Dori Adams - Taking The Leap

Some people wait for the perfect moment to pursue an idea. Our guest decided that maternity leave was hers. While most people use that time to simply survive the newborn stage, she used it to quietly build a two-sided marketplace gig platform that had been living in her mind, waiting for its moment.

But having an idea and actually making the leap are two very different things. So she returned to corporate life, back to the world of advertising she knew well. Until her agency offered a one-month sabbatical, and something in her knew, this was the moment.

She took the leap.

Since then, her platform has captured more than 1,500 events. But the road from idea to execution has been anything but smooth. Scaling a tech business means moving beyond the comfort of your inner circle. It means sitting with failure in a way that feels entirely different when you're the founder, when it's your vision, your name, and your mental health on the line.

This is a conversation about reinvention, the gap between a great idea and the courage to act on it, and what entrepreneurship really costs.

#pivotalmoment #entrepreneurship #shutterb

Lesley Hawkins is a keynote speaker with her signature keynote "The Courage To Define and Own Your Worth", workshop developer (The Leadership Mirror and The Leaders Table), leadership strategist, and storyteller who believes growth happens in the everyday moments that define who we become. 

Drawing on years of experience leading, guiding, and mentoring teams, Lesley brings authenticity, curiosity, and heart to the conversation as each interaction is an opportunity to define what truly matters.

One question. One turning point. One powerful story. 

To learn more about Lesley: www.lesleyhawkins.ca / www.marsley.ca

@the_lesley_hawkins_podcast

The Lesley Hawkins Podcast is a Marsley Canada production.

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:01

Welcome to the Leslie Hawkins Podcast. Each week, my guest and I discuss one pivotal moment in their life, what they learned from it, and their words of wisdom. Some people wait for the perfect moment to pursue an idea. Our guest decided that maternity leave was hers. While most people use that time to simply survive the newborn stage, she used it to quietly build a two-sided marketplace gig platform that had been living in her mind, waiting for its moment. But having an idea and actually making the leap are two very different things. She returned to corporate life back to the world of advertising she knew so well. Until her agency offered a one-month sabbatical and something in her knew this was the moment. She took the leap. Since then, her platform has captured more than 1,500 events. But the road from idea to execution has been anything but smooth. Scaling a tech business means moving beyond the comfort of your inner circle. It means sitting with failure in a way that feels entirely different when you're the founder, when it's your vision, your name, and your mental health on the line. This is a conversation about reinvention, the gap between a great idea and the courage to act on it, and what entrepreneurship really costs. Welcome to the Leslie Hawkins Podcast. I am so grateful that you are joining us here today. Please join me in welcoming today's guest, Dory Adams. Hi, thank you so much for having me. So good to have you here. So Dory is the founder and CEO of Shudderby, which you're gonna learn a lot about today. So I'm very grateful that you are joining us today. Thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited to be here.

SPEAKER_00 2:07

Yeah, and I love the studio. It's like so cozy. It's amazing. Yeah, yeah. Welcome to our house. I love it.

SPEAKER_02 2:14

I love it. So this podcast is all based on one question, which is what is one pivotal moment in your life? And the reason that I decided on that question was because, first of all, everyone has pivots. Some are chosen by us, some are imposed on us, some are great experiences, and some, well, not so awesome. And having gone through plenty of pivots in my life, I wanted to create a platform for people to hear amazing stories of how people manage through their pivots and how it helped shape who they are. And the added bonus is to meet amazing people like yourself. So that is the whole premise of this podcast.

SPEAKER_00 3:03

Amazing. It's such a good premise. And I think it's really interesting because I think if there's anything I've learned in my life, is that you can reinvent yourself and you can do it multiple times. I even I'm I'm laughing in my head a little bit because my mom just turned 70 and uh you know, she's starting to think about retirement, right? But she's also a busybody. So we're trying to think about what she could do in this next chapter. And you know, she really she reinvented herself at 50. And now she's like, here I am at 70, also thinking about how I'm gonna reinvent myself. So it was just another moment of like reminder of like we can do whatever we want. But I know the question was specifically about me and my moment of uh, my moment of pivot. So I'll give you a bit of my background. Okay. So I was in corporate advertising for 16 years. Okay. I had a fantastic career there. I worked at some of Toronto's top agencies on most globally recognized brands. I traveled the world, I was on million-dollar production sets, like I lived very, very well. And I really worked up that ladder. And, you know, I was at a very healthy six-figure salary. Yeah, and I turned 40 and was like, okay, I'm gonna burn it all down and start again and become a tech founder. So um, I mean, that's a very quick way of saying it, but I can talk about, you know, what led to that moment. So Shutterby sort of started for me at a concert. I would, I yeah, I saw a friend and his dad having this very beautiful moment. And I was like, someone needs to capture that for them so they can stay in the moment, not put out their phones and get it to them after. And it was an idea that just kind of kept coming and coming and coming. And then when I went on Matt leave with my daughter, um, I realized I had a year off. And I thought, you know what? If I'm ever gonna really try and do anything, it's gonna be now. And I don't think what I totally realized in the moment was that having a child changed everything because it wasn't just me anymore. There was a person that I am responsible for creating a life for. Yes. Right. And so there were that that for me was a few things. One was I want to create a really big life for her. Right. And I want her to have all the opportunities that she could ever ask for. But I also want her to see what you can do when you build something. And the fact that she has been able to be part of this journey from and listen, we are making ultimate sacrifices. Yes. We rent out the house we own. We've been living in my in-law's basement for the last seven years. Like we are making ultimate sacrifices. And the truth is, we're actually moving out in September. So I'm very excited. We're doing it. Um, but we um she will have seen this journey, right? She's neo seven years old, and she will have seen this journey and she will understand what hard work can get you and that you can create things. So, you know, I think that became sort of my ultimate North Star when I decided to finally make this change.

