Doubled her income in 11 months as a bridal hairstylist & makeup artist!!!

And check in with you because you joined when I first started the program. So, like, I would just love to see, I'm so curious to see where you're at, how you're doing. I would love to start off with, Tell me about you, what's your name? Where are you from? How did you get into the bridal industry? Okay, awesome.

I'm Alexis. I do both hair and makeup. So I've been doing hair and makeup for, since like 2017. I actually have a degree in marketing, mass communications and then a minor in sport management. So sole focus before getting this industry was like probably going into like sports and entertainment marketing or like working for Lululemon or Nike. But hair and makeup had always been something I was super passionate about. My mom started up in the salon industry, actually only managed, never did cut and collar. And so she came from the management side, came from like being able to provide an experience that she wanted to be able to, to help like women people have a great experience in the industry. But I, I never thought I'd go into it. But I grew up within the era of like Victoria's Secret Angels, where everyone had the beautiful bouncy, like hair. I was always the one that like, would always be applying clip and extensions and like back in the day, even with clip and extensions, it's funny because that always ties into a lot with like my brand because I do clip and extension rentals and I'm always working with clip in extensions and. But I was always the go to girl in high school and college for hair and makeup. And so I got to the point where the girls I was playing college softball with were asking like, hey, can you do my, like wedding hair and makeup? And then I was in a sorority and then the girls in the sorority I'd always volunteered be like, hey, can I do your hair makeup for a special event? Just, it was always so fun. And then I had started off actually in direct sales with makeup. And so instead of Oregon at that time, you didn't need to be licensed for hair or makeup. But I live in Washington now. But technically in the state of Washington, you do need license. So I came back home from college and there's a bunch of photographers in my area that I pretty much grew up with that were like, hey, we need a hair makeup artist. So I had started off dabbling, learning with bridal hair and makeup, just like, as I went, like working with friends. And I think because of my college background of things playing sports, I thrived in like high adversity situations. So being Able to like handle like high stressful situations. I loved it. So going into photoshoot hair makeup is a little bit slower. But when it was like 2017, majority of people in my area like the gals that were like makeup artists were. Because in the state of Washington you don't need to be licensed for hair makeup or like for makeup specifically esthetics or cosmetology, but you do need to for hair. So when I was starting off, my mom had always said she was like hey, like I'm happy you went the route of getting your like business degree but if you decide one day you want to go more into hair, you definitely need to get licensed. Being someone that had ran a salon, she was like I would hate for something to happen down the road for you. As she saw me like getting into more with hair and makeup and being really passionate about it. So I looked more into it and then I stuck with like hair and makeup as like a side hustle while like nanning full time for a couple of years out of college. And so I think it was it. It was until about like two years out, I think it was 2019 or 2020. I decided to like full full time and then also going to cosmetology school. So I, I'm trying to think I had to go back through my income for what I was making around then. But I think because I was doing both weddings and photo shoot, hair and makeup, I was hitting a hundred thousand. But that was like then going full time of like not having any like days off. Like I would just take clients like back to back to back or whenever I could. And because I returned a room at my parents house into like a home studio for me it made it easy for me to sleep in the same place, not in the same room but like same building and then be able to like just go down and work with clients. Now I'm in a place where I have my own apartment with my boyfriend old townhouse. And then I still go back and freelance out of my parents home. We, I have a studio that we've like renovated. But regardless of that I'm in a place now where I'm just like so happy because from even the growth for what I've made from. I joined Bridal Boss Academy in I think it was like October, October 10th of 2023. That was a time when I was transitioning where I was like okay, like I just become an S corp. I was making, I definitely was making over 100k in years past. But I can, I wrote down Like a progression of like 2023 to 2024 to 2025 for like what I'm projected to do. And it's a huge jump. And like what I've been able to see is that with shifting my focus into a bridal focus, I'm not bridal only right now. And I've chosen to continue to do both hair and makeup, my incomes pretty much not only like doubled, but I've seen a transition and shift into like the type of jobs I accept, which has allowed me and the type of jobs and doing more weddings. So it allows me to pack as much like income and like clients as I can in one day. And it's actually less work for me, surprisingly in a day's work. But then obviously we have all of our admin work that leads up to those days. But it's allowed me where like this is the first August in since doing hair and makeup since 2017, where I've been able to like actively like take two days off a week at least try and prioritize to have like Sundays off but I'm not booked with a wedding and then be able to price myself appropriately. Where like my photoshoot hair makeup pricing is starting to become more competitive with like my wedding pricing because I'm at a point where I built a lot of my clientele actually with like seniors in high school for hair and makeup. And a lot of people in the area have always been like, you know what, you have to be at this like low rate for things. And I was like, well, it doesn't make sense for me to still do a lot of work for such a like shorter price point for things. And then the problem that I was seeing and being someone that does both hair and makeup in the industry with photoshoots is if you are in an industry like the, like an area like the Pacific Northwest, a lot of our jobs are reliant on weather. And what I was getting to the point was it was really hard in years past with not taking on like the jobs that I do as much for like weddings with photo shoots where if weather would cancel things out or like photographers were just super unreliable, then your income shot for the day and I was taking on like literally like four to five clients in one day. Right now I'm about six, six services maximum one day for photo shoot hair and makeup because they're about like an hour long at my studio space. But I can take in about like a thousand dollars a day just for like my in studio rates. So it's been able to help me be, to understand like, okay, like what are my non negotiables? Like what do I have to like make at least in order to like be gone a day, even if it's bridal only. But I've even been able to shift and understand like okay, if I'm taking on like weddings Friday through like Sunday at least what are like my high peak rates for what I can offer and what I'm booked at and then just my weekday rates if I like decided to take on. I feel like my like photoshoot, hair and makeup has now become like my side income on top of like, like full time income with like weddings. And then I'm someone that doesn't have a team so I train a girl. But it's not something that I like. I'm not like an agency so I don't send out girls to jobs. If I'm taking on weddings, I'm fully doing weddings myself, which I would love to like not fully do one day. But it's okay.

