June 30, 2015

10 Best Ways To Advertise & Hire Hairstylists | Salon Atmosphere Matters

Best Ways To Hire Hairstylists

Chevon_Prather_with_clientHiring Hairstylists Isn’t Easy!

If you own a traditional multi-chair salon, then you’ve struggled with finding and keeping the right stylists.

Or if you’re someone who hopes to open a salon, then this challenge lies in the back of your mind like a big looming question mark in your dreams.

What’s the best way to hire hairstylists?

It’s not just about finding the RIGHT staff…

You have to keep them loyal! Because when they leave, they often take your clients with them.

And then there’s the challenge of finding stylists who have the same commitment to professionalism that you have. You set the salon atmosphere and tone – they need to follow. Heck, it’s YOUR salon!

10 Best Ways to Attract GREAT STYLISTS:

For Salon Plaza’s 10 best ways to improve your chances of attracting the right salon professionals who make you proud (PLUS – the most certain way of sidestepping the whole kitten kaboodle!) – read on…

1. Define Who You Want

When you have a clear idea for a well thought out BRAND EXPERIENCE, making a list of the qualities you are looking for in a stylist is much easier. Education, licensing, experience, skills are all important – but SECONDARY to the atmosphere they bring to your salon. Will they enhance or detract from your BRAND PROMISE?

2. Know Their Schedule

Identify the schedule you’d like your new stylist to keep. What days do you want your stylists to commit to? Will they open or close? How much flexibility will they have? How will you handle time-off? When you define this upfront and discuss it in advance, you’ll be able to refer back to your agreement if and when they express the need for more flexibility or more hours.

3. Employee or Booth Renter?

How will you pay your new stylist? And how often? Many salon owners find they must pay out first, and then hope for enough for themselves. Being an owner requires a lot of responsibility and sometimes, self-sacrifice. Be prepared!

4. Write Your Ad

decision_to_try-resized-600Now you have what you need to assemble your advertisement. Describe your BRAND EXPERIENCE and your TARGET MARKET as well as the specifics of what you are looking for.

They need to know the atmosphere at your salon and what type of clients you attract. Include the commission, booth rental options or salary, as well as a list of benefits stylists can look forward to enjoying when they work in your salon.

As always, follow the principles of direct response marketing – include a Headline,  Sub headline, Offer and Call-to-Action in your add.

5. Encourage Word of Mouth

Salon owners confide in me that the best new stylists come from recommendations from other stylist who work in their salon. People in the beauty business tend to know others like themselves who would be a good fit. Consider offering a “finder’s fee” equivalent to one or two weeks rent – it will pay off in the long run.

Note: make the fee conditional to meeting certain requirements, such as the new hire stays on for 3 months or something of that nature.

6. Attend Hair Shows

Get out of your salon and spend time where other stylists can be found, such as at hair shows. Then you can observe the stylists when they aren’t interviewing for a position at your salon. You’ll find this works very well to attract the right people.

7. Post and Spread the Word

If you have a website, add a page called “We’re Hiring” and post job description there. Tell all about it on your social media sites as well. Remember to link your social media posts to your webpage ad and encourage your members to help you get the word out. You can also use email in a similar way to broadcast your search.

8. Contact Cosmetology Schools

Contact cosmetology schools in your area and let them know you’re hiring. If you hire new graduates, then it might be a good idea to regularly teach a class to get your foot in the door. You’ll have a chance to attract the “cream of the crop” by getting involved with the local schools. Remember, over time new graduates become seasoned professionals, so keep in touch.

9. Post on Job Sites

One of the best sites to post your advertisement on is Craigslist. There are others as well – “Salon Employment,”  “Salon Builder,” and “Behind the Chair,” to name a few. Find out which job sites are most active in your area. How? Simply search on Google for “salon jobs in YOUR CITY” and see which sites come up in the top 3 on the page.

10. Skip It – Go Solo

1_Salon_Plaza_Kristan_Young_Own_A_Salon

When you hire hairstylists and booth renters in your salon, you will have many distractions. Vacation days, maternity leave, maintaining the salon’s image and level of professionalism.

Even if you are willing to deal with the distractions, the reality is, salons average about 40% turnover in a year. That means you will be replacing more than a third of your staff – EVERY YEAR! Not to mention the daily DRAMA that can develop.

Is there a better way to run a salon? Yes!

At Salon Plaza, you can own a highly profitable salon WITHOUT having to hire, manage (or fire) stylists!

Here’s what one of our Independent Salon Owners at Salon Plaza has to say:

“I love the freedom of working for myself, without employees or someone else’s rules!”
~ Kristan Young, JUST KRISTAN’S, Virginia Beach, VA

If you are ready to find out more about how YOU can be in business FOR yourself… but not by yourself, you’ve come to the right place.

To discover more about what it takes to run a successful salon – with a whole chapter on hiring and managing hair stylists – watch our 7 Secrets of Salon Ownership video.

You need these secrets to prosperity

“7 Salon Owner Secrets” covers our FAQs – most frequently asked questions about running a salon profitably – just the way you want to… as a reflection of YOU! 

This is the best way I know of to create your Space for Prosperity – Inquire Now!

 

Back to blog