20/10/2025
The other day I faced a disappointment.
I believe in walking my talk and conscious that I had fallen a bit behind on my own skin routine, I booked a course of treatment with another business.
Given my remote home location, busy work and home life, the investment wasn’t just financial.
I also firmly believe that therapists should remind themselves of what it’s like to be a client and experience the thoughts, feeling, excitement, and joy of booking professional skin treatments.
It became clear to me that the treatment was having little or no effect and the therapists weren’t properly trained in the protocol of this service. They took no before and after photos, didn’t use their eyes and hands to see or feel for themselves that the effect was minimal. They made no adjustments to the protocol to improve the result.
So, what did I do? I know how good this treatment is, so I gave feedback on how the treatment should be performed and it was positively received, they tried their best. However, I recognise I didn’t intervene earlier in the process and on cancelling the remaining appointment, I was treated very politely.
But here’s the thing - a member of the public wouldn’t have known that the treatment wasn’t being performed properly. Manufacturers training is there for a reason and in our unregulated industry it’s too easy to teach new staff by using existing staff, who is this case, were also performing the treatment incorrectly. As they didn’t have the knowledge, they couldn’t adapt the treatment to increase the result.
So that’s the professional side of me talking….but here’s the thing on a personal level. Time, money and lots of effort went into getting to those appointments. Anticipation, looking forward to my skin being in better shape, all gone. It was good to feel these things, to remember how others might feel when they start out with me and to feel the disappointment.
As I reflect on this experience, I hope that my clients feel that I constantly review how things are going at each and every appointment and because I bespoke my treatments, make adjustments to ensure my facials meet realistic expectation. I want my clients to see me as a working partner who has their best interests at heart.
Honesty is the best policy, if I think a client isn’t going to get their desired result with a treatment or with my approach to skin health, I tell them, adjust the treatment or find them someone better suited to their needs.
What thoughts come to mind when you read this?
