Build Your Salon With Phil Jackson

I do a LOT of non-fiction reading.  I love reading the biographies of entrepreneurs and leaders.  And naturally you start to see recurring themes in their message.  One very subtle theme that crops up again and again is how the super-successful feel fulfilled. It seems that at some stage in their career, it isn't enough to make more and more money or gain growing market share.  Almost without exception there comes a time when the most fulfilling thing an entrepreneur can do is to start giving back.  Buffett, Gates, Branson - they all plough millions or even billions back into good causes.  It brings a renewed sense of purpose.  It helps contribute to your "why".

You have invested everything in your business.  Time, energy, money.  What can possibly go wrong?

What I work on goal setting with my clients my aim is to improve their relationship with themselves. It's not about hitting the gym, meditation or yoga. I'm talking about scheduling some time to kick back and to do stuff that you actually like. Or how about scheduling some time with no agenda? What do you think it will look like having an hour or two in your calendar to waste? Contrary to what you think, it's not really a wasted time. It's your time to improve your relationship with yourself. And it's a beautiful investment! Believe me, this has transformed my business.

I can help you in overcoming procrastination and getting more things done. Are you: 1. An expert at putting off and delaying things? 2. Brilliant at doing the fun stuff first?  But leaving no motivation and energy for the things you're supposed to do? 3. Running your life in a panic mode for a lot of the time? A big part of the business is getting the right stuff done. You CAN get the right stuff done without working right up to a deadline in a very stressful way.  And you know that feels so much better! Thing is, a lot of us are our own enemies. We're procrastinators!! We put things off and then end up with a huge rush of tasks when it comes to the deadline. These tips that I have are based on my very own experiences as a big procrastinator. I have worked really hard to make sure that I'm performing at a level of high-productivity.  Basically I have had to deal with my procrastination in a very effective way! 1. Break things down - there may be times that you feel overwhelmed.  When you have so much to do in

I speak to a LOT of salon owners and manager in the course of my work, and time and again I hear how much EASIER salon life would be if only those pesky employees would do their jobs! The owner or manager thinks they are dealing with an attitude problem, but more often I think they are dealing with a motivation problem. Keep listening - maybe I can help a little with that.

Social Media Marketing is a good source of high-quality clients, especially in our industry. Yet, Social Media can be a little overwhelming. We bought into the belief that we had to do everything! Started with a website, then along came social media. First was Facebook, then Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Snapchat. We thought we needed to create bespoke content across platforms. Turns out that this is like a part-time job aside from running your Salon!

Don’t make any changes in your business just for the sake of it. I see this time and time again with the businesses that I’ve visited as a Salon Coach. By all means, look for ideas to improve your experience running your salon. Only make those changes that will make you further towards your medium to long-term goals.

Target setting is done infrequently, and certainly not well enough in most instances. When I start coaching a new salon, one of the first things that we go through is their performance management process. I believe that sitting down with Team Members at least every month (and ideally every week) to report back to them on their performance, to set them a meaningful target and coaching them to achieve that target is the only way to longer-term success. People get overwhelmed unnecessarily by the entire performance management process.

It's a sad reality that if you have a Salon Team, at some stage you'll probably need to dismiss somebody or terminate their employment. I would love to say that after over 17 or 18 years of Salon ownership, it gets easier and it doesn't hurt anymore. But it would be a lie because it does!! I make sure that I'm involved if I'm terminating someone's employment. We're talking about decisions that affect one's career and it's absolutely right to take those decisions seriously and to lose a little bit of sleep over it.

I'm a firm believer that in salon marketing - in fact in almost every aspect of your salon business - the answers are already in your business somewhere.   So why do we keep reinventing the wheel?  Look back on your past promotions.  Debrief properly and keep notes on what has worked.  There's no shame in filling your calendar with tried and tested salon marketing that delivers great results!

