According to a Dove survey of 8,000 men between the ages of 30 and 55 in seven countries, it appears that men are bothered by how they're portrayed in advertising. According to Michael Kaufman, Dove gender expert consultant, "These are bad news about what our standards of men's bodies should look like, they're impossible images. Men can't live up to that."
Dove launched an ad campaign during the NFL's Super Bowl for its new line of men's skin care products. What Dove's new ads convey and what their survey reveals is that reak men are not the fit, toned and buffed male models we see in ads. Men are just as frustrated by those portrayals as women are annoyed by fashion images suggesting all women should looked like photoshopped-to-perfection super models.
Sharon MacLeod, a director at Unilever which owns the Dove brand reports "What our campaign does is look to celebrate men who have different responsibilities in life and are comfortable in their own skin," Ms. MacLeod says. "These are not guys who are ladies men or heroes or power-hungry. These are real men with real lives" -- film directors, business people -- and the campaign is "about their definition of success."
Of note: Dove's survey found 65% of Canadian men are comfortable using women's skincare products but only 24% are prepared to admit to using women's products to their friends.
Outside of toiletries; other articles indicate that male demand for fillers, injectibles, liposection, laser hair removal and other cosmetic procedures are on the rise. Does this indicate that it is time of use promotional marketing materials (brochures, posters, countertop displays, DVDs) which show men - in and around your practice? Should your web site and advertisments appeal to your male patients? Should your practice offer product lines for retail with a focus on male concerns? Are male patients the new demographic? It's an equal opportunity world of aesthetics!
Wendy Lewis, acclaimed author and expert in aesthetic consultancy, has a helpful article on "Instilling Loyalty in Cosmetic Patients" in the October 2009 issue of Plastic Surgery Products.
Wendy recommends offering your loyal clients a reward program to encourage repeat business and referrals.
Customer Loyalty Programs may include:
courtesy vouchers
offer of extra service
complementary product
volume discount
refer-a-friend bonus
discount on particular treatment
trial of a new product or technology
Even offering a "thank you - using personal notes, calls or emails can be enough to make them feel special. I highly recommend saying thank you after any aesthetic laser treatment such as laser hair removal or skin rejuvenation or injectible; and keep them coming back for more.
Estheticians are faced with problems of pigmentation every day. Some clients want to be lighter, some darker; some have white spots, dark pigmented spots, freckles or melasma. It is difficult to know what to do for most of these clients without having a good foundation in the science of pigmentation.
Pigmented lesions are formed because of genetics, heredity, hormones, sun exposure, medications and certain disease processes. It is important that the treatment provider assess how many of these factors influence the formation of the pigmented lesions before starting a skin care treatment.
Irregular pigmentation of the face is one of the most common signs of photoaging. Pigmentation occurs because of the uneven production of melanin—a brown pigment produced by melanocytes—in the skin. Many different patterns can be seen on the faces of people of different ages.
Clients often are seeking an advanced skin care consult for pigmentary issues. An aesthetic Laser system may be used as part of the treatment plan to address the pigmentary needs. Laser Genesis and LimeLight facial are often combined with light chemical peels, cosmeceuticals, sunblock and good client education about sun protection to decrease the appearance to pigmented lesions.
Laser based technology has become a part of skin care treatment plan to address pigmented lesions. Many treatment providers with use a combination of topical agents, chemical peels, Laser Genesis and LimeLight facial in skin rejuvenation and the reduction of pigmented lesions.
"Skin-Lightening Challenges" by By: Zoe Diana Draelos, MD
Advanced Skin Care starts with daily skin care management. This usually includes facial wash, moisturizers & sunblock. Many skin care products also include the use of Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) in the ingredients. It is important to optimize the results of Laser based technology such as Laser Genesis, LimeLight facial and over all skin rejuvenation with good daily skin care.
Source:
"Vitamin C in Skin Care" By: Peter T. Pugliese, MD
Posted: June 2, 2009, from the June 2009 issue of Skin Inc. Magazine.
We recently released a Multimedia News Release on Pearl Fractional and the benefits to this treatment for "Eye-Juvenation" - treating that difficult periorbital area successfully.
Examples of some of the pickup (video and/or news sites and blogs) are shown below:
Good luck with YOUR PR efforts to promote your skin rejuvenation and aesthetic services - PR can be a lot of work but getting PR is always worth the effort.
We used a Multimedia News Release (MNR) for the first time to promote the Pearl Fractional laser for "Eye-Juvenation" -- results and coverage have been impressive.
Rather than just releasing a press release, our MNR included:
Press release
Video footage (interview with Brian Biesman, MD and treatment footage)
When you prepare media documents to promote your services or a new treatment such as Pearl Fractional for skin resurfacing and dramatic skin rejuvenation, gather up other supporting documents, videos and images to expand your story and make it both dynamic and content-rich. Your efforts will pay off in the long-term!
Alright - I know this is not part of "Marketing" but I just read an interesting article by Bryan Durocher on Employee Compensation published last December in Skin, Inc. and thought I would share it with you.
I know a number of Cutera customers struggle over how much they should compensate their employees - for promoting their practice, referring friends/family, closing consults to appointments, performing aesthetic procedures such as laser hair removal, skin rejuvenation, etc. There is no one answer as every practice is different.
Some pay commission on top of salary - others use monthly or quarterly profit sharing. I thought this statement was sobering. "If a business owner is paying more than 50% commission or is offering some type of benefits in conjunction with a commission structure greater than 50% they are losing money."