SPEAKER_01 6:10

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 6:11

Um, we were meant to launch in 2020 and the pandemic hit. Yeah. So that obviously threw a curveball in everything, and I ended up going back to work. I had been hoping to not go back, and I did. So I ended up going back for two years. And I mean, there's a ton of like pivots and and stuff that happened throughout that period with the business and getting it going, which we can talk about during this podcast. But uh ultimately I ended up quitting the job March 2023. Okay. Uh, we launched Shutterby in September 2023.

SPEAKER_01 6:43

Amazing.

SPEAKER_00 6:43

We're almost at 1,500 events that we have captured. So yeah. We're in Edmonton and Ottawa now. And listen, it's hard. It is not easy. You, you know, I know people wonder like, what would it be like to start a business? Can I do this? And the truth is, is that if you don't have the hunger, the grit, the obsession with the problem that you're solving, and the resilience to keep going, even when it feels like it's impossible, there's no point. You can't do it. Yes. You can't do it. I agree. Yeah. I realize we didn't explain what Shutterby is. That's okay. Go right ahead. Okay. Okay. So explain Shadderby to me. So Shadderby is a two-sided marketplace that connects event hosts with smartphone content creators. So what does that mean? What does that mean? Yeah. So think Uber, Airbnb, those are two-sided marketplaces. Okay. It's a technology platform that connects one audience with another audience to give a solution. So for us, what we are solving a problem for is that people who are hosting many events or experiences or doing keynotes, speaking engagements, whatever that is, we understand that content capture can be expensive. Photographers, videographers, and we want to create a solution that would allow people to be present, to stay in the moment, and have an affordable and accessible solution to having stuff captured and having it captured every time they do it, not picking and choosing the moment. So, you know, we're really affordable. Today it's $64 an hour, minimum of two hours. Within that, you're getting images and short video clips. And then we have also have editors who can put together what we call a recap, which is really just a reel. And that's uh an extra starts at $108. So it's really affordable. Um, we originally launched as a consumer platform. So speaking of pivots, um, it was meant to be a solution for birthday parties, showers, engagement parties, the moments you don't have a budget for a photographer. And as soon as we launched, businesses started flocking to us saying we need the content. And I was like, No, we're not for businesses. I literally was saying this to people. And I think I was having PTSD because I was like, I just left advertising. Like, I'm not working with no corporate clients or small businesses. And they just kept coming and coming and coming. And I had a call with a prospective coach, and I was explaining Shutterby to her, and she said to me, You're missing the mark on your audience. Your audience is businesses. And I was like, and I remember I was so mad she said it to me. I was so mad. And I went for a walk with the dog right after, and I was like, She was right. Oh, she was right. And I hate that. I hate it. I hate it. But I mean, that's another thing about being able to pivot. And you have to, you cannot dig your heels on what you think your business is gonna be. Yes, you have to let the business guide you. Yeah. With like within reason, with within reason, right? Because sometimes you can get distracted by the other shiny balls. Yes. But if your business is pulling you in a direction that's the right direction, you have to have the aptitude to be able to understand that. And so in that moment, I realized this woman was a hundred percent right, and I knew it in my belly the whole time. But and so we did that, we made the shift, and not to say we don't, we still do lots of birthday parties. And the truth is, is every time we do one, my heart feels just like a little bit fuller. Because it's like I just imagine these people with the people they love the most and getting all these moments captured. And you know, we're doing my friend's eight dad's 80th birthday tomorrow night, and she's so excited, she's like, we don't have to think about it. And I was like, that's exactly it. But ultimately, from a marketing perspective, we really focus on that B2B event host. So that's anyone from like uh solopreneurs, so that could be like breathwork coaches, DJs, like instructors, performers, musicians, uh, community leaders who are creating like networking events and experiences and coaching, like you know, um masterminds to corporate, where we do a lot of like conferences and trade shows and internal events, uh brand activations, that kind of stuff. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 10:50

And for the businesses, I understand, but but the Shutterbees, the actual people that are collecting the content, yes, aren't like employees of Shutterby.

SPEAKER_00 11:03

So they are not degrees. They are not actually employees, so they are subcontractors. Okay so it's known as a gig platform. I don't know if you've ever heard that term. I've heard the term, yeah. So really like it's a marketplace or it's a gig platform. And so what a gig platform, again, like Uber, Airbnb, Fiverr, any of these types of platforms, is a place where you can find clients to pick up gigs. Okay. You know, if you know Jiffy, that's like yeah, right. So that's what Shutterby is. So basically, to get on the platform, they have to fill in an application form. We do do monthly group interviews, we do all of the coaching with them so that they are shooting the Shutterby way. And then there's ongoing coaching. So we do really, because for us, if you have a bad Uber drive, you're over it in five minutes. Yes. It sucks, but you're over it in five minutes. Yeah. If you have a bad Shutterby experience, it's not good. It's not good because the event happens once. I mean, you just had the privilege of working with we had the privilege of working with you and um you you know had a great experience, but imagine you know, you had gotten the content and it wasn't what you were expecting.

