Ep. 11- Social Media: The Monster or The Machine in Aesthetics

In this episode of The Skintrovert, we’re diving into the double-edged sword that is social media in the aesthetic industry. From viral trends and unrealistic expectations to education, access, and opportunity—where do we draw the line between influence and misinformation?

We’ll talk about:

• How social media is shaping patient expectations (for better… and worse)
• The pressure it puts on providers to perform, sell, and stay relevant
• The rise of “skin experts” and where education gets lost
• And the real question—are we using the machine, or is the monster using us?

This isn’t about canceling social media. It’s about learning how to navigate it with intention, integrity, and a commitment to real skin health.

Because in a world full of filters… truth hits different.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:08

Hey y'all, welcome to The Skin Trovert. I'm your host, Sam Bazil. Today we're going to kind of get into the weeds a little bit because there's a topic that I think we need to talk about now more than ever. So today it's going to be social media, the monster or the machine in aesthetics. What do you think? I have my own thoughts and I'm going to share those with you today, but I'm going to preface it that this is strictly my opinion. This is not meant to be disrespectful. This is not meant to even change the world. I just feel that sometimes there's that little dark shadow that wants to kind of creep in. And because I'm so passionate about this industry and I love it so much, I want to bring light. And specifically to this topic because it is also important to me. So let's just get into it. Let's just dig it. So, okay, first, this happened recently. I had a friend of mine who, mind you, has been doing derma plane for like 15 years. She calls me up in a total panic. She's like, Sam, Sam, I need to talk to you real quick. I have an appointment scheduled with my esthetician tomorrow to do derma planing. But I was on TikTok and I saw this esthetician make this really bad video about derma planing. And then I started watching other videos about it. And should I just cancel the treatment? I was like, wait, what? And she starts telling me like the bad things that this esthetician said. And I'm like, uh, be so for real. I'm like, you have been getting dermaplane for the last 15 years. Dermaplane has been around forever. You're fine. Now, listen, are there people that maybe have it, you know, some kind of contraindications that shouldn't? Yes, there's contraindications for all treatments, but to just black label a treatment that has been around forever, that is basically just exfoliation, is wild. It's absolutely wild. So I get off the phone with her and I like go down the rabbit hole and I start searching and I jaw on the floor, just jaw on the floor. And I'm not gonna speculate, at least that not out loud. You know, I have my own opinions, but I feel that there are certain reasons that these specific aestheticians are um disrespecting this service, be it they can't do it, um, they have another treatment that they offer instead of that. So, like there, there's reasons, right? Which to me was just gross. And the sad thing is that I see it in a lot of other things. It's not just derma planing, it's a lot of things that are out there, you know, skincare. I see it a lot in skincare, I see it a lot with specific devices. And so let's just talk about that. You know, I think social media can be such a positive, impactful tool. You know, if you would have told me 20 something years ago when I started in aesthetics that in order for you to be relevant, in order for you to be considered successful, you have to basically be a content puppet. If you would have told me that, I would have never believed you. I would have said, get out of here. Nobody cares what you're doing on social media, you know, to be a good aesthetician. But that is exactly where we are. So whether you like it or not, welcome to 2026, folks, because this is the social media era and it is a very important part of your business. And I know that there's some people that fight it and they're like, I don't care. I don't care how popular social media is, I'm not doing it. I think it's a waste of time. Cool. You're that's your choice, and I get it. But I personally feel that if you're not showing up on social media, someone else is, and that's who's gonna capture the attention of your community, of your patient base. So while I think it's not fun being a content puppet sometimes, I certainly think it's important. So I also think there's a right way and there's a wrong way. So, what are some of the positive things about aesthetics? Well, I think being able to capture a patient base without even meeting them, without even having them walk through your door is powerful. It is a powerful tool that is right there in the social media world. And what do I mean by that? Well, some of you say, I think those, you know, lip-syncing reels and the dancing around is just silly and I'm not gonna do it. I understand that, but I also see the value in it because it shows your personality. It shows that you guys are fun, it shows that you're