We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Carolyn Heefner. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Carolyn below.

Carolyn, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your business sooner or later

If I could go back in time I would have started my social media marketing business back in 2013 right out of college. I wish I had started my business way sooner than I did.

I don’t know if I didn’t think I could do it or if it was a confidence issue or what. But I wish I had started my business back in 2013 right out of college. I would have been 6 years ahead of when I did and I started my business when I already had a child and I quit my 9-5 with my second baby on the way. If I had started 6 years before I had my first baby I truly believe I would be so much farther than I am now. And I’ve been a 6-figure earner for the last 5 years. But if I had started in 2013, I would have learned lessons a lot sooner, I believe I would be a 7-figure earner at this point.

Carolyn, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Hi, I’m Carolyn, a marketing strategist and Meta/Instagram Ads expert and Agency Owner for medspas and wellness practices who are ready to grow with more ease and intention.

I didn’t start out in the aesthetics world. My journey began with a deep love for storytelling, psychology, and helping small business owners turn their ideas into something that feels alive online through social media. Over time, I fell in love with the medspa space because it blends transformation, confidence, and care, and I realized so many incredible providers were struggling to get their message seen by the right people.

So many of them excelled at organic socials but really struggled with paid marketing and getting their ads to work without having to run constant discounts or flash sales to get new patients through their doors (and keep them coming back.)

That’s when I created my boutique ads agency. My work is all about taking lead generation off of my client’s plates. They’ve built a busy and successful practice but they’re ready to scale it and don’t know where to go from growing to scaling. Managing Facebook and Instagram ads is my focus and I do it in a way that feels simple, sustainable, profitable and actually works for our clients.

We help medspa owners and injectors go from busy but could be busier, inconsistent bookings and feast-or-famine months to fully booked calendars and waitlists, using ads that build trust, attract dream clients, and convert without feeling salesy or forced. And best of all the ads keep our clients top of mind so they’re not competing with other medspas in the area. They’re always showing up and getting in front of new and current clients.

What sets me apart is my approach. I don’t just run ads. I build full strategies rooted in understanding what makes a specific audience tick, how to connect authentically, build trust (not just look for quick and easy flash sale) and how to turn that connection into consistent growth. Ads shouldn’t feel complicated, overwhelming, or like shouting into the void. They also shouldn’t feel like every ads agency they hire just makes promises they can’t deliver on.

Ads can can be intentional, beautiful, and profitable.

I’m most proud of the ripple effect my clients create. Watching medspa owners go from stressed and stuck to confident CEOs with thriving practices will never get old.

At the heart of everything I do is a belief that business can feel good, that marketing can be both strategic and soulful, and that women in this industry deserve to scale with systems, not burnout.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

When I first started my business, I didn’t have an audience or fancy connections. I built everything from the ground up. I literally remember sitting in my mom’s backyard during COVID and cold calling local clients to see if they were needing help with ads.

I started on Facebook and Instagram, sharing what I knew, showing up consistently, and learning as I went. In those early days, it was less about “strategy” and more about showing up consistently, building trust and real relationships.

I talked about the behind-the-scenes of ads, tips and tricks, what was working (and what wasn’t), and offered genuine value to the people who were already following me. Over time, those people became clients, and those clients became my biggest source of referrals. (It’s easy to ask your clients to refer you and they’re happy to when you’re getting them such incredible results.)

My growth has always come from leaning into authenticity and consistency, not perfection. If I focused too much on perfection that’s when my content flopped the most. I focused on sharing my life, helping before selling, showing up as a real person, and being willing to evolve as the platforms changed.

For anyone just starting out, my biggest piece of advice is to start messy. Don’t wait until you have the perfect content plan or brand aesthetic. I literally started my business in my mom’s dining room 3 months pregnant with my second daughter, after quitting my 9-5 in 2020 (the year the world shut down).

Talk to your ideal clients like they’re sitting across the table from you, share stories that build trust, and keep showing up even when it feels slow. The truth is, social media growth is rarely overnight (ads make it faster) it’s built one post, one conversation, and one genuine connection at a time.

Another tip – Stop making excuses and just take action. Even if you don’t know what you’re doing. Thank God I did because this business has allowed me to be home with now all 4 of my children and homeschool them.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

One of the biggest and scariest leaps of faith that tested my resilience was when I quit my 9-to-5 job in May of 2020 – right as the world was shutting down. I had a one-year-old at home and another baby on the way, and to be honest, it felt like the craziest time to take a leap of faith.

Everything around me was uncertain, and people said I was absolutely nuts to leave a comfy state job, but I knew deep down that building my own business was the path I was meant to take.

There were plenty of moments of fear and self-doubt, but I kept coming back to the vision I had for my family and for the life I wanted to create. I didn’t want to have to be beholden to a boss, or someone telling me when I could or could not see my own children.

I wanted freedom, flexibility, and the ability to build something that truly mattered to me. So I showed up every day, often working during nap times and late nights, learning how to grow my business while balancing motherhood in a global pandemic.

Looking back, that season taught me that resilience isn’t about never being afraid, it was about moving forward even when you are afraid. It’s about trusting that the small, steady steps you take in uncertainty can lead to something incredible.

And they did. That leap in 2020 became the foundation of everything I’ve built today. A 6-figure ads agency that has transformed my family in every way.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://bellasocialmarketing.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carolyn_graceheefner
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carolyngraceheefner/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolyn-heefner-99700451/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MedspaAdsWithCarolyn

Image Credits

In Full Bloom Photoraphy – Austyn Conte
www.infullbloomphotography.com