Episode Transcript
[00:00:01] Speaker A: Hello and welcome to Pippi Talks. My name is Ashley Rivera, one of the account managers here at Tippy. We created this podcast just for you. As a service provider, we know it can be challenging, but we want to give you the education and resources to continue to be on fire for your career.
I am so happy to be here and bringing you more education. About Tippy. I am Ashley Rivera, one of the account managers here. And alongside me is Maggie, also another account manager. So it's exciting for us to be able to share these things with you because every day we hear lots of different scenarios that you go through on an everyday basis in the salons. Being in the salon for almost 18 years, I totally can relate. I know Maggie can too.
How long have you been in the salon industry?
[00:01:02] Speaker B: So I have been working the beauty business for about twelve years now. So not quite as impressive as you, but still quite a long time. And I've had much like yourself, I'm sure, a varied amount of experiences. I've sort of worked behind the chair. I've been a manager, I've been a front desk person. I've been a laundry attendant. So we really have a great wealth of knowledge and experience to share with you guys because we know where you're coming from. So it's really exciting.
[00:01:30] Speaker A: Yeah. And I love the beauty industry. It's so much. So today we're going to talk to you about the whole client experience and how we can really tie Tippy into that and really elevate the service professional. So we wanted just to bring the little bits and pieces and nuggets that you can take home and you can go back to your salon and you can start implementing right away. Building relationships with clients is the number one reason we all get into that business. Right? So from the moment the client walks in the door, they have ignited that experience already. So what we want to kind of do with you guys is give you that run through and the ripple effect.
When I started to bring Tippy into my salon, it was really cool to see that there was this intimate feeling that the client had that they could tip their own professional by themselves and just have that moment. They don't have to go through their wallet and figure out what is it that I have to tip them. But it's kind of very smooth and simple and a great process. So Maggie's going to talk about that best practice at the front desk. What does it look like and how does it feel and what does it sound like?
[00:02:49] Speaker B: Of course, yeah. I mean, a front desk agent or guest service representative, what do you want to call it? Is a really important part of the salon experience. And we're also understanding that there's a lot of businesses that simply don't have that position anymore. So regardless of who is taking care of that guest on kind of the back half of their experience, we do just want to make sure that they're leaving with positive vibes. Right.
Which is great. So when we're talking about Tippy as it relates to the front desk, I know that there can sometimes be a little bit of nerves in terms of introducing a new piece of technology in the business and making sure that your front desk is educated on what the product is and how to introduce it. So that's pretty much what I'm going to be running down. So not a lot should really change about your checkout process. When you introduce Tippy in your business, you're still going to have your point of sale. We do also have some point of sales that we integrate with. So that kind of even makes it more of a frictionless checkout process. But things are going to, it's going to be business as usual. Make sure you upsell them on products, right? You make sure you make them aware to pre book for their next appointment or whatever your business objectives are. But then when it comes time for that all important tip, it's really up to the front desk to kind of set the client up for success, to kind of tee them up so that they can make sure to get the service provider's hard earned tip over to them. So we'll kind of stick with the standalone solution. So with the standalone solution, your customer service representative at the front desk is going to choose your service provider, put your service amount in, and then Tippy is designed in a way that you can kind of swivel it back to the client. This is just one more way that the client can feel taken care of because that's a part of the checkout process the front desk has kind of set up for them. At that point, the customer will feel empowered to choose a gratuity that feels appropriate to them. We have tip suggestions that sort of help encourage some slightly larger gratuities, which is great for the service provider. And then the other thing that's great about this, too. And again, as being a former front desk manager, I know that there was always a lot of drama of where's my tip? I know this person left me a tip. I know they left me an envelope. Where is this? This kind of takes a little bit of that mystery out because the front desk can really take ownership of that process to make sure each service provider is getting their gratuity. At that point, the customer can just go ahead and use our device to check out, and then they're going to know that their service provider got their tip directly for a job well done. And then, so just kind of introducing that flow and again, just really making the client feel like they're taken care of and that they're taking care of their stylists too. To help build on that relationship is really important, too. So that's just our general set up. And then, like I said, we do understand that there are some businesses nowadays that don't have, like, a front desk person. So your staff can also feel empowered to do this as well without having to have that awkward conversation of, would you like to leave me a tip today? That's kind of tippy, can kind of take over that part of the process as well?