SPEAKER_01 12:08

Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 12:09

It would have been really like, you know, heartbreaking for you and heartbreaking for me. So we do invest in coaching them. Um, however, the way that we train them is that this is their business as a Shutterby. So they're using our technology to manage that business.

SPEAKER_01 12:23

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 12:24

So the technology that is provided to everyone, both sides, is a very seamless booking flow, where in a few steps, you put in your like event details, your like date, time, location, you see all the shutter bees that are available within your local area. You can go through their portfolio pages, choose whose style you like the best, see their ratings and reviews, what kind of smartphone they have. We are exclusively smartphone. I don't know if I had mentioned that. Um, and what additional equipment. And then from there, you tell us simply what kind of event it is. Yeah. And then AI will generate a shot list for you that you can then edit and then to make it a bit more customized to you. And then you can add the recaps. And again, AI will generate a brief for the editor that the Shutterby then ultimately will see both your shot list and your edit requirements. Okay. And then they show up on site and they shoot for you. And they and they get it. They get the images and the short video clips, they upload the same day as the ask, unless, like, it's a late event. Then sometimes I'll say, you know, ask the host if they're okay, fresh eyes in the morning. And then the reels will come uh 24 hours after that. So it's fast, it's affordable, um, and everything is just automated. Like the moment the Shutterby gets there, they check in through the app, you get a notification they've arrived through an SMS. Once they check out, you get the notification, your gallery's ready. Once the editor uploads your recap, you get the notification. So it's just a really seamless system. And so, yes, back to the question. They aren't our employees, they are subcontractors. And ultimately, we see ourselves as a technology company first and not a service-based business or agency. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. And that will continue to evolve in terms of how we incorporate AI into the flow and make sure creative consistency can be stronger. And how can we build tools through the ways that they shoot so that on site they're getting coached through AI integration? So there's a lot in our roadmap of how, you know, and and ultimately we want to be in every city in the world. Right. So the same way if you need a rod, you call an Uber. Yeah. You need something captured, you know, you can rely on a Shutterby. So today you're in Toronto. We're in Toronto, Edmonton, and Ottawa.

SPEAKER_02 14:32

Okay, great.

SPEAKER_00 14:32

Uh, we're about to be in Halifax. Fantastic. Yeah. And then the goal will be in Calgary by May. Okay. But even that, like, I mean, like let's get into the real, the real deal, you know. So this year, it's hard as a founder to know where to put your energy. And so we've really gotten strong traction in Toronto. I think we're becoming more well known and we're seeing that coming through in terms of the growth that we're seeing in the city. Um, and so we decided to start dabbling with going into new markets uh to just start to see what that's gonna be like. And you know, I'm kind of I was like, okay, let's take the gloves off and just go. Let's just do this thing. And the business has doubled where it was a year ago. Amazing. Which is amazing. Yes. But it's also exposing a ton of holes in terms of how our systems are set up right now, okay, that we're not ready for scale. Got it. So we've started offering ourselves in these new cities, and now I'm like terrified that we're not ready for it. I see. And so me and one of my partners, Carly, just had a conversation this week and we both kind of looked at each other and said, I think we got to pause the market expansion. Okay. Even though I've been going out there being like, we're expanding, we're gonna be everywhere. But I think it's about, you know, back to your initial question of like comfortableness with pivoting. Like, yeah, I think I I don't regret that we went down this road for the first few months of this year because I learned what I needed to know to be ready to scale, but now I need to come back home and focus on the business here. And I need to focus on getting our systems in place so that we are ready once we're in the all-this new market. So yeah.

SPEAKER_02 16:15

Yeah, and I think I mean, thank you for sharing that. I mean, it it's very honest and vulnerable. Um, and I think that's one of the things as a founder is once you go out there and you say, Here's what we're going to do, and then you need to say, Okay, you need to be bold enough to say, actually, we're gonna take a pause. Because you've only got one shot. Like one shot to get it right to make that first impression, and and you don't want there to be a poor experience 100%. Yeah, because it's your name, like it's your reputation, it's your brand.

SPEAKER_00 16:51

Yeah, and even like we've recruited in these markets, and now I'm worried that I'm gonna be disappointing these people who I've come to say we're here. And it's not to say we won't still allow bookings in the markets with the shutter bees that are there, but I'm not gonna be actively supporting the market for right now. You know, by September, like one of the next big steps for us is to raise, like, we're gonna do our first proper raise. Okay. And that's gonna be supporting the expansion into the new markets. So again, I'm happy we did this because now I know my talk track when I go to the investors of this is a hundred percent I know what we need in these markets. I mean, a hundred percent or now I know what I need until I got there. And then I'm like, now we need this. But uh, so you know, I'm a huge believer, you know, I'll get into a bit of the woo-woo, but I am a huge believer in that the universe guides us exactly where we need to go. And I think because I've always lived my life that way and believing that there is, um, you know, I'm not gonna make this like a religious thing, but like I have lived with a bit of a spiritual guidance. And I do think that even in the lowest moments of my life, maybe I didn't understand at the time, but it was all getting me to where I need to go. And I think if you can find whatever that is for you, it also helps tremendously when you're trying to build something. Exactly.

