I don't know that I deserve this job...

[MACtastic]

I just don't feel...qualified. I don't know. One minute I'm wrapping up a nearly $300 sale, and the next I'm struggling to get a customer in the chair. I'm totally not making my goals...I'm a good salesperson, but for some reason I'm having such a hard time. I'm seeing more and more how HUGE image is for MAC. I'm not a trendy person, I wasn't trendy at the interview...but all the girls that work for MAC are cute and trendy, and I can't seem to fit that. It's often talked about how the girls that look the best that day always seem to do the best in sales. The few clothes I have that are trendy aren't black, and all my black clothes are really simple because the jobs I've had where I had to wear all black didn't require me to be trendy. Instead of my 1st paycheck going to savings, its gonna have to go towards black, trendy clothes. I know I can do good makeup, but for some reason I've been having trouble with a few things. Applying false lashes, liquid liner, hiding really bad dark circles...it's so embarrassing making these mistakes. My makeovers have improved since starting out, but not enough I don't think. I hate that my appointments take so long too...we're supposed to be doing 30-45 minute faces, and I'm doing mine in 50....more if I have to ask for help. I want this job so badly...I want to improve and become permanent and all that...but I don't know if I can do this. I love this job, but I feel so much pressure. I just don't think I'm good enough. Please, if anyone has advice, let me know. I'm feeling super bummed right now.

 

[lara]

One minute I'm wrapping up a nearly $300 sale, and the next I'm struggling to get a customer in the chair.
Totally normal. Unless you're in a store that's 100% consistent, it's normal for the day/week to be patchy. If people aren't receptive to full sit-downs, aim for mini-makeovers - lipliner, lipstick, and gloss is my favourite little trio to do on people who are hovering but won't commit, or highlighter, blush and bronzer. It takes under two minutes to do, they feel good because they've had some one-on-one time with you and the chances of them impulse purchasing is higher because they've just been shown three+ items.
You can make excellent money off impulse purchases, you just need to be confident about it and totally ooze charm when you're doing it.


I'm totally not making my goals...I'm a good salesperson, but for some reason I'm having such a hard time.
Don't stress about it. Customers smell desperation. My record sales days have all been when I'm sick, without sleep, severely over-worked or just totally not into focusing on sales, dollars and items per transaction. If I'm worrying about dollars and UPTs, my sales immediately plummet. This is a fairly universal truth, so do your best to stop worrying and see if it reflects in your figures.


It's often talked about how the girls that look the best that day always seem to do the best in sales.
This could be more to do with them feeling good about how they look and that positive attitude is being reflected back at their clients.


Instead of my 1st paycheck going to savings, its gonna have to go towards black, trendy clothes.
Accessories make the outfit. Check with your manager what his/her policy is on jewellery, then get some nice on-trend pieces that won't break the bank. You'll immediately look more on-trend and funky, and you don't have to buy a whole new wardrobe at once.


I know I can do good makeup, but for some reason I've been having trouble with a few things. Applying false lashes, liquid liner, hiding really bad dark circles...it's so embarrassing making these mistakes.
Practice. I know it's a lame answer, but those are just things that can be rectified with practice and a bit of one-on-one training. Whenever a new product is released I pin my partner down and practice on him until I've got it committed to memory, and to be honest you can get away with a lot if you make a joke about it with your customer. Mascara is still my weak point so I'm always joking with customers about doing panda eyes or Courtney Love make-up, and they tell me about the time their daughter decided to help mummy and gave her mascara stripes, when they poked their eye one day, how they used to use black mascara on their eyebrows when they were a teenager, etc etc etc...
If you're really panicking over something, take a step back and calm down. Use that 30 seconds of downtime to crosslink some skincare.

My makeovers have improved since starting out, but not enough I don't think. I hate that my appointments take so long too...we're supposed to be doing 30-45 minute faces, and I'm doing mine in 50.
Again, it's just practice. Keep a (subtle) eye on your watch, learn how long it takes you on average to do the different parts of the face and go from there. What can you whittle down? What are you really labouring over?
Once you get the rhythm going, you learn how to set that little internal clock for your allotted time and keep right on schedule. Practice at home on a friend or your partner and use a little kitchen timer.

