What you’ll learn in this interview:
- How I grew my Pinterest Page Views by 30,000 in one month
- The most important thing to prepare for as an entrepreneur
- The graphic design site that makes all of your design needs simple
- The tool I use to create post/page titles that drive traffic
- The 4 skincare products that have completely changed her skin!
How This Business Owner Runs Her Anti-Bullying Clothing Line Behind The Scenes
1. What do you do? Who do you help?
My name is Natalie McKearin, and I founded The Kind Coalition – a clothing and home goods company that donates 50% of its profits to organizations working to combat bullying.
Our goal is to shift focus off of the things that divide us and onto something upon which we can all agree – kindness.
We believe that kindness is for everyone, no matter your race, age, or gender, and we are committed to changing the conversation.
2. List your favorite business tools.
SOCIAL MEDIA
- Pinterest – The best way to boost traffic to your website, whether you’re a blog or e-commerce or even traditional commerce. Pinterest is an excellent way to bolster awareness. Join Pinterest group boards and forge a community.
- Tailwind – It’s an app that allows you to pre-schedule pins and join “Tribes,” where you can share and boost each other’s content. Tailwind has grown my Pinterest page views by 30,000 in one month.
EMAIL MARKETING
- MailChimp – I love MailChimp for my email services because it’s free up to 2,000 subscribers. It’s the perfect way to get your feet wet.
DIGITAL PRODUCT
- Canva – for all things graphic design – they have endless templates for everything from letters to resumes to social media graphics. I’m absolutely design inept, and Canva has made it so much more manageable.
- WooCommerce – This e-commerce platform integrates seamlessly with my WordPress site and offers tons of amazing extensions to grow your business beyond your website.
- Yoast SEO Plugin for WordPress – Teaches you step-by-step how to optimize your posts and pages to help drive traffic to your site.
ACCOUNTING
- FreshBooks – helps keep your accounting in check so when it comes to taxes you’re good to go!
3. What is a good course, website or book you would recommend and why?
WEBSITES
- Co-Schedule – they offer a free headline analyzer to help you create headlines that drive traffic and bolster search results (https://coschedule.com/headline-analyzer)
- Fiverr – I love this freelance business services website – it’s the perfect way to find freelancers to help you with business tasks that don’t fall under your area of expertise.
BOOK
- The Last Lecture – Randy Pausch
- Lean In – Sheryl Sandberg
- Leading from the Front – Angie Morgan and Courtney Lynch
4. What is the best piece of advice you have received?
- Find something you love to do, find a way to make money at it, and you’ll never work a day in your life.
- What makes you weird makes you strong.
- Find something you love to do, find a way to make money at it, and that if you do, you’ll never work a day in your life.
- Be a rational dreamer – to take on big ideas and projects with persistence and hard work.
- Staying true to yourself in the process – the things that make you unique are the things that make you strong.
- Don’t try to suppress them for fear of standing out – embrace the opportunity to stand out.
- Cultivate your unique worldview and infuse it into whatever you do.
6. What advice would you give to other entrepreneurs
- Push through the lows.
- Set goals and do something every day to work towards them.
- “The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. The brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough.” – Randy Pausch
- Savor the highs and push through the lows.
- Brace yourself for the days that are slow or frustrating.
- Don’t let “no’s” derail you.
- Set clear goals, and do something every day to work towards them.
- Don’t be concerned with leaps and bounds – focus on small, consistent, steady steps.
6. What is your beauty and/or fitness routine?
BEAUTY ROUTINE
- Bioré’s Micellar Waters – they’re the perfect, easy way to make my skin feel super refreshed.
- Boscia’s Makeup Breakup – to remove my makeup before following up with a very simple facewash
- Trader Joe’s Spa Face Wash – I had a facialist tell me one time that your face cleanser should have the fewest and most recognizable ingredients possible, so I’ve prioritized that.
- Dermalogica’s Stress Positive Eye Lift Cream – this is simply a must.
- La Mer’s face cream – for the perfect finish!
FITNESS ROUTINE
Admittedly, I was way better about this last year when I was preparing for my wedding! But I did settle into a rhythm that worked really well for me:
- Three days of cardio (usually 35 minutes on the elliptical or 30 minutes on the treadmill, alternating walking and running in 2-minute intervals)
- Three days of resistance training (30-minute sessions, one day of arms, one day of legs, and one day of back/chest)
- One day of rest
I also like to toss in a little bit of yoga here and there!
7. List the products or items that are indispensable in your life.
Is it cliché to say my phone? When I think about life before smartphones, I’m honestly not sure how we did it. I’m glued to my phone, for better or worse (and it’s sometimes definitely the latter).
I’m constantly answering emails, managing social media, and fielding calls and texts. I enjoy being busy and on the go, and my phone allows me to do this and still keep a hand in my business.
I rely HEAVILY on my notes and clock app – I keep a running to-do list in my notes and set alarms throughout the day to keep me on track with any meetings or phone calls scheduled. My phone doubles as my assistant!
8. Which female entrepreneur(s) do you look up to and why?
There are so many. I truly admire Danielle Moss and Alaina Kaczmarski of The Everygirl. I think they’ve built a powerful and grounded platform that truly seeks to help women navigate life.
I’m also a fan of Sheryl Sandberg. It’s inspiring to see successful women taking time to give back to the next generation and equip future entrepreneurs with the tools needed to succeed.
I recently heard the phrase “community over competition.” I absolutely subscribe to this belief, and I think these women exemplify that.
9. List your social media platforms.
- Instagram @shopthekindco, @nataliegeorgette
- Twitter @shopthekindco
- Facebook @thekindcoalition
- Pinterest @thekindcoalition, @nataliegeorgette
- Websites www.thekindcoalition.com, www.nataliegeorgette.com
- Email info@thekindcoalition.com
- Hashtags #OneDayataKind #100KChooseKind
PHOTOGRAPHY: Images by nbounassar@gmail.com, Leather Jacket image credit is Rain E Night Photography. Press pics are courtesy of the JAM – WCIU-TV.