Clients will often request a specific treatment by name not actually knowing what the laser is, what it does or what type of skin it would be best for. I blame client confusion on marketing and advertising and can definitely get on a soapbox about how lasers are marketed in the US (spoiler: not very well).
The FDA regulates safety, which is a good thing. Where its not as good is regulating claims made about the efficacy of cosmetic procedures because it allows for existing technology to be rebranded or advertising to over-promise. It all leads to quite a bit of consumer confusion.
You don’t always get what you pay for!
Consider this, most cosmetic laser devices cost about the same for any medical office to purchase, around $100-$200,000 per device. Yet, you can see a wide range in service pricing for the exact same laser type. Often the increase in price is just related to the cost of advertising. Cosmetic products mirror this exactly. For example, you can pay $100 for a prescriptive, clinically proven, high-quality eye cream or $300 for a highly marketed over-the-counter eye cream sold at a department store. And you can guess which one penetrates deeper, has longer lasting benefits and is more effective!
Don’t (always) believe the hype
At Bella we never follow the trends or believe the hype. We are only sold on science! Basically, if you have solid clinical proof and data showing impressive, before and after results then we will consider trialing and researching it. We are passionate about educating our clients to be able to make the best decision when investing in skincare products and services to achieve their goals.
Treatment comparisons to give you a better picture
Halo vs Bella’s Pixel Perfect
At Bella we pride ourselves on our trademarked, layered laser approach to quickly resolve texture and pigmentation issues and provide skin tightening. Our favorite combo is our Alma IPL and Pixel Perfect (2940 nm energy) to remove five years from the skin and start with a clean beautiful slate. Halo (also 2940 nm energy) is another highly marketed service that is not new technology but rather a bundle of existing technology into one device. This company has worked hard to brand a layered laser approach as something new and their very own and requires medical centers to sign a contract agreeing to charge a higher than normal service fee.
Is more money better if the outcome is the same as other layered laser treatments and isn’t actually anything new?! We think not!
Coolsculpting vs Cryoslimming
Once again, another example of very similar technology, fat freezing by dropping adipose temperature externally (to below -11 degrees roughly) to kill about 30% of fragile adipose (weight cells) in a treatment area. Coolsculpting has spent millions on advertising despite facing lawsuits for contraindications from permanent nerve damage to divots and lumping in the treated area. Cryoslimming uses compression instead of suction, cutting out these contraindications making it a safer, more comfortable and more effective fat loss device.
It’s hard to not get excited about a newly or highly advertised service/product, but let’s be savvy when spending money on achieving our goals and get there safely and effectively. I describe my equipment and product investments at Bella as my top priority. I must be confident that they will work but equally importantly, I want to be able to sleep at night knowing I have not caused any risk to the client.
Let us know if you have any questions about treatments or products that you have been hearing about lately. I love to read medical journals and decipher the science behind treatments that actually work, whether they have a big advertising budget or not.