When a customer complains, you need to go into Service Recovery, which according to Liz McKeon, is what we do when things go wrong:

• How we rescue the situation
• How we handle complaints
• How we satisfy the dissatisfied client

So, what is a complaint?

“When a client feels strongly enough that her expectations have not been met, she may make a complaint”, or

A complaint is when a client brings a problem to the attention of the business and expects some redress, probably over and above simply supplying the original service or product that was the cause of the complaint.”

Things don’t always work out according to plan.  With the best will in the world, and armed with your best ‘quality care’ client skills, mistakes can still happen.  It may be something out of your control, or a mistake made by one of your team, but whatever the reason, when relations break down between the client and your business, it is time to take action.

Once a client’s problem has been identified, the recovery process must begin immediately:

1. Empathy: Understand that before you contact the complaining client, you can’t win.  Complaints are really just degrees of losing.  Put yourself in the client’s shoes, so that you can get a better understanding of their perspective.  Reassure them that you care, understand and are listening to them, by allowing them to explain their situation.
2. Respect: Staying calm sends a message that you have respect for them, and it can be difficult to do this when an angry client is yelling at you.  Remember, their anger is not about you, they are upset about their situation and are taking it out on you.
3. Apologise: Offering an apology, regardless of how you feel or what you can do about the situation, will alleviate some of the stress the client is feeling.
4. Take responsibility: If the mistake has been made by a member of your staff, take full responsibility and assist the client so that their problem is solved.
5. Settlement: The hard part is the settlement of the complaint and you will have to do some work here.  Since you are going to lose by something, the degree of loss is up to you.  Most likely, you will end up giving away product, treatments, full refunds or whatever it takes.  You and your client have lost regardless, but you owe it to yourself and your salon to salvage some type of relationship.  Try to agree on an equitable solution, where hopefully you will still retain that client for life, thus adding to the bottom line in your business.
6. Appropriate follow-up action: Such as a letter of apology or a phone call to make sure that the problem has been rectified.  For your own peace of mind – get closure, as an unhappy client is a dangerous client.

On a practical note:

Time is of the essence, if you want a positive outcome from a complaint:

1. Notify your insurance company, by phone, immediately.
2. Document the incident in writing for your insurance company.
3. The insurance company may then send you a claims form for completion.

After you have dealt with the complaint, next on the agenda is to have a ‘service recovery staff training session’:

• Explain the consequences of a treatment/service going wrong.
• When something goes wrong with a treatment, carry out practical training, ensuring that confidence is not lost – all staff members must know how to handle complaints.
• Carry out staff training about how to deal with complaints, emphasising that complaints must be handled courteously, sympathetically and swiftly.
• Introduce a company complaints/incident report form.
• Role-play your salon established procedure for dealing with complaints.

Complaints are to be welcomed!  Look at it this way:  if they walk away, you may never get the opportunity to make things right, they may take their custom elsewhere and badmouth your business.  Whereas, by choosing to bring the problem to your attention, you are provided with a golden opportunity to correct whatever has gone wrong.

When handled correctly, complaints can win a client back and you can then keep them for life.  These clients are to be valued, as they are bringing you a gift, an opportunity to step back and appreciate that something has gone wrong, they are telling you that there is room for improvement in your salon.

www.lizmckeon.com

The October 2024 Budget has put even more pressure on an industry that has already been struggling with the impact of the cost of living, increased electricity bills, and for many the recovery from Covid.

A survey by the British Hair Consortium shows:

• A generation of apprentices are at risk. Figures show numbers are already down by 82 percent vs pre covid [Department for Education].
• 42 percent of respondents are now considering closing their business in the next 12 months.
• The direct employment of staff through PAYE is now at risk of extinction with 98 percent of respondents considering switching to self-employment [even if it isn’t lawful] but feel forced to do so in order to survive.
• 95 percent of those that employ apprentices said they will reduce the number of apprentices they have; not take on any more apprentices or have already made all apprentices redundant.
• 94 percent are either extremely concerned for the future or believe a generation of apprentices will be lost.
• 98 percent of respondents do not believe our sector is valued by the government.

With the vast majority of respondents considering in some capacity, switching to a self-employed business model, the question of the professionalism and future of the industry has been raised. When done correctly and in line with HMRC guidelines, this can work, however the reality can be a very different picture.

Many workers relinquish their employment rights in exchange for promises of more money in their pocket. Furthermore, many of these unscrupulous business owners use this model as a vehicle to avoid VAT by splitting income at worker level,” says Hellen Ward, from the British Hair Consortium.

She suggests that direct employment not only enhances social and economic goals but safeguards the rights and benefits of workers, and is at the heart of the government’s improvements to employment rights. “But our sector cannot maintain this model it if it becomes unsustainable and uncompetitive to do so,” she adds.

Over the last five years, 37 percent of all employees have been lost, of which apprentices have been hardest hit. The October 2024 Budget has accelerated this process, and the employed model is under such pressure that it is unlikely to survive in many cases. As a result of the Budget, a forced retreat from PAYE employment has been accelerated rapidly. Without mitigation the number of employers will fall with the subsequent impact on Treasury receipts [both PAYE and VAT] and worker rights will be destroyed.

“The truth is that our industry has no clear understanding of guidelines on what a legitimate and legal business model is,” says Collette Osborne from the British Hair Consortium. There have now been many cases where HMRC have determined self-employed workers as employed, with salon owners then  being hit by hgih fines. Collette adds: “Salon owners who fall foul of the law only find this out when they are hit with fines that often are so high, the business has to close anyway and, in many cases, end in bankruptcy.”

Office for National Statistics figures show Employees in the hairdressing sector are down by 45,000 of the employed workforce, since 2018. In the same period 22 percent of all workers [employed or self-employed] have disappeared from ONS stats, which raises the question of where they have gone from a tax and employment perspective?

With the future of salons in the spotlight, and apprentices at risk of extinction, perhaps the greater risk is, that if increasing numbers of salons switch to a self-employed model, without understanding if their salon legitimately fits this business model, the implications from HMRC further down the line could be far more detrimental.

There’s never been a greater need for the industry to join together to ensure that everyone is trading under the correct terms. If you want to be properly represented, then join one of the six business organisations that are most representative of our industry,” says Toby Dicker from the British Hair Consortium.