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Win With Paid Ads
#70: Client Win: How Amelia Simmons is Getting More Leads from Churches with Ads
00:30:26
After a decade as a church communications director, Amelia Simmons took a bold step: redefining her career on her own terms. Motivated by the birth of her son, who was diagnosed with Cornelia de Lange Syndrome (CdLS), Amelia knew the traditional...
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- [00:01]
A
Welcome to the Win with Paid Ads podcast for small business owners, entrepreneurs, and really anyone who has anything you want more people to find. Whether you're starting from ground zero or scaling an eight figure business, you are exactly who this podcast was created for. Because you being the best kept secret helps no one, right?
- [00:20]
B
You may be the best at what.
- [00:22]
A
You do, but if you aren't the best at advertising what you do, then you're leaving money on the table. That's why in every episode, I'll show you how you can use paid ads to hit your goals 10 times sooner. It's time you finally learn how to win with paid ads. You or someone on your team can do this. I'll show you how to score and be known by more. Let's get started. Today we have Amelia Simmons in the house. I cannot wait for you to get to meet her. I'm gonna let her tell you just a little bit more about her and her story and how we met. So, Amelia, welcome to the podcast.
- [00:54]
B
Thank you for having me. So, yeah, my name is Amelia Simmons and I'm a brand and graphic designer, founder of Blaze Studio.
- [01:01]
A
And how. Let's tell everybody a little bit about this story.
- [01:04]
B
It wasn't always Blaze, wasn't always a Blaze. So my background is in church communications. I didn't always want to work for churches. And when I was in school, I was just going to be a graphic designer and a brand designer. But after a really cool experience at a worship conference, I won't say worship, but at a Christian conference, I went to my church after graduation of saying like, hey, I want to really further this mission piece. And then at the end I said, well, do you have like a babysitting list I could get on? I'm not really sure what my next step is. Yada, yada. And they're like, well, we don't have that, but we do have a director of communication position opened. You, you should apply. And within 24 hours, I had the job. And that was over 10 years ago. And that kind of started my trajectory in church communications and design.
- [01:54]
A
That's very cool. So I've gotten to watch Amelia go from kind of. Wait, what was the name of the company before it was Blaze?
- [02:05]
B
So, well, it all started in 2020, as so many things did. My husband and I had a baby. His name is Wilson.
- [02:14]
A
And.
- [02:14]
B
And he was born with a rare genetic syndrome. And after about two years of still being on staff at a church, I realized that this 9 to 5 life wasn't made for me. In fact, it really never was made for me, but I was making it work because that's what you do. Right. That's the safe thing to do. But having my son that needed more of my time gave me the courage to start doing freelancing full time. And that's when I started Open Hand Studio.
- [02:43]
A
Open Hand. That's right.
- [02:44]
B
Because I really believed that holding my life, holding my son's life, holding my creative journey with an open hand was the right creative posture, which was great, but it wasn't really hitting with my audience.
- [02:57]
A
Yeah. You know, one thing that I'm actually talking about on a future episode is about branding and about how, like, scientifically and statistically people are more likely to buy a brand they understand. And so Open Hand, although that story completely makes sense, I feel like watching you go from Open Hand Studio to Blaze Studio and understanding, like, the power behind why you named it and how things change, I feel like it's so on brand for you. You feel the same way?
- [03:28]
B
Yes. Well, and so fast forward to. I had been doing Open Hand for a couple of years, and kind of my model wasn't really working. I was really just trying to figure out how do I. How do I stay a freelancer, you know, how do I make the ends meet as a freelancer? And it was at our Mastermind retreat in Rosemary, where I was just kind of being goofy in front of some of the girls after dinner. And one of the other women that were there, she's like, amelia, you are awesome. You have so much energy. I don't see any of this in your branding. And I was like, God, you're right. And this is what I do for a living for other people. But I wasn't able to really do it for myself.
- [04:06]
A
Yeah.
- [04:07]
B
Because I still was in that I want to be safe. I want to, like, seem palatable. Kind of always being told like, you're too loud. You have too many ideas, like, be less kind of. And I was like, you know what? You're right. You're right. This. I need to show more of this personality in my branding and to decided I just need to etch a sketch. Shake this.
