Mini Moment #18: Stop Overlooking the Community You Already Have – with Sherri from Timely

TRanscript

[00:00:04] Jen: Welcome back to the Inner Sanctum, so on Rising the podcast Mini Moments brought to you by Timely. And I am joined today by my timely friend, Sherri from Timely. How are you?

[00:00:15] Sherri: am so good and I'm so happy to be back. I feel like it's been a while.

[00:00:19] Jen: I do feel like it's been a while as well. I was thinking that when I was setting up today. Thinking back to the last time we did some mini moments together and I feel like so much has changed since then.

[00:00:30] Sherri: lot has changed. And I was also thinking the other day of when I, it's been a year or just over a year that I actually did the podcast with you guys in person.

[00:00:40] Jen: Is it really? Oh my gosh. That's crazy.

[00:00:44] Sherri: Time goes by.

[00:00:45] Jen: Yeah, you're right. It is over a year. Oh my goodness. Yeah. Time goes by and I was saying that this morning to someone. It's like, yeah, so basically it's Easter. That's, that's it. It's happened. Christmas was five minutes ago, and now it's Easter.

[00:00:58] Sherri: I know. And they always say the older you get, the ti, the older you get.

[00:01:04] Jen: The faster the time goes.

[00:01:05] Sherri: and then it's like, okay, so then how do I counteract that? Well, I'm just gonna slow down and do less, and then you do do that. But I still feel like time goes by so fast.

[00:01:14] Jen: Yeah, agreed. Like I don't, I don't know that there's a way to biohacker stuff as such, the, the passing of time because it's still passing around us, whether we slow down or not. Right.

[00:01:25] Sherri: I think even if we slow down, we're still thinking of the to-do list that we have to do tomorrow.

[00:01:29] Jen: Oh, that bloody to-do list never ends.

So I think, you know, we had this, this conversation about perks and add-ons before we started recording. And do you know what's so interesting is that you said to me like, I'm hearing this a lot, Samara and I spoke in an event a couple of weeks ago, and when we asked what, so we'd put out prior what people wanted us to talk about that actually came up.

As one of the most things that people are getting asked about, in terms of the, the reps that we were working with for the product company that we were speaking for, that they were encountering in salons. It's like everyone's having this conversation. So

[00:02:10] Sherri: Yeah.

[00:02:11] Jen: What, what are, what are perks? What are add-ons?

What, what does that mean and how can we utilize them? Right.

[00:02:16] Sherri: Yeah, look, I think, you know, it's not just hair salons right now, it's every business owner in every business is going through a tough time in some way,

[00:02:26] Jen: Yeah.

[00:02:27] Sherri: No one's business right now I think is perfect. I mean it, I mean, what is perfect essentially, but I think when we

[00:02:35] Jen: Yeah.

[00:02:35] Sherri: things back is, uh, there's some tough times with rising costs.

Everything's going up. We're in this really. Yucky period of the world right now, and

[00:02:47] Jen: I love

[00:02:48] Sherri: wanna talk about

[00:02:49] Jen: to say it, but like uncertainty,

[00:02:51] Sherri: there's

[00:02:52] Jen: oh, I just,

[00:02:53] Sherri: And

[00:02:53] Jen: yeah.

[00:02:54] Sherri: like we're in a bit of a fight or flight. In our business at the moment. And we are seeing that, and that conversation, I'm going to say has been happening well before the madness in the world.

Okay? So this

[00:03:07] Jen: Yeah. Agreed.

[00:03:08] Sherri: on, and I think it will always go on in some way, shape, or form. So we just have to learn to, what's our solutions? How do we support businesses more, what does that look like? And let's just try and ease that. Feeling in business. And so essentially when we kind of were hearing these things are timely, we were like, okay, so

how do we align more with brands and partners and how do we help our salons? Because

[00:03:40] Jen: Yes.

[00:03:41] Sherri: all well and good. Here is your business management software. Here is how you run your business. Here is how you look at your numbers. Here is X, Y, Z, and I love that that's there, but like how do we alleviate some of those business costs for you? so we came up with an idea called Timely Perks.

And so my whole mission, the last pretty much 12 months, is like, okay, does that look like? Who can we work with? How do we form a partnership? How do we give back to our salons? And what does that look like? And we're 12 months, no, we're not 12 months in, I think we're about six months in And it's been amazing because, for example, we have some, you know, perks of, uh, you know, some our, our beauty brands, and they can go in, they can use a code and they can alleviate a bit of that cost on their business

[00:04:35] Jen: Yeah, that's huge.

