In this episode I'm catching up with Rebecca Taylor about the Instagram feature she used to bring in 10,000 new followers without spending a cent on ads, trial reels. Rebecca walks through exactly how she uses this often overlooked tool to build an entirely new audience, the mindset behind treating trial reels as a place to experiment, and the systems she has in place to turn brand new followers into people who know, like, and trust her fast.

→ What trial reels actually are and why they are different from posting to your main feed

→ How many trial reels a day is the sweet spot before Instagram starts flagging your account

→ The formats that perform best, including why Rebecca sticks to text on screen b-roll videos

→ How to write anchor content that attracts the right audience and repels the wrong one

→ The exact DM script Rebecca uses to turn new followers into real connections

→ Why testing content in trial reels before running ads can save you hundreds of dollars a month

→ How to use trial reels for client attraction if you are still behind the chair

→ Rebecca's take on captions for trial reels, spoiler, she does not overthink them

→ Inside her course, Crack the Code Trial Reels, and what is covered in each module

If you want to go even deeper into Rebecca's trial reel strategy, she is giving Hairstylist Rising listeners 20% off her Crack the Code Trial Reels course with the code JODIE20. You can find her on Instagram at Rebecca Taylor Hair or head to rebeccataylorhair.com to grab the course and connect with her directly.

Mentioned in this episode:

Escape To Elevate Retreats

Learn more and apply for Escape To Elevate - www.escapetoelevate.com

Listen to The Modern Hairstylist Podcast

Connect with Hunter on Instagram at @hairbyhunty

Clients expect a personalized experience today, and most hairstylists assume that means more manual work, more back and forth, more time spent trying to make every client feel special one by one. In this episode, Hunter Donia breaks down how he builds automations and systems that make the client experience feel deeply personal without having to manually create that experience every single time. We talk about what a trigger is and why it's the foundation of any personalized system, why a digital consultation form gives you more real personalization than almost anything else in your business, and why so many stylists confuse control with personalization when the two aren't actually connected.

→ Why personalization requires a trigger, and what that actually means in practice

→ How a digital consultation form collects the exact information you need to personalize the client experience

→ Why checkout information alone can never give you a truly personalized result

→ How to build a system where a client's own input shapes what happens next for them

→ Why online booking doesn't take away the personal touch, and how to keep it while still setting boundaries

→ How giving clients a booking link for their specific service creates a more personalized, more convenient experience

→ Why learning new tech feels uncomfortable at first, the same way learning a new technique behind the chair does

→ How AI is opening up new ways to personalize the backend of your business right now

→ Why the digital consultation form is the single best place to start if you want to personalize your client experience in 2026

Mentioned in this episode:

Escape To Elevate Retreats

Learn more and apply for Escape To Elevate - www.escapetoelevate.com

Links mentioned in this episode

Digital Salon Retail free seminar, digitalsalonretail.com

Sought After Educator Accelerator waitlist, jodiebrown.ca/sae

Follow Jodie on Instagram, @itsjodiebrown

If you have ever felt the guilt of being bad at retail behind the chair, this episode is going to change the way you think about selling forever. Victoria Domizet spent over a decade as a hair educator before she stumbled into affiliate marketing during a Melbourne lockdown, and what started as a forty five dollar surprise turned into a full business teaching stylists how to get paid for the recommendations they are already making every single day. This conversation covers how to set this up in your chair, on your phone, and across your social media, without ever needing to be an influencer or carry a dollar of stock.

→ How Victoria made her first affiliate sale from her couch during lockdown and had no idea what had happened

→ Why traditional salon retail no longer works for the seventy percent of hairstylists who are now independent

→ How to use a QR code at your station so clients can shop the exact product you are using on them

→ Why tagging a brand in your content sends your traffic straight to them instead of back to you

→ The simple phrase you can start using today to turn a product mention into a sale for yourself

→ How to use comment to DM automation to send affiliate links without any extra work

→ Why you do not need thousands of followers or perfect content to start making sales

→ Where to find affiliate programs based on where you live, and what to do if one does not exist yet

→ How TikTok Shop and Instagram Shop are about to change the way stylists get paid for content

→ Why retail recommendations from you as the professional build trust and keep clients coming back

→ How to think about client shopping behavior between appointments, not just the eighteen minutes they are in your chair

This episode is such a good reminder that the way people shop has changed for good, and the stylists who meet their clients where they already are will be the ones who benefit the most. If you want to start building income streams like this one for yourself, from your content, your expertise, and the trust you have already built with your audience, get on the waitlist for the Sought After Educator Accelerator at jodiebrown.ca/sae.

