023: Branding without showing your face w/ Venese Lau
Branding without showing your face.
With guest Venese Lau
Do you have to be the face of your brand?
In this episode, I’m joined by Venese Lau for a conversation about how you can create a brand without necessarily showing your face. (I can almost hear all the introverted and shy people perking their ears already!) This concept of creating a brand personality that isn’t actually based on a real person is something we are fairly used to with the larger brands out there, but what if you’re a solo business owner? Can it still be done? This is going to be an interesting conversation indeed.
Venese runs an events and marketing company in Tokyo, Japan. She has been an entrepreneur since she was 19, running all kinds of offline and online businesses. She is the host and face behind Your Entrepreneur Resources, where she helps entrepreneurs start, grow and scale their businesses, connecting them with the right mentors, resources and tools.
I think one of the most important things, no matter what kind of brand you’re doing, is sticking with the tone that you’re conveying.
— Venese Lau
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Disclaimer: The following transcript has been auto-generated and then cleaned up by my wonderful VA – and while the general flow of the conversation is there, it’s probably not 100% accurate.
P: Welcome, Venese. Thank you so much for joining me today.
V: Thank you so much for having me. I’m super excited to be here.
P: I’m really excited about the topic we’re going to talk about today as well, because we’re going to talk about how you can create a brand without necessarily showing your face, right?
V: Yeah.
P: And I can always hear all of the introverts who are listening in, or the shy people, perking their ears already. This concept of creating a brand personality that isn’t actually based on a real person is something we’re fairly used to already with larger brands out there. But what if you’re a solo business owner? Can it still be done? So, yeah, I think this is gonna be a really interesting conversation.
V: Yeah, I hope so.
P: Right. So before we get stuck in, could you tell us briefly what the listeners can expect to get out of this episode today?
V: Yeah, absolutely. So I think what we’re going to discuss is around how to convey your brand personality and your brand message without showing your face. Or… not necessarily just your face, but like your pictures… You know, when you go on Instagram it’s very common to see people with their business photos and things like that. Instead of showing that side of you, there are other ways to show off your personality and connect with your audience, and that’s what we’re going to be discussing.
P: That sounds fantastic. I mean, when I work with my clients, we do spend a lot of time uncovering their brand personality, and often with the smaller businesses I find that a lot of that overlaps with their own personality because it feels easier to them somehow. And so it’s almost like a short cut. So putting a face to a brand is an easy way to create that real connection. And you know that the all important “know like and trust factor” – how do you get that connection if you’re not showing your face or showing your own personality.
V: So this is from my own background. But just just like to talk about that really quickly. I actually run an event and marketing company. So it’s not a huge company. I’m not like, you know, a massive brand, but I never really show my face and people might know of me, but they wouldn’t necessarily say “Oh, it’s Venese’s brand.” It’s more like it’s Flip Productions. So that’s the name of my agency. And throughout the years, I kind of went back and forth and I was like “Oh, my gosh, everybody is putting their name out there. Everybody is putting their face out there. I’m not sure if that’s what I should do.” And, you know… should I do that, or should I just stick to what I know and convey the brand message through my logo through my colors and things like that. I’m really glad that I stuck with it. I never… I mean, my face is here and there, but for the most part, all of my branding; my website, my social media presence… All of them are mainly my logo, and when people think of my brand, they would think of not just my logo but the experiences and the memories and the way that my brand makes them feel. So I think that’s one of the most important things. It’s conveying that feeling across to the ideal audience. So for me, my ideal audience for my brand are people that are interested in events, having a good time, having memorable experiences… like enjoying a night out or a networking event or a nonprofit event without it being boring: Because I know sometimes with events, it’s very easy to make it kind of boring, knowing that there is going to be something unique to it, that’s the whole point. No matter what you do, it’s so important to make someone feel a certain way. And I think that’s key to making people remember you and making them know, like and trust you.
P: Yeah, I think that’s super important! In a way, I guess we can say it’s a little bit like acting, you know. Because you’re creating a distinct identity and personality for your brand, and then you’re applying it consistently, even if that’s not your personality So you kinda have to get into character for your brand.