 

[erine1881]

it took me a few months before i got lash certified. once i did, i was scared shitless to do my first lash application on a customer. it took me forever, but i told her that it was my first one and she was cool about it. i have been there for a a little over a year, and have used liquid liner once on someone. i tell them straight up i suck at liquid liner and use fluidline instead. if they insist on liquid, i ask another ma to do it. when i first started, i felt like i was underqualified too. to this day i still doubt myself sometimes. but then i realize that i must know what i am doing to have gotten the job in the first place. if i don't know something or how to do something (like a certain look or color pairing), i ask the other girls. they do the same with me, and some of them have been there for 7+ years. they even doubt themselves sometimes.

if you haven't gone to basic training yet, you will get more tips on how to do the things you are having difficulty with. just practice on yourself, on friends and family, and you will improve. nobody gets it overnight. and if they do, they suck! the more you doubt yourself, the more trouble you will have and want to quit. and who wants to quit the best job ever? just don't be afraid to ask questions.

for the longest time i only had a few black tops and black bottoms. i felt retarded wearing the same stuff over and over, but eventually your wardrobe builds. invest in some nice black pants. plain shirts are fine, just dress them up with some trendy jewelry like lara said. the majority of the clothes that the girls at my counter (my self included) wear come from inexpensive stores like old navy and forever21. don't feel rushed to buy an entire wardrobe right away. get simple pieces that you can wear different ways and work from there.

 

[MisStarrlight]

As far as clothes go....Forever 21 is definitely your friend (I don't shop there-not my style-but everyone else I work w/ does). I am not trendy at all, but I am getting better, like everyone said, with accessorizing.

As far as your makeup goes, all of that will come with practice. We still have people who's makeovers take them almost 2 hours...ugh! But yeah, your time will improve.

And unless you're on counseling don't stress your numbers. Everyone has bad days, weeks, months....just be friendly & positive & greet everyone.

And Erine, lash certifed? I've never heard of this...am I missing something? I remember my first set of lashes I ever put on someone, but I have never heard of lash certification.

 

[ms.marymac]

I went through some of the some of the same things when I first started, and still have times I doubt myself or struggle with certain things. Lara is so correct in saying your better $ days are on days you don't check your #s every 20 mins. Do you really love certain protects? Show the customer how much you love it. Don't be afraid to get excited...but be honest about it. Customers really pick up on energy. When you walk in, think to yourself how much you love our products, how much you enjoy helping people feel better about themselves and solving their beauty challenges. Even if someone is not wanting to buy a lot, think of them as practice (but don't tell them you are, lol).

I know it's easier said than done. There are still days I am silently freaking out because we are super slow.

 

[giz2000]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MisStarrlight As far as clothes go....Forever 21 is definitely your friend (I don't shop there-not my style-but everyone else I work w/ does). I am not trendy at all, but I am getting better, like everyone said, with accessorizing. As far as your makeup goes, all of that will come with practice. We still have people who's makeovers take them almost 2 hours...ugh! But yeah, your time will improve. And unless you're on counseling don't stress your numbers. Everyone has bad days, weeks, months....just be friendly & positive & greet everyone. And Erine, lash certifed? I've never heard of this...am I missing something? I remember my first set of lashes I ever put on someone, but I have never heard of lash certification.

I second Forever 21...I get a lot of work clothes there (and I am nowhere near 21...I call it Forever 39!). I try to stay trendy, but true to myself (read: I don't dress like a 20 year old, but I try to be as trendy as possible without looking ridiculous). Don't feel bad about not being the trendiest girl at the counter. A lot of customers are actually looking for the "normal" looking girl because they can relate to her better that the uber-trendy girls. So don't sweat it...just hang in there and believe in yourself...you can do it!

 

[calbear]

Too add to what everyone said above practice practice practice. WHen you are at work and there is nothng you absolutley HAVE to be doing, grab some young girl in the store and tell her you want to try something. They are always the first ones to allow you to play a little with no problems. Liquid liner, lip demos, everything. Make it a point that every day you are at work you will work on something like liquid liner by doing at least 5 demos in that area.

I will admit that MAC is becoming ever so trendy and less about individuality so I would say go cheap and hit the Forever 21 or H &M. I miss the days of walking into a mac store and seeing all kinds of different MAC girls. It is really starting to look all the same. I too was the girl who didn't look like everyone else and last year I was 47% over my goal so it really doesn't matter if you look all that trendy. It can still all work out for you.

Good luck and stop stressing about who actuallly sits down. The standing mini demos have been some of my best sales. Walking a customer around the store and adding a little makeup here and there cause most of my customers weren't the sit down type. Stay positive.

