Secret to MY success

I had to rebuild my clientele in 2013. Let me be honest....it SUCKS starting back at square one. But on a positive side, you get a do-over. You get to learn from previous mistakes.

I didn't have a lot of money to spend on advertising. And shockingly, I can be very shy. So what did I do? I contacted GROUPON. Yep, that's right, I built my clientele off them. For me, it was a bumpy start. They kept pushing back my campaign launch date and it finally launched over a month late. But it was worth it in the end. I have heard countless people advise not to sell yourself short with coupons, discounts, or groupon. But I did. They took my services and sold them at half price to their customers. Then, the part that SUCKS is groupon takes half of that and you get the remainder. For example if you all over color is $50, they sell it for $25. Groupon takes $12.50 and pays you $12.50. Yes I know....it's not much. BUT, just remember...that's more money than you had before. And that's what I kept telling myself.

I knew that if I could just get people to sit in my chair, I could get them to fall in love with my personality and talent becoming forever clients! So I worked hard. Those $100 weeks slowly turned to $200 weeks. Then $400... and so on. The 3 clients that followed me soon grew to 20...then 30...and now 63. I was so busy last summer that I had to cancel my second groupon campaign only 4 months into it. I was putting new clients on a month wait. Now yes that is a good problem to have...however my already forever clients weren't as happy. And I always kept them as a priorty. Now that I'm not doing groupon and all my clients are paying full price I am finally making a living out of what I love.

It didn't happen over night. It took me 2 years to grow. My clients have become friends and because they love me, my talent, and trust my opinion they refer their friends to me. And word of mouth is the BEST form of adverisement. You just have to have mouths to give recommendations...and groupon did that for me. Now there ARE some downsides with groupon. I had those few "groupon hoppers" who will see a new stylist everytime with a new groupon. I had some who rebooked....then never showed up and I never heard from again. (I will address in a later post how I've fixed that issue). Some of them didn't tip. And some came in with a "project" for me and received well over what they paid for in their groupon. But I remained professional and kind because I wanted every single one to come back over and over.

Don't get discouraged if you're fresh out of school, moved to a new town, or just needing to build. There's so many different ways to get started. Time is the key to success. And unfortunately you have to spend money to make money. But hang in there because one day your bank account is going to reflect your hard work, patience, and perseverance.

My Story

This world is ever changing. Majority of it is now powered by social media and what we discover off google. I am now giving in and cutting through to stay on top! Why? I am obsessed with the hair & beauty industry. I crave new techniques. I compete with myself daily to be the best of the best.

When I was 3, I told everyone I wanted to be a "hair dresser" when I grew up. My first "job" was volunteering at a salon named "Cheeta's Extreme Styling". My brother was dating the owner at the time. She knew my obsession of becoming a stylist one day. She decided put me to the test.I swept, cleaned color bowls, folded towels, and gazed while she worked. Everyone thought that would end my drive towards the hair industry. Instead, it fueled my fire.

I started beauty school at Clary Sage College in Tulsa June of 2009. I wasn't even out of high school a whole month. In august of 2010 I graduated and then passed my Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetolgy. I was nervous and so excited to begin my career. I started as a commission stylist at Hair It Is on Main Street in small town collinsville. During my 2 years there, I grew into a talented stylist. I took classes and learned from my fellow stylists. But that wasn'wasn't enough. I had outgrown the small town. There were 6 salons within a mile and only so many people to charm into long lasting clients. After bouncing around a couple salons trying to find the right fit I finally found home in Bixby at Valencia Salon & Spa 2013. But instead of working comission, i plunged into the world of booth renting. Let me tell you, it was the best decision I ever made. I work with an amazing family of stylists. I have learned more than I ever imagined by working with them. I lost a lot of clientele when I moved 45 min away from little collinsville.. I basically had to start over. But, I went from having 20 monthly regulars in collinsville, to 63 monthly regulars in bixby. I am ecstatic with how far I've come. But I'm not done yet. Here soon, I will make a post of how I did it. Check back to find out my shocking secret that helped me be successful and grow my business to the size it is today.