We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Naomi Ibanez a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Naomi, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What do you think it takes to be successful?

I feel that “being successful” is more of a state of mind and not a state of being. It takes a strong minded person to be successful. To be successful one must be open minded to trying new ideas and allowing themselves to view things from a different perspectives than their own. Additionally, one must also be courageous and not shy away from potentially making mistakes- after all one learns best from their mistakes, but most importantly it takes a lot of self discipline and motivation to be successful, you have to be YOUR biggest fan and never allow for outside distractions to sidetrack you from your goals.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I stepped into the nail industry almost 3 years ago. It started as just something I did for my own personal use, however I slowly started to fall in love with it and I realize the potential I had to turn it into something.

I specialize in acrylic nails and hand painted art, I offer acrylic nails ranging from extra short length, medium and to even as long as what I call, “extendos,” and with my love for painting, I have created sets where I have painted Rick and Marty, Samurai Jack, Chowder and more.

Outside of the nail desk, I have also recently became a “Nail Influencer” on TikTok (@nailedbynaomi) where I show tutorials, nail supply hauls, vlogs etc.. and I have also became an influencer on Amazon with my own storefront creating lists of my favorite products to share with other nail lovers!

One thing that my clients have also appreciated from me as a nail artist is my knowledge of proper sanitation, anatomy, and making sure they are comfortable at their appointments. I am always careful of properly disinfecting my implements and my station, as well as having a proper education behind the anatomy of the nail and of potential skin disorders and diseases. In addition to that, my clients always appreciate having the option of a “Quiet Appointment” and having access to a phone stand, phone charger and extra plug ins at their appointment.

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

The biggest social media platform that I currently have is on Tiktok with a current following of 37.2k. What really made my platform grow was a “stupid” and careless video I posted at 3am one random night with no intentions of going viral, it was just for fun. In the video I showed nails that I had done that week and included my clients “form of payment” with some of them being, “She let me pet her turtle” and “He brought me 2 new croc charms” and before I knew it, I woke up the next day with over 1 Million views and over 15k followers, after that I took it and ran with it and took advantage of the exposure I was receiving to continue growing my platform.

Since then, I have had the opportunity to collaborate and work with brands such as, Beetles, Rosalind, Madam Glam and more!

I definitely encourage those who are beginning their social media platforms to continue posting no matter what, don‘t focus on the number of views or followers, just focus on the quality of your content! Stay up to date with the latest trends and sounds on Tiktok and never be afraid to network with other creators!

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

Social media, business cards, and word of mouth have been the best sources for me when it comes to bringing in new clients.

On all of my platforms I always make sure to use hashtags, specifically hashtags that include my area such as #AthensGeorgia or even as broad as #GeorgiaNailTech because I have even had clients who drive HOURS just to get their nails done by me.

Another huge impact that goes hand in hand is my business cards and word of mouth, often times my clients ask for my business cards to hand out, and then when my clients are out at social events, at school or even picking up their coffee at Starbucks people will tend to ask “OMG who did your nails?!” It then results in them handing out my business cards or my social media

Contact Info:

• Website: https://nailedbynaomi.as.me/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/nailedbynaomii?igshid=NTdlMDg3MTY=
• Other: TIKTOK: https://www.tiktok.com/@nailedbynaomii?_t=8ZHBvxjuR5S&_r=1 AMAZON STOREFRONT: https://www.amazon.com/shop/influencer-e920842f?fbclid=PAAaZuVPgHfaZmThPDIzwasxVW_x8OSrClxhDCFbEv-Ir-oQZNNyuJoU08SoM