Stylist: Growing Your Clientele in a Small Town
Morgan Franklin: Welcome to the
Aspiring Stylists Podcast with
Tracey Franklin. Where to begin,
grow and aspire to become the
best stylist you can be. Whether
you're thinking about becoming a
stylist opening a salon, or
developing your skills as an
experienced stylist the next
step of your beauty career
starts here. Each week we'll
discuss strategic ways to
design, plan and execute on
becoming a stylist that excels
behind the chair and above the
bottom line. Here's your host,
Tracey Franklin.
Tracey Franklin: So I want to
talk about growing your
clientele in a small town. So I
am from a town called
Cookeville, in Middle Tennessee,
and the demographic when I
started working as a stylist is
about 27,000 people. So you
know, not big, not super small.
I mean, there are much smaller
towns in Tennessee and all over
the country, of course, in that,
but it's not a huge metropolitan
area. So building a clientele in
a small town, it has its
challenges, but it also does
have its advantages. You know,
you have a smaller pool to fish
from and the clients in a small
town can be fiercely loyal. I
have been at the receiving end
of that kind of loyalty, working
and building a clientele in
Cookeville. So if you're
listening, and you've been my
client, big thanks, obviously,
you know, I feel like the town I
live in. And the town I built in
is really great. As far as where
it's positioned. It's in Middle
Tennessee, right in the middle
of Knoxville, Nashville,
Chattanooga, which are much
bigger areas, obviously. So
being in the center of that I
feel positioned me well. So I
grew up in California. And, you
know, moving to Cookeville was
culture shock in both a good and
a bad way, in a good way where I
felt like people were a lot more
friendly and a lot more
accepting, very, very welcoming.
Were very proud of their
community, very willing to share
the things that they loved about
living in this area. And then
bad because I felt like I was
taking a bit of a step back in
time. And of course, I've
acclimated now and I feel like
I'm right on schedule, if not a
little behind myself sometimes.
But back then in my early 20s,
or Gosh, I don't even know if I
was 20 Yet now that I do the
girl math in my head. Yeah, I
think it was 19. So back then it
was a bit more of oh, gosh, what
am I gonna do this feels like
Podunk. I've always found people
in a small community to be
really kind and really have a
sense of community. When I
decided to go to school, I felt
like this was probably a pretty
good area to try to build a
clientele in back then I can't
really tell you exactly how many
stylists there were. But I do
know that statistically back
then only one and five
hairstylist made it past that
two year mark. And really even
less past that five year mark.
And my class is a really good
example. I think there were
seven of us and one dropped off
fairly early. But as far as when
I graduated, we were still a
class of seven. I'm at this
point, the only ones still doing
hair. So I find those statistics
to be pretty accurate. I found
building a clientele in a small
town to be relatively easy. You
know, the first salon that I
worked at after I graduated was
fairly new, but the person that
opened it had a really good
reputation and had built a
really strong clientele in this
area. So going to work for him
was kind of like buying into
that and reaping the benefit of
being under somebody that had
already had so much success in
this area and was so well known.
He actually went to school in
this area too, which made him I
think, even more popular among
people in the community. You
know, he was at that point,
building his clientele a little
bit differently now that he was
going to be the salon owner. So
I was lucky enough to get a lot
of his overflow. A lot of the
people that he really didn't
want or that weren't really as
exciting of a client as he
thought they should be he would
give to me and at that time
starting at Ground Zero, I was
like, I would take anybody you
know, at the time I was charging
$30 for a woman's haircut. And
that felt absolutely crazy to
me. Getting to the point where I
was comfortable with that took a
little bit of internal work. I
had to change my internal
dialogue and I had to convince
myself really that I was
somebody that could charge $32
for a haircut and get away with
it. It not only changed the way
I was thinking but just even the
terminology when I say it now
get away with it as if I was
doing something that I shouldn't
have been doing when really I
had put in the work. I was a
really good student I paid
attention. Beauty school came a
little later for me in life. I
was 26 when I went to beauty
school so I was there Already a
mother already a responsible
adult. And so I felt really
prepared for this industry. But
I still had what I felt like was
a little bit of imposter
syndrome, we say now $32, but
back then that felt like a lot
of money for somebody fresh out
of school. So I continue to
build my clientele. And
honestly, I don't have any crazy
tactics that I tried or
anything, I just did it, you
know, I just did it. I did it
when it wasn't easy. I did it.
