Issues relative to ‘People’ or staff members came up 62% of the time when guests were recounting their worst experiences. Of those, the most prominent things mentioned were:
- Inappropriate pressure/touch (21%)
- Staff not listening/not responsive (12%)
- Too much conversation (10%)
- Treatment felt rushed (9%)
- Pushy sales (8%)
- Unfriendly/not personable staff (6%)
On the contrary, when guests were recounting their best spa experiences, ‘People’ were mentioned only 49% of the time. The most prevalent praises included:
- Well qualified/well trained staff (23%)
- Friendly/personable staff (18%)
- Professional staff (12%)
- Personalized service (8%)
- Intuitive service/paid attention to needs (8%)
- No pushy sales (8%)
As indicated by the attributes mentioned most, much of the positive or negative experience was attributed to the skill and technique of the therapist or provider. Again, customization appeared high on the list, as did the staff demeanor and delivery. This is also evident in the following chart, where the departments relevant to treatments or services were generally mentioned more heavily than the support team.
Also, as seen in the chart above, most mentions were general, however of the best and worst experiences, massage was still the most mentioned at 29% for both best and worst experiences.
As it is understood that massage is the most frequently experienced treatment at the full-service level, this makes sense, however those spa professionals that overlook massage, thinking that there is limited training necessary, should beware. Ensuring that customers receive consistent, quality massages is perhaps more important than all the extra training on the specialty treatment on the menu.
