Home care devices are are a booming industry, and growing every year. Read on this article from Skin Inc. on how you can maximize your own bottom line with skin beauty tools outside the treatment room.
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Based on the numbers, it’s safe to say that at-home skin care devices are here to stay, changing the game for at-home care, and creating new opportunities for beauty professionals to collaborate with their clients outside of the treatment room. Although at-home beauty tools have been generating a buzz for quite some time, consumer demand for advanced modality devices like LED and microcurrent is growing like never before. In 2023, reports estimate that the market for skin care devices is worth nearly $23 billion and is expected to grow to over $101 billion over the next 10 years.*
If you have yet to embrace emerging trends and get your clients on board with at-home skin care technology, here are some benefits you could be missing out on.
1. Expanded Retail Business
Although there are thousands of at-home devices available for purchase online these days, savvy professionals know that the safety and efficacy of these devices can vary greatly. Given that clients will likely seek out a source to purchase either way, licensed skin care experts are in an ideal position to partner with reputable brands and retail devices to clients directly.
Doing so helps eliminate guesswork for your clientele and ensures that they are making a wise investment for their skin. But moreover, stocking at-home devices at your place of business can become a whole new revenue stream and even drive repeat purchases of accessory products like oil-free cleansers and conductive gels for microcurrent.
2. Better Results Between Appointments
Another way to view at-home devices is as an extension of practice, delivering even more impactful outcomes and reinforcing the benefits of your professional care. Understanding that modalities like microcurrent and LED devices work best when used weekly or even daily, at-home devices make it possible for clients to stay consistent and see even better results from treatment.
Similar to the way a personal trainer or physical therapist gives their client exercises to do between training sessions, skin care professionals can do the same to help their clients achieve long-term success. You may even find that their use of supportive modalities at home allows you to change up your facial protocols in the treatment room and focus on other specialized techniques.
3. More Opportunities to Position Yourself as an Expert
As more clients invest in at-home tools, the ways in which skin care professionals engage with clients will continue to evolve. For example, you could offer virtual sessions to train your clients on proper device technique or walk them through the steps of an at-home facial using their new tools.
This also creates more opportunities to expand your outreach on social platforms, conducting quick tutorials with at-home devices, answering common questions, and sharing tips that establish you as a go-to expert.
The more you are able to educate followers and demonstrate how various technologies support the skin, the more they will feel confident booking with you, purchasing from you and heeding your professional advice.
Devices to Get Started
LED. Light therapy devices come in a variety of formats ranging from handheld wands to wearable masks, and even portable panels. For clients with acne, blue light tools can be an amazing way to troubleshoot breakouts between treatments. Or for clients concerned with aging, red light devices are the gold standard given their ability to support healthy collagen and elastin.
Retail Tip: Consider bundling LED devices with other home care products as a complete acne or age management system.
Microcurrent. At-home microcurrent tools offer many of the benefits of a professional microcurrent facial for lifting, toning, and tightening the skin. The biggest difference will be that consumer-facing devices feature a lower microamp wattage, making them a compliment to professional treatments rather than a replacement.
Retail Tip: For clients who purchase directly from you, offer a free one-on-one practice session, so they can feel comfortable and confident using their new device.
Supersonic Cleansing Brushes. Sonic cleansing brushes are an easy way to uplevel any cleansing routine with gentle exfoliation and a bit of facial massage. The supersonic vibration helps to stimulate lymphatic drainage and boost microcirculation, delivering oxygen and nutrients to the skin cells.
Retail Tip: Adding supersonic cleansing to your professional protocols can be an easy way to organically introduce the concept to your clients. Once they experience the effects firsthand in a facial, they’ll be even more inspired to purchase.
Gua Sha Tools and Rollers. Though they technically don’t fall into the device category, gua sha stones and gemstone rollers are some of the most popular beauty tools on the market and boast plenty of benefits for the skin. They’re also a perfect alternative for clients who are pregnant or otherwise contraindicated to use electronic devices.
Retail Tip: If you offer facial massage as part of your professional treatments, consider offering a package of multiple sessions, and include a free at-home tool with purchase so that clients can practice at-home.
Jenny Leazer-Ragolia is a writer and NCEA-certified licensed esthetician. Throughout her career, she has worked as a hands-on skincare practitioner, business owner, blogger, and print media journalist, as well as in the retail cosmetics industry. Currently based on the East Coast, she now works as a freelance copywriter, using her love of storytelling to create content for beauty experts and brands worldwide.