Confidence Classic: Grow Your Business with Ease, Intention, and Instagram Strategy with Natalie Ellis
In this episode of Creating Confidence, Natalie Ellis shares the story of Boss Babe, a company she co-founded that grew to 1.7 million members in eighteen months. Ellis explains her social media strategy for growing the Boss Babe brand on Instagram, which includes analyzing viral content, maintaining consistent posting schedules, and sharing behind-the-scenes content to boost engagement.
The conversation also covers Ellis's approach to entrepreneurship and personal development. She discusses how she structures her priorities—placing health first, relationships second, and business third—while scaling her company. Ellis describes her methods for maintaining work-life balance, including her use of meditation and breath work, as well as her strategies for overcoming imposter syndrome through hypnotherapy and achievement-focused techniques.
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1-Page Summary
Natalie Ellis' Journey and Growth of Boss Babe
Natalie Ellis, who started her entrepreneurial journey with a UK-based supplement company at age 22, co-founded Boss Babe after turning down a lucrative job offer to pursue her entrepreneurial dreams. Together with her co-founder, whom she met at a business event, Ellis launched "The Society," a $29 monthly membership program designed to support women in launching their businesses. Under their leadership, Boss Babe rapidly expanded to 1.7 million members in just eighteen months, with plans to expand beyond online services into physical products.
Strategies for Social Media Growth and Community Building
Ellis shares her expertise in growing Boss Babe's impressive Instagram following through several key strategies. She recommends studying and replicating successful viral content from competitors, maintaining frequent posting schedules (four times daily for brands, once daily for personal accounts), and sharing transparent, behind-the-scenes content to boost engagement. Boss Babe's success stems from understanding their audience's needs and consistently delivering valuable content, including free training and resources that address specific pain points in their community.
Work-Life Balance and Personal Development For Entrepreneurs
Ellis advocates for a different approach to entrepreneurship, emphasizing the importance of maintaining strong boundaries and prioritizing health, relationships, and well-being above business. She maintains a strict hierarchy of priorities: health first, family and friends second, and business third. Her personal development journey includes overcoming imposter syndrome through hypnotherapy and achievement-focused strategies. Ellis incorporates daily meditation, breath work, and proper nutrition into her routine, modeling a healthy work-life balance for her team and community while successfully scaling her business.
1-Page Summary
Additional Materials
Counterarguments
- Replicating viral content from competitors might not always align with a brand's unique voice or mission, potentially leading to a lack of authenticity.
- Posting four times daily for brands and once daily for personal accounts may lead to audience fatigue and could potentially decrease engagement if the content is not sufficiently varied or valuable.
- The rapid expansion of a membership base, like Boss Babe's 1.7 million members in eighteen months, could strain resources and potentially lead to a decrease in the quality of support and resources provided.
- While sharing behind-the-scenes content can boost engagement, there is a risk of oversharing or violating privacy, which could have negative repercussions for the brand.
- The strategy of providing free training and resources is generous but may not be sustainable long-term without a clear monetization strategy to support the business model.
- Prioritizing health and relationships over business is commendable, but it may not be feasible for all entrepreneurs, especially those in the early stages of their business where more time investment might be necessary.
- Overcoming imposter syndrome through hypnotherapy and achievement-focused strategies may not work for everyone, as individual experiences with imposter syndrome can vary greatly.
- Daily meditation, breath work, and proper nutrition are beneficial practices, but they may not be universally applicable or practical for all individuals due to personal circumstances or preferences.
- The idea of a strict hierarchy of priorities might not be suitable for every entrepreneur, as the nature of entrepreneurship often requires flexibility and the ability to adapt to changing circumstances.
Actionables
- You can create a personal growth plan that prioritizes your well-being by setting aside specific times for health-related activities before scheduling work tasks. Start by blocking out time in your calendar for exercise, meal prep, and relaxation each day, ensuring these come before any business-related activities. This mirrors the prioritization of health over business and can lead to a more balanced lifestyle.
- Develop a habit of learning from others' successes by setting up a weekly review session where you analyze top-performing content in your field of interest. Take notes on patterns, styles, and topics that resonate with audiences, then brainstorm how you can incorporate these elements into your own content or projects without directly copying them.
- Foster a supportive network by starting a small, focused group with peers who share similar goals, where you can exchange resources, advice, and encouragement. Use social media or community platforms to connect with like-minded individuals, and set up regular virtual meetups to discuss progress, challenges, and share insights on personal and professional growth.
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Natalie Ellis' Journey and Growth of Boss Babe
Natalie Ellis, a passionate entrepreneur, founded Boss Babe with the aim of assisting other women in achieving business success. Her journey reflects an unwavering dedication to entrepreneurship.
Natalie's Entrepreneurial Passion to Help Others Succeed
At the age of 22, Natalie Ellis launched a UK-based supplement company. The products of her first official business were distributed in stores throughout the UK.
