Making Money with FB Groups with Stephanie Laynes

[00:00:00] Shannon O'Brien: Welcome to this Sugar Show. I'm Shannon O'Brien, body sugaring expert and licensed esthetician who's taken my own skincare business from zero to multiple six figures and has helped over 3000 students learn how to do the same. Now, let me tell you, it wasn't all that long ago that I lack. The time, budget, and knowledge needed to grow my small business as a body sugaring pro.

[00:00:23] If we were to press rewind, you'd see the many failed attempts and lessons learned that have helped me build the profitable business that I have today. One that runs on its own and gives me the lifestyle and freedom that I only used to dream of. I created the Sugar Show to hand you my secrets and give you the simple step by step strategies to help you do the.

[00:00:45] So if you're a cosmetologist or esthetician or wax professional who's looking to fill your books, make more money in your business and enjoy greater balance between your work and home life, you are in the right place. Let's [00:01:00] dive in.

[00:01:12] Welcome back to this episode of The Sugar Show. We are going to be talking about Facebook groups. Now, Stephanie Lane is our guest today, and we're not gonna be talking about my group or her group. We're going to be talking about your potential group, and the idea is that if you have a solid. Community, which can be a Facebook group.

[00:01:32] There aren't really groups in other social media areas. You can do reels and things like that for your business. But the Facebook group really is an intimate way for you to reach out to your community to put, uh, specials, special events, things like that, and you can quickly and easily grow that group so they can start sharing with each other, talking about products they like.

[00:01:54] Being responsive and it really gets them to know you. So I think some of you haven't really [00:02:00] thought about having a Facebook group for your business, and there's some really, really great gems in here that will help you to not only form that group, but a couple of ideas that you can incorporate into your new Facebook group.

[00:02:13] Or maybe revive an old one and take your business to the next level 24 7.

[00:02:24] Stephanie, we love getting together to chat about all the things. Absolutely. But most specifically, we like to talk business because Absolutely. I have a sugar ball in my hand. You have a wax stick in your hand. Regardless. Hair removal professionals need to have their business tight, and we keep pounding this and pounding this, whether it's on stage, on podcast.

[00:02:47] But really, I am so glad that you're back. We always love doing these together. Um, but I'm so glad you're back because really the goal is to help estheticians find different ways to keep their [00:03:00] business strong. Yeah. Recession or not inflation, or not, to really have the tools in their toolbox to make this a career.

[00:03:09] And you know, and if you're listening to this and you're an employee, you can be working with your spa owner, salon owner, manager, and maybe bring some cool ideas to them to help their business to help you. You so even if you're an employee, this, this works for you because you run like a mini business inside that room.

[00:03:30] Again, you're just having taxes taken out and letting somebody else buy the supplies when you're an employee. Absolut, So employees are independent contractors. This is really a, a good topic that we haven't talked about yet. You have a few years ago back in, in all of your business stuff, but we're reviving it again and you're gonna be having a webinar and we'll share all that in the show notes and at the end.

[00:03:50] But let's talk about Facebook groups. Yeah. and they are still around. Absolutely. They are, you know, doing [00:04:00] well. Um, no one, no other software really has a solid group component. No. As of this recording Right. We might be changing that for next year's recording wouldn't Right. Um, but really talking about how Facebook groups are a free way.

[00:04:15] Yes. That you can really speak with your customers. So yeah. I'm gonna turn the mic over to you cause we've done a lot of talking on this and, uh, really have you just work with our sugar professionals in those, thinking about sugaring or hair removal in general to use a Facebook group to kick your business up 10 notches.

[00:04:33] So take it away. Absolutely. 

[00:04:35] Stephanie Laynes: Yeah. You know, the monetizing of Facebook has, especially groups, has not been something that has been just brand new. The, the issue that I find with a lot of professionals, especially estheticians, is we are so focused only on what we touch. And who we talk to, we're really afraid to pull the, the veil back and be available to the masses.

[00:04:58] And I've said this on many [00:05:00] occasions where the reason you want to have a Facebook group that supports your business is because it's another extension of the relationship. We are in relationship business. We just happen to offer services. But our growth, our success, our longevity is all based in relationships.

[00:05:16] So, If you have never been in any of my groups, I've had my groups around, oh God, 10. I've been doing this a long time. Well, I've been monetizing a Facebook group for a long time, and people don't realize it. They're like, oh, I'm just in your group. No, you're actually not in your, in my group. I'm, I'm actually monetizing it, which means I'm a, I'm making available what I have to offer, and then allowing you on your own terms to choose which offer you'd like.

[00:05:41] And so when I really talk to estheticians about monetizing, you're, you're doing it in a bigger level, but you're with the anticipation that your clients that you invite are then going to invite their family and friends as well to experience you in the virtual space. So they may not ever be [00:06:00] able to step into your treatment room.

[00:06:01] They may not ever be able to get an appointment with you, but they can still experience and grow that relationship with you virtually. So if you can take the blinders. To think that you can only make money with who you touch and during an appointment and you kind of give me a little bit of leeway, I'm gonna kind of guide you as to why you have to have it so, When we look at our Facebook group, one most important thing, it's open 24 7.

[00:06:25] Facebook never closes , ever, right? Yep. And it never closes because it's a community-based app where people talk about any and everything. Literally from A to Z. The one thing that we miss out on when we don't have a group is allowing those clients to connect to us in a way that has nothing to do with an appointment.

[00:06:46] And what do I mean by that? My number one always advice is, is if you have anything that you want a client to use, right? Post care, um, a serum, uh, you know, any, uh, let's say, you know, um, [00:07:00] they are just over exfoliated, right? We never wanna say that, but some of them are right cuz they don't listen. They go and they rub on somebody and then they come and they try to come to you and you try to tell them when you demo that.

[00:07:12] In a group and you're speaking just to them, your percentage of not only the relationship goes up, but the avail availability for them to see exactly what you're doing. And I'll give you an example. I'm pretty sure you have sold a product to your client and they have never used it because they didn't understand when you verbally told them the instruc.