SPEAKER_02 18:13

Yeah. So what you I mean, you were in advertising. Yeah. Was there a specific moment because life was good? I get was there a moment where you just said, actually, I'm gonna pack this in.

SPEAKER_01 18:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 18:31

Because you you went from really, really amazing to I'm living in my in-law's basement. Not no disrespect to the in-laws, right? Yeah, no, they're great.

SPEAKER_00 18:39

Yeah, and they're at the cottage a lot.

SPEAKER_02 18:40

Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 18:41

And like we have our own kitchen, so it really is our own apartment. It's not as bad as maybe it's owned. Um yeah, there definitely was. I uh okay, so it was December 2022.

SPEAKER_01 18:51

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 18:52

Where I was working, the agency offered after five years a month sabbatical that they offered the employees as a like, you know, a bonus to stick in a round, um, which was such a nice incentive. It was it was a really nice incentive. It was a great agency. And um I took it off actually to I we were going through IVF. And so I took it to do an IVF round. Yes. And the round did not, uh, I don't know how much you know about IVF, but just medically things didn't work out to do the transplant. Okay. And I found out very early in the month. And then I was like, well shit, what am I gonna be doing now for the rest of my month off? Because I had taken it to be like zenfully just like, you know, harvesting this like little like thing. And I was like, great, like Nia, what am I gonna do? And at that point, like as I mentioned, we were supposed to launch Shutterby in 2020, and then we couldn't, and like the world was so messed up that we had no idea when we could really launch this thing. And as I'm sure you could imagine, the momentum for the business kind of died. Yeah, like we were still building, but like it was, you know, it we didn't know what it was. It was like the side of the it was like this, exactly. And but I had gone from this MATLAB where it was like the number, you know, I was like, I was out there, I was like ready to go. Anyway, so I decided, you know what, the world is getting back open. Yes, I'm gonna focus my energy on working on Shutterby and let's just see what that feels like, not having to work my job. And after the month, I was like, that's it, I'm quitting. I'm quitting. Okay. Yeah. So I'm like, if I am ever gonna do this, yes, I need to do a nium.

SPEAKER_01 20:27

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 20:27

So I quit early March, and it was terrifying. Yeah. The one thing that helped was that an ex-colleague had reached out that they were looking for a freelance uh account director at their agency for 20 hours a week. And she said, Is there any way you'd be open to doing that? And I said, Yes. Hell yes.

unknown 20:51

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 20:52

So I did that. So I mut I moonlit for uh for sort of that first year of doing part-time that and part-time Shutterbeam.

SPEAKER_01 21:00

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 21:00

And then as soon as I saw that we were getting the traction by December, I said, Sorry, I gotta go. I gotta go. I gotta go. Which was terrifying because even there I was still making six figures. So like it was still terrifying. So that was like my final, you know, and I've had to pick up things. Like, firstly, I work as a Shutterby sometimes. I do on select clients. Yes. And uh I do teach at Seneca in the advertising program if there's a position available for like one class a month. So I'm still picking up some stuff along the way. But that was really the moment where, yeah, where I was just like, yeah, here we go. Let's do it. Yeah, yeah. And then I mean, there were so many like twists, insurance that you I mean, that's the other thing. It's like you launch a business and you're like, I will be successful the day I hit live and let everyone know. And then people will are waiting. They're just waiting for me. They cannot wait. Yes, they cannot wait. So, and and there's this weird thing where, like, in the first couple months, everyone actually is so excited for you, everyone is cheering you. Everyone is like on link, like everything's amazing. And then all of a sudden, your friends aren't booking. Yeah. And you're like, why are you not booking? And I remember me and my best friend actually, it was like one of our only fights in life was that she had just had a baby and she was having like a like a meet and greet with the baby. And she called me and said, I just want you to know that I'm hiring a photographer because we want portrait style photos. And we just launched, like literally just launched. Ouch. And I was so beyond hurt by her. I was so hurt. And we had a really big fight. And again, universe. It had to happen because it had to teach me that I can't rely on my friends to make my business work. Exactly. And you know, obviously we've moved through it and she's she's used us for every birthday party since I will say. I love you. Um but yeah, like you, you that was a huge lesson for me in that moment. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 23:02

Yeah. I get it. And I think that's part of the stage I'm at is moving from like the warm network that I have that is being really supportive. I've had, you know, multiple speaking gigs, and it's been really good. And now I'm at the stage where I like I need to step out of the front door. I need to start cold outreach. And like literally gives me the hives.

SPEAKER_00 23:26

But it's a hustle. Like it's a hustle. Like you have to be at these like networking events, and it's like also they're expensive. So how many can you go to? And you have to be just showing up. And yeah, I mean, I have a billion new friends that I did not have before launching Shutterby. Right. Like, seriously, like I have a whole new world because I've put myself out there. And I mean, LinkedIn, LinkedIn has been a great tool for me. And I, you know, kind of use it as my diary sometimes, but it's so interesting.

SPEAKER_02 23:55

Yeah, yeah. You posted there was a post that like literally stopped me in your track, in my tracks, and it was I have never been this poor and I've never been this happy. I was like, oh wow. Now that's to me, that's the voice of an entrepreneur. Right?

