The Design Business Show

Tepsii is an expert copywriter, and life/business coach who has been featured in O, The Oprah Magazine, Cosmopolitan Magazine, and many renowned podcasts. She regularly speaks live and online and has taught thousands of people how to grow successful businesses since 2015. Tepsii's mission is to impact 1 million Africans within 5 years by empowering them to break generational patterns of poverty as they grow businesses with help/partnership from prominent business leaders, social activists, government leaders, and corporate entities.     Here's what we covered on the episode:   Tepsii's Start to Copywriting We share how Tepsii and I officially met during a conference in 2016 Tepsii shares the first time she saw my sales page design and how it influenced her to write her copy differently I share that I used Tepsii's story of remembering my work years later in an email sequence to show how your work can leave a lasting impact The drive to be an entrepreneur has always been there for Tepsii because she likes to do and is good at many things Over time, Tepsii transitioned into a business coach and consultant working with entrepreneurs and dealing with higher-level strategy Tepsii is from Vermont and South Africa and is the mom of 3 beautiful girls Make friends with your designers as copywriters because collaboration is more important than competition After college, Tepsii got her first job by reaching out to the president of a haircare product line that she liked and offering to help with their website and messaging When Tepsii started helping with the haircare line, she had no idea what digital marketing or copywriting was, but she helped increase their sales by 600% Tepsii was googling how to work from home and came across Marie Forleo's B school, which brought her to other connections and programs Because Tepsii was spending money on these programs to get started, she decided she was going to take up space, be visible, and ask for what she needed We chat about how, as women, we need to work on articulating our value so we can get paid our worth for the work we're doing AI + Industry Trends Even though AI is here to stay, Tepsii believes teaching copywriting will always be important because there are components that AI can't master Tepsii is still teaching and writing for entrepreneurs but shares that she now uses a holistic approach to their strategy that includes traditional media As part of her 360 communication strategy, Tepsii includes speaking training, sales training, and all things that go into becoming more confident in your words Currently, Tepsii is consulting for the cannabis industry in Vermont and is working on a big project in South Africa designed to help creatives digitally transform If Tepsii could tell her younger self one thing, it would be to guard her heart and open her eyes to see that the world is diverse Tepsii shares all the tips she wishes someone had told her when she was starting I believe the days of "My 7-step magic formula will solve your problem and change your life" are ending I share current design trends, including text from the early 2000s and '90s. The word of 2024 is authenticity - people are craving a real connection   Check out Tepsii's website to connect with her   Links mentioned: Tepsii's Website   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Mike Kelly is the CTO and Co-Founder of MemberVault, living in Olympia Washington with CEO Wife, 3 kids, and a giant dog.   Here's what we covered on the episode:   The Creation of MemberVault  Mike shares that he started writing code in the 5th grade and has been a developer his whole life - before MemberVault, he was a freelance developer At one point, Mike and his wife Erin started a business where she would design websites, and he would build them, but shared that it was a disaster  Mike took time off to be a stay-at-home dad after having their first child, where he started building MemberVault as a side project that came as a need from one of Erin's clients After getting enough interest in the platform, Mike and Erin created a beta, and it slowly started to gain momentum In 2019, Erin reached a crossroads in her business and joined Mike at MemberVault full-time Mike shares some mistakes he and Erin first made when they started MemberVault Early on, Mike and Erin realized the demand was for more than courses; people wanted to sell digital ebooks, one-on-one service, etc, which made it hard to identify the platform at first Leaning into what they were good at set them apart from other big platforms in the market Mike explains the difficult decisions he and Erin had to make about their business model so they could scale but continue helping individual customers on a personal level MemberVault is rolling out a new tiered system for membership that Mike explains Mike is the only full-time developer but brings in people on contract to help - they also use a company that monitors their servers 24/7 MemberVault has evolved from just selling digital products to having pages, navigation, blogs, comments, file uploads, questions, and so much more because they listen to their users and can implement their ideas quickly As a freelance developer, companies push for the fastest and cheapest option, so Mike felt he couldn't do his best work and take care of the finished product, which bothered him Mike talks about how it is to run a business from home and homeschool their 3 children How To Use MemberVault + Updates MemberVault wants to be your central hub for all your services and products so people can go to one place to find all your offerings 88% of people who enter your MemberVault for a freebie will click around to see what else you offer  In MemberVault, you can see what people are clicking on so you can meet them where they're at and start a conversation instead of having a fixed automated funnel A big thing MemberVault is working on right now is automated sales tax because Mike explains that the tech around it is a nightmare, and the solutions are expensive With MemberVault's tighter integration with Stripe, you'll be able to manage your subscriptions in one place Mike's tips for any platform are having a quality and consistent logo, readable brand colors, quality product images, linking up your socials, and showing your range of offers so people know how they can work with you Check out MemberVault - when you sign up for a free trial, you'll get access to all their resources to help you and an invite to their Facebook community    Links mentioned: MemberVault Website MemberVault on Instagram MemberVault on Facebook   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

After struggling to find adequate support and resources during her own pregnancy and postpartum, Dominique Jackson made it her mission to improve access to maternal health education, support and community for other moms to be. Here's what we covered on the episode: Creating Hatch + Nest  In the Summer, Dominique came to one of my workshops, where we worked on launch ideas for her, and I suggested she come on the podcast to talk about what she's doing Dominique shares that her background is in health technology and public policy  After the birth of her first son, Dominique struggled to balance taking care of her newborn, herself, and going back to work, which inspired her to create Hatch + Nest During pregnancy you are surrounded by support from friends, family, and doctors, but most of that goes away after you deliver The first thing that helped Dominique bring Hatch + Nest to life was talking to other entrepreneurs because she had no experience with starting a business or figuring out her brand  Dominique explains how they expanded from just postpartum support to prenatal through parenthood support Hatch + Nest is a maternal wellness platform that offers support through classes like breastfeeding, birth planning, infant CPR, and in-home support through doulas and relationship specialists   Mothers in central Ohio can take advantage of their in-home support services - Dominique shares the educational resources on their website and says they will have upcoming in-person and virtual events Dominique explains that they can get grant funding to help mothers who can't afford their services and says they are always looking for sponsors Hatch + Nest has some upcoming sponsored workshops that include lactation specialists, Doulas, and mental health consultants  How Dominique had to figure out what to prioritize in order to launch and generate revenue  Dominique shares that she had to shift her business model and audience to attract sponsors because that is how they primarily make money Some sponsors support through educational events by providing the space, catering, or gifts, and others sponsor a portion or all of the in-home support after birth Dominique explains her choice to keep messaging targeted towards mothers, but says they have plans to expand messaging to other audiences once they are more established They are planning a program for later in 2024 for dads and adoptive parents Check out the Hatch + Nest website and follow them on Instagram to learn more   Links mentioned: Hatch + Nest Website Hatch + Nest on Instagram    Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Lindsay is a sought-after leadership coach, organization design expert, speaker, facilitator and podcast host who believes that every business, no matter the size, deserves three things - great leadership, an impactful people strategy, and a culture that inspires. First, and foremost, Lindsay is passionate about guiding business leaders at all levels in creating a leadership style that is authentic and grounded in their own values and purpose. Her powerful coaching style leverages her extensive background coaching senior leaders, executives and entrepreneurs as they develop and embrace their personal leadership practice. Lindsay also utilizes her 15 years in strategic talent management to guide these incredible leaders in creating inclusive cultures and developing the people strategy that is often missing from their business plans. Knowing when amazing teams are connected by purpose, programs and processes that inspire, they create amazing results. As an entrepreneur, working Mom, and first-time Grandmother, Lindsay knows that the blend between work and life can be difficult to create. That's why she loves to coach and guide leaders as they navigate their personal leadership journey and create the work & life blend they long for. Her focus on people strategy, team engagement, communication and leadership development all help her clients drive their business goals while creating work environments where everyone feels like they belong.     Here's what we covered on the episode:   Organizational Design + Leading Yourself First Lindsay White found her love for organizational design and development while working for an organization whose HR department disintegrated - she became the go-to person for questions from managers who needed support Over the last 20 years, Lindsay has found a passion for helping leaders design and develop organizations that are meaningful and allow people to do quality work  Designing organizations is about creating structures that allow the work to flow and the people to do meaningful work that achieves business goals  If you don't have the right organizational design, the work isn't flowing, you lose momentum and ideas, plus people don't understand how they impact the customer or the next person in the process Lindsay explains that leadership is an inside job; think about what's important to you personally and in your business, and lead yourself first When Lindsay started her business, she focused on coaching leaders but quickly realized these leaders also needed organizational development to help their teams and businesses thrive You can be the best leader in the world, but if you don't have the right processes and programs in your business, it won't work, and vice versa; if you have good processes but don't lead well, it won't work either  Processes can work for you and not against you - Lindsay explains that processes are really about defining the connection to understand how everyone's work fits together for the end result/customer experience Lindsay breaks down performance management that creates inclusive and belonging spaces where people gain the confidence to be their best selves and do quality work   High Voltage Leadership   The name of Lindsay's business, High Voltage Leadership, comes from her life's purpose statement: to be the high voltage extension cord that connects people to their own inner brilliance Lindsay works one-on-one, in groups, or in organizations with female entrepreneurs to help them bring what they care about most to their work, create a work-life blend that serves them, and teach them how to create organizations where everyone experiences that  When it comes to attracting clients, Lindsay shares that she spends a lot of time nurturing her clients, which gives her referrals, and she is active on social media, specifically LinkedIn On LinkedIn, Lindsay posts consistently and focuses on what's happening in the leadership space, culture content, and providing value through information or questions she hears from her clients Last year, Lindsay had to take a big step back after dealing with multiple personal and work things all at once - she also shares how she was able to overcome being close to burnout Lindsay's podcast, Female Founder Friday, focuses on how successful business owners got to where they are today and the mistakes they made during their journey Check out Melissa's episode on the Female Founder Friday podcast Reach out to Lindsay on Instagram, Facebook, or LinkedIn, and check out her website   Links mentioned: Female Founder Friday Female Founder Friday - Time to Reinvent with Melissa Burkheimer Connect with Lindsay on Instagram Connect with Lindsay on Facebook Connect with Lindsay on LinkedIn High Voltage Leadership   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Ann Bennett is the founder of Renegade Branding and has spoken across the country and around the world. She is a Best Selling Author, Coach, and Brand Profit Builder. Ann has shared the stage with Thought Leaders like Les Brown, Jack Canfield, Sandra Yancey CEO of eWomen and You're a Badass Author, Jen Sincero. Ann uses her marketing and branding genius to help women entrepreneurs (and a few good men) build their STAND-OUT personal brands and boost their profits. Ann works with purpose-driven entrepreneurs who do transformational work so they can liberate and ignite their unique genius, and authentic voice to build a profitable brand platform. Ann has 25 years of experience in visual and graphic design and has brought her talents to many major magazines from Popular Mechanics to Vogue; “Where the Devil Really does wear Prada”. Ann's personal slogan and the cornerstone of all her programs is, “Liberate Your Rebel Spirit & Rake In The Revenue.”     Here's what we covered on the episode:   Ann's Start in Design When Ann Bennett started in design, they would cut out letters, paste them together, and take a picture for layouts.  How Ann learned all she knows about design "on the street" through doing hands-on work  Ann shares how she got her job at Vogue without fashion in her portfolio or knowing anyone in the company by taking their pages, redesigning them herself, and calling the design director each day for a week. The biggest thing when it comes to getting work, Ann says, is your impression and the feeling you give people in your presence.  As designers, we discuss how important feedback is and how to listen to your clients.  Ann shares that she originally went to art school as a painter and went to New York for her painting career, and along the way, everyone worked in graphic design.  In New York, Ann witnessed the first plane hit the World Trade Center on 9/11 while working at Vogue and says it changed her life forever.  Shortly after, she moved out of New York and realized she wanted to support people in building their businesses. Renegade Branding + Personal Storytelling How Ann created the 4 Renegade Brand Archetypes: Nurturer, Disrupter, Innovator, or Geek, and from that, she can help develop your visual brand, messaging, programs, etc. Liberating your rebel spirit is about allowing who you actually are to be at the forefront of what your brand is and what you do.  Ann explains and gives examples of each of her 4 Renegade Brand Archetypes and shares a quiz that you can take to help pinpoint which one you are  There are so many options and opportunities that it's difficult for people to make decisions, which is why branding is so important - so your brand stands out. The whole point of a brand and a strong message is so people can see and understand your value.  We chat about AI, how we've tested it, and the uncharted territory we are going into as designers because it will use your online work and give it to others. Ann explains that head-whipping hooks are strong statements that disrupt people's thinking, so you can bring the value of what you do to follow it.  Ann shares that a client of hers was in a car accident where her nose was severed from her face, which led her to the beauty industry - her head-whipping hook was "nobody wants to be stared at unless they're stunning."   Personal stories are powerful for branding and marketing because people want to connect with you. How Ann gets each client to write a story from each decade of their life to help share who they are, what they do, and the value of it. Ann works with clients through her programs, masterclass, and one-on-one work.  I share the results from my Renegade Brand Archetype Quiz and some details of the Innovator Archetype.  People come to Ann for work because they have an inner rebel who wants to become an outer rockstar, and she'll help them do it through development work.  Ann says it's not about being the best, it's about being different.  Take Ann's Renegade Brand Archetype Quiz and check out Ann's website to learn more about her   Links mentioned: Renegade Branding Renegade Brand Archetype Quiz  Ann Bennett's Website   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Nancy Giere is a course creation expert. She works with businesses of all sizes from solopreneurs to Fortune 100 companies turn their expertise into high profit courses. She creates engaging, fun, and interactive programs that get results.   Nancy Giere shares how she on accidentally fell into course creation while working for a bank and was asked to put together training for employees Melissa shares how her background in launch strategy, funnel design, and instructional learning and teaching at her community college helped me understand the importance of what goes into a course Nancy shares how it's important to look at your entire business and look at how a digital course can fit into your business model and the best way to market it  One mistake that people make it they throw spaghetti at the wall, and Nancy uses a phased approach that takes people through a phased approach Another mistake is that course creators aren't considering the desired outcome and lacking a logical flow Why the introduction and title should be the last thing you write  Why it's important to make sure that your course is a great experience for your audience  One simple shift that creators can make is pausing to create a break within your course content to give people a minute to process the info Breaking content into shorter, consumable chunks increases engagement AI tools like Udley can provide basic feedback, but deeper level feedback requires personal interaction Why online courses are effective for teaching certain skills, but some skills require feedback and practice Online content allows for scalability and time efficiency in serving more people Shorter content is trending on platforms like TikTok and YouTube and breaking course content into shorter, consumable chunks increases engagement The concept of Minimum Viable Product (MVP) determines if a product is good enough to go to market Nancy also suggests incorporating activities or personal reflections to keep viewers engaged Planning and timing of audience engagement are essential in online presentations Tools like Zoom and Prezi Video enhance the presentation experience without high costs and help you stay on brand  Nancy shares how she works with clients in both a done with you and done for you capacity Nancy is turning their book "Bundle Your Brilliance" into an online course using Zoom, and shares how she plans to participants can complete modules, assignments, and receive coaching to give them a really great experience  Why Nancy is researching corporate training methods to incorporate into the course for entrepreneurs Nancy shares the strategies she uses for getting clients, including JV partnerships, running her own launches and asking for referrals Nancy shares the inspiration for writing her book, Bundle Your Brilliance and how it drives home a tip that she shared at the beginning of the episode of writing your intro after you create the course   Links mentioned: Connect with Nancy on LinkedIn Nancy's book Nancy's Create a Training That Sells    Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Kristen Noelle is a Copywriter and Online Sales Strategist who helps business owners soulfully sell their high-earning offers. She works with service-based entrepreneurs to transform how they run their business, from “scattered to systemized”. Her framework, Systemize Your Sales, empowers clients to consistently connect their message, attract high-revenue opportunities, and grow their business without all that overwhelm. She offers done-for-you written sales copy and 1-on-1 marketing coaching.  Here's what we covered on the episode: How I was introduced to Kristen through my former guest, Keshia White  Kristen shares how as a young girl, she had a big imagination and always wanted to own a business  She decided to go to school for marketing, and she started to learn how to craft stories and tell the story about a product and an experience  She spent a lot of time learning, and even studied the culture of design and life in Italy Her first job was a government job, but everything about it was uninspiring for her She ended up moving to Thailand, and decided to freelance, and catapulted her dream of helping put their dream out there  She tried a little bit of everything, including web design, SEO, influencer marketing, and from there she refined her craft to do what she enjoys She found purpose in helping people put their story out there, and how she really loved the messaging piece of copywriting in addition to strategy The Kristen explains her point of view on messaging Messaging is the consistent conversation that you're having with your audience and moves people to take action How she helps people with strategy, systems and soul - and learning more about what your clients are dealing with to help them  Kristen shares her thoughts about AI, and why she's happy for its' presence, and doesn't think it will ever replace copywriters  Why Chat GPT is a helpful tool, but it needs a human element  Why AI is imperfect, it's just a tool that helps us  Why you should clearly and concisely communicate in a way that resonates, and an easy way to do this is by coming up with your own framework Kristen's process for market research, and why it makes your job a lot easier  If you're a business owner and does your own content marketing; and when you get close to your market to find out more Why you can put market research inside your own framework within your copy and messaging Why it's important for service providers to have experience working with clients so you can get to know what their actual problems are, and that way you can solve their problems  The breakdown of Kristen's offers and what they look like now For solopreneurs, Kristen offers done-for-you copywriting and marketing strategy and coaching  Why she loves helping her clients train VA's and their team to help save them time  Why it's important to assess where your clients are at when working with clients   Why Kristen thinks it's important to focus a lot on relationships, consistent conversations, and stop doing what isn't working for you   Kristen flips the switch on me and asks me what my why was, and I share where I'm at now in my business   Links mentioned: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristen-noelle/ www.kristennoelle.com https://instagram.com/getkrissed  

Hillary Weiss is a creative director, positioning coach, and founder of Statement Piece Studio @ hillaryweiss.com. She's also the former co-host of the cult-favorite YouTube marketing talk show Hillary and Margo Yell at Websites (#HAMYAW), and has had her work featured on Business Insider, The Next Web, The Observer, and more. Since 2011, she's helped thousands of brands all over the world get seen and heard (and make serious cash) through her 1-1 client work, writing, coaching, and videos. Nowadays, she's on a mission to help more small businesses define their “statement piece”, a.k.a. the bold point of view that makes them radically relevant to their perfect people. Wanna know more? Catch her riffs on all of the above on her blog, or say whaddaaap! to her on Instagram @hcweiss. Here's what we covered on the episode: We first met Hillary Weiss and how she went from copywriter to creative director on episode 128 Why I invited her to come back on the show because I like how she tastefully shares her success stories and what she's doing now as a creative director How Hillary was first on the show in 2020, she officially retired her copywriting business and was making the transition to creative director She worked on projects for 10 years of the copywriting space before copywriting courses existed How copywriting puts you on the engine room of lots of businesses to see how people do things, and she had to fill in the blanks of launch strategies, offer design, positioning, execution She realized that she loved strategy + creative direction and started to seek mentorship and moved slowly to the space because it felt selfish because it felt easy to her, but she wasn't feeling the satisfaction it used to give her How she made a 52-point turn from copywriter to creative director for 3 years  Why Melissa relates so much to Hillary's story when she was working with clients and offering the entire kitchen sink but charging for the faucet  The scoop on how Hillary booked $500K in revenue by June of 2023   The details behind the post that Hillary shared on social media that prompted me to invite her back on the show Hillary breaks down how 50% of her business is coaching + mentorships and 50% done for you services She shares how she launched an offer every quarter because she knew she was going to build new brand equity She shared how she hired a CMO and team to help her with social media so she could focus on sales  By doing that, she filled her programs and gave people a heads up about what she was selling, how it worked, and she became an evangelist of your own work By being consistent on social media helped her build that new brand equity and sales  The breakdown of Hillary's offers and what they look like now    Thunder, which is on ice now, her group program of 15 people where she did business coaching The breakdown of her creative direction services, where she offers positioning, photoshoots, oversees website design and web development for some clients  Power Positioning, her group program, the framework, the offer suite, messaging and all of it  Hillary shares how positioning can help your business between your audience, offers, differentiators and your unique selling proposition Hillary shares an examples of positioning with clients  Hillary shares how she first charged $3000 for her first creative direction clients, and photoshoots now start at $15K Hillary started out charging $5000 for positioning clients, and stayed at $6500 for a long time, and finally listened to her coach Susan Hyatt who told her it was a $10K offer She charges $6500 for VIP Days, and $1800 for a 90-minute session Hillary shares her thoughts on whether you should list pricing on your website (or not) and shared her experience of listing and not listing prices on your site Melissa shares her strategy for approach to pricing her new services in new industries How Hillary balances her mental health, spiritual health, and doing all the things she's doing now Hillary shares how she had a panic attack in a restaurant when her sister was visiting; and before that, all the things she was doing to help her mental health were not working anymore Hillary shares what she did to help her anxiety, because her anxiety door was still open, and wasn't mentally stabbing herself on her leg, and got her energy back and deepened her spiritual practice  Melissa shares how her mental health has improved since starting medication How Hillary balanced her workload by limiting the amount of clients she worked with and shortened the time frame When it comes to her team, she decided what she wanted to do, and what she didn't want to do anymore And how she has a schedule director + OBM, and shares what they all do inside her business How she only does calls on Tuesday, Wednesday's and Thursday's, and does her content on the fly   Links mentioned: Connect with Hillary on Instagram   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Noémi Beres is the Co-Owner of Podcast Connections. She helps entrepreneurs and business owners share their knowledge and connect them to quality podcast shows. In addition, Noemi is dedicated to helping experts grow their businesses with interviews.   She started to work in the online marketing field back in 2007. Noemi has a Master's Degree in Danish Literature and Language; she is a linguist, content creator, and “master organizer.” Noemi is also a collage artist. She makes hand-sewn collages on canvas made from old photos, postcards, colorful yarn, and textiles. Here's what we covered on the episode: We learn how I connected with Noemi as her agency has pitched several guests for my show  We learn how Noemi had a travel company and started Podcast Connections with her husband after the pandemic We learned some of the things that Noemi and her husband did to make it easy to run her business, including digital marketing, great communication and networking We learn how Noemi gets her clients; and how it's important to try to put yourself out there to get the clients you want do attract When it's time to pitch yourself for podcasts, it's important to have your bio and topics ready, do your research and listen to podcasts so you have an idea what a podcast hosts Why it's important to personalize your pitches, and how you can add value to the host and the listeners Why some experts treat a podcast interview as an advertisement, and instead, it's about what you can share and how you can help others as the podcast audience wants to learn something. Noemi shares the process she uses to work with her guests to research and understand their expertise, and to choose their podcasts Noemi shares that she does do all of the pitching for her clients, and she shares how she follows up, and tells her clients when they get a “no”  Melissa shares her desire to have a conversation with guests, and how she navigates those episodes Noemi shares her process for being a good guest on a podcast. First, you should listen to the episode, and why it's important to have both good sound and lighting You should also prepare your talking points + topics ahead of time to make sure the interview resonates with the audience  Why it's important to relax, be in a good headspace, and a quiet place before your podcast interview  Why the theme for Noemi's services is simplicity, and the process for every client is the same Noemi share's her onboarding process includes a discovery call, bio creation, topic ideas, social sharing links for guests and interview prep Why Noemi thinks it's important to continue a relationship with your podcast host, because an interview is just the beginning of the relationship  Why it's important to share your podcast interview on different platforms, create audio grams, video grams because the interviews create a ton of content    Links mentioned: Visit Noemi's website Connect with Noemi on LinkedIn Connect with Noemi on Twitter Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Karla is an award-winning designer, branding expert, and mentor based out of San Antonio, Texas. She has designed for brands such as HGTV, Food Network, Facebook, in addition to several other amazing companies. Her focus is on building branding that tells a story and reflects the core values of a company.  Her motto is to "be the person you needed when you were younger." She created "The Brand Design Academy" to share the knowledge and experience she has learned over her 15 years working with corporate brands and small businesses.  