42. Factory45’s Roadmap for Building A Sustainable Business and How it Relates to Your Nonprofit with Shannon Lohr

Shannon Lohr, Founder, and CEO of Factory45 helps her clients navigate the complexities involved in getting a sustainable clothing brand off the ground. What does this have to do with nonprofits? Well, her pragmatic advice applies to nonprofits too - everything from keeping your mindset right to how to prioritize the right brand and launch activities. We get into the nitty-gritty about things like content polishing, logo massaging, and font swapping that often keep us stuck from being more visible when we need to be focused on getting in front of our audience. Shannon and I share thoughts on the importance of knowing your own value and how to build confidence so you show up with that value in mind to all of your engagements. Enjoy this lively conversation with a woman who has carved out a unique coaching niche and is here with concrete marketing, sales, and other elements to consider as you look at ways to partner with, support, or start up a brand.

Episode Highlights:

(00:30) – Shannon introduces herself, gives the high-level on Factory45 

(04:37) – The importance of content marketing to create problem aware audiences 

(06:32) – Identifying a target customer or audience niche 

(11:19) – Marketing and audience acquisition are key components to building the volume of donors and brand recognition that underpin a business model.

(12:50) – About non-profit practices that bring value-add

(13:49) – Mallory mentions her Asset Mapping tool, which highlights marketing and education as valuable components that non-profits can bring to business partners.

(15:08) – About the emotional components Shannon’s clients work through on their journey 

(22:13) – How to start to understand the value that you are bringing to the table 

(27:50) – Shannon’s Top Tip for new entrepreneurs or non-profits just starting up: It’s all about putting one foot in front of the other. Don’t let perfection be the enemy of the good or procrastination paralyze you. Stay out of the weeds!

(30:00) – Some of the top offenders that lead to analysis paralysis 

(31:58) – What does Shannon do when she experiences imposter syndrome?

(32:50) – Another strategy for getting unstuck

(33:45) – The power of separating your identity from your non-profit 

(35:40) – Shannon’s journey as a mom and the work/life balance 

(40:00) – About the value of Factory45’s startup community: support, accountability, camaraderie, shared milestones and mentorship. Click here to learn more.

Huge thanks to our episode’s sponsor, Pledge, and their amazing e-commerce platform that will help you build amazing cross-sector partnerships.