[00:04:36] Sherri: you know, and now we're moving into the education and so we're trying to hit all these pillars of like, Hey, how do we give back to you?

Give back in education, give back in rising costs. I think it's a really special thing to look at. Business right now. And it made me think as I knew this podcast was coming up, I'm like, are you also thinking about that in your own salon right now? Because your clients

[00:05:01] Jen: Yeah. Agreed. Okay.

[00:05:02] Sherri: thing

[00:05:03] Jen: Yep,

 yeah, we've had a lot of conversation around this in Salon as well, like that whole, like how people are struggling and what are the different ways that we can actually support them. This is, so this is. An idea that I think, you know, in the past we spoke to, Chantel who has tole in Melbourne, and I love the way that tel like speaks about, being the salon on for all the time.

There is always a way for you to stay part of that salon on family and, and the different ways that we can do that for our clients, especially if they're experiencing hardship, that will make them still feel like they're a part of what we are creating. Right.

[00:05:45] Sherri: 100%.

It is so important. It's like also getting comfortable talking about money in your consultation.

[00:05:53] Jen: Yeah.

[00:05:53] Sherri: Like, you may know your client's circumstances. They haven't directly told you that I'm struggling with money, but they're telling you what's going on in their life and they may be going through a divorce that's costing a lot, or, uh, they have

[00:06:07] Jen: Yeah.

[00:06:08] Sherri: and they're a single parent or whatever that might look like.

And you just know deep down that, hey, money may be a little bit tight. So you get comfortable in that consultation being like, is does this fit in with your budget?

[00:06:19] Jen: Yeah, and this is why Samara and I are such massive advocates for quoting before you start, because also when you sit in that chair and you listen to the, and you know, that's what we're there for. We're obviously there to provide a service, but a lot of the time we are the people that. That people are unpacking the stuff that they're struggling with, and it's so easy to start mentally discounting because you know all the hardships.

Whereas it, it's none of our business what they value to spend the money that they have on. So if we can just allow, it's like this is what it is. Obviously, there's always that opportunity to work within someone's budget. I, I had that recently where I had a client who, she, she really needed to have her ends trimmed, but she can't afford to have me trim them.

Well, that's fine. I can just get, Ashley, one of our emerging stylists to do it for you. It's include, she's just working on getting her time up. I check it afterwards and, but she's quite proficient at it like, okay to be doing it on the floor and that will save you like this much money. And that's a, that's something that I got from Chantel as well, that it was like, yeah, I can totally do that for people and they really appreciate it.

[00:07:30] Sherri: Absolutely. Again, I guess it is like a perk in a different way.

[00:07:34] Jen: Yeah, for sure.

[00:07:36] Sherri: think salons can also chat with their brands and people

[00:07:42] Jen: Yep.

[00:07:42] Sherri: with, or maybe they have clients that are incredible businesses or, you know, thinking outside that, that square a little bit of like, oh my God, I have this amazing client who has this amazing business. How could I intertwine that into giving back to my clients? Maybe they have, you know, maybe they've actually created like a food brand or something that's like, you know, something that's like, I'm gonna add this to my business. And actually leveraging your community of your clients add some other things into your salon.

And I think that it's just a, using the community and using your network more than trying to create. New networks.

[00:08:25] Jen: Having that be a two way street. I had this conversation recently with a client, she's a beautiful new client from one of my seniors and she owns a gym and she had like recommended quite a few people to us. So I said, can we just get you in? We're gonna do a free service for you, da da, da. Just to say thank you so much, but by having her in, she was like.

That's so nice. She's like, you know, I'm happy to do this for your business and that for your business, for, for us and her business. And I was like, that's so amazing. Thank you so much. But also, what can we do for yours? She's like, wow. Nobody ever asked that. Nobody ever, it's always like, yeah, I'll take that.

[00:09:05] Sherri: Hmm.

[00:09:06] Jen: But she's like, I don't think anyone has ever asked what they can do for my business in return.

[00:09:12] Sherri: Yeah.

[00:09:12] Jen: You know, like, and that's. Yeah. It's that two way street, right?

[00:09:17] Sherri: between a client and a partnership. Right?

[00:09:20] Jen: Yeah,

[00:09:20] Sherri: it's

[00:09:21] Jen: sure.

[00:09:22] Sherri: looking at your clients now as more partnerships and how you can all work together to help build your business. It's sort of like, you know, refer a, we go back to this and basically like we're refer a friend.