SPEAKER_00 24:14

And that's when you know I'm in the right moment. I'm in the right moment. And this is meant for me a hundred percent. Because yeah, I mean, as I mentioned, not only was I making a good salary, but literally a month before me quitting, I was in Prague, like on a like the most incredible production set I had ever been at, eating in the nicest restaurants in Prague, you know, and now I'm like, oh, can we afford to go for dinner tonight? You know, so you know, and it's just it's I am. I am the poorest I've ever been, but I feel so much freedom. And let me be clear, this was not an overnight feeling of joy and freedom and happiness. Because when we launched, okay, so we launched, everyone was like, rah, rah, rah, amazing, amazing, amazing. And we did, we were getting our bookings. Like the bookings were starting to come, and it's the best feeling because you're like, oh my god, it's working. And then we're off. We're off. Off we go. And then December hit. Yes, and the bookings completely stopped. Ouch. Like that, like the the holiday, like over the holidays, just like stopped. I now understand that's the season of this business, but at the time, I was like, what have I done? I've made the biggest mistake in my life. Totally. We're failing. Everything is over. And I hit a level of depression that I had never I'm not a depressed person. I have never felt depression like this. So much to say that like there was like, I wasn't suicidal, but there was like, oh, if the car just went over this cliff today, that would maybe be easier. Kinds of thoughts. And um I remember, I remember calling my mom and I was just I was on the floor in shambles. In sham like shambles. And I woke up in January and I said, I'm gonna go find a therapist. Yes, and I'm gonna figure this out. Because I had worked in a very intense industry in advertising. Yeah, so intense. But I had worked in a way that I had figured out what I had always called my zen and how I was able to regulate myself when things were stressful. But the stress of a founder is a just completely different ballgame and the the mental health journey of a founder because you have to be able to take failure. And that was actually one of the first questions my therapist asked me was have you ever failed? And my answer was no. It was no. Yeah. I graduated university, I then graduated from honors from advertising, I then got my first job, I then moved up that corporate ladder, I got every promotion I ever wanted, I got every client I ever wanted. We never lost my clients. Like I it had never failed. Yeah, and all of a sudden now I was in a position to fail. And it it was really uncomfortable.

SPEAKER_02 27:09

Very uncomfortable. Yeah, it's interesting, right? Kind of thinking of my journey. I was like, Yeah, I mean, I a lot of the moves I had up the corporate ladder were you know, because I raised my hand or because someone tapped me on the shoulder. In many cases, for many of the roles, I didn't need to apply. It was just like, hey Les, we've got this new role. Can you just get after it? Right. Like, yeah, no problem. I can build that. I can well, I can figure it out. And it's it does build this um strength of character, which is great. Yeah. But there is also another side of that, which is trying to figure out what you how you handle failure, what your worth is, what what lights your fire, right? Um that's a little bit more challenging.

SPEAKER_00 28:02

Yeah, a hundred percent. And and there's a comfort and a cushion in it. Yes, right? Yeah. Because even if you do fail when you're in corporate, you're failing with a team. I mean, unless you're getting like laid off. Yes. But you know, listen, not every campaign went amazing that we worked on in. I I said we never lost. I'm sure I had at some point a client made a change in something. I'm trying. Okay, fine, maybe a couple. Yeah. So, but I was with a team. Like there was a whole team around me, and my job didn't ever feel like it was at risk, and it was like too bad for the agency, but like, okay, move me on to this client instead. I'm fine. But this, this is me. This is it's firstly my investment. You know, I've invested into my own business. It's my time and it's my ego.

SPEAKER_01 28:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 28:47

You know, I went out there and I told the whole world, I'm throwing it all away to start again.

SPEAKER_01 28:52

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 28:52

And if I were failing through that, you know, there's there, there could be shame to it. I don't feel that way today. No. But at that time, there could have been. Yeah. And now I understand more than ever that the failures are actually part of the whole thing. Yes. And you have to fail. Like even this whole new market expansion. Yes. I would say right now, it feels like a failure. Okay. Not in the way that you like, not not in the, I think maybe I'm making it feel too heavy, but it it has failed in a sense because we've turned on in these new markets. We've gotten a couple bookings based on our like a little bit, you know, but it's failed in that we can't service it. We can't got it. You know, like if I were to go and turn full-time media on, and then what we know we need to do is hire like hive leads in each market who are sort of boots on their like I know it will work. Yes. But we have we have failed, we have failed the launch of these new markets. Got it. Right. And and through that I'm learning why. Yes. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 29:53

So as you built this business, you have built a framework that you are now teaching. And you're doing keynote speaking and helping students, obviously, um, through Seneca and such. Um, but that framework that you built, is that just being like trial and error? And or did you wake up one day and say, I've got it?

