Effective interaction with clients is one of the key factors that determines not only the reputation but also the financial condition of any beauty salon. Interaction should be aimed at establishing trusting relationships, which contributes not only to regular visits but also to additional sales, recommendations, and an increase in the client base.
Yulia Pinchuk, who manages two top Kyiv beauty salons, La Fleur and Fluffy, has developed her own strategies over the years that allow her to effectively manage salons and increase profitability. In this article, Yulia Pinchuk will share her experience and methods that helped her achieve high results in managing and interacting with clients.
The Main Problems of Modern Beauty Salons in the US and Ukraine
Despite the diversity of cultural characteristics, beauty salons in the US and Ukraine face similar challenges. Yulia Pinchuk, working in the beauty industry in Kyiv, faced the same problems that salon owners in the US experience.
Changing Customer Habits and Frequency of Visits
According to Statista (2024), in the US, about 41% of women visit salons once a month, 31% once every two weeks, and 20% once every two months. Although the demand for salon services is growing, clients are becoming more demanding. In recent years, there has been a tendency to decrease the frequency of visits, and clients are becoming more selective in choosing services and masters.
Yulia Pinchuk noted in her work that in Ukraine, the client’s approach to beauty has also changed: people began to demand higher quality services and safety procedures, which led to a decrease in demand for mass and cheap offers. In such conditions, salons must be able to provide unique and high-quality services in order to retain clients.
Lack of Qualified Personnel
In both countries, the shortage of qualified specialists is one of the most serious problems. In the US, many masters go freelance, which complicates the search for permanent employees. In Ukraine, the problem is aggravated by the migration of masters abroad and the insufficient level of training among young specialists.
Yulia Pinchuk faced a shortage of experienced specialists in practice, which forced her to work on creating internal training programs and mentoring systems in her salons. These programs helped improve the quality of the team’s work, as well as minimize the problem of staff turnover.
Rising Operating Costs
Increasing the cost of rent, utilities, and consumables is a global problem for all salons, regardless of their location. In Ukraine, economic fluctuations and inflation have become additional factors. This leads to an increase in prices for services, which in turn can reduce customer loyalty.
Yulia Pinchuk has implemented a consumables optimization system and automated accounting systems in her salons, which has significantly reduced costs. This also included the use of expense management software, which allowed expenses to be monitored in real time and adjusted.
High Competition and the Need to Differentiate
The beauty services market in major cities in both the US and Ukraine is oversaturated. Beauty salons offer similar services, and only those who can stand out from the competition will be successful.
To stand out, Yulia Pinchuk focused on personalized service, offering unique services, and introducing innovative procedures. In the US, this approach is actively used in chain salons, offering unique styling services in a comfortable and cozy space.
Technological Changes and Digitalization
Modern clients expect convenience and speed when booking services. If a salon does not offer online booking, mobile applications, or CRM systems, this can lead to the loss of clients who are looking for convenience and flexibility.
Yulia Pinchuk has implemented mobile applications for booking services in her salons, as well as CRM systems, to improve the quality of customer service. These technologies help salons stay one step ahead and provide clients with convenient and personalized services.
Strategies for Increasing Customer Engagement and Revenue
In order to improve the level of service and increase the profitability of the salon, Yuliia Pinchuk suggests using modern strategies tested in her management practice.
Implementation of Loyalty Programs
Loyalty programs are one of the most effective methods of retaining customers.
Research shows that customers participating in loyalty programs are motivated to spend 67% more compared to regular visitors.
In the US, cumulative discounts, bonus programs, and VIP service for regular customers are now popular. The Ukrainian experience of Yulia Pinchuk shows that the most effective systems can be “bring a friend,” gift certificates, and discounts for birthdays and international holidays.
For example, in the La Fleur salon, the loyalty program increased repeat visits by 35% per year.
Using CRM Systems to Personalize Service
Salons using CRM systems increase customer retention by 15-20%. That is why, after the implementation of CRM in the Fluffy salon, the average bill increased by 18% thanks to personalized offers.
CRM capabilities can make the work of beauty salons in the US more optimized and less resource-intensive because they are able to send reminders about visits, offer personalized recommendations for services, and also perform automatic analysis of client preferences based on past experience and the client’s appearance (skin type, hair color, etc.).
Active Presence on Social Networks
73% of millennials find beauty specialists through social networks: Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook are the main platforms for promoting beauty salons. According to Yulia Pinchuk, salon managers should pay attention to SMM promotion. Hiring professional specialists from this field will allow you to create unique and interesting content to promote the salon and attract clients through Reels, Shorts, and other video formats.
This will help create a strong reputation for the salon, inspire trust and interest from clients, and will also help in the future by attracting new high-level specialists to work in your salon.
Staff Training and Development
Companies that invest in employee training note a 30% increase in customer satisfaction.
In Ukraine, in order to achieve better results and learn new beauty techniques, cooperation with international schools and brands is often practiced. In the US, it will also be useful to study new techniques of manicure, coloring, and facial and body care that are practiced in top salons around the world.
Providing Additional Services and Products
Selling professional cosmetics for home care increases the salon’s income by 10-15%. This can be a win-win strategy in many ways. Firstly, clients will receive professional care products that they will not be able to buy in the mass market, and this will maintain their well-groomed appearance and emotional satisfaction until their next visit to the salon.
Secondly, this approach will allow the salon to increase its prestige: cooperation with brands and distribution of high-quality, proven cosmetics always increases the trust of both clients and potential partners and employees. Finally, this allows you to increase the average bill of the salon. In Fluffy, selling additional services and cosmetics increased the average bill by 22%.
Feedback and Working with Reviews
Salons that work with feedback increase customer loyalty by 25%. Yulia Pinchuk believes that properly built communication reduces the number of complaints and increases the authority of the salon among clients.
To achieve high efficiency of the salon, it is worth hiring an administrator or manager who will work with both positive and negative reviews on Google, Yelp or other aggregators and offer solutions to any problems that people have.
At La Fleur, review analysis helped reduce the number of complaints by 40% and improve the quality of the service provided.
Conclusion
The strategies presented in this article allow not only to reduce costs but also to improve the quality of service, customer loyalty, and profits in a beauty salon.
In the US, the beauty industry remains one of the most profitable, but its successful development depends on competent management. The approaches developed by Yulia Pinchuk in Kyiv can be adapted for the American market and used by both small salons and large chains.