Here's what we covered on the episode: Originally from Mexico, Karla's parents sent her and her siblings to school in El Paso, where she graduated with a degree in Graphic Design  A month before graduating, a woman from an agency visited her college and Karla asked her for internship opportunities (and she got it because she was the only one who asked for one)  After graduating, she followed up with that agency to see if they had a job opening for her; and they said yes.  Karla had a successful design career, and she says she always knew she was meant for more She started her business in 2020 after being laid off for the second time; and she decided to quarantine with her parents during the start of the pandemic Karla lost her dad to COVID a few months after moving to Mexico and she was grateful to have time with her mom while they grieved  Inspired by her father's legacy as a teacher she decided to take the leap and create a course that taught both brand design and entrepreneurship Around the same time, she and her then husband decided to separate, and she ended up moving to San Antonio and decided to go all in on her busines Karla's Entrepreneurial Journey Karla actually started her business when she was still working full-time and made $5000 in her first year During her second year, she was able to 4X her business revenue and earn $20,000 Karla had a coach who encouraged them to aim for their first $100,000 in revenue without providing a specific strategy, and she made it happen Surrounding herself with people who were doing the same thing, and people who believed in her helped her make it happen Karla decided to niche down their business to offer logo design and web design services, even though she had imposter syndrome about designing websites Karla discovered that you actually don't need to go to school to specialize in brand design and learned about Affinity software as an alternative to Adobe, as cost is sometimes a factor Karla teaches a course, Brand Design Academy, on their design method, which starts with exploration and getting to know the brand Karla's tips for a strong brand identity The first part of the process involves research, understanding the client's target market, and the messaging they want to convey Visual research is also important in determining the brand's visual direction Brainstorming and sketching ideas on paper is the next step before transferring them to the computer for the design process Karla acknowledges that while the logo is not the most important part of a brand's identity, it is usually what people encounter first The overall brand look and feel, including the use of fonts and colors, are vital in conveying the right story for the brand Karla shares why it's important to ask for opportunities to get more doors opened for your business  Links mentioned: Connect with Karla on Instagram Karla's Brand Quiz 50 Adjectives 50+ Adjectives to Map Out Your Brand Identity Karla's Brand Design Audit   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Andrea Jenson is the Founder of The Cash Flow CFO - the 7-Figure Entrepreneur's Solution to Scaling a PROFITABLE business, and the creator of the Predictable Profits Accelerator - a five (5) step holistic approach to creating predictable business profits. The Cash Flow CFO team provides fractional CFO Services, Fully Outsourced Accounting Teams and Financial Training Programs. Andrea's modern, boutique approach provides well thought-out, practical solutions, designed to help entrepreneurs run and scale their business faster & easier. As an investor and entrepreneur, Andrea understands first-hand what business owners need most to grow & scale. Prior to opening her firm, Andrea ran Corporate Accounting Departments for both Public and Private Organizations. Her work experience includes Starwood Hotels, Venture Capital and Multi-Million dollar Online & Offline Businesses. Today Andrea's goal is simple: to empower business owners to confidently OWN their finances and their future and use their business as a vehicle to create personal, legacy wealth. In addition to sitting on the Board for several Non-Profits in her community, Andrea is a wife, mother, soccer player, and passionate volunteer who spends her free time helping kids with cancer thrive, and shelter dogs find their forever homes. Here's what we covered on the episode: Andrea is a fourth generation entrepreneur and while she was in college on a soccer scholarship, she had to choose a major and chose accounting As Warren Buffet says, accounting is the center of business, and she kept learning how business models play out and then she graduated with a business degree After graduating, she got a job at a venture capital firm and there she was able to compare what she did there with what she knew in the restaurant industry She noticed the big disconnect between the industries, what small businesses do compared to the big businesses and that's how her business was born While Andrea understood accounting, she didn't have a ton of background in business tasks like sales and marketing When she first started out, it was a lot of trial and error for the first couple of years, tried to do it on her own, and now has a team of 30 people working for her A closer look at how Andrea's Company operates Andrea's company offers fractional CFO services and by focusing on implementing systems, she was able to grow the business and hire more people Andrea explains the role of a CFO and benefits for businesses using the metaphor of driving a car to explain the difference between a CFO and other financial professionals A CFO is described as the person looking out of the front windshield, providing future forecasts and strategic planning Every month, they look at budget and actuals; so by having a monthly look at that they're able to prevent money leaks in the business and increase finances Why a forward looking process can better help you use your resources They help business owners make more money by using historical data to forecast the future and strategically deploy cash Strategic financial planning includes decisions like investing in hiring more staff, purchasing equipment, or expanding office space Right now, Andea's company offers done-for-you services, and they plan to offer workshops + courses to be able to serve more people Why her company focuses on using financial anchors such as budgets, forecasts, and job costing help businesses stay on track and adapt when needed These anchors provide a big game plan while allowing for adaptation and adjustment How Andrea's team meets for a “Workshop Wednesday” to close gaps in their current processes as they work with teams The benefits of having a CFO inside your business Andrea highlights the constant stress and juggling that business owners experience, and how having a CFO can alleviate this stress by allowing the business owner to focus on sales, marketing, and fulfillment Working with a CFO can fine-tune the business model and make it more profitable through incremental adjustments Not all business owners have the financial skills to make these adjustments, which is where a CFO can provide a return on investment Having a CFO not only benefits the business owner by reducing stress but also makes the business more profitable and efficient The approach Andrea took when it came to branding her business Andrea's brand aims to create a comfortable and safe space for business owners unsure about financial matters How a lot of her clients made her clients feel bad about their past moves; and her brand uses the approach of understanding that it's okay, we just move on from here Their logos, company values, colors and marketing they share the same message They want businesses to feel comfortable working with them; and the approach of not making people feel bad about their situation They are exploring areas such as benefits, insurance, and staffing to serve their clients in different capacities How there's currently a shortage of accountants drives the need for strategic partnerships to attract quality accountants Their primary focus is on providing excellent customer service and continuously improving their offerings Timing is crucial in business, and some factors can be controlled while others cannot COVID made it difficult to find good team members, emphasizing the need for strategic hiring and planning A staff utilization schedule helps determine revenue generation based on the existing team Budgeting should consider the time period before new hires can generate revenue and align with sales activity Andrea's company aims to serve their clients as it grows and evolves, exploring various avenues such as partnerships and joint ventures How you can connect with Andrea on her website and you can also check out her YouTube channel Links mentioned: The Cashflow CEO Website  Connect with Andrea on LinkedIn Andrea's YouTube Channel Andrea's FB Page  Connect with Andrea on Instagram   Like what you heard? Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Keyaira Miller, Lead Business Partner at Target, brings a broad set of Retail experiences and expertise spanning over 16 years within the areas of Buying, Sourcing, Product Development and Brand Management. Keyaira is a Lead Business Partner on the Merchandising Vendor Development Team at Target Headquarters. In her current role, she is responsible for sourcing, connecting, growing and amplifying emerging diverse and/or women owned brands to support Target's merchandising strategies and drive inclusive assortment for Target's diverse guests. Her notable and most recent work includes helping curate Target's Black History Month Assortments, Tabitha Brown's Limited Time Apparel and Food launches and Target's Activation booths and programming at Essence Fest in New Orleans. Keyaira has a passion for retaining and growing brands, allowing them to reach their fullest potential by empowering them with the right foundational tools, partners and resources in hopes that it creates a space to fuel generational wealth and drive economic vitality and equity. Prior to Target, Keyaira was at Amazon Fashion, leading the Women's Product Development team within Private Brands. Much of what Keyaira loves is involved with collaboration and connection. Assembling a team with gifts different than mine, who shine in ways I don't have, has been both inspiring and crucial to my success. Keyaira is a 2002 Graduate of West High school in Waterloo, IA and has degrees from The University of Northern Iowa and The Academy of Arts University. Keyaira currently resides in Waterloo with her loving husband and 10-year-old old son. Here's what we covered on the episode: How I met Keyaira when she was speaking at a panel at The Black and Brown Summit, a local event I attended in earlier this year, and I wondered how a girl from Iowa got to work with brands at Target Keyaira shares that at an early age she was always was interested in fashion, and was fascinated by how fashion worked She knew that the University of UNI had a great fashion and textiles program and the program showed her the familiarity she needed to know to get the opportunities she wanted Initially, she was interested in the buying part of fashion and she got her first opportunities by networking and cold calling, as this was before the opportunity By building up her network, working in retail in high school, she got her first opportunity in the field at Target in Minneapolis Melissa and Keyaira shared the same experience of not having an awareness of big fashion brands like Louis Vuitton or Manolo Blahnik growing up in Iowa until we saw Sex and the City Keyaira used her experience working at Victoria's Secret when she was younger and worked as an intern for Von Maur How she got laid off from Target after a few months during the recession, but they called her back shortly after Knowing Yourself, Knowing Your Wealth, and Knowing the Shelf Why it's important for Keyaira to equip the brand she works with to be successful at any retailer that they chose, showing them how to know themselves, know their wealth and know the shelf Know yourself: do you know yourself and do you have the capacity + capability to really scale in retail?  Being “retail ready” means you must be ready to get a retailer a shipment of 20,000 units in less than 2 weeks when they're ready to give you a PO, your answer should be yes Know your wealth: You really have to be truthful and honest with yourself that you're in the right place to be in retail, as it could put you out of business if you're not ready Know the shelf: you must understand your competition and understand the retailer where you want to be. Where do you want your product to be placed? Go there and take a picture to see if it fits there.    Melissa shared how she learned through her own desire to start a mascara line, but she decided to put that on hold Keyaira shares that she currently works within food and beverage, but may crossover in apparel, beauty and more Why Melissa is excited to learn more about what Keyaira does because it helps her and her audience learn how the retail sourcing process works The ins and outs of how Keyaira's team at Target works How Keyaira's team works with retail-ready brands, and learns more about them, like what their costs are, what retailers they're already in, and making sure that they're aligning brands that match the merchant strategies Each merchant or buyer has a strategy they want to follow, for example, bringing in more diverse brands for rice and beans Keyaira shares how she finds out about up and coming brands events, online and has a collaborative conversation with her merchant and buyer, who have the final say on who makes the final decision If they're interested in a brand, then Keyaira helps them get ready for a line review, and making a great impression and staying in touch with your buyer to continue the conversation Why Keyaira recommends brands have patience in the retail process; buyers change hands all the time, timing is everything and next year it could fit right into the new strategy How over the years of talking to vendors and understanding why it's so important to know yourself before you start a business, even though in this day and age anyone can start a business Keyaira shares an example of a luxury brand who was already on the shelf at Saks, and how they were adamant about being on the shelf at Target, but it wasn't really a fit for the brand Why having the awareness that as your business scales, your team must scale as well, or knowing when you need to bring in a distributor, and being able to re-evaluate your business on a consistent basis Keyaira's perspective on partnerships Keyaira shares an example of a how they did a small activation with Coca-Cola and to amplify black-owned brands like Ghetto Gastro with food demos, and created a moment with guests to have a connection and wanted to have a Coke The goal now is to drive guest discoverability with classic, iconic brands to drive awareness to brands like Ghetto Gastro How Target works with organizations like WBENC, and why those partnerships are crucial to the success because it's another layer that helps creates success and inclusivity  Melissa shares that her experience at Dress for Success Worldwide opened her eyes to different brand activations and partnerships that were out there and happening in the real world  How a lot of what Keyaira does is organic and fluid; but how her role and the area of business and the human centric approach matters, and why that's missing from a lot of brands  Why Keyaira loves meeting new brands and learning more about them Why inclusive design matters How inclusive design has been around for a long time, but now it's getting recognition it deserves Why there's power in leaning into inclusive design, and why it's a huge misconception, for example, that all black-owned brands are only designed for black people A lot of times, the brand is only serving products for everyone Why Keyaira recommends that brands celebrate heritage, and how data shows that buyers wanna support brands that have that messaging that celebrate heritage Why brands are now putting the logos of the causes they support and the certifications you have on your packaging Buyers are looking to bring cultures together; and how Target is seeing data that backs it up Why it's important for brand to have inclusive brands, inclusive products and as it relates to design and branding, it's not going away Why more retailers are going to lean into it more, and why brands should lean to it, be authentic to it, showcase it and not hide it  Sometimes when brands get ready to be inside of a retailer, they want to change their mission statement but there's beauty in who you are, and stay authentic to your brand and yourself  How you can connect with Keyaira on Instagram or send her a message at keyaira.k.miller@gmail.com Links mentioned: Connect with Keyaira on Instagram Learn more about Keyaira's role at Target   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Steph Tuss is the CEO of multimillion-dollar global consulting company Life Is Now, Inc., and frequent stand-in cohost of Business Daily News' top-ranked podcast - The Successful Mind. Steph discovered her love for teaching at a young age, beginning her career as an educator. It was during this time that her firstborn child was facing health difficulties, and she decided to completely overhaul their diets to figure out the root cause. She went back to school to pursue a Master's Degree in Holistic Nutrition and went on to open a practice to help families who faced similar challenges. Fast forward a few years, Steph hired David Neagle and his team at Life Is Now, Inc., as her health practice's business coach. As she continued to scale her business, her love for entrepreneurship and growing businesses shined through. She sold her business at the age of 33 and joined Life Is Now, Inc. as the Director of Sales in 2009 before taking on the CEO role less than a decade later in 2016. In her six years at the helm of the company, Steph has become the primary driver behind all of Life Is Now's marketing, business development and brilliant team culture. As a recent empty-nester, she lives in Charlotte, NC with her husband and cattle dog, Jack. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling the country in her Airstream. Here's what we covered on the episode: How Steph Became a Leader As a child, Steph was always told to quit being bossy, which caused her to fly under the radar in grade school, but when she went to college, she became a teacher because it was an acceptable way to be a leader  In 2001, Steph had her first child, who had a lot of health issues - after extensive research, Steph discovered she was suffering from food sensitivities and wanted to teach and share what she discovered with other people Steph went back to school and got her master's degree in holistic nutrition, and began to build her business which grew very quickly The business started to plateau, so Steph hired David as a business coach, who is now her business partner - though his coaching Steph fell more in love with business building and mindset work than with nutrition After 3 years, Steph sold her business to work with David at Life is Now, where she started in sales and is now the CEO Steph talks about what led her to seek out a business coach to help her see what she needed to change to grow her business  How Steph said yes to every opportunity within Life is Now so she could learn all parts of the business and become a part of the leadership After the current CEO left, Steph took on the responsibilities of the CEO without her role changing - one day, she walked into David's office and told him he needed to make her the CEO, and he did  Now, Steph isn't just the CEO; she is also a partner in Life is Now    Establishing Good Culture + Team Synergy  One of the first big changes Steph made as CEO was establishing psychological safety because of the previous CEO, people were scared to share their opinions As a CEO, you have to model what you want to see other people do; that means being transparent about what you're learning, telling them when you don't feel confident, sharing when you make mistakes, and celebrating the good Steph would host workshops on how to give to receive feedback to get people comfortable with conflict because businesses are here to solve problems, and you need people to share their ideas to come up with solutions If you want to know more about psychological safety, which is the most important when it comes to developing culture, Steph recommends the book, The Fearless Organization by Amy Edmondson Next, Steph shares that they established a clear vision by taking the team through a vision process that's outlined in Cameron Herold's book, Vivid Vision When you follow this vision process, Steph says you'll usually hit your vision goals within one or two years because it creates focus synergy for your team  Big lessons Steph has learned are that mistakes are required and to not take results personally   By creating a visionary leadership assessment, Steph was able to see that there are 4 different types of leaders: Catalyst, Charismatic, Limitless, and Legacy Leaders  Go to lifeisnowinc.com, and you can find their visionary leadership assessment  Steph talks about the rebrand they recently went through that switched the company from being about a person to being about their ideal client  How a lot of business owners get stuck doing tasks that shouldn't be on their plate because they aren't good at delegating  Check out the Life is Now Website and connect with Steph on Instagram for lots of free industry and business resources   Links mentioned: Life Is Now Inc. Website The Fearless Organization by Amy Edmondson Vivid Vision by Cameron Herold Visionary Leadership Assessment Connect with Steph on Instagram   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Olivia Dreizen Howell is the co-founder and CEO of Fresh Starts Registry, the first and only platform for everything you need to begin again, including divorce or breakup, moving, career changes, stepping into your truth, or starting again after grief. Her background is in social media marketing, and she is also the founder and CEO of March Lion Media. She's a single mom of two amazing boys on Long Island (born and bred!), and in her spare time, she loves to watercolor, make handmade cards, read about generational trauma, listen to 90s music, and collect crystals I know nothing about, but love the way they feel.     Here's what we covered on the episode:   How Fresh Starts Registry Started + How it Works How I came across Olivia on Twitter when she was doing a challenge involving reaching out to people in business that you normally wouldn't shoot your shot with  Olivia says that everything she's done in life, she hasn't had a background in - if you want to do something, go for it  The story of how Olivia got into teaching and then left after 8 years to run local businesses' Facebook pages which grew into a global agency that her sister eventually joined  Olivia's marriage ended in 2019, and after her husband moved out of their house, she wondered why there wasn't a registry for divorce, breakups, job loss, moving - any of the hard moments in life  How Olivia and her sister created Fresh Starts Registry, which is the first and only platform for everything you need to start again  Olivia explains how to use the registry builder on their site and shares that they have over 60 experts in all different categories to use as resources  When you become an expert, you get all these amazing resources and benefits like workshops, seminars, and public relations Usually, Olivia charges $100 - $200 an hour to work with them one-on-one, but when you're an expert, you pay $37 a month and can come in to get help as many times as you want  How Olivia got 5 clients before she had a website when she was starting, all because she talked to people If you're starting a business; you need to be able to vocalize what you do, be confident, and network within your industry   The reason why Olivia didn't want to niche down to just divorces was in order to celebrate all brave life decisions It was important when Olivia and her sister started building Fresh Starts that it was a safe place for people on the internet, which is why they don't collect user data of the people going through life changes  Olivia's Talent for Connecting Others + Teaching  One challenge they had at the start was keeping experts, but once they started supporting them, giving them resources, and teaching them all the marketing tools they knew to help them grow their businesses, the experts were multiplying  Olivia explains that Fresh Starts is in start-up mode and that revenue comes from the expert memberships How female founders make up 40% of founders but get less than 2% of the capital deployed by venture capitalists a year - Olivia shares this because it can be a very sexist world to be in, and there needs to be a change   Fresh Starts is very picky about who they work with because they aren't in it for the money; they're in it to change the narrative around brave life changes One thing Olivia realized early on in life is that she has a passion for connecting people with jobs and connecting people with people, which is why she has her personal brand, Digital Yenta, and one thing she does is update a job board (Yenta List) each day with jobs in the marketing world This year Fresh Starts wants to add vendors like copywriters, designers, SEO specialists, etc., to come into the community as well   Olivia shares how it is working with her sister when they have different personalities but says it makes for a beautiful partnership where they can grow together  Connect with Olivia on Twitter, Instagram and check out Fresh Starts Registry    Links mentioned: Fresh Starts Registry March Lion Media Yenta List  Fresh Starts Registry on Instagram  Fresh Starts Registry on Facebook  Fresh Starts Registry on Twitter  Fresh Starts on LinkedIn  Connect with Olivia on Twitter  Connect with Olivia on Instagram    Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Daniel Adoff is the Principal and Chief Strategist at Dyno Creative. He is a creative problem solver focused on building and evolving brands. He leads teams on a broad range of projects that include illustration, web design, and brand development. Some of his clients include Netflix, Discovery+, Sambazon, Taco Bell, and Hyperice. As a lifelong learner, Daniel is passionate about mentoring emerging talent in the practice of design and illustration. In his personal life, Daniel is a coach of Muay Thai Kickboxing. He holds a BFA in Illustration from LCAD and teaches courses within the Graphic Design and Illustration departments, including Professional Practices and Adobe Illustrator. Daniel is an active member of AIGA.   Here's what we covered on the episode:   Daniels Young Start to Art + Building Relationships Daniel shares a childhood story of how his friend showed him that experimenting is what art is all about, which made him rethink his creative process  How Daniel's father owned a screen printing shop where he learned how to make t-shirts at a young age  Daniel graduated from college with his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustration, but as he started working, he got more graphic design work  In 2008, during the economic crash, Daniel had all his clients disappear, but at the time coached water polo and decided to make it the best-looking team as a case study The first extensive branding project Daniel did was for his water polo team, which helped them expand from 10 to 175 athletes  The story of how Daniel helped one of his past water polo athletes build his brand from the ground up  Helping people is part of Daniel's core values, and he says that Dyno Creative shares that - they're here to solve problems, build partnerships and help people grow into their greatest self  Daniel likes to start building relationships by asking people how he can help them; In the business, that equates to asking someone what their biggest pain point is  Instead of trying to sell yourself and your services, Daniel says it's more valuable to ask people what they are struggling with and what's challenging them  If you make friends, Daniel says, then there is bound to be someone who wants to help and support you in the same way you want to help and support them  Why it's important to get connected with people who are outside of your circle and industry to find out how they got where they are  As creatives, we struggle to apply our skills to ourselves   Daniel and I both talk about what we want to achieve in our businesses moving forward Getting Projects You Want Daniel and his team created a bunch of mock projects that they have on their website to show off the type of work they want to be doing At Dyno Creative, they do a lot of cold outreach, and Daniel shares how it works for them   Daniel explains it's important that if they aren't the expert in what a client is asking for, they connect them with someone they know who is an expert How Daniel and his team can send 1,000 cold emails each month through PersistIQ that helps with generating an email list of people who might need their services   Social media is like a billboard; Daniel asks how many times you have driven past a billboard and called the number on it - it's great for awareness, which is how Daniel uses it, but he likes other strategies like email and building genuine relationships best  In emails, Daniel likes to include results they've had for other clients and a clear CTA (call to action) so people can see how they could help them solve their problems too  Daniel shares the details of working on the artwork for the Tracy Morgan: Staying Alive film On streaming platforms, you might notice different key art pieces for different shows because they are testing which ones get the most clicks - this is how Daniel's illustration ended up being used for Tracy Morgan: Staying Alive   No matter what you're trying to improve in your business, it won't work unless you have a clear core message - the easiest way to find this, Daniel says, is to take away your product and see what your brand would be  Check out the Dyno Creative website and connect with them on Instagram, Dribble, or Pinterest    Links mentioned: Dyno Creative Website Dyno Creative on Instagram Dyno Creative on Dribble Dyno Creative on Pinterest    Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Anastasia Lipske knows what it takes to book speakers and podcast guests. As the founder of Access Speakers, a full-service speaker, and podcast booking agency, she has booked more than 1,500 engagements for her clients. Anastasia speaks the language of speaker chairs, event planners, and podcast hosts who seek great speakers and podcast guests for their meetings and shows. Additionally, her unique skills help business owners brand themselves as speakers, spread their message, and attract clients. As a co-author of the book, Business Success with Ease, Anastasia emphasizes how to use speaker branding to generate influence, awareness, and clients! Her readers learn strategies of public speaking and podcast guesting as effective marketing tools. Anastasia motivates audiences with her energetic personality and passion for the speaking and podcast guesting industry. She inspires business owners to use one of the most powerful tools in existence...the voice!   