The Blueprint to Your Best Q1 Ever!

[00:00:00] Shannon O'Brien: Hello and welcome back. If you heard last week's episode, I hope that you have already gotten your planner and your colorful pens and you have already been working on the first two weeks of January. And if you have kudos to you, that means you're super serious about this and you will do nothing but succeed.

[00:00:22] Awesome. And if you missed the episode, then go back and take a listen because we walk you through exactly how to hit those goals and not go out too fast in January, but to really take one day at a time to get to those goals. And if you did listen to last week and you just haven't gotten your planner yet, Come on now.

[00:00:43] It's time . It's time to get it together. And, uh, if you just take these little baby steps, I promise you they will take you leaps and bounds and your clients will thank you. But most importantly, your bank account will Thank you. So in this follow up [00:01:00] episode, we're gonna be talking about q1, which is the first quarter of this year, what you should be taking a look at, what you should be promoting, uh, content and goals for q1.

[00:01:11] So let's get into it. 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 lacked the time, budget, and knowledge needed to grow my small business as a body sugaring pro.

[00:01:36] 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 same.

[00:01:57] So if you're a cosmetologist [00:02:00] or aesthetician 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 dive in.

[00:02:24] All right, so let's get into this. Let's get talking about what you should be thinking about in January and q1. If you are listening to this mid-year, that is fine too. Um, you can take a look at, you know, where you're at in the year and adjust accordingly. But we're gonna talk about specifically January and really what you should be thinking about and promoting right now.

[00:02:49] So you have your planner. You've got your goals out. You've broken down what you need to make. Let's talk about the perfect thing for Sugar Pros to [00:03:00] be. Promoting and thinking about in this first month, first in actually second month of the year. So no matter where you live, even if you're in Florida, uh, you tend to have kind of, you know, colder weather.

[00:03:15] Um, you know, normally in the winter people are wearing their long sleeves. They're not wearing tank tops and strapless shirts, and so they can usually hang with letting their hair grow out. So this is the perfect time of the year to be promoting arms, legs. And underarms backs, chests, things like that.

[00:03:37] Perfect time of the year because you can explain to your clients that they need to be patient. You know, so often clients say, oh, I just can't let it grow that long. Well, they can let their legs grow out if they're wearing pants. , right? And educate them about that hair cycle. So if they are shaving in between you sugaring, you're never [00:04:00] going to get them perfectly smooth.

[00:04:02] And the goal is to reduce that hair growth so far down so that by the time the spring and summer get here, your sugaring is a piece of cake. They come in, it takes you just a minute, and really they're super happy with their results. So when the weather is bad, especi. I wanna see on your socials, I wanna see in your treatment rooms, I wanna see in your emails, arms, legs, underarms, show those hairy underarms and what they can look like.

[00:04:34] Just with a couple of minutes of sugar ball put on their underarms. Or maybe they want to grow out their legs so that when they're ready for their spring trip, now is the time to put that in their head. So if you have someone who comes in on the regular for their bikini, start getting them to grow out their other parts, you will increase your.

[00:04:57] And you will make your clients a whole lot happier as [00:05:00] well. Now is also a great time for lightning treatments. So if you are someone that is doing a lightning, lightning treatment, say on uh, the underarms, thighs, elbows, knees, things like that, that tend to get pigmented and you're using a lightning protocol.

[00:05:19] Now is the perfect time to be doing that, and so you should absolutely be promoting your lightning treatments as well. There's a lot of really great companies out there that offer Lightning services, and again, this is the time where if you are an esthetician doing facials, Peels are a great time to do, are great product to do or service.

[00:05:42] Hello, peels are a great service to do in the winter because they're obviously not going out and dealing with, you know, the direct sunlight of laying out by the beach, for example, sunscreen. Awesome for retail sales right now. Awesome. For retail sales, you [00:06:00] absolutely should be selling sunscreen and exfoliators.

[00:06:05] Okay, let's talk about that. Exfoliation now is the time when the hot water comes out cuz people are cold, their skin is drying out. You need to be their go-to for the solution. Their skin is itchy, the dry skin is building. It might be causing ingrown. You are advertising should include any and all exfoliators that you have.

