Claims your clinic can make
The short version
A clinic can say how Vegalab products make skin look and feel. Statements about how skin functions, about a condition, or about use with a procedure that breaks the skin stay off every clinic surface. Every line in the marketing kit passes that test. 45 minutes. Delivered by Vegalab's professional education team.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the module you can:
- Apply the appearance-or-function test to any sentence about a cosmetic.
- Replace a prohibited term with approved wording.
- List a procedure and a Vegalab product on the same menu without linking them.
- Answer the sterility question with both halves of the approved statement.
- Post results and testimonials on social media within the rules.
Part 1. The one test (10 minutes)
Ask of every sentence: is this about how skin looks and feels, or about what skin is doing? Appearance is cosmetic. Function is drug territory. A functional word stays functional with "looking" added.
| Appearance: cosmetic | Function: drug territory |
|---|---|
| Helps skin look plumper | Stimulates collagen |
| Hydrates, helps hold moisture | Repairs the skin barrier |
| A more even-looking tone | Reduces pigment production |
| The look of visible pores | Unclogs and shrinks pores |
| Leaves skin feeling comfortable | Reduces inflammation |
| Smoother-feeling skin | Regenerates skin cells |
| Helps hair look fuller | Grows hair |
The rules behind the test, one sentence each.
- United States: under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, a product intended to treat disease or to affect the structure or any function of the body is a drug, whatever it is called (21 U.S.C. 321(g)(1) and 321(i)).
- Canada: Health Canada and Ad Standards publish the Guidelines for Cosmetic Advertising and Labelling Claims, which set out the claims acceptable for a cosmetic and those that are not.
- Advertising: the Federal Trade Commission Act and Canada's Competition Act both prohibit claims that are false or misleading, and a claim needs substantiation before it is made.
- Endorsements: the FTC's Endorsement Guides (16 CFR Part 255) require a clear disclosure of any material connection between the person posting and the brand.
The Vegalab standard behind every claim is set out in the science and claims charter.
Part 2. Approved wording for common terms (10 minutes)
| Term to replace | Approved wording |
|---|---|
| "sterile" for the serum, the ampoule or the vial set | The vials and stoppers are sterilized before filling. The serum is a preserved cosmetic formulation. |
| "single-use", "single-dose" | Each vial holds three full applications. |
| "FDA approved", "FDA registered" as a product claim | FDA does not approve cosmetics. |
| "GMP certified", "ISO 22716 certified", "medical grade", "pharmaceutical grade" | Manufactured in conformity with ISO 22716 cosmetic GMP guidelines. |
| "clinically proven", "clinically tested", "dermatologist tested" | Name the fact you can show |
| "penetrates", "absorbs deeper", "reaches the dermis" | The NanoVeil encapsulation system is designed to carry actives into the upper layers of the skin on its own, without mechanical assistance. |
| "heals", "repairs" (as a verb on skin), "restores", "regenerates", "anti-inflammatory" | An appearance or feel statement from Part 1 |
| "clean", "sustainable", "vegan", "cruelty-free", "carbon neutral" | The full ingredient list, which is published |
| "patented" | Proprietary encapsulation platform |
| "hair growth", "regrowth", "density" | Scalp comfort, helps hair look fuller |
Why "clinically tested" fails even when a test exists is covered in what clinically tested means. The FDA position in full is in is Vegalab FDA approved.
Part 3. Condition names (5 minutes)
Acne, rosacea, melasma, eczema, dermatitis, psoriasis and alopecia are diagnoses. They stay out of every menu line, caption, card and conversation about what a cosmetic will do. A physician's diagnosis can sit in a client record as history, never as the reason for a product.
Part 4. Procedures on the same menu (10 minutes)
Your menu can list microneedling, peels and other procedures you are licensed to perform. The procedure is your service. A Vegalab product is a leave-on cosmetic for intact skin. Keep them on separate lines, and never present a Vegalab product as part of the needling step, as a needling serum, or as "compatible with microneedling", with or without a qualifier.
| On the menu: acceptable | On the menu: not acceptable |
|---|---|
| Microneedling, 60 minutes, performed by a licensed practitioner. | Microneedling with Hyaluronic NanoSerum. |
| Take-home care for intact skin: Hydrating NanoSerum, sealed vial set. | Needling serum: sealed Vegalab vial. |
No needle depths or device settings appear next to a Vegalab product name, in any channel. The procedure itself is yours: the protocol is the treating professional's clinical decision. The editorial view of the procedure is on microneedling.
Part 5. The sterility question (5 minutes)
Clients ask whether the product is sterile. Answer with both halves, every time:
The vials and stoppers are sterilized before filling. Each ampoule is filled and sealed immediately under a re-enterable butyl stopper and an aluminum crimp, and is drawn from rather than opened, so the contents are not exposed to air across all three applications. The serum is a preserved cosmetic formulation; no regulation in the United States or Canada requires a topical used in microneedling to be sterile.
The full answer lives on do serums used in microneedling have to be sterile. The handling that keeps the format sealed is on vial handling and dispensing.
Part 6. Social media (5 minutes)
| Do | Do not |
|---|---|
| Post captions from the marketing kit as supplied | Rewrite a kit caption into a result claim |
| Post your own before and after photographs, with written client consent, same light, same angle, unretouched | Filter, retouch or crop to exaggerate a result |
| State the number of sessions and the protocol with a result | Credit a result to one product alone |
| Disclose any product or payment from Vegalab, clearly, in the post | Hide a material connection in a hashtag cluster |
| Tag products by their full name | Pair a product tag with a procedure or a condition hashtag |
| Reply to claims questions with a link to the product page | Repost client comments that describe a medical result |
| Show a vial on its own or in the treatment tray | Show a vial next to a needling device, or product applied from a syringe |
Assessment
Ten statements, each marked acceptable or not, with a rewrite for every one marked not. Pass mark 9 of 10. Sample statements:
- "Our hydrating facial helps skin look plumper."
- "The vial set is sterile, so it is safe after needling."
- "Brightening NanoSerum targets melanin production."
- "Clarifying NanoSerum leaves skin smoother-feeling."
- A menu line naming a procedure and a Vegalab product in the same sentence.
Related
Last updated: