Many luxury spas are failing to make the most of revenue opportunities available during the first stage of client contact, according to research by US-based brand quality assessor Coyle Hospitality Group (CHG).

CHG made 200 reservation calls to upmarket spas across 44 US states to evaluate the quality of a guest’s initial encounter with a spa. Twenty-four service benchmarks were grouped into four areas: revenue generation; attention to detail; hospitality; and service.

Calls were made during normal business hours with a CHG representative pretending to be a new client, making a standardised enquiry for treatment and completing a booking.

Benchmarks included answering the phone before the fourth ring; describing treatments in detail; mentioning speciality treatments before basic services; asking guests if they preferred a male or female therapist; and securing a payment method.

In the four main areas, spas performed best in service standards, with a score of 91 per cent, although staff could only describe treatments in detail 79 per cent of the time.

Spas also scored well in the area of hospitality, with calls being ‘generally friendly and positive’ 87 per cent of the time.

Attention to detail scored 77 per cent, with only 62 per cent of call-takers asking whether a male or female therapist would be preferred for body treatments. The payment method was only secured 88 per cent of the time, leaving 12 per cent of spas exposed to lost revenue.

The area where spas performed most poorly was in revenue generation, with only 44 per cent of spas optimising their potential revenue during the initial enquiry.

Although 87 per cent of staff members were cited as being ‘knowledgeable’ about the spa’s offerings, only 25 per cent of call-takers mentioned speciality treatments before basic services, while ‘upselling’ after a basic treatment was selected only occurred 28 per cent of the time.

Stephanie Perrone, vice president of business development at CHG, said: “Spas generally achieved the fundamentals of ensuring accurate booking and making the guest feel welcome.

Attention to detail and revenue generating techniques were not prominent with details like determining therapist gender preference and informing the guest of what to expect on arrival frequently missing.” Details: www.coylehospitality.com