🕵️‍♀️Secret Shopping Your Spa: The VIP Test You’re Probably Forgetting

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Welcome to another issue of the Glowelle Spark — your go-to newsletter for smart, sustainable spa growth.

Each edition is crafted to share practical, proven strategies that elevate client loyalty, boost revenue, and create a more elegant & profitable business behind the scenes

✨ In Today’s Issue…

We dive into why mystery shopping your spa is the luxury strategy most owners overlook—and how it can quietly supercharge your brand.

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🚨 Bold Truth: If You’ve Never Secret-Shopped Your Spa… You’re Flying Blind.

Luxury isn’t just about marble counters and organic rosewater.

It’s about consistency.

It’s about energy.

It’s about the feeling your client gets—from the first “hello” to the final email follow-up.

But here’s the deal:
Most spa owners have no idea what their client experience actually feels like.

Because you’re inside it.
You’re managing. Directing. Leading.

But you’re not living it.

Until you secret shop your own spa, you’re guessing.

And guessing is not luxury.
Guessing is Groupon.

💅 A True Story from Behind the Curtain

Let’s talk about “The Lemon Facial Incident.”

One of our spa clients—we’ll call her Juliet—ran a sleek, high-end boutique spa in Miami. Think gold-rimmed tea cups, eucalyptus steam, the whole nine.

She decided (after months of thinking about it) to secretly book a facial under a fake name and phone number.

What did she discover?

• The receptionist answered the phone with a bored “hello.”

• Her esthetician rushed through the intake form.

• She was upcharged for a lip treatment without being told.

• Her tea was cold.

🫠 And the worst part?

The front desk never asked how her service was. They just said “you’re all set.”

She walked out feeling invisible.

Not pampered.
Not seen.
Not worth $250.

She cried in the car.

Not because she was mad at her staff…
But because she’d trusted the brand to reflect her.

That secret facial? It changed everything.

She revamped her training, rewrote her phone scripts, and introduced a luxury experience checklist for every guest.

Within 90 days, her rebooking rate doubled.

👠 How to Secret Shop Like a High-End Spy

There are two ways to do this right—and both are needed.

📞 1. The Phone Test

Your front desk is either attracting or repelling business every. single. day.

Call your spa pretending to be:

• A new client asking about your most popular service

• A bride planning a spa day for 5

• A price-sensitive caller asking, “How much is your cheapest facial?”

Listen for tone, clarity, and consistency.

Do they sound:

• Engaged?

• Educated?

• Enthusiastic?

Or are they...

• Rushing?

• Muddling through?

• Offering zero personality?

💡 Pro tip: Do this with at least three different staff members. Vibe can vary.

🧖‍♀️ 2. The Live Experience Audit

Book under a name your team won’t recognize.
Even better—have a friend do it for you and give you a full report.

What to evaluate:

• Was the confirmation call made?

• Did they greet by name?

• Was the treatment room spotless?

• Did the service provider make a genuine product recommendation?

• Was there a soft close for rebooking?

• Was a follow-up message sent?

✨Use all five senses.
From smell to sound to lighting—what’s the energy?

Is it elevated? Or just... fine?

In luxury, “fine” is fatal.

🧬 What You’ll Discover (That You Can’t Learn from Yelp)

Secret shopping reveals:

• Gaps in training (especially at the front desk)

• Missed sales or upsell moments

• Inconsistent brand voice

• Energy leaks in the client journey

• Whether the vibe actually matches your vision

It’s data with a heartbeat.
And no software can give you that.

🏆 The Big Lesson

You’re not just selling services.
You’re selling an experience.

And if that experience isn’t being lived the way you think it is?

You’re losing silent sales.
You’re dropping client trust.
You’re letting your dream brand drift into mediocrity.

Secret shopping isn’t a “gotcha” game.
It’s an alignment ritual.

It says:
“I care so much about this brand, I’ll walk through the front door like a stranger—to make sure every client feels like a queen.”

🎥 Click HERE To Learn How To Tap Into Your Spa’s Goldmine – And Experience A New Way to Scale Faster

NEED HELP RIGHT NOW?

Here are three actionable steps you can take today to boost your profitability and maximize the potential of your existing customer base.

1. Watch our Luxury Spa Growth Series: 3 Free Videos

2. Order my Free Book: Strategic Loyalty

3. Order The Growth Accelerator Kit:

   It's the science of transforming a first-time visitors into lifetime VIPs who book regularly, spend more, and refer others to your spa without being asked.

   ➡️ It's a proven system that works specifically for premium spas, even if you've tried "everything" before.

Keep Glowing
✨The Spark Crew