[00:07:35] You didn't pull it out of the drawer and get a Q-tip and then put it on the back of your hand and then let them touch it, and then you put it on theirs. But the minute you use it in real time and you show them how it's supposed to be applied, how it's supposed to be set on the skin, how you don't rub it in, the light bulb comes on.

[00:07:52] Number two, I have multiple estheticians that I've worked with that have seven, eight, and 900 people in their [00:08:00] group. Mm-hmm. , because they organically allowed their. To invite their family and friends to experience what they experience in the virtual space. Those groups are now running themselves. The clients are coming in and saying, I just bought this new product.

[00:08:17] I can't believe that no one knows about it. Did you know that it does this? Let me show you a before and after. And I'm in these groups and I'm like, Lord, and they're running. So not only is that group a great place to increase your retail sales, which is what we always say, . Mm-hmm. . It's the place where you have last minute cancellations.

[00:08:35] I have a last minute cancellation at five on Thursday. Who wants it? It's gone. Mm-hmm. . There's no more calling, texting. Do you want to come? Do you want to come? The other thing is, is that you're forming a kind of community where you are the focal. . So if you understand that your business has to run outside of your opening close, that Facebook group is where you extend the extended hours, [00:09:00] right?

[00:09:01] You're extending yourself in a way that they will never see because you're busy doing the service. While they're in there, you may chop it up and ask how their family is or talk about something serious, but now they get to see a different side of you. Mm-hmm. . So you're talking about things that is very relevant.

[00:09:17] The one group that I really, really love is the one that does a, um, zoom facial every Friday, and she's not an esthetician that actually does facials. She does hair. She sends them a kit every single month. They pay for it. They come on Zoom and they do like this whole big thing. They have the towel on their head.

[00:09:36] They have their drink for the night. Like there's people like begging. She has a hundred to 200 people one Friday a month, and she makes like a thousand dollars on a one Friday just because she's doing a Zoom facial in her group. Like, there's so many things that we can do in the monetizing of your group that we're just so afraid of, and I understand it because it's overwhelming.

[00:09:59] Right. I have one [00:10:00] group that has 24,000 people in it. They drive me crazy. Right. I have another group that has 8,500 estheticians in it. They drive. They drive me crazy. So I get it, but I think it's such a big player that a lot of you are ignoring because you don't quite understand the relationship part of the business.

[00:10:17] Yeah. When we get done with the. We in that relationship, we're getting our mind ready for the next client. Yeah. That client though, has taken that experience and they're still running with it. Yeah. So they would love to run to the Facebook group and be like, I just had a great service. I'm so excited. I can't wait to see you again.

[00:10:33] Like it's such an outlet that a lot of us are not using. So let's go back from the beginning. One, it's gonna extend the relationship with you and build it and make it strong. Two, they're gonna invite their family and friends because that is the true, authentic way of referrals, right? Three, they're gonna buy whatever you say.

[00:10:49] So you're gonna have those links in from your e website. You're gonna have the link into your scheduler. You're gonna have the links coming in from gift certificate sales, cuz many of you limit it only to holidays. You technically should [00:11:00] have an income string of gift certificate sales all year long.

[00:11:03] That link is going to be in there as well. So now you have three different ways of earning income or monetizing that group because they're all consistently coming in all the time. Mm-hmm. , then you're gonna pop in there live maybe once a month and just say, did you guys all know I have this new post-care product?

[00:11:18] Are we all using it? Right? I bet you're not. Let's use it. Let's go to the bathroom with me. Yeah. You're gonna really start connecting on a different, and you're gonna see that fruits of your labor because it did not have to happen in a service. Yeah. And I love, I'm gonna stop you right there. Yeah. 

[00:11:36] Shannon O'Brien: If someone's kind of going, wait, I, I'm not a speaker, I'm not, you know, I'm not this, I'm not that.

[00:11:42] I want you audience to really think for a moment about what we're actually talking about. Mm-hmm. , so this isn't like Shannon and Stephanie have Facebook groups, you know. Talking to everyone about wanting them to sugar. Right. This is, imagine for a moment you are in a room and [00:12:00] you have invited every single client of yours to join this party.

[00:12:05] Yep. Okay. Now, if you had a physical party, there might be 10 people that can't come cuz their kids are sick. There might be 10 that flake at the last minute. There might. 10 that bring a friend. Yep. There might be 10 that, you know, maybe just come alone and learn something new they never knew before.

[00:12:23] Facials ex uh, is a great example. If you are a sugar pro that all you do is sugar and you have a couple other things that you offer and people just don't really realize. What better opportunity than to have them all in the same room. Yes. And tell 'em all at once. Yes. Right. So if you have a Facebook group in your mind, I want you to think about that group as a big room that you're inviting your people to, not necessarily the world.

[00:12:49] If the world comes awesome and they wanna buy your serum, great. Yeah. You're gonna have a link for that. Absolutely. You can pop it in the mail and send it to 'em, right? Yeah. Because you think about if you have 50 people [00:13:00] in the room. Mm-hmm. , that's your Facebook. And you've now told them about this beautiful serum.

[00:13:06] Mm-hmm. , you're hoping that they turn around and tell their sister-in-law that lives in Austin, Texas. Right, right. That lives in whatever city. But if all they have to do is share that with that person, that girl can now. Purchase your ingrown serum cuz maybe her aesthetician doesn't have any 

[00:13:24] Stephanie Laynes: mm-hmm. or she doesn't have an aesthetician, which is, or 

[00:13:26] Shannon O'Brien: she doesn't have an aesthetician.

[00:13:27] Yes, she doesn't have a sugar pro. Yep. Or you can say, Hey, I'm gonna teach you that we can do brows for sugaring. Did you know some of you only get Brazilians? Let me show you how I do eyebrows. Mm-hmm. now. She can tell her cousin and now we're sharing the love that community of sugar. Yep. And the key is to really understand, cuz I think some people feel like you and I do Facebook groups, like that's not for them.

