The Consultation Upsell: Skin Analysis Designed to Recommend Expensive Products

“Let me analyse your skin and recommend a personalised routine.”

It sounds helpful — an expert assessment leading to tailored recommendations. But the consultation model has a fundamental conflict of interest: the person analysing your skin is incentivised to sell you products.

Understanding how consultations work reveals why recommendations so often lead to the premium shelf.

The Consultation Structure

Whether at a department store counter, a branded boutique, a salon, or a skincare clinic, the pattern is consistent:

“Expert” examines your skin
Multiple “concerns” are identified
Products are recommended for each concern
Recommendations favour the brand being sold
Pressure (subtle or overt) to purchase follows

This isn’t education — it’s structured selling disguised as service.

Finding Problems to Solve

The Infinite Concern List

A skilled consultant can find concerns on any face:

Normal skin? “Preventative care needed.”
Dry patches? “Dehydration requiring treatment.”
Any line? “Early signs of ageing.”
Any pore? “Enlarged pores needing minimisation.”
Any redness? “Sensitivity requiring calming products.”
Any unevenness? “Hyperpigmentation to address.”

No one leaves a consultation being told their skin is fine and they don’t need anything.

The Magnification Effect

Professional lighting, magnifying mirrors, and close examination reveal “problems” invisible in normal conditions. Under harsh light at 5x magnification, everyone’s skin looks problematic.

These viewing conditions don’t reflect how your skin looks in real life. But they create concerns that justify product recommendations.

The Worry Creation

Consultants are trained to identify latent concerns:

“Your skin is good now, but without proper care…”
“I can see early signs that without intervention…”
“Your current routine is leaving gaps in…”

Future problems that might never occur become present concerns requiring immediate product solutions.

The Recommendation Engine

Brand Loyalty

Counter consultations recommend that counter’s brand. Always. A consultant at Brand X will never recommend Brand Y’s products, even if they’d serve you better.

This isn’t about your skin — it’s about moving inventory.

Targeting Price Points

Recommendations typically aim at:

The full regimen (5+ products)
Premium items within the range
The products the consultant is incentivised to move (new launches, promotional items, high-margin products)

A £200 recommendation is more common than a £50 one, regardless of actual need.

The System Sale

Individual products become “incomplete” solutions:

“This serum works best with our cleanser”
“You’ll need the eye cream to complete the routine”
“The night cream activates the ingredients in the serum”

What might genuinely help (one product addressing one concern) becomes a multi-product system with interdependencies.

The Training Behind It

Sales Objectives

Consultants typically have sales targets. Their performance is measured by revenue generated, not by customer satisfaction or skin improvement.

Good consultations (from the company’s perspective) result in high-value purchases.

Talking Points

Consultants are trained with brand messaging:

Proprietary ingredient stories
Differentiation from competitors
Objection handling (“it’s expensive because…”)
Closing techniques

This is sales training, not dermatology training.

Limited Knowledge

Most counter consultants have brand training, not cosmetic science education. They know the brand’s product line and talking points. They may not understand:

Ingredient interactions
Concentration thresholds
Alternative solutions outside their brand
When products genuinely aren’t needed

The Technology Veneer

Modern consultations often use technology to add credibility:

Skin Analysis Devices

Machines that photograph and “analyse” skin, generating reports with graphs and measurements.

These can provide data (hydration levels, sebum measurements, UV damage mapping), but:

Interpretation favours product sales
“Problems” are matched to product “solutions”
The analysis leads to brand recommendations regardless of findings

The technology serves the sale, not objective assessment.

Apps and Quizzes

Digital consultations and brand apps use questionnaires to recommend products.

The algorithm outputs serve brand interests:

Rarely recommend “you don’t need anything”
Often recommend multiple products
Always recommend that brand’s products
Sometimes recommend premium over entry-level options

When Consultations Have Value

Not all consultations are purely exploitative:

Genuine Expertise

Some consultants have real knowledge beyond brand training. They may offer useful information about ingredients, application techniques, or skin biology.

Sample Access

Consultations often include samples. Even if recommendations are sales-driven, samples let you test before committing.

Product Matching

If you’ve already decided to buy from a brand, a consultation can help identify which products within that range suit you.

Technique Demonstration

Seeing how products should be applied has value, even if the product recommendations are biased.

Protecting Yourself

Know What You Need

Before a consultation, have clear goals. “I want a vitamin C serum” is harder to upsell than “I want better skin.”

Set Budget Limits

State your budget upfront. “I’m looking to spend around £50 today” constrains recommendations.

Ask Questions

“What’s the concentration of the active ingredient?”
“How does this compare to [alternative product]?”
“What’s the evidence this works?”
“Can I just try one product rather than the full system?”

Questions reveal whether the consultant has genuine knowledge or just sales training.

Take Recommendations With Scepticism

Assume the recommendation serves the brand first, you second. Verify claims independently before purchasing.

Request Samples

Ask for samples rather than committing to full sizes. Any reputable counter should provide samples of products they recommend.

Walk Away

You’re not obligated to buy anything. Consultations that pressure you toward immediate purchase are revealing their true purpose.

The Alternative: Independent Advice

Better skin advice comes from sources without financial interest in your purchases:

Dermatologists (for medical concerns)
Independent aestheticians (choose carefully)
Evidence-based online resources
Product reviews from people who paid for the products

These sources aren’t perfect, but they’re not structurally incentivised to sell you specific brands.

The Honest Reality

Counter consultations are sales processes. The “analysis” identifies problems the brand’s products “solve.” The “recommendations” maximise purchase value. The “expertise” is brand training.

This isn’t malicious — it’s the business model. Understanding it helps you extract value (samples, information, technique tips) while resisting the pressure (buying five products you don’t need at full markup).

The Bottom Line

When someone with commission incentives analyses your skin and recommends their employer’s products, the primary service being rendered is sales, not skincare advice.

Consultations can be useful if you understand what they are. They’re less useful if you believe they’re objective skin assessment leading to personalised recommendations.

The consultant’s job is to sell. Your job is to buy wisely despite the sales environment. Knowing the game helps you play it better.