We believe that spa guests deserve a perfect service. But with 27% of spas at 0-10% in retail sales to service, we wonder if a perfect service is being delivered. Is product training for therapists providing all of the necessary information and tools? Or is something more needed? What gives?
If you missed our March 4th Blab no worries. In this segment we discuss product distributors, manufacturers and expansion of training. Tip:click your mouse on the verbiage to the right side of the screen to read the comments.
Next Blab-Can Introverts Sell?
Friday, March 11 7:30 p.m.-8:pm. Bangkok time | 7:30 a.m.-8:00 am East Coast
12:30 pm London | 11:30 pm Sidney,Au.| 2:30 pm South Africa |4:30 pm UAE
Almost everyone is waiting on something. For entrepreneurs with a product or service to sell, the waiting game can be tough. Actually it can be hell. Read More
There’s a lot of noise in the spa consulting marketplace today. Everyone has a product that they want you to buy. You sign up for various mailing lists to ensure that you receive their newest information first. But what about the 100 people on the list before you? Read More
Women and men between the ages of 25 to 34 are pretty glamorous people. They like to look and smell good. And they love to shop for the products which can help them get that way.
Consumer research firm Scarborough offers some interesting insight into the Millennials when it comes to making purchases. Among them:
65% of millennials like to compare prices across different sites before purchasing
34% say going online is one of their favorite things to do in their free time
51% agree that being able to customize an item makes them more likely to purchase
Spa therapists need to understand that many millennials who get spa treatments come mentally prepared to buy. Read More
My husband and I recently went to a spa that had a wonderful aroma wafting through it. On a table in the reception area was a prominent display of essential oils and diffusers. I assumed that one of the oils was scenting the spa. As a trainer I’m always interested in the staff’s ability to interact well with customers. This day was no different.
“I want to try something”, I whispered to my husband. “Talk about how much you enjoy the smell in here”. I didn’t have to cue him further as he is a marketer and has a natural flair for drama. “Honey, what is that aroma” he asked in a loud stage whisper. “I like it, it’s nice. Do you recognize it?” Two receptionists were standing at attention close by, smiling at us. Not one of them approached us to clue us in on what turned out to be the signature scent of their company. Read More
Want to sell more retail? Have your therapists determine their personal brand and match it up to the product brand that’s most compatible. It can be the beginning of a beautiful relationship.
My brand as an ethnic skin specialist worked perfectly with a product from South Africa. More about that…
Most therapists enter the spa industry with the idea of providing service, helping or healing. The problem with retail sales training is that more often than not, the service component is not emphasized.
The view that retail is a customer service component and not the cumbersome additional task many therapists see it as, is one that is shared by Lorna Macleod, spa manager at Ribby Hall Village in Lancashire. “I always say to the therapists, don’t look at retail as a negative, look at it as a positive.
If you went to the doctor with a sore throat and the doctor didn’t give you anything for it, you’d feel cheated and I think it’s the same with spas,” she says. “We need to give customers something to take home that enables them to continue the benefits they see and the great feeling they have when they’re in the spa. If we don’t do that then we, as therapists, are not doing our jobs properly, we’re not fulfilling the clients’ needs and concerns.”
The problem, Macleod continues, is that therapists are afraid of retailing. “All therapists are frightened of retail because they feel as if they’re asking something where they’ll get a no back and no-one likes rejection,” she says. Gill Morris, director of training and consultancy provider GMT Training, which offers courses in areas that include sales training for spa and beauty therapists, agrees.
“Therapists are frightened to death of selling and that’s because they don’t know how to do it,” she says. “Education for therapists focuses very much on treatment, so they actually don’t know how to sell and don’t feel comfortable with the process of selling. That’s because they haven’t been taught it and if you haven’t been taught something, you don’t know how to do it.”
While many spas offer retail bonuses and incentive these, Morris explains, will have no effect if the skills required to push sales are not there to begin with. And while brands may be excellent at providing product training, product knowledge alone is not sufficient
Excerpted from Professional Spa and Wellness June issue “Selling the Sales Pitch”
