IAM2024 – Visibility Expert Helps Established Entrepreneurs Skyrocket Their Visibility

In this episode, we have Michelle Lewis, the founder of Visibility Vixen.
Michelle is a visibility expert who specializes in helping established entrepreneurs skyrocket their visibility, launch their unique show strategy, and start landing press for their brand.

She shares her journey from working long hours in the film and television industry to starting her online business that focuses on teaching people how to gain visibility in the virtual space.

She also offers advice on the importance of not only creating content but also promoting it effectively, shares tips on physical and mental self-care, and stresses on the possibilities of gaining press and publicity, regardless of one's income or business size.

Michelle encourages all budding entrepreneurs to not give up, put their mindset practices in place, and take daily action towards achieving their goals.

• Background: Michelle Lewis is a Visibility Expert specializing in helping established entrepreneurs increase their visibility, launch their unique show strategy, and start landing press for their brand through her programs and membership in the Visibility Lounge.
• Visibility Vixen & The Visibility Lounge: Her platform is focused on supporting entrepreneurs in boosting their online presence, developing a show strategy, and gaining press coverage for their brand.
• CEO Hack: Michelle believes in nurturing a positive mindset, practicing journaling at a coffee shop, and maintaining a healthy diet.
• CEO Nugget: She advises entrepreneurs to tap into their zone of genius and promote it.
• CEO Defined: Michelle sees CEOs as thought leaders who facilitate change on the planet.

Website: visibilityvixen.com

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Transcription:

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Michelle Lewis Teaser  00:00

So it's been really discovery and answering people's questions that has helped me formulate my trainings like the visibility lounge and the visibility vault, where people can go through and figure out the mixture of specifically, I really love how I see color because I see it in two ways.

Intro 00:24

Are you ready to hear business stories and learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales, and level up your business from awesome CEOs, entrepreneurs, and founders without listening to a long, long, long interview?

If so, you've come to the right place. Gresh values your time and is ready to share with you the valuable info you're in search of. This is the I Am CEO podcast.

Gresham Harkless 00:52

Hello. Hello. Hello. This is Gresh from the I Am CEO podcast. And I have a very special guest on the show today at Michelle Lewis of Visibility Vixen. Michelle, it is awesome to have you on the show.

Michelle Lewis 01:03

Thanks so much for having me. This is going to be such a blast.

Gresham Harkless 01:06

Yes, I'm super excited about this because we get the opportunity to learn a little bit more about Michelle and all the awesome things that she's doing for entrepreneurs and business owners.

So what I wanted to do was read a little bit more about you so people can get a little bit of a glimpse into all the awesome things that you're doing.

Michelle Lewis 01:19

Absolutely go for it.

Gresham Harkless 01:21

Awesome. So Michelle Lewis is the founder of Visibility Vixen. She is a visibility expert who specializes in helping establish entrepreneurs who skyrocket their visibility, launch their unique show strategy, and start landing press for their brand through her programs and membership of the Visibility Lounge.

She is the host of the Visible Entrepreneur podcast and a Facebook group and has been featured on Entrepreneur on Fire, The Huffington Post, LadyBossBlogger, and JustLuxe. Michelle, are you ready to speak to the I Am CEO community?

Michelle Lewis 01:52

I'm so ready. Let's do this.

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Gresham Harkless 01:53

Let's do it. Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. So the first question that I wanted to have was to learn a little bit more about your CEO story and what exactly led you to start your business.

Michelle Lewis 02:01

Oh, my goodness. It's embarrassing because in Some ways I think I came into entrepreneurship thinking that it was going to be easier than working in film and television. I was so wrong, right. Oh my goodness. But it all, in all honesty, it came from working at 14-hour film days and being exhausted and feeling like my nothing against the shows that I work for.

But I felt like my worth wasn't being recognized and that I wasn't really helping anybody. I was showing up and standing on a mark and, assisting my actor and all that stuff. And then I was going home. So as much as I loved the film and television process, I just felt like there was so much more that I could be doing.

I'd had a history of some health issues that I was able to overcome. And that really put a burden on my heart to go. There's a lot of people struggling out there. So in all honesty, I left film and TV thinking I was going to become some kind of a health coach. And I put together a 30-day course called Life Reboot.

So people could help get themselves back on track. That's where I thought my life was going, but it totally snowballed into using the stuff I had been doing every day in Hollywood inside of an online business to help other people get that same visibility, but in the online space instead of,

Gresham Harkless 03:17

in Hollywood. That makes perfect sense. But obviously, that's very, very important to be able to learn a lot of those principles and those kinds of practices that people have in Hollywood and be able to translate them into their business. So I guess, can you delve a little bit deeper about exactly like how you do that and what kind of services you provide for people like that?

Michelle Lewis 03:33

Sure. It all came to fruition when someone said, why don't you teach people how to do video? And I went Everyone knows that and they're like, no, they don't. So that's what started everything. And me and my husband put together a course called Video University, where we showed people how to make their own videos and professional lighting and sound and all that for a very affordable price.

