I Need More Customers!

This is the number one problem that salon spa and clinic owners face, so why is it so difficult to solve?

When a beauty therapist decides to open a salon, they are filled with optimism and excitement about the journey ahead of them. Many anticipate all of the time, money, freedom and fulfillment that they will enjoy profiting from their passion…but, then comes the reality of running a small business!

All of that optimism fades quickly when you are struggling to attract customers, retain team members and no matter how hard you try, you just cannot seem to figure out where all the money goes.

So why is reality such a far cry from the original goal? As is the case across so many industries, beauty therapists are not usually experienced business owners and operators and are unsurprisingly trained in beauty therapy, not graphic design or marketing. We know that running your own business takes up more time than you seemingly have in any given day, and can feel like it is taking you away from your original passion; making your clients look and feel their absolute best.

There is no question that most beauty therapists that open a salon or spa are amazing at performing treatments and understanding how to get amazing results for their clients. However, this is a completely different skill set to what is required to run and promote a small business.

That is why Professional Beauty Solutions (PBS) have been working tirelessly to deliver the tools required to completely transform this reality for salon owners.

Solving Your Number 1 Challenge with Marketing on a Platter

Marketing on a Platter (MOAP) is designed to take a huge load of work off your plate by doing your marketing for you! We have taken our team’s abundance of experience to create marketing assets that work to attract and retain clients. We know that salon owners do not have the man hours to spend on marketing, so we have literally spent hundreds of man hours bridging the gap.

No matter which PBS brands you stock, whether that is one brand or all 11 of our brands, we provide you with free monthly sets of marketing collateral that you can use across multiple digital channels. From Facebook to Instagram graphics, blog posts, EDMs and website images and banners, we also create compelling deals to enable you to promote different services complemented with retail promotions. Along with exciting birthday campaigns, referral campaigns, and many tips on how all of this can be easily implemented to drive new business through your door, your marketing is complete without having to lift a finger.

Hear what some of our salons have to say:

“PBS have done all the hard work for us by creating all the marketing tools we need with ‘Marketing on a Platter’. Their talented graphic design team create amazing looking campaigns for us each month, including everything from in-store posters and counter displays, to social media graphics and e-newsletters we can send to our database. All the content is available at the click of your mouse. If you haven’t used MOAP then you don’t know how easy and professional your social media and marketing can actually look!”

— Margaret Ottley, Ultimate Care Skin & Body Centre

“As the owner of a busy salon, I have found stocking PBS brands has made my life so much easier. The ongoing support from them is unparalleled and their ‘Marketing on a Platter’ allows me to be present on social media, without taking up extra time that I just don’t have!”

— Amy Marvelli, Body Wisdom

“Being a salon owner is not easy. Thankfully the team at PBS are always thinking of the business, the owners and how to make them more profitable, and they’ve really made marketing so simple and easy by providing us with ‘Marketing on a Platter.’ Each month, all our marketing is created for us! It’s easy to use and everything you could possibly need is right there – from social media graphics to posters and emails. I’m so thankful for PBS for making my life so much easier with MOAP!”

— Lisa Fowler, Bella Spazio

Did you know?

Your clients spend 40 minutes per day on social media.
That’s why we create new sets of social media graphics each month, from product features to seasonal trends, ready to go with a click of a button.

Effective point of sale marketing can boost sales over 25%.
That’s why we create new sets of visually eye-catching POS posters, ready to print and display in your salon the same day.

Every $1 invested into email marketing generates an average of $38 in revenue.
Email is one of the best digital marketing tactics for small businesses with limited marketing budgets! That’s why we create enticing deals and grabbing headlines in your ready-to-use e-newsletters, driving action and traffic directly into your business.

Want to know what you will get from PBS when partnering with us? Here are some examples of our monthly marketing sets, all created and delivered to you for FREE:

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Contact Professional Beauty Solutions to find out how you can take advantage of this powerful business tool, call 1800 625 387 or visit www.probeautysolutions.com.au

Do You Want to Survive or Thrive?