Anyway, I got up, I showed up
every single day. And I poured
my heart and soul into building
a clientele in the salon that I
was at, I made myself get out
there, I went to business
networking events at the Chamber
of Commerce, and I at that point
carried business cards on me at
all times, I will never forget
what my business cards look
like. It was kind of like a
cartoon character of what I felt
like I looked like at that
point, that is not something I
would ever do now. And it's
definitely not something I'm
suggesting. But it's kind of
funny to look back and think
about how the aesthetic of the
business cards that we use to
promote herself have changed.
Being a stylist in a small town
has definitely shaped me, I
think in some really meaningful
ways. I feel like I understand
the value and the connection
that meaningful relationships
provide even in a business
relationship. Being an active
member, and my community I think
has really made my roots dig
even deeper into the ground here
and me feel more connected to
this community. The more I get
to know about it, the more I
still continue to learn after
all these years still connects
me. And I know in a small town,
the more I'm out there
networking, the more memorable
I'll be. That's how you build a
name for yourself. You show up
at different places at different
times, and you hope that someone
remembers you and that they
remember what you do for a
living. People in a small town
love to talk. So I made sure to
work that to my advantage. And I
made sure that they had lovely
things to say about me as
someone that lived in the
community. And as a business
woman, y'all have heard me say,
you know, you have to be the
first or you have to be the
best. And you need to bring in
that new and you need to get
that good, good. And you need to
give yourself an advantage in a
small community. Because a lot
of times people are afraid to
step out and offer more modern,
more advanced services in a
small town because they think
that they won't have the
clientele. And I'm just here to
say my career is complete
evidence that that's just simply
not true. I have faced some
challenges, you know, building a
clientele in this small town
that I may not have experienced
in bigger cities, there were
times when I stifled my own
growth because I was afraid to
charge my worth. Going back to
the very beginning, when that
$32 price point felt so strange
and uncomfortable to me. I mean,
that feeling was something that
I continued to battle throughout
my career. In a small town,
people know your business. So
things like a divorce or some
other major life event, it was
just out there, and people are
gonna have opinions about the
decisions that you make. And
people are also going to make
decisions for business based on
personal reasons. So sometimes
somebody might decide that
they're not going to come back
and see you based on something
they heard about you or
something they saw on your
social media. I mean, it's not
great, but it's how the world
works. There were definitely not
a lot of educators that were
traveling to smaller towns. So I
had to travel if I wanted really
good education, I had to get on
a plane train bus rentacar
something because it just
definitely wasn't like it is now
where I could just go to the
local supply house and take a
class educators weren't coming
to smaller towns yet. And you
know, this thing that we use now
you've probably heard of it
called the Internet was not as
out of control as it is now you
know, like it wasn't as
accessible, you didn't have
everything at your fingertips
like you have today. So that to
me would be a huge advantage of
trying to grow a clientele in a
small area. Building your
clientele in a small town is
very different than trying to
build it in a metropolitan area.
I have a lot of stylists,
friends who live in New York who
live in LA, and it is really,
really cutthroat in these bigger
metropolitan areas. I've heard
it time and time again. And I
feel like even though not
everybody's best friends in a
small town, I do feel like in my
community, everybody has a
certain level of respect for
their fellow artists. So to me,
that's an advantage. I would
imagine that having an advantage
starts in the very, very
beginning with your school
choices. Where you go to school
has a huge impact on the
trajectory of your career moving
forward, better education makes
you a more desirable candidate
for a position in a more upscale
environment. So I definitely
think going to a school that's
offering you everything that you
need makes you more desirable
from a salon owner standpoint,
it definitely makes you more
desirable. In a bigger more
metropolitan area, you
definitely have more
accessibility, there's a lot
more collaborations that could
help grow you as an artist,
there are different types of
opportunities. And there are a
ton more advanced training
choices that are way more
accessible to you, you could
probably hop in your car, you
could probably take an Uber and
get there, or for someone in a
small town, it would be more
travel more expenses, they'd
have to really think more about
it. And networking in a
metropolitan area. I mean, you
can't compare if you're in a
small town, they have major
networking groups, they have
places where you can go and work
and network with other people
networking in a bigger
metropolitan area is 10 times
easier than it would be in a
small group where you may have
one or two small women's groups
or some type of group to choose
from where you could really try
to fish from that pool and grow
your clientele. So more about
the small town advantage. If you
grew up in a small town, you
probably know everybody there,
your mom, your aunties, your
MeeMaw, they probably have told
every single one of their
friends how proud they are a
view for going to Beauty School.
