We recently connected with Rebekah Read and have shared our conversation below.

Rebekah, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Owning a business isn’t always glamorous and so most business owners we’ve connected with have shared that on tough days they sometimes wonder what it would have been like to have just had a regular job instead of all the responsibility of running a business. Have you ever felt that way?

I created my business for three reasons: 1. Freedom to travel
2. Purpose
3. To stay home with (future) children

I had just left the mission field and after spending a year and a half in Honduras caring for orphaned and vulnerable children, I didn’t feel fulfilled in my current corporate job. After working at a real estate company for a year and creating websites and doing social media for clients, I realized I could make more money, donate it how I wanted, and visit my second family in Honduras if I had my own business.

I wish I could say I took the leap and never looked back, but I can’t.

For the first 4 years of my business I felt fulfilled. Even if website design and social media didn’t feel like my calling, I was able to donate a portion of my proceeds to the nonprofit I helped in Honduras and it felt like I was still making a difference. Then I had my daughter and it felt like the initial 3 goals all fell in line. I had the freedom to travel and took her everywhere. In her first year of life we went on 14 plane rides. I got to stay at home with her and work during her nap. It was a privilege, and yet it was far harder than I ever could have imagined. The anxiety came creeping back in and I felt the overwhelm of it all. I started toying with the idea of getting a regular 9-5 job. I couldn’t run my business successfully and I didn’t feel I was able to be a good mom either.

I decided to get back on anxiety meds, take a break from website client work, and reevaluate. That takes us to now. I don’t have the perfect conclusion and I plan on taking it day by day, but as the new year starts and I watch other entrepreneurs dive head in, I plan on taking a step back. I have a few social media clients I have had since the very beginning and I will continue to work with them to bring in some money. I will pray my daughter can get off the 9 month daycare wait-list so I can have more time for my business and hopefully develop a renewed passion for it. I am excited for 2023! I know it won’t be my most successful year income wise, but I am hoping I can achieve a better balance and put my mental health first.

Rebekah, 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?

My name is Bekah and I created my business in 2018 after not feeling fulfilled in a normal 9-5 job. My work ethic and speed didn’t align and I decided starting my own business would be a better fit. In the beginning I did anything related to marketing as many new entrepreneurs do, but soon honed my craft to being website design on Squarespace and Showit for other (usually new) businesses. In 2020 I worried people wouldn’t want to spend $4,000 on a new website, so I pivoted to website in a day. That service took off and became my main offering for the next 2 years. I now have two Squarespace courses – one teaching entrepreneurs how to design their own website and one on SEO – and spend my days balancing motherhood and running my own business.

In all my pivots, the one thing that has remained the same about my business is my passion for being my client’s biggest cheerleader and helping them uncover what makes their brand unique and reflecting that on their website.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

When you start your business you have to get scrappy with how you find clients. It is easy to get pulled into the social media game due to the instant dopamine hits and it CAN be a great way to get clients, however I knew from the beginning I didn’t want that to be my long-term game.

I started blogging in 2018 and had maybe a few people read each post. It felt pointless, but I continued to blog and then incorporated YouTube into my marketing strategy. I now get 90% of my clients through SEO (they find me via search engines) and I don’t have to participate in the rat-race and ever-changing world of social media unless I want to.

I encourage all my clients to blog at least a few times a month. Even if you only blog once a month, that is 12 new “pages” on your website and over 12 opportunities to add keyword phrases to your website that people may use to search for on Google.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

I worked with Reach Out Orphanage Ministries for 1.5 years in Honduras and was a foster mom for a portion of that time. This fueled my desire to start my business and my business has allowed me to partner with them in ways I couldn’t do in a normal 9-5 such as donating 10% of my proceeds, giving them free marketing services, and traveling to Honduras to help in different ways. Each year I find a different way to support this small non-profit and it has been a huge blessing to my life.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://rebekahreadcreative.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebekahreadcreative/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rebekahreadcreative/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/rebekahread

Image Credits
Suzy Holling Hannah LaBolle