Eps 16 Paths To Creative Freedom: Zoe Sizemore

We sit down with Zoe, a multidisciplinary designer and illustrator, to unpack how strategy-led branding helps small businesses grow without burning out. From networking that actually works to AI’s impact on SEO, this is a practical guide to building trust, setting boundaries, and staying creative.

• career path from fine arts to branding
• why client freedom starts with strategy
• finding clients via networking and Wix marketplace
• realistic timelines for SEO and web projects
• onboarding workbook and feedback guides
• using AI for structure, not as a substitute
• SEO shifts toward FAQs and AI search
• boundaries, parenting, and urgent requests
• pricing pressure and market headwinds
• sustainable routines to avoid burnout
• illustration practice and symbolic storytelling
• platform choices across Pinterest and LinkedIn
• practical tips for 2026 readiness

https://www.cipdesignstudio.com/

If you would like to join us on the Bolton Inc. Effect podcast, please get in touch. It's literally just a cup of coffee, a chat, and a genuine interest in what makes us human.

Transcript

Welcome And Community Series Setup

SPEAKER_03 0:00

The Bolton Ink Effect.

SPEAKER_00 0:02

Hey there, I'm Louis. And I'm Bridget. Welcome to the Bolton Ink Effect podcast, where we are navigating new horizons.

SPEAKER_02 0:10

Each week we're pulling back the curtain on what it really takes to build something remarkable, a business, a life and a legacy.

SPEAKER_00 0:16

So join us as we share honest conversations about relationship, entrepreneurship, video production, and the art of building a life together in a new land.

SPEAKER_02 0:25

Because sometimes the biggest risks lead to the greatest rewards. How can we help?

SPEAKER_03 0:31

Can I ask you a question?

Zoe’s Career From Signs To Strategy

SPEAKER_02 0:36

Welcome to the Bolton Inc Effect podcast, Larry. It's nice to have you in the studio with us this morning. Thanks for having me. I'd like to get straight in. I'd like to understand a little bit more about your business. As we mentioned earlier, this is part of the community podcast series that we're doing where we're talking to people who are in and around our community and finding out what they do and how they do it. So you're an artist with a fine arts degree, turn graphic designer, turn web designer, turn brand person. Yeah, that's okay. So how how does all of that fit together?

SPEAKER_01 1:10

That is the hardest thing to do, my 30 seconds pitch talk when I go to networking events and things like that, because I am quite, you know, a jack of all trades. Um I started out when I finished my degree in graphic design a long time ago, nearly 20 years ago now, um, trying to find work right after the global financial crisis. Um no one wanted students with no experience. I wasn't prepared to work for free because I was in a flat in Auckland and had a life. Um so I went straight into signwriting, which probably was one of the best things for me because it was like learning the trade, you know, almost like an apprenticeship on the ground skills, learning how to vector digitally, create things and that sort of thing. Um and then I moved down here when I met my now husband and I went into another signwriting job, but the whole time I was like always, always on my craft because I just wanted to be like in branding and graphic design. Um, but you had to have some experience to do that. So eventually I got into that in um Rotorua and had amazing experience a year there. Um, unfortunately, he was more into mountain biking than running a business, and with um some other things going on, he decided to pull back and just be out on his own and dropped his stuff. So then I had to get another job, and I ended up um down in the mount in um product development, which was an amazing experience because I learned everything from like AdWords campaigns, launching products, coming up with the branding, developing the website and all of that. Um, and then I had my first child, didn't want to go back into those 50-hour grind weeks, there wasn't a flexible option. Um, so I really took that maternity leave and was like, what do I want to offer the world? What is missing? And at the time um there weren't as many as there are now small one-man bands doing it from home. And so I thought, well, I can take all this experience I've had, like developing products, developing businesses, seeing how that all goes, and offer it one-to-one. Um, so small businesses didn't have such a big outlay to get started, um, and creating freedom for my customers is what keeps me doing what I love every day. I love that I can help them through every step of the process from not necessarily coming up with the name because that's really hard, but I'll send them to the right people. So I'll send them to the professional photographer down the road. I'll send them to the copywriter that's gonna make them sound amazing and speak in their brand voice. I'll work with them on the strategy of how they're gonna have a niche in their business, and then I'll come up with what that looks like visually, which carries on from branding to web design to social media marketing, all of that. And I can always connect them with other people because in this super digital world now, we all have that fear that you're gonna take that$600 or$1,000 that's your little nugget of um investment for your business, and you're gonna give it to someone online that's gonna take you for a ride, you know. So I love connecting people with people, and and then I love um being on the journey with my customers right through and watching their business succeed.

SPEAKER_02 4:02

That sounds absolutely amazing. I mean, there's there's there's there's lots to pick out there. So let's go back a few steps. So you said giving your customers freedom, or your clients, giving giving your clients freedom. So what you mean by that is they then get to operate in their own sphere of their business, whatever that is, whether they're I mean, what what are some of your clients?

