Mastering the Art and Science of Skincare: An Esthetician’s Guide to Success

Don: Skincare clients have more information than ever, but more information does not always lead to better decisions. Recent research has even linked social media-driven skincare purchasing with significantly higher rates of skin barrier damage among acne patients. Welcome back to the Business of Aesthetics podcast. I’m your host for this session, Don Disha. It’s great to have you here. Now, to help us understand what real skincare expertise looks like in an increasingly complex industry, we are delighted to be joined by Lisa Waters. Lisa is the founder of Real Skin Pro, a California licensed esthetician, skincare educator, and certified nutritional therapy practitioner. With experience spanning both medical and holistic skincare, she brings a particularly valuable perspective on how estheticians can combine science, nutrition, and continuing education to deliver better client care. Now, today we are going to discuss what estheticians need to know to stay relevant as skincare continues to evolve. We’re talking about nutrition, acne, specialized client concerns, and how to turn clinical knowledge into stronger client trust and a successful professional brand. Now, this episode is brought to you by Ekwa Marketing. That being said, Lisa, it’s great to have you on the podcast. Thanks for being here with us.

Lisa: Oh yes, thank you so much. I’ve been looking forward to this. I really appreciate the opportunity.

Don: Wonderful. Let’s get into the conversation. So, Lisa, let’s start with how you think about skin. Clients can arrive today knowing words like retinol, salicylic acid, skin barrier. But knowing the vocabulary and knowing how to interpret it, especially for an individual’s skin, are two different things. So, in your journey in aesthetics that spans both the medical and holistic realms, how has this unique perspective shaped your approach to skincare education and client care?

Lisa: Such a great question, so relevant to what’s going on in aesthetics now. Especially with social media, clients know more than ever right now, and it’s because of social media and ads and advertising. There’s such a niche market for that, and people are paying attention. So when it comes to client knowledge in the treatment room, everybody wants what someone else has or had. They’re taking their social media knowledge and comparing it to their friends or people they’re seeing on social media and getting those sorts of results. So their knowledge goes up. And I feel around 2020, when people were sitting at home, they kind of dove into the knowledge, and their knowledge started to expand. As professionals, when our clients are talking about this and they think they know what’s right, it’s so important for us to really look at their skin and use the language with them instead of, you know, "Oh, that’s not right for you." Let’s take retinol, for instance. "I heard retinol is so great." And this client might not be a great candidate for retinol. Most people are, but this client might not be, and they’re using it, and we’re seeing a disrupted skin barrier. So it’s up to us to be able to educate them. "Well, you have the idea of what retinol is, but let me tell you what can be better for your skin." So using the language with them, but flipping it around so it makes sense to them bio-individually, because all of our clients are bio-individual. They have different needs. So working with their knowledge of skincare and ingredients to really let them know that you’re the expert, and here’s what I recommend for you and why.

Don: Talk to us a little bit about this holistic approach. What do you mean by this, if you don’t mind?

Lisa: Yes, holistic is a very big buzzword right now. I try not to say "holistic esthetician," but my approach is holistic. When people talk about that, mostly they think holistic is natural skincare, quote unquote. They think it’s about the products, but the holistic approach is about the whole body. So let me look at your skin and let me identify why these things are going on with your skin. We have those clients that have rosacea or acne or hyperpigmentation, and the holistic approach is asking the right questions, really getting to know their lifestyle, their product use at home, even things like diet and nutrition. We have to be a little bit careful with that as estheticians, because we can’t give nutritional advice, but we are always allowed to know about it. Have that knowledge so we can best support the client. So if we’re seeing rosacea and we have a knowledge of nutrition, that’s the holistic approach, because I’m working with the whole body instead of just the skin. I’ve got to see why the skin barrier is behaving the way it is. And the questions I ask can really shape my protocol and my recommendations for the products people use at home. So the holistic approach is not just about the skin, but the whole body, the whole person. It includes things like nervous system relaxation or regulation, which is kind of a buzzword right now too. But it means not just saying you’re doing it, but actually doing it and having the knowledge to do it. With holistic aesthetics, the esthetician has to have a lot of knowledge. It’s not just using natural products or a natural approach. It’s actually taking care of the whole person.

Don: Now, the questions you ask, do you actually let your clients know the reason why you’re asking them those questions, particularly when we’re talking about everything holistically?