And you know, it's easier to
stand out and make a name for
yourself, you still got to try
but you won't be such a stranger
to everyone. If you're outgoing
and a people person, it's
definitely a lot easier. If not,
it could hold you back and a
small town because if you're not
willing to get out there and
talk to people, you know, you're
gonna have a really hard time
later in life. Just basic
elevator speeches, handing out
business cards, the little small
things that help you grow your
clientele in the beginning will
feel really uncomfortable to
you. Having an outgoing
personality definitely makes it
easier. So what about in early
hair days could a slower paced
community a smaller community
benefit of hair stylists? Well,
I feel like it could potentially
hold them back. If they're not
out there being a go getter,
like every single day and trying
to reach different groups of
people, you can't network in the
same group all the time and
really grow, you have to network
in different groups. And it's
easy to get stuck. I really went
through this whole getting stuck
thing in my color journey. I
really loved being a colorist I
have to say even in school, that
was definitely my favorite part.
And I got in this funk in this
really just large span of time
where I felt like I was just
like this foiling machine, like
there wasn't a lot of artistry
behind it, it just felt very
robotic, I felt like I was
either doing all blonde or I was
doing blonde with something
else. And it just it felt very
stagnant to me. And then Bali
asure came out, and it just
opened up a whole new world for
me, when you don't have access
to these more advanced
techniques, then you can get
stuck. And that's just one of
the things that can hold you
back in a small town, you can
get really, really comfortable.
And the comfort zone just is not
where the magic lives. So
another advantage of the small
town hairstylist is you can
really get out there and make
yourselves an integral part of
the community by getting
involved in the things that
matter that matter to you that
matter to the community that
matter to other members of the
community. You know, they're in
volunteer, I mean, there are so
many really worthwhile causes
out there that you probably
don't know about, where you
could really make a difference
with just a few hours a week or
a few dollars out of your own
pocket. It's amazing how much
traction we can make when
everybody does just a very small
part. You can join social groups
that may not always be your cup
of tea, like I'm not going to go
out and join a quilting social
group just to get a client or
two out of it. It's not my vibe,
I wouldn't do that. But there
are things like that if it is
for you. And if that's not for
you then find something that is
no matter where you live, you
have to build trust and you have
to build loyalty. A small town
community will trust the word of
mouth more than they'll trust
Google. Speaking of word of
mouth, if you do someone right
like if you bail someone out of
an emergency situation, you know
what I'm talking about the
person that bought the hair
color from the Walmart and went
home and put it on their head
and they turn their hair orange
and now they don't know what to
do. They reach out you save the
day they will not forget you and
they will tell literally every
one they know how you save the
day and then that makes you
someone that is reputable,
someone that is trustworthy for
corrective color. Corrective
color is a very popular service,
because it's a very multi step,
very complicated color service
to provide, and you never know
what you're gonna get into when
you start trying to fix all
these different problems with
someone's hair. And it's a lot
of work. But it's really, really
rewarding. It's taking someone's
really, really bad situation and
turning it into somewhat of a
miracle. So that's going to
build some trust and loyalty
right there. So how do you
establish that trust quickly,
it's important that we establish
it quickly. We're trying to
build a clientele here. So I'm
going to start with the basics
good communication, having
really good communication and
dialogue with your clients, when
they come in is going to be
really important. And that needs
to be followed up by a proper
consultation, do not skim over
the hard questions, ask them,
What are you using at home?