[00:09:33] Jen: Yeah.

[00:09:34] Sherri: you this, you bring me a client and it's this like cohesive kind of, you know, partnership circle.

It's the same of what we're sort of doing here at timely too. In partnerships. We know the value of partnering, we know the value of

[00:09:46] Jen: Agreed.

[00:09:47] Sherri: with Salon Rising, right? And how can we work together? What does that look like? It's a forever evolving and it's, it's an exchange for whatever that is, whatever that can be.

You know, that's the conversation that you have. So. I guess the same with the perks. We're just involving our. Our clients or our salons to give back in a way that they feel like they can use something in their business to help ease what they're going through. And it's, you know, we've still got a lot of work to do on it.

I'm not gonna lie, there's still lots to unpack. There's just an very ever evolving, evolving beast. But I think I'd love to see more salons as well, embrace a little bit more of that and look at their clients as more partnerships too.

[00:10:34] Jen: Agreed. Absolutely. And, you can work with your community in so many different ways. And I think now more than ever, we need to look within the community that we have to be able to support that ongoing, you know, circular economy feeling.

In times of uncertainty, right? Like if you, if you need anything, reaching out to the community that you have and being like, okay, I need this. Who in my community, you know, can guide me in the right direction or help me in that way?

[00:11:08] Sherri: It made me think as you were speaking. I remember when I had my salon, I had a lady who to handmake cups like the most beautiful cups.

[00:11:19] Jen: beautiful.

[00:11:20] Sherri: And I just remember buying a whole bunch of her and how grateful she was to see them being used every time she came in and got her hair done. And

[00:11:30] Jen: Yeah.

[00:11:30] Sherri: a perfect example of. You know, working with your community of who you have in your business. And she was so grateful. I actually still have those cups because they were beautiful and I just knew she made them. And it's like even more respect and love for the craft of what she created, you know?

[00:11:49] Jen: That's so nice. I love that. Yeah, that's, that's definitely, yeah, definitely the type of thing. And I, and I do think, in terms of a salon on perspective, and I'm sort of deep diving into a lot of this at the moment, the idea of what is a perk for people, for our customers has definitely changed. And I think that.

Yeah, there needs to be something new and exciting because perks don't hit like perks anymore. You know?

[00:12:21] Sherri: I'd love to know more about what you are doing with that

[00:12:26] Jen: I, yeah, I know. It's, it's all sort of just get,

[00:12:31] Sherri: but

[00:12:32] Jen: it might be a three-way conversation with Brave, because there's a lot of stuff being built in the background at the moment, but yeah, just like re reentering the. Reward and perk space with a different and fresh view.

[00:12:48] Sherri: Yeah. Amazing.

[00:12:49] Jen: Yeah.

[00:12:50] Sherri: It's important. It's a part of business that we have to, uh, I guess think of, and I think

[00:12:56] Jen: Yeah.

[00:12:57] Sherri: out there, we sort of, uh, you know, you, I don't know how many salons I'd, I, I probably should, I'd love to know a little more data on it, but I know I'm just gonna speak of sort of Monday at an event.

You know, like so many young, beautiful business owners who are soloing out there. Like, have they even had the capacity to probably even sit down and like, think of these things

[00:13:26] Jen: Agreed. Yep.

[00:13:28] Sherri: maybe you just start off with one thing and maybe it's just like, put a story up and reach out and say, which if you, if you are one of my clients and you have a brand, let me know.

[00:13:40] Jen: Yeah,

[00:13:41] Sherri: as that. And I wanna involve

[00:13:43] Jen: that's such a good idea. I'm gonna write that down. I'm gonna do that this afternoon.

[00:13:46] Sherri: Because I feel you might not have even had that conversation.

[00:13:50] Jen: Where is my pen? There it is. Sorry. I'm just gonna write that down. I am gonna do that this afternoon.

[00:13:55] Sherri: you always walk away.

[00:13:56] Jen: I know I do. I take notes. I'm like, yep, I'm gonna do that.

[00:14:00] Sherri: But it's true because we probably don't, I mean, maybe I use LinkedIn and I might be like, oh God, they've got a brand or whatever. But it's like you just don't leverage your network enough. And I know this year for me, that's a big one. Just mm. I wanna leverage the people that I know and that I have good relationships with

[00:14:20] Jen: Yeah,

[00:14:20] Sherri: with because I love them and I appreciate them.

And it's like it has more meaning to it when you've built a relationship and relationships to everything. Your connections are

[00:14:30] Jen: everything.

