Brand Builders Lab with Suz Chadwick

By Suz ChadwickBusiness Entrepreneurship Marketing

Brand Builders Lab with Suz Chadwick episodes

June 28451. Why more strategy won't grow your business
Are you constantly pivoting between strategies, collecting tactics, and wondering why the business still isn't growing the way you want? The problem probably isn't the strategy. In this episode, Suz breaks down the identity shift from owner operator to creator founder and why it's the real move that unlocks one-to-many growth.
In this episode:
The Strategy Hunter trap and why smart business owners fall into it
The Tactic Collector pattern and what it's actually costing you
Why this is an identity problem, not a strategy problem
The difference between Owner-Operator and Creator-Founder identities
What you need to decide before any strategy will actually work
Resources mentioned:
The Brand Accelerator
Work with Suz:
Ready to make the shift from Owner-Operator to Creator-Founder? The Brand Accelerator is Suz's high-touch coaching programme for experienced business owners ready to scale beyond one-to-one. Join us at www.suzchadwick.com/brand-accelerator
15 min
June 24450. Business, Mental Health & Relationships with Marie Vakarkis
In this episode, I sit down with Marie Vakakis, therapist, mental health and relationship educator, and founder of The Therapy Hub in Melbourne. We get personal. We talk about the early days of building a business with little kids, managing money stress, navigating a relationship through big life changes, and why the work you do on yourself matters just as much as the work you do in your business.
In this episode:
How I started my business by accident while juggling a corporate job and two toddlers
What managing money really looks like when you leave a salary behind
Why communication is the skill that makes or breaks your relationship AND your business
The "stealth bomber" approach to hard conversations (and why it works for introverted partners)
The strength that drives my business success but can bulldoze everything at home
Why investing in your relationship is just as important as investing in your business
Guest Interviewer:
Marie Vakakis, therapist, mental health and relationship educator, host of This Complex Life podcast, and founder of The Therapy Hub, Melbourne.
Work with Suz:
Ready to build a brand that actually scales? Amplify is my high-touch group coaching program for experienced business owners ready to grow. https://www.suzchadwick.com/amplify
35 min
June 17449. Creativity, Boldness, and Showing Up Before You're Ready with Stepha Stock
Stepha Stock (aka Love Stepha) is a Brisbane-based portrait photographer, DJ, model, and self-proclaimed creative wild card. In this episode, we get into creativity as a business strategy, not just a personality trait, and why trusting yourself to figure it out as you go is the thing that actually moves the needle.
In this episode:
How Stepha's three-word prompt content series pushed her creative edges without a plan or a guarantee it would work
Why the "moments in between" are where the real magic happens, in photo shoots and in business
The personal brand sandwich: professional credentials, personal beliefs, and passions, and why it's the passions that actually hook people
How Stepha pitched herself publicly to photograph Erika Jayne and got the gig
Why 80–90% of cool opportunities are self-generated, and what that means for you
Resources mentioned:
Stepha Stock: lovesteffa.com | @lovesteffa on Instagram
Work with Suz:
Ready to build a personal brand that actually converts? Amplify is Suz's high-touch group coaching program for experienced business owners ready to scale. https://www.suzchadwick.com/amplify
50 min
May 28448. Content That Converts: 8 Formats to Try right now
Watch on Youtube
Stuck on what to post next? In this episode I walk you through eight content formats that build trust, get more reach, and actually convert. From carousels to commentary to the honest take, you'll know exactly what each one does and how to use it.
In this episode:
Why carousels build trust and how to make them faster
How personality posts pull in new eyeballs (and why that 45k-view post worked)
Using commentary and credibility posts to show proof and perspective
The quieter formats that still convert: weekly drops, honest takes, talking heads, and series
How to test formats, measure results, and keep what works
Work with Suz: Ready to build a personal brand that actually converts? Amplify is my high-touch group coaching program for experienced business owners ready to scale. Find out more about the AMPLIFY ACCELERATOR now
22 min
May 24 447. How to grow your confidence to show up online
Confidence doesn't come before visibility. It's built BY being visible. And if you've been waiting until you feel ready to show up, post the thing, or share your voice online, this episode is your wake up call.
In this episode I'm breaking down exactly how to build your visibility confidence as an experienced business owner, even if you've been hiding behind your brand, overthinking every post, or telling yourself you'll start when things feel less cringe.
I'm covering:
✅The lie that's keeping you invisible (and why confidence is the reward, not the requirement)
✅The 3 invisibility traps I see experienced women fall into constantly: the polish trap, the permission trap, and the comparison trap
✅Why perfectionism is just fear with a bow on it, and what to do instead
✅The visibility confidence loop and how to actually build self-evidence that you can do this
✅My 24-hour rule for posting without spiralling
✅How to choose courage over confidence every single day
✅The exact decision filter I use before hitting publish
✅Why professional practices beat motivation every time (and the one I've held for 10+ years)
If you're an experienced business owner who knows you need to be more visible but keeps stopping yourself, this one's going to challenge you and give you the practical plan to move forward.
Ready to actually become known for your work, build the brand that sells your business, and stop hiding behind beige content?

Come and join me inside Amplify Accelerator where we build your personal brand, content engine, and scalable offers together.
👉 Join Amplify: https://www.suzchadwick.com/amplify

27 min
May 21446. Stop Confusing Your Audience (And Start Converting Them)
The reason your content isn't landing has nothing to do with how smart you are. It's because you're assuming everyone knows what you know. In this episode I'm breaking down the four ways experienced business owners accidentally confuse their audience online, and the exact shift that turns scrollers into clients.