Mentioned in this episode:

Escape To Elevate Retreats

Learn more and apply for Escape To Elevate - www.escapetoelevate.com

Links

→ Follow Layla Tourh on Instagram: @iamlaylatourh

→ Follow Beauty Boss / The Beauty Business Academy: @beautyboss.businessacademy

→ Learn more about the Sought After Educator Accelerator waitlist: jodiebrown.ca/sae

Money is one of those topics we still don't talk about enough in this industry, and it's time that changed. In this episode, I sit down with Layla Tourh, founder of Beauty Boss and The Beauty Business Academy, who has spent over 25 years building income streams that go far beyond working behind the chair. We get into the real reasons so many of us feel weird about wanting to earn more, and then we break down exactly what building multiple streams of income can look like in this industry, from education to coaching to digital products and beyond.

→ Why so many hairstylists and beauty pros feel uncomfortable talking about wanting more money

→ The difference between working one to one with clients and building a one to many business model

→ How becoming an educator can multiply your income without adding more hours

→ The rise of blended education and what courses can and can't move fully online

→ The real differences between coaching, mentoring, and consulting in the beauty space

→ Why digital assets like ebooks, templates, and downloads are an underrated income stream

→ How Layla's client made significant income from a single waiver template during COVID

→ Why the membership model creates predictable recurring revenue for salon owners

→ How memberships shift client loyalty away from a single stylist and toward your business

→ Why upselling feels easier when clients aren't paying for services and products in the same transaction

→ The power of experience and how small details, like a goodie bag at an event, add value clients remember

→ Why every hairstylist and beauty pro is already a salesperson, whether they realize it or not

If you've ever felt like wanting to earn more makes you less passionate about your craft, I hope this conversation shifts that for you. You can absolutely love your clients, love your work, and build a business that pays you well.

Go check out Layla's work over on Instagram, and if you're ready to start building your own income streams as an educator, check out www.escapetoelevate.com

Mentioned in this episode:

Escape To Elevate Retreats

Learn more and apply for Escape To Elevate - www.escapetoelevate.com

Sign up for The Summer Sales Sprint!

This week I'm sitting down with Kat McEwan, known online as the Anti Hairdresser, and her story is one you need to hear. She was 21 weeks pregnant, fully booked six months out, and lost everything in a single day after being let go for reporting illegal activity at the salon where she worked. What she built afterward, using nothing but online marketing and sheer stubbornness, is proof that the skills you learn to promote yourself will carry you anywhere. We get into the difference between the long game of building your brand and the fast, tactical moves that put money in your diary this week, plus the exact language Kat uses to get clients to respond when they've gone silent on you.

→ Kat's story of losing her column through hidden employment while 21 weeks pregnant

→ Why so many self employed stylists end up in a gray area with no real protection either way

→ The real difference between long term brand building and short term gap filling tactics

→ Why sales feels uncomfortable for so many hairstylists, and how to reframe it as service

→ The exact wording Kat uses in follow up messages to get an instant response

→ Why a client going quiet on you is almost never actually about you

→ The stat every hairstylist should know about how much more clients are willing to spend

→ How Kat made 10k on part time hours once she understood how to market herself

→ Why the people you surround yourself with change what feels possible for your business

→ Details on Kat's five day summer sprint built to add bookings and money to your diary fast

If any part of Kat's story hit close to home, her five day sprint kicks off July 5th and runs through July 9th, just 30 minutes a day with a quick Zoom call walking you through simple, doable tasks to get bookings in your diary and money in your pocket. Replays are up for 14 days if life gets in the way, so there's no excuse not to jump in. Find Kat on Instagram at the.anti.hairdresser and send her a DM to get signed up. And if you take one thing from this episode, let it be this. The boring stuff you do again and again is usually what actually moves the needle. Thanks for listening, and I'll catch you same time, same place next week.