Here's what we covered on the episode:   How Anastasia Got Started as a Speaker Agent  Anastasia's speaker agency, Access Speakers, focuses on platform and marketing speakers - people who speak for free to grow their business    Before getting into the speaker world, Anastasia worked in luxury tourism, which involved event planning, PR marketing, and sales that gave her a lot of the tools she needed when deciding to become a speaker agent In 2008, when the economy took a turn, tourism was down, and Anastasia dabbled in social media, which led her to get connected with a sustainable farmer whose business coach said she should be speaking to grow her business and asked Anastasia to help Anastasia shares the different speaking engagements she booked for the sustainable farmer that helped her get clients - speaking became her number one marketing tool  In 2020, everything Anastasia had booked for clients went away due to covid-19, which is when she decided to pivot and dive into podcast bookings for her speakers  Anastasia explains how traditional speaker agents will usually not represent a speaker who is not commanding fees of at least 5k per talk  The difference for Anastasia is her people aren't speaking because they want to get paid; they're using it as a marketing tool to grow their business   What's nice about podcasting is its digital footprint, which is much deeper and evergreen Start Booking Podcasts When starting podcasting, Anastasia says it's important to have clarity of who you want to get in front of - find out what podcasts they're listening to, and put it out there to everyone that you are looking to be a guest  Anastasia explains why it's important to review the podcast before you propose to be on the show  Every single proposal is handled individually at Anastasia's agency so they can be certain that they are offering the host something of value that is aligned with them and their show Anastasia walks us through the process of booking a podcast at her agency  When it comes to finding podcasts, the agency has a book of past podcasts they've worked with; some clients have their own list of podcasts, and they use Listen Notes as a podcast directory  If you are looking for a different representation than what Anastasia offers, she suggests checking out Tom Schwab and Interview Valet   Apple is not putting weight into ratings and reviews as it used to because there are so many bots leaving fake ratings and reviews  Anastasia explains how Listen Notes works and says if you are just starting, you want to stick to shows that have a 5-10% rating in their industry because that's where you will have the most likelihood of success When you start getting on more and more podcasts, people will recognize your name, and it will give you more credibility  It's important to think about how you can add value for the host of the podcast - one thing you can do is be visible and share the episode in multiple ways One thing Anastasia suggests all podcast guests do is to have one place for people to go to connect with you  Visit accessspeakers.biz/thankyou to connect with Anastasia, register for her ebook, and get a 15-20 min consultation    Links mentioned: Access Speakers Website Listen Notes Interview Valet  Connect with Anastasia   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Renee Hughes serves the clinical aromatherapy community. She partners with them to advance in their businesses. She does this by helping them to create authentic captivating messages, and speaking skills. Renee herself is a Certified Professional Aromatherapist and a Natural Health Consultant. She understands the clinical and emotional factors involved in being a clinical holistic practitioner. Here's what we covered on the episode: Renee's Background + Start to Holistic Health  Renee started in marketing and VA support but always craved the holistic world and shares she wanted to be a clinical practitioner but thought she was too old to go back to school  How Renee ended up going back to school to get her certification to be a natural health consultant and went on to specialize in aromatherapy and psycho aromatherapy After going back to school, Renee created a program where she helps other practitioners boost their mood - this has molded into the speaker training they do now   Renee's health problems from a young age contributed to her curiosity about holistic health, and she shares that a mentor of hers taught her a lot, and once she started making small changes, it completely shifted her health How Renee tested her program on women with chronic illness and used aromatherapy to reduce pain and inflammation, which went well, but she discovered the emotional piece was so much more impactful, which is why she got into psycho aromatherapy While running her practice, Renee realized there were a lot of creatives in her world who wanted to do what she was doing, so she decided she wanted to have a business that trains people like her to be successful at it  Deciding to focus on messaging is what sets Renee apart from others because people can connect with their audience through what they say and how they say it   Incorporating psycho aromatherapy was an easy decision because so much of being successful in the creative and holistic space involves getting rid of fears, being confident, learning your zone of genius, and getting comfortable in it   Creating Strong Relationships + Getting Clear on Messaging     What has worked for Renee when it comes to getting clients has been learning to create real connections with the audience she has  Everyone needs a clear, powerful message as to what they do, why they do it, and how they do it - Renee says one way you'll know if you have great messaging is based on how many referrals you get because people know exactly what you do and will refer you  If your clients are constantly asking you for things you don't offer, that's a good indicator that your messaging is not clear When you're pivoting your business, you want to make sure you're clear and honest with your audience and make sure there is a need for it  If Renee is thinking about changing or adding something to her business, she likes to ask her audience what they think because it's powerful to bring them into the creative process  I talk about the new Be Nice to My Brand workshops I'm doing to help people discover if they're nice to their brand, if they are nice in the way they talk to themselves as the founder, if their team is on board with the brand, and vision, are how you're creating ways to get people excited about your brand People don't crave working with you until you have hit their emotions, connected with them in some way, and understood the transformation you can provide  Renee says there are a lot of different systems that can work for your business, but none of it works if your messaging isn't clear or if you're talking to the wrong people  The approach Renee likes to use when creating relationships is similar to one that you would use to create a genuine friendship  Don't be afraid to get to know yourself, find what you're looking for, and continue to ask yourself if you are clear on what you do When I was doing sales page design, I would also help with people's brands but only charge for the sales page design, so now I want to help people build their brand from start to finish  How I'm giving myself a couple of years to be a consultant so I can get into the space I want, which is the beauty industry  Renee invites everyone to come to their next event, Bold and Booked, where you'll learn about their company and what they do, plus there will be a live training on speaking    Links mentioned: The Aroma Specialist Website Bold and Booked   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Susan Hamilton Meier is a branding expert and career coach who helps women find the through-line of their work history, write a focused, memorable elevator pitch, and design a vision and action plan for the next phase of their journey. An alum of Harvard Business School, the Boston Consulting Group, and 20 years as a Fortune 500 brand strategist, Susan is now on a mission to empower other women to own their stories and unlock their promise. Here's what we covered on the episode: Susan's Background + The Zig-Zag Path  In college, Susan was an art major but shared the story of how she took a leap of faith to join a management consulting firm  Susan left management consulting to run a nonprofit theater for a couple of years, then went back to business school and worked for Boston Consulting Group when she discovered branding, which she found fascinating  12 years ago, Susan started her own company, and about 3 years ago, she started coaching to help people share their brand's story  When Susan was working for different agencies, she typically worked in strategy roles, which she liked but missed the visual communication component  Strategy is really about vision - being able to close your eyes and envision where you are today, look at yourself honestly, and think about where you would like to be  We talk about how important it is to integrate strategy and design, which is one of the reasons Susan wanted to start her own company  In Susan's coaching work, she has a wide variety of clients because her coaching is focused on personal brands On the corporate side of Susan's business, she went from working with consumer goods to healthcare technology The zig-zag path Susan describes is the ever-winding road life leads you down and how more people in the working world are discovering that you can have multiple interests instead of sticking to one specialization and moving in a straight line The benefit of the zig-zag path is that you meet more people, you have more ideas, and you encounter more things, which will make you more innovative  When it comes to making better decisions for what you want to do in the future, Susan's process starts with self-reflection about who you are and what your values are, then they dive into who your audience is, next you write your story, and then you can decide what's next  Susan likes to ask her clients what they got out of working with her, and a lot of them say confidence, which you need to make decisions and get rid of your fears   What to Include in Your Story  Deciding what goes into your story when you've done a lot of different things is based on a little science and a little art - Susan shares that she has a template people start with and how they then ask different questions to dive deeper and get their story  You don't want to tell your whole story in your elevator pitch, but you want to share just enough and hint at what makes you interesting and unique so people ask you questions - Susan says it's also important to be super clear with what you're doing and asking for  There is scientific research that shows that humans take in information first through their eyes  Susan built the tools of her course to be very visual to help people use that side of their brain and says that it has been fun to watch people discover things about themselves through visuals  If people are ready to dive deeper into designing their website or other deliverables, Susan helps them with a style guide  You can work with Susan one on one or in a group, but the 5-week course is where everyone starts  Susan says that she became a Fortune 500 brand strategist by working at big consulting companies and building her network  Check out Susan's website to learn more and get some free resources and connect with her on Instagram    Links mentioned: Susan Meier Studio Website Susan's Free Resources  Connect with Susan on Instagram Connect with Susan on LinkedIn    Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Abagail and Emylee are the business fairy godmothers behind Boss Project and the hosts of the chart-topping podcast, The Strategy Hour. They're internet-famous for their program, Trello for Business, which breaks down boring and complicated systems into bite-size chunks. They have helped over 10k creative small business owners create simplicity and ease in reaching their goals. After getting their start in 2015 serving clients in the marketing and branding space, they now help other service based business owners reignite their offer, create systems for client experience, and get more of their time back inside their program, The Incubator. The team at Boss Project is truly revitalizing the service based industry through strategies that don't require flashy marketing, a huge audience or full-time hours.   Here's what we covered on the episode:   The Start of Boss Project + Offers   Abagail shares that their brand was originally Think Creative Collective and rebranded to Boss Project about 5 years ago  You can join their Boss Project Facebook Community that has over 30k entrepreneurs - it's a great spot to find jobs and get support  The Boss Project started in 2015 when Abagail was recently laid off and started her own branding and marketing company - she was able to replace her salary in the first 30 days  Shortly after starting her business, Abagail met Emylee, her business partner, who at the time was running her own photography business  How Abagail and Emylee's partnership started as them working on projects together - soon they began marketing themselves as a package and started the Think Creative Collective  On top of running the agency, Abagail and Emylee were teaching everything they were learning, from how to get clients to sales strategy and more, on their blog When it was just the two of them, they leaned more into the education side of their business, but now that they have a team, they can offer a wide variety of services  Abagail believes the reason they grew was because of the community they offered and says it wouldn't have been possible without the community of women interested in learning and growing together  One of Abagail's favorite offers is website design because of their unique approach to design, messaging, and strategy to create an SEO-rich website that speaks to prospects for their clients Abagail and Emylee have 7 core full-time employees, but several additional contractors come in for specialized areas  One of the first things Abagail and Emylee do with clients is dig into the numbers because the only way to scale is to truly understand where you are at - they like to see what has served you well so you can do more of it and see if you are pricing yourself correctly   Abagail shares a client story of a social media strategist who needed to realign her pricing and contracts with clients  Instead of sending an email that outlined the new pricing for this social media strategist, Abagail, and Emylee coached her on how to have individual conversations with her clients based on her relationship with each client, and it was extremely successful   In 6 weeks, the social media strategist had 6 new contracts and an additional 60k in revenue, and by continuing to ensure her pricing was in alignment, in 3 months, she doubled her business with fewer clients than when she started with  So many people put themselves out of business because they are not appropriately getting paid enough for it to be worth all the effort they're putting in    The Power of Relationships + Prioritizing Your Life Abagail says that most people assume trends are marketing because it's what's working at the moment for the loudest people in the room, but marketing, in the most basic sense, is sharing what you do with the world  What business owners need to be focused on is relationships - marketing is only as good as who you know and how much they know about what you can do for them  Abagail focuses so much on relationships because she has seen people be one connection away from being booked out for years to come - when you and your client are in alignment, they'll want to recommend you  When Abagail first started her branding and marketing company, she had a referral partnership with another designer and shared that you would be shocked by what one solid relationship can do for a business  Reawaken a relationship, even if it's been years between talking is as easy as sending a message and setting up a meeting  Abagail says that you should go into interactions with an open mind about trying to understand the person and their needs and not be so focused on selling your services because not every interaction is going to produce a sale or client, and that's okay  In 2016, Abagail was in a car accident that left her with a brain injury, and at the time, she was running her business full-time - luckily, they had some systems in place, but they weren't expecting such a random event as a car accident  After the car accident, Abagail and Emylee started running their business with the focus that their lives will always be far more important than the work they do at their job Abagail shares that it takes time to prioritize your life first, and it takes the proper systems and support behind the scenes to make it work when life throws you curve balls that you aren't sure how to handle Having solid boundaries are important, and Abagail shares some of theirs  Building a business can be isolating, and Boss Project is a safe community for you to get the support you need because it's okay not to know everything as a business owner   If you want to talk about your business numbers, send Abagail a message, or if you're interested in working with the Boss Project, book a consult to talk with Abagail personally  Connect with Abagail on Instagram    Links mentioned: Boss Project Website The Strategy Hour Podcast The Incubator Program Boss Project Facebook Community Boss Project Consult Connect with Abagail on Instagram  Boss Project YouTube Channel  Boss Project on Pinterest   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Jaye is a creative professional with a passion for creative design, AI, and driving positive change. When she is not immersed in the world of technology, you can find her outside in the garden, cultivating nourishment from the earth, and spending quality time with her children. She believes in the power of technology to make a difference and is dedicated to using her knowledge of AI, web and graphic design, and Salesforce administration to help businesses and individuals thrive while making technology more accessible to all. She believes in the power of AI to help level the playing field. Jaye actively seeks to serve marginalized, and under-recognized communities by bridging the digital divide and creating equal opportunities for all. As an experienced public speaker, Jaye shares her insights on the transformative impact of AI and design while advocating for accessibility, inclusivity, and diversity in the tech industry. Jaye is driven by her heart for serving others and making a meaningful difference in the world.   Here's what we covered on the episode:   Jaye's Background + How AI Works   How we are going to talk about AI (artificial intelligence) on today's episode  Jaye explains how she got a full-ride scholarship playing field hockey while studying broadcast journalism   After graduating college, Jaye worked for a nonprofit where she did leadership training, graphic design, web design, videography, and more, which helped her develop her toolbox When the pandemic hit, Jaye decided to homeschool her kids for a year and a half and then transitioned into tech after they enrolled back in school How I started the show almost 5 years ago because I felt that I wasn't good enough in this field, I didn't know the opportunities were available to me, and because I wanted to learn from others  Jaye shares that she has an agricultural business that will be relaunching sometime that teaches people how to garden and grow their own food and herbal medicine on any budget and in any space  I know a little about AI, and I understand that AI is becoming a driving force in my field and can be an asset in business  Jaye says once people find practical uses for AI, their opinion on it usually shifts We talk about some of the trends in AI, and Jaye explains how the content from AI is originated AI software takes all of the prompts you give it and turns them into a number first, and then it spits out words and images for us  Jaye says she has been able to recognize the patterns in AI; for example, AI used a lot of passive words in its writing AI's Impact on the Creative World+ Jaye's Business  Learning to prompt well is the key to getting what you want from AI - Jay starts by giving it a role, then telling it its task by specifying dos and don'ts, and lastly, giving it a format to respond   Personally, Jaye doesn't believe that AI will take everyone's jobs; some roles may be phased out as it evolves, and companies may believe they can get rid of positions because of it, but she believes they will be at a loss  In a few years, Jaye thinks companies that still offer a human touch will be the niche market, and that will differentiate them from other companies  As designers, we are inspired by others all the time, so we should look at AI as a shortcut and not fear it - you want to be the person who understands how to use the technology  Jaye shares how she had been looking for Salesforce administrative jobs but found generative art at the end of January, which led her to AI How Jaye created her own tech consulting company, which merges visual strategy and design with AI  Jaye's goal is to teach people how to use AI to enhance their lives  If you want to learn more about AI or how to work with Jaye, visit her website Jayecreates.com Connect with Jaye on LinkedIn or Twitter  Jaye is creating a blog to go along with her website so people can learn more about their AI services  The Melanated AI Network is for people of color and allies who want to learn about the tech and discuss it in a safe place  With AI, there is a different trend every week, and Jaye shares her current favorites in the space  Although AI technology is amazing, Jaye thinks the ethical issues need to be addressed    Links mentioned: Jaye Creates Website Connect with Jaye on LinkedIn Connect with Jaye on Twitter  The Melanated AI Network Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Susan Harrow is a media trainer, marketing strategist, martial artist + author of Sell Yourself Without Selling Your Soul® (HarperCollins), the first and only book on promoting yourself without using jargon, sales, sex, war, or aggressive language. She specializes in working with women leaders, entrepreneurs + innovators solving the world's most pressing problems. For the past 33 years she's trained thousands of people for TV, radio, panel, podcast + print interviews to be highly desirable, repeat guests who shine in the media spotlight™. She's prepped her clients and course participants to appear on Oprah, 60 Minutes, Larry King Live, The Today Show, Good Morning America, Fresh Air, Marketplace, Bloomberg, MSNBC, NPR, CNN, FOX, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Wired, Forbes, Inc., O, Parade, Vanity Fair etc. as well as stage to screen. You may know her as the "Go To Girl" for getting on Oprah. What you might not know about her is that she has a black belt in Aikido, she rafted down the Zambezi River in class 5 rapids + was almost gored to death by an elephant. Join us as we learn how to let go of imposter syndrome or if we lack or have lost confidence so we can keep our originality and quirks and be true to ourselves in every moment.   Here's what we covered on the episode: Susan's Start in PR + Imposter Syndrome  How Susan used to be known as the go-to-girl for getting on Oprah when she was a publicist for authors, speakers, and entrepreneurs Women with products have a great opportunity to get into O Magazine, which can have one of the most powerful effects on your business As a publicist, Susan was curious why some people weren't as effective as others in media, and she discovered it was often what they were saying or how they were being, so she started doing media training Susan wanted to help promote women in a way where they didn't feel like they had to brag, beg or whore themselves  Self-doubt and imposter syndrome are natural when moving to the next level of our expertise, and we need to accept that it exists but not stay in it When imposter syndrome comes up, Susan teaches us how to micromanage our minds so we can make sure our thoughts are serving the person we want to be and shares an example of when she was experiencing imposter syndrome the other day and what she did to help herself Imposter syndrome comes from within, which is why we need to shift our mindset around it – you can make a million dollars, have a great life and family, and still experience it Susan shares that she's always thinking about the next thing and moves towards what makes her curious and what's going to light her up Susan had been working on a course for women on how to handle sexual harassment but also be able to speak their minds, stand their ground and express themselves in the world, which is the area she's moving into Role-playing is important to developing internal personal power so you can speak up and stay safe in any situation, especially in the media spotlight Susan teaches facial language, body language, verbal language, and the embodiment of showing who you are in any circumstance so you're not pushed around Media Strategy To move forward in media today, Susan says you need to have a story or a connection with something going on in the culture today that's important to other people and then match that to the correct audience, publication, or show Susan works hand-in-hand with publicity firms where they do the booking, and she does the media training The first 3 questions Susan asks clients are what's your deepest intention/how do you want to serve? What do you want for yourself professionally, personally, spiritually, financially, and physically? What do you want your audience to do? Then they build their messaging around those answers When choosing the best media method for clients, Susan says they start small to develop their chops and test what resonates with their audience; they look at what comes naturally to them and choose the medium based on where their clients are   Susan shares the strategy she used to help a client build her credibility through print media   In a world of quick videos and pictures, Susan shares why it's important to pick something long and lasting, like a podcast, but says if there is a quick pop of something in media for you, you need to monetize it quickly and work it into your PR plan Susan is always looking at what's unique or special about a person and how they can connect it to the world and culture today Check out PR Secrets.com for freebies, Susan's blog and free report to help you create the specific story you'll need for any media, interview, presentation, etc. Susan would like women to expand their vision and being into all the areas of capability and curiosity that they've been longing for   Links mentioned: Sell Yourself Without Selling Your Soul® PR Secrets Website  Free Report: How to Create Your Story  Connect with Susan on Facebook  Connect with Susan on Instagram  Connect with Susan on LinkedIn Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Cinthia Pacheco is the owner and founder of Digital Bloom IQ, a Digital Marketing Agency specializing in helping female business owners and brands grow their businesses and change the world. She and her team are incredibly passionate about assisting female founders in making an impact and partnering with their clients to reach more people who are already searching for them online. After five years of corporate working with companies like Avon, Sears, and Hyundai, she transitioned into the small business world, focusing on creating a digital marketing agency that specializes in SEO and Google Analytics services. She is on a mission to inspire Health and Wellness businesses to be more intentional about their SEO marketing and share more of their healing talents. When she's not working, you can find her playing with her daughter, chilling with her boyfriend, or watching Gilmore Girls on her couch.   Here's what we covered on the episode:   How to Get Started with SEO We first met Cinthia on episode 52 of The Design Business Show, where we talked about her background and attracting more clients using SEO Last year, Cinthia became a mom, which has been a crazy lifestyle change but has inspired her to dream bigger in her business, help more people, and be more transparent How parenting has changed Cinthia's mindset about how she utilizes her time because she doesn't have as much of it anymore Cinthia does a lot of journaling and tapping to help with her mindset and shares some exercises she uses I share a project I'm working on for an e-commerce brand where we are to the point of putting SEO terms on the page The first thing Cinthia suggests doing is SEO research to create a keyword strategy for everything inside your brand; that way, you can look at what someone would search if they were ready to buy or if they weren't ready to buy Cinthia explains how your SEO keywords play a part in your messaging and content strategy but also says that not every page on your site needs to have keywords and be SEO infused An SEO expert isn't someone who comes in and tells you where to put keywords; they're telling you what people are searching and giving you opinions on your customer personas When you are just starting, Cinthia feels that you don't need to spend money because you can search Google to see what people are searching and says to scroll down after you search to other suggested topics because those are also keywords Keywords Everywhere is a paid tool integrated into Chrome that works off credits – as you search on Google, it will give you keyword suggestions, tell you how many times that keyword is being used per month, and how competitive it is   Other places to start keyword hunting are Quora and Reddit to see what people are asking When looking at your SEO data, Cinthia recommends starting with the Search Console over Google Analytics because Google Analytics isn't just SEO specific and could be more overwhelming Cinthia gives examples of how to use different keywords throughout the customer journey for products and service providers to diversify your keyword strategy SEO For Product Launches + Blogging  A mistake Cinthia sees many product owners make is not blogging – they are so focused on the product page, which is important, but they are missing an opportunity to answer customer questions, create a product guide, or how-to videos When Cinthia tells her clients to blog about their competition, they get nervous but share how this has helped one of her clients rank on the first page   It's okay if your product doesn't align with keywords; they don't need to live on your product page Cinthia feels virtual products are a little easier because you can talk a lot more and utilize SEO in many ways than physical products – you can use keywords on your sales page, blog, testimonials page, etc. If you have a product that is competing with Amazon in the search results, Cinthia explains that you need a strategy that differentiates yourself If you want to work with Cinthia, they have a done-for-you retainer option because SEO can take a bit of time, or they have a done-with-you audit for businesses and people not ready to dive into a month-to-month retainer Not only do they send you an in-depth audit of your business in the done-with-you option, but they also send you what to do next with the data you receive so then you can decide if you want to hire the SEO agency or take it upon yourself Cinthia has an SEO course for those who have a team or any business owners who want to know how to do SEO for themselves Listen to Cinthia's Digitally Overwhelmed podcast episode, How to Hire an SEO Expert, where she talks about how to know if you are hiring the right person Blogging is not dead, but Cinthia says that Google is pickier than ever about what it ranks, which isn't a problem, but it is something to consider because you have to write useful content All platforms have their pros and cons, but choosing not to have a website is a very personal choice – Cinthia explains that you don't know what could happen to some of these platforms if you decide to only use Instagram or Facebook, for example Check out the Digital Bloom IQ Website, where you can find Cinthia's services, blog, podcast, and webinar series called the 90-Day SEO Plan, which is a great starting point for people   Links mentioned: Digital Bloom IQ Website Episode 52 of The Design Business Show Keywords Everywhere Digitally Overwhelmed podcast: How to Hire an SEO Expert   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

