When Philip Pelusi opened his first Pittsburgh salon in 1965,
he was shy. At about 20 years old, he was intimidated by the high-fashion
clientele who told him he was too young to style their hair.
“And yet when I started to talk to them, they became clients,”
says the founder and owner of Philip Pelusi Salons. “I had to learn the hard
way. I was forced to get [feedback] and learn and adjust.”
Pelusi had to devise his own way of connecting with customers
to meet their needs. But now that his chain of 13 Philip Pelusi Salons has
expanded to include 20 partner salons and another 60 that carry his P2 brand of
products, he’s sharing those lessons to help others provide client service.
To start, Pelusi spends time at partner salons to observe
client consultations. What he doesn’t want to hear is employees asking
questions that make customers choose their own solutions, such as, “So, what
are we doing today?”
Then, he brings people to his education center to cover
product education and skill certification — but the bulk of training comes down
to soft skills like communication.
“The barrier of communication is huge. You almost have to teach
a little empathy,” Pelusi says. “There’s no one class that can do it. It starts
with the questions you ask … and it comes from making suggestions.
“You don’t force them to buy a product. It’s just as simple
as, ‘Have you ever thought about caramel highlights? Think about it.’ Now, you
might say, ‘This is what it could do for you,’ so what’s in it for them. It’s
pretty subtle.”
Pelusi recently honed the communication skills of the team at
Akron’s Studio V Salon & Spa, the second partner salon for owners Coleen
Morlock, Mary Kay Hallas and Lucy Mahoney — who previously partnered with
Pelusi at VCS Salon & Spa in Medina, Ohio. Through role-playing, Pelusi had
their 35 employees take turns in the customer’s seat to experience service from
the receiving end.
“They helped us understand the clients’ needs from the
clients’ perspective and not just ours,” Morlock says.
Pelusi also helped them develop a needs assessment format to
help employees understand clients’ frustrations.
“Whether it’s a first-time client or a continuous client, do
a needs assessment to find, No. 1, what they’re looking for, but No. 2, what we
as professionals know that they need,” says Morlock, who follows up with
longtime clients to make sure they’re still receiving the same satisfactory
level of service as newcomers.