January sees the first of our ‘Women In Business’ series, focusing on Cat Archer Underwood from The Brandologist.
Cat Archer Underwood began her business “The Brandologist” after realising that small businesses needed help with rebranding, marketing strategy and overseeing the full creative direction. During the lockdown, the need for this support became more apparent and she began offering online courses and workshops to teach business owners how to do this all themselves.
Running her own business has always been something that Cat thought she would end up doing, “My family ran a business so I always suspected I might come back to being self-employed one day,” says Cat. Initially setting up her business was achieved through sheer grit and refusal to give up. She knows that there are always tough times but learning to see the good around her is a skill she is still working on. Recently, she is seeing the importance of going gently and keeping an eye on the bigger picture.
It has become apparent after speaking with a selection of Women In Business, that we all face barriers in our careers and it is important to speak about these. Cat spoke about her challenges being two-fold. Firstly, in the form of self-sabotage and self-doubt, which can cause barriers for many women. “When you experience a number of set-backs, self-doubt can start to rear its ugly head. It’s tricky recognising these beliefs versus a genuine instinct not to do something,” says Cat. Having children is another barrier that many women experience in the workplace both physically and mentally. Cat recently became a mother and speaks about the challenges she has experienced…
“The biggest challenge for me has been pregnancy and having a new-born baby needing around-the-clock feeding. There are physical and mental demands that no matter how brilliant, resilient or focussed you are, you can’t be all things to all people, all of the time. Something has to give. For me there’s still a lot to be done to better support new mums (and dads too) who are in business or building their careers. This is one of the major purposes for my brand now, because digital products are a way for women in business to gain time and financial freedom, so they can play bigger and achieve more, in fewer, more predictable hours versus 1:1 freelancer services.”
Encouraging Other Women In Business
Reminding others to never give up and remember their dreams is important to Cat. “Sometimes we can lose sight of our dreams and it feels so out of reach that we can’t visualise it anymore. We need to remember that there’s no rush, there’s no right way or wrong way to go about it. If you need time, take it. Need to make a temporary change, do that. Your journey is your own and you are a lot more capable than you may realise on those days where you feel like giving up.”
“If you are young and about the enter the world of business, I would remind you to do it your own way. Never stop learning and growing. Let others guide and inspire you but avoid the comparison trap. Most importantly, trust your gut. I’d also say avoid going down the road of letting social media dominate your time. This can be a real drain and it took me a while to realise that business social media needs a good strategy behind it that results in something profitable.”
We took this opportunity to ask Cat what advice she would give other women looking to grow either their own business or within a company they work for. Her main advice was to have a vision in mind, know what you are aiming for and keeping that goal in sight. She also advises that speaking with a coach can help individuals understand the best ways to achieve the goals they have set. “The best things I did was to hire a coach to help me unpack and plan out the best ways to get to what I wanted,” says Cat.
What is next for The Brandologist?
The growth of The Brandologist is very much a focus area for Cat going forward. She is hoping to grow her signature programme, Expand Your Brand, which takes business owners through the full process of creating and selling their first course, online class or group programme. She is hoping to collaborate with experts to support her with delivering this. Adding another arm to the business is also in her sights, with the aim to create, write and build website sales pages as an ancillary service.
Top Tip for Growing A Company
When asked what would be her tip for growing a company, Cat suggested that the company should really start with one really good thing and avoid lots of different products and services because this dilutes the message. She works with her clients at The Brandologist, to make sure they have a clear brand belief system that highlights their values and purpose so that people can relate with that and be part of what they are doing. Building a community so that they have an audience that understands them, and their products and services is key.
If you would like to speak to Cat Archer Underwood regarding The Brandologist’s services then please get in touch with her via her website.
If you would like to feature in our Women in Business Series, then please get in touch.
Read our other Women in Business interviews here: Lizzie Smith, Suzanne Bungard, Terrie Hounsome, Dipalee Jukes.