Lisa Cochran, owner of The Studio/Studio R3

When Lisa Cochran, owner of The Studio in Hattiesburg, and Studio R3 in Laurel, Mississippi, found her team falling into a rut when it came to delivering Aveda rituals to clients, she decided it was time for a change.

“We found we were getting too good at doing hand massages,” she says. “And that isn’t always what the client wants.”

Cochran also wanted her team to become more consistent in offering value-added services and educating clients on the Pure Privilege℠ program. The Studio and Studio R3 operate on team-based pay, a system that works well, and Cochran wanted to build upon that team mentality.

“So I attended Beauty Basics at Neill with some team members,” she says. “The goal was to learn something that could build the entire team up for success and expand productivity across the book.”

“By spreading productivity evenly, there’s no burnout for people who are too busy and no boredom for those with not enough to do,” she adds.

The Upsell Pad

The solution was as simple as a pad of paper. But not just any paper. The Upsell Pad from Imaginal Marketing was custom designed for The Studio/Studio R3 with Cochran’s input.

When a guest visits the salon, the guest care team member hands them a sheet from the Upsell Pad that asks them which complimentary Aveda ritual they’d like to receive, what added-value service they’re interested in, and if they are a member of Pure Privilege℠.

“The Upsell sheet goes from guest care to client to stylist, so when the stylist is doing the consultation, they can talk to guests about possible add-on services they’re interested in,” Cochran says.

Add-on services are only $35 (or less) and 10 minutes. Cochran also added a short description of each service on the back of the sheet, so the client (or a new stylist) has a quick reference.

“When a stylist is doing the consultation, they can talk to the guest about the added-value services and let them know another stylist may do the service, which helps grow newer team members.”

The Results

Since launching the Upsell Pad on May 6, 2019, The Studio/Studio R3 has generated 2,145 add-on services and $40,451—an average of $18.85 per ticket.

They’ve also gotten 138 Pure Privilege℠ enrollments and retention and retail numbers remain strong (retail is $66,000 ahead of last year’s numbers).

Clients love choosing their Aveda ritual at each visit, and Cochran and her team have learned which add-on services are most popular.

“The Botanical Therapy Treatments are our biggest, easiest upsell,” Cochran says. “Hair color lasts longer, it doesn’t fade, and the Botanical Treatments are easy to do at the bowl with a head massage—a win for the guest and the stylist.”

Photo Source: Aveda Flickr

Cochran also looks at services from the Pure Privilege℠ standpoint and lets clients know when they can get double or triple points for booking certain services.

“We show them how to work the numbers and really take advantage of the points,” she says.

The guests aren’t the only ones benefiting from upsells—Cochran’s team is also incentivized.

“We created a bonus structure around this for stylists and the guest care team,” she says. “Building relationships has created great reviews on our team. Training them with scripts and role-playing has provided systems for them to succeed and for the whole salon to benefit.”

Training the Team

Cochran also got tips on training her team at the Beauty Basics class, where she and her team members learned how to use Qnity’s 9 Grid tool for value-added services.

“The 9 Grids are like storyboards,” Cochran says. “One of our artistic stylists drew up 9 Grids on how to do our Color Band services, which is so helpful for our new team members to look at for reference.”

Photo Source: Qnity Instagram

When Cochran trained the team on using the Upsell Pad, she also role-played and provided scripts for the guest care team before launching Upsell.

“It’s easy to get eager to launch something, do great for two weeks, and then forget about it,” she says. “But with this, we really wanted to strengthen our team-based culture with client sharing, growing the company as a whole, and getting newer stylists busy.”