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Author: Barry

Episode 35 - Donna Crous

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Today Insta Queen Estelle Keeber is joined by award winning food photographer and blogger Donna Crous. Donna has worked across a spectrum of niches including health and food magazines to brand development and recipe books.

In today’s episode Estelle and Donna chat about how you can take better award winning photographs for your instagram feed!

Follow us on:
Instagram - http://mumsin.biz/instagram
Facebook - http://mumsin.biz/fbpage

Find all the MIBA podcasts here: https://www.mumsinbusinessassociation.com/category/podcasts/

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | TuneIn | RSS

Stop being Judgey McJudgeyson!

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Stop being Judgey McJudgeyson! by Leona

I know right, easy said done.

The Justice Project, the Kim Kardashian West documentary is mind blowing. If you haven’t watched you totally need to! (You’ll find it on HayU)

It really has made me think about the way we make an instant judgement on people, without understanding their backstory.

As somebody who has had my name dragged through the mud, as somebody who fought tooth and nail to clear my name, as somebody who spent months being vilified. I can only imagine what an incredible stress these people must feel who are trying to create new lives for themselves, being vilified at every turn.

I believe that we live our busy lives for the majority of time not allowing ourselves to understand, to learn, to be educated, therefore not having a true understanding and making judgement without the full picture ❤️

What if we all spent a little more time being compassionate humans? Believing that there is a bigger picture…. I mean the change in the world would be UNBELIEVABLE. And it’s free!

There is nothing wrong with focusing on what we want as individuals but I do believe that we are stronger as a collective. As a community.

What can you do today to be a little less judgemental? Don’t over think it. Don’t over complicate it.

Be kind.

Much love as always.

Leona Burton

MIBA VIP Guest Blog - Imposter Syndrome by Kylie King

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Imposter Syndrome by Kylie King

The first time I encountered Imposter Syndrome as a Mumpreneur was the day I took on the role as the Event Coordinator for Penrith-Blue Mountains in New South Wales, Australia for MIBA.

Although in my pre-Mumma days, I had a successful career as a senior retail project manager where I managed over 100 staff members, turned unprofitable failing stores into profitable flagships and chased millions of dollars in revenue.
Becoming a coordinator for the Mums in Business Association was another ball game.

I had dealt with anxiety for several years since leaving my corporate job in less than desirable terms and when I took on the role as MIBA Coordinator in November 2018, I felt like it had reached a new level.

I had this overwhelming feeling that at my launch event, the attendees would think I was a fraud. They would turn up to the meeting and realise I had a mask on and that I had no idea what I was doing.

At my launch event, I asked my partner to attend with my girls and asked them to play on the other side of the park because meeting so many new people was freaking me out.

My internal dialogue was yelling at me, “All these amazing businesswomen coming to network at an event I’m hosting, I’m not worthy, I’m not the right person for the job.”

I needed to know there was a familiar face somewhere that I could focus on, someone I knew that had my back and with him there I could make a quick escape if the ladies did unmask me.

Turns out that I didn’t have to worry, the ladies who attended had an amazing time. Since that initial launch event the group has continued to grow and flourish to almost 1000 members in the Facebook group with two events a month with an average of 35 attendees per meeting.

However, I still didn’t know what this overwhelming feeling was, and I passed it off as anxiety until someone mentioned the Imposter Syndrome to me and asked me to assist them on ways to overcome it.

Once I started to learn about Imposter Syndrome – it all clicked.

Once I could give this overwhelming feeling a name, I was able to identify when it crept up and tackle it head on.

It was comforting to see that 7 out of 10 people have encountered Imposter Syndrome at least once in their lifetime so I wasn’t alone.

Each meeting I have held since, my frenemy Imposter Syndrome pops up and starts tugging at my shirt and telling me my ladies will soon find out my secret and I am only the Coordinator because of pure luck and I was in the right place at the right time.

I thank him for dropping by and kindly show him the door as I know that I am an amazing coordinator and I have held amazing events and will continue to do so. Recognising your achievements and what you have succeeded in is a good wake up call to yourself and your frenemy, Imposter Syndrome.

Imposter Syndrome will pop up now and then and that’s okay, I just know now when he pops up for an unexpected visit and I can send him away as soon as possible.