[00:06:30] Be them manual exfoliators, like the super Cort. Or maybe a, um, chemical exfoliator, like a glycolic lotion or a serum or a pad that has, uh, exfoliating properties in it. This is the time to get them on that. This is also the time for hydration, so any sort of hydrating hyaluronic acid. Shea butter, fragrance-free [00:07:00] products that you have, you should absolutely be marketing those.

[00:07:05] So arms, under Arms, awesome. Awesome. Time to be promoting that. And if you want, do a leg package with a suco, you know, get three leg sugars with a suco. Give them a little something. Don't discount. Right? You wanna give them a prize with their happy meals, so to speak. All right, so focus on those areas that they just feel like they can't grow out in the summertime because they would just die if their underarms were seen.

[00:07:41] But they don't mind as much when they're covered with sweatshirts and sweaters and jackets. Okay, now is the time, so get that planner out and let's talk about your content calendar. So your clients want to see results, and I love, love, [00:08:00] love underarm sugaring, uh, so that you can add onto that Brazilian ticket and get that underarm added on.

[00:08:08] And now you have two services that you're doing throughout the rest of the year. Get them hooked on those underarms. So before and afters on your content calendar. Um, products and like take. Video of super dry skin. Let your skin dry out a little bit. If, if you have a great model of skin on your own, you could do your own arm or your own leg.

[00:08:30] Let it go dry for a little bit. Take some good video, and then show a beautifully smooth, sugared hydrated leg to follow. So before and afters are really great, especially if you're shy and you don't like to be on social media. Before and afters are great. Throw it on a little with a little audio track and some information with your text on a reel and your live-in so easy to do, even if [00:09:00] you are shy.

[00:09:00] So make sure that you're really on your planner. Take a different colored pen and put out the content that you want people to see this month. Okay? You need your clients. And potential clients to see what you offer. And I promise you, if you only sugar someone's Brazilian and you never let them give them the idea, they might not even think about the fact that they could do their underarms.

[00:09:30] They might not think about, oh, you know what? I would like to have my legs smooth and not deal with shaving in the summer. You absolutely need to let them know that those services are available, because a lot of times they just come in out of habit. Your clients roll in, they see you every four weeks, they get their bikini done, they leave or they get their brows done, they leave.

[00:09:53] It is up to you to mention the other services that you have that you could get them started on now so that by the [00:10:00] spring and the summer they are smooth and hair. , it is up to you to let them know that. Okay, now it is the beginning of January, as we know. And what is the most favorite holiday for sugaring?

[00:10:16] Brazilians is Valentine's Day, and that is coming up in about five weeks. So Valentine's Day. Do you know what you're doing for Valentine's? Do you already have any sort of a special, if you already have all the clients that you need, do you have something to add on for those folks? Maybe some cute little boy shorts I had, um, in my shop, I had cute little boy shorts that I took my cricket and on the back of them I put fresh sugar.

[00:10:48] Or just got sugared so that they could put it back on their little booty cheek, on their boy shorts. And, uh, I gave them out as gifts actually, because they were so reasonable. I just got a bulk of them and handed them [00:11:00] out as gifts. Great idea. If you want make a little business card size promo that you could hand to your girls this month and say, Hey, if your man is looking for something to get you, Let him know about Sugar Mamas, for example, and you know, give him the information on how he can get in touch with your business and get you a gift certificate, or maybe get you that super delicious lotion.

[00:11:29] Or maybe you have some of those delicious candles that melt into massage oil. Let your, give your client something to give their partner, to give them the idea to come to you for their Valentine's needs. That's how you sell more retail. And just a little card at Canva or Vistaprint or one of the other's.

[00:11:51] Moo has beautiful cards. Just a quick little business card that you can give to your girls to hand to their partner is a great [00:12:00] idea, and you'll make great sales that way. Okay? Also, you can sell to them some of these ideas so that they can use them with their partner. So something to think about, but Valentine's Day.

[00:12:13] Is like the Shangri La of our year. . It is the best, best time for people to be smooth. Maybe they're on a first date, maybe they're trying to reignite the flame. Maybe they know they're going to be in, get proposed to whatever it is they want. Their brows, their face, their bikini. They want all the parts smooth.

