✨ Episode Summary:
In this revealing episode, Amanda shares the behind-the-scenes journey of growing QueenMee Accessories through the power of customer reviews. From hand-written notes and £50 startup funds to over 1,900 glowing 5-star reviews, Amanda dives deep into the emotional and strategic value of reviews in building trust, driving sales, and creating genuine connection with your audience. Whether you're just starting out or ready to elevate your customer experience, this episode is packed with practical tips, inspiring stories, and encouragement to help you grow your product-based business.

📌 What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• Why reviews are your most powerful marketing asset—especially when you're just starting out
• How Amanda built trust with early customers through handwritten notes and storytelling
• The exact review-gathering systems she uses across Amazon, Etsy, and her own website
• Why photo reviews and personal responses deepen customer loyalty and boost credibility
• Tips for crafting review requests that feel natural and authentic (and actually get results!)
• How to maximise reviews at in-person events and pop-up shops
• Real customer feedback that brought a magical moment for Amanda —and confirmed she’s on the right path

💖 Highlight Quote:
"I want my customers to know they’re buying from a person, not a faceless brand. That connection is everything." – Amanda Waterstone

🛠 Resources & Links Mentioned:

• Follow Amanda on Instagram: @amandawaterstone
• Free guides and checklists to grow your product-based business – linked in Amanda’s bio
• Listen to the episode where Amanda shares how she started QueenMee with £50

📩 Join the Conversation:
Did this episode spark ideas for your own review strategy? DM Amanda on Instagram at @amandawaterstone – she’d love to hear from you!

📣 If you loved this episode…
Please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a fellow creative entrepreneur. Your support helps spread the light and grow this community of brave-hearted business owners. ✨

Welcome to the podcast for creative entrepreneurs!

I'm Amanda Waterstone, of QueenMee Accessories, let me take you on a journey of self- belief. 

How would you approach the highs and lows in your journey, if you knew - for certain - that your dream business was just waiting to be connected to you? That it already existed?

This idea has been on my mind a lot recently, as I keep my goals for QueenMee in my sights. 

I'm grateful to already have a 6 figure business that I love, and this was once my big goal. 

Now that goal has come to pass, I hold the dream of a 7 figure business in my heart. 

In the early days of growing QueenMee - although I did have a belief that I would get to 6 figures - I was also crippled with anxiety and doubt.

😍 How would we approach things differently if we truly believed our success was inevitable? That it was only a matter of time, if we just kept trying?

💗 This week, I'd like you to imagine you're in a room and you know, for sure, that your dream business is behind a door.

There are 30 doors in the room. 

❔Do you give up when you open the first door and your dream is not behind it? 

🤲Absolutely not! You keep trying, and keep opening doors until you open the right one!

Instagram: @AmandaWaterstone

In this episode I share with you the power of taking small steps - and how it can lead to big momentum in your creative business. I started my business, QueenMee Accessories with a big dream, and just £50. In this episode I take you through the steps that have taken me all the way to 6 figures in my product based business.
I'm excited to share my journey with you, to show you that you can do the same in your business. Even when you feel you are at the bottom of the mountain and the climb seems overwhelming - small, continuous steps are what it takes to build your dream. 

Instagram: @amandawaterstone

In this episode I share my entrepreneurial journey with you to building my business QueenMee - warts and all! I've struggled with self belief ever since I knew I wanted to become an entrepreneur. I encourage you to work on your self-belief every day (as I do now), so that you can build your dream business without letting your self doubt get in the way. 
This episode contains the tips that I wish I had known years ago!

Instagram: @amandawaterstone

Are your sales feeling slow — or worse, stuck? In this episode of Bright Lips, Brave Heart, I’m sharing five of my go-to promotional strategies that you can use to drive sales in your product-based business right now.

These are tried-and-tested tactics I’ve used in my own six-figure fashion accessories brand to generate fast cash injections, shift stock, and engage loyal customers. 

Whether you're looking to hit a sales goal this month or just want to breathe new life into your offers, these ideas will get your creativity flowing and your checkout dings ringing.

Here’s what you’ll learn:

🛍️ The Secret Sale strategy that makes your customers feel like insiders
🎁 How a simple gift with purchase can increase order value overnight
📍 Why hosting an in-person event could be your most powerful visibility tool
✨ The magic of limited-edition bundles (and how to promote them properly)
📝 How a customer survey can spark conversation and bring in sales

Plus: sales psychology tips, and communication techniques that I've used successfully at QueenMee Accessories when promoting products.

📌 Resources Mentioned:

 📸 Follow me on Instagram: @amandawaterstone

💬 Connect with Amanda:

• Email: Amanda@AmandaWaterstone.com
• Podcast: Bright Lips, Brave Heart — new episodes every Tuesday!

🎙️ About the Show:

Bright Lips, Brave Heart is the podcast for creative entrepreneurs building bold product-based businesses. Hosted by Amanda Waterstone — founder, mother, and visibility mentor — each episode is packed with practical strategies and honest stories to help you grow with courage and creativity.

