How is the organizing business growing and changing--and how do YOU adapt so you don't lose out? We're talking about it today on Day 2 of the Week of Cabri on the pod!

LINKS FOR LISTENERS:

Our new free workshop: www.poroadmap.com
Connect with Melissa: hello@proorganizerstudio.com
Meet Cabri: www.minimizethenorganize.com

Melissa is delving into the evolving landscape of the organizing industry with guest Cabri Carpenter of Minimize Then Organize in Lubbock, Texas.

They discuss the impact of COVID-19 on business practices, the importance of adaptability and flexibility, and the necessity for organizers to embrace new technologies and strategies. The conversation also touches on the influx of new organizers, pricing challenges, and the various paths professionals can take within the industry. Melissa emphasizes the need for continuous learning and innovation to sustain and grow a successful organizing business.

 01:32 Adapting to Industry Changes
04:18 The Importance of Flexibility
06:31 Challenges and Opportunities in Organizing
10:55 The Reality of Running an Organizing Business
13:54 Exploring Diverse Paths in Organizing
20:03 Conclusion and Upcoming Episodes

It's part 1 of our WEEK OF CABRI here on the podcast--you are going to get lots of GREAT stuff from one of my favorite (and one of the most successful!) organizers that I know! 

LINKS FOR LISTENERS:

New FREE workshop: www.poroadmap.com
Connect with Melissa: hello@proorganizerstudio.com

The Week of Cabri part 1: Business Growth, Team Dynamics, and Social Media Insights 

We are touching on various topics crucial for the professional organizing industry, including social media strategies, business reflection, team expansion, and the importance of knowing your numbers. Both Melissa and Cabri share their unique experiences and perspectives on growing an organizing business, tackling social media, and transitioning into leadership roles. 

03:54 Cabri's strengths and coaching style 
07:13 The journey of Minimize Then Organize 
13:10 The role of social media in organizing businesses 
22:07 Building and managing a successful team 

Your online presence is your employee that works 24/7/365--and today I'm hosting Brie Morrissey of BK Branding Co to talk about 8 signs your business needs a REFRESH! 

In this episode, Melissa Klug checks in from Kyoto, Japan, to discuss the crucial role of branding in the organizing industry with expert Brie Morrissey. Brie, a former Pro Organizer Studio employee, now specializes in helping professional organizers enhance their online presence to attract more clients.

They explore the significant impact of visual branding, effective website design, and proper use of fonts. Listeners will learn about the importance of maintaining up-to-date branding, aligning business models with current services, and making strategic brand refreshes.

Tune in to gain actionable insights on how to build a cohesive and attractive brand that will elevate your organizing business.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 Introduction from Japan

00:30 Meet Brie Morrissey: Expert in Online Presence

01:11 Brie's Journey and Expertise

02:23 The Importance of Branding and Websites

05:58 User Experience and Branding Strategies

11:26 Signs It's Time for a Rebrand

14:46 Practical Tips for Rebranding

23:55 Adapting to Business Changes

30:50 Staying Competitive in the Market

34:05 Expanding Your Business to a New Location

35:24 Rebranding After Acquiring a Business

37:36 Raising Prices and Enhancing Brand Perception

40:11 Attracting High-Quality Employees Through Rebranding 

42:03 The Importance of Investing in Professional Branding

45:09 Efficient Design and Branding Processes

48:30 Affordable and Effective Branding Solutions

01:02:21 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Jessica Litman is well known as The Organized Mama, and has built an organizing business that many of us dream of! She also has dreamed of writing a book since she was in 4th grade--and is making that dream come true in April with the publication of "Home Sweet Organized Home." She is talking to us today about her path in organizing, including working one on one with clients both in-home and virtually, as well as a super successful online brand which started with a blog and has grown exponentially. 

