The Aspiring Stylist with Tracey Franklin

Morgan Franklin: Welcome to the
Aspiring Stylists Podcast with

Tracey Franklin. Where to begin,
grow and aspire to become the

best stylist you can be. Whether
you're thinking about becoming a

stylist opening a salon, or
developing your skills as an

experienced stylist the next
step of your beauty career

starts here. Each week we'll
discuss strategic ways to

design, plan and execute on
becoming a stylist that excels

behind the chair and above the
bottom line. Here's your host,

Tracey Franklin.

Tracey Franklin: Anytime you're
trying to build a clientele,

networking is essential. Getting
the word out who you are, what

you do, letting people know that
is so important. And networking

within your own salon can be one
of the most effective ways to

build your client base,
especially if your salon is also

a spa. So what this can look
like is a sort of exchange of

recommendations to clients based
on the services that you offer.

I talked to people about you and
the things that you're doing

that I feel like are incredible
areas that you're really

succeeding in services that you
really love performing. And I

share that same information for
you. And I'm hoping that you're

going to do the same thing when
those same clients are in your

care. And it doesn't just stop
with teammates, you know, it

works the same for clients. So
it's important to talk to your

clients about all of the
services that you provide, even

if you don't feel like it's a
fit for that particular client.

If I'm really crazy about
Brazilian blowouts and providing

that service to the community,
but I know that my client

already has healthy silky hair,
I know that maybe for her that's

not a fit, but maybe she has a
sister or an aunt that's really

struggling with frizz and
texture that they don't like.

And then knowing that I provide
that service is a great way for

your name to be mentioned, even
if you're not there, even if

it's not a service for that
particular guest. So if you're

new to the industry, or maybe
new to the area, or even if

you're working in an already
established salon, this inter

salon networking holds a ton of
opportunity. I mean, these

clients have already decided
that they love the salon,

they've already walked through
the doors, they are already a

guest there. So the hard work
has already been done. So now

it's just time to go fishing in
this pool. And this works

exceptionally well for
cancellations. So the

conversation is simple. You've
had a last minute opportunity

come up and you ask the
esthetician or the nail tech

that you worked with, to mention
this availability to their

guests. I mean, even a blowout
or a conditioning treatment, or

a smaller service like that can
really help it's a great add on

to any spa service. Imagine
going and getting this

incredible facial, you're super
relaxed, but now your hair is an

absolute mess. But luckily,
there's a stylist available

downstairs that can do an
incredible blowout for you. That

to me, is great customer care
and something that I'm

interested in. So what does
internal networking within your

salon look like? If you work in
a salon with only hairstylist

this can be a little bit
trickier, but it is not

impossible. You need to know
what sets you apart. Maybe you

offer a unique service or you
have a special certification

that other stylist in the salon
don't have it. So it's important

that the team knows that. So
maybe you're thinking, hey, you

know what the other stylists are
not going to like this, they're

going to think I'm trying to
steal their clients. Well,

hopefully you vetted the salon
that you work at well before you

took the position. And you know
that this isn't the case. But

let's be honest, not everyone
can handle a little healthy

competition. And we should be
sensitive to people who just

aren't as confident as they
could be. So I've either always

owned or managed or worked at
both a Salon and Day Spa, mostly

because I really believe in this
networking concept. I've seen it

work time and time again. When I
first opened locks, I started

with two hairstylist, two nail
techs and two spa personnel. We

all started over together, we
all came from the same salon.