And then that started snowballing into live streaming because I kept getting messages saying, how are you so confident on camera and what equipment do you use? And what's your strategy so that you don't babble and all that. stuff.

So it's been really discovery and answering people's questions that has helped me formulate my trainings like the visibility lounge and the visibility vault, where people can go through and figure out the mixture of specifically, I really love how I see color because I see it in two ways.

One, how it affects the body because of my health training and number two, how people actually view color on screen because of my film training. So it's been such a blessing to be able to come alongside people and be that kind of one-stop shop when it comes to visibility so that they don't have to work so hard building everything and then not know what to do because no one's coming to their website.

No one's, investing in their services.

Gresham Harkless 04:45

Yeah, that makes perfect sense. And I always say like a lot of times the name of the game is visibility because a lot of times entrepreneurs and business owners build businesses. They understand that there is like a missing piece that they're fulfilling.

But a lot of times. Nobody knows exactly who they are and where they are, how to contact them. So they have to fill in that gap.

Michelle Lewis 05:02

Exactly. Exactly.

Gresham Harkless 05:07

Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. So I wanted to delve a little bit deeper into what I call like your secret sauce or essentially your unique selling proposition.

What do you think makes you unique and is your secret sauce?

Michelle Lewis 05:14

That's a really good question. And I think that there's so many entrepreneurs out there that would be like, Oh I'm, an organic marketing unicorn and all this kind of stuff.

And I got to tell you marketing has been a huge learning experience for me because in Hollywood, you literally get an agent and you go to wrap parties and that's how you get your next job.

And that's not how it works here. Everything's online. So it's been a huge discovery process for me. I think what's unique about me. Probably is just my transparency. I'm never going to tell you that I have it all together. I'm never going to tell you that I've mastered any process, but I can tell you that what's worked best for me is I love recycling content.

So that's why I think people, find out about my show. Like I'm sure they find out about this one is that I use it and I bleed it dry. And I'm very. parent about my story. And I think that's what lands me the different press articles and stuff. But just to show you a little something, which I think would be so good for anyone watching to learn, like you have to constantly be a student.

So literally I'm in my RV coming back from Idaho and decided, Oh, I'm going to mix things up in my lounge and just started like sketching things out. This is the gold here is being able to constantly change things and grow and learn. And I think that's why my personal tribe enjoys learning for me because I'm always learning.

Gresham Harkless 06:31

Yeah, that makes perfect sense. And I think you end up being one of the best learners of best teachers because you're using it in your experience. And then, of course, you have that background in Hollywood, and then you're translating and helping out those entrepreneurs and business owners that need it as well, too.

Michelle Lewis 06:44

Yeah, exactly.

Gresham Harkless 06:45

Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. So I wanted to switch gears a little bit and I want to ask you which I'm super excited to ask you for, which is a CEO hack. And this might be an app, a book or a habit or something that you do on a regular everyday basis that you feel like makes you more effective and efficient as a business owner.

Michelle Lewis 07:01

There are so many answers to that question, right? I think that number one thing is, of course, mindset and your work is always going to reflect where your mind is at. So for me, I can tell a huge difference when I am in my zone and I'm doing my daily power exercise in terms of, I love going to the coffee shop and journaling and, going through and getting my mindset on point.

I also am a firm believer in meditations because it helps your brain be in more of an alpha state than a high-frequency beta state. So I think that's huge too. And I think last but not least is fueling properly. So for example, I'm doing a site transfer, course transfer, everything, transfer aggression. I know you feel my pain right now.

And so I'm making sure I'm staying hydrated. I have high electrolytes. I'm eating cashews. I'm putting lemon in my water, everything that's meant to boost brain function just so that I can get it done. Stay healthy while I'm doing it. There's no reason to sacrifice your health to build your business. And I think that's something that happens to a lot of people, unfortunately.

Gresham Harkless 08:06

Yeah, that makes perfect sense. And I think a lot of times people forget that you have to refill your cup and you have to take care of yourself. You're so busy, working with clients and giving yourself, giving up yourself for clients that a lot of times you forget that you also have to make sure that your cup is filled as well, too.

So I think that's those are phenomenal kind of hacks that people can take in to learn and be more effective. and efficient. So I appreciate that.

Michelle Lewis 08:28

Yeah, health is number one. It's the only we're only given this one body. So it's something that we really need to treasure.

Gresham Harkless 08:34

Exactly. Exactly. So that brings me to what I would call a CEO nugget. And that might be a piece of advice or a word of wisdom, or maybe something that you wish that you knew when you started your business. But do you have a CEO nugget or two that you can give to us to help us out as business owners?

Michelle Lewis 08:48

Totally. So my biggest mistake, and I know a lot of people listening probably struggle with this, is that when I started my business, I went in creativity mode for a solid year and was just creating content. And I didn't stop and take the time to take that beautiful piece of content and distribute it, market it, get it seen.

