If your CRM makes you want to throw your laptop out the window… it might be time to talk. In this episode, I’m breaking down the signs your tools have stopped working for you, why we drag our feet on switching, and how to make the leap without losing your sanity.

We’ll cover:

• Why outgrowing your tools is actually a sign of business success
• Common red flags it’s time to move on
• The sneaky ways we “make do” and why that’s not sustainable
• How to choose your next platform without drowning in options
• My step-by-step approach to a smooth, less-chaotic migration

Your tech stack should make your life easier, not harder. If yours is creating friction, this is your permission slip to upgrade.

Links:

Don’t want to do this alone? With BizMagic Tech Magic, we help you decide what platforms are still working for you, what platforms to switch to, and we can even handle the whole migration! Learn more here!

Learn more about BizMagic or the BizMagic Podcast.

We’ve all heard the rumors: “Facebook groups are dead.”

Spoiler—they’re not. They’ve just evolved.

In this episode, I’m talking with Michelle Vroom—business coach, community builder, and someone who’s been using her Facebook group to grow a multi-six-figure business for years (and isn’t planning to stop anytime soon).

We get into:

• Why small, specific groups are outperforming the big, noisy ones
• How buyer behavior is shifting in 2025—and what that means for your content
• What makes a group actually valuable (hint: it’s not engagement posts or promo threads)
• How to revive a quiet group without burning yourself out
• What most people get wrong when they try to start or grow a community

Michelle also shares the behind-the-scenes of her high-touch business model and how she uses Facebook groups to build trust without relying on flashy funnels.

Whether you’re just thinking about starting a group, or you’ve got one that feels like a ghost town, this conversation will help you figure out your next right move—without jumping on trends that don’t serve you.

About Michelle:

Michelle Vroom is a business coach with nearly 20 years of marketing & PR experience with nonprofits, agencies, and big corporations. Now she helps women service providers & coaches grow to 6-figures & beyond so they can become the provider for their families. With 3 boys at home, Michelle understands the challenges of limited resources & time, and shares her proven methods for visibility and relationship building that put you in control of getting clients.

Links:

Website

Facebook Group

Facebook

Instagram

Michelle’s team has put together a calendar with daily tips you can take in an hour or less to sign a new client in 30 days. Each action step only takes 60 min or less, so super easy to do.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣When you download the calendar, you’ll also get daily emails to guide you through the process and keep you on track:

https://michellevroom.com/30-days-to-new-clients

Learn more about BizMagic or the BizMagic Podcast.

Hiring support for your business can be a total game-changer—or a total headache. If you've been thinking about bringing someone on (even just a few hours a week), this episode will walk you through the things I’ve learned after two decades of hiring—both as a business owner and from years working in management and as a recruiting business assistant.

We’re talking about how to avoid the mess, miscommunications, and “oh no, what did I just do?” moments that can come with bringing someone new into your business.

Here’s what I cover:

• What you actually need to do before you even schedule the interview
• How to structure interviews so they’re informative, not awkward or overly formal
• Setting up your systems to make collaboration smoother (and save you time)
• Why clear expectations and regular communication are non-negotiable
• The legal (and ethical) difference between a contractor and an employee—and why it matters
• A few simple ways to make your new hire feel appreciated without overthinking it

Hiring isn’t about finding a unicorn. It’s about building a working relationship that supports both of you. And like most things in business, it works best when you’re intentional about how you set it up.

Links mentioned in this episode:

• Free Hiring Training
• Hiring Guide
• 4 Signs You’re Ready to Make Your First Hire

If you know someone else who’s in that “I think I need help, but I’m not sure how to hire” stage—send this their way. And as always, if you like the show, subscribing and sharing make a big difference. Thanks for listening.

Learn more about BizMagic or the BizMagic Podcast.

You ever think about how branding is basically dating?

If not—get ready to have your brain lit up. In this episode, I chat with brand strategist and unapologetic dating-analogy lover Hunter Myers of Verdure Design Co. We get into the juicy details of how relationship marketing can help you build a brand that not only looks cute... but keeps clients coming back for more.

We talk about:

• How to build genuine client relationships that actually last
• What “branding” really means (hint: it’s not just your logo and colors)
• How I almost broke my own brand by forgetting this one key relationship rule
• Using love languages to boost client loyalty and keep the spark alive
• Why it’s okay (and GOOD) to repel people who aren’t your people
• When to DIY your brand, and when to call in the pros

This conversation is packed with honest insights, relatable stories, and practical ways to create a brand experience that feels like a perfect-fit relationship—not a one-night stand with a CRM.

About Hunter: Hunter Myers is the founder of Verdure Design Co. and your go-to "branding wingwoman" who transforms forgettable businesses into magnetic brands that clients can't resist. Blending her background in English, Sociology, and over a decade of design experience, Hunter treats branding like dating—helping entrepreneurs create authentic "profiles" that showcase what makes them special. With her refreshingly real approach, she guides business owners to find their brand voice, attract perfect-fit clients, "dress to impress," and create relationships where both sides can't wait for the second date.

Links:

Hunter’s website: verduredesignco.com

@verduredesignco (IG, Threads)

Youtube

LinkedIn

Hunter is speaking at a virtual summit the 23rd-25th of July, all about the Brand Matchmaker method we discuss in this episode. Learn more here.

Hunter hosts a virtual AI-Powered Customer Clarity Workshop she mentions in the episode. Learn more here. In this 2-hour, hands-on workshop, I walk attendees through the process of creating buyer personas based on what they already know about their ideal clients. We go through the same activities I take my 1:1 clients through, with the help of AI, so they can walk away with a clear buyer persona at the end.

Learn more about BizMagic or the BizMagic Podcast.

