The 36 Rules A Therapist Should Know To Provide Outstanding Spa Services

Service quality dictates, whether a spa or any business will flourish and grow like a mighty oak tree or wither like a bedraggled daisy picked from its life source and left to decay on the ground. Here we list 36 rules, which each spa manager should teach their therapists to apply:

1. As a therapist, the better the service you provide your guests, the more you will retain your customers. You will gain recommendations and guests will specifically seek you out, which leads to you gaining greater respect from them and other employees, personal earnings increase (larger commission and gratuity), and you will gain a growing fulfilment and joy in the work you do.

2. The more you express your talents and your capacity for influencing a person’s state of well-being, the more you will weave for yourself your own desired working environment out of the tapestry of your existing work place.

3. It is a combination of your personal skills and knowledge together with giving that “little extra service” that will distinguish you as a leader in your field as well as boosting the business for which you work.

4. The first impression tends to be the lasting impression.

5. Be organized and prepared for your guest. If a guest walks into your room and is screaming that you’re disorganized and don’t care, then unfortunately that will be the lasting impression that your guest will have of you and your business.

6. If this impression is further combined with average or even poor overall service, your business won’t be able to weather the storm of competition.

7. Be punctual for your guests. Avoid making them wait any longer than is reasonable. Avoid accommodating guests that are late by eating into treatment time that a punctual guest should’ve had. It is unfair to unduly “punish” the guest who is on time by giving them a shorter treatment as a result of your previous guest being late.

8. Rather explain to the late guest that out of fairness to your following guests, you will have to keep to the allotted time and they will have a shortened treatment.

9. Obviously there are rude guests who have no idea of honouring their obligation to be on time or calling to let you know they’ll be late. Consider rescheduling the late-arrival at the risk of losing their business.

10. Businesses hate turning away a paying customer, and in the quest for profit they regularly diminish the value of another paying customer, which is unacceptable.

11. Be yourself and be confident about your talents and skills. Allow yourself to shine. Any God-given talent that is wasted is an insult to our Creator.

12. Treat every guest with the respect that you would like to be given by someone else. The more confident you are about the service you are offering, the more you are able to respect your guests.

13. Greet your guest by name, look at them in the eye, smile, and give them a confident handshake. This immediately installs a sense of confidence in the guest that they can trust you, which allows them to relax. This in turn allows you to do your job more effectively.

14. Show every guest that you care from the moment of arrival to departure. Treat every guest like a lifetime partner.

15. Be free to laugh and have fun with your guest. Laughter is the most powerful ingredient for creating health. It will make both of you feel happy and energised. Obviously this should be done in conjunction with being aware of your guest and the appropriateness of the situation. Sometimes your opportunity is only before and after the actual treatment.

16. Five star service includes having fun and laughter as long as this doesn’t result in a lesser quality treatment.

17. Promote products as an extension of your treatment. Your recommended products will allow your guest to continue getting the same benefits back home.

18. Keep a sensitive balance between sales and service.

19. Give guests the best service at all times rather than looking for the easy way out.

20. Maintain a positive outlook and friendly approach in busy times or stressful situations.

21. Guests like to be surrounded by happy, professional and calm people – convey confidence, warmth and interest at all times even if you don’t

22. Remember that your guests are professionals in their own right just like yourself. Treat them with respect and foster their confidence and the right to make their own choices.

23. Respect their confidentiality.

24. Respect guests’ diverse cultural backgrounds.

25. Strive to listen, understand and explain in the best way possible.

26. Never take a guest’s complaints as a personal threat or immediate responsibility. Rather understand and assess, what is being expressed, and address the problem in a friendly and efficient manner.

27. Please treat every complaint seriously. Guests look for an immediate response and reassurance. Beware those people, who are regular complainers.

28. Strive to compliment people and focus on positive aspects.

29. Give proper advice with every sale made to maximize customer satisfaction.

30. Work as a team and not against each other. Refer to each other and share ideas and responsibilities – this is the only way to success!

31. Never discuss staff issues in front of guests or other people. Personally approach your fellow staff member with whom you have a problem, and discuss the issue directly, sensitively and with encouragement to create a win-win solution.

32. An exhausted therapist is bad business. During a fully booked day, the physical and mental demands can be great, and if we allow them to, they can drag us down into the dumps and zap us of our energy. There are four important ways that will allow you to have consistent energy and enjoy your work throughout the day, even when booked solid:

I. Be aware that you are connected to an infinite source of Divine Energy. You can consciously access and drink from this source by saying a silent prayer before every treatment.

A recommended prayer is, “Lord, let me be a vehicle for your work. I allow Your Divine Energy to flow through me and energise my guest and me. Thank you for this opportunity to express the gift that you’ve given me.”

II. Then be aware of energy flowing into you through your feet from the ground and into the crown of your head. Focus completely on your guest for that treatment to be totally in the present moment. You will feel the difference!

III. Look for ways of creating laughter and joy in your treatment and with your colleagues. Decide before you come to work that you have the intention for being happy. Make that decision and then act on it.

IV. Constantly seek out ways to improve your technique and posture to minimize the amount of physical effort you expend. When you work with an awareness of a Divine Energy flowing through you, this results in very little of your energy being used, even in Deep Tissue treatments.

33 Don’t judge people. You deal with guests who have many ailments and complaints – keep in mind, that it is always their choice to be the way they are. You can offer them a seed of greater well-being and no more than that. Don’t take on their burdens, allow them to be just the way they are, and appreciate them for who they are.

34. Pay attention to detail. Ensure your room is looking neat and attractive. When covering your guest with towels, ensure the whole area is covered, not just partially. If your intention is to cover the guest’s legs and feet, but the feet are sticking out slightly, it can keep the guest from relaxing completely. Whatever you intend to do, do it completely and properly.

35. Ask yourself, “What could I do to provide a better service? Could I work on overcoming self-limiting beliefs about others and myself? Can I treat people in a friendlier manner? What other information or knowledge can I learn?”

36. Be aware of your capacity to grow and improve, our minds love learning new things. This will allow you to become a better therapist and feel more fulfilled.

The above instructions for outstanding spa and salon customer service are part of our eBook Spa Success Strategies

More spa articles (blogs) and a free mini e-course "The 7 Spa Success Strategies" are available by clicking the link "Starting A Spa Business".