))
Small Town Business shines a light on people making big things happen in small towns, regional and rural communities. Each episode is in two-parts. In Part one, we chat with a small-town business owner, hand picked because they have a particularly special story to tell. They generously share the ups and downs and all the in-betweens of their business, before part two where I draw out one of the key points of the discussion into a specific learning with a focus on marketing and business devel ...
…
continue reading
Alex Thomas is a rural health and safety specialist and advocate for safety and wellbeing in regional and rural areas - especially on farms. In this episode she tells us her very personal ‘why’ and why she’s so passionate about this topic. She has chosen women to help her in her mission through her organisation ‘Plant a Seed for Safety’ and campaig…
…
continue reading
Sometimes to make a treechange you have to leave your career behind and start something new. There are so many pros to building a local business - especially to support your lifestyle or family goals, if commuting back and forth to the nearest City just isn’t possible. In this episode, I take some of the tips I’ve gotten from other local businesses…
…
continue reading
Kristy Plumridge is the owner of Greenhills Farm and The Ridge House in Yarragon, West Gippsland. She and her husband Neil made a treechange from Melbourne in 2015 but they did it a little differently - pretty smartly I think. They bought a farm with no experience BUT rather than taking their inexperience in farming and jumping straight in, they ha…
…
continue reading
Even though I believe there is usually a place for social media in your marketing, I will rarely encourage anyone to JUST focus on it. Having a healthy spread of promotional and marketing activity allows you to reach a broader audience and mitigate any potential disasters - like getting locked out of your social media accounts. Which happens a LOT.…
…
continue reading
How much time and effort do you spend working on your business’ social media? Is it at the expense of other media? There’s increasing pressure from all around us to believe that social is the only way you can build your business or promote yourself, your business or brand but there are options. Great options… In this interview, Kimberley Furness fr…
…
continue reading
If you’re in a small business, chances are you’re wearing the marketing and social media hat. Being close to the heart of your business makes you the best person for the job, but sometimes it can be hard to share the type of content that really connects you to your audience and converts them into customers. How much do you share? Are you holding ba…
…
continue reading
My guest, Amy from The New Red, is no stranger to a good pivot, having traveled a winding road in her career and life. More recently in her small business she went into battle against her local Council to keep her successful woodworking and emerging skills training business afloat but chose to put her mental health first - pivoting into an entirely…
…
continue reading
Are you a lifelong learner? I am! Learning comes with success and failure and, in small business, it comes from listening to others’ experiences. In this episode I open up about some of my learnings and challenges to date. I hope it helps - even if it just validates some of your challenges. You’re not alone! Mentioned in this episode www.business.g…
…
continue reading
My guest, Jackie Yong from Soilz Alive, describes herself as a curious human, compost enthusiast and hair lover…three things that you wouldn’t think you could turn into a business. But she has and it’s great. It wasn’t all smooth sailing though and Jackie generously shares her ups and downs in this chat. I hope you enjoy it! To find Soilz Alive and…
…
continue reading
This week I’m talking about passion. How to find it when you’re feeling stuck or how to know what you could or should be doing. I give you a few thoughts on how being passionate about your business can backfire and some tools to try and prevent that. Passion is an incredible foundation for a business and is absolutely essential if you’re working or…
…
continue reading
Does your small town have a calendar of events that you attend regularly? If not, do you wish it did? Conceptualising, creating and running events is no small feat and it requires a lot of hard work and passion. My guest, Alli Walker from Walker Events has that passion and you’ll hear it today. Alli will give you just a little bit of insight into h…
…
continue reading
Purpose-driven, for-purpose, heart-led, social-enterprise, profit-for-purpose… There are a lot of ways to describe businesses that have a purpose or a mission, but there’s also a common misconception that business that have a purpose, or are driven by advocacy for example - shouldn’t be ‘for profit’. Today’s episode is about how possible (and aweso…
…
continue reading
Just a few years ago, Jason and Andy Quin conceived, developed and launched a really special range of alcohol-free, inclusive drinks, called ETCH Sparkling, that celebrate health and native Australian fruits and herbs. Special for those reasons alone, but the personal journey that led them here is significant and an important part of their brand st…
…
continue reading
There’s a lot that can be said about family when it comes to business, especially small business. It’s very hard to run your own business without involving your family - whether directly or indirectly. Setting boundaries and having clear intentions can all get a little blurred when you don’t have that distinction between work and home…I should know…
…
continue reading
Are you one of the many many people who left their home town seeking greener pastures, fame or fortune only to feel that pull back when the time came to raise your own family? I am and so is Sarah Rowan, my guest today. Sarah lives in rural New South Wales and, alongside her brother, took over the reins of the family business - Harden Bearings and …
…
continue reading
Authenticity is such a slippery little sucker. We know it’s important, but what does it actually mean to be authentic when it comes to your business or your social media and marketing? In this episode I reflect on my conversation with Doug in episode 8 and I’ve pulled out five thought starters on what I think authenticity means and how you can look…
…
continue reading
Over the past two years I’ve talked with a lot of people who took a redundancy or lost their jobs during the pandemic. People who found themselves with either no choice but to start their own business or, in the case of this guest, saw an opportunity to take a risk and explore what he could build with his passion and knowledge and networks. I’m spe…
…
continue reading
As this podcast season progresses, I’m realising that everyone I speak with has something in common. The safety net of their own community. If you’ve been listening along, you might have noticed that too. So in this episode, I’m going to take my learnings from Dave (episode 6) and look a little deeper at the role that community can play in your bus…
…
continue reading
One of my favourite sayings is ‘a rising tide lifts all boats’ and I reckon Dave, his wife Mich and their network of business owners, foodies, makers and shakers are definitely that tide. We’re back in Warragul because I really wanted to introduce you to Dave, who would talk for days to share his knowledge on what community over competition really …
…
continue reading
I’m back again talking about confidence and how you can channel it if you’ve got it, or muster it up if you don’t. You’ll hear my thoughts on five ways that you can work on your confidence and, in doing so, put your best foot forward in your business. Have the capacity to deal with stuff like rejection or slow social media growth or when people wri…
…
continue reading
Confidence. Backing yourself. Sometimes when you’re starting out in business you really do have to fake it till you make it. And I’m not talking about anything dodgy here. I mean digging deep and faking the confidence that you need to walk into a room and say hey I’m here and you need my fantastic products. That’s the confidence you need to grow a …
…
continue reading
In this episode I dig a little deeper into the idea of ‘virality’. Why DO we dream of a large following? Why do we crave NUMBERS when it comes to our social media? You’ll hear my thoughts on five key features of viral content and how you can learn from that for your own business marketing. As you’re listening, have a think about how you could take …
…
continue reading
In the midst of all the lockdowns in 2020, Hanna Lofgren and her husband Grego Montalban Sanchez (aka The Invy Baker), set up a micro-bakery in the small coastal town of Inverloch, South Gippsland. Their intention was to create a lifestyle business that would take Grego away from the grind of #cheflife and allow them to spend time together with the…
…
continue reading
Small Town Business is coming soon! Follow along for inspiring stories from community-driven, authentic people. Then let Erika McInerney - that’s me your host - teach you how you can take that inspiration and turn into into action for your business. Make sure you follow or subscribe so you don’t miss the first episode!…
…
continue reading
