An increasing number of hairdressers and manicurists are giving up their studios in China. They get booked via app and do home visits instead.
This is called Online-to-Offline (O2O), and it’s booming in China. (Link / Link).
Tired of bathing your dog? Hire a dog bather that comes to your home. Too busy to pick up your kids from school? Hire a private driver that brings your child home, and keeps you posted via app.
Are you ready to join this new economy? Or are you holding on to what’s familiar and comfortable?
No matter what you do, at least upgrade your service: give your clients an option to book online, or start communicating via text message or email.
My Crossfit gym has nailed it: all classes are booked via app, and the main communication channel is WhatsApp. Easy and effective!
I asked a bicycle workshop if they can send me a text message when the work is done, as other shops do. “We don’t do that here”, they said. I suggested that they think about adding it. “No”, they insisted. So I don’t come again, I thought. Simple.
Of course, you don’t need to build these services yourself. There are platforms and Software-as-a-Service solutions for everything.
Do the work and upgrade your business, before it’s too late.
(I learned this lesson from AI Superpowers by Kai-Fu Lee.)