Have you experienced Imposter Syndrome?

If you’d like to learn how to overcome Imposter Syndrome then please check out my collection which is available in MIBA VIP.

Australia VIP
Rest of World VIP

 

 

MIBA Guest VIP - Liz Rowe - Ten Steps to Starting a Charity

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Liz Rowe - Ten Steps to Starting a Charity

Why do people feel compelled to change the world?

I suspect you know the answer because as a female entrepreneur and Mum in Business you are already doing that! But I mean from a social movement perspective, not for profit, for no reward other than the greater good!
I have worked with some of the largest and some of the smallest charities in the United Kingdom, and no matter what the income level, employee size or focus - they all have one thing in common - a compelling drive to make change for the better.

I set up in business last January, after developing commercial business approaches for my corporate role and being frustrated that other charities weren’t benefitting - I knew to meet a cause I would have to balance employment which suited me, so I set up on my own so I could work with more not for profit and small businesses.

One of the biggest issues I find are the most fantastic, driven, motivated people with the biggest hearts begin this charity journey and drive themselves into the ground because of the work needed to start these unique organisations.

• What model should I choose?
• How do I start?
• What level of income?
• What do I need to know about governance?

In this special MIBA VIP collection, you can find out how to develop a model for a charity or not for profit - helping you through ten stages and prompts to get you thinking and doing and some foundations in place. The content is super relevant for business too - so take a look! One thing charities and businesses DO have in common is they have to generate income to survive - so you need a compelling story!


As with all great companies - you need a plan. You need to have thought about your purpose, vision and strategy - not just from a service, campaigning and education perspective - but from a where do you want to be in ten years? What is the core issue you are trying to tackle? Why is it a problem and what is the solution, who do you need to help you? More than that, why will people just donate their money to help you to run it?

I’m on hand through the videos to give you some clues, ideas and insight to my thinking about pitfalls and challenges you might face - but the fact is that it’s always worth setting up your legacy that spans more than your business and I can’t WAIT to hear from you as you tackle your not for profit projects!

Bio
Liz Rowe is an experienced Commercial and Business Director, having set up Chesil Infinity, a Business Consultancy and Coaching Company in January 2019 to support more small businesses and charities. Liz has worked with some of the largest children’s charities in the UK and offers unique approaches to strategy through to team development - taking businesses on whole journeys of performance improvement.
Living in Dorset, UK with her three children, husband, and two dogs - she is a self confessed theory geek and collector of qualifications, loving all things strategy to digital and in-between. ‘When I am interested in something, I want to understand every tiny detail and learn everything I can about it!’

Liz is also the Co-Ordinator for MIBA Dorset, a Trustee for Dorset MIND Charity, runs a free online Leadership development group and is currently developing a social enterprise of her own working with women and young people starting in business.

Find Liz here:
Website - www.chesil-infinity.co.uk
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/libbyrowe
Business Page - https://www.facebook.com/chesilinfinity
Instagram - @liz_chesil_infinity
Linked In -https://www.linkedin.com/in/liz-rowe/
Twitter - @Chesil_Infinity

MIBA Guest - Amanda Clarke Celebrity MUA

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Amanda Clarke Celebrity MUA

After meeting the incredible celebrity make up artist Amanda Clarke during her photoshoot for the Daily Mail, MIBA co-founder Estelle Keeber couldn’t wait to find out more about her amazing journey and of course… share it all with you guys.

Amanda really understands the juggles of being a mum in business… read how she goes from doing the food shop to jetting off to work with HUGE celebs all around the world in today’s blog.

Where did your passion for make up start?

I always adored pretty old fashioned sweet shops with jars of candy, bold colours and clashing pattern stripes, and shapes of sweets. The arrays of colours throughout the year like a spring had arrived in November! The brightly coloured candy was like walking into a artist studio full of creativity.

I loved all the technicolour films as a child especially in far to reach places off the beaten track with real adventures, my love of exploring had begun. It must have been just a given that my favourite school subject would have been art, to really show my creativity and individuality.

All my school reports from primary school always said, “Amanda was very talkative and loves art!” - (always an A)

My thoughts by the time I was choosing my career path at secondary school was “How will I get paid to happily talk all day, paint and travel the world?”,  I wasn’t quite sure how, but I knew I was going to do it.

