For this final episode of our special season Bo and Tess are taking listener questions. They’re answering all your gripes and grievances... And it turns out that we all have a lot of those when it comes to the frustrations of marketing your business on social media. From the paralysis of comparisonitis to the sheer exhaustion of putting yourself out there again and again and seeing little or no gain from your efforts.

Tess and Bo talk about the tools and strategies they’ve used in their own businesses and lives to create boundaries around social media use and find less energy draining ways to market their businesses. 

LINKS: 

Bo's Website

Bo’s Retreats

Tess’s Website

Self-Promotion Without Social Media 

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This podcast is a collaboration between Soul Traders Podcast and Creative Minds. 

If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please, take a moment to recommend us to a friend by sending them a link to the show. 

You can find us online at soultraders.net.au and creativemindshq.com

Tess’s new book Self-Promotion Without Social Media is available at bookstores and independent retailers around Australia, internationally via Amazon, and at creativemindshq.com.

Thanks to Lucy Peach for our music and Scott from Sound Mind Editing. 

This podcast is recorded across the unceded lands of the Wurundjeri and Menang peoples.

As a sole trader or freelancer, changes in your personal life can have a huge impact on your business. In this episode, Tess and Bo talk about the risks and rewards of pivots and big leaps as well as small incremental changes across their own businesses and their client work. 

From having children to moving interstate, to changing your business name or a global pandemic, internal and external transitions can force us into having to change our business offerings whether we like it or not. Sometimes, it’s appropriate to bring your community with you on that journey of change and Tess offers suggestions for making sure your website and your narrative around that change is authentic and clear for your clients and colleagues. 

LINKS: 

Bo’s Mentoring 

Bo’s Retreats

DIY Guide to SEO 

Self-Promotion Without Social Media 

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This podcast is a collaboration between Soul Traders Podcast and Creative Minds. 

If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please, take a moment to recommend us to a friend by sending them a link to the show. 

You can find us online at soultraders.net.au and creativemindshq.com

Tess’s new book Self-Promotion Without Social Media is available at bookstores and independent retailers around Australia, internationally via Amazon, and at creativemindshq.com.

Thanks to Lucy Peach for our music and Scott from Sound Mind Editing. 

This podcast is recorded across the unceded lands of the Wurundjeri and Menang peoples.

In this episode, Tess, Amy and Bo talk about in-person events and why they’re important for relationship building as a smalll business or sole trader.

From attending an event as a punter to organising your own event - we think the informal opportunities for connection are incredible and can help your business in so many ways. People remember unique in person experiences for many years to come. 

Tess talks about strategies and ideas for approaching an in person event as an introvert and Bo talks about living regionally and the effort and impact of attending a few selected events in the city every year. We cover the benefits of industry specific events and offer ideas on low effort/high reward events that you can ‘muscle in’ on! 

Bo talks about the Pecha Kucha format as a sharpening tool for content and Tess talks about how her book was originally a talk and workshop that evolved into a book over time. Amy and Tess talk about their bug bears at in person events, how to avoid them and ways to make sure everyone feels welcome and has their nerves set at ease. 

LINKS: 

Melbourne Design Week, event at Coco Flip and Plyroom
Creative Women’s Circle
The Pecha Kucha format for speaking 
The Power of The Pause panel discussion
M Pavillion 
Living Futures Institute 

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This podcast is a collaboration between Soul Traders Podcast and Creative Minds. 

If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please, take a moment to recommend us to a friend by sending them a link to the show. 

You can find us online at soultraders.net.au and creativemindshq.com

Tess’s new book Self-Promotion Without Social Media is available at bookstores and independent retailers around Australia, internationally via Amazon, and at creativemindshq.com.

Thanks to Lucy Peach for our music and Scott from Sound Mind Editing. 

This podcast is recorded across the unceded lands of the Wurundjeri and Menang peoples. 

Is a website the jewell in your digital marketing crown? We think so. But how do you get the attention of your website visitors and encourage them to take the next step? Amy and Tess discuss our love of a good about-page photograph, what bugs us about inefficient websites, how blogging can boost trust with your customer and draw more people through your website’s doors, and how websites offer space for nuance that social media often can not. Plus, some technical tips and tricks you can implement today too!

DIY SEO: How to optimise your website to get more clients, customers, and sales (eBook) by Tess McCabe 

Find Your SEO Keywords (free worksheet)

Find Your Brand’s Tone of Voice by Angela D’Alton and Renee Baker (free worksheet)

Establish an Evergreen Traffic Source Using Pinterest (eBook) by Angela D’Alton and Renee Baker

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This podcast is a collaboration between Soul Traders Podcast and Creative Minds. 

If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please, take a moment to recommend us to a friend by sending them a link to the show. 

