Recently, I've seen an uptick of lash artists sharing their experience of providing lash extensions for a client, and the clients then saying they don't have all of the money or asking to pay them at a later date.

It made me think back to when I was young and inexperienced when it came to business as a mobile hair braider.

I had this client, who I’ll name Cassandra for this article, who for the longest time had been a great client.  She was easy to work with, she was faithful with her braid appointments and she even referred her sisters to me.

After about a year of working with Cassandra, she got into a relationship with this guy and all of a sudden, she had money problems.  

I don't know the details of the relationship but I remember her sisters didn't approve of the guy. 

What I noticed is that after I'd spent hours braiding her hair, she wasn't as quick to pull out cash and pay for her services.  Instead she asked if she could pay me at her next pay day.

So I agreed because she'd been a good client up until that point.

Her pay day came and went and I didn't get that payment she promised me.  I followed up with her and she kept pushing it off and pushing it off until she was ready to book her next appointment and then she paid me.

It got to a point where I'd provided services for her multiple times without payment and was just hoping she'd pay me.  Eventually she did but it was months after I had provided the service.   

So, one day she calls me, wanting to schedule another appointment.  And that day, I had the courage to say these exact words to her. "Cassandra, I'm happy to schedule another appointment for you but I need to be paid immediately after the service.  I can't do the delayed payment thing anymore."

I wasn't surprised that she didn't book again with me after I said that.

The problem with people who don't immediately pay for their services is that they know they don't have intentions to pay you before they get the service, but they get the service anyway, not even communicating this with you up front.  I believe they know you'd deny them service if they did.  

So they manipulate the situation and take advantage of your kindness to get what they want without a care in the world for you and how their decision will impact you.

This behavior is extremely slimy and selfish.  And I hate to say it, but it's behavior you typically see from bad clients that don't value the business relationship with you or the service you offer.  

UNDERSTANDING THE MINDSET OF A LASH THIEF

I want to share with you what I've learned about these kind of clients based on my journey of becoming a business owner.

I believe that if we can get to the root of an issue rather than fix the symptom, we'll have greater success.  If a client takes advantage and gets their lashes done, and doesn't tell you they didn't plan to pay until afterwards, yes it's slimy and extremely inconsiderate.

But how can you spot these kind of people before they get to your business so you can stop them in their tracks?

I've said this before and I'll keep saying it until it resonates.

When people pay, they pay attention. 

And what I mean by that is, the higher the price, usually the higher the commitment from the client's side and the higher quality of a client you're going to get.

If you charge strip lash prices for a luxury service like lash extensions, 9 times out of 10, you're going to get a low quality client because they haven't spent enough money to value the service.

So, you have to stop trying to compete with other local artists or keep your prices comparable to others where you work.

Instead, you need to look at what other lash artists are doing and think about how you can make your business and the client's experience even better than what everyone else is offering.

That's called offering value.

When you're focused on value and providing clients with an experience they can't get anywhere else, you now separate yourself from the pack and can charge whatever you want and clients will pay.

Doesn't matter if you're a new lash artist or not.  People will pay for more value.  Trust me.

This is exactly what I teach in the Lash Masters Monthly.  I teach my mentees the skills they need to master their lash application so they can stand out in a saturated market, attract high quality clients and structure their business so that they are efficient and profitable.  

I take them behind the scenes of my business and show them all the little things I've done to repel low quality clients.

If getting paid what you feel you're worth or attracting the right clients for your business is something you need help with, you're invited to join.

PROTECTING YOUR BUSINESS

So what can you do to repel the type of people that would schedule a service with no intentions to pay?

Funny enough, while writing this article, I saw a post on Instagram about a woman who didn't want to pay for the services she received and the stylist called the police to have the woman arrested.

In that case, I understand both the client's and stylist's perspective.  But that's besides the point.  Bottom line, it's never ok for a person to steal services from you.

I've never had to deal with this kind of client and I hope I never do.  But here are the things I've implemented in my business to repel these kind of people.

This is going to sound simple when I say it but you'd be surprised by how many lash artists are not doing this, and that is... to act like a business owner.  

So many lash artists treat what they refer to as their business, as a hobby. 

When I started behaving like a business owner, I immediately removed my emotions from business and I structured my business in a way that commands respect and appreciation from those who want to do business with me.

This means that I invested money into my business for a website, I got a business phone number so I could separate my business from my personal life.  I also invested in online booking so I could have a more automated system for booking appointments and clients could book at their convenience without having to wait for a text or call back from me.

Online booking also gave me the ability to require a credit card when a client wanted to book an appointment, and I added my terms of service to my online booking which clients had to agree to before they could schedule with me.  My reschedule/cancel/no show policy is that if I don't receive notification of a change 48 hours prior to the client's appointment, they have to pay me full price.  

I think that requiring a card at the time of scheduling and having a clear policy in place about how I plan to use that card if the client screws me over has been a key piece in repelling thieves.  Sure they could use a fake credit card but when they arrive, they must show ID and the card they put on file so there's that.

In addition to acting like a business owner, you have to do market research.  

A lot of artists do a little market research and they do it completely wrong. They look around at other lash artists in their city to see how much they charge, and then they try to keep their pricing in line with the going rate for the area, or they charge less to seem competitive -- thinking this will attract clients.

While it's fine to know what others are charging, you never want to base your price on that.  And really, the point of market research isn't to determine how much you'll charge people.  The point is to see know the quality of service other artists are offering so you can improve on that and add more value to the marketplace. 

For instance, in my area, most of the lash artists I see on Instagram work illegally out of their homes.  Well, I know that a lot of affluent clients don't feel comfortable having lash services in a person's home so just by having an actual business license and business location that's legal is one of the ways I easily improve upon the what's already out there. 

I also invested in an electric bed that adjusts behind the knees and the back so my clients get the most comfort.  And you'd be surprised how cluttered a lot of lash artists' spaces are.  My space is minimal, elegant and clean.  So just by these minor adjustments to my business, I'm already adding value in the client's eyes which justifies higher pricing.

So when you do market research, just look around to see what other lash artists are offering and find ways that you can improve on the service they're offering. When you do this, it commands significantly higher pricing which repels the kind of client that steals lash services. 

Scammers like that tend to take advantage of the easiest target they can find.  And unfortunately, that's the lash artist that's working illegally, the lash artist that's the cheapest in the area and many times, the lash artist that works from home.  

These are just a few things I've implemented in my business to avoid theft of services.  If you want me to take you behind the scenes of my business and show you how it's structured and the things I do to command $250 and up as a starting price for the services I offer, join the Lash Masters Monthly.

There, I'm an open book and I share everything that I wish someone shared with me when I was in the earlier part of my lash career. 

And hey, if you've ever had a client steal services from you, make sure you implement what I've shared here so it hopefully doesn't happen to you again.