How Lucy Werner used hype to become one of the biggest thought leaders in PR
Lucy's an overnight success, ten years in the making.
She's a PR expert, author of two books (which have sold in their thousands), Adobe Brand Ambassador, and now has the 52nd highest-grossing newsletter on Substack Business.
She's a PR expert, author of two books (which have sold in their thousands), Adobe Brand Ambassador, and now has the 52nd highest-grossing newsletter on Substack Business.
Studying her journey from unknown consultant to thought leader, I picked up some inspiring yet hard truths about what it takes to become a recognised authority.
There's no big break here.
She didn't have Google or Apple on her CV. No network of famous influencers in her contacts to give her a leg up.
The route Lucy carved for herself has been hard earned, made of highs, lows, detours, and setbacks.
Above all, she shares the kind of transparent, honest stories that I wouldn't have the courage to share with close friends, never mind on social.
This starts with teatime Marvel in the 90s, pre-Disney takeover.
There's no big break here.
She didn't have Google or Apple on her CV. No network of famous influencers in her contacts to give her a leg up.
The route Lucy carved for herself has been hard earned, made of highs, lows, detours, and setbacks.
Above all, she shares the kind of transparent, honest stories that I wouldn't have the courage to share with close friends, never mind on social.
This starts with teatime Marvel in the 90s, pre-Disney takeover.
As a child, watching Lois Lane in Superman, Lucy fell in love with the idea of becoming a journalist. But, as a teen, that dream slowly faded as she lost confidence in her ability to become a writer.
After a work experience placement for a music PR agency in London, she decided that if she's not going to be a journalist, she'll work with them as a PR exec.
The placement led to a university degree in media & culture studies, and then a job in PR for Leo Burnett (big ad agency). After a couple years there, she spent the next ten years working for a handful of different corporate & lifestyle PR agencies in London.
At the same time, she's meeting cool entrepreneurs who couldn't afford big agency fees.
After a work experience placement for a music PR agency in London, she decided that if she's not going to be a journalist, she'll work with them as a PR exec.
The placement led to a university degree in media & culture studies, and then a job in PR for Leo Burnett (big ad agency). After a couple years there, she spent the next ten years working for a handful of different corporate & lifestyle PR agencies in London.
At the same time, she's meeting cool entrepreneurs who couldn't afford big agency fees.
"I was doing cigarettes, booze, gambling, you know, all the good stuff, and I thought… I kind of just want to champion the underdogs for a bit and get them out there."
- Lucy Werner
Source: Lucy Werner on Being Freelance
In 2014, she left the PR agency with three months' rent in her bank account and started working solo.
Her first client was a friend, and word of mouth quickly spread. By month three, she was so busy that she hired an assistant.
What helped early growth was that she found herself a niche, working with food pop-ups and brands in London. Where do food pop-up founders hang out? At pop-up events with other food brands. So when you work in a tight niche that hangs out, word spreads fast.
Her first client was a friend, and word of mouth quickly spread. By month three, she was so busy that she hired an assistant.
What helped early growth was that she found herself a niche, working with food pop-ups and brands in London. Where do food pop-up founders hang out? At pop-up events with other food brands. So when you work in a tight niche that hangs out, word spreads fast.
By 2016, she was running a team of eight.
Fast forward to 2017, Lucy has her first baby and takes shared parental leave in France (with her French husband) for four months.
Fast forward to 2017, Lucy has her first baby and takes shared parental leave in France (with her French husband) for four months.
But the business suffered
Lucy was the driving force behind new business development. The pipeline of work completely dried up when she wasn't working.
If the classic entrepreneurial business is one where the owner earns money while she sleeps, this wasn't it. It was an extension of Lucy's brain and hands.
She subsequently scaled the agency right back and, moving into 2018, had this ambition of transitioning to a different model that could scale. Teaching, speaking, and workshops.
Trouble is…
If the classic entrepreneurial business is one where the owner earns money while she sleeps, this wasn't it. It was an extension of Lucy's brain and hands.
She subsequently scaled the agency right back and, moving into 2018, had this ambition of transitioning to a different model that could scale. Teaching, speaking, and workshops.
Trouble is…
She's a big fish in a small pond
“I was really quite shocked watching the 2020 election "I knew when I wrote Hype Yourself, I wanted to pivot into raising my own profile because, at that point, nobody on Instagram or Facebook knew who I was, it was literally an area of East London that knew me offline, but I wanted to have more of an online presence and be able to do more teaching and speaking and teach workshops."
