Digital Queens

By Sarah Thomson - Online Social ButterflyBusiness Marketing

Digital Queens episodes

November 07, 2023EP81 - Emily Fogg and Sally Newman -Capability Network
This week Sarah is joined by Sally Newman and Emily Fogg who are the co-founders of Capability Network, an organization that aims to support small businesses and individuals with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions.

About The Guest(s):
Sally Newman: Sally is a former corporate professional who transitioned into the celebrancy industry after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. She is now the CEO of First Line Productions, a theater and film production company that aims to share people's stories through art. Sally is also a co-founder of Capability Network, an organization that supports small businesses and individuals with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions.
Emily Fogg: Emily is a former teacher with 14 years of experience in special needs and mainstream education. She is the founder of Wise Out of Tuition, a tutoring business that specializes in helping neurodiverse children reach their potential in English and math. Emily is also a co-founder of Capability Network, where she provides mentoring and support to individuals with disabilities who are starting or growing their own businesses.
Key Takeaways:
Capability Network aims to provide recognition and support for small businesses and individuals with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions.
The awards night organized by Capability Network has received nearly 250 nominations, highlighting the need for recognition in this space.
Small businesses should consider working with individuals with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions, as they can bring unique skills and perspectives to the team.
Inclusivity in small businesses can be achieved through simple changes, such as providing sensory boxes, offering relaxed sessions, and making marketing materials more accessible.
Capability Network plans to offer networking sessions and online support groups to help small business owners become more inclusive and learn from individuals with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions.
24 min
October 31, 2023 EP80 - Sarah McLeod - Boosting Confidence Through Style
Summary:
Sarah McLeod, a personal stylist, joins Sarah Thomson on The Social Circus to discuss confidence, styling, and showing up as your best self.
Sarah shares her journey into styling and how she helps women find their confidence through clothes. She emphasizes the importance of starting with what clients already have in their wardrobe and helping them understand their personal style. Sarah also addresses common misconceptions about personal styling and offers advice for women who struggle with confidence and want to show up as their best selves.

About The Guest(s):
Sarah McLeod is a personal stylist and the founder of SJM Styling. With a background in marketing, Sarah followed her passion for helping others feel confident and stylish by becoming a personal stylist. She believes in bringing sparkle, joy, and magic to her clients' lives through clothes.

https://www.instagram.com/sjmstyling/

https://www.facebook.com/sjmstyling
30 min
October 25, 2023EP 79 - Selling and Promoting During Turbulent Times
In this episode, Sarah discusses how small business owners can navigate running their businesses during times of uncertainty and unrest. She emphasizes the importance of being true and authentic to oneself and honoring one's feelings. Sarah also addresses the challenge of discussing contentious political issues and advises business owners to approach these topics with compassion, kindness, and love. She highlights the need to maintain sales, promotions, and offers during turbulent times to create financial freedom, influence, and the ability to give back. Sarah encourages business owners to use their financial success to support causes they are passionate about and to bridge the gender gap in entrepreneurship.
Key Takeaways:
Honor your feelings and be authentic in how you navigate running your business during uncertain times.
Approach contentious political issues with compassion, kindness, and love to avoid isolating your audience.
Financial success creates influence and the ability to give back to causes you care about.
Maintaining sales and promotions during turbulent times helps bridge the gender gap in entrepreneurship.
21 min
October 17, 2023 EP78 - Melissa Ahlquist - From Outdoor Beanbags to Web Development: Melissa’s Entrepreneurial Journey
Melissa Ahlquist is a multi-passionate entrepreneur who has successfully started and managed multiple businesses. She began her journey by importing and selling outdoor beanbags in Australia, with a portion of the profits going towards missions work. Melissa then ventured into business coaching, where she realized the need to provide affordable coaching resources for small businesses. She started Little Biz Foundations, offering workshops and coaching tailored to the needs of micro and small businesses.
Melissa also found success as a WordPress web developer, helping businesses build and manage their websites. She is passionate about giving back and continues to support missions work and charitable causes.

