Ep111 How to scale your business using PR and get the visibility it deserves with Lauren Salaun

Lauren, welcome to her empire builder. I'm so excited to have you here.

Thank you so much. Thank you for having me. Super, super pumped to chat with you today. Yes.

So you're coming to us from LA this morning?

Yes. Yeah.

Which you have been for a long time in this world, being able to move around the country, which we, which we'll talk about after when we get into your online programs and what that has meant for you in your life. But can you give us a little bit of background in how you got to be to where you are today?

Absolutely. So I have been an entrepreneur since 2014, so left my last PR agency I was at, you know, at this point was that six, over six years ago. I'm not a math person. We're in the PR words world and it's been incredible ever since, like entrepreneurial journey is a wild ride for sure. But left that last PR agency and I was working in crisis PR in the healthcare industry.

So with everything, how to deal with crisis.

Yes. And so if we all think about how like the last year has been like, I, I am sure my past PR agency that I used to work at has been incredibly busy and like making a crap ton of money over the last year because we used to get pulled in when like, excuse my language, like shit hit the fan. And hospitals, healthcare systems, physicians, organizations, they didn't know what to do and needed like urgent help. And we would come in with communication strategies, grassroots PR stuff, media strategies to help them navigate really sensitive times. And so that has been like that past experience has been such a blessing in the last year, even though I don't do anything in the healthcare sector anymore, but just being able to like navigate crisis, you know, and know how to communicate and show up and get more visibility and be a leader when things feel really crazy and really uncertain. So yeah, so that's where I got, you know, spent. That's the end of my kind of corporate experience. Most of my career has been in the world of communication, so advertising, marketing, pr. I also spent a few years as a graphic designer as well. So communications and like visual stuff too in there. But yeah, when I left, I left for a couple key reasons. I was working about 60 to 80 hours per week and as the name crisis communication suggests, very high stress levels, very intense workload. Like all of the clients I was working on are in emergency type situations. Like everything is like all hands on deck, they're stressed, everything like that. So not only was the volume of work a lot, but the work itself was high intensity and yeah, And I was at that agency for about four years, did really well there. I think we were doing important work and like, on the side of the good guys, quote unquote. Even though the whole healthcare in the United States could stand to get rehauled. Right. And yeah. And at the end of the day, you know, I working in the hospital industry, it was not like what lights me up. The type of work I was doing was not the most exciting type of PR work to me either. And I also am somebody who is so motivated by freedom and choice and flexibility. And I, at this point, like, in my life, I don't think I could ever have a boss again. But so I like, we're ruined.

Once we hit the entrepreneurial world, we're just, we're destroyed.

Right. Seriously. And so I wanted to be able to do, to work when I wanted, where I wanted, with who I wanted, pick and choose the projects that I got to work on, and really wanted to be able to prioritize myself and my well being because, like, in my last year at this last agency, you know, I was insanely burnt out. So, so stressed. I was having anxiety attacks, like in the bathroom at work, like once a week, like needing to be like, get up from my desk, go in the back and like cry it out and then go back to work sort of thing. And I felt like I had zero control over how like my work life balance, like work absolutely had to come first. And then if there was extra time, energy leftover, I could maybe do my own laundry or go grocery shopping or find time to get to the gym. And I come from a big fitness background as well. And so, like, for me, making sure I break a sweat regularly is super, super important. And I was just sacrificing so much that. Not fulfilled. Yeah. And so I left, not really with like a plan, but went right into some consulting. So prior to branding, social media, marketing consulting, which give me a lot more.

Really with a plan. Did you just get to the point where you were just like, you know what? I'm out, Anything's better than this.

I, you know. Yes, ish. Yes, ish. So I'm somebody who, I don't think this is the case anymore. However, I used to not trust myself, not be able to listen to my gut and trust my gut and my intuition very well. I didn't trust myself. And so, like, I stayed a year longer than I probably should have. I was miserable, you know, and so I, looking back, would have been like, gosh, why did I. How did I not realize I needed to get the F out of there, you know, you would have been very.

Young, though, too, right?

I was like, 26 or something. 27. Yeah.

A lot of us are trying to hone our intuition in our 20s.

