getting an online business off the ground isn't easy. So if you find yourself working late tackling a to do list, that's a mile long with your fifth cup of coffee by your side. Remember great email doesn't have to be complicated. That's what clay vo is for. It's the email and SMS platform built to help e commerce brands earn more money by creating genuine customer relationships. Once you set up a free clay vo account, you can start sending beautiful branded messages in minutes. Thanks to drag and drop design templates and built in guidance and with e commerce specific recommendations and insights, you can keep growing your business as you go get started with a free account at clay vo dot com. That's K L A V I Y O dot com. Welcome Back. Here are the six quick questions. Mhm Question number one, What's your, why, Why are you doing this? You know, as I said to you and I really strongly feel like this, I love to motivate other people. It's just something in me. I've written books about like how to be a game changer or interviewed women about what inspired them and what, and most importantly, what were their challenges and how did they overcome them?

So my wife is really just, there are always going to be challenges, but I'd really love to tell you, it doesn't matter. I failed at a bunch of businesses ideas and multiple things. I've absolutely crashed and burned out and it didn't matter. Well, it didn't matter at the time, but I never let that determine and I just wanted to keep going. I always knew I wanted to do something I wanted to do business wanted to inspire people. So my wife is just telling everyone that you know, just keep going. I love that. What has been your favorite marketing moment so far? So we did this incredible campaign last year and we repeated it this year. Actually did we do it last year or this year? Anyway, I think we did it last year november and then we repeated it this year and was called give melanoma the cold shoulder. And we got a bunch of influencers to post nude with their shoulder and we raised money for the melanoma institute and the melanoma Research Foundation in the US and the recent and the institute in Australia. And um, just the amount of people that when it came on board and everyone was posting nude photos of themselves and it's just so fun. Sounds fun.

Love that football cause as well. Yeah. All for a good cause. Amazing. What is the most ultimate life changing business resource that you have used and can recommend? My G. M. Is the best. Oh sorry. You mean an app? Oh my God. I love apps. I do the website myself. So I do all the programming and I do all the everything. So what is life? Text Shopify is life changing gorgeous For customer service is life changing stamped for reviews. I love um, there's so many things. I love, oh who's my favorite? Okay, you know what my favorite is? It's a bogo app. It's a buy one get one free app. And then what I can do is I can program it to like just for a primer. Like it's best friend day coming up. So everyone gets a free mini miss to give to their BFF and I can just program it in and it's so quick and easy. And so that's oh sorry, I'm very tech clearly and I'm not tech. See this is the thing, I'm not from a tech background.

I know nothing. I've never even used job find my life. But you know, you learn, what was the app called for? That bogo bogo app? It's called the bogo app. Is that what it's actually called? Oh, okay. Oh my gosh, cool. Love that. Great. Your favorite word? Yeah, I don't know what it is, but I do now Question # four, how do you win the day? What are you doing in the mornings or the evenings that keep you feeling happy and motivated. Okay, so this is not a sales pitch, but my girlfriend sally Obama to who you might know, she created swish And she created this green powder years ago like 10 years ago And I got really sick because I worked 28 hours a day and I got really sick all the time and she and I said sally you never get sick and she was like, that's the cream powder and I was like coffee. And then anyway, I started on it obsessed. So it's just like greens mixed with water tastes delicious. And I do that every day. And I've got my daughter to give me cuddles, which I love.

She like snuck into my bed last night. There's nothing better. Um and how do I win? Yeah, have a glass of water in the morning, cuddle my daughter. Go on my bogo app. Oh my gosh, I love it to my GM who I love and have dinner for the family would be they would approve. They would think that was winning for them. I mean that that really happens. But it did happen tonight. Oh, that's so nice. I love that for you. I'm very simple. I'm super simple Question # five is what is the worst money you've ever spent in the business? And how much did it cost you one month? I remember, I just remember saying to my pr listen, let's just get like heaps of influences and let's just get them on board. And and I guess, you know, you've got to be really discerning when you get the influences and not just spread yourself really thin. And I remember just coming out of that and going, where did all our money go this month?

And I spent way over budget and for no, I I laugh now my staff, my team, my GM, everyone was just appalled they and they all blamed me and it was my fault. Um And I just, you know, and it really made me realize that influencer marketing is wonderful, but you need to know what you're doing, you need to be discerning, you need to watch. And I do all that. We rarely spend on any influences, but that one month I don't know why. It just sounds like let's get influences, it sounds cool and just everyone this thing like it sounds cool and yes, but just yeah, just think about your own brand and think about who you follow as an influencer yourself and how you know who you follow and who you like and who you don't and just, you know, don't think of influencer marketing as a thing. You have to jump on the bandwagon. You don't, you just have to go, okay. I really like this person. I'm going to contact them, I'm going to give them my product, they're gonna try them. They're gonna either love them or hate them if they love them, maybe they'll post about them and often they will just without you even paying them.