- Lucy Werner
Source: Lucy Werner on Being Freelance
To pivot the business, she needed to build her profile.
That starts with the idea of launching a book on PR for small businesses.
At this stage, Lucy has 1,628 followers on Instagram, half of whom are friends, family, and people she's worked with.
She joins a 10-day book proposal challenge (Extraordinary Business Book Challenge) and subsequently wins a book deal with the workshop host (who owns a small publishing house).
With a 12-month deadline to publish, she starts writing the book whilst also figuring out how to build hype along the way so she has an audience in time for the launch.
The January she wins the book deal, she decides:
That starts with the idea of launching a book on PR for small businesses.
At this stage, Lucy has 1,628 followers on Instagram, half of whom are friends, family, and people she's worked with.
She joins a 10-day book proposal challenge (Extraordinary Business Book Challenge) and subsequently wins a book deal with the workshop host (who owns a small publishing house).
With a 12-month deadline to publish, she starts writing the book whilst also figuring out how to build hype along the way so she has an audience in time for the launch.
The January she wins the book deal, she decides:
- I'll do one free PR tip every single day for a whole year.
- I'll do one free talk every month.
- I'll do one podcast every month.
She starts by targeting free speaking at coworking spaces in East London. Lunchtime learnings.
And, because she had a bunch of clients who were also experts in their own right, she became an unofficial agent for a roster of entrepreneur speakers.
It was win-win. She needed speaking gigs, and these venues were more likely to want her if she could bring some additional experts. The names on that roster helped. Jim from Jimmy's Iced Coffee, for example, was a high-profile disruptor in the UK market.
And for the clients, she was doing her job by getting them those opportunities.
But, let's be clear…
And, because she had a bunch of clients who were also experts in their own right, she became an unofficial agent for a roster of entrepreneur speakers.
It was win-win. She needed speaking gigs, and these venues were more likely to want her if she could bring some additional experts. The names on that roster helped. Jim from Jimmy's Iced Coffee, for example, was a high-profile disruptor in the UK market.
And for the clients, she was doing her job by getting them those opportunities.
But, let's be clear…
Lucy didn't have any speaking experience
And she wasn't necessarily a natural at public speaking. I doubt many are. As with anything starting out, you're not very good.
That's what puts most of us off public speaking. The horror of bombing on stage.
Lucy felt that same fear, but she broke through it.
That started with coaching.
She received speaker training when she became an instructor with Jolt Business School. They'd watch her deliver a workshop and critique it in rehearsals. Then, on her first speaking gig, , they'd go through it line by line to see how she could improve."
"It was f*cking brutal!"
But, it helped her improve fast.
Within three months, she transitioned from free speaking to paid.
Believe it or not, by month six…
That's what puts most of us off public speaking. The horror of bombing on stage.
Lucy felt that same fear, but she broke through it.
That started with coaching.
She received speaker training when she became an instructor with Jolt Business School. They'd watch her deliver a workshop and critique it in rehearsals. Then, on her first speaking gig, , they'd go through it line by line to see how she could improve."
"It was f*cking brutal!"
But, it helped her improve fast.
Within three months, she transitioned from free speaking to paid.
Believe it or not, by month six…
She lands the dream gig
When she set those original speaking goals, she also ring-marked a handful of aspirational targets.
One was speaking at a Courier Magazine event.
Here's how she got the gig:
It's early days, so very few wanted to book her to speak, never mind pay her to speak. She had zero profile and nobody knew her. But an opportunity came up.
An 'online friend' worked in marketing and was hosting a talk for General Assembly London and gave Lucy a 10-minute speaking slot.
Lucy's always connecting, so she searched out the event programmer, John. She approached him and told him she wanted to put on an event for the General Assembly with her at centre stage.
John made no secret of his complete disinterest in the idea.
So, mid-pitch, Lucy pivots. "How about a PR panel event with journalists? I'll host it and get the panel guests."
He gave it the green light, and because General Assembly already had a database of past attendees, Lucy didn't have to worry about filling the room. She just needed to get the panellists.
It wasn't a paid event, so she couldn't offer them a fee, just a goodie bag she'd put together of free food and drink (from her existing PR clients).
She contacted the editor of Courier to see if he'd sit on the panel. It was a straight-up no. "I don't do stuff like that."
Lucy - "OK, cool, would anybody on your team do it?"
He put forward a junior reporter, which worked for Lucy. She now had a journalist from Courier Magazine on the panel.
A few weeks later, that same junior journalist is in a meeting when a colleague announces that a panellist had just pulled out for a talk Courier was hosting."