As the Founder & CEO of Factory45, Shannon Lohr works with idea-stage entrepreneurs to launch fashion brands that are sustainably and ethically made. Shannon got her start in 2010 when she co-founded {r}evolution apparel, a sustainable clothing company for female travelers and minimalists that was featured in The New York Times, Forbes.com and Yahoo! News. Through her online business school, Factory45, Shannon has worked with over 500 entrepreneurs in the sustainable fashion space, many of whom have gone on to launch some of the most transparent supply chains in the fashion industry. Shannon has worked as a consultant for crowdfunding projects that have surpassed their goal amounts by as much as 300%, and has worked closely with startup apparel companies from all over the world to create ethically-made products with a focus on environmentally-friendly materials. Shannon is a strong advocate for increasing supply chain transparency through sourcing, localization and storytelling. She's been named a thought leader for the future of fashion and was nominated as a "Woman of Note" by the Wall Street Journal. Here's what we covered on the episode: Creating a Sustainable Fashion Brand + Visibility How Shannon started a sustainable fashion brand in 2010 that led her to open Factory45, an online business school that takes sustainable fashion brands from idea to launch It took Shannon nearly 2 years to launch her fashion brand, and she shares how hard it was to launch a physical brand that was sustainable, which is why she is passionate about helping others easily launch their brands Shannon shares how her first business became the highest-funded fashion project on Kickstarter in 2011 through preordering and raising money before they went into production – this is the strategy she now teaches The breakdown of fast fashion and how the fashion industry is one of the top 5 industries contributing to environmental damage and human rights issues When it comes to attracting your ideal customer for fashion or physical brands, Shannon says that photography and copywriting are the most important   Shannon says as an independent startup, the founder is the one making most of the decisions, so if copywriting, photography, or graphic design, for example, aren't your strengths, outsource them  One mistake Shannon sees a lot of people make when launching a new business is not taking the time to build an audience before they launch because otherwise, you'll be launching to crickets   Shannon explains why it's important to validate your idea, test, and make sure there is a market for what you want to sell – with all of the platforms available to us to build an audience, there is no reason to launch a business blindly   Once you have enough data behind your brand, Shannon says you can presell your product/service, which allows you to have that money upfront, validate your idea and market your idea Something Shannon tells her entrepreneurs is that visibility is so important when you're first starting, but it's not something that gets less important as you continue to grow Shannon breaks down the difference between content and visibility  One of the best things Shannon did when starting Factory45 was focus on visibility by doing guest blog posts, interviews, and getting in front of other people's audiences Visibility today for Shannon looks like being a guest on podcasts, hosting a live show on Instagram every week, and focusing on their YouTube channel    How Factory45 Sets Themselves Apart    Factory45 does 1 – 2 big launches each year, and in between, they do book a call enrollment to learn more about the program and an evergreen workshop that focuses on raising money for your fashion brand through preselling  80% of people in Factory45 just have an idea, the other 20% have started their fashion brand but haven't gotten to a sustainable launch or where they want to be, and there is a small percentage who are actively selling but want to be surrounded by a community of mentorship and coaching  Every person who comes through Factory45 is matched with a mentor who has been through the program before, in addition to Shannon's coaching and consulting We talk about having diverse streams of revenue and creating merchandise just for the sake of creating merchandise without thinking about doing it sustainably or where it will end up  Shannon shares that she is proud of how far the sustainable fashion movement has come because the brands that have launched from Factory45 and other independent sustainable fashion brands are having those conversations and educating consumers  We talk about consumer culture and how consumers have the power to drive brands to become more sustainable, which was not always the case  Factory45 is getting ready to launch a sustainable fashion mastermind called Founder, which you can join after you launch your brand; it will focus on growing sales and revenue in a sustainable and mindful way  The personal coaching and consulting program called CEO Hour that Shannon is launching will focus on people who are running online businesses that want to scale to multiple six figures Shannon tells us who is on her team at Factory45 and says that getting a team is how you create a sustainable business Factory45 is a lifetime program, which sets them apart – it used to be a 6-month program, but Shannon realized it wasn't enough time to go from idea to launch  If you are interested in starting any fashion or accessory product brand, you can go to Factory45.co/apply and book a free discovery call Check out Factory45 and the Start Your Sustainable Fashion Brand Podcast Links mentioned: Factory45 Website Book a Free Discovery Call with Factory45 Start Your Sustainable Fashion Brand Podcast with Shannon Lohr   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. 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From solopreneur to startup marketer. Jaclyn Mullen is currently the Head of Marketing for TheLoops AI. Much of her ability to help startups with their digital marketing success comes from her past experience as a solopreneur and founder of Jaclyn Mullen Media. When she isn't online building genuine connections or upleveling her marketing game, you can find her enjoying her family--son, fur baby and husband--and finding her next foodie spot. Here's what we covered on the episode: Jaclyn Mullen Media + Digital World Changes Jaclyn and I met in 2013/14 and have seen each of our businesses and lives change throughout the years When Jaclyn and I first met, she had an organic social media agency where she would post on Facebook and Twitter for people – this was before Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok Jaclyn previously worked as a solopreneur in digital marketing and now works in the start-up world as a head of marketing How the rise of digital and websites kept popping up, so in 2006, Jaclyn quit her job and decided she was going to work for herself doing consulting Jaclyn tells us how Jaclyn Mullen Media was created and how she was able to participate in the Tory Burch Goldman Sachs Foundation Program that helps female entrepreneurs scale their businesses and get to the next level, which gave her the foundation for where she is today When you go through a challenging situation where you have to split your time, Jaclyn says you discover skills you didn't know you had, like making quick decisions, a willingness to put yourself out there, and figuring out how to leverage what you're doing now to help yourself in the future Two important things Jaclyn suggests you do in this growing digital world are connecting with people and being quick to use new digital tools and resources Jaclyn explains how start-ups work and what she does in her current role as head of marketing The gist of marketing is making sure you're connecting with your customers and focusing on growing your brand  What's become newer, especially in B2B (business to business) marketing, is that the marketing team is tied to a revenue goal Jaclyn explains why there's not much difference between marketing for a tech brand vs. a digital brand or physical brand Visual Design + Making Relationships The importance of visual design and how it is integrated everywhere - Jaclyn explains that growing up, they had a lot of textual information, but now it's all about capturing attention on these smaller devices where text is not as aesthetically pleasing Every single marketing leader needs to understand that every brand needs to have a graphic designer or brand manager as part of their team and learn how to communicate their vision to the designer to identify their own look and feel Jaclyn says that tying how visual design is going to impact revenue is important, especially if you are a freelance graphic designer When you work in tech, you are going to have rapid product updates, so Jaclyn explains how to break out your marketing matrix and gives examples of micro-campaigns during tech launches On the coaching and product side, you're looking at launching quarterly or semi-annually, but Jaclyn explains that tech moves a lot faster because the buying cycle is longer Jaclyn shares the self-doubt she experienced before stepping into her new role as head of marketing and also shares how grateful she is for her current CEO's support   When it comes to making and maintaining relationships, Jaclyn says you get what you put into it  Life is very short, and you aren't guaranteed time, which is why Jaclyn says that even in this busy day in age, it's important to let those who have had meaning in our life know The last 3 jobs Jaclyn has had were due to LinkedIn, so she suggests having a presence on LinkedIn and using it for more than just a copy of your resume or portfolio Jaclyn shares some things to post, like your unique way of doing things, tips and tricks you've learned, and what you've been working on Connect with Jaclyn on LinkedIn Links mentioned: Connect with Jaclyn on LinkedIn   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Tara Newman is the Founder and CEO of The Bold Profit Academy, where she teaches service-based business owners how to sell premium services and programs without the emotional stress of launching, worrying about ads, overwhelming social strategies or complex funnels. Tara hosts a weekly podcast called The Bold Money Revolution and has been featured in publications like Money Magazine, Yahoo Finance, and Huffington Post as well as other publications and podcasts. She earned her Master's in Organizational Psychology from Hofstra University, has over 20 years of experience, is a certified Profit First Professional and holds an advanced level Reiki Certification. Everything she teaches incorporates Energy, Mindset and Strategy as a framework for resiliency and results.   Here's what we covered on the episode: Businesses Transparancy  We touch on how weird the world of digital selling is right now and about having open conversations around it Tara says she was a high school failure because of undiagnosed ADHD but thrived in college because she found something she was passionate about, which was psychology - she went into industrial organizational psychology, which is the study of human behavior at work In 2005, Tara and her husband started their first business but went bankrupt in 2010, shortly after the recession Tara started her third business in 2014, which is something she felt she could never do because she was coming into her business at such a disadvantage financially and physically but had to figure out how to make 6-figures independent of an employer   When she started her business in 2014, Tara was 38 years old and shared that she had never been responsible for her own finances, which was another disadvantage How we often forget that many people are necessity entrepreneurs, and most people leave their jobs out of necessity because of illness, stress, wanting flexibility, and wanting to replace their income Tara first had to figure out how to pay herself $100,000 because she was making more than that in her corporate career and shared that it took her years to get to that point – she had to learn how to sell, communicate the value of her work, position herself, understand her target audience, etc. After the first year, Tara realized she had a viable business but says she had the embarrassing realization that $100,000 in revenue is not the same as $100,000 in her paycheck It wasn't until year 3 in Tara's business that she was able to pay herself significantly, and she is transparent in saying that her pay has gone up and down over the years Just because someone says they have made $100,000 in a month or a year doesn't mean that's what they're profiting or paying themselves The framework Tara uses is the Profit First Framework – they provide a free revenue goal calculator that reverse engineers your revenue goal to make sure you can pay yourself what you need to meet your personal financial goals and expenses Tara explains it is possible to pay yourself $100,000 on $200,000 - $250,000 a year in revenue, but it depends on your business expenses   91% of Tara's Instagram community believes that social media over-glamourizes what's happening in small businesses and shares that in 2018, 88% of women small business owners earned less than $100,000 in revenue a year – only 1% are making over 1 million dollars We bust the myth that one-on-one work drains you and isn't as profitable because, personally, I've discovered that's how I work best Profit First Framework Profit First is a book by Mike Michalowicz, and it's a cash flow management system; it's not accounting – Profit First helps you make intentional money decisions, gives you clarity and a language to talk about money   Normally, profit = sales – expenses, but Mike said no, that's not the right formula and said we need to use sales – profit = expenses In Profit First, you pay yourself first, then set money aside for taxes, and then what's left over in your business is what you use to pay your expenses The first thing you want to do with your profit is pay off any debt you may have, then put 50% of your profit away as a cushion in your business until you feel comfortable and then once you've done that, you can take your profit as a reward for all your hard work, and then the next step is putting aside money for taxes and paying your everyday lifestyle expenses   Tara explains how to use their free revenue calculator and shares that when you work with a Profit First professional, it could take 18 months to get you from where you are to where you want to be – you have to be patient and know it doesn't happen overnight When it comes to working with clients, Tara works with those who are just starting, making zero, and says there is never a better time to create a cash-flow management system, but she also works with large businesses that are bringing in 60 million dollars in revenue How Tara has been able to create her offers to meet the right size business at the right point – her one-on-one work is typically for larger businesses, and she says she's mindful of what she's charging at what point in their business because she wants them to keep more of their money The Bold Profit Academy is a learning container because Tara has found that there are just a few knowledge and skill gaps in getting people to the revenue they desire Use the free revenue goal calculator, check out Tara's free podcast, The Bold Money Revolution, and feel free to reach out to her    Links mentioned: Free Revenue Goal Calculator  The Bold Money Revolution The Bold Profit Academy   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. 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Eric Melchor is the Partnerships and Personalization Ambassador at OptiMonk. He previously served as a Marketing and CX Director for publicly traded companies based in Houston and is currently building an ecommerce business from scratch. He's also the host of the Innovators Can Laugh podcast interviewing over 70 entrepreneurs from all over Europe. He claims he is a mediocre tennis player and currently provides guidance on how to personalize online shopping experiences for small and mid-size businesses. Here's what we covered on the episode: Eric's Background + Ideas for Personalization Eric shares that his experience is in digital marketing and only recently started thinking more and more about personalization when working with a startup called Bonjoro that sends personalized videos at the right moment during their customer journey OptiMonk specializes in giving marketers the tools to personalize an experience in real-time on their website – They're focused on giving small to mid-sized businesses the superhuman power that big players have, like Netflix and Amazon Before working with Bonjoro and OptiMonk, Eric worked in the retail energy space specializing in partnerships, managing PPC agencies, copywriters, and social media strategists Eric had wondered if he was as good as he thought and said the only way to prove that he was good at what he did was to work for a startup because, at a startup, every customer counts Over the past year, Eric says he has talked to more customers than he ever did in all his years working for large companies An important part of making a good experience is having the right messaging on your website – customers won't care about most of the jargon on your website; they care that you have a solution that solves their problem Eric walks us through an example of a customer in need of an engagement ring that is on a jeweler's website and says you wouldn't want a message to pop up that says, you could win a designer necklace; you want one that says, here's 10% off our top wedding rings One thing you can do is micro engagement, where if someone has been on your site for a while but hasn't clicked on anything to tell you what they're looking for, you can send them a message and ask what they're interested in – it's like holding their hand and showing them to the right part of your website, just like you would in a physical store OptiMonk specializes in helping SMBs (Small to Mid Businesses) where accounts fall between $500,000 – 1 million annually and specialize in e-commerce but says there are some B2B (business to business) companies that are starting to use them Every website visitor is important, so we should try to customize their journey as much as possible Eric shares that Winc, a subscription wine website, does a really good job gamifying its website so it's interactive and interesting for visitors When OptiMonk started, they focused on popups but now have transitioned into a personalization platform and have integrations with over 100 different platforms When thinking about personalizing your customer experience, Eric says to put yourself in their shoes and think about where you can make the experience more pleasurable and says to get rid of the annoying stuff, like an automatic popup that happens in the first 10 seconds If a quarter of your website traffic is international, Eric says to give those international visitors a personalized message Eric says if you get a lot of sales during the holidays, you could present a nice message that asks if they are shopping for themself or somebody else and take them where they need to go based on their response If you are running Facebook ads or Google paid ads, Eric highly suggests automatically changing the headings on your landing page based on the messaging that you are using in your ads All About OptiMonk  When Eric moved to Europe a couple of years ago, he wanted to make friends, and because he worked at a startup thought it would be interesting to interview other startup founders, which is how he started his podcast, Innovators Can Laugh, and what led to his role with OptiMonk In OptiMonk, Eric delivers their personalization boot camps that happen every 2 weeks – if you want to learn more about personalization, you can come to their free boot camp, where Eric walks you through their process OptiMonk just launched E-commerce Revolution, the first e-commerce business reality show – over 3 months, they're going to help brands by implementing best practices when it comes to personalization Eric shares that OptiMonk is also launching The Art of Personalization podcast When you sign up for OptiMonk, Eric says you'll be able to see your results in your dashboard and can implement different features like A/B testing You can sign up for different plans when using OptiMonk; Eric says there is a free plan where you can get started and then walks us through their different plans, what they include, and pricing for each Eric explains how easy it is to use and customize their templates, and when you set the template up, any other campaign you create in OptiMonk will be aligned with your brand We talk about inclusivity and trends in the personalization space, and Eric shares that he saw a fashion tool where instead of putting in your size, you select a model that has a similar body type to you, and then anything you pick in the store, can be seen on that model Try OptiMonk's free plan, check out their free personalization boot camp, and reach out to Eric if you have any questions   Links mentioned: OptiMonk Website Innovators Can Laugh Podcast Free Personalization Boot Camp   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Mickie Kennedy founded eReleases 24 years ago to help small businesses, authors, and startups increase their visibility and credibility through press release marketing. He lives in the Baltimore area. Here's what we covered on the episode: Goals of a Press Release  There are many different types of strategic press releases, and one of them, Mickie says, is researching your industry for blind spots; otherwise, you have a press release that doesn't result in anything How Mickie and his team helped a client issue a press release on a blind spot, and how they were able to issue 6 additional press releases on that same blind spot - each had articles written about them, which is the goal of a press release The articles written by media based on your press release convert very well because it's like a third-party endorsement for your company Mickie explains that these articles are a useful tool when working with leads and getting them to commit to working with you 26 years ago, Mickie graduated with a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing with an emphasis in poetry and knew he'd be waiting tables for the rest of his life, which he did for a bit but ended up being picked up by a telecom research start-up where he wrote press releases   Mickie explains why you want to craft whatever press release you're doing into a story so a journalist sees the story and can create an article from it   How PR firms tailor each pitch directly to key media outlets, which works but is very labor intensive - eReleases works with PR firms that send over their press releases, and then eReleases sends it through PR Newswire, the oldest and largest newswire of press releases which is available to journalists Mickie recommends doing both personal pitches and using a press release platform – many of their clients build relationships over time with different media outlets and email them directly and pitch as specifically as possible    If you have a good quote, Mickie says to include it in the pitch because most journalists can craft a story around a really great quote Mickie says 95% of press releases that pay to go through his service don't generate any media attention because they aren't writing meaningful releases Many start-ups do well with eReleases because they understand their unique selling proposition and tell a story – being a small company is not an obstacle; it's something that makes you more likely to get media attention Crafting a Press Release + Finding Blind Spots  When eReleases started, Mickie had an email list of about 10,000 journalists who agreed to receive press releases from him as long as it was in their niche of reporting, so Mickie would have clients come in and match them with the right editors on his list With the wire, it's an electronic distribution where journalists have a login and can look at press releases based on different filters they set Mickie explains that it's $1,200 to send a 500-word press release through the wire nationally, and all of the releases that go out through eReleases, which are substantially cheaper, also go out nationally through PR Newswire who offered to work with Mickie over 10 years ago A winning press release often isn't based on how it was written but what it's writing about – knowing that journalists are gatekeepers means you should reverse engineer what you want to announce One of the easiest ways for someone to get media attention is to produce their own data by doing a survey or study in their industry with specific and relative questions Narrowing down the data you focus on in a press release is important, but Mickie says you should build a page on your website that includes all the questions and responses because journalists will go there to see if there's a different angle to write about, and will link to your resource page Mickie says to send people to your website after they take your survey because it's a great way to get in front of more people in your industry To find blind spots, Mickie says it's good to do audits and bring in other people from your industry and ask them what gaps they feel trade publications or media don't cover well and use that as material to build out from Take Mickie's free Masterclass to walk away with strategic ideas on press releases for your business Local media is some of the easiest media coverage to get – research who covers your industry, then email them a pitch that could be about a trend in your industry and share what you're doing as a local business based on that trend and make sure to include an amazing quote Visit the eReleases website to reach out and find out more about them   Links mentioned: eReleases Website Free Masterclass: How to Build a PR Campaign Designed to Get Massive Media Coverage Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Jenn Robbins is the Funnel Stylist. She saves online entrepreneurs from one-size-fits all funnels with her Flexible Funnel Framework. With more than a decade of experience, Jenn offers funnel strategy and copywriting services to 1:1 clients, as well as training and support through workshops, programs, and her membership, the Flexible Funnel Society! Because a good funnel is like the perfect little black dress: versatile, classic, and best when tailored to fit YOU.   Here's what we covered on the episode:   How Jenn Got Her Start + Why Funnels Matter How Jenn and I connected through our mutual friend and met in person around 2018/19 at a couple of different events when our businesses looked different than they do now Before starting her business in 2011, Jenn was a tax accountant because although she always loved to write while growing up, she was told you couldn't make money as a writer – Jenn ended up being miserable at her job and volunteered to run social media and do blogs at her firm, which she enjoyed After Jenn quit her job, she moved back to Oklahoma, opened a WordPress site, and started taking clients and how it slowly evolved into what she does now, which is funnel strategy Jenn says she made the switch from mostly copy to strategy because she noticed many people were lacking in that department, and good copy and design couldn't convert unless there were a good strategy behind it How you can't create the same funnel someone else does for their business because it won't work for you the same way Jenn defines a funnel as an automated way to build a relationship that she breaks down into 3 different categories: list-building funnels, launch funnels, and evergreen funnels   In Jenn's business, her goal is to get the audience off other platforms like Instagram and TikTok and into an email list because your email list is something that you own, and it will be the longest lasting People are tired of the over-promising; they want more personality, authenticity, and results   Jenn shares a client story of a PR specialist who had a membership offer, but after going viral on TikTok, realized she didn't have anything set up for that, so they had to rework her funnel to get her audience off TikTok and to her offer   A lot of people have been going viral on different platforms, which is great, but Jenn is helping these experts with what's next and how to get their audience off the platform to purchase an offer from them Flexible Funnel Society + Instagram Trend Opinions Jenn doesn't see funnels as separate steps; she sees all the funnels as a whole ecosystem that work together, so you're constantly doing leads and nurturing, and when you're launching, you might not give as much attention to those funnels but they are still there working Why it's important to build a relationship before you try to sell to someone right after they join your list We talk about my sales page Trello board, which is a great lead magnet and converts well, but doesn't have a sales sequence, and how I could set up a sales funnel for it Jenn talks about her membership, Flexible Funnel Society, which helps you understand the foundations of the funnels – there are basic courses that you can access at any time, she does 2 coaching calls a month with anybody in the membership, and she brings in 2 guest experts every month How there are different kinds of memberships, and you don't have to have one that creates new content every single month – it has to be something that works for you Jenn's favorite part about her membership is the monthly calls and getting to know her members on a more personal level   When it comes to funnels, some common mistakes Jenn sees are people not having a funnel, overthinking their perfectionism, saying they don't need an email list, and relying on only one content platform Jenn is excited to start experimenting with posting on TikTok and working with content creators who are experts in their field on TikTok How Jenn can feel something shifting in her business and uses Taylor Swift as an example with the different eras she uses to brand herself and how we all have those different seasons of life but don't brand them in the same way   We talk about our opinion on the trend of deleting your feed off Instagram and how many brands are doing that when they make a shift in their business Check out Jenn's Website, where you can find her Funnels 101 Mini Course and Flexible Funnel Society Membership Connect with Jenn on Instagram and TikTok   Links mentioned: Flexible Funnel Society Membership Funnels 101 Mini Course Connect with Jenn on Instagram  Connect with Jenn on TikTok  Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Megan helps business owners work less, but make more money & impact through simple operational systems. Yes, this sounds SUPER boring, however Megan brings a bubbly personality that makes understanding such a boring topic exciting & empowering for the business owner(s) who may be facing burnout. Her goal is to share as much helpful information so your audience can take massive action and thanks you for bringing them the missing part that saves their mental health & their business! Megan has helped multiple 6+ figure service based CEOs remove themselves from their day-to-day so that they can operate in their zone of genius and fully step into their role as the visionary in their empire.   