V: Yeah, definitely. Obviously it can’t be something that is completely different than who you are, because then it’s It’s tough for you to put that show on the whole entire time, but you know… bring out that special something whenever you talk to your audience, or whenever you post a social media image or any kind of brand message… your content, just make sure that you stick to the same voice. Obviously, when it’s closer to your own voice it would be easier, but just make sure having like a branding kit, even the kind of words that you would always use, the kind of adjectives you’d use, the kind of language… do you use a lot of you, or do use a lot of third person’s perspective. Or do you want to speak directly with your audience? Like kind of working out how you want to convey your messages and your voice. I think that’s super important.
P: Yeah, I think in recent years we’ve seen so many new solo business owners popping out from, you know, the shadows of the Internet, and so it’s become almost the norm to brand your company as yourself when you’re running a business on your own. And I mean, yeah, there are some advantages to it, obviously. But there are disadvantages, too That is what I try to advise my clients: that they should really have a think about whether branding it with their own personality is for them – because they need to have thought about whether they are going to just be them forever, or what happens when they eventually, possibly want to bring on team members or grow their brand. What happens then, if it’s just their name? And I mean yeah, it can be done. But then you’ve got to kind of teach all of your new employees and all your team members to be like you.
V: That’s very true. I think it depends so much on the business model as well, because… say for example, you are a coach, you’re a consultant… and even if you have a team, they might be working behind the scenes. And you know, you can kind of do it two ways. One way would be everyone kind of pretending to be you, so your team would be speaking for you. But then the other way is where you let your audience know “Okay, so I have my team and this person is going to be managing this part, and that person might be talking to you.” So when it comes to I think like a coach or like a consultant, or even like a social media manager… service providers, I feel like personal brands might work better, or at least in the beginning, and I guess for products or saas software or tools or agencies, then it would make more sense to have more of a business brand, where instead of having the main core person out in the front with the face everywhere, it’s more like… you know, the logo or you kind of know that there is more than one person behind the product or the service.
P: That makes total sense to me, especially what you said about product based businesses. It would kind of be strange, I think, to put your name on that. I know people do it. I don’t know if I could do it. It depends on what the product is too, I guess. But yeah, there’s a nice sort of distinction there between the product based and the service based; especially the service based businesses where people especially come because they want to work with you. So with my brand, not I want to center it around myself or anything. But with my brand, I find that my clients come to me because they’ve had me recommended or they’ve heard good things or they seen my work and they want me to be the person who is actually carrying out the work. And obviously that’s also because I’ve been very much about putting me at the front of my brand. So people kind of think of me when they think of my brand. And that can go two ways – because I personally don’t want to take on a team. I want it to be just me. But if I wanted to take on a team, it would make me feel, at least in the start, a little bit uneasy because people would be coming expecting to be working with me, and then I would almost fob them off with someone else on my team. I feel like they would almost be disappointed because they were expecting me, but they’re not getting me. I think that’s something to bear in mind that if you are thinking of growing your team, you need to be very wary of not creating that expectation that it will be you that they’re going to be working with unless that’s what you plan to do.
V: I think especially nowadays there’s so many people that have virtual assistants, and I think that to a certain extent, virtual assistants… it makes more sense for solopreneurs to have, because they’re not the ones that are probably teaching, but more the ones that might be helping out here and there. And I see it quite a lot in Facebook groups, the admin would have someone helping out. And sometimes when you comment and then the person that replies would say “Oh, hey, I’m the virtual assistant of… let me answer that question for you” – and I feel like that’s okay because the brand is still the main admin or the moderator. But then you know that these people are just there, like helping out here and there, and they’re still sticking to the brand. They’re still using the same message and the same voice. And I think that’s a great way for solopreneurs and people that are working with a very small budget to be able to outsource a little bit while still sticking to their branding.