engaging. And as a consumer, seeing that with other things, but seeing that I can say, oh my gosh, her personality is amazing. She's so funny. Like, I want to be a part of that. So I'm gonna go in and I'm gonna see them. Now, again, do I think that's the only thing that you should be, you know, putting out there? No, I also think education, before and afters, all those things, but being able to like show your fun personality and who you are is what a great tool. What a great tool to be able to capture someone in that you may have never ever been able to meet. It's awesome. So that's one good thing. Another really great thing about social media that you it's just the power that we have is to show the quality of work that we offer. You know, again, I'm old lady, but when I was doing aesthetics way back in the day, you know, I hate saying that because it makes me sound so old, but it's true. Like we didn't have, like, I think TikTok, I mean not TikTok, I think um Facebook was around, but it it was Facebook was a place for like us to like it was just personal, all personal stuff. It wasn't really biz a lot of business stuff. I think it was just starting to kind of take off back when I was still in the treatment room. So anyway, if I had really good before and afters or I had content, I actually wrote a blog for the the med spa that I worked for. I would send people to the website. Y'all remember those days? Like, oh yeah, go to my website at www.whatever, right? That's wild. Like those days are wild, but that's where we were. Everything we sent people to the website. Do we even send people to websites anymore? Like, I think we all have a website just because we want to show up on Google, like if somebody's searching med spa in my area, but like, but are we doing anything other than like shopping on it? Like, it's just crazy. So, anyway, that was back in my day. So, social media has evolved so much and in what I think is a really great space. But there are some funkies that we're gonna talk about. So, aside from before and afters, you all, oh, and you know what else I'm seeing that I think is so cool. I love when you guys do this. And I'm just seeing a lot more of this recently, but they're posting the before, they're posting the afters, and now we're posting the in-betweens. I'm seeing people make reels where it's like day one, day two, day three, day four. I love that. I love that because it just shows realistic expectations. It shows the patient that it's not a poof and they look like that. They had to put in some work because a lot of these treatments are really corrective and there's some pretty significant downtime. And how would the patients know that if they're not seeing the the in-between? So I love when you guys show the good, the bad, and the ugly. And when you have like the before and afters out there, patients can go on and say, Oh, well, she has skin very similar to mine or concerns very similar to mine. And now I know if I go to them, this is how I'm gonna be treated and what I'm gonna get. So what a powerful, powerful tool. So I would definitely say that social media is definitely the machine and aesthetics. But because of the pressure, I think, for us to be content puppets and the pressure for us to show up, get the likes, get the engagement, you know, be relevant. Sometimes it can create a monster. And what do I mean by that? Well, I think the pressure to just be relevant and get all the views and all the engagement. Sometimes we go to the dark side to get it. You know, it's kind of like we're selling the soul, right? I am seeing that, I don't know why, but so much more lately. I feel like that's all my FYP is. Like when I'm scrolling on TikTok, I feel like that's all I am seeing. And I just hate it. I absolutely hate it. I'm gonna talk about it. I'm gonna talk about those different things, but I just encourage us to be more of the positive side, the educational side. And I get accused of being love and light, and that's not real. Why not? Why is it not real? Why do we have to be on the dark side? We don't. I get it. I know that smut stuff and the drama is always a little bit more, you know, engaging and a little bit more, you know, intriguing. So we kind of like, you know, want to get get into it, but I I don't know. And this is just maybe a Sam thing, but I do all this, you know, I do the social media stuff, I'm doing this podcast, and yeah, there's definitely pressure to get people to to watch it and to get people to look at my reels and all these things, but I don't know. I would much prefer if I I just I want what I put out into the world to bring value or love, value or love. And if that only gets me one view, that's okay because I'd rather the one person that viewed it actually gain or take something from that that brings them value or helps them in this industry rather than getting a million views for some smut negative bashing video that I made that they're they're probably gonna forget about later. Like I just I don't know. I I have a different opinion on that. I don't feel like you have to necessarily go to the dark side to be able to stay relevant here. And I, aside from the derma plane thing happening, like I'm seeing that