Working with VIP clients, or why the Titanic sank

Author: Inna Isakova, massage therapist of medical cosmetology “Anchor”, winner of the First Open Championship of the Western Region in classical and spa massage, winner of the V Open Championship of Ukraine in classical and spa massage (Ukraine)

Source: KOSMETIK international journal, No. 2/2013, pp. 74-79

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Managers of beauty industry enterprises (PIK) of various profiles strive with all their might to attract VIPs (show business stars, deputies, government officials, people close to them, etc.) to their establishment, sometimes without even thinking about what features and difficulties they will have to face in working with such people. Very often, the desired profit visible on the horizon is just the tip of the iceberg, and we are not always ready for what is hidden under the water (the specificity of the manner of communication; habits and requirements for service; work hours and free time routine). It is not easy to enter and gain a foothold in the segment of the beauty market we are considering: significant initial investments (from hundreds of thousands of dollars to several million), long payback periods (from two years) with low workload - not many organizers can accept and master all this. But if you decide to open a VIP-level salon or clinic, and no excuses will stop you, and no difficulties will frighten you, then try to take into account all possible pitfalls and prevent the collapse of your enterprise even at the planning stage.

VIPs can be divided into two main categories: those who, as a result of hard work, have achieved success, recognition and a certain status in society (representatives of senior management positions, top managers, famous politicians), and those who are accustomed to not rushing anywhere and have a good time using the funds of their eminent parents, spouses, friends (“star” housewives and their children). Representatives of each of these groups require a special approach to service, because each of them has their own motives and expectations from visiting the salon - quite a few publications are devoted to these features. In this article, we will pay more attention to the marketing policy of work in the luxury segment of the beauty industry, and will also try to identify the main reasons why many seemingly win-win initiatives fail.

Iceberg first

The main argument that guides enterprising specialists when opening a premium class PIK is the opportunity to quickly earn big money from elite clients. Let's just say that representatives of this category are indeed quite solvent, but, being very busy people, they are unlikely to be able to visit your salon as often as you would like. It is estimated that with competent management, a premium class salon at the peak of its popularity (starting from the second year of existence) has an average occupancy rate of up to 50%, a premium luxury salon - 35-40%, a super luxury - and even lower. This is why VIP-level services are incredibly expensive: two or three clients a day (and sometimes two or three days) must bring in enough profit for PIK to exist. If you and your staff are ready for this mode of operation, then the idea makes sense. What if not? You will have to find a way to fill the working hours of the enterprise: you can offer your “dear” clients express services from the “every day” category in the appropriate price segment, you can also develop programs to attract their relatives, friends and relatives to the salon, among whom there will certainly be lovers of all kinds of salon procedures with enough free time.

Time is a resource that is always in short supply and is highly valued among successful and wealthy people. Working until night, late meetings, and lengthy negotiations became commonplace for them. Eternal busyness, on the one hand, and the need to look well-groomed and in shape, on the other, lead to an ever-increasing demand for the provision of salon services at quite late times of the day. At the moment, this new and actively developing niche remains the exclusive prerogative of craftsmen working at home or outside of working hours, since clients who work late often do not have time to come to the salons. Based on the above, in order not to miss the opportunity for additional profit, you can introduce a flexible work schedule in the salon, providing for a second shift: with the main operating hours from 9:00 to 21:00, several specialists of your establishment could be on site from 12:00 until 24:00 - naturally, the master’s salary should include the cost of a taxi home at a later time of the day.

Iceberg second

Every specialist who has ever worked with VIP-level clients has encountered a situation where he was persistently asked to provide services at home or on the customer’s premises. Therefore, the owner of the establishment must clearly understand and accept the fact that for people of the level we are interested in, the rules are not written and an argument like “our specialists work only in the salon” is not relevant for them: a VIP client is accustomed to exclusivity in service, he can afford it , but adapting to someone’s rules is not his style. The situation is very delicate and difficult. In many salons, home service is not even considered as having the right to exist, and the reasons for this are really compelling - from concealing the income received by employees when servicing clients remotely, to the likelihood of inappropriate behavior by the latter. If you follow the path of least resistance (as many do), then, appealing to internal regulations, it is better to politely but clearly refuse service at home: it is easier to lose a client even of this level than to have a headache with field service.