P: Yeah, I can recognise some of that. I mean, I would probably not have a problem outsourcing VA work. You know, the administrative stuff. But when it actually comes to my area of expertise and my zone of genius that I know people expect it to be me. And I guess that’s the same for coaches as well. If you’re gonna be coached by someone, that’s kind of a personal thing, you know? So, to then be passed on to someone other than who you thought you would be working with, that I could feel a little…
V: Yeah, that reminded me, because I took a course a while ago, just a very low ticket course. And the person that was the brand, you know, her face is everywhere, and she was like “Oh, hi, welcome to this course. So half of the course is gonna be taught by me and half by my virtual assistant.” I was like “What? I thought you were going to teach the whole thing… like it doesn’t really make sense.” I mean, I kind of understood that because I think she had a script, and then the virtual assistant would just read it out, basically. But still, you know… I’m paying to have her teach me, right? So I totally get your point about that personal touch when it comes to coaching.
P: I’m not saying you have to put your face on your brand always – because, you know, that’s not what we’re talking about today. But I’m saying, before you make that choice, I think you need to be very aware of how you’re going to portray it and how you’re gonna plan for your brand going forward. Because if you know that you’re going to be taking on a team, then maybe not showing your face so much from the beginning is actually a good thing. You know, to start building something that’s not so tied to you as a person.
V: Absolutely.
P: So how would you advise a solo business owner who’s just starting out and they want a brand that’s oozing with personality, because they do really wanna hit that specific target audience/the ideal customer avatar. They know it and they want to bring out a personality that really hits them in the heart and connects with them. And that feels authentic. And real. How can they start to do that without having to put themselves into it so much?
V: I think one of the most important things, no matter what kind of brand you’re doing, is sticking to the same colours, the same fonts, sticking with the tone that you’re conveying. So I see a lot of people nowadays, you know, using Canva – like everybody loves Canva. But then people don’t really customise the Canva templates in the end. And they just stick to the font that the Canva templates come in. So then their Instagram, social media or even the website is just a mess of different fonts. So there’s like, 10 different fonts on one page, and I’m like “No, you need to stick to one!” Not necessarily because of the visuals. The visual part is 100% important, but also because you need to be consistent. So I feel like branding… and it doesn’t matter if you’re a coach or service provider, or an agency. I think having that consistency in your colours, in your fonts, in your message and your voice is super important. And when it comes to not showing your face so much, I think that’s totally doable. I actually never showed my face really, in my agency, social media or my website. I mean the about us page – I have my face there, but I don’t really have it anywhere else. And the way that I promote it is through talking about our stories. What makes us different? What makes my agency unique in comparison to other people or other agencies. So I really hone in on the story. And my story is that my agency is in Japan, but run by young and international foreigners, people who have had different experiences and have lived in different countries and are bringing that international touch to running different campaigns and different events in Japan. So that’s my story. And throughout every single thing that I do, I convey that. I show off that we are energetic. We’re passionate and we have the experience to help people bring their messages to life. So I think it doesn’t matter if you’re not showing your face as long as you’re letting your stories shine, your audience will resonate. The ones that matter, the ones that would work with you would resonate. That’s definitely one I think people can consider doing for their businesses.
P: From what you’re saying there, I can hear that you have put a lot of thought into your brand before putting stuff out there that people can actually see. And I really like that. Obviously like all of my listeners will know by now that I am very keen on strategy. I want people to really have good foundations before they start putting their brand out there. And I would say that if you’re not going to put your face out there with your brand, that underlying strategy is going to be even more important. For instance, when I work with my clients, I take them through this framework that I have to help them really find their brand personality, dig deep and find their values and define who they are. Who are they going to be? What are we going to sound like when we speak to our audience? What are we going to look like? What kind of feelings do we want to evoke? I think once you’ve got that in place, branding without putting your face on it is going to be easier because you’ve already defined who your brand is going to be.So it’s almost like you’ve made up this person only it’s your brand.