LINKS FOR LISTENERS:

The Organized Mama website

Jessica's book "Home Sweet Organized Home"

Jessica's Instagram @organizedmamas

Pro Organizer Studio courses 

LINKS FOR LISTENERS: 

Amy's Instagram @minimalistamom

Amy's website minimalistaorganizing.com

Inspired Organizer® program information

When Amy Mayorga became a mom, she realized that the STUFF of being a mother was overwhelming her. She discovered organizing and minimalism, changed her own home life--and now changes the home life of her 26,000 Instagram followers and her in-home organizing clients in the Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas metropolitan area. 

LINKS FOR LISTENERS: 

Amy's Instagram @minimalistamom

Amy's website minimalistaorganizing.com

Inspired Organizer® program information

Our new FREE workshop: The Pro Organizer's Profit Plan 

Join our Inspired Organizer® program

Pro Organizer Studio has resources for professional organizers to start and grow thriving organizing businesses. We have resources for you to check out at all of these places: 

www.inspiredorganizer.com

www.youtube.com/proorganizerstudio

www.instagram.com/proorganizerstudio

www.proorganizerstudio.com

LINKS FOR LISTENERS:

Our new FREE workshop/masterclass "The Pro Organizer's Profit Plan" 

Information on our Inspired Organizer® program and community

In this podcast, we are going over the three mistakes Melissa made early on in her organizing business--so if you are making them too, you know you aren't alone! This is a sneak peek of our NEW one hour free workshop called The Pro Organizer's Profit Plan--If you are interested in watching the full one hour free workshop, click here. 

For more information on our Inspired Organizer® program, click here. 

If you are struggling with mindset, or negative self-talk--and PS, WE ALL DO THIS!--today is for you. 

LINKS FOR LISTENERS:

Soundtracks by Jon Acuff

Sisters of Industry podcast 

Information on the Inspired Organizer® program and community

Jon Acuff's podcast (which is awesome!)

In the last two years, organizers have discovered that there are lots of ways to help clients--and sometimes, even for a business that primarily helps people inside their house, organizers have been able to move to find an audience online successfully. Today we are bringing you an interview that Jen Kilbourne Obermeier did with Carly Tizzano of The Resolve Podcast, and it is FILLED with insight for organizers about finding your audience, and important mindset shifts. 

Carly is a member of our Inspired Organizer® community and was an organizer for years when she discovered that she had a passion for helping people set and achieve their goals. Now she is a coach specifically for goals and hosts her own podcast, The Resolve Podcast, where she interviewed Jen. We are excited to offer you a replay of their conversation. 

LINKS FOR LISTENERS

Carly's website (https://www.carlytizzano.com)

The Resolve Podcast (https://www.carlytizzano.com/podcast)

Information on Inspired Organizer (https://www.inspiredorganizer.com/join)

Pro Organizer Studio resources (https://www.proorganizerstudio.com)

Sarah Brent did something awesome with her organizing business, which is she saw that there was a need for something in the market, and she kept saying "someone should work on this!" and then realized someone was actually her. We love when someone takes a challenge and is like, wait, I'll tackle that! So we wanted to have Sarah on to talk about what she's doing...and how it can help all our pro organizing friends. 

Links for Listeners:

In a new series, we introduce you to an inspirational pro organizer from our community and tell you about their journey. Kim Snodgrass has just taken the leap and started her business, but is already working with clients while she builds the back end of her business. She tells us the whole story about making this leap into full-time professional organizing. 

Links for listeners:

Rustic Home Organizing site

Information on the Inspired Organizer® program

I am so thrilled to welcome Jenny Albertini, who is one of the very first professional organizers I ever met, and who was a great part of my organizing life, to the pod! She is the author of Decluttered: Mindful Organizing for Health, Home and Beyond--and it's a book that will help organizers with clients by connecting health (mental and physical) with the organizing process. 

WIN A COPY OF JENNY'S BOOK! 

www.proorganizerstudio.com/links

Jen and Melissa open the doors of a recent live coaching event we held inside our private Inspired Organizer® community--we talk about starting this new year out right in your organizing business (and remind you to take care of YOURSELF so you can show up for your CLIENTS!)

