How To Make More Money As A Makeup Artist

Updated: Jan 31

And no it's not about booking more clients!

how to make more money as a makeup artist

First off, this isn't clickbait and I will not be gatekeeping.

If you want to make more money, you need to make it while you sleep and you need to stop relying on jobs that force you to only exchange money for services.

Because as we know this can go away really fast with a global pandemic, illness, car troubles, flaky clients -- honestly there’s so many variables.

So while you should definitely keep doing what you love (which is probably makeup) you should definitely add something you can sell your clients in between makeup appointments.

And what can this look like?

Digital products! Digital products are an amazing way to make passive income because you create them once and sell them on repeat to a large audience.

You don't have to be anywhere but on your phone to do this. And let me tell you, it WORKS. I've made over 2k so far since starting late last year. And that's from minimal effort on marketing.

The digital products world is BOOMING so don't get left behind! Here are some ideas you can do to make this a reality in your makeup business.

Makeup Classes (Online)

This is how I made almost 2k in ONE NIGHT in 2020. Makeup classes are an amazing way to make money BUT you need to know how to teach, plan, market, and price your courses.

You can teach anything from natural makeup to bridal makeup to special fx. But make sure you're teaching what you're best at. They can be live classes that you can then sell later as pre-recorded.

Now a lot of people have this one complaint. "Why would I sell makeup classes if there's free content on YouTube?" Because people are buying into YOU. Your clients want to know what you have to teach because they trust you. I taught a basic special fx class in 2020, sold it for $37 a ticket, and got 50 people to sign up. That's proof people will pay for someone they believe in.

Ebooks

You have to remember that your clients usually don’t know that much about makeup. So they’ll take any guide or shortcut they can to learn what works best for them even if they have to pay a small price. Ebooks are an easy way to make extra cash by addressing their pain points.

They're super easy to make and you can make it and market it all for FREE. Don't know what to make? That's when market research comes into play!

"You have to remember that your clients usually don’t know that much about makeup. So they’ll take any guide or shortcut they can to learn what works best for them even if they have to pay a small price."

Checklists + Shopping Lists

I haven’t done this one yet but I’ve been asked soooo many times from clients to make them a shopping list and they’ll pay for it. You’re cutting the time and research they don’t have to do by doing the work for them. It’s a win-win for both of yall!

Plus as an added bonus you can add your affiliate links to make extra money.

Guides

Guides can be the same as Ebooks but not as long. Maybe you have a bride who needs a guide for what skincare routine to do before her wedding/makeup appointment. Or you have mature clients who want to know how to do their makeup without overdoing it.

Honestly the possibilities are endless but it all depends on your target audience, strengths, and passions.

1:1 Online Classes/Virtual Shopping Trips

I've done 1:1 classes before and they're actually a lot of fun! You can charge whatever price you'd like but I've charged $1 a minute and people will pay over $100 for this.

Trust me, clients want to learn how to do their makeup desperately but they want to know if they're doing it right. That's something YouTube tutorials CAN'T give them.

Now this route isn't exactly passive because you need to be present to make money. BUT, you can do it from home which is the upside. And you can charge a deposit if the client doesn't show up. This is a big market to be in and I highly recommend it.

How To Make More Money This Month

Honestly, the best answer is to just start. Literally just start the process and figure out what you need to do to make this happen.

And I know it can be super overwhelming especially if you're not in this space, but that's where I come in!

Because I've done ALL of these methods since 2020, and I can tell you:

What works
What doesn't
Where to sell
How to sell
How to design
How to market
What to price
How to do market research
How to record classes
How to teach correctly (I have my degree in this!)
How to follow up
And everything else in between