Hiring guide for salon and spa

Was it always your dream to open a salon? You feel this dream of yours has been shelved for long enough. Finally, you feel ready to open up your very own salon. Everything looks green but the idea of hiring employees seems intriguing.

Maybe you already run a salon & spa business and it has been blooming lately. Happy clients, Yeahtalk of the town, hairstyling, nail treatments, facial care your salon has it all.

There is one problem though. This fame has attracted an enormous amount of clients to your salon. But how is that a problem? Well, to begin with, you seem to reject or postpone clients more and more due to time shortages or lack of staff available. 

Your appointment charts are packed full. Throughout the week you are burning the candle at both ends, managing your salon and working with clients. By Saturday evenings you are completely drained of energy and just want to get home. Taking a weekday off is not even in context anymore. Your salon that you started as your passion soon seems to be draining your passion for the job.

All these persistent efforts and your workload only seem to become heavier as time goes on. There is a long line of clients waiting for an appointment and that line only seems to get bigger and bigger. Moreover, the sofa in your waiting area is full at all times and it might be time to buy a bigger sofa for your salon.

But before you buy that sofa, have you considered hiring for salon staff?

Hiring the right employee can be quite tricky for a service-based sector like a salon & spa. Qualification and experience should go hand in hand with work ethics and customer interaction. This becomes even more challenging if you are planning to open a salon from the start. You could be faced with several constraints that may prevent you from reaching out to the best talents in the field.

As a startup, you may find hiring for a salon difficult even with a sufficient budget and business model. In such scenarios, you should select the best from the available candidates. This means you should be extra cautious during the hiring process.

Whether it is a startup or an established salon, 1st or 10th time hiring, we can all agree that hiring new staff for a salon can be very time and energy-consuming. Posting a vacancy, going through resumes and interviewing all can seem a bit complicated. Who doesn’t want a staff that is professional, preferred by your clients and has a unique set of skills?

 A perfect staff is not someone who does everything perfectly. Rather they are engaged and committed to their work. Engaged staff will make their work their passion resulting in a better quality of work. And a committed staff will bring out the best for the business they are working for. An engaged and committed employee will help your business grow further.

Therefore today let us break down and go through the hiring guide for salon and spa. We can discuss a few things to keep in mind when scouting for new staff. If done properly, your recruitment process could become much easier. This will make it easier for you to choose the perfect candidate for your salon. Read closely, as we will also be sharing tips on how to retain these employees.

This can be somewhat repulsive to your thought of hiring, but it is a perspective that surprisingly many salon owners fail to analyze properly. We emphasize this question because it can be a deciding factor in choosing the right person for the job. To make it easier, think of these scenarios: Will more hands be beneficial for your business? If you require a recruit, where do you expect them to be a lending hand in your business?  

The first question is more general and straightforward which can be determined by analyzing your business performance. Do you see yourself booking more clients? Are you turning clients away due to a lack of employees? Are you fully booked throughout the week? 

Analyzing these questions can help you measure the productivity scale of your business. If you see yourself answering a big “YES” to all these questions, then it might be an indicator that it is a good time for you to start hiring. If you feel your business productivity has reached a plateau, then hiring a new employee can be useful in getting back on that growth path.

On the contrary, If you feel that your business is currently running smoothly and managed fine by the existing staff, then increasing the number of your employees should not be your focus at the time.

  If you require a recruit, where do you expect them to be a lending hand in your business?  

If you do decide on hiring for a salon, you should have a clear-cut idea of where you see them being a helping hand in your business. A salon is not just styling your hair or getting that face massage. There are a ton of other services and work that sustain a salon and help it run successfully. Things like :

Laundry

These can seem like small tasks, but you as a salon owner would know that neglecting these tasks can be detrimental to the functioning of your business. Maybe you should be hiring salon receptionist. If your salon is lacking in the service department, it can lead to a compromise in your client’s experience. Moreover, this can pose a risk of losing a client altogether. Therefore it is important to identify where exactly you require more hands. This is an important criterion as it determines what type of a candidate you should look for. Sometimes, hiring a salon assistant might the solution to your busy schedule.   

If you see your business turning away more clients due to a busy schedule or have your employees working overtime, then it might be advisable for you to look for a professional with prior experience. This will make things easier for your existing service staff and also directly impact your business growth.

