Imagine you have done a great consultation with your client.
Now she’s just where you want her—right in the palms of your talented hands.
It’s a magical moment when both you and the client are in that state called “rapport.”
Everything seems to be flowing. You’re being your natural self. See http://www.naturaltraining.com.
You know your work is going to be great; she’s excited and can’t wait to love what you’ve done.
Yet at that very moment when your client is saying to herself “I finally found someone who understands me,” you’re thinking, “Do I or don’t I?” “Do I or don’t I what?”
Come on now, you know what I’m talking about.
It’s ”Do I or don’t I do that retail thing?”
You see, at that very moment when everything seems to be good, when you’re so much “in the flow” you hear that little voice in your head. You know the one. The one whispering in your ear, “I know this is
the time to introduce retail products to her BUT…”
And bang just like that, in a flash, the magic moment is gone. You are out of the flow and what could have been a great service turns out to be only a good one. And good today is simply not good enough.
Why have you turned great to good? It is because you’ve come up against your retail resistance.
What is retail resistance? It is how you think about selling or taking it to another level, it is how you feel about selling when you think those thoughts about it.
As a human being your natural tendency is to rationalize or justify your behavior. That happens when your little voice takes over. Just like a skilled martial artist uses her opponent’s strength to her advantage; your little voice uses your natural tendency to defeat you.
So let’s be clear about one thing. Poor retail sales are not about the client’s resistance to buying. Oh no, they are about the professional’s resistance to selling.
Look at this list about professional salon retailing and see what comes up for you. Do any of them sound familiar to you? Do you operate from any of these as if they were the gospel truth?
- Presenting retail products leads to rejection.
- It probably won’t work anyway, so why bother.
- If I ask for the sale, it will sound like I’m begging.
- People won’t be interested in the products that I offer.
- Retail selling doesn’t work for this kind of service.
- Retailing just puts people off.
- I don’t have the time to retail and my business retailing is a complete waste of time and resources.
- Retailing is hard and expensive.
- Only salons and day spas with sub-standard services need to retail.
- People who retail are just charlatans or snake oil salesmen.
- People who retail are just the manufacturers’ drones.
- I cannot start retailing until I know exactly what to do.
- I’m not qualified (educated or experienced) enough yet.
- Retailing is a bother and an interruption to people.
- I can’t sell—it’s too embarrassing.
- I’m not good at talking and my clients won’t believe me.
The next time you hear that little voice whispering those “sweet nothings” in your ear, remember that it is a rapport breaker.
Just ignore it and do your own voodoo. That voodoo that you know how to do so well.
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After spending 2 hours in a chair, and nearly $300 on services, I want to protect my investment. That’s why I buy the products my stylist recommends. I’ve seen with my own eyes how much longer my color lasts when I use products I buy from her. If using her products extends the life of my color by only a week, the products have already paid for themselves.
I personally am an amazing retail stylist, I carry a product line that can only be purchased at finer salons, and I couldn’t be prouder to be a part of an amazing company, I think the answer is for the stylist to believe 100% in the quality of there recommendation, if it’s not there they are destined to fail… I know that my clients hair will look and feel great as long as they go home with what I recommend…my average per client retail is generally over $50, it is sad to see what the national average is…not good…
Thank you for your comments.
You know the “secret” to retail success “I think the answer is for the stylist to believe 100% in the quality of their recommendation…”
Jay Abraham – author and marketer wrote “Your clients want to feel like you worry about them and you care about them in a dimension far more meaningful than just catering to their treasury, or their pocketbook, or their bank card. And you should, because it makes doing business and transacting you life about ten times more fulfilling and effective.”