Key Takeaways:

Melissa started her first business by importing and selling outdoor beanbags, with a portion of the profits going towards missions work.
She recognized the need for affordable business coaching resources and started Little Biz Foundations to help micro and small businesses.
Melissa became a WordPress web developer after realizing the challenges small business owners faced with their websites.
She emphasizes the importance of focusing on one business at a time while allowing room for new opportunities.
Melissa's passion for giving back led her to support missions work and charitable causes.
25 min
October 10, 2023EP77 - Ellie Swift : Running a Successful Mastermind
In this episode of The Social Circus, host Sarah Thomson interviews Ellie Swift, a successful business coach and Mastermind mentor. Ellie shares her journey from working in corporate to starting her own coaching business. She explains how she transitioned from one-on-one coaching to running multiple Mastermind programs. Ellie also discusses the importance of creating a unique Mastermind experience and the power of podcasting in growing a business.
About The Guest(s):
Ellie Swift is a business coach and Mastermind mentor who helps coaches, creators, and consultants build sustainable and profitable businesses. With over six years of experience in the industry, Ellie has successfully created and scaled multiple Mastermind programs. She is also the host of the "Shine Online with Ellie Swift" podcast.
Key Takeaways:
Ellie Swift transitioned from working in corporate to starting her own coaching business after realizing she was dissatisfied with her role and wanted to make a more meaningful impact.
Ellie's Mastermind programs have different tiers based on income level, allowing clients to progress and grow within the programs.
Creating a unique Mastermind experience that aligns with your strengths and values makes it easier to sell and retain clients.
Collaboration and community are key elements of a successful Mastermind, and strategies can be implemented to foster these dynamics.
Podcasting is a powerful tool for building a personal brand and generating leads, as it allows people to get to know, like, and trust you quickly.
24 min
October 03, 2023EP76 - Creating Boundries for Success
In this episode, Sarah Thomson discusses the importance of setting boundaries and improving productivity in your business. She emphasizes the need to reassess goals and plans for the final quarter of the year and shares her own strategies for managing time and energy. Sarah also highlights the impact of good boundaries on overall well-being and offers practical tips for tracking time and structuring workdays.
Key Takeaways:
It is crucial to set intentions and reassess goals for the final quarter of the year to avoid rolling into the new year without a plan.
Good boundaries are essential for protecting health, energy, and overall well-being in business.
Time tracking is a valuable exercise to understand how time is spent and identify areas for improvement in productivity.
Setting aside dedicated time for working on business goals, such as a CEO day, can lead to significant growth and progress.
Outsourcing tasks, even with a few hours of virtual assistant support, can alleviate overwhelm and free up time for more important activities.
Quotes:
"If you don't start to do some of this planning now, it will get to December, and we just kind of roll into the new year without any plans or thoughts or ideas on what that is going to look like for ourselves and our business." - Sarah Thomson
"If you do too much, you burn yourself out. You're exhausted, you get sick for a long period of time. That is all going to have a massively detrimental impact on your business." - Sarah Thomson
"The easy way to start outsourcing is with a virtual assistant with just a few hours a week of support." - Sarah Thomson
"There is nothing, how do I describe it? There is no magic behind the curtain when it comes to achieving growth and attaining the goals in your business. It is nothing sexy or special. It is simply a matter of setting aside time, preferably every single week, to work on those." - Sarah Thomson
"We do not get anything back. This is not a do over. This is our one time to do the things we want to do." - Sarah Thomson
22 min
September 26, 2023 EP75 - Simone Pavils - Understanding SEO
Sarah Thomson, host of The Social Circus podcast, welcomes back guest Simone, a Pinterest and SEO expert. They discuss the unique aspects of Pinterest as a search engine and how it differs from traditional social media platforms. Simone shares her journey from Pinterest to SEO and explains the three key elements of SEO: technical optimization, usability, and keyword optimization. She emphasizes the importance of Google Business profiles and collecting reviews. Simone offers a done-for-you service for both Pinterest and SEO, empowering clients to manage their own websites.

About The Guest :
Simone is a Pinterest and SEO expert who fell into the world of digital marketing while looking for a creative outlet outside of her nursing career. She is passionate about helping businesses optimize their online presence and has become an expert in both Pinterest and SEO strategies.

Key Takeaways :
Pinterest is a search engine, not a traditional social media platform.
SEO involves optimizing your website to make it easier to find through search engines.
Google Business profiles and online reviews can significantly impact search engine rankings.

