Ep 288 – At-Home Professional Treatments in Skin Care

Summary

ASCP Esty Talk: Episode 288 – At-Home Professional Treatments in Skin Care

Release Date: October 30, 2024
Host: Associated Skin Care Professionals (ASCP)
Co-Hosts: Maggie Stasik and Ella Christman

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Introduction

In Episode 288 of ASCP Esty Talk, hosts Maggie Stasik and Ella Christman delve into the burgeoning trend of at-home professional treatments in the skincare industry. They explore the surge in consumer-accessible devices, tools, and kits that promise professional-grade results, while also addressing the controversies and challenges these products bring to the esthetics industry.

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The Rise of At-Home Professional Treatments

Maggie opens the discussion by highlighting the prevalence of at-home treatments such as LED masks and handheld microcurrent devices. She notes their appeal lies in convenience and the promise of professional outcomes without the need for in-clinic visits.

Maggie Stasik [02:24]: "...devices like these LED masks, a full mask that someone can just put on their face, lie back in their bed and the LED is gonna work miracles for this consumer to turn back the hands of time."

Ella concurs, emphasizing the risks associated with unregulated products.

Ella Christman [02:57]: "...They could be Christmas lights. Yeah, I'm like, oh, fair."

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Types of At-Home Treatments and Their Efficacy

The conversation shifts to specific types of at-home treatments. Maggie mentions handheld microcurrent devices used for toning and tightening the skin, pointing out their long-standing presence in the market.

Maggie Stasik [03:35]: "There are handheld microcurrent devices over the counter for consumers have been around for a really, really long time."

Ella discusses the variability in product quality and effectiveness, noting that professionals often use more potent versions in treatment rooms, which may not translate well to consumer-grade devices.

Ella Christman [03:37]: "Some pros are trying to use that home version, which is like lighter, less current, but in the professional treatment room. And then that runs a risk of sanitation."

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Benefits vs. Concerns of At-Home Treatments

While acknowledging the potential benefits of at-home treatments, the hosts discuss significant concerns. Maggie points out that while some at-home treatments can be beneficial, they often do not match the results of in-office procedures.

Maggie Stasik [04:56]: "these at home treatments, they can be beneficial. And some would argue that they often don't deliver the same results as in office procedures."

Ella adds that despite the availability of these products, there remains a subset of consumers who prefer professional services for their expertise and personalized care.

Ella Christman [06:04]: "there are still consumers that are still going to want the professional because what's not included in the box with what you get with prime shipping is the professional that's designating."

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Impact on the Esthetics Industry

The discussion progresses to the perceived impact of at-home treatments on the professional esthetician clientele. Maggie raises the concern that increased consumer reliance on at-home solutions might reduce in-clinic visits.

Maggie Stasik [07:20]: "If more people are turning to at home solutions, estheticians will see or are seeing reduced clientele."

Ella counters this by suggesting that those opting for at-home treatments might not have sought professional services initially, thereby not significantly impacting professional estheticians.

Ella Christman [07:22]: "I don't think those people would have gone to an esthetician anyways."

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Regulatory Landscape and Ingredient Safety

The conversation shifts to the regulatory challenges and the importance of ingredient safety in at-home treatments. Maggie emphasizes that increased consumer awareness and knowledge are pressuring regulations to ensure product safety and efficacy.

Maggie Stasik [11:33]: "the consumer having More knowledge is 100% a benefit in ingredient safety and quality."

Ella underscores the role of professionals in educating consumers and dispelling misinformation propagated by unqualified influencers.

Ella Christman [12:04]: "...as a professional I think you should experience, have firsthand understanding not just lick our noses up at it like we used to."

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Consumer Trust and Professional Expertise

Maggie and Ella discuss the erosion of consumer trust due to misleading marketing and the proliferation of unverified products online. They highlight the importance of professionals leveraging their expertise to guide consumers towards safe and effective treatments.

Ella Christman [13:10]: "...but It's hard to know who to trust. And so as a professional I think you should experience, have firsthand understanding..."

Ella shares personal anecdotes illustrating the pitfalls of at-home treatments, reinforcing the necessity for professional guidance.

Ella Christman [13:28]: "I was like, I don't even know how to tell. I think it's broken. ... So I was convinced this was gonna work for me..."

Maggie adds examples of consumer experiences with ineffective at-home products, stressing the value of professional advice.

Maggie Stasik [15:31]: "...people are showing pictures. Shellac cured by the sun. Boom. It got me."

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Integrating At-Home Care with Professional Services

Towards the end of the episode, Maggie and Ella propose a balanced approach where estheticians can embrace at-home care products as complementary to in-clinic treatments. They advocate for recommending vetted at-home solutions to enhance consumer routines while maintaining professional integrity.