Feeling isolated as a creative entrepreneur is more common than we admit. In this heartfelt episode, Amanda Waterstone shares a vulnerable chapter from her journey building a product business — from working alone in a cramped spare room to finding joy, motivation, and momentum in her small business through the support of accountability partners.

You’ll hear how her fashion business, QueenMee Accessories, evolved once she made space for connection, and why having someone to share the rollercoaster ride of entrepreneurship with can make all the difference.

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• Amanda’s story of transitioning from full-time mum to full-time entrepreneur
• The emotional and practical challenges of working solo
• Why hiring a team member didn’t fill the gap she hoped it would
• How joining the Female Entrepreneur Association helped her find like-minded support
• The real impact accountability partners have had on her growth and mindset
• Tips for how you can find your own accountability partner(s)

Resources & Mentions:

• Join the Group Coaching Waitlist! 
• Female Entrepreneur Association (hosted by Carrie Green)
• Free guides and waitlist sign up also available via @amandawaterstone on Instagram

Call to Action:
🌟 Ready to stop going it alone? Start by reaching out to someone you admire in your space or explore networks like the FEA. Accountability might be the key to your next big breakthrough.

Are you thinking of trying Pop Up Shops in your product business, or do you already do them, and would like some tips to maximise your sales?

I've done 45 John Lewis Pop Up Shops in my business QueenMee Accessories, and I've had consistently high sales. I'd love to share my tips with you for maximising your Pop Up Shops and Craft Fairs!
 
This is the strategy that has helped me smash the 6 figure milestone in my fashion accessories start up. It's such a wonderful milestone to reach as an entrepreneur -whether you are a maker, a designer, or you sell other people's designs - Pop Up Shops can take you to the 6 figure mark and beyond. 

I'd really recommend that you give Fairs or Pop Up Shops a try in your small business. You'll learn so much in the process.

My friend's cider business: Artistraw Cider

To apply for a John Lewis Pop Up Shop, contact IndiePopUp

Get your Free Fairs Checklist on my Instagram page: @amandawaterstone

Do you get really excited about your plans for your small business, and put all of your energy into something, only to feel anxious about the outcome, and worried whether anyone will actually buy or engage?

This is something that I've struggled with time and again in growing QueenMee Accessories, and I'm still working on this area, to help me move forwards. 

In this episode for female entrepreneurs, I dive into some of the action I've taken at QueenMee that has left me feeling worried about the outcome, and a very memorable encounter with a giant fan, that surprisingly taught me a business lesson or two!

I'd highly recommend reading You are a Badass at Making Money, it's a brilliant book about mindset. 

On my instagram page I share lot of free resources to help you grow:

@amandawaterstone

Are you on the path to building your dream business, yet not all elements of your business feel aligned with where you eventually want to go? You could be due a plot twist!
In my path to building my 6 figure accessories business, QueenMee, I've had some major pivots along the way.
I dive into them in this episode written for female entrepreneurs, including how starting my entrepreneurial journey as a cafe owner eventually led me towards my accessories dream. 
So many highly successful entrepreneurs have had big pivots along the way - I believe that pivoting can help us to stay aligned with our Big Business Dreams!

References:

Mike Michalowicz: The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur

Instagram: @amandawaterstone

In this episode I dive into getting your retail pricing right to make sure you are profitable, as well as what might be holding you back from earning the best income you can. Let's get your small business to 6 Figures!

In growing my product-based business, QueenMee Accessories, I have had to work through some major money blocks and anxiety over pricing. 

I delve into my story, and also give actionable strategies for getting the right pricing for female entrepreneurs, and working through your money blocks.

I can't wait to share this with you, as I think it's really important we focus on the numbers, and on receiving money, so you can shine your light bright in your small business!

Free Resource: Hobby to Business Guide

Instagram: @amandawaterstone

I would highly recommend Shopify to build your website - I use it for QueenMee Accessories. It's very easy to use, and integrates with so many other applications seamlessly, saving you time and tech headaches. 

Hello! Do you worry about failure? It's a natural fear that I still grapple with, but I think we all need to celebrate failure!
I'm so excited to get stuck into this episode, as this is a topic very close to my heart, having had some major failures on my path to building my dream fashion business, QueenMee Accessories. 

In this episode I reveal some of the big failures I've been through, and the lessons I've learned from them. I'd encourage you to reframe failure too, it's amazing what growth it can bring to your small business.

What if failure is the world's way of moving us female entrepreneurs closer to our dream business?

Instagram: @amandawaterstone

If you'd like to build deep relationships with your customers, this episode is for you! Get over your shyness and get in front of the camera. You'd be amazed at what a difference it makes in terms of the connections you build, and the loyalty that grows in your audience.
In this episode I dive behind the scenes of my 6 figure small business, QueenMee Accessories, and take you through my journey as a camera-shy female entrepreneur, to putting myself out there time and again. It has brought amazing results in my small business, and it can do the same in yours. 

Instagram: @amandawaterstone