SPEAKER_01 4:22

That's the hardest thing. I mean, when I'm trying to advertise what I do online, I they're all sorts of people. And I've worked with in different like networking groups and like with mentors and all those sorts of things, they say you should niche, you should niche, but niching can get a bit boring. Like if I said I only work with women who do like sound bowls or wellness, then I end up working with you know, and also then it's tricky because they're in competition with each other and they might not like it that I'm you know working with all their competitors, so that's a tricky thing as well. So it's really interesting. Each thing I go into, um, I just learn all about that. I just absorb myself in their world. So yesterday, for example, I was building a website for a fence and decking company that's local, and I came out of my office after like a good six hours at the computer, and I was looking outside and I was like, I know that's a um horizontal paling fence, and and that's uh um security fencing for a school, and that's it, and that's like my vision was just all the types of fencing. So, yeah, it's just really interesting to learn about all the different businesses and what they do and get absorbed in their world.

Defining Freedom For Clients

SPEAKER_02 5:24

So, uh so once again, go back two steps. How do you find all your customers and your clo the c and the clients that you work with? So I'd be very keen to find out how you do that and if you have any advice for other people who are who are looking, and then um let's talk a little bit about how you formulate that strategy. So let's let let's do the how we find clients bit first.

SPEAKER_01 5:44

So in the beginning, it's really tricky, and obviously I help clients with this as well. Um, you you're starting out and you get your website live and you think, oh, I've got to be ready because I'm gonna get this rush of people, and it just doesn't work like that. It's a slow build when it comes to social media and having a website presence. It can take at least three months to start getting traction with your SEO, your search engine optimization.

SPEAKER_02 6:05

And do you do that as well?

SPEAKER_01 6:06

Yes, I do that as part of that puzzle of web design. Um, and then obviously social media that can take 18 months to get a good following. So I always say to people, if you want to get customers, you need to get face to face, you need to get into those networking groups, you need to, if you've got no work at all, just offer your services at a discounted rate and then get some word of mouth happening after they've worked with you. Um, you know, I think another thing people forget to do when they start out in business is to share it with their family and friends. They'll go to a Christmas party and they'll forget to say, Hey, I've actually just started this business and I'm doing this, and if you have anyone you know. Um, and sometimes you might feel disheartened if you've got a networking because you meet all these people and you think, oh, none of them are really relevant to me. But I've had people come to me and say, Oh, um, so-and-so told me to come to you, and I'm like, I don't even know who that person is. And so that's something that you would have got through a networking. Maybe networking. Or maybe someone at networking, they pass that on to someone else. Like sometimes people say, Oh, your friend blah blah blah. I'm like, I don't know who that is. I don't have a friend called friend, but I'm like, oh, amazing. And then I'm really lucky that that would be sort of a part of my business and how I get clients. But another way is um I'm a Wix partner, so Wix is a platform you build websites on, and in the time I've been building with them over a decade now, I've um become a legend status partner, which means I've built over 60 websites with them, and I'm like a trusted partner with them. I have a partner manager, and um they have what's called a marketplace where leads are sent through. So sometimes I've actually restricted mine to New Zealand and Australia just for time zone purposes, but sometimes it could be someone just down the road. They've gone into Wix, they've become overwhelmed, or they have an existing Wix site that they want done better, and they'll put into Wix. I want someone, an expert to help me, and it might put my name forward. So the Wix usually gives them about three or four options, and then I get the opportunity to put a proposal to that person for what they're after.

SPEAKER_02 7:54

Oh, that's fantastic.

SPEAKER_01 7:55

And that that really got me through some tight times, definitely. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 7:59

Okay. Um, and so then back to the strategy question. So, how do you break down the business? How do you what is your process for saying this is where the customer is, this is where they need to get to, what's your process in between?

Finding Clients: Networking And Wix

SPEAKER_01 8:12

Yeah, so that can be really tricky because it usually start with an onboarding call and ask a lot of questions, see where they're at, because you never quite know what stage a business people are in and how much they know. Um, one of my taglines is you don't know what you don't know. I think that's um one of Oprah Winfrey's sayings. But I've had clients say, Well, actually, I've worked in marketing, so I do know what I do know. And then you talk to them and you go, Yeah, but marketing is changing all the time, you know. Like it I am constantly in it, and I'm still just peddling to keep up with all the changes. So when people are running their own business and they're doing what they do and they're also doing everything else, you know, they do need an expert to step in. Um, so strategy from the start starts with a workbook. So I I give them an online workbook and I often get the feedback. And this is when you've developed yourself. Yeah, yeah. And I often get the feedback from people, I never thought of that, I never thought of this. And um, and it actually helps them in their business really objectively look at what they're doing and why they're doing it and who they're trying to work with. So once we develop who their ideal customer is, who they're targeting, then we can actually come up with what that looks like. So then we brainstorm in Pinterest and we go and look at their competitors and stuff like that, and then we find out what's a yes and what's a no. Um, and so it's really pulling out, so I don't get those people that go, I really love purple, you know. And it's like, well, you might love purple, but what does purple say about your business and what do your customers like and what does purple communicate to them? So it's it's really a guiding process from the beginning of teaching them about what branding is. Because it's visual, a lot of people don't actually understand the language around it, or they don't even um consciously recognise what they're seeing and how it's influencing them. So it's always a bit of a consultation at the start, and um, because I've been in business such a long time, I've learnt that if someone's paid a deposit, um then they can come in and have some chats with me. But I'm not gonna have someone into the office for free for three hours to talk about business and then they might go off and do something else. Because I just don't have that capacity to do that for free. So if someone comes to me and they're not sure about working with me, we do what's called a marketing consultation because all of that goodness comes out in there, and they can then not choose not to work with me, but they've had that initial consultation that actually helps them get started, and even if they don't choose to work with me, they've usually got a whole lot of value out of that session.