Ella Christman [16:35]: "...we can encourage our own at home care routines. ... the most importantly, trusting of you, the better."

They conclude by emphasizing the importance of building trust with clients, ensuring that consumers feel supported both in and out of the treatment room.

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Conclusion

Episode 288 of ASCP Esty Talk provides an insightful exploration into the complexities of at-home professional treatments in skincare. Maggie Stasik and Ella Christman adeptly navigate the benefits, challenges, and ethical considerations, offering valuable perspectives for estheticians aiming to balance consumer demands with professional standards. The discussion underscores the critical role of education, regulation, and trust in fostering a harmonious relationship between at-home solutions and professional skincare services.

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Notable Quotes:

• Maggie Stasik [02:24]: "...LED masks... work miracles for this consumer to turn back the hands of time."

• Ella Christman [03:37]: "Some pros are trying to use that home version... and then that runs a risk of sanitation."

• Ella Christman [06:04]: "there are still consumers that are still going to want the professional..."

• Maggie Stasik [11:33]: "the consumer having More knowledge is 100% a benefit in ingredient safety and quality."

• Ella Christman [16:35]: "...we can encourage our own at home care routines... trusting of you, the better."

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Resources and Further Information:

For more insights from Maggie Stasik and Ella Christman, or to connect with ASCP, listeners are encouraged to visit the show notes or engage with ASCP on their social media platforms.

Transcript

[Danae Montague King]

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[Maggie Stasik]

Foreign hello and welcome to ASCP's SD Talk. I'm your co host Maggie Stasik and ASCP's program director.

[Ella Christman]

I'm Ella Christman, licensed esthetician and content contributor for Associated Skincare Professionals. Hey Maggie.

[Maggie Stasik]

Hi Ella.

[Ella Christman]

How are you?

[Maggie Stasik]

I'm good. You?

[Ella Christman]

So good.

[Maggie Stasik]

Good. Today we're tackling a hot topic, the rise of at home professional treatments. And there's a lot of controversies surrounding them in the aesthetics industry. We're seeing a surge in devices, tools, at home kits and they're all promising professional level outcomes. But with this convenience I think comes a host of concerns.

[Ella Christman]

A lot. And levels too.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yes.

[Ella Christman]

I would say not just like treatment wise, but also taking advantage of entrusting consumers.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yes. Oh yes, very good point. So let's start first with what exactly these at home treatments are. So one of the ones I see out there all the time are devices like these LED masks, a full mask that someone can just put on their face, lie back in their bed and the LED is gonna work miracles for this consumer to turn back the hands of time.

[Ella Christman]

Obviously, yes, I believe em. I don't. I was telling somebody about this too. I think I might've talked to you about it even. It's like with those at home ones like we we as professionals, we purchase, we entrust, we go to trainings, we there's some validity to the provider or to the equipment suppliers that we deal with. But These you're getting from who knows where, and they could be Christmas lights. Yeah, I'm like, oh, fair. Yeah, that's so true.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah. There's also these handheld microcurrent devices, you know, to tone and tighten and handheld microcurrent devices over the counter for consumers have been around for a really, really long time.

[Ella Christman]

Yes. Different diodes and whatnot. And some people are trying to use. On the flip side of this, some pros are trying to use that home version, which is like lighter, less current, but in the professional treatment room. And then that runs a risk of sanitation. Yeah, I would say.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah, I didn't want to say that, but you're right.

[Ella Christman]

Oh, sorry I brought it up.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah. No, the estheticians are using the home devices in the treatment room. It's not as effective.

[Ella Christman]

Right.

[Maggie Stasik]

Also, chemical peel kits. And this we've talked about before, very controversial. You can go to Amazon, buy your 70% glycolic, and then consumers are wreaking havoc on their skin.

[Ella Christman]

If it is, it's the 70% glycolic with a Ph of 4 or 5.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah.

[Ella Christman]

So it's not really a long time ago, a big brand store, like a prestigious store, Nordstrom's, they had a 70% glycolic product, but the PH was really high. So it was just the inference that we're kind of conditioned to that the higher the number, the more efficacious it could be. But really it wasn't. So is this the same thing with those peels, or are they really able to sell these high percentage, low ph acids or devices for that matter? You could get a microneedling device with up to 2 millimeter depth for $99.99 with some tips. I mean, they stopped it now, but you could.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah, yeah. So these at home treatments, they can be beneficial. And some would argue that they often don't deliver the same results as in office procedures. I don't know if this is true. Necessarily depends. Like, you know, you're talking percentage and ph depends on what camp you're in. But you can get anything off of Amazon. And this can be a detractor for bringing the client in the door and paying the money from the professional esthetician who is trying to sell, in the eyes of the consumer, the same thing. Would you agree with that?

