1 00:00:00,290 --> 00:00:02,730 Cherie: I think as an entrepreneur particularly as an early stage 2 00:00:02,730 --> 00:00:08,040 entrepreneur, you do need to be involved in, in these things. 3 00:00:08,060 --> 00:00:12,930 You know, there's only so much that you can outsource at the early stages 4 00:00:12,930 --> 00:00:18,279 because ultimately it's your vision and you need to see it come to life. 5 00:00:18,779 --> 00:00:22,650 And no one is a better guardian of the vision than, than yourself. 6 00:00:25,820 --> 00:00:27,780 Becca: I'm Becca Pountney, wedding business, marketing 7 00:00:27,780 --> 00:00:29,209 expert, speaker, and blogger. 8 00:00:29,380 --> 00:00:31,880 And you're listening to the wedding pros who are ready to grow podcast. 9 00:00:33,379 --> 00:00:36,719 I'm here to share with you actionable tips, strategies, and real life 10 00:00:36,719 --> 00:00:39,690 examples to help you take your wedding business to the next level. 11 00:00:40,320 --> 00:00:44,070 If you are an ambitious wedding business owner that wants to take your passion 12 00:00:44,090 --> 00:00:47,449 and use it to build a profitable, sustainable business, doing what you 13 00:00:47,450 --> 00:00:49,080 love, then you're in the right place. 14 00:00:49,489 --> 00:00:51,315 Let's get going with today's episode. 15 00:00:52,685 --> 00:00:56,724 Today, I'm chatting with Cherie Young, CEO and founder of Visualist, 16 00:00:56,754 --> 00:01:00,394 an online software designed to connect client design and admin work. 17 00:01:00,785 --> 00:01:03,914 I first met Sherry and her team at a drinks party in Vegas, when they 18 00:01:03,914 --> 00:01:07,115 were introduced to me as the only other people from London in the room. 19 00:01:07,535 --> 00:01:10,235 Since then, it's been great to get to know them and the platform 20 00:01:10,265 --> 00:01:11,655 as well, much, much better. 21 00:01:11,855 --> 00:01:15,395 And we even had the opportunity to co host a networking brunch earlier in the year. 22 00:01:15,764 --> 00:01:18,044 Now it's time for you all to get to know her too. 23 00:01:18,284 --> 00:01:19,895 Cherie, welcome to the podcast. 24 00:01:20,345 --> 00:01:21,565 Cherie: Thank you so much, Becca. 25 00:01:21,565 --> 00:01:24,725 It's so lovely to be here and thank you for the introduction. 26 00:01:24,765 --> 00:01:31,134 I remember fondly that first meeting in Las Vegas at the Museum of Southeast, 27 00:01:31,145 --> 00:01:32,525 so that was a really nice memory. 28 00:01:32,935 --> 00:01:36,235 Becca: Yeah, it was a great night, and we'd been in Vegas a few days, 29 00:01:36,255 --> 00:01:38,815 and we'd been at Wedding MBA a few days, and we hadn't met anyone 30 00:01:38,815 --> 00:01:40,945 else who'd come over from England. 31 00:01:40,945 --> 00:01:44,414 So when they said, there's some other people from England in the room, we were 32 00:01:44,414 --> 00:01:46,215 very excited and it was great to connect. 33 00:01:46,965 --> 00:01:48,365 Cherie: Indeed, indeed. 34 00:01:48,375 --> 00:01:50,765 Thank you for having me on this podcast. 35 00:01:50,785 --> 00:01:56,435 And I'm really excited to share more about myself, about Visualized and maybe talk 36 00:01:56,435 --> 00:01:58,855 a little bit about Vegas 2024 as well. 37 00:01:58,935 --> 00:02:00,035 Becca: Yeah, absolutely. 38 00:02:00,254 --> 00:02:00,684 Okay. 39 00:02:00,765 --> 00:02:04,595 So let's go right back then, because I like to find out people's foundation 40 00:02:04,595 --> 00:02:08,605 stories and how they got to where they are now, because we all know 41 00:02:08,605 --> 00:02:10,125 that things don't happen overnight. 42 00:02:10,125 --> 00:02:12,605 So take me back, take me through your career. 43 00:02:12,605 --> 00:02:15,504 What was the foundation that has kind of led you to this point now? 44 00:02:15,774 --> 00:02:16,575 Cherie: Wow. 45 00:02:17,055 --> 00:02:19,295 So take you back. 46 00:02:19,325 --> 00:02:20,305 Okay, let's see. 47 00:02:20,305 --> 00:02:26,114 So let me start with the now and then I'll retrace my steps so you can kind of 48 00:02:26,115 --> 00:02:28,235 see how I've come to where I am today. 49 00:02:28,834 --> 00:02:33,694 So I am currently the founder and CEO of Visualist, which is an all in 50 00:02:33,694 --> 00:02:38,554 one connected platforms for creative pros to work and then scale better. 51 00:02:39,064 --> 00:02:44,864 We want to help connect your client design and admin workflows and I came to this. 52 00:02:45,185 --> 00:02:48,734 Really out of my personal pain points. 53 00:02:49,155 --> 00:02:53,165 So I was planning my own wedding. 54 00:02:53,345 --> 00:02:55,734 I was also redesigning my own home. 55 00:02:56,055 --> 00:03:01,834 And in that process, I encountered many challenges when it came 56 00:03:01,834 --> 00:03:03,515 to optimizing my workflow. 57 00:03:03,895 --> 00:03:08,095 And I thought that, okay, I was an amateur and maybe professionals were 58 00:03:08,095 --> 00:03:09,765 doing it differently and they had. 59 00:03:09,855 --> 00:03:14,445 Some secret systems that they were using or tools that they were using that really 60 00:03:14,445 --> 00:03:19,144 made their work a lot more efficient, but I dug deeper and I realized there wasn't 61 00:03:19,144 --> 00:03:25,355 one thing that really could be that all in one platform to not just help me do 62 00:03:25,355 --> 00:03:31,795 things well, but do things in a connected way in the way that my brain would work 63 00:03:31,835 --> 00:03:34,065 combining that left and right brains. 64 00:03:34,585 --> 00:03:36,494 So I ended up. 65 00:03:37,185 --> 00:03:42,114 Going down that rabbit hole and thinking about creating systems that 66 00:03:42,114 --> 00:03:45,394 could work, creating tools that were really connected to the creative 67 00:03:45,394 --> 00:03:49,114 professional's mind and strength. 68 00:03:49,384 --> 00:03:53,894 And that's how I ended up founding Visualist now about four years ago. 69 00:03:54,515 --> 00:03:59,154 And I think when I mentioned left brain and right brain, that really 70 00:03:59,505 --> 00:04:01,665 Connects to what you would say. 71 00:04:01,665 --> 00:04:05,835 I foundational career because I actually started my career as 72 00:04:05,835 --> 00:04:07,825 a very left brain professional. 73 00:04:07,825 --> 00:04:08,774 I was a corporate lawyer. 74 00:04:08,835 --> 00:04:13,165 I worked in New York and London doing things that are completely 75 00:04:13,165 --> 00:04:14,635 different to what I'm doing now. 76 00:04:15,155 --> 00:04:18,114 So being a lawyer by training, I was all about organization. 77 00:04:18,115 --> 00:04:21,874 I was all about administrative work and efficiency. 78 00:04:22,214 --> 00:04:25,844 And I think Whilst I was doing that, I was also itching for a 79 00:04:25,844 --> 00:04:27,794 little bit of creativity in my life. 80 00:04:27,794 --> 00:04:31,444 So I was just doing design classes for fun when I was a 81 00:04:31,444 --> 00:04:32,954 lawyer, this was a long time ago. 82 00:04:33,294 --> 00:04:36,354 So I've always had that left brain side to me and that right 83 00:04:36,354 --> 00:04:39,524 brain side of creativity, design. 84 00:04:39,794 --> 00:04:44,579 So when I left law, I actually, Took a very short break and then went 85 00:04:44,599 --> 00:04:46,659 into something completely different. 86 00:04:46,669 --> 00:04:51,869 I started doing product and brand strategy primarily for fashion and consumer luxury 87 00:04:51,879 --> 00:04:54,829 brands like Hermes and Chanel, LVMH. 88 00:04:54,839 --> 00:04:58,959 And in that role, I was really thinking about brand strategy, brand 89 00:04:58,959 --> 00:05:05,069 positioning, and did a lot of work on user research, consumer research, 90 00:05:05,119 --> 00:05:06,869 understanding what makes people tick. 91 00:05:07,199 --> 00:05:08,849 So all of these things. 