When's the last time you had
your hair color? Did you do it
yourself? Was it done in a
salon? All of these answers
really, really matter? So we
have to be willing to take the
time to ask the questions so
that we can get to the bottom of
it. What is it that you're
expecting out of your hair
appointment today? And how can I
exceed those expectations, you
have to be transparent about
pricing. The worst thing ever is
having your client go up to the
front desk and look at the front
desk person cross-eyed Because
they had no reason to expect a
bill that big because there was
no communication, we have a
process for that in my salon.
And I am very, very adamant that
that policy is strictly
followed, because it's not the
responsibility of the person
that takes the money at the
front desk to have that
communication. Some people
aren't going to care about an
extra $20. And other people are
going to come in with the exact
amount of money that they need
the exact amount of money they
were quoted for. Because this is
a special treat, this is not
something that they do for
themselves. So being transparent
about pricing is one of the
fastest ways to build trust, you
have to be honest about what's
possible in an appointment. If
someone comes in with that level
to box hair color, they're not
leaving platinum. And they need
to know that and they need to
know why they need to know that
it's going to damage their hair.
If they even have any hair left
at the end of it, it's going to
be expensive, it's going to be
time consuming. They need to
know what's possible in one
appointment, and what is going
to have to be spread out over
several. And you have to do good
work. I mean, let's not ignore
the obvious, you can build all
the trust and loyalty with your
words. But if you're not putting
good work out there, if you're
not staying educated, if you're
not bringing the magic to the
chair than any trust and loyalty
you build with your clients will
quickly fade. Do not forget to
send your clients home with what
they need, that's part of it,
your work is going to look
better to if you send them home
with the proper at home regimen,
their hair is going to look
great, feel great, smell great,
and they're going to be thinking
about you in the process,
they're going to be thinking
about this great haircut and
color that you gave them and how
they get to enjoy the benefits
of that through these amazing
products that you recommended
and that they took home with
them to use as a new stylist
especially if you're new to the
area, you got to have a strategy
for retaining clients and for
building a solid clientele. I
always say that retention is in
the relationships, a strong
connection with your clients is
going to help situations where
maybe you don't hit the mark a
little more forgivable, maybe
you take a little bit too much
off. Maybe you give them bangs
when that's not what they
wanted. When you have a really
strong connection and a
relationship established with
someone, they're going to be
more apt to forgive you for
these little mishaps and stay
loyal to you and give you
another shot. So we've talked a
little bit about how to retain
our clients now, how do we get
them in the first place? Like
how are we going to build this
solid clientele we keep talking
about, ask for referrals, ask
not and you're gonna have not
you need to flatter your client,
you need to look at your book
and you need to think about
who's on it. And how many of
those clients like bring you a
lot of joy. You see them on your
book and it puts a smile on your
face. Those are the type of
clients that know people that
you want in your chair. So you
need to look that client in the
eye and you need to say Hey,
Sarah, I'm still building my
clientele. And when I saw you on
my book today, I thought I'm so
happy. I love doing Sara's hair.
And I thought to myself, I'm
going to ask her if she can help
me out. And then while serious,
they're looking at you being
like starry eyed because she's
so flattered. You're gonna say
Hey, can you help me out by
giving 234 however many friends
and family members that you know
one of my business cards,
they're gonna save 20% off for
coming in and then when they
come in and mention your name,
you're gonna save 20% off. So it
gives you a little discount just
as a sign of appreciation. To
show you how much it means to me
that you send me the people that
you care about. Do you see how I
turn that into a big sloppy wet
kiss for Sarah? I didn't beg
her. I didn't sound desperate.
So try that. I think it'll work
for you, too. What about
ensuring client satisfaction? I
mean, is that any different in a
small town? I don't really think
so. I mean, knowing if your
client is satisfied can be a
little bit tricky. People live,
they'll look you dead in your
face and tell you they love it,
go home, cry, call back, want
their money back. There's just
like a whole wheel that you have
to go through. But
unfortunately, it's up to us to
kind of discern whether or not
they're happy. I'm sorry. But
you have to be able to tell
whether or not your client is
feeling herself. It's really,
really easy to pick up on it if
they are. So if they're not
acting like that, then dig, what
can I do to make this better? Is
there anything look in the
mirror? take one last look, is
there anything that I could do
to make it better for you don't
just resigned to the fact that
she hates it and you suck. Like,
let's figure out how we can fix
it before the client walks out
the door unsatisfied? Reviews
are a great way to tap in.
