What to Look for in a Permanent Makeup Marketing Partner

Being a beautypreneur often means wearing many many hats, particularly as you are starting and scaling your permanent makeup business. While you may be an expert artist, marketing is an art on its own – and the right partner can help you build a steady flow of clients without even batting an eyelash.

There are so many ways to market your business… Google, Facebook, Instagram, Groupon, Yelp… it might make your head spin. The good news is that you do not have to figure it out alone. Hiring a marketing partner that specializes in working with permanent makeup artists can save you time, hassle, and even money, versus trying to figure it out alone. If you want to see more clients, make more money, AND free up your time, then keep reading.

An exceptional marketing partner uses methods proven to deliver results – ie. help you book more clients, so you can get back to your artistry. Here are our recommendations on what a good PMU marketing partner should have.

❖ What a Good Permanent Makeup Marketing Partner Will Have:

➢ Experience
➢ Referrals
➢ Personalized Approach
➢ Passionate, Customer-driven Methods
➢ Measurable Results
➢ Transparency

➢ Experience
Look for a marketing agency that not only knows marketing, but also the beauty industry. Your potential partner should also be knowledgeable in driving more clients through your door.

➢ Referrals
Look for a partner that comes highly-recommended. Ask your peers and read reviews. Do your homework about strategies that can apply best to your business. A good partner will be like a teammate to help you grow.

➢ Personalized Services
Just like no two brows are the same, an amazing PMU marketing partner knows what it takes and recognizes where you are in your business journey. While every beautypreneur’s story is different, a good partner will immediately be able to take note of the stage of business you are in and work with you to create a plan to get you to your goals.

➢ Passionate, Customer-driven Methods
Look for a marketing agency that is enthusiastic and committed to building your brand and marketing to potential clients. While the agency should have a solid process, they should also be willing to experiment and think outside of the box to help your business succeed.

Just like customer service is important to the clients that you serve, finding a partner that is just as committed to the level of service that they provide to you is equally important and can save a lot of headaches.

➢ Measurable Results
The proof is always in the pudding. While some marketing methods take time to show results, the right partner will help get you there fast, while keeping you in the loop every step of the way.

➢ Transparency
An exceptional marketing agency will have transparent and open communication, keeping you in the loop with what they are working on for you and what results they are showing for you. Ask about their policy for communicating with clients and set expectations with them about what you would like to know, if you want any specific details.

Ultimately, you may not understand (or need to understand) every single detail of what they are doing for you. But, having a good working relationship will give you peace of mind about what’s happening behind the scenes.

Establish Clear Goals To Find Your Best Fit

Look for a PMU marketing agency willing to consult with you in person or virtually. Treat this consultation just as you would a job interview for a potential employee. This time together gives you a chance to ask questions about their style, processes, vision for your brand, and costs. Your potential marketing partner should have plenty of questions for you, too. Your consultation will help you determine their level of interest and curiosity about your business and the goals you have for growth.

Before you meet with any potential partner, have a vision session with yourself and determine what success looks like for you. Then, clearly communicate your goals to the marketing agencies you interview and find a partner that fits with you best.

Ultimately, growing your business is not a one-person act. It takes the right people working with you to help get you to the next level of your business.

Infographic

Do you want to be a successful beautypreneur? Being an expert artist is not enough. You need to put your hands on marketing your business. This is a struggle for many who are confused about how marketing works. That is where a marketing partner comes into the picture. Read about the importance of hiring one and how you can find the best-suited marketing partner for your business.

6 Exceptional PMU Marketing Traits Infographic

 

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How to Start a Successful Beauty Brand

The beauty industry is one of the most competitive markets today. Competing with established companies and brands may appear daunting. In addition to performing the typical market and feasibility studies done, new beauty brands should focus on strategizing their approach in the following key areas:

  • Brand Appearance
  • Competition
  • Professional Employment
  • Social Media Marketing
  • Continuing Education

Your brand will reflect you and your services, so spending the extra time and money necessary to devise a plan for these aspects of your business will pay dividends in the future.