[00:12:34] So now is the time that you should. Getting people in and promoting your retail and your services. Get that planner out and you should be talking about it now because it is January 15th as we, um, launch this podcast episode. That means there's one month left. That's it. . All right. Then we're gonna be talking about March and about spring already.

[00:12:58] Didn't we just talk about [00:13:00] Christmas and boom. Valentine's Day will be here. Before you know it, there's already heart. Everything inside the stores. You should have your. Content calendar filled with love stuff, filled with before us and afters, and giving them date ideas. And really, honestly, you should have lots of things available in your shop that would be perfect for them for this holiday.

[00:13:23] So Valentine's is here, folks. Get your stuff on your content calendar. Do that in red or pink pen if you need, but, uh, schedule out that content. Again, if you are someone who is shy, go ahead and just do a reel of Valentine's things that are around your shop so that you are front of mind. Okay? Take a look at that planner and let's talk about your goals.

[00:13:45] You are two weeks into January or into whatever month you're, that you're listening to this episode. You're two months or you're two weeks into the month. You should have two weeks of. Numbers and two weeks left to go. I think [00:14:00] we're three weeks in this month, but February is a short month. So how are you doing on your goals?

[00:14:05] Take a look at the last two weeks. Look forward to the next two weeks, and ask yourself, where could I get smart about my hours? Again, we talked about this. Listen to the last episode, because we talk about being strategic with your days and your hours and your times that you're sugaring. Where can you get strategic about your hours?

[00:14:26] What can you be promoting? Take a look at your retail products. If you have a serum that's sitting on the shelf, that's really not moving too much, promote. If you have a cleanser or a finishing product that has been sitting there and you have six to eight of them stuck on the shelf, do a promotion with that.

[00:14:48] And if you are shy, do a reel of the product of a cheek being with lotion being put on. It doesn't even have to be your cheek. You know, there [00:15:00] are so many ways that you can promote your products and services, and you don't have to memorize any script. This new social media world has made it so simple to do little four second clips, put 'em together, put a fun song on it, and put it up on any of the socials.

[00:15:18] Okay. You have the ability to freely market yourself, take advantage, put it down in your calendar, and really take a look and say, okay, I'm gonna work Monday through Thursday this week, say, uh, nine to two. Well, from two o'clock to 2 45. You can be working on a social reel each day, G. If you plan it out, it'll be super simple for you and you could be ready to pick up your kids or get off to your next class or you know, whatever it is you're doing in your afternoon.

[00:15:53] You have plenty of time to get all this done. So don't act as if you have, oh, you're so busy and you don't have time for socials. [00:16:00] You absolutely do and you absolutely need to be in front of people to build that business. Again, if you are someone who, especially Sugar Pros, we easily fill our books. If you are someone that is super packed with appointments and you have no room for appointments, then you should be marketing your retail.

[00:16:21] Market your retail with the theme of the month and remind people of the retail that you have and the extra services you can easily do. Again, you're somebody who's packed with Brazilians. It does not take long to add on an underarm. Now you've just boosted the ticket. Add on a soothing serum, or add on a hydrating moisturizer, add on an exfoliator, and now you've doubled to triple to quadrupled your ticket.

[00:16:47] All within the same a half. So my sweet, sweet friends, you are going to kill it this year. You have absolutely every opportunity [00:17:00] to make super smart business choices, okay? No matter when you are listening to this podcast. 20, 23 and beyond are about making super smart business choices. Getting a planner, taking it one day at a time.

[00:17:19] Do not put that aside. Absolutely. One day at a time. Have your marketing dialed, have your promos ready for the next month, and I promise you, it will make your job a whole lot easier and it'll be easier for your clients. You'll be more relaxed, your clients will see a difference, and so will your bank. So this year I want you to dial in your numbers.

[00:17:43] I want you to join the community. So if you are not already on the app, you are missing out because get inside this community this year, we are going to be taking that app to new levels, and you can find that in our show notes. We're gonna be taking our community to new levels, so we [00:18:00] aren't just gonna be talking about the mold and flick, right?

