Nikki Blog

Sorry I haven’t updating my blog for a while.  I’ve been busy interviewing people (met some really interesting people, which I’ll blog about later) and setting them up, and also started writing a dating guide book in Thai.  Writing a book isn’t hard as I have been writing a lot in the last few years, but writing a good and funny Thai book, that I find is quite a challenge.  I aimed to get it wrap up by the end of April, so will see if I can live up to my words. 

So here is the latest feedback from a female marketing client. It always surprised me how difficult my clients find to work out if the guys will call them. 

“I would like to thanks K.Nikki for the date with Khun M. The dinner went well and we both enjoy it very much. K.M is sweet and has a great sense of humor. Should we decide to meet again, I’ll let you know ka.
 
I think the 2nd date is much much better than the 1st one, great job ka K.Nikki!.
 
Thank you and best regards,
S“

Or looked at yourself in the mirror and thought “My hair looks so dull/unnatural, and I had this hair style/colour for years, but don’t know how to change it.”

Or I owned as much cosmetics products as a make up artist does, but I can’t seem to be able to apply it to the same affect.

Every weekend, I have scheduled in atleast one makeover session with male and female clients who are about to go on the date, to go over their attires, hairs, makeup, perfumes etc.  I think I have done it enough time to be able to start blogging about it with some useful insights and really workable tips. 

The first thing I considered when the clients come in, is to see if their clothes are right for them.  Does the cloth suits your lifestyle, social situations and personality? And most important of all, does the cloth says to your dating partner that “I am the one that you want to be seen next to”?

Hair is another essential items that often gets neglected. Most hairdressers cut your hair the way you told them to, but does it really suits your personality, lifestyle or career? I mean for a start, the hairdressers just wouldn’t know, unless you have been going to the same one for years.  Styling your hair is also very important, don’t over do whatever you think is good because it is usually isn’t. 

And the last point is just absolutely unbelievable, it always amazed me how many Thai women don’t know how to put on a good make up.  Applying the makeup in a right way can make you not only look younger, but it will also save you from having to buy in new unnecessary products that come out every seasons unknowlegably.

Trust me, changing your image can also boost your confident, and you will be glad that you took on the advice. 

People who come to see me are usually people who are ready to make a postive change to their life. They are proactive, wanting to choose, rather than being chosen.  So depending on how much changes you are prepared for, the makeover can be 10 mins -3 months, but the benefit is for a lifetime. (Note: Unlike an image consultant in the department stores that gets commissions if you buy the products (meaning conflict of interest), I don’t get paid for this, so you can be assured what I suggest will be worth it.)

Did I mention that I just recieved a call after this blog went up from my client, whom I did a makeover for last Thursday, saying that she got approached by a guy who offered to pay for her dinner with friends after she tried following my makeup tip? She was so pleased about it as it has never happened before! Great job girl!

A guideline of our free makeover process will be put up at the end of this week.

Just a little peek from our latest ads in BK and GURU magazines.

With 75.7 billion baht or $2.4 billion worth of advertisement revenue floating around in Thailand, I think it is worth discussing some experience I have had with such industry promoting my dating service.  I’ll try to make it as generalised as possible so you can use it too if you want to start marketing your own product.

If you want to go big and broke, watch out when you hire a PR company.  They may be good with getting newspaper to write articles on your business, organise an event, leaflet handouts etc. but they also great at sucking your income faster than you could earn it.  Line out all the details of what they will be offering to every single details otherwise your investment can dry up into a heated Bangkok air.  Write to me if you want to know a good and most effective PR company in Bangkok. 

 A lot of time you can actually do a self PR without going through an agency, but it’s time consuming especially if you don’t know who to contact.  Some jounalists do take compensation (off the book) for writing a story on your product , but it will take a lot of time and effort. It is somewhat easier if you hold a press conference of  the new product launch or send them photograph of your events, they will likely to publish it.  For the first example, make sure that you inform the newspapers and magazine in advance prior to press conference.  If some newspaper can’t make it, some jounalist will actually try to interview you afterwards.

Direct adverstisement in the magazines or newspaper are also pretty pricey.  I have recently got a quote from Prestige, an upscale magazine, with a 275,000 baht for a page inside the front cover, and why should anyone choose to advertise with this magazine? The exact quote is:

• Represents only outrageously luxury brands

• High earning professional target market

• Beautifully designed advertisings

• Engaging editorial

I almost choked when I read the first reason, and started to wonder what comes first, an outrageously expensive luxury brand or a crazy price quote from a Thai magazine. 

The last tip if you want to run a business in Thailand, it’s not what you can do, but it’s who you know. It’s sad but true. 

There are usually two types of people that come to see me about the dating service.  The first falls into the super-picky-I’ve-got-it-all-and-want-to-see-if-Nikki-can-do-better type of group (story for another time), and the second falls into I-love-my-house-and-nothing-will-ever-take-me-away type of group. These people are actually really smart, climbing their corporate ladder, graduated from Chulalongkorn, Thammasart, Kasetsart, or even from abroad.  But a lot of them came to see me and sounded so boring and looked so unimpressive.  If you want to lose a single and be a plural this year, here is what you should stop doing:

- When someone asked you about your hobbies, don’t say you like to stay at home and watch TV.  Say what series you like to watch i.e. Entourage, and asked if the other has a favourite show? 

- When someone asked you where you like to eat, name a place that you really like, and say why, and don’t just say I can eat everything.

- When someone asked you about your job, instead of saying “I’m an engineer”, say you are responsible for a production running of such and such which made such and such million last year. 

Be inspired, and learn to give yourself a credit for the simple things you do.