So what happened next?

My thoughts were cruise ships, so I studied to become a beauty therapist and worked in a hair salon learning my trade. My advice to anyone who wants to start within the industry is to train finding the right courses and find teachers who can help you get started.

Each course I enrolled upon lead to another gaining more experience in hair, wigs, special effects make up in TV, Film & Fashion. Over a period of 4 years I felt ready to give up my part time day job as an office temp in Regents Street, London. I had also learnt about business during those years.

Training and gaining new skills is so important. The knowledge of skincare and beauty products which have evolved and become so much better over time, however, the basic No.1 beauty tip is don’t bake yourself in the sun especially without protection on your skin. Always cleanse & remove makeup with a gentle touch not to drag the skin.

Talking of skincare what one product can you not live without?

If I had to choose one product I cannot live without would be my absolute favourite Rosalique Skin Primer, it’s so perfect like a little miracle as it beautifully evens out skin tone whilst it corrects colour balance to match your own shade giving your skin a radiant glow and hiding imperfections. Plus it has SPF 50.  It’s my everyday go to product and I love using it on photoshoots too.

Edit from Estelle – Amanda gave me this product after our shoot and its bloody amazing!

Any top tips for busy mums who want to look great for the school run?

I’m a working mum of three and I know that time in the morning is tight when wanting to look at least refreshed at the school gates, allowing yourself 3-5 mins for a speedy beauty look, use your fingers for application start with;

  • Moisturiser (this can be tinted BB cream, etc)
  • Dab concealer in corners of eyes (C shape)
  • Light dust of powder in T Zone if needed
  • Pop of blusher or sweep of bronzer
  • Hint of mascara
  • Tinted lip balm

What trends should we be checking out in 2020?

New trends in 2020 are more effortless chic, with beautiful cream eyeshadow that doesn’t crease and glow sticks like Chanel have created, although a dewy healthy look using fingers and sponges for blending many of these products are also semi matt so no need to worry about looking too shiny, although I personally love loose powder and will also use a little as I want longevity throughout my day. Eyebrows have become softer too and harsh eyeliners blended creating a subtle blur effect.

With all of the incredible stars you have worked with which one stands out for you?

One of my favourite all time shoots was on a James Bond set with the glamorous Shirley Bassey, in a fabulous ball gown with security close, keeping watch over all the diamonds she was wearing! I was standing in front of her doing final makeup checks when she burst into song singing Diamonds Are Forever. Wow!

Best client for me would have to involve travel, therefore reflecting back on my music days touring with world with M People and Janet Jackson it was incredibly exciting, exhausting and exhilarating all of what I had dreamed about rolled into one.

Having said that I never did the cruise ships to travel with work until years later, I spent 2 weeks in the Mediterranean on a super yacht with the best client ever! That really was the cherry on the cake for me. As a young girl this was a dream and one of my career aspirations.

Lets talk Instagram… how do you use it for your business?

Instagram is an essential tool for business as it offers an insight into your personality and style of work. It’s become your very own visual business card, it’s an amazing way to stay connected. Although I don’t think you need to get caught up in numbers & followers.  Some of the most respected & talented artists who are exceptional may not have largest followers, so this shouldn’t be a guide line to how good someone is.

Talk to us about work life balance and why you think your career has been so successful.

Being a successful businesswoman is knowing and understanding your business and what your client wants from you. Each client has different needs and requests, literally going the extra mile and being 100% committed and consistent will gain you an excellent reputation and trust.

I decided to move from the London where I am most days and live by the sea. Creating a healthy lifestyle for my family, I have managed to balance home & work.

Being flexible is key, changing plans last minute, cancelling dates with friends & family. So having great organisation skills and keeping it stress free.

One moment you’re doing your grocery shopping and the next you’re packing a bag for a flight on the same day. Having a good network of people & family around you is vital, It’s not for everyone but I absolutely love it still after 30 years!

So there you have it…. the secret life of a celebrity make up artist revealed… well kind of.

Massive thank you to Amanda for 1) making me look incredible for our shoot and 2) for taking the time to chat with us about her journey!