V: Absolutely. I love that. I also think when it comes products, people that have products, sell products. And, they’re like “Oh, I don’t want to put my face there!” And I get that it’s about your product, not so much about you. But then what I would suggest people do is show that behind the scenes when it comes to that aspect. So for example, how do you create your product? How do you wrap them? Maybe you write certain thank you notes to people or you’re running certain campaigns. How do you do that? So, for example, on Instagram I love using reels. Instagram reels are amazing and I think it’s a really good opportunity for people to just show a quick 15 second video of how they put together the product, or even if you’re a service provider… a day in the life of a web designer or something like that. And then you can kind of do like a 15 second video of you creating a website for your client. And then that’s adding the human touch without having to necessarily talk to the camera or show your face. Showcasing your clients and your customers in the past as well, that would 100% add that little bit of personality as well. Because you’re giving yourself more credibility. But at the same time, people can feel like “Oh yeah, that person has had clients in the past.” Again, sparking that know, like and trust factor. So, yeah, I love using these different tactics to talk to my ideal audience.
P: I love a good behind the scenes. You can peek behind the curtain, and it’s kind of exciting to get that little peek into someone else’s business. So I’m all for behind the scenes kind of content. Also, I guess you can live your brand by the way you showcase your values. So if you are very clear on a certain set of values, you can incorporate that into how you deliver your product. I know of people who have this policy whereby if they sell one of their products, they’re also going to donate one of their products to someone who might need it. And I think that’s a really good way for that person to showcase the values of her brand and what she really stands for, and that she cares about something outside of her own business. So that kind of way of putting, you know, personality and substance into your brand, could also be really effective. You’ve got the bigger brands doing that as well. I mean, you’ve got… I think it’s Tom’s. You know, the shoe brand. I think they do… whenever someone buys a pair of their shoes, I’m not sure whether they give away like a pair of shoes to someone who doesn’t have shoes at all, or if it was something else. I can’t quite remember what that scheme is, but I know that it’s something that could ultimately mean that someone would buy from them rather than just buy a similar brand – because they connect with the values. So I think if you’re not going to be at the forefront of your brand personally, if you have really well-defined brand values, you can make them lead to create a personality with.
V: Yeah, absolutely. I love that idea. Actually, I think that I saw a brand with a similar idea where if they sell a ring or sell any kind of jewellery, they would help plant a tree. So that sparks the little fire inside of you that wants to help the environment, for example. Even if it’s just a small thing, because everybody wants to help. It’s in our nature to support, and we might not have time for it, right? Like we might not be able to volunteer our time or our money. But then, just by choosing this brand instead of the competitors, it can truly make you feel “Oh, yeah, I connect with them because I connect with their values and their beliefs and everything.” So, yeah, I think that’s such a great way to stand out from your competitors as well.
P: I think a lot of the business owners I talked to, especially the smaller businesses, really they’re are a little afraid of putting their values so clearly out there and taking a stand on things because they’re afraid of pushing some people away. And I keep telling them “No, you have to push some people away in order to attract more of the right people!” So I keep coming back to the values of your business. I think when you’re creating a brand that’s not based around you as a person, your values become that core in a different way to if you’re being very personal.
V: Yeah, I think that also ties it with kind of niching down as well. Because identifying your values and your beliefs is kind of like letting some people know “I’m not the right person for you, but for some other people I am the right person. So kind of niching down to the audience that you would resonate with the most. Um so yeah, sometimes I see someone’s instagram bio and I’m like “Oh, my gosh, that person is speaking directly to me!” And I think, if you can, even without showing your face if you can spark that little moment of connection, then people would likely work with you versus other people.
P: Yeah, it makes it easier for you as well, because you don’t have to handle all the people who aren’t sure they want to work with you. You know, the ones that aren’t quite the right fit. So if you could make them sort of just turn around in the door and self select almost. It’s like, “Okay, I don’t think I could work with this person because our values crash” they can take themselves out the door, and then you don’t have to spend that time telling them “I don’t think we’re a good fit” – because you’ve already done that job. Of course, there’s the positive spin on that as well: people who visit your website, or look on your instagram feed… when they really feel that connection with your brand it makes it easier for them to just say “Yes, I wanna buy something from this brand!” or “I wanna work with this brand!” So I’m all about daring to ruffle a few feathers, because it’s going to make your communication a lot clearer. Your brand as a whole will be more cohesive, and you will stand out from your competitors, more when you really hone in on what you stand for and who you want to be as a brand.