[00:13:50] Right? That's what we're saying. Estheticians Sugar Pros that are listening to this podcast and please watching us on Instagram. Please. This is what we're saying, yeah. Is [00:14:00] estheticians should have their own little girl's night. It just exists in a Facebook. And you don't have to do all the setup and snacks, , you know, you can literally have girls' night out once a month.

[00:14:13] The Zoom facial is a perfect example. Mm-hmm. have a girls' night out and say, you know what, we're gonna get together once a month and I'm gonna teach you something new. I've got all the product in the shop. If you wanna swing by and grab it before we have our thing, maybe you send 'em out all samples in the month and at the end of the month, hang on to this cuz at the end of the month we're gonna do our girls' night out and it's gonna be virtual and grab your glass of wine.

[00:14:34] You're not buying all the wine anymore, you're not having to set up the snacks, which is really fun to do. I am really great love in-person experience. Absolutely. You can do both. Yeah. You can literally set up your little camera, do a live event in your shop, in, you know, and in the lobby of your. 

[00:14:52] Stephanie Laynes: And promote it.

[00:14:54] Live broadcast. Live in the group. Absolutely. 

[00:14:56] Shannon O'Brien: And now those people are all your people who are just too [00:15:00] busy. Maybe they just had a baby and they're watching it at two o'clock in the morning. They're like, oh, next time I go in for my sugar, I need to ask about that mask. Yep. It really is your way to have girls' night out every single month.

[00:15:12] And also let your people know, because social media is an interesting thing. Mm. I am watching estheticians feel like they have to dance and sing on TikTok. Feel like they have to do these things on Instagram, which is fine, but a lot of the audience that you're getting is people that you'll never put your hands on, which could be a great stream of revenue.

[00:15:34] That's another podcast that is. But for a Facebook group, these are your people. Mm-hmm. , they're laying on your table and three friends. Mm-hmm. And this is your opportunity for them to refer their person mm-hmm. to you in a, in a really nice setting. And you can actually monitor who goes into that 

[00:15:56] Stephanie Laynes: group.

[00:15:57] You can monitor who goes in. Mm-hmm. , you can kick out [00:16:00] people that act a fool. Mm-hmm. . The other thing that a lot of estheticians, I think Miss the mark when it comes to monetizing a Facebook group is they cannot get past the open and the. And I say this in a lot of my, uh, IG lives when I go live and I say, if your client wants to wake up at three in the morning and give your business money, can they do that or.

[00:16:26] are you limiting the way your business earns income and say, oh, you can only do that when the doors are open. You can only do that when the lights are on. You can only do, and the thing is, if you're saying, I can only do this with you during this time, then you're not really answering what every client wants.

[00:16:44] Mm-hmm. , right. The one thing we have to learn in Covid is that virtual is king now. Mm-hmm. . It is. And as much as we want to be, you know, upset about it and poo poo about it, and oh, I did not go to school to, you know, be virtual. It's [00:17:00] not about going to school to be virtual, it's meeting the client with where they are.

[00:17:04] If you actually understand numbers, and Shannon and I always do, we're always looking at metrics. Mm-hmm. , most people buy and shop between 9:00 AM 9:00 PM and 3:00 AM They're scrolling, you're closed. So if you're not allowing people to wake up at two and say, I wanna give your business money today, can I do that?

[00:17:25] Mm-hmm. and they can. Or I wanna learn, 

[00:17:29] Shannon O'Brien: why not? I wanna learn a little bit about this business. 

[00:17:32] Stephanie Laynes: I wanna listen to her. I wanna see her in a different light. I would love to see how she's using this. Yeah. And that's the thing where if, if. I'm speaking to you and you said, yeah, no, they can't give my business any money at two, or they can't give my business any money at six in the morning.

[00:17:47] You gotta kind of start asking those questions. Why can't they? Mm-hmm. if they want to. I want anyone that comes to my business to give my business money whenever they want. Mm-hmm. , I cannot be in the way of that. [00:18:00] So if I am in the way, then I have to say that I'm limiting my. . And the purpose of you going into business was to remove those limits.

[00:18:08] Yeah. You didn't wanna work for someone, you wanna dictate your hours. You wanted to have no limit on how much income you have. Yeah. But deep down, you are limiting. Mm-hmm. , and that's the thing. If it's from 9:00 PM to 3:00 AM is the hot zone, especially here in the us. Where are you in that 9:00 PM to 3:00 AM.

[00:18:28] Asleep. . We're asleep. Oh, resting up with the babies. You know, scrolling. Scrolling your own stuff, shopping with the rest of them, . But why can't your business be in there as well? And that's why I say a lot too about gift certificates. A lot of people think gift certificates are really only holiday driven.

[00:18:45] It's not the gift certificate market is huge gift giving and they do not work. It's huge. Yes. 

[00:18:53] Shannon O'Brien: You gotta be careful with gift certificates. We're gonna have another podcast about gift certificates. 

[00:18:57] Stephanie Laynes: We'll do that too. Yes, and I think that's the thing when you [00:19:00] start understanding, okay. if I place myself into where everyone is, which is Facebook groups, people love Facebook groups cuz you know, you can really say what you want.

[00:19:08] You know, people don't know what you're doing. Mm-hmm. , you know, but if you have one for your own and you have one for your business and you're extending yourself in a completely different way. Mm-hmm. , this is the one thing, and I'm actually gonna be interviewing Donna's, just, it's, she's one of the estheticians that has like an 800 person, um, Facebook group.

[00:19:25] She's been monetizing for about eight years now. Mm-hmm. . The biggest takeaway that she shares with people is that I don't run it. She's all, I have three kids. They're in elementary and junior high. Mm-hmm. , they run my. Yeah, they talk about their services, they talk about a new product that they tried. She's like, I don't run it.