Until next time… much love

Estelle AKA Insta Queen x

MIBA VIP Guest Contributor - Tania Taylor

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MIBA VIP Guest Contributor - Tania Taylor

Woman in business – Increasing your productivity

Introductions

Okay, so first off, who am I to be chatting to you about being a woman in business and increasing your productivity this year? Good question! My business on the grand scale of things is fairly new at only two years old. My fabulous accountant however, showed his admiration in my first year’s accounts by saying how incredible I had done to achieve so much profit in my first year. Businesses usually lose profit in year one, break even in year two and make profit in year three.

Mums / Women in Business Association (MIBA)

So, here’s the cringey bit where you shout out about how successful you are, whilst secretly hoping nobody thinks you’re heads so big it won’t fit through the door! I joined MIBA back in January 2018 when I first set up my business, but lurked in the background for a good few months before attending my first event in November 2018. Yes, I really did wait that long! Bit of advice from me, just pluck up the courage right away. It saves loads of time!

My achievements as a woman in business

From the offset I was determined to work my socks off to make my business work. With a family of my own and mortgage and other household bills to pay for, I couldn’t afford not to! And work my socks off I have. I’m fortunate to be able to call myself an expert in anxiety and sleep, as well as being an international, Multi-Award Winning hypnotherapist and psychotherapist, and number one bestselling author twice over. It sounds impressive when you put it so succinctly doesn’t it?

Awards as a Woman in Business

I have been hugely fortunate to have been nominated for all kinds of awards, and I’m very excited about the upcoming MIBA awards as I’ve been shortlisted for five categories:

  • Facebook Rising Star
  • Pay it Forward
  • Blogger of the Year
  • Paige Murney
  • MIB of the Year

I’ve also been nominated for the Venus Women in Business Awards, the Inspire Woman in Business Awards, Lavolta Events Awards and even The Pride of Britain Awards. I feel extremely lucky to have also been awarded the Top 3 hypnotherapist in Rochdale for the last two years and the Rochdale 30 award.

How am I going to help you as a woman in business?

Well, in order to be super productive and therefore successful there’s lots of ingredients that need to go into the mix. I’m sure you can think of many ideas as a woman in business yourself. Maybe energy, focus, work ethic, motivation, hardworking, you get the gist.

VIP Collection for a woman in business

Despite all of the wonderful ideas you may have about being more productive, my VIP collection is slightly different. We’ll be talking how you can increase your productivity through the art of taking time out. Shock, horror! It sounds like the least productive thing we could be doing and how many of us feel guilty for not working solidly on our business or our families?

Living with the guilt of being a woman in business

Hands up if you feel guilty for taking a break. Have you ever found yourself sat in the bath working on your phone? Or maybe watching TV and ‘meerkatting’ (using your phone for business and trying to keep up with your programme at the same time). Then you plan a time to take a real break, maybe you leave your phone in the bedroom, and your plagued with this overwhelming sense of guilt the whole time, your mind racing with what you should or could be achieving if you only spent this time on working right now.

Leaving the guilt behind

My VIP Collection is all about how to leave that guilt behind. How to give yourself time out and why it is important for productivity. I’ll touch upon the latest research and the science with what important processes are going on in the brain. We will also be looking at techniques that mean you can have a break and still have superb work-related ideas. As a woman in business, you not only deserve a break, but you WILL be so much more productive with your time and your ideas. And we will be saying goodbye to that guilt once and for all.

VIP Collection

Get on over to my VIP Collection now and enjoy a healthy work life balance that leaves you feeling wonderful about you, your family and your business. I wish you every success as a fellow woman in business. Do let me know how you the training helps you and what you’re now doing that is resulting in your business growing and your productivity being on fire.

Contacting Tania

Tania is an International, Multi-Award Winning Clinical Hypnotherapist and Psychotherapist supporting people with anxiety and related conditions across the world via Zoom, and in her private clinic in the heart of the Pennines, in Rochdale, UK.

She runs a monthly deep relaxation hypnotherapy group in Rochdale, and has affordable online memberships and workshops.

Tania is a Senior Lecturer for her business; ‘Tania Taylor Hypnotherapy & Psychotherapy’, and also Lectures on behalf of the ‘Clinical Hypnotherapy School’, who provide post qualification training to qualified hypnotherapists using the Solution Focused approach.