Design a Fitting Logo

One of the first things potential clients will notice about your PMU business is your logo. Spend time thinking about what you want to communicate through your unique trademark to the public. Do you prefer classic colors and lettering or something bolder? Typical colors for PMU logos are more feminine pinks, purples and whites. More luxurious and masculine colors are blacks and golds. Use color and font choices to communicate the vibe you represent best. “Edgy” or “modern” can be communicated without words through the design you choose.

Ask yourself who your target audience is and what unique strengths your business brings to the table. Are you branding yourself as affordable, or will you be known for high-end luxury? Investing in a PMU marketing company that understands your vision and voice is a wise investment to develop a cohesive brand image across all customer facing content.

Understand Your Competition

As with most market research, you’ll want to size up the competition and their branding strategies. More than likely, this information can easily be found on their social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Following their pages and interacting with them will inform you on how others market themselves. It’s also a way to start building up your own contacts.

Recruit a Team of Supportive Employees

It’s impossible to do all the things that need to be done to build a brand alone. Allocate your time and effort towards finding reliable people who share your vision. In the current market, traditional recruitment methods still seem to work well for finding great employees. Customer service is a big part of branding, so invest time and materials into training and mentoring your employees to reflect the quality service and customer-focused image you strive to attain.

Your staff is not the only part of the team. As your business grows, your tax liabilities and intricacies likely will, too. Hire a tax professional or accountant to give you the best financial advice and help with everything from controlling costs to preparing tax documents.

Use Social Media to Increase Brand Awareness

You can plan the best logo, build the best team, offer the best services in the friendliest atmosphere, and go above and beyond your competitors, but fall short of success if clients don’t discover you. Increasing your brand awareness is a must, meaning familiarizing the public with your services. Make it a daily habit to work on growing your business, setting aside anywhere from just ten minutes to an hour daily. Increasing public awareness of your brand and services will inevitably bring you more PMU clients.

Research what marketing techniques draw the most attention, but give particular consideration to social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. These platforms are wide-reaching, free, immediately accessible and chances are, you know a lot about how to use them already. Staying active on social media is a great way to get your brand and services in front of thousands of people every day. Keep in mind that other businesses are doing the same, so the key is to make posting and running Stories a regular habit to increase your viewership. Social media is a great avenue for posting before-and-after pictures and testimonials. Photos and testimonials are essential PMU advertising tools for branding yourself. Learn more about using Facebook and Instagram to market your PMU business here.

Never Stop Learning

Building your brand is an ongoing process that involves continuously educating yourself. From trends to training, you and your team will need to stay in the know so that your brand becomes and remains top-notch in quality and service. Attend trade shows and join a PMU trade organization to stay up-to-date on the latest techniques and trends in the industry. These events double as a great way to build relationships and increase your brand awareness.

Social media, PMU journals and the news can provide important information regarding beauty trends. Following what’s trendy could set you apart from your competition, as long as it makes financial sense and is not done at the expense of abandoning the services and products that speak to your brand. It would be unwise to chase every fleeting change at the expense of services that are timeless.

Take the opportunity to listen to client feedback and use it to improve your brand–from the comfy chairs in your studio to the aftercare kits you provide. Listen to your own clients, the clients of the competition, your staff, social media chatter and anyone you could garner information from about how to better your brand and stand out from others in the industry.

Establishing a new beauty brand presents unique challenges. We hope these tips for building your brand inspire your creativity and fill you with confidence that you have the skills, tools and professional help necessary to establish your successful PMU brand. Invest the time and capital in yourself, your team, and information to achieve your goals.

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Are you just starting in the PMU industry and want to build your business from the bottom and rise to the top? Everyone wants that for their business, and it requires knowledge and works to achieve. With the beauty industry being one of the most competitive in the market today, this will present unique challenges. Here are some tips for building your brand.

