Driving Referrals
Ways to make word of mouth work for you
By Keith West-Harrison
Originally published in Skin Deep, January/February 2009. Copyright 2009. Associated Skin Care Professionals. All right reserved.
The busiest spas and esthetician practices are ones that work every day to invest in growing their business. Every client can be viewed as a career opportunity. Sure, you may have brochures on the front counter, an advertisement in the newspaper, and a great street location, but why aren't the clients rolling in? Is it because of your traditional approach to marketing? That slow and almost invisible process of making yourself known and credible to the public takes its own sweet time. There is much more you can do, with little cost or inconvenience, to help bring new business your way faster. Remember that every happy client is a potential member of your personal marketing team. Following are three ways to facilitate that relationship.
Do a Great Job with Each and Every Client.
Most spas, and subsequently most facials, are just average. While clients may not be disappointed, they also aren't blown away. Seeing that each client is extremely pleased should be your goal. This means you need to build a solid relationship, provide professional advice, and listen to your clients' personal skin care concerns. There are some practitioners who refer to their clients by their appointment times and not by their names: have you seen my two o'clock? Instead, when clients book an appointment, make sure you address their individual needs from beginning to end.
Promote Yourself and Ask for Repeat Business.
In some cases, the spas I work with never thank clients for coming in and never ask clients to come back. The assumption for some practitioners is, "If I do a great job, the client will return." Maybe, but when? Just thinking of what you can lose by not rebooking clients frequently enough is astonishing.
The majority of your clients love you and will want to come back often. If you don't get them rebooked, their hectic lives take over as soon as they leave. Weeks will go by before they think of you again. That might be just when you have more time than you'd like between clients.
You can't assume your clients know how often to get facial treatments or even what the next steps in their skin care regimes should be. They look to you to tell them when they should come back. It's as easy as saying, "I want to see you again in four weeks for a facial. Let's have Becky at the front desk check my schedule." Do you ever get out of the dentist's office without rebooking the next checkup?
Ask for Referrals.
If you look at any successful person in the personal services business, they ask for repeat business and referrals. This is what makes the best real estate and insurance salespeople rise to the top of their fields. They make sure clients are extremely pleased and ask for the opportunity to do that for their friends.
In my experience, most estheticians don't know how to properly ask for referrals. The best thing to do is simply say, "Mary, it has been a pleasure working with you today. If you have any friends who are half as nice as you are, I would really love to see them." What a great way to let your clients know that you like them. They will leave flattered and become part of your word-of-mouth marketing team.
There are huge benefits to asking for referrals:
-Generating referrals is the least expensive form of
marketing you can do.
-Each client who refers new business sends an average
of five potential clients.
The people who love us or love our skin care practice become our client evangelists. The authors of Creating Customer Evangelists: How Loyal Customers Become a Volunteer Sales Force, write: "When clients are truly thrilled about their experience, they will usually become outspoken evangelists for your company. This group of satisfied believers can be converted into a potent marketing force to grow your universe of clients."i
Your client evangelists have a vast impact on how quickly you build your business. These people:
-Are loyal to you and return often.
-Are social influencers and connectors.
-Build buzz and sing your praises.
-Connect you to people you wouldn't otherwise meet.
-Give you new ideas for skin care products and services.
-Passionately recruit new clients for you.
-Sincerely believe in you.
The essence of these factors is that they feel loved and want you to feel it, too.
Following are other simple ways to increase the likelihood your clients will spread the word.
Appointment Calls. Teach your front desk to ask for referrals when clients book appointments. True, the person may never have been seen by you, but they picked you for a reason. You want to start them thinking. When a new client books, try something like this: "Great, Maria, I have you confirmed for your three o'clock facial on Monday. You are going to love your time with our lead esthetician, Susan. I do have a few other facial appointments open that day. Please let any of your friends or coworkers know we'd love to see them, too."
24-Hour Confirmation Calls. Apply the same concept when you confirm appointments. Be careful not to sound desperate or like your calendar is completely blank.
Business Cards as Referral Tools. Handing out your business cards is a great way to ask for referrals. Follow the rule that no client leaves your practice with fewer than three business cards. Present these when you thank the client for coming in. "Mary, it has been a pleasure working with you today. If you have any friends who are half as nice as you are, I'd love to see them. In fact, here's a business card for you and two for any of your friends."
WOW Calls. Especially for new clients, WOW calls are very important because they show you care. Ideally, you should schedule your call to new clients at least one or two days after a service and/or product sale. During this call, you can handle questions about future services or results of a product. This is a good time to encourage clients to reschedule.
Try a simple script in your follow-up call. "Hello Kathy, this is Linda at the Serenity Skin Care Center. I wanted to give you a call to see how you are doing after the facial treatment you had on Tuesday. How does your skin feel now that you've been using the Hydraplenish for a few days?"
Even a voice mail message will tell clients that you are concerned for their total satisfaction and will encourage them to speak with you about any skin care questions or concerns. Your clients will most likely be satisfied with their results and will be pleasantly surprised you took the time to check on their satisfaction.
Keith West-Harrison is CEO of Spa Enrichment Strategies in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He consults with top day spas, medical spas, and spa resorts, and is esthetician to many celebrities. Contact him at www.spaenrichmentstrategies.com or 800-884-1656.
i Creating Customer Evangelists: How Loyal Customers Become a Volunteer Sales Force, by Ben McConnell, Jackie Huba, and Guy Kawasaki(Kaplan Business, 2007).