Yeah. Well, I'm curious. So you said you were pretty like split in years prior, like prior to 2024 of like you doing photo shoot, hair and makeup and, and bridal. Would you say you're more doing bridal? Like you still do photoshoot, hair and makeup but you're able to do more bridal. It sounds like you're working less.

I'm working a lot less but I still, still take photoshoot, hair, makeup, but like for example like statistics wise like 2023 versus 2024. Let me see here. I wonder if I can. I'll send you a link to this. I'm like, I could share the screen but like three. Oh my God, my pricing was like so freaking low and I would, I'm trying to think. I think I was booking out a year to two years out. I don't do two year booking out now. I do year by year and I think it's saved me so much because I feel like we get in this weird imposter syndrome where we're like, oh, I see people charging these rates how I don't think I could ever charge those rates.

Yeah.

And I feel like after, before Bridal Boss Academy and then also I'm really happy I did this and talking with like my CPA and then becoming an S corp of like trying to figure out what is like my paycheck want to look like for me. What is like retirement want to look like for me. So that's when I like stop started to get to the point of Being like, okay, I can't sit here and continue to justify what my pricing is because I want to keep and maintain clients in the area because I want to be, like, still competitive. But also at the same time, too, I feel like with the years of experience and the continuing education that I do, I'm like, now. I cannot not justify my pricing where I'm at now.

It's.

It's a huge jump. So 2023, I only had 31 weddings, and then I had $60,000 in, like, income that I had come in for weddings specifically, like, went through Honeybooks and added everything up. And then in 2024, which I'm pumped.

About.

I had 52 weddings and I did $122,000. Yeah. And that's not even like, double the amount of weddings. That was literally like, okay, so again, 52 weddings. The other one is 31 weddings. That is literally double the income.

Like, literally double the income.

Double the income.

And you're not even working that much more like, because obviously you were doing so many photo shoots and doing a little bit more in weddings, but you're doubling your income. That's Dane. I'm so proud of you.

And then for right now, where I'm at, for 2025 right now, I have about. I see one, two, about 18 weddings on my books right now and already projected out to have, let's see here, 41,000.

Wow. Wow.

Like, so it does go to contractors for contractor pay. But again, that's like, still, I. I think even with Honeybooks, a lot of the time with Honeybooks, they don't, like, incorporate tips right away into, like, your, like, projected revenue. So. Tips. I do get some tips here and there.

But yeah, I know Honeybook does that where you can do like the. Add the tip on there. But I'm so curious. So, okay, so you must have really increased your rates. So since joining Bridal Boss Academy, how many times were you able to increase your rates?