[00:18:02] We aren't just gonna be talking about. Um, you know, which powder are you like, we are gonna be introducing you to other companies. We are gonna be showing you different things on the skin to be prepared for. We have so much in store that you are not going to want to miss out on All of the opportunities inside that app and the app is free folks.

[00:18:25] So this is a plug for it, but really it's about joining the community and being a part of a community. So as aestheticians, right, we have different groups that you can join on Facebook and um, you know, I don't know how many people are doing an online app like we are, but there's a lot of communities that you can join.

[00:18:44] You can go to trade shows, things like that. And the goal is to lift each other up. So if you're a part of our sugaring community, The goal is to not only get some assistance for yourself, but to also raise someone else's business because at the end of the day, that's what [00:19:00] this is about, okay? And the goal is to get prepared, but in small bites for what is to come in this year.

[00:19:09] And the more you're prepared, the better you will be for the year. Okay, this all the, all the stuff is done, the lockdown is done. The crazy making is done. Life happens. I get it. But if you are prepared and you have set your goals appropriately, you absolutely can make a career out of this. Now, if you are an employee, you absolutely can kill it this year, doing the same.

[00:19:42] Just because someone else takes taxes out of your paycheck and someone else is getting your supplies does not mean you don't treat your business, your room like a business because not having to worry about purchasing supplies, that's the, that's the spas job. Amazing. You know, [00:20:00] receiving a paycheck for all the work that you do and all the taxes and everything's already taken out of it, and you have sick pay and possibly vacation, whatever it is you have as those perks.

[00:20:10] Being an employee is actually pretty rad as well. So employees make sure that you have a planner also, and plan out the days that you work. Work with your manager to help yourself make more money, and in turn, the shop makes more money and your manager's happy as well, or your spa. So employees work that business.

[00:20:30] Grab a planner, grab those colored pens. Listen to the last episode. Listen to this episode again, and get your month dialed. Now the goal here honestly, is I want to have all of you make it onto the Sweet Success Series. So as some of you know, on the Sugar Show, we have about once or twice a month we feature sweet success stories and those are

[00:20:58] That's a lot of s's. We [00:21:00] have those. Sugar Pros that are in this industry. Maybe it's been a year, maybe it's been five years, maybe it's been 10 years talking about their sugaring journey, what got them into jour sugaring, how they built their business, and the kind of success that they're experiencing. I want you to be featured on the Sweet Success Series.

[00:21:19] I wanna be able to call you up and say, girl Guy, you rocked it. I wanna feature you on the show. Tell us your story. So if at the end of. Month or quarter, or in the middle of this year, right at the top, I wanna be featured as a sweet success story and contact me. Let me know what your journey has been. I would love to feature you because the goal is to be good examples for others in our community.

[00:21:46] You know, I took my business, I was a single mom. I wasn't sure in the recession how the heck I was gonna take this business to the next level. And sugaring was the thing that saved my life. If you have not listened to the Sugaring Save My Life episode, there's [00:22:00] two of them. I did it in the beginning when I first started out in a new town, and I knew no one, and I had we the recession.

[00:22:09] Sugaring saved my life then, and just last year I had a major family shakedown, and my heart was broken. I couldn't get myself to not be crying on the daily, when again, my heart was broken. I was, I went through a lot. So listen to that, how sugar saved my life again. Second episode and we'll link those in the show notes if you wanna listen to my life story.

[00:22:35] Um, because really it's about how you can create a business that either makes you residual income or makes you the kind of income that people need. And won't take out of their budget. And that's been sugar for me. So these tips and tricks that I show you are the things that I do in my own business. I work on them with the folks that work with me.

[00:22:55] We're gonna be working on these hard in this next year, and I [00:23:00] absolutely know that. , if you are mindful and prepared with this planner and in your business, that you too can make it on the success stories and you too can share with us your journey to sweet success cuz it is possible for all of you. I am a walking example, so I adore you.

[00:23:18] I hope you have a fabulously sweet week and I look forward to the next episode where we are going to be sharing a sugar company partner with you. So stay tuned and have a sweet week.