Show Notes
January 2020. New CEO. Six-month-old baby. Seven weeks later? COVID hits. That's how Cara McLeod stepped into the CEO role at Mahlab—and somehow that chaos became the launchpad for international growth. But here's the problem: Mahlab does bespoke strategy work. Everything is custom. Every project needs people. More growth = more headcount. The classic service business trap. So how do you scale what on paper looks hard to scale? Cara asks the questions keeping service business CEOs up at night: How do you stand out in a global marketplace when you're suddenly competing worldwide? Can you turn custom expertise into scalable products without losing your magic? And how do you test international markets—especially for their niche in member-based organisations—without taking your eye off the Australian ball? Naomi doesn't hold back. She reveals the partnership model that took a Shark Tank investment global fast. Plus: the warm referral strategies that crack international markets (spoiler: ditch the cold calling) and why tapping into global associations through your existing clients is pure gold. If you're wrestling with taking custom work global, this episode is your playbook. https://www.naomisimson.com/podcast/when-custom-meets-scale See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
More from Handpicked with Naomi Simson
Chris Loverseed makes dog gear by hand in Melbourne. He asked me whether people genuinely pay more for Australian made — and at what price they stop caring. My answer: the sticker won't save you. The story might. For more detail : www.naomisimson.com/podcast/made-in-australia-is-a-story-not-a-sticker-how-small-makers-compete-without-a-budget Thanks to Odoo for supporting this season of Handpicked. Odoo brings everything you need to run your business together in one easy-to-use, fully integrated platform, so you can spend less time juggling different tools and more time focusing on your business. Find out more here See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Go slow and steady, or raise money and turbocharge it? Lisa Taylor of Wicks Intimates asked me the question I get more than any other. My answer surprised her — before you look at your cap table, look at your cash flow. for more information www.naomisimson.com/podcast/how-to-fund-business-growth-three-options-before-you-raise-capital Thanks to Odoo for supporting this season of Handpicked. Odoo brings everything you need to run your business together in one easy-to-use, fully integrated platform, so you can spend less time juggling different tools and more time focusing on your business. Find out more here See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark Wege calls Orbital a 40-year-old startup. Founded by Ralph Sarich, now building drone engines in Perth and selling almost entirely offshore. His advice for anyone with a big idea: build for the global market from day one, because you cannot bolt it on later. For more information www.naomisimson.com/podcast/build-for-the-world-from-day-one Thanks to Odoo for supporting this season of Handpicked. Odoo brings everything you need to run your business together in one easy-to-use, fully integrated platform, so you can spend less time juggling different tools and more time focusing on your business. Find out more.”
Thanks to Odoo for supporting this season of Handpicked. Odoo brings everything you need to run your business together in one easy-to-use, fully integrated platform, so you can spend less time juggling different tools and more time focusing on your business. Find out more.”
When you're creating an entirely new category, you can't just sell—you have to educate. Kate Abrahams, founder of TrafficAI (a platform that predicts reputational risk events using workforce behavioral data), sits down with Naomi Simson to discuss the exhausting gap between building groundbreaking technology and getting customers to understand why they need it. Drawing on her experience launching RedBalloon when "experience gifting" wasn't a thing, Naomi shares battle-tested strategies for market development: how to look bigger than you are, turn customers into your sales force through case studies, and build authority when nobody knows your category exists. Kate and Naomi explore keeping tech teams energized during years of customer education, what investors actually need to hear about new categories, and how to cut through the AI hype to demonstrate real value. If you're building something genuinely new and struggling to reach customers who don't yet know they need you, this conversation offers practical frameworks for building customer reach and turning an interesting idea into a must-have solution. https://www.naomisimson.com/podcast/a-founders-guide-to-building-customer-reach Thank you to Deel.com for supporting Australian business owners through it's sponsorship of Handpicked Season 6 for more information about Anytime Pay click here See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.