The nature of business defines the type of decisions made by the management. The most significant factor that determines success of the business is its ability to meet the needs of clients. The service industry is one of the industries where the quality of services is crucial to success of the business. A salon operates in the service industry; thus, it is important for the business to enhance its service delivery, failure to which it may lose its market share to competitors. The management may not understand the perception of their clients on the quality of services without carrying out various measures such as market research to identify new beauty products in the market, as well as encouraging feedback from customers. To enhance service delivery in a salon business, it is important to identify the major quality dimensions. This helps in formulating accurate decisions to meet the unique needs of every client in the business. Customer satisfaction is the best way to retain and attract more customers into the business. It is therefore crucial for the business to consider professionalism, consistency, responsiveness, and courtesy.
As a stylist, one needs to observe a high level of professionalism in the business to avoid losing both current and potential customers. Professionalism entails performing the duties required in the best way possible and in this case, styling the hair according to the taste of the client. The professional knowledge that the stylist has is important in enhancing their service delivery. The stylist should observe a high level of professionalism by avoiding bad habits such as talking ill about others and use of vulgar language. The customers are put off by unprofessional employees. The other quality dimension in service delivery is consistency, implying that the outcome of work should be uniform for all clients. This may apply to the employees doing the scalp treatments as they are supposed to deliver the same quality of service. Some of the clients may prefer to use a specific type of treatment; thus, one should not change. Consistency is one of the aspects that create customer loyalty thus enabling the business to attract and retain a large market share. Responsiveness is the ability to act on the feedback provided by the customers and it is one of the main quality dimensions. The primary aim of business is to ensure that the customers are satisfied and this can only be achieved through listening to them attentively. The barbers need to be responsive to the customer’s so as to enhance the quality of service delivery by delivering the suitable haircut desired by the client. Failure to respond to the client’s wishes may lead to dissatisfaction of the client and consequently bad reputation that reduces the market share. Finally, the employees need to be courteous as this is one of the aspects that define the quality of service thy deliver. Courtesy should be observed at all times regardless of whether the client is watching or not. Doing pedicure requires courtesy especially because the level of contact with the client is more personal compared to other services such as hair styling.
It is important to have a sound management system in the salon business so as to formulate and implement measures that enhance quality in service delivery. A high level of professionalism is important in meeting the objectives of the business thus it should be integrated in the culture of the business. This can effectively be done through training the new employees on professionalism and retraining the existing ones as well. To enhance consistency in the salon business, it is important to let the employees do the jobs they are best at. One may be poor in doing the pedicure but excellent at styling thus they should be allowed to do what they enjoy most. Consistency is more likely to be achieved if specific employees are assigned the same job. To employees should be encouraged to be responsive so as to understand the needs of the clients better. One cannot fully meet the needs of the clients of they do not listen to their instructions. Performance appraisals in particular are suitable in enhancing responsiveness in the business. The feedback from the customers on the level of satisfaction should be recorded so as to determine the most responsive employees and also the least responsive. This forms the basis for awarding and punishing the employees accordingly. Indicating the importance of the employees having courtesy in the job description is an appropriate way of ensuring that the workforce comprises of courteous individuals. The management should lead by example by showing courtesy towards the employees first. This is also a good way of integrating the virtue in the business culture. Punishing individuals who behave in a manner that does not show courtesy is also a way of ensuring courtesy is upheld in the business. The management should ensure that the services offered meet the quality standards by observing the employees as they perform their work on a regular basis