Interview - Louise Blakely
Louise waited a few years to make the leap into doing her own thing full-time, but wouldn’t have it any other way. Her time spent side-hustling allowed her to hone her digital marketing skills and build a solid network. Her network even led to her first big-ticket freelance client. She now helps other businesses grow as a marketing and mindset coach.
Tell us how you ended up here as a marketing coach? Where did it all begin?
I started freelancing in 2013 while I was doing postgraduate study. I then got offered a great opportunity to take my digital skills into a tech startup, so I grabbed it. I continued to build my freelancing business for the next few years on the side until I went solo in mid-2016. That tech startup became my first big-ticket client.
What was your last ‘real’ job?
Digital Marketing Manager at gettimely.com (and side hustlin’).
What inspired you to start freelancing? Was there a ‘moment’ that made you realise it was time?
I had been working in a large corporate business and was getting continually frustrated with the inability to have any impact on the business. I felt like I was waiting to get chosen rather than being in charge of my own career! So freelancing was how I took that power back and created my own dream career.
I also knew that I had a lot to offer small businesses with marketing strategy and how to market their business online. It was a good time to get into this area, as digital was just hitting the mainstream as the main way to market a business.
How did you prepare to start working for yourself?
My freelancing journey is not linear. I started it, then took on a job and side hustled for nearly 3 years. This was a great way to do it for me because I gained a lot of skills from my day job and they had a solid budget to spend on ads. This meant that I got to really refine my digital skills and get some solid experience under my belt. It also helped me to build a network. Nothing really prepared me for taking the leap to full-time freelancing, but I knew I had to jump and leave the security of the job. As soon as I did, the extra time I had to spend on it paid off immediately.
What was your biggest fear before you started freelancing? Any tips to overcome these fears?
Initially, my biggest fear was whether people would recognise my skills in this area and pay me money for it. At this point, I didn’t have much digital experience and had more strategic marketing experience from my time in corporate and my university studies.
I quickly got over this when I saw the need, as well as the help I was able to give to small businesses to help them grow. My biggest tip on this is that most small business owners are really good at what they do best, and don’t have time to become experts in other areas. And that’s why they genuinely need you and your knowledge!
I did have a big fear around taking the leap to full-time freelancing, with no safety net of an income from a job. But I knew it had to happen sometime. I definitely recommend the path I took of doing freelancing as a side hustle first. This gives you time to build a network, finetune your skills, and get some clients on your books before you go full-time. Just don’t leave it too long and have faith in yourself!
Walk us through a typical workday?
AM:
Exercise (if I’m good), drop my son to school and at my desk by 9 or 9.30 most mornings with a coffee or cacao. I try to get the most pressing tasks done first, but sometimes I have coaching calls or other meetings I need to get to.
PM:
I usually have a late lunch and then try and get as much done as I can so I can get everything off my list for the day.
Evening:
I try to log off in the evenings but it doesn’t always happen. And this is when I’m at my most productive which is sometimes not ideal at all. If I didn’t have kids, I would work in the evenings.
How as COVID-19 impacted your everyday life?
It hasn’t that much, except for the fact that I had to homeschool for 5 weeks which put a big dent in the time I had available. That taught me that I don’t need as many hours as I’d thought if I’m focused on tasks.
My mindset improved over this time. I realised how many could benefit from my skill set of creating online products and marketing them online. It reminded me not to take my skills for granted.
Name three qualities you need to succeed as a freelancer?
Self-discipline
Being a constant learner so that you don’t lose touch with what’s happening.
The ability to know when to switch off and when to push harder!
I know we’re not supposed to have favourites, but can you share a favourite client project of yours?
I have too many to share! I enjoyed working with She Owns It NZ to sell out their NZ tour of the ‘Community Boost’ events in collaboration with Facebook in 2019. We used Facebook ads to fill the events nationwide.
I have also loved working with some of the eCommerce businesses I’ve had as clients that have majorly scaled their revenue using both Google ads and FB ads. The amount of growth for some of these businesses has been insane!
Best thing about being your own boss?
The ability to choose how to spend your time. And also I have to say I love looking at my bank account knowing that I created it for myself!
Suckiest thing about being your own boss?
I’ve found it really difficult to block out time for holidays where you don’t have to do any client work. This all comes back to boundaries though and doing some budgeting so that you can take a holiday without it affecting your income.
What advice would you give to someone just starting out on their freelancer journey?
My biggest advice is to establish your boundaries and what you want to achieve for yourself out of the freelancer journey. And then don’t allow any client to cross those boundaries or make exceptions for them. There will always be more clients who need your skills and expertise, who are willing to pay the money and who respect what you offer.
“At the end of the day, you need to be happy and healthy...and freelancing can result in burnout if you don’t have these boundaries in place.”
What’s next for you in business?
After many years of freelancing, I have moved into being a marketing and mindset coach. So now I coach female online entrepreneurs who are struggling with marketing their businesses online, and want to grow their business faster! I have found I can create a bigger impact by working collaboratively with my clients in this way, and we also get to work on their marketing mindset along the way.
This or that
Tea or coffee? I love coffee!
Introvert or extrovert? I’m an ambivert, apparently.
Earlybird or night owl? Night owl
Home office or coworking space? A mixture of both but fully home office with COVID.
Emails or calls? Emails
Paper or digital to-do list? Both!
Books or podcasts? Podcasts are easier but I love a good book.