You can find us online at soultraders.net.au and creativemindshq.com

Tess’s new book Self-Promotion Without Social Media is available at bookstores and independent retailers around Australia, internationally via Amazon, and at creativemindshq.com.

Thanks to Lucy Peach for our music and Scott from Sound Mind Editing. 

This podcast is recorded across the unceded lands of the Wurundjeri and Menang peoples.

Today we are discussing the little-known golden nugget that is self initiated projects. For creative business owners, self initiated projects can be a low risk space to test out creative ideas and build new skills. And they can be great tools for marketing your business too. 

Bo, Amy and Tess have all had plenty of experience with self initiated creative projects over their careers and have seen how dynamic they can be.

LINKS

• Creative Minds

• Bo’s ‘Golden State: Afterglow’ project 

• Tess’s series of books ‘Conversation with Creative Women’

• Tess’s website

• Bo’s retreats

• Lalese Stamps’ 100 mugs project

• Shannyn Higgins Duality project

• Kitiya Palaskas’ creative wellbeing blog series

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This podcast is a collaboration between Soul Traders Podcast and Creative Minds. 

If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please, take a moment to recommend us to a friend by sending them a link to the show. 

You can find us online at soultraders.net.au and creativemindshq.com

Tess’s new book Self-Promotion Without Social Media is available at bookstores and independent retailers around Australia, internationally via Amazon, and at creativemindshq.com

Thanks to Lucy Peach for our music and Scott from Sound Mind Editing. 

This podcast is recorded across the unceded lands of the Wurundjeri and Menang peoples.

Soul Traders kicks off this special season with Bo and Tess talking about digital marketing trends we’ve noticed in ourselves, our peers, and our clients. 

We also commiserate feelings of underperformance as self-marketers, and reminisce about the good ‘ol days when we had more energy to deposit into our social media banks ;) 

Plus, ideas for how sole traders can connect more meaningfully with the right people and nurture those relationships on and off-line, and why all the effort you have put into social media to this point won’t go to waste if you choose to explore other promotion activities.

LINKS

• Soul Traders: The agony of an overflowing inbox
• Self-promotion Without Social Media
• Tess’ Website
• Bo’s Retreats

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This podcast is a collaboration between Soul Traders Podcast and Creative Minds. 

If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please, take a moment to recommend us to a friend by sending them a link to the show. 

You can find us online at soultraders.net.au and creativemindshq.com

Tess’s new book Self-Promotion Without Social Media is available at bookstores and independent retailers around Australia, internationally via Amazon, and at creativemindshq.com.

Thanks to Lucy Peach for our music and Scott from Sound Mind Editing. 

This podcast is recorded across the unceded lands of the Wurundjeri and Menang peoples. 

Listen to Tess’ original interview on Soul Traders

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This podcast is a collaboration between Soul Traders Podcast and Creative Minds. 

If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please, take a moment to recommend us to a friend by sending them a link to the show. 

You can find us online at soultraders.net.au and creativemindshq.com

Tess’s new book Self-Promotion Without Social Media is available at bookstores and independent retailers around Australia, internationally via Amazon, and at creativemindshq.com.

Thanks to Lucy Peach for our music and Scott from Sound Mind Editing. 

This podcast is recorded across the unceded lands of the Wurundjeri and Menang peoples.

When you're self employed, taking time away from your business can be challenging. But if you don't integrate rest and downtime into your business, you risk stress, exhaustion and even burnout. In this episode Bo and Amy discuss the idea of taking breaks as a creative business owner. Bo speaks about the self funded creative sabbatical she's planning for 2022. They also speak about some of the community feedback from the past few episodes and Amy's dramatic u-turn on inbox management. Links: Find all the details about the Soul Traders retreat here: http://soultraders.net.au/retreat/ Amy's switched to multiple inboxes to manage her emails. This article by Andreas Klinger explains the system. Bo recommends listening to Phil Wang on How to Fail by Elizabeth Day, WorkLife with Adam Grant, Helen Garner's lockdown dairies, 2021 on The Weekend Read, Who is Daniel Johns on Spotify and Delwyn Everard's podcast 'Running the Show' Both Amy and Bo have been listening to Madeline Dore's podcast Routines and Ruts Amy's been reading This One Wild and Precious Life and listening to The Guardian's Full Story podcast Amy recommends following Penny Wong and Sean Doherty on Instagram. _ If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears. Also, review us on iTunes! Go on! We love reading them! You can find Soul Traders online at soultraders.net.au and on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions! Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