V: Absolutely. I completely agree. I also do the thing where I am very clear on who I don’t wanna work with and who I help and what I stand for. Just like what you said; the ones that don’t resonate can then just kind of turn away before they even enter the door, because my front door looks a certain way. And if they’re not happy, it’s not welcoming to them… Then they can just go the other way.
P: Yeah, they can go and knock on the door that appeals to them and they will probably be happier. And I will probably be happier.
V: Yeah, so true.
P: So I know that you’ve been an entrepreneur since you were 19. That’s pretty impressive. Have you always built your brand around… not yourself? Or was there a point where you had a personal brand as well?
V: I’ve always had my company called Flip productions. So it’s always been a business brand for the longest time, um, you know, because it was mainly events and marketing. But then now I have Your Entrepreneur Resources, which is still not really me. But it’s like a hybrid. So I feel like that’s something else that people can consider: a hybrid version. So I’m the only person that’s running it and I mainly use my logo. My photo is there on my website, like only in the about page. But I share a lot of my own experiences. I share a lot of my own stories. I also have a podcast show, so obviously I’m the voice behind it. But I interview a lot of people, so it’s not necessarily me in front of the camera the whole entire time. I share the stage with other entrepreneurs and other solopreneurs and service providers. So I think I don’t have business photos of me everywhere, but I’m there… so people know I’m around. But people also know that it’s not just about me. I have guest experts. I have guest bloggers that come on and share their experiences as well, so it’s a bit of a hybrid like situation I have going on right now. I think that’s good for people to know that.
P: Yeah, you can have the best of both worlds. You don’t have to go completely in one direction or the other. You know, find the mix that feels comfortable for you. I have examples of clients who say that they don’t want to be the face of their brand, but it’s more because they’re a bit shy, they’re afraid of showing their actual face. But they still put a lot of them into the brand, even though it’s not them doing Instagram lives all the time. You know… sort of putting themselves out there because that’s something that makes them feel a bit vulnerable. But there’s a middle way. There’s a middle ground there that I think can suit a lot of people.
V: I think also, you know, sometimes it’s also about the mindset, because when you’re starting a brand, you kinda have to realise: Do you not want to show your face because you don’t think your brand needs you to be the face of it – or because you’re afraid of the judgment? Because I think that’s one of the biggest things for a lot of people. Maybe you worried what your family and friends might think about you. Like imposter syndrome, who am I to be speaking about this topic? For example, earlier today I was in a Clubhouse room and I was chatting. I was like “Oh, yeah, this is my topic. I love sharing about this.” And then someone I knew that’s a friend, not really business related at all, came into the room and I just went “Oh, my gosh. I don’t know how to react to this right now.” So, um… it did kind of make me feel a bit like… that little kick in my stomach. But I think, at the end of the day, do what’s best for your brand. If you think that your face is important, then consider doing a hybrid version in the beginning and see. Because the more you do it, the more comfortable you’ll get honestly. But then, if you think that it’s not for your brand to even put your face out there – share your stories, share messages, share values… like what we talked about before. And I think that would guide you in the right direction. And you can always change, right? Like you don’t have to stick to this forever. You can always evolve, and if you’re a personal brand in the beginning, you can become more like an agency in the future. It really depends. And don’t worry about having it perfect right away. It takes time and it’s okay.
P: It does take time. And I think a lot of people want to just have that instant brand. You know, it’s like they want ready to go, perfect straight out of the box. And branding doesn’t work like that. In my experience, branding… well, maybe before to a bigger extent, where you know your logo = your brand much more than what it does today. Today I find brands are more evolving. They’re not static things; they’re living creatures almost, that can evolve. That can change. And that should change. Because you know… the world around us changes continuously, so brands these days have to adapt more by default, because the world is so rapidly changing. I mean, like with the political landscape or yeah, anything really.
