We had an interesting conversation about headshot photography makeup artists last week after one of the lessons in Headshot Academy.

By the way, are you on the wait-list for the next launch? Get on it here!

We were discussing makeup artists for headshot photography…

and how to get them to work for us more efficiently.

As I’m sure you can relate, when a makeup artist takes an hour and a half for “natural” makeup– we’re not talking full-on glam for weddings here– it makes us frustrated.

Cuz,what in the world is taking so long? It’s a portrait for f*ck’s sake!

Well someone brought up the point that perhaps they need to justify their price by taking a long time pampering the client.

Which led me to ask, “why would they need to do that when they stay with you the entire shoot?” which then led me to discover that the makeup artist isn’t always staying the entire shoot.😱

Whoopsie!

That’s the problem right there.

If you haven’t spent years talking to your ideal client, you may not know that when a client pays for a headshot photography makeup artist, they expect to get their money’s worth NOT by sitting in the makeup chair for an hour and a half (cuz trust me, at the end, they’re just as deflated as we are), but by having the makeup artist there to keep an eye on things.

Things like a hair out of place, under eye makeup smudging, lipstick needing a touch-up, not to mention makeup changes from one outfit to the next.

And your client isn’t going to tell you this when in the middle of the shoot, they find out (surprise!) makeup needs to leave now, cuz they’re too polite or don’t feel comfortable speaking up.

But they tell me, during our consultations when I get on the phone with them to sell my value and hopefully book them as clients.

So I know their pain points inside out.

In fact, when they ask me the details about makeup, I ALWAYS lead with “They stay the entire time…” because I know it’s a huge, HUGE issue with clients.

You know what else they’re not telling you?

Sooo much more.

In Headshot Academy, I teach every single pain point I’ve learned over the last 26 years as a headshot photographer that you may or may not know about, which usually results in a client not coming back to you, not referring clients your way, not giving you a raving review or worse, giving you a bad review.👎🏻

How do you start learning these pain points?

📲 By getting on the phone with them. The more you do, the more you learn about their needs and the better you can serve them.

Is makeup taking too long at your studio? DM me on IG and let’s talk about fixing it!