Talk Skin Academy Podcast

Therapists: You have a greater impact on people than just giving them great skin!!

• Katie Howell • Episode 2

Share episode

Join me on a personal tour through my experiences navigating the facial and spa industry. Let's tackle the common struggle most therapists face - striking a balance between meeting sales targets and deeply connecting with clients. Through a poignant narrative of a transformative encounter with a client named Barbara, I hope to illustrate how genuine care can create a profound impact on those we serve. This journey isn't just about doing a job; it's about learning to become the change in someone's life, even during a simple facial treatment.

But how do we achieve this? The answer lies within ourselves. This episode casts a spotlight on the importance of continual self-development and education in the facial and spa industry. Skills and knowledge are the lifeblood of our profession. The more we invest in ourselves, the more our clients benefit - it's a ripple effect of care and expertise. As I share my insights, I also invite you to pose your queries for our next episode. Let's continue this conversation on how we can excel in the facial industry by nurturing our greatest asset - ourselves. So tune in, let's grow together.

We also have an exclusive offer for you - a comprehensive course that's going to supercharge your knowledge in the beauty industry, and it's currently at a whopping 30% discount off in person and online courses. It's a fabulous opportunity to enhance your expertise and bring your A-game to the beauty industry. Go to my website and  use code blackfriday30 at checkout to get this great offer

In person courses: https://www.khspaconsultancy.com/talk-skin-academy/

The Skin Expert Consultation Course (online): https://talkskinwkate.thinkific.com/courses/professional-skincare-made-simple

Remember, you're part of the conversation - we welcome your thoughts and questions on our YouTube channel. So, turn up the volume and prepare for an enlightening chat on retail sales and skincare education, paving your path to success in the beauty industry.

Join our newsletter to keep up to date with new content, free monthly masterclasses straight to your inbox and special offers just for you

https://www.khspaconsultancy.com/talk-skin-academy/newsletter-sign-up-form/

Kate:

Today I wanted to talk about how much of an impact you can have as a therapist on your clients. When I left college, I honestly had no idea that a therapist was more than just a therapist. I just thought I was going to do nails facials, I was going to make a few people feel good. I didn't understand the impact I could have on them emotionally, on their families, on their relationships with their husbands, their daughters, their sisters. I didn't realise any of this until I got into the industry and I started getting love letters from my clients and I'm going to introduce you to a story that changed my whole life.

Kate:

So when I was 19, my first job was with Steiner and for those of you who know Steiner, it's now called One Spa World. They are hard, it is not easy, it is intense. I did them for 10 years and you know so I obviously loved it, but it was hard work and what I was on what they call the money making column, and the money making column is either the facial column, which is the electrical facials, or it was the body column, which was called the anaphemi, which is all about body electrics, losing weight, and I honestly was. It was hard first because the budgets were huge. I had never worked in sales before, apart from working in a surf shop once upon a time, and then I worked in pubs for the rest of it. So for me I had never had to have targets before, and I struggled for the first couple of months. I couldn't, I couldn't do it, I couldn't hit the targets, but I had a manager that I was absolutely terrifying like he scared the living shit out of me, and he used to say to me that if I didn't increase my retail sales, then I was going to get kicked off my column and start doing 14 hours of massage every day on Americans, and without being disrespectful or rude, these Americans were not small, they were large people, and I was, at that point, a small white girl from Wales. So that terrified me even further, because my body was going to break because I'd never been taught out of massage properly or deep tissue, and these Americans wanted deep tissue, and I was like I don't know how to do deep tissue. So it it it made me work hard, and I realized, though, for me as a person, I am not a natural salesperson, but what I am is I'm a natural people's person, and I didn't realize it at the time, but the course that I created during lockdown, which is the skin expert consultation course, is a system that I started creating to be able to, one, fill my management needs of hitting my retail target, but, two, to be able to work on what I knew I was good at, which was to get to know people. And this is how I started making thousands in retail per week, and it was down to the fact I understood that caring was better than just selling.

Kate:

And what changed my life completely was I had a lady in and she'd been on many, many cruises and had many, many facials and you know, she had that kind of approach of what you're going to sell me today scenario and I didn't sell her anything. I got her in, I sat her down where I was kind of sitting the way I'm sitting right now very comfortable, because at the end of the day, my whole ethos was I'm going to just get to know my clients, I'm going to get interested in them. They wouldn't buy nine o'clock or 10, 15 or 11, 30, oh, it's lunchtime now. They were Donna, sharon, caroline, cecilia, and I knew their lifestyles by the end of each treatment and this particular lady called Barbara. She had come in and I said there have been many, many cruises and used to be in Seoul too. And she basically turned around to me and said to me don't bother, dal, I've been sold to a million times, in her American accent. And I went I'm not here to sell to you, barbara, I'm here to give you the best facial you've ever experienced. And she went ho, let's see, you've got me, you've got my interest piqued here, amazing.