Whereas if you are looking for someone to be of help in the customer care supporting or service roles, like administration, laundry or running basic errands, then hiring a fresher or college graduate will be just fine. This will also provide an opportunity for young freshers and maybe even train them more towards your liking.

Identifying the type of person you would want to hire is important to even decide the pay scale they would be receiving. Hiring a professional employee with prior experience would require you to pay them appropriately. You cannot expect to hire a professional but pay them an entry-level salary. Whereas if it is service-level work you require, you might be able to hire a fresher and pay them according to the work they are engaged in.

Now that is out of the way, we can get into our guide for hiring the perfect employee for your salon.

How to hire salon employees?

 How do you start hiring employees for salon business? Hiring for any profession starts with a job advertisement and this is no different when hiring for a salon as well. There is one step before posting the advertisement, and that is writing the job description.

Unfortunately perfecting the job description is overlooked by most salon owners. But we are here to make sure you don’t repeat the same mistake. Sure, a simple online ad or a banner written “staff required” will do the trick. But this also means you are going to be bombarded with loads of applications. And there is a considerable chance that a large number of those applications will be not suitable for the vacancy post.

To avoid this unnecessary confusion, it is best if you would be more upfront about the requirements and skills essential for the job. The job description is the first piece of information an applicant is going to read.  Make sure it is detailed and specific to the job requirements. This will dissuade the wrong applicants from applying for the post.

A few things to specify in your job description include :

the job title

These are some of the basic information that you will be offering to the applicants as an employer or recruiter.

From your perspective, you can add a few points about your expectations regarding the applicants as well. Make a list of important qualities you would want in an employee. This can include qualities like :

Good in hairstyling or manicure (or any skill set that you are looking for)

 This will convey a clear idea to the applicants on if they qualify to apply.

The description you provide can be crucial in determining the success of your hiring process. Waiting till the interview to convey important information might just become a waste of time. If an applicant feels they are unsuitable for the job, it is better they do not apply. A well-curated job description can save you time and effort spent on the wrong applicant. Do not be reluctant to describe the job in the description. Specify your expectations and also describe the work environment of your salon.

 Should you choose an experienced professional or a fresher when you decide to start hiring? This is a confusion faced by many salon owners. Regardless of whether you are planning to expand your existing team or recruit from scratch. You could settle for a professional who has the experience and has done similar work. On the other hand, you could hire a fresher who is enthusiastic and eager to learn and make a mark for themselves.

To be honest, this decision is completely up to you as the recruiter. Both have their respective advantages and disadvantages. But these are subjective and can change according to your salon's needs. You must decide the type of candidate you want before you start hiring. Specify if you are looking for an entry-level candidate or an experienced professional in your job description. A professional won’t be ready to work for an entry-level salary and you will be only lagging in your hiring process.

Professional

If you have an already established and flourishing business, finding an experienced candidate will not be moving mountains. A salon with a good reputation would attract more talented prospects naturally. If you are confused about whether hiring a professional is the right choice, here are a few points to check :

If the job role is critical and cannot have room for errors. If you find yourself hiring for a role with multiple high-prospect clients, then opting for a professional would be a safer choice.

 There is no rule that you should hire someone with prior experience. And don’t hire a professional for the sake of it. If it is just basic duties you are looking to be taken care of, a fresher would be equally fit for the role. Remember that you will have to pay a professional accordingly regardless, even if all they do is an entry-level job.

Fresher

Whether you are opening a new salon or recruiting to your existing team, freshers are easy to hire. They are energetic and always looking for an opportunity to prove themselves. If you are confused about whether you should consider a fresh graduate, these points might help you analyze your decision :

If your business has an average growth rate. Hiring a professional when there isn’t much work to offer might be a waste. Why not hire a fresher and slowly progress through the business?

 Though they might be lacking in terms of skill, you can take into account other factors when hiring a fresh graduate. Their communication skill, energy, dedication and compatibility with your staff are a few on which you can judge them.

Spread the word. Once you have figured out what to include in your job description, the next step is to post a salon hiring ad. Of course, you can stick with the time-honoured tradition of posting your vacancies in newspapers and printing flyers. But to fish for the best talents, you will have to settle for nothing but the best methods as well.

