Latest / Salon Success Secrets — The podcast for salon owners who are done hustling harder and ready to break their revenue ceiling. / Creative Career Fair Magic: How to Have the Best Stylists Knocking Down Your Door

Transcript

Creative Career Fair Magic: How to Have the Best Stylists Knocking Down Your Door · Salon Success Secrets — The podcast for salon owners who are done hustling harder and ready to break their revenue ceiling.

• 0:33
  Speaker 1: Welcome to today's episode, where we will be diving into how to make your salon stand out at the career fairs and attract top stylists to your door.
• 0:44
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 0:44
  Speaker 2: So imagine this you know, everybody's been to a career fair before.
• 0:48
  Speaker 2: They're usually hosted a lot of times.
• 0:49
  Speaker 2: We see in our area, especially in the fall, and you have this big table set up and you see all these amazing students running to your table wanting to learn more.
• 0:59
  Speaker 2: And so you know, if you want to create that vision this is exactly what we're going to dive into.
• 1:03
  Speaker 2: Do is like how can you really get creative for a career fair?
• 1:06
  Speaker 2: That so that you create that magic?
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: I love that.
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: So today we're going to talk about creative strategies to engage with students.
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: You know fun ideas to grab their attention and ways to showcase your salon as the dream place to work.
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: And so let's talk about, first of all, like, why should you even go to career fairs?
• 1:28
  Speaker 2: And you know, a lot of times I've seen this happen at career fairs and Ellen's maybe you have as well as, like, you'll be at a career fair and you see the students like hopping around to every table and then all of a sudden, as the salon starts to speak, they just almost like word vomit exactly what they're going to offer the student, and the student's like, oh yeah, it's really good, but they've heard that same spiel like 10 other times, so they're like really not even present.
• 1:54
  Speaker 2: And so, like, the reason we want to talk about, like how can you create or craft a incredible table or career fair is so that when students come over, like you're able to create that connection right away.
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: And that's that's that's important because, like, when you be able to create that connection right away throughout their journey in hair school, you become top of mind for them.
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: So when I'm thinking, oh yeah, it's time for me to start looking for that job, it's time for me to start crafting that career.
• 2:19
  Speaker 2: You know salon ABC.
• 2:19
  Speaker 2: I remember that connection point I made with them at the career fair.
• 2:22
  Speaker 2: I really want to be sure I check them out.
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I love that Because you know it is so funny.
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: I've definitely experienced that same thing and it's like everyone is just kind of shut down when they walk into that environment.
• 2:35
  Speaker 1: It's like, oh my gosh, what is going on?
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: You know there's just all this stuff happening and so, truly, like when you're thinking about setting up your booth, you know one of the first things that you want to do is think about like, okay, how do we set up a booth to attract them over to us?
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: Because then when they get to us, we're going to have the next steps for that too.
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: But you know, when you're, when you're thinking about you know, setting up that that booth, um, you know, decorate it like almost like it reflects the personality of your salon.
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: You know, like you really want to make it visually inviting.
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: You know whether you have like a banner or some salon photos or, like you know, maybe you have like a recruiting video or some sort of.
• 3:14
  Speaker 1: You know some way that they can see, hey, what would it look like?
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: What do the other stylists look like there?
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: You know, and definitely, you know, a few people from the team can go that really helps showcase.
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: You know what it looks like, because people ultimately want to work with people that they either, you know, feel like they're going to fit in or that they aspire to be like, and so you know when you can really reflect the personality of the people working inside of your company, um, you know, and and take people who are really high relationship builders, um, because that's just going to be a natural fit for them to be at a career fair and want to get to know somebody else, see what's important to them, and you know it's going to just help attract even more of the right people to your booth.
• 3:57
  Speaker 2: Yeah, cause it would be kind of awkward, like if you were setting up a booth and your aesthetic is more modern but at your table you set it up as maybe more rustic nothing wrong with that but, like, really start to help that student paint the picture of what it would look like when they walk into your doors.
• 4:12
  Speaker 2: Or using your brand colors.
• 4:13
  Speaker 2: Like Lindsay was saying, do you have your logo?
