Getting your spa staff to sell retail has been in the Top 3 spa business challenges category for decades! But somehow we think our low involvement still warrants high expectations.......what??With your dedication, these 5 systems to Robust Retail will provide you with a measurable, impressive payoff.
1. Discover: Use your good sense(s) to identify influencing factors
- Who:Staff - who's (not) selling? Clients - who's (not) buying? Rank both
- What:Your top tier retail items are: Most # of units sold + highest unit price + highest unit $ & % gross margin
- When:Know your peak retail sales times: Daily, weekly, monthly and annual seasonality
- Where:Identify where your current retail initiatives are working/not working
- Why:Why are they working/not working? (Mature offering? Price? Under exposure? Training?)
2. Analyze Staff statistics and client tiers
- Staff Stats- Begin to study and capture weekly/monthly staff retail KPIs from your spa software program. For example, each staff members retail sales per hour; retail to service ratio; retail success on booked appointments; average retail ticket price; # of retail units per client transaction, etc.
- Client Analysis- Investigate who's buying. a) Lock in top tier "active/life-long" clients, with retention programs; b) Bump up mid tier "occasional" clients to top tier, with incentives; c) Build interest with bottom tier "non-committal" clients to mid tier, with education (and freebies!).
3. Design Training & support reward systems for this new retail initiative
- Make available 3 levels of staff training programs: mandatory; optional; and authorized extras;
- Insert product and service allotments into your staff compensation plan as a quarterly bonus incentive, based on staff tiers. This better encourages staff to experience a wider range of products than discounting does, and you'll know exactly what your in-house annual retail and service training costs will be
- Develop Staff Tally Sheets to be used daily by staff for minute by minute self goal setting and monitoring
- Be "success sensitive" and plan to continually monitor and minimize potential staff animosity/competition by choosing sliding scale commission; discretionary disclosure of staff stats; conducting mostly one-on-one staff recognition with well placed public staff recognition; resolve to staying flexible when you see upward or downward swings with your staff stats.
4. Launch your "At a Glance" reporting system program
- Turn your staff stat findings into a customized spreadsheet report with columns for each KPI you wish to monitor; and rows for each staff member in each department
- Share the influencing factors mentioned above with your staff so they understand the need for more robust retail
- Introduce each staff member to the new personal reporting system program:
- Reveal each employee's current results; set new goals for each (Independents N/A)
- Introduce the new Staff Tally Sheet and Retail training and support reward systems
- Did you achieve staff buy-in?
5. Monitor Your management style
- Robust retail requires that staff understand the importance of their efforts in growing this vital second revenue stream; and the relationship between their results and rewards. You must make staff feel clarity and confidence; proud and professional; recognized and appreciated! How are YOU doing?
Today's takeaway: Do more of what's working, and less of what isn't.