5 Tips for Starting a Successful Beauty Brand

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Keeping Up with the PMU Competition

Keeping Up with the PMU Competition

Passion, experience and preparation are a great foundation, but even with all the tools in the box, starting a business can be tough. Just like it takes grit to turn into a pearl – building an empire doesn’t happen overnight. The best news is that you’re in an industry predicted to grow by 8.3% to become worth $960 million by the year 2026.1 Take advantage and get ready to step into your power! Want to know the one essential ingredient for your success?

It’s planning.

Planning is the key to running and growing a successful PMU business that’s able to keep up with (or surpass) the competition. Just as the old adage says, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” Building and maintaining a successful business takes strategizing. Whether you’re just starting out or have been in business for yourself for a while, these steps can make the road to success a little easier to navigate.

1) Do your market research. Here are some key questions to ask yourself during the information-gathering process.
a) What should my pricing structure look like?
b) How should I brand my company? What kind of marketing and advertising should I use as a PMU entrepreneur?
c) What services and products will I offer?
d) Where will I set up my business?
e) Is there a need or desire for my services in that area?
f) Who will be my competitors, and what does their business look like?
g) How can I set myself apart from my competition?

2) Plan your resources. You are coming to the table with artistic skills and an eye for beauty. However, there are likely aspects of business that are new and challenging. No one is an island, so don’t expect to go it alone. When you’re first starting out, you may have to wear many hats. However as you grow, outsourcing business functions like growth marketing or administrative tasks gives you time back to focus on quality and client care.

3) Work on your branding. This step can be one of the most fun and creative parts. Your brand will come to represent you. While working on your branding strategy, here are some questions to ask yourself.
a) What should my logo look like? Sleek, modern or edgy?
b) In what ways should I advertise or market my business?
c) What social media platforms can I use for marketing my business?
d) Can a special in-store experience help my brand?
e) What prices should I charge for my services?

4) Make your clients #1. Your clients will always be the most crucial part of your business, because without them, you have no business. It’s all in the little details – the experience you provide during their visit, communication before and during the appointment, and aftercare follow up. The connection that your clients have with you is ultimately what drives positive word-of-mouth, reviews and loyalty.

5) Listen to feedback from your team and customers. You can learn a lot by just listening. Positive or negative, feedback is always an opportunity to learn. Pat yourself on the back for the positives and learn from the mistakes. Apply your new knowledge to better yourself and your business.

6) Keep expenses in line. It can be easy to lose track of small amounts of money that get spent here and there, especially when you’re just starting up. To prevent wasteful spending while money is tight, you’ll need to be vigilant in tracking your business expenses. Eliminate expenses that don’t add value to you, your team, or your clients. Find just one or two things that will build your business by improving the client experience or streamlining the scheduling process or boosting brand visibility.

Whether you’re just starting out or have been in business for years, these tips should help you focus or refocus your energy and efforts on the essential ingredients to being a successful PMU artist. They will serve to foster an environment that is both employee-friendly and customer-conscious. Most of all, they will give you the best chance for success doing what you love.

 

  1. M. (2021, June 14). Cosmetic Pigments Market worth $960 million by 2026 – Exclusive Report by MarketsandMarketsTM. PRNewswire. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cosmetic-pigments-market-worth-960-million-by-2026–exclusive-report-by-marketsandmarkets-301311440.html

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Mind Your (Social Media) Manners: 5 Social Media Marketing Tips for Permanent Makeup Artists

Tips for Permanent Makeup Artists

“Mind your manners!”

You probably heard that countless times as a kid, but you probably never expected to hear it again as an adult.

The internet and social media have so much of the world linked together that it is now more important than ever to observe online etiquette, especially if you are working hard to build your personal brand.

Avoid Costly Mistakes Online

As a “beautypreneur,” so much of your advertising and marketing is done through your social media pages. You can quickly make a name for yourself and build the reputation of your business through your personal and professional networking sites if you know how to promote your PMU or microblading business online.

One slip up on a post or story could hurt your reputation and cause you to lose your followers and potential clients, which means a loss of future earnings. It’s helpful to brush up on the correct code of conduct every now and again to avoid costly mistakes.