Oh, how about Lucy? She's great at hosting a panel. We should book her."
One was speaking at a Courier Magazine event.
Here's how she got the gig:
It's early days, so very few wanted to book her to speak, never mind pay her to speak. She had zero profile and nobody knew her. But an opportunity came up.
An 'online friend' worked in marketing and was hosting a talk for General Assembly London and gave Lucy a 10-minute speaking slot.
Lucy's always connecting, so she searched out the event programmer, John. She approached him and told him she wanted to put on an event for the General Assembly with her at centre stage.
John made no secret of his complete disinterest in the idea.
So, mid-pitch, Lucy pivots. "How about a PR panel event with journalists? I'll host it and get the panel guests."
He gave it the green light, and because General Assembly already had a database of past attendees, Lucy didn't have to worry about filling the room. She just needed to get the panellists.
It wasn't a paid event, so she couldn't offer them a fee, just a goodie bag she'd put together of free food and drink (from her existing PR clients).
She contacted the editor of Courier to see if he'd sit on the panel. It was a straight-up no. "I don't do stuff like that."
Lucy - "OK, cool, would anybody on your team do it?"
He put forward a junior reporter, which worked for Lucy. She now had a journalist from Courier Magazine on the panel.
A few weeks later, that same junior journalist is in a meeting when a colleague announces that a panellist had just pulled out for a talk Courier was hosting."
Oh, how about Lucy? She's great at hosting a panel. We should book her."
And, in the room that day...
Were a LOT of influential people. Folks from Mailchimp being one who wanted Lucy to work on creating video content with them.
Also, somebody at Cass Business School (now Sage) was attending and subsequently booked her to do a talk for them at their Business school.
In Lucy's words, speaking is the best form of self-promotion.
Also, somebody at Cass Business School (now Sage) was attending and subsequently booked her to do a talk for them at their Business school.
In Lucy's words, speaking is the best form of self-promotion.
"There's something about that face-to-face that you can't replicate online. It's that feeling in the room, the fact that people come up and talk to you afterwards. It's always been my biggest new business driver and led to me getting other opportunities."
- Lucy Werner
Source: Lucy Werner on Being Freelance
See what's happening?
It's a domino effect
One speaking gig gets her clients, which leads to another speaking gig, which gets her clients, and so on.
Let's rewind, though. Remember, the point of all of this is to grow her personal brand and transition from doing PR to teaching PR.
We're six months into the book-writing process.
The promotion is going well. She's landing speaking gigs and growing on Instagram (more on that later).
One thing I didn't mention is that, at this time, Lucy is also pregnant with her second child.
In the lead-up to the book launch and birth, Hadrien, a designer, brand expert, and 'co-founder of Lucy's children', is made redundant.
"This is perfect."
Hadrien could come into the business, Lucy would pull in some brand work and then, when the baby is born, Hadrien can fulfil the work that comes from the exposure the book generates once it's launched.
So, when he joins, they put together the 52 PR Tips deck.
We're six months into the book-writing process.
The promotion is going well. She's landing speaking gigs and growing on Instagram (more on that later).
One thing I didn't mention is that, at this time, Lucy is also pregnant with her second child.
In the lead-up to the book launch and birth, Hadrien, a designer, brand expert, and 'co-founder of Lucy's children', is made redundant.
"This is perfect."
Hadrien could come into the business, Lucy would pull in some brand work and then, when the baby is born, Hadrien can fulfil the work that comes from the exposure the book generates once it's launched.
So, when he joins, they put together the 52 PR Tips deck.
Lucy collected 52 of the questions she'd often get asked about PR, and then gave a tip for each one.
She gifted them to relevant press, which led to product mentions and a few expert testimonials.
Others were sent to former clients and bigger small business advocates on socials.
Indirectly, the campaign landed Lucy and Hadrien new clients for the branding side.
She gifted them to relevant press, which led to product mentions and a few expert testimonials.
Others were sent to former clients and bigger small business advocates on socials.
Indirectly, the campaign landed Lucy and Hadrien new clients for the branding side.
But the transition into maternity leave didn't pan out as planned
Their second child is born with four rare congenital heart defects. That, of course, comes with an enormous amount of mental stress and anguish. It also meant they spent seven months in and out of the hospital.
That put a spanner in the works regards building a pipeline of new branding clients.
As a result, the business takes a backward step and revenue declines.
Now, you may be asking yourself…
That put a spanner in the works regards building a pipeline of new branding clients.