SPEAKER_02 10:24

Okay, so so let's say that they do choose to work with you, you've got this workbook, um, and that's something that you've obviously put together over the years and refined, and so that gives you the foundation for what it is that you need to do with the business. You talk about the goals, you talk about what they want to do, and you do things over a two and a five-year period with them. So you ask them to look into the future and yeah, yeah, for sure. Yeah, that's right. Um, and then so so what happens when you're stuck?

SPEAKER_01 10:49

Yeah, so obviously that's the thing that comes up, and I've developed a few strategies over the years of business of doing that. Um, at the beginning, obviously you take everything you can get, and you're like, I just want to work and I love doing what I do. But what you find is you get burnt out pretty quick if you do that. So it's managing the time to allow the inspiration. So I could say that I could do a branding project in a week if I had to, but that's really pushing my creative energy. So I will say that will take three to four weeks and allows those windows of time that if I'm stuck, I can go work on something else and I can come back to it, or I can do the concepts and then I can step away for a day and then I can look at them again before I present them to the client. And often that's where I can see that ability to refine it because I come back with fresh eyes. Um, and then if I'm still really stuck, um go for a walk, or sometimes funnily enough, just getting in water. So whether it's going for a swim or having a shower, that's where I think it's because you're away from screens and everything, so you just can actually clear the mind.

SPEAKER_02 11:47

Yeah, and then and then some of that I I guess once you're in the flow, then some of those thoughts come through and you sort of correct course, you take action in a different way.

SPEAKER_01 11:56

Yeah, that's right. And I yeah, I do think the most important thing is allowing those timelines, not and as long as it takes you, but as long as you need, giving yourself that sort of wiggle room.

SPEAKER_02 12:07

And nobody has a problem with it if you say three to four weeks.

SPEAKER_01 12:10

As long as you're up front about it, yeah. And I think with website design, people always want things like immediately, but they don't realise how long the process actually takes to do it well. So often I'm having to guide people to say we need this time because you need to get your content together, you need to do research, you need to think about you know what you need and all of that sort of thing. It takes longer than people think when they're just like, I just want a website. So yeah.

unknown 12:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 12:31

Um Zoe, how do you deal with criticism and or or negative feedback?

SPEAKER_01 12:35

Oh yeah, that's been really tough. Obviously, as a creative, we're quite sensitive.

SPEAKER_02 12:39

So I live with a creative, so I I know exactly what you mean. And every time I think that um Louie and I are at that point where I can just say what I need to say, I actually have to remember that there is somebody's creation behind this. Yeah. It's really not useful to go, that's I don't like that at all.

Strategy, Workbooks, And Brand Foundations

SPEAKER_01 12:56

Yeah, that's right. I mean, I've developed a lot of processes to ensure that the communication is done in a way that's not personal, because you don't want people coming back and going, I really don't like that. What were you thinking? I I think I I think I had someone once about Brandon come back and say they were disillusioned. They use that word disillusioned, and I remember it stuck with me for like I mean, honestly, this must have been 15 years ago. But I was like, how can you be disillusioned with a logo? Like, it's just the craziest word. So now I actually have a feedback guide I provide when I give a proposal in the beginning. Yeah, that's right. Let's talk about the branding, not about like big words like disillusioned, which are a bit more uh you know, esoteric. Yes, esoteric. Yeah, so um the feedback guide helps keep people on point. It also requests that they review the original strategy document. So instead of saying you don't like it, why would the customer that we're trying to attract not like it? You know, so it's just creating those channels that we can always keep on in the same page.

SPEAKER_02 14:00

So that's very much uh bearing in mind the customer's journey. So which which takes me back to the science of marketing. So, other than your degree, how do you how have you kept yourself so informed?

SPEAKER_01 14:11

Um, just constantly trying to learn and keep on touch. I mean, the hardest part is I'm at home by myself, right? So it is just constantly learning, and it and that's the tough part when you're trying to project your value to clients when they're saying, Oh, you know, I can't afford that much, whatever. Um, you're saying, hey, I've been learning non-stop for 14 years to help guide you in this process that I've done with hundreds, probably thousands of clients. Like I just worked out this week, I had 53 clients this year already. We haven't even had that many weeks in a year, you know? It's too many. I was like, oh, I need to restrategize for next year because it's quite draining on my creativity. And also, each one of those clients, I'm giving my 100% of helping them in business, and I'm invested in it. I mean, you know, and and obviously communication doesn't always go well, and there are times when I get criticism and it's tough. My poor husband gets the airful on that one, does he? So the crit the client I go violently fold washing.

