6 Ways to Stay Educated as You Grow Your Business

Hello, babes! We’re fast-approaching the weekend and the to-do lists are long, but we are un-phased. Right? RIGHT. ;) We have a post for you with insight from 6 fabulous babes from around the country. As we grow our businesses, the tools we’re using are changing. Our industry is changing. We need to adapt what we do & what we know, and that includes social media, organization tools, marketing methods, pricing, etc. So when you don’t have a ton of time and you want to keep learning, where do you turn? We have responses from ladies in the following industries: photography, travel, retail, copywriting, digital marketing, & stationery. Their responses run the gamut of podcasts, books, workshops, & more. Take a peek and find the next best way for you to continue your business education as you grow your awesome business.

-G

Ali Kriegsman | Bulletin // IG

“Alana and I are both big fans of coffee or lunch dates with industry experts. While reading books or online resources is awesome for certain things - digital marketing logistics, segmenting email campaigns, and other technical or tactical priorities - sometimes you just want to hunker down with an expert and ask a million questions! For example, we learned early into 2018 that Instagram was going to be a huge revenue driver for us. I knew about a friend of a friend who ran all social and Instagram stuff for Buzzfeed for about four years. Let's call her Sarah! Contrary to what some people might assume, Bulletin's relationship to and with Instagram is still fresh. I knew we needed a veteran's eye and help to educate us on the parts of the platform we didn't understand or have not yet mastered. Rather than reading a lot of articles or downloading general, evergreen whitepapers about Instagram and social, we paid Sarah to come in as a consultant for a short period to get in the weeds with our Instagram, our data, our process, and whip us into shape. I really lean on people for education because I find it so much more valuable to get that personalized help and attention. You don't always need to pay people, either! Sometimes just covering the cost of lunch or coffee and picking someone's brain can save you hours of scanning through text or websites or articles to find the info you need.”

New York, NY

Andrejka Hirschegger | Andrejka Photography // IG

“Utilize the community around you! “A rising tide lifts all boats.” I truly believe in this. I love that I have an incredible group of photographer friends from around the globe. We learn together, work together and as a whole, make the industry better for everyone!”

St. Petersburg, FL

Crystina Castiglione | The Messy Painter // IG

“As an artist I’m always look to hone, refine and expand my craft. Just because I’m great at one medium, doesn’t make me great at all of them. I’m primarily a watercolorist, but I’m not awesome with other types of paint, and I’m always looking to up my digital design and illustration skills. I turn to places like Brit & Co, Skillshare, Creative Bug and online creative summits like the Modern Calligraphy Summit. The better I am at my craft, and the more expertise I have in a field, the more services I can offer my clients and the more creative I can get with my work. Anyone can learn how to run a business, but you first have to have something of value that is continually evolving to stay competitive, relevant and unique.”

St. Petersburg, FL

Erika Vidal Holmes | Erika Vidal Holmes // IG

“As a copywriter working from home, it is so easy to get disconnected and stay in my PJs all day and just do my own thing. In my agency life, I had access to so many learning resources, whether it was my fellow co-workers, conferences or lunch and learns. Now, I have to take a much more proactive approach to staying on top of my game.

Taking the time to invest in growing my skills and marketing my business is a major goal for me this year and I'm actually pretty darn proud to actually be following through with it. I'm halfway through Marie Forleo's B-School, which is her online business program. I've followed her weekly online Marie TV show since I started my business and I finally took the plunge to take her 8-week course. It is completely changing the way I view myself and my business and making me take a good hard look at what my real long-term goals are.

I've also been obsessively listening to podcasts lately to amp up my online marketing knowledge, most notably Amy Porterfield's Online Marketing Made Easy, Jenna Kutcher's Goal Digger and The Copywriter Club. I learn something new that I apply every single day, whether it's about building email lists, being more productive on a day-to-day basis, or mastering Pinterest. 

Beyond that, I'm always asking people what they're listening to or reading for inspiration as well, and just keeping close tabs on brands I love.”

Tampa, FL

Ren Altizer | Wolf&Rabbit Marketing // IG

“We mostly gain knowledge through yearly marketing conferences, being an active part of Facebook groups with fellow marketing companies, and attending industry webinars. I’ve also taken time to develop my writing with continuing education courses from UCLA! The truth is that the internet is a beautiful thing when it comes to education and there are many resources that are completely FREE! In addition, we’ve been blessed to have a beautiful network of genius women who we can collaborate, learn, and grow from.”

Tampa, FL

Theresa Chu-Bermudez | Get Out! Custom Travels // IG

“Education is one of the most effective ways to grow a business. When prospects and clients see you as an expert, they are more likely to use you to work with them to solve their problems. As a travel consultant, it's important to keep up with the ever-changing regulations and emerging destinations/experiences in the travel industry as well as learning how to market to my target audience. In addition to tradeshows, conferences, and supplier training events that really help me understand the best way to reach and serve my clients, I make it a priority to experience what I offer to my clients in person. Personal experience can really help you see the different nuances of a seemingly similar travel product; for example, each cruise ship provides a different feel even if they both belong to the same cruise line! This difference can be difficult to tell from a website. Even though all of these different educational opportunities involve a significant investment of time and money, the fact that I can constantly improve how I serve my clients in offering the perfect travel experience for them is priceless.”

Tampa, FL