So that's one thing I was trying to go through with all of my. I, like, cringe. I was like, typing in, like, all of my rates from, like 2023 to 2024. And I have a Google Excel sheet. So what I did was I put like, all my dates, my, like, brides that I have, what, what they were booking for, packages wise. And it was like, I feel like I did not have the same structure for what I do now. So now what I do is I give everyone, like, I have my packages for things I used to do a la carte for things. And our packages working for you? Oh, super good. The hard part is that I had to navigate how am I going to do it for both hair and makeup. And at first I was like, like, am I gonna have to start switch and do like, hair only or makeup only? Because in the grand scheme of things like hair or makeup for booking and you're doing packages is way easier to follow. But my brides, I still have brides that like, book it. No problem with having my starting packages. So, like, right, what I did was I went off of like, what like my minimum would be to book for a wedding day. So I give brides a couple different options and I'm. I can still also cater toward bridal only packages. We just substitute out for the time of like, someone's service for like an additional guest service for like touch of hours. So I do cater that way. But for prior, I was anywhere between, like, for bridal hair styling and makeup. So I have my pricing actually the same for both hair and makeup for, like, services. So in 2023, like, just throughout the year before going into 2024, I was anywhere around 325, five for a day of per service. So it was about 325 to 400. So you're be looking at like, what is it? Like 650 and then 400, like what, 800. So for that and then I am trying to think. I was like looking at a couple of these. And I mean, it was like a lot of these weddings were still like eight services that I was doing. I need to go through and like, almost compare how much I was doing on average with that. That one and like, what an average one. The same booking rate for this, but. And then bridesmaids, I was like 140 a service. And then I'm trying to think of anything else at that. If I brought in an assistant, I. It made me like, honestly, like, dread having assistance. Because what I was doing is I was doing like $150 rates. And it wasn't even to compensate for my time. It also like, included in their travel to things too. And I'm like, I'm literally los money when I bring on an assistant to come in because they're taking away so many services of mine and it was like getting below my minimum. So right now I protect myself. Or if I bring on an assistant, it doesn't drop below like, what my minimum is, or if it drops below my minimum, it accounts for the service I'd be losing out on. So that was a mistake. I was Doing in the past, looking at all that. So, yeah, 140 versus what I transitioned into doing this past year. So for 2024, some of them were booked off of, like, a year to two years out notice. So when I'd have those come around, I was like, why did I do this? And now that's like, again, why I go around each year now where I'm like, okay, I don't want to do that anymore. So on average, what I was looking at for 2025 after, like, shifting, I think I was right around before I shifted to you or like, shifted into your program. I think it was like 150, 160. And then I was like, screw it. I'm going 185 per bridesmaid. Huge jump like that, like 40 to like 45 jump for to like 185 makes a huge difference. Especially if I had like, a assistant. I was bringing on that because assistant rates can charge anywhere between, like, I think like 110 to maybe 155. Going up to 185 had covered a ton for especially the communication fire, what I was doing to, like, a little bit of an overhead for things experience of the gal that I was bringing on. So I've had some times where I had to, like, call in someone who was like, super, super talented, that ran their own business, like, last second, that, like, didn't just pick up jobs from other people. So having a little bit of a higher rate had protected me in that little pocket for things. And then what my pricing went up to, I think consistently looking at a lot of my pricing, I was like 800 to finally jumping to a thousand. I feel like last year I got to so 500 bridal service. So it was a thousand just for bridal service, for hair and makeup. Because what I do is I spend three hours with bride alone. As it is two and a half to three hours. So that really starts to max me out when I start to have like, a minimum of like, four services for those days. But that's what I shifted to. And I got like, pretty much. I think it was like, maybe up until about like, June in May. And I was like, screw it. I'm literally just going to go from that like 700, $800 range to like a thousand. And then my trial runs ended up going up to 250 per trial run. Some 500 I'd make for my trial run paid out day of the trial run service, which was really nice because it then spaced out my services throughout the year. And then I'M trying to think of anything else with that one. I ended up going up to a rate. Instead of doing a dollar per mile round trip, I ended up going up to like $100 per hour. I'm on the road and I start at that. So even if people are local in the area and it's like maybe a 20 to 30 minute drive, I'm like, if I'm going to be leaving my studio space for a weekend booking, like we're going doing it this way. And then. Yeah, I'm just trying to think. And then I do extension rentals. I actually have everything invested from like a range of like 16 inches to like 20 inches in extensions. And then my extension rentals are 125. I do anything between like Bellamy to Luxie to Cashmere for my extension rentals. Some are from Amazon too as well. But I actually found that I need to do a statistics of my brides. I would say a good like portion of my brides either do handheld extensions, buy clip and extension rentals or rent extensions. So that's one thing I was like putting up through. So I brought in probably around like at least like $2,000 in like sales like from extension rentals. Now again, a lot of them had been like purchased last year and I would been building up the year before. But I think it's going to really pay off even more for 2025.

So.

But that's where I think it's really important.

Yeah, yeah. I was gonna say your 2025 seems like it's just gonna take off. Like if this is how your 2024 started, like it's gonna end. Like, and you already have so many bookings going into 2025. Like what is, what did you find was kind of like the biggest piece that you feel led to you being able to. I know it was more weddings, but it feels like you're working less and earn more.

I feel like, mindset wise, I don't know this directly answers that. Well, I mean it's gonna answer it. But I think one thing that had shifted me mentally was I am now in a pretty serious relationship with my partner. And we've had conversations about like, okay, do you have a 401k? Do you have a Roth IRA? What is your paycheck and can you spend more time with me? Like, like, can we have more weekends together? And I remember having a lot of frustrations in years past of being like, I would get really frustrated at like photographers for canceling or rescheduling due to like a really stupid excuse or a client being like, oh, I have like cheer photos on the weekend I. Or camp and I had to move it to another weekend and. And I would look at my dates and being like, I could have had a wedding booked on this. Like, weddings, I. I never get canceled. I think last year, honestly, statistics wise. And as I'm the sole owner of my business and I work directly with a lot of my brides, I have a ton of communication Dan, day in and day out. And I love that communication portion of it. So that's why also I love that shift of going, like, more focus on bridal, but that shift of like, those reasonings of being like, okay, like, I have to get serious about, like, what is my paycheck look like for. Does my retirement want to look like for me? What do I need to do in order to get there? What do I need to be Bringing in? Profit first had helped a lot. I saw that you had implemented profit first into your course, which I really love and I appreciate. And also that shift too. I think around the same time I was like joining with your program, I just taken a course with someone that had done. In order to like, find success in this industry, you had to run teams. I love doing services, but I'm someone that I. I can't get out of the game right now doing this. But being someone that also listens to a ton of podcasts, most people who run salons or run teams, you have. You can't be fully doing hair and makeup in this industry. And while running a team with the success of things. And so I'm not ready to jump out of it. But I talk with a ton of gals that run teams and they're like, you are still producing numbers that I'm producing with like, several girls on my. So that's been a really cool, like, kind of aha moment with things. But yeah, just the shift of being able to space out, like, my income throughout the year, having the communication that leads up to that justifying, like, again, those weekends are things. So. And then I no longer travel like I used to for photo shoots. I'm. I'm all in studio for my like, home studio situation. But yeah, even having a little space in home studio, I know a lot of people, like, want to have the, what is it, brick and mortar type of like, studio situation.