Yeah. Right. And I also, like, it's so funny because I'm 34 years old now, and I. Back then, I'm like, I can't leave. I've been doing communications and marketing stuff for X number of years. I've been in this job for four years. Like, I can't pivot and, like, start a new job or a new career path now. I am too old for that. Oh, my gosh. Right. And. And so I. Yeah, so I left. I got to the point where. And this. This has been, like, a recurring lesson in my life, whether it's about work or other things where I just get to, like, literally hit a wall. And then I go, oh, those whispers and little nudges that I was hearing all along the way. I should have listened to that more. And now I'm at freaking, like, Breaking Point Meltdown City, and we need to take action and, like, go, you know? And so, yes, I did not have a clear plan. However, I had had a few people reaching out to me for help with marketing projects and was like, oh, I'll just do them in my free time as well. And I did that for a little while and then was like, what the hell am I doing? One, I don't have free time right now. Two, I need to be charging for this. So let's get a couple clients, a couple projects under our belt, and then get the F out of here. And so once I was able to have a couple clients, like, out of the gate, I took action and got out. So once I make the internal decision that things absolutely need to change, and I think I was. I was again, not trusting my gut. I was being stubborn. I'm like, no, this has to work. I'm going to force it to work. Right. I'm not going to give up. This is a good job on paper. This is really impressive. I make a lot of money, like, all that kind of stuff. And so sometimes it takes me, like, just being stubborn and frustrated for a while to realize, like, oh, no, it's time to. It's time to move on from this. And now I would say, absolutely, like, when I tune into my gut, like, I take action so fast, and it is effective, accurate, trust my gut and my intuition, so, so much. But, yeah, I left without a real plan. I had, like, I said a few clients under my belt and just trusted that I was gonna figure it the heck out. And those few clients were able to, you know, I was able to still pay my bills and cover all my expenses, but I had so much time back on my plate to then explore what I wanted the next thing to be. Because the first order of business for me was to, like, come down from all that overwhelm and all that stress and, like, reprioritize myself, my health, like, get my, like, adrenal system back on track, because I was absolutely burnt out. And so I didn't have room to be like, okay, what's the next thing? I was like, no, no, we have to, like, just, like, simmer down for a little bit and then explore what sounded exciting to me. Because I was at the point where I'm like, okay, if I am, like, quote unquote, starting over or wanting to do something that is more exc. To me and more fulfilling to me and gives me more flexibility and choice, then let's, like, throw all the things out there and see what sticks. So had my consulting going on. I started to do on camera hosting, like, red carpet hosting, livestream podcast hosting for the entertainment industry, which was super, super fun. Yeah. So got to do. Yeah, it was so much fun. It was like Sports center, but for TV shows and stuff. Like. Yeah. And that was. It's so funny that, you know, prior to recording, we were talking about how I'm starting a podcast. And so, like, I was doing on air podcasting, live stream podcasting, like, years ago, before everyone and their mom had a podcast. Right. And so I'm very excited to get back into it. But, yeah, so it gave me the flexibility to kind of see what was exciting to me and try out all the things and so over.

Kind of take you to go. Because I know a lot of people have so much fear in going from the comfort and safety of a regular job, which can often be hell, into going to working for yourself, but still having that anxiety that was with you. How long did it take you to kind of heal from that and be like, okay, now I'm not in survival mode. I can actually breathe and grow.

This is such a great question. I think it took me about six months to feel like I was on, like, the right track, if you will, or felt more confident in my decision, because, yeah, the first six months, I think once a week I'd be like, what am I doing? This is ridiculous. Get a real job with benefits. Like, all this stuff, like, you know, like, this is. What are we Doing. Yeah, terrible idea. And then it kept working and it kept like, you know, happening. I'm like, okay, this is less, less scary. Less scary, like, okay, okay. And then the big thing that showed me that I was like, it was happening and I had kind of crossed through that fear was I saw a job, like a job opportunity for something that months ago I would have absolutely jumped all over, applied to and would have wanted really bad. And I saw it and I was like, oh, that looks really cool. Six months ago me would have loved that. Yeah. Today me does not in any way want to even apply to this. So. So we have crossed that line and we're going to keep going. So yes, it was like about six months, but it was terrifying for sure. It was super stressful. And there have been plenty of moments since then where I'm like, what am I doing? This is not working. And then you're like, wait, it is working.

The entrepreneurial roller coaster.

Exactly, exactly. Yeah. So to kind of wrap that all put a bow on it, I, you know, over the last six years have had a social media marketing agency which I do some of that stuff still with PR clients, but not doing the social media management stuff anymore. I accidentally started a fitness business as well because one of my big priorities was getting back into fitness once I left and started a fitness business. Yes.

So I, you're going to have to elaborate on that.