Education Is Your Answer...

Many salon owners look at team training and education as an expense they can’t afford, when in fact, it’s an investment that can’t be ignored!

Competition in the salon industry has always been strong, but in 2018, it has taken on new meaning with the likes of Sephora and Amazon, juggernauts of global retail, launching into the Australian marketplace.

So how do you compete? And what will separate you from your competition?

“The difference will come down to extraordinary service, and in our industry, extraordinary service comes from up-to-date knowledge that leads to amazing, consistent results for your clients.” says Professional Beauty Solutions CEO, Matt Williams.

In an era where beauty therapists aren’t leaving college with the level of skills and expertise they once did, there is no greater time in history where post-graduate education has been more crucial than it is right now.

In fact, beauty industry professionals should be constantly pursuing education on new treatments, techniques, products and ingredients, if they want to remain relevant in an ever increasingly competitive environment. Because, quite simply, the one thing that will set a salon apart from retail giants like Sephora, is your tailored, face to face expertise and service. Two things that customers simply will not find browsing the aisles or throwing items into their online shopping carts.

At Professional Beauty Solutions we work with thousands of salons around the country and from our experience, most salon, spa and clinic owners and managers agree that education is crucial for their team and for themselves, but there is still enormous resistance to investing in training.

Two common responses are “I’m Too busy” and “I Can’t Afford It”.

Many owners are so busy with what they have to do on a daily basis that the thought of stopping to do an hour or a day of education is just too overwhelming. But unfortunately, the long-term impact of shelving staff training could see the business far worse off than if it had taken the time to grow staff knowledge in the first place.

“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.”

— Benjamin Franklin

The problem is that many small business owners in every industry don’t believe that they have the time, or the money to take their team away from their dollar-producing activities. But what many people don’t know is that there is exhaustive research that supports the fact that training and development offers the greatest return on investment that any a business owner could make.

In fact, studies show that businesses that invested in employee development generated*;

24% higher profit margins
218% higher income per employee
86% higher company value
21% increase in productivity
300% reduction in employee turnover
A return per dollar invested of $6.72

*Patrick McGovern (International Data Group)

Think about your business goals next time you’re agonising over your allocated time and budget for training, and instead of seeing it as an expense, shift your mindset to more accurately view it as an investment...the best one you can make for your business.

We have a strong focus on education at Professional Beauty Solutions and even though we have comprehensive product driven education, we also provide extensive education on exactly what you need to know in order to build a profitable and predictable business.

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To find out more about how Professional Beauty Solutions can help your business thrive in 2018 and beyond, call 1800 625 387 or visit www.probeautysolutions.com.au

PBS Education at Beauty Expo 2018

The Sessions Not to Miss!

Are you coming to Beauty Expo Australia (September 8th + 9th 2018)?

Join PBS as we bring you industry leading professionals from world-class beauty and skincare brands from across the globe to speak at the Beauty Expo conference this year!

This year, we are lucky enough to have seven amazing speakers, both homegrown and from our amazing international brands, lend their expert knowledge and amazing know-how in the industry to the two-day event this September.

You will be privy to NEW trends and ingredient technology emerging in the beauty scene, hands-on makeup tutorials with Youngblood’s brand ambassador, Pedro at his first Beauty Expo, and business education that will advance your strategic marketing and financial woes to the next level!

Plus, our very own Matt Williams will be taking on ‘the fear of financials’, a unique session that cannot be missed if you want to become more profitable in the salon arena!

SATURDAY 8TH SEPTEMBER 

INGREDIENT REVOLUTION
Time: Saturday 10:00AM – 11:15AM
Speaker: Dawn Clifford, Senior Director of Education, Image Skincare

Join Dawn Clifford for an in-depth and advanced ingredient training. Dawn will be discussing the science behind the fusion of ingredients and delivery systems and how they help target results for specific skin condition. Dawn will also delve into topics including, the defense mechanisms that protect the skin, and the art of creating customised treatments and regimens that allow product to deliver results.

