Master Your Brand Messaging: How Clarity Deepens Client Connections with Nakita M. Pope

Meet Nakita M. Pope, the ingenious mind behind 'Branding Chicks.' As a natural-born creator, Nakita embarked on her entrepreneurial journey as a graphic designer, fueling her passion for creativity and problem-solving. Her vast expertise, spanning a rewarding 25-year-long career, includes contributions as an art director and creative director in various marketing agencies. Nakita found her true calling in branding, which allows her to strategize, solve problems, and still tap into her vibrant creative streak. She prides herself on serving a niche clientele—women-owned businesses and femme-focused brands, embodying a sensibility that resonates deeply with her.

Go to Show Notes here.

Here’s the transcript:

00:00:01
            

Welcome to another episode of Straight Talk About Sales. I am super excited for today's guest, Nakita Pope, founder of Branding Chicks. Welcome, Nakita. Thank you so much for having me. I'm really excited to be here.        

00:00:15
            

Oh, my goodness. I am so excited to chat with you. And in full disclosure, Nakita and I go way, way back. Way back.        

00:00:28
            

Know, in a lot of ways, been on this entrepreneurial journey together and journey. So tell us, Nakita, what has that journey been like for you and what has brought you to the work that you're doing today? Wonderful. Well, I started as a graphic designer. I was always creative growing up, and I knew that I wanted to do something creative as a career.        

00:00:59
            

It took me a bit to figure that out, not too long, but in high school, I was convinced that I was going to be an architect because I was like, I want to be creative. And that was the only thing I could think of. And I started doing all my research, and I realized just how much math was involved. And I'm sure those of you out there who know Nadia knows that she likes math. I do not. I do not like math.        

00:01:27
            

So I kept looking, and I discovered graphic design. I'm like, this is perfect. It's a good mix of the things that I love and the things that I want to learn about. And so I've been in marketing and advertising through the creative side for about 25 years. I've done a little bit of everything.        

00:01:46
            

I've been a graphic designer, an art director, a creative director. I've worked in marketing agencies and graphic design firms. I've worked in house for companies and their creative teams. So it's looked a lot of different ways over the years. And that part of my journey led me to branding.        

00:02:05
            

I realized that one of the things that I really loved about design was the strategic part of it and really being able to solve problems and not just create things that look good, but solve problems through that and be able to meet objectives like from a business standpoint or to solve a customer's problem or issue or tap into something that they care about through all of that strategy. And so as my last creative director job, I got a chance to do much more branding and marketing in that space, and I kind of fell in love with it. So when I decided to go out on my own, I knew that that's what I wanted to do because it would allow me to do the things that I was trained to do as a graphic designer. But it also gave me an opportunity to do more with the strategic side of it and dive even further into a brand. So that got me really excited.        

00:02:59
            

And then I had always had freelance projects and worked with clients on the side, even when I had full time jobs. And I realized that it's so hard to brand yourself. Right? I know that from experience. So when I work with clients, I totally get it because it was really difficult for me to figure out what my voice was and who I wanted to serve and all those things.        

00:03:23
            

But I realized that all those clients I worked with over the years, that the majority of them were women. And that was not necessarily by design on my part, but I also talked to them. I asked them questions. I went back and interviewed them. Like, why did you choose me?        

00:03:38
            

Why did you continue to come back and work with me? And the things that I heard back were the things that shaped my brand. I realized that there's a certain sensibility that I naturally have that appeals to women, number one, but also that's something that's really close to my heart. I mentor and teach a lot of women in a lot of different capacities. And so I'm like, this is perfect.        

00:04:02
            

And I think just how I work with people, not just what I do, but how I work with people, would seem to be what people were responding to. And those aspects of my personality, I think, just came naturally. So once I got out of my head and actually got the information, it was a lot easier for me to sort of build that brand. So now I get to work with women owned businesses and femme focused brands all over the country, and some amazing women doing some amazing things. So it brings me joy, it fills my heart, and I still get to be creative.        

00:04:39
            

You're so good at all of it. I know. Speaking of personal experience, you're doing good.        

00:04:48
            

Thank you. I hear you talking a lot about brand. I want you to take a moment and define brand, because I feel like even though I'm not the branding expert, but I feel like people get it wrong. How would you define brand? So my definition of brand is that it's every single touch point that you have with your audience.        

