Small Town Business with Erika McInerney
Small Town Business shines a light on people making big things happen in small towns, regional and rural communities. Each episode is in two-parts. In Part one, we chat with a small-town business owner, hand picked because they have a particularly special story to tell. They generously share the ups and downs and all the in-betweens of their business, before part two where I draw out one of the key points of the discussion into a specific learning with a focus on marketing and business development.Follow along for inspiring stories from community-driven, authentic people. Then let Erika McInerney - that’s me your host - teach you how you can take that inspiration and turn into into action for your business.Whether you’re already living in a small town, thinking of moving, or wondering what business is like outside the city - this podcast is for you. Make sure you follow or subscribe so you don’t miss an episode and, if you’ve just found this, make sure you start from the beginning.
Episodes
If you own a business, one day you’ll be faced with the decision of what to do next - what’s your exit strategy? In this episode, I cover a lot of ideas, meant to be thought-starters, for you to get started on an exit strategy now. I think it’s never too early to plan for your future and some of these options have a long lead time.
Join the Small Town Business conversation on Instagram or Facebook or ...
Sara Howard is a copywriter, content marketer, and founder of Writers Australia, a copywriting and content agency she spent 18 years growing into the go-to writing team for major corporates and not-for-profits.
While growing her agency from very-part-time-while-wrangling-toddlers to a talented in-house team and impressive roster of clients, Sara pioneered a different kind of agency culture.
N...
If you’ve identified a problem you’d like to solve or help to solve, you’ve got a number of great choices to make towards that end. One of those choices is to create a successful, sustainable business that contributes in some way to the greater good or to a specific need you’ve identified. That’s not necessarily a charity or not-for-profit, it might be a ‘social enterprise’ and this episode unpacks what that i...
I’ve always thought that the best business ideas come from noticing something that’s missing in the world. Something important and necessary. Simone Eyles did just that. She noticed that the media and marketing channels are seriously light on for imagery and representation of people living with a disability so she got to work, putting her entrepreneurial brain and her big heart into this new and exciting ventu...
When crisis hits your town or your business, it’s hard to know where to start. This episode is packed with practical ideas to prepare for disaster or down time, but also advice on what to do and how to approach marketing and promotion when things are not ‘business as usual’.
Join the Small Town Business conversation on Instagram or Facebook or visit online where you can get in touch.
The Sma...
Andy McCarthy is an entrepreneur, best known for building a renewable energy business from a tiny town called Mirboo North in South Gippsland Victoria. He later sold his company ‘Gippsland Solar’ to the RACV but he hasn’t lost his passion for renewables.
Andy now delivers keynote speeches, leadership training and workshops, and advises businesses, government and regulators on policy, strategy and aut...
I’m sure we’ve all been there - seen a sign on a window or a post in a local facebook group with that ‘business for sale’ headline. It starts you thinking…what if??
In this episode I’ve pulled together five key things to consider, to look out for, to plan for if you’re thinking of buying an established business or, if you already have.
There are more things to consider but here are my five:<...
Kate Toon is a multi award winning entrepreneur, author and speaker. In the circles I work in, she’s well known for her commonsense approach to complex beasts like SEO and digital marketing. And then in 2024, out of the blue, she bought her local bookshop and has shared her journey with refreshing honesty.
Kate is not technically from a small town, but she is in a small community and strip of retail s...
How do you grow a thriving business in a small town, regional or rural area? One way is to learn from others and this podcast is a great place to do just that.
If you’ve ever wondered how to make big things happen in a regional or rural area, you’re in the right place. I’m sharing exciting updates about Small Town Business, what’s coming up in Season 2, and why you’re going to want to tune in.
Alex Thomas is a rural health and safety specialist and advocate for safety and wellbeing in regional and rural areas - especially on farms. In this episode she tells us her very personal ‘why’ and why she’s so passionate about this topic. She has chosen women to help her in her mission through her organisation ‘Plant a Seed for Safety’ and campaign #SaveALifeListenToYourWife and it’s such a great story, I’m s...
Sometimes to make a treechange you have to leave your career behind and start something new. There are so many pros to building a local business - especially to support your lifestyle or family goals, if commuting back and forth to the nearest City just isn’t possible. In this episode, I take some of the tips I’ve gotten from other local businesses, to help you start something before you’ve even left your City...
Kristy Plumridge is the owner of Greenhills Farm and The Ridge House in Yarragon, West Gippsland. She and her husband Neil made a treechange from Melbourne in 2015 but they did it a little differently - pretty smartly I think. They bought a farm with no experience BUT rather than taking their inexperience in farming and jumping straight in, they have built up multiple businesses over the years on the land slow...
Even though I believe there is usually a place for social media in your marketing, I will rarely encourage anyone to JUST focus on it. Having a healthy spread of promotional and marketing activity allows you to reach a broader audience and mitigate any potential disasters - like getting locked out of your social media accounts. Which happens a LOT. So today I’m going to talk about three ways to promote your sm...
How much time and effort do you spend working on your business’ social media? Is it at the expense of other media? There’s increasing pressure from all around us to believe that social is the only way you can build your business or promote yourself, your business or brand but there are options. Great options…
In this interview, Kimberley Furness from OAK Magazine and I talk about media from all angles. Eve...
If you’re in a small business, chances are you’re wearing the marketing and social media hat. Being close to the heart of your business makes you the best person for the job, but sometimes it can be hard to share the type of content that really connects you to your audience and converts them into customers. How much do you share? Are you holding back from your audience or are you transparent? In this episode I...
My guest, Amy from The New Red, is no stranger to a good pivot, having traveled a winding road in her career and life. More recently in her small business she went into battle against her local Council to keep her successful woodworking and emerging skills training business afloat but chose to put her mental health first - pivoting into an entirely new direction. Amy’s honesty, creativity and drive are pretty ...
Are you a lifelong learner? I am! Learning comes with success and failure and, in small business, it comes from listening to others’ experiences. In this episode I open up about some of my learnings and challenges to date. I hope it helps - even if it just validates some of your challenges. You’re not alone!
Mentioned in this episode www.business.gov.au
This episode is the last of this series and I’ll ...
My guest, Jackie Yong from Soilz Alive, describes herself as a curious human, compost enthusiast and hair lover…three things that you wouldn’t think you could turn into a business. But she has and it’s great. It wasn’t all smooth sailing though and Jackie generously shares her ups and downs in this chat.
I hope you enjoy it!
To find Soilz Alive and maybe try a bag or two in your garden, head to her web...
This week I’m talking about passion. How to find it when you’re feeling stuck or how to know what you could or should be doing. I give you a few thoughts on how being passionate about your business can backfire and some tools to try and prevent that.
Passion is an incredible foundation for a business and is absolutely essential if you’re working or volunteering for a community organisation. I hope this epi...
Does your small town have a calendar of events that you attend regularly? If not, do you wish it did? Conceptualising, creating and running events is no small feat and it requires a lot of hard work and passion.
My guest, Alli Walker from Walker Events has that passion and you’ll hear it today. Alli will give you just a little bit of insight into how she went from working in healthcare in Melbourne, to run...
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