Q1 was probably one of the hardest seasons of business I’ve had in a long time.
Maybe you can relate?
I know a lot of us were seeing fewer inquiries and sales, which meant everyone kicked things up a notch and pivoted strategies in real time.
I can honestly say that Q1 made me think more about multiple income streams, side hustles, and getting a second job than I have in a while. I wondered if I would even make it out the other side of my rebrand.
The root of the problem was I hadn’t been promoting my 1:1 offers since I was working on them throughout most of 2024, so I went into the year without a lot of leads, the most “open” calendar i had in years and honestly, it was terrifying.
One thing I wish more people talked about is that in order to reposition your brand (aka. change the way people think about you/your brand) you have to create content and market your brand over a period of time to rebuild authority and shift perceptions.
This is the messy middle that no one really talks about: when the data says you’re making progress, but your lived experience feels like you’re barely keeping your head above water.
There were more than one teary-eyed phone call to the besties & nights when me and my too-high cortisol levels woke up at 3 thinking about work, so I faced the fact that my 5-figure 1:1 offers weren’t drumming up much interest at the moment (not all that surprising considering there are no sales pages or portfolios up to support them right now).
And I switched up my sales strategy, pivoted what I was promoting, and stopped putting all of my eggs in one basket (remember this newsletter about lipstick strategies?) And guess what?
It actually worked.
By the end of Q1 and the start of Q2, things turned around dramatically. I beta-launched Brand Brushstrokes, my illustration offer, successfully booking two spots in the first week without a waitlist. (P.S. There are only two beta spots left!)
Then, I decided to take the old Brand Color Kit freebie, give it a complete update from top to tail, and position it as a low-ticket digital offer (special thanks to Mariah Magazine for cheering me on after I sent it to her to test out), and launched it with 15 pay-what-you-want sales in the first week!
The number one thing that made this turnaround possible?
I consistently created content over the last quarter to reposition my brand (kind of lame, I know—but the truth). There's no secret sales strategy, algorithm hack, or 6-figure mastermind to thank.
Just consistency.
In Q1 alone, I published:
- 18 Instagram feed posts
- 2 blogs
- Sent 27 emails (including 12 newsletters)
- 6 Substack articles
- 62 threads (my new favorite platform for connecting and finding my people! I know this number isn't a ton, and I want to focus more on threads in Q2).
Publishing 55 pieces of content in 3 months feels really good as one human behind the scenes who is still servicing clients, working on my rebrand, remembering to drink more water than coffee, and go outside to be a human.
I’m not saying this to “brag” - I’m saying it because I know that since TikTok closed for 24 hours and the mood around Meta has shifted, the volume on the internet has gone up to 11 regarding creating content on multiple platforms.
But as a solopreneur (or even a small team), that is easier said than done.
Yet, I am living proof that it is possible...
So this week's newsletter is dedicated to sharing tips & resources that can help you to create content faster & more consistently (without compromising on quality)
The 4 biggest things that helped me create content consistently & convert my audience in Q1
Creating content as a team of 1 on multiple platforms isn't "easy." But it is totally possible. I've always enjoyed creating content. I'm not afraid to yap on my stories, write a weekly newsletter long before I was "ready," or add another platform to the mix (oh, hey, my new love child Substack.)
I know we've been talking a lot about rebranding and repositioning around here lately, but the content communicates that rebrand more than anything else - and here is the four biggest things that helped me to create more of it, more consistently and more effictively in Q1 of this year.
1. Finding My Creative Flow
After taking a 6-week break from Instagram last summer, I've been experimenting with different approaches to find my creative flow. Here's what I've discovered works best for me:
For written content, I've learned to work on ideas gradually rather than trying to create everything at once. I let ideas marinate during phone-free walks, where they naturally start composing themselves in my head. While I don't handwrite entire pieces, I always outline on paper first—it helps me get into a writing mindset and creates a solid framework.
For video content, I've moved away from detailed shot lists that often led to overwhelm. Instead, I focus on documenting moments naturally throughout my week, then later decide how to piece them together into meaningful content. This approach has made my video creation process much more sustainable and authentic.
I complement both approaches with bi-weekly free writing sessions where I brainstorm and free write content without a specific platform in mind. This process has helped me understand and work within my own creative rhythm while maintaining consistency across all content types.
Feel free to try It out and see what works for you, but remember that everyone’s creative process is different. What works for me might now work for you and that is totally okay! Focus on what makes you excited to create content & get into a good flow.
2. Planning with Intention, Not Pressure
While using Notion for content planning isn't new for me, I love how it lets me track content ideas, brain dump potential topics, and easily shuffle things around when inspiration (or life) calls for a change in plans.
After working with Nicole at Groovy Social on my Instagram Strategy, I was able to update all of my databases to the content pillars she created for me, and I've finally found my sweet spot with timing: staying two weeks ahead with Instagram content ideas and a month ahead with newsletter topics.
This timeline is intentionally shorter than my previous approach of planning a months in advance - I found that when I planned too far ahead, I'd lose excitement about the ideas before I could create them. For blogs, I aim to plan quarterly, though I'm keeping that flexible until my website and rebrand are complete.
3. Having documented brand guidelines
Having a documented brand strategy (which I finally finished at the end of Q1) has been a game-changer for my content creation speed. By training my AI tools on my brand voice, messaging, and key stories while also maintaining a library of pre-designed templates with set color usage, fonts, and content "types", I’ve eliminated hours of decision-making from my workflow.
This systematic approach ensures consistency while dramatically reducing the time I spend on each piece of content.
This is something we will be talking about a lot more in the 2D design masterclass, so be sure to join the waitlist if you want to speed up the time it takes you to design posts for social + more.
4. Tracking the data behind my content
Every month, I create a “snapshot” of my most successful content and growth metrics. This includes tracking engagement rates, click-through rates, and subscriber growth across all platforms.
These metrics help me understand what resonates with my audience and guide my content strategy. I'm comparing data month-to-month and quarterly to identify what’s working and where I’m growing.
While the day-to-day of marketing your brand can feel like a rollercoaster, having this tangible data feels grounding and helps me see my progress over time.
You can check out everything I learned from my Q1 content review, + the actual data to back it up, in my newest article on Substack.
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JOIN THE WAITLIST
Pay What You Want For The 2D Brand Design Masterclasss
Live on April 24th, I'm teaching you how to think like a designer so you can create assets so good you'll have your biz besties asking who you put on retainer (but really it's just you!)
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FROM THE ARCHIVE
Make time for your own brand with a CCO week
I'm not saying a week changed everything for my rebrand... but I am saying you will have your Q2 CCO week scheduled by the time you finish reading this newsletter from the archive.
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FROM THE BLOG
The 5-phase brand-building process
The complete guide to strategic brand building and the step-by-step process I use to build strategic brands for my 1:1 clients + reposition Cedar June.
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