Irisha Steele Farmhouse Inn
Although spa revenue from hotel guests was strong Book4Time presented data that was clear and actionable allowing Farmhouse Inn to put together an action plan to market their services to local guests during off-peak times.
A Seamless Blend of Technology and Luxury
in the Modern Spa Space
The Farmhouse Inn has a unique story. The Bartolomei family became winemakers when they first moved
to the region, and five generations later, in 1911, they started a business. Brother and sister Joe and Catherine
Bartolomei bought a property to continue the tradition, and they turned it into one of the highest-rated hotels
in the country. Their goal was to foster the Sonoma lifestyle of stewardship and a commitment to the land—in
stark contrast to the increasingly manic lifestyle many of us lead. The Bartolomeis have been phenomenally
successful in establishing a place that is relaxing and enjoyable, a place where people feel closer to the land
and community.
Irisha Steele
Spa Director at Farmhouse Inn
& Restaurant
When I first met Joe Bartolomei to interview for the role, I knew that I’d found a heart-centered place with
people who focused on the good of the world and on customer service. They wanted to find a particular person
to create the vision for the spa, and I was the right fit. Starting a new job often comes with a lot of uncertainty,
but between the environment and the people, I felt I was in a place where I had always belonged.
People are more accepting of change if they have a say in the changes that are made.
Finding the Right Spa Software
When I arrived, the spa used Mindbody, a very
popular platform in the wellness industry. Mindbody
works for wellness appointments and classes, but it
isn’t the right solution for every circumstance. The
platform is limited when it comes to spa services,
and didn’t have the kind of analytics or forecasting
capabilities that I wanted for the Farmhouse Inn Spa.
For more than a decade, I had used Book4Time,
the first cloud-based business management
software designed with the spa and wellness
industry in mind. Nearly every corporate spa where
I had worked used this software, but I didn’t want
that to influence my decision. I set out to find out
whether there was something better on the market
that would work for a smaller, less corporate
facility. I questioned whether Book4Time was
too advanced and premium for what we needed.
It turns out, Book4Time offered all the features I
wanted, even on a small scale.
As much as we were invested in the physical spa
experience, we also wanted the spa to be profitable.
I’m analytical, I love numbers, and I love ensuring
that my team has everything they need to succeed.
That means making sure they can focus on the
clients, not on technology. I pitched Book4Time as
a user-friendly platform that could grow with the
Farmhouse Inn Spa. It was also cloud-based, which
would be a big bonus as we scaled.
I felt strongly about the platform, but I like getting
team input and buy-in from the beginning of any
project. People are more accepting of change if they
have a say in the changes that are made. To get
that buy-in, I included three teams in the demo: the
concierge, our reservation staff, and the spa team.
When the demo ended, all three departments loved
what they had seen. There was no pushback as we
made the final decision to implement Book4Time.
Strong Support During a Tumultuous Time
I started as Wellness Director at the Farmhouse
Inn Spa in February 2021. The spa had been closed
during the early stages of the pandemic but was set
to reopen in March 2021. Getting the green light for
Book4Time from staff and management was easy,
but now I had just a few short weeks to implement
our new platform.
Everything went smoothly, thanks to Book4Time’s
support and dedication. I may have a lot of
experience with the system, but I am not experienced
on the backend, so there was a lot that I didn’t know.
Their help was invaluable, and even on short notice,
the team jumped right in and moved quickly to get
everything done.
This was especially helpful when it came to
integrations with other systems, such as our POS.
Farmhouse Inn outsources our IT department,
so I didn’t know the answers to a lot of technical
questions. But Book4Time’s launch team took the
lead, complete with due dates and reminders. If I
got stuck or didn’t know something, they helped
us figure out how to move forward. They didn’t let
anything fall through the cracks, and they didn’t let
us fail.
This goes for training as well. A lot of the training
was virtual and we also had a manual to follow, so
after every training there was something for us to
practice. I thought I was a master at Book4Time,
but I didn’t have experience with setup from start
to finish. With Book4Time’s help, we familiarized
ourselves with the ins and outs of creating packages,
discounts, and inventory management. They made
everything simple.
Setting the Stage for Transformation
Book4Time gave us a solid foundation from which to
operate. It streamlined all of our processes, making
interdepartmental coordination easier.
One of our most prevalent use cases is online
booking. Some spas are still strangely resistant to
online booking. That never made sense to me, since
many guests want to set up their appointment in a
couple of clicks when they think of it, rather than
calling or visiting the spa. Book4Time offers a
simple, seamless online booking option for guests.
By letting people book their own appointments, our
staff spends less time on the phone and can focus
more on the in-person experience.
We use Book4Time’s customer note feature to
see everything from a customer’s shoe and robe
size to their preferred tea. We want to help guests
slow down and enjoy more human contact, and
that involves feeling cared for. It makes the entire
spa experience less transactional, which leads to
increased customer retention and revenue.
Book4Time has also improved our reporting. It’s so
easy to generate pretty much any report you need.
For now, we use reports to forecast appointments
and activities, and that forecasting allows us
to easily determine staffing needs. We also use
Book4Time to make and receive all of our purchase
orders and make adjustments as we go. Having a
single system to stay on top of everything in real
time avoids the discrepancies that arise with a more
lax management method.
We do a lot of staff performance and analysis with
the platform, too. The team can quickly access their
stats and appointments and see other information
as well, such as how much retail they sell. It’s
a great motivation tool for the team, because
they can see areas where they want to improve.
Using the dashboard feature, I can quickly assess
information and share detailed data with non-spa
management. Spa directors face a lot of pressure to
meet certain metrics and ensure spas are profitable,
and Book4Time shows why a spa is doing well
and identifies areas and opportunities to improve
services and expand reach. As an example, we
can see that our average rate for services as of
September 2021 was $239, and 97% of our sales
are from hotel guests. While that’s great, that means
we aren’t connecting with many local residents.
Knowing this, we can start campaigns to bring
more locals to the spa. This is a huge opportunity
to potentially boost demand in the community
during off-peak times. Many platforms don’t have a
way to see opportunities for growth without a lot of
research, but Book4Time presents data that’s clear
and actionable.
A Focus on What Matters
Book4Time fades into the background, allowing our
staff to focus on what matters instead of spending
a lot of time on the phone or figuring out technology.
And what matters is giving our guests a more
personalized experience.
People think that technology is at odds with a luxury
spa experience, but I’ve repeatedly found that not to
be the case. Book4Time demonstrates a beautiful
way to merge finance, technology, and luxury in
a seamless, user-friendly way. It’s brought the
Farmhouse Inn Spa into the digital age, keeping up
with the needs and expectations of our guests.