SPEAKER_02 15:05

Love that, love that. Um and and so this this brings me to another point. Moving slightly off the criticism thing. You're a parent as well. Yeah. So you've got to deal with um your clients, your husband, your home, your cat. You mentioned that you've got a really cute but very demanding cat uh who often uh you know if it's interrupts meetings, yeah. Correct, interrupts meetings. And then so how many children do you have? Just the two. Okay, boy and a girl. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. And they're at they're at school, so you've got the time from 8 30 to 3 30 or whatever. Oh, yeah. We would love to think it was that long, hey.

unknown 15:39

Correct.

SPEAKER_02 15:39

Correct. In in in an ideal world. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 15:41

Because there's no washing and there's no shopping fasting and there's no good TikTok reels about their life admin, eh? Yes, yes, absolutely. It's a way I feel like I'm a whole PA for my children now.

unknown 15:52

Of course you are.

SPEAKER_02 15:53

Yes, of course you are. And and it generally happens as they're rushing out the door. Where are my shoes?

SPEAKER_01 15:57

Where's my drink bottle? And I do have those kind of relationships with clients where they'll text me on a Saturday and they'll have broken their website, and I'm like, 'Cause I was at my daughter's whole dance show on the weekend and I got this text from my client. I was like, why is she doing this on a Saturday? I can help her Monday to Friday, but I'm not at my desk on a Saturday, so yeah, it's tricky. So how do you deal with it? I do want to help as much as possible, and I try to talk them through things. But fortunately, Wix where I often build, it's not the only place I build, but Wix does have the ability to go back a version. So if they've really broken something, they can go back a version. Um, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 16:28

So that saves everybody's bacon.

Timelines, Creative Blocks, And Process

SPEAKER_01 16:31

Yeah, and Wix does have 24-7 support, so they can submit a ticket and get a call back as well if it's they're really stuck. Yeah. How much are you using AI? A little bit. It's a really tricky landscape to navigate at the moment. Um, you guys might have seen the backlash on the book awards recently that they'd got the two books removed because they'd used AI. So I've done three book covers this year. One of them they specifically requested no AI, so they've they've covered their own bases there, which is nice because obviously I still want to be a creative because I'm an illustrator as well. Um, and I've lost a lot of work through AI, which is ironic because AI is stealing it from us and then literally stealing it from us. So, but you have to just move with it. As a small business, I don't have the resources to stand up to those kind of place companies, you know, and and say you're stealing my business. So we just adapt and we try to keep it really clear when we're using AI. Um, there are benefits to it. I'd say, in terms of website copy, in the past, a lot of my customers couldn't afford to get their copy written, and it is ideal if they can get professional photography and professional copy, but when it's combined with design, the investment is often just too great for small businesses or not what they're prepared to pay. So I use AI to help us get a landing point to help bring out the ideas as like a brainstorm so we can do the structure and we can say this is what this page should have on it, and then we get them to rewrite it. Um, so instead of just being like a mind blank and they don't know what to do, I work with them now to write the copy for SEO for search engine optimization because they might just say a whole long page and they're about, but actually we need to structure that so it's got keyword phrases, um, so it's sectioned off so people will be able to scan, read it, things like that.

SPEAKER_02 18:10

And so that landscape is changing too right now. Yeah. Because Goo Google search slowly but surely is is going to be.

SPEAKER_01 18:17

Yeah, just this year we've gone from just SEO to SEO in what Wix calls GEO, which is the AI search. So that's being monitored now, and we're having to add like a lot of FAQs to websites so that the things people are asking is what um AI is connecting them with. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 18:33

So that's a that's a really useful tip that's that I think people need to remember is is when we do a search, just average Joe doing a search on Google, you often ask, where can I or how do I? And so and so it will go first to those FAQs because that's exactly how the FAQs are phrased. Yes, that's it. So if anybody does have a website and they do want to get a little bit more optimized for search, that's one of the uh cheapest and easiest ways that they can do that, and then keep their their company name scrolling through those FAQs and make sure that they're useful. Yeah. And very often make sure that they manually humanly inputted rather than because AI has a very nuanced way of talking and answering.

SPEAKER_01 19:13

I'm starting to see now the patterns of the words it uses.

SPEAKER_02 19:16

And you can see the icons and Macron thing.

SPEAKER_01 19:19

That's right. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 19:20

Um and and something that Louie always makes me aware of is the M-dashes, which are so irritating.

SPEAKER_01 19:24

Yeah, that's right. So there's definitely a It's a long M-dash that has no spaces between it. That's usually a bit of a sign that you've used AI text, yeah. Indeed.

SPEAKER_02 19:33

And so anybody who's listening, that's a really good point.

