Sales Know-how for Hair Products in the Age of Coronavirus

Sales Know-how for Hair Products in the Age of Coronavirus

The Pandemic brought about big changes in the beauty and hair industry in America. Compared to other industries, the beauty industry involves a lot of physical contacts between the customers and the service providers, so even if customers are willing to go to the retail stores and beauty salons, they certainly face serious inconvenience. In order to reduce physical contact, home care is an absolute trend, which significantly boosted the sales of self-care products. As many consumers work remotely, cosmetics and perfumes have stayed behind while nail care and coloring product have increased in sales remarkably. Recently, social media is booming with a large amount of videos such as “how to do at-home hair cut,” And hair grooming tools are in high demand as people decided to cut their hair at home. How should beauty supplies react to this phenomenon?

 

Safety first. You should warn the customers!

Post store policies related to COVID-19 where customers can see. You should let customers know that you are paying deserving attention to store hygiene and doing your best for the customer’s safety. For example, you can place hand sanitizers for customers at the entrance, and all employees on the retail floor should wear masks and gloves. Social distancing can be adequately imposed by limiting the number of customers inside the store at a time by respectfully requesting their cooperation. If any staff member shows COVID-19 symptoms or feels sick, you must place them in self-isolation. All hygiene rules in connection to the retail floor should be displayed in the store for all customers to see.

Start one-on-one services.

If you have a beauty salon inside your beauty supply store, you must pay attention to the layout of chairs. If you have chairs in a wig styling section, those chairs must also be placed more than 6-feet apart. In-store beauty salons are subject to the same regulations imposed on hair salons and barber shops by the state government. When selling wigs and hair products, all services for each customer inside the store should be handled by a single staff member unless there is an exceptional circumstance. One-on-one service is an implementation of social distancing.

 

Curbside pick-up should be available.

You want to post a sign that indicates availability of curbside pickup. If you have an online store, that would be more efficient, but even if you do not have one, you can always receive orders by phone and let customers pickup the goods on the curbside.  Based on the unique setup of each retail store, you can devise the most efficient method to implement a curbside pickup. Curbside pickup is a first step to the age of no-contact service during the coronavirus pandemic, and it is also a great customer service that can boost sales.

 

Make customers aware of safety guidelines for a wig trial.

Before customers try a wig, you must make sure they will follow the safety guidelines. While most guidelines were imposed before the pandemic, most customers have ignored them. As the current situation requires the utmost hygiene, you cannot emphasize the guidelines enough. Limiting the number of trials to up to three wigs and wearing a processing cap (a disposable plastic cap) should be the norm. You can require the use of hand sanitizer before a trial and provide gloves if desired. You should let them know those rules are strictly enforced for the public safety, and any violation will result in refusal of service.

 

Increase sales through video communication.

You can offer consultation through video communication. If a customer wants to check out wigs and extensions without dropping by a store, you may offer an online consultation. Video communication should not be difficult. Simply put, you are doing a video call with your customer. You only need a smartphone or a computer. Depending on the size of the store and the number of staff, you can have a designated employee for a video communication and curbside pickup for the best outcome.

 

Senior-only Shopping Hours

You can ensure the safety of senior citizens with senior-only hours. For the seniors who are especially vulnerable to the coronavirus, you can allot an exclusive time period to seniors to shop. For example, you can allow only senior customers from 9 to 10 am on every Tuesday morning, so they can come to the store and shop essential items.

 

 

Marketing BY JOO PARK
BNB Magazine JUL 2020 ©bnbmag.com