Escape to Elevate retreat in Italy October 2026 www.escapetoelevate.com

Jamie's Instagram program: risesocialacademy.com

Jamie's monthly Instagram content membership for hairstylists: thesocialsuite.com

Connect with Jodie on Instagram: @itsjodiebrown

This week on Hairstylist Rising, I'm re-sharing one of the most loved episodes of the show with the incredible Jamie Dana. Jamie has been in the beauty industry for 13 years and has done almost every role you can imagine, from receptionist and assistant to commission stylist, suite owner, salon owner, independent educator, and brand collaborator. She is also one of the original online educators in the hair industry and the woman behind the Framar Jamie Dana collection, which became the biggest single day of sales in Framar's history.

In this conversation, Jamie shares the early years that shaped how she built her business. She talks about being homeschooled, getting bullied in beauty school, working under the table at her first salon, and trying to build a clientele with Groupons before Instagram existed. She shares the exact moment Instagram changed everything for her, going from barely booked to fully booked three months in advance and raising her prices, all within six months.

We get into what it actually looks like to step into online education for hairstylists. Jamie talks about launching her first online course, originally called O'HotGraham, which she had to rename to Rise Social Academy after a legal threat from Instagram, and how she eventually walked away from a six figure clientele to go all in on teaching. She also breaks down how she grew her YouTube channel by studying the algorithm for six months before posting a single video, and why the long form video space in the hair industry is still wide open today.

Then we go behind the scenes of the Framar collaboration. Jamie pitched the entire collection herself, including the documentary series that brought stylists along for the ride. She shares what really happened during that year and a half process, the tears, the moments off camera, and the launch strategy that turned it into the biggest sales day in the brand's history.

We also dig into something every creative needs to hear. How do you know which ideas to pursue and which to put on the back burner? Jamie shares her three year rule for evaluating projects, why the takeoff phase of any new venture takes more energy than you expect, and how to keep moving forward through imposter syndrome at every level of your career.

Whether you are a new stylist building your clientele, a seasoned pro thinking about education, or a creative weighing up your next big move, this episode is a real look at what is possible in the beauty industry today.

Jamie will be joining us as a guest educator at Escape to Elevate, our branding, marketing, and content creation retreat in the Italian countryside this October 2026. If you want to be in the room with her and a community of beauty industry leaders, authors, educators, and creators, you can find all the details at escapetoelevate.com.

Come say hi on Instagram @itsjodiebrown and let me know your biggest takeaway from this episode.

Mentioned in this episode:

Escape To Elevate Retreats

Learn more and apply for Escape To Elevate - www.escapetoelevate.com

In this episode of the Hairstylist Rising Podcast, I’m joined by longtime hairstylist, salon owner, and author Annie Fisher for a conversation about the deeper meaning behind a career in the beauty industry.

Annie has spent nearly three decades behind the chair and recently released her book Love Is in the Hair, a powerful reflection on the relationships, growth, and impact that come from working in this industry.

While hairstyling is often seen as a creative career, Annie shares why the work we do goes far beyond hair. From the connections we build with clients to the personal transformation that happens throughout our careers, this conversation highlights why the beauty industry can be one of the most meaningful professions out there.

We talk about Annie’s journey into the industry, the evolution of her career from stylist to salon owner to author, and how writing her book became a way to reflect on everything the industry has given her.

If you are a hairstylist, salon owner, or beauty professional who has ever felt like your work matters on a deeper level, this episode will remind you why this career is so special.

• Annie’s journey into the beauty industry and how she first got started

• Why being a hairstylist is about relationships, not just hair

• The personal growth that happens throughout a career behind the chair

• Reinvention in the beauty industry and evolving throughout your career

• The emotional impact hairstylists have on their clients

• The inspiration behind Annie’s book Love Is in the Hair

• Why storytelling and legacy matter in creative careers

Love Is in the Hair by Annie Fisher is available now on Amazon in ebook, paperback, and hardcover.

Book: Love Is in the Hair by Annie Fisher

Available on Amazon

If you enjoyed this episode, share it with a hairstylist or salon owner who needs the reminder that what we do in this industry truly matters.

