A recent study* revealed that men and women are loyal to their hairdresser in different ways. Understand why and improve your client retention rates.

It seems, on average, women are loyal to their stylist whilst men are loyal to the salon itself. Women attach greater importance to individual relationships whilst men relate better to groups and organisations – hence the pull of the golf club!

A female client is more likely to want a “trusted advisor” relationship with her stylist and if that stylist moves salon to move with her. Women are looking for a personal, one-to-one relationship whilst men are more comfortable staying detached from any one individual.  Men are content with a more anonymous relationship with the salon itself.  They still expect great service and good hairdressing skills but are happier to move between stylists in the salon. Overall this tends to make them more loyal customers.

The study concludes these differences are down to fundamental psychological differences between the sexes. Make these differences work for your salon:

Salon Ideas

• Recommend a Friend cards will get best results when handed out to women clients by their personal stylist.  Men, on the other hand, will generally respond better to a request to refer the salon itself from your receptionist.
• If you have to move clients around due to a stylist’s sickness or holiday then move men rather than the women if possible. They are less likely to feel uncomfortable with a different stylist.
• Personal birthday cards are likely to score more highly with women and help retention. Show them you care. But be sincere as women are much better at detecting insincerity than men.
• Reduce the risk of losing a female client if a stylist moves on by encouraging her to form a relationship with two stylists. The “reserve” stylist can be involved in the consultation by the usual stylist “I really value Jane’s opinion and I’d like her thoughts on ……”.  Thereafter, she can build rapport with a quick “hair” chat and even take on the cleanse or blow dry without detracting too much from the main stylist and without the client feeling she is being “passed around”.
• If a she does move on then a more personal, friendly and understanding message on your lapsed client mailer will work better for a woman. Tell her you genuinely are sorry the relationship has been lost; you value her and miss seeing her in the salon.  Don’t just send an impersonal £x off salon voucher – but that approach might just work beautifully for a man!

*Are Women More Loyal Customers Than Men? Gender Differences in Loyalty to Firms and Individual Service Providers

Journal of Marketing 2009  V. MELNYK et al