• 4:16
  Speaker 2: And I think another important aspect of it too is to have something that can be interactive.
• 4:20
  Speaker 2: You know people love to play games and so, like you know, we've seen things such as like a spinning wheel.
• 4:25
  Speaker 2: I'm kind of done on over the spinning wheel, though, but, like you know, I've seen people where you can, like punch a cup and win a prize, like just anything that you can do to, you know, create that connection, interaction with someone.
• 4:38
  Speaker 2: One time we've done actual style strategies for the students.
• 4:41
  Speaker 2: So, you know, we help diagnose if they're spring, summer, fall or autumn, which is part of our consultation process, and so, like that has been a big hit.
• 4:51
  Speaker 2: The last career fair we were at, like, we had students lined up to get their skin tone analysis and so anything that you can do that's going to enroll them to kind of get a taste of what it would be like to be a service provider and a client at the salon helps them to see.
• 5:06
  Speaker 2: Wait, I can see myself being here.
• 5:07
  Speaker 2: This sounds like the perfect fit for me.
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: Yeah, and if you're thinking what is a style strategy, if you're one of our members, you definitely know what style strategy is and how to properly diagnose people.
• 5:20
  Speaker 1: But if you're not, you know think of creative ways like skin, you know, just letting them know what their face shape is.
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: That's a thing that a lot of people inside of cosmetology school struggle with.
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: You know, and that can you know.
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: You could even just say like, hey, with your face shape, like these would be some complimentary um colors or cuts for you, um, even doing, you know, a skincare analysis for them would be great.
• 5:48
  Speaker 1: But um, truly, if you that style strategy like unlocked so many things inside of a salon.
• 5:50
  Speaker 1: So if you want to learn more about that, definitely feel free to reach out to us.
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: Hello at the phdprogramcom or hello at salonbusinessschoolcom and we can tell you a little bit about it.
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: And we do have an amazing course that really talks about you know how do you dive in deep and really set up your team for success on that.
• 6:07
  Speaker 1: But you know, thinking of ways that you can stand out, because everybody, like Jen mentioned earlier, is just going to be word vomiting on people what they have to offer and, you know, not really thinking about like okay, how can we make this fun?
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: You know we always like to do some sort of like a little giveaway.
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: You know whether it's in the past we've done things like we did cake pops one time and we said, pop in for a great career.
• 6:30
  Speaker 1: Or we gave a hundred grand bars and said come earn your first hundred grand with us.
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: You know you can do something like that.
• 6:41
  Speaker 1: Or, jen, you just did some really cool stuff at the last career fair that you guys went to.
• 6:44
  Speaker 2: Can you tell everybody about that?
• 6:45
  Speaker 2: Yeah, we did hats off to a great career.
• 6:47
  Speaker 2: So we were able to get some hats on Alibaba that were branded and cause like right now you're seeing a lot of the trucker hats.
• 6:52
  Speaker 2: So we're trying to also, like when we're creating a career for your table, we're always looking also at what's in trend and so being able to present that at your table kind of draws people in.
• 7:01
  Speaker 2: So we did hats off to a great career.
• 7:03
  Speaker 2: We also did where they were able to create their custom swag bag.
• 7:07
  Speaker 2: So the same thing like you can get some cool stuff on Timu or Alibaba that's really cost effective.
• 7:12
  Speaker 2: You just kind of have to plan ahead.
• 7:14
  Speaker 2: But like you can get clips, you can get combs, you can get like have your distributor give you some samples and then have like a mini consultation with a service provider and ask them hey, like what's your greatest hair challenges right now?
• 7:25
  Speaker 2: And help them create their personalized swag bag.
• 7:28
  Speaker 2: And so that way it makes them feel extra special, because it's not just everyone getting the same swag bag.
• 7:33
  Speaker 2: It's actually a personalized touch and I think when people feel that personalized touch, it helps to create more connection with them too.
• 7:41
  Speaker 1: So amazing.
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: Yes, I love that.
• 7:43
  Speaker 1: And so once you've had those elements that kind of attract them into your booth, you know then the next thing would be to really just get clear about what it is that they are looking for in their potential salon home.
