How do your customers know you are qualified to undertake the treatments you offer??

[Jaffacake]

Good idea but i've never been asked for my certificate or insurance document! hopefully (touch wood) I wont need it either

 

[hippy-chick]

I've only been asked twice in 12 years to tell them what qualification/experience I have.

I personally have NO certificates on display, not one single one.

I don't wear any badges, although I have about 8!

I have just received a very shiny guild one, and did wear it yesterday whilst doing a talk for the FHT (and came out of the meeting alive!), but I probably wouldn't wear it all the time.

when I did my baby massage certification, I was given a card with my photo on it, but I wasn't once asked for proof.

 

[essentia]

I think it is a great idea but I feel this just underpins the need to push for state registration. I feel only those who have under gone training to a certain standard should be able to use the title state registered beauty therapist/ Aesthetician etc and have it as a protected title like other allied health professionals. Too many jump on the band wagon with little training. I also feel that there should be a health inspector to monitor salons and standards of hygiene. It is about time this industry was shaken up.

 

[g5m_sh]

Just to put another spin on this - how many of you have ever been asked whether you are qualified?

Personally as a nail technician I have been asked twice for confirmation that I am Creative trained and currently use their products.

I do have lots of people who comment when they get to my room about my wall of certificates LOL.

It is a very sad state of affairs but do many clients know what your qualification would mean if they did ask?

Great idea though Collin - the card thingy!

I have never once been asked if i am qualified, have certificates or insurance!!!

But good idea!!!

 

[Marlise]

Haven't read all the replies, so apologies if I repeat something.

Firstly, clients seldomly ask and in my honest opinion, probably wouldn't be able to tell you if your training cert is good, bad, indifferent or even real

Which brings me to my next point. If it's easy to forge training certs, how easy would it be to make a little credit cards style thingy saying you are qualified ??

If I was a client and my therapist showed me that, it wouldn't mean anything to me, i.e. it wouldn't hold any validity to me.

I would much rather see a training cert before I believe a credit card :lol:


M.

 

[rebelrebel]

I have been in business since 1988 and I think I have only been asked a couple of times what certificates I have got! but never been asked to show them to anyone!

I am state registered and a member of the FHBF (freelance hair and beauty federation) and I do have a clip on credit card thingy with my photo on and my membership number on, so if anyone wanted to ring them they could assure them what my qualifications are and that I am insured.

I dont wear my ID badge but it is always in my car so if anyone wants to see it.

 

[lotus blossom]

great idea!!
i love badges!!and the badge id love to wear sooo much would be one of those that attaches to a strap thing round your neck, and has your pic on it!!!
we had one done for college and we still havent had ours yet( nearly a year waiting!!)

id feel sooo important, and i like feeling important

 

[lisa-marie]

thats a great idea, i would wear one with pride! it would help people know what treatments your qualified to do if it listed the courses you've passed. x

 

[collin]

great idea!!
i love badges!!and the badge id love to wear sooo much would be one of those that attaches to a strap thing round your neck, and has your pic on it!!!
we had one done for college and we still havent had ours yet( nearly a year waiting!!)

id feel sooo important, and i like feeling important

Tell you what Nikki..we will do you a very special badge with a light on it and 3 bells hanging from it...so when you do a twirl everyone can both see and hear you comming:hug:

 

[lotus blossom]

Tell you what Nikki..we will do you a very special badge with a light on it and 3 bells hanging from it...so when you do a twirl everyone can both see and hear you comming:hug:

oh great!! can i have it with the neck strap on aswell!!!??????????

 

[collin]

oh great!! can i have it with the neck strap on aswell!!!??????????

I was thinking of something more along the lines of a halo with bells on for you ...just make sure it doesnt slip when you twirl :lol::lol::lol:

 

[mikem]

I think it is a great idea but I feel this just underpins the need to push for state registration. I feel only those who have under gone training to a certain standard should be able to use the title state registered beauty therapist/ Aesthetician etc and have it as a protected title like other allied health professionals. Too many jump on the band wagon with little training. I also feel that there should be a health inspector to monitor salons and standards of hygiene. It is about time this industry was shaken up.