[00:19:44] Mm-hmm. , I post a link and matter of fact, I schedule it. So I do everything on Monday for the entire week. , she's like, I don't do it. And I think we have to get out of that mindset of, huh, I don't really quite understand, so I'm just not gonna do it. But guess what? Your clients are already [00:20:00] in groups. Mm. , it's not that hard for them to jump over to you mm-hmm.

[00:20:04] and see you. And they're like, Hey, 

[00:20:07] Shannon O'Brien: I love the idea too, of using it as kind of a v I P thing. Absolutely. You know, and well, you know, you're part of our v I P group, right? Yeah. Oh, let me give you access to it. Absolutely. You know, and if they're in the group and they're in the know, They're going to, you know, they get to be a part of this group.

[00:20:24] It's a special feeling to be a part of this thing. You know, it's, it's really sets you apart from just running in and getting a quick 

[00:20:34] Stephanie Laynes: wax or trigger. The other thing I'll be honest with is more people are more likely to refer on Facebook than they are in person. Mm-hmm. . Because, 

[00:20:42] Shannon O'Brien: so if they refer someone 10 o'clock at night, they can just 

[00:20:44] Stephanie Laynes: tag their friends.

[00:20:45] They can just push it forward and say, Hey, come join me. We're having this great conversation. Mm-hmm. , they're gonna do it more easier than giving them a business card or saying, go see my friend, or whatever. And it's a great introduction as well. Share your is an introduction to you. Yeah. 

[00:20:59] Shannon O'Brien: [00:21:00] Share your thoughts on why someone would need a Facebook group opposed to just like posting reels on Instagram to get people to know them.

[00:21:08] Stephanie Laynes: Sure, sure. So the thing is, is that, you know, when I'm a big on customer experience, right? You have people who are with you every month, and then you have the ones that are with you once a year. Mm-hmm. , the customer experience does not start when they make their, when they come and they see you, it starts when they make their appointment.

[00:21:25] So when you understand. . It's not just about showing off what you do or, and we'll segue to that a little bit too, because most of you aren't using social media correct either. Mm-hmm. , we'll have that on a conversation on another day. Mm-hmm. , but the client experience starts and ends the way it begins. So if you're not putting them and treating them like a v i p from the moment they make their appointment and then you are excited to see them and they know that when you're appreciating them, you're publicly appreciating them.

[00:21:58] All of that can happen in your [00:22:00] group. Yeah. It can't happen on a random reel. It can't happen on a random post on Facebook because the intention is not for them to be recognized. Their, your intention is to advertise and they know. So in your Facebook group, we're not really advertising anymore. What I'm doing is I'm growing my relationship.

[00:22:17] I'm letting you know what's happening. I'm saying one, uh, group that I'm in, she does kind of like a, um, a I spy game. Like did everybody this, everybody who had their services this month, did they check out what I hid? It's such an interesting thing cuz she hides things Ooh. And they and they, I'm gonna do that.

[00:22:37] They try to figure out what it is that she's hiding and they take their pictures and they post 'em in the group and she'll either say, um, no, but she won't say yes until the end of the month. And then she'll say, this is what it was, and this person got it and they, they won it. It's theirs. Them little fools act crazy.

[00:22:55] You hear what I'm saying? Everybody loves the game. All the stuff you're looking. And I'm like, what was [00:23:00] that? A doorknob? No. So there's so many things that you can do that can still tie your brick and mortar. That's in a fun way that someone, you know, you would randomly post on your page and they'd be like, what is that?

[00:23:12] Why is she taking a picture of the back of the bathroom door? You know? It's such a fun way to connect on an authentic level that continues that client experience. Mm-hmm. because, A lot of us go to places we don't have client experience where we can go in a group and talk about how we got our hair done or the color we got or whatever.

[00:23:29] Yeah. We have such a unique experience and relationship with our clients. We just, we kind of miss the Mark A. Little bit with kind of closing that relationship. We're great when we're there in person. We're great. Hey girl, I haven't seen you in a long time. What's happening when they're done? It's outside outta mind for four weeks.

[00:23:47] But if they come into the group and they. Shannon's posted a new post. Go see what it's about. Mm-hmm. . Hey Shannon. Mm-hmm. , you would be so surprised at how people's response are when you [00:24:00] show them this level of attention. Mm-hmm. . And that goes to the customer experience. And I'll say this and I'll, and I'll get off my soapbox, but most people think that the referral is the service.

[00:24:09] It's not clients refer their experience with you. If we're all doing the same sugaring, we're all sugaring, Brazilians and underarms and face. They're not referring the service, they're referring the experience. Mm-hmm. , how did they feel? How did they, um, take in the environment? What did they see? What did they smell?

[00:24:29] Did they get some water? That's has nothing to do with the service, but it's the experience of them there. That's what they refer to their family and friends. Go see Shannon. She'll treat you so good. They have such a great little, cute little place. Mm-hmm. has nothing to do with the service. So imagine extending that where, you know what?

[00:24:45] I'll see you in the. Can you imagine saying that to every client after your service? I can't wait to see you in the group. I have something special this weekend, so you're gonna join me, right? And they'll be like, yeah. 

[00:24:54] Shannon O'Brien: Yep. I love the idea of, you know, I, I think part of the experience [00:25:00] is, and we talk about this a lot in our groups, is that that personal tableside thing, right?

[00:25:06] Well, a lot of times that personal tableside thing, cuz we see them every four or five weeks, becomes their personal stuff. Yes. Right. And I might, they might really have had a day and they gotta, you know, share it with their sugar mama. Right. And so they have a day, they share it with their sugar mama, they're in tears.

[00:25:22] They get 'em to laugh. We smooth their hoo-ha and they forget about their worries, but they walk out the door and I have not talked to them about the latest thing we're doing. Mm-hmm. in a group environment. We can now say, I might not tell every single half hour person about this new scrub flavor we have or this new serum we just got in.

[00:25:45] I might not be able to get to every single person cuz that's the way the conversation, it didn't make sense to not sound salesy. But if they see it, then each month we have something we're talking about. It's at the foot of the bed. I always put shelving like this at the foot of the bed and with [00:26:00] a different featured something.

