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One of the biggest trends affecting beauty services providers (pureplay beauty and aesthetics), is the rise of the ‘skintellectual’ a new breed of hyper-educated client who has deep knowledge of skincare products and ingredients. This combined with the rise of online shopping for skincare has led to some clinic owner to struggle with the the new normal, watching retail becoming an ever decreasing part of their business and clients not getting the most out of their treatments (and so not coming back to clinic again and again). We need to change mindsets to embrace the new and creating new opportunities for in clinic retail.
Issues I’ve seen that can be addressed:
1) Process and the perception of ‘sales’ in clinic
Sales can be a dirty word, conjuring up images of pushiness and unhappy clients who feel they’ve been taken advantage of. Yes, poor sales techniques do make people feel like this, I came out of a facial recently to a pile of products bagged up at reception and was asked ‘shall i bag these up for you’ - at no point during my facial was I asked what products I used, what i was happy with, what my regimen was, if anything was missing - there was a huge disconnect between the experience and the final sales push (by the receptionist too)
How to fix this:
1) Make sales part of the therapist job and train, train, train them on sales. Set targets, create competition, give them the tools and motivation to succeed
2) Get them out of the old fashioned ‘sale at all costs’ mentality and teach them that selling skincare is selling benefits to your clients: longer lasting results, issue fixing, sell the benefits of the products, make the client feel as though the recommendations are bespoke to them and their needs. Don't just talk about ingredients, talk about benefits, why are antioxidant ingredients important? What do probiotics in skincare do
3) Education, education education - the therapists NEED to more than their clients, they NEED to be the product experts, not just in the product houses you carry but industry wide, you’re never going to make a sale if you don’t know your stuff. I met a skincare consultant a few months ago who hadn’t heard of ‘The Ordinary’ - one of the biggest brand launches of the last decade and she’d never heard about it. My takeout from that interaction was that she only knew about the products she sold and wanted me to buy. That’s not good enough, your team need to know their industry and what’s going on. Talk to your team about why you sell the products you do, inject some passion.
2) The Product Offering
Look at your product lines with fresh eyes, why are you carrying them? How do they support you? Do they invest in marketing to make people request these products and come to you specifically for them? Does your product house provide education, regular innovation, a point of difference from other brands, what is that? What does it matter?
One key thing for is matching your products to your clients and services, if your clients are older and looking for more potent interventions, carry lines with deliver this, if they want softer ‘more natural’ products, carry those
And finally on products themselves, look at who else locally carries the same line and then ask yourself how you differentiate from them, do you give clients a reason to come to you over them? Ask yourself all the difficult questions here.
3) The Retail Environment
Look at your retail area with fresh eyes, is it tempting to the buyer, are products clearly and attractively merchandised? Are you calling out brand and product benefits with point of sale - oh and by the way create your own point of sale, nothing makes a retail space look busy and incohesive than loads of brand made point of sale cluttering up your shelves. (if you want to know more about this, book in for your call for some advice)
How to make your retail environment work harder at driving sales:
Is your retail area well organised or a sea of boxes? Is it easy to navigate? Does it look enticing and attractive. get a fresh perspective on this. Is it spotlessly clean or are there dusty shelves? Dusty shelves are a big turn off!
I don’t like seeing retail arranged by brands, no one buys full brand ranges and you aren't SPACE NK!! Every brand has hero products for every type of concern. Instead, merchandise by role: cleansers / actives / serums / post treatment products etc. Add in some seasonality - it's currently really hot in London, give prime space and extra merchandising to relevant products: sunscreens, cooling masks, firming body products - mercahndise what clinets are looking for and are more likley to buy.
Have testers out and plenty of tissues and applicators - products are an experiential purchase, encourage clients (under staff guidance obviously) to see, feel and smell the products you want them to buy.
Add in skin analysis technology to your retail area to create a professional (and impossible to replicate online) bespoke skincare advisory opportunity
Make sure your merchandising enhances the client experience rather than detract from it. Get your staff involved with this too, get them to engage and connect with clients on the skincare journey.
I’d love to hear more about your thoughts / experiences and challenges around retailing.