Exactly. So I'm a big social sharer, like the stuff that I'm into and I love, like I will share it whether it's work related or not. And fitness is one of those things that's super important to me. I was a competitive soccer player my whole life and that's one of the things I felt like I was really sacrificing was like consistent exercise with my last agency that I worked at. So that was one of the things that when I was on my own, like non negotiable prioritizing fitness. And so I'm like sharing my gym stuff and what I'm doing and started having a lot of people asking like, oh, hey, what are you doing? Or like, what, what kind of shake is that? Or what, what kind of workouts are you doing? All that kind of stuff. And I had, I had been using products from a network marketing company actually and just for myself, for the, like my own benefits. Not really intending to start a business with it though. Being a social marketer, I'm absolutely like, if I'm into something, there's an opportunity for affiliate commission or partnership or money, duh. Like, why not? And so after about six months of using this, these products decided to go in and work the business and so built a successful network marketing business in the healthcare space. Also became an online health coach. So with that and separate from that was a fitness model for a few years. Did fitness competing like was, have been a personal trainer, like all that kind of stuff? So, so yeah, so it kind of happened organically and accidentally just because people were like, wait, what are you doing? Tell me more, tell me more sort of thing. I'm like, well, why don't I monetize this? Okay, let's go. And in 2020, I actually moved away completely from doing any fitness type stuff as a income stream, as a business. Now it's just for me. But yeah, so fitness was a major, major part of my business as well. And I had my social media and PR business running and the fitness business at the same time too, which was fun. And you may agree with me on this, if you don't like jump all in on the main thing, you're not going to get those big results that you want.

This was going to be my next question.

Yes, like splitting yourself really in many different directions and from a personal brand.

Point of view, representing a lot of different things as well. Did you find it hard to be like known for your thing when you.

Were doing all the different stuff? Yes. So, and so I wasn't sure. It was tricky for me to position myself and there was some time where it was all just mainly fitness oriented and like I was doing business coaching for fitness people and, and so what my business looks like now is PR agency and then I have my group PR program and we work mainly with entrepreneurs in health and wellness, in personal development, in lifestyle. So that's all become much more cohesive. But yeah, for several years with running like business coaching, social media type stuff, PR type stuff and the fitness stuff, it was confusing for my audience and I actually had a big aha moment. Like honestly, I think at this point it was only like two years ago where. And so part of this I'll back up a little bit because my last experience in PR on like the corporate side was so stressful. I had so much like PTSD connected to that. And so for me I was still doing marketing and PR stuff, but only on a project basis, you know, and only by referrals. And so, and, and it was working really well. Like I literally was having dream clients, like people who I wrote in my notebook, like, oh my gosh, one day I would love to work with so and so coming to me and being like, oh, hey, I hear that you're good at this stuff. Can we hire you for this launch? Can we hire you for this? And I'm like, sure. And then I, you know, pull in, pull in a contractor or something. We jam on that project, knock it out of the park, great. If another referral comes in, we'll step in and do it. But I was not prioritizing that business as the main thing or trying to grow it because I still had so much like crap connected to my last experience in the PR world. And so to me, I was like, no, I'm not doing this full time. This is not going to be the main thing because PR is stressful. Working in PR means I'm going to be working 12 hours a day. I'm going to wake up at 5am and check my email first thing and then start my day stress. So we're not doing this. Yeah, yeah, exactly. So I'm like, I'll do this on a project basis because I can do 90 days of being all gung ho on this project and then get back to my own stuff, you know. But I was like, but we're not doing this as the main business. I don't care how good we are at it. You know, like, I'm like, we're not. And then I was at an event that I helped my team and I helped to sell out through influencer marketing, social sharing, that kind of stuff. And like the year prior, the event sold out with 500 spots. The year my team and I came in sold out at 1500 spots. So like we crushed it. And this was like third or fourth project like that that I had been doing in the last like year, you know, year or two span. And I had somebody, a friend of mine actually who knows me in real life, come up to me at this event that like I helped to do and be like, so I know that you were helping so and so with their book launch. I know that you were helping so and so with this event and that thing. And I know you were involved in that too. And you're here and I know you're helping out as well, but I don't know exactly what you do.

Yes.

And I was like, oh shit. I'm like, this is someone who knows me as a human, not just on social media, and she doesn't know what it is that I do. That means everyone else who follows me, especially people who don't know me in real life, they have no idea either. So like, I Am blocking by not choosing one or the other and not being clear in what I was doing. I'm blocking so much business, right? And like, so that to me was a big, big wake up call to and funny thing at that event had another literally dream client be like, hey, so I want to hire you for this launch coming up. And I'm like, are you freaking serious? I'm like, oh, great. Another great opportunity to work on like, you know, and, and so I was. So that weekend at this event, I'm like, okay, I either need to say no to that opportunity and be done with this kind of work, or I need to like reframe my experience with doing this kind of work and decide to actually jump in and fricking go for it and do it for real. And so I was able to go back and like rewrite my relationship with working in PR and really like work on the stories that I had and kind of the blocks that I had around it. And then I was like, o, we can do this and it can be fun and it can be great and we can scale it and it doesn't mean I have to work insane amount of time and all this stuff. And so, yeah, so that like, really. And that was at this point about two years ago. And I still, you know, it still, I think took me about a year to fully jump in with both feet, like, you know, like sometimes.

