Small Business Growth Podcast

LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE IF YOU WANT TO BUILD A BRAND THAT DISRUPTS

In today’s episode I’m joined by Briana Summers, founder of Brighten Made, a Midwest-born designer with a California edge, known for creating some of the most memorable, strategic, and elevated brand identities online. After leaving what she thought was her “dream job,” Briana built a creative studio that now shapes brands people instantly recognize and obsess over.

Her perspective on branding is refreshing, honest, and exactly what founders need to hear.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• Why so many small businesses accidentally blend in instead of standing out

• The biggest branding mistake founders make when they “take inspiration” from competitors

• How to create a brand that actually means something. Visually and emotionally

• The power of cohesion across your website, Instagram, packaging, and customer journey

• How to identify your brand “feeling” and translate it into visuals, texture, photography, and storytelling

• The difference between trendy branding and timeless branding (and when each makes sense)

• Why consistency (not reinvention) builds recognition, trust, and long-term visibility

• When DIY branding works… and the clear signs you’re ready for professional creative direction

• How to prepare for a rebrand without confusing your audience

• The behind-the-scenes process of working with a creative studio like Brighten Made

Connect with Briana (Brighten Made):

LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE IF YOU WANT TO UNLOCK THE ONLY THREE THINGS THAT MATTER TO HIT SEVEN FIGURES IN PRODUCT SALES

Today, we’re diving into the three foundational pillars that every product-based business must master to scale past six figures and into seven. And why growth feels so random, inconsistent, or out of your control when these aren’t in place. Whether your current revenue is $5K a month or $500K a year, these principles stay the same… and they’re far simpler than you think.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• Why your growth feels unpredictable and the early-stage mistakes that keep founders stuck

• The symptoms that show you're missing the structure required for high-cash months

• The three core pillars every seven-figure product brand has in place

• How to build a brand that actually means something (and why that matters more than your product)

• The “Rule of One” and why mastering one ideal customer, one marketing channel, and one sales channel changes everything

• How to create a seamless, predictable sales system that turns awareness into revenue

• Why community (not virality) is the real driver of retention, referrals, and long-term scale

• How these pillars work together to create momentum that compounds month after month

• What to do next if you want to step into high-growth mode in 2026

📌 Have a question you want featured next time? Join the free podcast community below!

Topics we discuss: small business growth, e-commerce strategy, how to scale your product business, small business economy tips, overcoming sales plateaus

LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE IF YOU SEE YOUR NEW BASELINE & YOU WANT TO AVOID THE JANUARY SALES DIP

If you’ve had an amazing fall + holiday season and you do not want to watch your sales crash back down in January and February. If you’re looking at your Q4 numbers thinking, “Okay…how do I make this my new normal?” this conversation is for you.

Today, I’m breaking down how to turn holiday momentum into a higher baseline, what actually drives retention after the rush is over, and the simple shifts that help you keep buyers engaged, re-purchasing, and plugged into your community well into 2026.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• Why January and February reveal your true baseline (and how to raise it)
• How to use holiday momentum to build long-term revenue, not just a short-term spike
• The difference between “generating more sales” and actually retaining holiday buyers
• How to think about the customer journey for both gift-givers and gift-receivers
• Practical ways to use email, packaging, and touchpoints to keep new customers coming back
• How to shift your messaging in January to meet your audience where they are (goals, routines, “new year” energy)
• What to do now if you feel burned out but still want to protect your new baseline
• How to identify the one priority that will move your Q1 revenue forward the fastest

📌 Have a question you want featured next time? Join the free podcast community below!

Topics we discuss: small business growth, e-commerce strategy, how to scale your product business, small business economy tips, overcoming sales plateaus

LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE IF YOU WANT TO USE BLACK FRIDAY AS A TEST TO PROPEL YOUR BUSINESS FORWARD

Today, I’m breaking down how to use your Black Friday results as a diagnostic tool for your entire business: what it revealed about your marketing, offers, operations, audience, and growth strategy… and how to turn that data into a clear Q1 plan instead of just “trying again next year.”

Whether you’re disappointed, exhausted, or excited but overwhelmed by what comes next, this episode will help you identify your biggest bottleneck and decide exactly what to focus on first in the new year.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• How Black Friday acts as a mirror for the true health of your business
• The 3 “types” of post Black Friday founders (and which one you are)
• How to use the 5-part audit framework to pinpoint your biggest bottleneck
• What your data is telling you about traffic, buyer intent, and conversions
• The planning mistakes that quietly sabotage holiday sales
• How to separate emotional frustration from strategic gaps
• How to choose your primary Q1 focus and reverse-engineer your 2026 goals
• What to prioritize next if your issue was visibility, conversions, or operations

📌 Have a question you want featured next time? Join the free podcast community below!

Topics we discuss: small business growth, e-commerce strategy, how to scale your product business, small business economy tips, overcoming sales plateaus

LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE IF YOU FEELIN UNINSPIRED WITH CONTENT ALL THE DANG TIME

Today, I’m breaking down the real reason content feels hard, what causes inspiration to disappear, and the exact shifts that help you create messaging that finally works.

Because feeling stuck isn’t a creativity problem, it’s usually a clarity problem. And when you don’t know what you stand for, who you're speaking to, or what truly makes your brand different, every post feels like guesswork.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• The #1 root cause of content burnout and what it really means• How foundations (message, brand, differentiator) determine your content’s performance• Why inspiration can’t fix a strategy problem• The questions I ask clients to uncover their biggest clarity gaps• What to analyze when “nothing is working”• How to identify content that activates vs content that fills space• Why your marketing might not be the issue and how to know• How to rebuild direction, clarity, and momentum in your content• The framework that helps you generate endless ideas without scrolling• Action steps to create content that feels aligned and converts

📌 Have a question you want featured next time? Join the free podcast community below!

Topics we discuss: small business growth, e-commerce strategy, how to scale your product business, small business economy tips, overcoming sales plateaus