Ep. 11 - Who Should You Hire First?

Not all hires make the same impact on your business. And hiring the wrong role can actually slow down your business instead of helping you grow.

Today I'm breaking down who you should hire first based on your biggest pain points—whether it's another esthetician, a front desk person, or a virtual admin.

The Cost of Hiring the Wrong Role First

Many spa owners hire reactively instead of strategically. I've 100% been there, done that.

You might think, "Oh, I need another esthetician." But what if hiring a spa attendant would actually give you more breathing room to focus on other things so you can hire an esthetician and have that person scale your business with you?

For example, if you need someone for front desk to handle phone calls, scheduling, and emails, that can free you up to start making SOPs so you can hire an esthetician even faster. And then the esthetician will be able to make you so much more money so much faster.

Avoid hiring someone just because they're available or because it "sounds good," rather than because they're a good fit for what your business actually needs right now.

How to Know Who to Hire First

Identify the Biggest Pain Point or Bottleneck in Your Business

Before hiring, ask yourself:

• What's causing the most stress in my business right now?

• What do I dread doing or procrastinate because I don't like doing it?

If you're overwhelmed with clients and turning people away → It's time to hire an esthetician. If you're drowning in admin work (spending time on emails and scheduling instead of treatments) → You need to hire a front desk or admin assistant.

If you're struggling with marketing, social media, or scheduling → Hire a virtual assistant or marketing manager. And if all of these feel like "Well, all of them, Amanda!" then that's a different problem and you and I need to have a different conversation.

Avoid assuming another esthetician is your first hire just because it seems like the "obvious" choice.

When Is Hiring an Esthetician the Right Move?

Hire an esthetician when:

• You're fully booked and turning clients away

• You're burnt out from doing too many services yourself

• There's big enough client demand to keep another esthetician busy

Consider:

• Will this hire increase revenue immediately?

• Do you have training or onboarding SOPs in place?

If you're ready to expand your service capacity, hiring an esthetician totally makes sense. But only if you have the demand to support them.

Front Desk: The Overlooked Game Changer

This is someone I actually kind of put together with a spa attendant—someone who can help fold laundry, respond to emails, do cleaning, and handle all those other tiny things that are super important.

Hire a front desk assistant when:

• You're spending too much time on admin instead of clients

• You're missing calls, double booking, or struggling to schedule

• You need someone to handle client communication and appointment reminders

• They can sell retail once properly trained

This will free up SO much of your time. You'll be shocked.

Consider:

• Can they increase efficiency and free up your time for services?

• Can they check clients out, making your turnover time less? (Meaning you can fit one more facial in that day, which will ultimately have that role paying for itself.)

The right person in this role can actually help increase client retention and upselling.

Avoid thinking you should wait until you're "big enough" for a front desk hire. Many spas grow faster once they make this hire earlier on.

If you feel constantly pulled away from your clients by admin work, hiring a front desk assistant should be your top priority right now.

Virtual Assistant or Marketing Manager: Behind-the-Scenes Support

This hire is similar to front desk but more behind-the-scenes. If you're struggling with marketing, social media, emails, and need help behind the scenes that you don't necessarily need someone physically at the spa for, a virtual assistant could be the role that helps you most.

Consider:

• Is this person going to help you grow your client base or streamline operations?

• Can they handle tasks you don't have time for but you know are important?

Don't do everything yourself. Outsourcing tasks you're not great at is a smart investment, not an expense.

A virtual assistant can look like many different things. Depending on what area of the country you're in, this can really help. If you're missing calls really early in the morning, maybe hire someone from the West Coast in a different time zone. Or if you're getting calls really late at night, maybe hire someone on the East Coast or in the Philippines.

Your Next Steps

Download the "How to Know It's Time to Hire" worksheet at AmandaLuisaConsulting.com (it'll help you assess what role you need first). Identify your biggest pain point in your business right now. What's slowing you down the most?

Make a hiring plan instead of hiring reactively. Right now when you're not in desperation mode is the best time to do it.

Need help figuring out who to hire first?

Fill out this intake form to book a discovery call with me. Let's create a strategic hiring plan that actually moves your business forward.