And so then, because I do know, and this is a problem a lot of people come up against as well, is they're really good at their service based business, like really good at done for you stuff. But you've managed to get all that and package it and then scale it and use kajabi, which I love for your online courses. How did you go about, like, at what point did you go, you know what? I'm going to end up working my ass off again all day every day if I don't figure out a way to scale this.

Yeah, beautiful question. So I, for me, like, I probably spend more like one of the beautiful things that happened in 2020 was my business grew very, very fast and in a very short period of time. And so I went from having a contractor and a virtual assistant to a team of about seven contractors, like in the span of a couple months. And so like, I am always like, I would much rather have more help and like less profit for me to keep my time and energy balance in a, in a way that feels good than just like do it all myself to take more of the money. Like, so like one scaling with Support and with team has been huge, huge, huge to keep my workload and energy in a place that feels good for me. And then also it's like, I mean, so much of it too is like the mindset side of things and the visualization and just the like, you know, being like, no, I be like, this is going to look and feel this way because I say so. And even if that's not like normal or whatever, like, I don't care. I'm the boss and I get to create this to look exactly how I want. Like, this is my business. We like, I get to make it look and feel how I want it to. And so really being committed to the vision you have for how you want it to look and feel, that's been amazingly helpful for me. And like real talk. And again, this is what I was saying before where sometimes I need to like actually hit the wall, like very hard before I hear the lesson. In 2019, I dealt with depression and I also in 2019 was not feeling excited about my business. And that was kind of after that, that aha moment with my friend. I was like, okay, so we're going to pivot back into PR as the main thing.

Yeah, so you were at your crossroads.

Yeah, so. But I wasn't excited about it yet. I was like, I had kind of decided that's where we were going. But I was feeling really unmotivated. I had a lot of personal life stuff I was needing to prioritize as well. So I, in 2019, I was like, you know what, we're not going to go gung ho on my business right now. And I did a lot of fitness stuff. So I popped back into fitness being the main thing. I was doing a lot of personal training. I needed something that felt easy and more just routine. And I wanted to be out of my house and plug into a new network. And so I did a year of just like, ok, I am focusing on me and my health, my life and the, you know, personal stuff I needed to deal with. And when I start, like when that is healed and that stuff is like nurtured the way that it needs to, then we're going to jump back in. But, but yeah, so for me, 2019 was like, it was a big, yeah, a big lesson in listening to myself, listening to my gut, taking care of myself. And I historically have been a workaholic, do way too many things at one time, work non stop, never take a break, never feel like I'm doing enough, like all that. And for me, my thankfully, like I'M I've dealt with anxiety for a long time, but never had dealt with depression. And thankfully I could still function quite highly with my depression. And I also had a very limited amount of energy each day. So I was like, some days I was like, okay, I can work on my business after I'm done training clients and stuff like that. I got three hours in me. So all the extra crap, the unnecessary stuff, the stuff that doesn't actually move the needle, the stuff that's busy but not actually productive, like you're just doing shit to do, shit like that all had to get cut out because I had such a finite amount of energy and inspiration each day. Like I'm used to working like 12 hours a day easily. And I was like, I got three. So make sure I'm doing what is really important. And one of the great things about that, like, you know, and it's, it ebbs and flows sometimes we're working crazy hours and just knowing that that's not how it's going to be all the time. Like I can put in a, like killer week, month, whatever. But one of the things that I really took from that was, and why I'm so grateful for having gone through depression, as shitty as it was, is one, I don't need to work eight hours a day, nine hours a day, 10 hours a day. I can get everything done in five. Right. And so it really, really showed me the importance of like maximizing my time, cutting away all the extra stuff and really focusing on what the biggest priorities are. And then even though now I am not dealing with depression anymore and barely deal with anxiety at all, which is like, I can't believe I like got rid of, I got rid of anxiety and depression in 2020. That's bizarre, right? But one of the things that I've maintained is, okay, like I get to keep that extra space and time to nurture myself, take care of myself, just be. Just because I feel better and more inspired does not mean I go back to 10 hour days.

And so what things do you have in place practically to stop yourself from? Because I know once a workaholic, we're always a reformed workaholic and we can go back to that habitually, really easily. How do you actually put those barriers? I know you know what I'm talking about there. You're like, yes, I do. How do you stay away from the work?