[00:26:01] Mm-hmm. , you can talk about that, featured something inside of the group now and feature that all month. And if you kind of miss talking about it to that one girl, she still can. . It's an extension of you. Absolutely. And we talk all the time about focus on your balls, focus on your sugar ball. I know I talked about that.

[00:26:21] Focus on your sugar ball. Focus on your client. But sometimes we just can't, cuz they have stuff they wanna share with us. They do as they're naked legs are in the air and they wanna really share what's going on in their heart. And it might not, it usually doesn't have anything to do with sugar. Right. I can catch 'em this way.

[00:26:36] Perfect example of the facial. . Mm-hmm. . A lot of times if I'm focusing on their sugaring, on their, on their parts. I might not have caught that their, their pores are congested or they could use a facial or they're dehydrated on their skin cuz I'm focusing on their bits. Right. We might talk about it a little bit, but I'm turning that room now.

[00:26:56] It's an extension of that experience. Like you're saying, [00:27:00] I can talk about a facial sunscreen that I might not, it might not have made sense to talk about while I was talking, like why I was sugaring bits or sugaring their legs. But now I can talk to that same. Just through socials. Mm. Yeah, it really extends your message cuz every half hour if we're talking about exfoliation, like 

[00:27:19] Stephanie Laynes: we wanna absolutely

[00:27:21] And the other thing is too, is we forget that each client has their method of communication. Sure, some people like to listen to you. Some people wanna just hear you and not see you. Some people just wanna read so. We're not hitting everyone's preferred method of communication when they see us either.

[00:27:36] Yeah. Because we're, we're go, we, we, we gotta get the room turned over. We gotta make sure we keep our time right. Sure. So when you understand that and you understand that clients have a completely, everyone has their own preferred method of communication, you're gonna hit all of those methods in that group.

[00:27:53] Yeah. Yeah. 

[00:27:56] Shannon O'Brien: I wanna circle back around to, we kind of err [00:28:00] on the side of talking about this as a business owner. Mm-hmm. and I do wanna circle back around to the employee. Yeah. Because there are a lot of people in here that are like, oh, do I have to be an a business owner to do this? No. So Facebook groups.

[00:28:13] Mm-hmm. , obviously you're gonna wanna be sensitive to the fact that, you know, you can't just like have your own group as an employee and not include the place that you work. Right. . Right, right. Your boss won't love that so much. So I love the idea of coming to your boss, your manager, whoever's in charge of kind of the plan, and bringing some ideas to them and saying, Hey, think about this.

[00:28:35] If you're somewhere that works with multiple estheticians, but you come to your boss and you say, Hey, I just heard this really great podcast with two of my favorite industry leaders, and they gave an idea about doing a Zoom facial every month, would you be okay if I did that Zoom facial every month inside the.

[00:28:55] Now you have all of these people that you are exposed to and they see your face. [00:29:00] I guarantee you, when they're calling in for an appointment, they're gonna remember your name. Yeah. Because you are the one that's been talking to them on Facebook. Yep. And put away your introvert side. A lot of people don't know this, and I talked about this on another podcast.

[00:29:17] I'm actually an introvert. I know. Might be hard to. But I am And cuz you, like you won't see me at the trade shows out, you know, dancing, doing my thing. Like I literally am after a trade show. I meet and love on everybody and then I'm home back in the hotel room with my slippers on and you know, just haven't taken a bath and everybody else.

[00:29:38] Yeah. Well I don't even turn on TV yet. I know, I know. I'm actually more of an introvert and I actually sometimes have to get myself to record some of these things. Mostly because I kind of do my, kind of have my own groove. Right. But I realize that you all see us. Mm-hmm. . And if we weren't doing these [00:30:00] podcasts and these Facebook groups and things, you would never know who we are.

[00:30:04] Right? It's a perfect example. Absolutely. You would not know Shannon and Stephanie, right? If we just had these, you know, programs or we just had a treatment room in Folsom and you never saw us, I would venture to guess that if anyone listening to this podcast or watching us on socials is like, I wanna get a get sugared by Shannon, right?

[00:30:21] I wanna get waxed by Stephanie. Does Stephanie Wax like I wanna get, like I wanna experience that. Right, because you see us and you love us online. So if you are an introvert going, I don't know if I could do this, or, oh, I'm an employee, I don't know. It's not really my job. Yes it is. It is your job to talk to your boss and say, Hey, I heard this really great idea.

[00:30:44] Is it possible that I can address? Are our Facebook group, oh, we don't have a Facebook group. Is it possible we can start one? Uh, manager? I'm happy to run it and administer it. Is that something we can do? Hello? Opportunity. If your boss does not [00:31:00] wanna do this but is happy to have you kind of cultivate this and do the work cuz they're too busy.

[00:31:06] Goldmine. 

[00:31:07] Stephanie Laynes: Goldmine. 

[00:31:09] Shannon O'Brien: Yeah. Be the face of your business. Absolutely. Whether somebody owns the the name on the door or not, you can still be the face That little progressive lady Flo, she doesn't own progressive. 

[00:31:22] Stephanie Laynes: Is she making good money? Hmm. Because she's the face. And just to let you guys know, a lot of times when you see me on social medias, I'm pre-recording.

[00:31:31] I'm, I'm in a room by myself, I'm not. I rarely go, well, I go a little bit live on Instagram a little bit, and it's just really to talk and I'm in my bathroom, so it's not anything that's big, but anything that I'm recording, like I'll do a bulk recording. So I'm gonna go boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, record like 10 videos in a room by myself.

[00:31:50] So I'm not talking to anyone, but just to me in the screen so I do get it. Cuz I have people have said, you know, Stephanie, you know your personality is just so I said, but you have to [00:32:00] understand I've been doing social. A long time. And my first YouTube started in 2008. Mm-hmm. . So I've been doing, you were doing Periscopes then?

