By signing your lease for your brand new studio at Sola, you have just made an exciting and positive change for your life and career. Since becoming your own boss and opening up your own salon comes with new challenges and responsibilities, it’s not unexpected to take a break from being on cloud nine and ask, “Where do I start?” Here’s a quick-list of tasks and items you should focus on in the first few weeks of your new #SolaBoss life. Lean Into Sola Tools Download the Sola Pro app to get access to exclusive product deals, education, perks and more. Create your Sola webpage. The Sola website (www.solasalons.com) gets over one million visitors per month! Many of these people are looking for a new beauty professional to book an appointment with. Using the Sola Pro app, you can easily update your own Sola webpage with beautiful pictures, a robust bio, hours and a booking link. And the best part? It's free to all Sola professionals! At Sola, we've made it easy to increase your online presence and keep your books full. Visit the Sola Blog to find marketing ideas, tips and success stories from other Sola owners. Subscribe to the Sola Stories Podcast. Whether you're looking for a marketing quick tip, advice from a fellow Sola professional or inspiration from some of our industry's thought-leaders, subscribe to the Sola Stories Podcast for your on-the-go inspo! Take the initiative to walk around and meet the other Sola pros in your location. This is not only a great way to cross-promote your business to attract new customers, but to also get to know your amazing Sola community! "Compared to other suites, Sola isn’t just my landlord. Our Sola owner is a friend and a business partner. He is there to help us and make sure we succeed. Compared to a booth rental salon, at Sola, you are the true owner. You get to choose the vibe of your salon, down to the wall color." - Lindsey Couch, 2020 Faces of Sola Protect Yourself + Your Business Now, you may be tempted to run to IKEA, HomeGoods, or Target and start picking out some décor (who wouldn’t?!). But first and foremost, let’s get all the important business stuff taken care of. Ask your manager for assistance with the business licensing requirements in your area - and make sure to utilize Sola's start-up manual to guide you along the way! Create Your Culture Now that you own your salon, you get to do things YOUR way! You’re in complete control of creating your salon's culture and identity. An important step is to create the vision for your salon and really think about what your salon is going to offer and the experience you are going to provide that will set you apart. It’s all about building a unique brand and client experience. Think about your target clientele and why they would want to visit your salon over another. What problems are you going to solve that will bring your guests back again and again? What feelings do you want your guests to have when they arrive and leave your studio? Read more about Creating Your Salon Culture. Build Your Brand When creating your brand, you’ll want to consider everything from your logo to colors to your brand voice. The branding process will take time, and does not need to be completely done before you take your first appointment! Brands are constantly evolving. One thing to consider: hire a professional! If you want a logo but aren’t sure how to create one, hire a designer. They can also help you determine the right colors, fonts and images to use in your marketing. Tips on building a brand: Be authentic Have a unique voice Be consistent Create value for your customers Consider the experience in your salon as part of your brand "I've never changed myself, style or personality and it’s what has made me successful. I never change my roots. Consistency and authenticity are why my clients come back." - Brittany Athey, 2020 Faces of Sola Choose Your Paint, Artwork, Music & Décor Now’s the fun part: create the space of your dreams that you will love being in every day and that your clients will love to visit! Your salon should match the experience you want to evoke for your clients. When it comes to designing your studio, you’ll want to think about setting a mood. Think about the full experience. Do you want bright colors and loud music or soft hues and sweet melodies? These decisions will come back to the brand you are aiming to create. One thing to keep in mind—a wall to shoot client photos for social media. Shelbie Donoho and Tara Chilton, 2020 Faces of Sola and co-owners of Meraki Salon & Co. wanted an aesthetically pleasing space to shoot before and afters, so they bought a beautiful shimmery fabric to place on their salon doors for all their stunning hair photo-ops. They've even had clients connect over getting their hair done at the same place because they recognized the backdrop! Talk about that next level brand recognition 💯 Create a color scheme or palette for your brand BEFORE you start picking out colors. This will