SPEAKER_00 30:23

I think it comes from my advertising background, to be honest. I'm I I worked with the biggest and the brightest of like strategists and creatives. Uh, so I do have that benefit of like firstly, I went to school for advertising. And then, of course, uh working 16 years, like I really understand how to develop strategy when it comes to advertising and content specifically. Yes. So what I've done is I've kind of bridged that knowledge with now understanding what our clients need. So whether that's event planners and how they can market events that they're doing versus founders who need like content to promote their business. Yeah. Uh, and I've sort of just stumbled on this little like framework that uh I'm gonna start teaching more of, but ultimately it's about being curious about the people that you're speaking to and understanding their human truths and finding key messaging that's gonna resonate with them based on those human truths. I think a lot of the time uh where business owners can go wrong is that they're so busy preaching about their business, about their product, this is what I do, and that belongs somewhere. But you know, in advertising, in marketing, there is a funnel that I sometimes think everyone understands, but I don't think everyone's ever understands. But you know, there's a I know not maybe everyone's gonna see me, but there's a my arms are in a triangle upside down triangle right now. Um, but there's a funnel, right? And there is awareness, yeah, there is then engagement, and then there is conversion. Correct. And so you want to cast a wider net when it comes to awareness to get people sort of drawn into you. Yes. And the way that you do that is showing them that you understand them and their problems and what it is that they're looking to solve. Right. And then from there, you want to have content that will then, once they're looped in, really engage them, you know, keep them on the journey. And that's where you have more of your organic content, like you do on your social channels. Yes. So educational, lives, like that. Yeah. What we're doing right now. The fun things. So, like, why do why should I be part of your orbit? You know, like let me want to be part of this. And then that's when you can get to converting, and that's where you're gonna actually try to sell them. So, you know, I think a lot of the time people can think they go right to that conversion. And it's like you haven't even taken me on a first date. Right. So that is what I try to help people understand in terms of like my framework. Um, and then the other part of my coaching and my training is about specifically events, because we're so event focused, is how to look at your events as more than just a single in-person experience and extend that story beyond the room. Okay. Because the beautiful thing is events are becoming so much more important, especially as AI is coming out. I think people are gonna continue to crave in-person in real life. Yep. And the content opportunities that come out of that are immense because AI content, while it's great, like especially for like talking head type stuff, I think it's it's really gonna help people, but people are gonna want authenticity. And I think that's where the event content is gonna have a real opportunity. Yeah. Uh so I do a lot of coaching around that and how to sort of plan for the content and stories that can come out of your events. That's amazing. Um, to storytell it beyond just the people who are experiencing it in the room.

SPEAKER_02 33:56

Well, and because the thing is, is that the event is a is a moment in time. And so there's the pre-cell that goes into it, then there's the event, then there's all the posts of, hey, thanks, that was great. Yeah. And then it's forgotten.

SPEAKER_00 34:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 34:08

Right. And so it the actual time that you're talking to people about the event is typically quite short. Right. And so what you're teaching people is how to extend that. How to extend it. How do they make it?

SPEAKER_00 34:20

So, like if there are speakers at the event, and we were just talking about this when I had come in, it's just, you know, I think this is event organizers. I think this is one place that they actually don't do a great job sometimes, is getting the content to the people that are involved to ensure that they have what they need to extend the reach into their communities. Agreed. Right? Like somebody will have you or myself speak on a stage because they know we have an active audience. Correct. But if you're not giving me the content after to show my community, the issue becomes you're not you're you're the ROI becomes very small on your event. Exactly. Versus if you invest in having somebody there to capture and edit the stories coming out of your event, let's say you have five keynote speakers on a stage. Well, now you have the potential of five different communities hearing about you because you gave them and and it's in an untimely fashion. Right. Because that's the other problem. I was just talking to you about an event that I did in February, and I still haven't received the content. And luckily I had Shudderby there because I always have Shudderby there. But um, yeah, like I so I was able to share, and the other speakers were able to share from the Shutterby gallery. So exactly uh I think I think event planners really need to think that through.

SPEAKER_02 35:37

Yeah, and extend the whole the other thing I found with some events is that the the engagement of the speakers or the panelists or whoever it is before the event, like all of the I mean, they've got this entire community who's standing there waiting to cheer them on. And the event organizers are not utilizing them and their networks afterwards, yes, but beforehand, not at all.

SPEAKER_00 36:04

100%. 100%. So I like, I like on this side, just like a volunteer thing, I like create some community events for a community that I'm part of. Okay. And uh yeah, we're doing uh we're doing a comedy show at the end of this month where we're invite inviting 10 women to stage to vent about whatever they want to vent about for five minutes. But part it's fun, and there's gonna be like a cash prize for the winner and uh it's stand-up style. So I'm doing stand-up, it's gonna be fun.

SPEAKER_02 36:32

Good.

SPEAKER_00 36:33

But I'm ensuring that each of them, so as part of their acceptance on I was, you know, can you please send me your headshot?

SPEAKER_01 36:40

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 36:41

And then I've created graphics that are within the design of the event. Okay. And now all of them are gonna have their own graphic with their face on it to then promote to their communities with their own promo code to get a discount off tickets.

SPEAKER_01 36:55

Perfect.

SPEAKER_00 36:56

And I'm gonna help them understand how to promote this event. Yes. And it's gonna sell it out because that's how you have to do it. So I agree with you. I think pre is also a thing. And while Shudderby doesn't offer graphics, I have toyed around with is that something eventually we want to consider getting into as well, if we really are gonna be an event content solution. Is there something there that we could also help with creating those pre-event assets?

SPEAKER_02 37:24

Well, maybe there's training that you can offer, quite frankly, to event organizers.

SPEAKER_00 37:29

Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_02 37:30

Because I think there's been a template that has been used for so long. Yeah. And other than going dark basically through the pandemic, I, you know, it hasn't really changed. And I and I look at the lists and lists, and the amount of events that are happening now is amazing. Um, but it's it's the so what.