92 00:05:09,409 --> 00:05:16,609 My law career and that strategy create a strategy career combined to lead 93 00:05:16,639 --> 00:05:19,389 me to entrepreneurship and business. 94 00:05:19,389 --> 00:05:23,839 Because today what I'm doing is very much a blend of both worlds. 95 00:05:24,049 --> 00:05:26,769 And I like to think that the people that we're serving 96 00:05:27,069 --> 00:05:30,729 wedding pros, interior designers, customers, sellers, they are also. 97 00:05:31,464 --> 00:05:36,904 Trying to find a system that can balance both that very right brain, creative 98 00:05:36,904 --> 00:05:41,904 side of things, and also that left brain business management admin side of things. 99 00:05:42,194 --> 00:05:46,224 And that's why for visualized, it's so important that we are catering 100 00:05:46,234 --> 00:05:50,884 to the holistic workflow and not just one aspect, which might be. 101 00:05:51,244 --> 00:05:54,784 Designs and color palettes and mood boards or another aspect, which might 102 00:05:54,784 --> 00:05:56,424 be all about invoicing and proposals. 103 00:05:56,464 --> 00:06:01,184 We truly believe that to be efficient in your processes, you have to have that 104 00:06:01,184 --> 00:06:06,234 seamless connection between all sides of your brain and all sides of your business. 105 00:06:06,674 --> 00:06:09,544 Becca: I think it's really fascinating to talk about the whole right side 106 00:06:09,544 --> 00:06:12,184 of the brain, left side of the brain, because I think actually that a lot 107 00:06:12,204 --> 00:06:15,344 of wedding professionals would fall into that category because they've 108 00:06:15,374 --> 00:06:19,224 got the entrepreneurship side of them, but they're also very creative people. 109 00:06:19,584 --> 00:06:22,544 And I'm sure you found when you were doing your research as I 110 00:06:22,554 --> 00:06:25,334 found that a lot of these systems are designed for one or the other. 111 00:06:25,544 --> 00:06:28,744 So there's a lot of really ugly platforms out there that will help 112 00:06:28,744 --> 00:06:31,934 you with your invoicing and your workflow, but they're not pretty. 113 00:06:32,104 --> 00:06:34,815 And then there's All these pretty platforms out there that aren't 114 00:06:34,855 --> 00:06:36,335 actually particularly efficient. 115 00:06:36,345 --> 00:06:38,335 So was that what you found in your research? 116 00:06:39,095 --> 00:06:39,875 Cherie: Absolutely. 117 00:06:40,335 --> 00:06:47,015 I think we found that things were either one end of the spectrum or the other. 118 00:06:47,045 --> 00:06:50,195 There wasn't anything that connected all sides of the spectrum. 119 00:06:50,505 --> 00:06:54,990 And we found that To your point earlier about saying wedding pros are really 120 00:06:55,080 --> 00:06:57,000 that epitome of Lapin and right brain. 121 00:06:57,000 --> 00:06:58,620 I fully agree with that. 122 00:06:58,920 --> 00:07:03,440 Internally, we like to say that wedding pros are like the CXO, the 123 00:07:03,860 --> 00:07:07,520 chief operations officer, the chief experience officer, the chief design 124 00:07:07,525 --> 00:07:11,960 officer, the chief executive officer, and the chief financial officer. 125 00:07:11,960 --> 00:07:14,480 So you know it, you're really as a wedding pro. 126 00:07:14,835 --> 00:07:20,105 Covering so many aspects of the project, and you're also a chief people 127 00:07:20,105 --> 00:07:24,375 officer, which is that very important bit that I think so many platforms 128 00:07:24,455 --> 00:07:26,925 miss that client communication bit. 129 00:07:26,945 --> 00:07:32,595 How do you elevate the level of service you are providing to your clients? 130 00:07:32,595 --> 00:07:34,735 Because at the end of the day, it's a service based business, 131 00:07:34,765 --> 00:07:36,225 and it's it's about people. 132 00:07:36,425 --> 00:07:37,175 Becca: Yeah, absolutely. 133 00:07:37,345 --> 00:07:40,955 Now, I always find it really interesting when I talk to tech founders, because 134 00:07:40,955 --> 00:07:43,035 you always say I had this idea one day. 135 00:07:43,035 --> 00:07:43,169 Yeah, absolutely. 136 00:07:43,360 --> 00:07:45,860 And now I've got this platform, but we all know that it's 137 00:07:45,860 --> 00:07:47,770 not quite as simple as that. 138 00:07:47,770 --> 00:07:51,580 And to me, starting a tech business is just a whole nother level of business. 139 00:07:51,790 --> 00:07:55,290 So how did you go practically from, I've got this idea to 140 00:07:55,410 --> 00:07:56,930 actually seeing it come to life? 141 00:07:57,150 --> 00:07:57,800 Cherie: Wow. 142 00:07:57,860 --> 00:07:58,300 Yes. 143 00:07:58,310 --> 00:07:58,820 So. 144 00:07:59,190 --> 00:08:03,560 Firstly, I am not a developer, so, you know, the odds are stacked against me, 145 00:08:04,540 --> 00:08:10,800 but I think if I were to think back on how that idea came to life, it really 146 00:08:10,840 --> 00:08:14,220 stemmed from understanding the customer. 147 00:08:14,260 --> 00:08:19,420 So the first thing I did when I had this idea was I put out a survey 148 00:08:19,880 --> 00:08:23,620 and tried to get as many creative professions as possible to understand. 149 00:08:24,090 --> 00:08:27,300 to respond to the survey so that I could better understand where 150 00:08:27,300 --> 00:08:28,510 the pain points truly were. 151 00:08:28,990 --> 00:08:33,940 I talked to as many people as I could, literally just cold messaging people on 152 00:08:33,940 --> 00:08:39,740 LinkedIn, messaging people that I knew and asking, do you know anyone who is 153 00:08:40,440 --> 00:08:42,770 Wedding pro who is an interior designer. 154 00:08:42,820 --> 00:08:45,240 I would like to speak to them about this idea that I have. 155 00:08:45,590 --> 00:08:48,680 And then from there, it's really about building what we call the 156 00:08:48,680 --> 00:08:50,580 MVP, the minimum viable product. 157 00:08:50,830 --> 00:08:53,590 Although I think in our case, what we were really aiming for 158 00:08:53,590 --> 00:08:55,655 was Slightly more than an MVP. 159 00:08:55,655 --> 00:08:57,305 It's a minimum lovable product. 160 00:08:57,315 --> 00:09:05,005 And I think that is critical because we are operating in a space full of a stats. 161 00:09:05,105 --> 00:09:10,475 These are not people who just want something that works at a minimally viable 162 00:09:10,475 --> 00:09:17,055 level, but something that also looks good, given that we want to position this 163 00:09:17,065 --> 00:09:20,295 list as a platform that allows you to. 164 00:09:20,845 --> 00:09:23,345 Enhance your brand and Hans, your client satisfaction. 165 00:09:23,345 --> 00:09:24,545 So it needs to look good. 166 00:09:24,665 --> 00:09:29,875 It needs to feel good and it needs to be, it needs to really elevate 167 00:09:29,875 --> 00:09:34,835 that client experience and that, that business experience as you are using a 168 00:09:34,835 --> 00:09:37,965 platform, whether you're a wedding pro or whether you're wedding pros clients. 169 00:09:37,975 --> 00:09:39,975 So it was a lot of learning. 170 00:09:40,055 --> 00:09:44,635 It was a lot of learning, new tools, learning, new methodologies, 171 00:09:44,665 --> 00:09:48,125 learning about development, getting into the weeds of. 172 00:09:48,550 --> 00:09:50,310 How does something work? 173 00:09:50,550 --> 00:09:54,910 How, you know, I had to learn about things like react and Python. 174 00:09:54,930 --> 00:09:55,670 I'm not a coder. 175 00:09:55,670 --> 00:09:59,890 I'm still not a coder today, but as a founder, you have to really 176 00:09:59,890 --> 00:10:03,930 immerse yourself in all aspects of the business so that you can. 177 00:10:04,210 --> 00:10:09,790 Make good decisions and you understand why you are having to make these 178 00:10:09,790 --> 00:10:13,930 decisions about choosing a particular library or a particular method of 179 00:10:13,940 --> 00:10:18,360 building the software, for instance, so I guess coming back to your point. 