happen a lot. Like I'm seeing a lot of aestheticians be disrespectful to, and it's not just aestheticians, I see other, you know, other ones too, but being disrespectful to skincare brands that um other providers are choosing to carry, services that other providers are choosing to offer, um devices that other providers are choosing to offer only because they don't offer it, you know, and they'll argue and they'll say, no, it's not. It's I I I'm saying that because it's not a good treatment or it's it's this or it's that. But listen, if a product, if a service, if a uh a device comes with science and clinical backing, why are we doing that? Why are we saying those things? Because listen, just like you are qualified to be here, right? You have your license, you have your degree, you have your education, you you you you worked your way to get here. So did that provider, babe. So did they, and they have the education, they have the license, they have the the the degree, and they are choosing that product, that service, that device for their standard of care for their patients. So for you to go on and say that it's this or it's that when there's scientific clinical backing is just wild to me. It's actually gross. It's it's just gross. Now, don't get that confused with the trendy things that are out there, because that's happening a lot lately, and I I see it. Um lots of trendy stuff going on. And um, it is kind of scary a little bit because I feel like we're kind of jumping into that water before we have the clinical backing, before we have the science. So that's not what I'm talking about. Like if you are a provider that is trying to educate consumers on what is safe and what is not, I completely understand you trying to educate consumers on things that are out there that are not exactly like okay or safe. That's not, let's not confuse that. This is something completely different. Um, I do feel like there's a way to share your opinion without being disrespectful to another provider that is choosing that for their standard of care. So I'll give you an example of what I mean by that. So when I was scrolling, you know, scrolling, scrolling, um, there was an aesthetician that made a video, and she is an aesthetician, and uh, she made a not so nice video about the skincare brand that I represent. Um, but I actually had a lot of respect for her. You want to know why? Because this is how it went, and this is a summary. So basically, she said that um she went to a local esthetician and wanted to try the product because she had seen amazing before and afters. So the esthetician put her on this protocol uh a week and a half in, she was raw, red. She reached back out to the esthetician, and the esthetician said, You need to push through. That's what you need to do. And this is what she said. She said, Well, as an aesthetician, I do not agree with that. Um, I immediately stopped. I started on another skincare line that I know, and it's a no for me. And while it's a no for me, it does have clinical backing, it does have amazing before and afters. It just wasn't for me. And that's I that's what I respect because I appreciate her sharing her opinion, her time, you know, on it, but she didn't say facts about it because she was, she's not been educated on it. She doesn't offer it. So she didn't try and share misleading information about it. She wasn't spreading lies. She strictly said her experience, but then followed it up with. But basically, other people are getting great results, other people are, you know, are utilizing that science behind it, and other people are using it for their standard of care. It's a no for me. And I respect that. I respect it coming from a place of honesty. She was tactful and kind. So those are the kind of things that I I think are are great way. If you're if you are that type of provider, if you show up on social media in that light to be more of that influencer culture, share opinions and and products. I I think that's fine. I don't, I'm not saying not to share your opinions or your input. I just think that there's a right and a wrong way to do it. And that's almost like me going coming on here or going on my social media and sharing information about a skincare brand that I don't represent. I wouldn't do that. I I just wouldn't because I'm not educated on it. Even if it was to say like awesome, kind things, like I listen, I know that there are other products outside of the little bubble that I live in that are great. You know, I and I and I've used them, I've tried them. I I love knowing what's out there. I want to know what my competition is. But to publicly come out on social media and say facts about things that I am not I've not been educated on, I would never. I would never, I'd be mortified because I don't know it. So to go on and share something that could potentially be untrue or potentially hurt other providers and their business, mm-mm. Not me, sis. Could never be. So there's that. I just I think like I said, there's just a right and a wrong way to do it. But yet I as I sit there and I scroll, I just I see all of the the negativity and it it's just not it's not good. It it's just not good. I I think uh education should always be at