Lisa: Yes, because a lot of clients, when we’re doing a consultation or they’re filling out their intake forms, wonder why they’re being asked these questions. Why do I have to answer questions about my job, my lifestyle, my medications, my health history? They don’t understand that we’re trying to put the puzzle pieces together so we can best treat them. That’s why the consultation is so important. It’s not just something we throw into our treatments. You can base a whole business off just the consultation and spend a thorough 30 to 45 minutes with your clients, so you can tell them why you’re asking those questions, because they do seem kind of funny. If you get a little deeper into it, these things can seem like TMI. You’re asking about gut health and bowel movements sometimes, if you’re really trying to be that good skin detective. So it is important to talk about why you’re asking, because otherwise your client is just filling out this intake form and wondering why. And then you don’t do anything with the information. Maybe you have it in your head, but they don’t know why you’re asking. So yes, it’s super important to guide them. That’s part of a thorough consultation: guiding them and letting them know why you’re asking those questions.

Don: Oh, that’s wonderful, because otherwise, I’m coming in because I have this acne going on and you’re asking about my gut health.

Lisa: Yes.

Don: There is a bit of a gap right there for the person who is unaccustomed to the relationship between those two.

Don: Now, let’s talk a little bit about what real education looks like now. What are some of the most important skills or knowledge areas estheticians should focus on to stay at the forefront of the industry and still deliver exceptional results for their clients?

Lisa: Such a great question, and this is something that’s always changing. I’ve been in the industry for over 17 years, and I’ve seen it go from what was really important then to what is really important now. I think it’s about going back to the basics and remembering why we’re doing this. Social media is a blessing and a curse. It’s really become that. I’m not knocking it, because that’s why I’m here and that’s how I get to spread the word of education. But right now, I think there’s a big need to go back to soft skills: being a human being, listening, using your ears, using your eyes. You can have as many modalities as you want, and you can do this and that because it’s popular or trending, but how did that client feel when they left you? Did they feel heard? Did they feel like you were actually paying attention to them and giving them a protocol that was just for them? So bring it back to the basics: knowledge of how skin reacts, diving deeper into the consultation questions, and really helping your clients feel heard, rather than thinking the newest ingredient or the newest modality is what sets you apart. It’s really back to the basics. How are you making your client feel? You get that with knowledge and with care, and by really being present. That goes into the holistic thing, but it applies in any realm. If you’re stacked with eight clients a day, that client is most likely not going to get the personalized care they deserve. They can go anywhere and feel rushed or get the cookie-cutter protocol. What really helps an esthetician stand out, and what they should educate themselves on, is business skills, soft skills, and customer service skills, because we have a lot of competition out there right now with TikTok, social media, YouTube, and now AI. I’m not knocking AI, but clients are using it more than ever. So what’s going to set somebody apart? What’s going to make somebody come to you? It’s going back to being human, being passionate, and knowing the basics, because that’s the tool that will help you grow with your clients.

Don: People really thought Dr. Google was tough. Now with AI, your whole treatment plan is given out to you, right? When you mentioned whether your client felt heard, I was wondering, how would you really know that? Are you giving back a feedback form? I get it, the client books with you, but is there something deeper there that tells you?

Lisa: Yeah, I should be doing more feedback forms, but the retention in itself is letting you know. I get a lot of it when I’m doing the consultations, or during my hands-on approach. I hear, "Nobody’s ever asked me that before." It also means giving somebody a little note of the retail products you want them to take home to get results at home too, and being thorough and telling them why, rather than just throwing five products in front of them at the end of the service and saying, "Yeah, just take these, I think you’ll like them." And you have to follow up with your clients to see how their treatment was and how they’re liking the products you recommended. The responses say a lot. I like that a lot of the time it’s, "Nobody’s ever asked me that before," and I’m telling them why I’m asking. So it always goes back to that consultation.

Don: So the retention really speaks for itself, primarily with these signals, as you mentioned. "No one has asked me that before." "No one has taken care of me like this." Those kinds of things signal that you’re heading in the right direction.

Don: Now, Lisa, you had a wonderful podcast episode recently titled "But I’m Certified." How should an esthetician distinguish between "I learned how this treatment works," "I’m competent enough," and "I’m legally permitted to offer it"?

