Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Chloe Thomas. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Chloe, appreciate you joining us today. Your ability to build a team is often a key determinant of your success as a business owner and so we’d love to get a conversation going with successful entrepreneurs like yourself around what your recruiting process was like -especially early on. How did you build your team?

Outsourcing is something that I’d do all over again.

I took the leap into entrepreneurship in May of 2021 and made my first contractor hire in August the same year. When starting my company, I didn’t want to be the “jack of all trades”. I loved website design but potential clients were consistently asking me for brand design as well. Instead of giving them cookie cutter designs, I decided to completely hire out this portion of my service suite. Since then, we’ve designed over 100 brands and while I’ve led creative direction on them, I haven’t had a physical hand in this process since.

Hiring my first contractor surprisingly wasn’t scary. It was something that felt needed to propel my company to where I wanted it to go. I remember posting to social media to source any friends or fellow designers that wanted extra work. Low and behold, one of my designer friends had a sister-in-law that was looking for extra work. We went through a very fluid, easy-going interview process and since then, she’s been with us at the studio!

My advice to anyone outsourcing important pieces of their business is this: hire someone for a personality/culture fit, not a skills fit. While skills are very important, I’ve found that my best hires are those who mesh with me on a personal level – skills can always be learned and taught.

Chloe, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I was an undergrad in college, majoring in Business Administration with a focus in Information Technology when I found myself thinking, “There has to be more to development than this.”

Many classes in college focused on the very technical aspects of development– debugging code, building, crafting user experiences– all of which are important. However, I was craving personality and connection. While pursuing my degree, I decided to take on any logo and website design work I could get my hands on. I created an Instagram in December 2018 and started posting work I was doing in my free time.

Soon thereafter, I dropped my name in the comments section of a dietitian Facebook group I was in and I booked my first legit client. She was a dietitian in Colorado looking for brand and website design. We worked together for a few weeks and launched her private practice website. Since that moment, I’ve been targeting private practice clinicians.

At Studio Adagio, we serve our clients in branding design, website development, SEO strategy and copywriting. Our clients are comprised of any individual in private practice, but mainly Registered Dietitians and Therapists. Our goal is to equip them with a brand that is on the same level as their expertise, a website that brings in leads while they parent their kids and messaging that makes their clients feel understood. We specialize in a data-first approach, always showing our clients that you get what efforts you put into your private practice.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

Shockingly? Google. It sounds cliche because it’s what we do – but focusing your efforts into blogging and thus an SEO strategy is key. I think that this has been the most effective way of growing my clientele because with an SEO strategy, you are targeting individuals with a certain search intent. So, when they hop on my website, they’re usually my ideal clients. From there, I know my messaging and my brand will resonate with them enough to want to book a call. It’s an easy user experience!

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

I love this question because I am in such a small niche. While we serve a wide span of private practice clinicians, we’ve found our main clientele to be therapists and dietitians. I truly believe fostering connections within the space and creating a great client experience helped me to build a reputation.

After I served my first dietitian client in Colorado, she referred me out to another friend. That friend sent three more my way. I’d like to think this is because I resonated with my ideal client personally. I love hearing about their lives– personal and professional– and learning how I can serve them as a friend first, client second. By leading this way, I’ve found that I am able to cater to their professional needs better, thus leaving them happy with their purchase of our services.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://studioadagio.co/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/studioadagio.co
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chloecreativestudio/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/chloe-creative-studio

Image Credits

Hannah Harmon Photography