Anonymous reviews are great for
shy people. But some people
aren't afraid to tell you what
they think. So in a situation
where they're very, very
pleased, they're going to be
more likely to leave a review.
In a situation where they're
very very unplaced, they're
going to be more likely to leave
a review, right? So it's
important that we not only pay
attention to those people, but
the people in the middle too,
because the people in the middle
or the majority, people are not
just going to offer up their
time to leave you a review. Of
course, again, a horrible
service, they're going to do it
in a heartbeat. But what if you
know, you just want to know what
they think about your service,
so that you can make it better?
Like, yes, reviews are a great
marketing tactic. But it's
really a good way to take a
deeper look into your business
and into your service plan to
see what's missing. What's
really working, what needs to be
changed. I think loyalty
programs and local promotions
definitely help in ensuring
repeat visits. I do believe
people love a deal. Even rich
people love a deal. I do not
believe percentages are
effective. I feel like people
have to do math in their head
and they figure it out. And then
it's only $4. And it doesn't
mean anything to them. I'm not
going anywhere for $4 I'm not
going anywhere for 10% Oh, well,
there's taxes while I'm paying
to I you know, I don't even
count taxes, taxes are what they
are, I'm paying them regardless,
I don't get excited. Okay. But I
do believe that free speaks
louder. And I'm gonna give you
an example. And if you've
listened to my podcast, you may
have heard me talk about my OC
client, Lisa, she's been with me
forever. She was my first female
client that I was able to
retain. I had done a few
haircuts on women before her but
nobody stuck around. And how I
got Lisa was through a local
radio promotion. It was called
Working women's Wednesday and
one of the local radio stations
every week was drawing a name
out of a hat and giving some
hard working woman a free
haircut at the salon that I
worked at. Well in walk, Lisa
and little did I know I was
about to hit the jackpot. She
happened to be a pharmacist here
in town and she happened to work
with a lot of people just like
her. And so she went back and
she bragged about the scalp
massage, and she bragged about
the great color and the hair cut
and everything. And so guess
what? The next week, another
girl from that pharmacy came in
the next week. And before I knew
it, I had everybody in that
pharmacy and it was just such a
great feeling. Now all these
years later, you know many of
these women have found their way
elsewhere. But Lisa is still
with me to this day. I believe
that Bree speaks really, really
loud. And at the end of the day,
I didn't give anything away, I
hit the jackpot. So again, let's
go back to loyalty programs. And
when one way that that can work
for you is through a pre booking
promotion. Pre booking is
essential for your success, you
need to be looking ahead at your
schedule for six 810 12 weeks
from now and see some of the
same people on your schedule
then that you're seeing today.
You know, I love seeing a new
client or at least I used to I'm
not building anymore, but I
think seeing a new client keeps
you on your toes. And I
definitely see the magic in
that. But it also brings a whole
lot more anxiety to the table
not knowing what's going to walk
through the door and not knowing
what the day is going to hold.
