Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Miara Bryant. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Miara, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today One of our favorite things to brainstorm about with friends who’ve built something entrepreneurial is what they would do differently if they were to start over today. Surely, there are things you’ve learned that would allow you to do it over faster, more efficiently. We’d love to hear how you would go about setting things up if you were starting over today, knowing everything that you already know.

One of the biggest mistakes I made on my entrepreneurial journey was not having a system in place to manage my finances. Often times as business owners, we focus so much on figuring out how to get “booked and busy” or sell so many of our products to reach that ideal 6 and 7 figure goal, that when we finally reach those heights, we have no idea how to actually manage the money that’s coming in. When my business did reach 6 figures, I wish I would’ve had a clear breakdown of my finances. What am I spending? What am I bringing in? How much do I need for personal expenses? Can I afford to expand? Having this system would’ve helped me cut costs and save a great deal of money that could’ve gotten me much farther, much faster.

Can you share one of your favorite marketing or sales stories?

I have always been pretty advanced with my marketing tactics. Being as though I graduated with a marketing degree, I apply many things that I learned during undergraduate school to my marketing ventures with my business. Recently, however, I put together my first REAL targeted and strategized marketing campaign for The Lash Vault. The “Back to School” campaign took place from August 15-September 1. The rollout featured a promo commercial, a few Instagram flyers, and text and email marketing. There was a lot of pressure weighing on the outcome of this promo. I had spent thousands on inventory that wasn’t moving the way I expected, and needed this campaign to push inventory out! I was also working on a serious time crunch. I had a week to set up the content session, create the flyers, schedule the texts and emails, and plan the content. To my surprise, the results were more than I could’ve ever imagined:

-965,378 impressions from an ad with a $100 budget, yielding a $0.0132 cost per link click.
-400% increase in website sales in comparison to the last period.
-99% increase in site conversion rate.
-7% increase in average order amount.
-813% increase in Instagram accounts reached.
-Over 500 new followers!

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

I was never afraid to put myself out there to grow my clientele. I promoted myself like there was no tomorrow! I would go to festivals in downtown Atlanta like the “Sweet Auburn Fest” and introduce myself to anyone that would listen and pass out business cards. I would reach out to girls via DM on Instagram all day long to the point where Instagram wouldn’t allow me to send anymore messages that day, simply asking girls to check out my page. Promoting your brand, especially in the beginning, is oh so important! After I got the clients to finally come, I provided them with both a service and an experience that they couldn’t find anywhere else. My clients then refer me to their friends, and keep returning. Word-of-mouth will always be the best marketing!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.shopthelashvault.com
• Instagram: @miara.emoni
• Facebook: @TheLashVault0
• Other: Search us on Google!

Image Credits
Personal photo and photo #3: Adonis D. Photography. Photo#6: Jay Lenard Photography.