Have You Fallen Into the Good Treatment vs. Awesome Service Trap?
For many spa managers who are expats, working in Asia can be challenging. Sometimes it’s downright hard.
As a retail trainer, I frequently encounter spa managers who are struggling with the best way to deliver constructive feedback. Despite their therapists not delivering service anywhere near the vicinity of Five-star they are reluctant to confront the problem. “I don’t want them to ‘lose face’” they tell me. Or, “They’re sensitive. I don’t want to hurt their feelings.”
Give me a break!
What about your guest’s feelings???
I am amazed that at so many spas, therapists are given ten or more new guests per week, perform more than three thousand dollars in treatments and yet generate less than $200 dollars in retail product sales.
Why is this ok?
The irony is that most therapists know that their performance is falling short. Many don’t have the process language needed to do better. But they don’t bring it up because the manager doesn’t address it.
Stalemate!
For the record, in all my days of training, I have never encountered a spa manager that was too harsh. You guys are too hard on yourselves.
Spa managers who are reluctant to address poor performance issues are co-signing on bad service. No guests are complaining so they figure the treatment must have been fine. Well of course it was. It’s a Five-star facility for goodness sake.
But is good treatment the same as awesome service?
One measure of awesome service are your retail and guest retention numbers. When guests feel as though they’re seen, heard and cared for, they respond favorably. They purchase recommended home care and come back to your spa again. It’s not complicated.
Studies have proven that retail is so critical to retention that selling a mere two products increases your guest return rate by 60%!
Coming into one of the heaviest spending travel seasons is a good time to have a third-party perform an assessment of the service your staff is delivering. The customer experience will be viewed from a fresh perspective and targeted improvements can be made.
It’s a good way to ensure a great last quarter of 2018.
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Linda Harding-Bond