Lisa: Great thing to think about. All those things are great things to think about. I did that episode because I recently went to an aesthetics conference, and in the episode I mentioned that the California State Board said to be aware of the vendors. They aren’t all from California. They’re not all practicing in scope. These are national brands, so they want to sell. It also comes from my own experience as a newer esthetician, being told that I can microneedle because it only goes a certain depth, or that I can do lash lifts because it’s a keratin treatment, not a perm. So they’re slapping titles on modalities and products that confuse the esthetician. You see these things that are popular, and they’re beauty related, so a lot of people ask themselves, "Why am I not doing that?" instead of "Why am I doing that?" They go in without real knowledge, thinking it’s a trend they have to keep up with to stay relevant in the industry. It really comes down to marketing. That’s what the companies want you to think. I notice a lot of lack of education when it comes to state board rules, and we’re all so different that it’s really hard to get an answer a lot of the time. Some states are really vague, and some companies read between the lines and make you believe there’s a loophole for using these treatments and modalities when there really isn’t. So I encourage estheticians to really do the research and find out whether they can do it or not. Write to your state board. You are licensed, and you have a duty to follow what your license allows. An example I always use: say there was a new law starting in 2026 that you have to stop at a stop sign for 20 seconds. That’s kind of ridiculous, right? And you don’t know about the new law, so you don’t stop for 20 seconds, and you get pulled over. Is the cop going to say, "You didn’t know, go ahead"? They’re not going to say that. So it’s up to us to find the information, sign up for scope-of-practice email notifications, and be involved in what’s going on in your state, because that makes you a stronger esthetician. You shouldn’t be relying on cool, trendy modalities that you can’t even do. It doesn’t make you a better esthetician, your insurance is not going to cover you, and you can get in trouble using out-of-scope modalities or ingredients. So protect yourself and protect your clients. If you can’t do it, don’t do it. Use your skills in other ways to really know the skin, and approach it that way. You don’t need fancy modalities that you can’t use.

Don: Yeah, being ignorant of the law doesn’t mean you’re not liable for it, right?

Lisa: Right.

Don: Now, Lisa, just to follow up on that, what questions should estheticians be asking before deciding that a piece of continuing education is genuinely worth pursuing?

Lisa: Yes. First, find out whether it’s legal in your state. Go to your state board website. I obviously haven’t been to every single state board website or resource, but in California you can sign up for email notifications for industry bulletins and be involved that way. Typically, the information is right on the website if you pay attention. I do think schools should be educating students more about where to find this information, because that’s why they’re there. People go to school to get an education and pass their state board exam, and one of the things that should be taught is how to access that information. There’s always going to be something new out there, and people talking about buzzwords and new modalities. So if you’re interested, find out what the modality does and what the claims are, then go to your state board website and compare. Am I allowed to do this? And you’re going to see, "No, I can’t, because this pierces the skin," or "No, I can’t, because this is body contouring and it’s going into the fascia." The state board is very clear if you know how to get the information, and that’s typically through the state board website.

Don: Wonderful. Now, you recently became a certified nutritional therapy practitioner. Break down for us what that means. How has this knowledge enhanced your approach to skincare, and what advice would you give estheticians looking to incorporate nutrition into their client consultations?
Lisa: Okay. So the nutritional therapy practitioner is training. It’s not a dietitian, and it’s not a nutritionist. You have to be careful with the verbiage. But it’s a holistic approach to nutrition, mostly learning how the system works, how digestion works, and how it affects our skin or general health. It was very interesting to learn all of that. I got into it because I had skin issues of my own that I was trying to figure out, and I fell in love with the nutritional therapy part of it. It’s really a whole-food, nutrient-dense diet. My focus going into the program was how I can help my clients with acne, sensitized skin, rosacea, psoriasis, and eczema. I wanted to know how I could support them even better without just slapping a bunch of products on their skin. I wanted that holistic approach. And I really do think estheticians should have some kind of knowledge in nutrition. But like I mentioned before, it’s a little tricky, because as an esthetician I can’t give nutritional advice, and as a nutritional therapy practitioner I can’t put my hands on people to support their skincare goals that way. So I keep them as two different businesses. If I’m doing a consultation, it incorporates nutritional therapy and skin rather than one or the other. That way I can lay the groundwork for the nutritional therapy support and then take the client into my treatment room as an aesthetics client. So it is a little tricky. I don’t want to misrepresent myself in either profession, but it has helped me a lot with getting down to the concerns of clients, particularly with rosacea. Of course, we don’t diagnose. If I think a client has rosacea, I ask whether they’ve been diagnosed. Most of them don’t know, or some think they have it because their skin is red. But with the ones who do know, I now know the approach. I keep the nutrition knowledge in my head and can make those little recommendations during my consultation to support them inside out.