180 00:10:18,380 --> 00:10:19,700 It was research. 181 00:10:19,730 --> 00:10:20,280 It was. 182 00:10:20,615 --> 00:10:26,375 Designing and building the minimum lovable product, it then went into 183 00:10:26,565 --> 00:10:28,595 the hands of people to use it. 184 00:10:28,685 --> 00:10:32,365 And it's an extremely iterative process of build, test, 185 00:10:32,385 --> 00:10:34,235 iterate, build, test, iterate. 186 00:10:34,295 --> 00:10:37,925 Sometimes you tear apart what you built because it's not working the 187 00:10:37,925 --> 00:10:41,930 way it should, or because People have come back with feedback saying, 188 00:10:41,970 --> 00:10:43,230 actually, you should do this. 189 00:10:43,260 --> 00:10:47,850 This, this, or maybe think about extending the feature this way instead. 190 00:10:47,850 --> 00:10:49,940 So we're still a work in progress. 191 00:10:49,970 --> 00:10:53,490 There's never, I don't think there's ever going to be a point where I say 192 00:10:53,510 --> 00:10:55,180 vicious is done, vicious is complete. 193 00:10:55,210 --> 00:10:55,670 Because. 194 00:10:56,160 --> 00:11:01,340 What we want to do is help our customers to scale their businesses. 195 00:11:01,350 --> 00:11:06,550 So we're constantly thinking, what are ways that you can as a wedding 196 00:11:06,550 --> 00:11:09,650 pro be more productive, and that's what we need to build for you. 197 00:11:09,830 --> 00:11:13,880 Or what are the ways in which the industry is growing? 198 00:11:14,570 --> 00:11:17,560 Because that is where wedding pros will be going to next. 199 00:11:17,560 --> 00:11:23,700 So what are the tools they need to enter into this new business, given that's where 200 00:11:23,700 --> 00:11:26,129 the industry hit winter driving them. 201 00:11:26,130 --> 00:11:27,580 So I would tell them to driving that. 202 00:11:27,790 --> 00:11:31,980 So it's, it's a, it's a constant work in progress and it would never 203 00:11:31,990 --> 00:11:36,370 be done, but I think that's part of the delight and challenge of. 204 00:11:37,990 --> 00:11:39,810 Becca: An entrepreneur's work is never done. 205 00:11:39,810 --> 00:11:40,630 We're always changing. 206 00:11:40,630 --> 00:11:41,370 We're always evolving. 207 00:11:41,380 --> 00:11:43,950 I think there's something fascinating in what you said. 208 00:11:44,410 --> 00:11:48,690 And when you shared your story, there was a part in there that I talk quite 209 00:11:48,700 --> 00:11:51,480 a lot about, that I want to talk to you a little bit deeper about, which 210 00:11:51,480 --> 00:11:54,480 is that you explained that you're not a coder, but you did spend some 211 00:11:54,480 --> 00:11:56,280 time understanding the systems. 212 00:11:56,280 --> 00:11:58,869 And as Wedding Pros, we have to understand everything. 213 00:11:58,869 --> 00:12:01,954 We have to understand all these social media platforms, websites. 214 00:12:02,005 --> 00:12:06,195 And sometimes we outsource this stuff, but don't really understand it ourselves. 215 00:12:06,195 --> 00:12:07,825 And that can get us into problems. 216 00:12:08,135 --> 00:12:11,655 So why do you think it was important for you to have a base level of understanding? 217 00:12:11,845 --> 00:12:12,775 Cherie: Great question. 218 00:12:12,885 --> 00:12:19,625 I think the importance comes from being able to make decisions 219 00:12:20,955 --> 00:12:24,065 quickly and also optimally. 220 00:12:25,605 --> 00:12:32,375 And you can't make decisions without understanding the considerations that 221 00:12:32,375 --> 00:12:34,375 need to be factored into these decisions. 222 00:12:34,375 --> 00:12:38,765 So to give you an example, when we're thinking about building a particular 223 00:12:38,765 --> 00:12:46,695 feature, I need to understand what is the work involved in the back end and what 224 00:12:46,695 --> 00:12:48,275 is the work involved in the front end. 225 00:12:48,305 --> 00:12:53,785 And I also need to understand if we build it this way, how does it affect things 226 00:12:53,795 --> 00:12:55,635 that we might want to build in the future? 227 00:12:55,975 --> 00:13:00,245 If we wanted to add on another feature, does that mean that we can simply build 228 00:13:00,245 --> 00:13:02,345 on top of how we're going to build it now? 229 00:13:02,345 --> 00:13:06,485 Or do we have to tear it apart because we're not future approved? 230 00:13:06,865 --> 00:13:11,675 So then I have to make a decision on, okay, so do we go with decision A or 231 00:13:11,675 --> 00:13:16,955 decision B based on what I understand to be true at this point in time? 232 00:13:17,295 --> 00:13:24,080 So I think for me to make that decision, it's Important for me to understand. 233 00:13:24,550 --> 00:13:27,320 It's almost like running a cost benefit analysis in your head and 234 00:13:27,320 --> 00:13:29,090 also a future proofing analysis. 235 00:13:29,290 --> 00:13:32,840 but you know, I don't make these decisions in isolation as well. 236 00:13:32,840 --> 00:13:35,620 I have a team now, I have really good engineers now. 237 00:13:35,620 --> 00:13:42,320 And so it also means that I need to be able to have these discussions with the 238 00:13:42,350 --> 00:13:45,910 experts and I need to be able to speak their language or at least understand 239 00:13:45,910 --> 00:13:50,940 their language in order to have a productive discussion that said, I see 240 00:13:50,940 --> 00:13:56,975 that Decisions decision making is a big part of my day to day, but I'm always 241 00:13:56,985 --> 00:14:04,255 thinking about what do I know now that leads me to making such a decision and in 242 00:14:04,255 --> 00:14:10,815 the future, if I see that what I thought to be true is no longer true, I'm also 243 00:14:11,135 --> 00:14:16,465 very cognizant that I need to be able to adapt my decision or change my decision 244 00:14:16,475 --> 00:14:20,385 because the underlying assumptions and factors no longer hold true. 245 00:14:20,385 --> 00:14:21,675 So I think. 246 00:14:22,040 --> 00:14:23,540 It's about awareness. 247 00:14:23,570 --> 00:14:25,090 I think that's the ultimate thing. 248 00:14:25,150 --> 00:14:29,860 You know, learning about different systems, learning about different domains. 249 00:14:30,140 --> 00:14:33,690 It's about building confidence in myself to make decisions. 250 00:14:33,700 --> 00:14:40,930 It's also a when is of what I think I know so that I can be just that bit more agile 251 00:14:40,930 --> 00:14:47,770 and flexible as things change or as the company grows and it all boils down to. 252 00:14:47,875 --> 00:14:51,725 I think being open minded and also I think as an entrepreneur particularly 253 00:14:51,725 --> 00:14:57,245 as an early stage entrepreneur, you do need to be involved in, in these 254 00:14:57,255 --> 00:15:02,015 things, you know, there's only so much that you can outsource at the early 255 00:15:02,015 --> 00:15:07,495 stages because ultimately it's your vision and you need to see it onto 256 00:15:07,495 --> 00:15:12,425 live and no one is a better guardian of the vision than, than, than yourself. 257 00:15:12,725 --> 00:15:13,365 Becca: Yeah, I love that. 258 00:15:13,375 --> 00:15:14,615 And it's, it's so true. 259 00:15:14,615 --> 00:15:15,925 Knowledge is power. 260 00:15:15,975 --> 00:15:19,815 And even if we're planning on sharing our workload with other people, that 261 00:15:19,815 --> 00:15:22,525 we need to upskill ourselves to have a basic understanding of what they're 262 00:15:22,525 --> 00:15:23,965 doing so we can make great decisions. 