SPEAKER_00 37:50

And it's a sea of sameness. Yes. Like I, and I I say that with no diss to anybody because everyone is creating their own thing and everyone has to believe in the thing they're creating and the story for their why and all of that. But at the end of the day, when there's five female focused networking events on one day, why am I going to yours? You have to tell me that. You have to tell me the story. Right. What is it? So, you know, um, one of our clients that we work with, like when she does events, she actually does a very good job of reusing the footage that we captured from the previous event to create promo assets. Yes. And then even we've done stuff where we've done content days to shoot content to promote the event. Okay. You know, and it depends on what your budget is, right? You can do it, you can do it at no budget, or you, if you have a bit of budget, I think it's, you know, people love behind the scenes, they love to hear why.

SPEAKER_02 38:42

Yes, exactly.

SPEAKER_00 38:43

Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_02 38:44

Well, and that's the thing. I mean, that's one of the amazing things about what you've built with Shutterby is that it's accessible to everybody, right? I mean in my years of corporate, we would hire photographers or videographers, like it's thousands, right? And and time. Exactly. Yeah. Right. And it wasn't exactly, and this is it's amazing seeing seeing the Shutterbees walk around and they've got their phone, and I and it's really it's amazing what they're able to.

SPEAKER_00 39:13

And it's nimble and it's we can be, you know, and I also like I I want to be clear, I don't think it's uh or with photographers. And okay. I mean, maybe video. No, we love the videographers too, but I don't, I I think it's just different. Like we shoot a very social first style of content. It's high res and it's feels very premium. And sometimes I don't know and know the difference between a smartphone photo and a DSLR. But I do say if you have the budget, I I think like the dream team is always when we are working with others on site because it's just this different style of photography. Yeah, you know. So I just want to, in case there's photographers or videographers out there. We love working with you.

SPEAKER_02 39:56

So through this whole journey that you've been on, um what have you learned about yourself and your community?

SPEAKER_00 40:04

I've learned that it's really important to be vulnerable and be transparent with people along the ride. That at the end of the day, people, yes, they love Shudderby and it's created a real solution for a problem that they have. But I think people also really have sort of, I don't want to say this in an egotistical way, but I think people have sort of also fallen in love with my story and my truth. And and it comes from the most sincere place because really I am like a rags to riches, and I'm not at the riches yet. But that is, you know, that that I am, I am just a real like person that's just trying to do this thing. Like, I don't come from money. I'm out there, like, you know, I was just at uh at a conference where Michelle Romano was speaking, and she was like, there's two kinds of founders that like really can do it. One are the trust fund babies, and the others are the ones that come from nothing. Yeah. And I think because I listen, I I mean, when we had our initial conversation, and I'm happy to share a little bit of also my childhood story, but you know, my dad was an entrepreneur. He was, he had a very successful plumbing business. He had 20 trucks on the road. Um, it was it was one of the biggest in Toronto, and he unfortunately got hit with mental health issues and he eventually lost his business. And that was right before I went into high school. So I knew what it was like to have a very comfortable life, and then I knew what it was like to lose absolutely everything. Yes. And I think that my entire life, when I really like look back at it all, um I've always been achieving, like like going after getting back to that place. Um and I, you know, had I not quit advertising, I would be totally good and in that place, but I I I wanted even more than that. So I think really uh that plays a huge role in like in everything and and and my drive to to keep moving forward. I don't know if I just totally answered your question or if I just pivoted somewhere totally out there.

SPEAKER_02 42:10

It's all good. This is all about pivots. We love the pivot. We're pivoting, we're pivoting. That's amazing. Yeah. Yeah. Well, and I totally understand the the context um as well, understanding um your upbringing. So you've seen what entrepreneurship is like up close, the good and the bad and the bad, right? A hundred percent. Yeah, which also explains why you would be bold enough to go seek out a therapist as well.

SPEAKER_00 42:39

Yeah. Right?

SPEAKER_02 42:39

To recognize that something's not quite right here.

SPEAKER_00 42:42

Yeah. A hundred percent. A hundred percent. Yeah. I mean, I've always been like pretty big on like, you know, just mental health check-ins. I hadn't had a therapist in a while. So when as soon as I started feeling like those feelings, I I knew how important it was because I could see, you know, I've I've I've seen unfortunately firsthand through my father how uh how much that can go down downhill, you know?

SPEAKER_01 43:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 43:04

Um, and it's interesting because when I started this journey, I didn't really think about him. Uh he's he passed in 2013. So I didn't uh I don't know, I didn't, I I it was it wasn't part of the journey for me, my dad. Like it not that he like he's obviously always here, but like it wasn't anything. And then I actually ended up doing a sound bath experience early last year. And I just lied there with two streams of tears going down my entire face. And what came through for me was that while I had definitely worked through the trauma of what had happened with my father, and there, you know, there's a lot to unpack there. Um, I had never allowed myself to mourn that I actually just lost my dad. I was more focused on fixing the w the battle wounds of dealing with somebody who has mental health issues. And I anyone you know has dealt with that it's not an easy role to play in somebody's life especially when it's your parent um so I'd worked through that and I was always like I'm good I'm good but I never actually mourned the fact that I just like I don't have a dad yes and that I don't have a dad who is an entrepreneur who could actually be guiding me through this right now and that that is fucking unfair and it's and it's it's it's not fair. And so it opened up this whole thing for me and I ended up going seeing a medium which I had never done since the past and he came through and he said stop asking me he said your strategies are so much stronger than mine ever were and he said that he just was too crazy. He was crazy enough to make it as an entrepreneur but he was too sick to actually see it through and that those are the things that I don't struggle with. Okay. And that I need to stop worrying about what he thinks and just keep going. So yeah again I don't know who I who on here is into the woo-woo but like that's a little bit of my journey from last year. So so you know it's been interesting the relationship with my dad over the last like year and a bit especially because he passed over you know a long like a while ago now. But that's definitely been part of this like journey and and and also through it and I did just put a post about this on LinkedIn not too long ago, but just understanding like what happened in my family dynamic and how like watching even I said off the top full circle here. But my mom that she had to reinvent at 50 well she had to reinvent at 50 because she was a housewife of a successful entrepreneur and then he went ahead and lost everything and she had to restart her entire life you know and she just turned 70 and she's in a reflective state right now of, you know, what if that hadn't happened and we would have been fine and I would be retired. You know, like there's so much there but watching my mom restart at 50 only recently did I realize how much of an impact that actually had on me to teach me that you really can restart at any point in time. Any time.