V: Yeah. I think what you said is really important, you know. Don’t feel like it has to be perfect, because it’s never going to be perfect. But you know, you grow and you evolve as you go along. I love that even huge brands like Uber… they have Uber eats and Uber pool and all these different branches now. And Airbnb before… I forgot the name but it was all about sharing mattresses or something. It’s very interesting. So even big brands have changed and evolved so much. Instagram too, for example. Instagram was like, completely different. They had a different business model as well, and they changed. So I feel like it’s okay. It’s better done than perfect, right? Like… just get your brand out there, do what you’re comfortable with, don’t force yourself to be in front of the camera if you’re not comfortable with that. Yeah, get your business out there and just get going.
P: That is such sound advice! We’ve been talking a lot about creating a brand personality and we’ve also been talking a little bit about consistency – because consistency is going to create that know, like and trust factor. Like I said earlier, I think it’s easier to stay consistent with your brand personality if your brand is you. But there are ways around it. So if you’re building a brand that’s disconnected from you as a person, pop it in your brand guidelines and get really clear on the personality of your brand. Define those values. Define the tone of voice. Define that image style and, you know, make a record of it. Put it in your brand guidelines alongside with all of the things you normally think of when you think of brand guidelines. Your brand personality is equal to your brand colors, your brand fonts, it’s just as important. So you can actually write instructions for whomever is going to act on behalf of your brand, to say that you need to show up with this tone of voice. You know, whether it’s a happy, chirpy, relaxed kind of voice versus a more formal, businesslike voice. Just, you know, put it in your brand guidelines. So it’s there like a recipe, because that’s going to make it easier if you want to expand your team, maybe you take on a VA. Then you can hand that person your brand guidelines and say “Hey, look. Here’s how I want you to act on behalf of my brand.”
V: Yeah, actually, that’s such a great point with having the branding kit. I think that it’s super important. I think it’s going to be annoying in the beginning because you’re going to be like, “What am I doing this for?” It’s frustrating. But once you have it, it’s going to save you so much time. Like even finding the colour code will be much easier. It’s so much easier when you have that, and also to go along with what you just said, about consistency. I completely agree that when it’s not your face out there, when it’s not a personal brand, it can be harder to stay consistent because you feel like no one’s going to judge you because no one is going to know who is not being consistent, right? And something I do want to say about that is, you know, one of the best ways to stay consistent without showing your face and like creating content even when you’re super busy and don’t have the time to, you know, make a whole new graphic… is to share other people’s content. I think collaborating and partnering up with people is one of the best ways to gain visibility. And, for example, say in an Instagram story, you see a great post that someone else has shared and you really liked it and resonates with you and it, you know, it’s something that your audience would find useful. Then you can share that, and after a while you start building these relationships with people, and maybe then you can go on their podcast. Or maybe you know you can do a guest post for them. You know there’s so many opportunities through collaborations. And I think that just because you’re not the face of the brand doesn’t mean that you can’t do collaborations and sharing and working together on different projects. And even tiny things like what I said about sharing someone’s instagram posts. It could just spark so many new ideas for you as well. And that way you can be consistent without having to keep creating new content and just feeling like “Oh, gosh… do I have to go on Instagram Live or Instagram story and show my face today?” No, you don’t have to. You can just share other people’s content or your old content as well. So I think that’s something that people can consider doing.
P: Yeah, absolutely. And we spoke earlier about the rabbit hole of Canva, a lot of the free templates, and that you can really get sucked into that. You see this new font… There’s a template and that looks nice. And that template that looks nice… and they’re all free and like you could just take them and use them. And the temptation to do that can become quite strong. And I think I think that’s something that’s also going to become easier if you’re clear on your strategic choices for your brand, because then when you’ve got a brand that’s aligned and you know what it’s going to look like, sound like, feel like… and it feels aligned with the values and with the personality you want to convey. Then the temptation is going to go away (well, at least partially!) because you feel at home in the identity that you’ve created for your brand. And so it doesn’t feel so tempting to jump from font to font or colour to colour or free template to free template anymore. A Lot of people say to me “Oh, but you’re a designer, you must hate Canva!” I’m like “No, I love Canva!” I use Canva all the time for my clients. I set up their brand kits. I set them up with templates that are theirs so they don’t have to go down that free route. Yeah, and that again makes it a lot easier for them to be consistent. And to put that brand personality out there in the same way every time. Canva is not evil, Canva is really good if you use it in the right way.
