Business Skills

the soft sell

Dale Hollinshead of successful salon, Hazel & Haydn in Birmingham offers his top tips on retailing homecare products without the hard sell. 1 2 3 Show the client the product. Place it in front of them so they can see what you are using. This way they will naturally touch and feel the product and read the information on the packaging. Educate the client. Explain to them how much of the product to use, show them how much you put on your hand before you apply. Normally, at this stage most clients will comment on how amazing it smells and that’s my moment to sell the product as a hair fragrance too. Explain the benefits. Tell your client why you are using specific products and why they are good for their hair. I use analogies that they will relate to. So, for example when I am explaining the shine element of a product I will say ‘it is like a lip gloss for hair’. A lot of clients don’t know why they should use a certain product. They often use the wrong product and don’t like the result so will stop using professional products all together. 4 Remind the client in a really nonTOP TIP confrontational way in your conversation that if you spend so much money on a colour and cut, using professional products is the best way to keep it looking as good as it can and also keeps the hair in the best condition it can be. We use Wella, so I like to explain that more than 140 years of specialised science and technology has gone into the products to make them so amazing.

TOP TIP TOP TIP TOP TIP

“Educate the client. Explain to them how much of the product to use”

TOP TIP 5

Finish the sale - don’t forget to ask them if they need to take any products with them when they are at reception. You will be surprised how many clients just forget and when they get home they just order online. You will be amazed how many people buy the products you used.

Content PRo

@babylissprouk

Hairdressing entrepreneur Ky Wilson shares his secrets on how to take at-home content creation to the next level in a new Instagram mini-series with BaByliss PRO.

In his BaByliss PRO-powered mini-series, ‘Content Creation with Ky Wilson’ Ky covers the basics from getting started and planning posts, to how to use lighting and other kit. Ky shows how to take the basic at-home production quality to the next level, and more importantly, how to apply this to the needs of a hairdresser.

“Be your true self and be as authentic as possible”

@kycutwilson

01

PICK UP YOUR PHONE AND START FILMING Confidence is everything, and you need to give it all you’ve got.

02

CHOOSE YOUR TOPIC, AND WRITE A SCRIPT Having a script is the power to know what you’re saying. Plus, it will stop you getting in front of the camera and freezing up, and then giving up. Use your script as a plan to figure out what footage you need, and don’t forget that all important B-roll.

03

OVERSHOOT AS MUCH AS YOU CAN Shoot multiple versions of your script and other footage you capture. That way, when it comes to editing you’ll have a choice of which to use.

04

GRAB YOUR VIEWERS’ ATTENTION Mobile social users spend on average just 1.7 seconds before they swipe onto something else, and that’s how long you have to capture their attention. Your opening shot is one of the most important things to focus on.

05

GET YOUR KIT TOGETHER Think about extras you could use to enhance your content and make your life much easier. Even something simple like a bluetooth clicker will be a game changer.

06

THINK ABOUT YOUR LIGHTING Natural daylight is without a doubt the best light to film in, but it’s constantly changing, so be careful when you plan to shoot and how long it will take. Artificial lighting will help you, but your setup is very important.

07

LET YOURSELF BE HEARD The mic on your phone is great, but headphones or even a clip on mic can make your voice so much clearer and level up the quality of your video.

08

FIND YOUR VIBE Make sure you feel comfortable with what you’re capturing, otherwise it won’t come off very well on camera. There are different ways of creating content for different comfort levels so find out what you’re happy with and go for it.

09

OVER-PERFORM The camera sucks so much life out of you, that you need to go over the top to compensate for it, even though you might feel a bit silly at first doing this.

10

BE YOURSELF Try and be your true self and be as authentic as possible - this will be so important when you look back at your content and know you’ve created something you’re proud of.