Hollie’s Pen & Paper Upgrade to Software

Hollie and husband Ryan started Salonology with a desire to help salon owners set big life and business goals, whilst building strong, successful businesses that can make their dreams a reality. They built, grew, and sold their own multi-award-winning day spa, and have helped thousands of other salon owners discover their own unique journey. Far from the ‘cookie-cutter’ methods, they teach part inspiration and part formula to help people find their own path, the most successful way.

I remember the moment I wrote the very first booking into my paper diary back in 2009. It was a memorable event because it meant someone wanted to pay me money to come to my salon.

That meant it was real. It was tangible. And I had the appointment book to prove it. As my salon started to grow, so did that book. Page after page of bookings and scribbles and notes and phone numbers.

Pages turned to books and books filled a drawer.

Those books were filled with extremely valuable information for my business. Client’s contact details, their notes, who they had treatments with, when they visited, what they bought. Information that could make me busier, more professional, and offer a better service.

But there was an issue.

That information wasn’t really accessible. How on earth could I find out when Mrs Jones had her last appointment? How could I easily find out who had not visited in a while? What possible way did I have of knowing which client’s birthday was coming up?

I’d had thousands of clients coming through my business – and no way of contacting them. When I announced to my team it was time to go ‘online’ with booking, they stared at me open mouthed.

• ‘But what if the internet goes down?’ one asked me.
• ‘I like a book’ said another.
• ‘No-one likes booking online’ said another.
• But I pressed on. If we didn’t evolve in the things we did day to day, I’d still be wearing a shell suit and listening to Bananarama.

I had a list of things I was looking for: 

• Something that didn’t cost the earth to set up.
• Something that was easy to use.
• Something that gave me all the information I needed, easily.

Fundamentally, I can be lazy. I was ONLY going to put the work in if I didn’t have to put too much work in, if you know what I mean. We looked at a few companies – some wanted thousands upfront. Some looked incredibly complicated. Some seemed clunky and not user friendly.

When I found Timely, it ticked the boxes.

I showed my team excitedly. I was eager to share how easy it was for the customer, the deposit settings, all the reports we could run. They were very excited that they could pick different colours for different treatments so the diary looked like a rainbow.  So, you know, they were happy.

It was February when we went live. I remember with crystal clarity because despite it being the shortest month of the year, and traditionally a quiet one, we financially superseded any month we’d ever had by some distance.

• We had practically zero no shows.
• We had more bookings.
• We had more money in the till and a busier salon.
• I’d wake up and look at my phone and see 10-20 bookings that had taken place since we’d closed the day before. Bookings we otherwise would not have been able to take.

Win-win all around right?

I sold my salon and spa in January 2020 to work full time on my coaching brand – Salonology. We have over 300 clients that we help be more successful whilst finding more freedom.

Ironically, an online booking system can make you more successful and help you find more freedom – so I preach it as much as I can, as I experienced the vast difference of the ‘before and after’.

And now, It’s 2020. People expect ease. They expect to be able to book 24/7. They expect to be able to make things happen at the press of a button. If you don’t offer them this option, you will lose some business. It’s harsh but it’s true.

Will everyone want to book online? No. Does everyone have to book online? Of course not. Not if you don’t want them to. It’s about options for your clients and options for you. Software that makes life easier for everyone.

Imagine having all that data at the click of a button. Imagine waking up to bookings. Imagine being able to reach out to your clients on their birthdays in seconds. Imagine being able to run a report that tells you all you need to know about any client that has ever visited.

Imagine all your bookings showing on the screen in different colours like a rainbow! It made my team so happy. All you need is the right software. It’s that simple.

(Current government requirements indicate pre-health checks for COVID and test and trace in place in salons. It’s important to note that Timely software and their consult app feature succinct and bespoke systems to ensure ease of use and safety first for your clients and team).