Tania continues to volunteer delivering free Hypnotherapy for local Macmillan events, and in her Facebook group weekly, helping people across the globe. She’s always looking to help more people and welcomes you to join the Calm Your Mind group and to invite your family and friends too.

Email: [email protected]

Tel: 07442 169 033

Facebook: www.facebook.com/TaniaTaylorHypnotherapy

Instagram: www.instagram.com/TaniaTaylorHypnotherapy

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TT_Hypnotherapy?s=09

Facebook group: www.facebook.com/groups/CalmYourMindFree

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCos7z3Tc87AQoEIsAMwXxqg

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/TaniaTaylorHypnotherapy

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/taniataylorhypnotherapypsychot/pins/

Website: www.Tania-Taylor.co.uk

UK and Worldwide Training Site

Australia Training Site

MIBA VIP Guest Contributor - Buckso Dhillon-Woolley

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MIBA VIP Guest Contributor - Buckso

Hello Everyone!! 

I’m Buckso, a Midlands based British Indian Actor whose task in life, is to help others with those objectives in achieving THEIR lifes mission. Now you might find this a little strange coming from an Actor, and to be honest, a lot of Actors would be thinking “what the hell does she think shes doing?!” LOL! But you see, I’ve NEVER had any help in getting to where I am in the industry, 10 years later, so I know ALL about the hard graft its gonna take for YOU, if you don’t get some help along the way. 

Now, ive never been one to care what others think, after all, I chose to marry my Caucasian husband at the risk of losing my family (which I did!) so im not likely to give a shit what others think, am I? So in a nutshell, that’s what you can pretty much expect from my contribution to the MIBA VIP. A LOT of factual, evidence-based tips and techniques formed from MY experiences over the last 25 yrs.  

Who else is going to be best placed to tell you WHAT can work for you in life and business unless they’ve been through it? The foundation for my upcoming online course titled “The BukSu Method” has been created from daily Rockstar Rituals that I perform, in order to become solid in my resilience and mastering my mindset. Without that in your life, youre not going to last long and im telling you, the competition out there isn’t going away! So don’t get lazy!? 

Put the effort into your development because YOURE the one that’s steering the ship and believe me there will be LOTS of rocks to navigate along the way. I mean, even the BEST athletes in life need someone to be their lighthouse.  

WHOSE YOURS!? 

Check out Bucko’s VIP in the MIBA Online Training - Finding You Voice and Mindset by Buckso Dhillon-Woolley

UK and Worldwide Training Site

Australia Training Site

MIBA VIP Guest Contributor - Cherish Reardon - Popsy Clothing

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MIBA VIP Guest Contributor - Cherish Reardon - Popsy Clothing

If somebody had told me 3 years ago that I would be giving tips to business owners to help them with their social media I would have laughed! When I set up Popsy Clothing I had absolutely no idea about Facebook as a platform for a business. I used it to catch up with friends, upload a few pictures but selling on there? Not a friggin clue! That’s why looking back I’m not surprised that I really struggled and didn’t get any sales! I couldn’t work out why my post wasn’t being seen, I didn’t understand why my posts didn’t get any responses when I would post and I could barely spell algorithm let alone understand it. I knew if my business was going to work, I really needed to spend the time learning about Facebook and finding all the tips I could get. I have spent many hours, I’ve cried, I’ve learnt, and I’ve put into practice all the tips and as a result my business has grown. In fact, around 90% of our business is from Facebook! That’s why when I was asked by Estelle and Leona if I would like be part of the VIP it was a YES!!! I wanted to condense what I’ve learnt over the last 3 years into a really short, back to basics segment. I would be sat on my laptop with my earphones in at 3am listening to videos and let’s be honest - who has the time for that?

So what will you learn? All about community. My absolute favourite topic! My community of nearly 60,000 has not only grew my business but also has become a really special part of my life. I believe Facebook, building your community and using Facebook groups is one of the best ways to grow your business and I am really passionate about helping business women know how they can do it affectively! In my VIP collection I talk about community, how I built my community and more importantly how to keep one. I believe that when we have a strong community we stand out from our competitors and become leaders in whatever market we are in.

