Are you stuck in a color rut with your client? Every visit, it’s the same old routine: “retouch and a highlight.” Try to always give your client something to look forward to, says David Velasco, author of 101 Trade Secrets of a Haircolor Consultation. “Give her a vision of what the future could look like and suggest she change her color slightly with each season,” he suggests. “Like adding subtle highlights in the spring, which get heavier in the summer. In the fall, introduce warmer tones or reddish highlights, and then deepen the base for winter.” But how to initiate that color conversation is the tough part. David suggests something like this: “Hi Suzie! I’ve been thinking about your haircolor (already she’s impressed because you’ve been thinking about her even though you may have hundreds of other clients) and what I’d like to do when you come in for your May appointment. I thought we’d start introducing a few very soft highlights to complement your spring wardrobe and makeup. Then after that, we can increase the boldness of your highlights for summer. What do you think about that?” Continue the conversation to talk about your fall and winter plans, explaining the benefits of each new look. “Remember,” says David. “If you don’t change your client’s look, she will change you!” Get successful tintback strategies from David Velasco!

Think about the editorial hair of your dreams…thick, voluminous, cloud-like texture that defies gravity and lends an air of sophistication to your client’s overall look. This look with wow factor attracts attention like a magnet, and it’s a look you should definitely know how to master. Check out this how-to from Matrix Artistic Director Nicholas French, and when the next charity runway show hits your town, wow the crowd with your awesome avant-garde sensibilities! Begin by misting slightly damp hair with Matrix Biolage Hydra Seal Softening Mist and comb through for even distribution. Set hair on large hair pins in a rick-rack, figure-eight formation. Seal each pin by pressing it between the plates of a flat iron. Release the hair and gently tease the roots with your fingers, then dress out the ends with your fingers and brush lightly with a boar bristle brush. Get $2 off the NEW Matrix Total Results Break Fix Leave-In Elixir!

The summer months can be slow for stylists—but they don’t have to be! Joico Celebrity Colorist George Papanikolas has an enviable pool of A-list clients at Andy LeCompte Salon in Southern California, and he knows how to thrive in a competitive hair environment and keep the clients coming through the door no matter what the season! One of his suggestions for boosting your color profits this summer: think year-round. “Discuss highlights in summer months and lowlights once the temperatures dip. Knowing there’s a strategy in place will keep clients excited about coming back for seasonal adjustments,” George says. And color is just the beginning. “Be sure you’re offering seasonally-adjusted add-on services and products, too, like extra conditioning and sun-protection for summer strands and moisture-replacement in the coldest, weather-stripping times of year,” he says. Enter to WIN a Joico K-PAK Color Product Set—50 Winners Chosen at Random!

Is your dream to become the best-known stylist in your town? You may be surprised to learn iconic celebrity stylist Garren wasn’t always at the head of NYC’s beauty pack; he actually started his career in far-off Niagara Falls! If you’ve always dreamed of being the star in your city, start with the basics. Here are three ways you can get on the path to superstardom:

Size Up Your Clients: Check out new clients that walk through the door: her shoes, her overall posture, etc. You can peg her immediately and get a clear sense of how far you can go with her hair.

Get Involved: If your salon is departmentalized, you still need to be present for every part of your client’s visit—cut, color, nails, makeup, everything! Clients appreciate your interest in all of their beauty needs.

Dress to Impress: The dress code at Garren Salon is solid black and white. “This puts the focus squarely on the clients where it belongs,” says Garren, “not on the people working here.” Want more advice from Garren and celebrity stylist Ken Paves on how to become a star? Register for their FREE Webinar Monday, May 21st!

Session stylist and On Paper columnist Garren has been in the industry for decades—his now-famous career has humble beginnings at a hair competition in Buffalo in 1969! Now he works with celebrities like Madonna, Victoria Beckham and Scarlett Johansson and his work has been featured on thousands of magazine covers. With his firsthand experience of life as an up-and-coming stylist, Garren is the perfect man to judge the seven RAW teams June 3! With all that experience, his advice to young stylists looking to make something of themselves is invaluable. The tips he gave to the RAW teams can be translated to any salon team working in a group—whether they’re producing a show or photo shoot for the salon, creating a collection or working backstage for a fashion show. “Don’t let feelings get in the way. The best colorist should direct the color. The best cutter should direct the cuts. Let the strongest person lead the way. Work as a team, but take advantage of the individual strengths on your team. And make sure to leave your attitude at home,” he says, adding that a successful group collaboration comes down to executing the details perfectly. “Don’t miss a single detail,” he explains. “The set, the models—everything has to be flawless. All of the components have to come together to make a fabulous show or picture. The must be continuity.” Want to get more advice Garren? See him at RAW, Sunday, June 3 in Orlando! Tickets only $20!