[00:32:09] We were doing Periscopes. I had my videos, I was recording. It was all fuzzy off my little phone. Hell, I was doing TOS and shorts way before TikTok and IG even was even existing, right? Mm-hmm. . Mm-hmm. . Um, but I'm not recording. When I record in front of people, I'm literally in a room by myself. So you can totally pre-record and.

[00:32:27] Uploaded to your group, you can have other people come live if they want to. And that's the one thing that's being nice about that type of freedom is that there's a lot of people that are willing cuz they just wanna be seen, they would love to be, to go live or post a video or do a review. Like that's the other thing too.

[00:32:42] You could do a lot of challenges for reviews, um, and a lot of people, They wanna do a review. So they're like, oh, let me go get it and let me, you know, get myself together and then they talk. So there's a lot of ways that you can monetize that. It doesn't necessarily mean you're doing all the work. Mm-hmm.

[00:32:56] and when you get a bigger group, You can, um, make [00:33:00] admins of certain people, you can tell them to be in charge. They would love to do it. Yeah. So you have a lot of opportunity right at your fingertip to just extend that customer experience and then also extend a part of you that you're not able to do during services.

[00:33:13] We already know. We gotta keep to our time. We gotta make sure we talk to them in and we gotta make sure we talk to them out. We gotta turn the room over. Yep. So it's just another extension of you that you probably just didn't think about and you probably have heard monetizing a Facebook group and never really understood why you should have it and why there's not a lot of estheticians that do.

[00:33:34] Yeah. And some kind of way, this is what is extending that customer experience for you. Yeah. Just remember what I always say, if they can't buy from you at three in the morning, you gotta change it so they can. 

[00:33:47] Shannon O'Brien: Yep, yep. So for those of you that are in the Sugar Tribe, especially, and I know you talk about this in your groups, we always have our planner out.

[00:33:54] Mm-hmm. , we have our planner that we're not only putting our financial goals in, but I want you [00:34:00] Adderal, but I want you to put your. Your social media goals in here and your group goals. So, for example, a easy, easy way to do this, if you wanna just get your feet wet and invite your clients in, maybe put a sign at the end of the bed.

[00:34:15] Hey, have you joined our new Facebook group? It's for our v i P, you know, guests. and go ahead and, you know, have a little fun with that. Put it on the, the shelf behind, you know, at the foot of their, at the foot of the bed. Put it at the back door of the bathroom, is always a great idea where they're washing their hands.

[00:34:30] Have you joined our Facebook group yet? Just put these little tags around your shop. If you have a one room place, you can put it like right where they hang their coat or mm-hmm. , you know, a little sign right where they put their purse. And the easiest way to start this out is A, to introduce yourself.

[00:34:44] Mm-hmm. and B, to schedule out. Look at your shelve. And literally do a post for each product and tell 'em how to use it. That's how you start. That's easy. You don't have to be po posed and perfect and [00:35:00] you know, like, I mean, TikTok has shown us that, right? People are like in their beds, hanging out, talking. I mean, I, yeah, I wouldn't do that.

[00:35:05] I would make it professional. But you know, walk over and grab the first product that's on your shelf and say, okay, how many of you are using this clean. If you are, are you using it right? Let me tell you how to use it, right? And if you aren't, here's the benefits of it. Boom. Done. Throw that in the group.

[00:35:24] Ask a question of everyone, and it'll come up in everyone's feed. Okay. And they're seeing you. They're seeing this pro, oh, what's she holding? I mean, this is like social media 1 0 1. Absolutely. But I think people, Stephanie don't realize you too can have a Facebook group. Mm-hmm. owner of a solo place. You don't have to be a Stephanie or a Shannon to have a group.

[00:35:44] Mm-hmm. . You can have a group of your clients. Mm-hmm. . And that's how you grow your client base. Mm-hmm. , that's how you grow. You make money in 24 7, but you also have people recommend, because I always get, how can I market? Should I do Groupon? No. Mm-hmm , get a [00:36:00] Facebook group, start talking about yourself, even if it's just your hands.

[00:36:06] and your voiceover to start, cuz you're really too nervous. But I promise you, you just throw that phone on. Just start talking about this cleanser, talk about it for 30 seconds, write down a couple little bullet points and just say, Hey, 

[00:36:16] Stephanie Laynes: are y'all using this cleanser? You know, and I'll even challenge you a little bit more.

[00:36:20] There's some estheticians that don't even talk. They'll show the product, they'll squeeze it in their hand 

[00:36:28] Shannon O'Brien: and they put the text on and they just put the instructions. But the instructions, that's all you. You've 

[00:36:35] Stephanie Laynes: seen 'em. Cause they always go, yeah. Love you. 

[00:36:41] Shannon O'Brien: For those of you listening to the podcast, we're making love you hands and waving

[00:36:44] Yeah. They don't tell, I forget sometimes. So yeah, it's, it's, uh, it really is a great way and one of many ways to boost your income, especially in these times with rece recessions and inflation and, you know, all the things we're talking about. High gas, high [00:37:00] eggs, da da da da. This is another way that for.

[00:37:04] You can reach your people and you can create excitement in your business. Yeah. And that's what we want. Create that excitement and that experience. Absolutely. So we'll get off our soapbox now, but I do wanna talk really quick about, I'm super proud of you, Steph, because I mean, I'm proud of you all the time and you're proud of me and I love our friendship of course.

[00:37:24] But I'm really proud of you for putting together this. Because that's no small feat. No. So for those kids who are listening and dunno what we're talking about, we're talking 

[00:37:32] Stephanie Laynes: about the esthetician Summits coming up April 17th through the 19th, right here in Plano, Texas, which is outside of Dallas. You know?

[00:37:41] But here's the thing, and this is what I always ground myself with, is that I used to do this, I just traveled to everybody when I did the wax show. Mm-hmm. , I just kind of put this one on steroids and I just got all the favorite people that I love doing education with and we're all in one space and we have.

