The Ed.
Well-Known Member
Wahanda's new service is so simple it's a wonder it hasn't been thought of before. Comparative sites are so ingrained in our internet shopping habits now that it's no surprise that Wahanda are keen to offer beauty's version.
Gone are the days of trying subtly to book a bikini wax on the phone at work only to have them ask you, "What kind of bikini wax?" Try as you may, mumbling "Hollywood" still guarantees some amused glances from colleagues. Wahanda is hoping to remove all of this for consumers by allowing them to book online.
Consumers simply log on, enter their location and desired treatment and Wahanda will provide them with a list of local salons with available appointments and tell them how much they'll cost. They can book it right there and then without even leaving their desk or revealing their grooming needs to the entire office. Sounds great for the average consumer, but what about salons?
The problem with this is that, a little like Groupon, it doesn't encourage salon selection based on loyalty but on price. We know that the cheapest treatments are often not the best, but the consumers don't get this and let's be honest, if they're not loyal to a salon, then they are going to make their decision based on price. Of course, they may become loyal to a salon on the back of their visit to Wahanda but there's very few guarantees.
Plus, even if salons do want the increased one-off foot traffic (and let's be honest, we can't really afford to turn any custom down at the moment), you have to be in it to win it. At the moment, there are only 1000 salons signed up to the programme.
There's no doubt that consumers will use this and, according to Wahanda CEO Lopo Champalimaud they already are. "The percentage of beauty appointments booked online before we launched the new system was currently at a relatively insignificant 2 per cent. When you compare this to travel, which is around 40 per cent, you can see that the potential in this sector is just huge. In just a few weeks we have seen online booking triple. The response has been incredible - this really is just the beginning."
Are you signed up? Have you noticed a positive change in bookings? Has it generated loyal customers? If you're not signed up, would you consider it? Is this a positive or a negative move, or perhaps you're totally indifferent to it?
Until then...geek on!
The Ed.
Gone are the days of trying subtly to book a bikini wax on the phone at work only to have them ask you, "What kind of bikini wax?" Try as you may, mumbling "Hollywood" still guarantees some amused glances from colleagues. Wahanda is hoping to remove all of this for consumers by allowing them to book online.
Consumers simply log on, enter their location and desired treatment and Wahanda will provide them with a list of local salons with available appointments and tell them how much they'll cost. They can book it right there and then without even leaving their desk or revealing their grooming needs to the entire office. Sounds great for the average consumer, but what about salons?
The problem with this is that, a little like Groupon, it doesn't encourage salon selection based on loyalty but on price. We know that the cheapest treatments are often not the best, but the consumers don't get this and let's be honest, if they're not loyal to a salon, then they are going to make their decision based on price. Of course, they may become loyal to a salon on the back of their visit to Wahanda but there's very few guarantees.
Plus, even if salons do want the increased one-off foot traffic (and let's be honest, we can't really afford to turn any custom down at the moment), you have to be in it to win it. At the moment, there are only 1000 salons signed up to the programme.
There's no doubt that consumers will use this and, according to Wahanda CEO Lopo Champalimaud they already are. "The percentage of beauty appointments booked online before we launched the new system was currently at a relatively insignificant 2 per cent. When you compare this to travel, which is around 40 per cent, you can see that the potential in this sector is just huge. In just a few weeks we have seen online booking triple. The response has been incredible - this really is just the beginning."
Are you signed up? Have you noticed a positive change in bookings? Has it generated loyal customers? If you're not signed up, would you consider it? Is this a positive or a negative move, or perhaps you're totally indifferent to it?
Until then...geek on!
The Ed.
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