This conversation ranges from 2022 planning to what's happening in the industry to how do you really change your mindset when you change from a nine to five job to having your own business--and much more.  

LINKS FOR LISTENERS:
Information about our Inspired Organizer® community

Pro Organizer Studio resources

Do your clients ask you "Hey, what should I do with my..." (Grandma's crystal vases, this antique furniture, this jewelry)? Our podcast guest today, Charles Tinsley of The Keys Guild, is here to help us understand collectibles and how to work with our organizing clients more effectively when they ask these questions.

In this episode, Charles and Melissa Klug of Pro Organizer Studio talk about how the changing tastes of generations are impacting the market for collectibles and how organizers can be educated to be able to assist their clients with options for antiques, jewelry, china, and other items you might encounter in a home.

Links for listeners:

Keys Guild website 

Inspired Organizer® program information

What does it take to have a professional organizing business? When do you know it's the right time to launch a business? What does entrepreneurship look like for a professional organizer? Jen and Melissa answer all of these questions and many more in this episode. 

Links for listeners:
Free workshop (Your 4-Part Plan for Landing your Dream Clients in 2021) 

Information on our Inspired Organizer® program

Laurie Palau is an organizer, coach, author and Enneagram expert, and she's here today to talk about how understanding the Enneagram can help you better serve your clients--and your own business. Laurie's new course on Enneagram and Clutter can help you and your clients understand more about themselves and how to improve their relationship with STUFF!

LINKS FOR LISTENERS:

https://simplyborganized.com/enneagram-clutter-course/
Use code: POS20 for 20% off this course!

Laurie's website, Simply B Organized

Laurie's podcast This Organized Life

Our guest Pia Thompson of Sweet Digs, an organizer in the NYC area, talks to us about an incredibly important special event for the home organizing and productivity industry happening this week on Tuesday, October 19 (replays available.) This event is sponsored by The Home Edit, The Container Store, The Neat Method, and YouCopia.

Links for listeners:
Event registration-- www.gridandglam.com/unfolding

One of Melissa's organizing clients joins us this week to talk about a productivity concept she uses in her life that organizers AND their clients can both use to get huge wins. Boss October is a way to free yourself from those things that hang over your head (you know that email you've needed to send for three months? Yeah--that!) and it might even find you a lot of money. 

PODCAST EXTRAS WILL GO LIVE WEDNESDAY 10/13

Links for listeners:

Information on Pro Organizer Studio coaching programs: www.inspiredorganizer.com

Whether you've had an organizing business for years or are brand new, today's guest is offering so much wisdom about how your website and branding help you find clients and connect them to your business. Brie Kistler is the owner of BK Branding Co and she knows what it takes for an organizer's website to show off the best of her to potential clients. 

Show links: 

BK Branding Co website 

Brie Kistler Instagram

Email Brie: hello@bkbrandingco.com

Information on Inspired Organizer®

Jen and Melissa got together recently and decided to record all of our conversations so you can feel like you were here with us. Today we are covering both analog and digital--we chat the value of referrals as well as SEO for your organizing business--and we promise, SEO isn't scary! The name of the game is finding clients for your business, and these are two great ways to accomplish this.

Links for listeners:

Pod on SEO:
https://proorganizerstudio.com/blog/seo-for-organizers/

Our free workshop:
www.poroadmap.com/2021

Music by Atch: First Light - Atch https://soundcloud.com/atch-music 

We love when a new organizing show comes out so more people get to know what we do for a living. Today Melissa talks about the new Netflix show from Marie Kondo and how you can use this to your advantage with clients (even if you don't use her methods to organize!) 

Melissa drops in with a minisode about something she read recently in Tribe of Mentors by Tim Ferriss that she is implementing--and wants some buddies along for the ride! 