[00:05:42] Speaker A: Definitely. And it's so smooth and easy, it doesn't feel like you have to have any kind of awkward scenario happening.
What I love about this is that you just literally gave the path to success on how to run through that tipping process and also to give the service providers more of a sense of, I actually have my tips.
They get them instantly. They can walk out of the salon that night and use their tips for groceries, or maybe they're going out that night, like, whatever the case may be, but it's so cool to be able to have that. And we use branch and branch is our banking institute that we use, and they really have an amazing set up because you can really set yourself up for success as a service provider. So just to kind of layer back onto this, that ripple effect again, yes, the client is getting this amazing experience in the salon, but you also are too, as a service provider because you can now have the ability to just whatever you want to do with those tips. Is it saving for a home, a car, whatever the case may be. But you're able to, within that branch app, utilize the money however you want, which that's so empowering. And I feel like when you have cash, we were just talking about this the other day, cash in your wallet.
[00:07:13] Speaker B: Of course.
[00:07:14] Speaker A: It's great and it's fun and it's amazing, but it's almost like this disposable income that doesn't matter.
So it's just really neat to be able to see service providers really elevating themselves to be able to achieve their goals that they have. Instant tips have been just incredible. And I know that it's changed a lot of people's lives and it's been really neat to see the consistency, the support and all of that. And all of it kind of relies around the Tippy Institute. And I love it.
[00:07:45] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:07:46] Speaker A: So we have some questions.
I'm going to shoot your way.
[00:07:51] Speaker B: Love that. I'm so ready.
[00:07:54] Speaker A: All right, so we have a convenience fee that is linked into the tip and that is just the way things are these days.
[00:08:03] Speaker B: Right.
[00:08:03] Speaker A: Like everything is expensive. That client is going to be paying for it. So the service provider, it does not come out of their paycheck or their tip. So how if a client says something and you're maybe at the front desk and you just don't really know what to say or you're a service provider and they're questioning it, how would you go about doing that?
[00:08:26] Speaker B: Yeah, that's a great question. I mean, the convenience fee, although that's what allows to tippy to do as I say, it's tip magic.
It can be a point of friction in the checkout process and we're very understanding of that. So I think, Ashley, you kind of already touched upon this. I do like to just put this out there that convenience fees, processing fees, it's kind of a part of life, a part of using financial apps, transactions.
I always like to bring in personal examples. I just had the pleasure of doing my taxes a couple of days ago, and even the IRS charges a 3% fee for paying for your tax bill online. So even the IRS is getting on board with this. So it is part of the culture in terms of paying the financial transactions right now. Right. So just kind of keeping that in mind. But for the folks that really have questions sight on scene, how do we like to deal with that? Well, it's all about how you present it and having a positive energy behind it. I think this is really important because the guest is going to follow your lead. So what we typically recommend is just to have a little bit of verbiage prepared. And you can always reach out to one of us if you'd like this in text so that you can have this for your front us. But something to the effect of this is tippy, this is how we're going to be handling our credit and debit card gratuities going forward. Our staff really likes it because they get their tips instantly. It's as good as handing them cash and that they know that the gratuity is going. It came from you because we are able to, in most instances, get the name off of that transaction which continues to build that bond between the service provider and the client and then just kind of adding at the end there if you would prefer to not pay the convenience fee. We're very understanding of that. Cash is always a welcome gratuity as well because we never want to be a barrier for a staff member getting a tip either. And then at that point the customer has a choice, right. They know what their options are and then usually, again, kind of being positive about it is my best recommendation. As long as you're not like, oh, I don't really know what this thing is. I don't know why it's charging you because the guest is going to pick up on that energy. If you're like, oh my gosh, we really love skippy here in the salon. It's done really lots of great things. Our staff really loves it. And I think you're really going to like it too, if you want to give it a try today. But you know what, if you don't, cash is always a welcome option as well when the guest comes. Mean, I'm sure particularly in lots of businesses you have repeat customers. They're going to know next time to come prepared with that cash if they again would rather not pay that fee. But they'll know that's always there in case they need that convenience. Because one other thing I'll add is if you're anything like me, just to bring myself back into this, I never have cash anywhere I go, ever. So then what happens is when I need cash, I'm running to just whatever ATM is closest. I am paying anywhere from $2 in ATM surcharge fees just to take cash out. So at the end of the day, that may not be an ideal situation for a guest either. So just making sure that they're aware of their options. And again, just keep that positive because it is a great service and a lot of times people are really appreciative of it, particularly around the holidays. Like if they want to leave a little bit more of a generous tip, maybe they're not carrying around a couple of $100, but it's not so bad for a little bit of an extra Christmas bonus. So it can be beneficial to everyone. But that's just some of my recommendations on how to overcome that friction point.
