Some of our readers may recall that the Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids Salon Franchise in Albuquerque was voted Best of the City in 2014, 2015 AND 2016. We are excited to say that they've done it again, and have been voted by readers as Albuquerque The Magazine's Best of the City for 2017! This is quite an honor to be sure, as numerous votes were cast in order to spotlight those businesses, organizations, restaurants, and people that help make Albuquerque such a great place to live!

Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids in Albuquerque is noted as not being just another kids' salon, but as a unique place where mounted cars for styling chairs, televisions and Xbox games at every station help make the haircutting experience fun and special. Additionally, Shear Madness also has an award-winning YOUniquey Boutiquey where kids and parents can shop a fantastic selection of toys, jewelry, kids hair products, hair accessories and more. And to top it off, by mixing in ShEAR Dazzled Ear Piercing (a unique ear piercing experience), the La De Da Spa, themed parties, and a great styling staff - customers are sure to find something to bring a smile to their face! 

Kimberly Abeyta, owner of the Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids in Albuquerque says that, "We are grateful for being voted 'Best of the City Children’s Salon' 4 years in a row! Thank You Albuquerque for making Every Child Matter!" Kimberly also notes how hard the Shear Madness team works to bring smiles to their customer's faces each and every day by building up personal relationships and striving to create a special memory and fun atmosphere for kids and parents alike. Additionally, Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids in Albuquerque has really perfected the art of not only giving a great haircut, but also hosting fabulous kids Birthday parties! For example, the spa party concept has been a real hit in Albuquerque. Girls are treated to wearing spa robes, getting mini manis, twisty updos, glittery makeup, and a glitter tattoo. They sing Karaoke and get to choose a headband from the YOUniquey boutiquey to take home!

Janon Otto, CEO of Shear Madness Franchising noted that, "Shear Madness in Albuquerque has always been so concerned with excellent customer service since day one!  We are so proud of this store, the stylists are excellent, the parties - the best, and now they are doing an excellent job with ear piercing as well!  We see this store continuing to build its clientele and remaining - The Best in Albuquerque!"

Customer Service is one of those things that might sound easy on paper, but can sometimes be a lot more difficult to remember or implement effectively when you're interacting with your customer in person (or over the phone). Following are five recommendations that Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids (an award winning kids hair salon franchise system) has learned over the many years that we've served thousands of customers with a smile and the help they not only deserve - but have come to expect!

1. It's important to have the right information at hand! When interacting with a customer, the right information can make a big difference in the kind of interaction you might have with them. Wrong or unclear information might cause someone to leave with a feeling of annoyance, exasperation or that they just didn't get the solution they were wanting - which could cause them to look elsewhere. So make sure that your business has a great system in place that keeps track of relevant customer data. For example, let's say a customer contacts your business wanting to know about a service they received from a couple of weeks ago. If you're unable to quickly look up this information, or the employee who assisted them, the lack of details could lead to potential confusion over what they're asking for. 

2. Treat your customers like people! We've often seen very sterile communications with customers, which is laden with in-house terminology, number or letter sequences (for products) and sentences that seem like they're spoken by a robot. Or, I'm sure we've all had that employee who acts about as bored as can be when you call them up to ask a question, or take absolutely forever to give you the answer you're looking for. This all leads to a feeling that the customer is either just another number in some machine, or isn't really that important. So make sure that you're relating to your customers in ways that help them to feel valued and intelligent, and use language that is friendly and not too technical. One trick that might help is to actually smile when speaking to someone, whether in a face-to-face discussion or on the phone. It's a lot harder to convey an attitude of boredom or annoyance when you're smiling. 

3. Acknowledge customer concerns. This can be a tough one, as no-one likes to feel like they're in the hot seat. However, make sure that when you're assisting an upset customer that you listen carefully to their concern, and promise to make it right (as much as is feasibly possible). It's also important to utilize positive language over negative language when interacting with your customers. For example, negative language might be the use of "I can't or won't do that right now", or "This is not our fault". Positive language would be, "Thank you for bringing this concern to our attention. I would be happy to help fix this issue for you!"

4. Help customers with the ability to help themselves. Sometimes it can be frustrating for customers if they're looking for an answer that they know should be easily available online, but instead have to spend the time to contact someone at your business. It's a good idea to have a website where customers can find this information, and publicize it on social media or in your advertising so that they know this is where many of their questions could be answered. For example, a business website should include store hours, locations, services provided (with helpful descriptions) and perhaps even a frequently asked questions. Another great thing about a website is that it can communicate through photographs or videos, which can be very helpful for your customer in understanding more about what your business offers!

5. Be thankful to you customers. As noted earlier, customers love to feel appreciated and valued.  One way to do this is write thank you notes after a customer makes a purchase, or have customer appreciation days with fun give aways and snacks. You might also consider utilizing the blog on your website or social media to highlight positive customer feedback, good customer questions or photographs of customers in your store (with their permission of course). A lot of people complain about faceless mega-corporations that seem to regard them as just a number. So be sure to bring a personal touch to help your business stand out!