Two of my favorite people I've met in all my years of organizing are back with me here on the podcast! I am having a fun convo with Brandie and Ryan of Home+Sort in northern California, who are the founders of the How To: Summit. The summit for 2024 is moving to Austin, Texas in the end of September--and tickets are almost gone! We're chatting about everything that's in store this year for the 6th year of the summit. 

REGISTER HERE: howtosummit.org

Connect with Melissa: hello@proorganizerstudio.com

Melissa Keyser's journey to professional organizing stretched from the Bay Area to the woods of Maine--including selling almost everything she owned to move cross country. Today she joins us to talk about her business, including why it's the ideal career for people who identify as being HSP--highly sensitive people--and who might struggle in a traditional workplace. 

Melissa can be found on Instagram at @melissakeyser and her website, melissakeyser.com. 

We are back with more conversation with Shari Medini, work from home and parenting expert. Today we talk about great productivity tips for working from home--whether you're helping a client navigate a home office or if you're trying to figure out how to prioritize solopreneur time in your own pro organizing business. 

Links for listeners: 

Adore Them Parenting website 

Parenting While Working From Home book 

If you want our free workshop, "Your 4-Part Plan for Landing your Dream Clients in 2021"--click here!

Shari Medini is a mom and work-from-home expert. Even if you are not a mom yourself, or if your kids are older or grown and out of the house, Shari has awesome advice for us on how we can be the best professional organizer and coach to moms of kids--whether younger or older.

This is the first of a two part episode with Shari. Today we will talk about what we've learned about working from home with kids during the last (very challenging!) year-and how many workplaces are migrating permanently to work from home. We can be special advocates to our clients navigating this change and Shari tells us how!

Links for listeners:

Adore Them Parenting Website: adorethemparenting.com

Parenting While Working at Home book: www.adorethemparenting.com/book/

If you are considering starting or growing a professional organizing business, we have a brand new for 2021, totally free workshop you can take that goes beyond this podcast--you can register here if you want to check it out!

Xiomara Romero started Lilly's Organizing on a whim one night--and the very next day had her first client! She talks to us about her business growing over the last three years, and about her next unique project--taking her Airstream and her organizing business to all 50 states.

Xiomara is a part of our Inspired Organizer® program--to learn more, click here!

Website: www.lillysorganizing.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/lillys_organizing/

On day 5 of our Spring Cleaning bonanza, we talk about cleaning up your business processes. Looking at your sales and marketing, finance and accounting, operations and human resources (yep, even if you're a solopreneur, you need human resources!) departments and how you can improve your processes is a boss spring cleaning move. 

Dubsado for Professional Organizers course

Our free workshop from founder Jen Obermeier, "Your 4-Part Plan for Landing your Dream Clients in 2021."

Do you LOVE doing social media for your organizing business...or does it totally overwhelm you? Either way, we are talking all things social today--and no matter what side you fall on, we can get you back in order. Spring clean your social today with Jen and Melissa! 

Your website is your employee that works 24/7. Jen and Melissa tackle one of the most important aspects of spring cleaning your professional organizing business--your website, including the supporting players SEO (search engine optimization) and Google My Business. It's Melissa's favorite subject to tackle!

Check out our previous podcast with SEO expert Caitlin Strempel here: 

https://proorganizerstudio.com/blog/seo-for-organizers/

In part 2 of our 5 part "Spring Clean Your Organizing Business" series, Jen coaches us on priorities and what Warren Buffett has to teach pro organizers. If you have 100 different things on your priority list--this is the pod for you! 

Spring cleaning isn't just for your house--it's for your organizing business too. Jen and Melissa start a five part mini-sode extravaganza this week talking about how to take a look at your organizing business and make it sparkle and shine as you move into the busy spring and summer months. Stay tuned this week for all our tips and tricks! Today we start with GOALS...

