Posted by: Joe in Untagged on
Mar 9, 2010
Much of media coverage today is focused on the "Healthcare" debate. Our services are predominantly elective, meaning they are not covered by insurance reimbursements. I find that our clients are well-versed and are quite selective about our treatments, and in fact, they demand efficiency. Price of a treatment is frequently a decision point in receiving treatment, and people do shop around.
There is something to be said for taking the decision out of a bureacracy and allowing people to actually have a say on what they pay for, and what they decide to forego. I for one would love to see laser hair removal, fractionated laser, SMARTLIPO, and similar to be treated in the same manner as regular doctor visits like physicals. To me, a physicial is a preventative, and so is getting a shot of Botox. Many people's mental well-being has a lot to do with how they feel and that they retain their youthful appearance. After all - its your money and why should an insurance company tell you how to spend it and what to spend it on? One thing we can all agree on, the debat will continue - perhaps indefinitely.
Posted by: Joe in Untagged on
Feb 25, 2010
I was listening to a TV personality rant and rave the other about how we as a society have become a people of instant gratification, demanding excesses beyond imagingation, spoiling the planet, ruining the fabric of our family life, etc.
Laser Hair Removal in many respects is better than Waxing Hair Removal. For one, Laser Hair Removal is permanent. The hair that is destroyed by a laser does not grow back. Although it does take several treatments, once finished with a series of treatments, a laser hair removal procedure significantly reduces the density and coarsness of hair vitually anywhere on the body.
However, laser hair removal is not for everyone. A person with gray, light blond or strawberry blond hair will likely not respond to laser hair removal. Laser hair removal is also not an appropriate way to shape or design the eyebrows - the laser is too unwieldy for this purpose. Electrolysis may be an answer, but it is rather painful, expensive and very slow. So, the only other method that may apply is a depilatory wax or cream. I guess that's better than nothing.
One item that I learned a while ago about waxing v. laser hair removal. When a person commits to waxing as a method to remove hair, they have to let the hair grow out for at least 2 to 3 weeks. So, with waxing, you're hair free for 2 weeks, and then you're a 'beast' again for 2 - 3 weeks. And this goes on forever; whereas with laser hair removal, after a few months of laser hair removal sessions, you're hair free! Easy choice if you ask me.
Posted by: Joe in Untagged on
Dec 14, 2009
Latisse is one of the newest products to hit the esthetic market in 2009. Latisse is prescription product that is FDA-approved to grow eyelashes for people who have lost or have inadequate eyelashes. Latisse works by deferring the natural cycle where your eyelashes are shed approximately every three weeks. As a result, when you use Latisse regularly, your grow longer fuller eyelashes. We also found that Latisse will cause eyebrows to thicken when applied to the eyebrow area. Perfect for women (or men) who've had an incident with an overly aggressive brow waxing tech. Results are readily visible in about 3-4 weeks. Give it a try, we always stock Latisse, and from time to time even offer special discounts.
Posted by: Joe in Untagged on
Dec 8, 2009
Spa gift cards are a terrific way to show someone that you really care. A visit to the spa can be very relaxing. There is nothing better than an expert massage to get rid of stress and knotted muscles. A serene spa with exotic smells and quiet music is just the right fix to calm jittery nerves. Gift cards come in all different shapes and designs. The best ones are those given from the heart. The gift cards at New Image Medical Spa in Huntingdon Valley are beautifully packages and do not have an expiration date. The value of the card is totally flexible, starting from as little as $25 to $1000 or more. Spa gift cards are a perfect holiday gift.
In speaking to a good friend of mine who is a marketing maven, I wondered aloud how some companies pick their brand logo or image. There are some really interesting ones out there. For example, a website called "lulu.com" is an online book publishing network. "Lulu?" Yet, it is now in the top 1000 website in the world. There are others like "mozy.com" - a site that will backup your computer data automatically. "Mozy"? Some companies' brand name reflect what they do. For example, "thefreedictionary.com" is exactly that - a FREE dictionary. Now, I asked myself what does a butterfly have to do with a medspa. I looked up the definition of a "monarch butterfly" on freedictionary.com. The monarch butterfly is described as " A large American butterfly (Danaus plexippus) having light orange-brown wings with black veins and white-spotted black borders, noted for its long-distance migrations and its brightly striped caterpillars that feed on the milkweed plant. Also called milkweed butterfly." Maybe the business owners wanted to portray to the world that their intent is to show the business as ever-migrating over long distances? Makes perfect sense I guess, because many medspas these days do tend to change owners quite a bit, most fail because they over-promise and under-deliver. Our name says exactly what our intent is - we strive to create a New Image for our clients. A beautiful radiant youthful image.
