The COVID-19 pandemic has upended everyone, although small businesses

seem to be bearing the brunt of the repercussions. Being forced to close for
weeks, then months and then again wasn’t in anyone’s 2020 plan. From
keeping employees on the payroll, to just keeping the lights on, this
pandemic has posed unprecedented challenges. We hope this resource
guide helps salon owners navigate these changes, and continue to run
their business.

How to Prepare for Reopening Traffic

How to Respond to the Pandemic Today

How to Control Costs During COVID-19

How to Prepare Your Business for the Future

Any “new normal” necessitates a “new mindset.” It also means addressing

new expectations from customers. What tried and true methods still work?
What needs to be totally reimagined? We hope this game plan to survive and
thrive helps to start a conversation. Find us on social media and let’s talk.

COVID-19 has been the biggest business disruptor in modern history. It

has forced everyone to re-examine operations and processes, looking for
inefficiencies. It could be a time of opportunity for those that use it to
modernize their service delivery. The hardships are here, but savvy salon
owners who build a go-forward strategy will best weather this storm
and position them for the longer-term.
Chapter 1: How to Prepare for Reopening Traffic (Even
if You Already Reopened)

Depending on where you live and work, stay-at-home advisories have

started to ease over the past couple weeks. Whether your salon has just
reopened, or is thinking about it, you must be prepared to service the influx
of customers headed your way. Once stay-at-home advisories ease, people
will be racing to touch-up and trim their ‘dos, and you want to ensure your
salon is where they go to do it. Even if you’ve been open for a month, it’s
still important to ensure that each of these steps have been taken (better
late than never!).

1. Market Ahead of (Re)opening Day

You need to let your customers know when your salon’s doors will be back
open for business. If your business is already open, but you didn’t reach out
to your customers, how do they know? Send informative email marketing
communications and text alerts to your customer base that share
1) reopening hours and 2) which services will be available at that time.
According to Daysmart’s recent Customer Loyalty Report—which surveyed
2,000 U.S. consumers—consumers prioritize quality of service above cost
when determining which businesses to frequent, so reopening with a
specialized menu—as opposed to offering all your services—may work in
your favor.
Continue this communication even after reopening—letting customers
know about new procedures, cleaning protocols, touchless payments,
curbside pickups or mail order products. Using a service-oriented software
makes it easy to assure you’re maximizing your outreach and attracting
return business. With Salon Iris you can schedule those messages to be
deployed automatically, which means one less thing to worry about as you
get your business back in order.

2. Organize Booking to Optimize Resources

To accommodate a surge of appointment requests, you need to have an

efficient, organized booking system in place. A digital platform is a strong

option here, as it will enable customers to book appointments in the weeks

prior to reopening while providing staff with an up-to-date record of their

schedules. If your business has been open, it’s still helpful to have a full view

of appointments and staff availability, especially as business hours and

customer needs continue to evolve.

Knowing what to expect in terms of customer demand will help you

maximize your resources, staff and initial business hours. If you’re still

working off pen-and-paper methods, you may risk overbooking or

miscalculating needed resources.

3. Focus on Customer Relationships
As a small business owner, you know the importance of customer loyalty.

To attract customers back to your business—and win their loyalty in the

long run—focus on building up your relationships with them and encourage

your employees to do the same. DaySmart’s recent Customer Loyalty

Report revealed that more than three-quarters of consumers are more loyal

to their hairdresser, barber or nail technician than to the business itself,

underscoring how critical it is for customers to feel connected with your

staff. Check in with members of your existing customer base to affirm how

much you value their business and hope to see them again soon. As an

added touch to your outreach, nod to their regular treatment, mention their

pet by name, make a recommendation for a product that you think fits their

unique style, as our survey also found that 72% of consumers say they

enjoy getting personalized messages from the businesses they visit.

