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Botox Training Marketing | What to do after your course

How To Market Your New Medical Aesthetics Business | Botox Training Marketing

After you complete your botox training or dermal filler course, you will naturally be raring to go and get started with setting up your own medical aesthetics business. However, one of the main hurdles to jump over in making a success of your medical aesthetic business is the way in which you market yourself. In this Blog, Cosmetic Courses share some Tips for Botox Training Marketing:

1. Print Advertising

Most new aesthetic practitioners initially start with print advertising (local newspapers, fliers, maybe even cheaper local glossy magazines). Whilst this approach may work for some people, it is quite an outdated method of medical aesthetics marketing and can prove very expensive if not approached smartly and monitored carefully. Traditional print advertising essentially falls into ‘local’ and ‘nationwide’ audiences but the average start-up business will be aiming at the local publications to begin with. Even here, where the advertising costs are cheaper, our advice is that there is always room for negotiation: do not take the advertising cost quoted in the publication or by the sales rep. as gospel – be prepared to haggle, stand your ground and you will find that you can get a real bargain (especially just before print closes). Research your desired client’s demographic very carefully and make sure that the publications you are advertising in really are aimed at them or the response could be poor / made up of timewasters. Always ask the readership of the publication to see how many people it actually goes out to (some which seem like a great offer actually have a tiny readership so your chances of getting much work from them are slim). And check out the legal implications before handing out fliers – at local events, for example, you may need to get permission from your local authority (and are very unlikely to be able to specifically advertise medical aesthetic treatments, so be careful not to violate any trading standards!)

2. Online Advertising

Much more of-the-moment and with (potentially) the ability to reach a far bigger audience at once, online advertising for medical aesthetics has become increasingly popular with aesthetic practitioners. You can set up a free medical aesthetics website relatively easily these days if you are fairly tech-savvy, or for a small price if you need to get help. However: please do be warned that this is just the start of the process. There are hundreds upon hundreds of websites out there advertising medical aesthetic services…the challenge is to get yours indexed and found by anyone searching on the big search engines (Google, Yahoo, Bing etc.) This is a process known as SEO and involves clever use of keywords (the most commonly used words related to your industry that potential customers are searching at any given time), regularly creating and updating content (information, photos, blogs, maybe videos and social media usage linked to your site can really help you get increased rank and visibility quicker too). If all this sounds like complete gobbledygook to you then chances are that you may have a bit of learning to do before you embrace this form of marketing, or you might need to employ someone to help. This is, of course, a Catch 22 as you need to be earning before you can start employing! Do not be put off, though – there are abundant sources of helpful information about SEO and optimizing your site for the search engines…particularly good ones are SEOmoz and Mashable. If you just want to advertise without getting too involved with any of that nitty-gritty stuff, online sites like Gumtree provide quick and easy access to large numbers of potential clients and have options ranging from completely free – approximately £49 per week depending upon your region and the level of visibility that you want for your advert.

3. Word of Mouth

It may be horribly boring, but building up a great reputation via word-of-mouth really is a great way to build yourself a client base. The trouble is that it’s a slower approach than most medical aesthetics practitioners like. Start off with friends, family…anybody who would like botox and dermal filler treatments from you. Encourage them to spread the word. Perhaps offer a ‘refer a friend’ scheme where for each entirely new client who refers a friend, they get a small discount off their next treatment. If you have Social Media pages like Facebook and LinkedIn, encourage clients to leave reviews / endorsements. Try to form a link with an established business, perhaps, like a hair salon or existing medical aesthetics clinic (at least initially). Even if you ideally hope to be independent or freelance, this could be a good stepping stone to get reviews, spread the word about your new talents, link-build and hopefully create a client base. Whilst we never advocate stealing clients from another business (this is simply dishonest and poor practice), the networking that you do whilst working alongside others can help you greatly when you branch off alone.

Final Words of Wisdom for Botox Training Marketing

  • Whatever your method of marketing, always remember to ask “Where did you find us / hear about us?” It is vital that you do this consistently or your marketing efforts are wasted because you have no idea what is bringing clients in and what is not, so you could be spending money on completely the wrong types of marketing.
  • Get into the habit of taking down contact details from every enquirer, whether they book or not. These will form the basis of your ‘marketing database’ – a list of emails, addresses and phone numbers that you can use to sell to in the future on an ongoing basis. Remember that once you have these and as you add to the list, you have a responsibility under Data Protection to look after these details, not to spam them with constant heavy sales pitches and to always give them the option to ‘opt out’ of future promotions.
  • Remember that saying the words ‘Botox’ or ‘Botulinum Toxin’ in a sales-orientated manner violates MHRA standards. So always be careful to use alternatives like ‘wrinkle-reducing treatment’ or ‘anti-ageing injections’ instead!
  • Words are everything – keep track of the language you are using, split test and be prepared to vary it. If something isn’t bringing in clients, change it and try saying it in a different way.

We hope this Botox Training Marketing Blog has been helpful. Cosmetic Courses are market leaders in both Cosmetic Training Courses for medical professionals and providing medical aesthetic marketing advice. If you would like more information about training with us, Book Online now or call our friendly team on 0845 230 4110.

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Can I start my Cosmetic Courses training at Advanced Level if I am an experienced nurse, doctor or surgeon?

I am already an experienced doctor or surgeon: can I skip the foundation level course?