SPEAKER_01 19:35

If you don't want to look like you. And um, that whole thing of like cutting out the extra words. Uh AI likes to put in extra words and it also likes to do these like little comparison things, like you're not this, you're this. It does that a lot. Well, you don't need to say that, you can just say it. So I'm often just rephrasing stuff that people put through.

SPEAKER_02 19:54

Um, something that you mentioned there is that you're also an illustrator. So take me through that journey. Yes. That's June that's Juno in the studio. What podcast doesn't have a mask on it? Yes, exactly.

SPEAKER_01 20:07

At least she's sleeping. Snoring, but So um I've always been um uh uh art based from the beginning when I was a child. Um and illustration You mentioned that your parents are artists. Yeah, both my parents are artists. Um I went to Elam School of Fine Arts and majored in graphic design, so illustration's always been a part of what I do. Um I came out of uni and actually went and interviewed like with an illustration company and they just scared the life out of me because they were like, you need to get all your own clients, you need to like be really good, it's really competitive, you need to be up to a speed with all of the latest, you know, digital models. And I was like, oh my gosh, it's really intimidating. I don't think I'm good enough, sort of thing. And so I pulled out. But as my journey's gone and I've ended up working for myself and getting my own clients, um, illustration, something I've popped in as an additional service, and it does come into branding a lot. There's lots of fun brands if you think about the supermarket shelves that have illustration on them. So yeah, it's a featured service I have. I've done a nine-meter mural in Florida, for example, that was all digitally drawn, and then they got it printed over there in a fish and chip shop. Yeah, so in a fish and chip shop. Yeah, New Zealand style fish and chip shop in Florida. So how did they find you? Um, Instagram.

SPEAKER_03 21:14

Fantastic. That's amazing.

Boundaries, Parenting, And Client Expectations

SPEAKER_01 21:16

Pinterest is also another great place that people forget to advertise themselves because it's largely untouched and it's one of the biggest social platforms in that it's called a social platform. It doesn't feel like a social platform, but that's what it's called. Um and it is one of the biggest ones New Zealanders use. So how would one use um Pinterest? Because you can't so or should I say, what sort of a business would use Pinterest? Well, you can provide ads, but people are going on there for sort of DIY stuff. So if you're offering help with like how, you know, maybe how to build your own website or marketing strategies or how to do social media, you can have like a little um picture that shows like a link and then that links to your blog or your podcast or your social media or whatever like that. So you'll see that kind of thing popping up through their videos work quite well in there too. If you've got a little intro video where you're helping someone with something. Yeah, that that was that was quite a pointed question uh because Pinterest is something I just don't use. Yeah, and there's actual whole marketing companies now that aim at teaching people how to use Pinterest. So there's a local woman I meet that does it as well. So yeah, it is. Teaches really and how to use Pinterest. Yeah, yeah, for their business. So really, that's interesting. Yeah, yeah. There's so many platforms, eh? There there there are. So do you use LinkedIn as a as a platform? I'm pretty naughty on LinkedIn, I have to say. I mean, I do try to, but I had someone contact me through LinkedIn, like in a business-to-business kind of way, and she was like, I see you're not very active on here. I was like, felt like I'd got a slap on the wrist. And I was like, Oh, I try to be active everywhere, but you know, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 22:41

Because if if you took a particular post that you put on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest, it would be just as easy for you to create a LinkedIn post.

SPEAKER_01 22:50

Yeah, and they are all different audiences, so you just kind of sh sl slant them a little bit differently. Blogs are really good to share on LinkedIn because often that's informational and people are looking for interesting articles and things.

SPEAKER_02 22:59

And people are also looking for a how-to.

SPEAKER_01 23:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 23:02

Yes. And so that's such a useful tool, and it shows that you're really engaged with your audience, helping people get to a solution.

SPEAKER_01 23:10

AI is a really good way also to come up with blog ideas because blog's really good for your SEO. Um, but I also, old school styles, really use the opportunity of if something keeps coming up with a client that they keep wanting information about, I go, hang on, this has come up last week and this is information people need. So that's when I go and sit down and put a blog together about that. And then if I get asked it again, I go, I've actually got a great blog on this, you know, with links and stuff. So go and have a look at this. And it saves me having to repeat myself on the same information, but it's also providing, you know, that search engine optimization for me with all those um valuable keywords that are in that blog. Interesting.

SPEAKER_02 23:44

Tell me, Zoe, this year a lot of Kiwis have said that they found it particularly rough. And so financially we're share retail, yeah. Correct. We've been compared with the crash in 2008. Your business has been quite has been quite fluid and steady because you've had 53 clients, as you mentioned. Um, but what are you reading from the market?

