Phil Jackson

Hitting £90,000 in turnover should be a huge celebration for your salon. For Phil Jackson, it nearly destroyed his business. He missed the VAT threshold for nine months, leading to a massive backdated bill for money he'd already spent. Don't let this happen to you. In this episode, Phil shares his costly mistake and gives you the exact steps to proactively manage your salon's VAT, avoid a surprise bill, and ensure your business grows profitably. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 📊 MAIN CONTENT: THE ROLLING 12-MONTH VAT THRESHOLD • The £90,000 VAT threshold is NOT based on your tax year or company year end. • It's a rolling 12-month period: you must check your turnover for the previous 12 months *every single month*. • Once you cross £90,000, you have 30 days to notify HMRC. Registration kicks in from the first day of the second month after crossing. PHIL'S £10,000+ MISTAKE AND ITS CONSEQUENCES • Phil delegated, then abdicated, trusting his accountant to track the threshold. • He crossed the threshold but didn't know for nine whole months. • HMRC backdated his liability, demanding 20% of all revenue taken during those nine months. • The money came straight from his business reserves, cleaning out his emergency fund. WHAT TO DO IF YOU'VE ALREADY MISSED THE THRESHOLD • *Act fast:* Go back through records to pinpoint when you crossed £90,000. • *Call your accountant immediately:* Make a voluntary disclosure to HMRC to show you're fixing the problem, which can prevent penalties. • *Reduce your bill:* Work with your accountant to reclaim VAT on purchases (equipment, stock, coaching) made during the period you should have been registered. • *Talk to HMRC:* If you need a payment plan, engage with HMRC directly. They prefer to find a solution than push you into bankruptcy. PREPARING FOR VAT REGISTRATION AND GROWTH • *Gradual price increases:* Don't wait for a 20% cliff edge. Implement small, regular increases (e.g., 3-4% every six months) to absorb the VAT impact gradually. • *Keep growing:* Between £90k and £110k, profits can be squeezed. Aim to quickly push past £110k towards £120k+ turnover to ensure strong profitability after VAT registration. • *Explore the Flat Rate Scheme:* Discuss with your accountant. For beauty businesses, it can be 13% of turnover (12% in the first year), simplifying budgeting but meaning you can't reclaim VAT on purchases. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 📊 RESOURCES: Get Paid Properly: getpaidproperly.com ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 💬 WORK WITH ME: 1:1 Coaching: https://buildyoursalon.com ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎧 LISTEN: YouTube:  / @buildyoursalon Spotify: https://go.philjackson.me/Spotify Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3MZp6jP ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ CHAPTERS: 0:00 - My VAT Mistake That Nearly Ended My Business 0:50 - The Truth About the Rolling VAT Threshold 2:00 - Why HMRC Backdates Your Salon's VAT Bill 3:10 - The Cost of Missing Your VAT Registration Date 4:00 - The One Habit to Avoid a Huge VAT Bill 4:50 - What to Do If You've Already Missed It 6:00 - How to Reduce Your Backdated VAT Bill 6:50 - Talking to HMRC About Payment Plans 7:30 - How to Manage Salon Price Increases for VAT 8:40 - The Flat Rate VAT Scheme for Salons 10:10 - Your 3 Immediate Actions for Salon VAT ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ #SalonVAT #SalonPricing #SalonBusiness #BuildYourSalon ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Questions? phil@buildyoursalon.com

Are you using AI in your salon, but only for the odd email or social media post? Many salon owners are missing the huge potential of AI, treating it like a glorified chat bot rather than a powerful tool, costing them time, money, and opportunity. In this episode, Phil Jackson shares three specific AI tools that will move you beyond simple prompts and into true automation for your business. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎯 WHY YOU NEED AI SYSTEMS IN YOUR SALON • *Stop Losing Hours to Non-Revenue Tasks:* Identify and automate repetitive jobs like answering common client questions, managing stock orders, or onboarding new team members. • *Gain a Competitive Edge:* While some are using AI as a 'toy', others are adopting it as a 'tool' to automate operations, creating a widening gap in efficiency and profitability. • *Shift from Prompt Engineer to Manager:* Move beyond chatting with AI to making it a productive 'employee' that performs actual work for your business. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🤖 THREE AI WORKERS TO HIRE TODAY • *Google Notebook LM (Your Business Brain):* This free tool is an expert in your specific documents. Upload your employee handbook, price lists, and training guides. Your team can ask questions and get accurate, sourced answers, or even use audio overviews, quizzes, and video summaries for training. It won't 'hallucinate' answers, only using the information you provide. • *Agentic AI like Anthropic's Claude (Your Admin Assistant):* These systems go beyond chat, connecting to your tools and files. Give it a goal, like 'analyse my spending for the last financial year, categorise it, and report my top three expenses,' and it will autonomously perform the task, even generating charts. Or, ask it to analyse your calendar to show how much time is truly spent on clients versus admin. • *Pi.AI (Your Personal Mentor):* Designed for supportive, empathetic conversation with a strong memory, Pi.AI is perfect for personal brainstorming and processing the stresses of running a business. Keep your personal reflections separate from business AI tools to maintain focus and privacy. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 📊 RESOURCES: 1:1 Coaching: https://buildyoursalon.com ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 💬 WORK WITH ME: Phil's program AI by Your Side: philjackson.coach ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎧 LISTEN: YouTube:  / @buildyoursalon Spotify: https://go.philjackson.me/Spotify Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3MZp6jP ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ CHAPTERS: 0:00 - Stop Treating AI Like a Chatbot 1:10 - Why AI Systems Matter for Your Salon 2:20 - Google Notebook LM: Your Salon's Brain 3:15 - Using Notebook LM for New Team Onboarding 4:50 - Agentic AI: Making AI a Worker 5:40 - Claude AI for Financial Analysis 6:50 - Claude AI for Time Management Reports 7:50 - Pi.AI: Your Personal Mentor 9:15 - Keep Personal AI Separate from Business 10:00 - Three AI Tools to Implement Today 10:40 - Learn More with AI by Your Side #salonaiautomation #salonbusinessstrategy #salonmanagement #salontraining #salonproductivity ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Questions? phil@buildyoursalon.com

Are you endlessly busy in your salon, working all hours, but still feel like you're just surviving? Many salon owners pour their heart and soul into their business only to find it dictates their life, rather than supporting it.Phil Jackson challenges you to assess if your salon business is genuinely working for you, or if you've simply created a job you happen to own. This episode delivers a crucial framework to evaluate your salon's health and start building a business that serves your lifestyle.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━🎯 THE 5 SIGNS OF A WORKING SALON* **You Get Paid Properly:** Beyond minimum wage or 'what's left'. A deliberate, planned salary reflecting your value and risk.* **It Functions Without You:** Your business doesn't collapse if you take a holiday or a day off. It can operate, serve clients, and make money independently.* **It Grows Predictably:** Growth isn't accidental. You have a defendable plan for turnover, marketing, pricing, and team capacity for Q2 and beyond.* **Your Team Performs Without Micromanagement:** They take initiative, maintain standards when you're not watching, and you're leading, not firefighting every day.* **It Gives You a Life:** Your business supports your desired lifestyle, offering time off, financial security, and the ability to make choices, rather than demanding your every hour.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━📊 RESOURCES:1:1 Coaching: https://buildyoursalon.com━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━💬 WORK WITH ME:1:1 Coaching: https://buildyoursalon.com━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━🎧 LISTEN:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BuildYourSalonSpotify: https://go.philjackson.me/SpotifyApple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3MZp6jP━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━CHAPTERS:0:00 - Is Your Salon Business Truly Working?0:40 - The 5 Things a Working Salon Delivers2:40 - Question 1: Are You Paying Yourself Properly?4:20 - Question 2: Can Your Salon Function Without You?6:20 - Question 3: Do You Have a Predictable Growth Plan?7:50 - Question 4: Does Your Team Perform Independently?9:40 - Question 5: Is Your Business Supporting Your Life?11:20 - What Your Answers Mean for Your Salon12:10 - When Your Business is Surviving, Not Thriving13:00 - Build a Business That Works For You━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━#salonsuccess #salonowner #salonbusiness #profitablebusiness #lifestylebusiness━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━Questions? phil@buildyoursalon.comPhil Jackson, your Queen of Salons, offers essential business tips for a business that just WORKS! Following a month of discussions on pricing, planning, team, tax, and profit, this episode helps you determine if your salon business is operating effectively. Discover key strategies for business management and financial analysis to ensure your salon is a profitable business.