[00:14:31] Sherri: like it's always good making new ones. It's, it's beautiful. But what about the ones that you've. Known forever or are doing really cool things. It has just a different feeling and energy to it that I think is just so awesome.

So I encourage everyone, reach out, put a story up, who's got a business? You know,

[00:14:51] Jen: Yeah.

[00:14:52] Sherri: that we could do stuff together? Because if you look at the of marketing and what's going on out there, you're seeing the biggest brands collabing. You're seeing brands like

[00:15:03] Jen: Yes.

[00:15:04] Sherri: doing coffee or like she did a pancake poll, a pancake thing, or whatever it is, like it's random brands. Collabing and creating things and there is something so cool about that. And so you don't dunno what

[00:15:19] Jen: Yeah, agreed.

[00:15:20] Sherri: asking the question and putting it out there, know, we are seeing so many things happen in so many businesses. It's cool as, and I would love to see more of that happen I think in our, in our hair and beauty industry of co-lab being of different things that you stop and you're like, that is cool.

[00:15:40] Jen: Yeah, and I think it, it brings it back to, you know, that age old saying of like, community over competition, but this is, this is a really. Actionable way to do that. You know what I mean? To build that community.

[00:15:56] Sherri: Well, we see, I think, education in the, in the hair industry a lot, right

[00:16:01] Jen: Yep.

[00:16:02] Sherri: In. Like you obviously have a brand that you work or that you support, but you have your own independent education, and that was like not

[00:16:12] Jen: Yes.

[00:16:12] Sherri: 10 years ago. Well, I think 10 years ago.

[00:16:15] Jen: And even in. In the education that, Samara and I just recently spoke at it, this was in a. Different artists using different brands like that was not heard of a while ago. Do you know what I mean? It's like, you know, well we are all delivering a result today, but we're using the things that we use and they're not the same.

'cause these people came to see us. But then we can collaborate with other artists and industry peers and it's, it's a really nice movement. I think it's, it's an exciting future.

[00:16:48] Sherri: I agree with you. And that's a perfect example of like, you know, community over competition because the artists are collabing together with their differences and their different, you know, way they do things. You might have a colorist with the stylist now collabing with their different, you know,

[00:17:04] Jen: Yes.

[00:17:05] Sherri: like, what, what would the future of all of this look like?

Like what's the next phase of like. Collaboration. I mean, I have some wild ideas and I hope they come to life, but, because I, I'm, so, me personally, I just love a collaboration. I think it's beautiful. It's a way to work together. It's, it's so great and I think that's why I've been so passionate about perks, because it is such a. A way to go to a brand and, and be like, Hey, I know you wanna, I know you wanna be in front of our customers too.

That's cool. Love

[00:17:39] Jen: Yeah.

[00:17:40] Sherri: it. And then like, what can you give our customers? Like let's talk about it. And it's just, it, it is that. And then, you know, we've, and then we can put it in. We're in our inside, our timely app. Amazing. Click on it, use it.

[00:17:54] Jen: Yeah. Yeah.

To be fair, I don't think I've utilized that enough, and this conversation will have me diving into the perks section.

[00:18:02] Sherri: it. Absolutely. We have so many exciting, like I'm gonna announce it at our event, but we have some really cool brands coming on board. I have honestly worked so hard just trying to, you know, it moving. But we have some really cool things happening and this is an ever evolving space that timely, really wanna get behind.

And

that whole mission just comes back down to like, first thing is, what does it do for our customers?

[00:18:31] Jen: Yeah.

[00:18:32] Sherri: What, what, what's it doing? How is this gonna benefit you? How is this gonna help you run your business? How is this gonna help your mindset? How is this gonna leverage things for you as a salon owner? And then, hey, how do we support it timely? And so, yeah, I just, I'm so excited about it. It's been such a big project and I just, I'm, I can't wait to see how it evolves in the next 12 months.

[00:18:53] Jen: Oh, how exciting. Okay. So perks at timely watch this space. But I guys, I've reached this really hope that that 'cause clearly this is a conversation that's happening a lot at the moment. So I just think we all need to go back to the drawing board and really think about the community that we have, the perks that we can offer and how we can build together with our community.

Yeah. Because it's a mini moment and we are always renowned for going a little far over the mini side of the moment. We will cut there for now, guys. I hope you found that helpful. We might even jump on at some point and do a more lengthy podcast about this, but that was your mini moment brought to you by timely.

And we'll be back soon.