00:05:09
            

So that's everything from I like to call it the 300,000 foot view all the way down to the 300 foot view. So let's take a brand that everybody is probably familiar with, right? So chickfila, for instance. Chick Fil A is everything from what their core values are. Whether you agree with them or not, it's their core values and all the things that they have founded their company on to the kind of service that you get to the products that they serve you to.        

00:05:40
            

The fact that when you go through the drive through that every single person you encounter says, my pleasure. Like every single touch point along the way is part of their brand. So when you think about branding and you think about brand strategy, it has to be thoughtful and it has to include the gamut of how your audience is going to experience your brand because it's not just one thing. Whether it's a product or a service, there's so many little touch points along the way that make a difference. I love it and I tie that in.        

00:06:10
            

And one of the reasons why I love your definition of branding is because it's so, believe it or not, closely related to sales, right? Oh, for sure. I often tell people sales starts long before you actually are in that conversation. There's so much energy, and it's an important part of the process of having that conversation. But your sales start a long time.        

00:06:32
            

You start at hello, right, or even before the hello. And so branding and having a solid brand, being really confident in your brand, knowing what it is, and having that brand clarity will definitely help and impact your sales. Absolutely. They're absolutely tied together because when you have a strong brand, often you get people who come to you because they already know who you are. Right.        

00:06:58
            

So even in terms of outbound sales versus inbound sales, often those people are coming to you because they already know who you are. They already see themselves in that brand. So when it's time to have a sales conversation, they are already 75% there. Right. And even if you go out to them and they don't know anything about you, let's say it's a cold conversation, they might hear everything you have to say and they might really enjoy that conversation or be really intrigued or want to hear more.        

00:07:28
            

When they go to look at everything else that you have out in the ethers about your brand, it all has to match, you know, on your behalf. Like Nadia, if you're the salesperson or you're doing sales for someone like, they may love that conversation. But then if they go to that website or they Google it and they see all the things that pop up about that brand or about that company, it has to be consistent and it has to still leave them with the same feeling or a better feeling. Otherwise you've lost the sale. Absolutely.        

00:08:01
            

And I've been there when there was a misalignment, I was like, Right.        

00:08:08
            

And sometimes your audience can't articulate why, but they will definitely be like, yeah, I was on board. And I'm not.        

00:08:19
            

Especially when representing another brand, I had to get better at the questions that I even asked, like. Absolutely. So let's talk a little bit about the clarity and confidence, because I think that a lot of times people talk a lot about brands and they think that if I get my colors and I get my logo, that all is well. But there's a lot more in it. Not only just the clarity and confidence around the brand, but also in the messaging and how people feel and all of that.        

00:08:52
            

So what's some of the process that goes into gaining that clarity and confidence within a brand? Yeah, so I think I ask a lot of questions. I tell my clients this. You know, this she does, facts. And I find that I ask those questions for two reasons.        

00:09:14
            

One, because we need to dig deep here, but also I need to know how many of these questions my client has already asked themselves and how many of them that are not even on their radar. So whether they have an answer or not, have they asked themselves that question at all? Right? So that's a large part of it. The other part of it is getting that foundation really clear.        

00:09:38
            

You would be surprised at the number of people that start businesses that aren't actually clear about what they're selling. They don't actually know what their product is, or they don't know what their service is. A big part of it is who your audience is. And I think I can't tell you how many times I've talked to people, and I'm like, well, who's your audience? And they're like, well, this is really for everyone.        

00:10:02
            

And that's the worst possible answer. And I know that for some people, you think the broader the better. But when it comes to branding, that's actually not true. It doesn't mean that you're alienating anybody. It just means that you need to be clear about who your ideal client is.        

00:10:19
            

Like, yeah, you would sell it to anyone, or you could perform this service for anyone, but who's your ideal client? And knowing that can guide everything about your business strategy, about your sales, about what you do to sell yourself or show yourself in the world. So knowing who that audience is is very important. And not just the demographics, the ones that we always hear, like, how old are they? How much money do they make?        

00:10:47
            

Are they single? Do they have kids? Where do they live? Those things are important, but the psychographics sometimes are more important, because that really gets you into the head of the people that you want to sell to. How do they think?        

00:11:02
            

What keeps them up at night? What are the things that they're committed to? What do they feel really strongly about? And those things are the things that allows you to align with those people so that you don't have to sell them very hard. They just see it.        

