1. Be friendly, polite and helpful on the phone.
2. Greet me at the reception desk in the same manner.
3. Be considerate of my time - take me on time for my appointments, don't sneak other people's services in between mine, etc. and make my appointment stretch out longer than it needs to.
4. Have clean facilities - no matter what time of day it is.
5. Give a good haircut.
6. Be reasonably priced.
7. Be consistent with all of the above each time I visit.

2) On the day of the appointment, the receptionist greeted me a little absentmindedly. She was getting ready to cash out, and it was clear I had interrupted her. (-)

3) I arrived 10 minutes early and was told to help myself to snacks and drinks. There was a coffee dispenser (empty) and a tray with about a half dozen picked through and broken cookies on it. I sat down with a cup of water. Shortly after I sat down, a young woman hauled off the coffee maker and returned. She pulled a cookie tin from the cabinet, dumped the old cookies in it (certainly to be offered again the next day) and cleaned off the counter. (-)

4) The place where I was sitting had a view into the salon. The floor was covered with hair. A young woman was sweeping. I know it was the end of the day, but I wondered why they hadn't swept more often throughout the day.(-)

5) At my appointment time, the young woman put the broom aside and invited me to come in the salon and sit in a chair. She told me the owner would be with me shortly. She resumed sweeping. The owner came over and talked to me about what I wanted to do with my hair and made suggestions. I appreciated that bit of discussion time. (+)

4) When were done talking, the young woman put down her broom and escorted me to the sinks to wash my hair. There were 3 sinks. Two were spotless. The third had a ball of hair in it that was the size of my fist. She sat me at the third. She didn't wash her hands first (she was cleaning the floor immediately beforehand). I was grossed out. (-)

5) The owner gave me a great haircut. (+)

6) The charge was $5 more than my old salon, already obscenely high for a haircut. (-)

7) I didn't return. The good cut wasn't enough to get me to come back.The vision of that hair ball will prevent me from seeing if they are any better at a time not at the end of the day. Total score: (--)

Salon B

I needed another haircut about 6 weeks later. I was driving down a familiar road, and I saw a salon another friend of mine goes to. Funny, I never noticed it before. It said "Walk-ins Welcome" on the sign. I walked in. Here's how they rated on my criteria:

1. I didn't call that first time, but I have since, and the person has been very friendly, polite and helpful. (+)
2. The woman at the reception desk was very friendly. She asked me to wait just a minute while she checked with the stylists. She returned and said one would be able to take me in 10 minutes. She invited me to sit in the waiting area and asked if I would like some coffee, tea, water, or a bagel. (+)
3. After 5 minutes, a young woman invited me to come with her to the hair wash area. I sat down, and she asked me if I would like a scalp massage first. I said yes and asked if anyone ever said no. She said yes, once in a while but not very often. It was a fabulous scalp massage. I got only one scalp massage in 23 years at my old salon (+)
4. Everything was clean - the floor, the sinks, the refreshment area. (+)
5. My stylist gave me a great haircut. My husband later said it was the best I've had. (+)
6. The price was HALF of what I had been paying at my old salon. I felt I could afford to give very generous tips to both the stylist and scalp massager. I was given a discount card to give to a friend. (+)
7. I've been back 2 times since the first visit. I have to say the experiences have varied in consistency a bit. (-) I was not offered refreshments in the waiting area during the 2nd or 3rd visit. The second and third scalp massages were incorporated into the shampoo, and I wasn't asked if I wanted it (of course, I did). The 2nd massage was given by a different person and not nearly as good as the person who gave the 1st and 3rd. However, they were all better than having none. The salon has been very clean each time on each visit. The cut was good each time, too. I was charged more for the last cut and not told why. Perhaps it had something to do with the discount card. I'll check next time because, even with these inconsistencies, I plan to continue going to this salon for a while. They seem to "get" customer service better than the others. In fact, I've sent my husband, son and daughter there and suggested my friend who goes to Salon A give it a try, too. Total Score: (+++++)