Creatives tend to be very DIY in spirit with lots of optimism and zero experience in legal agreements. The learning curve for creative business owners is huge and we can find ourselves in tricky waters when it comes to the legal aspects of our business. Thank goodness for legal brains like Riz McDonald. Riz is the founder and director of Foundd Legal. She's been a lawyer for 16 years and an e-commerce entrepreneur over the last decade. Her mission is to make legalese easier to understand. Bo speaks to Riz about contracts and agreements, what terms like 'moral rights' and 'intellectual property' actually mean and how to avoid scope creep for good. Links: Find Riz online at founddlegal.com You can browse her free tips and checklists and find helpful contract templates tailored to creative business owners. Check out Riz's podcast Legals and Biz with Riz Bo also recommends Delwyn Everard's podcast 'Running the Show' and Michael Tucak from Creative Legal for more legal support for artists and creatives. Riz recommends reading 'Profit First' by Mike Michalowicz _ If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears. Also, review us on iTunes! Go on! We love reading them! You can find Soul Traders online at soultraders.net.au and on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions! Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

Kitiya is a craft-based designer who lives in Melbourne. Her work is easily recognisable with its vivid colours and playful designs. She's worked with big names like Adobe, Etsy and Lego producing props, installation and illustrations and facilitating workshops. She's also an advocate for what she calls 'creative wellbeing'. Initiating important discussions around issues that creatives face including setting boundaries, navigating creative ruts and imposter syndrome. Links: Find all the details about the Soul Traders February retreat here: http://soultraders.net.au/retreat/ Find Kitiya online at www.kitiyapalaskas.com You can also sign up for her popular email newsletter there. She's on Instagram as @kitiyapalaskas 'Stop Telling Women They Have Imposter Syndrome' an article by Ruchika Tulshyan and Jodi-Ann Burey If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears. Also, review us on iTunes! Go on! We love reading them! You can find Soul Traders online at soultraders.net.au and on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions! Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

When did our inboxes get so out of control? Can we blame the pandemic? Or is this problem much bigger? Thousands of unread messages. Constant interruptions to the focused work we need to get done and the perception that we need to be always on top of our emails. We're calling it inbox overwhelm. In this episode Bo and Amy discuss email and how they navigate their inboxes. Bo is a proponent of inbox zero. Amy uses tabs and filters. They also discuss the new retreat dates and what they've been listening to, reading and working on. Links: Find all the details about the Soul Traders retreat here: http://soultraders.net.au/retreat/ This is the tweet that started it all Cal Newport's book 'A World Without Email' Cal Newport interviewed by Lisa Leong on This Working Life Subscribe to Tess McCabe's excellent email newsletter Sylloge Josh Spector's 40 One Sentence Email Tips Read short story Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut Bo recommends listening to 'Everybody Knows', and reading Sally Rooney's 'Beautiful World, Where Are You' and enjoying the commentary surrounding it Amy's has been working with Tess McCabe on her Creative Minds project Amy recommends @iamthirtyaf for lols If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears. Also, review us on iTunes! Go on! We love reading them! You can find Soul Traders online at soultraders.net.au and on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions! Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

Shannon Palmer and Bryce MacDonald of Studio Bonum truly want to make a difference in their community. They are intentional and thoughtful both in the work they produce for their clients but also in their approach to their business. Amy spoke to Shannon and Bryce about launching a creative business at a time of global uncertainty, the values they bring to their business and how they hope to attract clients with a similar social conscience. Links: If you'd like to join Amy and Bo for the Soul Traders retreat in November from the 11th until the 14th head to the retreat page soultraders.net.au/retreat/ and click on the link to email your interest. Find Studio Bonum online at studiobonum.com.au/ and on Instagram as @studiobonum If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears. Also, review us on iTunes! Go on! We love reading them! You can find Soul Traders online at soultraders.net.au and on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions! Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

Exciting news: Bo and Amy are planning their very first in-person retreat! It will be a nourishing weekend for creative business owners who want to overhaul their businesses, go deep and get clear on what they want and need to happen in 2022. In this episode Amy and Bo talk about their plans for the retreat including an impactful program of workshops and activities. And food, don't forget about the amazing food. They also describe the incredible venue, New Farm Denmark, and cover the essential details. If you'd like to join Amy and Bo for the Soul Traders retreat in November head to the retreat page http://soultraders.net.au/retreat/ and click on the link to email your interest. Links: Find all the details about the Soul Traders retreat here: http://soultraders.net.au/retreat/ If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears. Also, review us on iTunes! Go on! We love reading them! You can find Soul Traders online at soultraders.net.au and on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions! Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

The podcast has reached a milestone: 10,000 downloads! Thank you to all our regular listeners for supporting us on our journey. To celebrate Bo and Amy answer the questions they get asked most frequently about their personal and professional lives. Links: Bo reflects on her interview with Kate Stokes from Coco Flip earlier this season. Amy remembers the episodes Real mistakes we've made and what we've learned along the way and Resisting the call to grow If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears. Also, review us on iTunes! Go on! We love reading them! You can find Soul Traders online at soultraders.net.au and on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions! Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