You're so lucky.

It's very expensive. So that's one thing I was like, it would be a dream of mine one day. But being someone now has been trying to like, break down again. What. What am I making? What can I pay myself out paycheck wise? Keeping my expenses low? It's been a really nice focus and shift with going more bridal with that. But yeah, I would say, like, the big, big conversation is, like, becoming more, like, financially literate and not feel as embarrassed to talk about, like, what my income is and, like, what I can be better at.

So, yeah, I feel like it was almost like a mindset shift of, like, putting your CEO hat on. Because, like, you. You and me kind of really vibe on, like, the stats, the financial financials being, like, financially literate. Like, we were like, I feel like we're the same with that. So I love that you implemented, like, the profit first and, like, you really break everything down. Because I feel like a lot of people in our industry, sometimes they. I was talking with someone else. They're like, they see it as fun. Like, this is a fun job and it can be fun, but have to have that CEO hat on of, like, no, you need to make sure you're making this. Like, you went to the S Corp, which I think is so financially smart and something I love that you went inside the program and you. You took what worked for you and you. You left what didn't. So, like, if you're in the program, you know that I went from hair and makeup to just hair. And I love that you're like, I still love hair and makeup and I'm gonna do both. And you made it work for you. So on that specific piece, how do you find work Doing hair and makeup is working for you and how you. Like, you don't have a team.

So we're doing both. I feel like. Okay, so this is. This is a tricky one because again, doing both hair and makeup, you have to be. You have to have a diverse skill range, especially for, like, the styles that you offer and makeup as well, but then still honing down on, like, what are you consistently doing? So I know I can be better about posting on social media. I do love social media, don't get me wrong. But because I take out a lot of photo shoots at the weekday, it does take away from the time. I can be, like, doing content and I was, like, pulling up my conversions that I can share with you when it comes to, like, where I'm getting people from. But doing both, it's. It's allowed me to be able to. I was talking to Rachel about this too. I can't remember her last name. Super talented hair makeup artist. It's in your program too. But When. Yeah, yeah.

Rachel loves.

Yes, yes. But it's like taking it. We're able to take on like less services in one day to be able to like have like like all my starting bridal packages start with the bridal glam experience. So it's like sole focus on like the bridal's the bride's experience herself. But even with my starting packages I feel like on average, even though my pricing is higher for both hair and makeup for Bride again I'm taking on less services throughout the day. I am booked at my like Bride only for or my Bride first for hair and makeup and then two additional services. That's like a thirteen fourteen hundred dollar like starting package and my other one with Bride the choice I allow my clients to have the choice of bride for hair or makeup and then five additional services or four additional services. So it's a about a minimum of five. I actually don't get booked a lot for that which is very surprising. I've seen a shift of a lot of clients want to not like book like two different team or they're wanting to have a smaller, smaller booking when they do reach out to me. So that's what I've attracted. Although I can book like some larger parties. Like I've had a couple. I have one coming up in November where it's me for bridal hair and makeup. I have four additional services by three other people working the wedding with me and it's a $6,000 job starting with that. So it's a lot. So I'm very grateful for that. But yeah, I would say shifting for bridal hair or makeup. A lot of my content's a sole focus on like the bridal hair and makeup like service portion. The results, the, the outcome for things. I'm trying to think of anything else. When it's hair and makeup only you just, you're, you have to keep in mind you're gonna, you're not gonna be able to do like the seven to eight services is going to be too much on the body. That's what I've been able to find with that when you do like a sole focus and bridal ha up and then with the like again starting like two additional add ons. I also have been able to. In Pacific Northwest we get a lot of elopements. So sometimes I do like a special rate for like my weekday ones. And that's the nice thing about taking like my pricing off my website and my starting pricing on my website. But I took off my per service off my website because when I have people that reach out that I can like, throw out like a, like a customized quote for them, especially if they want to, like, do an elopement just for themselves and I travel to them or they come to me.

I love that you're getting. I love that you're getting smaller bridal parties and more like bridal only because I feel like with your messaging with the packages that you just described, that's exactly who you're going to attract in which, like, is kind of a good thing if you don't always want to be having to bring on additional people to help out. Because I'm so glad that you realize, like, oh, yeah, doing eight hair and makeup is a lot. That's a lot on the body. You're exhausted after, you know, well, you had that burnout.

