Clipboards at ten o'clock
Six guests arrive at once for spa days. Each is handed a clipboard with a two-page consultation form. They sit in the lobby writing, then some come back with questions about what a particular question means. The first treatment starts late. The forms are put in a tray for the therapists, who read them in the corridor between guests. At the end of the day they are filed in a box by date. Next time the same guest visits, she fills in the whole form again, and nobody can quickly find the old one.
One guest ticks a box that the spa's own policy says should prompt a conversation before treatment. The form is in the tray, and the therapist sees it as the guest is getting onto the couch.
Paper that arrives at the last possible moment
The consultation form matters to how your spa runs its treatments, but the process around it was designed for small numbers of walk-in guests.
- Forms are completed on arrival, which is the busiest moment of the visit.
- Answers that need a conversation are seen by the therapist minutes before the treatment.
- Paper forms are filed by date, not linked to the guest's record.
- Repeat guests fill the same form each time, and changes since last time are not highlighted.
- Forms for group and corporate guests are collected by the organiser and often arrive incomplete.
Queues, surprises and a filing problem
Arrivals back up and treatments start late. Therapists face questions they would have preferred to handle calmly beforehand, and sometimes a treatment has to be changed on the spot in line with your own policy. Retrieving an old form for a returning guest, or for any query later, means searching boxes. Paper records also raise questions about who can see them and how long they are kept, which is a matter for your own data protection arrangements.
How we build pre-arrival consultation forms
- We turn your existing consultation form into an online form with the same questions and wording your spa uses. We do not write the questions or advise on them.
- The form link is sent with the pre-arrival message a few days before the visit, per guest, including each member of a group booking.
- Completed forms are stored against the guest and the booking, with access limited to the roles you choose.
- Answers your policy marks as needing a conversation are flagged on the day sheet, so the therapist or manager knows before the guest arrives.
- Returning guests see their previous answers and confirm or update them, so changes stand out.
- Guests who did not complete it in advance get a tablet at the desk rather than a clipboard, and the result goes to the same place.
| Moment | Paper form | Pre-arrival form |
|---|---|---|
| Completed | At the desk on arrival | At home, days before |
| Seen by therapist | In the corridor | On the day sheet in the morning |
| Repeat visit | Filled from scratch | Previous answers confirmed |
| Found later | Box by date | On the guest record |
How long forms are kept, and who may see them, are set by your spa's own policy and data protection advice. The system applies whatever retention and access you decide.
Arrivals without clipboards
Most guests arrive with the form already done and walk straight through. Therapists start their day knowing which guests they need a word with. Returning guests confirm their details in a minute. The office stops filing paper, and a query about a past visit takes a search instead of a trip to the storeroom.
Is your check-in like this?
- Guests fill consultation forms on clipboards at arrival.
- Therapists read forms just before the treatment.
- Paper forms are stored in boxes by date.
- Returning guests fill in the full form every time.
- Group organisers collect forms and some go missing.