The busiest spas and esthetician practices are ones that work every day to invest in growing their business. Every client can be viewed as a career opportunity. Sure, you may have brochures on the front counter, an advertisement in the newspaper, and a great street location, but why aren't the clients rolling in? Is it because of your traditional approach to marketing? That slow and almost invisible process of making yourself known and credible to the public takes its own sweet time. There is much more you can do, with little cost or inconvenience, to help bring new business your way faster. Remember that every happy client is a potential member of your personal marketing team. Following are three ways to facilitate that relationship.
Do a Great Job with Each and Every Client.
Most spas, and subsequently most facials, are just average. While clients may not be disappointed, they also aren't blown away. Seeing that each client is extremely pleased should be your goal. This means you need to build a solid relationship, provide professional advice, and listen to your clients' personal skin care concerns. There are some practitioners who refer to their clients by their appointment times and not by their names: have you seen my two o'clock? Instead, when clients book an appointment, make sure you address their individual needs from beginning to end.
Promote Yourself and Ask for Repeat Business.
In some cases, the spas I work with never thank clients for coming in and never ask clients to come back. The assumption for some practitioners is, "If I do a great job, the client will return." Maybe, but when? Just thinking of what you can lose by not rebooking clients frequently enough is astonishing.
The majority of your clients love you and will want to come back often. If you don't get them rebooked, their hectic lives take over as soon as they leave. Weeks will go by before they think of you again. That might be just when you have more time than you'd like between clients.
You can't assume your clients know how often to get facial treatments or even what the next steps in their skin care regimes should be. They look to you to tell them when they should come back. It's as easy as saying, "I want to see you again in four weeks for a facial. Let's have Becky at the front desk check my schedule." Do you ever get out of the dentist's office without rebooking the next checkup?
Ask for Referrals.
If you look at any successful person in the personal services business, they ask for repeat business and referrals. This is what makes the best real estate and insurance salespeople rise to the top of their fields. They make sure clients are extremely pleased and ask for the opportunity to do that for their friends.
In my experience, most estheticians don't know how to properly ask for referrals. The best thing to do is simply say, "Mary, it has been a pleasure working with you today. If you have any friends who are half as nice as you are, I would really love to see them." What a great way to let your clients know that you like them. They will leave flattered and become part of your word-of-mouth marketing team.
There are huge benefits to asking for referrals:
-Generating referrals is the least expensive form of
marketing you can do.
-Each client who refers new business sends an average
of five potential clients.
The people who love us or love our skin care practice become our client evangelists. The authors of Creating Customer Evangelists: How Loyal Customers Become a Volunteer Sales Force, write: "When clients are truly thrilled about their experience, they will usually become outspoken evangelists for your company. This group of satisfied believers can be converted into a potent marketing force to grow your universe of clients."i
Your client evangelists have a vast impact on how quickly you build your business. These people:
-Are loyal to you and return often.
-Are social influencers and connectors.
-Build buzz and sing your praises.
-Connect you to people you wouldn't otherwise meet.
-Give you new ideas for skin care products and services.
-Passionately recruit new clients for you.
-Sincerely believe in you.
The essence of these factors is that they feel loved and want you to feel it, too.
Following are other simple ways to increase the likelihood your clients will spread the word.
Appointment Calls. Teach your front desk to ask for referrals when clients book appointments. True, the person may never have been seen by you, but they picked you for a reason. You want to start them thinking. When a new client books, try something like this: "Great, Maria, I have you confirmed for your three o'clock facial on Monday. You are going to love your time with our lead esthetician, Susan. I do have a few other facial appointments open that day. Please let any of your friends or coworkers know we'd love to see them, too."
24-Hour Confirmation Calls. Apply the same concept when you confirm appointments. Be careful not to sound desperate or like your calendar is completely blank.
Business Cards as Referral Tools. Handing out your business cards is a great way to ask for referrals. Follow the rule that no client leaves your practice with fewer than three business cards. Present these when you thank the client for coming in. "Mary, it has been a pleasure working with you today. If you have any friends who are half as nice as you are, I'd love to see them. In fact, here's a business card for you and two for any of your friends."
WOW Calls. Especially for new clients, WOW calls are very important because they show you care. Ideally, you should schedule your call to new clients at least one or two days after a service and/or product sale. During this call, you can handle questions about future services or results of a product. This is a good time to encourage clients to reschedule.
Try a simple script in your follow-up call. "Hello Kathy, this is Linda at the Serenity Skin Care Center. I wanted to give you a call to see how you are doing after the facial treatment you had on Tuesday. How does your skin feel now that you've been using the Hydraplenish for a few days?"
Even a voice mail message will tell clients that you are concerned for their total satisfaction and will encourage them to speak with you about any skin care questions or concerns. Your clients will most likely be satisfied with their results and will be pleasantly surprised you took the time to check on their satisfaction.
Keith West-Harrison is CEO of Spa Enrichment Strategies in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He consults with top day spas, medical spas, and spa resorts, and is esthetician to many celebrities. Contact him at www.spaenrichmentstrategies.com or 800-884-1656.
i Creating Customer Evangelists: How Loyal Customers Become a Volunteer Sales Force, by Ben McConnell, Jackie Huba, and Guy Kawasaki(Kaplan Business, 2007).
