Mr. Bermingham

Spas, Health & Fitness

James Bermingham - Six Best Practices of Spa Therapists That Keep Guests Coming Back for More

By James Bermingham, Vice President, Montage Hotels & Resorts

Spa marketers know competition among spas is fierce, but the very finest are peerless for reasons that aren’t always obvious, even to people in our industry: the secrets of the best spas hinge not on the wondrous beauty of an enviable destination, or on the sophistication, or depth of a spa menu, but rather on a spa’s most valuable asset: its therapists.

As spa competition intensifies, talented therapists with well-honed skills remain scarce, providing a competitive advantage to a handful of spas, which win high praise principally because of their expertise. While all good therapists are, by nature, care-givers, nurturers, and healers, the best are endowed with something special.

What follows are six best practices that give top spas and their therapists a decided edge over competitors.

#1: Find a Resort/Spa with a Passion for Great Service

World-class therapists are drawn to world-class spas because these spas offer impeccable service and do it with great consistency. Both the best spas and the top therapists have a special flair for living up to great expectations.

The best therapists know that service culture is the key differentiator of a great spa, and that ultimately guests perceive a therapist’s talents through the prism of a resort’s culture. Top-flight service culture matters even more than the finest bricks-and-mortar in an idyllically situated resort.

A superb spa experience relies on the same service philosophy that drives every other guest touch point, from arrival to departure. The freshness of bedding, the quality of amenities, the renewal power of a deep massage, the delight in discovering world-class dining -- they’re all equally integral to resort success.

#2: Focus on Character

The best therapists respect a bedrock principle of spa: they regard their services not as indulgences, but as vital necessities and essential to a balanced approach to wellness. Spas, in other words, are a direct path to total rejuvenation and renewal.

Also, great therapists have a natural inclination for this work. The best spas focus on hiring therapists with great character. They seek therapists who are genuinely respectful, gracious and passionate about what they do. If a therapist has expertise, great; but the technical aspect can always be taught. In the end, character is the essential, but too-often missing, ingredient in spa. It’s important to note, too, that memorable treatments are triggered by a therapist’s willingness to learn about a guest’s needs and wants. Skilled therapists know that the ability to listen attentively serves as the jumping-off point for an exceptional treatment and a memorable experience. Character-intense cultures create their own momentum and high expectations for fellow associates, which in turn create a higher level of performance.

#3: Training, Training, Training

How can therapists polish their skills, and provide unique guest experiences creating long-term spa relationships? Through superior training supplemented by continuous learning and education.

What sets a spa treatment apart is the ability of the therapist to design a highly individualized program for a guest, which is possible only when the therapist has superior training. As such, when the required level of training for therapists is higher, the expectation for performance is also higher.

At Spa Montage, therapists are at peak performance due to their intensive and thorough training program. They undergo an education composed of many individually certified components.

The spa industry is rapidly growing, and therapy modalities are always evolving, so training shouldn’t stop upon certification or employment. The only way to master these techniques is to undergo continuous training and education. Advanced training helps a therapist master and refine techniques, thus elevating the spa experience.

#4: Make It Personal

Guests return to great spas not only because their facilities are extraordinary, but because the therapy they receive suits them perfectly. Memorable treatments are guest-specific and custom-tailored. Chances are slim that any other guest will require precisely the same course of therapy.

Therapists should gear each session to a guest’s verbal clues, as well as to their specific health and lifestyle needs, what his or her constitution is, what the guest needs are at that particular time, and which therapy regimen would be most effective at meeting these needs.

A therapist may have at his or her disposal a full complement of therapies, but he or she must focus only on the components essential to the task at hand. The choices should be suited to a guest’s special needs, because the aim ultimately is to transport the guest to a zone of sheer comfort, where the body melts away beneath the kneading hands of a masterful therapist.

The spa environment is key. That’s why top resorts spare no expense to build the ultimate facilities in captivating settings, where the setting will enhance the spa experience. Great therapists know how to take full advantage of this, incorporating elements from the environment into treatments. Using nature’s abundance of minerals from the earth, sea and plant life ensures the utmost in purity and natural disposition.

It must be remembered, however, that these products, no matter how wonderful, are almost never the focal point of a spa experience. The best therapists enhance treatment plans with carefully chosen products, but won’t allow its properties to define the experience.

#5: Learn to Assign Homework

To many, spa is a respite from the rigors of living at warp speed. But true believers know that spa itself is a holistic lifestyle, one that shouldn’t be limited to the confines of spa facilities, but integrated into our daily lives by each and every guest.

At-home recommendations are a crucial component of any comprehensive treatment plan. Therapists have a duty to educate guests in how to incorporate elements of spa treatment in their daily or weekly regimen, and thus keep wellness, health and balance a continual goal.

Recommendations are a great way to extend the spa experience at home or while traveling. As such, therapists must be adept at literally (and ever so tactfully) assigning homework to guests. The basic idea is to set up a guest for success, to put him or her on a program that will provide healthy lifestyle practices until the next spa visit.

Homework can help to ensure optimal results not only at home but at the next spa visit. What’s particularly important is that when a guest is diligent about completing at-home regimens, he or she will continue to benefit, and steadily move from imbalance toward balance.

#6: Get Beyond Massage

The final best practice involves a therapist’s ability to broaden the horizons of guests so they will understand that spa consists of so much more than preconceived notions about massages and scrubs.

Many guests are overly focused on massage. Certainly massage techniques can work wonders, but a good therapist will know various roads to renewal, some more direct than others. Not enough emphasis has been placed on the kaleidoscope of spa offerings, among them hot/cold contrasting therapies; sea and water treatments; mineral rich peloids (muds and clays), and light touch therapy, among others.

Therapists who excel at all techniques do so for the benefit of guests, who will inevitably expand their own knowledge as they learn to appreciate the breadth of techniques in a therapist’s repertoire. Massage might be the most in-demand therapy, but it also might be the overture of a masterpiece.

These six best practices can set a therapist apart from others, but depth of experience counts too.

A wise therapist will get to know a guest over the course of multiple visits, and eventually be able to determine a guest’s specific needs and desires before they are even voiced. A highly trained therapist should be able to “read” a guest’s needs from a checklist of signs and symptoms, and from knowledge that’s fine-tuned with each spa visit. This is another reason why it’s so important for a therapist to have a keen ability to listen.

James Bermingham is Vice President of Montage Hotels & Resorts and Managing Director of Montage Laguna Beach. In his roles, Mr. Bermingham oversees Montage Laguna Beach, Montage Beverly Hills, Montage Deer Valley, and Montage Residences Corporation. In addition, he supervises the management company in sales, human resources, culture development and training, and supports the development team. The veteran hotelier has been the Managing Director at Montage Laguna Beach from its opening in 2003, and has played an integral role in guiding the team that has helped Montage achieve significant industry and public acclaim. Mr. Bermingham can be contacted at 949-715-6000 or jbermingham@montagehotels.com Extended Bio...

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