Why Formulation Is the Biggest Way to Elevate Your Services:
The statistics don’t lie. Most clients try a stylist only twice and if they aren’t happy, they leave. That means you have a very short amount of time to make an impact on someone.
Your job is more than just your technique. You see, people need connection and trust. It is absolutely our job to provide them with the best service possible and also the best TONE possible.
When clients were asked what made them most frustrated about the stylist they decided to leave, most responded with: they didn’t receive what they asked for.
It’s true we cannot please each person that sits in our chair and we really aren't supposed to. You are meant to be the stylist for someone, not everyone. Being and everything and everyone stylist can lead to multiple issues, one of them being complete burnout. A feeling of never being able to keep up. You absolutely have to find passion in your work.
The truth is, technique can be such a small part of the puzzle. People are often looking to FEEL better inside and out when they leave. It is our job to create an experience for them. They most likely won’t notice that piece that’s slightly off in the back of their head, but you might lose sleep over it. The point is, we are delivering an emotion to them.
Let me share what they will notice…
What they will notice right away is how the tone of their hair either brightens their face or brings out their eyes. They will notice if their hair is shiny and bouncy. They will notice how happy they feel or the smile it brings to their face. They will notice the depth at their root or the brightness around their face. There’s so much that a tone can do. Each season brings new lighting, outfits and makeup. That means their hair should be reflecting the same.
If you’re able to create a vision and experience for your client, they will never leave you and always follow you. We are sharing so much of their life with them. Sometimes we are the only bright spot in their day, week, month… maybe even year.
Creating a formula that is SPECIFIC to each client will bring a new perspective to your chair. If you’re someone who tends to stay in the same circle of 5 glosses you’ve chosen, this is the information for you!
Customized tones are what is needed because even if your technique is slightly off, formulation will save you every single time. That properly formulated smudge or melt will fix not only a bleed mark, lift issue, or unwanted warmth…it’s going to create movement and shape within the crown of the head. It’s going to add dimension and bring contrast where it’s needed.
There is so much POWER in formulation. Especially when a gloss is needed to brighten or soften raw lift. You have the ability to make or break your finished result in under 2 minutes. WOW!
Things we need to consider when creating the perfect tone:
Choose the correct level of gloss! If you are using a level 9 on a lift that is actually a level 8, not much will happen. Make sure you’re analyzing the raw lift properly.
Include enough warmth in your formula. Maybe the tone appears a bit dark or flat to you when you’re blow drying. Chances are you used too much ash on hair that was overly porous. Without warmth, your color will lack light reflection.
Take the raw lift into consideration. This should be assumed as 50% of your glossing formula ( already in the bottle). Maybe you wanted warm, but not brassy. That brunette you lifted to an 8 gold already has 3 additional tones ( yellow, orange (red + yellow). If you are not considering these tones while formulating, they will absolutely pop through in your result. Making a much warmer finish than you initially thought.
How we move through this process either makes someone feel comfortable or it suggests we are unsure to them. A client really never wants to feel that energy. They want to feel your excitement for what you see for them. Most people have no idea what looks good on them. They have an idea of what they like to see on other’s, but not always for themselves.
Remember that the eye color holds a lot of secrets. You can see so much pigment in the eyes that may be hard to see elsewhere. It can tell you how much warmth someone has in their natural pigment and what tones might best accompany their natural beauty!
Always be honest and advise with the energy of, “ I am SO excited for the look I see for you today!”. Show them through pictures and swatches. Explain why! Over explain and build trust. This is how we make a roadmap for future appointments and get them excited.
Either way, if you’re questioning yourself, your client will most likely pick up on it. Not one stylist wants to feel unsure when they are creating a tone to HELP someone feel better. It can feel a bit overwhelming.
We feel so strongly about building confidence in this area and we hope you will join our online education to gain invaluable knowledge on how to create purposeful tones with.
The Confidence Behind Formulation was written to help you identify your confidence and change the way you see color theory forever! Join in the fun below!
