Studies have indicated that between 2020 and 2025, the salon business management software market is expected to grow at a healthy annual rate of 7%, and just this mere statistic should beget the question, “Why?” The basic simple answer is that salons, world over, are increasingly adopting technology to not only make their businesses efficient but also take it to the next level. From handling complex operations such as scheduling appointments and managing inventory to driving your marketing and client loyalty programs, a salon software can easily manage your salon business operations both efficiently and accurately. So, if you’re still new to the world of salon technology keep reading to know how salon software benefits your and transforms your business.
Speedy Appointments, Confirmations & Reminders
The days of going back and forth your appointment book, and engaging in long wait calls are well and truly over. Clients, today prefer instantaneous solutions and in just a few minutes. A salon software tool offers the clients the convenience of booking appointments anytime, anywhere and get instantaneous confirmations. What is even better, that the software also sends reminders of the upcoming appointments over emails and texts. As a result, deploying the software it saves time for all the stake holders. Infact, salon software such as the one from Zenoti allows clients to book appointments in just about 4 clicks thus almost eliminating the need of having a front desk.
Inventory Management
Amongst the crucial aspects of managing a beauty salon is to keep a constant eye on the inventory. However, in the flurry of managing other activities, it is rarely possible to focus on keeping a tab on what is consumed and what is left out. However, when you deploy technology aka salon business management software you no longer have to worry about it. The system is designed to reconcile inventory, chart consumption patterns and lead times to prompt you when it is time to replenish stocks. No longer do you need to spend hours conducting inventory audits. Further, since every detail is recorded, the system also prevents any loss due to theft or pilferage. Moreover, by analyzing the consumption patterns the software can also help you understand what products sell and which don’t such that you don’t have to stock things which don’t move.
Payments & Accounting
The days of cash only are long gone and clients today have myriad number of choices such as cards, bank transfers, and digital wallets. A salon software equips your business to accept payment through all modes such that clients can settle invoices in methods that is convenient to them. Further, no sooner are the invoices settled, the software automatically makes relevant book keeping entries, and inventory adjustments, if applicable. Since, the software links each and every invoice to an appointment, there is complete end to end traceability of records.
Marketing Management
The salon software helps you improve your marketing. Some of the things that can be easily done by the software are to send automated newsletters to guests, push on notifications for personalized marketing, promotional campaigns. Further, the salon software is also assists you in increasing your client retention. Spot a client, who hasn’t shown up in a while – the software will suggest you with promotional deals that are likely to have higher acceptability with the client.
Reporting & Analytics
Businesses grow when managers take data driven decisions, and a salon management software helps in the process. As all the administrative processes are run through the software, the software can easily analyze the data to creating customized reports for sales, revenue, profitability etc. in just a few clicks and present to you for your study. Infact, some of the salon software such as the one from Zenoti comes with upto 100 pre-set reporting formats such that you can obtain both micro and macro view of the business. Whether you run a single store or a chain of stores, the software can help you understand your numbers individually and holistically.
Besides the above, a salon software can also help you run loyalty programs, manage your salon staff, increase customer retention, manage online reviews, and much more. With the rising disposable incomes, people like to spend more on self-care and grooming, and this is what is making the salon business grow. However, it is also making the industry highly competitive. A salon software assists you in acing the competition by running all the administrative processes such that you and your team can focus solely on providing superior client experience, business strategy, loyalty programs, and growth. The market has many well established technological solutions such as Zenoti, BePOS, Rosy, MindBody etc. We personally love Zenoti because it is a holistic cloud based salon solution, which is easily scalable to meet the growing demands of the business. To know more about Zenoti, read our post on “5 Reasons to Switch your Salon POS Software to Zenoti”