Tip 1: Be Relevant, Relatable and Visual

Your clients fall in love with you, your work and your story. Use your Instagram, Facebook and other social media channels to showcase your expertise and results that you’ve achieved for other clients. Before and after pictures are a great way to show potential clients a visual example of what results you may be able to achieve for them.

Give them a little more…Reels and Stories are a great way to show the behind the scenes of your work and showcase a little bit more about your personality.

What should you not post? We recommend steering clear of pictures that are overly personal like pictures of pets, kids, food, vacations – anything that isn’t relevant to your business should stay minimal or not be posted on your business pages.

On the flip side of the coin, remember that potential clients can easily access your personal social media pages. So, keep those free of content that some might see as objectionable or offensive. It could affect your business reputation. Create and maintain separate accounts. Consider having a dedicated employee or team manage your professional page and always give yourself time to think before you click that ‘post’ button or keep personal profiles on private.

Tip 2: Build Relationships

Building relationships works better than being pushy and salesy. Clients can see through interactions that are not genuine. No need to immediately and continually plug your services to everyone.

As a PMU artist you have every right to take on (or decline) clients based on the nature of the work, how the client behaves or if you feel like the work in some way compromises the integrity of your work. Relate and connect, and know that the right clients will be interested in what you have to offer.

Tip 3: Give Clients a Person to Talk to

Did you know that your DMs are a super important way that you can connect with your clients? Your followers prefer a real person answering their questions. Firstly, because it builds trust and security in your abilities to perform a top-quality service. Secondly, it’s a great way to start to build a long-term relationship before they are even in your salon.

It may seem tiresome, but set time aside to review and respond to client messages and comments each day. If you’re actively requesting reviews from your clients, acknowledging and following up with reviews is key for building loyalty, as well as mitigating any negative situations that might arise.

Tip 4: Use Thoughtful Hashtags

Hashtags get you and your posts noticed, by allowing Instagram to tag and sort the type of content that you are posting (ie. microblading examples, lip blush before and afters, etc.).

Using hashtags helps those searching for your services actually find you. If you use too many or irrelevant hashtags, though, your content is likely to become white noise that goes unnoticed.

Use hashtags regularly but also wisely, making sure they relate to your business (examples: #Eyebrows #PermanentCosmetics) and avoid using hashtags that are not relevant to your work.

Tip 5: Give Respect to Earn Respect

The PMU community has a positive, encouraging vibe to it. Your interactions with clients, followers, potential clients and competitors should be upbeat. Keep these rules in mind when posting and replying:

  • Post content that is kind, encouraging or uplifting.
  • Remain professional, even if someone ruffles your feathers
  • Ask permission to borrow content
  • Give credit to borrowed content
  • Avoid complaining
  • Treat others the way you want to be treated
  • Always get clients’ permission and/or a consent form before sharing their imagery

Be You-nique

It might be possible to put all of these rules together under the big Golden Rule of treating others the way you want to be treated. Always stop and think before you post:

  • Would you appreciate reading what you’re about to post?
  • Is it kind?
  • Is it true?
  • Is it legal to post?
  • Is it helpful?
  • Is it relevant to a client who is looking to book with you?

If you can answer, ‘Yes’ to all of the above, then post away. Armed with the knowledge of social media manners, you are ready to make your business pages uniquely you.

Highstoke Media Network

HSM Network

 

Highstoke Media NetworkGetting ahead of the game today requires businesses to be able to adapt to a world marked by innovation and change.

Taking a step back, evaluating what has been done, and figuring out where you want to go is essential for any organization. Changes are here and we are excited to share them with you.

This year, Highstoke Media has faced a substantial growth and we have taken time to understand our role in the beauty industry and what we intend to achieve.

We have realized that the scope of our business project has far exceeded our expectations. As time went on, it became more clear to us that our mission is to walk alongside not only with Permanent Make up artists but business owners of the beauty industry and help them to make their dreams come true.