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: You know, because they're going to go to every other booth and they're just going to start telling them stuff and you know they don't even know what's important to them.
• 8:03
  Speaker 1: So it would be like if a guest came in to your chair and you know you just started saying you know you this, this, this and that, and like you haven't asked them any questions or gotten to know them or created that connection.
• 8:16
  Speaker 1: And so once you've done all these fun things inside of your booth, now the person has come over, now it's time to create connections.
• 8:24
  Speaker 1: So don't just start off telling them about you get to know them.
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: So ask them, you know, a couple of questions like what made you choose the beauty industry?
• 8:33
  Speaker 1: You know what's your favorite thing that you've done in school so far or that you're learning about, and then what are you looking for in a salon home or in in a career?
• 8:44
  Speaker 1: So so really setting that up, to ask them what's most important to them before you dive into anything about you, because, first of all, they're not going to trust you until you've started to kind of develop that relationship with them and started to create some connections.
• 9:01
  Speaker 1: So then, whatever they say, if they're like hey, you know, education is one of the most most important things to me Awesome.
• 9:08
  Speaker 1: Well, you know, I'm excited to tell you about the education that we offer at Salon ABC.
• 9:14
  Speaker 1: We're proud to have, you know, some of the best education in all of the world.
• 9:19
  Speaker 1: And you know, just letting them know some things about that and then asking them, you know, is there anything else that's important to you?
• 9:25
  Speaker 1: And then following up with you know, just letting them know some things about that and then asking them, you know, is there anything else that's important to you?
• 9:26
  Speaker 1: And then following up with you know what it is that your salon offers and how that could.
• 9:31
  Speaker 1: You know how it could be a win win for both of you in that situation.
• 9:37
  Speaker 2: You know, I love that you said that because it reminds me like one thing we always like to ask is because we ask it for our clients too is like, hey, we like to start on a positive note.
• 9:44
  Speaker 2: What's been the best part of your day?
• 9:51
  Speaker 2: And we've had actual students say, well, nothing good ever happens in my life, and so it just it's a huge opportunity for us as well to say like they're probably a good person, they're just not going to be the right match for us, because we do have cultivate that positivity in our culture and it's important to us, and so sometimes it's hard to teach that.
• 10:03
  Speaker 2: So I think, like, getting to know someone will help.
• 10:05
  Speaker 2: You know, hey, I think this person could have potential with us.
• 10:08
  Speaker 2: Or you know what?
• 10:09
  Speaker 2: I know that another salon is going to serve them well.
• 10:14
  Speaker 1: That is so good.
• 10:15
  Speaker 1: And, um, you know, it's like putting them in that red, yellow or green light category, like looking for, you know, people who are yellow lights and above.
• 10:24
  Speaker 1: You know if they're, if it takes them just a minute to decide, hey, that's okay.
• 10:28
  Speaker 1: You know, as long as you know somebody can come up with something great, because you know you can have one bad thing happen to you but it doesn't have to ruin your whole day.
• 10:35
  Speaker 1: And if that's, you know how people choose to live their life, like Jen said, doesn't make them a bad person.
• 10:41
  Speaker 1: Just, probably, you know you won't get the traction inside of your company that you're looking for, and so once you've kind of learned about them, then you can tell them a little bit about yourself.
• 10:51
  Speaker 1: You know, let them know some of the perks that you offer, what it looks like to create a career with you.
• 10:58
  Speaker 1: You know, I think one of the things that we love to talk about because, you know, I think with Instagram and so many social media things like, there's a lot of people portraying that the industry looks a certain way, but it might actually be a different way when they, you know, first get out of school.
• 11:14
  Speaker 1: Is, you know, specifically around, like scheduling, for example, because on Instagram they'll get on and be like you know, find somebody.
• 11:20
  Speaker 1: That's like.
• 11:20
  Speaker 1: You know, I do three balayages a week and I work, you know, for just a couple hours and you know I charge a million dollars and so my life is so easy peasy.