Sticking to newspaper ads, job vacancy flyers or posting a sign outside your salon is not completely useless. But you could be overlooking the finest of experts you might want to hire for your business. And how exactly do you find the best talents out there? We have you covered. Here are a few methods you can incorporate in your search to hire the best candidates :

There is no dispute that social media has grown to become one of the most influential technological advancements of today. So why not make the most out of it? Scouting the internet, more specifically social media platforms to recruit your next staff member might not be such a bad idea.

Professional social media platforms like LinkedIn or Naukri can be a good place to start. You can even make use of pure social media platforms like Instagram or Facebook to further widen your scope to reach great candidates. Further, you can even ask your employees to promote these posts through their social media handles to reach a wider audience.  If you already have a good foot on these social media platforms, that can make the work much easier for you.

Even if your business does not have a strong presence on social media, you can still make use of paid advertisements. Regardless of your presence on social media, making use of Instagram or Facebook paid Ads can help you reach a wider and more targeted audience. Simply put, not making use of social media irrespective of your social media presence can make you miss out on a lot of candidates with true potential.

If you have a dedicated business website, then of course you would want to use that as well. You would also want to notify available positions on the About Us > join our team section. Another piece of advice is to keep this tab active throughout, even if you are not recruiting. You might catch an interesting resume that may cross your eyes. You could keep those aside in case you might change your mind in the future.

Cosmetic events, workshops and even cosmetology schools should help you in scouting for budding talents. Events are a great place to search for potential candidates. They can also help you connect with a wider audience. Events are a good place to directly approach hairstylists and present them with a job offer based on their skills. This can avoid the hassle of going through resumes and conducting interviews. Although not the best method, it is still worth giving a try.   

Cosmetology schools are another good option if you want to search through a wider audience. If you are looking for a fresh graduate or looking for an entry-level employee, then cosmetology schools are going to be very helpful. Fresh graduates will gladly work for your salon as it benefits them as well. They get experience or internships, whereas you get an entry-level employee. Keep in mind that these graduates are still lacking in practical experience. Giving them appropriate training will be very much advisable, especially if you plan on making them permanent.

Conducting workshops is another underrated method of finding underlying talents. You could hold an open skill enhancement workshop in your salon. Even taking your employees to such workshops in other salons could also work. This can attract a lot of talent to your salon. Among them, you may come across candidates with exceptional talent or skill. 

You could directly ask them to join your team if interested. Maybe you might hit the jackpot by recruiting someone perfect for your salon. Conducting such workshops also helps in analysing and understanding the candidates' true potential before hiring them. This method is becoming more popular among salons for hiring top-layers of professionals.

Sometimes you might come across your next employee through an active recommendation. This can be from anyone from your friends, family, existing employees or even your regular clients.

Your employees might be able to help you in finding some fine talent for your salon. This is especially helpful if you already have a talented workforce under your command. Employees might be able to recommend ex-colleagues who they have worked with in the past. Your employees know your work environment and might be able to recommend the perfect candidate for the job. They might also be able to give information on the person’s skills, previous experience and personality. This can give you a better idea of what to expect from these recommendations.

Before you post an ad for a job vacancy, asking your close ones or regular clients for potential recommendations can be a good idea. If you are lucky you might find the right person for the job just through one of such recommendations. The cherry on top is, you don’t have to go through the hassle of posting ads, going through resumes or conducting interviews. A pretty straightforward method of hiring new staff.

 As an employer, you would want to widen your search base and fish for the best candidates. We would advise you to utilise at least two different mediums when advertising. This means that your chances of finding the perfect employee increase. Sticking to just social media or taking in only recommended candidates might do the trick. Especially if your business is already popular or has multiple branches. But that would also mean you are missing out on a lot of potential talents out there who would have been a better choice. Do not forget to specify that applicants would need to apply with an active resume.

The beauty and cosmetic industry is a highly skilled and competitive environment. A resume can be a vital tool in analysing a candidate's skills and qualifications. It can also help you align the talents of a candidate to the requirements of the job. As an employer, you can utilize the information provided to learn more about the candidate's talents and experience. Resumes can also include achievements about the candidate during their past employment or experience. Being the initial point of contact between you and a candidate, a resume can set the tone for the rest of the recruiting process such as interviews, screening etc.