[Ella Christman]

I would. I could. I could see it that way if you're. Yes, I could see it that way. But let's go back to. I could do this at myself at home. Waxing kits. That's been around for a long time. And skincare. I can do my own at home facial or work with an MLM company who says, oh, this is a facial. This practice is not new. It's just the technology is more advanced. So we know. Well, maybe I might know firsthand that at home wax is not. It's really sticky. You can put yourself in interesting positions. That stuff I tried to do. I'm a pro.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah.

[Ella Christman]

And like let me order. I'm not trained in sugaring at the time. Let me order sugaring. I'm sure I got this. Yeah, no, I do not have this. I had a shower afterwards. But like it's a skill. So I think there are still consumers that are still going to want the professional because what's not included in the box with what you get with prime shipping is the professional that's designating. Are you a candidate for this treatment? Are you using the right products previous and post like what do you need really? You're just going, mm, let me check out the reviews of all these other people and I'm gonna do it. So where do you put your trust? So there still will be people who will exclusively put their trust in the hands of a Pro.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah, you're 100% right. There are those people that it's not just the expertise of the professional, but it's also just the service in general. You know, you're being treated by somebody else. I totally get that. And I think another significant impact is just on the industry itself. If more people are turning to at home solutions, estheticians will see or are seeing reduced clientele. So the people that say I don't need the esthetician, I can do it myself. Do you think there's an impact there? No, not at all.

[Ella Christman]

I don't think those people would have gone to an esthetician anyways.

[Maggie Stasik]

Uh huh.

[Ella Christman]

I don't, I really don't. Same with at home dermaplaning. Yeah, that became a thing too. People didn't realize they really, they could just shave their face. But now they have these at home dermaplane blades and those people that are buying those at home dermaplane blades would never have gone to a pro anyway. Yeah, I don't think so.

[Maggie Stasik]

Have you ever had a client come through the door? The client is seeing you. The esthetician and has said, I bought XYZ online.

[Ella Christman]

Yes.

[Maggie Stasik]

And okay.

[Ella Christman]

So. But it, but they're coming in my door.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah.

[Ella Christman]

So they're still coming to me. So they like people who would not. There aren't anybody who Would not. Who would stop coming to me? It's me. There's not anybody that would stop coming to me. Maybe pause, maybe think they could do it. But then they come back and they stretch their appointments out. Maybe as long as they fess up at school. And maybe the ones that I'm saying no to, maybe I just haven't seen them again. Fine by me. Bye. Bye.

[Maggie Stasik]

You didn't want em anyway.

[Ella Christman]

I know. I don't. I know. But there's somebody else walking in the door that maybe had a bad experience at home. So I don't. I haven't felt the burden. This. Oh my gosh. They're selling now at home. Christmas light LED mask. So I'm going to be without. I haven't had that experience.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah. I mean there has always been at home. Fill in the blank. But as the esthetician, do you feel in any way you're competing with that?

[Ella Christman]

I don't, but others might.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah. There's also an ethical consideration, I think, so promotion of at home treatments like what you might buy on Amazon or a handheld microcurrent device. In my opinion, to some degree, I think that undermines the integrity and expertise of an esthetician. Do you agree?

[Ella Christman]

Like if we're recommending these at homes.

[Maggie Stasik]

I think just the fact that they exist because there are companies out there that are selling to the pro and also selling to the consumer.

[Ella Christman]

Yes. And I think what we've seen in the last, let's just say 15 years, let's say 20 years. Cause we're right there. We're knocking on the 20 years, both of us. There was a huge difference between the pro and the consumer. But that's. That gap is closing. There's different ingredients that they're focusing on. There's more sophisticated products. We could always like, you know, flick our nose up at the drugstore brands.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah, sure.

[Ella Christman]

But not anymore. Right. Like it's, it's closing. They're not as, as gross as we used to think as pros. So that's one way to think about is like, oh my gosh, they're closing in on us. The other thing is that the rise in consumer awareness has changed. So that's a pro for our industry in my mind. So does it take away from us? It could theoretically. Or does it legitimize what we do? It could. Hold that thought. We'll be right back.

[Danae Montague King]

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[Ella Christman]

Okay, here we go. Let's get back to the podcast.

[Maggie Stasik]

I think you're leading us into our next topic which is consideration of the regulatory landscape and ingredient safety and quality. I think the consumer having More knowledge is 100% a benefit in ingredient safety and quality. Where before the consumer didn't have the knowledge, you know, 10, 20 years ago they didn't have the knowledge and we didn't have social media to inform, now we do and that's putting even more pressure on regulation. I think in a positive light.