Yes. So I don't take any calls before 11am so I'm in the United States, but you know, whatever, I don't take calls before 11am my morning, I get up at like 7am still and my morning is for me. And so, and so that's, I'm looking over here at my calendar. So I in the mornings, like I do my morning practice, like journaling, meditation, move my body a little bit. I like to try and create a piece of content for the day. I don't batch create. I create in the moment. I like to create my content in the morning. Doesn't always happen in the morning, but I like to create my content and put it out into the world before consuming a bunch of other stuff. And then I like to work out and then I'll check my emails and then plug in. And I usually have a work block from like 11am to 4 or 5pm it's beautiful. With my calendar and time block, yes, all that stuff can get moved around. But I put how I want my day to look and feel is plugged into my calendar so that I stick with it and don't always listen to like my own rules and stuff. So we're breaking those parameters often. But it helps me to be like, oh no. If I say that I want a five hour workday and I want to run a multiple six figure business with five hours a day and really I only want to work Monday through Thursday if we're being honest, then I get to be super ninja with my time and really stick with my boundaries. And I know too, another thing also, and why I followed through on that and how it's become easier for me is trusting the process too. And it feels so. Not anymore. It felt so wrong in the past to start my day with me, to not go right into answering emails and notifications and stuff. It felt wrong to be like, well I'm going to wake up without an alarm clock and like do my meditation y stuff and work out and like have a slow morning. Like that felt wrong and it often feels wrong when the work doesn't feel hard. That still inside to me feels wrong. So and that's years of working on this. I'm like, and so it's a constant reminder to me and I even texted one of my coaches about this a couple weeks ago. I said, this launch I didn't feel like I was launching. I didn't, I did not have the energy to show up in gung ho launch mode all the time and it was pretty chill and we made more this launch than any of the launches. And so I'm like, and that feels wrong. But I'm going to tell my body that this is how it gets to feel all the time. It gets to be easy. And so that's one of the things for me is like being super specific with my time and really intentional about that. Really getting clear on what I want my work and life to feel like each day and how I want that to look each day and then doing it, following through on that, asking for support, like, and with support too. It's like going through all my tasks and deciding, okay, what must be done by me and then anything that shouldn't be done by me or doesn't have to be done by me or I don't enjoy doing that gets delegated. And so, and like, and so that's been really, really effective is having support, getting really clear on how I want it to look and feel and then doing the things like just because I'm like, oh, in a year I want my business to do like this XYZ and I want it to feel like this. And I da da da da da. I'm like, okay, then what can I do today that will make that happen sooner? And if I say I want to have a five hour workday, then what do I do now to make a five hour workday and get everything done right and trust that I can maintain that and that discipline and structure even when way more money is coming in.

So well done. Go you.

That is so good.

Okay, so I want to talk about the online course because that's what so many of our listeners are packaging their.

Experience into online courses.

And so you did that a year ago was when you really went, I'm going to go head first online course world.

So I in the past have done coaching programs and stuff in the fitness space. But I, yeah, I launched my first online program last May actually. So even less than a year, you know, really the second half of 2020, launched the PR Express Accelerator, which is my four month PR program which is essentially a hybrid program. It's a mastermind coaching program course and PR agency experience like all wrapped into one. So and we as we talked about, we use Kajabi for it. And so everyone who it's a course for or program for entrepreneurs who are scaling, entrepreneurs who know what they do, they know who they help, they're doing a job great, great job already at what they do. And they want more visibility, to scale with more ease, to really like anchor in their authority, be seen as the go to expert at what they do, get more like I said, more visibility, more eyes, more leads and more and scale more with more ease. And so so, yeah, so we've got the course and all the trainings and stuff running through Kajabi, we've got the private Facebook group, we have our weekly zoom calls. And at the. One of the really cool things about this program is at the midpoint. So at the second, the last two months of it, everyone gets to have me and my team as their in house PR agency. So we actually do a bunch of the work for everyone. So it's been really beautiful to be able to teach entrepreneurs how to do their own PR and how to get their own visibility. But then a lot of entrepreneurs who are scaling as well, they don't want to do all the pitching and all the PR stuff themselves. So it's been really great to be able to help out by doing some of the work alongside them. And even in this round we have a lot of people, I think half of the group has like their VA or their assistant or their marketing person doing it with them to learn how to do it in house for them so that when they're done now they're doing it all on their own. Right.

That's when you were saying that. That's what I was thinking. Because I'm going, my assistant does my PR and I'm going, this could be great for her.

Yeah, exactly. And so, and I love that. Cause I'm like, I don't. And so what I did is, and I will say too, like, I am not a natural. As much coaching as I do and coaching that I have done, coaching is not the place that I feel most like alive in. Like, I love to be more in the CEO role. So like entrepreneur role, doing. I like a lot of different things. I like things to change quickly. Like every six months I want to be doing something new.

I would never pick that up from you, Lauren.

