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The makeup artist earned $2,500 in her debut Launch. Here's what she wished she'd Do in a Different Way

Dec 10, 2023

Similar to the majority of the 18-year-olds in England, Faye Smith didn't decide on a career path.

"My friends were taking a course at the university and dreaming to be lawyers or a doctor, or opting for to spend a relaxing gap year with their families in Australia," Smith tells . "But I did not know what I would pursue in my future career."

One thing she could say undoubtedly that she was looking to learn, work, and travel. To figure out her strengths, she enrolled in some classes at college, such as stage makeup on the walls of a restaurant. "I played around with diverse subjects in order to decide the ones I was attracted to," she says. "I believed I could do well with artistic subjects ."

The course was a success for her, to the point that her makeup teacher asked her to be a part of the stage for an opera. She was asked to do the fake tattoos on people. Feeling inspired after this gig The idea was to being employed in the theater or in the film industry as makeup artists. "I realized that I had to study more since this was only one hour of instruction," she explains. "I looked up makeup schools on the internet and the first one that came up is Blanche McDonald in Vancouver, BC. The location was in the opposite side of the globe. I decided to travel there ."

When she made the decision in a makeup course, she set out to create business using the knowledge she gained. A few years later working for a full time job doing the things she is passionate about. she is the owner of Faye Smith Agency, a hair and makeup agency--and Primp & Proper Salon, which is located in Gastown, Vancouver. In 2021 she opened another division of her business, Faye Smith Academy: online courses offered via . While she did have a great course launch, there were several points she would have done differently

Skip ahead:

     She would have liked to do more study    

Smith began her business in the form of an agency slowly. when she went to Blanche McDonald, she landed her first freelance position during an event. The bride needed an helper, so she enlisted an old classmate to help her. "I was constantly getting larger bookings, and I was in need of additional assistance," she shares.

Her work developed into an agency by 2009, she was in charge of booking client appointments and employed musicians. It was growing as time passed by. Since then, she's worked with celebrities and has increased the size of her agency to Toronto as well as plans to potentially expand into Calgary as well. "It continues to grow," she says.

In 2015 she took home the most gorgeous wedding hairstyles she had ever seen at the Professional BC Wedding Awards. "Winning the award was quite a shock," she chuckles. "I was more well-known for my hairstyles in the past I was not aware of my skills to be top hairdresser. But all of a sudden I received the honor which gave me all of this credibility ."

As the salon gained momentum, the stylist decided to organize an on-site training for hair stylists as well as makeup artists. "12 people signed up for the workshop and we sold it all out." the woman says.

Her workshops continued to grow. The workshops she offered sold out. After that, she was awarded a grant in 2021 and took the initiative to convert her classes into an online-only version. With the help of grant funds, Smith was able to engage a videographer in filming her classes. "I am thrilled by getting an international public," she says. "With in-person classes I was able reach locals ."

"I loved the concept of by taking online courses, can be created, which may take time to capture, but after the course has been completed, it's a product that you could sell frequently," shares Smith.

Her first course in 2021, she had 16 customers bought it, generating around $2,500 in revenue. "It was a huge success," she says. "I think everybody was thrilled to find out about the course that which we developed and turned our money back in a matter of minutes. ."

"I have been added to the list of over 100 artists and I'm able to directly target them," she says. "Plus, I'm big in my industry ."

To make sale, she provided an offer of 50% off that showed the initial price before revealing how much she would be offering it for so that customers believed they had received a good deal. It was priced at $395.

To questions regarding how she managed in order to turn potential students into students, she said it was simple. "Honestly I published about it, and then people bought the product. It was as simple to do as ."

The next courses (she now has four classes in total) weren't as successfully. She admits that she should have conducted additional research prior to launching the course online. "I usually don't do very much research," she admits. "But it's different today due to the proliferation of online products, putting online courses could be like the process of putting things in retail stores. It's not as simple than putting your product up for sale and hoping that people will buy it; you need to devote time to finding out the most effective program, and taking serious considerations. ."

     It was a wish that she had created the marketing strategy    

After the first successful course launched The instructor came up with three additional recorded classes that she could sell on her website. This totals four. The third one was designed by a videographer, costing $195. The two other ones were made by herself and were priced at just $39 because they were smaller and were more expensive to create.

"The quality was not as high without a videographer" she says. "It's an artful line since the videography is too expensive, but you still have to ensure that the video is of good quality. ."

A lot of people contact her to inquire whether her next live class is going to be. If she did not plan an upcoming class, she'd direct them towards her pre-recorded online classes instead. The process of turning potential customers into learners can be "like chewing gum" according to Smith. "I confess that the sole kind of advertising I've ever performed was via Instagram as well as some email marketing campaigns," she reveals.

The woman says if she could, she'd launch online courses or webinars for free to attract leads. However, as a new mother to a baby as well as a newborn and a newborn, she is on a tight schedule. "I am aware that my skills in marketing could improve, and marketing online is different from selling items in personal. ."

Her preferred marketing platforms her top choices are Instagram, Facebook, and is currently experimenting using TikTok. "My courses haven't always been as successful as I'd like them to be, however this isn't the top importance for me either. ."

"I've observed that a lot of people who are successful with online courses have it as an entire day job," she says. "I thought that my online classes would become an additional side business but I realized a lot more work has to be put into the process instead of just promoting my courses and hoping that people will purchase the courses ."

She suggests that online course creators make plans for marketing to allow them remain competitive within the field they work in.

"You must be aware of who you're competing against," she says. "Being successful online takes dedication as well as commitment, time and effort ."

     She wished she'd focused on shorter, less costly lessons    

Her audience consists of professional makeup and hair stylists. while any gender is welcome However, she states that most of her course students are women between the ages of 18 and 40, and the vast majority being from Canada as well as the US as well as the UK.

After her initial course's success launch, students have asked for shorter and affordable courses. In fact, Smith believes that this is where online education in the future is headed into 2024 and beyond. "I'm certain that people are a bit anxious over money and it's not like people have money," she says. "I believe that less costly programs will sell higher in the coming years or ."

In near future, Smith would like to put greater effort into online classes. Smith states that she plans to pursue the option of providing inexpensive, short-term digital courses. "That's what seems to be asked for," she says. "And I would suggest that you to listen to what people have directly asked you to do ."

The most important thing she can offer students who are looking to step into the field of learning online? Spend the time listening to your students, map out the process you will implement and develop a plan to put your class in the hands of those that require it most.

If you're interested in trying your hand at creating your own online course, then this is the time. Join today for a free trial!

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