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Fact & Stats: How to Slay in the Aesthetic Space

Jul 9, 2021 8:58:38 AM • Written by: Terri Ross

If you’ve been around my tribe for a while now, you probably have heard me talk multiple times about knowing your “Why.” Your “Why,” according to Simon Sinek in his famous Ted Talk, is the purpose, cause, or belief that drives every one of us.

My “Why” is to shed light and provide truths about the aesthetics industry and to use my real-world experience to educate and provide solutions for as many providers and practices as possible. In other words, my “Why” is to serve, support and truly create an impact on your practice, people and experience to patients.

That’s why for this week’s blog, I wanted to share some cold, hard facts, the latest medical aesthetic industry statistics, as well as the top concerns, requests for help, and traits of the most successful practices I’ve uncovered as I’ve been traveling and speaking at conferences around the country.

Top Four Areas of Concerns/Gaps

The global aesthetic market is valued currently at $13.8 billion. Let that sink in a second. It’s crazy, right? It’s expected to reach $47 billion by the year 2030. With insurance reimbursements so low, and everyone wanting to look good and feel good coming off the pandemic, so many providers are wanting to switch gears from traditional medical practices and get into the aesthetic space. 

What I have found is there is a significant gap and lack of business acumen in the industry when it comes to understanding finances. There are all kinds of clinical training courses out there, and I know you all strive to be the best medical providers you can be. However, there is no MBA program on the business side of aesthetic medicine. That’s why I’m even more committed to my “Why” and providing the tools and solutions you need to launch, grow or scale your practice. I’m the bridge to get you to where you want to be faster and more efficiently so you can increase profitability. 

Did you know?

  • 60% of practices cannot calculate their total expenses.
  • 30% cannot estimate their revenue.
  • 21% can’t determine their revenue sources.
  • 50% can’t calculate expenses as part of their total revenue. 

So, why am I sharing these statistics from AmSpa’s Industry Report with you?  I’m sharing them because I am so humbled and honored to have developed APX, our new growth and training platform that provides solutions to every pain point and gap in the aesthetic industry. APX was the result of my 20 years of managing and leading sales teams, along with my team’s real-world experience launching and scaling medical spas in Beverly Hills and around the country, and more than 12 years of private consulting with individual aesthetic practices.

APX’s training modules, financial optimization calculators, marketing analytics dashboard and industry benchmarking data components address the top four requested needs for both plastic surgery and medical spa practices that come up over and over again.

Sales Training

Sales is the lifeblood of any business. We need people in the door, but that is a moot point unless your team is highly trained in how to convert phone and web leads; has the knowledge of what services and procedures you offer and can discuss the features and benefits; can articulate your Unique Value Proposition in 20 seconds; has honed their communication methods and tactics to listen, ask the right questions, qualify, overcome objections and convert consultations; can build long-term treatment plans; can nurturing your existing patients; and has mastered the art of following up. APX features a robust, self-paced, sales training curriculum for your entire team with built-in accountability and talk tracks.   

Understanding Financial Data

So many practices have their practice management software (PMS) and have no idea of what reports to run, what KPIs to measure, or how to analyze their data to make informed decisions. Our finance course within APX teaches you step by step how to use the data from your PMS and determine which reports to run, how to budget and forecast, how to calculate your costs of goods and services, how to determine your profit per treatment and your revenue per hour so you can determine which services yield the highest profit, and how to create pretty vs. shitty Profit & Loss statements.

Compliance

The laws are changing so rapidly, and every state has different regulations for which provider can perform which service and how to compensate your team. You can’t pay commission, so you have to carefully structure your compensation. As part of the financial training course within APX, there is a module on compensation structure and strategies. AmSpa has taken the lead on developing awareness and creating legal education on compliance. Byrd Adatto, the law firm associated with AmSpa, can help make sure your practice is set up for success and ensure you have the right SOPs, contracts and structure in place.