263 00:15:23,965 --> 00:15:24,775 That's really helpful. 264 00:15:25,105 --> 00:15:28,185 Now we've talked a lot about you founding Visualist. 265 00:15:28,445 --> 00:15:31,575 I'd love to just have a little bit more information about what 266 00:15:31,595 --> 00:15:32,845 the platform actually does. 267 00:15:32,865 --> 00:15:36,655 So if I'm a wedding planner, a wedding florist, a wedding designer, what, 268 00:15:36,665 --> 00:15:38,055 what does Visualist actually do? 269 00:15:38,065 --> 00:15:40,035 How's it going to assist me in my business day to day? 270 00:15:40,520 --> 00:15:41,090 Cherie: Absolutely. 271 00:15:41,600 --> 00:15:45,550 The main value proposition of this list is that it is an all in one 272 00:15:45,550 --> 00:15:48,840 platform for you to connect your client design and admin workflows. 273 00:15:49,320 --> 00:15:53,280 And I like to rule of three, so I like to split things into three 274 00:15:53,280 --> 00:15:54,890 and think about things in buckets. 275 00:15:55,180 --> 00:15:56,660 And obviously, all of these. 276 00:15:56,890 --> 00:16:01,720 Workflows, the client workflows, design workflows They're all interconnected. 277 00:16:01,840 --> 00:16:05,900 So what we want to do is make it easier for you to manage your 278 00:16:05,900 --> 00:16:10,370 clients whilst you're sharing design work with them whilst you are 279 00:16:10,710 --> 00:16:12,530 sending in proposals and invoices. 280 00:16:12,550 --> 00:16:16,650 So that is that connection between the client design admin workflows. 281 00:16:16,850 --> 00:16:21,100 We want to also give you a better space to create. 282 00:16:21,705 --> 00:16:25,205 A shared portal with your clients so that they can be involved in the project. 283 00:16:25,205 --> 00:16:28,955 So in this list, you can create a hub, your client hub for 284 00:16:29,025 --> 00:16:30,495 each project that you're doing. 285 00:16:30,515 --> 00:16:34,495 So, for instance, if you're planning a wedding in Lake Como 286 00:16:34,545 --> 00:16:38,545 in summer 2025, you can create a hub called Lake Como summer 2025. 287 00:16:39,680 --> 00:16:44,220 You invite your clients and this is going to be the central space in which 288 00:16:44,230 --> 00:16:48,970 you share all information relating to the wedding with your clients. 289 00:16:49,150 --> 00:16:53,600 You can share your concept ideas, you can share your meeting notes, 290 00:16:53,620 --> 00:16:56,650 you can share the stationary designs. 291 00:16:56,975 --> 00:17:00,275 You can invite a stationery designer into the hub as well to collaborate 292 00:17:00,605 --> 00:17:05,995 and how we do that is by making collaboration contextual and seamless. 293 00:17:06,055 --> 00:17:11,075 So one of my favorite features that I've been talking about a lot is the feature 294 00:17:11,075 --> 00:17:13,685 that we call the sticky notes feature. 295 00:17:14,195 --> 00:17:18,485 Creative professionals workflow, wedding pros workflow is highly visual. 296 00:17:18,505 --> 00:17:23,545 So this is really built from that perspective of how do we enable 297 00:17:23,545 --> 00:17:26,595 collaboration to be visual fast? 298 00:17:26,980 --> 00:17:28,820 You're using pictures to communicate. 299 00:17:28,820 --> 00:17:31,250 You're using color palettes to communicate mood boards. 300 00:17:31,460 --> 00:17:35,230 So all of these are things that you can create and you 301 00:17:35,230 --> 00:17:36,970 can share easily in business. 302 00:17:37,390 --> 00:17:42,790 So when I share a picture with my client, if I'm a wedding pro, I can not only 303 00:17:42,790 --> 00:17:46,890 share the picture, but also drop sticky notes, which are literally look, you 304 00:17:46,890 --> 00:17:48,290 know, they, they look like post it notes. 305 00:17:48,290 --> 00:17:51,050 I can put a post it note, a sticky note on the picture and ask my 306 00:17:51,050 --> 00:17:55,270 client, How do you feel about the shade of pink, or how do you feel 307 00:17:55,280 --> 00:17:57,830 about the lighting installation here? 308 00:17:58,070 --> 00:18:02,230 How do you feel about these types of flowers at the reception? 309 00:18:02,940 --> 00:18:09,490 So, it reduces the back and forth in emails, DMs, WhatsApps, iMessages, 310 00:18:09,490 --> 00:18:12,330 and it keeps everything in one place. 311 00:18:12,680 --> 00:18:16,150 It's good for the client because they know where to look. 312 00:18:16,450 --> 00:18:22,290 It's visual, so they know exactly what you're referring to, and it's good for 313 00:18:22,290 --> 00:18:26,180 the professional because, again, it centralizes all of the information in 314 00:18:26,180 --> 00:18:31,320 one space, it makes it easy to manage multiple projects at once, and it also 315 00:18:31,320 --> 00:18:38,086 becomes a system of record, which then makes organization a lot easier, so 316 00:18:38,086 --> 00:18:40,615 you've got not just your visuals in there. 317 00:18:40,765 --> 00:18:42,225 You move boards and color palettes. 318 00:18:42,255 --> 00:18:48,105 You can also put in your invoices, your proposals, everything all in one space. 319 00:18:48,305 --> 00:18:49,645 It gives you peace of mind. 320 00:18:49,645 --> 00:18:51,195 It gives your client peace of mind. 321 00:18:52,175 --> 00:18:56,105 We're always looking to how can we help the creative 322 00:18:56,105 --> 00:18:57,715 professional to save time as well. 323 00:18:58,075 --> 00:19:01,115 And, you know, there's a phrase that we use, which is focused on 324 00:19:01,115 --> 00:19:03,165 the business, not the business. 325 00:19:03,505 --> 00:19:09,405 So we're also developing tools based on AI that can help you with generating 326 00:19:09,685 --> 00:19:14,795 proposals quickly, generating summaries quickly, generating reminders, because 327 00:19:14,945 --> 00:19:19,595 it's always helpful if there's a whisper in your ear that says, Oh, don't 328 00:19:19,595 --> 00:19:21,865 use the orange flowers, the client. 329 00:19:22,140 --> 00:19:23,830 Doesn't doesn't like orange. 330 00:19:23,850 --> 00:19:27,470 For instance, that's just a very quick example off the top of my head, but we 331 00:19:27,470 --> 00:19:31,250 feel that, you know, AI is a big, big thing that people are talking a lot about. 332 00:19:31,260 --> 00:19:36,500 Now, AI has always been a consideration and visualize, but we are thinking 333 00:19:36,500 --> 00:19:41,150 about it from the perspective of how can AI be an assistant to you so 334 00:19:41,150 --> 00:19:42,690 it's not replacing you as a creative. 335 00:19:43,280 --> 00:19:46,240 But it's about doing the things that you hate. 336 00:19:46,270 --> 00:19:48,860 It's about doing the things that are mundane and repetitive. 337 00:19:49,200 --> 00:19:54,610 Things like pulling together task lists, or pulling together summaries from a 338 00:19:54,610 --> 00:20:00,710 client questionnaire that the client has filled in, or sending reminder emails, or 339 00:20:00,720 --> 00:20:07,630 sending reminders to clients about tasks that they need to do, or simply combing 340 00:20:07,630 --> 00:20:12,985 through all of the correspondence That has happened within divisionist client hub and 341 00:20:12,985 --> 00:20:18,085 generating status reports about what is outstanding what you're awaiting client 342 00:20:18,095 --> 00:20:24,425 feedback on and I think particularly for wedding pros, many of whom work as. 343 00:20:24,795 --> 00:20:27,265 Solar printers or micro businesses. 344 00:20:27,645 --> 00:20:32,785 This is where technology and AI in particular can be truly helpful 345 00:20:32,805 --> 00:20:39,345 because you are not spending your time, your precious time on very low value 346 00:20:39,375 --> 00:20:45,435 administrative work that you're The client might not necessarily see, but you're 347 00:20:45,615 --> 00:20:50,635 now diverting that time that will spend on that memoir to higher value things 348 00:20:50,635 --> 00:20:56,045 like generating truly one of a kind designs or interacting with clients to 349 00:20:56,305 --> 00:21:00,535 maintain the client relationship and give that personalized and bespoke service. 