2020 has been a wild ride. Your numbers bear that out. Some weeks and months might even be zeros on the tracking sheet.
Never fear. 2021 is here. New year. New numbers. We are to come roaring back, at least hat is the plan.
Plan now to track your numbers to stay on track for you expected success.
Use the information below in three parts for a foundation for your 2021 tracking success.
Know that “To know your numbers is to grow your numbers: and “That which gets measured gets improved”. These are my two marching orders or mantras for statistical tracking in the haircut business.
Part 1
Here are my top tips for tracking:
Track one thing – Start with just one statistic. Do not try to track too much. Spend one month getting to know one stat about your business. Add another stat next month. Go slow. Manage the info and build the habit. Once you get going it becomes addictive.
Track every day – It takes less than one minute to track each day. If you wait the week it will take more than five minutes. If you want the month it will take more than 20. The sum is greater than the individual parts. Quick tracking every day makes the math fast and easy. If you wait it seems like a bigger job because it has become a bigger job. Then you will not do it. Track small every day.
Track on paper – This does not need to be complicated. This does not need to be fancy. A pencil and a small spiral notebook is all you need. A fancy system or an app or a spread sheet is overkill in the beginning. Remember… any system that you actually use is a very good system. Any fancy-schmantsy system that you do not use is a bad system… for YOU.
Only compare you to you – Tracking is a private game. No one needs to know your numbers. Share with your life partner or business partner. That is plenty. Share with a coach or mentor, maybe. This is not a contest between you and anyone else. The chair next to yours is not your competition. Your competition is YOU last week.
Have a goal – Once you have a base of tracking data on even one statistic set a goal for progress. Measure against the goal. Know how you are REALLY doing. Adjust the goal as you learn more about you and your market.
Part 2
This is what I can the evolution of tracking. Knowing why knowing is important:
Know what to track – Know the stat you are tracking. Know what it is called.
Know what it measures – Know what aspect of your busiess this statistic represents.
Know how to track it – Know hot to extract the numbers from your business data.
Know hot to interpret it – Numbers are just numbers until you know what they mean. What story they tell and how to understand the story.
Know how to act – Know what actions can be taken to alter the statistic. Know what to do to move the needle in a way and a direction that marks improvement and progress towards your goals for that particular stat.
Part 3
This is my short list of what to be tracking:
ROO – Rate of occupancy - This is expressed as a percentage. This is the answer to the question, “how busy are you?”. Of the haircuts you CAN cut, how many DID you cut?
RRR – Repeat request rate – Of the haircuts that you cut, how many of them have you cut before. Again this is a percentage. New vs repeaters.
RR – Rebook rate - Of the people that you cut how many make their next appointment before leaving from this appointment. This is expressed as a percentage. This is the best mathematical representation of the quality of your customer service. Bottom line, happy people rebook.
Total dollars – Money talks. This is total revenue. All the money for a day, week, month. This is the bottom line.
Average ticket – Thein is client penetration. How much are clients spending. This is total revenue divided by head count. Are clients buying add-on services and take-home product? This number tells that story
Total retail sales – This is money from non-service transactions. Products and stuff sold. Daily, weekly, monthly.
Average retail ticket – This is another penetration statistic. How well are your clients buying beyond the haircut? Are you selling? Are they going for it? Total retail and add-on service sales divided by head count.
I love the power of tracking. I love helping haircut pros become informed and empowered by the power of this information.
How can I help you harness the power of your own information?
Let’s talk.
Happy 2021.
Ivan