4. Check in with Your Partners

As business ramps up, you’re going

to need to restock supplies, but after

months without revenue, these initial

costs may be difficult to cover. Ask if

vendors can work out flexible payment

terms until you get a few weeks of

business and the capital needed under

your belt. Be sure to reiterate your

appreciation for their accommodation

during this time to maintain

positive relationships.
5. Sanitize Your Salon
While your business has always abided by cleanliness regulations, they are

especially critical for both business success and staff and client safety. On

the heels of COVID-19, many individuals are still extremely concerned with

sanitation, and as a business based on in-person interactions, you need to

do everything in your power to dissuade those fears. Establish a sanitation

protocol and articulate it to customers, either as part of your marketing

outreach or by making it available on your website. For instance,

customers may need to wait in the car for their appointment rather than

in a waiting area.

Maintaining trust and reputation are critical to the health of a business;

in fact, 31% of consumers say trust is the most important trait when

visiting a business, and 31% say the same about reputation, according

to DaySmart’s report.

6. Promote Gift Cards

A smart way to pull in revenue during business closures is to promote e-gift

cards. Even once your doors are open, gift cards are a great way to secure

the business of consumers who are still hesitant to return to public spaces

so soon after stay-at-home advisories lift.

Chapter 2: Immediate Responses to COVID-19

Even the most seasoned small business owners are being tested by
post-pandemic challenges. Reliable business practices are no longer
fool-proof, and even the most mundane tasks require extra thought. While
not every aspect of your business needs to change, they may need to be
altered to help you thrive in the new normal.

Since nothing is “business as usual,” what can salon owners do to respond

and move forward today? Here are a few pandemic-specific best practices
to get you started.

Add a “COVID-19 Fee”

If a business has been closed for weeks or months, it likely hasn’t been

seeing its usual revenue, which means budgets are off kilter (to say the

least). Businesses must plan for the additional costs that come with

reopening and making a safe space for customers—from needing to

provide masks and disposable aprons, to taking an extra 15 minutes to wipe

down seats between appointments. By adding a COVID-19 surcharge as a

line item, small businesses can pass the cost to the consumer with full

transparency. This is better than simply marking up the cost of a haircut,

because the fee will be removed once it’s no longer necessary, and pricing

remains the same.

Craft Special Customer Programs
Small businesses need their loyal customers and recurring business more

than ever. Make sure to separate your best customers and let them know

they are appreciated. Special perks could range from giving them priority

when rebooking appointments to providing early access. Going the extra

mile to reward customers for loyalty will help retain those individuals and

build in more reliability and predictability for your business as it emerges

out of uncertain times. In fact, it may be valuable for small businesses to

filter the types of customers trying to book appointments. Are they

recurring customers or one-time shoppers? With limited availability,

businesses will want to prioritize the former.

It’s also wise to create a referral program. As small businesses reopen,

people are likely to be discussing their service providers and how they

handled recent challenges. Salons could consider incentivizing their clients

to refer their friends and receive a discount if the friend becomes a new

customer. This type of program not only rewards current customers but

also helps earn new ones.

The Do’s and Don’ts of Discounts

After having lost revenue for so long, many small

businesses want to draw in as many customers as

possible, especially with the enticement of a discount.

However, small business owners must remember that

demand is high right after re-opening. Consumers

have missed their go-to salons and will be coming in

anyway—there is no need to offer discounts. During this

time, businesses should focus on getting the most

revenue they can to cover additional costs and recoup

from weeks of lost income.

The one exception to this rule is recurring memberships or discounted

packages. Help ensure passive recurring income by offering value-add

memberships or packages to loyal customers. For instance, customers who

bought gift cards to support the business while doors were shut could be

invited to join a premier club in which they receive a discount for a card

kept on file. Small business owners can also offer discounted packages,

such as $100/month for unlimited XYZ service or offer a fixed rate for a

5-service offering.

Employee Empowerment
As many small businesses offer longer hours, require

new procedures and manage newly demanding

customers, employees will be working harder than

ever. Small business owners must identify the possibility

of employee burnout; working 10 hours/seven days a

week doesn’t just happen. Consider if members of

your staff deserve a bonus for any additional duties.

Another avenue is a form of “hazard pay” for staffers

who have had to step up to make the re-opening

possible. A small stipend could go a long way toward

keeping employees engaged.