the forefront as a provider for your social media content. And how you choose to educate and how you choose to put it out there is okay. I I I don't wanna I don't ever want to stop education from being put out there. I just feel like if your content is less education and more opinion-based, there's a right and a wrong way to do it. And that esthetician that posted what she posted, in my opinion, is the right way to do it. And you know, I've seen other providers say like other things, like, oh, we shouldn't be using this laser because it's this or that, and we shouldn't be doing this, but they don't even offer it, they've never offered it. You know, a lot of times it's not necessarily the laser, it's the operator. And for you to go on and say that you should never use this laser, you should never ever do that. And again, there's other very qualified providers that are choosing that for their standard of care, that hurts their business. And if that's your MO, that's not okay. I don't know, that's yuck to me. Why would you want to hurt someone's business that they're just as qualified to be here as you are? You know, I I don't, I just I want us to be, I want us to be love and light. And people are gonna say, like, oh, she's ridiculous, but that's fine. I can be ridiculous, but I'll be positive as I'm being ridiculous. I'll be love and light while I'm being ridiculous, you know. That's really what the skintrovert is, guys. Some people see it as just a name, and I don't because it's mine. So I see it as something so much more. Skintrovert is something that shows my passion for this industry. I literally bleed for this industry. It's it's always been a passion of mine. I had personal reasons for getting into this industry, and my love of this industry is what has just caused it to grow. And any, if you talk to anybody that knows me personally, that has actually met me in person and spends time with me, they will tell you how passionate I am about this industry. That is the one thing that people will always hang on to because that's that's that's who and what I am. And while I am only one person, this was started to hopefully make some kind of an impact, even if it is on one person. I don't care about having millions. I just need one person to share my passion with. So I I don't say any of this to like, if you are a person that gets into the smut stuff to like bash you or say you shouldn't. I just would hope that it inspires you to look beyond that and maybe instead of worrying so much about what I guess what other people are doing, maybe worry more about what you're doing. And what do I mean by that? Like, why make all these videos on things that you don't offer or don't carry when you could be taking that time to educate your consumers on what you do carry and what you do offer and why, in your opinion, you feel that that is superior to other things that are out on the market. You know, I really feel like the consumer sees that and they understand that they're not they're not dumb. They know, they know when you're being messy and they know when you're being educational. I I felt that. I I actually had an experience when I was an esthetician where I truly felt that. And it wasn't on social media because social media wasn't really a thing, but let me tell you what happened. Like, so when I was an esthetician, I had what I thought was this like really amazing friendship with my laser rep. Um, you know, he sold us most of the lasers that we carried and uh, you know, always told us like we had the best in the biz, like we were superior with this technology. Um, you know, he would take us to dinners and lunches and all these things. I always was invited to their educational seminars, and I don't know, I felt aside from him just being this laser rep, like we were actually true friends. And then there was like months where I didn't hear from him, which I thought was weird, but you know, I figured, you know, he was probably busy doing other things. And then he emerges after months, okay? And he says, Hey, look, I'm not with that company anymore. I'm now with this company, and we need to, you know, trade out all of these devices for this stuff. And I was like, wait, whoa, well, pause, hold. What? And he was like, Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. That's garbage, it's trash. You need it. I wouldn't even pulse that on a laser on a on a on a patient now. Like, you need this. And it was in that split second that not only did I like lose trust in him as like a device rep, but I've I lost complete trust in him as a friend. And I see that with some of this social media stuff. Like, you know, you start offering something, but then you offer something else, and then all of a sudden that's trash, and you're moving on to that. You don't think people see beyond that? They start to lose trust in you as a provider and what you chose to align with previously. And look, I like I said, I know things change and we evolve and we grow, but to be able to say, like, listen, that was past, this is now, and let me tell you why this is so good. I would have so what's wrong with that? I didn't have to like bash what I left behind to highlight what I'm stepping into in the