“ To help ease fears, spas need to be in the forefront of educating clients on the benefits of massage and correcting misconceptions by putting out evidence in avenues easily accessible by the public...”
FASTFACT
Published on americanpregnancy. org, there are approximately six million pregnancies every year throughout the United States. Given this number, the potential for the spa industry to tap this market is enormous.
time when they take the two-day course, the spa pays for their course fee which is approximately $ 400.”
Apart from investing in high training standards, a great way to win a mother’ s trust is through referrals by reputed medical clinics and professionals.“ When we first opened, we tapped doctor’ s offices and clinics and asked them to refer their expectant clients to us,” says Arthur-Dick. This targeted marketing strategy not only helped introduced the spa in the local community, but also created a sense of high standards in the minds of moms-to-be as it had their doctor’ s approval.
Prenatal facial treatments are among The Spa Ballantyne ' s popular services off the menu.
course work and practicum, to receive their RMT certification,” she says, adding that all of their nine RMTs are also licensed to perform prenatal massage as proper prenatal techniques are already included in their training.
The spa further equips its staff with additional skills, such as Baby Massage Training courses offered exclusively to RMTs by several reputed institutes in Calgary and Alberta, including the Canadian College of Massage and Wellbeing and the Natural Health Practitioners of Canada.“ Our baby massage lessons, which we offer in the mornings, are well received by new moms,” she says.
The two-day training covers topics like: Benefits and purpose of infant massage, preparation and application, infant massage techniques and understanding baby cues, among others.“ Although we don’ t give overtime pay for our staff’ s
Get Feedback from” Real Moms” A common mistake among spas is to introduce new treatments or products without consulting“ real moms.” Getting feedback from expectant moms can help streamline treatments according to what they truly need, and not the fluffy trends that come and go.
Sundara Inn & Spa in Wisconsin, for instance, identified the need to add a Mom-to-Be Body Treatment in spring last year after expectant mothers expressed disappointment on not being able to use the spa’ s water features due to high water temperatures. Using a temperature-regulated Chromotherapy tub, pregnant clients at Sundara can now de-stress for 30 minutes in a bath before getting an organic hydrating body rub which helps them relax and prevents stretch marks.
Their Babymoon package( includes one-night suite accommodations, pedicure and massages, among others) is another treatment that was added into Sundara Inn & Spa’ s menu after guests left notes in suite journals about savoring their“ last getaway” before the baby arrives.
March / April 2011 ■ PULSE 33