WATCH ON YOUTUBE
In this episode:
The curse of knowledge and why your expertise is working against you
How to stop firehosing your audience and pick one clear idea
Why jargon is keeping your dream clients away
The "start of the story" rule every piece of content needs to follow
How simplifying your message becomes your biggest authority play
Resources mentioned:
Voice of the customer research (covered inside Amplify)
Using Claude to pull questions from coaching call transcripts into Notion
Previous episode on building your method
Work with Suz: Ready to simplify your message and build a personal brand that actually converts? Amplify is my high-touch group coaching program for experienced business owners ready to scale.

https://www.suzchadwick.com/amplify
18 min
May 15445. Stop Chasing Clients: Build a Demand Engine Instead
Stop Chasing Clients: Build a Demand Engine Instead
Most business owners think they need more content. The truth is, you need more demand. In this episode I walk through the three pillars of the demand engine I teach inside Amplify, so you can stop chasing leads and start attracting them.
In this episode:
Why outbound energy keeps experienced business owners stuck
Pillar 1: Brand assets that actually convert (positioning, signature method, results, ecosystem)
Pillar 2: Building an authority content engine that works while you sleep
Pillar 3: The repeatable sales system that turns attention into clients
Why most business owners skip the demand phase, and what it's costing them
Resources mentioned:
Map Your Method workshop - https://www.suzchadwick.com/mym
The Scalable Impact Method (Brand, Build, Demand, Deliver)
Watch on YOUTUBE
Work with Suz: Ready to build a demand engine that brings clients to you? Amplify is my accelerator for experienced business owners ready to stop chasing and start attracting. We build the brand assets, the content engine, and the sales system you need to scale through your personal brand.
👉 Join Amplify: https://suzchadwick.com/amplify
21 min
April 27444 - Why you shouldn't quit, even when things feels hard & awkward
What this episode is about
I'm doing something a little different today. I started a Substack a while ago and I've not been completely consistent with it (more on that in the episode). One thing I've been doing with some of my Substack articles is recording the voiceover, so I figured why not share it here on the podcast too.
This is the audio from a recent article called "I've been a bit crap. And that's the whole point." and it's about the messy middle of getting good at anything new.
If you've started a podcast, a newsletter, a Substack, a YouTube channel, a sales process, or any new skill in your business and quit because it felt awkward, this episode is for you.
What you'll learn
Why I started Substack even though writing isn't my flow (and the workaround I'm using to stay consistent)
What Anna Mackenzie taught me about the long game on Substack (7 hours per article, 16K subscribers, and where most of her clients now come from)
The Fitts and Posner three-stage model of learning (1967 research that still holds today) and why stage one is supposed to feel like trash
The driving metaphor that makes all of this click
The Dunning-Kruger effect and why your confidence crashes right when you start to actually get good
Why most people quit at the exact moment they're about to break through
The challenge for you this week: pick one thing you've been avoiding because you're not good at it yet, and do it badly on purpose

If you're a female founder and service-based business owner who's ready to turn your invisible expertise into bold, profitable brand through identity-led positioning, content and sales strategy then let's connect!
https://www.suzchadwick.com/amplify
9 min
April 10443. The portfolio career & shooting your shot with Anna MacKenzie
Anna Mac built multiple income streams from scratch - fractional work, digital products, mentoring, writing - and turned a simple cold outreach ritual into a strategy that's gone viral.
In this episode, we dig into what a portfolio career actually looks like, how to validate offers before you build them, and why shooting your shot every week might be the best business habit you're not doing.
In this episode:
Anna and I talk about
What a portfolio career actually is and why more women are building one
The personal inventory exercise Anna uses with her mentoring clients to identify your skill stack
How Anna generated over $50,000 on her first digital product launch with a 5,000-person email list
Shoot Your Shot Wednesday - the weekly cold outreach ritual that changed Anna's business
Why being high agency is the most important characteristic you can have right now
Resources mentioned:
Anna Mac's Substack: Anna Mac Stack
Portfolio Career Operating System (Anna's Notion-based digital product)
Instagram + TikTok: @annacmac
Work with Suz: Ready to build a personal brand that actually converts? Amplify is Suz's high-touch group coaching programme for expert women ready to scale. - AMPLIFY ACCELERATOR
49 min
March 25442. 4 Simple way to start using AI in your small business (non technie edition)
Feeling excited about AI but also kind of overwhelmed? Same. In this episode I'm taking the hysteria down a notch and sharing exactly how I'm using AI in my business right now — in the most non-techy way I can manage.
I walk you through four practical pillars: Insights, Efficiencies, Automations, and Innovation — with real examples from my own business, including how a two-week SEO project started bringing in more organic leads and what I'm building inside Amplify that could change how clients get results.
This one's for you if you've been wanting to start with AI but don't know where to begin.
In this episode:
Why Claude is winning over ChatGPT for me right now
How I used AI to find the biggest gaps in my business across all my platforms
The grunt work that used to weigh on me that AI is now handling
The automation I'm building to turn one video into a full content suite
What innovation actually looks like in a coaching business
Links + Resources:
Grab the free Claude Brand Builders Guide
Ready to amplify your personal brand and get seen as the expert you are? Learn more about working with me inside Amplify → https://www.suzchadwick.com/amplify
24 min