00:11:16
            

They're like, oh, this is the person I need. And it's very clear to them, right? So that clarity is what not only allows you as a business owner to be very confident, like you said, but it also allows you to be very clear about what your next moves are. All of us have been there. It's really easy to get caught up by the shiny thing, be like, hey, these people are doing that.        

00:11:40
            

Maybe I should do that too. Oh, wait, maybe I should do that. And it's like, you could be all over the place. But if you're clear about what your brand is and who you serve, then the filter for that cuts out all the riff raff. You know what I mean?        

00:11:54
            

It's like, okay, well, if I do that thing that other people are doing, does that appeal to my audience? If the answer is no, then I shouldn't be doing it. Is that aligned with my business strategy? If it's not, then I probably shouldn't be doing it. I think that just that clarity allows you to move so much more confidently and so much more efficiently.        

00:12:15
            

Because unless you're independently wealthy, which I think most entrepreneurs are not, working on it, about their resources. You can't just be like, I'm going to throw money at everything. You want to put your resources, your time, your energy, your money behind the things that are going to make the most impact. And so when you're clear about your brand, I think that that makes that so much easier. Oh, I agree 100%.        

00:12:43
            

I think too, being clear. So there are lots of people out there that don't know what they're selling. I do know that, yeah, what is happening right now? And they don't know who they're selling it to. And so one of the questions, like, when we did we used to do “done for you” sales support.        

00:13:04
            

And one of the first questions I would always ask is, how will we know that this is the right client? Because part of that also is who do you want to work with? Just because you can work with everybody doesn't mean you should or that you want to. And so how do we know that that person? But even if you don't have someone doing your sales, there are things that you can put in place to help you identify.        

00:13:28
            

Is this someone I want to work with? Is this someone whose values align? Is this someone who I'm going to be excited to work with? All of those things play a part, and I think we just sometimes get so caught up, like you said. And I've been there, I remember many a times when I've had folks like Nadia, what are you doing?        

00:13:49
            

It's easy to do. Are you doing? Great idea. Let me go. Do.        

00:13:55
            

Focus, ma'am. It is so easy to, you know, as you said it's, who do you really want to be working with, like, in a perfect world. And it's easy to just kind of get caught up in like, I just need to make some money or I just need to get this thing off the ground. I can solidify that later. But the truth is that the earlier the better, because I talked to so many people, they might actually be somewhat successful, but they might, for instance, have 75% of their clients are the people that they don't want to work with.        

00:14:31
            

So now when they shift gears to where they really need it to be in the first place, now they go through the growing pains of probably, in some cases, losing some of those people in order to gain the traction with the people that they really want to be working with. Right. And it's not even just with your audience. It's the people that you choose to partner with, your partnerships. Where do you advertise and market yourself?        

00:14:54
            

If you're clear about your brand, then all of those decisions are so much easier, and you have a litmus test to hold it up against and be like, okay, this doesn't match. That doesn't match. So I'm just not going to do that. And if you're working with other people or you started a business with someone else, then that also helps to cut out a lot of arguments. I really want to do this, but I don't.        

00:15:21
            

Okay. What's more aligned with that brand? Exactly. Nice to have that roadmap. Absolutely.        

00:15:28
            

Oh my gosh. So I have to ask you because I know you have this saying, and even a book say that real loud, titled Branding is Like Dating. Let's talk about it. I love that analogy. I think especially because I serve so many women, I think it allows people to take something that they know about dating and map it onto something that they may not know a lot about, branding.        

00:16:00
            

And the reason why I use that analogy is because branding really is like dating. It is a relationship building exercise. It's constantly changing. Even think about all the relationships in your life, none of them has started in one place and stayed exactly the same. Right.        

00:16:16
            

And most often, if we do have relationships that stayed exactly the same, we're not really in relation with those people anymore. No, we're not. Because it didn't grow, it didn't change, it didn't do anything. Right. So it's a relationship.        

00:16:32
            

Every single one of those touch points I talked about is part of building that relationship. It's how you communicate, which is your messaging. It's what you look like, how you present yourself, your logo, your colors, your aesthetic. It's how do you interact with me when I encounter your brand? So let's say if you have a physical storefront, what happens when I walk through the door?        