Here's what we covered on the episode: How Megan Discovered Systems After Experiencing Burn Out Megan shares how she quickly hit burnout from working her 9 – 5 job and running a drop shipping store by herself How Megan got rid of her drop shipping business and started learning how systems could work in a business – she practiced building systems inside her family's company and realized she really liked it, so she started her own business working for friends and agencies The story of how Megan got her first client, Tiffany Tolliver, who is still a client today, from a high-performance weekend event where she gave a horrible pitch for a package she didn't even have yet  Megan shares her stressful experience of going up onstage and pitching her idea and how the other women in the room were able to help by telling her what they need as high-performing CEOs It took a while for Megan to realize that her biggest weakness was that she loved to talk to the CEOs about their vision and create systems for solutions to their problems but didn't want to have to tell them to change some setting in a software (the small details) After a few months, Megan was able to find her COO (chief operating officer), who loves the small details to balance her out in the business Megan shares that they build everything custom for each CEO based on their vision, so each client uses different platforms and software For recurring clients, Megan does a business map each quarter to make sure their vision stays aligned  Megan and her team focus on the systems; they are on call for launches, community calls, etc., so if there are any tech issues, they are handled, and the CEO can focus on being the talent Behind the scenes, Megan and her team are focused on making sure the CEO's team is engaged, which isn't something she realized she did until a few clients pointed it out to her Creating Boundaries + Megan's Business Systems A lot of times, CEOs have great ideas, but the implementation can be messy, and then it's the team's job to fix it, so if Megan's CEOs have an idea, they talk to her so she can then communicate it, and make sure it matches their systems We talk about setting boundaries with clients, and both share experiences when boundaries were crossed, so we didn't continue working with those people How Megan goes about helping clients realize the root of their problems – she can fix something in their business, but if they don't follow it and get to the root of their problem, it won't really be fixed in the long run Part of Megan's business map is based on the personal life of the CEO, like if they are exercising, eating healthy, and what their balance is because all of that impacts whether or not they'll be able to perform well in their business Megan breaks down her business map that they revisit each quarter where they go over different the pillars of business - personal, finances, operations, marketing, sales, implementation, and vision When it comes to systems in her business, Megan says she is a big fan of ClickUp; she has her own CEO Braindump Board where she gets to dump any of her ideas and tasks – it helps her delegate tasks quickly How they are working to put everything in one spot so they don't have a ton of courses and communities all over the place, and Megan shares they are down to two software platforms, Mighty Networks and ActiveCampaign Megan shares that she has a COO, an HR person, two virtual assistants who help build systems and do project management, and someone who writes all the standard operating procedures for the business and their clients Connect with Megan on Instagram and, shoot her a DM, and check out her website to learn more about her, what she does, and take the quizzes on her site to figure out where you are wasting time in your business and what kind of CEO you are    Links mentioned: Connect with Megan on Instagram Megan Galane Website Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Adrienne Johnston is a presentation designer who specializes in helping clients visualize their content in PowerPoint for the purpose of landing new clients, educating existing internal or external clients, or securing investment capital. Adrienne's current clients include Meta, Microsoft, Samsung, and Marriott. Additionally, Adrienne advocates for presentation design to be recognized as a design profession and coaches other presentation designers on building their successful presentation design businesses. Adrienne currently resides in Seattle, Washington, with her husband, daughter, and two cats. Here's what we covered on the episode:   How Adrienne Landed on Presentation Design Adrienne shares that she majored in chemistry, where she spent more time making her lab report presentations look pretty than on the actual data, and after college, she realized the lab environment wasn't for her How Adrienne was hired for a startup in the healthcare space where she self-taught herself on nights and weekends to help with design In 2017, Adrienne wanted more flexibility and wanted to work for herself, so she got on Upwork and started doing any general design work people wanted but realized after a few months that she needed a better and more sustainable way to do her business Adrienne used her background in science to help create a process and look at what work came naturally to her, took the least amount of time, and wasn't as competitive, which is how she landed on presentations People get caught up in the plans and ideas, but Adrienne says it benefitted her to start and take action without having all the knowledge because then she was able to find where she fits in – she tells people to just get started instead of thinking it has to be something fancy In the first few months of her business, Adrienne realized people would pay her for her skills, she wasn't efficient enough to scale and make the revenue and lifestyle she wanted, and she had a customer acquisition problem As a freelancer, Adrienne says she doesn't have to serve every client; she needs to find a way to make her business work for her, and if she doesn't have boundaries, no one else is going to Executives at big companies do senior leadership meetings or present to the board, and they know they can't take cruddy-looking slides into those meetings, but they can't compete for those resources on the marketing team, so they find their own people to hire Building an Aligned Business + Adrienne's Course After doing some research, Adrienne optimized her website for SEO, and within 3 months, she was ranking for the term freelance presentation designer and started getting a flow of big-name clients, like Samsung When it comes to using templates and guides for clients and herself in the business, Adrienne says it depends on where the client is and explains that for pitch decks, they might have a logo and some colors, but they don't have an established brand style or guide On Adrienne's website, it says she can do presentations within 48 hours, but she says that no one asks for that service, but having that on her website has doubled her conversion rate Adrienne explains why building an agency wouldn't work for how she wants to run her business To help yourself find clarity in what you want, ask yourself if there were no limits, what you would want - write it down and commit to it  Adrienne gives many ideas on how to think about long-term goals and break them down into smaller chunks to achieve them so you can build a business that is better aligned with you When creating your goals, you have to acknowledge that you might backslide – Adrienne shares that in 2020, she said that she wasn't working Fridays anymore, but at some point, she went back to working Fridays After optimizing her website for SEO, Adrienne had people reach out asking her to help them become presentation designers, so she started having informal one-on-one coaching calls and realized she needed to take all her knowledge about business and design and institutionalize it In 2020, Adrienne launched her course, Six-Figure Presentation Designer, which is all about helping people specifically focused on presentation design to reach and surpass that six-figure mark Reach out and get access to Adrienne's resources at designerandthriving.com   Links mentioned: Designing and Thriving Resources Adrienne Johnston's Website Six-Figure Presentation Designer   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Tiffany Tolliver is the founder and CEO of The EmmaRose Agency®, based in Washington, D.C. Tiffany has a deep passion for helping women of color see their true value and not compromising the true vision they have for themselves while scaling their brands to 6 & 7 figures. She believes that revenue is just a resource to help others in need and that by putting your brand in a category of one, through strategic branding - you can serve your community WITH LESS stress knowing that your digital presence is working for (and not against) you! Tiffany believes that the key to creating an eye-catching and intentional brand is recognizing that your company cannot flourish solely based on your logo; there must be an experience cultivated that organically taps into the pain points of your target audience - ushering them into a digital home created solely with them top of mind. Through her dynamic designs and out of the box messaging and sales strategies, Tiffany is creating her own lane in graphic and web design. With her mission rooted in income-generating service offerings, she has worked with brands in creating unique and innovative websites that have allowed her clients to see $350k+ launches. Showing up is serving and Tiffany commits herself to being present and future minded in order to help her client realize their true greatness and build brands that stand the test of time and create bigger profit.   Here's what we covered on the episode:   How Tiffany Used Her Talents to Create a Business Tiffany used to work as a communication director at a hair salon, and after yielding 10 - 15k from a Black Friday sale based on their email list and in salon sales, she realized she was doing something right and had a gift given by God  Everything in Tiffany's life aligned to where she was able to quit the salon but, at the time, had no clients or income  In the beginning, Tiffany was only offering logos and got her first client through her then mentor, whose husband was a chef and needed a logo and media kit  The Emma Rose Agency, Tiffany's company name, is a combination of middle names Tiffany and her daughter both got from their great grandmothers  Tiffany shares that in the beginning, she started saying she could do things, like creating websites, before she even knew how and would teach herself - she still does this today but with more confidence  How Tiffany grew very quickly because she realized the gap she wanted to fill, which is helping women of color stand out online so they can fulfill their passions and help the people they want to    We talk about being overlooked in the design industry based on experience, and Tiffany shares that she is thoughtfully transparent with clients if it is her first time doing something but works her hardest to get the client what they want   One of Tiffany's goals was to be sought out for her aesthetic while creating a unique design that fits each unique client's style  At the end of 2022, Tiffany had a mental breakdown due to doing too much in her business and realized she needed to pay more attention to her greater vision   Now she revisits her greater vision every week to keep it top of mind so she can focus on the things in her business that truly align with it and says that defining her core values has also helped a lot when she's questioning anything in her business  Tiffany is thankful for her breakdown because she realized her business wasn't working for her, it was working against her, and it led her to her vision Using the Marketing Ecosystem for Branding + Marketing Tips The clients Tiffany serves are established business owners who have a professional service-based brand - they are tired of how they look online and how they are running their business and want to build a personal brand  Even in the beginning, Tiffany understood that strategy needed to come before the design  Tiffany prefers to work with her clients long-term in their rebranding process because one thing she's tired of in the industry is people having to hand their brand off to multiple people and having it be inconsistent  The way Tiffany is situating her agency to grow is by not only helping with strategy but also developing and executing the vision for the brand through marketing and branding  Tiffany explains how she looks at the bigger picture for clients because when you look at their marketing ecosystem, it's not just the website, so in her proposal process, she outlines what a partnership service (retainer) would look like How having a mindset of collaboration is important to Tiffany because her clients have teams that she will be working with  Tiffany shares some marketing trends such as developing a community, looking at the marketing ecosystem as a whole, and making sure you have consistent evergreen content and not relying solely on social media  When developing a personal brand from a professional brand, Tiffany says it's important to establish a clear and authentic perspective first, then decide if you want the two brands to complement each other or be different   For strategy and design, Tiffany likes to identify what unique story her clients are telling and then create a focus plan, 6 months at a time, looking at what she can do and what the client needs to do to make the partnership and brand work Tiffany realized during her breakdown that she was putting the profit of her business over her purpose and was carrying herself differently because of it, which was not aligned with who she truly is  The people you surround yourself with are important because they can distract you from your passion and purpose if you aren't careful  There is no shame in taking a break to recover from burnout, but you don't want to repeat those same patterns  Connect with Tiffany on Instagram   Links mentioned: The Emma Rose Agency Connect with Tiffany on Instagram   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Shannon Mattern is the founder of the Web Designer Academy, where she helps web designers work less and make more money. She's also the host of the Profitable Web Designer Podcast and the Simply Profitable Designer Summit, where she shares strategies and advice to help web designers create freedom, flexibility, and financial independence. Here's what we covered on the episode: Shannon's Background + The Web Designer Academy   Shannon got her start by solving business problems for the nonprofit she worked at, where she did marketing and tech work – she was self-taught when it came to building and running their website How a vendor of the nonprofit hired Shannon to do some website work for him on the side, which is how she got her first client and then kept getting clients through word of mouth and says she felt bad charging people even $25/hour because she didn't understand the value of what she was doing After listening to a podcast episode, Shannon learned she could earn a commission through affiliate marketing by helping people set up their blogs through WordPress Even though Shannon was teaching people WordPress for free, people were still asking Shannon to do the work for them, so she got her pricing, systems, mindset, and boundaries in place so she could work with these clients and quit her day job How Shannon created the Web Designer Academy in 2016, where she teaches new web designers everything she knows Shannon explains how she got people to sign up for her free DIY WordPress Training with their email, which grew her email list, and shares that she used affiliate links to keep the training free To go all in on the Web Designer Academy, Shannon retired her free DIY WordPress Training last year How Shannon got the opportunity to do a speaking engagement where she offered to teach others what she was doing, which is how the Web Designer Academy was born Shannon shares how rewarding and fun it was to help others through the Web Designer Academy, which is why she decided to go all in on it in 2020 to empower women web designers and teach them how to run their business The Simply Profitable Designer Summit + Intellectual Property If you've been around for a while on Episode 26 and Episode 132 of The Design Business Show, I interviewed Krista Miller, a web developer who started the Simply Profitable Designer Summit, but now Shannon is the host of it The Simply Profitable Designer Summit is coming up on March 21st – 23rd, 2023 Shannon explains how she and Krista met through Shannon's 5-Day Website Challenge and how Krista invited Shannon to speak at the Simply Profitable Designer Summit Krista created her Summit in a Box offer, which was doing well, so she wanted to step away from one-on-one client work, and the summit Because The Simply Profitable Designer Summit was so pivotal for Shannon to get in front of her ideal clients and build relationships, she told Krista she would run the summit for her, and they eventually worked out a deal for Shannon to take over the summit If you want to hear the details of Shannon and Krista's deal, listen to episode 182 of Krista's Summit Host Hangout Podcast    When it comes to your value and pricing, Shannon says to take yourself out of the equation and look at your client, what is going to be possible for them, what they are going to create in their business, and the long-term value of your offer Some people want to do it themselves and will never hire you, but some people don't want to do it themselves, and they can't wait to find you, and those are your people. Shannon explains that in the Web Designer Academy, they talk about investment-minded clients and expense-minded clients, and they teach having package-based pricing based on those clients You get to pick your price and then go out and sell the value of it instead of letting someone else tell you the value of it Shannon's Profitable Pricing Framework Training for designers that talks about her pricing philosophy How the value of your entire system and process that you do for clients is your intellectual property and can also be packaged up and sold separately If you have a process or something that feels easy to you and you love, go all in on it because that's what makes business easy Here is my affiliate link to The Simply Profitable Designer Summit – get your free ticket for full access to the presentations through the end of the day on March 23rd and upgrade to an all-access pass for lifetime access to presentations or the power pack to get speaker bonuses and courses Check out the Web Designer Academy website and connect with Shannon on Instagram Links mentioned: Web Designer Academy Profitable Web Designer Podcast Simply Profitable Designer Summit Episode 26 of The Design Business Show with Krista Miller  Episode 132 of The Design Business Show with Krista Miller  Episode 182 - Summit Host Hangout Podcast with Shannon Mattern Profitable Pricing Framework Training Connect with Shannon on Instagram   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Hunter Lowder is co-owner of Tortoise & The Bear, a business strategy, operations, and mindset coaching company that supports visionaries in bringing their wild and crazy dreams to life. Coupling her past business experience as CEO of a multi-million dollar company with mindful coaching approaches, Hunter helps service-based business owners create and prioritize a strategic plan to grow their impact and move their business forward in a sustainable way. After suffering severe burnout as a CEO, Hunter is passionate about building a business in alignment with her values. When she's not helping clients fine tune their operations, she's likely dancing and singing karaoke with her husband, feeding her son's football team, or hanging out at the beach with her fur babies.   Here's what we covered on the episode: Experiencing Burnout + How to Cope   Hunter shares that she ran a luxury wedding venue in southern California, but towards the end of her career, she was having a lot of physical problems and realized she wasn't taking care of herself because of her mindset There were two options for Hunter, she could leave her career to heal or have a heart attack at age 35, so she decided to leave When Hunter left her career, she didn't know who she was anymore because her career became her identity, so she started working with a career life coach and dove into personality assessments  It took Hunter 6 months to a year to realize that she needed to be kinder to her body and try her hardest every single day, but also forgive herself if she didn't hit her goals, unlike her overachiever, type A old self would have For the first couple of years after Hunter's burnout, it took a lot of practice to figure out what intuition was: what was her body saying yes or no to versus what was just fear We talk about reverse engineering your business, where you look at the big picture of where you want to go and break it down into smaller chunks that feel doable Hunter helps her clients close the gap between today and their goal by creating SMART(Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-based) goals and breaking them down into each year, quarter, month, week, and day You need to permit yourself to work in the way that works best for you, and as women, Hunter says we need to consider our cycles when figuring out what works best for us and not plan anything stressful during that week if it affects you in a certain way Tortoise & The Bear + VIP Days  After Hunter's burnout, she knew she wanted to help women like herself: Type A overachievers and those recovering from burnout, so she got a ton of coaching certificates but realized she wasn't meant to be a coach Hunter got a job as an executive operations assistant to help dip her toes back into the workforce, and got promoted to operations manager after 3 months and is still with them today While working with this company, Hunter decided she would still take on clients and ended up working 50-hour weeks, which isn't what she wanted to be doing   How Hunter was able to pivot into strategy instead of being the implementor and got her director of operations certification to help translate brick-and-mortar business strategy to online business strategy Now, Hunter offers VIP Days for small business owners who are looking to have a sales and visibility strategy based on their personality  Hunter learned that she was a manifesting generator which made so much sense to her because she loves being interviewed, answering questions, and talking to people, but where she struggles is creating the content when no one is interacting with her, like on a blog or social media post One of Hunter's main forms of content is podcasting, and she shares that she's creating her own podcast Something Hunter recommends to all her clients is content repurposing – find what you love to do and repurpose it on all platforms A goal of Hunter's after her son graduates is to have a nomadic life where she can live from anywhere and work from anywhere Hunter typically works with creative solopreneurs who are struggling with consistency, usually a lot of women who are on their 2nd career How Hunter's VIP Days help set clients up for the next steps in their business, which usually includes hiring a virtual assistant, scaling the business, doing group programs, etc. One of the biggest lessons in business and in life that Hunter has learned is that the only thing she has control over is how she reacts to things   Hunter feels that TikTok and reels on Instagram are refreshing because they are raw and real At tortoiseandthebear.com/podcast, you can find a free customer journey audit from Hunter, where she will give you suggestions and ideas to implement to help make your leads, sales, and marketing efforts easier and more consistent Connect with Hunter on Instagram    Links mentioned: Tortoise & The Bear Website Customer Journey Audit  Connect with Hunter on Instagram  Connect with Hunter on TikTok   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Sherwanna Livingston is a brand strategist, digital entrepreneur, mother, speaker and influential leader who brings a fresh approach to bringing brand visions to life. Known as "The Vision Catcher", Sherwanna provides innovative branding and business consulting solutions through her enterprise Live Love Your Passion LLC . Over the course of five years, Sherwanna has been blessed to consult over 100 small businesses nationwide and serve thousands of entrepreneurs in her online community. She's been featured in Digital Journal, FOX, Shoutout DFW, Voyage Dallas, and has also been the guest on several podcasts and live radio shows.   Here's what we covered on the episode: How Sherwanna Get Started + Elevating Self-Image  Sherwanna shares that she worked in corporate America as a corporate trainer and was laid off while 5 months pregnant The story behind when Sherwanna launched her YouTube Channel in 2018 called, Live Love Your Passion about mindset, personal development, and helping others go after their passion Sherwanna did everything from the graphics to editing for her channel, and soon people began to ask her to help with their brands 2018/2019 was a time when people wanted their Instagram feed to be aesthetically pleasing, so Sherwanna started by doing Instagram makeovers - there wasn't much strategy behind it because people just wanted it to look good Soon, Sherwanna realized her picture-perfect feed and the feeds she was creating for clients didn't reflect their true selves, which is why she doesn't fully believe in doing that anymore Sherwanna likes to dig deep with all clients but especially ones who only care about something looking good - she usually finds that there's a self-image issue Why Sherwanna is going to launch a self-image program that will help people elevate their internal image, show up 100% confidently in themselves, and help bridge the gap between whom they envision themselves being and who they are now Your business and personal brands need to tie together because the vision you have for your business came from you – it starts as a personal vision Sherwanna shares why it's so important for people to know who they are in relation to the thing they are creating We are in a time where you can't just have a logo and a company and no one showing up, interacting as a person for your company What Sherwanna's Business Looks Like + Following Your Visions Sherwanna explains that now her business looks like helping nonprofits/socially responsible organizations and shares how she was able to help Urban Specialists, a local Dallas, TX nonprofit, and UTOPIA Washington, an international nonprofit On the personal side, Sherwanna helps coach small businesses to secure corporate contracts, and she helps coach people on personal branding, which will be her main focus this year How Sherwanna realized there's a big branding gap for most nonprofits because for-profit companies normally have the branding together or even have an internal team to handle it, but nonprofits usually don't, which is why she wants to help them Sherwanna is S/WMBE certified (small business, women-owned business, and minority business enterprise certified) and explains what advantages it has for her business and how it creates stability Government entities and corporations have contracts put aside to work with small businesses, minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, etc. Sherwanna's Road to Certified Program helps you certify your business to qualify for grants, corporate, and government contracts One thing Sherwanna wants to step into is UGC (user-generated content) - she shares how she would do that and that she's stepped into the TikTok space With Sherwanna's personal brand, she wants to become more of who she really is – she loves beauty and cooking and wants to show more of that Sherwanna's advice is to not be afraid to do that one thing that you feel called to do – go after your visions and ideas Check out the LLYP Studios Website and connect with her on Instagram or Facebook    Links mentioned: LLYP Studios Website LLYP Academy - Road To Certified  Connect with Sherwanna on Instagram  Connect with Sherwanna on Facebook   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Hi. My name is Melissa. If you're new here - hey!! I'm so glad you're here today. If you're not new, heeey! I'm grateful that I get the privilege of being in your ears and eyes. I say ears for those who listen and eyes for those who prefer to read the show notes on our website at https://thedesignbusinessshow.com. Sometimes I prefer to skim show notes instead of listening to a podcast. So, typically the podcast format we follow over here is an interview style, but as I mentioned in episode 210 sometimes, I'm going to do solo episodes, when I'm into it. And that's record and publish a few solo episodes in addition to our weekly interviews where I talk about things I'm obsessed with related to business, design, product launches, branding and life. Think current brand + design trends meets my real (business) life. On episode 210 I shared 3 things I love about the brand, OUAI. And in this episode, I'm going to share Legendary lessons we can learn from Rihanna's SuperBowl performance (inspired by her song lyrics). Some people watch the SuperBowl for the football. Or the commercials. I only watched Rihanna's concert. :) I've been a fan of her brand and her music for years. So of course, like the rest of the world, I've been obsessed with the buzz around her SuperBowl performance and all the glass ceilings she's breaking with her brand. And I wasn't gonna talk about it in this week's email, but then she dropped this legendary British Vogue cover about her being Reborn, while ASAP Rocky holds their baby and she's leading them on a walk on the beach, and my brain has so many things to say. So here we are. I love lists, so I'm calling it Legendary Lessons We Can Learn from Rihanna's SuperBowl performance, inspired by her song lyrics, and the results it landed her. 1. She told us she was a savage in her song, Needed Me. Here's why that's true: :: More people watched her performance (118.7 million) than the game (113.05 million). :: The streams of her songs went from 12.4 million on 2/11 (the day before), to 20.4 million on 2/12 (the day of), and 38.5 million on 2/13 the day after). 2. She can do things her own way darling, in her song, Consideration featuring SZA. Here's what she did: :: All her dancers wore custom Savage x Fenty (Rihanna's lingerie line) sports bras and boxers in white. :: She touched up her make up using one of Fenty Beauty's Invisimatte, in the middle of a song. Google Searches increased by 833 percent when she did that. :: Her make up artist told us exactly what products RiRi wore during the performance. :: Custom NFL x Fenty Beauty products launched and her team did several brand activations in honor of this. 3. She shined bright like a diamond, like in her song, Diamond. Here's why: :: In the finale to her performance, she sang her hit song, Diamond, while the audience held up the flash lights on their cell phones for a super cool visual effect. :: She showed up as herself, performing some of her best hits, with 80+ dancers and no other artists because she knew she was enough. And she knew it. :: She nonchalantly announced her second pregnancy during the performance, and when you look at the physicality of doing everything she did - like sitting down when she needed to and dancing up on a stage in the middle of the sky, on a stage, it's nothing but enough. :: There's a viral video of ASAP Rocky, her boyfriend, cheering her on. 4. Chasing the American Dream, as she sings in American Oxygen. In case you didn't see the adorable video that was created with Apple Music, the NFL, and RocNation that features her song Run This Town with footage of a little girl walking down the street in Barbados to fly kites at the cemetery, where she dreamed her big dreams. You must watch it. The story telling brings literal tears to my eyes. I loved this work of art especially, because it hits kinda close to home. She's from Barbados, and her mom is Guyanese. My dad was born in Guyana, and was a big believer in the American Dream. I joke with my family that we could be cousins. I have no proof of that, but a girl can dream, right? Okay, I'm going to reapply my Fenty Glow lip gloss and make a Reel about this. Maybe. :) Talk soon! Melissa 

Sandy Vukovic is best known for spearheading development for Marc Jacobs Beauty, Kat Von D, bareMinerals and Buxom Cosmetics, Sandy Vukovic has created and grown some of the most recognizable and eponymous beauty brands for women today. Realizing that femtech products, including personal lubricants, still lacked the innovation and superior ingredient utilization that can greatly improve a woman's sexual health, Sandy is excited to parlay her deep product development expertise into game-changing products for modern day woman. Her ultimate passion is to develop Playground into the leading female sexual wellness brand—because every woman deserves to feel great in their body. Here's what we covered on the episode: Sandy's Experience in Product Development  From a young age, Sandy was obsessed with beauty and personal care products for their transformative properties and how they made women feel How Sandy started her career at Estée Lauder and then moved to one of their hair care product brands called Aveda In the mid-2000s, Sandy received an opportunity to move to San Francisco and work for the brand bareMinerals After working for bareMinerals for 7 years, Sandy moved to Sephora, where she got to work on their beauty brand incubator, KENDO At KENDO, Sandy got to help create brands that had never existed, create formulas that had never been done, and utilize ingredients that were new and cutting edge As a product developer, Sandy was in charge of formulations, which involved identifying the trends, ingredients, and safety testing Sandy talks about helping to create the Buxom brand when she was at bareMinerals and how they were able to address a younger demographic and create one of the first lip polish formulas Two and a half years ago, Sandy left KENDO due to burnout and started consulting for small, independent brands How Sandy's co-founder, Catherine Magee, approached her about an amazing business idea involving a category for women that needed desperate transformation and innovation – sexual wellness Despite the sexual wellness industry growing, the products being offered were boring, so Sandy and Catherine were able to enter the category with more modern formulations, better-for-you formulations, and better-for-you ingredients Creating Playground + Formulating Products How Sandy and Catherine were able to find a female chemist who came from the female lubricant industry to help them create the best personal lubricant possible Sandy explains the lengthy process they went through to create the lubricant formula to make sure others loved it just as much as they did During the research process, they discovered that women didn't feel comfortable purchasing lubricant because it made them feel gross or like something was wrong with them In addition to creating a formula that felt great, it was important to Sandy and Catherine to brand their products properly – to speak to women in a way that made them excited about using the products Sandy shares the different scents they offer and the science behind them and explains that they aren't strong, just enough to give you a little scent As women, we spend so much time, effort, and money into what we put on our face, hair, or body, but we aren't giving the same love or attention to our vaginal care routine, which is one of the most important parts of the female body There are so many different things that can disrupt your pH balance, which is why it was important to Sandy and Catherine to use ingredients that are safe and help with vaginal health Sandy explains the different ingredients they use in their products and all the benefits they have It was important to Sandy and Catherine that their products looked like anything else that you would find on a nightstand or bathroom shelf - it wasn't something you had to hide, and they were able to find a design agency that understood their mission Sandy's job right now in the business is to formulate the next generation of sexual wellness products – she shares that they have many new products in development that they will be launching over the next 2 - 3 years Because the FDA regulates personal lubricants, brands have to conduct a series of very intensive tests that prove the formula is safe, which is also a big part of Sandy's job How they were able to bring on Dr. Emily Morse, who has the #1 sexual wellness podcast as an authority figure, which has been a great asset for digital marketing   If you want to develop a product, Sandy says to immerse yourself into the industry you want to create a product in and look at what's missing Check out and reach out to Sandy and Catherine directly through the Playground Website and connect with them on Instagram Links mentioned: Playground Website  Connect with Sandy on Instagram    Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!  

Rich Watson is a strong force in Augmented Reality Marketing. He has spoken all over the world about the future of eCommerce and how it will be brought into Web 3.0. Rich has over 8 years of Facebook ad media buying experience, and he is an avid believer in the potential of Non-Fungible Tokens and the metaverse. When he's not working or speaking, Rich enjoys spending time with his wife in the coastal city of Da Nang in the center of Vietnam. Here's what we covered on the episode: What is Augmented Reality? Before stepping into the Web 3.0 world, Rich worked in paid marketing for Facebook, Instagram where he worked with primarily eCommerce clients Augmented Hype is Rich's business that helps online business leverage augmented reality for their marketing One of the biggest things people need to start doing when it comes to Web 3.0 is building a community Rich shares that the difference between virtual reality and augmented reality is that with virtual reality, you're stepping into a virtual environment, but with augmented reality, you're augmenting your immediate surroundings, yourself, your room, etc., with something digital To Rich, the Metaverse is this world with no boundaries, a chance to be anything you want and be able to connect with anyone you want at any time you want – it's a digitally rendered amplified version of the world An example of augmented reality is when sites let you see what something would look like in your actual home before you buy it, like what a specific rug or wall color would look like, so you can make a more informed purchase decision Rich explains how you can use augmented reality for all parts of your sales funnel When it comes to using new technology, look at what's already working within your industry and think about how it can become a more immersive experience A simple example Rich gives is with beauty products; augmented reality allows you to try different products on to see how they'd look on you before purchasing, something you can't necessarily do at a store – this also means consumers might try something they wouldn't have in the store How to Use Augmented Reality in Your Business  One case study of Rich's shows how they were able to help a client increase their average order value by 50% because they gave people a chance to try the top 6 – 8 selling lipsticks through augmented reality By allowing people to have the most realistic experience with your products, you can lower your return rate and customer service inquiries Rich explains that the barrier to entry for augmented reality is the lowest it's ever been because there are many ways to do it without having an app - there's social and web augmented reality, for example Web 3.0 is the new internet infrastructure that's coming – the idea is for you to own the data through your communities Augmented reality can set you apart from your competition, and it can help lower the returns that your competitors might have Rich shares a Squid Game example; a creator from Singapore created a Squid Game augmented reality that reached 500 million people organically You can go into different galleries (Lens for Snapchat and Spark for Meta) and scroll around to see different creators and what they've made Augmented Hype started working with agencies where they were their augmented reality specialist and helped achieve specific objectives for different campaigns Shopify did a study that showed using augmented reality to visualize products increased conversion rates by up to 200% How Rich created a Slack Community called Augmented Marketers to help people add this service to their agencies Rich helps people implement augmented reality into their business and works with them for 2 months so they can continuously optimize and change things when needed, which is not something a lot of augmented reality services do Go to the Augmented Hype website to see examples, download freebies, and join their community The biggest thing with augmented reality, Rich says, is making it as clear as possible – keep it simple, especially when starting out Rich says that even implementing the most complex augmented reality into your campaign strategy wouldn't take longer than 2 working weeks When it comes to what's next for Rich's business, he says they'll be focusing on educating and showing people how you can use augmented reality Rich gives an example where Disney+ used augmented reality for a short film called, Remembering where you downloaded the app, and during the movie, your phone would ring, and when you opened it, the movie spilled out into your room Augmented Reality glasses are the future, Rich believes, and within the next 3 – 5 years, he believes they'll replace phones Check out the Augmented Hype Website to learn more, and connect with Rich on Instagram and LinkedIn   Links mentioned: Augmented Hype Website Connect with Rich on Instagram  Connect with Rich on LinkedIn 7 AR ad strategies for Facebook ads   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Liz Nead is an adventure speaker, traveling the world and taking on challenges to find lessons of leadership, communication diversity, and inclusion. A diversity speaker and researcher for over a decade, she specializes in common language and daily communication around race and cultural differences in the workplace. Liz uses a direct, humorous, and vivid style from the stage to create opportunities for communication around differences. Liz has also served as an executive coach and consultant for DEI challenges for companies like Paypal, News Corp, National Guard, and YWCA.   Liz is a television host and author, writing several Amazon best sellers, most recently “The 1440 Principle.” She also won a regional Emmy for her television show, “Life Dare.” Liz balances her passionate work with a thriving family of seven and husband of 20 years, a retired army major.  Here's what we covered on the episode: How Liz Became a Speaker + Created Her Own TV Show How Liz and I met, why I was drawn to her, and how we've stayed in contact for around 15 years Liz is putting a podcast together that I've been helping her with a little bit Check out Liz's website to see all the different topics she speaks about   Because Liz believes in inspiring and helping people in the different ways they need, she has many different mediums for people – if you like to read, she has a book; if you watch TV, she filmed a show; she did radio, and does coaching The story of how Liz was speaking to her stuffed animals as a child and thanking them for coming to her events and feels that she had speaking inside her from a very young age Being laid off pushed Liz into entrepreneurship and into speaking   How Oprah helped shape how Liz views the world and how It was always a goal of hers to have a TV show Liz shares how she was able to start her TV show, Life Dare, with the help of someone in her Rotary Club and how she bought a 30-minute slot on FOX to do it If you see yourself doing something, you build a structure to make yourself believe it – then you can do anything Liz gets most of her speaking engagements through word of mouth but also spends a lot of time cold calling At the end of 2021, Liz was put in the hospital due to a heart condition, which hurt her business because she went 7 months without promoting herself Liz went to the hospital expecting to be checked in and out the same day but did not end up checking out for another 7 weeks and had to have open heart surgery right away Liz was in a coma for a week, and her amazing kids helped while she was in that condition, moving her schedule around for clients, posting to her social media, staying by her side, etc. Being superwoman is tiring, Liz shares, but at the same time, it fuels her fire – which is relatable for many people Part of why Liz is so transparent is because she needs support, though most people's instinct is to act like everything is fine and they don't need support The Importance of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion In 2020, Liz says that DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) blew up, which was good for her because she had been speaking about it for years  How Liz created 10 training videos on DEI for Prositions, a company that sells training videos to companies – creating those videos helped her nail down her messaging  Many racially charged events over the last couple of years have shown us how much work we need to do when it comes to DEI and how conscious we need to become  Liz explains that many people were not taught anything about diversity growing up, which has contributed to the lack of knowledge when it comes to DEI The reason why Liz talks about DEI in a very non-confrontational way We discuss how different times are now compared to when we were growing up or when our parents were growing up – our kids know so much more about mental health and sexual identity, for example  As creators in 2023 and beyond, we have to learn to educate employers on why it's important to be conscious of DEI, and Liz gives an example of how to do this when giving a proposal  Liz says it's not enough to put brown people into pictures; you have to truly understand why representation is important and be sensitive about it  How Liz couldn't find brown hands on Canva even though they have hundreds of thousands of images  It's hard to notice when others aren't being included when you are always included – we need to make room for everyone, and to do that, it may feel like you're being disregarded, but you aren't  Liz explains that we will always have to be conscious of DEI – it is a constant self-evaluation  Human resources and connections are the money – if you get the chance to talk to someone and they share what they think, and they're giving their thoughts and opinions on what you are passionate about, that's really important  Check out Liz's website, and if you put your name in the dropdown box at the top of the website, she'll reach out to you  Liz is creating a diversity workbook that ties in the concepts she speaks about, which will be available hopefully within the next month on her website   Links mentioned:   The 1440 Principle Liz Nead's Website   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Laurie Rosenwald is an author, designer, painter, and educator whose impressive body of work encapsulates her vivacious, outspoken, and colorful personality. Her most recent book, How to Make Mistakes on Purpose, which was the subject of her TEDx Talk and is accompanied by a touring workshop of the same name, gives readers and audiences insight into the beautiful world of creating through intentional acts of randomness - a way of working that helps individuals get unstuck and discover new skill sets. The workshop has been conducted for major businesses and brands like Google, Starbucks, Scholastic, Buzzfeed, and Johnson & Johnson, to name a few.  Here's what we covered on the episode:   How Laurie Got Her Creative Start Laurie describes her childhood and shares that she has been drawing since 3 years old and has never stopped   The mindset Laurie has always had of what mattered was art and creativity - she has never focused on business or making money which has allowed her to be freer than others The first paid project Laurie had was an illustration for a small editorial in the back of the New York Times Most people choose to do one thing and stick with it, but Laurie shares that she's always done graphic design, illustration, painting, and writing because she gets bored easily when she sticks to just one thing    Laurie always did freelance illustration but also worked with many different magazines and newspapers doing layout design, graphic design, and editorial design The story of how Laurie got the job at the New York Times Magazine by lying about her skills, but because they liked her, they taught her how to do her job After working for the New York Times Magazine, Laurie worked for Condé Nast, where she worked on the first issues of Self Magazine and Vanity Fair Magazine, plus so many other projects One of Laurie's favorite projects was working on a Bloomingdale's shopping bag in 1981, which they, unfortunately took her name off of because she wasn't famous Laurie has lived off and on in Sweden for many years and shares that she worked on products for the Swedish post office In the late 80s, Laurie worked on an album cover for Joe Jackson More recently, the most exciting things for Laurie to do are her own books because she gets to express herself and have the freedom to do whatever she wants The story of how Laurie created her own typeface called, Loupot, which is based on a logo she has always loved  Laurie started dabbling in animation while working with Nickelodeon and ended up doing an animated app with David Sedaris called David's Diary When it comes to awards, Laurie believes they don't really matter because there are so many awards, and no one ever asks to see them – she believes it shouldn't be what you focus on Making Mistakes on Purpose How, in the digital world, we've lost a bit of personalization, which Laurie believes is super important Laurie explains that her workshop, How to Make Mistakes on Purpose, is more about helping people do things they normally wouldn't and discover new things by sabotage because if you do the same thing over and over again because you've mastered a skill, you never discover anything new The point of Laurie's workshop is also to take the focus off doing one good thing and instead focus on creating as much as possible Laurie wants to combine what digital programs are good at and what human beings are good at and combine them Laurie shares a personal story about her life and how looking back, sometimes you think things are mistakes, but they aren't Because Laurie has done so many different things, her clients and projects are very diverse The most important thing to Laurie is to keep creating, and if people find her, that's great, but she's not making it a priority for her work to be known All of Laurie's books are a combination of humor and design because she wants to entertain people How Laurie feels that her books, How to Make Mistakes on Purpose and All the Wrong People Have Self-esteem are misunderstood as self-help books Laurie is excited about a memoir she's working on called, Memwah and is currently looking for the right agent, editor, and publisher and explains why she doesn't want to self-publish One thing Laurie wants to continue to do is bigger and better workshops – she shares that she's done them for brands like Google and Starbucks A goal of Laurie's is to find great companies and venues to experience How to Make Mistakes on Purpose The more digital the world gets, the more perfect the world gets, but Laurie says there's a problem with that, and we need to bring back the random and chaos to get somewhere new Reach out and connect with Laurie on Instagram, Twitter and check out her website to learn more about her   Links mentioned: Links mentioned: How to Make Mistakes on Purpose Book How to Make Mistakes on Purpose Workshop Laurie's 2019 Invisible Talk: How to Make Mistakes on Purpose Connect with Laurie on Instagram  Connect with Laurie on Twitter  Visit Laurie's Website Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Hi. My name is Melissa. If you're new here - hey!! I'm so glad you're here today. If you're not new, heeey! I'm grateful that I get the privilege of being in your ears and eyes. I say ears for those who listen and eyes for those who prefer to read the show notes on our website at https://thedesignbusinessshow.com. Sometimes I prefer to skim show notes instead of listening to a podcast. I'm a fast reader and easily distracted. I'm going to do something a little bit different on the show this year, for a moment, while I'm into it. And that's record and publish a few solo episodes in addition to our weekly interviews where I talk about things I'm obsessed with related to business, design, product launches, branding and life. Think current brand + design trends meets my real (business) life. And today, I'm doing something I've wanted to do for a long time, talk to you about all the things I love about Jen Atkin's brand, OUAI. From both the lens of a consumer and a designer. Quick disclaimer: I'm not an affiliate for this brand. I'm not a hair influencer. I just love it and I think there's a lot we can learn from it. About Jen Atkin and her brand, OUAI I first heard about her when I saw her traveling with Chrissy Tiegen and quickly learned she was her hairstylist. And if you've seen an episode on Keeping up with the Kardashians, you might've seen her doing Khloe or Kendall's hair. Long story short, she's someone I aspire to be like when I grow up. She's a talented hairstylist who's worked with celebrities. She has an educational site for hair stylists she founded called Mane Addicts, which is the authoritative and educational destination with a “cool modern voice” for all things hair, according to their website. She also has a book I've read, twice, called Blowing My Way to the Top, (in reference to blow drying hair). I even bought the suitcase she helped create as a collab with CALPAK. And then there's her hair product line, OUAI. Reason #1: The Products Are So Awesome I Spend OUAI too much money on them I've tried 16 of the products. The ones I use the most frequently are the Medium Hair Shampoo and Conditioner, Leave-in Conditioner, Scalp Serum, Dry Shampoo and the Scalp and Body Scrub. And the Wave Spray. They smell amazing. They helped me eliminate the eczema on my scalp, and my hair is the healthiest it's ever been. My Indian hair is one of my better features, but it's fine and thin; and now it's thicker, a little wavier and I repeat, it's the healthiest it's ever been. The products are a little on the pricier side, but I don't spend a lot of money on stuff, so I consider this one of my treats. And they're so good I don't even like to get my hair washed at a salon.  Takeaway: Create high quality products that solve your clients' problems and they'll try over 16 products and spend OUAI too much money with you. Reason #2: The puns If you read my headline; it says I'm "OUAI" obsessed with this brand, because OUAI pronounced “way” and means yes, in that casual, Parisian way. And in all of their marketing, there are puns. Right now, for example, they recently launched their anti-dandruff shampoo and they use clever copy like “Stop Flaking On Your Plans” on their website and “Do More than Drugstore” on their display graphic at Sephora. The press box for this product had a glittery snowflake with a gift tag with the words “Let it Snow” with the word Snow crossed out. So fun. And they even have a “Paw-some” product called Fur Bébé (spelled bebe but pronounce dBaybay) I bought for my dog. It smells amazing. After we wash my Benji with it he actually smells good instead of a wet dog. And Jen is a huge advocate for adopting shelter dogs, and her Insta bio used to read dog mom. We've adopted both of the dogs we had, and I refuse to do it any other way. There are a ton more puns, you'll just have to follow them on social media and try some of their products to see their brilliant product descriptions + marketing copy in action. Takeaway: Clever copy, genius puns and a clean brand and product design will make your nerdy customers who love puns create an entire podcast episode about them. Reason #3: Their product landing pages are the BEST As someone whose specialty is conversion design, I love Ouai's branding. It's simple. Clean. And their product sales pages make me drool. Let's break down the formula they use for the Fur Bébé shampoo landing page. 1. They use tons of cute photos of dogs. Anyone who is a dog lover will be drawn in.  2. They use copy that reads WASH THIS OUAI, WASH THIS OUAI. In reference to the Aerosmith song, Walk this Way. Now every time I hear that song I'll think about the doggy shampoo. 3. The add-to-cart button is right at the top of the page, making it easy for me to purchase, with options for payment plans via Klarna. 4. If I'm not sure I want to purchase, I can read the product descriptions, check out the ingredients, read the instructions on how to use it, and/or read reviews. I really love how beauty brands are showing you how to use their products. 5. Then I can look at cute photos of dogs with the “before” and “after” shots. They go from cute and wet to cute and fluffy. 6. An entire section that highlights the scent of the shampoo; and I love most of their scents. 7. Then, they show me related products. One thing I'd love to see in each section or at least a couple times on the page is another buy button. I'm not exactly sure who their full design team is, but I know they have an in-house team, and I believe they work with CASE Agency. Jen has shared Zoom meetings they've been on on her Insta Stories and tagged Tony Yumul, one of the agency founders. I think they're old friends, but don't quote me on that. The takeaway: Use branding, imagery and clear copy on your landing page that's specific to your products and speaks to the user. They don't use a ton of copy. They show me how to use the product. They show me the ingredients, the details, the benefits I need to know. And they show me cute dogs. As my kids have gotten older, I've become a dog person. I might just buy some more even though we haven't gone through it all yet! Bonus reason: They don't use manipulative language For my friends in the online space, I want to point out that OUAI's brand voice is pop-culture-y fun. There is no misleading language or language that says if the user doesn't invest in their dog shampoo that the dog will continue to stink and have bad fur. The tactic of telling someone they will “fail” if they don't invest has been a trend in the online space for years, and now I know better. Recap: Takeaway #1: Create high quality products that solve your clients' problems and they'll try over 16 products and spend OUAI too much money with you. Takeaway #2: Clever copy, genius puns and a clean brand and product design will make your nerdy customers who love puns create an entire podcast episode about them. Takeaway #3: Use branding, imagery and clear copy on your landing page that's specific to your products and speaks to the user. They don't use a ton of copy. They show me how to use the product. They show me the ingredients, the details, the benefits I need to use. And don't be manipulative or try to make people feel bad if they're not ready to invest. That's it! And one thing I'd love to know from you (directly), is do you like these kinds of episodes? Send me a message and tell me! If you go to Melissaburkheimer.com there's a red button that says “Send Melissa a DM” and you can message me on Instagram, LinkedIn or you can email me. No one will see your message but me! Talk to you soon and thanks for tuning in! Links mentioned: LIVE WORKSHOP: Be Nice to My Brand  OUAI Mane Addicts Anti-Dandruff Shampoo Fur Bébé

Brittany Hodak is an award-winning entrepreneur, author, and customer experience speaker who has delivered keynotes across the globe to organizations, including American Express and the United Nations. She has worked with some of the world's biggest brands and entertainers, including Walmart, Disney, Katy Perry, and Dolly Parton. She founded and scaled an entertainment startup to eight figures before exiting, and she is the former Chief Experience Officer of Experience.com. Her debut book, Creating Superfans, will be in stores on January 10, 2023.  Here's what we covered on the episode:   Brittany's First Company, ZinePak Brittany grew up watching her father work in customer service, but she had always wanted to work in the entertainment industry After making her dreams come true, Brittany realized there was a huge overlap between customer experience and the entertainment industry Brittany decided to go back to school, where she got her master's degree in consumer behavior in marketing – she was curious if the same principles that would lead someone to create fans as an entertainer were the same for brands Brittany shares how she started working in the entertainment industry at a radio station when she was 16 years old and got the chance to interview rockstars After graduating, Brittany moved to New York based on a coin flip and started working for Sony Music Brittany had always had this idea since college of a fan package for album releases and making CDs something people want to purchase by making them a collectible Everyone dismissed Brittany's idea, so she decided to go out on her own and create her product using the connections she had made in the industry and her connection at Walmart, who had agreed to buy her product   How Brittany launched ZinePak (short for magazine pack) and started taking the skills she developed and started creating these immersive fan packages for album releases – within the first year and a half, they had worked with stars like Katy Perry, Taylor Swift, and Justin Bieber Brittany started reaching out to companies to buy ad space in her packages in exchange for a branded display in the store featuring their brand Brittany ran her agency for about 8 years and one day got a call from a producer who asked if they would like to be on the show Shark Tank – to which they agreed to The story of how Brittany and her co-founder went on the show Shark Tank and got offers from a couple of the Sharks, which they agreed to but ended up not doing the deal in real life Because of the visibility of the show, Brittany got a lot of invitations to speak outside of retail with very fan-driven industries that weren't related to retail or musicians going on tour Brittany continued to run her agency while doing speaking gigs, but it became hard to juggle, so at the end of 2019, she sold the majority of her equity in the business she had founded, which allowed her to do more speaking, researching, and writing Creating Superfans  Brittany's book Creating Superfans is a customer experience book that talks about the principles that anyone can do to connect more deeply with their customers to create superfans The power of creating superfans, what a superfan is, why they are important to brands, and how they create positive outcomes for your business   Brittany shares how influential her dad was in creating her business Your brand is more than the products; it's based on the experiences people have with your employees Brittany shares a story from her book of an artist who understood that the brand wasn't just him; it was everyone his fans came in contact with, whether it was the merch booth employee, the security guard, or the guitar tech that contributed to the overall experience. When starting her business, Brittany had a unique take on being told no – she thought about those no's as relationship building because although they had said no to her, those people had no idea who she was before, and now they do One thing to keep in mind is that your customer experience will never be better than your employee experience – if you don't treat your employees well, you can't expect them to treat customers well Brittany explains the SUPER Model framework she uses and teaches in her book and says that her book is to help managers, business leaders, and employees have a shared understanding and framework of customer experience  You can purchase Brittany's book anywhere – it's also offered as an eBook and audiobook The design process Brittany went through when creating her book and how she knew she wanted to use color in it, which many people do not do Brittany walks us through the key questions you should ask yourself to design your brand One goal of Brittany's in 2023 is to no longer do consulting work so she can focus on speaking With consulting, Brittany had a hard time saying no – if something outside the scope of their agreement came up and her client asked her about it, she would take care of it because she didn't set clear boundaries Now Brittany offers Intentional Experience Design Days, where somebody can hire her for a day to help architect the intentional experience they want their customers to feel throughout the whole customer journey Connect with Brittany through her website, and make sure to check out her book   Links mentioned: Creating Superfans by Brittany Hodak Brittany Kodak Website Connect with Brittany on Instagram Connect with Brittany on Twitter Connect with Brittany on LinkedIn   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Monica is an eCommerce brand mentor & consultant, a purpose-driven (digital) brand, marketing & strategy professional with 17 years of global experience building brands. She's worked across diverse sectors and companies from Fortune500 to scale- & start-ups. It all started with an MSc. Business Administration, major in Marketing. She's worked with Fortune500 companies across brand management, strategy consulting & global marketing. In addition, she has been hired by Google to coach their premium partners - 7-figure scale-ups, Tech, and SaaS & agencies who work with eCommerce businesses. Monica offers high-touch coaching & mentorship to small business, conscious, eCommerce & product, and retail entrepreneurs. She is Dutch by birth and Indian by heritage. Global by choice & education.⁠⁠⁠ A creative thinker.⁠ A dancer.⁠ A chai fanatic.⁠ A mom of 2 girls.⁠⁠    Here's what we covered on the episode:   Business With Monica + ECommerce Strategy We talk about how the eCommerce space is growing Monica worked in the corporate world for 10 years but decided she wanted to go out on her own and continue the work she was doing, but for small businesses where she could feel the impact she was having In the corporate world, Monica worked in brand management for a wide range of brands for a magazine   Monica then moved into strategy consulting, where she got to take brands from position to action plan to marketing structure Right after leaving the corporate world, Monica had a store selling home accessories but quickly realized that wasn't what she wanted to be doing The clients Monica works with have usually been in business for 1 – 3 years and have made 6 figures or close to it Monica has noticed that most people don't think about doing the brand work, customer work, or strategy work before they start The first thing Monica makes sure clients do is to get to know their customers where they do research and in-depth customer and audience interviews – you cannot run a business when you don't know whom you're speaking to   Monica uses a technique called customer story probing, where you invite customers to tell you stories so you can dive deeper into their emotions, needs, wants, and desires The 4Ds or the desire over demographic framework Monica uses outlines the 4 question categories you need to ask your customers – demographics, desires, do, and delight How you should base your marketing communication on your customers and where they live, but Monica shares some evergreen communication, such as email marketing Monica shares that many people forget about the post-purchase and says you must be nurturing your customers after they have purchased from you It's important to move away from a strategy that focuses on just the features of your product to one that evokes emotion Monica uses what she calls the customer benefit ladder to get different messaging pieces out – think about the functional benefits, the emotional benefits, the transformational benefits, and the societal benefits of your product As an example, Monica talks about Starbucks and how they were focused on creating a “third place” between home and work where you could go and hang out and get great coffee – they combine functional and emotional benefits There are many ways to get customer feedback, but Monica says nothing beats doing customer interviews because you can dive deeper into their motivations Because Monica dives in deep with her clients, she works one on one with them, and right now, she currently offers a 6-week or 6-month mentorship Most of Monica's clients are referral based Monica shares that her strategy is the same across her different clients, but the implementation is what's different for each client   How Monica works with the client's team (if they have one), instead of just with the CEO, for example – this makes sure there is cocreation, and there's not just one person making a plan Monica's expertise is in brand strategy, which is different from brand design and copywriting For marketing her own business, Monica does a lot on Instagram and LinkedIn but says she's been trying to do a lot more podcast interviews and collaborations with other people and shares that she will be adding a blog to her website soon Another way Monica markets herself is through her email lists that she emails consistently The keys to your business to create sustainable growth and impact are understanding why you're doing what you're doing, your customers, and your numbers – if you can combine your findings, you will see the answers Connect with Monica on Instagram or LinkedIn, and visit her website and get access to her 4D Download so you can take action and get to know your customers   Links mentioned:   Business With Monica Connect with Monica on Instagram  Connect with Monica on LinkedIn 4D - Desires over Demographics Download   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Nadine Nethery is the Founder of CAN DO! Content and a strategic website and email copywriter for female founders who want to intentionally attract, delight, and retain their dream customers. Her strategic take on audience research and copy turns every brand touchpoint into genuine connections that drive sales, celebrate loyalty, and surround you with keen brand advocates who happily do the word-spreading for you. Over the years, Nadine has given global e-commerce success stories, game-changing startups, and industry-disrupting service providers the words to shine and the strategies to build a sustainable business long-term.  Here's what we covered on the episode:   How Nadine Found Content Marketing + Copywriting  How Nadine filled out the pitch form on the design business show.com Nadine's specialty is Audience retention, research, and discovery Nadine has always loved language and worked as a translator, then after moving to London, Nadine worked in customer service After Nadine met her Australian husband, she moved to Australia and worked for the Volkswagen PR team for about 10 years Then Nadine had a few babies and lost the job she loved to do How Nadine went to work at Australia's largest retailer, which didn't fulfill her but gave her selling skills In the search for what Nadine wanted to do, she discovered content marketing and copywriting, which intrigued her because she has always loved writing and language The story of how Nadine found a couple of clients through social media and wrote any copy they threw her way Nadine discovered it took a lot more to write copy than she originally thought, so she took many copywriting courses, which has changed her copywriting approach into a more strategic one In late 2020, Nadine quit her corporate job to go full-time in her business, where she works with female founders to help with website and email copy that supports their audience Nadine talks about having more of an impact in her own business than she did in the corporate world Audience Research  Everything Nadine does is based on audience research – many clients believe they know their audience when they come to Nadine, but it's usually very surface level On Nadine's website, she has a DIY Toolkit that gives templates and strategies for audience research A good starting point is sending out a survey if you have an existing audience – starting with where they were at when they started working with you, what it was like working with you, any objections they had when working with you, and then you finish with tangible outcomes they had so that you can use that in your copy Nadine says you should ask very strategic and open-ended questions so clients can explain their experience in their own words, which is gold for your copy How Nadine works with eCommerce brands and service providers that are in different stages of their business Nadine focuses on nurturing the audience to look at the bigger picture Customers come to Nadine for her strategic insights, so she is currently doing everything herself without a team In her business, Nadine will give design suggestions because she knows how important it is for copy and design to work together Clients can find Nadine through her website or Instagram Nadine talks about how to know if your audience is still aligned when you are making a pivot in your business by giving people a choice to opt in or opt-out How you should clean your email list and social media regularly so you can make sure you are talking to the right people and getting better engagement   Mapping your customer journey is important so you can show up exactly where your audience needs Nadine gives an example where one of her clients anticipates her customer needs by using past purchases to suggest different products There are many lessons Nadine has learned along the way, but one big one is staying in your lane – everyone does things differently and shows up differently Nadine is a big fan of automation and using Dubsado to automate processes in her business and audience research Check out Nadine's website and connect with her on Instagram If you want to see what Nadine does, you can sign up to see Nadine's Over The Shoulder Tutorial where she takes a project through client research to website copy   Links mentioned: CAN DO! Website Pitch Form - The Design Business Show DIY Audience Toolkit Connect with Nadine on Instagram  Nadine's Over The Shoulder Tutorial   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Staci Hauschild is a director of operations and ClickUp consultant. She helps feminist entrepreneurs smash the patriarchy one deadline at a time via strategic planning and business management so CEOs can create positive change in the world, increase their profits, and take real (business-free) vacations. Staci has lived all over the world and now calls Oaxaca, Mexico, home, where she lives with her two rescue pups and a collection of rescue kittens. She enjoys hiking, collecting rare tropical plants and cacti, and believes that every day should start with a strong cup of coffee and a good book.  