Good point

I was talking to a qualified beauty therapist from Hungary who's booked some tanning training with us. She was surprised at how lax the laws were in the UK as you have to be fully qualified in Hungary to do virtually anything in the beauty business. Her example was a tanning salon - in Hungary you need to be a beauty therapist to open one.

I think registration is a positive step provided it is not too onerous and costly. The Uk does have a tendency to be a bit bureaucratic and you need to get the balance right to ensure it is about quality, training, safety and insurance and not about the ability to pay money and fill in a very big form

From a personal perspective within the NLP community we have the same problem if not bigger. There is no recognised certification and you could find yourself with someone who did a week long course with 500 other people where someone installed the belief they were a fantastic trainer :Scared: or you could get someone who's done hundreds of hours of training and continuous CPD. Unfortunately, like the beauty industry, even plenty of practise and a cert doesn't mean you're any good, but it tends to weed out the dangerous

Mike

 

[aliceellen1974]

I think its a great idea, i have all my certificates in a folder a long with my insurance document so it would be easier..xx

i'll second that this is what i do too x

 

[absolutly fab!]

going back to the orginal qusetion, (great thread), how does the consumer know u are qualified, how does the consumer know that the cert that is widely displayed on the wall is a good one or reputable one? Unless the consumer knows who is repuable or not how will this change?

Some very constructive ideas talked about, really intresting.

 

[tonilee]

Hmmmmm well I can see its a good idea in principle but am not sure if it would ake a difference to the therapist or the client. As nailzoo quite rightly pointed out, you may have the certif but does it make you good enough??

My previous nail tech was a creative master in L&P great certificate and title but sadly my nails were lifting within hours of being applied!!

I have only been asked for cerificates once but that was by the salon owner of the place I used to work in!!

So all in all I not sure I would see the point in them myself

 

[1999judy]

If you are salon based it's quiet easy to frame your certification and stick it up on the wall so that customers can see it.

Now how does a mobile do this..does she /he stick the certificate on the rear window of the Ford Fiesta???
They don't....just assume if they don't ask you back again you are crap?
Ford Fiesta....Collin how dare you:lol:

A geek has come up with a fantastic idea for all you mobiles which I would like your opinion's on.

Would one of those security type swipe credit card jobbies that you hang round your neck (or simply keep in your purse with all your other over used credit cards) with a photo and confirmation of certificate number,company logo etc work???

I.E. you mail your picture in after proof of qualification and within a few days you receive your own personolised I.D. card with confirmation of qualification etc etc.

Would this be a good idea and make you and your customer feel safer in that you can easily prove your qualification and identity etc without having to take your origional certificate around with you all the time?

This is a non brand specific issue so could work with any brand or treatment offered.
Your views would be very much apreciated :hug:

Great idea but most clients can check out your websites etc to check how good you are and by your standard of work.
You could be qualified to the eyeballs but if your work is no good you won't see them again.
Most techs gain clients by word of mouth and generate more clients than they need sometimes.
Just my opinion of course mate x

 

[Kim Lawless]

it's an excellent idea, if only a qualification made everyone a certain standard, I know qualified people that do crap work.
The proof is in the pudding, certificates are a good start (as is the card idea).
.

I so agree with this statement. To me, a certificate just proves attendance most of the time. It doesn't prove ability, although it should do.

Maybe it would be better if along with our insurance, we're given a credit card type card by them to show our clients that we're insured. That way, the public can see very easily that the therapist is serious about what they do and they have some come back if anything goes wrong.

Great idea Collin.

 

[absolutly fab!]

going back to the orginal qusetion, (great thread), how does the consumer know u are qualified, how does the consumer know that the cert that is widely displayed on the wall is a good one or reputable one? Unless the consumer knows who is repuable or not how will this change?

Some very constructive ideas talked about, really intresting.

great comments so how can the consumer know what is good or not is the idea of the thread?

 

[Beautyandme]

I suppose its like many things in life, how many times do you really get asked, are you trained in what you do.

Hairdressers/Chef/Garage/Nursery, most of us just presume that know what they are doing.

 

[Rach]

I suppose its like many things in life, how many times do you really get asked, are you trained in what you do.

Hairdressers/Chef/Garage/Nursery, most of us just presume that know what they are doing.

Very true - how many people ask to see certificates? - Such as when you go to have car fixed, solictors, restaurants (food hygeine), hairdressers.

I know i dont...