It has been an absolute honour to be part of the MIBA VIP collection and share my knowledge. I have learnt so much from MIBA and it has been really lovely to give back.

Cherish x

Check out Cherish’s VIP Collection Using Fb and Fb Communities to Grow Your Business

UK and Worldwide Training Site

Australia Training Site

MIBA in Forbes

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MIBA were featured in Forbes in 2019 which we see as one of our amazing achievements. Here is a throwback to some of the article…

Where did the idea for Mums in Business Association come from? What were your career backgrounds and were you both active networkers?

Estelle
After struggling with mental health issues and becoming a single mum after 9 years of partnership, I knew that returning to work was going to be difficult. As part of my mental health recovery my counsellor had suggested that I find a creative outlet that enabled me relax and have fun but that also enabled me to express how I was feeling in a non verbal way. I studied photography for 3 years as an adult student at night classes and finally went on to gain a teaching qualification. It was becoming a single parent that actually made reevaluate the skill set that I had an become creative about how I could start to financially support my family whilst still being a present parent. I set up Love Photography 13 in 2016 and this was the start of my entrepreneurial journey.

As step sisters we had always supported each other in our chosen career paths and the idea for MIBA came from the lack of support and feeling of isolation that we were both verbalizing in our lengthy daily phone calls from Wales to Leicester.

Setting up Love Photography 13 was an eye opener and brought along a whole host of challenges I hadn’t expected to meet. Not only was I required to capture gorgeous weddings but to create a successful business I also needed to know about marketing, web development and social media. I spent hours and hours watching webinars and trainings, listening to podcasts and trying to connect with people who could help me grow my business. I remember wishing that I could find all of the information I needed in one place, so that I could develop my business without having to search the whole of the internet for things that were relevant and would actually help me. I felt like the only person that really understood my struggle was Leona because as a mum in business herself we were going through the same thing! Trying to be a great mum and start up a business all at the same time was a challenge to say the least!

It was then that we realized that if we felt like this, there must be thousands of other mums who felt the same! It was then that we decided to set up the MIBA Facebook group in the hope of bringing other women together, so that they didn’t have to struggle the way that we did.

How did you go about starting the network, what were the first steps and what were your initial costs?

Estelle
We set up the Mums in Business Association Facebook group in June 2017…that group now has 45k community members. The most incredible thing about what we have achieved so far is the fact that we started with nothing. No investment, no capital, no start up fund. We used social media to connect with people who we understood. We recognized their pain point and we work to ease it. The formula for creating this incredible network hasn’t changed in the 27 months we have been established. We simply started by sharing value and content with our community. Not just tips on how we were growing our own businesses but real life, no BS posts about how difficult it is to try and juggle a million things on your to do lists whilst keeping the kids entertained, walking to dog and maybe finding time to meditate. We shared our own journey, the highs and the lows with our tribe. Allowing our own identities to shine through is the reason that so many others then go on to tell other women about our community. We are relatable and real, our tribe trust us because they can relate to us. Building relationships is a crucial part of creating a network.

How did you manage the startup being based in two different locations?

Estelle
Lots of long phone calls! The joy of being based online means that we can work from anywhere. Leona and I spent hours and hours discussing what was working and what wasn’t and what we wanted to do next to grow MIBA. Its no different now Leona has moved to Spain. Not a day goes by that we don’t speak.

How did you attract your first members? How important was social media to your business growth? How often do you hold live events and what do these involve?

Estelle
Without sounding to cliché, your vibe attracts your tribe. We set up the group and began going live and sharing our own favourite tips and resources on everything from getting the kids to behave to starting a blog and building a website.

We have built a 6-figure business using social media alone and so my answer here is most definitely YES! Social media is your biggest FREE marketing tool and resource. Whether you’re using Facebook, Instagram or Twitter, social media is free. You literally have access to millions of people at the touch of a button. It’s really understanding HOW to use social media that is key to success!

Social media also allowed us to take our networking offline too. Having a community online is amazing but there is nothing better than sitting in a room full of motivated and excited women who have all gathered together with the same end plan… to grow their business. We used our social media to communicate about our events using the community we had already created online. I hosted our first ever child friendly networking event in August 2017 in my hometown of Leicester. We had around 10 people attend the first meeting but the response from our community was incredible. Women all around the world wanted to get involved which is when we hit a problem. We were only 2 people. We travelled the UK for a few months before realizing that it was time to expand the team. We currently have 130 networking events worldwide and are expanding at a rate of 10% per month. September saw our biggest month yet for attendees with over 1300 women coming through the doors.

