Many salons and spas are starting to embrace selling retail products online and offering the ultimate shopping experience for their customers. They find it quick and convenient, and the way their clients want to shop. If you’re not taking advantage of this powerful sales platform, your business is missing the opportunity to service your clients while increasing your potential earnings.
However, as wonderful as the opportunity is to sell online; there are still lingering doubts from many salon and spa owners. Below we’ve addressed some of the concerns:
Our retail sales are off. Why is that?
If you are not earning the retail sales that you should be for your salon or spa, you’re likely feeling the bite from online retailers. The reason is that more people, including your customers, are buying their beauty products online. The reality is that in the U.S., online retail sales will likely top $2.4 trillion in 2019, which is about 33% of the overall retail commerce. It’s probable that volume will nearly double by 2021. These statistics show that about a third of your clients are buying online and within a couple of years, between half and two thirds will be. Are you ready for that? Face it – if your clients don’t purchase products from you, they’ll look to Amazon, Ulta, eBay, and other retailers to buy what they want.
What can we do about it?
Simple – take back the sale! With your very own online retail store, your clients can make purchases when they find it convenient. For those who buy from other retailers, now you can provide them with a trusted source for their online purchases. Offering the option for online purchases is the best way for your salon or spa can keep professional beauty products truly professional. Even when they’re not in the salon, your customers appreciate the opportunity to shop locally.
My staff doesn’t step up to sell products now, why would they sell online?
Most of your staff should relate to the online buying experience, as they are likely online shoppers themselves. Even if they are not, they will at least appreciate the convenience for their clients. Your salon or spa team will also love the idea of offering other brands or specialty products that are not currently carried in the salon. The opportunity provides more offerings and allows each service provider to customize product recommendations to the many needs of their clients.
Our retail sales are great – why should we sell online?
Perhaps your salon never misses the opportunity to recommend products. As impressive as that is, you are still missing out on some of the sales. Why? Because people prefer shopping online because it’s convenient for them. In the time it took you to read this, you lost yet another sale! If only you had an online store – they could have purchased from you instead!
We have a fair amount of inventory – will selling online take away from our current sales?
Offering online sales is not meant to take the place of your current in-salon sales efforts – it’s intended to offset it. Think of it as an add-on service – that gloss treatment over the top of a client’s highlights or a treatment that adds value to your client’s regular cut and blow dry. You gain client appreciation AND a few extra dollars in the bank!
What if we don’t have the room for retail inventory?
If you are a smaller salon without the room for inventory, a solo stylist who never thought you could afford it or a larger salon that never saw the need, you are not alone. To provide the best possible service to your clients, you may find yourself making product recommendations and sending customers elsewhere to buy. With an online store, you can offer your customers professional products without having to carry any inventory. Your clients can order from your online store, and the product is delivered from us, your distributor, to the comfort of your client’s home. It’s so easy!
Why should our salon sell online?
It’s simple – your customers are buying online and will do so with or without you. In fact, they expect the convenience from you. Why would you want to miss out on the opportunity?
So, are you ready to start selling online?