So I didn't make profit as quickly because I was so focused on creating and not actually building up the audience. And I think a lot of us have that. And I think it also can stem from an, a deeply rooted fear of no one's going to like this. This isn't going to reach anyone, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

So I think that the best thing you can do tap into your zone of genius, create that beautiful offering product video, whatever it is, then take the time to really work on promotion. And that's something that I really struggled with. So it took me more of that ketchup time. And I wish I would have known that earlier.

Gresham Harkless 09:41

Yeah, that makes perfect sense. And I like you probably touched on before, like your Hollywood background. Probably you had somebody that would actually do that and fulfill that for you. But understanding that not only creating is a big part of it, but also making sure that people see it and understand it as well, too.

Michelle Lewis 09:56

Absolutely. You just do the whole red carpet thing or the movies all shot like you're done and everyone else is promoting it and putting on buses and stuff. And so you don't have to worry about it. But When you're a one-man operation, it's just you, but it can be done. I was just chatting with someone over at Tailwind and talking about Pinterest and I really wish I would have dove into Pinterest when I first got started.

I'm like playing the catch-up game now, but there are friends of mine who started at the same exact time who blew up just because of Pinterest. So there are so many different resources out there that are at our disposal. But a lot of us don't take that action because we're really afraid that we either aren't qualified or we don't have the tech kind of brain to handle it.

But I think it's really important to focus on it and just slowly but steadily build that skill. It's like a muscle.

Gresham Harkless 11:01

Yeah, that makes perfect sense. That makes perfect sense. Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. So I wanted to ask you for now the definition of what being a CEO means, and we're hoping to have different types of CEOs on the podcast so we can peel back the onion and see exactly what everybody thinks a CEO is.

So I wanted to ask you very specifically, what does being a CEO mean to you?

Michelle Lewis 11:03

I think I'm still discovering what it means for me personally. But I think that when we're blessed to be able to build our own business, our own empire, our own team, it means that we have a specific mission on our heart that we were born with, whatever that may be.

So I think that really means that we are thought leaders. The online business, the world of entrepreneurship is revolutionizing the planet and it's a wonderful thing. And we can say, oh, I've made this much in our monthly income report, but it's really bigger than that. I see being CEO as how am I actually helping to facilitate change on the planet.

So I think whatever really touches our heart in terms of bringing people water or helping people who are homeless or whatever we can do to take a percentage of what we earn to help other people is really what being a CEO is all about.

Gresham Harkless 11:52

I love it. I love it. It's all about paying it forward. You reach a certain level or a certain stage and then you're able to give back and make the world a better place.

So I love that definition. I truly appreciate that. And Michelle, I thank you so much for taking some time out of your schedule. I wanted to pass you the mic, so to speak, to see if there's anything additional that you want to let our readers and our listeners know, and then how best people can get ahold of you.

Michelle Lewis 12:13

Awesome. I think what I have to say just as parting hugs to everyone that's listening is me and my friends and coauthor, Kristen Markay wrote a book called Publicity Jumpstart, which you can reserve. It's just publicityjumpstart.com. But what I want to say about that is. We think that until we're making millions, we don't have the voice.

We don't have the leadership. We don't have the income to justify getting press and publicity. And that's something that I thought until I met Kristen. So I want to encourage everyone listening that even if you're just starting out work on getting your story down on paper, work on writing out how you want to impact the planet, different things that you've learned as a business owner or whatever it is, and start figuring out how to implement.

Applying for publicity into your schedule now, because I'm telling you, this is a muscle that you have to develop, but you absolutely can do it. And I think there's so many entrepreneurs out there who are probably listening, who haven't gotten impressed yet and are going, I have no clue. It seems like this big hairy monster.

And I know it did for me too, but it's so important for you in terms of establishing your credibility, getting your voice out there, and it's 100 percent possible. So if you're listening today, know that is something that you can absolutely get for your brand, that you deserve to have that and you deserve your voice to be heard.

So that would be my parting love for everyone today.

Gresham Harkless 13:37

I love it. I love it. I love it. And if people are listening to this, what's the best or watching this, what's the best way for them to get ahold of you?

Michelle Lewis 13:43

They can absolutely grab our book, publicityjumpstart.com, and you can come and hang out with me anywhere.

Visibility Vixen works for website, Instagram, everything. So come on over, say hello. Let me know that you heard me on I Am CEO. I'd love to know. And I just really encourage you guys don't give up, put your mindset practices in place and then just take that daily action. And that snowball effect does happen.

Gresham Harkless 14:08

Awesome. Thank you so much, Michelle. I truly appreciate everything that you're doing and all the gifts that you have and sharing it with us so that we can learn to be better entrepreneurs and CEOs. So I want to give you a virtual high five, and I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day.

Michelle Lewis 14:21

Thanks, Gresham. You too.

Outro 14:23

Thank you for listening to the I Am CEO podcast powered by CB Nation and Blue 16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at iamceo.co. I Am CEO is not just a phrase, it's a community.

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This has been the I Am CEO podcast with Gresham Harkless, Jr. Thank you for listening.

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