 

[erine1881]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MisStarrlight As far as clothes go....Forever 21 is definitely your friend (I don't shop there-not my style-but everyone else I work w/ does). I am not trendy at all, but I am getting better, like everyone said, with accessorizing. As far as your makeup goes, all of that will come with practice. We still have people who's makeovers take them almost 2 hours...ugh! But yeah, your time will improve. And unless you're on counseling don't stress your numbers. Everyone has bad days, weeks, months....just be friendly & positive & greet everyone. And Erine, lash certifed? I've never heard of this...am I missing something? I remember my first set of lashes I ever put on someone, but I have never heard of lash certification.

it might just be a regional thing. before anyone at my counter can apply lashes to a customer, they have to apply them one of the other girls at the counter. until you apply them correctly, you can't apply them to customers. not sure if it is technically called "lash certification", but it isn't really practice either. i hadn't applied lashes before i did the cert. luckily i got it on the first try. but we have one girl who can't apply them to customers yet cause she hasn't done them on one of us yet (we haven't had a slow time for her to do it). like i said, not sure if it is technically called certification.

 

[yummy411]

great thread and posts everyone.. so encouraging. did i expect less of specktra? =)))

 

[MACtastic]

Thanks so much for the advice and words of encouragement!! I'm definitely going accessories shopping, and my wonderful bf has agreed to be my fake eyelashes/liquid liner practice dummy.

I guess I just need to learn to be more confident in myself. There's so many girls that want to work for MAC, so I suppose they must have seen something in me. I just need to figure out what that something was lol.

 

[SparklingWaves]

As a shopper, I don't need someone who is "trendy" or even does their m/up well. I want someone friendly, knowledgeable, and willing to give me honest feedback. You sound like you all of these.

 

[claresauntie]

Great that you have a model to practice on!!!! Yay, boyfriend!

I'm not trendy. I'm 36 and Rubenesque and I just try to wear all black that looks nice. I buy a few more upbeat clothes from Forever-21 and Nordstrom's BP department and H&M, but I make sure they flatter me and they are something that suits my personality. I am just going to look silly with fishnet arms on a metal-studded top!

As for the rest of it, just practice. I used to hate liquid liner, but then I figured: If I'm going to screw it up, I might as well play around with different brushes. I started with the 269, went to the 212, then tried the 263 (yuck!) and finally settled on the 266. I can now 70% of the time do a decent liquid eye liner.

 

[makeba]

You could practice on me anytime because it seems that you are more approachable! I cant stand an over trendy person because they would not understand my laid back style. The over trendy artist either tend to ignore me or tend to show me products that are too much for my style, so when i do find a personable artist that spends time with me my receipt helps her and my products help me!. In time you will grow as long as you allow yourself to excel!!!

 

[amoona]

MACtastic I know you're freelancing in my region so I'm going to keep it real with you. The SF region is VERY competitive and image is very important, we're reviewed on our image. HOWEVER being trendy means something different to everyone. You don't need to look like you walked out of Vogue but you do have to believe like you walked out of Vogue. Your image isn't only what you wear, its how you represent yourself.

Our MRO told me when I was first hired that if I only have two cute black outfits then I should rock those outfits every other day like it's the first time. Basically just don't look like you rolled out of bed and you should be good. Your image is you as a person not just your clothes.

 

[glam8babe]

to be honest whenever i go to the MAC counter i dont look at what they wear i look at their makeup. Just get yourself some cheap black trousers [maybe some black jeans? if allowed] get a black shirt for the winter to keep you warm and for summer wear black t-shirts and wear lots of nice accessories! sometimes maybe you could keep your hair out of your face with a nice scarf, bracelets and necklaces always look good, get yourself some cute belts to make your uniform more exiting. Nice big rings look good i have a few and people always say how nice they are; i have a butterfly one like Mariah Carey, a big diamond one [obv not real but looks hot!], a black heart plastic one with 3 diamantes ohh and loads more. Remember try not to wear bracelets when wearing rings; looks too over the top. If you have your ears pierced get yourself a buck loads of earrings in different styles, colours etc. thats al i can think of but as i said i dont take notice of what they are wearing. so far ive seen some of them wear longish skirts with black tights and black top [obviously] some wear black shorts with black tights underneath and whatever else they can think of lol

 

[giz2000]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MACtastic my wonderful bf has agreed to be my fake eyelashes/liquid liner practice dummy.

My husband was mine!!!!

 

[giz2000]

Quote:

Originally Posted by amoona MACtastic I know you're freelancing in my region so I'm going to keep it real with you. The SF region is VERY competitive and image is very important, we're reviewed on our image. HOWEVER being trendy means something different to everyone. You don't need to look like you walked out of Vogue but you do have to believe like you walked out of Vogue. Your image isn't only what you wear, its how you represent yourself. Our MRO told me when I was first hired that if I only have two cute black outfits then I should rock those outfits every other day like it's the first time. Basically just don't look like you rolled out of bed and you should be good. Your image is you as a person not just your clothes.