[00:37:57] The most beautiful location, [00:38:00] and we have a center stage where there's nothing but conversations and relationship building, and you're not rushing through your little 10 feet of a trade show booth and having to move because they have to run to a class. Like I have tables and chairs at everyone's booth.

[00:38:16] Shannon's gonna have tables and chairs, and people can just sit down at a booth who's you ever see. Unless you're imminence, but they have the little be, you know, the little bleachers that they have, but no one gets to sit down in a booth. Yeah. And I'm loving it because one, I'm getting so many responses from vendors like, this is such a great idea.

[00:38:36] Right. But it's an opportunity to have education on a completely different level. Like I'm literally bringing all walks of life in the aesthetics world, so I'm not having anyone that's dominating an event. Mm-hmm. . And typically in our. Brands will dominate it. We're not going brand. We're really starting with education.

[00:38:56] Um, and it's been an amazing time recording all of the [00:39:00] speakers and you know, each other, Shannon has hers already up on YouTube. Mm-hmm. , we premiered it this week and people are like, wow. And it's really interesting because we have never had an event that has focused so much on education. Mm. and I think it's needed.

[00:39:15] Like we really need to start having some serious conversations about not only just lack of education, but being able to be in a situation or an event where you're being educated too. And I'm not talking about buying a product, I'm talking about old school education. Mm-hmm. . Right. And I think it's so missing that so many of the newer estheticians don't even know what that is because they've never experienced it.

[00:39:38] When I got licensed, All the events that I went to were education based, like I was on the grand stage, Shannon was on the grand stage. It couldn't be product specific, and we had an hour and then 30 minutes with Q and a with people from the audience, and there was hundreds of people speaking about aesthetics [00:40:00] and we don't have that anymore.

[00:40:01] Yeah. Um, one, I'm really excited to bring this, um, level of an event. Two, I think that the people who are coming, they're already excited because I've been teasing so much, right? I'm doing a swag bag, which you don't get a swag bag when you go to events, right? Like with real 

[00:40:17] Shannon O'Brien: products. Like full size products, not with just a little thumb.

[00:40:21] No, no. 

[00:40:22] Stephanie Laynes: We got full size product. I'm sending product to you girl. We're giving everybody products that comes for the summit. I'm even opening it up for people if they just wanna come to the day and just meet the brands and just sit at the table and just look at you and say hi. And like I'm really kind of pushing our education to the forefront in a way that it needs to be done.

[00:40:41] So I'm very grateful, Shannon, that you're gonna be there and you're gonna be speaking and you know, you and I have. Kind of in the same place for a long time. And a lot of people don't understand that. I think when you start looking at our education and, and I wouldn't even say lack of, I just don't think there's a lot of opportunities anymore for us to be [00:41:00] educated in this way and it be exposed to different types of people too, and it not just be one thing.

[00:41:10] Shannon O'Brien: Yeah. Well, and and when I say I'm proud of you is that you didn't. Complain. We should have this. We need to have this. You saw the best and the not so good of. A trade show and how they've changed over time. This isn't, oh God, yeah. You know, and I'm, I'm, what I'm really think is wildly cool is that you've taken that and done something with it and actually created an event that's no small feat.

[00:41:39] No. Like that. No. Having an event is no small feat, but squawking about it. I think there's a lot of estheticians and brands that'll be like, Ugh, the trade show. You know, it's, it's nothing like it used to be. Well, you are putting your money where your mouth is and you're saying, okay, well then let's make it better.

[00:41:56] Yeah. And that's what I love about what you're doing with this is you're [00:42:00] saying, and you're surrounding yourself with Boss Babes that are like, yeah, absolutely. Let's help you make this better. Let's make this something that's wildly cool. So the first one is in April, and we will be there, and then you've already booked the next one and it's gonna be even bigger.

[00:42:14] So this was like, put the foot in the water, but then 2024 is even booked Two. 

[00:42:19] Stephanie Laynes: Yeah, it's, it's weird, you know, it's not weird, but it is weird because I do think that there's a lot of brands who have been so peer pressured into. Jumping away from education and so into the selling portion, right. And I have a lot of brands that have come up to me since I've decided to do this.

[00:42:39] And I'm really like, you know what? If you don't have education in your forefront, it's not gonna work. Because everyone who's attending is coming with the understanding. I'm coming to be educated. I'm gonna walk away with education and understanding. And I'm, I'm gonna be able to use it as soon as I get it right.

[00:42:55] And I think that we have, because I did the trade shows, I mean, I participated for [00:43:00] 10 years and I saw a lot of changes. I saw some good things and then I saw some not so good things. And I do know that a lot of it has to do with advertising dollars and you know, if you're willing to spend a lot of money to be up.

[00:43:11] Front, and you have a lot of brands who are absolutely amazing, but they really wanted to focus on the education portion and not just being in the front. The other thing is too, is that I think when you decide to do something like the Esthetician Summit, you're putting your education first. You're saying, I want to be in a space.

[00:43:31] With a whole bunch of other estheticians. We're all learning and we're absorbing and we're able to talk to each other. And one thing that I will say about community of estheticians, when you get around estheticians who are either where you are or are a little bit above, but you're watching how they move and you're watching what they do and how they s.

[00:43:48] Week, it's such a different experience, right? So everybody gets to have lunch together, and I'm encouraging that networking thing. You don't get that when you go to a trade show. Um, hell, you gotta stand in line to go to the [00:44:00] bathroom. So, you know, , it, it's, it's such a different process. It can be lonely in a giant room.

[00:44:04] It's lonely in a giant room. You're not able to talk to people without feeling like you're gonna be rushed. You're yelling and screaming over everybody. Um, and then I always and I laugh at this, and Shannon knows this too. Typically we would have probably three or four people who would just try to stay at the booth for like hours, just trying to get in.

[00:44:23] And they would walk around one way and try to get your eye, you know, and then they would come around the other way and they'd try to like wave from the back. And you're kind of like, You'd wave back, but you would just feel so bad because you know that they wanna talk to you so bad. You just don't have the time.

