Isobel Larkin Sisters and co-founders of SSKIN Clinic, Amy and Emilee Hembrow, share why they encourage staff and businesses to “grow together.”
In 2022, it won’t be news to anyone that we’re well and truly living in the ‘digital age.’ Social media can be a powerful tool for marketing and supercharging the growth of your business, as well as building a solid community within your client base.
But in the aesthetics world, a debate amongst spa and clinic owners has been raging around the etiquette of staff Instagram accounts, and whether these can be beneficial or detrimental to businesses.
Weighing in on the debate are two major Australian rising stars, sisters and co-founders of SSKIN Clinic, Amy and Emilee Hembrow.
If you’re thinking their surname sounds familiar, you’re not mistaken. The two are in fact sisters of powerhouse Australian YouTuber and content creator, Tammy Hembrow, as well as influencers in their own right. Emilee boasts an incredible 1.1 million Instagram followers while Amy has an impressive 281k.
Considering their roles as cosmetic clinic owners, and social media insiders, Amy and Emilee are primed to offer a well-informed and incredibly insightful opinion on the topic.
SPA+CLINIC caught up with Amy and Emilee to hear their thoughts on whether or not you should encourage your staff to showcase their work via social media.
“Being afraid to promote your staff in the media and on social media is a backwards way of thinking. When showcasing your employees, it’s a juggling act but it comes down to your brand structure, having a clear vision of employees you are hiring and mutually beneficial staff business relationships,” say the pair in a joint statement.
“It is naive for brands to think that by not promoting their staff publicly that they are not forming relationships with their clients. So why not use this aspect, which is often very beneficial for the business, to mutually grow together?”
Below, the sisters summarise four main reasons why they think the idea of hiding employees behind the brand – for fear of losing their investment or clientele – should be left in the past:
1. Creating industry recognition through social media is brilliant for your business
We have found industry recognition is high on the priority list for staff these days. It opens more opportunities for the employee and employer. This can be a very mutually beneficial relationship when approached correctly. To make sure your investment in the employee is worthwhile, the business should be structured so that clientele form an attachment to the brand and not solely the practitioner.
We strongly believe that if your business could be greatly affected by having a practitioner leave, then your brand strategy needs adjusting.
Relationships are encouraged with their practitioner because any employee good at their work will already be forming these relationships. It’s on the business to leverage this.
For example, Christie Cameron, our Senior Dermal Therapist, has won best Beauty Therapist on the Gold Coast twice.
Christie often contributes to media articles and is encouraged to promote herself and is promoted by the business. We are working with Christie towards her future goals so that she grows with the business, we leverage her success for the business and give her resources to better achieve our common goals.
Yes, she could leave us but we have become very selective in our hiring process specifically selecting employees that want to grow with the company, and if they do move on which is in their right (which often happens when your goals no longer align) we have positioned the business so that many of our clientele see multiple practitioners at our clinic, have relationships with our coordinators and have become accustomed to the “experience” which is embedded in our brand strategy.
2. A nurturing workplace with opportunities for growth attracts quality talent
We ask our employees what drives them in their careers, and employee feedback allows us to tap into what’s most appealing. With industry recognition and increased opportunities, the workplace becomes a highly sought after and attractive workplace to people comparing workplaces when looking for places to apply.
3. Encouraging employees to grow can enhance staff retention
Inspire employees to work hard and achieve their career goals. But also, encourage employees to grow and develop with the company – thus increasing employee retention and loyalty. This can also lead to increased overall productivity. When the hard work and expertise of employees are highlighted, it inspires other employees to work hard to achieve similar goals.
4. Social media promotes transparency and allows clients to more easily find their ideal practitioner
When you’re getting procedures done it’s important to know who you’re going to, their experience, and their past work. An Instagram page is like a portfolio of their work – it helps builds trust. In today’s social media climate, more clients ask for personal pages of nurses to see their work so they can differentiate between other practitioners on the business page.
We encourage sharing our practitioners’ personal work because we are proud of their skillset. It can come across as sneaky and less transparent when cosmetic pages don’t [specify] who the injector is [and] you could book thinking you will get an experienced nurse but get someone who is fairly new to the industry.
What do you think about promoting your staff on social media, and maybe even letting them manage their own business Instagram profiles? Let us know in the comments or e-mail info@spaandclinic.com.au
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