Brand Lover with Rachel Reiter

In a world where the main gripe of online business owners is the battle to be noticed, it’s imperative to start thinking outside the box. Building a sought-after, lovable brand is a slow burn, not a viral shortcut. If you're ready to be more than ordinary and delight your audience instead of adding to the online noise, you're going to love this episode. We're talking about sensory branding.

Sensory branding uses multiple senses to establish a more emotive connection with your customers. By thoughtfully engaging sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell, you can create a memorable and immersive experience that truly resonates with your audience.

In this episode I’m sharing why sensory branding matters to you if you want to start shining an undeniable spotlight on your brand, examples of how sensory branding has been implemented successfully, and my tips to get your creative juices flowing to use sensory branding to enhance your own brand experience in the online landscape.

 Click here to listen on: YouTube

Words and visuals go together like cheese and Vegemite. Hand in hand, they paint a clear picture and weave a tale that should be as enticing as a steaming cup of tea on a cold, wintry day. So when I met Catherine James at a networking event recently, I knew I needed to share her story with you!

A self-confessed word-lover from a tender age, Catherine was forced into a career pivot through the Covid years when she rediscovered a passion for writing, and Catherine James Creative was born.

CJ is now dedicated to helping female entrepreneurs amplify their voices and align their business messages with their values and goals. CJ's methods are deeply embedded in presence and authenticity, aiming to create genuine human connections amidst the digital noise.

During this episode we explore:

• Being open to opportunities and seizing them rather than staying stuck in a “why me” mentality
• Gratitude for Covid, what it taught CJ and where it has led her career path
• CJ’s recommendations for overcoming pressures to write social media captions, blogs, emails etc, particularly if it doesn’t come naturally to them
• What message alignment is, what it means and why it’s so important to the success of your business
• Signs and symptoms to look out for to indicate if your message is out of alignment, and what you can do to fix it

Find Catherine James on Instagram her head straight to her website. 

Click here to listen on: YouTube

Asking for feedback is crucial. Whether you’re validating a business idea, seeking a response to an idea or new concept, or simply conducting market research, feedback from the right (or wrong) people has the power to make or break you. I truly believe that words hold power. An uplifting, encouraging conversation can give you the confidence to step forward. A negative, sarcastic or harsh comment can literally stop you in your tracks.

It makes sense then, that as business owners and creators, we need to be 1) super careful who we share our ideas with and 2) be selective with exactly what we share or seek help with.

In this episode I’m offering up my simple, actionable thoughts on requesting feedback, and more specifically, how to do it objectively and effectively.

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Rebranding, whilst often the thing holding you back from reaching the next level in your business, can be a VERY daunting process. Because it’s not just about changing your logo or colour palette. It’s deeper than that. There’s a flow on effect. There’s the question of whether or not it will “work” for you or not. Rebranding is not simply about a visual update, it’s about evolving your brand to better align with your goals and resonate with your audience… leading you toward a better, bigger, brighter future.

But with change comes fear. And with fear comes aversion.

I’ve worked with hundreds of businesses to establish, update, refresh or overhaul their visual brands, so I’ve been around the block a few times. I’ve walked alongside my clients as they face the initial mental barriers towards rebranding, and also the ones that come throughout the process.

Over the past twenty years, I have become attuned to how the big changes associated with the rebranding process impact both the business owner and the consumer. So there’s the thing. The more mentally prepared you are, the better equipped you’ll be to anticipate the feelings and concerns associated with 1) the prospect of a rebrand and 2) navigating all the emotions during the rebrand process.

By understanding your natural aversion to change and addressing it thoughtfully, you can navigate the process more effectively and make strategic decisions that will catapult your brand into a positive future.

 Click here to listen on: YouTube

Anything that can help boost brand confidence gets a bit tick from me. As small business owners, wives, mothers, and everything in between… our wardrobe or “sense of style” may be neglected. But we all know how a beautiful dress, a favourite lippy, or a flattering pair of jeans can impact how we feel on any particular day. So it makes perfect sense that discovering your unique personal style, and investing in your wardrobe can not just impact how you show up for yourself, but also for your business.