Quotes :
"Pinterest is a search engine where you come for yourself, not to learn about other people." - Simone
"SEO is optimizing your website to get found by your ideal client or customer." - Simone
"Google Business profiles and online reviews are essential for local businesses." - Simone
24 min
September 19, 2023 EP74 - Becca Maxwell - Do Divorce Right
In this episode of The Social Circus, host Sarah Thomson interviews Becca Maxwell, a divorce coach and relational intelligence consultant. Becca shares her journey into entrepreneurship and how her experience in the corporate world and consulting led her to start Do Divorce Right. She discusses the challenges of managing a corporate job and running a business, and emphasizes the importance of setting boundaries and delegating tasks. Becca also provides valuable advice for individuals going through a divorce, including managing overwhelm, acting with integrity, not delegating responsibility, and filling your own cup with joy.

**Key Takeaways:**

1. Manage overwhelm by making appointments with yourself to address thoughts and emotions related to the divorce.
2. Act with integrity and avoid badmouthing your ex-spouse to others.
3. Take responsibility for decisions and arguments related to the divorce, rather than delegating them to others.
4. Fill your own cup with joy and find activities that bring you happiness during this challenging time.

**Quotes:**

- "Make an appointment for yourself to deal with overwhelming thoughts and emotions related to the divorce." - Becca Maxwell
- "Act with integrity and avoid badmouthing your ex-spouse to others." - Becca Maxwell
- "Take responsibility for decisions and arguments related to the divorce and create your own narrative." - Becca Maxwell
- "Fill your own cup with joy and find activities that bring you happiness during this challenging time." - Becca Maxwell

About The Guest:

Becca Maxwell is a divorce coach and relational intelligence consultant with over six years of experience in coaching and consulting. She has a background in the advertising industry and has used her expertise in relational intelligence to help individuals navigate through difficult divorces. Becca is the founder of Do Divorce Right, where she provides support and guidance to those going through a divorce.
28 min
September 12, 2023EP73 - Meta Ads Q & A part 2
Sarah Thomson, the host of The Social Circus podcast, answers listener questions about Meta ads and provides insights into other advertising platforms. She explains the importance of understanding the audience on different platforms before running ads and highlights the differences between Google Ads and Meta Ads. Sarah also emphasizes the need to know how customers find your business and the scalability of your products or services when considering ads. She discusses the Advantage Campaign Budget feature in Ads Manager and shares her best-performing ad campaign, which is a lead magnet for a Canva class on creating reels.
Key Takeaways:
Before running ads on a platform, establish a presence and test it organically to see if your audience is there.
Google Ads are effective for bottom-of-the-funnel advertising, while Meta Ads are better suited for top-of-the-funnel campaigns.
Understand how customers find your business and focus on scalable products or services when considering ads.
Advantage Campaign Budget in Ads Manager allows for testing and optimization of ad sets and reallocates budget based on performance.
Testing and refining ads is crucial for success, and the best-performing ads often result from continuous testing and adjustments.
Quotes:
"Before you run any paid ads on a platform, it is always wise to have a presence on that platform." - Sarah Thomson
"Google Ads are more effective when people are close to making a purchase decision." - Sarah Thomson
"Your most effective ads are always going to be top of the funnel for Meta platforms." - Sarah Thomson
23 min
September 05, 2023EP72 - Meta Month: Mastering Meta Ads Q & A
In this episode of The Social Circus, host Sarah Thomson answers questions from listeners about running successful Meta ads. She covers topics such as targeting specific geographic areas, determining a good cost per acquisition (CPA) or cost per click (CPC), choosing the right audience size, knowing when to make adjustments to an ad, and the order in which to test different components of an ad. Sarah emphasizes the importance of testing and patience when running ads, and shares her personal strategies for achieving success with Meta ads.
Key Takeaways:
Targeting specific geographic areas is possible in Meta ads, and it's important to consider the distance people are willing to travel for events or services.
The ideal CPA or CPC depends on the value and profitability of the desired action or conversion.
A good audience size for Meta ads is between 250,000 and 2 million, depending on the targeting criteria.
It's best to wait until an ad has generated at least 100 results before making any adjustments.
When testing different components of an ad, start with images, then move on to audiences, placements, call-to-action buttons, headlines, and finally ad copy.
Quotes:
"Successful people fail fast and fail often." - Jenny Cole
24 min

About Digital Queens

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Join me, Sarah Thomson, as your host each week as we dive into digital marketing, social media and all the things it takes to run a business in this social circus.