Ever feel like some stories just stay with you?
That’s Catherine’s story for me.
Catherine stepped away from a successful corporate career to raise her family in rural New Zealand. Then came a cancer diagnosis that flung everything into perspective.
On this episode of the Build Your Copywriting Business podcast, Catherine shares how she built relationships with other business owners in her rural community (and beyond), replacing her corporate salary with her copywriting income.
But let me be real with you, Catherine’s success didn’t happen overnight.
She’s sharing the areas she focused on, how she consistently put in effort, and the pay off she saw as a result of her efforts.
I can’t wait for you to hear this one, so, without further ado, take a listen!
TUNE IN: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Stitcher
Looking for closed captioning or a transcript? Watch the episode on YouTube!
A Sneak Peek at the Episode
[01:44] I actually did a degree in business strategy and marketing, quite a big corporate career in that for many, many years before deciding that my husband and I wanted to raise a family rurally in the country.
[02:04] I fulfilled my dream of becoming a stay at home mom where we had three children and I took about eight years off work. When my youngest child was one, I actually found out that I had breast cancer, which was a huge shock. Everyone says that when you get hit with something like that, it really changes your life.
[02:53] As much as I loved my children and loved being a full-time mom, there was so much more that I wanted to do with my life and contribute to the world. I had to find something to do from home around my children, and copywriting kept popping up as an option.
[03:53] Came across Build Your Copywriting Business podcast and consumed every single episode going back, I think about two years. These guys know what they’re talking about. And what I really loved was the advice on how to run your business, not just get trained and do the course and become a copywriter.
[04:14] You, Nicki, held our hands right through the process in terms of how to set up your business and how to find clients and then how to nurture those clients and how to invoice those clients. It was the whole shebang and that really impressed me. I joined and I’ve never looked back
[07:00] I put a post out on our local Facebook community page for our little rural community. Just saying, are there any women at home that would like to meet once a month for a coffee? I had 50 women sign up reached out to me. So we’ve been running that for about 18 months now. And it’s wonderful.
[07:50] I meet with these women every week in our local town, and that has been a game changer for my business in terms of just really understanding the problems these women have in their small businesses. My business has pivoted now to be more about the strategy and the brand positioning, which is a precursor to the copywriting.
[10:36] Just listening to what they have to say and making sure I just ask all sorts of questions. They are the visionaries for their business but you were coming in lading them to where they need to go.
[12:43] I’ve had a real mixed bag of clients and that’s what I just love because you just learn so much. I’ve had a client that runs a wet pollination business, marriage celebrant, restaurant, lots of beauticians, a clothing boutique store, and an interior designer and a personal color consultant. I’m working with a medical team at the moment.
[16:32] For the first years from launching my business, launching my website, it was a lot of work and a lot of hours. I was working weekends and It felt like for a long time it was like where is this going? And then about three months ago, all of a sudden the floodgates opened. And I have more work than I can deal with.
[19:36] It took me a good year to build up those relationships and just be continually offering value to people with no expectation in return. Helping and doing what I love is just helping people and seeing that little spark come back in their eyes and their passion for their business.
[23:24] You can do this. There’s a proven method to follow. Follow the steps. Don’t give up. You’ve got a proven method that has worked for so many people. It will work for you if you just keep going.
[24:40] I’m passionate about helping the small to medium sized businesses because they’re passionate about their product or their service. It’s the reigniting the passion and the individual for their business. They go from being overwhelmed and drained and wanting to quit, to just being, I can see the light.
[28:39] You need to do what feels comfortable for you as a person. The CCA system works a hundred percent. I was getting responses from pitching clients. I’m just gonna get out my front door and go and meet people, and I think that came naturally to me.
[29:20] You have to work and you have to work hard and just make sure that every step that you you’re taking is a step towards the right direction to get your business out there.
Must-Hear Takeaways
As with every episode, we highly encourage you to listen to the entire conversation! But here are a few of the highlights:
“You don’t need to over complicate how to market the business. It’s getting to the heart of what they do, who they’re speaking to, what the benefit is that they’re offering their clients” – Catherine
“I’ve had two months in a row now where I’ve made more money than I did in my full-time corporate job.” – Catherine
“I am so excited to do what I do and it’s on my terms. And if I want to take a break, I take a break.” – Catherine
“Relationships come first, and then the business flows from that.” – Catherine
“You’ve got so many different trainings in there about how to promote yourself. It’s just follow the steps, use the resources, and use the Facebook group for support because it really is wonderful.” – Catherine
Mentioned in the Episode
- Catherine Website
- 8 Tips for Networking Success
- Find Copywriting Clients by Networking in the Right Places
- Questions You Need to Ask Your Copywriting Clients
Related Links
Get an *Exclusive* Bonus Recording!
Tell us what you love about the podcast and what you hope to hear next! When you do, you can get access to an exclusive bonus recording featuring five wildly successful entrepreneurs who share what they do (and don’t!) look for when hiring copywriters. You do not want to miss it!
Get all the details on how to get your recording here »
About the Build Your Business Podcast
Ready to turn your love of writing into a successful copywriting career?
Join professional copywriters Nicki Krawczyk and Kate Sitarz to get the tips, tools, and training to help you become a copywriter and build a thriving business of your own. Nicki and Kate have 20+ and 10+ years of experience, respectively, writing copy for multi-billion-dollar companies, solopreneurs, and every size business in between.
Whether you want to land an on-staff job, freelance full-time and work from wherever you want, or make extra money with a side hustle, the best place to start learning is right here.
