Why we do not book a treatment on the same day as a new client's first visit, and what we do instead.
First consultations at Ivory are structured differently to how most aesthetic clinics run them. Here is how, and why.
What a first consultation is not. A menu-and-sales conversation. We do not walk a new client through a list of treatments and see what they will book. We do not offer same-day treatment on a first visit for any injectable, laser, or advanced modality. This is a philosophy choice with a reason.
What a first consultation is. A structured 45 to 60 minute clinical conversation. It starts with the client's concerns, in their own words, before we say anything about treatment. It includes a full skin analysis using both direct examination and (where relevant) imaging. It covers medical history, current medications, previous aesthetic treatments (including complications), lifestyle factors, and current skincare routine.
What comes out of it. A written treatment plan, ranked by priority, with clear expectations of outcome, session cadence, downtime, and total investment. Where we would recommend delaying or declining a treatment the client asked about, we say so and explain why. Where we can offer alternatives that better fit the client's actual concern, we present them.
Why we do not book same-day treatments on a first visit. Two reasons. First, decisions made in the emotional context of first seeing your skin under clinical lighting are often not the decisions clients would make with 24 hours to reflect. Second, our team wants time to review the plan together before any injectable or laser session, so that the practitioner performing the treatment has full context, not just a chart written 15 minutes earlier.
What clients often expect that we do not do. Extract commitment on the day. Push the highest-margin treatment. Offer bulk-session packages with pressure to buy on the day. Compare a client's face favourably or unfavourably to a template. None of these serve the client well long-term.
What clients often do not expect that we do. Tell them they do not need what they came in asking for. Recommend a lower-cost treatment when it is clinically the right answer. Refer to a dermatology, surgical, or medical colleague when the concern is outside our appropriate scope. Book a follow-up consultation before any treatment when the picture is complex.
The team pattern. New clients typically meet with either Shohreh or a senior clinician for the consultation. If the recommended treatment plan involves a specific specialist (dermatologist for medical skin conditions, a specific injector for structural work), the plan includes who will perform each part of the treatment.
The consultation fee. We charge a consultation fee that is credited toward any treatment booked within a defined window. This is a small filter that means clients coming in have real intent, and it lets us give the full 45 to 60 minutes without pressure to convert.
The honest reason. Aesthetic medicine is one of the areas where the client-clinician relationship should be built on care and clinical judgement, not sales pressure. Our consultation format is one of the ways we hold that standard.