Tag consultant

Tag consultant

Linda Harding-Bond
October 7, 2015

Does Your Spa Service Suck?

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Last week I traveled to the Middle East to discuss spa training and increasing retail sales with a well-known resort company. I was impressed by the opulence and beauty of their spa, it was the type of place designed for indulging in luxurious treatments all day long with your girlfriends. Read More

Linda Harding-Bond
September 9, 2015

How to make money at your spa during holiday season

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Yes, it’s just the day after Labor Day. But that’s why you need to get on this now.

If you manage a spa you probably look forward to the holiday season. That period from mid-November to January 5 is ripe with opportunity for selling. Beginning with Thanksgiving (hostess gifts) and concluding with Christmas, High Holidays and Kwanzaa this time should be a retail selling bonanza. Read More

Linda Harding-Bond
August 26, 2015

Why Your Massage Therapists Don’t Want to Sell

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For many therapists in the spa industry, retail selling has negative connotations. Some massage therapists consider their vocation to have roots based in spirituality. They don’t think that commerce should enter into the process. “Render under to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s….”  Others have expressed discomfort with the idea that as health care providers making a product recommendation may be crossing their line of authority.  Read More

Linda Harding-Bond
August 6, 2015

Why Your CEO Needs to be Tweetin’

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As a spa trainer and consultant I do a lot of information gathering. Two of my sources are LinkedIn’s Pulse magazine and articles on Twitter. Twitter’s information is in real time, fast moving and can be customized to appeal to specific demographics. It makes me wonder why more C-Suite executives from the hospitality industry aren’t using Twitter to reach a broader audience.

According to Leslie Gaines-Ross of Weber Shandwick, a recent analysis in Harvard Business Review, found that 80% of the chief executive officers of the world’s largest 50 companies are engaged online and on social media.

None of those companies include hotel groups. Indeed when trying to find CEO’s from that sector who tweet, I was able to locate only three; Greg Marcus of Marcus Hotels, Mark Hoplamazian of Hyatt Hotels and of course Sir Richard Branson, Virgin Hotels.

Want to read more? Click here>>>http://huff.to/1IlBUU9

Linda Harding-Bond
July 28, 2015

Five Hidden Gems on Pulse, to Sharpen Spa Performance

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 Spa and beauty industry people.  You know who you are. You’re always consumed with handling staff or customers or both. Rarely do you  have time to peruse the articles on LinkedIn’s Pulse for news that might  impact how you conduct business. But as an information junkie, I do.  So here in a roundup are excerpts from five articles that I’ve read in the past week which gave me pause.  They might do the same for you. Read More

Linda Harding-Bond
July 22, 2015

Do Your Spa Employees Need Refreshing?

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By 2018 the spa industry is projected to grow by 40%. A new regime of employees with fresh skills and talents, but not necessarily experience will enter the workforce. Meanwhile many existing employees struggle with the initial skills they learned from school or knowledge gleaned from product training.

Is refresher training for employees overrated? Hakeem Adebiyi of V-Creative says there is a school of thought out there that doesn’t see the value of teaching employees concepts they have already been introduced to. There is a lot of value in the refresher course though. For starters, here are two benefits of the refresher course. Read More

Linda Harding-Bond
July 17, 2015

Grandmom Knows Best: Five Tips for Delivering a Perfect Spa Experience

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People are hungry for love, affection and attention. Any good spa manager and therapist knows this. As a therapist, I would measure my effectiveness, not by tips but by the amount of daily hugs I received from my clients. If none were forthcoming it worried me; what could I have done better?

I think that going to a spa should be like a visit to your grandparent’s home. Here are five things that my Grandmom did which made me feel special. Apply them with your own clients and watch your wait list grow. Read More

Linda Harding-Bond
July 5, 2015

The Zen of Spa Retail Training

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The first time that I had to give a public speech  I began to cry hysterically. I also wet my pants.

I was four years old and in kindergarten.

Since that time I’ve had many jobs where public speaking came with the territory. It’s never been fun but I’ve gotten considerably better at it. When I worked for Verizon as a training manager, I attended a two day workshop on public speaking. I had an instructor who was able to create a safe emotional space for the attendees. He built such an atmosphere of support that it was almost painless to stand in front of the other 11 trainees and give a five minute presentation. People performed brilliantly during those two days. I wish I could remember his name, he was wonderful. Read More

Linda Harding-Bond
July 3, 2015

How the Consumer-Led Economy is Disrupting the Hotel Industry

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The hotel and spa industries are being challenged by social media and their newest largest consumer group, Millennials. Here, marketing expert and social media influencer Norm Bond gives us his views on the current state of affairs; 
The hotel industry is being disrupted. Of course we know about Airbnb but they may actually be the least of the industry’s problems. The real challenge is changing the culture of a business sector that has experienced tremendous success. History shows it’s difficult and the result is that former household names may go the way of Borders Books. In today’s digital age we’ve seen this dynamic play out in publishing, music, and even the electronics retail industry as with the 94-year-old brand Radio Shack.
millennials w iphonesThe consumer is in the business driver’s seat like never before. Social media, mobile and digital devices have changed the rules of marketing and customer service. Many of the traditional practices of the hotel industry are liabilities when targeting the most rapidly growing consumer segment, read that as millennials.
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Linda Harding-Bond
June 30, 2015

5 Tips for Painfully Shy Spa Therapists

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Most therapists who work in the spa industry are introverts. It doesn’t matter if they are in Bangkok, Thailand or the United States, they tend to be shy. It makes sense; what other personality type would elect to work in a darkened room, one on one with a minimal need for conversation. But even introverts want to be part of the group. Here, Jeff Hayden gives 5 tips on how to fit in. Read More