00:16:56
            

Am I delighted about every single step of the way between when I walk through the door and when I leave there? If it's not a brick and mortar, it's everything from, let's say I reach out to you on your website and email you because I'm interested to have a discovery meeting with you, what happens between then and making the decision? Every single one of those things is part of that relationship. So just like, if you're dating someone, there's that initial attraction, like, well, you're kind of cute, right? And then you start talking to them, and sometimes that's where the relationship falls flat.        

00:17:34
            

But if you get further than that, then it continues to build. Right. And you feel like you get to know that person, you feel connected to them. You feel like they understand you. So, like, in a perfect business and audience relationship.        

00:17:48
            

I say you get to write off into the sunset together. Like you get each other. You want to continue growing together. You're excited about being connected to this person and it's the same thing. So if you think about it in that way, you understand that A, it doesn't happen overnight and B, that it's much more about having a deeper relationship than it is something transactional.        

00:18:12
            

I love that I'm all about relationship and I think that is so key, which is why I've loved it from the start, ever since we had that conversation many years ago around branding being like dating, because it is. You build this relationship, you get to know each other, you have those different touch points. Do I like you? I think I like you. Let me hear something else.        

00:18:30
            

Oh, I do like you. I really like you. And then just taking it through that process and eventually you close the sale and then you have a client for life, right? So it's really an amazing thing to think about, but there are a lot of people out there who talk about branding who don't share that. So one of the questions that came up for me was what are some of the things that we should be asking when we're thinking about or interviewing to hire a branding expert?        

00:19:00
            

Because there are times if you're new or you're starting a new venture, you're building a new brand. But as you and I know that even along when you are established business, sometimes you shift your brand or you rebrand because you're growing and maturing because nothing stays the same even in your business. So what are things that we need to ask and really uncover? Like, is this the right person for me? And can they really help me build the brand that I'm looking to build?        

00:19:24
            

Oh, that's a great question. So I would ask about process first, similar to how you just asked me, what does that look like? And I think that when you work with someone, like if they say, I can build a brand for you in two weeks, red flag.        

00:19:46
            

And not necessarily because it's such a short period of time, although that's part of it. But the other thing is that you want to work with someone who is going to collaborate with you. Like someone who's going to go back behind the curtain and there's lots of smoke and mirrors and they come back and say, TADA, here's your brand. That process I find to not be as successful for two reasons. One, because you were not intimately involved in the process.        

00:20:15
            

And so that means that as a business owner and often an entrepreneur, so much of what that brand you want it to be is in your head and you've not actually had a chance often to get all of it out or nobody to extract those things from you. So you might be making decisions intuitively because you have some idea way in the back of your head of what you want this brand to be, but it's not on paper, it's not transferable. If you hire someone to work with you or work for your brand, they have no idea what your brand is. And you might try to tell them, but you only told them the surface. And there's all this stuff underneath that hasn't been unearthed.        

00:20:58
            

So I feel like that takes time. So trying to do it quickly doesn't really help. And also if you're working with someone who wants to go away and create it for you and bring it back, the problem with that is that you now are in a space where you have a brand that you don't feel connected to. And if you don't feel connected to it, then the confidence that we were just talking about also ends up lacking. So when I've seen brands created for them in that way, what happens is if you go back to their website three or four months later, none of that stuff has changed.        

00:21:34
            

None of the new brand has been implemented because they never felt like it was exactly where they wanted to go. They weren't connected to it and they didn't have confidence in it. And so a lot of the process, I think, is building that relationship with the client so that we can get to a place where it's really going to elevate, where they want to be, but without losing the core of what it is that they really want to build and like pulling all of that information out. So if somebody wants to do it quickly and you're not going to be heavily involved, I would say probably, no, don't do it. I've been there and it impacts your sales.        

00:22:14
            

I remember watching someone who had a brand created for them, no connection as part of that. This is the wild part. There were offers and things attached to it. Yeah, it was a whole hot mess. And to then try to sell this in front on a stage so I don't know about you, but I still get nervous sometimes.        

00:22:44
            

Stage right. And to then try to sell something that you have zero connection to, you have zero intimate knowledge of because you didn't create it. And it was a nightmare and it was very uncomfortable to witness. But I've been like, I want it quick, because that's one of Nadia's strengths and weaknesses. I want it fast, get it done, like yesterday and no ma'am.        

00:23:13
            

Because having an expert like Nakita to even ask you the questions, you don't even know what you don't know or you didn't know to ask or really to know, to be able to communicate or convey. And you need to give yourself that time so that because, again, this all ties back to your sales. And you can't show up confidently on a sales conversation when you're not really 100% sure that you know what you're selling. You're not even 100% sure that you even like what you're selling. And you don't know nothing about this brand except if you may or may not like the way it looks.        