- [04:30]
A
Shake this thing up.
- [04:31]
B
That's right.
- [04:31]
A
I remember walking up to you and being like, you are a firecracker. I'm like, you are funny. Like, me and Katie were about to pee on ourselves, laughing so hard. I'm serious. I'm, like, sitting back there and watching everybody, and Amelia's on the board, like, doing this funny thing, and I'm like, that is so fun. Like, people want to engage with you, but it's like, you're funny, but it's not. Like, I think sometimes people think with advertising or with messaging that if you're funny, that that correlates to dumb.
- [04:59]
B
Right.
- [04:59]
A
And you can be so playful and immensely intelligent. And that's something I was insecure about. I'm like, if I go on Instagram and say something funny, are they gonna. Is that gonna discredit me? And I think it actually just, like, shows our humanity.
- [05:11]
B
Yeah. Well, and also, too, just how it was a mindset shift, too, because I don't think if you go on my social media or look at my website, I'm not, like, cracking jokes.
- [05:20]
A
No.
- [05:21]
B
But in the tone. And just, it was changing my internal branding around how I saw myself and how I was okay walking into spaces. Like, yeah, I'm gonna come into your church and I'm gonna wanna change everything, and you're gonna wanna hire me because of that. I'm not gonna be a bother or too much on your staff. I'm not gonna be coming in here making trouble. You're inviting me into your space to shake things up, to bring a vision. Exactly.
- [05:47]
A
Yeah. I think I've complimented Amelia so much on this that I even sent her a message yesterday. I was like, you're so good at bringing a vision to life. Like, you. You have an idea. And one of the things, like, Amelia and I get to work together pretty closely. And so I give her very direct feedback on her ads. And I'm like, she's so good at creating the visual. I just have a few. Like, it's the balance of, like, graphic design and advertising, and we're just coming together. And it's so cool how of all the clients I've worked with, one thing that you do so quickly is when I give you specific feedback, you're able to visually represent that feedback so quickly, which is cool.
- [06:23]
B
That's art school. I joke with people. I have two degrees. My first degree is in art history because I actually wanted to be a lawyer most of my life.
- [06:31]
A
Okay.
- [06:32]
B
And work at the un.
- [06:33]
A
Wow.
- [06:34]
B
I was very big into model UN and mock trial in high school, but then I didn't get into my dream school, and for some reason, those two things were very close together. So I'm like, well, I'm going to a different school, different life. Some of major in art history and maybe still go to law school. We'll see. But ended up going to France for a semester, learning from artists, and deciding to go to art school. Which art school it's not for the faint of heart. Because in traditional education, you take a test, you turn in a paper, just you and the teacher know your grade. In art school, you literally are putting up a little piece of your heart every day on the wall for the entire class to critique.
- [07:14]
A
Wow.
- [07:15]
B
And on a crit day, you know everyone's grade. It's no surprise.
- [07:21]
A
So, yeah, that's very interesting. I did not know how that works. I feel like that could be bad. And also really good.
- [07:27]
B
Well, and it's terrible when the professor makes you rank everyone in front of everyone and tally up who was the best. Oh, my gosh. Yeah.
- [07:36]
A
I feel like that's me on the Mastermind calls. I'm like, I love you. And this ad is. Is not good. Let's change it. But it's like, it's good because everybody's learning from the feedback that you're giving. Oh, yeah. But then there's some pressure assigned with it, you know?
- [07:48]
B
Yeah, we only get better.
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A
You only get better with feedback. As long as every. As long. That's actually one thing that I feel like is one of the many reasons that you're so successful and have grown in your success with your ads is just because you're okay taking feedback, not okay taking it. Actually, you look forward to it.
- [08:02]
B
I invite it.
- [08:03]
A
You invite it.
- [08:04]
B
Because, like, if it's not working, then we got to figure out how to make this work.
- [08:06]
A
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I feel like. So I want to talk to you about it, because I want everybody to hear your. Your wins that you've had with your ads, but I also want them to know how long it took to have a good adwin. But I feel like before we get to Adwin, it was that pivotal moment at the Mastermind where you had a redirection.