A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO ANTI-AGEING
Time: Saturday 11:30AM – 12:45PM
Speaker: Janine Tait, Bestow Beauty Founder, dermo-nutritionist and beauty therapist

When it comes to anti-ageing, what your clients put on their skin is only half the story. Janine will shine a light on the science of holistic anti-ageing factors like skin nutrition, gut health, sleep quality and exercise choices. Learn how to support your clients to establish healthy life patterns and wellbeing rituals that will nurture healthy, youthful skin. 

BEAUTIFUL NUMBERS: REMOVING THE FEAR OF FINANCIALS
Time: Saturday 1:00PM – 2:15PM
Speaker: Matt Williams, CEO of Professional Beauty Solutions

Want to take control of your salon and your business and guarantee growth? In this powerful session, Matt Williams will cover how to understand your numbers and finally take the fear out of financials, show you how to get your team aligned and grow your top line sales, and more importantly, bottom-line profits.

Matt will also walk you through the 5 steps to growth, including how to set realistic, but exciting goals, what impact that has on the business, how to make meaning of your profit & loss statement, and where to focus and what to do. He will then offer 2 powerful strategies for each of the 5 steps that you can implement immediately. Finally identify the top key performance indicators that will drive your salon results and boost team productivity, plus rethink your entire approach to retailing.

THE SCIENCE OF PEELS & COMBINED THERAPIES
Time: Saturday 2:30PM – 3:45PM
Speaker: Dawn Clifford, Senior Director of Education, Image Skincare

Dawn Clifford will take you on a scientific skin journey and uncover in-depth the ingredients that result in an undeniable and amazing change to your client’s skin. As the Senior Director of Education for one of the world’s most innovative skincare brands, Image Skincare, Dawn will detail the crucial steps to advance your peels and explain how to customise the right treatment plan to solve any clients’ issue.

SKIN IS IN: THE ART OF BEAUTIFUL, NATURAL MAKEUP
Time: Saturday 4:00PM – 5:15PM
Speaker: Philip Luque, International Brand Ambassador & MUA for Youngblood

In this session, we will reinvent your definition of flawless makeup, from sheer to full coverage and show you how to use mineral makeup to adapt to your client’s skin needs. Philip will redefine the concept of ‘less is more’ and explain how mineral makeup is the solution to adapting the skin-obsessed climate and meeting it in the middle with cosmetics that act as a second skin.

SUNDAY 9TH SEPTEMBER

WHAT GOES ON, GOES IN: THE RISE OF THE CLEAN BEAUTY MOVEMENT
Time: Sunday 10:00AM – 11:15AM
Speaker: Cindy Lüken, Lük Beautifood Founder

As consumers realise how the health of their skin is directly influenced by the nutrients that are available to them, Cindy – a successful food scientist and beauty & wellness expert – looks into the rise of the ‘Clean Beauty’ movement, and what your business needs to do to stay ahead of this leading trend. Lead a path towards a toxin-free industry by harnessing the power of food and nutrients as clean beauty alternatives in makeup.

CLEAN, GREEN, SUSTAINABLE, HOLISTIC: NEW MARKETING BUZZWORDS & WHAT THEY MEAN FOR YOUR BUSINESS
Time: Sunday 11:45AM – 1:00PM
Speakers: Janine Tait, Bestow Beauty Founder | Cindy Luken, Luk Beautifood Founder | Sinead Roberts, Wotnot Naturals CEO | Dani Lombard, Founder & Director of Dani Lombard Public Relations
Moderator: Matt Williams

Brands that are taking on the rampant holistic epidemic are destined to come out on top in 2018. With the current industry climate’s fixation in beauty meeting wellness and sustainability, as well as ethical practices, consumers are realising the importance of not only making sure what we put on our skin is clean, but focusing on what goes into our bodies in the name of beauty as well as sustainable packaging.

