MUA Networking Help!

Jul 12, 2012

Amanda B.

I feel like Ive hit a brick wall trying to get work right now. Wedding season is coming to an end Prom and graduation are long gone and I am having trouble finding jobs for myself right now. Is there any advice marketing or networking info/advice anyone could give me on how to get my name out there and round up some work? I hate not doing makeup for weeks at a time besides my son. Its my only passion.

Jul 13, 2012

Hillary H.

Hey Amanda!
I hear you! I am not sure what your goal in makeup is as far as area of focus. Be it film, weddings, editorial, etc. But here is my advice for what it's worth.
I try to get on the most popular sites and really connect with people. You never know who is looking for a makeup artist, an assistant, etc. I show my work as much as I can. I also post on Craigslist and TAKE jobs from Craigslist as well. I am just super careful about it and I always make sure that the employer is legit and typically take along an "assistant" to meet them. Mandy.com is very helpful for film/tv/music videos. Model Mayhem casting calls as well. I know you said you had a son, I have two children as well, so I am not sure if you have any interest in doing film work as it can be grueling hours. But Georgia has A LOT to offer an mua in that area of work and the competition is less there in comparison to say NYC, or L.A. So check out your states film commission. If film is not your thing then I suggest searching those sites, sticking with social media, maybe think about taking an out in the paper? The work rarely comes to you, there are too many of us, so you go get it girl! :)

Film Commission in Georgia : http://www.georgia.org/industries/entertainment-industry/film-production/Pages/default.aspx
Mandy.com
Modelmayhem.com
Craigslist.com

Jul 13, 2012

Amanda B.

Thanks Hillary I am really interested in print. That where I want to go now. I love wedding prom and formal events. But in this industry I want to learn and know how to do everything. Ive been calling around to local photographer to try and do some TFP's show them my work so if they like it they can call me for work and for the past few months I have had great steady work. wedding prom and graduation time now that thats dyed off 

Jul 13, 2012

Amanda B.

Im just stuck calling anyone and everyone emailing anyone who might be able to help me. thanks again i'll look into all that

Jul 13, 2012

Hillary H.

That's definitely a good idea. Are you on Model Mayhem? If so answer all the casting calls in your area and post an ad for you.... take everything and anything! It can be super frustrating but don't give up if you love it. 

Jul 13, 2012

Onyx B.

Do you have a facebook page??? if so you could do advertising for as little as 1$ a day and promote your business- But you need to make sure you give an incentive- this should help with more viewers on your FB page and potentially more business- its all about consistency!! 

Jul 13, 2012

Dannielle L.

ModelMayhem definitely helps, but your best advertising is word of mouth...definitely network on FB and twitter. FB advertising is great, you can target interests, so you can say, target girls who have 'wedding' in their interests, etc.

Jul 13, 2012

Amanda B.

@ Hillary No I am not on modelmayhem the reason being is my camera got stolen (long story) and instead of asking for my portfolio pics on a disc there all in 8x10s in my book so at the moment I have no way to put pictures up.
@Dacori yes I do have a facebook page and I have generated alot of business from it but Its just fizzed out right now nothing really special going on
@dannielle youre right word of mouth is the best but its getting me no where right now no one i know has anything going on

thanks yall for all the good ideas if you have anymore just let me know

Jul 13, 2012

Krish A.

Have you thought about prospecting? I think someone kind of alluded to it, but basically, you can set up meetings/consultations and put those people in your pipeline for later (Halloween, winter graduation, NYE). For now, you could start a creative campaign and market yourself for milestone birthdays like 30th & 50th to get some business. 

Jul 20, 2012

Amanda B.

@ Krish... Never heard of it. How would I go about doing something like that?

Jul 20, 2012

Krish A.

Prospecting is similar to outside sales. It's about getting out there in front of your about your target audience. Once you figure out who you want to go after in terms of clientele, then you present yourself to them in a way that appeals to them. When you're prospecting, you're basically feeling people out to see if they'd be receptive to buying from you later. Similar to what a salesperson does when they cold call or sell ads. The person may not purchase your services immediately, but you stay on top of them with friendly, periodic contact (maybe once per month) until they want to purchase. There are more complex ways to do this, but that is the easiest. Here is a quick way to get people (and more importantly, their info) in your pipeline:

--Reserve a room at your local library and host a basic makeup seminar for 30 minutes, to network & get people's info.

The tactic(s) really depend on how aggressive you are with this, what your city/town is like and who you want to target.

Jul 23, 2012

Amanda B.

@ krish thank you so much I will be doing that