350 00:21:00,545 --> 00:21:07,395 So our mission with visualized is really to help you save time by automating 351 00:21:07,405 --> 00:21:09,655 things that can be automated so that. 352 00:21:10,220 --> 00:21:12,730 As a wedding pro, you can scale more efficiently. 353 00:21:13,040 --> 00:21:13,600 Becca: Amazing. 354 00:21:13,610 --> 00:21:14,870 Such a great synopsis. 355 00:21:14,870 --> 00:21:17,400 I mean, with all of these platforms, I always say you really need to go 356 00:21:17,400 --> 00:21:20,950 and log in and have a look at them to really get a feel for how they work. 357 00:21:21,190 --> 00:21:24,220 So at the end, you're going to share a promo code so that people can have 358 00:21:24,220 --> 00:21:26,570 a go and use the free trial as well. 359 00:21:26,570 --> 00:21:28,840 And I'll make sure I share that information in the show notes. 360 00:21:29,030 --> 00:21:33,510 Now you've talked about how helpful this platform is for us as wedding pros, but 361 00:21:33,520 --> 00:21:38,230 why do you think it's important that we integrate technology for today's couple? 362 00:21:38,240 --> 00:21:39,820 So the people actually getting married. 363 00:21:40,215 --> 00:21:43,875 Cherie: I think that the simple answer is that people today want convenience. 364 00:21:43,925 --> 00:21:45,245 People are time poor. 365 00:21:45,295 --> 00:21:46,785 People live on their phones. 366 00:21:47,265 --> 00:21:52,765 And the, as a wedding pro, their service that you're 367 00:21:52,765 --> 00:21:55,915 providing is highly personalized. 368 00:21:56,615 --> 00:21:58,455 It is also highly personal. 369 00:21:58,845 --> 00:22:01,885 The, you know, you're helping a couple plan their wedding. 370 00:22:02,155 --> 00:22:03,595 So you want to make this personal. 371 00:22:04,230 --> 00:22:07,890 Experience as delightful and a seamless for them as possible and 372 00:22:07,890 --> 00:22:09,660 also as stress free as possible. 373 00:22:09,980 --> 00:22:13,690 And I think truly the way to do that is by integrating technology 374 00:22:13,690 --> 00:22:17,840 because technology works on the go. 375 00:22:18,090 --> 00:22:20,540 It works, you know, business in particular. 376 00:22:20,770 --> 00:22:23,370 It's all about being where the client is. 377 00:22:23,770 --> 00:22:28,500 So how as a wedding pro, can you deliver an experience that 378 00:22:28,520 --> 00:22:30,320 is tailored to the client? 379 00:22:30,730 --> 00:22:38,500 And The big part of it is being accessible to the client as well. 380 00:22:38,810 --> 00:22:43,470 So with a client hub in business, for instance, the clients 381 00:22:43,510 --> 00:22:45,270 can access it at any time. 382 00:22:45,560 --> 00:22:48,560 They can leave their questions and comments at any time. 383 00:22:48,870 --> 00:22:50,080 And it's all. 384 00:22:50,335 --> 00:22:51,765 Integrated in one space. 385 00:22:51,805 --> 00:22:55,065 It's it's, you know, they know where to go to when they have questions. 386 00:22:55,265 --> 00:22:58,755 They know where to go to when they want to check on something 387 00:22:58,765 --> 00:22:59,975 that was discussed before. 388 00:23:00,335 --> 00:23:01,085 And I think so. 389 00:23:01,085 --> 00:23:02,405 That's the convenience factor. 390 00:23:02,785 --> 00:23:07,705 And then the other thing as well is it's productivity as a wedding pro. 391 00:23:07,725 --> 00:23:14,405 You are juggling multiple projects at once and the great thing about technology 392 00:23:14,425 --> 00:23:16,365 is that it works wherever you work. 393 00:23:16,775 --> 00:23:25,815 So it means that you are able to have one space that contains all of your 394 00:23:25,855 --> 00:23:30,935 active projects, all of your past projects, and technology that is smart 395 00:23:30,975 --> 00:23:37,905 will also start learning about you and how you work and give you that tailored 396 00:23:37,905 --> 00:23:40,785 experience is that it's learned. 397 00:23:41,545 --> 00:23:44,505 Based on your previous interactions with the tool. 398 00:23:44,685 --> 00:23:46,845 That is where technology is going. 399 00:23:47,245 --> 00:23:49,285 It's, it's about personalized technology. 400 00:23:49,735 --> 00:23:55,715 And I think with technology, it's about me. 401 00:23:55,725 --> 00:24:00,825 It's about having tools that work the way you work tools that 402 00:24:00,825 --> 00:24:02,405 work the way your mind works. 403 00:24:02,415 --> 00:24:07,275 And I think that's why many existing tools that don't cater to. 404 00:24:07,340 --> 00:24:12,710 The creative's mind and the creator's workflow, they, they only get the job 405 00:24:12,750 --> 00:24:18,020 half done because they still create a lot of, they still require the 406 00:24:18,120 --> 00:24:22,350 creator of the user to do a lot of legwork, a lot of the heavy lifting. 407 00:24:22,620 --> 00:24:26,620 And what we want to create is technology that is intuitive 408 00:24:26,870 --> 00:24:28,240 to the creative professional. 409 00:24:28,240 --> 00:24:32,620 And that means working from a very visual space, working from 410 00:24:32,630 --> 00:24:34,350 a space that is client does. 411 00:24:34,790 --> 00:24:35,430 And. 412 00:24:36,015 --> 00:24:41,485 Ultimately, it's, it's about saving time and it's about being able to take back 413 00:24:41,495 --> 00:24:45,885 time to, to do the things that you love and, you know, pen and paper is great. 414 00:24:45,905 --> 00:24:49,505 I personally still do a lot of brainstorming on pen and paper, 415 00:24:49,505 --> 00:24:53,985 for instance, but the way that we are building technology today and 416 00:24:53,985 --> 00:24:57,315 the way that we are building tools today, it's all about automation. 417 00:24:57,345 --> 00:25:05,225 It's all about, how do you save time on repeatable processes so that you can. 418 00:25:05,875 --> 00:25:11,895 Get back to time that you socially need to then provide that highly bespoke 419 00:25:11,895 --> 00:25:17,035 service to your clients, to the, to the wedding couple that you're working with, 420 00:25:17,575 --> 00:25:22,575 and ultimately achieve that greater, greater level of client satisfaction. 421 00:25:23,235 --> 00:25:23,535 Becca: Yeah. 422 00:25:23,565 --> 00:25:27,525 And we're also time poor, both us as wedding pros and the couples themselves. 423 00:25:27,525 --> 00:25:30,815 So anything that saves time and, and leads to convenience. 424 00:25:31,500 --> 00:25:32,710 Is definitely a good thing. 425 00:25:33,060 --> 00:25:37,640 Now I want to just shift the conversation slightly back to Las Vegas because as I 426 00:25:37,640 --> 00:25:42,770 mentioned I met you and your team there for the first time and I think you did 427 00:25:42,770 --> 00:25:45,900 some amazing pieces of marketing and I want to get into this now because 428 00:25:45,900 --> 00:25:49,360 for those that haven't been to Wedding MBA there is a huge exhibition hall 429 00:25:49,380 --> 00:25:51,470 which you had a stand as part of. 430 00:25:51,480 --> 00:25:53,150 I think something like 200 exhibitors. 431 00:25:53,370 --> 00:25:56,935 So to stand out from the crowd is difficult when there's so many people. 432 00:25:56,935 --> 00:26:00,235 And I think this is a similar experience when wedding pros go to 433 00:26:00,235 --> 00:26:03,405 a wedding show and they're amongst all the other vendors and they're 434 00:26:03,405 --> 00:26:04,735 trying to stand out from the crowd. 435 00:26:04,985 --> 00:26:09,255 But I believe what you did as a team at Visualist really worked. 