You found your passion: You love makeup and making others look their best. Awesome! Here are three platforms to digitally market yourself as a freelance makeup artist to help you gain a steady clientele and be successful doing what you love via Facebook, Instagram and a website.
Most of my makeup artist friends swear by their Facebook pages when it comes to promoting their business.
- Be sure to use a custom cover photo. Make a collage of your work with a free photo editing website or create an image with your logo and contact information. Make sure it’s sized to fit Facebook’s cover photo dimensions so it isn’t blurry.
- Upload a custom profile image. My personal favorite is a photo of you doing makeup on a model, but a crisp, clear image of one of your completed clients also works. Refrain from using your logo here – it’s so tiny.
- Fill out as much of the “About” section as possible. The more information, the better — particularly if you don’t have your website up yet. Include all services you provide — from bridal to makeup lessons — and phone/email. Including your personal bio also helps make clients feel confident in who you are and why they should choose you.
- Share posts consistently. If you only feel comfortable posting once a week, make sure you do it on the same day and time. Consistency works with Facebook’s algorithm. You may have to play around with the day/time that works best for your followers, but eventually you’ll find a time that garners the most engagement. Stick with it. You don’t always have to share images of your own work; share helpful beauty-related articles or others’ work that you admire and ask questions. This helps build community and keeps your page seen on others’ newsfeeds.
- Take about 15 minutes three days a week to engage and comment on other relevant pages, and don’t be afraid to pay $5 to $10 per month on sponsored/boosted posts/pages. Unfortunately, this is where Facebook has profited, and even $3 will take you a lot farther than $0.
After Facebook, the next place to be is on Instagram.
- Use a favorite photo of a client or yourself as your profile image and consider making your account name your freelance business name.
- In the bio section, state where you are located and what you specialize in, then include your email and website or Facebook page in the URL section.
- Write your bio in iPhone Notes or a Word document to format/align it the way you want (centered, bullet points, emojis, etc.) and then copy and paste it into Instagram.
- Make sure your photos are taken in natural light. Pose your model outside or near a window when possible. My favorite editing tools include brightness, contrast, highlights and shadows. Avoid filters.
- Follow any and all related accounts in the beauty industry: fellow MUAs, pro team MUAs, celebrity MUAs, beauty schools, brands, stores, bloggers, industry professionals (wedding venues, etc.).
- Search hashtags to find other relevant accounts and comment/follow for about 15 minutes a day. The longer you spend engaging, the more engagement you’ll receive!
- Post frequently. The most successful accounts post daily — if not two to three times a day (and once or twice on weekends). Build up to this. Use the same client in your photos at different angles for more post options. Get a closeup of an eye look or lipstick you’re trying. Share your favorite products and new purchases.
- Tag your photos with the brands you’ve used and put any hashtags in a separate comment. You don’t want to appear spammy in the photo description. Spam away in the first comment!
Website
As social media continues to take over the digital marketing landscape, websites are becoming less robust (which makes things easier). We have social media and other client service platforms to promote for us. However, it’s still important to have some sort of home base.
- Have these four pages at the top for easy navigation: About (your photo and bio), Gallery, Services (as a former/recent bride … please put a “prices starting at …” line) and Contact.
- As you build up your portfolio, you may want to add a “Featured” page to include media/press coverage where your work has been published (wedding/beauty magazines, events, shows, etc.).
- It would be wise to separate your gallery into sub-categories like Bridal, Before/After, Senior Portraits, Beauty/Commercial, Editorial and Headshots to make it easy for your customers.
- Be mobile/tablet responsive.
- Update your website once a month with new photos, features or tweaks to your bio.
Get a notepad and pen and make yourself a checklist to track your social numbers over the next six months. I’m sure you’ll be happy with your success! For more social media info, check out this infographic on the Ogle School Blog by Jeff Chiarelli, director of marketing for Ogle School.