Don: Now, that would definitely increase the lifetime value of a client of yours, right?

Lisa: Yeah, definitely, because they see the results. That’s information they can’t get from AI or Google, because I listened to them and took both approaches to get a more well-rounded, personalized protocol for my clients.

Don: Okay. Where do you really draw the line? Does it come naturally to you now that you’ve been doing it for a while, or do you need to be very conscious about drawing the line between an esthetician being educated enough to recognize these nutritional issues and giving advice?

Lisa: Yeah, that’s the hard part, drawing the line. There’s a particular brand of education that focuses on acne, and it was a really exciting thing when they came out with supplements to support their program, and I thought, you can’t do that. That’s why I’m super careful. Again, I focus on the consultation. The initial consultation incorporates both, and that stays within the scope of both esthetician and nutritional therapy. I don’t want to say I get the nutrition stuff out of the way, but that’s the groundwork. I say, "These are the options for nutrition. This is what I would like to see you work on." It’s kind of like a rotation. We do a consultation focused on nutrition and skin health, then a treatment. Then another consultation follows up to see how they’re doing with the recommendations from the prior consultation, along with the next treatment. So it’s a balance, a little back and forth. I’m a rule follower, and I’m very careful not to blur the lines. That’s why I don’t represent myself as a dietitian or a nutritionist. I make sure the client knows what the goal is of the nutritional therapy practitioner title alongside the esthetician title.

Don: Well, that’s so good. Now, Lisa, we have arrived at the midpoint over here.

Lisa: As an esthetician and skincare educator, I know firsthand how challenging it can be to deliver excellent care while also attracting the right clients and growing your business. That’s why I wanted to mention an opportunity available to Business of Aesthetics listeners. Ekwa Marketing is offering a complimentary 60-minute marketing strategy session designed to help aesthetic practices identify growth opportunities and build a customized plan for attracting high-value patients. If you’d like to take advantage of the complimentary session, visit www.businessofaesthetics.org/msm to reserve a time.

Don: Right. Let’s keep moving on over here. All right, back to the questions.

Don: So now, Lisa, this next area brings home the importance of knowing not only what you can do, but when you should modify something or involve another healthcare professional. You’ve trained in oncology aesthetics and acne treatment. How can estheticians better support clients with these specific concerns, and what are some of the most effective protocols or approaches you’ve encountered?

Lisa: Yes, unfortunately there’s a big need for education in both oncology aesthetics and acne. We’re seeing a lot of both, again, unfortunately. Acne is a very popular area for people to get education in aesthetics, and I think what we learn in school is just the tip of the iceberg. So going into more advanced education is not a want, it’s a need. It’s a responsible decision for estheticians to educate themselves on acne because it’s prevalent everywhere. Same with oncology aesthetics. It feels more popular to me because I’m involved in it and hear about it a lot, and I have colleagues doing the same thing, but I still don’t think estheticians really know about this niche. And I don’t even want to call it a niche, because it shouldn’t be. It’s a need for you to know, because we’re seeing it all the time. I got involved with oncology aesthetics in 2020. I was giving an old close friend of mine a facial one day, and she said she couldn’t have any massage. She had been in remission from cancer. I didn’t know why, but she knew, which is rare, because usually our clients don’t know they can’t do certain things because they had cancer or are going through active cancer. So she told me why. I don’t want to get into that giant story, but I wanted to know more, because even at that point in my career, 10 years in, I had never heard of these treatment contraindications. What I had learned was only that we can’t treat somebody who’s in active cancer or seeking cancer treatment. That’s it. So I thought, don’t touch anybody who’s had cancer. But it goes so much deeper than that. It’s again that client care, that human care. With these particular clients, because we don’t have the knowledge, it’s "Oh, I can’t touch them. I was told not to touch them. I don’t want to harm them." So educate yourself, and you can touch them. With oncology aesthetics in particular, it’s so important to know how to modify your massage movements and how to customize the skincare based on everyone’s needs, again with that bio-individuality, because you absolutely can treat them. If you don’t have the knowledge to do that, then you absolutely should be referring out, and it’s okay to do that. If somebody walks in with grade three or four acne and you think, "I’m just going to slap a peel on it because I saw someone else do it and call it a day," that is not the right approach. It happens because the esthetician didn’t want to seem like they didn’t know how to do it, so they did what they thought they knew. We don’t want to create harm. We don’t want to make anything worse. So know your limits and know that it’s okay not to know how to do something. Your client will appreciate that so much more than you potentially ruining their skin, or with oncology aesthetics, maybe creating harm because they’ve had lymph nodes compromised or removed and now have lymphedema. Hopefully that doesn’t happen, but it’s so important to know the boundary and know that it’s okay. As a professional, you should have a laundry list of people you refer out to for certain things. I went from medical aesthetics, to doing eyebrows for a long time, to holistic aesthetics. I can do all of those things, and waxing, but I’m just not good at some of them. So I have people I refer to. It’s not because I’m not great, it’s because I know somebody else can do it better or has more skill and knowledge than me. You’ve got to put the ego away a little bit, get the education and the certifications from a company you trust, and really inform yourself. When in doubt, refer it out. I’ve always told my students that, and I still do, whether they’re new or seasoned estheticians. When in doubt, refer it out. Have that list of resources so your client can trust you. They’ll trust you more than anything if you can say, "You know what, I don’t think this is the job for me, but I’m going to refer you to this really great esthetician who can," or this physician or this dermatologist. You should have that list of resources.

