The Importance of Document Control for Spas

by
Julie Register,
Managing Director, Operations
SpaQuality LLC

I planned my spa visit via the spa’s web site – a 50-minute Invigorating Full Body Salt Scrub for $65. I called the spa and made the appointment, although I could have made it online. When I arrived at the hotel the day of scheduled scrub, I decided I would like to have another treatment the following day. I grabbed the spa’s brochure from the information binder in my hotel room. I decided on the 50-minute Summer Hydrating Skin Renewal Facial. Since I would be at the spa within the hour, decided I would make the reservation in person. I scanned the rest of the brochure and noticed the Invigorating Full Body Salt Scrub was $75. Hmmm. I could have sworn it was $65 on the web site…

I checked in at the spa reception desk and asked about the price of the scrub. Sorry, the $75 price applied. A little annoyed, I thought to myself, “They really should update their web site.” and “If I had made the appointment online, would I have only been charged $65?” and “Is this a bait and switch?”

I had the scrub and, at checkout, remembered I wanted to schedule a facial. I asked if the spa had any slots open for facials the following day. Fortunately, they did. When I asked for the Summer Hydrating Skin Renewal Facial, I was told it was no longer on the menu and was given a copy of the brochure to select another facial. I scheduled a Fabulous Fall Moisturizing Facial (which was probably the same thing as the Summer Hydrating Skin Renewal Facial) for the following day. I mentioned that the brochure in my room had the Summer Hydrating Skin Renewal Facial. I was told, “Yeah, that’s old.”

DUH!!! The brochures looked identical from the cover, yet contained different information. The spa should have made sure the information displayed on the web site and brochure was the same and that all old brochures in the hotel rooms were the latest version. I found it frustrating to not get the treatment I initially had chosen and annoying to pay more than the spa had advertised on the Internet. Do I remember the Invigorating Full Body Salt Scrub and Fabulous Fall Moisturizing Facial? Sort of. Do I remember the mess with the different spa menus? You bet! Every last detail.

So how exactly does a spa ensure the experience I had doesn’t happen (or fix it if it has)? With a process called Document Control.

Document Control encompasses the creation and control of all spa documents – spa menus, web site, printed newsletters, electronic newsletters, press releases, treatment protocols, cleaning procedures, purchasing procedures, purchase orders, records, signs, reports, customer feedback forms, and so on. Documents can be in the form of written pages, electronic pages, flow charts, diagrams, pictures, photos, signs, brochures, etc.

Document Control is one of the processes that SpaQuality LLC recommends a spa define early in its journey for SpaExcellence^SM Certification. Even if a spa is not interested in certification, it is a process that EVERY spa needs.

The following are the Basic Steps to Creating a Document Control Process:

Spas may find it useful to define their process in a flowchart similar to the one below.

Once the system is created, it only works if it is followed and maintained. That, of course, takes discipline. However, it’s worth the work. Remember, when processes and systems fail, it is usually your client that‘s the first to notice.

By the way, when I mentioned to the spa the differences between the web site and brochures and the fact that two versions of the brochure were in circulation, the spa receptionist should have made note so the appropriate person could fix the problem. Better yet, the spa would have periodically sampled the brochures in the hotel rooms and checked that the web site and brochures matched. They would have discovered the problem themselves, found out why the brochure wasn’t the current version, fixed it and prevented the problem from presenting itself to the customer. That is called a Continual Improvement Process and it will be covered in future articles. Without a Continual Improvement Process, the spa is doomed to repeat the same problems over and over and over again.

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SpaQuality LLC (www.spaquality.com) is dedicated to advancing the Spa industry through Quality Management Standards, Education, Assessment and Certification. It's all about helping Spas become excellent. The International Standards of SpaExcellence^SM apply to the smallest day Spas to the largest resort and destination Spas and from the newest Spas to the pillars of the spa industry. The International Standards of SpaExcellence^SM provide a road map to quality management practices such as Document Control as well as other sound business practices that translate into consistently excellent Spa experiences for the Spa Guest and a profitable business for the Spa owner.

For more information about SpaQuality LLC and the SpaExcellence^SM Certification Program, contact:

Julie Register
Managing Director, Operations
SpaQuality LLC
phone: 302-426-0274
email: info@spaquality.com

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