SPEAKER_01 24:04

I definitely took a hit this year. Okay. Um, so when I said I had 53 clients, I was looking back, going, why did I take a hit financially this year when I've had so many clients? And I think it's been really difficult because in the past, people would come to my website, they'd see the value, they'd be excited about working with me, and they wouldn't question the quote. Uh, this year it's been a lot more difficult. People are really doing their research, they're shopping around, they're asking four or five different times why do I need this or can I cut this out of the quote. It's sort of I I joke to my husband that's like if you went to the dentist and said, Do I really need that tool? Could you cut that tool out, please? Like, no, no, I'll just do that while you watch. You know, that kind of thing. I'll cut this. So it's just been really challenging because I have pulled those quotes down to try to accommodate for my clients and then got frustrated because it does take that long and it and I take the hit. So um, yeah, it's been a tough, yeah, it definitely has. Um, but at the same time, I'm working with other businesses I really want to support and I feel for them. So yeah.

SPEAKER_02 25:04

Um and and so your outlook for for 2026, what are you what are you thinking in terms of where the economy's going? Have you seen a a little bit of a lift in um positivity as we've closed this?

SPEAKER_01 25:14

I don't know. I don't have a crystal ball really. Um it's it's really tough. I I'm really grateful that I'm still very steady with the work and I get excited to work with people and appreciate when they come to me through referrals or they love my work, that sort of thing. Um but I think people just have to keep take, or especially at the end of the year, take the opportunity to really tighten up your processes, to really ref, you know, have a look at what you're doing and who you're targeting, what people want, ask questions, send out surveys, say what do you want and how can I help? You know, those sorts of things. If it is maybe gonna be another tough year, I don't know. But um if it is, then you've really got to pull up your socks and um and make sure what you're offering is really valuable and what people need and want.

SPEAKER_02 25:54

I think if it if it is gonna be another tough year, I think we're going to definitely see um a number of small businesses closing.

SPEAKER_01 26:01

It's been really heartbreaking this year. The amount of people I've worked with where I've built their brand up and you know worked with them on their websites and they've told me they're closing or they need to shut down their website or whatever. That's really heartbreaking because I am really like invested in my client's success. That's an awful experience to go through, actually. Yeah, it's I just say, oh my gosh, not another one. That's so hard.

AI, Copy, And The New SEO With FAQs

SPEAKER_02 26:18

Yeah. Yeah. So a couple of weeks ago, within the space of I think two or three days, I met three people who one was closing their business, one had been made redundant, and the other well, two of them had been made made redundant and one of them was closing. Um, and then the next week I heard of somebody else who had that situation. And and it does make you sort of think are we doing the right thing by owning our own businesses? So that brings me to another point. Do you ever have a seek week? So I I don't know if you if you're familiar with the term. So I I belong to an entrepreneur uh a solopreneurs group. Um on a on a Monday, we get together at lunchtime and we either work together or we we solve problems for each other. Um and and um there was one week where I I was on board with them and I was feeling particularly drained. Just this is not working, you know, head in hand, kind of. And she said, You're obviously having a Seek week, and that means that you're going onto Seek, which is the local job listing platform, and you're looking for anything in marketing, anything in copywriting, and you're applying for all.

SPEAKER_01 27:20

Oh, definitely, definitely. Yes, I've got a an Instagram friend who's a copywriter, and she did a beautiful post the other day. It was one of those carousel posts, and it was talking about all the things that have happened this year, and she was like, You've looked up jobs 470 times on Seek to go and get a nine to five. It's definitely been one of those years that's happened to me a few times. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 27:38

I uh in fact, I said to my daughter, I think I'm gonna go and pick kiwi fruit next year. So, so I mean, I I said it quite flippantly. Yeah, and I wouldn't mind going to pick kiwi fruit because you're outdoors and you're you know you're in you're in the beauty. You're probably tall enough too. I'm not or short enough. I'm not sure which one you need to pick. So so she so she comes up to me like the next morning, she'd obviously been assimilating this and had obviously wondered how she was gonna tell her friends that her mum was a kiwi picker. Um and and she's like, Mom, are you really gonna go and pick kiwi? And I was like, Kenzie, what is the problem? It's it's you know, you're still earning your money. Um but yeah, that's that that's the thing with kids. So, how do your kids feel about your business? Are you are you a good role model for them in terms of being a solopreneur and being a bit entrepreneur?

SPEAKER_01 28:21

Yeah, I hope so. I definitely encourage them to start their own businesses. Um, my daughter is very keen. She's looking, she's just saving up for a a cricket machine at the moment, which is like a vinyl cutting machine. You can make home projects that are customized personalizations. Cricket's machine. Yeah, yeah. So it's that sounds interesting. Yeah, like it's a kind of a craft crafters type thing, but yeah, she's looking at her business model. But that it's a personality thing at the end of the day. And my husband had his own business for a while and it wasn't for him. And I think my son's a lot on the same track. Some people do really well working for themselves with the freedom, but you also have to be really good at time management and really self-driven. So when people say, Oh, should I go do this business? I say you need to be passionate about it because there's going to be days when you don't feel like working and the ocean looks beautiful and you could just not work, but you don't get paid if you don't work. And I do say that to my children a lot when they're putting pressure on me. Um, you know, Mum, we need to do this. And I'm like, I don't get paid if I don't work. So I you have to give me time to work so that then you can go and we go do the fun stuff, you know.

SPEAKER_02 29:18

So, but do you give yourself permission to have do the fun stuff?