Don: Seems like a real passion project for you.

Lisa: It is, yeah. It definitely is, and it’s ever growing. I’m always learning more, and I’m so excited that I get to share this with people, because especially with oncology aesthetics, people didn’t know it existed, and that includes the oncology clients themselves. How wonderful is it that an esthetician can have the knowledge to help them feel good? To me, that’s really what’s lacking in the industry: that care.

Don: Oh, that’s beautiful. Speaking of what’s lacking in the industry, you founded a fantastic brand, Real Skin Pro. What strategies have you found most effective for building a successful skincare brand and attracting loyal clients? And I’m curious, what gap are you actively filling in the industry?
Lisa: That’s a good question. I want to know from other people what that is too. For me, I don’t want to be an influencer. I want to be an educator. I think that’s what stands out with Real Skin Pro education, and that’s why it’s in the title, Real Skin Pro. With TikTok and YouTube, you have non-professionals giving professional advice, or they think they are. I wanted to make sure people know this is real education from a real pro, a real skin pro. I try not to be the influencer, and instead use my background and education to actually teach, rather than saying, "Look at this cool thing I have. Look at my client’s glass skin. I’m using this new hot ingredient or this new hot modality." Let’s go back to the basics and ask why we’re doing this. I have technique to share, and I explain it through education, trying to hit all the different learning styles rather than just throwing information out there. I feel like it’s in the infancy of the attention it’s getting, but I do think that’s what sets me apart a little: I educate. I’m not there to sell a product. I’m not there to sell a brand other than myself. I’m really teaching as if the person has never heard the information before, and that goes for seasoned estheticians or new estheticians. Treat everybody like they’ve never heard it before, because we can always learn something new from each other. That’s what it’s all about: keeping connected, staying informed, learning from each other, and no gatekeeping the information.

Don: Lisa, since we’re now arriving at the end of the podcast, I’m curious, was there any particular question you wish I had asked you?
Lisa: No, not really. I think these were all great questions. They’re so relevant in this industry, and I’m glad you asked the ones you did, because I wanted to bring attention to some of them. It was great.

Don: Okay, wonderful. Well, that was Lisa Waters, founder of Real Skin Pro, on mastering the art and science of skincare. Where can people find you and the work you do?

Lisa: You can follow me on Instagram at real_skin_pro. I’m not really on TikTok. I kind of am a little bit, but I’m not dancing for attention yet, so that’s a little scary to me. The podcast is on Apple Podcasts. It’s Real Skin Pro Education. You can always visit my website at realskinpro.com and email me at lisa@realskinpro.com.

Don: Wonderful. And if you would like to strengthen the growth side of your own practice, Ekwa Marketing’s offer to our Business of Aesthetics listeners, the complimentary 60-minute marketing strategy session, is still available to you. Go ahead and reserve your session at www.businessofaesthetics.org/msm. I’m Don Disha. This has been the Business of Aesthetics podcast. Thanks for listening, and until next time, keep on learning.