After completing her university education, Natalie chose to bet on herself by turning down a lucrative job offer, which would have enabled her to pay off all her student loans, in order to pursue her entrepreneurial dreams.
Natalie's passion for entrepreneurship and her desire to help others succeed in business led her to co-found Boss Babe. She found the concept of aiding others to enter the realm of entrepreneurship more compelling than simply running numerous businesses.
Natalie met her future Boss Babe co-founder at a business event, and they maintained communication. This connection eventually led to the co-founding of Boss Babe.
Co-founding Boss Babe
Once they began collaborating, Natalie and her co-founder discussed the concept of Boss Babe's first product, "The Society." Her co-founder decided to invest in Boss Babe and officially joined the team. "The Society" is a membership for female entrepreneurs that Natalie had wished for when starting her own first business. It was launched with an accessible entry point of $29 a month to support women in getting their businesses off the ground.
Boss Babe's Rise as a Hub for Ambitious Women
"The Society" serves as a platform to empower female entrepreneurs, providing them with a framework for success and transforming members' lives. The success of Boss Babe can be attributed to their strategy of tuning in to the community's needs and crafting services that offer genuine value, like the Instagram Growth Accelerator, designed to replicate Boss Babe's own success with social media.
Boss Babe experienced rapid scale by staying attuned to the audience's needs. For instance, responding ...
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Natalie Ellis' Journey and Growth of Boss Babe
Additional Materials
Clarifications
- Natalie Ellis is an entrepreneur who founded Boss Babe to support women in business. She started her entrepreneurial journey with a supplement company in the UK before co-founding Boss Babe with a focus on empowering female entrepreneurs. Boss Babe offers services like "The Society" membership and the Instagram Growth Accelerator to help women succeed in business. Natalie aims to expand Boss Babe's offerings and grow it into a global community for ambitious women.
- "The Society" by Boss Babe is a membership program designed to support female entrepreneurs in their business endeavors. It offers a framework for success and aims to empower women by providing valuable resources and a supportive community. One of its key features is the accessible entry point of $29 a month, making it inclusive for women looking to kickstart their businesses. The program was created to fill a gap Natalie Ellis experienced when starting her own business, aiming to provide the support and tools she wished she had at the beginning of her entrepreneurial journey.
- The Instagram Growth Accelerator is a service offered by Boss Babe to help female entrepreneurs enhance their presence on Instagram. It provides strategies and tools to optimize their social media marketing efforts, leveraging Boss Babe's own success in this area. By addressing the community's need for guidance with Instagram, this service has played a significant role in Boss Babe's growth and success.
- Natalie Ellis plans to introduce physical products as part of Boss Babe's offerings, expanding beyond their current online services. This move aims to provide tangible goods that complement the existing digital services, enhancing the overall experience for members. ...
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Strategies for Social Media Growth and Community Building
Natalie's Skill in Growing Boss Babe's Audience via Instagram
Natalie Ellis shares her expertise on rapidly growing Boss Babe's audience on Instagram, providing strategies that enable greater visibility and engagement.
Replicating Viral Content From Competitors to Gain Visibility
Natalie recommends creating viral content to get pushed to the top of feeds and explore pages, which expands visibility to those not following you. She advises making a list of at least 10 people/influencers in the same niche, studying their posts for virality, and replicating the successful content. This approach, known as “viral research,” helps to understand what resonates with the audience and to attract an audience that is more likely to convert into customers.
Frequent Engaging Content on Instagram Stories and Feed
Natalie emphasizes the importance of frequent posting to stay favorable with Instagram's algorithm. She advises brands to post on Instagram Stories every day and to post on the feed four times a day. Personal brands should aim to post at least once a day. Infusing posts with transparency, such as discussing a bad day or sharing behind-the-scenes events, may also increase relatability and engagement with the audience.
Heather Monahan notes that Natalie has effectively "hacked Instagram," as evidenced by the significant growth of Boss Babe's audience. The company has gained over 1.6 million followers in a year and a half through consistent, frequent, and engaging content on Instagram Stories and feeds as well as providing value through free trainings on growth hacks.
Building an Email List and Other Owned Media Channels
While the specifics of Natalie’s strategy for growing an email list or other owned media channels aren't detailed in the provided content, it is suggested that she has systems or "hacks" in place. Natalie has built various platforms beyond just Instagram, including a Facebook presence, a podcast, and a blog. Offering a range of free resources to funnel followers toward specific tools emphasizes the focus on engagement while driving audience members to sign up to an email list.
Natalie's Way to Cultivate Loyal Followers
Understanding Her Audience's Needs and Pain Points
Natalie’s success with Boss Babe suggests a deep understanding of her audience. By identifying who the ideal client is, what content they resonate with, and the preferences of her audience on different platforms, Natalie has been able to tailor her content to me ...
