8 minute read
Are You Laser Sharp on your Product Offering By Gry Tomte
ARE YOU LASER SHARP ON YOUR PRODUCT OFFERING?
B y G r y T ø m t e
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I have to admit, every time I open an industry magazine (hello Beauty Biz!) I feel a bit like I do when I walk through Mecca - like I NEED to have everything on display!
The allure of every new machine, every new ingredient on the market…is… well… STRONG!
Over the years I have definitely fallen for the marketing, and the occasional impulse buy of $250k machines (oops!).
I mean, I HAD to have it. It was going to be the big thing that set us apart (spoiler alert - it wasn’t…).
The same goes for skincare ranges. When I opened HÜD I had three ranges - and I’d already had one before then. The pull of new and exciting ingredients and delivery systems really got me. And of course, staff are asking for the latest toys to play with so they can have their fun too. There’s always a new shiny ball out there and if we don’t jump on it we’ll miss out.
Right? Ummm. Post COVID I don’t think I’ve ever seen the race to have the latest, brightest and quickest quite so fierce. And all the while I’m hearing from clinic owners not able to keep up with demand, not being able to find people to operate the new machines - and most of all - who struggle to even get a pay check for themselves every week.
So I’d like for you to ask yourself: at what point does investing in 3 new lasers bring enough value for it to be worth it? Do you have a TRUE gap in your treatment offering? Or is it simply a way to have the latest and greatest?
I can tell you, from my own experience I’ve found the grass isn’t greener on the other side. That one machine isn’t going to be what sets you up as the expert in your field. You are. Your team. Your business. Your purpose.
But let’s leave machines for another time. Today I want to chat about skincare.
The most common feedback I hear from therapists is that their work place has so many skincare ranges that its confusing what to recommend. And imagine this scenario: a client has a great treatment and is ready to invest in that amazing vitamin C serum their therapist recommended. They arrive at the front desk only to discover that the serum is out of stock. The therapist say “oh that one’s out of stock but we have another on that’s amazing too”.
Don’t you think that client is wondering why the heck she wasn’t recommend that one in the first place if it’s that bloody amazing?? I guarantee it doesn’t build much client trust. At HÜD we tried this. And failed. It was one of the great learnings in my business that helped shape a 7 figure, steady, fully booked business.
When we took on our current skincare range DMK, I’d barely heard of it. Of course, it had been in existence for decades already - I just never really heard of it.
I had a treatment - the signature Enzyme with a cassia peel that felt like my face was on fire! And thought “no one will EVER want to have this treatment. It’s so uncomfortable!”.
My mind instantly went to a place of “ok, I’ve got this range which has a signature treatment that doesn’t feel very nice (although now of course I absolutely LOVE my enzymes…) and none of our clients have heard of. How on earth will we market this?”
I did a lot of research and I found out it was exactly what I’d been looking for. It fit my philosophy of not just exfoliating away the (not so) dead keratinocytes but rather focus-ing on restoring optimal levels of water in the skin to be able to take care of most of the desqua-mation process itself. Of course this isn’t the only way - it was just what I personally believe. And belief is the strongest sales tool.
So I decided that we would make our clients fit in with our skincare and treatment philosophy - rather than the other way around. I strongly believed that if my team and I were really passionate about something our clients would feel it from a mile away. And they’d trust us to invest. And we would attract the kind of clients who are passionate about the things we’re passionate about.
In the transition we waited till we were low in stock in our other ranges but ended up giving away a fair bit of products to other clinics. I couldn’t in good faith have my team raving about another range whilst selling off our phased out skincare to our clients. So we actually didn’t mention our new range until we one day switched.
At the time I remember being very nervous that our clients would go elsewhere because they were loving their current skincare. But I trusted that my team and I were SO excited about the new range that we could educate our clients with honesty and transparency why our new offering would be a benefit to them.
I was right.
We probably lost a handful of clients - and in my mind we set them free to go and find what they believed in. After all, they’re not our clients. If they don’t believe in what you believe in, they’re better off somewhere else.
6 years later there are MANY new, hot skincare ranges on the market. Some are marketed very well - with celebrity endorsements, making IT and YOU an “it place”.
But looking at my own business, what has been a key to our consistently full books, long wait lists and 100% organic (unpaid, unsolicited) influencer engagement is that my team REALLY be-lieve in what they’re prescribing. And clients are more attracted to that then the latest celebrity endorsement. Guaranteed.
Celebrity endorsement is great for the short term, don’t get me wrong. But unless you and your team are fully invested and believing 100% in what you’re “selling”, it will be a short lived one. Because there’s always another new exciting brand with endorsements just around the corner. And often marketed using the same celebrities and influencers. And I truly believe clients are getting a whole lot more savvy, and understanding influencer marketing more and more.
Instead, teach your real clients why they should love your brand and trust your judgment.
Thats the purpose part. And in my opinion, the most important part (as I’m sure you know if you’ve read anything I’ve previously shared).
Now, let’s talk profit.
From a stock perspective, imagine having just ONE range of products to hold on the shelf! One range of backbar products. The cost of holding excess stock is probably one of the biggest profit suckers that goes largely unnoticed by a lot of business owners (if you have this under tight control whilst having multiple ranges, well done!).
Having 3, 4 or even up to 7 ranges (!!) often means a whole lot of lost revenue in excess stock and even more wages spent on the time taken to count, rotate, track and place multiple orders.
What about raining? One range to train in vs 7. That one is fairly self explanatory - we all know the cost associated with training staff.
I’d also ask “who am I competing with in the online market?” Often I see the distributor actually competing with their own clinics who they’re meant to be supporting.
I know post covid it feels like a must to have a brand with a model which allows for online sales. Trust me - I can sympathise! But here’s the real kicker - you’d be competing against every other business who offers the same product as you. Without the benefit of being able to differentiate your business from the next. Why would they buy from you? Why not the place down the road that sells the exact same product? And often cheaper?
When covid hit our skincare partner allowed all of us to be able to look after our own clients - and meanwhile staying strong in their non internet sales policy. Our clients all had to have a consultation with our team beforehand. And we sent dozens and dozens of clients who contacted us from other areas, to other clinics closer to them. So we managed to stay afloat, support our clients and also support other businesses by doing the right thing.
What emerged was a way for us to be able to create a community of clients with the same goal - better skin when people needed it the most. And did we lose any clients to internet giants? Nope. All in all it was a positive for us because we were clear on our purpose and messaging to our clients. We were selling the “why”, not the product.
Now, from a sales perspective, well let’s just say that being clear in your offering will attract YOUR tribe of clients. And they will keep coming back because they love you for you - and the results you give them or how you make them feel when they’re with you. Not for your skincare brand or your machines.
So when you take a look at your offering, both product and equipment wise, if you haven’t al-ready done so I challenge you to look into whether you make your product fit with your business or the other way around.
