Alisa Beyer of The Benchmarking Company led two PBA Beauty Boot Camps, based on PBA's Consumer Trend Report and her experience consulting on brand building in the beauty industry, at Cosmoprof North America this July.

Ada Polla-Tray of the skin care line Alchimie Forever loved the Boot Camp. "This class is a big reason why I came to Cosmoprof North America. It is worth coming to the show just for this." Ada and other attendees took home pages of worksheets and a complimentary copy of the PBA Salons and Day Spas Consumer Trend Report-a $299 value.

The first part of the class was dedicated to the brand building process and the techniques and tricks that set certain brands above the rest. Alisa recommended setting up a "Brand War Wall" where you post your brand materials side by side with competitors' materials to see which ones really stand out. She also offered juicy pieces of advice, such as: "A brand doesn't have to evoke a positive emotion as long as it evokes some emotion."

In the second half of the class, Alisa got into the trends behind brands and what consumers want. "The number one reason women switch products is that they want to try something 'new,' so make sure that they always feel that you are new," she advised. In talking about trends of the near future, Alisa predicted that skin care will change from "me skin care" to "family skin care," and she pointed out that skincare has already become "manly."

After the close, Brandy Smith of Bubbles Hair Salon commented, "I was engaged for 4 straight hours. [Alisa] has viable passion. This class was the best part of my experience here!"

To benefit from some of the consumer insights behind the Beauty Boot Camp, purchase your copy of the PBA Salons and Day Spas Consumer Trend Report. Call 800-468-2274 (480-281-0424)