Unfiltered Entrepreneur by Ashli Pollard - Business Tips for Digital Service Based Founders and Agencies

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Feeling stuck in your content strategy? Or like there is a solid space between you and your clientele? Let's unpack three ways to bond with your audience via email list, membership, social media, etc. without stepping foot out the door or spending a dime! _____ Into it? Subscribe/Follow/Rate the podcast wherever you are listening (from one entrepreneur to another, we know how important this is right?!) And make sure you take your Archetype quiz to unlock loads of free content tailored to you + your business. Follow us on IG here! And check out all the other bomb podcasts from Fast Forward Productions right here. Get more from Ashli over on this side and leave your listener voicemails at the link below!

When I hear a space in "saturated" I take it as a GOOD thing! Why? Because a "saturated" market means there is a need for that market! So today we're delving into 5 things to keep in mind when dealing with competition in your "saturated market"...you lucky entrepreneur you! _____ Into it? Subscribe/Follow/Rate the podcast wherever you are listening (from one entrepreneur to another, we know how important this is right?!) And make sure you take your Archetype quiz to unlock loads of free content tailored to you + your business. Follow us on IG here! And check out all the other bomb podcasts from Fast Forward Productions right here. Get more from Ashli over on this side and leave your listener voicemails at the link below!

Save this and use this as your comprehensive launch guide so you spend your time and efforts WISELY.  Sidemark: one of my main goals for May was to give away as much free info as possible. I mean like -- free educational content that has so much info you could’ve paid for it⁠ -- type of free. So enjoy this week’s issue of free content - because launching your new product or service is a sure-fire way to make some BANK in your business… when done correctly ofc. Also, something to note here: Invest in systems and experts wisely. Keep simple things simple – ESPECIALLY in the beginning. There is no proof that the more complicated and costly a launch, the more money you’ll make. Especially if you haven’t done the work to build your community, nail down your product suite, and optimize your messaging.  Questions about any of these steps? I’m happy to answer them for you right here! _____ Into it? Subscribe/Follow/Rate the podcast wherever you are listening (from one entrepreneur to another, we know how important this is right?!) And make sure you take your Archetype quiz to unlock loads of free content tailored to you + your business. Follow us on IG here! And check out all the other bomb podcasts from Fast Forward Productions right here. Get more from Ashli over on this side and leave your listener voicemails at the link below!

Nicole Nixon is a top-hairstylist-turned-graphic-designer/brand designer/web designer...basically, she is my go-to for all things creative. She comes from the professional beauty industry, where she worked as both a hairstylist and Director of Education and Training for brands such as SexyHair, Colorproof, and DevaCurl. After finding her way to an online brand design course at the end of 2019, Nicole left the beauty world in order to start her second career as a brand designer. Wanting to build her very own business, Nicole worked really hard over this past year to establish herself in an online space. Now, after successfully launching a second career, Nicole wants to share what she learned with anyone else wanting to open a door to something entirely new. 02:11 — Nicole's Background in the Beauty Industry 04:58 — Pivoting to Something New: Nicole's Gamble 06:45 — How to Move Past The Doubt That Comes with Being an Entrepreneur 10:37 — What Helped Nicole Build Up Her Business at the Start 17:04 — Starting Over in a New Field After Building Up Success in Your Current Career/Business 24:41 — What's Behind Nicole's Passion for the Beauty World 31:34 — Finding a Way Through What You Want to Do vs. What Is Supplying You Money 39:50 — Nicole's Biggest Piece of Advice for Anyone Wanting to Start Their Own Business/Be Their Own Bose Resources: Nicole's Website Nicole's Instagram Brand New Team Toolkit (Follow us on IG for an exclusive discount code!) Team AP Consulting Resources Team AP Consulting Services _____ Into it? Subscribe/Follow/Rate the podcast wherever you are listening (from one entrepreneur to another, we know how important this is right?!) And make sure you take your Archetype quiz to unlock loads of free content tailored to you + your business. Follow us on IG here! And check out all the other bomb podcasts from Fast Forward Productions right here. Get more from Ashli over on this side and leave your listener voicemails at the link below! 