Marketing

Marketing is vitally important in this industry. In order to allocate your marketing dollars appropriately and make sure they are well spent, you must have a strategy in place. You have to know which verticals make the most sense for your practice. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, Tik Tok, email marketing, LinkedIn...it can be overwhelming and tempting to do them all. Where are your ideal clients hanging out? If you don’t know this, you should spend some time researching and cultivating your client avatar. Consistency with posting is key as you can’t just post something once or twice. **Marketing spend should be a 3 to 1 ratio.

Marketing spend on average should be 10% of your total revenue. If you have a new practice, it can go as high as 20%. However, you must know where your marketing dollars are best spent otherwise you are just throwing spaghetti against the wall and wasting money.

Again, this is where knowing your profit per treatment and your revenue per hour come into play, and the financial optimization calculators within APX become invaluable. You want to spend your marketing budget on the treatments and services that are going to yield you the highest return on investment. APX’s social analytics dashboard allows you to connect and monitor and analyze your practice’s performance on up to 50 channels at once.

Top Six Things Successful Practices Do

The top, highest-performing athletes in the world don’t rise to the top 1% by accident. It takes years and years of training, dedication, mindset, and practice to be the best. The same holds true in our industry. Being in the top 1% of aesthetic medicine practices doesn’t happen by chance. Here are the top six things that successful practices do.

1. Have a Plan

I don’t mean a goal like I want to grow 20% this year. I mean a detailed plan with a forecast, budget and clarity on their most profitable treatments or services. Then, they follow that plan like it is a bible and make tweaks and adjustments if necessary.

2. Understand their Value Proposition

Could every member of your team communicate your unique value proposition and why people should come to you vs. the practice down the street? If not, that is an area of opportunity you should work on right now.

3. Offer the Right Mix of Services

The most successful practices offer the right mix of services and treatments that their market is demanding and that yield a high return on investment. 

4. Invest in Training

Invest in sales and finance training for your team. A team is a collective group of people with the same vision and mission as you. Create a positive team culture that focuses on catering to client needs, not just a bunch of clock punchers. Set them up for success and give them the tools and resources they need. The ROI will be worth it I promise. 

5. Understand, Track, and Measure Data

I know it sounds a bit scary because most of us don’t know what to do. I promise taking the time to learn these skills will give you the ultimate freedom and set you up for success. 

6. Maximize Consultations and Focus on Patient Retention

I know at times you're in a hurry and tend to rush the consultation process in order to see the next patient. Oftentimes providers take a symptomatic approach, meaning they only talk to patients about the one thing that they came in for. The top practices prioritize the consultation as time to educate, listen, overcome objections and ultimately convert the prospect to a client. They focus on educating patients on what other options are possible to achieve the best possible outcome and develop long-term treatment plans to increase the lifetime value of the patient. 

Did you know that the average patient spend is only $459? This number comes directly from statistically validated benchmarking data from the American Society of Plastic Surgery, available through APX, and from the AmSpa Industry Report. That's not a lot of money, so you can see how creating a long-term treatment plan is vital to the overall lifetime value of a patient and retention rates. 

So how does your practice measure up? Do you want to train like an athlete?

We are here to support and serve you. Please share with us what hit home for you. What areas do you need to prioritize? We would be honored for you to take a look at how APX can help you slay in the aesthetic space by booking a discovery with our team

Terri Ross

Terri Ross is a world-renowned practice management consultant, international speaker, and founder of APX Platform. Terri has spent 15+ years working for Fortune 500 companies in the aesthetic industry, leading sales teams to over $20M. She spent 5 years as managing partner for a high-profile medical spa in Beverly Hills and has been helping hundreds of medical aesthetic practices launch, grow, and scale upwards of $1M and beyond. Terri is a leading speaker attending over 20 annual aesthetic conferences and hosts a podcast, Intouch with Terri, where she teaches industry best practices.