At first, it may look like extra work. But we assure you that a resume will only make the process of hiring easier and time efficient.

Before you even realize it, you will be looking at tons of applications from various sources. Next, we shortlist the applications which are suited for the vacancy offered. This shortlist will be the applicants who will be appearing for the interview.

But why go through the pain of making another list? You must have worded the best job description possible. So that means you will receive applications only from eligible candidates, right? Well in a perfect scenario that would be the case. But in reality, life does not function perfectly.

Going through the resumes will make you understand why you would want to make a shortlist. Among the pile of applications you get, you might find candidates not suitable or under-qualified for the job. It is better to reject these applications at the beginning itself rather than wait for the interview. This will save time and effort for you as well as the applicant.

 The interview seems to be the most time and energy-consuming part of hiring, and rightfully so. Interviews can seem like extra effort, but they have essential benefits. Hiring based on a resume is not the best option either. Most of the time resumes are often inflated to make them stand out better. Indulging in an interview with the candidate can give you a clear idea of the candidate's skills. A person is less likely to inflate their skills or achievements during an interview.

For service-based industries like salons, spas, studios etc the interview is more concentrated on practical tests. This is not a surprise given the skill requirements for the profession. But adhering to just skill assessment may not be the best approach for the interview.

 To make sure the interview is held smooth, we recommend you plan ahead of time. Planning will give you a clear idea of what to look for in a candidate. It can avoid any fumbling during the process of interviewing. Being prepared can also make you more confident about recruiting the right candidate. Your confidence can reflect on the candidate as well. A confident employer gives a positive impression to the candidate. Remember that an interview functions both ways. At the same time, you are judging a candidate, they will be analysing if the work environment is comfortable for them.

 Here are a few things you can plan out beforehand for the interview.

Make sure you schedule the interview on a date without other commitments. This will ensure that you can have a steady mind and concentrate on the interview.

Interviews with the candidate can give you an insight into their character, communication and also their preferences for the job.

As for you, it allows analysing how suitable they will be for your salon. Are they responsible enough for the job? How well they would be able to interact with clients? Will they be easy to manage? You could get a clear idea on these questions by engaging in a conversation with the candidate.

 Another idea would be to include one or two experienced staff members in the interview. Maybe they would be able to analyse the person from a different perspective. Sometimes they will be able to clear off queries on topics which you never thought of. This is also an effective way to reduce the pressure of the interview from your shoulders. Together you could find a candidate who is the perfect mix of enthusiastic, professional and knowledgeable.

 When indulging in a questionnaire session with the candidate, here are a few things to keep in mind. Confidence is key. Just as ready as you are to ask the questions, you should be prepared to answer the questions thrown at you as well. An interview does not always mean you will be the only one asking the questions. So be ready to answer any questions thrown at you regarding your business or the skills you prefer when hiring.

Remember to ask the same or similar questions to all the candidates when asking general questions. This will make it easier for you to compare which candidate is more suited for your business. A few common questions you can ask every candidate are :

1. Are there any particular types of clients you prefer to work with? Although an uncommon question it is helpful to know the candidate's preferences. Some candidates might be specialized in working with children or in a particular style. This can be valuable information to understand their role in your salon if you were to hire them.

2. What is something you did not like about your previous employment? This question is only relevant if the candidate has any previous experience. This question can give you an insight into why the person left their previous job. It also gives you a clear idea of what the candidate sees as a red flag in an employer.

3. What are your strong skills and which ones need improvement? This is a common question during most interviews. This will help you recognize a candidate's strengths and weaknesses. This will also shed light on where they would need improvement or training

 Some questions are too generic and better if they are just completely avoided. Avoid asking questions that are

1. Why are you leaving your previous job? Anyone smart would not bad mouth their previous employment. If they do seem to be bad-mouthing their previous job, that might be a red flag to look out for. Your usual answer to these questions will be, “I am looking to explore more opportunities…” or something similar. We know the drill and you know it too.

2. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? Not this one again. 90% of the time you will get nothing but vague lies for this as an answer. 5 years is quite a long amount of time. Life is unpredictable and no one is sure what will happen in 5 years. If you plan on testing a candidate's commitment and loyalty, there are better ways.