436 00:26:09,265 --> 00:26:10,025 It really stood out. 437 00:26:10,025 --> 00:26:12,915 And I think there's a lot of learnings people can take from what you did. 438 00:26:12,925 --> 00:26:16,345 And from my perspective as a marketer, I loved watching what you were doing. 439 00:26:16,345 --> 00:26:18,435 So if you could talk me through some of the things that you did 440 00:26:18,445 --> 00:26:22,020 to stand out as part of that, Exhibition and what your thought 441 00:26:22,020 --> 00:26:23,870 process were behind those decisions. 442 00:26:24,100 --> 00:26:24,630 Cherie: Absolutely. 443 00:26:24,820 --> 00:26:27,800 Firstly, thank you so much for those kind words. 444 00:26:27,830 --> 00:26:28,870 It was definitely a team effort. 445 00:26:29,680 --> 00:26:33,990 Charlotte from our team in particular was a big, big part 446 00:26:34,020 --> 00:26:35,990 of all of the things that we did. 447 00:26:36,370 --> 00:26:39,560 So we're based in London, right? 448 00:26:39,590 --> 00:26:44,360 And going to Las Vegas is a huge undertaking for us, not just in terms 449 00:26:44,360 --> 00:26:46,150 of time, but also in terms of cost. 450 00:26:46,160 --> 00:26:54,240 So planning for a wedding MBA was A big part of our regular marketing meetings 451 00:26:54,260 --> 00:26:59,460 and we were really thinking how can we do things that will help us to stand 452 00:26:59,460 --> 00:27:04,530 out that and you know, help us really appear everywhere appear bigger than 453 00:27:04,530 --> 00:27:08,720 we are because we're still a tiny team and we're still a very young company 454 00:27:09,050 --> 00:27:14,240 and there are many other software tools out there and we want to come across 455 00:27:14,240 --> 00:27:16,520 as not just any other software tool. 456 00:27:16,880 --> 00:27:18,950 So one of the things that we did. 457 00:27:19,170 --> 00:27:28,450 Was at our booth we had a manicurist or a nail station So we we hired a nail 458 00:27:28,550 --> 00:27:32,520 a nail technician to come to our booth and set up a manicure station where 459 00:27:32,520 --> 00:27:37,500 we were giving away free manicures and What that meant was that people 460 00:27:37,500 --> 00:27:43,715 would come to the booth They would sit and wait for the session to start. 461 00:27:43,745 --> 00:27:48,085 And during that time, we have a bit of an opportunity to talk to 462 00:27:48,085 --> 00:27:51,235 them about fish list, to show them the platform on iPads, et cetera. 463 00:27:51,685 --> 00:27:55,235 The reason that we wanted to do that was because we had been to a couple 464 00:27:55,235 --> 00:28:00,015 of trade shows before, And we knew from our personal experience that 465 00:28:00,135 --> 00:28:06,495 it gets Very tiring walking around and it's, it's very overwhelming. 466 00:28:06,765 --> 00:28:12,295 So what we wanted to create was a space amidst Las Vegas convention center that 467 00:28:12,295 --> 00:28:19,065 people would walk by and feel relaxed and not like they're a part of this hectic 468 00:28:19,095 --> 00:28:24,621 maze of booths and I think the design of the booth as well, we, we didn't want 469 00:28:24,621 --> 00:28:29,905 it to feel too techie even though we're a tech company, we wanted it to feel 470 00:28:29,905 --> 00:28:35,455 more like A mini spa, like a tiny, tiny corner of, of the exhibition hall that 471 00:28:35,685 --> 00:28:41,435 got relaxed, you know, so we had, we had white rugs, we had bamboo chairs just to 472 00:28:41,435 --> 00:28:45,345 create a very soft calming setting where people could come in and rest their feet 473 00:28:45,605 --> 00:28:47,825 and we can talk to them in that process. 474 00:28:48,225 --> 00:28:54,015 Another thing that we did also was we, we gave out, or we, we 475 00:28:54,015 --> 00:28:57,505 displayed and exhibited a lot of, what do you call them, enamel pins. 476 00:28:57,885 --> 00:29:02,420 We do like to have Fun things and make fun things at vicious every now and then. 477 00:29:02,420 --> 00:29:03,510 So we had enamel pins. 478 00:29:03,510 --> 00:29:06,900 We had some bags, lots of fun stickers as well. 479 00:29:07,210 --> 00:29:11,090 Stickers are as something that are really common and popular in the 480 00:29:11,090 --> 00:29:14,630 tech world, but not so much in, in the wedding, in a wedding pro world. 481 00:29:14,660 --> 00:29:17,500 So I think we, we, we were a bit different in that sense. 482 00:29:17,500 --> 00:29:20,110 Cause we're giving out stickers that just had really funny. 483 00:29:20,375 --> 00:29:25,475 Catchphrases, one of them was a graphic illustration of a teacup because we're 484 00:29:25,475 --> 00:29:27,725 from England and it says here for the tea. 485 00:29:27,945 --> 00:29:31,805 And then another one said in mind, a drama, another one said that there were 486 00:29:31,805 --> 00:29:33,805 a lot of Vegas themed ones as well. 487 00:29:33,845 --> 00:29:34,905 So we're giving out stickers. 488 00:29:34,905 --> 00:29:39,135 I think the thought was, how do we attract people to our booth? 489 00:29:39,500 --> 00:29:45,210 If they were just walking by and what is, you know, what was a low five thing that 490 00:29:45,410 --> 00:29:50,130 we could do to be able to grab someone who is walking by and say, would you like 491 00:29:50,130 --> 00:29:51,950 a sticker or would you like a manicure? 492 00:29:52,280 --> 00:29:57,310 So it was really thinking about things from the perspective of if I 493 00:29:57,310 --> 00:30:01,800 am, if I am an attendee at wedding MBA, what would stop me in my tracks? 494 00:30:02,450 --> 00:30:07,120 And then last but not least, the thing that probably was the biggest impact 495 00:30:07,140 --> 00:30:09,780 was the event that we met you at, Becca. 496 00:30:10,060 --> 00:30:16,320 So we attended the Monday night mixer, which was hosted by 497 00:30:16,320 --> 00:30:18,775 Renee Dallow and Amber Anderson. 498 00:30:18,775 --> 00:30:23,020 And that was probably the best decision that we did because this was 499 00:30:23,485 --> 00:30:26,495 The mixer that was pre wedding MBA. 500 00:30:26,495 --> 00:30:27,935 So it was the night before wedding MBA. 501 00:30:27,945 --> 00:30:32,155 And it just allowed us to be in a room with so many wedding 502 00:30:32,175 --> 00:30:36,185 pros who we wouldn't have had a chance to connect with otherwise. 503 00:30:36,185 --> 00:30:39,055 And we got to meet them the day before wedding MBA. 504 00:30:39,980 --> 00:30:43,470 So we could then tell them, Oh, come to our booth at Wedding MBA tomorrow. 505 00:30:43,490 --> 00:30:46,010 And, you know, you can see more of the platform, more of Vigilist. 506 00:30:46,400 --> 00:30:51,650 And what we did at the Monday night mixer, we, we gave this Vigilist tote bag, which 507 00:30:51,660 --> 00:30:53,170 Becca, I know you have and you love. 508 00:30:53,690 --> 00:30:57,470 And in this tote bag, were a few things. 509 00:30:57,510 --> 00:31:02,155 We created what we call the Las Vegas survival kit, because It's Vegas. 510 00:31:02,205 --> 00:31:03,235 It's Wedding MBA. 511 00:31:03,235 --> 00:31:04,175 It's hectic. 512 00:31:04,225 --> 00:31:05,895 It is insane. 513 00:31:05,905 --> 00:31:08,535 It is a lot of fun, but you also need self care. 514 00:31:08,575 --> 00:31:10,955 So we put in things like liquid IV. 515 00:31:10,985 --> 00:31:13,605 We had, I think, a face mask. 516 00:31:13,655 --> 00:31:17,135 We had some energy bars, I think. 517 00:31:17,155 --> 00:31:22,345 So the whole idea was this is a kit that you could take with you and relax. 518 00:31:22,695 --> 00:31:28,515 After you've had your film of Vegas and in that, we also, we also had some vicious 519 00:31:28,515 --> 00:31:33,295 match or printed flyers that talked about what vicious is again, the whole idea 520 00:31:33,295 --> 00:31:35,215 was, how do we bring people to our booth? 