- [08:23]
B
Yeah. So this was in December, and I was like, I think I'd been thinking about a rebrand for a while, but I'm always quick to want to start over. So I'm like, well, no, let's see if we can make this work. And then when we had that conversation, I was actually walking on the beach thinking, like, no, this needs to be 2025 is the year. We're going to turn this into something a little more authentic. And also, I went from thinking like a freelancer to thinking like a business owner and being an agency owner, and that was a huge mind shift for me. And I think that goes to the testament of the women you bring into the Mastermind. How, like, yes, we love learning paid ads. We love getting Coached by you.
- [09:01]
A
But.
- [09:02]
B
But everyone is so generous in the Mastermind with what expertise they bring. And so I just really appreciate that from the mastermind.
- [09:10]
A
Well, I welcome that. I'm not the smartest person in the room. I may be the most experienced with ads, and that's great. And we'll talk about ads. But that's why even one of the things that we're, like, prepping for launch youh ads live, that's coming up soon for the Mastermind and Hall of fame is how can we get other brains that are really, really good at those other things to benefit everybody else in the room? I know we've talked about it a little bit too, because you're just so good at the visuals. I'm like, people need to know, like, some of the stuff. Some of the ads I'm seeing are just terrible. They're just like the font I can't read. It's not centered. It doesn't have that graphic design. Amelia esque. And that's why I asked Amelia. I was like, would you be open to talking to some of the people about some of the ads that you've done? Because at launch youh ads live, we're gonna be launching ads. And I just. And it's an exclusive perk, by the way. If you're listening. It's not an event I'm selling. It's actually just an exclusive perk of being in the Mastermind or Hall of Fame. And so there's just these little things that I think come natural to you, But I guess now that I'm realizing it, like, oh, it was art school. It was like, you already had this visual experience that you brought to ads, and you were able to transfer it really well.
- [10:11]
B
Absolutely. And that's one of the things, too, in design, especially in branding. You're always looking for what is distracting. I used to. I had a professor who would always, like, if you could put your hand over it and the design still works, take it out. If you can squint and you don't see it and can't read it, then it's. You can't be lukewarm. You can't be in the middle. It's gotta be either, like, it's a thing or it's not a thing. And so really cutting out everything in between.
- [10:35]
A
This is why I was distracted by your dresser in that video.
- [10:39]
B
Oh, for sure. My video situation is.
- [10:42]
A
We're working on it.
- [10:43]
B
Well, we're in an apartment.
- [10:44]
A
Okay.
- [10:45]
B
Like, my house is under construction. We're getting there.
- [10:47]
A
Yes. But it is one of those things, like, do you ever notice with ads, you get distracted by something that is completely unrelated to the thing? That's what I. Yeah, that's what I. People don't think about it. Like, I had someone and I'm gonna. She's gonna remain unnamed for this purpose, but she sent me an ad the other day, and there was like, a little bit of trash and, like, some things falling behind her. And I'm like, I love you, and I can't listen to anything you're saying because I'm like, what is that mess? Yes, because here's the thing. You can be type A and type B. Like all my type A and B people hear me when I say this. You can be type A and type B. But here's one thought I want to give to you. When someone sees your type B background, it's a little bit messy. And you don't care. What that's going to say is, you also don't care about how you can help them. Now, you say you're helping and you can take care of the people watching, but you can't take care of your dresser. How are you supposed to convey confident? And I'm not talking about your dresser. I'm talking about messy dresser. If someone sees a mess behind you, they're going to think they can't even take care of their own house. How are they going to take care of me? Right? And you don't realize it, and honestly, your audience doesn't realize that they're thinking that too. But subconsciously they're picking up on these cues and it's a little bitty subconscious red flag. So that's why even whether it's art, whether it's ads, whether it's a video, the little things, the distractions distract and detract from your message.