Alia O'Neal is the Founder and CEO of The Product Place. Alia began her career in pattern-making and apparel construction before working her way up to Director of Production and Sourcing. Having climbed to the top of a luxury product-based business, Alia founded The Product Place to help others build up their own businesses. After working with her to create Me Time and achieve my morning journal dreams, I wanted to bring her wealth of knowledge to all of you. I absolutely vouch for her, and she shares so much including how much you can expect to invest, how to avoid being a drop-ship copycat brand, the importance of building out an internal suite catalog, what makes a product-based business so unique, and more! Whether you've been considering creating your own products for a while or you've just started to think about it, this episode is for you. 00:58 — Alia's Background + How She Got Started 10:06 — Current Businesses Ali Sees with The Product Place 13:06 — Investment + Time Commitment 17:35 — Creating a Product (Me Time) + Launching For The First Time 26:34 — The First Step in Creating a Product-Based Business 30:22 — Pros and Cons of Launching with Size Runs vs. No Size Runs 34:46 — Common Mistakes Early Founders Make 41:48 — Manufacturing Overseas vs. Domestically 45:55 — Why Creating Products Is So Special 49:09 — When to Move to a Warehouse 51:07 — Product 24  Resources: The Product Place Website + Instagram Product 24  Alia's personal Instagram Brand New Team Toolkit (Follow us on IG for an exclusive discount code!) Team AP Consulting Resources Team AP Consulting Services _____ Into it? Subscribe/Follow/Rate the podcast wherever you are listening (from one entrepreneur to another, we know how important this is right?!) And make sure you take your Archetype quiz to unlock loads of free content tailored to you + your business. Follow us on IG here! And check out all the other bomb podcasts from Fast Forward Productions right here. Get more from Ashli over on this side and leave your listener voicemails at the link below!

Bday Team toolkit is $450 for her team contracts + my team toolkitNina Marinaro, Esq. is known online as Nina The Lawyer. She spent over 10 years in NY as a lawyer before deciding she wanted to travel the world. As she started building her dream life, she realized that many online entrepreneurs had no idea how to ensure legal protections for themselves and their businesses. Now she provides business owners  with the contracts they need to protect their content. She has personally saved me tens of thousands of dollars with those contract templates, and I use them in ALL of my businesses. We talk about why you shouldn't be afraid to start implementing contracts and why they are actually a necessary investment in order to protect your intellectual property in an online space. Nina also shares a lot of personal stories to help us all learn from her mistakes. Bring a pen + paper — this episode is full of important info you'll wanna remember!  02:14 — All About Nina  04:57 — The Key to Building Trust in Your Online Brand + Maintaining Client Relationships  13:44 — The 3 Reasons Why You Shouldn't Be Afraid to Use Contracts  23:12 — NDA's + Why You Need To Use Them To Protect Yourself  36:28 — Joint Venture Contracts  39:30 — Protecting Yourself with Contracts  48:04 — Fun questions for Nina, including: What She'd Title This Chapter of Her Life, A Mistake She Recently Made + Learned From, What She Wishes People Knew, What She Wishes She Knew, and What She Has in the Pipeline  The BIRTHDAY SALE: Use code bdaysale for the collab and client bundle! Bday Team toolkit is $450 for Nina's contracts + my team toolkit! Resources: Nina the Lawyer on IG Nina the Lawyer on TikTok Nina's Website Non-Negotiable Success Podcast Brand New Team Toolkit (Follow us on IG for an exclusive discount code!) Team AP Consulting Resources Team AP Consulting Services _____ Into it? Subscribe/Follow/Rate the podcast wherever you are listening (from one entrepreneur to another, we know how important this is right?!) And make sure you take your Archetype quiz to unlock loads of free content tailored to you + your business. Follow us on IG here! And check out all the other bomb podcasts from Fast Forward Productions right here. Get more from Ashli over on this side and leave your listener voicemails at the link below!

