51
===
[00:00:00] Welcome to episode 51 of the Artist to Artist podcast. This is the podcast for self-taught and undertrained makeup artists who are ready to stop second guessing themselves and start showing up like pros. My name is Angie. I'm a full-time freelance makeup artist, and today we're talking about something that's costing you bookings and you might not even realize it.
And that is being unclear, and I see this consistently with new artists. Your Instagram bio will say something like, makeup artist, but it doesn't say what kind or where you work. Your Instagram feed or your social feed shows everything from natural bridal to like crazy editorial looks. Your captions are very vague, and then you wonder why you're not getting the clients that you want.
The truth is confusion kills conversions, and what I mean by that is when a potential client can't quickly understand what you do, or if you're the right fit for them, they won't book you. They will move on to someone who is very clear about what they have to offer as a makeup artist, when a potential [00:01:00] client lands on your feed or on your website and can't immediately understand what you do, who you serve, or what they can expect from you when they hire you.
They will move on to somebody that does all of this. I do need to address a paradox that I think confuses every new artist. You do need to be versatile. That is part of our job, especially when you're starting out. You can't afford to turn down work because it's not in your niche. I have done everything, any type of job that you can imagine.
I have done it from bridal to commercial work, everything in between because I needed the experience and I needed the money.
What's important to note is that being versatile as an artist and presenting a clear portfolio are actually two different things. And let me explain what I mean by that.. In real life, you might be doing a bridal makeup on a Saturday.
And then an e-commerce photo shoot on Tuesday. That's being versatile. But your Instagram doesn't need to show both if they're completely different makeup styles. Or styles of work. Your potential [00:02:00] bridal clients don't need to see a lot of your crazy editorial work because it will confuse them about what you can offer them for their wedding.
The solution here isn't to limit what work you take, especially in the beginning. It's to be strategic about what work you show. Here's what I wish someone had told me when I started. Start always with what you want more of. If you want more bridal and event clients, curate your social media feed to show mostly that.
If you get a commercial job, that's great. Take the money, get the experience, but maybe the final photo or video doesn't go on your main feed. You can always create highlights on your Instagram. If you have a website, you can create pages for different types of work, but your main portfolio should tell one clear story.
Let me give you an example from my own work on my Instagram. I show a lot of very nondescript makeup, very clean, natural applications that could pretty much work for anything. This is what gets me booked for commercial work, but also gets me booked for bridal clients and special event [00:03:00] clients. When I do work on a bridal client, I will share it, but I'll try to post it in a way that doesn't look too specifically bridal.
I will maybe share a process photo, I'll share maybe some behind the scenes content. Instead of the final image of the bride who has a dress on flowers, bridesmaids standing behind them, that is something I probably won't share because I personally don't want to be only doing weddings. I know you're probably thinking, how do I actually decide what to show?
And I think there's a pretty simple framework that I always use. You wanna look at each piece of content that you're considering posting and ask, could this photo or video attract the type of client that I want to work more with? If you want more bridal work, does this content make a bride think, yes, this is the artist that I want to.
Work with me at my wedding. If you want more commercial work, you have to ask yourself, does the work that you're posting show a professional application that maybe a brand would trust or a company would trust, [00:04:00] or an actor would trust? It's not so much about the setting or the styling, it's really about the makeup application itself.
A natural look you did on your friend in really good lighting might work for both bridal and commercial clients because the application quality is kind of what these people are looking at. And the other question I get often is, what if I don't have enough content for this strategic curation that I'm supposed to be doing to attract the clients that I want?
Now listen, if you only have three good photos of your work, you wanna post those three, but you're also not at a point in your career where you can be picky. Your job right now would be to create more content, not perfecting what you have. Do makeup on anyone that's willing, your friends, your family, yourself.
Document the process. Take photos in different lighting. Take photos of your setup. Practice a specific look that you really wanna nail down multiple times on different people and share that. If you're at a stage where you literally just do not have enough photos to cur. Then your focus isn't [00:05:00] curation, it's creation of content, and that is completely normal.
We all started with nothing.
The thing about our industry is that the turnaround is very slow. You can't wake up one day and decide you want bridal clients in a month and expect your portfolio to immediately attract them. We're building portfolios over time because bookings do not happen overnight. So instead of thinking about.
What is going to get me booked next week or this month? Think about being intentional with how you're marketing yourself and creating content over the long term. If you're still in the early phases and you're practicing on your friends and family, use that time to play around with lighting, take better photos.
Really look at the content that you are filming and figure out. Different positioning how your client sits in the chair. Make sure you're addressing details like stray hairs, weird wardrobe choices that people might be wearing in your photos. Weird cropping, anything that distracts from your work, you wanna remove it.
Take ownership of your content creation. You cannot [00:06:00] rely on other people to do this for you, and you cannot rely on other people to provide you with opportunities to create content. This is part of our business and we have to market ourselves. You have to think of it like any other startup company.
You're responsible for playing all the roles, including content creation. And I don't mean trying to sell a product for a beauty brand that you like. I mean really marketing your services as a professional makeup artist, this is something you have to be intentional about practicing, just like all the other elements of your makeup application, content creation, portfolio building. It is a skill and just like any skill, it gets better with practice and with time. Okay. Your portfolio now has way more dimensions to it than when I first started.
When I began, it was just a booklet of photos. Now we have to show our clients all sides of our business, your process that you're actually on, jobs, your kit, that it looks professional and organized your technical skills through closeups and application shots, your social media [00:07:00] awareness that you understand how to present your work professionally, online.
All of this has to be demonstrated in our portfolios. Now, the goal is showing that you're doing the job, that you're professional, you're skilled, and you understand the industry without confusing potential clients about what they'll get when they book you. So when you are thinking about your feed or your portfolio, ask yourself, does this show that I'm a working professional?
Does it demonstrate my skill level and does it attract the kind of clients that I wanna work with next? You can be versatile in your work, but very clear in your presentation. Those things aren't opposites, but they are both necessary. The goal also is not to have a perfect portfolio before you start working.
The goal is to be intentional about building one as you practice and grow. If you're listening to this and you're struggling with this balance, being versatile, but presenting clearly this month in the Artist to Artist membership, we are deep diving into portfolio building and personal branding.
We're covering [00:08:00] exactly how to curate your work strategically. What dimensions your portfolio needs and how to show you're a working professional even when you're just starting out. There is of course, a seven day free trial, and this month's content is gonna help you navigate this kind of weird paradox that you are faced with when you start working as a makeup artist.
I will link you to the membership in the show notes, and I will see you in the next episode where we're talking about why you don't need to go viral. You just need to be consistent. Thank you so much for listening, and I'll see you next time. Bye.