- [12:04]
B
I mean, so my office is in my attic, and I ran an ad, one of the very first ads that I ran, talking about working genius. And I'll get to that in a second. But anyways, so someone commented, like, girl, you and your attic. I'd be like, yeah, I am okay. I'm in my attic. It's a nice attic. Yeah, but still, I mean, I've thought about, like, in our home renovation of, like, where am I going to find a space to video that is as clean and clear and not. You have to. It's a fine line between specific and nondescript, like specifically you, but it's also not specifically not them. Does that make sense?
- [12:42]
A
It does, yes. You know, I'm sitting here thinking I used to do. Because I used to. When I first made the first version of the course, I was very pregnant and I was in an apartment and there really was no place where there was gonna be a good background if I was gonna have lighting. You know what I mean? And so just figuring out like, honestly, Robert's here. I'm like, we. I probably should have like just invested and gotten in a different location to just do some of like, like what we do now with batch days. It's like batch a bunch of content in a good location temporarily. But I remember very recently, I say very recently in the last year before we moved here. I remember Macy, I was on one of the calls and she's like, you have a seven figure business. And all I see is this old 1980s, like end of my headboard of my bed. And it was like brown. It was in the way. She was like, at least hide it with the whiteboard, something.
- [13:42]
B
Yeah.
- [13:43]
A
And like, it's so true. I'm over here saying, I can help you grow a business. And I'm like, now I don't have an office because I can't afford an office. Like it was one of these little things, but it's like we all have to be somewhere for a while to get somewhere. Like all. And so I'm like super proud of that bed. Like I didn't have to pay for it. I used it for 10 years. Like you have to be in a phase of interim in every phase of your life. So it's just. How can you still be in that phase while still communicating confidence? Because I will tell you, your website and brand, so clear, so clean, so simple, so organized, so not distracting that I think that's why it's almost like the video contrasted with the rest of the whole page. Because it's so good. Yeah, it's just those little things.
- [14:22]
B
Yeah, I'm with you.
- [14:22]
A
But you see that for your clients too, right? Like, you see a church coming up in here and they've got. It just looks like a little bit messy. Even though they're good people with a good mission.
- [14:30]
B
Absolutely. So one of the churches, I feel like we're jumping around to get to where I am versus where I was. So back to before I knew you. I took your challenge.
- [14:42]
A
Oh, by the way, I forgot to mention you just registered for the challenge. It's really great. That's so cool. I had forgotten that you did actually.
- [14:48]
B
I took your challenge and that got me in the retargeting for Salesgirls. So the sales girls challenge, which I, like, joked with people. It's like, I don't wanna sound weird, but I feel like I had a spiritual experience.
- [15:00]
A
Oh, my God. Tell me more.
- [15:02]
B
Well, just I was so insecure. And the previous church I had served, like, church is not for the faint of heart. Like, I love church. I grew up in it, in a little, small church, and I've served really big churches, but it's just a place for hurting people. And I'd been really hurt by previous church, and I just felt, like, really crummy about myself, and I didn't know what I was gonna do. I was ready to, like, leave design behind. Like, maybe I'm done. I'm gonna do this working genius thing.
- [15:30]
A
Wow.
- [15:30]
B
And I went into the VIP room and I got to ask Kat a question. I forget what it was, but the community that they have, similar to the one you have, was just so supportive and kind and sweet. Like, no, we can tell you're really good at what you do. I'm like, oh, my gosh, maybe. Maybe I can do this. And that's when I decided, like, I need to invest in this company and whatever I'm doing, because I hadn't really invested anything in my company. Yeah, I'd been really lucky to get a few, like, early big successes that allowed me to leave my full time job, but those were kind of like, running their course, and I needed to figure out what was next. And so it was after the salesgirls challenge. I was like, you know what? I need to talk to that Ashley girl. And that's when I, like, messaged you. And I was like, so surprised. Like, wow. She voice memo me right back. Like, okay. And then we had our conversation.
- [16:25]
A
I remember it.
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B
And I was hungry for entrepreneurial community. And that is what I found in the Mastermind. And, like, the ads are great, but the Community's even better, which shows how good the community is because the ads are really good.