Now let’s try to figure out how justified and constructive this decision is when working with VIPs. Refusal of service on the client's premises will lead to the fact that he will not visit the salon as often as both he and you would like. And it doesn’t matter whether he has no desire to come to you, or his work schedule doesn’t allow it. The result is the same: both lost! We must also recognize the fact that, despite the ban on activities outside the salon, some enterprising employees are not able to refuse additional income and can afford to ignore general corporate rules. The result will be the same: we are a loser. What can you come up with? If we turn to the experience of foreign colleagues and some of our compatriots, we will see that field service services are clearly stated in the price lists of their establishments. This allows clients to become accustomed to openly ordering a specialist to their home through administrators, and if there is no prohibition, there are no violations (at least obvious ones). To be on the safe side and prevent negative situations related to payment, send one of the administrators with an employee, and let him personally handle the settlement with the customer. An employee with an administrator behind him is always more efficient, and his client is obedient. With this approach, both parties win: the VIP client is satisfied with the level of service, and the salon made a profit, and a considerable one, because the on-site work of a master is valued at least 20% more expensive than the same service provided in the salon (moving costs and time spent are taken into account on the road).

The situation with remote maintenance is not easy, but quite interesting. From a marketing point of view, this is a very profitable move: we are significantly increasing the number of our VIP clients - from civil servants and businessmen working late into the night to housewives who simply do not want to leave their apartments. Also, your specialists can provide salon services to foreign citizens and guests of your city living in nearby hotels, who, as a rule, prefer service without having to leave the hotel. On the other hand, for the effective functioning of field service services, you will have to establish trusting relationships with employees or find new ways to control their work on the client’s premises, and this is quite painstaking work with personnel - the sphere of the HR manager.

If you, as a manager, do not support the idea of remote service, then learn the rules and tricks of attracting VIP clients to the salon. To do this, try to develop and offer procedures using various devices (for example, Starvac, Velasmooth, LPG - in figure correction; ELOS, fractional and other lasers, Biogenie, Jetpeel, etc. - in hardware cosmetology; spa capsules - in the body aesthetics area ). Your employee is unlikely to purchase an expensive and bulky device on his own and will be able to transport it if necessary, but a VIP-level salon can do this. Complex programs that involve sequential service from several specialists can also be a good way to tie a client to a salon. In this regard, it will be interesting to create and operate a VIP office, which is a separate zone of increased comfort, designed for individual comprehensive service. This idea is that the client, having paid for the service in the VIP room, gets the opportunity to privacy, maximum attention from the salon specialists, without the need to move from office to office - all the required procedures will be carried out here. Increased comfort and additional service will certainly make a favorable impression on the VIP guest, strengthening his idea of his own exclusivity and importance for you and your employees, and among people of the level we are considering this is highly valued.

There is one more little trick: unobtrusively lead your VIP clients to purchase and store special professional tools for individual service on the territory of your salon, such as manicure and pedicure sets, bathrobes, towels, injection drugs, the dosage of a bottle is designed for several procedures - a person will always return to where he left something.

Iceberg third

Many representatives of the category of clients we are considering are public people. Appearance for them is a calling card, an indicator of their status and success. Understanding this, they willingly resort to the services of aesthetic cosmetology specialists. But the need to be constantly visible somewhat limits the list of possible procedures, so the main thing is that they are low-traumatic. For example: when correcting the oval of the face using fillers, it is necessary to give preference to working with cannulas; it is better not to use needles; All manipulations should be carried out with the utmost care, without leaving traces, which, naturally, requires high qualifications and professionalism from the master.

Regarding the procedures, I would like to once again emphasize that the specialist must clearly understand with whom he has to work, and to which category of VIPs, described by us at the beginning of the article, the client can be classified. So, if you expect to work with TV presenters, businesswomen, top managers or politicians, then, taking into account their busy schedule, offer short but quite effective procedures, four-handed services. But you will have to give maximum of your time, attention and care to the housewife who has arrived to have a pleasant and useful time. Unhurried complex procedures and pleasant communication over a cup of coffee or tea in the bar area would be appropriate here. An individual approach to each client is a necessary attribute of VIP-level service!

