Meet, Train, and Elevate: 4 Training Tips from ZING Coach Marie Drever

This article was published in Professional Beauty Jan 2018.

Unless you invest the time today to train your team to be a cut above the rest, you’ll slip behind. By training them up, you’ll build a successful salon that delivers the rewards you deserve.

As an owner, you have so many competing demands. Yet, to have a thriving salon or spa, you need to keep all the balls in the air. A big part of that is teaching, training, and guiding your team to be the best version of themselves. Great teams are found on two things: truth and training.

Start working on my four must-do meeting and training approaches every salon owner should be putting into practice and soon you’ll find your team is freshly focused, productive, and motivated to help you reach your business goals.

1. Schedule weekly meetings

Regular weekly meetings will change the way your team works. If you do nothing else, this routine alone will set you up for an ultra-organised salon where everyone understands your expectations.

The key is scheduling. Block out time for weekly meetings in your salon, for example, first thing every Friday morning for 20 minutes, before the first clients walk through the door.

All you need is that 20 minutes – make it fun and meaningful, and prepare an agenda so everyone knows you mean business. Choose one topic to focus on, have some relevant notes handy and print out engaging hand-outs ahead of time. Consider asking your team to take turns conducting part of the meeting.

Tell your team how much you value their participation and input. Tell them again. Spotlight team members who have been stepping up. Be generous. Be specific. Praise all wins, big or small, and your team will feel appreciated and valued.

Set the scene: at your first weekly meeting explain your goals and expectations and run through your new monthly training plan (see #4 below).

When you’re done, pin up the meeting’s minutes in the lunchroom for all to see.

If you’re worried about running out of discussion topics, browse these ideas:

• Your latest product or service offering.
• Prep/plan for an upcoming Saturday bridal party booking.
• Easter hours.
• Planning a VIP event in your salon.
• Team uniforms.
• Targets.
• Sales reports.
• Product information.
• Upcoming promotions.
• New marketing strategies.
• How to handle complaints .

That will keep you going for a while. Now get cracking!

2. Lock-in one-to-one meetings

Each week, give each of your team members 15 minutes of your clear and undivided attention. You’ll be astonished by what unfolds. For best results, escape your salon or spa to chat in a nearby café. The $4 coffee is a wise investment in your team member (and your business).

Kick-off your one-to-one meeting with an open question: How can I help you? What are you working on at the moment?
Use the opportunity to discuss issues and reinforce your expectations, especially the three Rs: Requests, Retailing, and Rebookings.

Employees want (and need) direction. They look up to you as leader to provide clarity and boundaries.

For top results, follow my meeting rules:

• Don’t presume anything. Find out.
• Listen.
• Agree on a plan and a timeframe.
• Praise any growth, no matter how small.
• Continue one-to-ones, even when it seems you have nothing to discuss.
• Keep notes so you know where you left off.

3. Line up morning strategy meetings

Plan and organise the day before it gets away from you. Use the time to set priorities, focus energy and ensure everyone is working towards the same goals today.

Agree on expected outcomes for the day, areas such as:

• Individual KPIs, collective targets and plans to reach them.
• Ongoing and upcoming promotions.
• Future events in-salon.
• A new service or product to mention to clients.

By rocking a morning strategy session, you can change your day and easily turn your column from $300 to $700 for the day. Multiply that across your team and you’re winning big-time!

4. Map out monthly training

In the diary, block out once-a-month dates for team training. For example, the third Thursday of each month from 1-3 pm. Not just this month – every month, from January right through to December, a whole year in advance. That’s right! Training your team takes year-round planning and consistency.

Allocate training topics to your dates and you’ve created your salon or spa’s training calendar. Print out a copy for every team member and pin one on the wall.

Need some inspiration for training topics? Try these:

• Product knowledge, with your skin or product companies on board.
• Advanced skin treatments.
• Salon culture.
• Skin analysis.
• Ageing skin client care and comfort during a massage.
• Prepping a treatment room.
• Laser or injectables update.

Monthly training is all about sharing the load. Invite your team members to take turns sharing their knowledge, skills and professional techniques with the whole team. You’ll learn amazing things from one another. And you’re encouraging your team to take ownership of their role – an incredibly powerful driver of culture in your business.

“I think education is power. I think that being able to communicate with people is power. One of my main goals on the planet is to encourage people to empower themselves.” – Oprah Winfrey

You owe it to your team, to your business and to yourself to make meetings and training sessions mandatory for your team.

Think of it this way: just one hour of meeting time each week accumulates to 52 solid hours of training and engagement over a 12-month period.

Imagine the difference that could make to your salon or spa business!