News is an important way for salon owners and their staff to keep-up-to-date with industry changes, trends and regulations. We were pleased to learn that of the 250 professionals who recently completed our nail survey, Professional Beauty is their main news source and more popular than other industry magazines, websites and newsletters: 54 per cent read the newsletter and 42 per cent read the magazine.
In addition, the web in general including Google searching and Facebook is used regularly by 42 per cent of participants looking for nail news. Just a few participants said they rely on trade shows to keep up-to-date with trends and industry changes.
News is also a form of education
News is a way for nail industry professionals to stay educated in the profession and the brands they use. It seems many in the nail industry are looking for more guidance and would love more dedicated news sources. Ninety per cent of participants said they would benefit from online nail tutorials (with a significant proportion [41 per cent] using YouTube for industry insight) and would also love a dedicated nail newsletter. A couple of participants also went so far as to recommend an Australian nail magazine as at the moment they read the American Nails Magazine.
The survey also shed light on respondents' major concern being industry standards, including a lack of education. As the nail care industry is unregulated, the basic education varies considerably from institution to institution. Although all nail technicians need training in order to perform well and adhere to best practice, courses range from one day to a number of weeks, with many technicians relying on in-salon training which varies in its comprehensiveness.
It is important that the chosen brand being used and sold in a salon provides all staff with thorough training and guidance; the majority of professional brands do this.
Talya Bergmann, marketing and operations manager for Bio Sculpture said of education: “Products are becoming more and more refined and thus the application techniques are so different and fundamentally important for each brand. Our belief is in protecting the natural nail and therefore, training, training and more training is our motto, to try and ensure that our customers expectations are met by tirelessly working to educate and train professionals in the industry to use our treatments effectively."
Peter Lykissas, managing director of Switch Funky said, “Education is obviously the fundamental building block for any successful salon but it's especially critical in an industry with little or no compulsory standards. I think most of us would agree that ongoing education is the cornerstone of success. Without education, even the coolest, most innovative and original products cannot be used to their fullest advantage. There are many longstanding companies in the nail industry offering great education programs at very reasonable prices. Taking lots of courses, even if they are product biased, allows the nail professional to be confident in the quality of their menu offerings and maintain an edge over their competitors. The industry is moving very quickly right now and making sure your business is across all the innovation is critical.”