00:23:47
            

Right. And so it makes it really difficult. So learn from my lesson and a lot of other people, trust me, if you're out there and you've done that, don't feel ashamed. You are not alone.        

00:24:02
            

Trust me.        

00:24:06
            

But it does happen. But ideally, you want to work with someone that's going to help you think through it. Because I find that sometimes also having that extra time means that it gives the client time to go away and think about it. On those strategy calls, I'm like, okay, these are the things I need you to consider for the next call. And you come back to me with your thoughts.        

00:24:30
            

They need time to marinate on it, especially if it's not a question that you've asked yourself. Now you're being asked that, and you understand how important that answer to that question is, but you might not have an answer yet. So you need time to go figure that out. Yes. So give yourself time.        

00:24:51
            

Slow it down.        

00:24:57
            

I know some people do, and it does work out. But going back to my relationship analogy, you can't just meet somebody on the street and be like, you know what, we'd have a babies tomorrow. Right? That's the equivalent. That is the equivalent.        

00:25:12
            

I mean, you could, but it doesn't work out. Well. Yeah, I wouldn't recommend that either.        

00:25:22
            

Oh, my gosh. Yeah, we should go make no, not now. I don't even know your last name. Exactly. That's so funny.        

00:25:32
            

Actually, one of my favorite Carrie Underwood, this is a side note, but one of my favorite Carrie Underwood songs is called Last Name, and it's about her running off and getting drunk in Vegas and she ends up marrying this guy and she doesn't even know his last name. It is a fantastic song. Not a fantastic story to play out in real life, but it is a fantastic song. So we're all going to go listen to that and then we're going to remember that's what we're not going to do when it comes to branding and probably real life. Perfect.        

00:26:00
            

Probably wouldn’t recommend that either. Oh, my gosh. So as you're looking at building a brand, Nakita, what are some of the best practices that you would recommend for entrepreneurs, again, whether they're building a new brand, rebranding, or just really wanting to build a stronger brand, what are some of those best practices? First, like I said, be clear about who your audience is, even if you're already established, really give yourself a chance to take a hard look at what your audience makeup is. And are those people the people that just keep coming to you or are those the people that you really want to be serving?        

00:26:38
            

And how big of a gap is there like, is there a gap between the people you work with now and the people you want to be working with? It's important to know that even if you don't know how to fill that gap yet, it's important to be able to identify that. So really think about your audience and who you want to be serving. I would say think about the voice of your brand. And when I say voice, I don't just mean the writing part of it.        

00:27:02
            

Your voice is truly the personality of your brand. Is it fun? Is it flirtatious? Is it educational? Is it sophisticated?        

00:27:13
            

Really think about what the personality of your brand is. I know that all of us have probably encountered a brand that feels a little bit schizophrenic. Like 1 minute they kind of sound this way and the other minute they kind of sound that way. And it's like, I don't really know. Where is it going on here?        

00:27:30
            

Right. And going back to our relationship talk. Right. When you're building that relationship, trust is important. So think about if you were dating someone and they showed up, completely different personality every time you went out with them.        

00:27:44
            

That wouldn't last very long because you wouldn't be able to trust them. You feel like you don't know who they are. So it's the same way with your brand. So really think about what you want the personality of your brand to be and that impacts everything. That impacts your visuals, like what colors you use and what your logo looks like.        

00:28:01
            

It impacts your messaging. Like what sort of adjectives do you use? How do you write about your brand again? Is it fun language? Is it very straightforward?        

00:28:14
            

And really think about all those different buckets of what your brand is and it includes all of those things. Your partnerships are part of that. They say as people that saying you're the sum total of the ten people you spend the most time with. Brand can be very much the same way. If you are a brand or a business that does a lot of partnerships, your partnerships should reflect who your brand is.        

00:28:41
            

If you look at the list of your partnerships and then you see what your brand is and it's like, how in the world did they end up partnering together? That shouldn't be the case, right? It should be very understandable why these businesses are partnering together. So really think about those are the big buckets. It drills down a lot further when you're thinking about social media and all the tactics that you use to kind of reach your audience.        