- [16:41]
A
Yeah. That makes me so happy. Yeah. It's crazy when you are alone as you and I, like, run our businesses, it's us at home in our. In our offices. Yep. And one of the reasons I created the Mastermind was because I hated being alone. And I think. And I know I said it on a recent episode with Katie, one of the ladies in the Mastermind. But the. The. The value you get is the skill. But also, like, if you walk away believing in yourself more, then that will take you farther than. Than everything, let alone if you've got ads to take you there with it. It's like so incredible. And so I've watched you, even from our first call. I think you and I both, we've both been growing this whole time. I've watched us both grow in our confidence. Yeah, it's been really cool. So I'm so grateful that you're a part of it too. And everybody freaking loves you. Like, like, everybody's like, amelia is fun to be around. You know, it's not fun.
- [17:36]
B
Why do it? You know?
- [17:37]
A
Exactly. Like people say, someone asked me on Instagram, she said, were you working on vacation? And I'm like, oh, no. They think work is like a bad thing or not a fun thing. They think it's a four letter word. I'm like, I love this.
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B
Yeah.
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A
Like, yeah, I have an hour to get caught up during nap time. I love this.
- [17:55]
B
Like, well, and I have really identified with that. So when I worked on staff, like, I'm a creative, I like to design, I'm very visual. But when you work on staff, you gotta do weekly bulletins, you gotta wrangle youth directors on, like, hey, I need, I need the price of that, that retreat to put it on the website. There's so many administrative things you have to do when you're on staff somewhere. They just really drained me. And with the clients that I've gotten through ads, I'm just doing design. I'm just doing design and messaging and branding. Fun stuff. And I love it. Like, I stinking love it. And so that is also the part that I've loved about what ads has given me is people find me for just what I want to do. I don't have to do all those other things. Also, I'm not good at it. I am not good. I'm dyslexic. And I always tell my clients that for you need a proofer if you got me. But yeah, so I've loved that too.
- [18:58]
A
That's awesome. I mean, that's the whole point of ads, is be found for the thing you really want to do. So let's talk about these client wins. Amelia, so it took you, we redirected with your messaging, and then I feel like once the messaging shifted and you kind of launched your new approach, things started to pick up pretty quickly.
- [19:14]
B
Yeah, they did.
- [19:15]
A
Tell us about it. Everybody's waiting on the edge of their seats to say, what are her wins? What did she spend? What did she make? What's the scoop?
- [19:21]
B
Yeah, so I spent, I think today I spent around 2,500 to $3,000 and gotten back around 10 grand. In different clients. So one of the clients is in Maryland. It's a church up there. And that was. I went and flew up and did a site visit and it was a quick one day turnaround and it was amazing. But this, I mean, this is like a nondescript church called New Creation. Um, and it's funny, when I think about Maryland, I don't think about the countryside, but this church is kind of on the east shore. And driving there from the airport, it was like being in South Georgia. That's so cool. And just getting to really connect with them and working on their branding right now is awesome. I'm working with a Christian influencer.
- [20:06]
A
Okay.
- [20:07]
B
In Pennsylvania.
- [20:08]
A
Let's go.
- [20:09]
B
200,000 followers. And what I love about him and what I've seen in a lot of ministries I've worked with is people that are outside of traditional institutional church. He has a full time job, but he has done this basically an Instagram Bible study. And people really connect with him and the way he talks about God. And so I'm designing some journals for him. And then this past week, this is my favorite. I won't say favorite. I love them all, but this one is. Is huge for me, is. Yeah, it's through Duke Divinity School and it's the coolest project. So at Duke, they have a like, MD fellowship. So like medical doctors that get a theology fellowship along with their doctor in medical stuff. So I'm really excited to work with Duke that we're working on this kind of special project to help physicians kind of stay. Stay in a good place spiritually, but also be able to minister to those that they're serving.
- [21:13]
A
Very cool. So you've done all of this through. It's a mix of your Google Ads and your meta ads. Right.
- [21:19]
B
I mean, my. I guess you would say my, like, conversions have all come from Google Ads.
- [21:26]
A
Yeah.
- [21:26]
B
And I've had a couple of conversations, maybe through retargeting.
