The modern spa owner is getting just as creative with their staffing methods as they are with their treatment menus.
In an effort to super-serve their clients’ specific needs, bring in quality applicants for open positions and keep their current valued employees thriving, savvy spas are adding every kind of position from Ambassador of Happiness to Director of Charity to their HR plans. Here’s a look at how five spas are getting creative with their employee roster…
AMBASSADOR of HAPPINESS
In order to help a valued employee grow within the company, milk + honey spa, which has five locations in Texas, created the position of Ambassador of Happiness a year ago.
“We have an employee, Shannon, who we adore and she got bored in her position as Spa Concierge and there wasn’t really another position that suited her,” explains general manager Summer Smith. “She said the one thing she really loved about her current job was going off site and telling the world about milk + honey. So, we created this position for her. It elevated her ownership and her pride in her position. Sometimes creating new positions with uplifting titles like this one is more for staff morale and employee retention than anything else.”
The Ambassador of Happiness raises brand awareness and introduces milk + honey to future clients and employees. She represents the spa at offsite events, such as at-home spa bridal parties and open houses at technical schools, and does a lot of networking and grassroots marketing.
HOSTS, CONCIERGES and ATTENDANTS
Another example of switching up the title of an existing job for the purpose of employee satisfaction is what milk + honey did with their housekeeping, receptionist and spa attendant positions.
The housekeepers were given the elevated title of Spa Attendants, and the previously named Spa Attendants were renamed Spa Hosts. The Spa Concierge is a higher title, with more responsibilities, for what is essentially the receptionist position at most spas. “This helps people feel better about their jobs and helps us keep good people around longer so there is less turnover, which can be costly to a spa,” says Smith. “We’ve found by doing this that we also get better people applying for these jobs when we post them online.”
The change-up at milk + honey started when they decided to rename the housekeepers Spa Attendants. “We wanted to increase the ownership and pride in that particular position, and it’s worked,” explains Smith. “The word ‘housekeeper’ has a certain connotation to it and we wanted to expand the thought of the position to encompass the entire spa.”
The Spa Host (the spa rotates four people in this position) welcomes clients to the spa, gives them a personal tour and circulates between the front of the house and the back of the house, communicating with the support staff, therapists and managers to ensure that the communication is strong and they are all able to deliver a top-notch customer experience. The Spa Host also contributes to retail sales by being on the floor and available for inquiry, making sure the retail is merchandised and looks fresh.
The Spa Concierge (29 total) is the “heartbeat of the milk + honey experience,” says Smith. “She manages the flow of the front desk, the check-in/out experience, offers support with describing and scheduling services, knowledgeably and confidently speaks about retail offerings and manages the cash drawer. She is the last person the client sees before leaving milk + honey, so she has a big responsibility to finish with a bang! They close retail sales, which is another very important contributor to revenue.”
OUTREACH MANAGER
As teaming with local businesses and being an integral part of your spa’s community becomes more important, the need for an Outreach Manager might arise. SenSpa in San Francisco, Calif., created this unique position three years ago to help build the brand beyond traditional marketing and advertising.
“My role is to be the voice, face and ambassador of the SenSpa brand,” says outreach manager Terri Eaton. “My responsibilities include partnering with local businesses, collaborating with social and exercise-based groups in San Francisco, managing the online presence, including monthly email campaigns to existing clients and all of our social media accounts, as well as onsite educational events, field marketing and making connections with local and national press and generating the copy and content as the voice of the spa.”
Spa director Jenean LaRoche says the biggest benefit to this position is that it helps shape the message of the SenSpa. “It truly is the first impression and this transcends across the board from in-person networking to the event signage created for spa display,” she says. “The Outreach Manager touches each aspect of the business and its revenue, whether it’s creating a relationship with a social group, developing promotions, or being the media voice. All of the facets of Outreach can be time consuming, so having a person with a singular focus streamlines the voice and provides effectiveness with the goals in place.”
SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER
It used to be that the marketing director handled marketing, advertising, brand awareness, public relations, community outreach and, more recently, social media. However more spas are finding the need to branch out these separate jobs into positions of their own — especially for social media, due to its proven power to bring in new clients and market to the existing ones.
SunWater Spa in Manitou Springs, Colo., originally hired their first Social Media Manager, Paotie Dawson, after Dawson was hired to help promote a local event in town. “It was a huge success so they asked me to join their team to set up and manage all of their social media platforms. As a deaf person, this is the perfect job for me,” says Dawson.
Dawson is tasked with not only managing all of the spa’s social media accounts, but the website as well. “A Social Media Manager enhances the marketing process for the spa,” says Dawson. “It is another avenue to disseminate information and messages about the spa. I work with a great marketing team and our media/art director. In many ways, the social media platforms we have provide people, whether customers or potential customers, an additional avenue to know what’s going on at the spa.”
DIRECTOR of GIVING
Giving back to the community is a big goal of Spa Gregorie’s Day Spa & Salon in Newport Beach and Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif. Seven years ago, they added the position of Director of Giving to have a person dedicated to determining where the spa’s charitable donations should go.
“The deluge of charity requests necessitated the creation of a central responsibility for managing our commitment to community support,” says owner Angela Cortright. “Community support is part of our mission statement, so it is a critical position in our company.”
The Director of Giving has programs and practices that ensure that the spa’s resources are best used. One means of doing this is through the spa’s charity wall, which won Spa Gregorie’s president Scott Duncan the Innovator Award from the International Spa Association (ISPA) last year. The charity wall’s signage says, “Help us direct our charity outreach. Place a stone in the bowl that most closely resonates with a cause dear to you.” The current choices for causes include military, childhood diseases, cancer and food banks.
“The charity wall enhances the guest experience by enabling them to embrace our commitment to community support by involving them in our charity decisions,” adds Cortright. “It enhances our brand in the community by making sure that Spa Gregorie’s support is present in as many charity events as possible.”
ALTITUDE AMBASSADOR
While an Altitude Ambassador is not applicable to most spas in the U.S., it can be created to serve the very specific needs of some clients in high altitudes. That’s just what Bloom Spa at The Sebastian, a Timbers Resort in Vail, Colo., has done to help guests, especially those new to their area, handle the high altitude of their state.
“We’re located at over 8,000 feet above sea level, so we introduced the Altitude Ambassador position to help guests manage the elements of high altitude living as it relates to skin, hair and muscle care,” says Robert Friedl, general manager of The Sebastian – Vail. “We customize spa treatments to address altitude-specific issues, as well as recommend products geared toward combating the high altitude.”
One treatment to help when guests are feeling uneasy due to the high altitude is the spa’s Aromatherapy Massage (50 minutes, $165 and 80 minutes, $245), which features a traditional Swedish massage with an aromatherapy-infused oil of their choice based on what is ailing them. For instance, trouble sleeping is a common symptom of altitude sickness. If the guest tossed and turned all night, then the massage therapist would suggest the soothing oil. Energizing oil, on the other hand, is used to alleviate the altitude sickness symptoms of feeling weak and tired.
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