And it's like working in years past when I was doing so much with photoshoots and resenting myself with how much I was taking on with that. And then hair, makeup, and then also traveling with photo shoots, like, again, I don't travel really much anymore for photoshoots, which is so nice because, like, for one person, like, I was making like 250 or 300 for what I was charging. I was like, damn. Like, I could literally make that in like, just two bridesmaids in one setting. You just 45 minutes back to back to back to back back. So, yeah, exactly that. And just this. I've just seen a shift in transition of not wanting to feel like I'm burning myself, but also being realistic with brides where I'm like, here's your timeline. Like, here's an example of a timeline for what you're looking for. Realistically, do you want to have me book someone else or you can go out and book someone else yourself. I find a lot of people actually, like, have me book someone else, and I make sure my rates reflect that into the work that I'm going to put into to book out an additional hairstyles make room artist. So I definitely have seen a bigger shift though, too, on a lot less tipping as my pricing has gone up. I don't have a problem with that. I just know that that's a huge conversation in the industry. I don't do auto gratuity. I think gratuity is, like, earned. It's like, not something that should be expected even with higher, like, rates to things. But that's where, like, again, if I need to, like, price and like, pay like a contractor out, like, appropriately, I'll do it that way.

So, yeah, Yeah, I totally agree with you on that. I would love to talk about it if you want, for a sec. I loved when we were first in the program and you came in with that amazing bridal experience of the bride, who was like, no, you're too expensive. And then that you came back and didn't she, like, hide you? Like, she wound up booking with you literally hit me. Yeah. But at first it was like a bridal objection, and everybody was like, she's a red flagger. And I was like, like, I don't think so. Like, I would love if you could share that experience.

So now that I have gone up in pricing, I'll get a mix. It's. It's really funny. So she was like, the start of the year where I was like, okay, let me try and pull up what I, like, pulled out for this one. It was like one of, like, my January rides. And that's one thing that I'm trying to find the balance with. With like, my, like, lower time in the season or my slower time of the season. Like, what. What financially makes most sense for me to, like, show up to do a job and then also, like, what's like, yeah, what's worth my time? Like, what's worth, like, also some of these gals that are like, I don't say, like, red flags, but when they're like, bring up all these points, they're like, I want you to do this. I want you to do this. It's like knowing you have to price yourself appropriately because in the long run, we can start to see certain things that they say or do or the things that they were requesting. It's going to be more than what you think. So I'm really happy I price myself the way that I did then. And the. The pricing. Kelly, let's see here. Or no, it wasn't Kelly. So it was. I ended up making a thousand six hundred seventy dollars from that booking. And it was literally just for her for hair, makeup, and then one additional hair styling service. So I found that she's not the first one this past year that has been like, okay, you're a lot more than what I would think when you start to take your pricing off of your website. But I think because they also put on my starting pricing, it's kind of rolled out. Those people that are so sticker shocked.

I love that you have the starting price. Like, you didn't totally take it out. You have the starting price. I love that.

Yes. And with this gal's booking. So, yeah, she had booked me she had. She came as a referral from other people. And she was in her, like, 50s or so first marriage, and she was wanting to have this whole, like, experience for things, but then was wanting to do it on, like, this budget for things. And I didn't know that with the budget until she had responded back to me saying, like, this is a bit out of my budget. And then it was really odd because at that time, when she'd responded back to me, she was like, yeah, I mean, I was going back and forth between your emails over the course of the holidays, and people were like, oh, my gosh, you're crazy to, like, book at that pricing for things. I feel like, like, most the response I actually get now is I'll have gals that politely respond back, and they'll either be like, you know what? Like, I. You're on my budget, but I love your work. If my budget, like. And my response usually is like, if your budget changes and you want to be able to, like, work with me and be able to get, like, this vision for what you have, don't hesitate to reach back out to me. Like, if your date's still available, available, I'll reopen up your contract in your invoice of things. And I actually have had a couple people reach back out and do that. Some of them have been like, okay, I've had to, like, really sit down with my partner, talk about, like, my needs, my wants, and you being one of my top vendors for this. And even with some of those brides coming back, they've been some great referrals. They've even, like, tipped on top of those things. Again, a lot of time I don't end up getting tipped, which is totally fine. But it's the gals. Some of them, I was like, I wasn't expecting you to end up doing that when you were like, I'm trying to figure out how I can do this. But I have found that if someone wants it bad enough, they'll do whatever it takes to make it happen to book. And we are so limited with our dates for booking that you don't need to drop your pricing with this fear of, like, am I going to get this filled? Now, there are some dates, like a Tuesday or Thursday wedding, where I'm like, okay, I could figure something out, maybe, like, make something happen, but I'm not going to sacrifice price, like, what I can, like, potentially make, even if what I'm doing with, like, photo shoots in one day. So she was. She was one that was very appreciative like of the experience with everything was really funny. She like left a review and everything was really happy with her services. I've had really good retention with all of my brides this past year. Even with the hard part is that sometimes with your budget brides, you'll have gals that. Because I do touch up hours, I found in years past when I was actually a lower pricing, I was going through some of my like bookings where I was like making like $2,000 and I thought it was a really good booking where I'd like discounted my touch up hours because they're like, oh, I want to do this, but I'm on this type of budget. Like, what can you make happen this way? I have found that you're going to find your clientele, especially if you have your perceived value out there and you're constantly putting out like images of your work or your photos or videos and then you have good referrals. Girls, you'll have those girls that will book you at the rates that you are set when your perceived value is there and they won't even question your rates. And so I love that with a lot of my like brides right now. I'm seeing that a lot with my 20, 24 bookings. And being that I'm almost what like 20 weddings booked out for like next year, I'm not having a ton of people question things with the. The more that do on social media, I feel like that's, that's one of the biggest, biggest components. I feel like a shift that I've made over this past year. Letting people in with like behind the scenes of like how my experience is a little bit more unique than others. And then the transition of like the from point A to point B. I have really liked doing a more thorough breakdown of my pricing and like service guide. I think that that's one thing that has helped me a lot with people better understanding my value there. So yeah, yeah, I just loved how.

