Selling your Services as an Artist

When I moved to Los Angeles several years ago, I had to start over again. I went from working as a Key Makeup Artist to working in sales. For two years I worked as an outside sales rep for a major fortune five hundred company and I hated every minute of it! The entire time I felt like I was spinning my wheels. I just wanted my makeup career back, but I was a slave to the steady paycheck. I felt like I was wasting my time selling someone else’s services when I could be selling my own. That’s when the light bulb went off in my head: it’s all sales and marketing. It doesn’t matter if you are a carpet cleaner, a freelance business consultant, or a makeup artist; you still have to sell and market your services. How is anyone going to know how great you are unless you sell them on it? As much as I hated working in sales, it taught me a lot about business. The product or service may change but the sale remains the same. That’s when I began applying what I learned working as a sales rep to getting work as a makeup artist.

So, here is some business and marketing advice from a former sales rep:

1. Set monthly goals for yourself. This means that you decide how much money you need to make each month as an artist.
2. Once you determine your goals, set a plan on how you are going to achieve them.
3. Every smart sales rep knows that it’s a numbers game. This means that the more people you contact, the higher the chances are that you will sell your services.
4. Start by making a list of people you would like to have as clients. Then cold call the companies to find out who hires for hair & makeup. Get their contact information and continue to follow up with them at least on a monthly basis.

Remember, “no” doesn’t mean “no forever,” it means “no for right now.” So never take no for an answer. Just keep asking for what you want in a different way until you get a yes! Make this a part of your daily/weekly routine and eventually you will get to where you want to be, I promise. It just takes persistence and patience!

Makeup Maverick
http://www.hmartistsnetwork.com
http://www.mymakeupart.com

Men's Grooming

Several years ago, when I went to makeup school, they taught us a ridiculous "corrective male makeup". It was a very old school technique of applying foundation, cheek color, and even mascara and lipstick. I remember the first time I did a man's makeup was for an industrial shoot. I really wanted to do a good job, so I broke out my notes from class and began to apply makeup the way I was taught. I have to laugh now, because looking back he looked like a girl! The reality is that men's grooming (or makeup) should be as little as possible. Your job is to make sure he looks clean cut, awake, and his best. This means you should only apply makeup where its needed. Make sure his eyebrows are groomed, his lips are moist, and there aren't any visible dark circles or blemishes. Most men will tell what they want and that is, "as little as possible". Mostly this means you are there to powder them and make sure their hair isn't sticking up. That's a far cry from the "corrective male makeup" they taught me in school. My best advice is to understand what medium you are working in and ask your talent what they feel comfortable with.

Makeup Maverick
http://www.hmartistsnetwork.com
http://www.mymakeupart.com

Working with celebrities

Last year I got the honor of working as a Makeup Artist for Ms. Geena Davis. It was my first time working with Geena and her hair stylist of fifteen years. Its a strange to be the newcomer in a long standing relationship. Obviously Geena had and her stylist had a natural repore with each other (which made my position even more awkward). I learned very quickly how territorial artists can be with with the talent. However, I learned a few interesting things that morning about working with high profile celebrities. I watched very closely how Geena's stylist pampered her. He combed her hair a million times, made sure the lighting was just right, and waited on her hand and foot. The reason movie stars chose a personal artist is because of the relationship that is built between the talent and the artist. You have to remember that you are providing a service and its the extra touches that make you stand out. So working with stars means giving star treatment. Being a hair or makeup artist is a very personal job. You are the first person they see in the morning, and the last person they see before they leave. Its care that you give to your client that makes them keep coming back. Its up to you to determine the situation and add your personal touches.

Makeup Maverick
http://hmartistsnetwork.com
http://mymakeupart.com

Negotiating your rate

Its so important in this market to understand what the going rate is for the type of work you are doing. We are living in tough times and schools are pumping out more and more hair and makeup artists every week. Rates are usually affected by several factors: supply vs. demand, your experience level, the budget, and your reputation in the industry. The one thing freelancers hate is negotiating money. There is a delicate emotional balance between wanting or needing the job and standing your ground to get paid what you are worth. The problem is that most people under-bid themselves because they don’t want to lose the job. However, every time we say yes to low pay we drive the price down. I know there is a lot of competition out there, but we all need to stop undercutting each other. Know what the rates are and don’t accept anything less. After all, your time is valuable, stand up for what you are worth!

Makeup Maverick
http://www.hmartistnetwork.com
http://www.mymakeupart.com

Networking with your peers

It always amazes me when makeup & hair artists tell me that networking doesn’t work. For some reason its like introducing a completely foreign concept to them. I might as well be talking to them in Japanese when I tell them to network with their peers. Most artists see other hair and makeup professionals as their competition. "Network with them, why would I do that???" The truth is that if you want to work on commercials, music videos, film, or television, you absolutely must network with your peers. Most things that are filmed or taped for broadcast have more than one makeup/ hair artist. This means that you have a higher likelihood of being hired or referred by a Key Artist than you would a producer or director. Makeup Department Head, Jori Jenae said it best, “It’s the only way to get work." She receives hundreds of resumes for the hit show Boston Legal. Because she gets so many resumes, she only reads the ones that say, “referred to you by xyz artist” or “I met you somewhere." Networking not only works, it’s the difference between getting work or complaining that you don’t have any.

Makeup Maverick
http://www.hmartistsnetwork.com
http://www.mymakeupart.com

Organizing your union paper work

I have recently had the joy of organizing my union paper-work for Local 706. As most hair and makeup artists know, if you want to join the union, you have to either work thirty days of union projects or have sixty days each year of non-union work over a three year period. I have taken the 60/60/60 route. To do this, you have to prove your employment with call sheets, pay stubs, and verification letters from the production companies you worked for. The biggest mistake I ever made was waiting until the end of three years to get my letters of employment verification. Not only is it extremely time consuming to contact everyone you have worked for over the last three years, in some cases its IMPOSSIBLE to contact them. Production companies come and go in the drop of a hat in the entertainment world. In my case, not only did some the productions companies go out of business, so did one of the payroll companies that provides the employment letter! So save yourself a lot of time by getting the after each job or at least at the end of every year. It will save you a lot of headache and younwon’t lose credit for the union days you worked.

Makeup Maverick
http://www.hmartistsnetwork.com
http://www.mymakeupart.com

The importance of confirmation agreements

Just recently I was booked as a Makeup Artist for a Satellite Media Tour with Tobey Keith. After I got the call from the production company I sent over a confirmation agreement. The agreement contained information on the number of talent, date, the rate, payment terms, and most importantly, the cancellation policy. I always write in a clause that states, “if they cancel within a 48 hour period, they will be charged for 100% of the rate”. Two days before the date of the job, I got a phone call explaining the SMT was canceled. The first thing I did was remind them that I have a 48 hour cancellation policy written into the confirmation agreement that they signed. They hung up, double checked the agreement, and suddenly the tour is not canceled! As it tuned out, the tour wasn’t canceled. The client just decided to bring their own makeup artist. Unfortunately, this is something that happens frequently. I have been burned too many times before to not get a signed agreement when booking a confirmed job. It’s a good thing I did send it over because earlier that day I turned down two days worth of work for this job. Always protect yourself from last minute cancellations!

Makeup Maverick
http://www.hmartistsnetwork.com
http://mymakeupart.com