Turnover while you sleep

Lorna Bowes reviews ideas for why and how to build a passive income stream from skincare sales 24 hours a day, seven days a week

Concepts of passive income

Passive income is described as “making money while you sleep,” but there is so much more to it than that… 

Passive income encompasses earnings generated with minimal ongoing effort or active involvement, in other words, the creation of a system that generates income on autopilot, generating revenue whether you’re in clinic or on a beach in the Maldives. 

In our usual working days, we are patient-facing, and immediate sales of skincare to the patient in front of us is relatively straightforward (and for those reading this whose subconscious has just said, “No, it isn’t” - please do reach out, we can help you with this!), but following this up with repeat purchases over the years is way more complex. It is, however, one of the key success factors – great repeat skincare sales bring increased skincare revenue not only from repeated sales to existing patients but also new patients from referrals by happy patients and, importantly, better patient outcomes.

Let’s look more closely at passive income, according to leading e-commerce platform Shopify, the key points for passive income are:

• Most successful passive income ideas are the result of hard work and repeat gains.
• Adding passive income streams to your life can give you more freedom, flexibility, and money.
• Dropshipping is one of the best passive income ideas to earn money from wherever you are.

How to build trust to enable ‘distant purchasing’ and dropshipping?

To get the best from your business, we can take ideas from many other ‘user interfaces’. The concept of User Experience is well documented and discussed widely in other contexts, and there are many lessons that are pertinent and commercially wise.

User Experience is defined as the sequence of actions taken by a user while he or she uses a product, digital interface, or service, leading to a rich and beneficial experience. The process of identifying user needs and creating solutions to address them is known as “UX design”.
UX design includes elements of branding, design, usability, and function other than the process of obtaining and integrating whatever the product or service may be.

According to research published by Forbes in February 2023, the return on investment on UX spend is 9,900%, or rather, a £1 investment can bring a £100 return. How much would you like to invest in growing your business?

Skyhook user research published in May 2023 demonstrated that 55% of the world’s companies actively conduct user testing to assess UX spending with the key business goals of:

• Driving revenue
• Maintaining a competitive edge
• Bolstering reputation 

It is certainly something we have adopted in our business, with great effect. I commend it to you!

Concepts of UX design:

In the workbook, you will find exercises to help you work through the following segments of the UX design process.

1. Empathy: Put yourself in your patient’s shoes. What are their expectations, what problems do they want to solve? What do they want a positive patient experience to look like?
2. Strategy: Goals, design, testing. What does success look like?
3. Usability: Reduce cognitive effort. Is booking treatments/buying from you intuitive?
4. Inclusivity: Notwithstanding your Personal Brand, take into account the demands of individuals of various ages, genders, races, ethnic backgrounds, socioeconomic levels, and other characteristics.
5. Validation: Test potential solutions. Test again. Test again.
6. Product: Homecare sales (products, devices) to support in-clinic treatments and drive  new business
7. User Interface: Website, social, clinic, team

Building success – implementing these ideas

Presence: Building the passive income needs a starting point. Having done your research and built your ideas, now to put them into practice:

Brand consistency: it is critical to ensure your messaging is consistent through all touch points, whether that is your website, your social media voice, your advertising, how you work with PR, the design of your premises, your choice of training for your team, the products and treatments that you offer.

Alongside this, try not to be the area’s best-kept secret; ensure existing patients, staff, friends, and family tell stories of success, share before and after photographs, and share their skincare journeys in relatable ways.

Careful product introductions: 

1) Procedure Pairing Examples:

• Body procedures: Revision Skincare Bodifirm/Nectifirm with any body shaping or resurfacing treatments
• Lip Augmentation: Revision Skincare Youthful Lip Replenisher, NeoStrata Lip Wrinkle Repair for any mid and lower face injectables, and any facial energy device treatments
• Neuromodulators: Revision Skincare Revox Line Relaxer for any facial upper third procedures

2) In-Clinic Product Positioning

• There are many ways to introduce patients to skincare. These are a few:
• Keep samples of cleansers in an area set aside for removing makeup prior to procedures and on the treatment trolley so you can open a conversation.
• Provide a choice of SPF and suitable makeup for post-procedure, again with buying opportunities

3) In-clinic ‘Point Of Sale’ material positioned to reach every patient

• Literature - skincare branded or clinic branded physical materials and/or QR codes so they can access your materials digitally
• Product tick sheets in the treatment room to ensure conversation around skincare
• “Have you picked up your homecare to support your treatment?” or a similar sign at the payment point

Use this link to register to receive a digital workbook to support turning your learnings from this article and your notes into a viable plan.