Watch as this panel of experts take you through the key wellness trends and beauty buzzwords that cannot be ignored in 2018 and beyond.

THE BIG COVER UP: MINERAL MAKEUP THAT HEALS & CONCEALS
Time: Sunday 1:30PM – 2:45PM
Speaker: Philip Luque, International Brand Ambassador & MUA for Youngblood

Unlock the power of minerals to camouflage problematic skin conditions such as rosacea, acne and eczema. Philip will demonstrate a unique professional technique used by Youngblood makeup artists that shows the effective coverage capabilities of mineral makeup, camouflaging everything from major skin conditions to tattoos, birthmarks and post-operative bruising. Uncover why mineral makeup should now be considered an extra step in your skincare routine… the new 360 approach to a skin prescription.

FOUNDATION MARKETING: ESSENTIAL STRATEGIES
Time: Sunday 3:00PM – 4:15PM
Speaker: Vanessa McDonald, Salon Marketing Coach Founder

In this session, Vanessa will discuss how to maximise and set a solid foundation for your annual promotional calendar and how to approach your overall marketing strategy from a more targeted position, including uncovering your KPI’s.

Vanessa McDonald is the Australian Beauty Industries Salon Marketing Coach with an obsession to turn beauty salon owners into savvy marketers. With 17-years’ worth of experience in sales and marketing specific to the beauty industry, she is a specialised Marketing Coach who works with full-service beauty salons to improve their businesses, specifically with the use of Foundation Marketing – the marketing that MUST happen in your business each and every day.

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PBS returns to exhibit our collective of 11 brands, as well as providing world-class education, amazing brand offers and complimentary on-stand treatments. Lock in the 8th and 9th of September in your diaries!

Book your expo tickets now!

Join Janine Tait for Holistic Skincare Training this July!

SKIN THERAPISTS! Are you eager to advance your pursuit in treating skin holistically?

Janine Tait – founder of Bestow Beauty, nutritionist, holistic skincare coach AND beauty therapist with over 30 years’ experience – and nutritional expert, Jenny Barrow will by coming to Melbourne for an exclusive 2-day workshop, Anti-Ageing: The Nutritional Approach.

Skin ageing is impacted upon by many different environmental factors and lifestyle habits. As skin health coaches, we need to understand the impact of these things and be able to recommend some simple things clients can do to address them.

With a passion for mentoring beauty therapists to achieving transformative results for their clients, Janine recognises the link between skin ageing and environmental factors and lifestyle habits and delivers it effortlessly to help you further your treatments in salon.

Join Janine and Jenny as they deliver this wealth of knowledge they have gathered in the holistic and inner beauty space, and cover topics that are unique and happening NOW in the industry.

“Before I met Janine Tait I had lost a lot of faith in the beauty industry. Her training completely inspired me and reignited my passion for skincare. I have never seen such transformative results. It is an amazing feeling to help someone who has been suffering from an on-going skin condition and see them obtain beautiful healthy skin and new confidence.”

— Jeanine Chell

For $495 per person for the 2-day workshop, which takes place over a Sunday + Monday, this is an incredible investment into education and delving deeper into the commitment it truly takes to treat client’s skin from the inside out, and one that you will benefit from immediately in your salon.

Previous holistic workshop attendees have commended Janine’s ability to simplify the complex functions of the body and the skin, into terms your clients will appreciate when looking at their skin’s health from within.

“Don’t hesitate for a minute to attend Janine Tait’s Holistic Skincare workshop. Janine is an absolute wealth of knowledge!”

— Melanie Gaynor, Beauty Elements

You will learn about:

• The powerful and interdependent link between the skin and the gut

• Biological and lifestyle factors that influence this relationship

• The philosophy of nutrition and how it is an essential step to treating skin disorders and ageing skin

Trust us when we say this is something you CANNOT MISS!

ALL BEAUTY THERAPISTS WELCOME! You do not have to be a Bestow Beauty stockist to join this holistic skincare workshop.

