Experience – the teacher of all things

Experience – the teacher of all things Harry S. Truman, the 33rd president of the United States once said that the reward of suffering is experience. September is a special month for us as we celebrate AdMarula’s 11th birthday. The past eleven years have certainly provided us with many challenges and opportunities to learn. We have made mistakes, hussled like crazy, solved problems, adapted, celebrated as we growed, cried as we lost clients during Covid, forged incredible business partnerships, helped companies grow, and done it all over again. Here are some of the biggest lessons I’ve learnt so far: 1.Fear is the greatest stopper – when running and building a business you will often find yourself in unchartered waters, having to do things you’ve never done before. Just do it! The fear of doing it is much worse than the actual doing, and you will figure it out along the way. 2. It’s all about relationships – we may live in a tech-centric world, but behind the tech there are still real people who need real connection. The technology will change and come and go, but strong business relationships survive the ebbs and flows of change. 3. You’re only as good as your team – I know this is a bit of a cliché, but that’s because it’s true. No manager or leader can grow without the team to help make this happen. Keep your staff happy and your clients will be happy too. 4. Doing the right thing gets you farther in the long run, but not necessarily in the short run – all industries have grey areas which some businesses chose to explore in order to gain results quicker, but the damage you do to your reputation, relationships and brand will catch up with you in the long run. Do what is right, always. 5. Are you a problem finder or a problem solver? Most people would rather not solve their problems, it’s sad but true. People would rather ignore them and hope they go away, but by going to the root and solving them you save unbelievable amounts of time, pain, and suffering. So be the guy who solves the problem, not the one who finds them. 6. There is no easy business – at least not what I’ve seen. That said, you CAN make your business simpler,  which will make things feel easier. Businesses naturally increase in complexity as they grow, so it’s important to continually look for ways to simplify. Remember: Less is More! Finally, I wish you all a good Heritage Day and may we all use this day to celebrate what makes our country and its people so special. Onwards and upwards! Daniel Gross – CEO All CEO's Thoughts Interviews and Insights Industry News Interviews and Insights Why Black Friday 2022 will differ from before 26 Oct 2022 Why Black Friday 2022 will differ from before Despite current downturns in the economy, evidence shows that the e-commerce industry is picking up and going back to pre-pandemic… Read More CEO's Thoughts Never stop marketing 26 Oct 2022 Never stop marketing There’s a LOT going on in the world right now. This is not a political piece, yet it is diffiult to ignore the world-shaping events… Read More Interviews and Insights Interview with Sandra Jardim, Blogger/Founder of MammaBearLove 26 Oct 2022 Interview with Sandra Jardim, Blogger/Founder of MammaBearLove Our October profile is Sandra Jardim, mom to twins Gisela and Alaia and blogger/owner of MammaBearLove. She uses her blog as… Read More Prev123Next

Interview with Zissy Lewin, Nutreats.co.za

This month we chat to Zissy Lewin, writer, recipe developer, food stylist and MD at Nutreats.co.za, an online resource to healthy living and a digital content creation studio. A firm believer that healthy living is simple and attainable, Nutreats was created to share content that is all encompassing, inspires action, and showcases brands, products and books in a tangible way. With her love for recipe development, food styling and fitness, she gets a kick out of creating high quality food and fitness related content for brands in the health, wellness and lifestyle industry. Describe yourself in 3 words curious, fast, creative What made you decide to start your own business? I had an idea and wanted to see it through. My attitude has always been to just jump in, try things and act on ideas. If it works amazing and if not, you have experience and a good story to tell. Describe the typical Nutreats reader We have such a wonderfully diverse readership, but the common ground is that they have an appreciation for well-researched content. Demographically, our average reader is over 30, South African and loves physical activity, wellness, reading and of course food. How would you describe your content strategy? We always look to create content that leaves our readers with their cups full and has value. Our content strategy looks at healthy living as all-encompassing and this comes out in our content pillars which include mental and physical fitness, food and nutrition, beauty and home, self-growth, and learning. We’ve developed a knack for spotting trends, finding them locally and trying them out before they hit mainstream, sharing with our readers, and becoming a place to go to if you want to know the latest in wellness, food, books and fitness. How do you attract new visitors? Good quality content that is current and has a strong SEO backbone. In addition, we have always put a big focus on people and sharing their stories – whether it’s brands, athletes or people that have a story to share. We’ve always loved that story sharing aspect and it’s exposed us to new audiences and people that become loyal readers. Every great website should have…. An easy to find search button. How do you work with Affiliate Marketing/Advertising? We utilise affiliate marketing for banner ads as well as through shoppable links within articles that allow readers to purchase things we use and love. Affiliate marketing is still young in South Africa, and we would love to see more brands adopt it. What have been your highest highs and lowest lows on the journey of building your online business? Nutreats today is very different from what it was when we started out. We started as an online store selling sports nutrition and pivoted to being a hub of wellness and lifestyle content. Making the decision to pivot the entire business was both our lowest low and the highest high. Accepting and acknowledging when something isn’t working is both difficult and freeing. The world is a very different place now from what it was 18 months ago. Has it changed the way you do or think about business? Business before was very location based. Location matters less and it’s opened us up to being able to work with international clients as well as clients around the country. We’ve become more flexible and more focused on the immediate – looking ahead a month or two at a time instead of a year – which works better with the current uncertainty. Content wise, we’ve focused more on the home – things that people can do to enhance their lives within their own space. Where will Nutreats be in 5 years from now? Our vision for Nutreats is to be the best and biggest online wellness and lifestyle destination in South Africa that also has a physical presence in the form of products and events. Find out more at www.nutreats.co.za or follow them on Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/nutreats/