So that was a mistake Testing one Testing 1. Now, always got fired. You're out. Last Question Question # six, What is just a crazy story, good or bad from the journey of building this business. So I went to um I just got back from new york and L. A. And I went to and I did beauty editor lunch breakfast in new york and then another one in L. A. And I left my family. I left my daughter On a plane, took 24 hours middle of Covid. It was just I was so nervous. I wore like a like a suit on the plane. And anyway and then before I got flew into LA the the beauty editors in L. A. Had all left to go to paris for like one of the big brands for beauty lodge. And so none of them were there. So I had booked a really small table at the back of a rooftop restaurant that my friend who lived there told me was really cool and it was a lot of money for 10 at the back of a rooftop restaurant for breakfast, 10 a.m. They were like you have to pay, you have to put your booking when you've only got 10 and you know that anymore.

I said oh my god so the pr calls me the day before, she's like canceling. We only have three people coming. And I said excuse me I just moved 24 hours. I've left my daughter. I'm here, we are not canceling. So I called in every other said to you, I used to live in L. A. So I called every one of the people I've ever met in L. A. And I said do you know any influences? Do you know any beauty people? Any of you? Yeah, this is 24 hours before and most of them are like, I'm sorry, it's too, it's too soon. And all of my friends that they couldn't come as well. They were like, we cant come. It's too too short notice. Anyway, so I fly in from new york to L. A. I go to the hotel where the event is at midnight. I wake up at eight a.m. To messages from my friends in L. A. Going, I'm coming And I'm bringing five people. I'm coming. I'm bringing 10, I'm coming. I'm bringing 12 and I was like, and as I texted one of them was like, are you? And they were like, and and they're all bringing their agents as well. Anyway, I get to this breakfast, you will see photos on instagram on my instagram.

Samantha underscore Brett I get there Kid you not. There are 60 top beauty influencers in America dress to the knives. The waiters like putting out knives and forks. They're like, what's going on? Like there was no product that people were like walking around with a product like this, like hauling it off like so excited. No one liked the breakfast at 10. No one like four o'clock in the afternoon was still drinking champagne and everyone was there. It was the most beautiful event. I had to say speech. I didn't even have anything for bed. I thought it was a little breakfast for 10 and the beautiful restaurant Hiring a rooftop in would have been $50,000 minimum. American didn't charge me any extra. They were short on staff. They didn't have any stuff. They don't have any food because it was a breakfast. They just made everyone toasting eggs and gave them all like, like cocktails and cocktails and I was just honestly the most beautiful day. So unexpected. I felt so blessed.

There's so much bars everyone posted for free. I didn't pay anyone to even be that nothing and they just all posted. There was so much buzz. It was the most electric day. I was wearing this like Cinderella age dress, like literal massive shoulders and big puffy like dress because I just thought no one comes, I'll get a photo and it was just one of those moments everywhere I looked. I thought to myself, Alright, we've got something here. Hopefully I it all worked out. Gosh, that's amazing! Everyone rallying for you and just whipping it together really quickly. That is so special. I love that. What a great way to finish this episode. Thank you so much for joining and for sharing your journey and everything that you're doing. I'm so excited for you. Thank you. I really appreciate you having me on so amazing of you so thank you so so much to the G8. No money was shared, no products were given there will be no fines being dished out over here.

We're just trying to motivate people and get them to wear sunscreen. Leave us alone. Gosh, thanks so much. Hey, it's dune here. Thanks for listening to this amazing episode of the female startup club podcast. If you're a fan of the show and want even more of the good stuff, I'd recommend checking out female startup club dot com where you can subscribe to our free newsletter. We send it out weekly covering female founder business news, insights and learnings in D. C. And interesting business resources. And if you're a founder building an e commerce brand you can join our private network of entrepreneurs called hype club at female startup club dot com forward slash hype club. We have guests from the show joining us for intimate. Ask me Anythings, expert workshops and a group of totally amazing like minded women building the future of DTC brands. As always, please do subscribe rate and review the show and post your favorite episodes to instagram stories. I am beyond grateful when you do that.