What 5 Events in 10 Days Taught Me About Running a Color Analysis Business

We come back after a busy month and break down what five events in ten days taught us about running a color analysis business. We share the real time cost of pop-ups, how we changed our event pricing, and why we no longer accept “exposure” as payment. 
• The hidden workload behind events such as prep, travel, setup, breakdown, and follow-up emails 
• The physical and mental demands of back-to-back color analysis sessions 
• Why we switch from per-person or hourly pricing to a flat event rate 
• Pricing events high enough to bring an assistant for check-in, flow, breaks, and better conversions 
• Why upgrades from quick undertone analysis are rarer than expected 
• “Exposure is not payment” and what can go wrong with in-kind partnerships 
• Getting specific about social media deliverables such as tags, collab posts, and story requirements 
• Becoming more selective so the business stays sustainable instead of just busy 

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Transcript

Welcome Back And February Chaos

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Hi everyone, welcome back to the Business of Color Analysis podcast. It has been a while. I know I did my first three episodes, and then life got super busy. February was crazy for me, and it totally plays into today's episode because I am going to be talking about how I had a whole bunch of events in February. I think I had eight total, maybe nine. But what really did whoop me in was I had five events in 10 days. And today we're going to talk about what that taught me about running a color analysis business. So some of the lessons were great. Some of them were honestly very frustrating, but overall it was incredibly helpful because it made me rethink a lot of how I structure events inside my business. If you've ever considered offering your services at events, pop-ups, or partnerships with other businesses, there are a few things I wish someone had told me earlier. I figured this out all on my own. So I thought I would share what I've learned with you while it's still fresh.

The Hidden Work Behind Events

SPEAKER_00 1:14

All right, lesson one events are far more work than people realize. And you've probably realized this if you have done any events yourselves. So when people see a vendor at an event, it can look pretty simple. It looks like you show up, set up your table, and start working. But the reality is that the event itself is actually the smallest part of the job. Before the event even starts, I'm organizing everything at home. I am working out maybe lots of details with the event organizer. I'm packing my drapes, my mirror, lighting, and supplies. I have to load everything into the car. I drive to the venue, find parking, unloading everything, and then I have to set up my station. And depending on the venue, that setup alone can take a while. Some buildings are easy and some involve elevators and security, long hallways and multiple trips back and forth to the car. Then, of course, there is the event itself where I'm doing back-to-back color analysis sessions. And then when the event ends, the whole process happens in reverse: breaking everything down, packing everything up, loading the car again, driving home, unloading everything back into the house. And I often send to people PDF guides after the event. It depends on what type of color analysis, what level they have done, if they've done the four season or the 23 season with me, then I will send them a guide. So then I will have quite a bit of emails to send afterwards. So what might look like a three-hour event can easily turn into six or seven hours of work. And something else I don't think people talk about enough is that events are extremely physically and mentally demanding. Physically, I'm on my feet for hours, lifting equipment, resetting drapes between clients, and constantly moving. Mentally, I'm doing color analysis nonstop, which requires a lot of focus and decision making. You are really concentrating on every person that sits down. When you do that for several hours straight, it is exhausting. Doing five events in 10 days made that very, very clear to me.

Switching To A Flat Event Rate

SPEAKER_00 3:32

Lesson number two. So previously I had different pricing depending on what someone received, and that was either a per person price or an hourly rate. So an undertone analysis had one price, a four-season analysis had another price, and a full 23-season analysis had another price. I also tried out doing an hourly rate, but that rate just wasn't high enough. Also, I realized I had given them the option to reduce the number of hours if they needed to, which didn't guarantee my income. But after doing so many events so close together, I realized something. What I'm really being paid for at an event is my time, my knowledge, and my expertise. Not just the time during the analysis, but also the preparation, the travel, the breakdown, and everything that goes into it. So I've now switched to a flat rate for events. That flat rate covers prep preparing everything at home, packing and organizing, my travel time, the setup, the event itself, and breakdown afterward. Once someone sits down with me, they can choose whether they want an undertone analysis, a four-season analysis, or the full 23-season analysis. So typically in advance in advance, the organizer has chosen what type of analysis the guests are going to receive. So, but I will give the example that at my most recent event, it was undertone analysis for everyone, except for one person, there was