Like, even though she, some people might see that as like, oh, she's a budget bride, like you still had the confidence of like, no, this is my value, like, I'm not going to drop my rates. And she actually wound up paying it and I just felt like confidence oozing from you and it was just so nice and so sweet to see that like, like you weren't going to drop your rates just because somebody asked for, you know, a discount or she was like saying how her budget was like the enemy and you, you stuck to your rates and she Wound up paying that and being a great client. So like budget brides aren't always, you know, bad people, red flaggers at the beginning. But I would love to know, I know you do Honeybook. I would love to know if you used any pieces of like the email templates or if you saw any success with that piece.

So with the email templates I was already doing some portions, like some stuff that was similar to like what you had like encouraged us to do. I'm trying to think of like the biggest shift that I've had with HoneyBooks this past year. Yes, I feel like what I have that's helped me even when it comes to like my service and pricing guide, I have my starting packages for things when like so I have like a full workflow of things. Because with like my schedule with doing photo shoots, being able to have time off transition between like weddings and everything. Even with my photo shoots with honey books and like one off appointments. Let's say for example, if someone wanted to book like rehearsal dinner, hair makeup or like engagement photoshoot, hair and makeup. Because all of those. I don't do trial runs on those types of like occasions. Someone can, but I'm like, that's the look that you're getting for, for your wedding day. If not, we can make tweaks and changes. But with Honey Books, all of my stuff, I my workflow of things, I have my clients, whenever anyone inquires to my website, they get an automated or like automated like email response. So for until I was able to open up my books, I actually had on all of my email responders like when they can expect that I would be opening up like my next year's bookings. I think that's something that's super important. Just the clear communication that way and then the time for what they would expect for things for responding, response time, my admin hours throughout the week. I've been really like stern on like keeping my admin hours like certain days throughout the week and then having my like clients expect that and then my workflow. I love HoneyBooks. I couldn't imagine not having HoneyBooks or Dubsado. Two totally different platforms. Very similar. I know that they're rolling out a lot with Honeybooks. They're rolling out like a tap to pay which is awesome for like your one off clients if you're having them come in. But I automate all of my like payments to happen out a week before. So I with my Honeybooks program I have like my service and pricing guide. Clients can select it. It's cool because on there too as well, I have my clients be able to like schedule out like bridal calls if they want to chat with me about like their services or questions. Usually the biggest questions I ever have from clients. And this is one thing that I've really been happy about implementing this past year is the follow ups with inquiries for my contracts and my invoice or my follow ups in order to like create my contracts and then my invoices. So you do a great job with like, okay, here's like your like, I think it's like two, three day follow up and then if you don't hear back from them, here's another follow up and then another follow up. Just like. And then it ultimately kind of like ends with please let me know if you've like gone another direction or if there's anything else I can do. So that's been a really nice way to kind of like continue to open up that dialogue. I've actually had brides actually follow up with booking because they're like, so sorry, like, life got crazy. Thank you for your follow up. Like, I like see that you're really interested in working with me. So and just having those templates there, it's really cool. Because now Honeybooks, I don't know if Dubsada is doing this, but there's an AI version for messaging for these platforms. So even though I have my templates every, I have templates for everything. So I can pull it up when I'm on my phone on the right road. But with Honeybooks, they have an AI responder. So whatever comes through and they're like inquiry, it'll formulate a response taking like, like a customized message on what your response would be to someone wanting to book you with their vision, their location, all this. It's really freaking cool.

That's wild. The game. Oh my God.

Do you know how much time I would spend with being like, hi, thank you for these details. This is what I would like recommend like, so it's phenomenal. They don't have it set up for I. I haven't seen it in response to like my hair and makeup console forms. I love my console forms. That's something I didn't have in years past. But the AI version is freaking cool because sometimes I even have like a bride that responds to me that's like, hey, so I just want to let you know, like, this changed with this. Can we do this or can we do that? And then I'll formulate an AI response where it's like, hey, this has now been drafted. Are you ready to send like a response like this or like, here's like a drafted reply and then I can go in and like change it up where it's like, okay, let me look into this for you. But I have noted that you want to have X, Y and Z. This sounds lovely. Like, it's really freaking cool.