And we functioned as a team and
we built each other up and this

is how it can and should be
done. Collaboration and shared

knowledge benefits everyone in
the salon and my salon. We'd

love to share knowledge we come
back from classes and we can't

wait to show each other our cool
new tricks. I really can't

imagine holding space for anyone
who didn't love it who didn't

see the benefits of it. We have
to remember the simple truth

that there is enough for all of
us. And when one of us when we

all win in the salon world we're
basically providing the same

services yes We all have
different specialties in some

certifications, but we're all
cutting, we're all coloring,

we're all doing extensions,
we're all doing the same type of

work. So when we think about all
of the skills we developed, we

must remember that we also
learned these skills from

someone who learned them from
someone, and so forth, and so

on. So all of us growing and all
of us sharing elevates our

industry as a whole. And that is
what we should all want. Let's

talk about effective ways to
start building relationships

with some of the other stylists
in the salon. Well, it's

important that we recognize who
these people are in our lives,

we will be spending more time
with them than we spend with our

own families on some days and
having a good rapport with them

will make all the difference in
the joy that we experience at

work, not vibing with your
teammates creates tension and

anxiety. And honestly, there's
just no room for it in such a

fun industry. One way to start
building these relationships is

to simply make yourself
available for conversation. Now,

if you're an outgoing person,
this will be a breeze you love

conversation, right? So if
you're a more introverted

person, you may find this a
little bit harder, but it's

really important that you still
make the effort. It can be as

easy as hanging out in the break
room during lunch or staying a

little late to help your
teammates close up. At my salon,

we love after our events, we
have dinners, holiday

celebrations, we go to each
other's weddings and baby

showers just to name a few. And
I feel like the real bonding

takes place when we are out of
the salon element. And we're

able to just focus on this
engagement with one another. The

most successful people in my
salon are the ones that immerse

themselves in the salon culture
and really lean into the common

goal that we all have, which is
growth. So whose responsibility

is it to facilitate these
networking events? In my

opinion, it's a little bit of
both some members of the team

will just click they'll become
fast friends. And before you

know what they're lunching
together and making plans to go

out after work, it just happens
naturally. It's also important

that the team convenes as a
group and it's more likely that

the salon leadership is going to
make something like that happen.

Having a strong support system
within your salon really helps

build up the team and improve
the working environment. For all

of us. having a bad day is
inevitable, right? We've all had

um, you know the type of morning
where you step out of bed into a

puddle of cat vomit, stumbled to
the bathroom and hit your funny

bone on the scene. Not funny at
all. You know, you head to the

kitchen only to realize you're
out of coffee. So you grab your

keys, and you realize you left a
light on your in your car. And

now your battery's dead, and
you're not going to get coffee

at all. So is that just me? No,
I didn't think so. So by the

time you get to work, it's
already been a day, right? Like,

don't look at me. But having a
strong support system, when you

walk in those salon doors
changes everything. Soon, you're

laughing about that ridiculous
morning you've had and you're

feeling lighter, and you're
ready to go slay the day.

Working with the right tribe of
people in a loving and uplifting

environment makes everything
better. From the general mood of

the day to the networking
opportunities, functioning as a

team is essential. So many times
getting what we want is just a

matter of asking. So ask if I'm
trying to grow my book, or if

I'm trying to fill a
cancellation spot, I need to let

my team know that if I'm
struggling with a particular

skill set, then I need to feel
comfortable going to one of the

more seasoned stylist in the
salon and asking for help. Any

front desk personnel is already
aware of any cancellations, and

they're going to do what they
can. But letting the team know

as well can really help. They
are having different

conversations with different
people. And the chances of your

name getting brought up in these
conversations is a lot greater

if you've expressed your
intentions and you've asked for

that help. This kind of support
goes beyond just billing a spot.

It's also emotional support. In
a perfect world, we would all

support one another and there
would be no jealousy or

cattiness and I really do try my
best to create an inclusive and

equal opportunistic environment
for my team. But we are all

human and it is not a perfect
world. So we have to learn to

manage these emotions. And
remember that no one can take

what's meant for us. And if
we're all showing up strong for

our team and our clients, then
we are doing our best and our

best is all that we can really
ask for being part of a thriving

team really is a beautiful
thing. It's give and it's take.

So make sure that you're making
more deposits than withdrawals.

Morgan Franklin: Thank you for
joining us on this episode of

anytime soon. The Aspiring
Stylist Podcast with Tracey

Franklin. If you enjoyed
listening and you want to hear

more, make sure you subscribe on
Apple Podcast, Spotify or

wherever you find your podcasts.

The Aspiring Stylist Podcast
with Tracey Franklin is a Morgan

Franklin Production. Today's
episode was written and produced

by Morgan Franklin editing and
post-production by Mike

Franklin. Want to find out more
about Tracey and the Aspiring

Barber and Beauty Academy go to
aspirebarberandbeauty.com