- [21:29]
A
Yeah.
- [21:30]
B
But the prospecting on Google is money. Like, that has been perfect. And I know, like, when I started, I had wanted to be the overachiever and have. I want 10 ad sets with 40 words in each ad set. No, I have five words that are my words. And just like we talked, we. I attended that garden. I've gotten in so many negative keywords to have it be just what I need it to be.
- [21:55]
A
And people who don't know Google Ads without giving away secrets. What I can tell you is people don't realize how to actually truly have control. How Amelia does. Like a lot of people are like, yeah, I put keywords in. Yeah, but negatives, that ain't working. And I'm like, you don't get it. What Amelia is saying is something that we're obviously not. I can't go into it here on the podcast, but what she's done is she. She's been able to, like, have extreme control so that every dollar that she's paying now we know is exactly the person who, with the intent to hire Amelia soon. And so does she get 100% conversion rate? No. Nobody does and nobody will. But what we do know is that the money she's spending is not wasteful because it's actually people searching for precisely what she loves to do, which is so fun. So she's getting a lot of leads from Google. She's staying top of mind with them through retargeting ads with the method that we have there. And I've just watched her ads get like, better and better on Google and on Meta. And I just, like most people, well, don't push through. So the last thing I wanted to end with today is how and why are you the person that even when it's not going well, you just keep going and know that it will. Like that, like, people want that. Like, how does someone spend money? Or how does someone invest and not get immediate return and keep going? Why are you like that?
- [23:11]
B
I think it goes back to your why of. I never want to have to ask for a week off so my son can have open heart surgery. I don't like. I don't. I know I can get good work done. And it does not fit in the box. Sorry, Robert. And it does not fit in the box that the world has made. Part of the reason why I call it Blaze Studio is sometimes you have to blaze your own trail. And that is what we have done with our son. And that is what I think a lot of people, they see how other people have made it. And I think especially as women, we have to form different ways that work for us.
- [23:50]
A
We do.
- [23:51]
B
We don't need to play by the 9 to 5 Monday through Friday game. Like, we can work anytime, anywhere. We fit all the things in and we. We should be compensated for it and not have to fit into a box. So it was that drive of. I don't want to do that again. But one thing that was really cool is I hired an assistant. Well, I say assistant head of operations.
- [24:14]
A
I love this.
- [24:15]
B
I hired a head of operations and it's of someone I used to work with at another church. And having just Someone on my team, she talked about. Cause I was like, erica, like, we're not rolling yet. I can't offer you a ton, you know, And I know how good you are. And she's like, no, I just want some extra money to go to Disney World. And, like, honestly, getting her to Disney World, like, heck, yeah, we're gonna go. You're gonna go to Grand Floridian. Like, I want that for her more than I want it for me. Does that make sense?
- [24:49]
A
It does make sense.
- [24:50]
B
So I think part of it is not doing. It's never been for me. It's always been for somebody else. But then also, the more I get to work with people that I want to work, working with this church in Maryland, working with this doctor through Duke and with Garrett, like, I just want them to win.
- [25:10]
A
Yeah.
- [25:10]
B
You know, like, I totally get, like, their message needs to be out there. They are doing really meaningful work that needs to be seen. So I think before I had that success, I kind of knew it. But being around different people telling me, like, no, you can do this also helped a ton. And having supportive husbands, supportive everywhere. But, yeah. I mean, just filling my head constantly with people telling me I was gonna win even when I didn't think it.
- [25:40]
A
Yep. Cause I say it all the time. You have to have someone who's the one who can. Who can help you think differently about sometimes something. But also, you, like, help someone see that potential in you. So I'm really proud of you. Is there any. I guess. I guess this is my last question for you, and then we'll wrap it up. How did that conversation go with your husband when you were making a pretty large investment in the Mastermind, when you were kind of just getting started? I always just, you know, what is. What was his. What was that conversation like before? And then what has his response been to some of your new clients and the traction. I'd love to hear the honest behind the scenes.
- [26:19]
B
So. Well, this wasn't the first, what, how many digits big thing I'd come to him with.
- [26:26]
A
Okay.
