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

Alright, Leilani thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?

I had a hard time creating Leilani’s Consulting’s name. I wanted a name that would fit everything I do. A lot of people told me not to name it after myself. On the other hand my daughters told me; since my name is unique and beautiful, name it after me. That way it really represents me as a whole. My business coach thought it was a great idea. She felt that since I will be doing a lot of talking I should name it Leilani’s Consulting and I did.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a young 42 year-old that was born in Waukegan, IL but raised in Minneapolis, MN. I am the youngest girl out of five siblings. I am a mother of 3 children (25, 22 & 22 year-old). I also adopted two loved ones (13 & 8 year-old) two years ago. I am a grandmother of 3 (2yrs, 15 months and 5 months) and guardian over my mother. As you can tell I am a busy woman.

However, I do find time for family, walks around the lakes/parks and enjoy traveling. I enjoy helping other people understand how money/credit works. I try my best to keep my prices affordable and offer a lot of credit/taxes tips for Free on my platform. I believe that is what sets me apart from a lot of my competitors. I am very proud of taking the leap of faith to start my business and giving my children the courage to do the same.

The first industry I got into was taxes. It was during tax season when I was charged $290 to file one W2 and I didn’t didn’t understand why so much for something I thought was so simple. So, I started researching the topic and invested into a tax mentorship program. I started by doing my own taxes. A few years later I was doing family/friends taxes.

After a hard lesson about credit/interest rates, I got into the credit repair industry. I needed a reliable vehicle for my family. I was approved for a 2007 van, but it came with a $3k down, 5 year contract, 29.9% interest rate and $430 monthly payments. After I signed all of the documents the salesman told me, “If your credit score was 40+ points higher you could’ve gotten a better deal.”

That’s when I started researching how credit scores work and connected with some credit professionals. I followed their directions and my score jumped 46 points within 45 days. That’s when I felt I needed to help people with credit so they don’t make the same mistake I made.

Currently, Leilani’s Consulting provides credit restoration, Public notary, monthly budgeting and tax preparation for individuals/small businesses. We also help small businesses find their tax deductions to be eligible for funding. We plan on adding photography and life insurance services soon.

There are many problems we solve for our clients. When it comes to our tax clients I enjoy helping them solve a variety of concerns. Such as what they can write off to how to locate documents to file the business taxes. As a small business owner I understand how important it is to have everything in order to maximize your refund. All while trying to avoid an audit.

Our credit clients usually have concerns about understanding their credit report or why their score isn’t moving. During their first consultation I teach them how to read their report. Sometimes it can be a simple reason the score is not moving. Such as; credit usage, no credit mixture or inaccurate information being reported. I also partner with Jeffery Asamoah the C.E.O of ThrivEdge Solutions to offer current clients credit education weekly.

How did you build your audience on social media?

Building a social media audience had been hard for me until last month. I connected with Candice Hill (C.E.O of Social Media University & The Tax Advisor & Associates). Ms. Hill taught me how to find my target audience. At the time I thought anyone with a job or business was the people I was marketing to. Ms. Hill analyzed my Facebook & Instagram pages and explained to me why I wasn’t getting the engagement I felt I should’ve got. She was able to tell me what times people look at my posts to know when I should post.

Now I have apps posting for me, so I can focus more on my clients. I enjoyed learning how to create passive income. Now I have an E-Book coming out. I am now able to create good content, remain consistent, and reach my target audience, in 30+ Facebook groups where I advertise for free to reach more people. I will encourage others to reach out to Candice Hill to gain this valuable information that Ms. Hill is willing to show anyone.I currently have 4k+ followers, 8,517 people engaging with me on my post, was able to rebrand myself, 3119 profile visits, 2,603 reactions, 169 shares and the list just keep going – all within 30 days. I plan on continuing to apply these strategies to all my business ventures.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

Yes, my side hustle (tax preparation) turned into a full-time business. It started when I attended the 2nd Annual Black Business Ball in Minneapolis. The company I was working with as a tax professional was nominated for an award, but we didn’t win. A guy named Weston Hill from Tampa, FL won. I started wondering what he did that I didn’t do. So, I connected with him and set up a time/date to see what he is all about. I also followed him on social media, because I needed to know what made him different from me.
I found out Weston Hill is the C.E.O of The Tax Bizz in Tampa, he trains people on how to do taxes, how to build a successful tax company just as he did. That’s all I needed to know to have him as a mentor. So, I signed up. Mr. Hill educated me on tax software, IRS requirements to run a tax company, how to keep all records in compliance, marketing, how to hire people and MUCH MORE!!

I can honestly say Mr. Hill wants me to be successful just as he is. My 1st year alone I completed 30 tax returns for 2022, 3 for 2021, 2 for 2020 and applied for 8 extensions for 2022. That’s a total of 43 returns ranging from $300-$650 (per return). When I was working for the other company I had to find my own clients, split profit and only made $6500. Now I follow Weston’s blueprint. I made $20k+ within those same 4 months. This year I am a Reseller, meaning I will be helping others reach their tax goal just like Weston helped me.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.lconsultingllc.com
• Instagram: Leilani_Consulting
• Facebook: Leilani’s Consulting LLC
• Other: https://directory.blackbusinessenterprises.org/listing/leilanis-consulting/