As a result, the business takes a backward step and revenue declines.
Now, you may be asking yourself…
How do I know this, and why am I sharing such personal details (that aren't mine to share)?
Because Lucy shares the story publicly herself.
She shares several other personal stories too. It's very much part of her brand.
Often about failure, sometimes very vulnerable moments in her personal life, her childhood.
She shares several other personal stories too. It's very much part of her brand.
Often about failure, sometimes very vulnerable moments in her personal life, her childhood.
Following her newsletter and podcast appearances, you get to know a lot about Lucy. To an extent, I feel like I know her.
That is a fundamental part of personal branding that I fail at.
I'm somebody that's always separated work from business. I've never intentionally done that, it's just that, for some reason, I feel uncomfortable sharing my personal life.
I think part of that comes from an insecurity, a feeling that I myself am not worthy of sharing.
But Lucy shows me that this inhibition is an enormous stumbling block.
After all, people want to work with people they like, and in order for someone to like you, they need to know you.
That is a fundamental part of personal branding that I fail at.
I'm somebody that's always separated work from business. I've never intentionally done that, it's just that, for some reason, I feel uncomfortable sharing my personal life.
I think part of that comes from an insecurity, a feeling that I myself am not worthy of sharing.
But Lucy shows me that this inhibition is an enormous stumbling block.
After all, people want to work with people they like, and in order for someone to like you, they need to know you.
"There is no such thing as an original business, really, it is just your own individual thumbprint that differentiates you."
- Lucy Werner
Source: Lucy Werner on I Like Networking
With a personal brand, it's the personality that differentiates you, because…
Classic positioning doesn't work for service businesses
I'm talking about best practices to find a unique space in the market.
A unique position that's not yet taken.
If the whole market sells plain chocolate, add peanuts, and you've got a chocolate bar for folks who like nuts and crunch.
That classical positioning is differentiation of the 'what' you do.
But successful personal brands rarely differentiate through the 'what.'
Bolt-on features don't move the needle.
Consulting brands primarily differentiate in one of two ways (or a mixture):
The Why
Those are sometimes personal stories and values that make their clients like and want to work with them. More often, it's the bold points of view that contrast with best practices.
The How
A unique IP or methodology often isn't that unique in application but is articulated in a new and interesting way. That could be the framing too. StoryBrand, for example, is a reframing of branding and copywriting.
Like April Dunford didn't reinvent positioning, Lucy hasn't reinvented PR.
But her unique points of view and story of why she does what she does set her apart, and telling that story is one thing that Lucy excels at.
She documents everything and shares it. I imagine some stuff is held back, but listening to her and reading her newsletter, I get a sense that I know her. I like her. I want her to be my friend.
As a result, I'm not scouring the web for PR advice when I need it. I'm happy, as a paying member of her audience, for it to all come from someone I know and trust.
Because good PR is essentially good stories.
And it's all of the above that gives you something to say. A reason to go on podcasts and promote yourself. Because you're not actually promoting yourself. You're sharing your stories and unique points of view. That's what podcasts and speaking engagements are.
Without the who and the why, there is no personal brand.
But I digress. Let's get back to the book…
A unique position that's not yet taken.
If the whole market sells plain chocolate, add peanuts, and you've got a chocolate bar for folks who like nuts and crunch.
That classical positioning is differentiation of the 'what' you do.
But successful personal brands rarely differentiate through the 'what.'
Bolt-on features don't move the needle.
Consulting brands primarily differentiate in one of two ways (or a mixture):
The Why
Those are sometimes personal stories and values that make their clients like and want to work with them. More often, it's the bold points of view that contrast with best practices.
The How
A unique IP or methodology often isn't that unique in application but is articulated in a new and interesting way. That could be the framing too. StoryBrand, for example, is a reframing of branding and copywriting.
Like April Dunford didn't reinvent positioning, Lucy hasn't reinvented PR.
But her unique points of view and story of why she does what she does set her apart, and telling that story is one thing that Lucy excels at.
She documents everything and shares it. I imagine some stuff is held back, but listening to her and reading her newsletter, I get a sense that I know her. I like her. I want her to be my friend.
As a result, I'm not scouring the web for PR advice when I need it. I'm happy, as a paying member of her audience, for it to all come from someone I know and trust.
Because good PR is essentially good stories.
And it's all of the above that gives you something to say. A reason to go on podcasts and promote yourself. Because you're not actually promoting yourself. You're sharing your stories and unique points of view. That's what podcasts and speaking engagements are.
Without the who and the why, there is no personal brand.