• 11:31
  Speaker 1: But in reality, like we know what it takes to create a career inside of this, inside of the beauty industry, and so letting them know like, hey, you know, as part of our career path, we don't want you to work evenings and weekends forever.
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: We want to create so much demand on your time that you can have freedom with your schedule, you know, and so maybe that looks like you want to work Monday through Thursday, 830 to 230.
• 11:53
  Speaker 1: And that's an opportunity inside of our salon company and we have proven strategies to show you how to get there.
• 11:58
  Speaker 1: And so truly we want this to be a long, lasting career where people earn six figures and, you know, retire millionaires and all of these wonderful things.
• 12:10
  Speaker 1: And we know how to do it because we've created it before.
• 12:12
  Speaker 1: So if that's something that you're looking for, you know we'd love to set up, you know, a shadow opportunity or something.
• 12:19
  Speaker 1: At that point you can start to kind of invite people into your space.
• 12:23
  Speaker 2: Yeah, and I love that you mentioned that inviting them into your space because, like, after the career fair, is really when the connection and relationship begins as well.
• 12:30
  Speaker 2: And so, like you know Lindsay mentioned this earlier is making sure that you have some way that you're collecting their information, their name, their email, their phone number, their Instagram handle, their expected graduation date and so, like that, you can really start to build that relationship.
• 12:45
  Speaker 2: Their birthday like you could send them a birthday card, that you can really start to build that relationship.
• 12:47
  Speaker 2: Their birthday like you could send them a birthday card.
• 12:49
  Speaker 2: You could, you know, follow them on Instagram after the career fair to say, you know, cheers to a successful week ahead.
• 12:54
  Speaker 2: May all the clients in your chair love their hair this week.
• 12:58
  Speaker 2: And so I think you do have to continue that connection point beyond just having the career fair, because in my opinion, the career fair is just that first connection point.
• 13:13
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I love that and I agree.
• 13:13
  Speaker 1: That is where you start that relationship building process.
• 13:15
  Speaker 1: So when you have all that information you have their birthday, all of those different things then you can kind of come up with a game plan.
• 13:18
  Speaker 1: Like, hey, you met a couple of yellow and green light people and so you really want to nurture that relationship, so what's the plan going to be?
• 13:25
  Speaker 1: So that when it comes time for graduation, you are top of mind for them, like there's nobody else, even that's on their radar.
• 13:32
  Speaker 1: They're not even touching them, you know.
• 13:34
  Speaker 1: And so I think you know there's several different fun things that you can do.
• 13:39
  Speaker 1: You can set up some sort of an email campaign to send the people that you really enjoy.
• 13:44
  Speaker 1: You know, one of the first things that you're going to want to do is invite them in for some sort of a shadow opportunity, and so you know that could look like hey, come in for a complimentary brow wax or blow out or whatever it is.
• 13:56
  Speaker 1: You just want them to experience what it's like to be a guest inside of your salon.
• 13:59
  Speaker 1: You know, give them that diagnosis with this style strategy treat them exactly like you would a new guest, give them a tour of your company, introduce them to service providers that are working that day, give them a little map of where everybody's working at, what services they'll see taking place.
• 14:15
  Speaker 1: And then, you know, have a person you know whether it's on your guest experience team or a newer stylist on your team that can kind of be that connection point for them, just to make sure that they're you know, after their service experience, that they are enjoying their time with your salon.
• 14:31
  Speaker 1: You know, and then I think beyond, you know once, once they've done something like that, creating some emails, um, that really engage with them, you know you could send them like a fun day in the life of a stylist at your salon company so that they can really get connected to like hey, what would it look like to be a team member here?
• 14:48
  Speaker 1: What are people experiencing and can I see myself there?
• 14:53
  Speaker 2: Yes, awesome, all right, so we um.
• 14:56
  Speaker 2: Thank you so much for listening and tuning in today.
• 14:59
  Speaker 2: If you know some other salon owner buddies that would get as much out of this podcast as you did, please feel free to share it, and we invite you to get creative.
• 15:08
  Speaker 2: Try implementing one or more of these creative ideas that we shared with you today, and, before you know it, you're going to have the top service providers knocking at your door.