Hey there, my friend, welcome to episode 347 of the Small Business Made Simple Podcast.

Thanks for leading me your ears right now – I know you have lots of other things you could be doing or listening to – so I appreciate you.

Today Sara Howard is joining me, and we are business growth – good growth – beyond solo growth.  It’s a great chat.

But before we get into that one, did you get a chance to listen into last week’s episode which was all about whether we should still be bothering to use hashtags in our captions on social media.  Take a listen to episode 346 here, if you haven’t already: www.socialmediaandmarketing.com.au/346

Theres lots of chatter on the internet at the moment around AI and especially the use of AI graphics and photos on the internet – especially on socials.  Is what you are looking at fake or real? And believe me it’s almost impossible to tell sometimes – other times is sooo embarrassingly obvious! Being in a constant state of not knowing, damages trust, damages community and damages brands.

But do you know what you can’t fake? In real life events. They can’t be, at this point in time, at least.  The person at the front of the room is real, so are the people at the event.  So if you’re frustrated with the all the AI and wondering what’s real, what’s not and who to listen to (ensuring they are human!), then come along to the 2025 Social Media and Marketing Conference in Melbourne in August. Tickets are selling well – all the speakers are locked in (and boy is it like a rockstar concert lineup!).  You can get your ticket here: www.socialmediaandmarketing.com.au/conference – Super Early Bird Tickets are on sale now – come see the rockstar lineup for only $199. The date is Friday 29^th August, and the place is 700 Bourke Street, Melbourne. It’s THE conference to come to and bonus is that we get to hang out!

Okay, onto today’s episode and my chat with Sara. Whether you are thinking of growing your business or just growing your profits, this is a great chat.  Have a listen – here’s Sara.

INTERVIEW WITH SARA HOWARD

Website:  www.beyondsolo.co

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahoward/

I hope you enjoyed that chat. I know I did. My biggest takeaway was around planning for the exit of business. Think about your business’s endgame early—selling, succession, or closure—so you can build value and ensure a smooth transition. I am definitely in that phase – something that I will create a podcast about soon-ish! But business goals are changing and 2025 is definitely the year of succession for me.

What was your biggest takeaway?

All Sara’s details are in the show notes at www.socialmediaandmarketing.com.au/347 and you can get Sara’s book Beyond Solo at www.beyondsolo.co and at all good book stores.

If you’re rethinking your business strategy after this episode and wondering “What should I actually be doing instead?”—you are so not alone.

Come join me in the Like Minded Business Owners Facebook group and let’s chat about what’s working now. Or book an Hour of Power with me and we’ll map out a strategy that’s actually built for 2025.

Until next time, keep it simple, stay in action, and as always—make marketing a priority in your business.

Thanks for tuning in.

If you’re enjoying this podcast, don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode and share this with a friend.  And maybe leave me a rating and a review wherever you listen in.  Those things are like gold for podcasters like me!  PS – you can leave more than one rating and review – just saying!

If we aren’t hanging out on social media then let’s get social on social – you’ll find me on Instagram, Facebook, and my fav LinkedIn.

But whatever you do,

…….. remember small business peep, as my opening song says, there’s no point in dreaming small!