Yeah, like, you know, I don't like to, like, I'm not one to be like, oh, let's like have a year long coaching, like arrangement and we're going to like, you know, that's a lot of energy. As much as I love it, like even back when I was doing personal training, like if I had three clients in one day. And again I loved all my clients, but three clients, one on one, face to face, felt the same as seven clients one on one, face to face because of that energetic exchange, that's just not like how I'm wired. You know, even if I did love them and I love the like present time with them. And so similarly, like I had a lot of resistance to creating a course or Creating a coaching program and at some point, like the accelerator will become an evergreen only option. Not, not this year or anything like that. But I had a lot of resistance around creating coaching programs because I didn't. That's not like my first choice. Right. So I don't know if you're familiar with my friend Amanda Bucci has the entrepreneurial archetype quiz and it kind of breaks down like how are. It's like a personality test for entrepreneurs. And so like I'm entrepreneur, creator, teacher. So teacher is more like, I'm going to create the thing, put it out into the world for you, go learn and goodbye. You know, like I'm not entering into a relationship with you. Coach is like where it's like, no, we are entering into a relationship that is ongoing. And so that is my lowest. Right. And so once I realized that I'm like, oh, that's why all this coaching that I'm doing feels so draining. Right. And so with the PR accelerator, yes, there's coaching with it, but we still, it's still very much like there's a lot of done for you with it. Right. And like at this point, all the trainings and stuff, it's all created and so it's something that is with the done for you element. I have to be very mindful of how many people are in it because my team, yeah, my team gets pulled in. So we cap it at no more than 15 people at this point. Like 10 to 15 is our sweet spot so that everyone gets the hands on attention that they need and deserve. But it's been really beautiful to be able to scale an offer like this because. Yeah, because like I can teach everyone. Like, hey, here's what we do in my agency and how I'm training my team on how to do all this. Like here you can have it. Like I'm not hoarding the knowledge, you know. And so it's been really fun to. Yeah, it's been so fun to create and to do and I'm, I'm loving it, you know, and it's gonna get.

Some launches because you've just come off a life launch, haven't you?

Yes. We just, we just closed doors for the first 2021 group. This is week three. Week three. We're starting today. Like, where am I? What time is it? What's going on? So we're starting week three of 16 weeks. Yeah. And just closed it. I usually do like a soft 30 day. Really like a five week, five weeks out, I start getting into launch mode. But Then it's like the last two weeks are like gung ho and all that. But yeah, just closed out our most recent launch about two weeks ago and it went super, super well. And it was again, like, I'm still in a place where I don't. I worked my booty off like a ton of time spent in the first half of 2020 and that momentum has continued to where my workload now is much lighter. And so, yeah, so I wasn't feeling like working 10 hour days, 12 hour days, nonstop conversations all the time in the DMs, like I wasn't there. And I'm like, you know what? My energy is not there, so I need to acknowledge that. So if I'm not going to be doing xyz, which I normally would do during a launch, what are the other things that we can do to make sure we still hit our goals? And so this last launch was so much easier than the other ones. I spent way less time like I was not, I didn't feel like I was grinding and hustling and just like nonstop go, go, go mode. And we brought in more revenue with this launch than any of the others. And so it's like what things did.

You do in place of that connection sort of thing.

Yeah, so some of the things that I do with every launch is I'll do like a webinar or masterclass series, like offer like two to five maybe live webinars, like kind of in the month prior to when we start. So maybe anywhere from six weeks out. And so I'll do live webinars and live trainings. I am like all over the Instagram stories. My hard feed Instagram posts are very launch oriented. I do a lot of Instagram live collaborations with like strategic partners, affiliates to talk, you know, so IG lives. Those are really effective. And then I have an affiliate and referral program for my team and past like alumni of the program. And so last launch, so not this most recent one, I was dealing with some really big like life stuff and was just like not in the place to work like crazy. And so that launch, like we hit our goals with a ton of affiliates. And so and because I was like, you know what I'm gonna. Because like my energy's here, we're going to push lean more into affiliates, which at the end of the day I may bring home less money, but we still hit our overall revenue goal. And I'm fine if people are helping me sell spots. I'm happy to pay out. Right. And so for this launch similarly, webinars, you know, conversations in the DMs, of course, a couple referrals, but not a ton this round. Solid, like email nurture sequence from opt in to like sale and. Yeah, and like IG lives and getting into my IG stories and all that.

Well done, well done. All right, so I want to ask you a couple of PR questions.

Yes.

So for people that are kind of in the early days and going, I really want to build my presence online from scratch. Where do you start when you've got nothing to build on?

