Skin analysers are a powerful consultation tool, yet they are often underutilised. Here are some tips on how to improve your initial consultation process using a skin analysis device.
Prescription Before Diagnosis is Malpractice
What’s true in the mainstream medical profession is true for us in the beauty and aesthetics industry. In fact, the nature of our client engagement makes it even more important to go into every client consultation without any presuppositions as to what treatments they require. After all, many of our clients come through referral and as a result, if the same recommendations follow a consultation, it’s likely to be assumed that everyone receives the same information.
In the age of social media, clumsy analysis leads to bad, or indifferent reviews such as “don’t waste your time with the diagnosis, a friend of mine and I did it and we got the same results…”
As always, the operator is the critical element in the equation.
The Analysis Is Not The Analyser
Your client already knows the problem areas on their skin, they stare at it every morning and evening. Your skin analyser will help your client look to the past and the future, so what information is valuable? You’ll only work this out by completing a questionnaire/conversation/verbal analysis before you start using the device. Using your instincts and experience to learn what the client is trying to improve and what they don’t like about their skin. To demonstrate why this is important, consider the difference between two dentists.
At the first dentist, you are greeted in reception and shown into a waiting room. Then you are taken to see the dentist where he asks you what is wrong and solves your problem, whether it’s a filling, painful wisdom tooth or…whatever.
The second dentist offers a similar experience: you are shown to the waiting room and then to see the dentist, but in this case, he greets you in a consultation area and asks you one question:
What would you change about your smile if you could?
In our industry, we’re not simply transforming smiles, but how people judge us and how we see ourselves. Improving our skin can transform our experience of other people and the world itself.
Add Value Before They Start Paying
As mentioned, the power of skin analysers is their ability to look into the past and see the damage, and into the future and present an image of what might be. Remember to take the approach of consultation rather than selling. There will likely be a number of actions and at-home treatments that clients can undertake to immediately improve their appearance and it’s here that you can add additional value and build trust. Like a doctor, you seek wellness, not just payment. If you earn your client’s trust through honesty and openness, you will receive the financial benefit and – far more importantly – loyalty and referrals.
Skin analysers are a powerful tool, but like everything else in our industry, they only work if they add value to the client. Make them part of your diagnosis system and help your clients understand what they want and need.