Kate Waldo Jones didn't know when she first started Orchid Organizing that one day she would be running a 6 figure organizing business in three different cities, plus running a successful online business teaching people how to streamline the business of running a business (think emails, invoicing, contracts--all the stuff that takes a ton of time)--but on today's podcast, she tells us exactly how she did this. Kate talks to us about how she built her organizing teams, and how she learned about automations that help make the customer experience exceptional--and how you can learn all of these things from her. 

Learn more about Kate's team and Dubsado CRM courses here.

One of the most popular topics with organizers is social media. A lot of people have a view of what social is for their business, but it doesn't always align with the reality. Today we are talking about the dos and don'ts of social and how to really show up in the right way--without stress. 

LINKS FOR LISTENERS:

connect with Jen Mary: https://youreverydaystyle.com

Prior social media episodes referenced: 142 + 143

Bee Movie clip--"this time!": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_AZgoP2Jig

Jen Howard found herself in an unfortunately very common situation--she was solely responsible for cleaning out her mother's home, which had become fully and completely stuffed from basement to top floor with hundreds of thousands of things. During this intense, years-long cleanout process, Jen learned about the history of clutter, as well as about professional organizers, junk haulers, and donation locations. She shares her personal story about how clutter and hoarding impacted her mother's life, and how it's impacted her own life, and what she learned during her 2 year long journey with her mother's home. 

Jen's book Clutter: An Untidy History can be found at your favorite bookseller. 

Jen's website: jenniferhoward.com

Have you ever thought about taking your professional organizing talents to the page? Our Inspired Organizer® Hillary Zama decided to take a dream and an idea and make it a reality--she is now a published author, with her book "Spruce Up: A Professional Organizer's Guide for Your Home, Your Body, and Your Life" being out in the world. Hillary walks us through the publishing process and the goal-setting process that got her through taking her lifelong love of writing from an idea to a finished book. 

Have you dreamed of bringing a team of organizers with you to a client's home--but are intimidated by the idea of "how would I do that?" Kate Jones of Orchid Organizing, who is one of our Inspired Organizers®, has teams of organizers in three cities--and is ready to demystify the process of building teams for the Pro Organizer Studio listeners. 

Click this link to find out more about the new course for building a team for professional organizers.

As pro organizers, we know that organizing can transform a house. But have you ever applied organizing principles to your financial house? There are some really smart things we do with our clients that can be adapted to work in thinking about finances, and Melissa and Jen talk about this plus how Melissa used these principles to do presentations with financial services companies for her organizing business and networking!

Jennifer Mary of Everyday Style, our guest on our last podcast, is super passionate about customer service!

When we hear the words "customer service" we tend to think about retail stores--the service that you get from a store associate or how someone helps you in a retail environment. But customer service is really what we do with our clients every single day. It's how we interact with them from the time that they first contact us to the time that we show up in their home. It's how we communicate with them, it's how we get them on as a client, it's everything we do to make them feel valued.

I thought it was so important that I wanted to bring it to you as a bonus episode, because it's something that we can think about with our organizing clients as we move through 2021.

She can be found at her podcast, Everyday Style School, on all podcast platforms. 

Jennifer Mary is a personal stylist for everyday women. After growing her in-person client services for years, a family move and changing priorities led her to look to taking that service business to the online space. As professional organizers expand their services to virtual services and online courses, Jennifer has a lot of great advice on how she added these services, and what professional organizers can consider if they are looking at expanding online. 

Jennifer can be found online at youreverydaystyle.com, on Facebook, and at her podcast, The Everyday Style School.

Carly Adams is one of the mentors of the Inspired Organizer® program, and after four years leading a successful professional organizing business in California, she has plenty of wisdom to share with other organizers. Carly talks to us about how she works with clients, the shift to online and virtual organizing, what she brings to a client relationship, how she learned what her true north was for organizing--and we talk about how we will never go back to working for someone else! 

Carly can be found at tidyrevival.com and on Instagram @tidyrevival.

If you'd like to get our roadmap for success as a pro organizer, head straight to www.poroadmap.com. 

