THINGS I DON'T DO
THERE ARE MORE WAYS THAN ONE TO GET TO A DESIRED OUTCOME.
I'm not claiming my way is always the most efficient. That phrase “Work smarter, not harder,” is relative. My primary goals are to provide incredible service to my clients, give them beautiful makeup and have fun doing it. If I'm being honest, I also want to make as much money as I can, in the shortest period of time. Any time spent working on things for clients, when I'm not actually with a client, is reducing my overall hourly wage. A question I always ask myself: “Is this a good use of your time?” Here are a few things that may surprise you that I do not do and I'm telling you why it isn't worth my time.
I DO NOT USE CLIENT SOFTWARE
I am really old school here. I don't use any platform so my clients can book directly. I don't use auto/text reminders for appointments or anything like that. I like the flexibility of deciding moment to moment, whether I will take a client or not. There are venues I don't like to work at, geographic considerations etc. I am a control freak and letting people book themselves on a platform just creates too many unknowns for me personally. They fill out an inquiry form on my website. I reply via email (I have created templates to help me respond quickly and my version of efficiently) and then I book them if I'm available. I find this makes me the most happy in my day to day life and allows me to make adjustments on the spot without a big production.
MY SOCIAL MEDIA FEED: CURATION
I admire a well curated feed. When the images are all in a similar preset and there is a consistent flow it can look so artsy and cool. For me personally, that isn't realistic. I'll admit currently with clients AND content creation my feed is a bit of a hot mess. I'm going to reference my approach pre-content creation days, because it worked. I think there is a misconception that high end clients ONLY want to see beautifully curated feeds, with images only from photographers, none of your own photos and only your “best” weddings. I don't ONLY want to attract high end clients working with the fanciest planners. I'm down to work with anyone that wants to pay me my rates that meets MY criteria (another newsletter topic).
I have found that clients feel most confident when they see professional photos from the photographers (so they know how the end game looks), photos I have taken in real life (will they look like a cakey mess?) and they enjoy a good before and after (they want to be reassured they will still look like themselves). As you know photographers all have a different editing style. I'm not a huge fan of a darker, moody edit and will likely not post those. There is still a huge variety in the remaining edits and since I work with many photographers, there will be a lot of variety in the tones of the photos on my feed.
My own images will obviously not look nearly as great as a pro, but they are more of what my clients want to see. I didn't always do before and afters. I noticed a HUGE increase in my business when I started posting them. My photographer friend Christy, is the one that pushed me to do so. She said you do such natural looking glam that it can feel basic. When you see what someone looked like before, THEN you realize how transformative that natural glam was. THAT is what people want. So I started. This medley of photos from all different sources has been effective, but doesn't result in cohesion for me. That is ok, because I'm not wasting time trying to make it happen, and my clients are seeing what they need to in order to feel confident booking me.
I DON'T PROVIDE TOUCH UP KITS FOR MY BRIDES
Some of you may be gasping! LOL. I say this with zero judgement, but I think it's a waste of time. I don't think a deciding factor for someone booking you in the future is whether or not they get an extra powder puff and a breath mint. Touch up kits kind of remind me of the bathroom basket. You know the one every bride makes that has Advil, a sewing kit, and new toothbrushes etc? No one ever uses it and it just sits there. A nice to have for sure, but is it a NEED? PS many items provided in a touch up kit are already IN that basket. Have a look next time you are in the bathroom. LOL. Also, single use items generate a lot of extra plastic waste:)
To have the best outcome, I feel the bride needs not only their lipstick, but the liner too. Gloss could also be a factor. They should really buy the full size versions (you aren't sampling the lip liner!) using YOUR link after the preview. If a bride didn't do a preview or just doesn't wear lip color, I will for sure make her a sample. Last newsletter, I linked the vial I use. That is the extent of it. If she gets shiny, I'd rather her blot with a tissue than more powder. I walk her through how to do so. There are tissues everywhere that day. It is a nice gesture to provide her with extra things, but is it necessary? Will you make more money in the future because you did? Is she more likely to refer you because of it? Maybe. I just don't do it:)
I GENERALLY DON'T DEPOT FOR MY KIT
I can definitely admire a condensed kit. I can see the advantages of keeping a lot of options in a smaller space and the overall weight of the kit can be less. They are interesting to see. Personally, I rarely depot anything. I am a full size bish. I have put my lipstick tubes into lip palettes, because I can’t take the time to read through labels. I use eye shadow palettes and will buy pre-made palettes where it makes sense. I am constantly pairing down what is in my kit and ask myself all the time: “Is it kit worthy?” For instance I have a light bronzer, medium and deeper in tone but I don’t have 4 different brands of the medium version. ONE is the best of the moment. It’s beats out the other 3 and is therefore kit worthy. Don’t get me wrong I test products constantly and what is kit worth will evolve or I rotate for variety. I don’t have the brain cells to remember to refill items and I also try to minimize single use plastic where possible from a sustainability standpoint. It works for me and I’m sharing that, because condensed kits ARE smart. We all get there in different ways. If you are also not a depotting kinda MUA, I do encourage you to evaluate if you have multiples of the same items and if every version needs to be there.
We all have nuances that are important to us. I may be speaking crazy talk to you! That's ok! I just encourage you to think of how could you do things differently? Is how you are spending your valuable time garnishing more clients? Is the task at hand, a NICE to do or a NEED to do? Only you really know those answers. XO