It may even make sense to hire a new staffer, as new

cleaning requirements are likely to necessitate

additional support. By hiring someone whose sole

responsibility is to clean the shop, the rest of the

team can stay focused on their core tasks and on

delivering the client service that can make or break

customer loyalty.
Finally, employees’ physical health must also be considered. Small businesses

must take the time to screen staffers for illness before they return to work

and as they continue working. If employees have a temperature, they could

be exposing other members of the team or customers. Don’t let your

business become a hotspot for COVID-19 resurgence—it may be a setback

from which you can’t recover.

Try Video Chat Consultations

To save time—knowing that employees

will be spending more of it on longer

appointments and cleaning protocol—

consider conducting video chats with

clients before they come back in. This

proactive measure can reduce the time

required for each consultation and

maximize the revenue generation for

“chair time” by connecting with clients

about their needs before they walk in.

Chapter 3: How to Control Costs During COVID-19

After months of suspended operations, salons need to operate more

cost-effectively than ever. To do so, they need the right tools for strategic
money management. Amidst so much financial uncertainty, salon owners
can’t risk costly slip-ups that come with pen-and-paper bookkeeping—nor
can they afford to miss out on opportunities to pull in revenue at every
corner. Business management software, such as Salon Iris, can help
businesses be more economically efficient upon reopening. With software,
small businesses can:
Optimize Appointment Booking
With a digital booking platform, salons will be able to outline available

appointment windows and have a clear view of schedules as customers

fill them up. With all this information organized in one place, owners can

ensure they don’t miss out on revenue opportunities by over- or

under-booking, and that they aren’t paying overhead to have their space

open and staffed disproportionately to the number of scheduled

customers. This is especially important for the initial transition back to work

as owners navigate the appropriate hours of operation and how to allocate

their available resources. And to eliminate no-shows—which unfortunately

may still be a possibility as consumers get cold feet about returning to

public spaces—a digital booking platform can automatically deploy

appointment reminders via email or text in advance of appointments.

Automate Expense Processing

Credit card processing fees can quickly add up when completed by an

outside party, and business owners can’t afford any avoidable losses to

revenue. Owners should implement an integrated system that keeps rates

low by linking to their existing accounting software so that payments can

be processed in house. As a bonus, Salon Iris prompts customers to tip at

checkout, opening one more opportunity to increase revenue before

they’re out the door.

Having integrated payment processing also helps businesses ensure they

are appropriately compensated for their work. If there are no-shows, Salon

Iris can auto-charge customers for missing appointments, as well as for late

pickups. Having these fees in place is necessary for salons to build financial

security for their businesses, particularly after months of disrupted revenue.

And to ensure employees are taken care of

during this time, owners can also automate their

payroll with Salon Iris to avoid pen-and-paper

slip ups. Using the digital processing platform,

which incorporates sales and facilitates

commission distribution, owners can crunch

the numbers with increased accuracy as well as

ease—all they need to do is print the checks

when it’s payday.

Pay Attention to Reports

Salon owners will need data to rebuild their business. With a software

that monitors business performance by considering all aspects of their

company—from revenue to employees—owners can understand where their

efforts are underperforming, and where they are losing money as a result.

In addition to its core service offerings, retail may be a significant revenue

driver for salons—especially in times where they can’t be fully executing

some hands-on services. To profit from this avenue, owners should keep an

eye on their numbers, from sales to stock, to see what items and price

points are selling so that they can make strategic investments in inventory.

Likewise, with these stats, owners can identify areas in need of a boost,

and offer specialized promotions to drive customers to those practices

or products.
Save Employees Time to Spend with Customers
Digitizing operations expedites the back-office processes that are

otherwise a major time suck when executed by hand. This gives owners

and their employees more time to focus on fulfilling, value-adding

activities—like spending more time building customer relationships—that

encourage repeat business and make employees want to stick with

their companies.

Staff retention should always be a priority for salon owners; not only is it

costly to train new hires, but, as mentioned before, customers are more

loyal to employees than to the brand. This means if employees feel

frustrated by tedious operational tasks, they can walk out and take their

clientele with them. A salon’s talent is one of its strongest assets, so owners

need to strive to retain them by providing them with the tools needed to

most efficiently and effectively do their jobs, which will boost revenue while

safeguarding against pricy losses.

In the wake of COVID-19, salon owners

everywhere are reimagining their business

models on tighter budgets. But there’s

a solution: a dynamic software platform

with capabilities to cut costs while

simultaneously encouraging revenue

growth. If you’re still unsure about how

digitizing your operations can benefit

your salon, try Salon Iris’ ROI calculator

to get an estimate for just how much

implementing the platform can save

your business.
Chapter 4: How to Prepare Your Business for
the Future

One area where salons need to focus is populated common areas and
touching surfaces. The salon experience is tactile—from hands-on services
to crowded waiting areas to, yes, even the checkout experience. While
learning about the risks of COVID-19, people have become very aware of
how cash, credit cards and every high-traffic item in a business may not be
as sanitary as they once thought. Suddenly, the integral touchpoints of a
salon—from POS systems and processing terminals, to keyboards and
pens—are identified as risky.

To deliver consistent service, prepare operations and improve customer

engagements, salons must future-proof the core aspects of the shopping
experience, starting with checkout. Take these four steps to reduce the
number of touches needed to complete a transaction.

1. Implement Contactless Payments

Contactless payments are more possible than ever.

In fact, most credit and debit cards issued in the

last five years have NFC (near-field communication)

or RFID (radio-frequency identification) capabilities

embedded within the card. Similarly, most payment

terminals have NFC and RFID capabilities. These

“tap and go” cards work similarly to Apple Pay or

Google Wallet: 1) they don’t require a third-party

device (e.g., a cell phone) to store the credit card

information, and 2) can just use the card itself.

Not every consumer may know about the possibility of contactless payments.

Salons can support customers by providing guidelines, instructions or FAQs

and displaying them by the payment terminal, on their website, or via social

media pages. It is especially important that salons reassure customers that

tap-and-go payments are as secure as EMV chip payments. Similar to chip

transactions, the contactless payment is accompanied by a one-time use

code that secures the payment data.

Even after salons implement contactless payments, their payment processing

system can still integrate with their Salon Iris business management software.

Integrated payment processing simplifies and expedites checkout, so

customers don’t have to wait while employees switch between systems as

your client waits. For customers still feeling uneasy in public spaces, a quick

and seamless checkout will be especially appreciated.

2. Disable Signature Functions

Now that chip and tap-payment cards are equally

secure, most major card brands removed the

requirement for transaction signatures in 2018 in the

U.S. and Canada. This means there are no longer fees

related to processing a transaction without the

signature, making it more appealing to customers.

That said, many processing terminals and POS

systems still have the signature prompt as a default

setting. To fix this issues, salons can contact their

card processor, such as CardConnect, to adjust those

settings. Customers will appreciate saving a step,

as it reduces time, risk and stress.
How does this work for tipping? Some salons may prefer to continue

requesting signatures so patrons can discreetly add a post-transaction tip.

Otherwise, small businesses can set up integrations in Salon Iris that

“prompt for a tip” before the purchaser approves the amount. With this

system, the full transaction amount is charged at once (instead of a tip

adjustment after the fact).

3. Consider Recurring Billing

Using Salon Iris software, business owners can sell recurring client

memberships to their customers. First and foremost, these memberships

are a proven and effective way to recognize customer loyalty with a small

discount on recurring services. In fact, according to our survey, 44% of

respondents say their favorite benefit of being a regular is getting discounts

and/or promotions.

Not only can recurring billing help nurture customer relationships when it’s

most needed, but charging their card automatically every month—without

touching the card or terminal after the initial setup—makes payments

completely touchless. If salons don’t offer memberships, they can still

integrate their Salon Iris software with their payment processing systems

that allow shops to store card information for future visits. Being able

to securely store data allows salons to facilitate quicker, touch-free

transactions and provide more convenience to loyal customers.

Conclusion

Despite the widespread wish for life to return to what it once was, small
business owners, entrepreneurs, employees and consumers understand it is
not possible in the immediate future. As communities slowly continue to
reopen in the coming weeks, people will return to their favorite salons with
a new mindset. To ensure they receive the same-quality service and
experience, salon owners must anticipate new customer apprehensions
and expectations.

To learn how Salon Iris business management software makes this easier,
check out our website or contact us at support@daysmart.com For more
findings from the Customer Loyalty survey, which can help attract
customers in the post-pandemic world, visit this site.