Book in for our 2-day workshop at the end of July (29th + 30th) to enhance your anti-ageing treatments in your salon or clinic!

8 Ways to Build Positive Word of Mouth for Your Salon

Word-of-Mouth marketing is the most difficult to measure, but it's also the most cost effective because it costs you nothing.

Your customers are the best vehicle for positive word-of-mouth marketing, but how can you get them to talk about you?

Here are 8 ways you can help build positive word of mouth for your salon.

1. Set the Atmosphere
   Use soft, fresh sheets; play relaxing music; and keep service areas organised and sanitised. Clients love familiar environments and will refer everyone they know because they’ll know you’ll take care of their referrals as you do them.
   

2. Be Professional
   Make eye contact, greet clients by name, offer a genuine compliment, dress to impress and practice good hygiene. These small details show your clients you care about them.
   

3. Read Your Clients
   Engage clients in polite conversation and ask about them—but don’t dig too personally. Conversations should be uplifting and never geared toward gossip or your clients will lose trust in you. Nix chatting if it seems like they want to relax or sleep. The more you do for them, the more they’ll refer you to others.
   

4. Consult Positively
   When consulting with clients on lash or brow styles, never tell them they’re wrong, even if you disagree. Instead, let them know what your education and experience has taught you regarding what will complement their features.
   

5. Be an Open Book (With Your Services)
   Walk clients through the service, answer any questions they have and never talk down to them. Remember, some clients may be nervous or tense if this is their first time receiving the service.
   

6. Respect the Clock
   Your clients’ time is precious, and disrespecting it can net negative word of mouth. Don’t be tardy, go overtime, or call or text clients off-hours.
   

7. Create a Referral System
   Reward your clients for spreading the word with a referral system that garners them perks at your shop. Think: point systems toward discounted services or retail. The ‘If you scratch my back, then I’ll scratch yours’ mentality is always healthy in the artist/client relationship.
   

8. Send Them Home With a Smile
   Never rush clients and always allow them to examine your work post- service. When your clients leave feeling confident and happy, they’ll keep coming back—and they’ll bring their friends.

Make Education your Top Priority this Year

There are New Year’s resolutions, and New Year’s resolutions. Coming into a new year can make you think about all the things you wanted to do in your salon and for your business, but inevitably can not always all get done before December comes around. To ensure that you do not break on your resolutions this year before the end of January, you need to push your career to new heights and discover once hidden prospects that will induce change in your frame of mind; education.

Education in 2018 is much more than writing notes on a page that you’ll forget to look at again or a demonstrated technique. It surrounds the determination, skill and personal motivation to further your business and professional development. Education now offers the freedom in the ever-changing world of the beauty industry to go with what you have felt and analysed to be the right move for your business, from experts and therapists alike.

As your clients are becoming more self-aware and knowledgeable about current trends in the industry, salon owners need to be 3 steps ahead at all times, ready to offer their clients exactly what they are looking for in the new world of beauty, skincare and wellness.

Reading up on blogs, articles, podcasts and following those in the know of the latest marketing, beauty and salon techniques to help your business grow is step one to achieving greater levels of knowledge in 2018. Your instant access to digital publications, apps and the realm of YouTube has seen a worldwide boom in opportunities for career growth and education.

Education does not stop at improving upon your skillset however. When in the beauty business, your job entails marketing, sales, profitability, systems, people, and most importantly, your mindset to make the entire machine work to please and retain your clients. You can become an entirely different, more aware and better-informed beautician through simple to complex education classes and webinars, and is a goal worth striving for in 2017.

Professional Beauty Solutions offers salons, clinics and spas the opportunity to take part in dozens of education, training and growth sessions throughout the year. Our 2018 goal is to provide more business and profit building tools than ever before. Through regular webinars, intimate training sessions with expert trainers, and our monthly MOAP Monday Facebook Live education events, 2018 is the year to make education your top priority.