Does the UK tax year end on 5th April fill you with dread? Many salon owners feel anxious, unsure what they owe or what they should have done differently. You've got 9 days to fix it.Phil Jackson shares 5 practical, immediate steps to get your salon's finances in order and sail through the tax year end with confidence.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━📊 RESOURCES:Get Paid Properly: getpaidproperly.com━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━💬 WORK WITH ME:1:1 Coaching: https://buildyoursalon.com━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━🎧 LISTEN:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BuildYourSalonSpotify: https://go.philjackson.me/SpotifyApple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3MZp6jP━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━CHAPTERS:0:00 - Introduction: Why Tax Year End Causes Stress0:50 - The Crucial Window: Why Act Before April 5th1:40 - Step 1: Update Your Income and Expenses4:10 - Step 2: Utilise Your Pension Contributions5:20 - Step 3: Check Your VAT Threshold Position6:40 - Step 4: Ensure You Are Paying Yourself Properly8:10 - Step 5: Talk to Your Accountant This Week9:20 - Setting Up for a Successful New Tax Year10:40 - How to Gain Ultimate Financial Clarity━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━#SalonTax #TaxYearEnd #SalonFinances #BusinessAccounting #UKTax━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━Questions? phil@buildyoursalon.comThe tax year end often brings anxiety for salon owners due to procrastination or uncertainty about their tax obligations. This episode provides timely advice and guidance to help fix these issues, emphasising that nine days can be enough time to get organised with proper tax planning. We'll cover crucial financial management strategies to ensure your small business achieves business success.

Are you staring at empty slots in your appointment book this spring, hoping social media likes will magically turn into bookings? Stop wishing and start doing. This episode gives you a no-nonsense, three-point spring marketing plan that delivers real clients through your salon door. Phil Jackson, your Queen of Salons, reveals the direct, actionable strategies to fill your books NOW, without relying on Instagram. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 📊 WHAT YOU'LL LEARN: 1. REACTIVATE YOUR LAPSED CLIENTS * Your cheapest client to rebook is one who's already been in. * Pull a list of clients not seen since before Christmas. * Send a simple, direct, personalised message via text, WhatsApp, or even a phone call. Mention their name and usual treatment. * Example: 50 lapsed clients, 20% respond = 10 bookings. At £50-£100 average bill, that's £500-£1000 revenue for an afternoon's work. 2. MAXIMISE THE PRE-EASTER PUSH * Easter is a key gifting and treating moment, even if clients aren't religious. * Use the two weeks before Easter to promote "get Easter ready" or "get set for spring" services. * Push gift vouchers as Easter gifts for mums, partners, or friends. * Use point of sale (POS) prompts in your salon; clients often book or buy vouchers if prompted on the spot. 3. MASTER YOUR REBOOKING STRATEGY * This is the most powerful retention tool, but most salons use it inconsistently. * Every client leaving in April should have a May appointment confirmed before they leave. * Use reasons like "it's getting busy for summer" or "secure your preferred slot." * Script it for your team: "Can I do this for you?" rather than "Do you want to book?" * A 70% rebooking rate from 30 weekly clients means 21 confirmed appointments for the next month, generating easy, loyal revenue. SOCIAL MEDIA IS A SUPPORT, NOT A DRIVER: * Don't spend two weeks posting on Instagram hoping it fills your books. * Liking a post isn't the same as a booking. * Direct contact with existing and lapsed clients outperforms social media for short-term bookings every time. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 📊 RESOURCES: Salon Spark: https://salon-spark.com ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 💬 WORK WITH ME: 1:1 Coaching: https://buildyoursalon.com ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎧 LISTEN: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BuildYourSalon Spotify: https://go.philjackson.me/Spotify Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3MZp6jP ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ CHAPTERS: 0:00 - Introduction to Spring Marketing 1:05 - The Cost of Waiting Too Long 2:00 - Strategy 1: Reactivate Lapsed Clients 3:30 - How to Personalise Your Outreach 4:40 - The Power of a Phone Call 5:30 - Strategy 2: The Pre-Easter Push 7:00 - Leveraging Point of Sale Prompts 7:45 - Strategy 3: Master Your Rebooking Strategy 9:10 - What to Say for Effective Rebooking 10:35 - Why Social Media Isn't a Booking Driver #springmarketing #salonmarketing #salonbookings #clientretention #salongrowth ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Questions? phil@buildyoursalon.com

Phil Jackson, your Queen of Salons, discusses the importance of effective quarterly strategic planning for salon owners. He guides viewers on how to properly map out actions beyond just setting revenue goals, emphasising that good planning is crucial for business growth. This video encourages salon owners to develop a clear strategy and focus on goal setting for a thriving business.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━📊 RESOURCES:1:1 Coaching: https://buildyoursalon.com━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━💬 WORK WITH ME:1:1 Coaching: https://buildyoursalon.com━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━🎧 LISTEN:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BuildYourSalonSpotify: https://go.philjackson.me/SpotifyApple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3MZp6jP━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━CHAPTERS:0:00 - Introduction to Q2 Planning1:00 - Why Q2 is a Big Opportunity2:00 - The Problem with Reactive Planning2:50 - How to Set Your Q2 Revenue Target4:10 - Breaking Down Monthly Revenue Targets5:20 - Identifying Your Marketing Gap6:20 - Key Q2 Marketing Moments to Plan7:40 - Checking Team Capacity and Finances9:00 - How to Create Your Simple Q2 Plan9:40 - Next Steps: 1:1 Coaching with Phil#SalonBusiness #SalonStrategy #SalonPlanning #Q2Planning #BuildYourSalon━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━Questions? phil@buildyoursalon.com

Is your accountant actually LOSING you money?It's tax season, and your accountant should be more than just a scorekeeper. This video explains how to get more value from your accounting relationship, focusing on proactive financial planning rather than just reporting past figures. Learn essential questions to ask your accountant to boost your salon business growth and improve your financial health. Because your small business finance deserves more than just annual accounts.What You'll Learn:What most accountants actually do (compliance vs. strategy)Why you're paying for a historian, not a business advisorThe five questions to ask your accountant this weekWhen to change accountants (red flags to watch for)What accountants can't do (but you wish they would)The gap between accounting and strategy (and how to fill it)What Most Accountants Actually Do:Process your bookkeeping (or tell you off for not doing it)File your tax return, tell you what you oweGive you last year's numbers (when it's too late to change anything)Charge £1,500-3,000/yearThat's COMPLIANCE, not strategyYou're paying for a historian, not a business advisorWhat Your Accountant SHOULD Be Doing:1. Monthly Financial Reports (Not Annual)Monthly P&L (ideally) or quarterly minimumBreakdown by: service type, team member, cost categoriesSpot problems WHILE you can fix them (not 12 months later)HMRC making tax digital = quarterly reporting anywayForecasting: See expenses coming, anticipate shortfalls, plan promotionsGame changer: Stop flying in the dark, start steering strategically2. Profit Margin Analysis"Your margin dropped 3% this month - here's why""Product costs creeping up - time to renegotiate"Proactive advice, not reactive reporting3. Tax Planning (Not Just Tax Filing)"Based on current numbers, you'll owe £X in tax""Set aside X% monthly for tax""Here's legal strategies to reduce your bill"No surprises in January when tax bill landsHelp you AVOID the tax hole, not just get out of it4. Strategic Business Advice"Your wage costs are 45% - industry standard is 40%, here's how to adjust""You should be making £X profit on £Y revenue - you're not, here's why""That new treatment? Not profitable. Here's the math."Industry