So much less brain power you have to use because like I don't you find that's like the biggest time suck is like, like we want to be personable and customize our emails, but it's such a time suck for us, which is why we love Honeybook. We love Dubsado to automate a lot of it. But you still want to customize that. I wonder if Dubsado is going to do that. I'm going to look into. That is cool.

That's been phenomenal about Honey Bucks. And so everything's automated templates. Like, I've always like, even before going into bba, like, I always was like, I had honey books, but I didn't have like, I had a newsletter, but it was a huge ass newsletter. And so my newsletters now are all broken down. Like I have like a spray tanning like newsletter I have. It breaks down the difference between like with spray tanning and tanning what to like look out for. And then I put together a newsletter on like how to prep your skin and hair before wedding day. So I have a list of like all like my favorite go to like products. So I'm able to diversify like my income out if people want to like purchase things online. I've made really great connections with med spas in the area, hairstylists, just other vendors that can help enhance the bride's overall vision and like results leading up to wedding day, which I highly recommend for any hairstylist or makeup artist to do to connect that way. So I send that all out, like start to like roll it out like weekly or like every other week. My prep one is like the skin and makeup prep where it's like all the things that they need to do leading up to day of have a year out in advance and then yeah, and then just keeps breaking down different newsletters. And then I'll have like a final like check in, like, here's your like prep for the wedding day of like things to like, remember and even stuff as simple as like, please make sure your vows and your thank you cards are written out before you sit down in the chair because it makes the biggest difference. Like I want you to have the best results. So yeah, yeah. So all that's been very helpful. And then automating out head final head count. Okay. So being someone that offers both hair and makeup, the trickiest part is you will have a lot of people want to add on a mix of services. I allow a mix of services for myself. I don't have a problem with it. But if I have someone that comes on, then I have to make sure that they can either do a dual services or either or. That's the trickiest part of like, doing multiple and having a headcount for things. Does that make sense? So sometimes I'll have like, Sally sue that wants to, like, do hair makeup for herself and then four additional makeup services and then like, it's like five or six hair. So it's going to be a mix of services, which again, when it's smaller parties, it's nice for me because not everyone wants to have makeup done or not everyone wants to have hair done. So it works for me. There's a lot of people out there that run teams who provide kits. They'll only be all hair or all make makeup. Right. So but that's again what works for me. So my head counts. I'll do that. Have that all automated out in advance and then have a timeline questionnaire automated out. Having these things automated out and you're thinking, like, one step ahead of the game to protect your energy, but also put the bride at the, like, forefront of, like, her feeling, like a priority 30. There are so many hair makeup artists that don't do timelines or don't do, like, head counts or, like, check in for, like, changes to things. And I've seen it firsthand of brides, like, being so stressed out for day of being like, well, when is she gonna come? Like, who's she bringing on to assist with services? Or she's changed or, like, checked in like a day before, like the wedding day to get. Get like the final details for the wedding day. Like, I couldn't imagine doing that now. Especially when I have weddings that are like a Friday, Saturday or Sunday or like some. I've had like four days in a row, and I'm like, the last thing I want to do is do an email check in when that should have been done a week or a month out.

Right. And don't you feel like your brides feel so much more taken care of, like, because you're adding in the newsletters, you're doing the timelines, like, have you gotten good response from your bride about like, how much better you are with communication, right?

Yes. Yeah. They. With that price point of, like, upping your pricing, you have to have that type of communication. If you don't have that communication, it just doesn't reflect on the professionalism there. And we want their day to go just as smooth as they want their day to go as smooth. And so just eliminating all, like, the. Even. Just like, the suggestion of. Of something as simple as, like, okay, we're creating your timeline. Like, please keep in mind, like, Airbnbs are great, like, location and even just encouraging to them. It's like, make sure that with your venue, like, you're communicating with your venue far out in advance that, like, you know when you can get access to those venues. Or even if you have an Airbnb, make sure that, like, you either have a late checkout or you still have it booked going into the next day. Because I've had brides where they didn't read some of those things and they go, I should have reread that because. Because they didn't think of their Airbnb having a checkout at 11. And we had a timeline going until, like, 1pm so having. Having some of that communication in the beginning, I think is very important. And having some of that stuff sent.

Out, so, so important. So I want to ask if there was anything inside Bridal Boss Academy that I removed. What? But I kept, like, I removed everything, but I kept one thing. What would be the one thing you would, like, want me to keep that was, like, pivotal for you?

That's a hard one because I've taken a lot of courses. I'm like, removal. I think one thing that really makes your program very unique is your approach to social media and the, like, perceived value of what it is that, like, we're creating and giving out. But also at the same time, too, I loved, like, the way that you went into branding and understanding your ideal bride of, okay, what does those venues look like? Because the more that my pricing has gone up and the more that these things, like, I can now kind of get an idea of, like, if a bride reaches out to me and they put down a venue, I know if I'm going to work within their budget or not, oddly enough, sometimes.

Right.

