#WIB-Q&A With Ronelle Louwrens Founder of YehBaby Marketing
1. Can you please tell us more about your business?
A. My business is YehBaby Marketing. We specialise in connecting our clients with their customers online. As experts in brand positioning, content and online marketing, we know how to turn your brand into an online marketing asset. The YB team is a support team to help business owners and marketing teams grow their customer base and generate sales.
2. When, how and why did you start your business?
A. I previously owned and managed a design studio and during that time I have always been aware of the interplay between creativity, branding, design and the marketing, business departments. I could see the missing interaction and the need for more connection in order to be successful and drive sales.
3. What is your role in the business?
A. I am the founder and CEO – my role is Strategic Thinking, Branding, Marketing, Sales, Quality Control, Training.
4. Where did you study and what did you study?
A. My background is quite diverse and I think unusual. Ballet, fine art, graphic design and online marketing. I am a constant student and am currently interested and the field of Future studies. Understanding what the future holds for us has never been as important as it is now.
5. How did you finance your business?
A. I started my first business quite young, which means I could work with a very small budget. A small loan for equipment and the support of my husband gave me a few months to grow my customer base. My business just grew naturally from there and I have not had the need for further financing.
6. Describe your average workday, if such a thing exists.
A. My day starts very early at 05:00 to catch up on mails and checking the progression of projects. Around 08:00/09:00 I will go to the studio for meetings, planning and brand reviews. In the afternoon I am lucky enough to work from home and will then. mostly deal with planning, quoting and business management.
7. How do you balance your home life and your work life?
A. Work has always been extremely important to me and my personal life I have to admit was secondary. That is the advantage of starting young and having some time to grow a business before your children come along. It is also important to structure your world so you have support and don’t waste your time doing things that someone else is better off doing. In time I learnt how to simply switch off when home and take enough time for myself to exercising and structure time with family.
8. What drives you and inspires you?
A. I am very driven and always inspired. I love ideas, I simply love nurturing ideas and taking action to make it happen. The idea of something that there is nothing till you create it and seeing it gain momentum always amazes me. It is fantastic how your own efforts open up possibilities for others – it nurtures their talents and gives them gainful employment.
9. Where and when do you have your best ideas?
A. I will wake up with ideas or hike and run. Sometimes you just have to sit and work till it takes shape. Road trips are also a great way to get the juices flowing.
10. Where and how do you market/advertise your business for sales leads?
A. Most of our work come through referral and our website.
11. What is next for your business?
A. We are constantly building new products and forming new partnerships. Next year we are really stepping up and expanding our national database as well as grow our international customer base.
12. What advice would you give to female entrepreneurs hoping to start their own business?
A. Find something you can be passionate about for long enough. Make sure you know how you are going to make money and what the possibility is for scaling. Find the best employees you can afford and take the time to train them well. Find good clients that value what you do. Don’t be afraid to say no. Take the time to think about how to improve, adapt or change your systems. There will experience adversity, you will experience sexism – just find the next way you can continue with what you want to do. Keep your eye on the prize and be unnecessarily positive.
Contact Information:
Tel: 021-879-1823
Cell: 0721270330
Website: www.yehbaby.co.za
E-mail: ronelle@yehbaby.co.za
Facebook: facebook.com/yehbaby
Twitter: twitter.com/yehbabyct
Instagram: @yehbabyct