But I digress. Let's get back to the book…
The book launch was a success
Lucy sold 1,000 copies in the first month (at the time of writing this, she's at 10,179).
The problem was that the book launched, and Lucy didn't actually have anything to sell readers (besides 1:1 consulting work).
Remember, one key purpose of the book was to move from doing to teaching. She'd effectively set up shop, had a queue waiting outside but no stock.
Not unless the reader was hosting an event and wanted a speaker.The lesson?
The problem was that the book launched, and Lucy didn't actually have anything to sell readers (besides 1:1 consulting work).
Remember, one key purpose of the book was to move from doing to teaching. She'd effectively set up shop, had a queue waiting outside but no stock.
Not unless the reader was hosting an event and wanted a speaker.The lesson?
"[If I released Hype Yourself now] I would have systems and processes and products in place."
- Lucy Werner
Source: Lucy Werner on Being Freelance
Lucy and Hadrien set off making products after the event, but I want to share with you another lesson from the book launch.
Through 12 months of brand building, Lucy had built connections with big Instagram followers. People with 100k+ following.
She gifted them a free copy of the book, which they shared with their followers…
Through 12 months of brand building, Lucy had built connections with big Instagram followers. People with 100k+ following.
She gifted them a free copy of the book, which they shared with their followers…
And it did absolutely nothing for sales
Because the audience match (and quality) has a much greater impact than numbers:
"If we're really drilling down into book sales, the person that shifted the most for me was actually a book marketing person called Katie Morwenna, who had a marketing newsletter, and she shouted out my book, and I could literally see the number on Amazon Author Central shooting up."
- Lucy Werner
Those big influencers weren't talking to small business owners and creative entrepreneurs. Their audience numbers were irrelevant.
What matters is who they're speaking with.
A person with a tight-knit group of 200 subscribers matching your target persona is worth way more than some content creator with a broad, generic audience.
What matters is who they're speaking with.
A person with a tight-knit group of 200 subscribers matching your target persona is worth way more than some content creator with a broad, generic audience.
"I cannot tell you the amount of times physically giving somebody the book completely has changed the opportunity for me and it's got me teaching in universities, teaching in creative accelerators, I've got to work with some amazing women's social enterprises… it's really helped me pivot from that sort of corporate agency, retainer business model into flexible work that fits around my life."
- Lucy Werner
And, as with speaking, there's an interesting loop at play with a successful book.
The 12 months she spent building her brand to launch a book fuelled book sales, which in turn fuelled her brand's credibility.
The 12 months she spent building her brand to launch a book fuelled book sales, which in turn fuelled her brand's credibility.
Let's go back to one key aspect of brand building I've only touched upon so far…
Instagram
Remember earlier in the article when I mentioned the three challenges Lucy set herself?
One of them was to post a free PR tip on Instagram daily for a year.
It was tough, some days you'd get zero engagement, others you'd lose more followers than you gained.
But Lucy does build an audience of a few thousand over the first 12 months.
One of them was to post a free PR tip on Instagram daily for a year.
It was tough, some days you'd get zero engagement, others you'd lose more followers than you gained.
But Lucy does build an audience of a few thousand over the first 12 months.
And the thing with any social platform is you don't actually know who's following your content from the shadows.
It turns out one lurker was the marketing manager for Adobe UK. He'd been following Lucy's content for 12 months. One day, he slides into her DMs, asking her if she'd be interested in becoming an Adobe Brand Ambassador for a beta program they're trialling.
She became a paid Adobe Ambassador in 2021 and still is to this day.
It turns out one lurker was the marketing manager for Adobe UK. He'd been following Lucy's content for 12 months. One day, he slides into her DMs, asking her if she'd be interested in becoming an Adobe Brand Ambassador for a beta program they're trialling.
She became a paid Adobe Ambassador in 2021 and still is to this day.
And that role leads to further opportunities to work with their other brand partners. Through their network, Lucy's picked up keynote speaking opportunities and paid workshop events.
It also led to an opportunity as a guest on one of the world's biggest marketing podcasts.
It also led to an opportunity as a guest on one of the world's biggest marketing podcasts.
Chris Do and The Futur
As an ambassador, Lucy was invited to attend Adobe Max LA in 2022.
Chris Do has a stand, and Lucy wants to meet him. His podcast, The Futur Podcast, is one of the biggest on the marketing planet, and it's on her hit list (she has a list of publications and podcasts she wants to feature on).
