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AMERICAN SUNTANNING ASSOCIATION UPDATE 51 ❘ SMART TAN MAGAZINE ❘ MARCH 2015 WWW.SMARTTAN.COM Member Perspective: Mat Rockey, Fabutan Sun Tan Studios This past January, I was invited to join the board of the American Suntanning Associa- tion, and of course I accepted. After my first call with the board, I can tell you this: the ASA is ready and capable of real change in the industry we all love. One of the most refreshing things I have no- ticed is the willingness of the ASA to accept that the issues facing our business are issues that affect the world sunshine market, not just the United States. The ASA has worked aggressively to establish a strong North American and European relationship with sister associations such as the Joint Canadi- an Tanning Association in Canada and the European Sunlight Association in Europe. These relationships are imperative to the global industry's success. We have all noticed the impressive marketing campaigns funded by the Sun Scare folks. These campaigns use the exact same language and content, wheth- er that campaign is being run in the US or Canada or somewhere else in the world. This is accomplished by a unified and well-funded effort with various advocacy groups focused on ridiculous messages like, "The sun is bad for you," and, "The tanning industry is irresponsible." Perhaps it's time to learn from these groups and take similar steps to unify our message of responsible sun care. Have you ever asked yourself, what can we do in our stores to make a difference? In my view, the answer is simple – implement professional standards in your sunshine business. I think we can all take comfort that the ASA has a handle on the scientific, public relations and lobbying aspects of defending our businesses, but we as salon owners can certainly tackle the issue of our irresponsible reputation. We can accomplish this by remaining focused on training, edu- cation and sunburn prevention. As I'm sure the majority of you would agree, the staff behind our counters are directly responsi- ble for the customer experience, including everything from the exposure time to the recommendation of professional tanning products. How confident are you that your customers get a top-notch experience every time no matter what? As we have learned from the media, you just never know who is standing in front of you. It could be a customer or it could be someone investigat- ing your business to determine if proce- dures and professional standards have been implemented. I would encourage everyone reading this to engage in the evolution of our industry. You can do this by simply implementing the items discussed in this article and by becom- ing a member of the ASA. If there is one thing I know for sure, it's that a fragmented industry is one that will never reach full potential. Let's stand together and defend Mother Nature's greatest gift, the sun!