The 4 C's............

Thank you, Redken NYC, for this topic!!

During your consultation, it's soooo important to go over these 4 subjects (and this applies to all services, really) concerning your color.

CONDITION:  What condition is the hair in??  What does it feel like, both dry and wet??  What does it look like??  How is the porosity?  Does the client have water issues??  Does the client take medications??

All of these are vital questions.  If their hair is in poor condition, over processed, either by chemicals or by the sun, you'll need to do one of two things:  Adjust the formula accordingly, or refuse to do the service.  (which, if you have an ounce of integrity, you'll do if the hair is compromised).

Water issues:  If they have well water, do they have a water conditioner/softener that equals out the mineral levels in the water??  If not, you may need to do an intense clarifying treatment (Malibu comes to mind) to cleanse the hair and make sure there's an at home treatment they can purchase to follow up with.  Too many minerals in the hair can cause the hair to smoke (when introduced to hair chemicals), cause the color to be even darker than expected, or to not "take" at all.

Medications:  All medication, all drugs, come out in the hair.  Your hair is a part of your elimination system, like sweat and tears are.  So, everything you put into your body (BP meds, blood thinners, illegal drugs, vitamins) all come out on your hair.  Heavy doses of medications will coat the hair and prevent the chemicals from doing their job properly, resulting in an unhappy client who receives a free service (or two) to correct the mistake, costing both you and the salon, a bunch of money.

CHANGE:  How much of a change are you looking for??  Subtle??  Dramatic??  You'd better be explaining what you have to do to take them from one color to another.  Generally, it means using decolorizer (bleach) which changes the texture and porosity of the hair.  It also means that to extract certain colors from the hair (black & red) will be very difficult and you man not get the results you're looking for.

COMMITMENT:  To maintain the color, you must prescribe a routine for the client to come back in to get things touched up/adjusted.  Some colors require serious maintenance.  For example, lets say we take you to a fabulous pale blonde.  To maintain that, you, the client, need to come in no more than 4 weeks from your last appointment to get your color dealt with so that it matches.  Anything longer than that, and the stylist has to deal with the attractive gold band that keratinized hair creates.  And , if the colorist doesn't deal with it (and charge accordingly, don't forget to tell the client this part well before the next appointment), the client will think you screwed something up and will expect you to fix it, free of charge.

COST:  How much will it cost for this initial service??  How much will it cost to maintain it??  What if the color needs a toner??  How about adding highlights to break it up??  Is the finishing service (haircut, blow dry) included in the cost??

All of this requires a 5th "C"..COMMUNICATION!!  If you, the hairdresser, do not have good communication skills, you will not be able to gain and keep your clients trust.  They trust you, as the "professional", to not only know what you're doing, but to know what you're talking about.  Which leads to:

HONESTY:  You must, AT ALL TIMES, be honest with your client.  Even if it means telling them:  I may have to adjust the formula for next time if this isn't quite right this time.  This also applies when you're selling at home care.  If you don't know how something works, FIND OUT.  DO NOT LIE TO YOUR CLIENT!!

I listen, daily, to hairdressers, who have no clue what they're saying, try to lie to their clients.  We're in a powerful position because we have immediate trust placed in us.  Lying to the client to cover your ineptitude just doesn't work.  AND, it takes your credibility and flushes it right down the toilet.

READ:  Do not rely on your coworkers to be able to answer all your questions.  READ.  Seek out more knowledge on your own.  Then, when you don't understand something, ASK.

There is so much more to this job than the average person realizes.  So, the next time you're thinking hairdressers are ditzy, or not very bright, or they only went to hairdressing school because they couldn't get into college, please think again.  Our job is a lot more than just grabbing a head of hair and going for it.