Building your Brand

Our markers for business success vary and evolve as our lives change. But we rarely stop to think about how our failures can also be a marker for success.  Today I talk to PR Dispatch founder Rosie Davies-Smith about how closing her first business led to the success of her second and all the feelings that were brought up.  If you've ever worried about your own business decisions this is the perfect episode for you. Referenced in the episode:  PR Dispatch on Instagram PR Dispatch memberships Thanks to today's sponsor Thrivecart (aff link)  This episode was written and produced by me and edited by Lucy Lucraft. If you enjoyed this episode please leave a 5* rating and review!   

There's not a small business owner alive who hasn't grappled with their pricing. Whether it's asking if you're too expensive, too cheap, too diverse, not diverse enough chances are you've Googled "What should I charge for XYZ" and ended up as confused as you were to begin with.  That's why I wanted to chat with today's guest pricing mentor Susie Jackson. Susie shared her practical tips and financial knowledge with me as we dived deep into how pricing can negatively and positively impact your brand. If you've been worrying about your pricing this is the perfect episode to dive into.  Referenced in the episode:  Susie's website Susie's Instagram  Thanks to today's sponsor Thrivecart (aff link). This episode was written and produced by me and edited by Lucy Lucraft. If you enjoyed this episode please leave a 5* rating and review!   

In today's episode, I've roped my small biz pals into spilling the tea on their favourite memberships they've joined.  There are so many benefits to joining a membership, not least of which is the knowledge on offer from the host, the opportunities to network and the feeling of being a little less alone at work. Referenced:  My blog post  Doing it for the kids The Aligned Life The Best 90 Days Ever The Clubhouse Community And thanks to the episode collaborators, Angharad, Rebecca, Sian and Sarah This episode was written and produced by me and edited by Lucy Lucraft.  

How many times have you wanted to change your branding because something else caught your eye? Or perhaps you've had to course correct in your business only to realise your branding will be completely obsolete if you do? Future proofing your branding is something I always encourage clients to think about in today's episode my guest logo designer, author and YouTuber Will Paterson talked me through his time honoured tips to make sure your branding stands out and stands the test of time too.  Referenced in the episode:  - Chris Do - Episode 52: Adapting to unexpected change with Nicky Elliott (Wilder Ones) Thanks to today's sponsor Thrivecart (affiliate link) This episode was written and produced by me and edited by Lucy Lucraft. If you enjoyed this episode please leave a 5* rating and review! 

As business owners, we are constantly writing with intent. We write to inform, educate and sell but we rarely stop to write like nobody's reading. But that is one of the best ways to get to the roots of an idea or a problem we need to get to the bottom of. You might know it as journalling but today I discuss the concept of exploratory writing (free writing without self-editing) with my guest, writer, publisher and podcaster Alison Jones We talk about how you can make it a habit (and we have some great tips on how to do that!), why using a pen and paper is neurologically important and how it helps to unlock creativity and un-muddle your brain in six minutes a day. Referenced in the episode:  - Buy Alison's book Exploratory Writing - Reflective Practice by Gilly Boulton This episode was written and produced by me and edited by Lucy Lucraft. If you enjoyed this episode please leave a 5* rating and review! 

The fear of being copied can hold lots of us back from showing up online. This is exactly why I was so keen to talk to designer and Adobe community manager Kelsey Slay about her experience of dealing with a serial copycat and why that hasn't stopped her from showing up and creating content regardless.  Kelsey and I met via TikTok and got to meet in real life at Adobe Max so it's a really fun, chatty episode with a heap of truth bombs!  If you've been dealing with a copycat or have been scared to show up authentically online this episode will give you the boost you need. Referenced in the episode:  - James Martin - Show Your Work by Austin Kleon Thanks to today's sponsor Penfold.  This episode was written and produced by me and edited by Lucy Lucraft. If you enjoyed this episode please leave a 5* rating and review! 

Running a small business can sometimes feel like we are constantly waiting for 'success' to happen which can feel oh so frustrating.  As a small business owner, I know how tempting it is to fall down the rabbit hole of comparing myself to others, imagining they're doing it quicker and better than I am. But that's rarely true, and more often than not things take far longer to achieve than we ever see online.  That's exactly what I talked to best-selling author and designer Radim Malinic about. From his accidental start in graphic design (via ice hockey and heavy metal!) to founding not one, but two successful businesses, Radim knows a thing or two about being patient and taking your time.  If you want to learn simple, honest advice from an industry leader - this is a great episode to dive into.  Referenced in the episode:  - Radim's bestselling book Book of Branding - Radim's publishing house Thanks to today's sponsor Creatorship. This episode was written and produced by me and edited by Lucy Lucraft. If you enjoyed this episode please leave a 5* rating and review! 

If you've ever hit a wall in your career you'll know igniting your creativity is the best way home to yourself. And learning something new is one of the best ways to flex that muscle, whether you're learning something related to your career or completely different to it.  In today's episode, I chatted with my friend and fellow Adobe Live Host Tony Harmer who has taught literally millions of people through his courses on the LinkedIn Learning platform. His expertise and humble approach to teaching people as well as how he creates space for his own learning is so refreshing and he had some great advice for course creators too.  If you've been keen to create a truly valuable course or you want to make sure you buy one this is the episode for you Referenced in the episode:  - Tony's LinkedIn Learning courses - Tony's Youtube channel  - The Adobe Live UK channel  Thanks to today's sponsor Creatorship. This episode was written and produced by me and edited by Lucy Lucraft. If you enjoyed this episode please leave a 5* rating and review! 

We can all agree that the last few years have been a bit of a rollercoaster. Running a small business is hard work at the best of times but throw a double whammy of an unprecedented pandemic AND a recession into the mix and finding joy falls to the bottom of our (very long) to-do lists.  If you're nodding your head right now today's episode is going to transform how you think about happiness, positivity and how to find joy even when times are really tough. I invited author, positive psychology practitioner and Joyful Coach Sophie Cliff onto the podcast to share her thoughts on how to live a more joyful life without falling into the trap of ignoring the negative stuff. It's a really practical episode that'll uplift and inspire you to choose joy and, top tip, make sure you have a notepad handy while you're listening!  Referenced in the episode:  - Buy Sophie's book Choose Joy - Check out Sophie's Instagram  Thanks to today's sponsor Creatorship. Find out how to work with Esther at www.creatorship.co.uk This episode was written and produced by me and edited by Lucy Lucraft. If you enjoyed this episode please leave a 5* rating and review! 

How do you feel about money? If you're anything like me you might have a chequered history with your business finances and, let's face it, that rarely feels good. In today's empowering episode I chat with the award-winning founder of rainchq Davinia Tomlinson who is on a mission to help women take control of their financial futures. I've talked about burying my head in the sand with my business finances before but today we tackle this sometimes scary topic head on as we unpick money stories, working with financial advisors without feeling shame and the impact feeling confident with money has on our business.   Referenced in the episode:  - Buy Davinia's book Cash is Queen - Listen to Liz Wilcox on the podcast talking about brand personality and email marketing  Todays sponsorship slot featured the amazing email membership of Liz Wilcox. Check it out here. This episode was written and produced by me and edited by Lucy Lucraft. If you enjoyed this episode please leave a 5* rating and review!