[00:11:37] Speaker A: I love it.
[00:11:38] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:11:39] Speaker A: And then honestly, we don't really hear much.
It comes up sometimes, but we really don't hear much. And clients are loving it. It is easy.
I know I've been in a situation where I'm like, oh my gosh they only accept cash here.
[00:11:55] Speaker B: I don't have that.
[00:11:57] Speaker A: And just like you were saying then what? Right. I would do anything at that point just to make sure that the service provider would have.
We've seen increases in tips also through Tippy, and that's been just really cool to see. So what is the easiest way, do you feel?
I guess we kind of really covered that to introduce Tippy to the staff and you definitely touched on it. But any other ideas or tips for.
[00:12:30] Speaker B: Yeah, I know the staff because your clients, I don't want to say they're almost an easier sell, but again, if they've had a really wonderful experience, which I'm sure they have in their business, they're delighted to tip your service providers and they really want to make sure that their funds end up in their hands. So again, just keeping it positive and explaining to what it is is really going to be your best path. But as you're introducing it to your staff, just making sure that they know what it is and how it's going to benefit them in the long term. And this all kind of depends on how you were handling tips previously, if you were a business where you were waiting two weeks and paying those tips out on a paycheck, well, the instant gratuities are going to be really awesome because now they're not going to have to wait that rolling two week period.
If you had a staff where maybe you were having to do the work of going back and forth to the bank to make sure you had cash in your drawer and yeah, they were getting paid out in cash at the end of the day, but they didn't really have a good way of tracking that information. Right. Just going back to that financial empowerment that they're just getting handed cash and I don't know, they're using it for random things and they don't really have a good idea of what that money looks like, that's a good way to approach it. Now you're really going to know how much money you're making because it can be quite substantial. So that's one way to introduce it as well. And then again, and service providers are great because they have such an intimate connection with their clients. A lot of times they have concerns like, well, I don't want my clients to be paying any fees or anything like that. Just again, easing their concerns and letting them know that again, this is positive stuff, this is good stuff. You're going to get your tips instantly and most of the time your clients are just going to be delighted to tip you. So in terms of presenting it to your staff, it kind of depends on your team. We have some teams that are like, woohoo, I'm so ready to go. This is so exciting. I'm ready to get my money. And some people, we get it. Change can be scary sometimes, but just whatever way, just kind of based off of maybe what you were doing previously, how are we going to improve upon that process? Can be a good way to kind of get them on board. And then just one more thing to add here. Just in my experience with teams that may have been a little bit more resistant to it, the second they start getting money, many of those issues tend to melt away. So even if you can present it like, I know maybe you're a little unsure of this change, can we maybe give it a try for two weeks or 30 days or something like that? And then if at the end of that 30 days, it's really not ideal. We're contract free, so we're risk free. Obviously we don't want you to cancel, but to that point, let's give it a try. Let's see what happens. And then I'm going to say I would almost ten times out of ten, as soon as that staff, once they get those instant tips, they're a little bit more on board. So just a couple of tips and tricks there on how to introduce the service with your team in addition to your clients as well.
[00:15:09] Speaker A: Yeah, no, I agree 100%. And just to kind of like close this up for everyone, we're going to continue to do these conversations. This was fun. I love it. I love to talk about how we can empower the beauty professional and the beauty industry in itself. And this is it. I really had the opportunity to see this whole company be born and brought into the beauty industry and I've literally seen service providers lives being changed and that's what this is all about. And we want to make sure that you have all the tools to be able to do that and continue doing that. So thanks for listening in. We appreciate it. And like I said, we're going to have more. Stay tuned.
[00:15:56] Speaker B: All right, thanks for joining. Bye. Have a good day.