First, our mission was focused on worldwide PMU artists but now we want to help all beauty professionals to build and expand their business while they impact their community.

The Beauty Growth Network  

Since we understand that community makes all the difference, we are here to introduce you to Highstoke Media Network, an online community for beauty entrepreneurs and professionals, a place where their questions are answered and they can feel part of something bigger.

Highstoke Media is on a mission to create a community of beauty professionals where they can learn about how to take advantage of their potential and define their own definition of success.

We are here to provide valuable information and inspire action through the content we are creating. Highstoke Media is here to support entrepreneurs who are chasing their dreams. We are here to grow together.

Our goal with the Highstoke Media Network is to support beauty professionals by providing them with a safe environment that not only allows them to find new clients but also where they can feel confident and  can discover all the tools and information they need.

Highstoke Media Network

Our Program: Brow Clients on Demand Plus

Over time we are seeking to develop programs that facilitate the objectives set by the beauty professionals. That is why we are proud of our first program focused on Permanent Makeup artists. Brow Clients on Demand Plus (BOCD+) offers PMU artists a method to get more paying clients with guaranteed bookings. This program handles both the marketing (directing dream clients your way) and  sales (booking appointments, closing deals, and directing deposits in your bank account). 

This is just the beginning of all the great things we have planned for this year. Stay tuned. for more announcements.

How to become a successful Beauty entrepreneur?

successful beauty entrepreneur

At Highstoke Media, we have learned that our passion is to support and partner with beauty entrepreneurs. We have experienced the feeling of uncertainty and doubt that came with setting up our own business. That’s why we want to share some insights and advice to help you make it as an entrepreneur.

  1. Establish a clear business plan

Beauty EntrepreneurA good place to start is creating your own business plan. Take your time to define your business advantages and weaknesses, what you offer; what makes you unique in the market. Also, don’t forget about focusing on the strategies that you will use to grow and create brand awareness in the industry. 

In this stage, you should think about every possible scenario, which could happen in your business. The idea is not to be scared, but to be ready and create possible action plans. For example, in the case of a new confinement, what should you do? What is most important, how would you deal with it? 

  1. Be careful with financials – remember you’re just starting out

Cash flow is one of the biggest challenges for start-ups. In order to avoid unnecessary costs, you should resist the temptation to upgrade your office/studio to the max or have unnecessary expenses.

Whenever you make an investment, you must consider the benefits it will bring to the company and determine if you can afford it.

  1. Don’t be afraid to ask for help

Beauty EntrepreneurNew beginnings are not always easy. When it comes to business, getting advice from people with a lot of knowledge can prove to be the best tactic. To be successful in this industry, it is not necessary to know everything, but rather to know that there will always be someone who knows more than you. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.

There are plenty of resources for networking, knowledge sharing, and advice available. Networking is more than just finding new business opportunities; it is also a great way to find support and ideas for the future. Please do not be afraid to seek advice from the people around you.

  1. The best asset you have is yourself. 

Beauty EntrepreneurIt is common for entrepreneurs to forget that each of us should take a break once in a while. Since it is your own business, commitment is greater, but you must rest, exercise; eat well, and most importantly, set boundaries. You do not have to work endlessly!

Take time to spend with your family and friends. Quality time can help you to breathe, oxygen the brain and can help you to be more efficient at your work. As an entrepreneur, you should forget working on your time management skills. 

Here is a post where you can read why it’s important to take some time for yourself. 

  1. Always learn new things

Beauty EntrepreneurRunning a business is a continuous process of learning and growing. In addition to practical skills, you should also develop emotional capabilities. Browse free and low-cost online courses, try to listen to podcasts, watch TED talks or documentaries of your industry. There are also great conferences where you can learn up-to-date industry trends and network with like minded beauty professionals, like the Vegas PMU Conference.

It has been said that the only thing you have that cannot be taken from you is what you have learned.

Over the years, we have learned that each process should be enjoyed and now you are off to an exceptional journey. Don’t worry; we are by your side to help you.