In this episode, I’m getting into something I’m super passionate about—continuing education for business owners. Because yes, we should all be learning as we grow… but we also don’t need to drown in a sea of unread newsletters, abandoned courses, and “maybe someday” content.

So here’s the scoop, straight from my experience and an idea sparked by a long-time biz connection:

• Why continuing biz education matters (and what happens when you don’t)
• How to be intentional about the content you choose
• Why “one-size-fits-all” frameworks are 🚩🚩🚩
• How to avoid becoming a course-hoarder with a digital closet of unfinished stuff
• Easy ways to actually make time for learning (without guilt)
• When to chill, take a break, or bring in a coach for accountability

Whether you're deep in CEO growth mode or just want to avoid wasting money on another "guru" program, this episode will help you think more clearly about where to invest your time, money, and energy.

Learn more about BizMagic or the BizMagic Podcast.

This one’s for all of you hiding behind your laptop, hoping no one notices you haven’t posted since May. I sat down with the brilliant and refreshingly real Megan Hamilton to talk all things visibility in your business.

Megan is a speaking, confidence, and visibility coach—and she brings some serious depth to this conversation. We get into the emotional weeds of showing up in your business and how to make it feel actually doable without doing forced TikTok dances.

In this episode, we dig into:

• What visibility really means
• The mindset blocks that keep us playing small
• How pricing your offers is a form of visibility
• Megan’s “visibility ladder” technique to take small, sustainable steps
• Why your energy is the strategy and how excitement = magnetism
• The uncomfortable truth about launches, sales, and business droughts
• That time we bonded over meat flowers and salami rivers 🧀

So if you're struggling to show up, feeling like no one’s listening, or just sick of pretending you’re not scared—we got you.

About Megan:

Megan Hamilton is a speaking, visibility and confidence coach, a speaker, a musician and the host and producer of the Embracing Enchantment podcast on the Women in Media network. She’s also the speaker advisor for the award-winning TEDxQueensU.

Megan’s Links:

Socials: @ubuskills for everything but I’m off X :) Embracing Enchantment Podcast IG

Megan’s website: https://www.ubuskills.com

Thriving visibility cohort 5 begins in September. Learn more here: https://www.ubuskills.com/thriving-visibility

Learn more about BizMagic or the BizMagic Podcast.

This episode is a little different, y’all—because BizMagic just turned 8 years old! 🥳

So I’m throwing a party in podcast form. This one’s part celebration, part reflection, and part storytime about how this wild business of mine came to be—and what I’ve learned (and unlearned) along the way.

If you’ve ever scaled too fast, hired the wrong person, clung to a million-dollar fantasy check, or wondered if you’re doing it “right,” this one’s for you.

In this episode, I’m sharing:

• BizMagic’s journey into being
• The moment I realized I accidentally became an agency
• Why 2022 was a giant dumpster fire and also one of my best teachers
• What scaling too fast taught me about systems, boundaries, and trust
• Some of the milestones that actually matter (hint: it’s not always about revenue)
• The unglamorous but essential magic of just staying in business
• Why my team is the real MVP
• And a big ol’ thank you to you for being part of this wild ride

If you’re a small biz owner who is thriving, surviving, or even just treading water, join me to celebrate the messy, magical, still-here years.

Learn more about BizMagic or the BizMagic Podcast.

Today, we dig into how to keep your business seen—even when you’re running on empty—thanks to the brilliant Marketing Minimum framework from Shari Balouchi. We cut through the shiny fluff and get down to bite-sized strategies that actually stick.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• What a “Marketing Minimum” actually is—and why it means way more than skimping on visibility.
• How to pre-decide and OWN your lowest-effort marketing actions so you don’t freeze up when you’re burned out.
• Real-world examples from guest pitching to email follow-ups—even when life hits.
• The big myths around “consistency” and why showing up perfectly every day is bullshit.
• Tactics to ditch the “all-or-nothing” mindset.
• One simple question to ask yourself to kickstart your own marketing minimum in under 60 seconds.

If you’ve ever felt paralyzed by all the content ideas, schedules, or tech BS—and wondered why the hell can’t I just get visible?—this episode is your vibe. Grab your favorite drink, and let’s do this.

About Shari:

Shari Balouchi is a business coach, marketing strategist, and unapologetic whole ass human®.

She brings over a decade of professional marketing experience—leading strategy for universities, global nonprofits, and impact-driven brands—alongside six years of coaching entrepreneurs 1:1, from solo consultants to seven-figure CEOs. Shari blends deep expertise with lived experience to help people build businesses that actually work for their lives.

As a multiracial woman navigating chronic illness, her whole ass human approach is equal parts data, lived experience, and cultural nuance. She’s helped clients create consistent full-time income, scale without sacrificing their wellbeing, grow teams that feel supportive (not overwhelming), and build systems that align with how their brains operate.

She’s also the host of Success for Whole Ass Humans, a podcast that explores business growth through grounded analysis and real-world client case studies. Today, we’re diving into her signature framework, Find Your Marketing Minimum, so you can keep your business moving, even on your lowest-energy days. When she’s off the clock, you’ll find her sipping strong tea, nerding out on the human condition, or exploring Oregon’s natural beauty with her phone firmly on Do Not Disturb.

Links:

Website: https://www.sharibalouchi.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sharibalouchi

Subscribe to The Marketing Minimum, a free email series designed to help you simplify your strategy, build momentum in a way that works with your real-life capacity, and stop overextending yourself just to stay visible.

(Shari also offers a limited number of Find Your Marketing Minimum intensives each quarter if you want 1:1 support building a personalized strategy.)

Tune into her podcast Success for Whole Ass Humans where she shares a grounded approach to business growth—for entrepreneurs who want strategy that honors their values, lived experience, and real-life capacity.

Learn more about BizMagic or the BizMagic Podcast.