Here's what we covered on the episode: What Strategic Planning Is + Looks Like   Staci shares what kind of coffee she drinks to help start her day The story of how Staci came to Oaxaca, Mexico, on what was supposed to be a 3-month holiday but ended up staying because it felt like home Staci decided she could be an English teacher, or she could take her skills and put them online When Staci started, she was a virtual assistant, but even as a virtual assistant, she was a strategic partner in her client's businesses, but she didn't know that was a thing As Staci learned more, she stepped into more of a management role, and a couple of years ago, she became certified as director of operations When Staci graduated from Ops Authority Program, she fell in love with strategic planning Without CEOs and visionaries, Staci says she would not have a business – most operators are not great at creating visions for their futures, but they are great at helping other people with theirs Staci describes herself as the back-end best friend who doesn't get the credit, nor does she want it Strategic Planning, defined by Staci, is a process that creates clarity, direction, and a plan - in the corporate world, it is creating business strategies, implementing them, evaluating them, and making sure they're aligned with our revenue goals and vision for the future When Staci talks about vision, she's not just talking about the vision for your business, but the vision for your lifestyle Your business foundation is the most important, Staci says, and it includes your business mission, vision, core values, diversity, equality, and inclusion statement, and your revenue goals After building your foundation, Staci moves to build strategic objectives or the pillars of business, which are money and finance, service and sales, operational efficiencies, team and human capital, and visibility After looking at the pillars of business, Staci takes all the ideas of her clients and categorizes them by the pillars, and then they look at which strategic pillar they should be currently spending the most time on depending on their goals, needs, and visions Next, Staci will break client projects down into quarters and then into each month Each project has an owner, whether it's the CEO, a team member, or a third-party contractor Staci says the strategic plan can work for any level of business, and she helps with who's going to do it and when they're going to do it One of Staci's favorite things is visions – she sees client breakthroughs when her clients talk about their vision When someone says they want to travel more, for example, Staci helps them nail down the specifics like how often, what they look like, whether they are international or stay-home, etc. So they can get clarity around that With visions comes revenue goals, and Staci talks about being taught good, better, and best revenue goals  ClickUp + Staci's Offers Staci says she does the entire strategic planning in ClickUp, from planning to communication to creating the plan, and works with long-term clients who use ClickUp as their main platform   Operational people usually fall into two categories, those who take the managerial, leadership, and people route or the systems and tech route If Staci gets a client who wants to work in another platform besides ClickUp, she will refer them to someone else in her circle because she wants to be more efficient and have lean systems in her business It's much easier to educate people and share how you can help them when you hone in on your skills and expertise instead of speaking very broadly and wanting to help everyone One service Staci offers is an Operational Consulting Day that takes place over Voxer or WhatsApp – it works as if you're messaging your best friend throughout the day, but instead, Staci is coming it from an operational standpoint The Operational Consulting Day is to overcome one specific challenge you may have – for example; people may be working on a job description for a role they want to hire The two other services Staci offers are strategic planning and long-term Operational Business Manager (OBM) or Director of Operations (DOO), where she comes in as an integrator to the visionary, where she manages the business entirely so the CEO can step into their zone and do the things only they can do Most people don't get into business to manage a business, but that's what Staci got into business to do People are at different stages in their businesses where they have different needs and budgets, which is why Staci offers 3 different service levels in her business In her business, Staci can only take on a certain amount of retainer clients and a certain number of strategic planning clients, so she sees the Operational Consulting Day as a great way to help other people along those services How Staci and her team think no more than 6 months ahead and how this quarter, they are focused on creating a quiz/operational assessment for Staci's community to help determine what area of business they need to focus on and how to do it Your strategic plan isn't a to-do list; it's about the strategy and the goal behind it Staci didn't realize how intensive it would be to create a quiz, come up with the questions and the results, and come up with the email education sequence for each of those results Another thing Staci is working on in her business is creating a strategic planning refresh as a group program because sometimes things don't go according to plan, so she wants to help existing clients be able to refresh their plans if needed    Staci's Love For Rescuing Animals  Staci says she's always been a cat person, but because she was living all over the world, she never wanted to adopt an animal because she didn't want to put it through the stress of moving every 2 years Once Staci was stable in Oaxaca, Mexico, she adopted her first kitten, but during that time, she and her neighbor rescued and adopted out around 40 kittens When some of Staci's neighbors moved; they left behind a Siamese cat that Staci tried to adopt out, but no one wanted her because she was fully grown, so Staci took her Staci explains that while on YouTube trying to find ways to entertain her Siamese cat, she started to learn more about dogs and says she used to be afraid of dogs her entire life Living in countries where there's a high level of animal abuse and lack of resources, there are some scary dogs on the street, but Staci never knew why they were scared – she started to learn that they're scared and barking because they had been abused How a dog showed up at Staci's house that she fed, how he's never left and is now the love of her life Staci adopted her second puppy after finding her near death on the side of the road and says that she could adopt a new animal every week – sometimes she has to walk away, call a rescue organization, and says she then donates to the organization Kittens are less work than dogs because they are independent and so if she sees a kitten, she will pick it up and has reduced 4 cats in the last week One of Staci's visions in her business is to be able to donate a percentage of her profits to organizations in Oaxaca, Mexico – Staci donates to big organizations but realizes there is an opportunity within her community Staci loves working with people who want to donate their money to organizations or political campaigns because she believes we vote with our dollars and we can create change by earning more in our businesses and doing something good with it Learn more by going to Staci's website and connecting with Staci on LinkedIn Get a $250 discount on a full strategic planning session with Staci that sets you up with clarity, direction, a plan, your goals, and projects for 6 months with a high-level view of the following 6 months Links mentioned: All listeners receive $250 off a full strategic business planning service with Staci. Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Jen Szpigiel has created a multi-million dollar global iconic brand for legendary leadership, life and business. As the owner and founder of Becoming Iconic®️, Jen is infusing years of wisdom, pure-clean energy and proven strategies for the visionaries, legends and entrepreneurs who want to break expired paradigms and shift the narrative within their businesses, relationships and lives.    As an industry leader, top mentor and podcast host, be ready for Jen to expand you into your full potential as the most epic, vision centric leader for yourself and your legacy.  Here's what we covered on the episode:   How Jen Became Iconic  Jen is a mom of 4, has been an entrepreneur for 16 years, and has been in marketing and sales for even longer When Jen was younger, she had a corporate job that she loved, but after the birth of her first baby, she decided to stay home to be with her daughter While being a stay-at-home mom, Jen felt like she lost herself, so entrepreneurship seemed like the answer to her prayer because she didn't want to set the example for her daughter that you had to either choose your career or your family – she wants to help be an example that you can have it all In 2019, after growing in entrepreneurship and helping people all over the world, Jen felt called to build more of a company and brand How Jen kept hearing the word 'iconic,' but she was worried about what people would think or turning people off until she heard the word 'becoming,' and as soon as she put those words together, Becoming Iconic, her soul lit up Becoming Iconic will mean different things to different people, but we can all relate to it at some level because we share the purpose of wanting to become all that we can be The Spark of Becoming Iconic was from Jen wanting to eradicate the narrative that we have to choose and have a sacrificial life – Jen was living a harmonious life and still has a gorgeous family life and booming business, so she wanted to translate that to others Now Becoming Iconic has grown into a personal journey – in February of 2021, Jen's Instagram and Facebook were hacked and disabled, and she never got them back When Jen's accounts got hacked, she had tens of thousands of followers and was looked at as an influencer; Jen was leaning on social media to grow her business, it was her main way of communicating with her community, and in a matter of minutes, it was gone. How Jen decided to look at her accounts being hacked as a real-life example of becoming iconic – so many people came in during her success and hadn't watched her grow, so Jen thought this would be a great opportunity for people to get to know her and her grit, work ethic, love, passion and see her lead Becoming Iconic is now a movement that's growing exponentially, and since losing her social media, Jen shares that they've created their first seven figures in less than six months     Jen reflects on how she is doing the same things to grow her business now that she was doing 10-15 years ago Many people like to blame social media or use it to justify, but Jen says the truth is if you are wasting time scrolling, you're comparing, or it brings you down, that should be a point of reference for you to lead yourself better, it has nothing to do with social media Why Jen loves social media is because it opens opportunities to find incredible connections and relationships that you would have never been able to make 10 years ago When it comes to social media, Jen says consistency and discipline are the most important A lesson Jen learned as a people pleaser who lived for outward validation was to be full of herself, which most people need to learn – as an entrepreneur and leader who wants to grow a business, Jen says you are going to have people who don't agree with you or don't tell you you're doing a great job even when they think you are so, you have to look inward for validation Jen explains that she has a team and support, but she has built a business on ethics and integrity, which she feels strongly about – so when you come into her DMs, it's not someone pretending to be her; it's actually her It's a contradiction in your life and business to want to be a seven-figure business owner but want to do as little as you can in a day and want to rest – they can exist together, but it's this harmonious living and working hard, and feeling like you had a productive day that Jen thinks people are losing Part of the reason people don't want to work as hard is that they grew up in hustle culture, but Jen shares some great things about hustle culture, too, like having a work ethic, following through, and being dedicated You can work hard and get rest – when you work hard in your business, Jen says, that's when it starts to thrive Becoming Iconic is mainly mentorships; Jen does a lot of private, deep, relational mentorships, which is what she thrives on Jen also has a podcast that is part of the brand - it is rated top in business and lifestyle across the globe   Another part of Becoming Iconic is Jen's magazine and boutique agency How Jen describes Becoming Iconic as an umbrella company that supports entrepreneurs, whether service or product based, to build multiple, six or seven, eight-figure businesses Jen focuses on leadership, who are you being in your life and business because she will not grow a business that hurts your family or breaks relationships, nor will she let her clients lean in on that as an excuse to not fulfill your dream and destiny within your business Jen's Rebrand + Magazine The story of how Jen and her business partner decided to part ways so Jen could stand on her own two feet and the things that came to light because of it Most of Jen's time in business was dictated by what people told her she could and couldn't do until she started doing it her way and began pioneering the coaching industry Jen shares that she went to school for fashion and has always loved style – when she went on her own, she decided to explore that in her business and did more fashion and branding photoshoots, which she loves How Jen was finally able to fall into herself and follow her intuition in her business and create her Becoming Iconic Magazine, which has been a dream of hers since she was 20 years old, even after so many told her it wasn't a good idea Jen wanted her magazine to be a place for entrepreneurs to get sound business advice but also be inspired by beautiful things, lifestyle, places to visit, and things to eat – so she created it, and it has been one of the most successful things she's done What holds many people back is wanting to do something perfectly the first time, so Jen shares some of the errors inside her first issue of the magazine and how she used them as an opportunity to be better Jen walks through the different features and columns within her magazine and how some are more business based while others are more life based You can have the digital copy of the magazine complimentary on Jen's website, or you can subscribe to get the beautiful glossy pages delivered to your doorstep The two other people Jen has on her team to help with the magazine are her designer and her operational business manager – Jen does all the copy and even handwrites the addresses on envelopes because it means so much to her that people would subscribe The Becoming Iconic Podcast + Offers Jen created The Becoming Iconic Podcast to explore conversations, meet new people, and help those who aren't ready to come into her world to be mentored by her How Jen's intention for her magazine and podcast was not to make money - they are passion projects of hers, but they do bring in income In Jen's offers, it's a lot of intimate setting work because she loves relationships and partnerships In 2023, the main ways to work with Jen are through private coaching or her mastermind called Icons which is about teaching women that they do not have to wait for success to feel like the women they want to become   Jen feels that 2023 will be a year of deepening the experiences she offers to make them the best they can be If Jen wakes up tomorrow and wants to try something, she can because she's not attached to the outcome; she's attached to creating an exceptional experience which gives allows her to do things in a playful, curious way Creative Direction in Photoshoots Jen says she found a great photographer and videographer who work together and says she wanted to create a fashion influencer vibe under a coaching umbrella The inspiration behind Jen's photoshoot came from a fashion influencer in Germany, and she shares that she wanted to create photos that were mysterious, inspiring, professional, and edgy-elegant all that the same time Jen does her hair and makeup for her photoshoots because it's more about the feeling than how she looks Why Jen believes putting on clothes and being presentable is part of what makes her feel good because after Jen had her first daughter, she lost herself and became the sweatpants mom after having gone to school for fashion, so it makes her feel better to get up, put a little makeup on and get dressed Jen talks about how we're told to build our email lists so if we lose our social media, we'll still have access to everybody, which is true, but Jen doesn't believe the outcome is as solid as we're teaching – not all the people on your email list will refollow you on your new social media How Jen communicates through email but is not consistent with it because, to her, there are so many other ways that are more elevated to connect and communicate with her audience Jen's 3 favorite places to communicate with her audience are through her magazine, podcast, or Instagram Many of us spend too much time in the ‘waiting' – we're waiting to feel ready, confident, for the right time, for somebody to give us to go ahead, etc., and what Jen knows is that these things don't lead us into decisions, what does is our heart, soul, and trust You don't have to wait to do what you want and chase your dreams – Jen says there will never be a right moment, so create the perfect moment for yourself Check out Jen's website, Becoming Iconic, listen to her podcast, view her magazine, and connect with her on Instagram     Links mentioned: Becoming Iconic Website Becoming Iconic Magazine The Becoming Iconic Podcast Work With Jen  Connect with Jen on Instagram   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Amanda Walker is a certified master coach who inspires coaches to become better coaches. Amanda is passionate about helping coaches and online service-based business owners get their clients massive results in order to grow a profitable coaching practice. She is the host of the Best Damn Coach Podcast and runs the premier coaching program for coaches, Best Damn Coach.   Here's what we covered on the episode:   Amanda's Start to Coaching How Amanda had sent me a pitch over the summer to come on the show and talk about high-touch marketing strategies that you can use to grow your business organically Amanda's perspective is that everyone is a coach in some way – if you're a parent, you're a coach; if you're a spouse, you're a coach; if you run a business, you're talking to clients that you're coaching in some element   This first coaching job Amanda had was coaching boy's pee-wee basketball at age 15 – it was that job that made her realize she had a passion and a gift for helping people create results Amanda wore a lot of different coaching hats and was a teacher, but the year after her son was born, she decided she didn't want to continue teaching; Amanda took a year of sabbatical in case she wanted to come back but ended up falling into entrepreneurship How Amanda opened how her own coaching practice in the health and fitness industry, which she did for about 6 years - she had success in organically attracting many coaches and aspiring coaches Many coaches attracted to Amanda's work wanted her to help them in their business, which is how she decided to move in that direction with her business Amanda wanted to help coaches scale to 6 figures and beyond practitioners but, more importantly, work on the art and mastery of coaching because she believes there are a lot of outside resources, but the one thing that will trump when it comes to growing your business organically is, results that you create with your clients   After Amanda had children, she went through a personal weight loss journey, and her first clients were her fellow gym-goers who saw her transformation and wanted help doing the same thing As business owners, we're all serving people, and the most important thing we will do is create results because our people become walking billboard advertisements for us The first few years of Amanda's coaching business were done through email because she was afraid of live coaching, and for the first client she had, she charged $50 for the month because she was scared to ask for money The online coaching industry is predicted to be a 20-billion-dollar industry globally by the end of 2022 Because there are so many online coaches, Amanda's mission is to help her clients stand out, and her perspective is that you don't do that from fancy Facebook ads or templates – what makes them stand out is who they are as people and how they connect with others Amanda's Offerings + High-Touch Strategies Amanda's signature program, Best Damn Coach, is a 6-month to year-long experience - Amanda believes it doesn't do service to entrepreneurs to have a course, step-by-step mission – Amanda believes in real-life support from real-life people holding space for us to be accountable The Business Accelerator is another one of Amanda's offerings that aim to take coaches, consultants, and mentors to the 6-figure mark Amanda's high-level mastermind called the Inner Circle for those who are already succeeding and looking for intimate upleveling strategies – they have live events and retreats that coincide with this mastermind Why Amanda keeps one-to-one clients because she believes that to teach coaching, she needs to be involved in it  When you're growing organically, the first thing you need to do, Amanda says, is shut out the rest of the noise and get back to the basics of human connection How you can grow to a 6-figure business without a large email list through intentional connections with your small audience At the core level, we are meant to be part of a tribe; when we think about that, we have more opportunities to make our clients feel connected to us, safe, and trusted. Amanda is a practitioner of NLP, and something she teaches her clients right away is understanding what rapport is – there's verbal rapport and unconscious rapport When you hear someone's voice or when you hear your name, you automatically build a deeper level of unconscious rapport, which is why Amanda teaches clients to take communication out of text messages and take them into audio or video Amanda shares that she communicates with her email list twice a week – One is a call to action to listen to that week's episode of the Best Damn Coach Podcast, and the other is a message dedicated to celebrating clients When Amanda showcases the results clients are having, it builds trust – she usually takes a screenshot of a result a client shared with her and writes about it High-touch strategies to Amanda is going above and beyond in the most personal way to cultivate a feeling Amanda leverages audio and video in email marketing by sending a video in the first email after someone signs up for one of her programs so they can see her and hear her voice Another high-touch strategy Amanda does is calling each person who signs up for one of her programs When Amanda has a warm connection, she will reach out with a personal audio message Amanda is constantly looking to nurture the person versus taking a blanket approach to marketing The story of Amanda's client who hosted a workshop and how she sent a personalized audio message to those who attended and those who signed up but didn't attend to see if they had any questions – she got great results from this high-touch strategy that led to a purchase of the workshop     Another client of Amanda's sends audio messages back in response to the direct messages she receives on Instagram and asks to hop on a call with them to help answer their question further, which has yielded great results Inside Amanda's Best Damn Coach program, they focus on the 4 Ss of coaching: Sales, Service, Strategy, and Self-Coaching In the Business Accelerator program, they dive deeper into creating frameworks by looking at the common steps clients take when they see success Within Amanda's teaching, there are many frameworks she uses; one, for example, is the BEST model is one Amanda teaches to create flow and results inside a coaching session   In the Best Damn Coach Podcast, Amanda explains that they focus on 3 things – 1) helping listeners be better coaches, mentors, and guides, 2) helping listeners coach themselves, 3) helping listeners grow a thriving business Two things in Amanda's business that she has stuck to are communicating with her email list every week and posting consistently with her podcast because she says it's important to show up when people are expecting you to Amanda says entrepreneurship was the greatest journey of personal development she never knew she needed because it brings up insecurities and weaknesses that are exposed for a growth opportunity How personal development is tied directly to your profit – Amanda says if you are not nurturing yourself, there is no way to handle the mindset drama that happens inside a business Personal practices that Amanda uses are journaling and using her personal certifications to visualize where she dreams of taking her business What Makes a Good Coach? When someone says yes to you, Amanda says you have to understand that clients go through a moment of buyer's remorse, so immediately you want to instill belief in them and reconfirm that their success is inevitable, which is a step many people miss because they're more focused on the details like booking a call with them or having them fill out a form One thing that makes a great coach is your ability to create results – Amanda says if your clients are putting in the work and they don't see results, it's time to reevaluate your coaching, and just because you get a certification, it does not mean that you are ready, able or confident enough to cultivate that Another piece that Amanda believes makes a great coach is your ability to do the work yourself – Amanda says she only takes her clients as far as she's willing to go herself A couple of reasons coaches don't make money is because of fear, they don't have a clear offer, or because they have money drama – in the beginning, people want to be accessible to everyone, but you might not always be the best fit for someone to come in and invest in you In the past couple of years, Amanda thinks the global pandemic positively impacted the online coaching world through many opportunities because coaching becomes more powerful as more people are exposed to it   Amanda also believes coaching rivals therapy because there are things coaches can do that therapists are limited to – it's the reason she works with so many therapists that are transitioning into coaching because they see the value in both During the pandemic, Amanda also learned that there are a lot of disappointing things happening in the coaching world around integrity There is no barrier to entry in the coaching world, so anyone can decide to be a coach for whatever they want, and no one is checking in on them; there's no certification required Amanda created the Best Damn Coach program because they believe you don't need a certification to be an amazing coach, but you do need to have a heart for integrity, hone your craft, and be able to learn from other people Listen to the Best Damn Coach Podcast – on Tuesdays, they release content-driven episodes, and on Fridays, they release behind-the-scenes episodes where you get to hear Amanda live coach somebody Connect with Amanda on Instagram, where she has many free resources  Links mentioned: Best Damn Coach Podcast Best Damn Coach Program  The Business Accelerator Inner Circle Connect with Amanda on Instagram   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Nhat is the Director of Bridge Creations, he established the business in 2021 through a background of emotional trauma with discrimination, abuse, and workplace toxicity, but contrary built potent health with a desire for sports. The two fields led to opposing outcomes of good and bad health, valuing the need for adequate well-being with picturing a deduction of health implications. He combines his health background with his graphic design experience to envision visual collateral to aid, encourage and empower healthy living. Nhat graduated from the University of Canberra in 2021 with a Master of Design Strategies; he also holds a Bachelor's and an Honours degree in graphic design, specializing in visual communication, branding, design-led innovation, and information graphics. Here's what we covered on the episode: The Why Behind Bridge Creations The story of Nhat's university assignment, which made him realize the impact graphic design has on health, and the article he wrote with his colleagues called Service Design Thinking For Social Good Nhat has had many health issues since he was around 12 years old, dealing with racism, school-yard bullying, and cyberbullying, and for 4 years, was a victim of a toxic workplace Why Nhat is passionate about improving health with graphic design so hopefully, in the future, health issues can be reduced How graphic design can communicate facts and health information more effectively – covid is a great example because when you scroll on social media, you see posts about daily numbers or graphics on how to stop the spread Nhat's assignment combined two areas, health and graphic design – the assignment was a brochure on how to prevent childhood obesity that communicated strategies, was persuasive, informative, and engaging  Current clients of Nhat's come from networking events in Canberra, Australia, which is one of the most innovative cities in the world and Australia Each month, Nhat attends a networking group called the Canberra Innovation Network, which includes many different entrepreneurs and investors, which is how he has gotten his current clients  Even if a company has nothing to do with health, Nhat is good at finding some small components – for example, one of his recent clients has a company that uses nursery rhymes to help school kids with vocabulary learning, and Nhat was able to find some health-related elements like mental and social health to help improve their wellbeing and learning At this stage in his business, Nhat is trying to build evidence through the clients he has so that in the future, he can have more proof behind his process and send proposals out to health-related entrepreneurs  Nhat shares another client example where they changed their logo to help improve awareness of their business and significantly improved their marketing content  A lot of Nhat's current clients are entrepreneurs because they can lack the graphic design skills needed to effectively communicate their message, which is how Nhat helps  Nhat is most passionate about physical health in the industry, and before his university project on childhood obesity, he did a hypothetical promotion on health for university students to improve exercise, which helped him shape his business niche Because of Nhat's sports background, he has much experience with the physical, mental, and social benefits that physical health has  In the future of his business, Nhat hopes to see people applying more visual collateral because, while in school, he realized how underestimated and underappreciated graphic design is The Future of Bridge Creations + Design Tips  Many people think graphic design is the cherry on top, but Nhat believes it's the opposite because when you look at marketing, people tend to focus more on images and videos, which is why it's so important to implement  In the future, Nhat would like to assist clients with anything from their marketing content to their branding to their website and would like to see health service providers better improve the usage of graphic design because he would love to see a reduction of health issues  Nhat focuses on static images and photos but can consult and identify strategies for video content as well and, most recently, has worked on logos for clients, along with other promotional materials  In the future, Nhat would be interested in doing public speaking to share his passion for graphic design and health, along with sharing his own story  Nhat likes to include the why behind his business on his website and in the pitches he gives because his personal experience played such an important part in shaping his business  Evidence building is one of the most important things Nhat has learned since starting his business – it's not enough to just say how great your service is; you need to be able to show the impact it has had for past clients  One of the biggest mistakes people make when it comes to health and design is designing something just because they think it's right; you need to make sure you're inclusive and make sure you understand your audience so you can pinpoint their pain points in the promotional content The name of Nhat's business, Bridge Creations, came from his thinking about bridging the gap between health and graphic design  Check out Nhat's website and connect with Nhat on LinkedIn   Links mentioned:   Bridge Creations Service Design Thinking For Social Good Connect with Nhat on LinkedIn   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Cristina Robinson is the founder and designer behind The Lovely Geek, a web design studio aimed at elevating women in their online presence. Her passion for the web started in high school and led to an internship with Intel, followed by several years of freelancing. Armed with her Bachelor of Science degree in Web Design & Interactive Media, she spent nearly a decade working for local Sacramento agencies before ultimately becoming her own boss. Her experience from the big agencies inspired her to help small businesses, and now she works almost exclusively with female solopreneurs making their brands shine.    Here's what we covered on the episode:   How Cristina Got Her Start in Web Design How I met Cristina through Paty Ventura, who was on episode 193 of the podcast  Cristina was inspired to create her own website after meeting a friend at summer camp who had a website on Yahoo Geocities and an online journal  If you wanted to customize any text or put in any images, you had to learn HTML, so Cristina started teaching herself a lot of the basics  In high school, Cristina took a beginning HTML class, and the teacher saw she was passionate and showed a lot of promise, so he asked her to be his teacher's assistant for her senior year  While being a teacher's assistant, Cristina got the chance to redesign and maintain the school's website Other school staff members noticed Cristina's work, and then she found out about an internship for high school students with Intel, which her teachers encouraged her to apply for During her Intel internship, Cristina met a lot of other students, got a great learning experience, and it gave her insight into the corporate world   Unfortunately, most colleges at the time didn't offer a web design degree, the closest they had was majoring in communications or computer science, but that wasn't the route Cristina wanted to go Cristina started looking at more specialized schools, like The Art Institute, where she was able to find a web design and interactive media major  How Cristina's first freelance client was the traditional nightmare client who made her question if she actually wanted to freelance  While in college, Cristina was able to get her first paid internship with a local agency, and after she graduated, it turned into a full-time role Most of the people at the agency Cristina had gone to school with, so she knew their work ethic, and they were able to collaborate well together  This agency is where Cristina met Paty because they both went to The Art Institute and worked at this agency together  The agency was big into tourism, so Cristina got to work on a few projects for Yosemite, the state fair, and a lot of local businesses in the Sacramento area   Cristina says she had a lot of great learning experiences and met a lot of people from working at the agency Because Cristina grew up 45 mins away from Sacramento, she didn't really know her major city until she started working at the agency, which made her appreciate it After working at this agency for a few years, Cristina got a job at another agency where she was able to focus on design - she got to do website design, interface design, print design, and dabble in app design     When Cristina got pregnant with her daughter, she decided to stay home and went back to freelancing, which is how she ended up where she is today  All of Cristina's clients have been referral based and have been people that she's worked with already in some capacity  Most of Cristina's freelance work has been with small business owners, usually solopreneurs, and she shares she only started working with companies when at the agencies   Cristina has done enough work to realize her sweet spot is working one-on-one with women - women much like herself who want to be their own boss, and Cristina comes in to help with the online portion  How Cristina started branding this year because she found that the people coming to her either had a brand they created but weren't happy with or they had nothing  Branding isn't Cristina's preferred offering, she can do it, but she would rather partner with someone so she could send clients to that person for the branding experience and then have clients come back to her to take care of their website  Cristina shared she just found someone she would like to partner with who does branding   Staying Organized + Keeping Clients for Life  For project management, Cristina uses Dubsado because it has a great client portal option, but she also uses Notion and has found it very handy for her retainer clients - with Notion, Cristina creates content and calendars, tracks hours, tracks projects, and says you can create whatever you want   How Cristina recommended Notion to her husband, who is a Twitch streamer and content creator, and now he uses it to organize all his YouTube videos and TikToks and even writes his scripts in it  In Notion, Cristina will create a content calendar, and within that calendar, she has different templates for each content type - blogs, emails, Instagram posts, Reels or TikToks, etc. For example, Cristina will look at her calendar and see that on Tuesday, she wants to do a blog post, so she'll select her blog post template, which already has all the fields she needs in it    Within the database in Notion, Cristina can see a list of all of her content, and as she's brainstorming, she can put all her ideas in one place so when it comes time to map out her content, it's very easy to do and well organized   Cristina says she's always been a blogger and likes to create that content when she has time   One tool people should be utilizing the power of LinkedIn because their algorithm can get you a lot of exposure - Cristina recommends using LinkedIn's section where you can write articles  One thing Cristina likes to do is create an article on LinkedIn that's similar to a blog post she already has, so if someone wants to read more, they can click over to her website to read the blog post, so she's still driving traffic to her website  Cristina offers a retainer service after she's worked with a client on their project because she finds that people end up wanting to be very hands-off and want someone to help maintain - Cristina says it's really up to the client what they want her to do A lot of times, Cristina's retainer clients will write up blog posts by throwing their content in a word document, and then she's responsible for scheduling it, putting together the graphics, and making sure it goes on all the right platforms Cristina always designs her websites with the intention of the client saying, thanks, I've got it from here, but a lot of times, the clients want her to continue to help maintain     In Notion, Cristina has a client-facing content planner for her clients to see what content is scheduled - then they can make decisions on adjustments or adding on  Clients have appreciated seeing their content scheduled out so they can see where they're at and what they need to provide Cristina has found that most clients have worked with another website designer who worked with them one time and then disappeared, which makes Cristina sad because then the clients don't have the tools they need to maintain  It's important to Cristina that she emphasizes no matter what, even if it's been days, months, or years since she's worked on a client project, they are a client for life, so they can always reach out to her  There was a time while working at the agencies when Cristina was not taking on freelance work, but she still took care of and helped her current clients  When people feel taken care of, they're going to have nice things about you  The biggest tip Cristina has is to build a routine based on what works for you and know what time you have blocked off for certain tasks  It's important for Cristina to balance work while being a mom - her kids are up from as early as 6:00 am and take a nap around 1:00 pm, so she knows that the tasks she's working on during those hours need to be ones where it's okay if she's interrupted or ones where she's not being paid hourly  Knowing which tasks require your full, entire attention vs. which tasks can be interrupted a little bit is important  Check out Cristina's website, The Lovely Geek.com, and connect with her on Instagram     Links mentioned: The Lovely Geek Website Episode 193 with Paty Ventura  Connect with Cristina on Instagram Connect with Cristina on Pinterest   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