V: Actually, I’ve seen people just basically take this template and just use that template like exactly how it is without changing anything and posting on, like, instagram or Pinterest. And I’m just like “Gosh, I know exactly where that came from. And you didn’t even change your quote or change anything.” So, I love that you create templates for your clients. You know, I don’t think you have to make a million different designs, like honestly, don’t. But having that consistency, having those templates, can really help save your time. And yeah, I love that you do that for your clients.
P: I mean, it’s a win win. It takes the small little design jobs out of my hands. And it empowers my clients to do it themselves. And then, you know, it saves them time. It saves me time. And then I can have my eyes on the bigger picture for them. And then they’ve got it all sorted because you know, their fonts and colours, all of the logos… They’re all in their brand kit. And that way they can start to experiment within the confines of their own brand, to find their voice and to find their way of communicating. So that’s also a way I find that they have creative freedom to evolve their brand, but within a set of guidelines so that they don’t come across as completely different from time to time and get tempted to just jump to the other side and try something completely not on brand. Because that’s not very good for building brand trust and recognition.
V: Yeah!
P: I think those people who are a little bit introverted, a bit shy, who have been listening today, should be able to go away today with a lot of ideas of how they can build a really strong brand without having to put themselves out there too much, which is really great. But if you could give our listeners just one simple tip, something that’s really easy to implement. What would that be?
V: I think I say this quite a lot. I have two tips that go hand in hand and they contradict each other. So the first thing is to just do it. I know that everyone, entrepreneurs, especially female entrepreneurs, are perfectionists. You expect, you know, to have the perfect brand logo, the perfect brand colour combination and the fonts and the templates… everything you expect. You know, you want your website to be perfect before you launch it. And honestly, there’s no perfect. It’s never going to be perfect. So just do it, because it’s like I said before, it’s better done than perfect. Your brand is going to evolve. You’re going to change. your brand is gonna change throughout the months and the years to come – so it’s okay to just get it out there. So that’s the first tip. And the second one is to validate your idea because, yes, you should just do it. But at the same time, if your idea is not going to attract anybody, if you can’t monetise it… then there’s no point in doing it, because you’re just gonna waste a lot of time and energy. I speak about this with experience. I have failed two businesses where I was like “Oh my gosh, I’m so passionate. I love this. I’m just going to do it!” And I spent a lot of time and a lot of money, a lot of energy, and I realised that nobody cares about it, except for me or a few other people. So 100% validate your idea, but don’t spend too much time on it. Go and talk to a few people. Jump on like 15-30 minute calls with them. Just see what they’re saying. See what language they’re using? See what they need – and that’s it. Spend a few days on it, don’t spend months, because I see people doing market research for months on end… and that ties back into my first point. Like, just do it. Spend a little bit of time validating your idea, and then just do it. Get it out there.
P: So if my listeners want to learn more from you, where can they find you and where can they connect with you? I happen to know that you’ve got a free resource library, right? I’ve had a little sneak peek at it and I’ve got to say it looks really good. Tell us about that. You know, what can people find in there? Where can they sign up? Where else can they connect with you?
V: You can find me at YourEntrepreneurResourcees.com and on Instagram. I’m always in my DMs just chatting with different people. So feel free to just hit me up. And I do have a free entrepreneur resource library. So my whole thing is about connecting people with the right resources and the right mentors and tools. And I feel like there’s just so much BS and there’s so much overwhelm out there. So I have a no tech confusion resource library inside the resource library. A lot of tongue twisters here! So, you know, for people that want to… start their own website, you know, figuring out if you should use WordPress or Squarespace and all these different tools… email service providers… which one should you go with? I’ve got e-books in there, many courses and a lot more.
P: Thank you so much again for being here with me, having this conversation today. I’ve really, really enjoyed it.
V: No, thank you so much for having me. I’m super excited. I’m so glad to be able to come on and speak to your audience.
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