Ask for the World and Give Nothing

Client Situations
Clients who ask for the world and give nothing
This week we had a mother and her daughter coming in for facials at 3:00.  No big deal right?  It would take a hour and 15 minutes, if that, out of my otherwise painstakingly slow day.  I prepared my room at 2:30.  Not only did the pair come in 30 minutes late, they didn't even show any remorse.  If it had been a busy day, this would have completely thrown off every one's schedule.  I didn't exactly mind but Betsy, the owner and boss, wasn't pleased.
I took the daughter into my room and our other Esthetician (and hair stylist) took the mother into the other facial/waxing room.  The daughter was sweet.  She has never had a facial before so I explained to her what happens during one.  I made sure she was aware what the extraction process would entail.  Extractions are basically when we get those nasty blackheads out of your nose.  She said she had no problem with that, however; they were going to a 5-day wedding that night.  They were Pakistani, and that's how their weddings work.  She didn't want her nose to be red so I said I'd just do a few extractions.  Her skin was pretty clear except for a few blackheads here and there.

Next, I asked her what she does to take care of her skin.  She replied saying that she usually just washes it and uses Nivea cream.FYI:  Surprisingly, I hear this a lot.  People coming in to get a facial, expecting you to work a fricking miracle on their face.  Even with the help of steam to soften your pores, I cannot get many blackheads out if you're not exfoliating regularly.  Without any exfoliation in your weekly routine, the dead skin on your face piles up making it nearly impossible to extract anything without using unnecessary force.  Even dry skin needs a little scrub here and there.  Don't over do it though because that can irritate your skin and make you very red.  These days, many cleansers already have chemical exfoliants in them, even with that you need to use a scrub every couple days.
Continuing our story, throughout the entire extraction process, this girl was complaining.  Every time I used even the slightest amount of pressure, I would hear "Ouch!"  While extractions are usually my favorite part of a facial, I do not enjoy knowing that you're in pain.  So I said the hell with it and stopped completely.

After her facial, she asked if she could have the top of her back waxed because she would be wearing a dress.  I told her no problem, it would take about 20 minutes.

She asked to make a quick call in between, that was no problem.  It was 4:05 by this time and their next destination was a nail salon.  She changed their appointment from 4 to 4:30.  This was ridiculous.  It was already past 4 and exactly what she had done to us.  There was no way that she would be there by 4:30 either.  Anyone who works at a job where people make appointments to see you understands my annoyance with people like this.  You think we have nothing better to do than sit around waiting to see if you show up or not?

During her wax, I decided I wasn't such a fan anymore.  Every time I would spread wax onto her back she would hiss with pain and pull her head back as if the wax was too hot. Now anyone who has used wax knows the consistency of wax when it's too hot.  It's as thin as water dripping off of the stick.  This wax was anything but thin.  Pulling her head back was another problem seeing as I was waxing her back.. she was basically putting her hair into the fresh wax.  The kicker is, when I would pull the strip off she was silent.  Either she was full of it or had serious sensitivity issues.

After the services were finished they went to the front and paid.  Each facial is 70 and her waxing was 25.  They then proceeded to leave without tipping.  People like this really frustrate me.  I get no percentage of that service.  The only way I make any money from tips and my hourly wage.  Honestly, I would have rather sat around for that hour doing nothing than had to work with you and get nothing from it except a headache.



That concludes Client Situation #1.  Feedback?  Too long?  Too much complaining?  Not enough?  Let me know!  Comment below if you have any feedback or suggestions!


Ciao,
Toni