The 3 Questions to Ask Yourself for 2013 (and beyond)

Another year is quickly passing us by and the Mayans were definitely wrong (as predicted). So, I guess as a salon owner you should take the next few days to reflect on what you did right in 2012 and what you did wrong. Not so you can dwell on the failures…but rather so you can learn from them.

If you’re reading this on the day it was posted…you’re in the middle of the Holidays and you’re already probably hearing the reports of sub-par holiday spending. Just proving my point that listening to the news every day is just toxic to having a positive attitude. Do yourself a favor and listen to LESS of it in 2013…you will be much better off.

To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe.  Anatole France, French Novelist and Poet

Anyway, take a hard unbiased look at what you did in 2012 and laser-focus on areas to improve going forward. Burying your head in the sand is not a sound strategy in any year. And with that, let me give you a head start on what type of questions you should ask yourself – whether you’re using HairMax salon software or not.

At the end of the day, all software for salons contain the necessary components for a great year end review. I will be using HairMax as my template for this post but you can find similar information in others too. Ok, on with the questions…

The best report to use in HairMax is a Year at a Glance report for all of these questions. It’s under “Sales” reports. It’s a 2-page report and the totals are on the second page.

Question One: Did my service sales increase in 2012 over 2011? How about retail sales? Gift Card sales?

Answer: Now, what’s a good number? Anything above 10% is a good number and anything above 20% is a great number.

Question Two: Am I getting more new clients every month (on average) than last year? This will tell you if your marketing efforts in 2012 actually worked out or not. A salon cannot grow consistently without a steady stream of new clients every month.

Answer: If your salon is getting 80 new clients a month this year and you were getting 60 last year (on average) that would be great. Basically, you want to get 20 more new clients per month than the previous year. (Note: you will want to run the 2011 Year at a Glance report to compare these numbers)

Question Three: Is my average sales ticket up from year to year? In other words, are you making more per client visit than you did last year.

Answer: Now, what’s a good number here? Anything above a 7% improvement is a good number and anything above 10% is a great number. Look, you’re trying to maximize the amount of dollars generated by your client base. Any improvements here go right to the bottom line.

Other Important Questions:

1. Did I do a price increase in 2012? If you didn’t…make sure you do one in 2013.
2. Are my retail product lines still relevant? Do I need to eliminate some or add some new ones?
3. Did my number of staff members grow or shrink in 2012?
4. Did I create any great new habits in 2012? If you didn’t…why not?
5. Am I a better or worse communicator to my staff?
6. Did I start building a “relationship” (thru email blasts like this) with my salon clients in 2012 or did I just send promo after promo to them?
7. Did I revamp my website in 2012?
8. Did I introduce any new technology to my salon clients or staff in 2012 (i.e. online booking)
9. Did I look at my profit every month or did I bury my head in the sand and hope that it gets better in the days ahead?
10. Did I invest in my business or did I squeeze out every expense including marketing.

Those are some good reflective starting points for you to ponder. Be honest with yourself. Because at the end of the day…it’s your business…nobody else’s.

As always, aim high…and dream even higher…

Steve Sampson