521 00:31:35,215 --> 00:31:38,485 Because you're, as you said, over 200 exhibits is, and, you 522 00:31:38,485 --> 00:31:42,085 know, we had to do something that would make people remember us by. 523 00:31:42,350 --> 00:31:45,400 And so that Monday night mixer was, was our first attempt. 524 00:31:45,400 --> 00:31:51,970 And yeah, I, I think it for, for our first, first go at wedding MBA, I 525 00:31:51,990 --> 00:31:56,480 think we were very proud of the, the booth set up and, and our experience 526 00:31:56,480 --> 00:32:00,910 in general, but this year we have also taken on board a lot of learning. 527 00:32:00,920 --> 00:32:05,020 So I, and we're experimenting with a few different things, so I'm excited to. 528 00:32:05,425 --> 00:32:08,375 See these things come to fruition and check back in six months. 529 00:32:10,165 --> 00:32:12,255 Becca: I can't wait to come and see what you guys have got planned this 530 00:32:12,255 --> 00:32:16,135 year, because I think there's a huge amount of learnings that my listeners 531 00:32:16,135 --> 00:32:19,755 could get from all of those amazing things that you did at Wembley NBA in 532 00:32:19,755 --> 00:32:23,275 terms of standing out from a crowd, in terms of getting your name out there, in 533 00:32:23,275 --> 00:32:26,295 terms of showing that you, or at least having the perception that you're a 534 00:32:26,295 --> 00:32:28,715 bigger company than you actually were. 535 00:32:28,945 --> 00:32:29,765 And I agree with you. 536 00:32:29,765 --> 00:32:33,755 I think the The Monday Night Mixer was a great call for you guys, because what 537 00:32:33,755 --> 00:32:37,105 you did is you put yourselves in a room of influence, so at that mixer there 538 00:32:37,105 --> 00:32:40,315 were attendees, but there were also a lot of educators in that room, there 539 00:32:40,315 --> 00:32:41,605 were a lot of influencers in that room. 540 00:32:41,905 --> 00:32:46,375 By giving out those bags, which then everyone was carrying around, by giving 541 00:32:46,375 --> 00:32:50,805 them all of the Visualist merch, You know, you kind of, you set yourselves apart 542 00:32:50,835 --> 00:32:54,835 before the exhibition had really even kicked off and I think that was really 543 00:32:54,835 --> 00:32:58,675 smart and I talk a lot with my pros about being in rooms of influence, working 544 00:32:58,675 --> 00:33:02,045 out the rooms that you're in, talking to the right people and I think that's 545 00:33:02,045 --> 00:33:03,595 what you did really well at Wedding MBA. 546 00:33:04,585 --> 00:33:07,195 Cherie: Thank you so much Becca, it means a lot coming from you. 547 00:33:07,930 --> 00:33:08,550 Becca: Yeah, you did. 548 00:33:08,640 --> 00:33:09,670 You did an amazing job. 549 00:33:09,710 --> 00:33:11,740 Everyone was talking about visualists all week. 550 00:33:11,760 --> 00:33:13,120 I loved my visualist merch. 551 00:33:13,240 --> 00:33:14,640 I've got my visualist bag. 552 00:33:14,640 --> 00:33:15,600 I've got my socks. 553 00:33:15,600 --> 00:33:17,980 I've got my pins and I use them all. 554 00:33:18,150 --> 00:33:20,800 And, you know, again, I talked to my pros about simple things 555 00:33:20,800 --> 00:33:24,610 like creating pens because pens are something that stays forever. 556 00:33:24,620 --> 00:33:27,020 This, this merchandise doesn't have to be a huge cost. 557 00:33:27,060 --> 00:33:28,820 You can buy things that are not. 558 00:33:29,110 --> 00:33:30,100 super expensive. 559 00:33:30,100 --> 00:33:33,290 Not everyone can afford all the tote bags, but actually just a pen that 560 00:33:33,290 --> 00:33:34,640 people then carry around with them. 561 00:33:34,660 --> 00:33:35,730 I've still got pens. 562 00:33:35,940 --> 00:33:39,300 I've got Allenberg's pen on my desk right in front of me right now. 563 00:33:39,520 --> 00:33:41,860 You know, and I've had it since I met him about three years ago. 564 00:33:41,860 --> 00:33:42,930 This stuff stays with us. 565 00:33:42,930 --> 00:33:46,120 So I think you guys did a great job and I cannot wait to see 566 00:33:46,120 --> 00:33:47,390 what you have planned this year. 567 00:33:47,410 --> 00:33:49,980 So we are all going back to Vegas this year. 568 00:33:50,010 --> 00:33:51,900 I'm going to speaking, which I'm thrilled about. 569 00:33:52,100 --> 00:33:55,540 You guys are going to be having your, your exhibition stand, 570 00:33:55,540 --> 00:33:57,440 which I'm also excited to see. 571 00:33:57,710 --> 00:34:00,780 I'm trying to get more of my UK friends to come out to Wedding MBA. 572 00:34:00,820 --> 00:34:03,400 I've got five UK people coming so far. 573 00:34:03,650 --> 00:34:06,780 If people are listening and thinking about it, what would you say to them? 574 00:34:06,780 --> 00:34:07,590 Why should they come? 575 00:34:07,860 --> 00:34:10,760 Cherie: I think it's the learning and networking opportunity. 576 00:34:10,780 --> 00:34:11,930 There is nothing like it. 577 00:34:12,440 --> 00:34:16,490 Wedding MBA in the UK or anywhere else in the world. 578 00:34:16,640 --> 00:34:21,890 I, I personally wish I had more time to go around to different talks because 579 00:34:22,090 --> 00:34:25,750 there were so many amazing speakers and I can't wait for your talk this year, Becca. 580 00:34:26,060 --> 00:34:31,300 And I think it's almost like you, you could have a year's full of learning 581 00:34:31,300 --> 00:34:34,600 packed into three days because there were just so many different 582 00:34:34,600 --> 00:34:40,240 speakers on different topics ranging from social media to finances to. 583 00:34:40,700 --> 00:34:45,650 PR to even, you know, the design aspect itself of wedding planning. 584 00:34:45,660 --> 00:34:52,430 And I think it's about opening your eyes and it's about being, being curious 585 00:34:52,460 --> 00:34:54,950 to what else other people are doing. 586 00:34:55,190 --> 00:34:59,800 There is, I think as, as an entrepreneur in particular, and as wedding crows who 587 00:34:59,800 --> 00:35:05,740 are often working in, you know, Very small teams, I think it's so important 588 00:35:05,750 --> 00:35:11,490 to Expose yourself to what other people are doing, not just within the region, 589 00:35:11,490 --> 00:35:15,180 but internationally, and it's not about following trends, but it's about 590 00:35:15,180 --> 00:35:19,740 keeping an ear your eyes and years out there on the ground and seeing are 591 00:35:19,740 --> 00:35:21,460 there better ways that I can do things. 592 00:35:22,075 --> 00:35:25,695 I think ultimately as an entrepreneur is all self improvement and 593 00:35:25,695 --> 00:35:27,845 self reflection is really key. 594 00:35:27,845 --> 00:35:32,435 And I think having a change of scenery, being in Vegas, what's there not to love? 595 00:35:32,655 --> 00:35:33,585 Becca: Yeah, absolutely. 596 00:35:33,785 --> 00:35:35,685 And it's not always the easiest solution. 597 00:35:35,685 --> 00:35:38,365 I mean, for you guys, it's not easy to go to the other side of the 598 00:35:38,365 --> 00:35:41,395 world and exhibit your business and take all of that stuff with you. 599 00:35:41,735 --> 00:35:44,185 But actually, sometimes if you want to grow and evolve, you've got to 600 00:35:44,185 --> 00:35:45,605 put yourself in the bigger spaces. 601 00:35:45,950 --> 00:35:47,100 Cherie: Yeah, for sure. 602 00:35:47,580 --> 00:35:48,470 Becca: I can't wait. 603 00:35:48,490 --> 00:35:50,750 I'm very excited to go back to Vegas. 604 00:35:50,750 --> 00:35:52,510 I'm very excited to meet up with you guys in Vegas. 605 00:35:52,510 --> 00:35:56,330 And I'm sure between us, we'll plan some fun things while we're there as well. 606 00:35:56,560 --> 00:35:59,790 Sherry, it's been such a pleasure chatting to you, finding out more about visualists, 607 00:35:59,790 --> 00:36:01,670 finding out more about your story. 