00:29:05
            

But if you have the foundation of those things, then everything else is going to be a lot easier to execute. Yeah, social media is going to be hard if you don't know what your voice is, if you don't have an aesthetic and you don't know who you're talking to. Right. If you'll know those three things, it's hard to execute. Almost anything for real.        

00:29:24
            

So if you feel like you're fighting an uphill battle with every single aspect of your brand, it's probably because you don't have clarity about some of those foundational things. Oh, I 1000% agree. I remember as we've been going through our own Pivot, that has been a big part. That was we've gotten there. Hallelujah.        

00:29:43
            

But it was a big part because. I was like, I don't know who she is. I don't know who I'm talking to, but I'm out here because, again, Nadia doing the absolute most and I'm wanting to do all the things to get out of this very uncomfortable space of figuring some things out and not being as certain as I had been. And I was trying to write some copy for a webinar I wanted to host. You'll love this.        

00:30:11
            

And I was sitting here and I was just kind of staring at my computer because I'm like, that sounds great, but were we invited to this party? Right? Who is this person and what really is their desire and what really is their challenge? I think I know, but I don't know. And go back to the drawing board, get clear, because again, it impacts so much.        

00:30:37
            

And yeah, you wanted a webinar, you want to generate leads, but are you generating the right leads? And then are you having the right conversations? And let me tell you, from someone who's had sales conversations and not been clear, I'm too in my head. I can't be so in my head when I'm having that conversation. Because then it was like, well, I.        

00:30:54
            

Guess we could do this or we could do that. No, I need to be able to state with certainty that this is what's going to happen. To be able to then instill that confidence in the person I'm talking to. So do yourself a favor. Oh, man, that makes so much sense.        

00:31:12
            

That makes so much sense. Again, the clarity matters. It really does matter. And if you are again struggling with confidence in your brand, or you feel like it's not quite there, or you don't feel like you can proudly talk to people about it in very clear language, or you feel like you tell people what you do and then they just kind of look at you weird afterwards, it might need a little tightening up. And it's not that there's anything wrong with that.        

00:31:42
            

We've all been there. But it does make a difference. And I think sometimes people are used to kind of fumbling through it and so they don't realize how much better it can be. If you're like, this is what I do. It's like that elevator pitch they're always talking about.        

00:32:00
            

It goes past an elevator pitch. If you can say in one sentence what you do, and people are like, oh, then you're good. If you say what you do and it takes you six sentences to say it, or they have nothing but questions afterwards, then there's a lack of clarity there. And if you live it and breathe it, then it makes sense to you. But if other people don't get it, then it got lost in the sauce somewhere.        

00:32:26
            

Totally. Yeah. And it just makes your life so much easier. In your messaging, I know we talk about social media, where you post or how you post or if you post at all. Right.        

00:32:36
            

If you're writing newsletters, who you're writing a newsletter to, it really just helps to be clear on who you are. And again, like you mentioned, Nakita, it helps you to know what to say yes to and what to say no to. As a business owner, you're presented with so many different opportunities. And I know Shonda had I think she wrote a book about her year of yes. That may work for Shonda, but that may not work for you.        

00:33:01
            

You need to say no, girl. Just say no. No. Absolutely not. I always say that for everything you say yes to means you're saying no to something else and vice versa.        

00:33:13
            

So if you look at it as a trade off, then it allows you to understand how tied to things those things are because you saying no to something. There's nothing wrong with saying no to something. But if you say no to this, that means that you're leaving space to say yes to the thing you really want or the thing your business really needs. So being able to know what that is and confidently do it because nobody wants to him and haw about it and then beat themselves up like, man, maybe I should have done that. But if you made that choice powerfully through the lens of your brand, then you don't have any regrets.        

00:33:48
            

You're like, oh, no, that's not for me. Period. Full stop. Exactly. I love that.        

00:33:54
            

So you have a resource. Yes. You have a Creative Leadership Masterclass. I want to know more about it so everyone can be involved. I am launching this in September 1 of the Things.        

00:34:08
            

So as a branding professional, I've worked in marketing and advertising for a really long time. I worked with a lot of creatives. I was a professor of creatives for 13 years. And one of the things that I've seen in those experiences and a lot of my mentees is that often, especially in the creative space, people tend to do really well at whatever their technical area of genius is. So if they're an art director or a copywriter or they're a videographer or a photographer, there's a lot of lists.        