It's funny how regions are so different...down here, no one really does the whole MAC thing all-out, unless it's for an event. A lot of the counter girls barely wear any eye makeup, and the girls on South Beach wear even less. The thing is, that the pared-down look goes with the climate...it's too hot to wear a full face. Now, they do go all out with the clothes....

 

[Bernadette]

Everyone has posted some great advice here

!

I freelanced for only two months, and have been permanent and helped open a new coutner in June. Just in the last few months I can't believe how much I've grown. Here are a few tid-bits...

As far as lashes go, make sure you are letting the glue get really tacky. Then you can place it without it slipping or causing a mess. I usually let it get tacky for at least 45 seconds to a minute. Also, make sure you are cutting the lashes enough to fit the eye, if they are too close to the inner corner it will poke the customer, cause tearing and lift up easily.

Until you get faster and more confident, do the prime eye on every customer. If they are interested in color, add that color to their lid. If they are interested in more than one color, do the prime, do one color on the lid, add some of the other to the outter corner of the lid etc. If you haven't had any traning and are unfamiliar with the prime eye, ask any of the people you work with. This technique will greatly cut down on time and make figuring out where to put what a lot easier.

As far as your clothes, I know I spent a lot of my first few checks on clothes. I suggest buying a lot of basic things that you can change up with accessories and shoes. Forever 21 in my favorite place to shop. Target also has some great things. Don't go out and buy everything at once, you'll probalby end up with a lot of similar items that will stop being trendy soon. Just pick up a few things here and there as you find them. That way you won't spend all of your money at once and you will end up with purcahses that you like more.

As far as goals go, like someone else said, unless youa re at a super busy and consistent location, it's not alwyas that easy. My counter is new and still pretty slow. I've been doing well at making my goal and then I'll have terrible days. it's hard. Something I've have found to really work is to offer to demo on everyone. If you're slow and someone is asking about shadows, offer to do an eye demo. Most of the time people will say yes and out of those times people will usually buy because they will feel more confident in their bility to use the products. Remember to walk people through what you are doing and to give them tips. Really teach them and they will want to use what they've learned.

Like everyone else said, practice and give it time. Don't feel so down on yourself, you're not the only one to have gone through this.
If you have any questions, need any more tips, need advice on certain products etc. ask us here!

 

[MACtastic]

Makeba and Sparkling: I'm totally like that too. I always preferred the MA that was classic and sophisticated rather than trendy. It's nice to know that at least I can appeal to the crowd that prefers the 'regular looking girl' lol.

Amoona: Thanks for being straight with me, I really appreciate that. I'm a competitive person (debate team captain in high school, woot woot!), I just need to apply that spirit to work (without being a b*tch to everyone I work with, especially since they're really sweet). After I finished my demo and the manager was going over what they were looking for, she said that they do look at our image....it was then that I figured I wouldn't be getting the job. I guess they saw *something*, so again, I just need to find that *something* that they saw.
Bernadette: Thanks for the advice on the lashes! I'll definitely have to ask about the prime eye.

Forever 21 has come up a lot...I unfortunately can't fit into their clothes. I can, however, fit into H&M's clothes. I might instead just invest in a few quality pieces that are more up my 'sophisticated, classic' alley, and just jazz them up with some jewelry. I have this gorgeous Swarovski charm bracelet that I got in Austria, and since Tiffany and Co. seem to be trying to bring the charms back, I think I'll rock it every now and then. There's a super cute jewelry store on Union that I adore, so when I have time to head that far into the city, I think I will pick up some things.
I think amoona got it right when she said that 'you just have to believe like you walked out of Vogue'. I didn't dress super trendy when I worked yesterday, but I kept reminding myself that they gave me this job for a reason, and that although I've got a lot to learn, I am a good artist. Thinking this way definitely helped my sanity, and although I still struggled with my goal, I think customers seemed to respond to me better. Plus, for some reason, I think my demos and appointments went better too...I got compliments a couple times from my coworkers.
Thanks guys!!!

 

[FacesbyNiki]

Love this thread.

But yes, it truely is all about practice. H&M is my friend for nice trendy tops. Bottoms, I go to New York & Co. Jewelry, I get from all sorts of places.

Just take a cute peiece and build around it to make it look like different outfits.

You are going to be fine.