[Ella Christman]

I think so too. And I think wrapped into there is also some opportunity for miscommunication and misunderstandings of ingredients. So that's where the professional aspect comes in and they can speak to some of those. We talked about it with the scanning apps. Even so ingredient like that's not necessarily a malefic or a bad ingredient, it's how it's used. So this is where you can exercise your expertise on your own social media combating against some of the influencers who really are just spewing about random stuff. There's this one person that I have been watching and he speaks with such authority and that invalidity that people are like oh my gosh that must be true and I just wanna reach through and and GRA grab him, say stop, stop. And he's implied this level of prestige and like if he's qualified of qualifications and he's not in my qualified opinion, but I don't know, it's hard to know who to trust. And so as a professional I think you should experience, have firsthand understanding not just lick our noses up at it like we used to.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah, we've talked about this with TikTok too. You know, you have all These trends, people see it on TikTok and whether it's valid or they're trusting that person. I think there's a little bit of FOMO too. They want to try it.

[Ella Christman]

Remember when I got that ultrasonic wand?

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah.

[Ella Christman]

That was solar powered.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah.

[Ella Christman]

Do you remember? And I was like, I don't even know how to tell. I think it's broken. And they're like, oh, no, it's just on. It's just.

[Maggie Stasik]

It's just on.

[Ella Christman]

You won't see any. And I was like, I've been duped. So I was convinced this was gonna work for me in a time of incredible, like, oh, my gosh, I have wrinkles. I just need to do something. So do I identify with the public in that way? Absolutely. Am I. Did I happen to order some turmeric pads to see what the hype was about? Yes. Did it lighten my skin? No, it did not. So, like, there's. There's things in. Having that experience to speak to I think is really key.

[Maggie Stasik]

We all do it.

[Ella Christman]

We all do it. Yeah. And I had a client actually this weekend who came in and she was like. She brings her boyfriend in and they both do services, and so we just end up talking the whole time. And she said, oh, yeah. He goes, yeah. She brought me a gift. I go, what was the gift? Her face went white. She was gonna. She's starting to panic. He's like, skincare. And I was like, oh, really? And she was like, well, it's just some stuff I got off at Amazon. I go, was it the blink blink? She goes, yeah. And I go, oh, yeah, I love that stuff too. She's like, you do? I'm like, yeah, there are some good products, but when should. You always should tell me about this so that I can help you with your routine or if this is a. If it's something that's going to interfere with what we're doing in here.

[Maggie Stasik]

So I. I do the same thing. I. This is where reviews are like a thing. At least for me. If I know other people like it, it's working for other people. You got buy in from me. I found this nail polish that. Speaking of sun, you put it on, it's like a shellac. It's like a gel. You just cure it in the sun, you paint it on, you stick your fingers out in the sun. Boom. Hard nails. And I'm telling this to a coworker who's a cosmetologist, and she's looking at me like, I'm so dumb. Why is that not legit. It has all these five star reviews. People are showing pictures. Shellac cured by the sun. Boom. It got me.

[Ella Christman]

Is that not different than regular nail polish? Does it take like the same amount of time as regular nail polish, but.

[Maggie Stasik]

It'S like a hard, like gel.

[Ella Christman]

Okay.

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah, it's. It's the same as your ultrasound wand.

[Ella Christman]

Exactly. Like done. Absolutely. Is there anything. You know what I got recently sucked into was the mask that goes clear. Like social media. Oh, yeah, forget. You don't have. Let me. I'll start sending you links. But there's this one. You put it on and then it's gonna go from white to clear as it absorbs. So I'm so pumped, I'm like, let me see what this is. Everybody's raving about it. I open it up and it's Korean skincare.

[Maggie Stasik]

Okay.

[Ella Christman]

So I pull the sheet mask out and it's more for like my chin than my whole face, you know?

[Maggie Stasik]

Yeah.

[Ella Christman]

There was two parts and I'm like, I can. I have to pick left or right because there was not enough for my entire face. So I got suckered into that one.

[Maggie Stasik]

It reminds me of a mood ring. Yes.

[Ella Christman]

Am I mad or is it 90 degrees in here? What's going on? I don't know.

[Maggie Stasik]

I love it. I love it.

[Ella Christman]

I think we can embrace the at home part portion of this and I think we can encourage our own at home care routines. And I think we have to open up our mind to the fact that some of these at home devices or other products can be woven in to your recommendation for at home so that you're not just wagging your finger at the consumer because it's enticing. The more they feel accepted and the most importantly, trusting of you, the better.

[Maggie Stasik]

Now listeners, we want to hear from you. What are your thoughts on at home professional treatments and their impact on the skincare industry? Share with us on social media through Instagram, Facebook or by emailing getconnectedscpskincare.com thank you for listening to ASCPSDtalk. And as always, for more information on this episode or for ways to connect with Ella and myself, or to learn more about ascp, check out the show notes.

[Danae Montague King]

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