knowledge (don't need industry-specific accountant, but they need to understand your business size)5. Benchmarking"Here's how you compare to similar salons""Your rent is high/low relative to revenue""Your retail margin is better/worse than average"Context so you know if you're winning or losingAbout Phil Jackson:Phil Jackson is a salon business coach with 27 years of industry experience and a Creative Head Most Wanted Award. He helps salon owners in hair, beauty, and aesthetics build profitable businesses without the hustle BS.Work with Phil:If you need help beyond what accountant provides (understanding numbers AND what to do with them):Episode Timestamps:0:00 - Introduction: Tax Time Reality Check0:29 - Phil's New Website (Built with Claude Codex in 1.5 Days!)2:49 - What Most Accountants Actually Do (Historians, Not Advisors)4:35 - What They SHOULD Do: Monthly Reporting & Forecasting6:08 - Profit Margin Analysis & Tax Planning7:06 - Strategic Business Advice & Benchmarking8:53 - The Five Questions to Ask10:25 - Red Flags: When to Change Accountants11:14 - What Accountants Can't Do (The Gap)12:00 - Closing: Last Episode of February#salonbusiness #salonowner #accounting #bookkeeping #profitmargin #saloncoach #beautybusiness #hairdressingbusiness #businessfinance #buildyoursalon1:1 Ultimate Clarity Coaching: 90-day programme delivering your 5-year lifestyle-first business plan, 12-month profit & pricing strategy, and 12-month marketing planBook a free consultation: https://tidycal.com/philjackson/1to1-enquiryWebsite: https://buildyoursalon.comNew podcast site: https://queenofsalons.comEmail: phil@buildyoursalon.com

Your team's been cooped up together all winter. Three people not talking, one being a bitch, one being passive-aggressive. You're hiding in the office. Today: How to actually handle the drama. In this episode, Phil Jackson tackles the uncomfortable truth - staff drama doesn't resolve itself, it festers. Late February cabin fever is real. Here's how to handle it instead of hiding. What You'll Learn: Why drama ages like milk (longer you leave it, worse it gets) Two types of drama (and how to tell which one) Four-step process to handle it Why your avoidance makes it worse When YOU'RE the problem The Two Types: Type 1: Legitimate Grievances Badly Expressed Real issue: Unfair scheduling, favoritism, broken equipment, lack of training Bad expression: Bitching, passive-aggression, attitude Fix: Address issue AND coach better communication Younger teams especially struggle with face-to-face communication Type 2: Personality Conflicts & Drama-Seeking Just drama: Gossip, cliques, excluding people, undermining No legitimate grievance Fix: Hard boundaries, consequences, possible exit About Phil Jackson: Phil Jackson is a salon business coach with 27 years of industry experience and a Creative Head Most Wanted Award. He helps salon owners build profitable businesses without the hustle BS. Work with Phil: If drama is symptom of deeper problems (unclear expectations, poor systems, lack of leadership): 1:1 Ultimate Clarity Coaching: 90-day intensive delivering your 5-year lifestyle-first business plan, 12-month profit & pricing strategy, and 12-month marketing plan Book a free consultation: https://tidycal.com/philjackson/1to1-enquiry Email: phil@buildyoursalon.com

Take a look at next week's diary. Still seeing gaps? That's hope as a business model. You're hoping clients will rebook, hoping they'll spend enough, hoping March will be better. Today: The opposite of hope. Memberships for predictable income, loyal clients, and better cashflow. In this episode, Phil Jackson (the "Queen of Memberships") walks you through how to start salon memberships without overwhelming yourself. After 10 years teaching memberships, Phil knows what works. What You'll Learn: Why hope is killing your February Memberships vs. subscriptions (and when to use each) How memberships create predictable income Why membership clients have 95-100% retention How to start with ONE service Who to target (your 7s and 8s, not your 10s) The Two Types: Memberships (Unlimited) Pay monthly, unlimited use Works for: Hair services, waxing Not for: Services with no natural limit Subscriptions (Defined) Pay monthly, specific allocation Works for: Beauty, holistic, aesthetics Example: £90/month = 1 luxury facial The Three