Our staff gets asked this question all the time. With all of the fillers on the market, which one is right for me. First, you have to know that fillers can be categorized by their main ingredient. The most widely used fillers today are based on hyularonic acid, which is a compound that is naturally occuring in our bodies. It is what gives our skin its elasticity. Fillers made from this compound are Juvederm, Restylane, and others. These fillers last anywhere from 6 months to a year. Then, there are are other fillers made of collagen. These are Cosmoplast, Cosmoderm, etc. These fillers typically only last a few months after being injected.
Some of the newer fillers on the market are Radiesse and Evolence. Radiesse uses a calcium-based compound to deposit particles under the skin which then promote the generation of collagen creating a lattice-like structure under the skin. Evolence is a new formulation of collagen which lasts up to 12 months - much more than the traditional collagen-based fillers of the past. Then, there are other semi-permanent or permanent fillers like Sculptra. Most people stay away from these, because these generally cannot be removed once injected and they are not absorbed.
Posted by: Joe in Smartlipo, liposuction on
Oct 2, 2009
There was a recent story in the news about a liposuction case gone wrong that really captured many people's attention (see story at this link: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/broward/weston/sfl-tanning-nurse-b092909,0,3203465.story). This story involves a nurse that had a liposuction procedure performed in a tanning salon/spa by a licensed doctor at a facility that was not licensed. While the details of the case are not clear as to why the nurse has lapsed in to a comma and is now on life support, one thing is clear, the facility was not licensed by the state to perform such procedures. Further, the doctor who performed the procedure was not trained as a surgeon.
This leads me to this thought - if you're going to trust someone with a medical procedure (like SMARLIPO - http://www.pamedspa.biz/smartlipo-laser-liposuction.html), why not check on the credentials? To be sure, in Florida and California there are many fly-by-night operators who skirt the state regulations and perform discounted procedures, but what is the real risk? The real risk is that for a savings of a few hundred dollars, this patient in Florida is now fighting for her life. Is it worth it?
Our approach has always been and always will be that we do not aim to provide the cheapest service. We provide a value based service. We deliver the highest possible value at a fair price without compromising safety or efficacy. Our ability to reduce our prices comes from efficient operations and leveraging our vendor relationships. You, our client, benefit from our expertise, both as a medical practice and as an efficiently run business. We believe this is a recipe for success, not only our business, but ultimately for our clients.
Posted by: Joe in Laser Hair Removal, Botox on
Sep 25, 2009
I learned a new term this week - "astroturf marketing". I have never heard this term before. I learned this term when I received a phone call from the owner of another facility similar to ours, who accused our marketing department of placing detrimental comments on a public forum website about their facility. The comments, as I found out, were not placed by anyone associated with our office. In good faith, I did ask the forum administrator to remove the comments because I did not want in any way to be associated with any negative statements toward another facility. I was saddened to find that the owner also reciprocated by putting negative comments about our office on this same forum. In his commentary, this person accused our office of "astroturf marketing". Now this term was quite an enigma to me. What in the devil is astroturf marketing?
Posted by: Joe in Untagged on
Sep 25, 2009
A cure for Rosacea? No, at this point in time, there is no cure for Rosacea. But, there are ways to control it to the point where it becomes not even noticeable. Our office has a unique combination treatment combining the effectives of the PhotoGenesis treatment to control the "redness" in the skin caused by vascularity (fine veins near the surface of the skin), and by reforming the rough texture of the skin and also diffusing the redness using the nd:YAG LaserGenesis treatment. When a series of 4-6 treatments is performed about 3 weeks apart, we've been able to control moderate to severe cases of Rosacea. Ofcourse, post-treatment care is incredibly important. Avoiding sun exposure, following proper skin care, avoiding harsh soaps and detergents, etc. helps a great deal too. Maintaining the fantastic results we've seen is quite easy, with a repeat treatment once every 6 months, and proper skin care. No flare ups, just beautiful calm, even-tone skin.
