We recently connected with MacKenzie Franklin and have shared our conversation below.

MacKenzie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear how you think where to draw the line in terms of asking friends and family to support your business – what’s okay and what’s over the line?

First and foremost becoming a business owner or entrepreneur you have to embrace all stages of the process. The journey is not always glorious and no one truly knows the behind the scenes but you so if you want the support- you have to ask for it.

Of course the thinking is “if they are my friend or my family they should be doing XYZ to support my business…” but in reality someone who isn’t a small business owner or in the beauty industry doesn’t know how doing the small things such as liking a post, sharing your social media posts or referring you to friends and family – means to us.

When I first started out- I was nervous and didn’t know what kind of direction my business was going to go due to COVID but it really took my support system to hold me down in those trying times to give me enough confidence to keep going. Once I caught momentum and my business started to really take off- I gained this level of confidence not only in myself but also in my work. I wouldn’t have got to that point without my friends and family really holding it down during the hard times.

For me it’s simple- if you want the support ask for it. The people who believe in you and believe in your vision will support you unconditionally.

MacKenzie, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am a freelance makeup artist- I specialize in bridal, special occasion and soft glam makeup.

The bread and butter of my business is weddings- I love my brides! They are the absolute best and I’m really grateful for them. It’s an honor to be chosen to be a part of their special day.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Listen… social media is a full time job within itself. To have a successful business you have to invest time and energy into building a platform that works for you.

This was hard because I enjoy my privacy but with building my brand I had to force myself to learn the trends, the basics and do what felt authentic to me. In my opinion, being authentic online will go a long way. People want to relate to you, they want to know you for you- kind of creepy- but it’s true.

My demographic I engage with the most online is the mom community- it’s this an unspoken bond that’s created itself. I relate to them the most because we have similar struggles and it’s nice to know I’m not alone in this journey of finding the balance of work/life/mommyhood

My best advice when it comes to social media is embrace the cringe- yes sometimes hearing your own voice is like nails on a chalkboard but try it anyways. Don’t do everything that everyone else is doing- find your own niche and stick with that and grow from that. Being yourself is key.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I started my career shift in the fall of 2019 and COVID happened in the Spring of 2020….

Talk about a pivot- I questioned my whole life decision at that point. At one point I felt like COVID was a sign from the universe that I made the wrong career choice since it was all so new. Thankfully, at the time I had my support system helping me through it and told me to stick it out and stay the course.

I look back at that time and don’t know how I got to today with going through COVID. However, the amount of obstacles I dealt with with each wedding I had that year really prepared me for the worst of it all. Now everything seems like rainbows and unicorns compared to the COVID wedding season of my career.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @kenziemua