Benefits: 1. Predictable Income 20 members × £50 = £1,000 guaranteed Phil's business: Memberships cover ALL fixed costs Plan, breathe, sleep easier 2. Loyal Clients Retention: 95-100% (vs. 60-70% regular) Don't ghost in February Committed, organized, not shopping around 3. Stand Out Still relatively unusual Value, consistency, convenience (not discounting) How to Start: Step 1: ONE Service Most popular, already profitable, ongoing 12-month ideal (6 months works, avoid 3) Step 2: Target Right Clients Your 7s and 8s (not best, not worst) Good clients who could be amazing Step 3: Make Easy Direct debits/recurring cards Gift options (Black Friday, Mother's Day) Step 4: Deliver Treat as best clients Extras, bonuses, special What NOT to Do: Discount club Too many tiers Services people don't want Launch unlimited (sell 10 first)

Did someone just hand in their notice? Or maybe you're stuck with staff who just aren't good enough, but you're too scared to let them go. Good news: good staff exist. You're just fishing in the wrong pond. In this episode, Phil Jackson breaks down the five-step recruitment process that actually works in 2026. This is Build Your Salon's #1 most-watched topic—updated for portfolio working, flexibility expectations, and where good people actually are. What You'll Learn: The five points where your recruitment process breaks down Why "nobody wants to work" means you're looking in wrong places Where good staff actually are (not Indeed or Facebook) How to make your offer compelling in 2026 Proper interview process that prevents expensive mistakes Why onboarding determines 90% of recruitment success The Five Steps: Step 1: Know What You're Looking For Written job description before you need it Required vs. desired skills, culture fit criteria, deal-breakers Desperation hiring = expensive mistakes Step 2: Fish in the Right Pond Good staff are already employed, ready to move for right opportunity Where to fish: Instagram, college tutors, industry events, your clients Always be recruiting (even when fully staffed) Build pipeline: "When you're ready to move, call me" Step 3: Make Your Offer Compelling 2026 staff want: progression path, training, flexibility, low drama, transparency Include: Training budget, 4-day week options, success stories Good people have options—they're choosing you too Step 4: Interview Like You Mean It Phone screen → interview → practical → trial (paid) → references Call references, don't just email Real example: "Car crash" hire because no references checked Step 5: Onboard Properly Shadowing, training on YOUR systems, clear expectations 12 weeks probation minimum Regular feedback (weekly for first month) Most failures happen in first 90 days This Week's Action: Write that job description before you need it. About Phil Jackson: Phil Jackson is a salon business coach with 27 years of industry experience and a Creative Head Most Wanted Award. He helps salon owners in hair, beauty, and aesthetics build profitable businesses without the hustle BS. Work with Phil: If recruitment struggles are symptoms of bigger issues (pricing, culture, systems): 1:1 Ultimate Clarity Coaching: 90-day intensive delivering your 5-year lifestyle-first business plan, 12-month profit & pricing strategy, and 12-month marketing plan Book a free consultation: https://tidycal.com/philjackson/1to1-enquiry Email: phil@buildyoursalon.com

t's Friday the 13th. The unluckiest thing you can do today? Ignore your numbers. You might tell yourself a few fibs about how your business is doing—your numbers won't. Let's dive in. In this episode, Phil Jackson walks you through four critical numbers that tell you everything about your salon's health. These aren't weekly metrics—these are quarterly deep-dive numbers that show you exactly what needs fixing and where to focus your strategy for the next three months. What You'll Learn: The four numbers that expose your salon's true health What healthy benchmarks look like for each measure Why "money in the bank" doesn't mean profitable How to spot pricing vs. capacity vs. retention problems When being "busy" just means busy being poor The Four Numbers That Matter: Number 1: Net Profit Margin Formula: (Net Profit ÷ Revenue) × 100 Healthy: 10-15% minimum (target 15-20%) Below 10%: You're in trouble What it reveals: Pricing too low, costs too high, or