She heads to Chris' stand, buys a copy of his book, asks him to sign it, takes a selfie with him, and then tells him: "I've got a book of mine for you in my hotel. You gonna be here tomorrow so I can give it to you?
''Sure."
Chris Do has a stand, and Lucy wants to meet him. His podcast, The Futur Podcast, is one of the biggest on the marketing planet, and it's on her hit list (she has a list of publications and podcasts she wants to feature on).
She heads to Chris' stand, buys a copy of his book, asks him to sign it, takes a selfie with him, and then tells him: "I've got a book of mine for you in my hotel. You gonna be here tomorrow so I can give it to you?
''Sure."
Lucy arrives at his stand the next day at 10 am, and he's not there. Chance gone.
Only it wasn't. As luck would have it, sitting in the audience for a talk the next day, who should turn up and sit next to Lucy in the audience? Chris Do.
She has the book on her and gives it to him.
Twenty-four hours later, he DMs her on Instagram, asking if she'd like to be a guest on the podcast. She didn't even have to ask him!
Like with the speaking gig for Courier Magazine, that 'hit list' is a theme in much of Lucy's content. I'd say that's one constant pattern that's driven her path towards thought leadership.
Only it wasn't. As luck would have it, sitting in the audience for a talk the next day, who should turn up and sit next to Lucy in the audience? Chris Do.
She has the book on her and gives it to him.
Twenty-four hours later, he DMs her on Instagram, asking if she'd like to be a guest on the podcast. She didn't even have to ask him!
Like with the speaking gig for Courier Magazine, that 'hit list' is a theme in much of Lucy's content. I'd say that's one constant pattern that's driven her path towards thought leadership.
Goal Setting
In the context of this article, the first goal started with becoming known outside East London and writing a book.
Lucy's been featured in The Times, The Independent, The Telegraph, FT Women in Business, Stylist, Courier Magazine, Startup Nation. Basically every big UK media outlet.
Those were all on the back of an intentional strategy to be featured in each.
I don't think it's a coincidence that she also sets very specific goals of what she wants to achieve. She sets the goal, then figures out what she needs to do to get there.
Lucy's been featured in The Times, The Independent, The Telegraph, FT Women in Business, Stylist, Courier Magazine, Startup Nation. Basically every big UK media outlet.
Those were all on the back of an intentional strategy to be featured in each.
I don't think it's a coincidence that she also sets very specific goals of what she wants to achieve. She sets the goal, then figures out what she needs to do to get there.
"Draw a little media mind map for yourself, a vision board for your next two years."
- Lucy Werner
Lucy talks about the top 5. The five people you want to be positioned alongside. Or the five top publications you want to feature in. Or podcasts.
Write down their names, then create a plan for getting there. Don't just passively wait for things to happen.
If you want to do a TED Talk in the future, find out who organises your local TEDX, figure out what you want to talk about, discover where they hang out, then you go hang out in the same places and build a relationship.
And go big with your goals.
That also means, if you want to be featured in The Futur Podcast, for example:
Write down their names, then create a plan for getting there. Don't just passively wait for things to happen.
If you want to do a TED Talk in the future, find out who organises your local TEDX, figure out what you want to talk about, discover where they hang out, then you go hang out in the same places and build a relationship.
And go big with your goals.
That also means, if you want to be featured in The Futur Podcast, for example:
- You need to listen to the podcast.
- You need to engage with Chris' content, in a valuable way, and get on his radar.
- You need to make something or develop a deep point of view that makes him want to have you on The Futur.
Lucy does that, writes about it, and then she either hits the goal (success) or she has a story to share on her fail (gets her coverage, so success).
Like her attempt to become a Sunday Times Bestseller
Very publicly, when writing her second book with Hadrien (Brand Yourself), she declared that she wanted to become a Sunday Times Bestseller.
She's sharing that goal regularly on social, on podcasts, and at speaking events.
She received 3,000 pre-orders, and to be a Sunday Times Bestseller you need to get above 1,100 in launch week (which pre-orders are part of).
Launch day comes, and things are looking good, only to discover she's out of stock.
It was just after the first COVID lockdown that book publishing was down. Everybody who ordered the book received a message saying there was no distribution, the book wouldn't be ready for three months and invited them to cancel their order.
Supply sped up, but Lucy had gone all in on Amazon, and by the time the books were ready, she'd lost momentum. Many pre-orders fell through, along with the chance of becoming a Sunday Times Best Seller.
A fail?
No, it's a win. Because when you document the story, everything's a win. She's shared this story on multiple channels. This story about The Times got her a speaking engagement from a podcast audience member listening in.