future. I just need to tell you, like, look at how cool this is. Like, this is this is where I'm going, this is where I'm aligning. So, like I said, I feel like we do that and maybe it's unintentional. I don't know. I just see it so much more now, and I I don't know why. I don't know why we've like taken that road. I I was literally watching these two aestheticians get into it in the comment section in a video where someone was talking about like, oh so silly, guys. It was a video that was made about the difference between. Like drugstore and medical grade skincare. And this esthetician just made a video that, in her opinion, and she says it, like, in my opinion, I do feel like there is a difference whether it's a recognized term or not. I feel that I see really great before and afters from medical, pharmaceutical, professional grade over drugstore. And then there were these estheticians in, they were fighting each other, like in the comments, saying that, like, you're only saying that because you want the consumer to buy directly from you, and drugstore skincare is just as good. There's other ones. And the esthetician simply said, Well, then show me. Show me the before and afters that you're getting from the drugstore skincare. And it just went boom, like wild crazy. Why did it even have to go there? Why was that even like let the esthetician share with her consumers what she was she's saying, in her opinion, why she feels, in her educated opinion, why she feels pharmaceutical professional grade skincare is a much better investment and a much better choice. We can't be afraid to say what we feel. Y'all, I had an esthetician that sent me this video. It was so good. She made a video on glycolic acid as the ingredient, and it was just an educational video. And she talked about what glycolic acid was, who is it used for, like who is it best for? And then she highlighted the products that she carries that contain glycolic acid. It was an awesome video. So she sends it to me and she's like, hey, would you look at this and like just tell me in your opinion? Like, did you, do you like it? Do you think I made any mistakes? Whatever, whatever. So I messaged her back and I was like, it is perfection. I love it. It's so good. Well, then like weeks pass and I didn't see the video. So I texted her and I was like, hey girl, I'm like, are you gonna post that video? It was so good. And she's like, no, I chickened out. And I was like, okay, no, call me. So she called me and I was like, what do you mean you chickened out? And she was like, Sam, I'm just so scared that if I post it, I'm gonna have other like aestheticians message and say that I'm saying something wrong or I'm I shouldn't put that or whatever. I'm like, what are you scared of? No, there's no misinformation there. You stated strictly facts, and it's educational to your patients. What's the problem? She wouldn't do it. Absolutely petrified. That makes me so sad. And I I've done it myself. I've done it myself. I have been afraid to speak my mind. Um, I've been afraid to ask help, you know, in these like uh I've said this before, but like these little Facebook communities for aestheticians. I remember when I was, you know, a young green aesthetician and I would try to reach out for help, but I was scared because I've seen how they react to people who ask questions. If you ask a question and you seem too green or too naive, they come at you like, you shouldn't even be doing this if you can't answer that, or if you what what it's so it's just not yum. There's gotta be a way for us to support each other and help growth. And if there is a service or a brand or a product that is not, it doesn't have clinical backing, it's not an approved treatment. Um, I understand you questioning it, I understand you wanting to educate the consumer that this is not okay. But if there's something that is clinically backed, it has science, and there are other qualified providers that are choosing that for their standard of care, who are you to say that it's not okay? That's not that's not cool. Because what if they did that to you? What if they said, you know, that what you're choosing is reckless and wrong and all these things? Let's just think about that before we put certain things out there to market. You know, there's a way to be fun, educational, promote yourself, promote your business, and still be likable and still get all the clicks and all the attention. There's actually a provider out there, and I'm gonna I'm gonna call him out because um I I think y'all should go follow him. Um, I hope I don't butcher his last name because I'm Italian, I shouldn't, but his name is Michael Renazzo. He is an aesthetician out of Philly. His content is hilarious. He is so freaking funny. It's educational and it's it's good educational. Like he talks, I think, in like digestible ways, which is what I like. I like to learn digestible. I don't like you to throw everything at me. I like it to be relatable. I love analogies, I love funny, I love things that hold on. And that's his content. His content is funny, his content is relatable. It's also very educational. So, and and guess what? He also does not carry or support the skincare brand that I