Building your business is HARD work. We make mistakes, we encounter problems, and we have to innovate at every twist and turn. On this journey that you've started as an entrepreneur, you'll face up and downs. Maybe you'll feel on top of the world one day and unsure of what to do on the next. Maybe you'll encounter having a client base you don't know how to grow, an immense lack of confidence, or that you don't have time to meet the demands of your business. You may even feel like you do not have enough money coming in because you don't know how to drive sales. Whether you're facing all of these or one of these, I'm going to walk you through how to combat four of the most common problems that entrepreneurs face. — Common Problems Entrepreneurs Face — Dealing with a Lack of Clients — Lacking Confidence + How To Deal With It — Feeling Like You Lack the Time — Not Earning Enough Income From Your Business Resources: Brand New Team Toolkit (Follow us on IG for an exclusive discount code!) Team AP Consulting Resources Team AP Consulting Services Check out @thewomenarespeaking on Instagram + our new Podcast in a Day program! _____ Into it? Subscribe/Follow/Rate the podcast wherever you are listening (from one entrepreneur to another, we know how important this is right?!) And make sure you take your Archetype quiz to unlock loads of free content tailored to you + your business. Follow us on IG here! And check out all the other bomb podcasts from Fast Forward Productions right here. Get more from Ashli over on this side and leave your listener voicemails at the link below!

Burnout is the boogeyman for entrepreneurs. We worry about it sneaking up on us — hiding behind every corner just waiting to put a huge wrench into whatever plans we have coming up. Luckily, after 10 years in corporate and a few years building my own business from the ground up, I've come up with a few tips that have helped me avoid burnout for my entire professional career. I'm sharing those exact tips in this episode to help any of you who are currently battling burnout or hoping to avoid it in the future as your business grows! — What Burnout is + Why There Is No Shame — Tip #1: Busy + Slow Periods — Tip #2: Time Off — Tip #3: Creating Balance — Tip #4: Listening to Your Body — Tip #5: Integrating Play in Your Day-to-Day Resources: Brand New Team Toolkit (Follow us on IG for an exclusive discount code!) Team AP Consulting Resources Team AP Consulting Services Check out @thewomenarespeaking on Instagram + our new Podcast in a Day program! _____ Into it? Subscribe/Follow/Rate the podcast wherever you are listening (from one entrepreneur to another, we know how important this is right?!) And make sure you take your Archetype quiz to unlock loads of free content tailored to you + your business. Follow us on IG here! And check out all the other bomb podcasts from Fast Forward Productions right here. Get more from Ashli over on this side and leave your listener voicemails at the link below!

So you want to grow your team but you don't know where to start. Maybe you don't know where to look, or you aren't sure how to conduct an interview, or you don't even know how to budget for a new team member. Don't worry — the Unfiltered Entrepreneur is here for you. In this episode, I am going to guide you through the interview process, from finding talent, to creating an application, to having a successful interview. I tell you all about the questions that I ask people and the main things that I look for when I hire someone. (HINT: Finding the "perfect" fit shouldn't necessarily be your main focus!) 1:20 — Our New Team Toolkit to Help You Build the Team of Your Dreams 3:35 — Finding Talent to Interview 6:17 — The Pre-Interview Process + Which Questions You Should Consider Asking on Your Application 14:32 — What to Expect From an Interview + Avoiding Common Pitfalls 19:05 — The Big Three: Basics, Personality, and Values Resources Mentioned in This Episode: Brand New Team Toolkit (Follow us on IG for an exclusive discount code!) Team AP Consulting Resources Team AP Consulting Services Check out @thewomenarespeaking on Instagram + our new Podcast in a Day program! _____ Into it? Subscribe/Follow/Rate the podcast wherever you are listening (from one entrepreneur to another, we know how important this is right?!) And make sure you take your Archetype quiz to unlock loads of free content tailored to you + your business. Follow us on IG here! And check out all the other bomb podcasts from Fast Forward Productions right here. Get more from Ashli over on this side and leave your listener voicemails at the link below!