Iceberg fourth

What will be discussed below relates more to the internal policy of premium establishments than to direct work with clients, but, due to the significant relevance of the moment, we will pay attention to it. In the salons of the level we are interested in, mostly highly qualified specialists work, who may have already formed an individual style in their work, a non-standard approach to performing seemingly mundane procedures, and a wide range of regular clients. And everything would be fine if at a certain stage the specialists did not begin to develop star fever, which leads to significant negative consequences in the work of the master himself and the salon as a whole. In this case, HR managers developed two tactics for managers’ behavior with “star-studded” employees. Firstly, you can hire another specialist of the same level - lively competition quickly sobers up a foggy head. If this method does not work, then even dismissal may be advisable: the behavior of a specialist who is unable to control his emotions, does not accept corporate rules, can significantly damage the authority of the establishment and deprive it of the loyalty of many eminent visitors.

Important “little things”

The features of working with VIP clients listed above are just a drop in the ocean of those nuances and non-standard situations that you, as managers of a premium class PIK, will have to face. At the planning stage of your salon, try to think through everything, provide for it, and take it into account as much as possible. Work for a VIP client begins long before he crosses the threshold of your salon, and there are no trifles in it: everything must be at the highest level, everything must match. In particular, pay attention to the following points:

• place advertisements for your establishment only in elite publications and mass media;
• The VIP salon cannot be located in basement-level premises (which were originally basements), in areas of dormitories, spontaneous markets, or ring roads. City center, expensive residential areas or luxury country estates, five-star hotels - these are the main directions when choosing the location of your establishment;
• convenient parking and valet services must be provided;
• a face control system is possible (with a closed club system);
• design delights in the interior;
• provide the salon with the ability to ensure maximum customer safety, be prepared for the presence of personal security for VIPs;
• individual approach to service, individual prices, individual loyalty programs are possible;
• use top brands and expensive devices of the latest generation; a great move is to develop and launch a line of cosmetics under your own brand, as, for example, Vladimir Tarasyuk, a guru of hairdressing and style, did;
• specialists of your establishment must work only in a specially designed corporate uniform; wear badges with clearly printed last name, first name, patronymic and qualifications of the master;
• in your salon there can be no interruptions in the supply of raw materials, tools and accessories necessary for work;
• In your salon design, include a minibar in which your guests can taste delicious coffee or teas of various types. But whether to charge them for this is an ambiguous question, at your discretion. Although we believe that the cost of the salon’s services and the status of a VIP establishment with high-level service excludes the price list for treats for dear guests;
• remember that representatives of the class we are interested in are big fans of personalized cards, individual discounts, bonuses, and birthday gifts. Take this into account when developing price lists and personal prices, as well as personal loyalty programs;
• Do not skimp on training administrators who work with clients and guests in the reception area and manage telephone and Internet communications for the salon. The administrator must be able to present his salon with dignity, at a level, in no case allowing himself to be rude and tactless, as well as flattery and excessive courtesy in communication;
• Be prepared for the fact that your “star” clients will often change the time of their appointment with a specialist, may be late or, conversely, be too demanding in terms of timely service. Attribute this to the excessive busyness of business and political elites or the costs of character of our lovely ladies.

The basic law of marketing says: “Stand out or die!” Think about what is unique about your idea, what is the exclusivity of the salon, what will highlight your PIC among many similar ones. In order to stand out, an institution must have a whole legend about its creation or at least the origin of the name, have its own special style, “play its own performance.” As an option, consider creating a closed salon, with a club system, where each new visitor can only enter on the recommendation of regular customers. This scenario should be considered by those who already have a certain circle of clients. Visiting establishments, going to see a specialist “under patronage” is fashionable among the elite, they will immediately appreciate it. But if you are starting your business from scratch, it is better to resort to the traditional, “open” scheme. Come up with a real ceremony for meeting and seeing off clients. Strive to make it fashionable and prestigious to be served in your salon, then you are unlikely to face a shortage of clients, the problem of them leaving for other PIKs or to the master’s home. Don’t be afraid of bold decisions, be flexible, strive for innovation and don’t forget about the good old methods of accounting and control in your work, and then success and recognition will definitely be on your side!

* The article uses the experience of dermatocosmetologists of medical cosmetology “Anchor”