[00:44:40] You have so many people pulling you in different directions and it's not our fault. And I, and I said this honestly the other day, I like connecting with estheticians in a not trade show way. Mm-hmm. , I like being able to have a class where I talk to you all day. We gonna learn about what happened to you when you [00:45:00] started school, the traumatic that happened to you when you opened your business.

[00:45:03] Like I like those types of relationship building events because it's memorable. Mm-hmm. , I cannot tell you how many people that I have met at a trade show that I just can't remember because it's, everybody is a blur and I'm running from one class to another and I'm coming back and then I'm like, okay, Shannon, I'm gonna talk to you in like in a half hour.

[00:45:23] And I don't see her again until we're packing up, getting ready to go, because it's, it's just so chaotic. The Esthetician Summit is just so calm. One thing I will say that I'm, I'm proud of is one, the center is gorgeous, so I can't wait for everyone to see it, who's attending, but it's just a, just, just wrath of fresh air.

[00:45:42] Like, just, just come in, have a seat. You wanna take a picture? Okay. You wanna take a picture of this person? Okay, let's talk about it. Go to Shannon's. Go see 

[00:45:51] Shannon O'Brien: how I'm looking forward to falling in love with my profession again. Yeah. Because you know a lot for selfishly for [00:46:00] me, I'm behind this screen all the time where before I was out more and, you know, COVID put us back in, you know, in the office.

[00:46:07] This year I'm looking to fall in love with this again. Right. You know, because it's not sitting at the desk pounding, you know, out content. You know, like I get to put my hands on, people hug people. I have been telling my sugar tribe for forever. I can't wait to hug you. Like I just, I can't wait. Really be out there again and falling in love for me with that industry that I fell in love with, you know, 22 years ago.

[00:46:33] Right. You know, and, and really being there for you and with you and with your audience, and not just speaking at your people. You know, we're not gonna just be speak. And that's the, that is the wave of speaking. Now that I'm so glad that this has changed too, is we're not gonna be speaking at you. We're with you.

[00:46:52] Yeah. And we're available for you. Yeah. Because that's why we got into this education piece to begin with. Was not to sell you [00:47:00] anything, was not too, you know, like, Convince you to buy something because that will make you the big bucks, you know? No, no. It's like, let's teach you how to do these things the right way.

[00:47:10] Absolutely. Proper education. Absolutely. So that you can, that you can go kill it. Ugh. Steph, I could talk to you for hours. Girl, I swear. Thank you so much for speaking to our tribe and yeah, being on this sugar show all the time. And thank you for including sugar. You know, it's so funny, , uh, we talk about this all the time.

[00:47:29] People are. Wait, you wax versus sugar? We're like, there's not wax versus sugar. No. You know, it's, it's two companies that. We do hair removal, right? We do proper education, right. We talk about skincare. It's all the same skin. It's just how you remove it. You know, it's some works for some, some doesn't work for others, you know?

[00:47:50] And that's fine. And, and I always love that Stephanie, because she does get sugared and she loves her some sugar. Absolutely. Mm-hmm. , I I love that you keep including us in, [00:48:00] in the conversation because, you know, we're, we, we love waxers too. It's 

[00:48:04] fine. 

[00:48:05] Stephanie Laynes: You know, it's, I think that it's, it's such a, um, . It's such a marketing thing because if Esthetic institutions really understood, and this is one thing I will say when I train.

[00:48:14] If you don't understand all modalities of hair removal, you're not great. You gotta know when someone walks into your door and they've had laser and what hair responded to, what didn't, how many services did you have? How many sessions did you have? What did they say? How long ago was it? Right? And I've had everything except for ly.

[00:48:34] I've had every modality. Right. Starting with that nasty nare back when I didn't know what I was doing. But anyway, , we have to be open to understanding the process. Yeah. And I am very open. I'm like, oh yeah, I've gotten lasered, I've gotten threaded, I've done dator, I've done wax. But after I had my daughter and I had laser, my hair just never was the same.

[00:48:56] So I can't just say anymore. Well, you know, waxing is the [00:49:00] best. No, it's the best for some people. For me, sugaring is what has really responded really well, especially after laser. Cuz my hair was just really kooky. We're not gonna talk about the hormone problems, but anyway, . So when you, when you understand that it's no longer, you know, sugaring versus waxing.

[00:49:15] No, it's about understanding what they do. And I think it's such a marketing thing that all of these, and I'll be honest, these waxing companies love doing that. In some sugaring companies. Mm-hmm. They love pitting it, but it's not about pitting, it's about understanding and education. So I love, including you, Shannon, cuz I tell people when I get on stage, she sugars me.

[00:49:34] And then you Plus we have fun. Like what? 

[00:49:37] Shannon O'Brien: Plus we're sassy and we have fun. So it's all good. Absolutely. It's all good. So we will see you live in April. Yes. For the Esthetician Summit. We are always on socials. You can find us pretty much everywhere. Oh time And uh, and it's time to take this education thing to the next level and I'm just honored to be a part of it.

[00:49:55] So thank you so much for being on you with us. Uhhuh. . [00:50:00] Well, I hope that you enjoyed this episode as much as I did. I actually learned a few things. I'm gonna be implementing some of those into our business at Sugar Mamas in Folsom, California. , but really the goal is to make sure that you have as much information as you can to make sure that you are the, either the strongest boss babe, because you own your own business or you're the strongest employee because you are going to bring these strong ideas to your manager or your owner and help them to build their business, which in turn will benefit you so, so much.

[00:50:34] So if. Are going to the summit and you are going to be in Texas with us. I please come and find me and give me a hug. I would love to meet you in person. Uh, if you wanna wait till next year, I will be there as well because I always wanna make sure that I support Stephanie in all of her efforts and hopefully that you'll read in the show notes, something that is of help to you.

[00:50:55] Or you can always jump into our Sugar Tribe, jump onto our free app. We [00:51:00] talk about this stuff all the time because our goal is to make sure that you have the sweetest and strongest year ever.