You know that feeling when you’re juggling a corporate career, building a business on the side, and your marketing is… well, let’s call it “winging it”?
That was Caroline when we started working together in September.
She’s an interior designer who specialises in design-for-wellbeing (how brilliant is that?), with 15+ years of corporate marketing expertise. She knows marketing inside out. But the thing is, knowing what you should do and having the systems in place to do it while managing everything else? That’s a different challenge.
Caroline’s goal was clear: build a sustainable business generating enough monthly revenue so she could transition to three days per week I her job in 4 months, with a full exit from corporate 6 months after that.
Six weeks of focused, strategic work. Here’s what happened.
Where She Started
Caroline had been completing interior design projects for friends and family for years. She discovered her design-for-wellbeing approach when redesigning her own home during COVID helped her mental health. She was passionate, skilled, and ready to transition – but she needed marketing systems that could work around a full-time job.
At the beginning: no lead magnet. No email list beyond past clients. Social media content created week-to-week with no real strategy. All workable.
What We Built Together
The Foundation (Weeks 1-2)
We started where every sustainable business needs to start: with clarity. We mapped out how her business could realistically fit around her corporate role. We nailed down two clear ideal client personas and chose her free guide topic: “5 Sensory Shifts for a Home That Restores You.”
She also commissioned professional design for some printed items – because sometimes you need to invest in your brand upfront.
The Systems (Weeks 3-4)
This is where it got properly exciting. Caroline drafted her entire lead magnet, got it professionally designed, and had some items printed to reach her high-end audience. She set up an email system and drafted a 5-email welcome sequence. I gave copy feedback on all of the written messaging.
We completed SEO keyword research, got her Google Business Profile optimisation underway, and developed her social media content framework with her unique golden thread running through everything.
Week 4, Caroline said: “It feels like the marketing is really starting to get up and running.”
The Momentum (Weeks 5-6)
By October, things were moving. Caroline launched her lead magnet. Plus, she secured a half-page advert in a magazine (25,000 circulation), with a half-page editorial feature about design-for-wellbeing.
She mapped out a couple of key collaboration partnerships for the future. Next, we worked on training AI for more streamlined and sustainable content creation (crucial for Caroline’s busy week). For this to work meant getting everything organised in one place with her brand voice properly trained in.
Oh, and she secured a major new client for January while doing all of this!
The Real Win
At our final session, Caroline said:
“I have found it so incredibly helpful. I don’t think when I started the programme, I thought I was going to get so much value out of it. It’s been valuable beyond what I even imagined.”
But here’s what I think the real win is: Caroline now has systems that work for her life and her business growth. Not advice that assumes you have unlimited time and energy. Not a one-size-fits-all content calendar that ignores the fact you’re managing a corporate career, a business coach, and building a business simultaneously.
She built sustainable foundations while being completely realistic about her current constraints.
Need to Build Your Marketing Foundations?
If you’re reading this thinking, “Yes, that’s me. I’m juggling too much, and my marketing keeps falling to the bottom of the list”, I understand. And more importantly, there’s a way forward that doesn’t require you to burn out or quit your job before you’re ready.
The Strategy Accelerator isn’t about doing ALL the marketing. It’s about doing the RIGHT marketing. The stuff that builds momentum toward your specific goal – whether that’s £3K months, more time freedom, or finally having systems that don’t require you to reinvent the wheel every single week.
Caroline proved you can make massive progress in six weeks when you’re working strategically. Want to chat about what this could look like for your business? Drop me a message. Let’s talk about building your marketing foundation – the sustainable way.
The Strategy Accelerator is my 6-week marketing mentor programme for ambitious female founders who want strategic marketing systems without the overwhelm. I work with a maximum of 3 clients per month: apply for your space here.
Read more: To see Caroline’s interior design work, visit her website Eden Lane Interiors.
Recent Comments