We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Freya Padmore. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Freya below.

Freya, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. One of the most important things we can do as business owners is ensure that our customers feel appreciated. What’s something you’ve done or seen a business owner do to help a customer feel valued?

As a tech nerd and systems fanatic, it would be tempting to say that a good client experience comes from seamless systems, tech that wows and automations that make everything function perfectly.

While they’re all big contributors to an amazing client experience, the one thing that I think can’t be replaced or replicated is the HUMAN TOUCH.

A thank you card in the post, a 1:1 welcome call with the founder when you join an online programme, or a personalised sales video with someone actually using your name. All these human things are what make a client experience truly great.

For me, one of the ways I bring a human touch to my client experience is by sending a personalised thank you gift in the post, along with a handwritten letter expressing my appreciation.

As a website designer, I often help bring brands to life in the digital world, but I like to take things offline to truly bring them to life. In particular, I love gifting custom notebooks with my clients logo engraved onto them. Not a corporate gift with MY logo (who wants another pen or branded mug?!), but a thoughtful gift with THEIR logo. Especially as the business world is becoming increasingly online, having a physical representation of your own brand can be truly special.

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.

My name is Freya Padmore and I am a website designer and your new techy bestie. I like to describe myself as a huge nerd and with over 4 years experience in website design, along with a degree in digital marketing – I know how to make a website that turns clicks into clients.

What makes me different from other web designers is my passion for all things techie. I don’t just create websites that look beautiful. I create websites that are SEO optimised, automate the repetitive processes in your business and capture leads you can convert into clients through email marketing. I call it my “attract, convert and retain” method.

My whole working career has been in marketing, starting with my degree in Digital Marketing from the University of Derby. This is where I really discovered my love for web design and SEO, learning about how your online presence can be a tool for building trust and generating leads.

During Covid I joined a Facebook group full of small businesses in my local area and I got to see first hand how powerful community is. In such a difficult time, this community came together each week to share their worries and support each other through the hard times over a glass of wine and a few tears too.

I really got to appreciate just how much small business owners care about what they do. It is a passion that is unparalleled.

After graduating, I fulfilled my life long dream of moving to London and worked at an award-winning marketing agency where I ran campaigns for huge brands like Amazon but I was missing the passion that came with small businesses. I learnt a lot but I was totally unfulfilled staring at emails and spreadsheets all day. Not to mention my salary and growth was completely in the hands of someone else – no thanks!

I wanted to go back to supporting small businesses, back to working on my own terms and back caring about my work. Which is how I ended up here: A web designer working with all sorts of passionate people. I adore helping small businesses make an impact through websites that actually convert.

So, if you’re ready to build a high-converting website rooted in marketing strategy and want to work with someone who understands your passion and will do everything to help you succeed…. that’s where I come in!

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

Joining online communities has been my biggest source of clients by far. It’s by actually connecting human to human that I have managed to grow my business into what it is today.

I started off by going to as many in-person networking events as possible but really struggled to get my business off the ground by going to physical events. I think in part this was due to the quality of the events I was attending. I didn’t have much money to invest at the start so was going to free and super low-cost events which likely wasn’t the best place to find clients.

But I also think that in-person networking often came with a hidden agenda – everyone was there to find clients, to pitch their services and not to grow genuine connections.

Online communities on the other hand were the exact opposite – everyone is there to collaborate, support one another, celebrate the wins, troubleshoot the lows and THAT is what has grown my business. Clients came as a natural result of building genuine connections with people over a long period of time. As did collaborations and friendships.

Examples of these online communities included virtual coworking groups, marketing clubs, Facebook groups and virtual networking groups. Wild Coworking is a particular community that I cannot recommend enough.

So if I had one piece of advice for a business owner looking to grow your client base – I’d suggest starting with genuine connection, rather than sales. It might just surprise you what comes next.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

A conversation with my business coach just before the new year was a true turning point for my business. I realised I had stopped prioritising joy in my business and had forgotten to pursue what I truly LOVED about my business. For me, that was all the techy and nerdy side of business. I love to learn and I love to teach. That’s how I got started in business in the first place.

So when I realised I had stopped prioritising joy, I made it my mission to start finding the fun again. I wasn’t prepared to go to another boring networking event, or spend months on a website I wasn’t interested in.

Instead, I wanted to host masterclasses, make time in my calendar to learn new skills and focus on attracting clients that lit me up, rather than whoever would pay me.

It was this pivot from hunting the next client to prioritising joy that helped me fall in love with my business again and I’m so glad I made that change.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.freyapadmore.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/freyapadmore
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/freyapadmore/

Image Credits

Bethany Lavin
Nicole Engelmann
Rosie Frost