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

Alright, Emily thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Are you happier as a business owner? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job?

I am a lot happier owning a business than I was working at jobs – but it does come with its downsides.

The reason I left regular jobs was because they couldn’t accommodate for my health needs. For example, when you are plagued with chronic migraines, there’s really no point trying to get any serious work done, so you need a job that’s flexible enough to allow you to work when you’re feeling well – even if that’s in the middle of the night. And most jobs just aren’t an option!

But even if it weren’t for health reasons, I always would have ended up working for myself. Because the real joy is being able to do what you love, choosing what you want to work on each day, and controlling when and how much you work.

There have been times where not enough clients were coming in, or the clients I did have weren’t a good fit, and stress was high. In those times, it’s so easy to consider for a moment just going back to the simpler life with a steady job, where you have one boss and you can clock out at the end of the day.

But then I remember that, since I run my own business, I can take a three hour break in the middle of the day, or decide to take a personal day at the last minute so I can spend time with family or just knock out some housework. That, to me, is worth the risk and uncertainty of entrepreneurship!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I own a web design studio called By Emily Jane, where we’ve worked one-on-one with over 70 small businesses worldwide. I’m passionate about helping helping creatives find more success by standing out, through personality-based design that converts.

I’m a former photographer who spent hundreds of hours on a mediocre website, only to get no clients from it. Years later, I now have a website that shows up at the top of search results and gets me leads, and I’ve been able to help my clients attract and book their dream wedding couples! What changed was the addition of personalized strategy and high-level design for each website.

I love sharing what I’ve learned through a relaxed and fun approach to free website reviews on social media, in-depth blog tutorials, and industry podcasts! I believe everyone should be able to live comfortably doing the work they love, and the answer is finding what makes you and your business unique, and then infusing that into all of your marketing.

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

The most effective strategy for growing my clientele was A) niching down and B) finding speaking opportunities in that niche.

I think an important thing to note right off the bat for anyone who’s scared to niche down is this: Niching is mainly a positioning strategy. It doesn’t mean you can’t still work on projects outside of that niche. It just means those projects aren’t at the forefront of your marketing. One thing I’ve learned is you will likely keep getting inquiries from all manner of industries, regardless of your positioning. Especially in the form of referrals from past clients.

But without choosing a fairly narrow niche, marketing becomes so much more difficult. For example, if you’re wanting to work with all creatives, you now have tonnns of competition in your market. It will be harder to stand out, harder to win speaking opportunities, and harder to create content that speaks to your [very broad] audience.

When I finally decided to label myself “a designer for wedding pros” (BEFORE I actually had many wedding clients, mind you – so don’t wait), it became so much easier to not only find podcasts to go on and summits to apply for, but I also started getting invited to opportunities too, purely because of that title.

And I have found that once you are featured as an expert in an outlet that’s trusted by your niche, then you are also trusted by that audience. It has been the most efficient way of growing my audience and getting new clients that I have found!

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

Something I’ve had to unlearn (repeatedly) is that people pleasing provides a better client experience. (Hint: It can to a certain extent, but when taken too far, you’re doing both you and your client a disservice.)

On my first 5-figure project, I felt more pressure to give in to every request and extension, to never argue or push back, to let the customer always be right. After all, they were paying me so much money – who am I to boss them around when they stray from the contract?

But because I didn’t stick to my terms on the little things like late responses and additional unpaid work, it added up to a big thing. I ended up having to ask for a paid extension, when instead I could have communicated the potential consequences early on. It made the client feel like they couldn’t fully trust me to guide the project.

I learned to put transparency first, even if it seems like I’m being difficult in the moment. Because I can’t expect the client to know every time they’re doing something that’s outside the contract. It just takes not being afraid to communicate.

Contact Info:

• Website: byemilyjane.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/byemilyjane
• Facebook: facebook.com/byemilyjanefb
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emilyjanelee/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@byemilyjane
• Other: tiktok.com/me/@byemilyjane

Image Credits
Harmland Photography Hannah Hix Photography Catie Ronquillo Photography