When Jill S. Wiltberger left her marketing position to help her husband, Kenneth R. Collopy, promote his already-popular Blue Ash salon, she believed she would have a major impact on revenues. Instead, she found that the firm, Kenneth's Haircutting Inc., was already pounding on almost all the right marketing buttons.

        Mr. Collopy had an unwritten positioning statement, encouraged client loyalty, kept good employees and generated new clients with regular discount offers.

        But in this line of work — as in most vocations — almostis never enough. The informal thrust had to be written and kept in a high-profile place where employees and customers could read it.

        After adopting Ms. Wiltberger's formal initiatives, the company has doubled its revenues from $500,000 to $1 million.

        “I've always known people in other businesses and try to do what they do and make it relate to my business, and what I've found is this: It boils down to how good you are at personal relationships,” Mr. Collopy said.

        The lessons learned over the past five years at Kenneth's offer keen insight into a handful of highly effective approaches that promise to reduce the churn of customers, to retain employees and to gain market share for any business.

        A quick list of how to brand a company, developed by Ms. Wiltberger, owner of Wiltberger Communications, follows:

        • When hiring employees, ask quirky but on-point questions during the interview. “He asks "How lucky are you?'” Ms. Wiltberger said.

        “If a person says they are unlucky, they're probably going to be unlucky for your business.”

        Find out about a prospective employee's hopes and desires to gauge motivation and determine how likely they are to fit into the culture of the company. If the vision is too limited, how can they contribute to future growth?

        • Once employees are on-board, never stop training, and ensure training crosses multiple disciplines. For instance, education at Kenneth's lasts at least two hours on Tuesdays. Mr. Collopy, who commands $250 per cut, regularly demonstrates his technique for a crowd of stylists.

        A recent guest speaker was former Maisonette maitre d' Richard Brown to talk about customer service. There are yoga classes for relaxation, and last year an English teacher lectured on language and the history of the written word.

        • Create an employee handbook, and then make sure the employees actually read it. Ms. Wiltberger took two years to complete the handbook for the 14 stylists, two nail technicians and four receptionists

        “The idea that you would have a handbook addresses all employment issues up front,” she said. “It gives employees an understanding of what to expect and what they can expect from their new employer.

        “It makes everything clear at the beginning so you don't have issues down the road. That makes it easier to concentrate on the business of building a business.”

        Mr. Collopy, 57, began his career in the beauty industry in New York City before opening his own salon.

        Ms. Wiltberger, 50, has been involved in the marketing and public relations industry for 30 years and was formerly employed at Northlich, were she served clients such as E.W. Scripps Co., Clopay Building Products Co. and the Procter & Gamble Co.'s Salon Education Division.

        Susan Smyth, president of Smyth Management, a management consulting firm based in Anderson Township, said the approach at the salon works across many industries and disciplines. Her firm has advised P&G, Union Central Insurance and Investments and Exxon Mobil Corp.

        “It would work for the hardware store in Dent as well as a computer software company,” she said. “This is an exceptional approach for the type of business they are in. This is very, very good stuff.”

        In the highly competitive work of hairstyling, strategies to build salon brand awareness can even be enhanced by the design of the salon.

        At Panache Salon in Newtown, for instance, floor-to-ceiling windows with views of the styling chairs and stylists create a living billboard for the drivers and passengers on heavily traveled Ohio 32.

        “It was part of my angle when I bought the building in 1994. The windows were definitely a factor,” said Patrick Meredith, owner.

        Retention of employees is why incentive trips to the Caribbean are offered to employees.

        “In this industry, people manage themselves,” he said. “You have to be self-directed to get behind the chair and please the customer.”

        He said quality also depends on the product. “It's the way it is with any type of service,” Mr. Meredith said. “A restaurant is only as good as the food.”

        Kenneth's tips for success

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