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BEST PR ACTICES © GETTY IMAGES 10 MAY/JUNE 2017 | Med Esthetics ASSESSING IDEAL LIP DIMENSIONS In an effort to help practitioners achieve optimal cosmetic lip augmen t ation outcomes in Caucasian women, Brian J. F. Wong, MD, PhD, et al, surveyed focus groups and used their responses to develop ideal lip dimensions. Assessments were based on attractiveness ranking of surface area, ratio of upper to lower lip, and dimensions of the lip surface area relative to the lower third of the face. The researchers used synthetic morph frontal digital images of the faces of 20 white women (ages 18 to 25) to generate fi ve varied lip surface areas for each face, for a total of 100 faces. They ranked the faces by attractiveness via developed conventional and internet-based focus groups, and each face was plotted to quantify the most attractive surface area. In the second phase of the study, they created four variants of 15 images ranked most attractive, manipulating upper to lower lip ratios while maintaining the most attractive surface area. In the third phase, the surface area from the most attractive faces was used to determine the total lip surface area relative to the lower facial third. Based on focus group responses, the most attractive lip surface area represents a 53.5% increase from baseline, an upper to lower lip ratio of 1:2, and a surface area equal to 9.6% of the lower third of the face. The study was published online February 16, 2017, in JAMA Facial Plastic Surgery. Evaluating Aesthetic Devices Twenty years ago, physicians who wanted to offer aesthetic laser and light treatments had only a few choices—vascular lasers, CO 2 lasers and intense pulsed light (IPL). Today, there are hundreds of devices from which to choose. To help phy- sicians determine which devices are right for their practices and patient bases, dermatologist M. Christine Lee, MD, of the Laser and Skin Institute in Walnut Creek, California, offered the following advice for evaluating medical lasers during her presentation at the 2017 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology (A AD) in March: • Look for multi-functionality. Multi-modality platforms that offer several applications will allow you to address a variety of concerns with one system. • Compare laser systems. Talk to several companies and compare cost benefi ts; consider whether this is a gold standard or best-in-class device. • Ask yourself, what does this device add to my practice? • If you typically perform combination treatments, make sure the device can be used in combination with toxins and fi llers. • Look at the system and its functions critically. Is this a workhorse device or a current fad? • Investigate your competition. There are pros and cons to being the fi rst to offer a new device; conversely, you don't want to invest in a technology if your market is already oversaturated. For years, practices and medspas have been building their Facebook followers and tracking likes and comments, but they don't always know what to do with those engagements. Recently, the social media giant added a new, more quantifi able adver- tising product: Facebook Lead Ads, which allows businesses to create ads with mini forms. When consumers click on the ad, they are asked to share a small amount of information about themselves, and the prac- tices can then use this information to follow up on the lead. To help you make the most of this new tool, Angela (Miller) Hamilton, a Facebook marketing expert with ReachLocal, offers the following tips: • Keep the lead form short (three to fi ve questions). Ask for the bare minimum information needed to follow up with the consumer. Too many questions can negatively impact conversion rates. • Since Lead Ads enables consumers to interact directly with an ad to contact a business, it is critical to create a compelling offer—or rea- son—for the consumer to engage. Ask the question, "What would it take to get an individual to fi ll out this form?" Entice potential clients with something specifi c, such as educational information or an offer that is of value to them. • Follow up on the leads within the fi rst hour. Have a staff member regularly log into your account to check for new leads or consider using third-party solutions, such as ReachSocial Ads, that deliver leads to your inbox, enabling faster response times. USING FACEBOOK TO DRIVE LEADS