So having those irregular repeat
clients I think give us as
stylists a sense of calm that
sometimes we just need. But
yeah, pre booking is great. I
would do some sort of pre
booking promotion, I think it
still needs to be working
towards something free. That can
be whatever you want. That can
be a free haircut on every
fourth pre book visit that can
be whatever you want it to be I
just as a consumer and as a
business woman for the last few
days. Gainsville that Free is
better than discounts. So what's
the advantage of leveraging
radio stations, local
newspapers, podcasts or even
community bulletins? Well, I
think being featured on any
local platform can be good for
your business. Again, small
towns, or at least my small town
is a very community driven. So
are these even great marketing
tactics in 2023. I mean, it can
work in 2023. I can, but I
believe most of your efforts
should be used on your social
media, you're going to want to
use your local hashtags tag
local businesses, share local
happenings, just be as community
driven on your social media as
you can be. Let them see you as
a team player, not just somebody
that's in it for themselves, but
somebody that's willing to
promote other entrepreneurs,
other business people in their
community. So I have a really
kind of cool, UNCONVENTIONAL
marketing tool that I used to
use a long time ago. And
honestly, when I was talking
about it, when I was writing
this episode, I was thinking
that's something I should bring
back, we need to bring that
back. That was a good one. And
they were called VIP boxes. So
very important business, me and
my team at our staff meeting
would select one of the local
businesses here in town that we
felt really needed to be
celebrated. And you know, a
group of people that we wanted
to invite into enjoy our
services, and maybe a discounted
price, just somebody in our
community that we felt needed a
little bit of recognition. So we
created these amazing boxes. And
of course, we made them cute, we
put our little sticker on there,
and we had the curly ribbons and
all the things. And inside the
boxes, there were samples, and
there were coupon books, and
there were offers, and oh gosh,
I think we put some nice little
chocolates in there. There were
just all kinds of little things
in there that would let them
know that we appreciate who they
are in this town, and that we
would love the opportunity to
serve them. They all went over
very, very well. And we had
really great response to that
tactic. So take that and do what
you want with it. How can you
use platforms like Facebook,
Instagram, Tik Tok, to showcase
your work? And will that bring
in new clients? I think it will.
I think you should be posting
quality pics of your work is
your online portfolio. Yes, it's
important to get on there and be
entertaining and offer videos
and tutorials and things like
that too. But there still need
to be some really beautiful
curated still shots that
showcase your work in there. You
need to tag people and you need
to ask them to share it. It's
simple. It's a click, people
will do it, but they're not
going to think to do it on their
own. You have to just dig a
little bit deeper and ask for a
favor. Going back to being
educational. I think people
really really appreciate how
tos. When my Facebook and my
Instagram pages were more geared
toward building clientele. My
tutorials were a favorite people
absolutely love that. Especially
during COVID. I felt like we
brought people a sense of
normalcy during COVID They're
sitting at home, they're
wondering what's going on in
this country. And I'm showing
them how to cover their graves
with eyeshadow. So here I am
just giving them like a little
mental Margarita from what's
going on in the world and
offering them a coping tool that
might help them between colors
even in the future. And lastly,
but not leastly be entertaining.
People love that shit. I mean,
people love my reels when I'm
being entertaining. I love doing
all the other stuff. I feel like
my content has a lot of meat and
potatoes and it needs to have a
lot of meat and potatoes for
what I'm trying to do in my
career right now. But I also
love entertaining people. If you
know anything about me, you know
I'm a clown. I was class clown
in middle school all three
years. Yeah, I don't know if I
should be proud of that or not.
But I am a jokester. I do enjoy
making people laugh. And I do
feel like people love to be
entertained. I think
collaborating with other
businesses and creators
definitely help promote you. I
think they're great. Focus on
clothing, boutiques, pageants,
weddings, those are all great
ways to connect and collab and
create a networking circle where
somebody is more likely to call
you in the future if they need
your services. It doesn't matter
what size town you're trying to
be established in. You're gonna
have intense feelings of
competition. You are going to be
paralyzed by a reel that shows
up in your feed you are going to
notice how much anxiety you feel
when you're scrolling and
something pops up or you're
minding your own business in
stories and then all of a
sudden, something that makes you
feel less than something that
makes you feel unworthy will
come across your screen and
change the way you feel about
yourself. And here's the truth.
competition isn't real. It's a
state of mind and minds can be
changed and so can yours you can
change your mind to Comparison
is the thief of joy. And you're
going to find yourself in the
beginning of your career,
comparing yourself to someone
else's middle or even end. And
that is unfair, that's unfair to
do to yourself, it's unfair to
hold yourself to some sort of
sacred standard, that you're
never going to be able to hit
imitation, the biggest form of
flattery. Everything that we are
doing on reels is something that
we have seen that has inspired
us, I'm going to use social
media as an example. Nobody is
coming up with original content
anymore. Everyone is just out
there putting their own spin on
someone else's stuff. And you
know what? That is, okay. Your
spin on someone else's stuff, is
why someone's following you.
That's what they're there for.
People look at other people's
work for inspiration, you need
to be looking at it like that.