SPEAKER_02 46:12

That's amazing yeah you have been raised by very resilient parents quite frankly a mother for sure yeah absolutely that's incredible. Yeah yeah so my last question for you is what would be your words of wisdom for the audience my words of wisdom are to keep going.

SPEAKER_00 46:30

Okay there are gonna be moments where you're gonna pause and you're gonna question it all and it's ups and downs and roller coasters but truly if you believe wholeheartedly in what you're doing, you have to keep going. Every time I have told myself I think I gotta stop, I've pushed through and I've come out stronger the other end. And somebody really wise just said to me that if you stop the suffering you will feel over the question of what if will far outweigh your fear to keep going. Right. So that would be my biggest piece of advice that is a great piece of advice we need to put that on a board maybe in my own I don't think she said it in those words.

SPEAKER_02 47:16

So I I think I just created those words exactly so that is okay we're gonna use that yeah that's amazing I mean honestly uh I think it's so easy as a uh entrepreneur to think well if this doesn't work then then I'll give up then I'll give up or I'll just go back to corporate or yeah but I just I I I don't I there's too much fire in the belly first of all more than anything but then also it's about fighting through it's about battling through and I think about being really honest with yourself about why are you doing this in the first place?

SPEAKER_00 47:55

Because every time you run into a wall there has to be a a part of you that you just power through and you just you know figure it out yeah and that's what makes you also a true entrepreneur because not everybody will have that.

SPEAKER_01 48:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 48:10

And I just you know I I ran into somebody yesterday who's just starting the journey. Okay. And I've noticed she's focusing on this like other thing recently and I said what's going on with your business yeah and she just launched it. Okay. So she's at that point where now you're looking for the customers. Yes which is a very hard moment. Super scary it's the super like you're trying to get to a product market fit moment. Yes. And that's not an easy thing to do. And now you're relying on people to actually pay for the thing that you've built it's easy to not easy but strategizing and creating and whatever that's the fun part. But going to get the customers is not the fun part. So she said no I know it's just I'm seeing this thing is more return on my investment and whatever. And I said you're getting distracted by the other shiny ball. Yes. And it's so easy and I've been there through this journey I've only learned it through this journey because when it gets hard all of a sudden you're like oh but I also have this idea and I'm gonna start working on this idea because it's exciting to create something new. Correct but if you don't get through the hard hurdle on the thing you already created the exact same thing is going to happen on the new ball that you're like focused on.

SPEAKER_02 49:20

Yes. It's so easy to have those squirrel moments though like yeah all the time.

SPEAKER_00 49:26

Even I came in here today being like I think I'm gonna start a coaching cohort. Like if I do stay tuned. Yeah exactly but yeah no it's it's hard it's hard because you're all the other thing is is like for me personally my business is very reliant on other people the subcontractors the shutterbees right which is hard because I'm dealing with people and everyone's gonna be different. Um if I just went out and started an ad agency tomorrow and I brought in my key players and I was involved and it was you know I'd have a fee structure I'd be making an automatic salary and I would have complete creative control because I would, you know, it just would be a totally different thing. So yeah it's you know it's yeah you're relying on others. Yeah yeah yeah so it's hard so sometimes like you know I will be like oh if I just like went the agency route like I'd be good and I would but but I really I just like so strongly believe in this thing and I just like I see it I see it in like the next five years that like every major city you're in there'll be Shutterby. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 50:28

Well the thing is you have a very recognizable logo as well and I go to events and I'm like oh there's a Shutterby oh there's another Shutterby so all the work you're doing is massively paying off and I I know it's a grind and I I totally empathize with that. But I would say from somebody who has used Shutterby uh it's a great experience and just keep going because you are really making things more accessible you're hiring amazing people and uh you're really making a difference. So thank you for everything you've built and I look forward to being on the sidelines cheering you on as you continue to build.

SPEAKER_00 51:08

Amazing thank you so much for having me Leslie this was so much fun.

SPEAKER_02 51:11

So good thanks thank you thank you for joining me today Dory is so engaging with her passion and energy around Shudder Bee. But I really appreciate her vulnerability with the challenges of entrepreneurship, the mental health journey and the risks that come with expansion. Entrepreneurship is certainly not for the faint of heart and yet I put my money on Dory to achieve global expansion. If this story resonated with you please share it with someone you care about and be sure to subscribe so you can continue to hear more pivotal stories involving one question, one turning point, one powerful story. I'll see you next week with another guest on the Leslie Hawkins Podcast