Bringing An Assistant And Adding Breaks

SPEAKER_00 5:11

extra time left over. And so we did the full 23 season analysis. So, regardless of what type of analysis they get, the price stays the same because what I'm reserving is my time. Another change I made is now I price events high enough that I can bring a second person with me. And this has been huge. My assistant can check people in, check them out, answer questions that I might not have been able to go into during the actual analysis, and they can explain how someone could book a full color analysis later, either in my studio or virtually. So if someone comes to the event and does a quick undertone analysis, my assistant can talk to them about upgrading later and booking a full session. And to be honest, what I've been finding is that people very, very rarely upgrade from an undertone analysis at an event to a full analysis later. It happens occasionally, but not nearly as often as you might expect. So having someone there to help explain the difference and encourage that next step is really valuable. They also help manage the line and keep everything running smoothly. And another big benefit is that they can give me a short break every once in a while. So I'm not doing five hours straight of color analysis without stopping. And on that note, I will say that for my last couple events, I have added in a lunch break, either 30 minutes or one hour, because I completely forgot to do that in the beginning. So doing these things has made events so much more sustainable for me. Lesson number three, and ooh, I really learned this one the hard

Exposure Is Not Compensation

SPEAKER_00 6:56

way. Exposure is not payment. So I recently did a couple of in-kind partnerships. I tried doing a few events where the agreement was essentially exposure in exchange for my services. This is something a lot of small businesses try, especially when the host has a large following. The idea is that their audience will discover your business, but unfortunately, that has not really been my experience. In several situations, the exposure that was promised that just did not happen. And one event in particular was honestly really, really disappointing. The host was walking around filming content and introducing all of the vendors. She was naming each business and highlighting them, but when she got to me, she just said something like, and we have color analysis. She didn't mention my business name, and she did that in multiple videos. This person has hundreds of thousands of followers, and the event had been presented to me as an in-kind partnership for exposure. So when your business name isn't even mentioned, that exposure just isn't there. Another thing I've noticed is that sometimes vendors are only mentioned in the caption of a post and there's no tag for the business. So if someone is interested, they can easily click through to find you. After seeing this happen a few times, I've realized that exposure is not a reliable form of compensation. And that brings me to lesson number four.

Setting Clear Social Media Deliverables

SPEAKER_00 8:29

I am now very specific about social media deliverables. I am very clear when I am doing a collaboration. If I'm doing any kind of trade or in-kind partnership, I now clearly outline what I expect in return. For example, that might be a specific number of Instagram stories with tags, maybe an in-feed post, either a carousel or a rail. And it's marked as a collaboration on the post, so it appears on both of our accounts. And I need to be clearly tagged so people can easily find my page. Those details matter because they aren't, they are what actually create visibility. Right now, I'm not using formal contracts for these collaborations. I'm still hoping people follow through on their word. And I don't want to add a whole bunch of paperwork and back and forth emails to make sure they sign and also just taking the time to build those contracts. But if it's needed in the future, I will definitely be implementing contracts. But for now, I'm hoping that just being very upfront and clear and putting my expectations in writing is going to make all the difference.

Choosing Only Sustainable Opportunities

SPEAKER_00 9:47

Lesson number five is that not every off every opportunity is worth it. The final thing these events taught me is that not every opportunity is worth saying yes to. Events take a lot of preparation, energy, and focus. So moving forward, I'm being much more selective about which events I participate in, how my time is compensated, and what partnerships I agree to. Because at the end of the day, I want to build something that is sustainable, not just busy. Even though there were definitely some frustrating moments, I'm honestly grateful for the experience. Doing five events in 10 days was like a crash course in what works and what doesn't. It helped me refine my pricing, get clearer about my boundaries, and understand the real cost of events in my business. And those lessons are incredibly valuable. So I hope this episode about events has been helpful for you. And I will see you on the next Business of Color Analysis podcast.