SPEAKER_01 29:22

I've definitely learnt over the years. I think the first two years of business is when you burn yourself out. You go hard, you work till 1am, 4am, you know, you take every project that comes, um, and then eventually you learn it's not sustainable. You have to pace yourself. So I think in the beginning I'd work till 4 a.m. and then I wouldn't be able to go to the gym the next day, and I'd be so tired and I'd feel like I have a newborn sort of thing. And then I learned, no, I've got to have those routines of going to the gym every morning. So I have to stop work at 10:30 if I've got a deadline. I still have to stop myself because otherwise it ruins the whole next day. Um, so yeah, I'm definitely all about balance. And I see a lot of my friends working for other people and just burning themselves out, and I think, well, well, what are we here for on this earth if we if we're not enjoying each day? So it definitely is something I focus on is the balance, even though it makes me feel a bit slacker than all my very ambitious friends.

SPEAKER_02 30:09

Yeah, there's there's that there's that thing that you have to weigh up. Um, because I I agree with you. We see people who are working in corporates and working for other people, and they take home the immense weight of the stress, and they've almost got all of their department weight on their shoulders. Um, and and then and then you look at you look at your business or I look at our business, and you know, sometimes I can just get on the estuary, it's right here because I just don't feel like it. I just don't have a flow, I'm just not feeling the creative ideas coming. And then when I'm out there, I'm thinking this is the best thing. And of course, the minute I get back and I'm in my in front of my computer, I think, am I actually lazy? Should I have been doing something else?

SPEAKER_01 30:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 30:47

But it's about it's about that balance. It is, yeah. And that's and that's one of the hardest things to find. Yeah. When when you're at home alone and you're working.

SPEAKER_01 30:55

Yeah, and sometimes I feel like I'm being naughty when I'm working on my own website, which is such a funny feeling. I have to remind myself it's actually part of my business. It's not like sneaking out to work on my website, but I feel like I'm cheating on my clients when I work on my own things. Because you are your boss, but you sometimes you're your own worst enemy.

unknown 31:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 31:12

Um, if you have any advice for somebody, so a young somebody who um is is create who feels the the pull towards creativity, what would that advice be? Especially with if if you could cast your mind into the cloud that is AI, the cloud that is self-motivation, um, and and and tell me what some of your thoughts are for somebody who who wants to start.

SPEAKER_01 31:37

Well, if they know that they'll love doing it day to day and they want to commit to that, my advice would be if I could go back and tell myself 14 years ago is invest in the experts because they will, you know, they will help you jump those that ladder faster to being successful in business. Don't try to do everything yourself, you know. It makes such a difference to have a professional website to go get professional photography done. In my business, I started off doing what I could myself, but it made it slower to really kick it off. Um, I think if I'd gone and invested and learned from other service providers that were experts in that field, it actually would have helped me move along faster. Because as soon as I did start investing in copywriting and photography, then yeah, it that projects you more professionally. Indeed.

SPEAKER_02 32:19

Um, and anybody who is in business, our age, any any age who's been in business for a little while, what are the key things that they should be getting right as they go into 2026 from a business marketing perspective?

SPEAKER_01 32:31

Um, well, it's a really tricky landscape now. Who knows who's going to have a job? I mean, some of these podcasts are predicting 23% of jobs are gonna be replaced, sort of thing. So I think the most important thing is to ensure you keep learning and investing in whether that's investing or just looking things up that you can find for free. Keep learning, keep on top of what people need. Um, because there are jobs that will disappear. So don't just keep trying to slug it out in something that may have already been replaced. Like, for example, I've done a lot less brands this year because I think people are going to AI because of the economy. They maybe look at and go, I can get a brand done by AI, or I can invest in a person, and I don't have the funds right now, so I'll just do AI, right? So then I need to pivot and figure out what you know what I can still offer as a human that's going to be more valuable than AI. So I'm having to revisit that myself this year.

Illustration, Pinterest, And Platform Choices

SPEAKER_02 33:18

Um and a and a couple of of of small tips as as as we leave. Um SEO for your website, FAQs, some professional photography, even if you are going to AI to write some of that copy, make sure that you've tailored it so that it still sounds human. Yeah, yeah. Um networking. Yeah. That's really important. Going out to whether it's the B and I's and keep learning. Um and keep learning. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 33:42

Those are those are some. But for also lifts on a final note, for creatives looking at doing it as a job, um, one thing I have kept separate all these years is my art business. So on I have case in point design studio, but I'm also a Zoe Seismore artist. Um and the reason after doing a fine arts degree, I never turned that into my full-time job is I feel that making it something I have to chase commercially would take the inspiration and passion out of that job. So I try to keep that separate and do that for me. Um, because design work is always for the client, it's what they want, it's what works for them, but my artwork is just for me, what I want to do. So when people start saying, Oh, you paint birds, can you paint me this bird? I try to stay away from those and just keep painting for my own personal passion because I think that's what creates the most creative work. So it is a careful line to walk as a professional artist.