Orla Larkin is an award winning digital designer, strategist and educator. Over her career she's worked across state government, not for profits and education. These days she helps makers, creatives and ethical businesses establish themselves online. Orla is no stranger to remote working, having worked with clients around the world for many years. In this conversation, Bo talks to Orla about finding ways to connect and create community as a freelancer, the importance of website accessibility, using Tik Tok as a grown up and her take on 'personal branding'. Links: Find Orla online at www.orlalarkin.com If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears. Also, review us on iTunes! Go on! We love reading them! We have a brand spanking new website www.soultraders.net.au Check it out and sign up to receive our Monthly Roundup - an email full of links and resources for creative freelancers. You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions! Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

Fiona Killackey is a business coach who has worked with many small to medium sized businesses supporting them with practical insights into their marketing, business systems, goal setting and most importantly, working out where their dollars are coming from! Fiona has a podcast, offers courses and coaching and she's also written a book called 'Passion. Purpose. Profit.' which is an incredibly useful guide for anyone who has a small business or who dreams of starting one. In this conversation, Amy talks to Fiona about her tips for dealing with uncertainty (and lockdowns!) and the advice she gives her clients about finding their purpose as well as the people and the systems to support them. Links: Find Fiona online at www.mydailybusinesscoach.com and on Instagram as @mydailybusinesscoach Fiona's group coaching program 'Marketing for your small business' is enrolling now, find the details here. If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears. Also, review us on iTunes! Go on! We love reading them! You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions! Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

Imposter feelings, or that nagging voice at the back of your head that whispers 'who do you think you are?' or 'any moment now, people are going to discover you're a fake!' Most of us have them from time to time, no matter how outwardly successful or established we are. In this episode, Bo and Amy answer a community question about imposter syndrome. They discuss how fears and doubts show up for them and what they've done to build confidence around their work and creative abilities. Links: The Soul Traders are online! Check out our new website soultraders.net.au Listen the the This Working Life episode about imposter syndrome Amy and Bo are reading The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron for the Soul Traders book club. Do you have a book suggestion? DM us on Instagram or use the contact form on our website soultraders.net.au Amy and Bo recommend Ms Represented with Annabel Crabb available to watch on ABC iView If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears. Also, review us on iTunes! Go on! We love reading them! You can find Soul Traders online at soultraders.net.au and on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions! Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

There's no denying working for yourself is a bit of a juggling act most of the time. When you're self employed, you are wearing all the hats: from administration, to accounts, to marketing and of course the actual creative service you are offering. Sometimes performing all these roles can feel fun and easy, but often it can feel like we're pulled in different directions and we have too much on our plate which can lead to overwhelm and then if we're not careful, burnout. In this episode Bo and Amy discuss the pros and cons of wearing all the hats, how overwhelm shows up for them and ways they avoid or combat it in their working lives. Links: Bo recommends This Working Life, an ABC podcast hosted by Lisa Leong and the Instagram account @sinkreviews Amy recommends the Instagram account @uglymelbournehouses She also recommends reading Richard Flanagan's essay in The Monthly 'To be free'. You can also listen to him reading the same essay on the 7am Podcast. If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears. Also, review us on iTunes! Go on! We love reading them! You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions! Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

Tess is a freelance graphic designer with a broad portfolio of work spanning web design, print and publishing. But she has many other strings to her bow: she started publishing company Creative Minds and has written and released several books of her own. She was formerly the coordinator of the Creative Women's Circle and co hosted The New Normal Podcast with friend and fellow small business owner Emma Clark Gratton. Her monthly newsletter Sylloge, a compilation of podcast, blog and book recommendations has a cult following. Amy asks Tess about her incredibly diverse career and how she manages to wear all the hats in her solo business. They delve into her recent book, Graphic Design Speak, and what prompted her to write it. Tess also shares some thoughts about where to find a graphic designer and how to get the most out of the relationship. Links: Find Tess online at www.tessmccabe.com.au and her publishing company Creative Minds at www.creativemindshq.com You can buy Tess's most recent book, Graphic Design Speak, from Creative Minds or your local independent bookstore. She's on Instagram as @tessmccabe and @creativemindshq If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears. Also, review us on iTunes! Go on! We love reading them! You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions! Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

In this short episode Amy shares 10 content ideas for social media that might actually translate into paying clients. Amy recommends an intentional approach to platforms like Instagram, leveraging our innately human need to connect and create community. She discusses the 'know, like, trust' principle and how you might use it as a starting point for your social media content. If you're a small or solo business owner who feels frustrated by social media, if you aren't seeing the return on the investment of time and energy you put into it, then listen up! Links: Listen to our other episodes about social media and community building: Are you wasting your time on Instagram? Mini episode: photography for Instagram, Bo's tips Mini episode: Amy's tips for writing great social media captions Marketing and community building for creatives, without the ick factor Mini episode: Amy's Instagram engagement tips If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears. You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions! Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.