- Kindly give our readers an introduction to your business. Please include what your business is all about, in which city you are located and if you have offices in multiple locations/ cities.
At Awakened Marketing we help brands amplify their impact using marketing that is in alignment with their purpose. We use proven marketing strategies to create customized blueprints for our clients based on their needs and market trends. We work specifically with brands that are on a mission to spread positive influence in the world in some way. We offer Web Development, Google Ads/SEO, Facebook/Instagram Ads, Email Marketing, Copywriting, Branding, and more! We help clients in the Lead Generation industry, Ecommerce, and the online coaching industry. We are located in South Bend, IN, but we service clients all around the world.
• Kindly give us a brief description about yourself (it should include your brief educational or entrepreneurial background and list some of your major achievements).
I’m Allison Anna, Marketing Extraordinaire, Bestselling Author and Empathy Expert. I’ve invested my time over the last decade to studying the psychology of the cus tomer journey, emotional intelligence, and empathy in marketing and sales. I have a bachelor’s degree in finance, and I spent a decade in various sales, marketing, and data analytics roles before I opened the doors to my agency. Since then, I have had the opportunity to network and collaborate with over 300 digital marketers in the in dustry, which has equipped me with knowledge of the most effective advertising strategies to use for any niche. I am writer for Brainz magazine and Small Business Showcase Magazine, and I have been a guest writer for several other business maga zines. It is my conviction that every business that has a positive mission in the world should have accessible support to grow and scale their business.
• What inspired you to (start a new business venture) or (to make significant changes in an existing business)? How did the idea for your business come about?
When I started my Digital Marketing Agency, I had no clue that I would embark on a journey of supporting positive businesses in the world (I had no clue what type of client I wanted to work with at all). It was through my own awakening and decision to make positive changes for my health that I discovered my mission to amplify brands that sell positive and healthy products and services. When I started to cut back on consumption of toxic goods, such as household products, beauty products, food, etc., I noticed such a drastic difference in my own health, mood, and even relationships. I knew that I wanted to contribute to the spread of goods and services that promote this same health and healing in others.
• What three pieces of advice would you give to budding entrepreneurs?
Fail fast and fail forward – you never know what lies around the next corner or through the next challenge, but rest assured if you fail, you will LEARN. Learning through trials and failure in business is the key to upleveling and becoming greater at what you do.
Outsource the tasks that are not in your zone of genius. Everybody has a zone of genius, a zone of competence, a zone of excellence, and a zone of incompetence. Figure out the part of your business that is your zone of genius and focus almost all your efforts there. Find experts to outsource the other parts of your business too. This will allow you to scale your business quicker and you’ll be more fulfilled at the end of the day.
Pick the weeds in your brain daily – Every morning when you wake up, pay attention to your first morning thoughts. Are they positive or negative? If they are negative, get rid of them. A great way to do this is to practice gratefulness. Several things I do every morning to pick the weeds in my brain daily are meditate, pray, journal, write down 3 things I am grateful for and 3 things I want to accomplish that day (yes, only 3!). This looks different for everyone but do whatever you need to do to clear your mind of negativity and make sure that voice in your head is speaking positively. Your mind can be your worst enemy in business if you let it.
• What would you say are the top three skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur?
Radical responsibility – take responsibility for everything in your life that has gotten you to the point where you are. Once you get over this mindset shift, you can move forward in your business without excuses.
Courage – Courage comes before confidence in business. You may not be the greatest at what you do starting out, but all you need is courage to keep showing up and doing the next thing. If you keep being courageous and keep working hard and learning, you will become confident and great at what you do.
Time Management – Time can be your biggest downfall if you don’t know how to manage it well. As an entrepreneur you have many tasks pulling you in different directions every day. Managing your time is one of the most vital skills to continue building as an entrepreneur.
• How many hours do you work a day on average?
I work 6-8 hours/day on average.
• To what do you most attribute your success?
Self-mastery of my own emotions and mindset. The world of entrepreneurship is full of many failures. Failure can do a number on your mindset if you allow it, and it can also be a motivator for growth and change. In the face of my many failures, I choose to always ask myself “what is this trying to teach me?” or “what can I learn from this?” In this way, I am constantly evolving and seeking opportunities for growth around every corner.
• How do you go about marketing your business? What has been your most successful form of marketing?
As far as paid advertising, Facebook Ads has given me the highest return on investment for my marketing dollars. Overall, referral networking and agency partnerships have been the most successful form of marketing. I am part of the world’s largest referral networking group where I network with many business owners who refer business to me and vice versa. I have also networked with many agencies that send me clients for work they do not specialize in, and they complete work on projects for me that I do not specialize in. By far networking and word of mouth referrals have been my most successful form of marketing.
• Where did your organizations funding/capital come from and how did you go about getting it? How did you obtain investors for your venture?
I bootstrapped my entire company, which means that my company is completely self-funded. In the beginning I got business credit cards with 0% interest rates to pay for some larger expenses that I did not have capital for.
• What is the best way to achieve long-term success?
The best way to achieve long-term success is to first understand what long-term success looks like for you. Really picture it and ask yourself is my vision of success what I really want? You have to be very clear on your end goal and specifically what you want your life to look like as a result of your business growth. A lot of people think they want to make a million dollars, but they don’t want to maintain the work required to keep up with a million dollars straight away. Get clear on your goals first and then start setting plans and action steps in motion to reach them.
• Where do you see yourself and your business in 5 – 10 years?
I see myself as the creative and strategic mind in my business leading a team passionate soul-led marketers on the same mission as myself. I also would like to help more non-profit organizations grow their charity and funding through marketing. I have some future personal project ideas for publications that will reach all corners of the world. My goal in this endeavor is to coach others on the pitfalls of our mindset and how to avoid them. I love studying the science of the brain and the unconscious mind and specifically uncovering limiting beliefs that are holding us back.
• Excluding yours, what company or business do you admire the most?
Alex Cattoni and The Copy Posse. Her fire inside to be her authentic self and bring forth empathetic marketing is the spark I admire. It is exactly the fire I want to bring into my purpose for my own business. I also love her story and the massive value she provides to people in the marketing industry.
• How do you build a successful customer base?
We build a successful customer base by giving more than we take from our clients and nurturing long relationships with them. If our clients (past or current) need help with minor things, advice, or have any kind of digital marketing questions we are always available and there to help! We also throw in extra small services for free all the time! We value transparency and communication at the highest level, and we believe this makes for the best partnerships.
• What is your favorite aspect of being an entrepreneur?
My favorite aspect of being an entrepreneur is consistently coming across new situations and people. Every day there is something new, and I am not just doing the same tasks daily. I used to work in a call center which was boring, mundane, and impersonal. I enjoy building connections with others and getting out there in the field to help people. Coming across new projects and working with people to grow their business is priceless.
• In one word, characterize your life as an entrepreneur.
Rollercoaster