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Strategies for Social Media Growth and Community Building
Additional Materials
Counterarguments
- Replicating viral content from competitors may lead to a lack of originality and could potentially infringe on intellectual property rights.
- Posting frequently on Instagram Stories and feed might result in audience fatigue or content oversaturation, which could decrease engagement over time.
- Building an email list and other owned media channels is important, but it requires a balance of promotional and valuable content to avoid high unsubscribe rates.
- Understanding the audience's needs and pain points is crucial, but there's a risk of becoming too niche, which might limit audience growth.
- Delivering valuable content and resources is benefici ...
Actionables
- You can analyze the emotional triggers in viral content to create your own unique posts. Look at the viral content from competitors and identify the emotions they evoke, such as humor, awe, or shock. Then, brainstorm ways to craft your own content that taps into these emotions without copying the content itself. For example, if a competitor's viral post is a funny take on a common industry problem, think of a different problem in the same industry and create a humorous video or meme about it.
- Develop a content swap strategy with peers to diversify your Instagram Stories. Find friends or colleagues who target a similar audience and agree to feature each other's content on your Stories. This can help you stay active and visible without always creating new content. For instance, if you're a fitness enthusiast, you could share a workout tip from a friend's page, while they share your healthy recipe.
- Create a feedback loop with your audience ...
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Work-Life Balance and Personal Development For Entrepreneurs
Natalie is a strong advocate for work-life balance and personal development among entrepreneurs, stressing the importance of setting boundaries and prioritizing health, relationships, and well-being.
Natalie's Boundaries: Prioritizing Health, Relationships, and Well-Being
Natalie speaks about her firm belief in work-life balance, not wanting to regret missing out on time with friends or family in the future. She has "crazy boundaries," which she vocally shares as part of her personal brand, emphasizing the importance of relaxation and doing business differently.
Top Priorities: Health, Family/Friends, Business
Her top priorities are her health, family and friends, and then business, in that particular order. She places her husband and marriage as the second priority, emphasizing that her business should never trump her personal relationships.
Daily Meditation, Breath Work, and Nutrition For Energy and Focus
Natalie recommends breath work to remove stress and anxiety and stresses the importance of her diet, eating clean to perform well at work. Sleep is also a priority, aiming for at least eight hours a night. Meditation is crucial for Natalie; she values stillness and quiet, reflecting her commitment to maintaining energy and focus.
Modeling a Healthy Work-Life Balance
Natalie wants to model a different approach to entrepreneurship that allows for significant personal time and relaxation while still building a successful business. She leads by example, taking vacations and encouraging her team not to overwork and to take care of their well-being. She resonates with a healthy work-life balance by making trade-offs, such as choosing when to check emails or investing in self-care activities that can lead to increased productivity.
Natalie's Personal Journey With Confidence and Self-Belief
Natalie discusses her journey with confidence and self-belief, detailing how she overcame imposter syndrome and invested in personal development to stay grounded as her business scales.
Overcoming Imposter Syndrome When Entering a Prestigious University
She recalls feeling like an imposter when she first attended a prestigious business school. She spent the first week crying, feeling out of ...
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Work-Life Balance and Personal Development For Entrepreneurs
Additional Materials
Counterarguments
- While prioritizing health, relationships, and well-being is important, some entrepreneurs might argue that the early stages of a startup often require a temporary imbalance, with more time and energy dedicated to the business to ensure its survival and growth.
- The idea of setting "crazy boundaries" may not be feasible for all entrepreneurs, especially those in highly competitive or time-sensitive industries where availability and responsiveness can be critical to success.
- Placing business after health and family/friends might not always align with the demands of entrepreneurship, where sometimes the business needs may temporarily take precedence to meet critical deadlines or opportunities.
- Daily meditation, breath work, and strict nutrition might be challenging to maintain consistently, especially for entrepreneurs with erratic schedules or those who travel frequently.
- Aiming for eight hours of sleep a night is ideal, but some entrepreneurs might find this goal unrealistic during certain phases of their business cycle.
- Encouraging a team not to overwork is noble, but it might not always align with the realities of the business world, where sometimes extended hours are necessary to meet project timelines or client expectations.
- Overcoming imposter syndrome is a personal journey, and what worked f ...
Actionables
- Create a "boundary blueprint" for your week by designating specific times for work, exercise, and social activities, ensuring you don't overcommit in any one area. For example, block out 6-7 pm for a workout, 7-9 pm for family time, and have a hard stop on work emails after 8 pm.
- Develop a "mini-retreat" routine once a month where you spend a day focused on activities that recharge you, such as a long hike, reading a book, or a DIY spa day at home, to emulate the rejuvenation of a vacation without the need for travel.
- St ...
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