Yes, yes. So this is. So many entrepreneurs think that, well, one don't really know what PR is and it's like this like mysterious kind of abstract thing that like, once you've arrived at a certain level, you're allowed to do PR and you'll just like know when it's time or somebody will slide into your DMs or your inbox and you're like, oh, now I'm ready for pr, because this person reached out to me and here we go, you know, and with that, like, there is no like, line that you need to cross. You don't have to have a certain number of followers. You don't need to have been in business for X number of years or hit X number of revenue or sales. Like, there's no like, no rules for when you can get started on this. And so PR and visibility, it needs to be part of your plan from day one, right? Because if you're not talking about what you do and like showing up and getting visible, people aren't going to know how to do business with you. They're not going to know how to hire you or what the hell you can even help them with, right? So it's like winking in the dark. You're not, you're doing nothing. So we want to like be visible from day one. And that also doesn't mean that you have to do every single thing, right? So visibility, that's super easy if you're just getting started and you're like, well, I don't. My business is barely doing anything is client testimonials, right? That's social proof. One of the beautiful things about PR is that it relies on third party credibility, right? So that's one of the great things about PR is like when you're doing advertising and marketing, it's usually you telling people how amazing you are, right? When with pr, it's other people or other outlets telling people how amazing you are. So if we're just talking right now, listen, we'll pull back the curtain right now on this podcast interview because you're having me on as a guest and your audience trusts you. Some of that trust gets applied to me, even if your audience has never met me before. But they're like, you know what? We trust Tina. So we like, let's hear what this chick Lauren has to say. And so that is just like one example of how amazing PR is. And so if you think about, okay, getting featured in an online publication, being a guest coach in somebody else's program, being on a podcast interview, having an influencer tag you and shout out about you, like whatever that third party source, whether it's the podcast host, influencer publication, like, that gives you automatic social proof and credibility. And so even when you have clients share about who you are. So if you're just getting started, maybe you're doing a beta group and you don't even have paid clients yet, you're working with a few clients, like, for free, like getting testimonials from them. That's amazing. To strengthen your credibility and authority, doing Instagram live collabs, that's something that you can do so easily just with your friends, right? So there's so many things that you can do on a regular basis when you're just getting started to get more visibility and to do more public relations. And the things that I would say people need to have, like, locked in and have clarity around before putting themselves out there more. And these are things, you guys, spoiler alert. These are things you should have, like, locked in when you're starting your own business anyway, right? Is like knowing, like, what is your niche? Like, what is your special space in your industry? What's the solution that you, you provide to people? What problems are you solving? Who are you helping? Who's your ideal client, Right? So those things are super, super important. Like, what is your superpower and how are you helping people and who are you helping? And so when you have those things clear also, you should also have like one, a way to do business with people. Because if you're putting yourself out there and like someone slides into your DMs, it's like, oh my gosh, I heard you on so and so's podcast. I would love to work with you. You want to be able to be like, great, here's the link. Or give me your credit card info, right? So you need to be able to take people's money and do business with them or have your products set up or have a wait list at least. And then I would say Having an email list or a text list, some form of. Some way to capture people's information that you own. So not just relying on, like, oh, come follow me on social media. Right. Like, owned Internet real estate. So. So, yeah, your niche, ideal client, whatever your superpower is your offers and, like, the ability to do business with people and, like, get. Take their money and then an email list. Like, you've got those things, like, locked in. Start putting yourself out there and get more visible.

I love it. And what do you think are, like, consistent, good practices in terms of how often should course coaches, creators be sending out? I want to be on your podcast and pitches for different things, do you think?

Absolutely.

Just, like, fire hydrant it every month or how would you recommend people do that to get the best results?

Yeah, yeah. So in my program, I recommend. And obviously people in my program, they're very committed to more visibility, so I recommend weekly, you know, sending out new pitches and weekly following up. And if that sounds really overwhelming, because one of the things about PR is. Yes. Like, it's often a lot of details to manage, which can feel really overwhelming. You can do this in one hour a week, you guys. So, like, at the start of the week, identify five podcasts you want to be on. Craft a pitch. You craft, like, one core pitch, and then customize it so slightly for each person based on who they are, what their podcast is about, what their audience would find valuable. The key with pitches is adding massive value for the other person and their audience and not making it all about you, making it about how you can give so much value to them. So, yeah, get one core pitch.

That's how you're on my podcast. I got the beautiful email from you going, here's what I can do for your audience. I'm like, she's in prison.

Thank you. It's always good to hear, right? Yeah. So, like, identify five places you want to pitch to. Three even. Right? Like, and. And once you have that main pitch ready, it takes 10 minutes to customize for each place. So you can send those pitches out in one hour or less. And then once a week, go in and. And follow up. Right. Like, have one day or a couple hours dedicated to following up. There you go. Like, it can be done so easily and so efficiently, and you can have, like, a VA doing it or somebody on your team. Like, it doesn't have to be all on your plate either. And I would also recommend people have a regular, like, weekly time to just engage, like, proactively engage with people that you want to collaborate with whether it's an editor, journalist, podcast host, influencer. And with that, all you need to do is maybe if it's a podcast you really want to be on, listen to one of their episodes, like whatever new episode comes out that week, listen to it, get into your Instagram stories, throw it into stories with a little insight like, hey guys, just listen to this episode. Here's what I loved about it. Bop, bop, bop, bop, bop. Tag the person. Hopefully they reshare it. Which one. That gives you.