(01:00) Intro
(02:00) Online/Virtual Organizing
(04:00) Being "everything to everyone"
(05:00) Finding the right fit with clients
(08:00) Setting expectations
(09:30) The power of organizing
(10:00) Trusting your gut
(15:00) Finding your niche
(17:30) Additional advice
(21:00) Finding your forever job as an organizer

When professional organizers work with clients, emotions and psychology often come into play. Our guest today is Dr. Ania Schwartzman, who combines her clinical psychology degree with a lifetime love of fashion into her personal styling business The Fashionologist. Ania joins us to talk about what professional organizers can learn from a client's closet, and how we can better help our clients through the organizing process by listening and asking key questions. She also tells us a little about how fashion is changing and gives us ideas about pro organizer work wardrobes as a bonus. 

Ania can be found at thefashionologist.com or on Instagram at @thefashionologistnyc. 

(01:00) Introduction; working with clients
(04:00) Why people work with a personal stylist
(05:30) What questions to use with clients when organizing to help them make decisions
(09:00) What deep things closets can tell you about your clients
(15:30) Fashion changes/current trends
(18:45) Fashion for professional organizers
(24:00) "Enclothed Cognition"-dressing influences actions
(29:00) The power of clothing and how we help clients
(31:00) Showing up for our clients
(34:30) Pivoting for businesses like ours

Jen and Melissa are talking about one of our favorite topics--when is it time to make some investments in your pro organizing business? "Investment" doesn't have to mean multi thousands of dollars--it can mean "when is it time to hire a web designer" or "when is it time to stop using a free spreadsheet and start using an accounting system." Knowing when to invest--and what to invest in--is important, and Jen and Melissa talk about their (sometimes very different!) philosophies on spending for your business.

(01:00) Topic intro
(02:00) Jen's philosophy on investing
(04:24) Keeping promises to yourself
(06:00) Investing in yourself 
(08:00) Melissa's lessons on under-investing
(10:00) Jen's guideposts on investing
(12:00) Doing the work to get value out of an investment
(14:00) Delegating-not doing everything yourself 
(16:00) Freeing yourself to be a better entrepreneur
(18:30) Your business goals
(20:00) Wrap-up 

Entrepreneurship can sometimes feel a little lonely. Developing a network, and finding people who can be a professional support system is important--but can be overwhelming. Today Melissa Klug and our guest Laura Brown of The Sisters of Industry podcast talk about steps you can take to build a network and a personal "board of directors" to strengthen you as an entrepreneur and a person. 

Helping clients who need organizing while they're struggling with grief can be very challenging--and today we want to help you with some concrete ideas to help your clients. My guest is Missi McKown of Clear Spaces Organizing in Maple Grove, Minnesota, and she is graciously sharing some of her personal stories of loss to help organizers work with clients. 

Your website and Instagram are often the first ways a potential client has to connect with you--and showing your best self there is important. We offer you specifics on how to look at your website and Instagram feeds a little differently, all to provide a simpler and better experience for your dream clients. For pro organizers, your online content is key--make it fantastic!

Join our free Facebook group for podcast insiders to get notified about new episodes (plus get behind-the-scenes access and other goodies)!

Learn more about our Inspired Organizer® course + community

Check out our brand new workshop, The 4-Part Plan for Landing your Dream Clients in 2021. 

The rest of the show notes can be found here:

proorganizerstudio.com/podcast

Jen and Melissa break down the serious (and not so serious) things we learned this year, and what we can take with us into 2021 for our professional organizing businesses. 

Kay Patterson is also known as The Organized Soprano on YouTube, where she makes fun videos about home organizing, cleaning and life as a professional classical singer in Boston. She is a professional home organization and clutter coach, helping clients both virtually and in-person. Her co-star Clover is the most organized dog in America! Kay invited Jen on a YouTube Live recently and we are happy to have it here today for you to hear their conversation. 

She can be found here on YouTube and here on the great internet!