When you first start a business all you want to do is just make it. You haven't thought about 5 years from now or what your brand will look like when you cross the 7-figure line (ok who am I kidding…we probably have), BUT most of us are focused on hitting our first major milestone. For some, that's a 10k month, for others that could be quitting your 9-5. Whatever the goal is, we often find ourselves stuck after we’ve completed it. Once you’ve arrived, the question becomes: now what? What comes next… and more importantly how do you get there? 

Well, you’re in luck..because that's exactly what I’m here to talk about. Three things every business owner needs in order to scale their brand.

Mindset

I know what you're thinking *If someone tells me I just need to energetically feel it, I’m going to go crazy.* Trust me I’ve been there. Even I - someone who is not a fan of the “whooo” - will admit that mindset has a HUGE impact on your ability to scale your brand. In order to grow, you have to mentally be prepared to receive what that growth will give you. You have to feel expansive, you have to allow yourself the freedom to dream, and you have to prioritize wellness. 

Mindset will never be one and done but here are a few practical tips on how I protect my energy. 

1. Limit your social media intake: When you spend all day absorbing other people's energies it makes it hard to have your own. Especially as an innovator or thought leader! 
2. No set schedule: CEO days do not exist in my business, and for good reason. The moment I tell my brain, “Fridays I will not do any client work,” well guess what? Friday is the EXACT day that I want to do client work. Instead, I keep a running list of everything I have to do and I break them down into sections. 
   • My current to-do has a section for 
     • Legal (tax season)
     • Client work 
     • Marketing
     • Collaborations (aka making time to write this post!)

If I can complete one from each section then it's been a productive day! 

PS I work 40 hours a week at a corporate job, so flexibility and self-forgiveness for missing deadlines is a big one for me. 

3. White space: I’m the first to say, “Alexa set an alarm for 20 minutes.” I use that time to do whatever I want; a walk around the block, or call a friend. I let my brain shut off for a minute! 

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Strategy

I used to be the girl that thought a step-by-step process could fix all your problems. Growth has taught me that the mind comes first and THEN the plan to execute. Strategy is the jelly to mindset’s peanut butter, the Christina Yang to the Meredith Grey, the KAN to the YE…. 

…so many of these I could go on for forever…

But my point is that both mindset and strategy should be inseparable. In fact, your most impactful strategy is one that you are energetically behind. Your highest self chose that step-by-step process on how to accomplish those goals. This means….on the days when your mindset gets a little funny, and you want to throw in the towel, the strategy will still be there. It’s clear, it’s reliable and it holds you accountable. Strategy is a core part of scaling your brand because you need both energetic capacity to grow and the logistical foresight to help get you there. I can guarantee you the “1 mili and more club” are not out here “just winging it.” The difference between where you may be and where they are is that they likely have people creating these strategies for them so that they can focus on coaching or doing the things that give them joy. Until you’ve reached that milestone, here are some tips I like to tell my clients: 

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Building a strategy includes 

1. Clarity on your mission and brand values: this will be your guiding light on how you differentiate yourself in the industry. If you wanted to know where thought leadership comes from, THIS IS IT. 
2. Build a Plan for Profitability: I know people like to say, “I’m not in it for the money,” and maybe you aren’t but still…we gotta talk about it. I recommend making a list of your 3 month (short term), and 12 month (long term) financial goals and taking a peek at your pricing strategy to make sure everything aligns.
3. Marketing + Content: Once you have your brand values and business goals mapped out, you can move into selling and promoting. Think of all the ways your work creates impact, your own journey, and then put that into your content! 

Operations

I am the queen of “let's just figure it out as we go along.” Now, the 1-year-wiser business owner version of me is like…

skirttttt absolutely not. 

You need to have systems in place. They don’t have to be fancy but they do need to be organized. Systems are how clients work with you. When you have a complicated buyer's journey (AKA when you’re delayed 5 days to send a proposal or when you have to send your invoices separately because they are all customized), it slows down the entire process. That Stripe notification that could have been instant is now 2 or 3 weeks later because your back-end systems are all over the place.

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In business, you’re going to have 99 problems…but getting paid should never be one. 

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Operational stuff that was a lifesaver

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Use the free version of:

1. Honeybook: The easiest CRM I’ve ever used. They also have stellar deals and promotions!
2. ClickUp: Where I manage my entire team (studio of 6 contractors plus my own business)
3. Airtable: Used for content planning (which content is for email, vs blog, captions etc)
4. Google Forms: Hiring team members! I used to use these to capture testimonials and onboarding questionnaires.
5. Excel: I do all my financial planning here, although after hubs and I close on the house we will switch to Quickbooks!

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If you are ready to spend some cash:

1. Dubsado: I used this tool after Honeybook. Definitely a learning curve, but after a while you get the hang of it. I’d say on a scale of 1-10 of how tech-savvy you should be to use this, I would rate it an 8!
2. Miro: Virtual whiteboard that I use to visual plan all my content and my client's social media content. If the previews in your scheduler suck then this is a great alternative! 

Last note and then… I’ll *poof* be gone…. 

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It never hurts to look the part. When your brand grows, so do your client's expectations. Here are some simple and subtle appearance upgrades you can make:

1. Ditch the linktree for a website template. If you’re not ready to commit to a customized website yet there are some beautiful templates that will get the job done. Back in my blogging days, I was a huge fan of WordPress and Squarespace! My current website is fully customized on Showit.
2. Upgrade client materials: If you don't have the design gene, I recommend Creative Market. They have some beautiful welcome guide templates and Instagram bundles under $40!

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Ok, folx..my time here is up, and I’ve officially left ya with all the gems I had to give. If you have any questions about anything you read today or you just wanna pop by and say hello…You can find me here:

www.klcthestudio.com

https://www.instagram.com/klc.thestudio/

Until next time

- Kierra Conover

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