What An Extra Has To Prove Before We Recommend It

What does an optional extra have to show before it earns a place on a Chowchilla reader's list? This page sets out the tests applied to every add-on that appears in this journal.

What an extra has to show

Some optional extras pay back and some are mostly marketing. To be called worth having, an extra must name the one thing it adds, say what a reader can realistically expect from it, and say what it asks in return. A claim that cannot meet all three stays in the marketing column. The American Society for Dermatologic Surgery's laser resurfacing page is an example of the kind of professional reference used to check a claim of that sort.

Why offer terms come before studies

The research method is to read offer terms and independent studies before estimating what an extra is worth, and the terms come first. A study can show that something works in general, but only the terms show what you will be asked to buy, how many visits count and what happens if you stop. Reading them first keeps a good study from making a poor package look better than it is. For readers asking who will perform a treatment, the Medical Board of California is where to start.

How a benefit estimate is stated

Estimates are given as a range, with the limit stated next to it. A single figure with no range, or a range with no stated limit, is treated as incomplete. A discount is reported only after the terms behind it have been read, because headline savings figures are treated with suspicion. The ASDS page on intense pulsed light is an example of a source consulted for that kind of treatment.

How you can challenge an estimate

If you think an estimate in this journal is too high or too low, send the offer terms and the source you believe was misread, using the form on the contact page. An estimate that cannot withstand a reader's reading of the same terms should be revised. Chowchilla anchors this journal, and the rest of Madera County is covered whenever a topic reaches that far.