If there’s one thing your spa or massage practice – or any business for that matter – can’t get enough of, it’s fresh ideas. Even if you are satisfied with the way things are, circumstances change. It would help if you were prepared to deal with the changes forced upon you by the marketplace because of competition, changing client requirements, or a shift in the economy (don’t we all know that one too well). Change even may come from within because your employees or even you may want new challenges and opportunities.
At some point, you may find that the old ideas for dealing with change aren’t working anymore. New ideas and new ways to do things are important because your spa or massage practice might become stuck and unable to move ahead without them. Not only will you suffer – professionally and financially - but your team members may lose their motivation, and that will eventually affect clients.
So unless you want to stick with ‘nothing really new here’ ideas, you need to strive to generate new and creative ones – even if you don’t put all of them into practice or not all at once anyway. You also want to get your team involved. By helping them unleash their creativity, they will feel more invested in the success of your spa or massage practice and more enthusiastic about their work.
Get your Team Motivated for Fresh Ideas
Just ask your team to ‘think different’ might not get the results you want. Some employees hold back, for starters, because they are afraid to express something that might be construed as bucking the system or ‘off the wall.’ It would help if you made it clear to your team that you are open to new ideas and taking risks. When employees feel safe that their ideas won’t be rejected or criticized, they will be open to making suggestions. Here are some other things you can do to inspire creative thinking:
Encourage Curiosity
An inquiring mind can lead to fresh ideas. Encourage your team to ask questions – about the marketplace, your philosophy about running the business and goals for the future, how you respond to client feedback, why you purchase certain products or select vendors – whatever piques their interest. As they learn more about the business, your goals, even your concerns, you’ll find they will contribute enormously with ideas to make things change for the better.
Set aside Time for Creativity
Whether formally or informally, get the team together to bat ideas around. Talk about the competition, potential new skin treatments or massage, social media, or mobile marketing tactics to bring more clients in the door and customer care. Let the conversation flow and markdown creative ideas that come up.
Reward Initiative
Recognize team members for coming up with fresh ideas. When you put one into practice, and it succeeds, it celebrates success.
You’ll be surprised just how many fresh ideas you and your team can generate when everyone asks questions that challenge the status quo, and you open your mind to new possibilities.