608 00:36:01,870 --> 00:36:04,000 I always end the podcast with the same question. 609 00:36:04,020 --> 00:36:06,510 So I'm going to pose that to you now, which is this, what's one 610 00:36:06,510 --> 00:36:09,620 thing you personally wish you'd known sooner in your business? 611 00:36:09,740 --> 00:36:12,220 Cherie: So the one thing that. 612 00:36:12,450 --> 00:36:21,620 I wish I had known and I had done sooner is, I think, creating my immunity of 613 00:36:21,780 --> 00:36:25,390 people that I could lean into for support. 614 00:36:25,450 --> 00:36:29,330 And I'm very fortunate I have that now, but I think being an entrepreneur 615 00:36:29,330 --> 00:36:33,250 is a very lonely job and the only other people who understand what 616 00:36:33,250 --> 00:36:34,740 it's like to be an entrepreneur. 617 00:36:35,335 --> 00:36:36,945 Would be other entrepreneurs themselves. 618 00:36:37,325 --> 00:36:41,565 So particularly for wedding pros, many of whom are solopreneurs, you know, I think 619 00:36:41,565 --> 00:36:46,365 it's so important to surround yourself with people who are going through what 620 00:36:46,365 --> 00:36:50,685 you are going through and who can provide. 621 00:36:51,300 --> 00:36:55,460 Support who can provide advice, who can provide empathy. 622 00:36:55,870 --> 00:37:00,620 I think it is, I know it is tough because technically wedding pros are in 623 00:37:00,620 --> 00:37:04,920 competition with one another, but truly I believe that collaboration can still 624 00:37:04,920 --> 00:37:07,570 happen within friendly competition. 625 00:37:07,610 --> 00:37:11,980 And for me, I, I think I'm a first time founder. 626 00:37:11,980 --> 00:37:13,890 So, you know, I was making a lot of mistakes along the 627 00:37:13,890 --> 00:37:18,200 way as well, and mistakes are fine, but I think I could have. 628 00:37:18,410 --> 00:37:19,960 Mistakes are fine because you grow from them. 629 00:37:20,030 --> 00:37:25,480 I have to covet that if you grow from them, but I think I would have Benefited 630 00:37:25,480 --> 00:37:31,820 a lot from having this early Almost like support group of other founders 631 00:37:32,040 --> 00:37:36,215 who you know, I could you know Easily message when I have this burning question 632 00:37:36,215 --> 00:37:38,695 about, Oh, how do I do SEO or what? 633 00:37:38,765 --> 00:37:40,385 What task management system should I use? 634 00:37:40,615 --> 00:37:43,885 It's almost like it's the power of many, right? 635 00:37:43,885 --> 00:37:45,445 It's leaning into the power of many. 636 00:37:45,465 --> 00:37:46,715 And I'm very thankful. 637 00:37:46,715 --> 00:37:50,915 I have that now, particularly other female founders, female first time founders. 638 00:37:51,225 --> 00:37:54,515 For instance, I have a friend and we have a standing calendar. 639 00:37:55,190 --> 00:38:00,600 Event which is which I call dinner therapy and in that we meet for dinner 640 00:38:00,600 --> 00:38:06,750 like every three weeks and we just talk we just talk about our businesses about 641 00:38:06,780 --> 00:38:12,663 our personal lives about what it's like to be a founder about the, you know, 642 00:38:12,663 --> 00:38:18,270 the wins and also the challenges and we celebrate and we commiserate together. 643 00:38:18,520 --> 00:38:23,310 But I think having a strong community around you of fellow. 644 00:38:23,535 --> 00:38:28,675 Entrepreneurs and, you know, like minded people is, is really something 645 00:38:28,695 --> 00:38:30,965 that nourishes your mental health. 646 00:38:30,965 --> 00:38:34,235 I don't want to get too Google about that right now, but I, you know, honestly, 647 00:38:34,235 --> 00:38:40,725 I think mental health is something that entrepreneurs need to be very mindful of. 648 00:38:40,725 --> 00:38:46,170 And I think A great vitamin or yeah, a great vitamin or like solution to 649 00:38:46,170 --> 00:38:50,650 that is, is having a community of people who you can call on any time. 650 00:38:50,870 --> 00:38:52,150 Becca: I totally agree with you. 651 00:38:52,150 --> 00:38:55,640 And actually, I think maybe I need to organize myself some more therapy dinners. 652 00:38:55,640 --> 00:38:59,290 I love that idea of just going and meeting up with someone and just talking 653 00:38:59,310 --> 00:39:02,000 it all out whilst also having nice food. 654 00:39:02,000 --> 00:39:06,420 So I think maybe that's something I need to implement into my own business as well. 655 00:39:07,130 --> 00:39:08,620 It's been such a pleasure chatting to you. 656 00:39:08,640 --> 00:39:12,680 As I mentioned earlier, really, Visualist needs to be seen to be understood. 657 00:39:12,830 --> 00:39:16,540 So I believe you've put together a super special offer for my listeners. 658 00:39:16,690 --> 00:39:17,760 So tell us more about that. 659 00:39:18,040 --> 00:39:22,030 Cherie: Yes, please go to our website, which is visualistapp. 660 00:39:22,610 --> 00:39:29,120 com and sign up to Visualist with the code Becca, B E C C A, and you will 661 00:39:29,120 --> 00:39:34,160 get a one month free trial and also 300 of credit, which To be used towards 662 00:39:34,200 --> 00:39:38,700 creating your client hubs and also other special features within Vicious. 663 00:39:38,710 --> 00:39:42,240 So we'll leave the details in the show notes and also 664 00:39:42,240 --> 00:39:43,990 please follow us on Instagram. 665 00:39:44,000 --> 00:39:45,360 We're at vicious underscore app. 666 00:39:45,370 --> 00:39:49,850 That's the best way to learn about new features and see the new features. 667 00:39:50,000 --> 00:39:55,430 If you like to have a look before signing up and we're also always very happy to 668 00:39:55,430 --> 00:39:57,730 jump into calls with wedding pros and. 669 00:39:58,145 --> 00:40:02,375 Other creative professionals to see through how to set up this list to 670 00:40:02,375 --> 00:40:05,195 make it work for you And your clients. 671 00:40:05,555 --> 00:40:10,085 Thank you so much Becca It's been such a pleasure being on this podcast and 672 00:40:10,085 --> 00:40:13,495 testing for you I feel like we're just having a conversation over brunch. 673 00:40:13,495 --> 00:40:14,595 So this has been lovely 674 00:40:15,040 --> 00:40:15,950 Becca: It's amazing. 675 00:40:15,950 --> 00:40:16,770 Thank you so much. 676 00:40:16,770 --> 00:40:18,830 Thank you for putting together that special offer as well. 677 00:40:18,870 --> 00:40:21,100 And if you're listening to this, just know that Sherry and 678 00:40:21,100 --> 00:40:22,600 the team are so approachable. 679 00:40:22,600 --> 00:40:23,220 They're so lovely. 680 00:40:23,220 --> 00:40:26,490 So if you want to try out the platform, if you've got questions, if you've got ideas 681 00:40:26,490 --> 00:40:28,550 for features, reach out and chat to them. 682 00:40:28,580 --> 00:40:30,650 I'm sure there'll be open to a conversation. 683 00:40:30,910 --> 00:40:31,990 Sherry, I hope to see you very soon. 684 00:40:32,550 --> 00:40:33,130 Cherie: Indeed. 685 00:40:33,150 --> 00:40:34,590 I'm sure I'll see you soon. 686 00:40:34,690 --> 00:40:36,390 And let's chat more about Vegas. 687 00:40:37,400 --> 00:40:38,540 Becca: Yeah, absolutely. 688 00:40:39,770 --> 00:40:41,350 I love that conversation with Sherry. 689 00:40:41,440 --> 00:40:44,890 Isn't it fantastic to hear about the future platforms where we're 690 00:40:44,890 --> 00:40:47,440 going with technology and all of these amazing tools that can help 691 00:40:47,480 --> 00:40:48,650 us in our wedding businesses. 692 00:40:48,690 --> 00:40:51,910 I recommend that you go and check Visualist out, use that code. 693 00:40:51,950 --> 00:40:54,970 I've put all of the details in the show notes and I'll see you next time.