At what stage were you able to monetize the network and how did you do this?

Estelle
We started off by providing free content into the group. Once we had become established and people began to see us as the experts in our area, we then knew that we could then start to charge for our products. Again, it‘s about creating that trust and relationship. People were ready to invest in us because we had consistently shown up, offered amazing value and content and maintained our visibility. Our first course was a business bootcamp which we sold for £10. Every evening I would manually go through all of the people who had paid and send over a link for the training. No funnels, email lists or automation. Good old-fashioned pen, paper and a lot of hard work! 

We offered different levels of affordability to ensure that as many people as possible could benefit from the trainings regardless of where they were at in their business journey. Still to this day we offer FREE Instagram challenges and £10 trainings but alongside that we can now use all of our skills and experience to coach corporate clients and large organisations in maximizing their impact using social media. 

Tickets for our offline networking events are still £15 or the equivalent as they were when we first set up. We wanted our events to be affordable yet full of value and opportunities. It‘s incredible for us to hear that other women are closing deals in excess of £10k after connecting at our events.  

Has the business had any external funding? Is this something you are looking to pursue?

Estelle
Not so far but this is not something that we would disregard. We know that as businesses grow their need for investment may rise too. We are always very aware of what is happening within our business and act accordingly. We would love to connect with people who have a vested interest in the message we are spreading and if this were to include investment then this is something we would consider. We run the business very flexibly and go with what works. Who knows what tomorrow will bring?

What’s next for the network? Is it now profitable?

Estelle
MIBA is growing at an incredible rate. Not only do we have our online communities and offline networking events we also help other women tell their stories of success. So far in the last 2 years we have helped to create 73 Amazon best selling authors, 9 best selling books and have lots of amazing authors working away behind the scenes!

We are very excited to be expanding our speaking portfolio. In the space of the next 6 months we will be speaking at events such as Social Media Week Durban alongside incredible people such as Bravissimo founder Michelle Mone, Supermodel and business woman Caprice and politician Karren Brady CBE.

Our business started in June 2017 with no investment and in the last year has turned over approx. ¼ million pounds with our expected turn over next year to double.

To find out more about our amazing journey check out our autobiography Laid Bare

Until next time much love
Estelle & Leona

Why You Should Come To A MIBA Networking Event by Claire Mandle

Posted on by Barry

Why You Should Come To A MIBA Networking Event by Claire Mandle

This is a review that was left on the MIBA Facebook Group by one of our attendees of our global MIBA networking events

“Yesterday was my first MIBA event and it has done even more for me than I thought it would!

We were lucky enough to have the fantastic Adam Hulme speaking about goal setting. I made 3 pages of notes, and they are pure gold!

But the thing is, I really struggle when there is a room full of strangers. I’m fine speaking with one or two people, but when there’s a group of new people I tend to have difficulty speaking up, even when I really want to.

Going to a networking event was VERY out of my comfort zone, and although I made effort to talk to a couple of people one on one - by the end of the event I really felt as though I had wasted the opportunity to get to know these wonderful ladies…

Walking back to my car I was kicking myself!

But as I was driving home, I realised something- this is exactly what Adam was talking about!

So when I got home I sat and made my goal list for 2020, number one on my list is to be ‘comfortable with groups and public speaking by the end of 2020’. And to do this I will be taking advantage of the sponsor spotlight opportunity at my local MIBA group.

I also wrote a post in the local group explaining why I was quiet, and the responses where so comforting. MIBA ladies are so nice!

Now I know I’m not the only one who was scared to go to an event, or who is worried about talking with a group they don’t know. But if this is you - please go to an event and get out of your comfort zone - I promise you won’t regret it! — with Adam Hulme and Paige Bird.”

MIBA Networking Events take place globally. We are so proud of all our coordinators and guest speakers and love that we are bringing women entrepreneurs together worldwide.

Click here to view upcoming events.

Love as Always
Estelle and Leona