Kate:

So I got to know Barbara and Barbara told me about her son and her son had a girlfriend or a fiancee, and it split the whole family apart because her son's fiancee and her. They didn't get on, they didn't see eye to eye, all based on religion. And as she spoke through the whole facial, she didn't stop speaking. At the end of it I said, barbara, can I give you a bit of advice from someone that sounds very much my age? And she went go for it.

Kate:

It's like look, you are a wonderful, you are a strong, independent character, and that is absolutely terrifying to someone my age, when I know for a fact that if I was her, I'd want your approval, because I'm guaranteeing your son absolutely idolizes you as a mum because you're strong and you know, you know your own mind and you've put that into him and he's now probably found someone quite similar to who you are because, let's be honest, they all go for they all say this right, they all go for someone like their mum. And so she's probably just trying to find her way and she's probably put up a shield because she's such a strong woman. You know. She's probably scared that, because she's not following your religion, that you are automatically not going to like her, and for that reason she's probably put up a shield and for that reason you two haven't connected. I said look, I don't know if that's the reason, but that could just be that she's actually just all she wants is your approval and all she's gotten is a family divide, which is probably making her feel even more awful. And she went.

Kate:

I've never thought of it that way obviously an American accent. She went and she started getting teary and I went oh, barbara, I said I don't need to make you up. So she goes. No, no, she goes. I think you've just saved my family. And to this day I still get those are. You know, whenever I talk about that story, I still get little haze standing up because she goes. Not only was that the best facial, she goes, that was the best therapy session I've ever had and she's like and I pay thousands for them and she goes. I'm not not even good skin, but you've also basically fixed my family and I was like, well, there we go, and I might just took it all in my stride. I was 19 at the time, I was young, you know, and I and that was the.

Kate:

That was then where I realized how impactful you can be as a therapist if you truly let yourself forget about what you should do and focus on what, who you should and who you are and what you are to each client. If you're going into a treatment room thinking I've got a 9am, I've got a 1015, I got 1130, holy cow, yes, it's break time, then that is, you shouldn't be in this industry, because that's not how you build a successful, successful business or a successful calling. If you work in a spa, how you build success is through compassion and caring, and you get that through your education. Now, unfortunately, education in our industry right now current state 2023, it's not great, and so it's difficult for therapists to be able to have that experience with their customers because they're not taught to think this way. You're not taught to think this way. You're taught to.

Kate:

The consultation is basically a waiver to make sure that one there's no medical issue, so they can't sue you. You've got one and at the end of it you've got the actual signature again, so they don't sue you. The actual consultation, which is what I found out, is actually where you make or break your actual whole experience for your customer. It's where you build that relationship to gain the trust to be able to get the knowledge that you need to be able to give them the most, best phenomenal experience, whether it is facials or is massage or is manicure. You then are then able to educate on why is it? They go through those concerns, whether it could be a broken down family or a broken down skin barrier, and then at the end you can then go right, you need to come back to me and see me every three weeks because I'm basically a new counselor, you know, saving you thousands. Or I'm going to help fix your barriers because I know why they're broken, because I know I took the time to get to know you.

Kate:

My client, not my nine, not my 1015, not my 1130, caroline, barbara, sydney, jackie. Whoever they are, they are people with a story and if you are good at what you do and you care about what you do and the education supports what you do, you get success, and this is how you build success within our industry. So when it comes to education, you have to start building it on you. Okay, like I said, you don't get given any of this. It's not taught. I wasn't taught this. I've had to learn how to become a successful therapist through messing up a million times.

Kate:

So if you want more support and you are struggling to build connections, you're struggling to retain your customers, you're struggling to get retail out without having pushy sales comments, then come and have a chat with me, come and join the podcast, come and work with me on the courses that I offer, cause everything that I've just talked about pretty much is divulged in those courses. It's either how to build a successful relationship with your customers or how to build an experience that completely outshines anyone else around you. So I just wanted to end this podcast and say that if you have been struggling, it's not your fault. I can tell you that for a fact. It's because the education has failed you, because all you've been taught is how to sell products and how to sell a treatment. They haven't taught you how to sell you, and that is what you have to do, first and foremost.

Kate:

People buy into people they like, but they don't like you if you haven't been told that you are your biggest asset.

Kate:

So let me help you, whether it's by the podcast and you're sending me your questions which if you have got questions for me, then please just pop yourself over to the YouTube channel, which is also brand sponkling new, for all the videos of me talking and ranting about the skincare and the facial world.

Kate:

Put your questions on the video and then in the next podcast, I will answer those questions, the best of my ability to help support you on your journey to success within the facial industry or the spa industry. So, like I said, it's not your problem, but what I would say is the next step for you, if you want to build your career and be good at what you do, is actually work on you and realize that you are your biggest asset and that the education is all about supporting what you are, not what the products are, not what the equipment are, not where you are. When it will you work. It's all about you. People buy into you first, so I hope that's been another educational experience from my own experiences and how you can really truly make a difference in someone's life. Thanks everyone for listening and watching. I'll see you in the next podcast.