How to attract a client to a permanent makeup salon?

Anna Zabolotnaya , Head of the International Academy of PM and Aesthetic Dermopigmentation "Biotek" (Russia), certified artist, international class master teacher in permanent make-up, aesthetic dermopigmentation and trichopigmentation, winner of the first Contour of the Century competition (2003), judge of permanent make-up championships in Russia and abroad, lecturer at the International University of PM (Milan, Italy) (Russia)

All over the world, the economy is going through hard times, and this has a negative impact on all areas of business. By inexorable logic, in difficult times, large companies feel best, which can afford dumping and thereby steal customers from smaller companies, for which price reduction is an unaffordable luxury. However, not everything is so clear. Especially in the field of permanent makeup.

Of course, permanent makeup exists according to the universal laws of the economy, but, like in any separate industry, we have our own nuances. One is that, at least for the moment, in the PM it is the small businesses that pose a threat to the big and well-established companies, not the other way around. It is small salons that offer services at the lowest prices, which attract not so much low-income as inexperienced customers.

Fortunately, this is not the only nuance that distinguishes the PM industry. Another important feature of our business is that whether we like it or not, the price in PM is not decisive for most of our clients. PM services belong to the “deluxe” sphere, and here it is the quality, not the price, that has always been and remains the main factor of attraction for the client.

So, the first and main condition for winning customers in a situation of fierce competition is the highest possible quality of services provided. What makes up the quality of PM services? Let's figure it out.

What not to save

First of all, this is a professional level, which is achieved as the master learns and gains work experience in his specialty. Next - high-quality tools and, of course, high-quality consumables - paints, diluent, painkillers, etc.

Naturally, the training from which any mastery begins must also be of high quality. It should be held according to professional methods that guarantee the effective assimilation of the material being studied, in balanced courses, where the necessary theoretical information is supported by a sufficient number of practical lessons from recognized masters who confidently lead the student from the basics of the profession to its heights.

It is clear that high-quality equipment and materials, as well as vocational education, are not cheap. Therefore, the price of quality services cannot be low.

The second important condition that attracts customers is a wide range of services provided. PM is developing rapidly, regularly offering something new to the market. A self-respecting company should not only be aware of all newly invented services, monitor the emergence of new techniques, but ideally also have their own and, of course, be in the trend of world fashion, which includes colors, density and sizes of applied patterns, as well as various methods and techniques for introducing pigment into the skin.

In practice, this means that representatives of a respectable company should participate at least in the most significant exhibitions, congresses, symposiums and other events where leading craftsmen and manufacturing companies gather and where you can see how the PM industry lives, get acquainted with the latest trends and latest technologies. , show the whole world your own achievements, gain recognition, make useful connections, etc.

In addition, in order to provide a wide range of services, a company needs not only to acquire technical innovations that appear on the market, preferably earlier than others, in order to have at least a short-term advantage over competitors, but also to have highly qualified craftsmen ready to provide any of the requested services.

All this also requires rather high costs and serves as another confirmation that high-quality services cannot be cheap. But what about those masters and salons that offer PM services at ridiculous prices? My answer: nothing. Working on poor, often not at all adapted to PM equipment, using low-grade, cheap pigments that have not been tested in practice, such salons drive themselves into a coffin. The client can be deceived once. If he appears in the same salon again, it will be only to demand his money back. However, as a rule, in such salons, instead of returning money, other methods of “satisfying” the client are practiced: if he is dissatisfied with the work of the master, he is simply fired, and, of course, without paying what he has earned. As a result, the deceived client comes to us, however, now for a correction, if, of course, it is even possible. And the fired master, if he has a head on his shoulders, goes to study, after which he looks for work in a “normal” salon, where customers are respected and they value not only skill, but also the responsibility of their employees.

Miser pays twice

In general, using the services of cheap PM salons with undereducated and irresponsible craftsmen is the same as buying fake copies of expensive and high-status items. For example, in some places you can still buy your favorite perfume in bulk. You will be very lucky if the aroma of the counterfeit is similar to the real one. But already after the first application, you will be convinced that the precious fragrans does not open as expected, and disappears after a couple of hours. So in the best case, you will have to "refresh" the applied perfume several times a day. As a result, in a week the “precious” bottle will be empty, leaving a persistent disappointment as the final note.

Another example: you can order a fake Rolex online to splurge on others. But in a week you will have to state that the “gilding” has flown around, the strap has become cracked, and such a watch will show the correct time at best twice a day, and even then only when it is standing.

Such purchases are money thrown to the wind. They illustrate the superficiality and short-sightedness of the buyer, the lack of banal common sense. But all these troubles are easy to survive, especially if you have learned the lesson and, therefore, have become smarter.

Unfortunately, as far as PM is concerned, the purchase of cheap services threatens not only with unreasonable costs. The risk here is much more serious, because we are dealing with subtle matter - with living people, with their flesh, with their spiritual, emotional world. Poor quality work can lead to a serious blow to health, not to mention mental trauma, when instead of the expected result you get indelible horror on your face or in other places that you hoped to improve, make more attractive.

If you respect your customers, provide quality services that can satisfy the most demanding requests, if you do your job responsibly, you should not be afraid of competition from irresponsible companies that tempt people with cheap prices. Companies like this have no future.

It remains only to express regret that cheap one-day companies disfigure people with their services and damage the reputation of the entire permanent makeup industry. But be sure that the clients lost by cheap salons as a result of their activities will inevitably come to real salons, where we will do everything to correct poor-quality work and restore self-confidence and self-esteem to the “victims”.

And in conclusion, I would like to give advice to novice masters who, having not received a good education and not having sufficient experience, immediately rush into the battle for banknotes. If you don't care about the people who come to you for help, think about yourself. What future awaits you when, after a few misses, your PM career is over before it even started?

Don't rush. We were all beginners once, and I assure you that if you take your education responsibly, if you value your time and spend it wisely, trying to gain as much experience as possible before you start "experimenting" on people , if you do not rush and chase after a long ruble, success will come to you much faster than you expect!

Read also

Psychology of master and client: what is important for a PM specialist to know