So what's the next goal?
She's sharing that goal regularly on social, on podcasts, and at speaking events.
She received 3,000 pre-orders, and to be a Sunday Times Bestseller you need to get above 1,100 in launch week (which pre-orders are part of).
Launch day comes, and things are looking good, only to discover she's out of stock.
It was just after the first COVID lockdown that book publishing was down. Everybody who ordered the book received a message saying there was no distribution, the book wouldn't be ready for three months and invited them to cancel their order.
Supply sped up, but Lucy had gone all in on Amazon, and by the time the books were ready, she'd lost momentum. Many pre-orders fell through, along with the chance of becoming a Sunday Times Best Seller.
A fail?
No, it's a win. Because when you document the story, everything's a win. She's shared this story on multiple channels. This story about The Times got her a speaking engagement from a podcast audience member listening in.
So what's the next goal?
Substack top 50
"We have the work that we do for love and we have the work that we do for money. And you need the money to be able to do the work for love. But if you take on too much money work, there's no time to do the love work. And it was this constant juggle."
- Lucy Werner
Source: Lucy Werner on Being Freelance
Lucy and Hadrien (the co-founder of her children, remember) decided to move the family to the South of France for a new lifestyle.
At this time, she was still working with clients and was the face of the agency, but Hadrien was still running the branding side of the business. As much as she wanted to completely close down the agency and focus on writing and teaching, she couldn't. That'd close off Hadrien's stream of work.
But she does fire all her PR clients and goes all in on full-time content writing to build her email list and attract more teaching and brand opportunities.
Obviously, though, she needs to keep promoting the brand agency work, which splits her time.
But that doesn't last long.
They got 'lucky'.
Out of the blue, Hadrien got headhunted by Adobe. All because of what they were seeing and hearing from the two of them regards promotion and visibility for small businesses.
Now, Lucy can fully close the agency and go all in on writing again (newsletter).
Within a few months, as chance would have it, in this same three month time period of going all in on writing and teaching, Lucy got 'lucky'.
Out of nowhere, she started getting brands approach her to do content for them.
With that, the brand ambassador work and the business accelerators, she had a decent income to replace a chunk other the agency work.
At this time, she was still working with clients and was the face of the agency, but Hadrien was still running the branding side of the business. As much as she wanted to completely close down the agency and focus on writing and teaching, she couldn't. That'd close off Hadrien's stream of work.
But she does fire all her PR clients and goes all in on full-time content writing to build her email list and attract more teaching and brand opportunities.
Obviously, though, she needs to keep promoting the brand agency work, which splits her time.
But that doesn't last long.
They got 'lucky'.
Out of the blue, Hadrien got headhunted by Adobe. All because of what they were seeing and hearing from the two of them regards promotion and visibility for small businesses.
Now, Lucy can fully close the agency and go all in on writing again (newsletter).
Within a few months, as chance would have it, in this same three month time period of going all in on writing and teaching, Lucy got 'lucky'.
Out of nowhere, she started getting brands approach her to do content for them.
With that, the brand ambassador work and the business accelerators, she had a decent income to replace a chunk other the agency work.
The play was to build a newsletter
"I played on Medium first, and you can tell because the first Medium articles I wrote are quite sh*t."
- Lucy Werner
To find the good articles in you, you've gotta find the bad ones first.
When Lucy started getting serious with her newsletter, she started out on Medium, setting challenges like she had earlier in her career.
This time it was one article per day (putting in the reps).
She reached around the 40 mark just before coming up to her latest maternity leave. At this point, she decides to switch to Substack (everything in one place, more of an owned space) and launch a paid newsletter.
Her first goal is to become a top 50 Featured Business writer.
Lucy's first 100 paid subscribers were all existing people from her audience. They'd either read the book, bought one of her online courses, or seen her speak/teach live. Her power 100.
She contacted each of them individually to ask them what they were struggling with.
With each piece of feedback, she compiled a list of articles they all wanted, adding in the personal stuff, which gave her a bank of months' worth of content ideas.
This time it was one article per day (putting in the reps).
She reached around the 40 mark just before coming up to her latest maternity leave. At this point, she decides to switch to Substack (everything in one place, more of an owned space) and launch a paid newsletter.
Her first goal is to become a top 50 Featured Business writer.
Lucy's first 100 paid subscribers were all existing people from her audience. They'd either read the book, bought one of her online courses, or seen her speak/teach live. Her power 100.
She contacted each of them individually to ask them what they were struggling with.