both Number 2: Revenue Per Client Visit Total revenue ÷ Number of visits Healthy: Higher than your most popular service What it reveals: Pricing structure, retail conversion, profitable vs. busy The question: 100 clients at £30 or 60 clients at £60? Same hours, more profit Number 3: Client Retention Rate Percentage returning within expected timeframe Healthy: 70% minimum Below 50%: Churning clients What it reveals: Service quality, pricing alignment, team issues Number 4: Utilization Rate (Billable hours ÷ Available hours) × 100 Healthy: 85-90% Below 70%: Capacity problem Above 90%: Pricing opportunity What it reveals: Marketing problem or pricing problem This Week's Action: Calculate all four for January. Track quarterly to see trends. These show you what to work on next. The Brutal Truth: Numbers are facts. If they're bad, fix the business model or keep pretending until you run out of money. About Phil Jackson: Phil Jackson is a salon business coach with 27 years of industry experience and a Creative Head Most Wanted Award. He helps salon owners in hair, beauty, and aesthetics build profitable businesses without the hustle BS. Work with Phil: If you need help fixing what these numbers reveal, that's what Ultimate Clarity does: 1:1 Ultimate Clarity Coaching: 90-day intensive delivering your 5-year lifestyle-first business plan, 12-month profit & pricing strategy, and 12-month marketing plan Book a free consultation: https://tidycal.com/philjackson/1to1-enquiry Email: phil@buildyoursalon.com

February is when you notice the gaps in your diary. Those clients who couldn't get enough of you in December aren't rebooking. You don't have one big retention problem—you have three specific leaks in three specific places. Let's plug them before March. In this episode, Phil Jackson identifies the three critical points in your client journey where you're losing people and gives you one practical fix for each that you can implement this week. What You'll Learn: The three specific points in the client journey where you're losing customers Why "better customer service" is too vague to fix retention problems How pre-booking appointments can jump retention rates dramatically The power of one personal touch per visit (and how to systematize it) Why 48-hour follow-up messages work (and how to template them) The Three Retention Leaks: Leak #1: Before They Book Problem: Great experience, intended to rebook, just... didn't Fix: Book next appointment before they leave (every single client) Script: "I need to see you in four weeks time. Let's get that booked now for you." Follow-up: Get permission to text if they don't book online Impact: Creates consistency, removes friction, positions regular visits as normal Leak #2: During Their Visit Problem: Service was "fine" but nothing memorable Fix: One personal touch per visit that shows you remember them Examples: "How did that job interview go?" / "I thought of you when I saw this product" Implementation: Note one personal detail per visit, reference it next time Impact: Personal connection beats perfect technical delivery Leak #3: After They Leave Problem: Happy client leaves, you never contact them again Fix: 48-hour follow-up message (every client, every time) Templates: "Just checking in after yesterday—how's your hair/skin settling in?" Advanced: Product tips, midpoint check, booking prompt Impact: Shows you care beyond transaction, keeps you front of mind This Week's Action: Pick ONE leak to fix (Phil recommends pre-booking—easiest, biggest impact). Team meeting today. Track for one week. Reality Check: If your service is good and you're still losing clients, these are your three leaks. Plug them before March. About Phil Jackson: Phil Jackson is a salon business coach with 27 years of industry experience and a Creative Head Most Wanted Award. He helps salon owners in hair, beauty, and aesthetics build profitable businesses without the hustle BS. Work with Phil: If retention is a symptom of bigger structural issues (pricing, service design, business model), that's what Ultimate Clarity addresses: 1:1 Ultimate Clarity Coaching: 90-day intensive delivering your 5-year lifestyle-first business plan, 12-month profit strategy, and 12-month marketing plan Book a free consultation: https://tidycal.com/philjackson/1to1-enquiry Email: phil@buildyoursalon.com