Today, I want to help you decide: When is the right time to grow your salon team? When is the right time to recruit? This all boils down to your goal-setting. If you don't have clear goals on what you want your salon to achieve this year or in the next 5 years, that is the first place to start. Your goals ultimately dictate the size of the team that you need. Maybe you have a certain level of turnover that you want to achieve. Or maybe you want to step back from the salon floor. This will tell you how many team members you're going to need this year or next. Start with the turnover target. Once you know the average bill and your frequency of visit you can start to break that turnover target down. It’ll show you the number of people you physically need on the premises earning money for you. That gives us the overall target of what we want your team to look like. Those goals are going be influenced by what it is you really want. Your bigger goals have to come first on this. Your 5 year plan and your life ambiti

Aside from being a Salon Mentor and Coach, I also own a hair salon in the South of England. And if I'm being honest, I have been neglectful on my Salon business. I moved away from the Salon business into the coaching space and I didn't replace myself as a Manager. I thought that being a magnificent coach and mentor meant I was some kind of superhero that I could run both businesses effectively. And I was wrong!

A Salon Training Agreement is a contract between you and a Team Member where they agree to pay back some or all the value of a training course should they leave in a period following the training.

Setting targets in your salon isn't easy - and there are a couple of pitfalls I see owners and managers fall into again and again. But for the long-term success of your business, they are vital. Taking the time to communicate to your team exactly what is expected of them is never time wasted.

Social Media has replaced a lot of things in our modern lives. The rules of English Grammar, warmth, and authenticity in our human relationships and the need to research something before we pass it on have all gone by the wayside. But one thing I've wrongly predicted would decline - BLOGGING. There are still millions of people around the world who share their thoughts by updating their blog. I see a lot of Salon owners trying to build that in their online marketing strategy. A few of them get some good traffic and a decent audience for their blogs. But some struggle to be consistent and create high-quality content. If the blog is not doing you any good, you need to step back and think if this needs to be a continuing part of your online marketing strategy.

As Entrepreneurs and Salontrepreneurs, our job is not always to use our platform to change the world. It is to turn the conditions that we're living into something that can grow, prosper and generate some profit. I don't tell you what cards to deal. Instead I help you with the cards that we've been dealt. Whatever your political belief is, we can all agree that we're in for a choppy time financially and economically. So how can we protect our businesses in difficult times?

Stocking a range of professional salon retail products is great - but what if you're team just won't sell?  How is your salon retail?  Is it a strong part of your salon strategy?  Or are sales poor?  Even ZERO?  Take a look - I might just be able to help!

OK. We don’t cope well with the snow here in my part of the UK, problem is, it happens so infrequently that it’s hard to justify investment in snow precautions. So this week hit hard. Lots of customers and staff struggling to make their way in. And lots of calls for me from managers and owners wondering if it’s wise to call a salon snow day.

Gat ALL of the BuildYourSalon podcasts at https://buildyoursalon.com/blog Why hold salon team meetings at all? In every salon, there is an agenda.  A set of goals and objectives that every salon team is striving for.  Problem is, if you're not communicating the agenda, not moving your team towards the salon goals, the team will set their own agenda. I'm lucky.  I get to see inside lots of salons.  To see how they tick.  What works, and what doesn't.  Right now I'm seeing a lot of salons who could be getting much better results from their teams, if only they would coach and direct them. Salons everywhere invest hundreds, if not thousands in the development of their teams every year.  And a lot of salons waste their money.  Follow the SIMPLEST way to be the salon manager your team deserves.  Improve your team's performance and be clear about what you want them to achieve.  Check out Team Performance Upgrade here: https://training.buildyoursalon.com/tpu

I've had a rough week.  My salon website was hacked.  So of course step 1 is to have a nose around - see what everyone else is doing.  I've been shocked! So many salon owners are neglecting their websites.  I know we're all getting so much from social media, but I think this is shortsighted. Take a look at your own website and bear in mind my 5 key points . . .