If you’re a salon business owner looking for ways to generate more revenue, you need to learn how to upsell. Upselling is an amazing tactic to sell additional services to clients. And luckily for us, it’s easy to do. Here are the best ways to upsell services in your salon.
What Is Upselling?
You’ve probably heard the term “upselling” before, especially if you’re in the salon, restaurant, or other service-based industry. However, you may be unfamiliar with the term’s meaning. But don’t worry, we’ll get you up to speed. Essentially, upselling is a sales tactic that businesses use to entice customers or clients to purchase more products or services to generate more revenue. But, of course, you never want to come across as too pushy or “salesy.” Continue reading to learn more about how you can use this tactic in your salon creatively and effectively.
How You Can Do It
Now that you understand what upselling is, we can introduce you to some effective ways to use this technique in your business. You want to use as many opportunities as possible to upsell your products and services to your clients. You never want to miss out on a perfect chance to make more money, but you also want to handle upselling delicately so you don’t annoy your clients or come across as pushy. Therefore, it’s best to work upselling into your interactions with clients naturally.
Offer Add-On Services
One of the best ways to work upselling into your client interactions naturally is by offering add-on services. A great example of an add-on service would be hairstyling after a haircut. Maybe your client just got a fresh cut, and you want to offer them a blowout to complete their look. This approach effectively makes your client feel like you are going above and beyond to take care of them and give them additional services.
Run Promotions
Running promotions can also help you to upsell your salon services. Some popular promotion ideas include BOGO deals or limited-time discounts for purchasing multiple products or services. If you plan to run a promotion to upsell your services, you want to advertise and market these opportunities appropriately. If people don’t know you are offering something, they won’t know to book an appointment. So be sure to utilize social media, flyers, email campaigns, and other forms of marketing to get the word out to your clients.
Sell Package Deals
Selling package deals is one of the most common ways salons upsell their services because it is effective. Clients love to feel like they’re getting the full treatment with all the bells and whistles. So come up with some package deal ideas that make sense for your salon. You can package popular services together, like a wash and shampoo with a haircut and blowout. Or you can package services with products you sell, like hair masks, styling sprays, and other relevant items. Be sure to price your packages appropriately, so your client gets a great deal while you make a profit in the process.
Keep Relevance in Mind
As you come up with unique ways to upsell your services, be sure to keep relevance in mind. You don’t want to upsell a product or service that doesn’t make sense or benefit your clients somehow. For example, it doesn’t necessarily make sense to package a hair treatment with a massage. You want whatever you’re upselling to be relevant to the product or service your client is already receiving.
Know When To Upsell
Now that you know a few upselling techniques, it’s important to know when to use them. As we mentioned, you want to take every opportunity to upsell. But, again, you don’t want to be pushy. Find the most natural and practical moments between client interactions to upsell your services. Read on to see examples of the best times for upselling.
During Booking
Your first opportunity to upsell products or services is during a client booking. The moment a client is scheduling an appointment is an ideal time because they are already thinking about what services they want to purchase. If they book the appointment in person, you can casually work upselling into the conversation. But if you have an online booking system, it’s beneficial to create buttons and links that allow you to upsell on your website and give clients the option to select add-on services.
During Check-In
Client check-ins are another prime opportunity for upselling because they haven’t paid yet. You always want to catch them before making a payment. The last thing you want to do is ask them to make multiple transactions, so always upsell before a client pays for their original service. When a client checks in at the reception desk, you can ask if they’d like to add additional services, try a new package deal, or try out any current promotions. Now is your chance to entice them and give them the option to try something new or add to their experience.
During Appointment
And, of course, you always want to try to upsell during an appointment. Again, always keep relevance in mind when using this tactic. Consider the service your client is currently receiving, and then offer additional services that complement that. Before you begin a haircut, ask if they’d like a wash and shampoo. Then after the haircut, ask if they’d like their hair styled. Appointments are also a prime time to upsell products. Upsell products you use on your client’s hair during the appointment, like a shampoo, detangler, styling spray, or heat protectant. Tell them all the benefits of the product as you’re applying it, and share additional information with them naturally within the conversation.
Train Your Team To Upsell
The most important step is to train your whole team how to upsell. If your employees and hairstylists have no idea how to upsell your products and services, you’re fighting a losing battle. Therefore, it’s essential to teach these tactics to your employees so they can execute them effectively. Train your team to be personable, friendly, and relatable when dealing with clients, and show them how to work upselling into client interactions naturally. Then encourage them to use these techniques at any opportunity they get.
Be sure to use these effective techniques for upselling salon services in your business. And if you’re looking to upgrade your salon in other ways, check out Salon Equipment Center’s selection of salon shampoo stations that will bring your business to the next level. We are a family-owned and operated business, and we offer Click Lease financing options with easy approvals and 0% interest for the first five months to help you achieve and afford your salon dreams.