We are Jessia Gleim (rhymes with slime) and Amy Christie (yes, she has two first names). Together, we founded Flairst, which is grounded in our love of creative thinking, enthusiasm, and problem-solving. Our passion is empowering ambitious women-led DTC eCommerce brands. Consider us your strategy and growth partner - we'll scale your business through personalized, data-driven omnichannel social media advertising and help you make shit loads of money! We don't just focus on the now. Instead, we help bulletproof the future of your business by creating sustainable, profitable revenue. At Flairst, we're all about putting money in the hands of women. Nothing makes us happier or more fulfilled than seeing our clients win BIG!  Here's what we covered on the episode:   How Jessica + Amy Got Started How Jessica and Amy sent me a message about being on the show and why I think the story of their business is important Jessica and Amy both have fine art degrees and had separate businesses before creating Flairst together Jessica shares that she loves paper products and was designing a series with Shutterfly but had some health problems and needed a way to do her own thing, which is why she started her freelance design business in 2014 After doing some design, someone asked Jessica if she could help with marketing, so she had her own marketing business going on for a while; then, around 2015, someone asked if Jessica could help with Facebook Ads, which is how she got into ads In 2016, Jessica had her first child and quickly realized she could not be a one-woman show; Jessica dreamed of having a partner but never thought she would because she needed someone who could do it all and understood being a parent Both Jessica and Amy had been going to a conference called Alt Summit for 10 years and had previously met there, but they didn't remember meeting until they randomly got paired as roommates After sitting down with each other at the conference to get to know each other, Jessica asked Amy to join her business While at home with her oldest, Amy decided she needed something that fed her soul, so she learned everything about blogging, and within a year of blogging, she was also creating content for other people Amy shares that she got to see the launch of many social platforms and got to figure out how they worked for creators and how they've changed to have advertising As Amy's kids got older and more involved, she found content creation exhausting and needed something where she could leverage the skills she already had – Amy could build a website, create graphics, write copy, and build ads, but she didn't know how to do all of that and get clients How Amy will be attending Alt Summit in New York this fall, but Jessica will not because she is 9 months pregnant and will be having her second child soon We talk about the Alt Summit conference, which Jessica and Amy recommend for anyone in the creative space - the information is good, it's aesthetically pleasing, and the community is great Blessing of a Business Partnership + Flairst When Jessica and Amy are interviewed on podcasts, the host always says they are the first duo they've ever talked to, which always surprises Jessica and Amy because so many people wished they had a partner How motherhood, living during a pandemic, and entrepreneurship can all be very isolating – there are very few people who understand it, even if your friends and family support you in it Jessica and Amy didn't go into their business to only work with women; it just naturally happened that way – their mission is to put money back into the pockets of women and families   It's hard to be a parent, a primary caregiver, and a businesswoman at the same time, which is why Jessica and Amy believe it takes a village – not just with your children or yourself but also within your business   Jessica shares that having a partner to be with her and help grow their team has been so impactful not just for the business but for her mental health Although Jessica and Amy have similar backgrounds and learning abilities, they are opposites - Jessica says she is unorganized, has her head in the clouds, and has to focus on the next step in front of her, while Amy is organized, grounded, and looks at the end goal How being opposites has been beneficial for their business, their mental health, and just life Jessica says being a parent and having a business mesh together well because it gives you the flexibility you need   Amy says the jobs they worked before creating Flairst were partly out of necessity because of the lifestyle they were living at the time and how their current work also compliments their current lifestyle, where if they need to drop what they're doing for their kids, they can do that   Jessica and Amy's business is rooted in social media advertising, and Jessica shares that social media has been a blessing because so many women have been able to create businesses, substantial income, and influence from their phones on their own time - they know it can be hard to get back into the workforce after having children or taking a gap between working Amy wishes the type of partnership she has with Jessica on every woman because even though they don't live in the same place, the mental and emotional support that comes with being a partner and sharing the responsibility of growing a business together is something Amy wishes everyone could have Even contractors and other members of your team that aren't as fully invested in your business have a different take on the business – Jessica and Amy are equally attached to the business Because there are two of them, Jessica and Amy have been able to lean into what they are really good at because they don't have to do absolutely everything by themselves Amy shares the conversation she and Jessica had at Alt Summit when they decided to work together after barely knowing each other When Amy came in, she brought the business mindset because, at the time, Jessica didn't have a website or brand name, just an LLC, a bookkeeper, and clients for them to work with Jessica and Amy had much trust for not knowing each other well but had made a pact early on to always tell each other the truth no matter what In 2019, Jessica and Amy went back to Alt Summit and gave a presentation about ads which is when they decided ad strategy for direct-to-consumer, women-led, eCommerce businesses would be their only offer One of the best things Jessica and Amy have done for their business is working with a business coach whom they work with individually and together Before narrowing down their offer, Jessica and Amy did everything under the sun for clients but found they could best serve clients by just offering ad strategy, which they are really good at The advertising education Jessica and Amy have has come from the free resources they've found on the internet How Jessica and Amy have always been obsessed with the psychology behind why people make purchase decisions and the emotional relationship that goes into advertising   Jessica and Amy say to think of advertising like online dating – all these steps need to happen before you ask someone to marry you Typically, Jessica and Amy get clients through fostering relationships and networking by going to conferences, usually with women, because women like to create relationships before making a business decision Amy shares that they work with direct-to-consumer eCommerce businesses that own their data  If you're a business on Amazon or Etsy, that platform owns your business data When Jessica and Amy work with clients, it's less about the product the client sells and more about what stage they are at in their business Because of the changes in the iOS update, pandemic changes, and the growth of digital advertising, the market has changed – when Amy was first starting, all of the social media platforms worked for the creator, but now the algorithm has changed to benefit the platform so they can run ads  Ad costs have gone up, making it more complicated for small businesses   The businesses that Jessica and Amy work with are usually well-established, mature businesses that are in the 2.5 – 3-million-dollar range because that allows them to have an ad spend range of $20,000 – $25,000 a month to be able to pay to play on social media platforms It can be frustrating for small businesses that can't afford to pay to play, but Jessica and Amy highly suggest growing your organic marketing by building your email list, social media, community, and influence until you are to a point where you can scale Creating a Direct-To-Consumer Brand + Data Driven Ads Direct-to-consumer brands that have created products that hit an emotional pain point or solution with their consumers will be successful Jessica and Amy don't see success with direct-to-consumer brands who create a product and then go try to find their target market, but if you create an audience and community and then sell to them based on what they are asking you and what they need, that's where you will find success Amy says brand and product positioning is about your customers remembering that you have served them well and will continue to engage with them – you need to have your product proven organically by a community of people   There are a lot of different ways to run an ad strategy, but Amy says the first step is to pick your objectives In ad strategy, there are a lot of levels because you are working with many different people at different stages in the buying cycle You want to bring in new people to grow your community, make sure you're managing and supporting your current customers, and grow the lifetime value – which is where the organic marketing portion comes in with Jessica and Amy's ad strategy Jessica gives an example to show how it's not just one advertisement: it's a whole strategy cycle to get someone who has never heard of you to become a repeat customer Amy says that their strategy and all strategies should be built on data which is why businesses today need to be thinking about building their data portfolio Before the iOS update, Amy explained that data on the internet was like one of those big communities where the backyard of all the homes is shared; each of the homes would be a different social media platform, and they all shared the same third-party data – it was inexpensive and free for anyone to use    After the iOS privacy update, it's like all the backyards were fenced in, so now you only have access to your backyard, which is why it should be your top priority to build your data portfolio because that's what's necessary to build efficient, functional, profitable ads    We talk about the mascara line I want to create, the story behind it, and how to create a community first to then launch my product Connect with Jessica and Amy on Instagram, TikTok, or visit the Flairst website – feel free to ask them questions because they want to know what other business owners are curious about and want to know             Links mentioned:   Flairst Website Connect with Jessica + Amy on Instagram  Connect with Jessica + Amy on TikTok   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Hi. My name is Melissa. If you're new here - hey!! I'm so glad you're here today. If you're not new, heeey! I'm grateful that I get the privilege of being in your ears and eyes. I say ears for those who listen and eyes for those who prefer to read the show notes on our website. Sometimes I prefer to skim show notes instead of listening to a podcast. I'm a fast reader and easily distracted; plus I wanna make sure the show is accessible to them in whatever ways they want to digest the info. Anyways - here we are, several weeks after I “should've” recorded and published this episode; but I just could not bring myself to do it. Not for any reason other than I didn't really know what to say beyond the cheesy “I can't believe it's been 200 episodes” sentiment. I wanted it to be extra special. Then I put a lot of pressure on myself (which I then resisted) and then I wonder if what I have to say is still relevant. I've recorded at least a dozen solo episodes and haven't felt this kind of anxiety about publishing an episode before. So I didn't force it; I gave myself lots of grace until it's like okay girl - time to move forward. Last night I watched The Redeem Team on Netflix with my youngest son; and I believe it was Dwyane Wade who said (I'm paraphrasing here) that you're not moving because you're afraid of success. As long as you move, it's good, so here I am, moving. I've got some very unrealistic, but fun goals for this podcast in the future; so first and foremost I want to say thank you to everyone for listening, sharing, connecting, and just giving me the privilege of helping you. And, this is very important, a thank you to Cora and Grace, who help me publish the show every week. If there's ever a week we don't publish; it's always on me and I'm so grateful for their support. I started out the show doing everything myself and realized quickly I couldn't keep doing it all on my own. The podcast origin story + future plans for the show  I launched the show in October 2018, so just over 4 years ago. My friend Kira Hug, who is the co-founder and co-host of The Copywriter Club podcast, interviewed me for the first episode and for episode 100. Kira was really the first one to tell me to host a podcast and didn't really listen to me when I gave her all the reasons why I shouldn't have one. I recorded the first episode and sat on it for 6 months; published 4 episodes; and then didn't really take it seriously until January 2019. At that time in my business I was running paid mentorship programs for designers and this one messaged me to tell me that she loved my show and listened to it at the gym; and it really motivated me to take it a little more seriously. At 200 episodes in, we've interviewed 150+ diverse experts and received over 120,000 downloads. We've been ranked a top podcast for entrepreneurship in Sweden, New Zealand, Japan, India, Great Britain, Germany, Colombia, Brazil and Australia, and a top podcast in business in Belgium, Czeck Republic, Egypt, Ireland, Pakistan, South Africa, South Africa, and United Arab Emirates, and a top podcast for all podcasts in both Cyprus and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. In 2019 we won “Best Podcast” at the Social Media Club Hashie Awards, and I almost didn't submit the podcast for the award. My friend Caroline Jones gave me the nudge, and I still can't believe I won. So apparently my questioning the podcast relevance is normal, but not necessary. A lot of podcasts get more downloads + rankings and awards, and some get less. I'm very content with where I'm at, and don't stress about that stuff. I really like how we tell the stories of the guests on the show - and the nitty gritty details that help me understand how they got to where they are; so I can see what's possible for me. In college I don't really feel like it was explained very well what opportunities were available to me, so that's one of the reasons I love this show. And, I get to talk about what I don't think is mentioned enough in this industry; how design, copy, marketing, strategy, UX, tech, systems and all the creative elements have to work together to create successful brand campaigns + product launches. It's becoming more and more clear to me that understanding those things is one of my super powers. As I learn to embody this super power, and my business shifts and evolves into doing more creative launch direction for B2C brands; I'm really excited to tell more stories behind-the-scenes of your favorite product launches + brand campaigns from designers, founders, creators and to understand like we did with the McDonald's rebrand in episode 116 with Tyler Brooks and the Jill Brand Launch with Meagan Carboney in episode 184. So, if you're someone who has a product launch or brand campaign behind-the-scenes story you want to share on the show; go to the “Be a Guest” in the footer of our website to submit your pitch. I'm much more interested in the nitty gritty details than your 3-step formula. And while you're on the website; you can sign up for email updates to be the first to know when episodes go live. I'm excited to incorporate the emails in our weekly production process so I can share a few personal insights about every episode as it goes live. The behind-the-scenes of my new podcast art If you're on the website or have visited it or you listen on any podcast platform; you may have noticed we're slowly making some much-needed design changes. When I launched the show, I kept the same podcast art with a photo of me in a blush suit jacket with my hair pinned back and very curly. As both the show and my personal brand have evolved; I knew it was time for new podcast art. It's one of those things I tried doing on my own after putting it off for months and months. And then I decided to hire a designer to help me. One thing I'm very clear about right now in this phase of my life is that I don't want to put my face all over the internet right now. Maybe in 2023. Not now, though. So, I knew for the new podcast art, I didn't want to use my photo. I really like the podcast episode graphic we use to share on social media and the logo; I just wanted new art. So, I hired Taylor Weaver, and she nailed the concept in the first try. Score! Thank you, Taylor! In the next phases of the rebrand; we'll be making some updates to the UX of the podcast website. Most likely in 2023. A thank you note to my younger self  On a little bit of a personal note; last month I was driving to one of my son's football games that was 3 hours away; and on the way I listened to Kendall Jenner's interview on Jay Shetty's On Purpose podcast. There was a video clip that went viral of Kendall talking about being kind to her inner child and that anytime you're mean to yourself, you're being mean to your younger self. So, she has a photo of herself as a little girl on her bathroom mirror “so that every morning, every night, every day when you walk into your bathroom and look and the mirror your looking at her and remembering that if there's anything negative that you're saying about yourself, or ever being mean to yourself, you're talking about her.” This really resonated with me, not because I'm doing any inner child work; but because I think it's important to be kind to yourself and to pay attention to the things you say about yourself. I hesitated to record + publish this solo episode and one reason was because I wondered if anything I had to was relevant without another guest on the show. I even question it when I have guests on the show. If you saw the title graphic for this episode on social media; and the graphic actually features an image of me from when I was a kid. I was probably 11 in the image and it was from a photoshoot my sister and I had done as kids to promote our singing business. My mom made our costumes, my dad was our manager and we were living our parents dream. My mom had the calendar made in 1997; and kept it on her wall until at least 2005 when she sold her house. Unfortunately for my parents, I killed their dream of my sister and I becoming pop stars because I didn't like all the practice that went along with it. Sorry mom & dad! Now I get to use my voice in a different way; by talking to the creators, designers, and founders behind your favorite product launches and brand campaigns to uncover why they do what they do in the way that they do it. Because to me, graphic design is not just what a website or logo looks like. It's about strategically using beauty and language to construct a path that connects your ideal customers to your products and services. A final thank you and an ask I can't believe that we're at episode 200. It's been four years since I launched this show. Four years and 200 episodes is wild to me. The fact that people listen to a show I created simply because I wanted to know what opportunities were available to me is wild. And the fact that people still engage; and want to be a guest on the show blows my mind. I'm just a regular chick from the midwest who became a mom super young whose kids are pretty self sufficient; and I'm excited to explore the new opportunities out there for me and spread the word even more. And I have a short ask: leave us a review. You can do it on any platform - we're on iTunes, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Stitcher and Spotify. I have one more ask: Send me a message and tell me if any episodes have inspired you and/or you have anyone you think I should interview. If you go to Melissaburkheimer.com there's a red button that says “Send Melissa a DM” and you can message me on Instagram, LinkedIn or you can email me. I'll be sharing more soon about what I've been working on in my business; it's not quite ready yet; or maybe I'm not ready yet (I published this episode - a big to-do off my list!). Remember to be nice to your younger self and be nice to my friend. Talk to you soon! Links mentioned: Episode 1 Episode 100 Episode 118 Episode 184 Be a Guest on the Show   Like what you heard? Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!

Kate Ahl is the owner and founder of Simple Pin Media, a Pinterest management and marketing company. Through their work with over 700 Pinterest accounts, they take a data-driven approach to crafting a Pinterest strategy that aims to help their clients and students find their perfect person on Pinterest. Kate teaches thousands of people about Pinterest marketing through various speaking engagements and her podcast, the Simple Pin Podcast.  Here's what we covered on the episode:   Kate's Journey to Pinterest I share how Kate and I got connected and how she's here to talk about how to use Pinterest in your business Kate tells us that her degree is in political science and always planned on being a teacher but ended up getting married, moving, and having 3 kids right away, so she was at home with her kids   In 2009, right before Kate's son was born, her husband lost his job suddenly, and they were struggling to make ends meet During this time, Kate's friend had just started a frugal coupon deal blog and asked Kate to help with Facebook marketing - Kate loved it, and although she wasn't making much, it was what she could handle while having little kids at home  A couple of years later, Kate and her family were still struggling, so her same friend suggested she help with affiliate marketing - Her friend taught her WordPress while Kate self-taught herself code  In 2013, her friend suggested managing people's Pinterest accounts because, at that point, Facebook had turned off all business page reach since they had introduced ads   Bloggers were trying to find a place to get traffic which is when Pinterest popped up on the radar Kate shares that she thought managing Pinterest accounts sounded like the worst idea because she was sure that no one would pay her to do that  For the rest of 2013, Kate learned everything she could about Pinterest, and in 2014, she bought the domain Simple Pin Media and started with a few beta clients  After 3 months, her clients gave her very positive feedback, so she added a few more clients and then had to decide to make it a legitimate business Kate decided to throw herself into it and hired a business coach, now 8 years later, Kate has a team of 35 people, and they work with hundreds of clients  Pinterest's intent has always been to put the pinner first, which they still do, but it has changed from chronological to smart feed, which is dictated by your engagement and ads  How Pinterest is a search and discovery platform that is also merging into a shopping platform  When people go to Pinterest, they aren't looking for a specific brand or person; they are looking for something to solve their problem or dream and inspire  Kate explains that Pinterest users tend to be cold while Instagram users tend to be warm Pinterest intends to shorten the time between idea and purchase - Kate says traditionally, it's about 3 - 6 months  Kate likes Pinterest because the elements you have on other platforms, like having to write certain things or post at specific times, don't exist on Pinterest   Simple Pin Media + Where to Start With Pinterest In Kate's business, they primarily serve clients through their done-for-you services because what they've found is when it comes to Pinterest, people don't understand it; people think they can repurpose content in the same way for different platforms   Some of Kate's clients feel anxiety around Pinterest because it is pretty picture based, so they give Kate and her team full control   Kate says that some of their clients still want to control the design of their pins, so they will continue to do that portion of it  Some middle-ground clients like using Pinterest but would like some guidance - Kate shares that there is a whole education side of the business for those who want to do it themselves   8 months into the business, Kate's daughter was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, and she realized she didn't have anyone who could keep the business going if something happened, so Kate asked a friend if she could teach her   After Kate hired her friend, she realized she could teach more women who are at home who have little kids to do what she was doing  The strategic choice Kate made was to hire locals, so they could meet together and have a community  Kate figured out that she loves teams; she loves empowering women to recognize their gifts and creativity The breakdown of leadership and roles within Simple Pin Media and how most of these women have been with Kate for 6 or 7 years  How Kate aligns Pinterest with Google and YouTube - the first step is to search on Pinterest for what you think people are asking and see if people are even talking about what it is you provide  By searching your service or product, it helps you see what's already out there, what people are searching and asking for surrounding your business  Kate explains that at Simple Pin, they believe pinners go through 3 main stages: inspire, inform and decide  In the inspire stage on Pinterest, people are just asking questions, the people who click on pin images or videos have decided they want to learn more and are the ones that will potentially go to your website, and when they're on your website, they're going to decide to either buy something or join your email list  For most marketing professionals, Kate says it's best to get pinners on your email list so so you can warm them up and nurture them  Once you decide why you're going to use Pinterest, Kate tells people to commit to it for 6-9 months because Pinterest is a long game  Start by building your profile, then building your boards, then your pin images  When it comes to what you are pinning, Kate says content is number one - think about the questions people ask you in your business and build your pins around that  2 things you need to knock out of the park whenever it comes to your Pinterest strategy are your keywords and images  Keywords fuel the algorithm on Pinterest by telling Pinterest where to show your content  Kate explains that pinners are readers and investigators, which is why it's important to start by searching what people are asking around your business so you can craft blog posts answering their questions  Going straight to a sales page never converts, Kate says, because pinners aren't warmed up to you yet - they've tried it on multiple accounts, including their own The first place to consider keywords is at the search bar because Pinterest has search prediction - they also have another tool called Trends, where you can look up any keyword and see at what time of year it has the highest volume of searches  The second place to consider keywords is your image that displays what it is you're talking about - it needs to have text on it because Pinterest reads the text on images  Kate loves that Pinterest is not time-based because she could search for something and find a pin someone made 6 months ago  If you aren't blogging, Kate says you should send them somewhere that they can join your email list  Kate explains that the boards you've created are where you're pinning to, and you should think of them as silos, and each board should have its own title  For example, one board could be titled sales page tactics, and another could be copywriting techniques, so Pinterest will see these silos and know that everything in it is about sales pages and the other one is about copywriting Kate shares that if you don't blog, you can still create 10 different images that all lead to one page where they can learn more or join your email list because Pinterest will see these images as new content   Why it's important to have short, poppy copy that catches people's attention on Pinterest  You could buy templates for your images if you aren't a graphic designer or don't have access to one  B2C Vs. B2B on Pinterest + Top Mistakes  Kate shares that to sell their services, their strategy is to market the pathway to get people to a discovery call or on their email list to warm them up instead of marketing the actual service   When using Pinterest for services, Kate says to think about what people are asking or what you're hearing on discovery calls that you could take and turn into something you can address on Pinterest  If you have a podcast that you are posting about on Pinterest, and your goal is to get people to sign up for your services, Kate says to put the link to sign up in every post because you want people to take that one action  Kate shares that the difference between B2B and B2C is the traffic; someone in the food or fashion industry is going to see way more traffic than someone in the marketing space  One of the biggest mistakes people make is hearing about how someone in B2C is doing and expecting those same results in B2B  Another mistake Kate shares are that people do not give Pinterest enough time to work; some clients stop working with them after a couple of months because they don't think it's working, only to come back 6-9 months later saying they're getting a bunch of traffic from the things we pinned while working with them  Kate shares that she has a pin from 2017 that still drives monthly traffic   Why you can't take your square image from Instagram and directly repurpose it for Pinterest  How you need to embrace new features on Pinterest - in 2020, Pinterest introduced idea pins which live forever and are short, storyboard stories like Instagram stories that are about the idea or concept and less about the person     The 4 formats of pins on Pinterest are standard pins, idea pins, video pins, and pin ads   People on Pinterest aren't there to be entertained, which is why your Instagram reel of you dancing won't perform well on Pinterest - they are there to be delighted and surprised by your ideas  Kate says you can repurpose your TikTok content on Pinterest as long as you remove the watermark   Pinterest wants to help physical and digital products, which is unique compared to Facebook or Instagram, where you can't have a shop for digital products  In Kate's business, they created a new package and way they serve done-for-you clients because they want to take all clients through their accelerator, which goes through 6 key elements for Pinterest marketing success  After clients go through the accelerator, they can decide if they want to go into monthly management or if they want to pass it off to a team member, which is easy to do because they are fully equipped with the strategy to do that   Pinterest ads have been clunky in the past, but Kate assures us they are getting better and what should excite people about them is that you don't need to have a long runway with your organic strategy - you can set up your profile and dive right into ads  Simple Pin Ad Society, which is Kate's low-cost membership that teaches people and helps troubleshoot    Give yourself enough time to learn Pinterest ads; Kate says about 6-8 weeks to learn and then 4-6 weeks for your Pinterest ads to optimize  If Kate could go back and tell herself one thing, it would be to not worry about getting it right because everyone is trying to figure it out, the online space shifts and changes so much, and not everyone's method is the same  Connect with Kate on Simple pin media.com or find them at Simple Pin Media on all channels  Kate suggests going to their Pinterest profile to see what they are doing and how they are positioning their B2B content or what they're doing with idea pins      Links mentioned: Simple Pin Media  Pinterest Trends Simple Pin Ad Society Simple Pin Media on Pinterest  Simple Pin Media on Instagram  Simple Pin Media on Facebook   Like what you heard?  Click here to subscribe + leave a review on iTunes. Click here to download my Sales Page Trello Board Let's connect on Instagram!