So, we've taken advanced education classes, now what? This is a question I get a lot when I visit salons for a day of in salon training. What do we once we have taken the education? What do we do with everything we have learned? How do we start taking the educational pieces and turn it into a making-money skill?

I like what Sandy posted last week and I want to elaborate on that subject. She opened the door to the subject I want to talk about this week. Sandy posted: “Once you have the education how do you let your clients and potential clients know that you learned something new? Do you tell them about it? Do you put your class certificates up on the wall or in an album in the waiting area so they can see them? Do you have a salon website that you can post a blog on about the new technique you learned? If not then you can always set up a Facebook page just for your business to keep your clients updated on the things you learn.”

Post it, post it, post it! There are three main ways that I recommend to post education. There are many ways to promote the education that we have taken; however, I think these are the best ways to get the word out to the masses.

Number one: Your salon website is the best place to post and brag about your education. There is so much traffic on your company's website, why wouldn't you use it? When potential clients are looking for services, they are already on our website. So why not post our educational credentials for all to see?

Here are some tips to help you get started. Take pictures when you attend education classes! They say a picture is worth a thousand word right? Take a commemorative photo with the facilitator, instructor, or educator. Take shots of you and your team attending the class. Get a snapshot of the hands-on training or a picture of you with your class certificate. Post it on your salon website along with a paragraph or two about the classes attended. Talk about ideas, products, and procedures you hope to implement.

One of my favorite salons is The Hair Company in Leonardtown, Md. Owners Jackie and Debbie are an awesome example of this. I have provided nail education classes for their staff on location several times. The owners understand that over time the salon staff changes. People leave, you take on associates and you hire new staff, this is normal. They bring me in every couple of years to refresh the staff and train the newer team members they have accumulated. We always refresh their menus and expand and update the department with new products and procedures. The Hair Company always posts education classes on the salon’s website. Check it out here.

The Hair Company has several pictures posted of in-salon training and national level educators. These educators have come to their salon or the staff has attended classes at industry shows. They have several high-profile Redken Artists — Chris Baron, Sam Villa, and many others. You can see their staff placing foils for highlights, in a cutting class, and working on mannequin heads. You will also see me doing a pedicure/massage demo at one of their in salon trainings. The owners attended The Summit Seminar in Minneapolis and are pictured with industry leaders Dave Kirby, Michael Cole, and Randy Kunkel. Even the owners advance their education by attending The Summit’s classes. Some of the tools the owners received were level charts, how to coach and mentor staff, budget guidelines, tips to maintain the salons culture, and formats for an associate program and succession plan.

Jackie and Debbie write about "The Hair Company’s commitment to providing the very best in services and customer care." After reading a few paragraphs they have posted about education, you get the idea they and their staff are not fooling around. The pictures they post tell a story and show that education is something they do often. They take advanced training very seriously. This is one of the reasons they have achieved becoming one on the Top 200 Salons in the nation. This is an impressive honor that they have received eight times from Salon Today Magazine.

If you would like to take your nail department’s education to the next level like Jackie and Debbie did, you can learn more by e-mailing me. You can schedule an in-salon training day with me at your salon or a business-building seminar exclusively for nail technicians at a product distributor near you. E-mail me for more information at jwilson@summitsalon.com.

Check back next week for the other effective ways to post your education. Taking education classes and posting your advanced training on your salon's website — one more way to help you how to stand out above the rest and become the BEST!

— Jill