But also sometime, too, people will figure out, like, if they, like, want to make it work for you. And it also just gives you a heads up too, like, the more that you work of these venues, like, realistically, like, what you can expect from them with, like, timelines for things. So that those were just really Good building blocks. I don't think any of that should be taken out. I think one thing that's not talked about enough is like breaking down and getting so micro with your. Your services of like your take home for things, your taxes, like just being financially like literate. I think in the future it'd be really, really cool for you to bring in, like, I think you already did this. Maybe you did this. Did you do it with like a tax expert, like tax expert or like a cpa? It'd be really cool for you to like continue to add into your programs even with this, someone that helps people understand like the difference between like so props, L.L.C. s corps. But like, you need to keep in the profit first. So like even just encouraging those things. Because I feel like the one thing that is really hard as a business owner in the hair and makeup industry, when you're doing your thing solo, unless you're chatting with other people, a lot of people can give you really shitty advice when it comes to how they like price themselves. But when you can get so micro, I mean, like, okay, what are the cost of all, like my kits for things? Whether you're providing it for a client or building up your kits, like getting so micro into how we can financially not burn ourselves out and like what makes most sense for us. Because most people that leave this industry are from burnout and then they just like, they just don't enjoy it anymore and they're not seeing that income come back in. And so figuring out with yourself your just income, you need to do the balance, you need to create in your life. What your ideal client is, I think is just super important. And I'm just trying to think of any other courses. I didn't really have any other courses that helped me really break those things down. So I think where I was at with like my S Corp journey and then working with the programs that I have with you, I think it just kind of of had that flow of being like, okay, these are my next steps for what I need to do.

I'm so glad you said that because the profit first lesson for me was like one of my favorite pieces. And also just like getting financially literate, like, I definitely took a note of possibly bringing in like CPI and like continuing that because that's so my values and what I value. And I'm so glad that you were able to like pick up on that because it's not only we want to make a lot of money, we want to know how to manage it budget, we want to know how to make sure we're paying for our expenses and things like that. If somebody was on the fence about joining Bridal Boss Academy, what's something you would tell them?

Oh God, that's a hard one. I've told so many people about this program of like it's literally changed my complete perspective of how I run my business. It allows you to again, I've said this, this like twice. It's funny though because I'm sure other people have been like, oh, it's helped me with building my social media. It's literally just helped me like confidence wise especially with like my pricing for my packages. How to. I don't ever feel like I have to negotiate my pricing with my clientele. Like I don't ever have to feel like I have to like fight for the client. Like they like take it or leave it. And perceived value I think is so important. I talk with so many hair makeup artists in the area area with perceived value and they're like, I don't know why people aren't booking. I don't know why people aren't booking. And I think it's really important that if people aren't understanding your value, you need to like break down. Like what can I do better in order to attract that type of bride? Whether it's like I want to work with glamour waves and I want to have like soft land like makeup looks. Okay, so who are the people out there that are killing it? See, take a note from like their book with things being able to see. But also you can't compare yourself to what other people are doing. You have a voice and a talent and gift that no one else has or will ever possess and no one ever can do it quite like you. And I think it's really important to not get lost, get lost in the comparison with things. But also it's you just have to consistently work to become a better version of yourself with your business. I think that that's one thing with the social media aspect. There's a constant comparison game with it. I feel like when I into Bridal Basic Academy one thing that had also helped me was I actually unfollowed a bunch of other like and it wasn't anything against any other hair and makeup artist the area but or like clients as well. But I really try to fuel like my feed with things that inspired me to help keep me on like a good trajectory with things but just really focusing on okay, am I posting things that are going to attract my ideal pride? Am I going to be booking things that that will compromise like what my ideal bride could be on these days. So it helps you be able to like make better decisions both like emotionally within your business and financially within your business with Bridal Boss about or Bridal Boss Academy. So that's long winded, but I hope that helps. Yeah.

Thank you. I so appreciate your time. I so appreciate you pulling up stats and finances for me. Like that's so my vibe. I love that. And I am so beyond proud of you, you that you are hitting your six figure year that you already are booking out into 2025, like the sky is the limit for you. I feel like you're just gonna keep increasing your packages and doing so well for yourself and I just can't wait to see where your business goes and I would love everyone to be able to find you. So what is your Instagram? How can we, how can we connect with you?

So my Instagram is Alexis Michael Hmua, both on, well, Instagram, Tick Tock Tok. I actually get a lot of clients from TikTok now, which is kind of cool. So don't overlook TikTok. But one more piece of advice I do want to give is no matter where you're at within like the season of your business, you can still hop in and out of this program. I felt like I was pretty established in my business and I feel like no matter where you're at, whether you're starting off, you're pretty well established or pretty like established within your business. Like there's always so much room for like growth and improvement. But even at busier times of the year, like, don't be afraid to like just like keep checking in and don't compare your progress in the course to other people's progress because we all, our seasons of our business are so different. And just there's one thing I've really liked about the community that you have is like you have a great place where you can like bounce off ideas with other people. Everyone's like minded, but they all bring like unique skill traits and perspectives to the table. So that's one thing I do really appreciate.

So yeah, I love that and I love the community and we're moving over into the new community. So I hope I see.