SPEAKER_02 34:29

Yeah, in fact, one of our friends is an artist, um, and we we talked about her um earlier on. Anna, she does the the beautiful facial portraits and portraits, and she was just saying she can't sell anymore. So she's taken a step back because she's not doing it out of passion. Yeah, it it can shift so subtly. Yes, yes. And so as soon as you realise that shift coming about, yeah. So for her, she's pulled, she's pulled right back. So I I I really hear what you're saying there. Because there's there's the dynamic that says I need to earn money, and there's the dynamic for a creative that says I really need to create something. And if you merge those two, the the results aren't always as as positive as one could have. Yeah, yeah. Can be a bit soul crushing. Yes, yes, indeed. And we need more artists alive right now, don't we? Yeah, yeah. We need more positive artists whose souls aren't crushed.

SPEAKER_01 35:19

Yeah. And Australia is moving towards um protecting artists' IP as well for AI, so hopefully New Zealand follows that. I hope, I hope so. Yeah, because copywriters need to be protected, artists need to be protected.

SPEAKER_02 35:31

Yeah, musicians, musicians, filmmakers, photographers.

SPEAKER_01 35:34

Definitely.

SPEAKER_02 35:34

Yeah, otherwise we're gonna lose that, you know, human spark in the work. Look, right now, the only way I can determine an AI video is they still haven't quite got the voice right. But like those cat and dog videos, you can kind of tell because you're like a cat wouldn't do that. No, of course. And and there's the two, there's the golden retriever who's who's constantly educating his little buddy about humans. Yeah, yeah. Um so that's so easy, but there's there's a there's a there's a fitness one. Yeah. And you've got to look really closely because they've got them perfect.

SPEAKER_01 36:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 36:04

You know, the wrinkles on the skin, the slight nuance of muscle.

SPEAKER_01 36:07

And the fact that it's only in its infancy is quite scary, eh? 100%.

SPEAKER_02 36:09

And the only way you can tell them is it's just its slight tenderness to the voice, which is which which will change in the next couple of months. That's right. It's so fast. Yeah, yeah. Um, I had a thousand other questions, but um, I realize your time was important, and uh, we probably need to wrap this up. But there's something I can do, it's talk. Yes, me too. I love talking. I I really do. Um so there is there is one question, just taking you out of business. Um, what is one thing of beauty that you've noticed around you lately?

SPEAKER_01 36:40

Well, I've had a massive year of renovating my house, so I am just really sitting back in my new office that we've custom built and enjoying that uh garden coming away and growing, and just everything has come together really well, so I'm definitely appreciating that. And tell me what do birds mean for you? Oh my goodness. That's not a simple question. I've become like the bird lady painter, but that's not actually all I paint. Um, in 2021 I did a whole series around CRISPR9, which is the science they've come up with that can bring back extinct birds. So that whole series was around what happens if you do bring back an extinct bird by merging its DNA with another bird. You don't actually bring back that bird, you create a new hybrid of a bird that is actually not built for this environment because it was extinct two or three hundred years ago. So birds are a beautiful thing to paint because they are so symbolic, you know, like the canary in the mine. It's it's always a symbol. So I like using a lot of symbols in my work to represent meaning. Um, and then just the detail and things as well, and people seem to love them. So I often use them as symbols. So when you look at my work, do try to see the deeper meaning or read the blurb below, because that's usually what is the reason that it's in there.

SPEAKER_02 37:48

Lovely. And are you noticing anything with birds around our environment?

SPEAKER_01 37:51

Oh, for sure, you can't help it. It's kind of like when you're pregnant and then all you see is pregnant women, or you buy a new car and then you're like, oh, there's a million of those on the road. I definitely become the crazy bird lady. But it's cool because it's something to share with other people, like friends and family now know I love birds, so they're always like, Oh, I just saw this, and they send me a video of it, and things like that. And bringing awareness to our environment is so important at this time. I mean, the government like our latest government just cut back forest and bird funding hugely when in a time when we need it more than ever. So bringing awareness to our environment is really important to me as well.

SPEAKER_02 38:21

Yeah. This has been such a lovely chat. There's such richness in you from a business perspective, and there's this artist that's that's in there, and then there's this environmentalist. Um, I think you should write a book.

unknown 38:34

Thanks.

Market Headwinds And Pricing Pressure

SPEAKER_01 38:36

And hopefully I could stay on track. Each chapter would be completely random. Yeah, the random book of Zoe.

SPEAKER_02 38:42

Yeah. Zoe's random book. Anyway, thank you so much.

SPEAKER_01 38:46

Well, thank you for having me. Absolutely pleasure talking to you. I really appreciate what you guys do and sharing all the voices of the community that are stuck at home by themselves.

SPEAKER_02 38:53

Indeed. So at least you've got out this morning.

SPEAKER_03 38:56

Can I ask you about Bolton Inc. Effect.

SPEAKER_02 39:02

If you would like to join us on the Bolton Inc. Effect podcast, please get in touch. It's literally just a cup of coffee, a chat, and a genuine interest in what makes us human.