represent. I don't have to, I don't have to support only people that believe and align with what I believe and think is right. Like you can carry other product lines and I still think you're an amazing provider. You can also not agree with certain things that I think are good or treatments that I think are good for me to think that you are still a good provider. And I think that's how we kind of should be because that's how we learn. You know, if I would have never followed him because he doesn't carry the brand that I represent, I wouldn't have gotten, I wouldn't have gained the nuggets from him and his content because I've learned lots from his stuff. So that's what I'm saying. There's there's there's lots of education and and beauty out there to grab onto. But if we are not tuning in because they don't align with what we align with or they don't carry what we carry, we're never gonna grow and we're never gonna learn. I want to always remain teachable because I always want to be able to grow. I want to grow with this industry, but when we kind of box ourselves off and refuse to expand or learn or grow, that's always where that's always where we're gonna be, is in that box. You know, sometimes the opposite happens too, though. You guys get in that comparison culture, and then that's like a whole nother topic. You know, you you want people to only offer what you offer because that's the right things to do. But then, no, no, don't offer the same thing. It's it's it's wild. I hear that all the time. Like, I can't believe like this skincare is in every single, you know, med spa here. Like, that's just ridiculous. It is because it's considered the best. You know, that's just like saying that only one place can carry tox. That's not real. If it's a med spa, if it's a plastic surgeon, if it's a derm practice, they're gonna carry tox. Just like if it's a med spa, if it's a plastic surgeon, if it's a derm place, they're gonna carry that skincare brand. You know, that's I think that's what's happening. It's just the comparison culture. Let's stop worrying so much about what other people are doing, and let's worry about what we do. Let's worry about educating on what we do best and showing our smarts, showing why we should be the provider of choice. I'm gonna say that. I'm gonna call out my boss. My boss, John, always tells me, you have to be the partner of choice. You gotta be the partner of choice. And he talks like that. You gotta be the partner of choice. He's gonna kill me. But he's he's right in that aspect. And I'm gonna share that little bit of knowledge with you. You need to be the partner of choice, and you need to be the provider of choice. And how can you be the provider of choice amongst all of this? Education. That's what it is. Educating your consumers on what you do, educating your consumers on why it's superior and why you align with it, why you choose to partner with it. Share education about the skincare brands that you offer, share what makes you different from the masses and why you choose that. Show your before and afters, show the transitions, show the times in between, show how you guide your patients to success. To me, that is what's golden. That is what sets you apart. And then, like we say in Louisiana, the lanyat, the cherry on the top, that's the fun stuff. That's the uh that's just like the little juice, like the education stuff, the fun stuff, the things that show who you are. There's just right and wrong ways to do it. And I know that we're not perfect. Oh, I know. I know there's times when I get in the weeds. I know that there's times when I get in the weeds, and and I don't claim to be perfect, and I don't sit here and say that I've never done anything wrong. I I I have. I'm just not proud of it. And I certainly wouldn't want it on social media to where it never goes away. I don't want people seeing me in my negative, you know, forever and ever. You know, I'm not perfect, so sometimes I do get into the gossipy, yucky stuff, and it's not my proudest moments, it's actually embarrassing. So I don't know. I guess that was my point of today's episode. I just I feel like social media is absolutely a machine in our industry, in our business, but it's very easy for it to take over as the monster. So, unless we recognize it, unless we change what we're doing and how we put it out there, that monster is gonna take over. So I guess that's it. I hope you guys enjoyed this episode. Um, if there's another topic that you want me to cover, please let me know. Or if you have more to weigh in on this social media topic, you can reach out to me directly at theskintrovertsam at gmail.com. I'm on all social media platforms as the skintrovert, and I'm on all podcast platforms as well. Thanks, guys. I hope y'all have a wonderful rest of your day. Go be nice on Instagram and TikTok. Bye, y'all. Think of the skintrovert as your aesthetics round table, not a training manual. This podcast is for professional education and discussion. It's not medical advice. Your scope of practice matters, regulations vary, and your license always leads. To continue the conversation, follow the skintrovert on Apple, Spotify, or any platform that you listen to your podcasts.