Mr. Di Stanisloa

Spas, Health & Fitness

Five Successful Methods in Training Your Spa Team

By Bill Di Stanisloa, Founder & Principal, GreenSpa 101 LLC

Method One: Creating a trusting relationship by example.

It is paramount for your employees to feel supported and trusted prior to any training programs. Establish a good working environment which includes delivering a positive attitude towards each of them at all times. Your team should look up to you as a role model of respect not only for the client and customer but for them as well. Once you have earned the trust from your team your well on your way for successful trainings of all kind. Serving by example also means ensuring you become involved in each training type for your spa as well as keeping current educationally on spa and spa/salon services. You must be able to walk your talk as a Manager, Director or Lead. Training is not about your Providers or sales team only, it must involve everyone. This includes your locker room team!

Method Two: Customize our training to serve your product and operation.

Not all spas are created equal. Your job as a good Manager is to validate the uniqueness of your spa business by the treatments offered and the client service delivered. Professional training whether it comes from you or a hired expert for product or chosen modalities must reflect your spa’s mission statement or goal. This customized training will set you apart from other similar business types and allow your spa to stand out from all the rest. Your client’s experience will be determined by the unsurpassed unique training that you provide for your team. Product training is just as important. Too many spa team members who include the Providers, no little about all the products their spa is selling in or out of the treatment room. Again, this includes the locker room team. If they are asked a question and direct the client to a Provider or spa desk consultant, you have failed to provide total training.

Method Three: Scheduling training session successfully.

First, it is must be understood that all team members must receive continual training sessions. No excuses are to be made based on status of an employee. Full-time, Part-time, On-Call, Seasonal and On-leave team members must all be held accountable for the necessary training which will serve their respected field and line of duty. Clients and customers will rely on each team member to be the expert in their held positions. Scheduling is key to a successful total training program. Scheduling trainings during business hours has yet to ever prove successful regardless of the excuse that is usually a slow day and payroll must be used wisely. Spa Team members scheduled to work a business day must be available without question for a client, customer or phone call. This includes walk-ins. Yes, walk-ins should be expected for any spa or salon. Walk-ins are crucial for new prospective clients as well as those customers who simply choose to come in and buy product. Having your incoming calls go to voice-mail or turning away new business because your team member and/or your Providers are in training is unacceptable. A better option for training is to schedule one or two hour maximum classes and hold them either after close of business day for one or two days. Training costs in the form of payroll should always be part of your budget. Most spas close earlier on a Sunday; this is another good day to have a class after closing. Most non-resort salons are closed on Sunday. Again, a perfect day for training for an hour or two. If you have product consultants that offer training then hold them to the day best for your business and not the other way around. This includes weekends. Your selling their product, they in turn must accommodate your schedule.

Method Four: Save all questions till after initial training class.

For the sake of all concerned, it is best to have you or your trainer make it clear that questions which do not hold immediate concern should be held till the end of that training session. Too many times a trainer feels it necessary to allow an open forum for all questions during a training program. This not only interferes with the focus of the training and topic at hand but interrupts the energy in the room. Once this energy is stopped then you can bank on a slower training session and frustrated team members who are taking mental or written notes or better yet in practical moves. The trainer is not in a scheduled class to make friends but rather to deliver education. They must be calm, centered, prepared and able to lead the class. Should a student dis-agree with any of the training they may be asked to leave the classroom and at break-time discuss the variance or concern.

Method Five: Respect the training.

Training cost money, time and commitment. This should be understood by not only the Trainer but the student. Respect must be honored during all class sessions. This means that all cell phones must not enter the classroom. Regardless that your team members are not at their positions, stations or treatment rooms with a client is no excuse for them to bring their cell phones in the classroom. The only reason a student should leave the classroom is for a lavatory break. Your business success depends on the pride you and your team hold for themselves and the Spa or Salon. New customers and current clients can see and feel the pride an employee displays for their business. Respect the training, have pride and common courtesy for the purpose of the training. Training is not just a mandatory job requirement, it is an opportunity for growth and great success personally and professionally. This understanding is what sets apart a great resume from an average resume. 92% of all professional resumes are average. Providers and Team Members of a spa or salon who simply worked to make a living instead of loving what they do and taking it to new heights usually make the same yearly gross for decades.

Training can be fun, educational and allow new doors of success to open. How you accomplish the method is up to you.

Bill Di Stanisloa brings with him more than 22 years of personal and professional experience in the field of Holistic Health and Nutrition and 30 years in the business world including hospitality, property management, spa and salon development and operations. Mr. Di Stanisloa has also led a global product portfolio bringing customers together during the dot.com era. He has served director roles for a multitude of positions which include committee member of resort operations at Amelia Island Plantation Resort, its’ Holistic Spa and Salon and the Resort Green Program. Mr. Di Stanisloa can be contacted at 904-879-9203 or Bill@GreenSpa101.com Extended Bio...

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