 Interviewing can be spontaneous and you might have to think outside the box at times. A little preparation and confidence can ensure your interview goes smoothly.

 The interview is not the final stage of hiring. The next and most crucial step involves putting them through a series of practical tests or demos. In this case, you can ask the candidates to perform their skills on a mannequin. A practical hands-on trial is necessary for you to analyse a candidate's skill level and areas they require improvement.

Make sure you don’t settle on a single candidate before the practical test stage. Sometimes a candidate who could not perform exceptionally during the interview might blow you away with their skills at hand. This way you can further trickle down your list of candidates and choose the person perfect for your salon.

Sometimes you might end up favoring more than one prospect for the favored position. During such a scenario, you could hire the top 3 candidates for a probation period if it is possible for you to do so. If you are planning to open a new salon business this method comes with its pros and cons. If your budget allows it, we would recommend opting for a trial run. 

As a new startup, you do not want to give up on any potential talents that you come across.  Who knows, maybe you might end up hiring more than one of the recruits. A probation period makes it clear to the recruit that their job is at risk if their performance does not match the requirements. It can stand as a motivational tool to bring out the best in a new employee.

This trial period will give you a much clear idea of how the recruit can adapt to your working environment. It also gives more time to analyse their flaws which you may have missed during the process of recruiting.

For eg., an employee who is always late to work will not be suitable for your salon. Similarly, someone who is rude to clients can affect your salon business. Problems like these unfortunately cannot be identified during interviews or through practical tests. A trial run period can help you set up behavioral expectations for the new employee. It can also make them more accustomed to the rules and work ethics that you hold for your salon.

Once you can settle down on choosing your perfect employee, be the perfect employer as well. Offer them a decent salary, work experience and a positive work environment as well. This will make them more dedicated to their job. A happy employee is a committed one as well. This will avoid employee turnover and you having to repeat the recruitment process all over again.

Regardless of the work experience or skill of the new recruit, you have to introduce them to your business and get them more accustomed to your salon. You could start with a simple tour of your salon. Introduce them to your existing staff and maybe even the regular clients. This is a good place to start things off without having to break a sweat.

Further, you could provide additional training and guidance. Encourage your recruits to become better in their career paths. Providing training workshops or skill improvement events would be useful. You could even schedule periodic meetings with your team members. This is to ensure that they are satisfied with their current work environment. Put in the effort to improve your team's performance. This in turn will motivate them and also show that you value them as staff. Such gestures are also a very good way to retain your best employees.

 Sometimes certain doubts and panics can lead you to be confused about hiring employee for salon. Will I be able to afford to pay the new employee? How can I manage such a team of professionals? How do I assign an equal workload to my staff? It is normal for you to have these thoughts when hiring. But that does not mean you should restrain from hiring a new employee if your salon requires it. After all, once your business hits a plateau there is not much room for growth without hiring. The reason you should hire is secondary. If you realize that your business requires help, it is time to start hiring.

For service sector businesses, your hiring decisions can make or break your business. This is no different when running a salon. As much as your quality of work matters, your service towards clients will decide if they return to your salon in the future. Therefore it is necessary to hire people who are perfect around people.

Hiring is an area where your judgement will play a critical role.

Even after you finish hiring your work is not completed. You need to observe and make sure the new recruit is completely accustomed to your work environment. As an employer, it is your responsibility to take corrective actions and to guide your staff for the success of your business. Once you choose to hire a fresher or a professional, do not forget to review their performance timely. This is why we believe that hiring is not a one-time process, but a continuous process requiring skill and dedication.

Hopefully, we were able to give a clearer idea of the “Dos” and “Don'ts” when you decide to start hiring. Keep these in mind when you are planning to hire next time for your salon.

If you are running your salon or plan on opening one, incorporating business software like DINGG can be beneficial in managing your clients and staff at the same time. DINGG is a business management software dedicated towards salon & spa businesses. 

Their feature-packed software along with their business insights can be a game changer for your salon. With the help of salon management software like DINGG, you can keep track of your employees, let clients book appointments and even pay online through the software. DINGG allows you to assign clients to staff members and check their work schedules. You can even keep track of their salary dues and even issue bonuses depending on their work input. DINGG manages your salon so you can focus on growing your business.