With each piece of feedback, she compiled a list of articles they all wanted, adding in the personal stuff, which gave her a bank of months' worth of content ideas.
"Weirdly, I never expected to be able to have hundreds of micro-clients through Substack."
- Lucy Werner
Lucy is currently ranked 52nd on Substack. Considering her track record, I'm betting she'll be in the top 25 within the next 18 months.
Track record is built on the foundations of consistency. Real consistency.
Track record is built on the foundations of consistency. Real consistency.
What consistency actually looks like
Bros love to tell you how important consistency is with shitty platitudes. These are guys in their 20s who showed up on Twitter 12 months ago, with no family responsibilities, and write whatever's required to boost their engagement and follower count.
They have no idea what consistency really is.
Here's what it actually looks like.
It looks like posting daily on your subject matter expertise. You're not following hacks or jumping onto the latest trends to make a quick dollar.
Most of the posts get very little traction. Occasionally, they get some. Often, they get nothing. But in between those quiet moments, you get a DM out of the blue from someone who's been following you for the past 12 months and wants you to work on their latest project.
Meanwhile, other influencers you've been engaging with are blowing up, selling audience building or some other latest fad, boasting online about their six-figure sales. Two years later, they disappear or move on to a completely different, unrelated fad.
You (or Lucy) are still talking about PR. Your audience still isn't as big as theirs, but you've got a real community of people who love what you do and loads of brands paying for you to speak on the subject because, of course, you're an authority at this stage.
And you've attracted paying customers through what you publish. Importantly, those customers are happy with your work. More important still, they're the kind of people you want to work with.
You've been consistently pushing it for years.
That's what Lucy and every other thought leader did.
Ignored hacks, fads, trends, and easy money.
They did the boring stuff, day in and day out, often with little recognition. But slowly, they gain it.
They have no idea what consistency really is.
Here's what it actually looks like.
It looks like posting daily on your subject matter expertise. You're not following hacks or jumping onto the latest trends to make a quick dollar.
Most of the posts get very little traction. Occasionally, they get some. Often, they get nothing. But in between those quiet moments, you get a DM out of the blue from someone who's been following you for the past 12 months and wants you to work on their latest project.
Meanwhile, other influencers you've been engaging with are blowing up, selling audience building or some other latest fad, boasting online about their six-figure sales. Two years later, they disappear or move on to a completely different, unrelated fad.
You (or Lucy) are still talking about PR. Your audience still isn't as big as theirs, but you've got a real community of people who love what you do and loads of brands paying for you to speak on the subject because, of course, you're an authority at this stage.
And you've attracted paying customers through what you publish. Importantly, those customers are happy with your work. More important still, they're the kind of people you want to work with.
You've been consistently pushing it for years.
That's what Lucy and every other thought leader did.
Ignored hacks, fads, trends, and easy money.
They did the boring stuff, day in and day out, often with little recognition. But slowly, they gain it.
Although really, is it that slow?
Five years to become a thought leader working with some of the biggest brands on the planet in your field. You'd do it if you knew it'd get you those results, right?
The hard part is, day to day, you don't know. You don't know whether you're spinning wheels or whether this is just a flywheel that needs one more push.
That's what you've got to get through.
And that running theme of luck throughout this article.
I'm using that term tongue in cheek.
There seem to be lucky breaks throughout Lucy's story. That luck coincides with hard work, consistency, specific (ambitious goals), being incredibly good at the thing they sell, being a nice person that people want to hang out with, being prepared to fail in public, and getting through the dip of mastering hard sh*t like speaking and writing.
I'm a paid subscriber to Lucy's newlestter, Hype Yourself. If you want to learn how to hype your own brand, and get to know Lucy along the way, go sign up.
The hard part is, day to day, you don't know. You don't know whether you're spinning wheels or whether this is just a flywheel that needs one more push.
That's what you've got to get through.
And that running theme of luck throughout this article.
I'm using that term tongue in cheek.
There seem to be lucky breaks throughout Lucy's story. That luck coincides with hard work, consistency, specific (ambitious goals), being incredibly good at the thing they sell, being a nice person that people want to hang out with, being prepared to fail in public, and getting through the dip of mastering hard sh*t like speaking and writing.
I'm a paid subscriber to Lucy's newlestter, Hype Yourself. If you want to learn how to hype your own brand, and get to know Lucy along the way, go sign up.
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I publish deep dives into B2B thought leaders, breaking down their journey from unknown consultant to top tier personality.
I focus on content insight marketing strategies and implementation, not growth hacks.
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