First Impressions

We’ve all heard the saying, you never get a second chance to make a great first impression.

When a new client enters your clinic for the first time they will be subconsciously evaluating the environment. They will take in the décor and furnishings, they will take in the sounds they hear, the scents they smell and who greets them and how. In those short few seconds your new client is going to form an opinion about your clinic, your service and their anticipated treatment. They may have already decided whether they will come back again!

So how do you ensure you’re making the best first impression? Here are our 3 top tips…

Create an ambience

How do you want clients to feel when they walk in the door? Warm and cosy, relaxed and peaceful, revitalised and rejuvenated or professionally clinical? Choose a colour palette that supports that vision and run it through your paint colours, furnishings, linens and uniform. Use essential oils in a vaporiser to further enhance the mood you are creating and use suitable background music.

 Keep everything scrupulously clean and when something starts to look worn out, threadbare or stained, refurbish or replace it.

 Use basic good etiquette

 Really make an effort to welcome a client as soon as they walk in the door. A smile goes a long way to showing warmth and making someone feel welcome. A professional greeting instils confidence and is more likely to create an impression of competence and make new clients comfortable, feeling they are being professionally looked after.

 Address people by their name, it makes them feel unique and respected, rather than just another appointment. Also give your name as it helps to relax people by taking the “stranger” out of this new relationship.

 Show gratitude

 New clients can be hard to come by and even harder to keep so be grateful for every opportunity to turn a new booking into repeat bookings. If it costs a little money or time isn’t it worth the effort to make a lasting impression and keep clients coming back to you?

 Whether you give them something as they leave, it could just be some essential oil on a card so the ambience is extended to their handbag or car for a bit longer, or just a genuine thank you note will make an impact. If you are really attached to your tech a follow up email or text message is a viable, although less personal, option.