| It’s an underrated talent, yet problem-solving know-how helps you make clear decisions during uncertain times and in many cases becomes the key tool to help recover post-COVID business. To become a rock star at solving problems, use this easy to follow guide. 1. Ask yourself, why should I care about this problem? Write down a problem you are currently facing. Be as specific as you can be, for example, instead of “our client rebook rate is very low”, a better statement would be, “in 2019 we lost 25% of our customers due to poor follow up from our team, amounting to £85,000 of missed revenue in the salon”. You don’t want to define the problem so big that you become overwhelmed in your resources and ability to solve it, also resist the temptations of trying to solve prematurely by reacting to your emotions too quickly. 2. What does a successful salon business look like for you? Become clear what you want to achieve and key results to know when you’ve actually achieved. For example, your objective should focus on the goal, not a solution. “Make our salon website an intuitive for our clients” is an objective, but “Hire a designer” is a solution. The define measurable results so that you know you’ve achieved it, for example, your goal would look more like this “Get increased enquiries” is a little vague, but you’ll know when you “increase appointments by 30%”. 3. How can I solve this problem? It’s time to brainstorm the solutions. Firstly, start looking beyond the salon industry, often parallel industries outside of yours can provide proven solutions. If you are holding a group brainstorming meeting, select one person as a moderator, others as timekeeper, notetaker. Encourage everyone to be expansive and brave in their thinking and come up with both big and small ideas. Once you have a list of potential solutions, organize and define how you are going to get there (that’s your rock start strategy). For example, let’s say the objective is “Increase colour sale”, then list possible solutions as “upsell clients while having a hair done”. 4. How should I actually solve the problem? Start by prioritizing. High-impact and high effort solutions will have to be put into use first as they will bring you the most results. And focus on low impact and low priority solutions only when you have free time available. 5. How can I take action? Keep your plans simple. Use simple action trackers and daily checklists for each of your staff including yourself. Discuss and get everyone to agree to the new responsibilities and daily checklists. Track and monitor daily and make everyone accountable. Remember solving problems does not have to be complicated. Sometimes a simple smile and a service follow up call to a client is enough to win them for life. Happy Rock Star Problem Solving Tamara from Salon Punk PS. >> Discover Rock Start problem-solving in Salon Extreme 21 – ORDER HERE |