At Cosmetic Courses, we frequently receive enquiries from potential delegates wanting to know whether they can skip the foundation level medical aesthetic training (botulinum toxin training with an introduction to dermal fillers) and go straight to the advanced level techniques (such as brow lift, Nefertiti neck lift, platysmal bands, hyperhidrosis etc.) This question is usually posed by doctors or even surgeons who are very highly qualifed, so feel that the foundation course might be too simple for them and cover ground they already know.

However, we do strongly believe that all our medical professional delegates, regardless of sector or experience, need to start with the Foundation course. This is not to say that the Foundation course you do cannot be tailored specifically to your level and ability. We have good logic for this reasoning, which we shall explain in this Blog:

  1. Although you may be very experienced within your own field, medical aesthetics is quite a different approach (technically and theoretically) to other medical professions. Quite often it is the most highly trained doctors who find they need to go over the groundwork in skin structure again! Sometimes you might have covered the necessary theories, but a long time ago during your initial degree or you may have approached them at a different angle to the way you will need them for aesthetics. Having a refresher can only benefit your understanding and ability to deliver fantastic results to your patients.
  2. There is a much wider gap between the Foundation Level course and the Advanced Techniques course than many initial enquirers realise. It is only when we begin to explain the extent of the techniques and theories that we cover on this course that they see there may actually be a need for some homework in between the two in order to be confident enough with the required theory and methods to achieve good results. In fact, many of our delegates choose to attend 1-1 courses with Cosmetic Courses in between their Foundation and Advanced courses, to brush up on techniques they are unsure of before taking the next big step.
  3. Cosmetic Courses do actually certify you in competence after each course so we have a duty to know that each of our delegates have the Foundation grounding in place before we can progress you to the next level. Whilst the vast majority of our delegates are entirely honest, highly qualified and skilled practitioners, there are always those who will try to claim they have more ability than they do. Therefore, we have to assess this level of medical aesthetic competence in order to be sure that we are certifying fantastic injectors to go out into the world and practice!
  4. Cosmetic Courses have a reputation for excellence and very high standards of training. This benefits you in that the delegates we train are also associated with high standards of medical aesthetic ability. In order to maintain this, however, we need to be very rigorous about our training procedures and ensure that everybody follows each step of the courses.
  5. We do not want anybody to be frustrated, however, by material which they already feel they know or to believe that they are wasting time and money. Please be assured that Cosmetic Courses are experts at tailoring courses to suit individuals’ needs. If you feel that you are at a higher level than a typical Foundation Level delegate, simply give us a call on 01844 390 110 and explain your experience and knowledge. We can then work with you to put together a tailored foundation level package incorporating new angles, theories and techniques or focusing on areas which you feel you are less confident about.
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5 Things to Consider Before Travelling for Training

Coming to the UK for Cosmetic Training Courses? 

If you live in a country outside the UK and have decided to embark upon a career in medical aesthetics, you are probably well aware already that an English certificate in Medical Aesthetics (Botulinum Toxin, Dermal Fillers and other techniques like Genuine Dermaroller Therapy) is seen as, somehow, prestigious.

This could be due to the very rigorous standards of training and the insurance, facilities and product laws here in the UK. Or it could be because the UK is at the fore-front when it comes to new techniques and theory in aesthetic medicine. So you would be choosing a great place to come for your training, not to mention a very beautiful and friendly country.

However, the same rigorous laws and strict policies do mean that there are a number of things you need to take into account if you are considering travelling to the UK for your Botox or Dermal Fillers training. You also need to think carefully about the practicality of returning to your own country afterwards and setting up your cosmetic business – will this industry be sustainable in your native country?

  1. Is your level of English (speaking, listening and reading skills) adequate enough to fully get the most from your cosmetic training course? Medical aesthetic training is not cheap, so it is important that you can fully understand all that is being presented in your training lectures, read the material in any slides or folders and talk to your trainers and models. You will need to be able to communicate with the trainers and models on the day in order to perform successful treatments to be awarded your certificate. It is important to remember that the type of vocabulary used will be technical, medical aesthetic jargon so may not be the basic language you have learned at school or on a linguistics course. You may wish to spend some time before your training revising key terms to help with your training.
  2. Have you arranged your accommodation & sufficient money for your stay? Your training provider may be able to help or advise regarding where to stay. It might be cheaper to try and share with other delegates, or perhaps you have relatives you could stay with? Remember to find out about exchange rates and factor this into your budgeting.
  3. Sort out your VISA in plenty of time if you need one. There is no point arranging and paying for your course, only to find that you cannot get the right type of VISA from your authorities. Your training provider is unlikely to arrange this so it will be your responsibility.
  4. Check about Insurance and Governing Bodies necessary to practise in your own country after training. In the UK, you must be currently GMC, NMC or GDC registered in order to practise. Legislation varies widely from country to country but if you do not follow the correct protocols for your country you may not be able to practise at all….even if you have been certified in the UK. So it is worth finding out about this and the costs involved beforehand.
  5. If you are a nurse considering cosmetic training courses, you also need to find out about prescribing legislation in your country as this varies too. If you are a different medical professional (doctor, dentist etc.) you will still need to consider where you are going to source your products from and the costs involved with this. Again, you may want to consider doing this research before you invest in cosmetic training so that you can be sure your medical aesthetic career is financially viable in your country.

We hope this information has been useful. Cosmetic Courses do train a large number of delegates from non-UK countries every year and can provide help and advice on the necessary process for coming to train in the UK. You can book your course online with us here (if you are abroad, you simply need to send your certificates to us via post or email scan for verification after booking) or call 0845 230 4110 for more advice.

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