00:34:41
            

There content creators, whatever that is. Right. They may be really good at that thing that they do, but normally the reward for doing well at that thing is that you move up. And so when you move up now, you're charged with very different things and very different problems to solve. Now you're managing budgets and now you might be managing other people whether you're in a business and you're now bringing on a team or whether you're working for someone else.        

00:35:09
            

And now you have to manage other people. And often there isn't much training to take those things on. They just kind of throw you in the deep end and they were like, you're really good at that thing, you'll be fine, and they just kind of throw you out there. Right. You got this.        

00:35:25
            

Exactly. And I think that most people that get promoted to that space do have what it takes, but they just haven't been given any tools. And so this is a three month master class that is set up to really give people those tools. So we'll talk about everything from having those difficult conversations to how to communicate with your team. And I'm looking at it through the lens of the creative side of things.        

00:35:55
            

But it really does apply to anybody who's looking to move into leadership, or already is in leadership that feels like they're not sure how to do some of these things they're tasked with all the time, how to prioritize their time, how to manage their time differently. Because as we all know, when you get that promotion or you start up leveling your business now, you have twice as many things to do and the same amount of time to do it in. And so I want to kind of tap into a lot of those things. So the structure is that we'll meet once a week. Every other week is either a group session or an individual session with me.        

00:36:35
            

And I wanted it to be three months because it gives you a chance to not only get some of those tools and learn about them in theory, but it allows you to take it away and actually be able to practice it, because sometimes it's hard be like, okay, I get that. And then when the time comes, be like, wait a minute, what am I supposed to do? What did she say I'm supposed to do? Exactly.        

00:36:59
            

So I wanted it to be to give people time to really let it settle in and be able to deal with some real time scenarios and things that are happening with people. So I'm looking at a small cohort, probably about ten people to start with, but I'm launching that in September, so I'm really excited about it. It's a culmination of a lot of different things that I've already done and a lot of training and speaking that I've done. And I see a little bit of a gap for this and I just feel like it would really help people get over that hump and have that confidence to lead powerfully yes, 100%. So I love this and I encourage everyone to check it out.        

00:37:42
            

We'll make sure the link is in the show notes because as you mentioned as a business owner, as you start to grow and you start building a team, some of the things that I see are challenges or gaps. When we go in and we're working with now we're working with teams and we're helping them develop these sales skills, I'm like, whoa, we got to talk about culture, and we got to address some of the things that have been going on or things that have been allowed to happen over years in some instances because the business owner, the leader, just didn't know how to address them. A great resource, and a lot of us are very creative. That's part of our challenge. We have a million ideas.        

00:38:22
            

I definitely encourage everyone. Yeah, absolutely. I love it. Absolutely. And whether you work for a big company or your own business, I think that for a small business, often you might have someone at the helm that hasn't created the culture that supports the things they're trying to do.        

00:38:44
            

But the big companies are the same way, believe it or not. Often you've got directives coming at you from right and left about all the things, but at the end of the day, you have to consider those and then be able to sort of mix them together with the culture that you want to create on your team. And that's hard to do when you're new to a role sometimes, or you're just not sure how to do it. And I think those are transferable skills. Those are skills that you can use now and later in a lot of different capacities, I think.        

00:39:20
            

So I'm excited to help people in any way I can. Love it. I can't wait. Yes. So excited.        

00:39:29
            

All right, Nakita, so you already know I could talk to you for hours and days and years, tell people how they can stay connected with you, and learn more about all the great things that you're up to at branding chicks. Yes. Well, you can check out our website at brandingchicks.com. We are also on twitter now. X.        

00:39:55
            

About branding, right? On instagram, we're real branding chicks. Sorry. And on x, we are our branding chicks. And if you want to email me directly, you can email me at Nakita.        

00:40:09
            

Nakita@brandingchicks.com. Yay. So we'll make sure all of Nakita info is in the show notes. Thank you so much. Thank you for having me.        

00:40:22
            

This was delightful. Yes, I love it. We'll definitely have to bring you back now. I want to do case studies, and we just break apart brands and talk about it. Oh, man.        

00:40:32
            

Let's go. Let's do it. I actually just did some video case studies with some clients on my website, and I had no idea how much I was going to enjoy it. Yes. Okay.        

00:40:46
            

All right. We'll get that book. We'll get that on the calendar. Okay, wonderful. Well, thank you all for joining us for another episode of Straight Talk About Sales.        

00:40:54
            

We'll see you again soon.