Operator Documentation · TeamHaircut
Understanding the Promo Event Post-Analyzer
This guide explains what the tool does, how to use it, where to find each number, and how to interpret your results. The tool itself also has a built-in How to Use panel — this document goes deeper for operators who want to understand the methodology.
↗ Open the ToolOverview
What This Tool Does
The Promo Event Post-Analyzer is a post-event financial analysis tool. You use it after a promotional haircut event has already run. It tells you two things:
- What the event actually cost — revenue sacrificed, payroll spike, and how many new customers you needed to break even versus how many you actually got.
- What price point would have produced a better outcome — the price sensitivity table shows every $1 increment from your sale price to your baseline average invoice, so you have a concrete recommendation for the next event.
One salon at a time
The tool analyzes a single salon per run. If you ran a system-wide promotion, run the tool once for each salon to compare locations against each other.
Getting Started
Two Ways to Enter Data
Option A — Upload SPOTR (Recommended)
Upload Your SPOTR Salon Pick List
Export your SPOTR Salon Pick List as a CSV file from INsite+ and upload it. The tool reads all available weeks automatically, then you select:
- Step B — Baseline period: the weeks before the promotion ran (From / Through). The tool averages all selected weeks.
- Step C — Sale period: the week(s) the promotion ran (From / Through). Single-week events use the same week for both. Multi-week promotions select the full range — all weeks are averaged.
- Step D — Sale Price Point: the advertised price. This is not in the SPOTR report and must be entered manually. Required before loading.
Option B — Manual Entry
Enter Numbers Directly
Pull your weekly performance reports from INsite+ and type the numbers into the input fields. You will need two report pulls: one for your baseline period (pre-sale) and one for the sale week. See the field reference table below for where to find each number.
Field Reference
Where to Find Each Number
All fields except Sale Price Point come from your INsite+ weekly performance reports.
| Field | Where to Find It | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| CC Last Year | Customer count, same week prior year | Used to calculate year-over-year trend |
| CC This Year | Customer count, this year | Primary volume metric for the week |
| Avg Invoice | Average invoice per customer | Includes services + retail product sales per visit |
| Payroll % | Payroll as % of total sales | Reflects stylist wages as a share of revenue |
| Revenue Change % | Total sales % change vs. prior year | Used for context, not the core calculation |
| New Cust Return % | New customer return rate (NCR) | GC measures this over a 105-day window from 15 weeks prior — baseline only |
| Repeat Cust Return % | Repeat customer return rate (RCR) | Applied to each subsequent visit in the retention decay model |
| Sale Price Point | The advertised promotional price | Not in any report — enter manually. Required before loading SPOTR data. |
| Baseline Weeks | Number of pre-sale weeks selected | Auto-filled when using SPOTR upload; enter manually if using Option B |
Assumptions
Step 03 — Adjustable Assumptions
Three inputs in Step 03 shape the retention and price sensitivity models. Review them before generating your analysis.
Price Elasticity
Customer Drop per $1 Above Sale Price
Default: 3%. For every $1 you raise the promotional price above the sale price, the model estimates you lose this percentage of customers. Higher for price-sensitive markets, lower for loyal locations. Range: 0.5% – 8%.
Avg Visits Per Year
Customer Frequency
Default: 6×/yr (~57-day cycle). Slider runs from 6 to 9 visits per year (9 = ~40-day cycle). This drives the retention value calculation — how much a retained new customer is worth over time. Use 6 for a conservative estimate.
Coupon-Loyalty Factor
Customers Who Won't Return at Full Price
Default: 25%. Research by franchisee operators suggests approximately 25–33% of promotion-driven new customers rotate across multiple salons and are loyal to the coupon, not your location. They will not return at full price. Increasing this slider produces a more conservative, more realistic result. Insight contributed by franchisee operator Greg Thomas.
Reading Your Results
What the Numbers Mean
Revenue Sacrificed
Dollar difference between what your sale week generated and what a normal week at baseline avg invoice would have produced.
Payroll Point Spike
How many percentage points your payroll % increased during the sale week vs. baseline. Lower avg invoice with similar hours = worse payroll ratio.
New Customers Generated
Estimated number of new customers the event attracted, calculated from the increase in customer count vs. baseline trend.
Breakeven New Customers
How many new customers you needed to retain at their full lifetime value to recover the revenue sacrificed. Compare this to new customers generated.
Retention Value
Estimated lifetime value of the new customers generated, based on NCR, RCR decay, visit frequency, and avg invoice — adjusted for the coupon-loyalty factor.
Net Position
Revenue delta (vs. a normal week) plus retention value. A positive number means the event paid off. A negative number means it did not.
Color Coding
Green — positive outcome or above breakeven
Red — financial loss or below breakeven
Gold — near breakeven or optimal price point
Price Sensitivity Table
Finding the Optimal Price Point
The price sensitivity table shows every $1 price increment from your sale price up to your baseline average invoice. For each price point it calculates estimated customer count (using your elasticity setting), projected revenue, breakeven requirement, estimated new customers, retention value, and net position.
The row marked ★ is the price point with the best net position — the optimal price for the event. Use this number when planning future promotional pricing decisions.
How to use this for your next event
If the optimal price was $11.99 but you ran the event at $9.99, the table shows you exactly how much additional net position $11.99 would have produced. That gap is your recommended price increase for the next promotion.
Methodology Notes
Three Important Limitations
This model is designed to conservatively estimate the financial impact of a promotional event. All three factors below cause the tool to overstate the case for the event — meaning actual results are typically worse than shown.
1 — Bypass Customers
Customers added via the Bypass button during high-volume events have no profile created and cannot be tracked for return. They are counted in your customer total but contribute nothing to the NCR or retention calculation. Your actual new customer count is lower than the number shown.
2 — "New Customer" Definition
Great Clips flags as "new" any customer absent for more than 365 days. Sale-week new customers include lapsed customers who timed their return specifically for the discount. These are not genuine new acquisitions — they are price-conditioned returnees who are likely to repeat this behavior at the next promotion rather than returning at full price on a normal cycle.
3 — Advertising Costs Not Included
The cost to run the promotion (advertising spend) is not included in the revenue sacrifice calculation. The true breakeven threshold is higher than shown. Advertising costs vary by market and event type and must be added manually to get a complete picture.
FAQ
Common Questions
Can I use this before an event runs?
No — this is a post-event tool. It requires actual results from the sale week. A Pre-Event Planning Tool (which lets you model a proposed price point before committing) is in development.
What if I ran the promotion across multiple salons?
Run the tool once per salon. The input fields and results are all per-location. Running it separately for each salon lets you compare which locations benefited most and which did not break even.
Can I save or export my analysis?
Yes. Use the Copy Summary Text button to copy the executive summary to your clipboard. Use Download Blank Copy to save a clean offline version of the tool to your computer for use without internet access.
Is my data sent anywhere?
No. All calculations run entirely in your browser. Nothing you enter is transmitted to any server. The tool has no backend — your financial data stays on your device.
What browser should I use?
Chrome is recommended for the best experience, especially for the SPOTR CSV upload feature.
How do I report a problem or suggest a feature?
Use the 💬 Feedback button in the top banner of the tool. Your feedback is read directly by the team building this platform and shapes every version update.