As a heterosexual, married for twenty-odd years, middle-aged Mum (to a boy) who ticks all the cliché boxes with regard to ‘doing everything’ and having 234 mental tabs open compared to the one tab my husband battles with daily, I don’t want to think about men anymore than I already do, thank you very much.

But I concede that if I was running my own aesthetics business I’d be thinking about men - a lot.

An Opportunity

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, there has been a 99% increase in men getting injectables over the last 20 years, and it’s an area that is just going to keep on growing.

Dr Rachel Aaarons, founder of The Curated Clinic, says: “In my experience, male aesthetic treatments, has been an area that has shown exponential growth and demand over the last five years. A lot has changed in the world around us - especially over the course of the past two years - and this has led to a seismic shift in opinion towards men wanting aesthetic treatments.”

Yet, there remains a heavy bias towards women and women’s treatments in aesthetics, and men aren’t exposed to a great deal of marketing that’s targeted to them, for them. It makes sense, as most aesthetics treatments are bought by women so that’s who is targeted. However, they’re only bought by women because they’re sold as treatments for women….and so the circle continues.

Look Around You

I suspect the majority of your patients are women, with the odd exception. Why is that? Are you telling men you can help them too?

Think about your area where your clinic is situated. Are any of your competitors targeting men? Are you letting the men in your town know that you have treatments that are good for their concerns?

Marie Fuller from Elysiphi Aesthetics spotted the gap in her market and took things one step further by partnering with a barber's shop to give men greater and better access to Botox, fillers, skincare, tear trough fillers and liquid nose jobs.

Marie says; “My patients often report how long it has taken them to choose a clinic to attend. Often citing lack of knowledge and confusing treatment menus as a reason. The associated "fake look" seen on some social media accounts only exacerbates this delay in accessing a clinic. I hope to resolve this by providing a safe space within a familiar environment. It's all about breaking down some barriers and smashing stigma.”

Men Need The Same Encouragement As Women

All of the fears and the barriers around booking a non-surgical treatment that women have are shared by men, perhaps even more so. Arguably the stigma surrounding men having lip fillers and Botox is greater and men feel emasculated and embarrassed about wanting treatments. Yet, they do want them , so it’s your job - as it is with women - to break through these barriers, inform, educate, excite and reassure the men folk!

Fifty years ago men would be too ashamed to even buy a tub of moisturiser for themselves, and just look at how the male grooming market has now boomed. This all happened because the manufacturers and marketeers made it acceptable, normal and gave men permission to tackle their rough and rugged skin.

The more positive stories men see about aesthetic treatments, the more men ‘that look like them’ they see having treatments, the more it’s talked about and opened up, the more men will become comfortable with booking an appointment.

Miles, aged 40, recently took the plunge and had lip filler with Dr Rachel. He said: “Approaching my 40s, I had started noticing my mouth just looking quite deflated and dehydrated…which started to mismatch the way I felt. Getting lip fillers was absolutely not something I would ever have considered previously and, even before the procedure, I was terrified of looking ridiculous. The result is exactly what I wanted - just looking like I did 15 years ago; nothing more. No one has actually noticed, but the effect it has had on my confidence is really surprising. It’s been really worthwhile.”

There Are Enough Men Ready Now

You don’t have to work too hard to convince men that aesthetic treatments are for them, there are enough men ready to take the jump right now, they just don’t know where to go, nobody is speaking directly to them!

Dr Rachel says: “Joyously, we have witnessed more diverse ideals of beauty, acceptance and inclusion of male grooming, more visibility of androgyny, and a deeper education of gender identity. Large brands tasked with capturing the zeitgeist to steer trend direction have no doubt had a part to play in the reduction of stigma by adopting a gender inclusive approach. We have all spent A LOT of time in front of screens since the pandemic, and I’ve had men talk to me about their ‘Zoom face’, their social media and their dating apps as a reason for wanting to get a subtle enhancement.”

The audience is there, the demand is there. It’s revenue just waiting for you, and you just need to go and get their attention and tell them you’re there!

What Can You Do To Attract Them?

• Make your treatment menu man friendly, have a specific section for ‘men’. It may actually be exactly the same treatment that women have but by defining it ‘for men’ it will immediately engage them and smash though that first hurdle.

• Talk about treatments from an ‘issue’ perspective, rather than the treatment itself: ‘Craggy skin’, ‘Deep lines’, ‘Jaw definition’, ‘Overworked eyes’, ‘Thinning Hair’. Think about the things that bother men and use simple language to tell them you can help them address these issues.

• Reassure them that your clinic is discreet, private and welcoming to men.

• Explain to them that your treatments are subtle, natural and won’t be obvious - that you won’t be emasculating them!

• Offer deals and promotions for men around key themes such as Father’s Day. You may very well find the women in their lives (who are already your patients) do the hard work for you and book their fella’s appointment themselves!

• Consider producing some flyers or even posters you can distribute to local gyms, sports centres, football clubs, rugby clubs, golf courses etc which simply lists your ‘Treatments For Men’ and prices.

• Perhaps you see if your local newspaper is interested in a feature about male treatments and how you’re seeing a rise in ‘blokes from Birmingham seeking Botox’.

• Use your social media to share some of your male patients’ results and explain what treatment they had.

• Do use male celebrities too in your social media to demonstrate how subtle treatments have given them their looks today (think Paul Rudd, Brad Pitt etc.. the guys who do it well!)

• While we’re on the subject of diversity and inclusivity, which we’ll cover in a separate article, think about the LGBTQIA+ community in your area. This is often an underserved area. The Instagram account so.informed has published an excellent glossary of LGBTQIA+ terms. and they note, “Equipping yourself with knowledge, especially when it comes to terms and knowing how to use them correctly, is important in helping the LGBTQIA+ community to feel seen and safe.”

This is a huge opportunity for you to take advantage of, and if you don’t do it someone else soon will.

Be the first, reel those men in, and keep them as loyal patients forever!