Where did it all begin for you in the industry, to get to where you are today?

[jenny2]

Hi guys, as i am at a loose end, hubby is cooking tea and the boys are out playing, i have been wizzing around trying to answer questions for people based on my experiences and i was wondering for those that have been in the industry a while or have recently set up a home studio, how did u go about it?.
We all talk about advertising, but many of the posts i have read kind of skirt around the answers. What i mean is, often we have the words in our heads on the best way to advertise our leaflets, posters but can never quite put it on to paper. Obviously we can pay good money to an advertiser to desighn it for us, but this is often more costly. I no when i first set up on my own it cost 200 before i started just for the desighn work and have since done it myself and it looks better than what i paid for.

In our business it takes time to build a name for yourself and sometimes we throw a strop as we wanted everything yesterday so to speak. So guys, my question is for u home based geeks and mobile geeks how did u get the clientel u have and how did u go about advertising it. Were did u start, how many ladies did u have, what treatments did u offer and so on.

I have not advertised as yet, and am averaging about one to two ladies per day, and every week i seem to get a new one, is this how it works simply by word of mouth, or did u get out there and pace the streets.
What about those that have no clientel, no passing trade as they are home based how would such as they get there name out there.
Does the internet really do what it says on the tin, I no trainers and people selling products do great with there business on the internet, it is the same for tech
sorry i no lots of food for thoughtxxx

So guys were did it all begin for u and how did u get to were u are today:lol:

 

[maguire]

I am home based and mobile, I have an ad on yell.com which I have had quite a few calls from, I also have buisness cards that I have left in restaraunts, chip shops and local small supermarket shops, I have run around Asda carpark putting leaflets on car windows and I am doing quite well out of it biggest satisfaction is from word of mouth as thats your proof of the pudding if you know what I mean.

 

[suzie49]

I am home based and mobile as well, I am well advertised on the net, but other than that I haven't really bee plugging away as I should do due to different commitments. I shall be after I come back from holiday in September.
But I have a few clients from word of mouth and I have had some who have got my name off the net, so I am hoping to go from strength to strength once I start really going for it ..x

 

[Kim Lawless]

I think a website is a must nowadays.....it's a bit like your shop front really. If it looks good, then people will enter and look around (and hopefully buy).

I've never advertised so I would say, keep ploughing away and if you give an excellent service, word will spread, and before you know it, you'll have a waiting list of clients. Keep your standards high. xxx

 

[suzie49]

I think a website is a must nowadays.....it's a bit like your shop front really. If it looks good, then people will enter and look around (and hopefully buy).

I've never advertised so I would say, keep ploughing away and if you give an excellent service, word will spread, and before you know it, you'll have a waiting list of clients. Keep your standards high. xxx

WOW, then you are about the best advert I know for word of mouth hun, I must have heard your name and knew what you did very early on on joining this site and Im a nail geek..so that says a lot about good advertising and having a good name in the buisiness..xx

 

[Jen Smith]

I have done lots of local news paper advertising which has only brought in two or three new clients... but they are long term clients that come every month for various treatments.

I have advertised in Yellow pages that has brought me diddlysquat .. ran it for two years and had two pervy calls from this so have cancelled it this year.

I now have a website and I get new clients every week .. I cannot believe the difference its made.

The biggest draw is reputation like Kim said... do a good job and word gets round and this has brought the largest amount of clients through my salon.

It has taken a long time.. and the first two years I was only working on one or two clients in a day.. sometimes in a week. Now I am busy most days and have a two week waiting list for evening appointments.

Plod on.. always work well and give your client 100% and slowly but surely you will get an established business going.

Then you can lie there in bed of a night and feel pretty darn good about all the hard work you have put in and how much its all been worth it

 

[jenny2]

I've never advertised so I would say, keep ploughing away and if you give an excellent service, word will spread, and before you know it, you'll have a waiting list of clients. Keep your standards high. xxx

Could not agree more, money for nothing eh kimxxx

 

[Bagpuss]

I did a ad in the local rag when i first started out....just to let people know i was here....that was in 2004....since 2006 i haven't advertised at all....its all word of mouth...to be honest i would be pushed to take on many more clients which is why i no longer advertise.

All i have is my free one liner in yellow pages that also puts me on yel.com

I would say 99% of time new clients rings saying ...."hiya you do so and so's nails and she gave me your number"....

So to start of with i think its important to get your name out there....how will they know about you unless you advertise....once you are more established it gets easier....however its one thing getting the clients in the first place and another keeping them.

 

[Kim Lawless]

Tell a lie.....I did put a few ads on Gumtree free ads but I don't call that advertising. Still good to do though. xxx

 

[Tracey Park]

I did the yell.com and yellow pages in the early days but got jack pit !!!!

To date I have my website and word of mouth which has made a great difference to my client base. I have them coming all over to see me which I dont mind at all and they come back because of the service I provide.

What more could I ask for !!!

 

[hippy-chick]

I paid for ads in my local free paper and didn't get much.

I've done free editorials and got 1 call from it.

I've repeated the first one over the past 12 years and come to the conclusion that its not worth it.

I have done numerous talks for WI and MU and church groups (that gets no clients but your name is known).

I have paid for teenagers to do leaflet drops for me.

I pay to have postcards put in local newsagents windows.

I have a few ads on gumtree.

My website is probably the biggest draw and when I did the guild/aero promotion a lot of people chose me because I had a website.

I have 1 line in yellow pages and thomson.

I have one of my courses going to advertised in the guild magazine that will be out soon.

I always carry biz cards around with me.

I ask clients to take postcards into work with them.

I send an email newsletter out to 80+ clients every month.

 

[fiona wallace]

I started out on my own over 10 years ago and have tried pretty much everything. Here are my results as best as I can give you without checking all my files. (I keep records of everything!)

Leaflet drop by extended family when I first opened drew in approx 15 clients, it was a large drop though, 8 family members helped:lol:

NO results that I know of from free editorials in local papers.

Very few results from local advertising, one or two, but difficult to determine.

A Scottish newspaper's Sunday magazine (upmarket broadsheet as opposed to tabloid) journalist came for a freebie service when we invited her and wrote up about said service and I reckon we got 25-30 clients from that

We are in Yellow Pages and Yell.com and spend several thousands of pounds with them now - we believe we get at least our money back and can't judge further than that.

Word of mouth - word of mouth - word of mouth!!!!!

There is nothing to beat it! We can trace so many of our clients back to other clients when we get chatting to the ones who have been coming for years and ask how they first heard of us (oh, I know we should have asked them in the beginning)

As best I can tell, over 50% of our clientele are recommended by others. So....a high standard of treatments along with friendly service that exceeds client's expectations and you shouldn't have to spend a fortune!