That's how I've got more visibility, doing exactly that, putting it on. And then they go, thanks for sharing. And then I say, oh, and if you're ever looking for guests, how about me?

Exactly, exactly. So you get it. So that's so easy, right? Like, throw that out there. Because podcast hosts, they. You want to like, work with people who enjoy your show. Right. And if someone's gone through the effort to share why they loved an episode of yours and put it out there, like, that feels good. Right? Like, and so people pay attention to that and so as well, which I.

Think is so important because I mean, we get pitched all the time for the podcast from people that I read, they don't even know who we serve. And it's, I mean, it's her empire.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And so, so that. Cause like, then, you know, you do that a little bit. And especially if it's like a big, like long shot type of podcast, like, you know, one that you're like, probably, like, this one's probably not. I'm not ready for that. But one day do that once a week, something like that. Or just slide into their DMs, comment on their posts, that sort of thing. So that when you do go in for the pitch, they're like, oh, there's that person, there's Lauren, who's like such a fan of the show and is consistently engaging with our stuff. Yeah, I'm going to open this email now. Right. So yeah, like regular sending out pitches, whether it is 5 or 50, like whatever you have time and energy for, it can be 30 minutes, you know, and then engaging and building those relationships.

Yeah, I love that. And do you think there's a difference with, I mean, I know you're from a PR background doing PR for people, but do you think there's a difference when someone like a PR agency is pitching on your behalf or you as the course created, the entrepreneur yourself, like, do you think it should come from you personally or from someone else?

This is such a good question. And it kind of depends. So it's not always realistic. Well, both, you know, to have a team doing it for you or to do it all yourself. So you need to determine, like, what is what you're able to be consistent with and what's actually going to get the job done, whether it's you doing it or someone else doing it. That should be the priority. Of course, whatever you can be consistent with and whatever's like, maybe in your budget time or energetically or financially. But then a lot of, on the one hand, having somebody else do it for you comes off as more established, more credible, more authority, all of that. So if you don't have somebody doing it for you yet, you can create an extra email address pretty easily and be like, so and so on my, like, hi, I'm representing Lauren. And it can be me just with like, my marketing person is reaching out and be like, oh, Lauren here, right? Like, you can play as if someone else is doing it, but there's not, like, you know, there's. You can totally reach out on your own as well if someone else is doing it for you. A lot of podcast hosts also really enjoy having, like, having the ho or whoever wants to be on the show, like, send a personalized note. So if it is your team doing it for you, amazing. But then it also is a really great touch to then, like, slide into that person's DMs and be like, hey, so and so, like, my team just reached out to you about being on your show. Really excited to connect with you and looking forward to getting to know you better. There you go. So it adds that personal touch. If it's not you sending the email, like, drop a little message or something to like, make that more intentional and intimate.

Yes. PR gold right there, guys. PI gold. All right, so what is. What is on the horizon for you in 2021?

Yes. Yes. So we are running the PR accelerator three times this year. We've already got one underway. Just got started, as I mentioned, about three weeks ago. And I'm going to be launching my own podcast finally, which we talked about, like, goodness. I. Yeah, it's been a long time coming. So launching my own podcast at the end of February, early March. Same. Thank you. What is it going to be called?

Do we have a name for it yet?

That's still going to be a secret because it's like 99% decided, but. So I'm not going to give it away just yet, but we most likely have a name and. And obviously, like, you get you. I'm going to be reaching out to you to be a guest on my show. This is so fun. And yeah, so I'm very excited for that. We're going to cover. It's not just going to be about pr, not just going to be about business. Covering, like all the things to really, like, help you amplify your life and like have a next level life and alignment, like in all the ways, not just business, but like life fulfillment as well. And yeah, and so that I'm super excited about that and probably be some like, coaching programs, masterminds courses or something kind of along the lines of the podcast. So, yeah, PR accelerator. The next round will be starting in April, right? We'll be starting in May. Sorry. So I'm like, what, where am I? What month is it? So the next round will start in the very beginning of May. And you know, we, we max it out at 15 people, so we sell out every single time so people can snag their spots early to make sure they secure a spot in the next group. But yeah, that's what, that's what's coming up. The podcast, npr.

All of the links, everything that you've spoken about today is straight underneath our conversation. So you can get them all there and follow. Lauren, what's your Instagram handle?

It is just my name. Lauren Salon.

I love it. Thank you so much. Lauren, your champion.

Thanks. Thank you so much. This is absolutely fantastic. Thank you. Trust you. Some of that trust gets applied to me, even if your audience has never met me before. But they're like, you know what? We trust Tina. So we like, let's hear what this chick Lauren has to say. Because here, like, and so that is just like one example.