Susie Wilson realized that tying employee bonuses solely to sales targets did not align with the values of Antoinette Champagne salon. She decided to instead tie bonuses to providing excellent customer service and ensuring guests' needs are met. This new approach evaluates employees based on problem-solving skills, understanding guests, and demonstration of the salon's core values of service excellence, transparency, respect, and integrity rather than products sold. While this change may not seem radical, it sets the salon apart by shifting the focus from sales numbers to truly serving guests. Susie Wilson believes this approach has become a core strength for the business and its employees.

1. www.susiewilson.co
www.susiewilson.co
Bonuses should be tied to customer value, not sales targets.
By Susie Wilson.
Why would you eliminate sales targets as a way to evaluate, motivate, and reward your sale
staff?
The link between the bonus pay to our salon professionals and the numbers of retail products
sold for a particular service. It is, after all, a well-established incentive plan. At Antoinette
Champagne salon we have a very special responsibility to our guests they depend on us to do
more, feel better, and look amazing. It is the responsibility and the critical importance of trust in
our relationships that means we are judged to a higher standard than many other industries.
I have seen the good that our industry does and transforming the lives and confidence in
people. But I have also heard complaints that our incentive systems and not focused on the
interest of the guest. We are, of course, concerned that some see perceived conflicts of
interest in the way we run our business, particularly related to incentive plans for our salon
professionals and the financial links we have with product companies we buy from.
General Manager Susie Wilson realised that "how" we do our job is just as important as what
we do. Ultimately every leader knows that you get the behaviour you reward.
At Antoinette Champagne salon I decided that the bonus incentives for our salon professionals
should be tied to the value we bring in ensuring that guests are appropriately treated in
"service excellence".
The service for excellence focus is a core value for us, along with transparency, respect, and
integrity. So instead of specific products sold, I began to reward our salon team for the guest
focus, understanding of their guest, problem-solving, and level of scientific knowledge as
measured by tests and other assessments.
This approach may not seem like radical thinking, but when we change our focus away from
numbers of products sold to guests well served, it sets us on a different path that, thus far, we
walk alone.
As a service industry business, I watch the sales numbers and I'm concerned if they dip. But
our value metrics are important to our long-term growth, and we hope they will help restore
trust in the hairdressing industry.
Our employees must recognise that this change will align you our stylists with our values and
brand Antoinette champagne.
Susie Wilson had to identify new metrics to evaluate aspects of the employee performance
such as problem-solving, business acumen, and demonstration of our values. I believe this
new way of thinking has become core strength for us.

2. www.susiewilson.co
That's why we are now working to extend that practice and several countries around the world
as a brand grows. That's no small commitment, but my experience of the past several years
has strengthened my belief that this is the right path for our company as well as the guests we
serve, where-ever they live in the world.
Renewing focus on our values by reshaping employee incentives is helping us to do more to
help our guests we are not the only industry that needs to better meet society's expectations.
Every one of us and the service world must look at our business through the eyes of our
customer/ guests and nimbly respond to their changing expectations.
Susie Wilson
Creator and Visionary Antoinette Champagne Salon.