In this podcast episode, I chat to personal stylist, Stephanie Vaughan from Infinite Styling about how to style your way to brand confidence (even if you’re in a wardrobe crisis!). Stephanie is a wife, mum to three young adults, personal stylist and committed coffee lover (love that)! In 2013, she decided to turn her passion for styling into her career and has been helping women find and fall in love with their personal style ever since.

I loved chatting with Stephanie, because it really shone a light on how many women are living with an “it will do” attitude to their personal style and clothing choices, not truly realising the impact that carefully chosen pieces can have on their energy and overall confidence. We all know how intimidating it is to consistently show up vulnerably online to market our businesses, but with Stephanie’s help you’ll be digging yourself out of your wardrobe blues and skipping your way to confident dressing in no time.

Find Stephanie Vaughan on Instagram or head straight to her website.

 Click here to listen on: YouTube

I’m not calling you lazy. Not really. But let’s be honest. All any business owner wants is to have as much impact as possible with as little effort as possible. It’s part of our human psyche. And if you’re new to business, you’re likely completely swamped with all of the things that go into starting a brand from the ground up.

It costs money. It costs time. It even sometimes costs sleep, relationships and fun… for the greater good, of course.

And if you’re feeling that way right now, I want to give you a red hot tip if you’re starting to delve into marketing your brand.

You need a a solid foundation for you brand to market effectively.

I was on the phone with a potential client the other day and I explained it like this. Your brand is the message. Your marketing is the vehicle transporting that message to your ideal customers. First you have to know what the message is, second, you need to know who you’re sending the message to and where it’s going, and finally, you need to know the most efficient route for the vehicle to deliver the message safely. Make sense?

Let’s be real. SO many business owners find themselves overwhelmed by the thought of branding, assuming it requires endless hours of strategising and designing. And it can. But to begin with, it doesn't necessarily have to be that way if you don’t have the know-how or budget to dedicate to it. So what I want to do for you today is outline the most simple but effective, must-have aspects of the brand building process for lazy business owners (as in, time-poor and overwhelmed business owners!) to create a powerful brand presence with minimal effort.

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Tori Kopke is a Rural Business Coach combining proven strategies with a twist of innovation. She loves to help business owners find realistic and achievable growth solutions - especially businesses in the Aussie bush. Good old fashioned country values are a huge foundation for her business (she had me at “old fashioned”).

I came across Tori recently on Threads, showcasing a little-known Instagram strategy called an Instasite (“Instagram website”). She instantly sparked my curiosity, and in my own research I’ve also seen it called the Permagrid (“permanent grid”), but whatever you call it, it’s sweeping small business owners on Instagram by storm.

Tired of the never ending, ho-hum monotony and pressure to incessantly post on Instagram? Me too. Which is why Tori’s revolutionary Instagram strategy caught my eye, and I knew I had to share it with you immediately!

So without further ado… listen to this insightful episode if you’re just about ready to throw your phone out the window (or at least delete your social apps) and want to learn how to fight the algorithm with a strategy that not only creates space and freedom – but actually works!

Find Tori Kopke on Instagram or head straight to her website.

 Click here to listen on: YouTube

Hannah Willsmore is a Registered/Endorsed Midwife, IBCLC and award-winning childbirth educator. She is also the Founder of Held Midwifery - a private midwifery practice here in Adelaide, South Australia. Recently, Hannah and I worked together to bring her DIY brand into the future vision she has for her business, stemming from Hannah’s decision to shift from a personal brand to a business brand.

During this episode we discuss:

• Why Hannah decided to leave the hospital system and offer private midwifery services
• How she has grown her business with calculated risk, organically over time
• The catalyst “wake up call” she experienced to instigate the rebrand process
• They key qualities/deliverables she was seeking in a brand designer
• The strategies and process Hannah used to execute and rollout her new brand assets
• Her sage advice for business owners who feel they need to rebrand but aren’t sure how to approach it

Find Hannah and Held Midwifery on Instagram or head straight to her website.

 Click here to listen on: YouTube

This is the age old question for service based business owners. The answer can feel a little foggy, and is highly dependent on your own business goals. There is no clear cut solution.

So today I’m sharing the pros and cons of sharing your prices on your website, my experience after trying both options and ultimately, the main consideration you should be focusing on when making your final decision.

Click here to listen on: YouTube