A very important element of the patient consultation and skin care treatment plan are uniform photos of the treatment area. Patients often forget how much hair they had before starting Laser Hair removal. Pictures help to identify changes in pigment. This is important when performing a Limelight facial for pigmented lesions or Laser Hair removal. Pictures really are worth a thousand words.
Having a simple protocol for patient photography is essential. This means taking steps to standardize not only the method of taking representative photographs, but also of storing/cataloging them for efficient retrieval for presentations and patient use.
The key to this is to simplify the process and make the number of photos required for each patient uniform.
Potential patients are bombarded with advertisements for Laser Hair Removal, Laser vein treatment, skin tightening and skin rejuvenation. It is important for treatment providers differentiate themselves from the competitors.
After great anticipation Aesthetic Profits Inc. is trilled to announce the launch of it’s much awaited How To: Series - Effective Patient Attraction Tools for Aesthetic Physicians. This compilation contains essential strategies aesthetic doctors need to build a reliable database of returning patients, to enhance their presence within their community and see a steady boost in revenues.
Current titles include: ‘How to Differentiate Yourself From All the Others’, ‘How to Make the Most of Your In-House Marketing’, ‘How to Effectively Communicate With Your Patients’, ‘How to Become Famous in Your Community’, ‘How to Conduct a Successful Aesthetic Patient Consultation’, ‘How to Coordinate a Successful Open House’, ‘How to Promote Retail Profitably’, ‘How to Promote Minimally-Invasive Procedures’, ‘How to Build a Word-of-Mouth Practice’ and many more.
Source: International Association for Physicians in Aesthetic Medicine (IAPAM)
We all know your best aesthetic patient is the referred patient. They are not as price conscious and are already pre-sold on you. You do not want to take these referrals lightly. Every aesthetic practice or medical spa has their group of cheerleaders and you do too.
Source: International Association for Physicians in Aesthetic Medicine
There are many things to research and learn about starting an Aesthetic practice. The physician may want to offer skin rejuvenation with chemical peels and Laser based technology or a more advanced skin care practice with Laser hair removal, vein treatments or skin tightening.
After completing this workshop, participants will leave with a comprehensive business plan for their aesthetic medicine practice. This program will cover all aspects of creating a business plan for a profitable medical spa, including:
• Financing options for physicians; • Target demographics for tailored aesthetic procedures; • Developing a menu of treatments and pricing strategies; • Establishing aesthetic practice protocols and HR for aesthetic practitioners; • Creating an effective marketing plan; • Finding the right location; • Staffing; • Federal and state legal and regulatory issues; and • Startup costs and reading financials.
Souce: International Association for Physicians in Aesthetic Medicine (IAPAM)
Minimally-invasive anti-aging procedures will continue to secure the majority of the aesthetic medical procedures’ market over more invasive, expensive surgical offerings.
The public will choose these less expensive and less risky procedures over surgeries. People generally desire to look 10 years younger, and minimally-invasive procedures can achieve this desired outcome. “During hard economic times, men and women look to non-invasive cosmetic treatments such as Botox Cosmetic, Dermal Fillers and Skin Rejuvenation as a means to feel and look better about themselves physically and emotionally,” says Dr. Alexander Ataii of Laser Clinque in San Diego.
Source: International Association for Physicians in Aesthetic Medicine
Women appear to believe cosmetic procedures can give them the edge in an increasingly competitive workplace.
Source: February 11, 2009 Healthy Aging.
Women consider laser based technology, chemical peels and advanced skin care very important part of the "dress of success". Laser Genesis can be used on all ages and skin types to improve tone, texture and poor size. Limelight can treat pigmented lesions anywhere on the body and provide a vascular treatment to the face, neck and chest.
Laser based infrared technology in advanced skin care can result in complications. Complications with Laser based technology can result when someone does not understand light/heat - tissue interaction, poor technique and inadequate cooling. Burn injuries can happen with vascular treatments, Laser hair reduction and the treatment of pigmented lesions. A treatment provider should never perform a treatment that may result in an adverse event that they can not recognize and properly treat. Proper and timely treatment of a burn injury is key to minimize such adverse events as scarring and pigmentary issues.
It is very important to NEVER ICE a burn.
**Renee Lierly, R.N. has worked Burn Intensive care for 7 yrs and continues to work in a verified burn unit in the San Francisco/Bay area.
Melasma is often diffifult to treat and usually requires a multimodality skin care treatment plan. The treatment of Melasma may require a combination of laser based technology such as Laser Genesis, chemical peels, sun protection and skin care products over several months in order to diminish the appearance of the pigmented lesions.
Postinflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH) is a possible transient side effect of laser based technology, chemical peels, skin rejuvenation or trauma. Sun exposure, genetic predisposition, hormones and inflammation are just a few of the contributing factors in the formation of pigmented lesions in skin types III-VI. Properly identifying clients at risk of developing PIH is key to developing a skincare treatment plan with "prevention" as the primary focus.
Laser based technology has been used in the Laser revision of scars. Laser Genesis is often a part of an advanced skin care treatment plan to induce collagen remodeling during the healing phase of the scar.
Limelight may be used to treat pigmented lesions. Sunscreens are helpful to prevent the formation of pigmented lesions. It is preferable to avoid sun exposure when performing skin rejuvenation treatments, Laser hair removal or vascular treatments.
Encouraging photoprotection is the leading preventative health strategy used by physicians involved in skin care. Although sun avoidance is most desirable, outdoor occupations and lifestyles make total avoidance impossible for many individuals.
Author: Stanley B Levy, MD, Clinical Professor, Department of Dermatology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
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