It shouldn't be about what
you're not doing better. It's
about what you should be aspired
to become. There are no original
creators, we're just out there
emulating people that we admire
trying to become as good as them
some day. And if you turn around
and make yourself feel horrible
every time you look at someone
else's work, especially someone
that's further along than you,
you're in it for a real rough
go. So how are you going to
handle slower business days or
off seasons? Well, honey, you
need to be a pre booking boss,
you need to create a repeatable
schedule. Again, look at your
book in six weeks and see the
same darn thing that you see
today. That's not to say that
you shouldn't be leaving room
for the magic of a new client,
we all know that we need that.
But most of your clientele
should be coming back. And
that's how you're creating that
repeatable schedule, you need to
be fiscally responsible. This is
a very unpredictable business,
and there is no room for you to
treat a big week like pocket
cash. It's simply not the truth,
because in two weeks, you're
gonna have four cancellations.
Now, I'm not speaking that over
you. Okay, I'm not attracting
that I know the nature of the
beast. I know the nature of this
business. And it's going to
happen so many times, my biggest
week has been followed by a crap
week of crap where I had
cancellations of crap where it
snowed and nobody could get to
work. It doesn't matter, we have
to be prepared, and we have to
be fiscally responsible.
Commission is unpredictable. And
it does fluctuate like crazy. So
you need to be prepared. But if
you're a hustler, if you're a go
getter, then you can use
commission to your benefit
honey, because as much as you
work as as much money as you
make, and if you want to save up
for something, you can open up
another day, and you can
increase your income. Being a
commission paid stylist is an
advantage. And that's how you
need to see it. So hair stylists
have to stay up to date. That's
not different in a small town. I
mean, up to date is relative. So
you know, depending on what part
of Mayberry you actually live in
how up to date you need to be
could fluctuate, but you do you
do need to know about the latest
trends, even if you're in a
small town, and honestly, now
it's at your fingertips, no
excuses. It's one click away,
and then save up and splurge on
an in person, you know, some in
person education when that's
possible. But don't use costs.
Don't use time as an excuse,
because you can fit it in, it
needs to be important to you.
You know, the energy of in
person education just hits
different. I recommend that
somebody go to something once a
year if you can, and I'm lucky
enough to be close enough to
Nashville where I can find
something every single year and
you should be finding something
to struggling to build a
clientele will probably have a
lot of stylists asking yourself
if they should switch things up.
If they need to make a change,
should they go and work at a
larger commission based salon. I
think every stylist should start
out in a salon with a mentorship
program. And most of the time
those are going to be bigger
commission based salon. So
that's not to say that it has to
be commissioned based. I just
know that that's the business
model that's going to lend
itself in the biggest way to
somebody who's fresh out of
school, starting out trying to
build a clientele. And it's
never too late to start over. I
don't care if you're in your
five or if you're in your 25 if
you are not able to find success
where you currently are. It's
never too late to start over.
Find your tribe find your
people. That's where you're
gonna find the success is when
you're where you need to be with
who you need to be with. I have
made it part of my job to stay
current and up to date on what's
going on in this industry and I
do feel like it has helped me
kind of niche out and really
flourish as a stylist. I'm also
very outgoing. And I've made
really strong connections and
I've planted very deep roots in
my community. I'm committed to
giving my clients the best
service I can with the best
products I can find. I'm
committed to listening when they
want to talk about their hair
when they want to talk about
anything. And I'm committed to
solutions to any of the problems
they have. All of that is going
to lead me to my niche, make me
happier, make my heart fuller
when I'm at work. My specialty
has always been lived in color
and extensions. If you asked me
what my niche was, that's what I
would say. I could not be more
happy with the community that
I've found with the clients that
I built, the connections that
I've made and the relationships
that I've made in my small town.
Morgan Franklin: Apple Podcast,
Spotify or wherever you find
your podcasts. The Aspiring
Stylist Podcast with Tracey
Franklin is a Morgan Franklin
Production. Today's episode was
written and produced by Morgan
Franklin editing and
post-production by Mike
Franklin. Want to find out more
about Tracey and the Aspiring
Barber and Beauty Academy go to
aspirebarberandbeauty.com