When your client sits in your chair and says she wants “something different, but keep the length,” you’re flummoxed. Here’s a solution: give her a bold, full fringe like this one, created by TONI&GUY Advanced Academy Director Joseph Marzioli. First, take a horizontal parting at the top of the occipital and isolate the hair underneath it. Separate the desired fringe with a triangular section at the recession area, comb to 90 degrees and point-cut square. Finally, cross check at natural fall to create a rounded line. Add some face-framing layers to draw even more attention to her face, and voila! You have a cut that manages to both give the client a new look without taking off too much length! Learn more cutting techniques when you attend TONI&GUY’s 2-day classes! Click here for more info!

What fashion-forward client doesn’t love a show-stopping red? Make a bold statement using these formulas from TIGI Copyright ©olour:

Formula 1: TIGI copyright©olour creative 77/66 + TIGI copyright©olour activator 40-volume/12% (mixing ratio 1:1.5)

Formula 2: TIGI copyright©olour mix master /66 + TIGI copyright©olour activator 30-volume/9% (mixing ratio 1:1.5)

Formula 3: TIGI copyright©olour mix master /66 + TIGI copyright©olour activator 20-volume/6% (mixing ratio 1:1.5)

Formula 4: TIGI copyright©olour mix master /66 + TIGI copyright©olour mix master /44 + TIGI copyright©olour activator 20-volume/6% (mixing ratio 1:1.5) Click here for the complete step-by-step and application technique!

Nothing makes us think of warm weather more than a gorgeous platinum blonde, and this one from Angelo Seminara’s Flamboyance collection for Davines is as good as it gets. Here’s how to create this stunning look on a Level 8: Begin by applying Glorifying Treatment Pre Color. Section hair from the top of the head to behind the ears. Starting from the top of the head and working towards the nape, apply section-by-section 40g L’Art Decolor Bleaching Paste + 60g Activation Source 20-volume to lighten up to two levels, keeping 1 cm distance from the scalp. In the front area, work forward from the top of the head towards the forehead. Process for up to 20 minutes, checking visually. Shampoo the hair with Davines Naturaltech Well-Being. On towel-dried hair, apply 25g Finest Pigments Pearl + 5g Finest Pigments Gloss from the regrowth area to the ends and process for 20 minutes. Tone with 40g Mask 10,0 + 1g Mask Violet Intensifier + 80g Activation Source 7-volume. Process for up to 20 minutes, checking visually. Discover the new Naturaltech line from Davines!

Flowers die, candy is fattening and she already has way too many scarves. What moms really love is personal services—the National Retail Federation says $1.2 billion was spent on service-based gifts in 2011. And guess what?! It just so happens you’re IN the personal service business and Mother’s Day is right around the corner. As a final push, make sure your whole team is on board to sell gift certificates and product and service packages to those last-minute shoppers. Encourage each team member to strike up a conversation with their clients about Mother’s Day, letting them know the salon has gift certificates and unique gifts available. Your phone’s “hold” message can even say something like, “Forgotten about mom? We haven’t! Salon ABC has plenty of gift certificates and packages available, so stop in and pick one up soon!” Speaking of packages, put together some “just for mom” service options like the “New You” package which may include a mani/pedi, facial and a hair extension application. Learn how you can add new service options to your menu with Great Lengths!

Hellen Ward, Director of the “Royal Wedding Salon” Richard Ward Salon & Spa, sure knows how to treat her clients like royalty! But when it comes to offering incentives, she uses her keen business sense to decide which clients reap the rewards. Her sage advice: Never discount services for new customers. “My belief is that deals must only be for established and previously-loyal clients only, avoiding the “deal chasers.” If you want do some sort of incentive, try adding value rather than cutting prices. “For instance, offer a promotion where your client can receive a personalized color gloss to refresh her color at home (continuing a home-care, all-encompassing customer service ethos) when you book a color treatment. Promotions like that are proven to be more effective than reducing prices and decreasing perceived value,” says Hellen. Remember, adding value to your service menu is far less damaging to any salon brand long-term. The pros at Richard Ward salon know that good customers rarely mind missing out on such an offer, but from experience, cutting prices is a slippery slope to mediocrity and a damaging route which is almost impossible to recover from. Want to learn more from Hellen on becoming a star salon manager? Register for her webinar—Wednesday May 30!