Client Development: Let Them Know You

My new book, "The Heart of Esthetics: Creating Loyal Clients & Achieving Financial Success” is about the nuances of esthetics. In other words, I'm not going to tell you which products to use or which facials to offer. Nor will I advise you regarding esthetics equipment you should purchase or how to “capture” emails. You can get that advice anywhere.

The Heart of Esthetics will highlight for you the “moments of truth” that matter so much but are probably not even on your radar. Your Esthetician school curriculum won't include this because it’s not their job. They’ve got other important things to teach you. It's possible you will figure some of this out as you are working with clients, but only if it’s already instinctual for you (or if you have read my book!)

One example is how you market yourself. You may think that’s about sending emails, posting on social media, sharing your menu of services on your website. But it’s none of those things. These are not the reasons a potential client will choose you over another Esthetician.

I know the words “market yourself” might send chills down the spine of many Estheticians because that’s not why you got into this business. But honestly, marketing yourself simply means becoming the best you can be and then allowing people to see that part of you. It means letting people know you – not everything about you, just enough so they feel like they know you a little bit.

And here is why this is so crucial: 

Estheticians are in a very intimate business. We ask clients to disrobe and get into (or onto) something that looks a lot like a bed. For facial services, we may begin by removing their makeup and then we stare at them through a very bright mag lamp. For hair removal, well, let's just say the territories involved are often very personal. Talk about feeling vulnerable!

It’s okay to be a little vulnerable. If clients can do it, we can do it too.

So rather than marketing your service menu, the brand of products you use and sell, or the ingredients in those products...let them know you. Market yourself by sharing with clients and potential clients why you became an Esthetician, what you love about your work, lessons you have learned throughout your career, and experiences you have had as an Esthetician.

My book covers this topic in depth, and when you read it, you will see that I have given you several examples from my own life that are in some way related to my esthetics career. That's because if you are going to trust me and consider my advice, you've got to know where it came from and how I got here. And believe me, my stories are not all filled with rainbows and butterflies. I've made some mistakes, and there are things I would have done differently. But I learned from those and I carried on. You will too. 

Below is one of those examples, and it certainly qualifies as a vulnerable moment. It's about the first time I attended an esthetics trade show while I was still in Esthetician school. That was 23 years ago and although it's a little embarrassing, when you consider that I went on to become a speaker and a Master of Ceremonies at esthetics trade shows, it's actually really funny! 

The Heart of Esthetics: Chapter 10 – Networking “Navigating a Trade Show”

I want to begin this section by telling you the story of my first trade show. I don’t remember which one it was…I think maybe it was Las Vegas, which is an enormous show. I was still in Esthetician school and a bunch of us went to the show together. Talk about overwhelming!

It was definitely fun, but I did the worst thing you can do, which is what we all do when we don’t know any better. We just wandered down each aisle as a group, taking it all in and stopping at every vendor booth we encountered. We really didn’t know anything about the vendors other than we recognized the skin care line we were using in our Esthetician program. We excitedly collected everything each vendor gave us and tossed it into that enormous bag given to everyone by the sponsoring vendor as we entered the show.

Later I went back to my hotel room, and I dumped the contents of the very big bag onto my bed. I felt like a kid on Halloween! But that feeling faded quickly when I realized that the samples and the accompanying literature were not attached to each other. Therefore, nothing made sense to me.

The fact that I was so tired, so overwhelmed, and so confused hit me hard …and I broke into tears. In that moment, I was convinced that I was probably not going to make it through Esthetician school, I would never get my Esthetician license, and even if I did, I probably would be a lousy Esthetician. OMG, that’s so funny now considering how far I have come in my esthetics career, but trust me….it was not funny back then!

So, the moral of that story is: If you have moments in your career when you think you are not going to make it...you will. Just hang in there!

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