Mentioned in this episode:

Escape To Elevate Retreats

Learn more and apply for Escape To Elevate - www.escapetoelevate.com

In this episode of the Hairstylist Rising podcast, Ambrosia Carey, a veteran hairstylist, and salon owner with over 25 years of experience, shares her journey in the beauty industry. Ambrosia discusses the importance of marketing, branding, and sustainability for modern hairstylists and salon owners. She emphasizes the critical role of understanding data in making informed business decisions and suggests integrating additional revenue streams such as retail, affiliate links, and subscription boxes. Ambrosia also highlights the importance of consistency, routine, and building trust with clients to foster a sustainable business. Tune in for actionable advice on maximizing income, managing time efficiently, and creating a thriving, multi-faceted beauty business.

00:00 Welcome and Introductions

00:36 Ambrosia's Journey in the Beauty Industry

02:47 Marketing Insights for Modern Hairstylists

07:59 Building a Sustainable Beauty Business

10:55 Maximizing Profitability and Time Management

21:55 Retail Strategies and Client Retention

24:20 Monthly Team Meetings and Product Discussions

24:51 Introducing New Products Through Independent Stylists

25:46 Affiliate Links and Salon Profitability

26:58 Maximizing Retail Sales in Limited Spaces

29:46 Leveraging Influencer Marketing for Hero Products

31:56 Building Trust and Client Relationships

36:39 Sustainable Practices and Consistency

37:47 Creative Routines and Time Management

44:55 Final Thoughts and Resources

Mentioned in this episode:

Escape To Elevate Retreats

Learn more and apply for Escape To Elevate - www.escapetoelevate.com

In this episode of the Hairstylist Rising Podcast, Jodie sits down with salon business coach and author Nina Tulio to talk about what profit really means inside a salon business.

If you’ve ever felt fully booked but still financially stretched… this conversation will hit home.

Nina shares insights from her new book, Profit Is Personal, and explains why profit is not just about numbers on a spreadsheet — it’s about leadership, culture, systems, pricing, and personal growth.

1. Why avoiding your numbers is costing you more than you think
2. How to read your profit and loss statement without fear
3. The 3 growth levers every salon owner should track weekly:
4. Frequency of visit
5. Average ticket
6. Volume (plus the bonus lever: retention)
7. The difference between revenue and actual profit
8. Healthy profit targets for:
9. Commission salon owners
10. Independent artists and suite renters
11. How payroll, back bar, and rent impact your margins
12. Why emotional discounting damages your value
13. How to create pricing based on facts and data — not comparison
14. The connection between culture, onboarding, and profitability
15. Why social media panic shouldn’t dictate your business decisions

Nina also breaks down what sustainable profit really looks like and why reinvesting into your team, systems, and long-term growth is part of building a strong business.

If you are:

1. A commission salon owner
2. An independent stylist wanting stronger margins
3. Considering opening a salon
4. Or simply ready to stop winging your finances

This episode will give you clarity, direction, and a framework to start paying attention to what actually matters.

Get your copy of Profit Is Personal

Visit Nina Tulio at ninatulio.com

Mentioned in this episode:

Escape To Elevate Retreats

Learn more and apply for Escape To Elevate - www.escapetoelevate.com

In this solo episode of Hairstylist Rising, Jodie breaks down the exact quarterly brand building content system she teaches salon owners and hairstylists who want to:

1. Attract dream clients who value their expertise
2. Raise prices with confidence
3. Stand out in an increasingly competitive market
4. Build a team of stylists who align with their vision
5. Create consistent bookings without living on Instagram

If you’ve been posting inconsistently, overthinking every caption, or feeling like your content isn’t translating into real growth, this episode walks you through a practical 90 day strategy to fix that.

You’ll learn:

• Why brand building is non-negotiable for hairstylists in 2026

• How clients and potential team members are vetting you across multiple touchpoints

• The three foundational questions that clarify your brand direction

• How to create visual and messaging consistency that builds trust

• A step-by-step batching system for salon content

• How to audit your content quarterly so you double down on what actually books clients

Jodie explains why repetition builds reputation and how becoming known for one clear specialty can position you as the go-to stylist in your market.

Whether you’re a solo hairstylist trying to fill your books with better clients or a salon owner looking to attract aligned team members, this episode gives you a realistic, implementable content plan you can start this week.

Block off 30 minutes this week and answer:

1. What reputation am I building this quarter?
2. What does someone need to believe about me before they book?
3. What am I trying to accomplish in the next 90 days?

Then start building your content around that.

If this episode helped you think differently about salon branding and content strategy, subscribe to Hairstylist Rising and leave a review. It helps more hairstylists build businesses that actually support their life.