- [26:26]
B
Because I'd already been at our. We already kind of had known something needed to happen.
- [26:31]
A
Yeah.
- [26:31]
B
And, you know, making small, little $1,500 here, $2,500 here. That wasn't making a difference.
- [26:39]
A
Yeah.
- [26:39]
B
Like, we needed a big step. Yeah. And so I was like, hey, so I've thought about this. Watch this. And he's like, yeah. I mean, I think because he's a financial.
- [26:49]
A
What did you have him watch? I ForGot was a YouTube video. Me and Kyle I wonder.
- [26:54]
B
No, no, no, no. It was just showing him your stuff. I played him all the voice memos you sent me of, like, Stacey here, Like, she's. It also helped you from Georgia. So I live in Atlanta.
- [27:06]
A
And we both went to Georgia.
- [27:07]
B
And we both went to Georgia.
- [27:09]
A
Yeah. Veronica's over there cheering. We're like, go, dog.
- [27:12]
B
UGA connection is strong. Never bark alone. And was like, yeah, let's do it. Let's use, you know, some of, you know, this pile of money, and you're worth the investment. Like, I know betting on you is worth it. And he's a financial planner, and so he gets to work with people all the time about making these kinds of investments. And so it's like, yeah, sometimes you have years where it's an investment year, and this is our investment year. And it was so true. It was very scary. It still is scary. I mean, I'm still working to that point where I want to be. I'm still the not there yet, but it's, like, just pushing through till something works. Like, if the story's not good, the story's not over. Like, that's my mentality. Keep going.
- [27:58]
A
You're such a fighter, and I love it. It's awesome. So last. Last thing. So what does he say about your. Your attraction that you've had in the past couple of months?
- [28:06]
B
He's proud.
- [28:07]
A
No.
- [28:07]
B
Oh, yeah. He's proud of. You know, I mean, he's surprised, but not like, I didn't think you could do it. Surprised. It's like, okay, I didn't know this was how it was gonna look. Yeah, I loved my mom asked when I was. When I tell my mom about things, she's, you know, I think because I work from home, they think I don't work.
- [28:26]
A
Right.
- [28:27]
B
You know what I mean?
- [28:27]
A
Oh, yeah. No, absolutely. It's like, if you work from home, you're just doing laundry, right?
- [28:32]
B
I'm like, no, mama, I'm working and doing laundry. I told her, yeah, I got a lead. I've got a conversation with Duke Divinity School. She goes, oh, my gosh. Well, how do you know them? Like, I don't. It's through my ads. Like, literally what I've been talking about the last 10 months. Well, yeah, it's through my ads. Like, oh, well, how do you know somebody? I don't know someone in Maryland, but now I do.
- [28:56]
A
I love it. That's my favorite thing. It's new people. You couldn't wait. I bet when you walked up on. When you put your steps on that church, and the person saw you, they were like, Amelia, like, they were so happy to see you.
- [29:06]
B
Well, and that's the thing. I knew for my business to work, I needed to have a national presence, because there aren't enough churches in Atlanta or even in Georgia that I think are looking for the type of design that I'm providing. And to be able to find those people, I needed to have a national presence. And that's what Google's really done for me.
- [29:25]
A
So. Awesome.
- [29:26]
B
Yeah.
- [29:27]
A
All right, well, Amelia's journey started with the challenge. I'm just saying it could be a great place and could be the start that you need to. And so you can click below this video on YouTube or on Instagram. Now, before you go, after you register for the challenge and get your VIP ticket, your next question is, is going to be, well, what about design and do I need Amelia? And so we'll link to her information below this. But, Amelia, tell them where they can find you.
- [29:51]
B
You can find me on Instagram lasestudio.design and follow all my fun stuff there. And if you're interested to hear about more about my son Wilson, he has his own Instagram where we kind of chronicle all things disability life and advocacy. Chilson. Yeah, he's Ilson, I think, cdls, which is the name of his syndrome.
- [30:15]
A
Very cool. So we will link to both of those. That is so special. Amelia, I'm so glad you came today. And for everybody else, I cannot wait to see you on the next episode.