What I learned about Folsom's women entrepreneur community
Last Thursday night, I walked into the Folsom Women's Expo & Social with bags full of locally-themed swag, butterflies in my stomach, and genuine support for the women entrepreneurs building businesses in our community. We didn't let a little rain stop us!
What I discovered over those three hours? It completely shifted how I think about the challenges established local businesses are facing right now.
The energy was contagious
The foot traffic was steady all evening. Women (and everyone) moved from table to table, genuinely interested in learning about each other's businesses. There was laughter, excited conversations, and that unmistakable buzz that happens when passionate people gather in one space.
The variety of businesses blew me away. Brick-and-mortar shops, service providers, handmade product creators, professional consultants; you name it, someone was there representing it. Our Folsom community is wildly creative and entrepreneurial.
And here's the thing: these weren't brand new businesses or side hustles. These were established operations run by women (and men) who've already done the hard part; they've proven their concepts work, built loyal customer bases, and made it through those brutal first few years.
But as I moved from table to table throughout the evening, I kept hearing the same story told in different ways.
The hidden struggle of established businesses
Here's what surprised me: almost every business owner I spoke with mentioned considering a rebrand.
Not because their businesses were failing. Not because their services weren't valuable. But because they'd reached a point where the gap between who they are and how they're presenting themselves had become impossible to ignore.
One conversation particularly stuck with me.
A local business owner shared that she'd created her logo herself on Canva when she first started. She knew she had a logo; she could show it to me on her phone; and she knew she liked the color pink, but she didn't know how to actually use it. More importantly, she didn't understand why it mattered.
She had a thriving business with loyal customers. She was good at what she did. But when it came to marketing herself, she felt lost. Every social media post felt like starting from scratch. Every marketing decision felt arbitrary. She was succeeding in spite of her brand, not because of it.
This wasn't an isolated story. Throughout the evening, I heard variations of this same pattern:
"I know I need to invest in my branding, but I don't know where to start."
"The pricing for professional branding seems high, but I also know what I'm doing now isn't working."
"I've been using this logo for years, but I'm not sure how to make everything look cohesive."
The real cost of DIY branding for established businesses
Here's what became clear to me: the challenge isn't that these business owners don't value branding. They do. They've watched competitors with stronger brands attract more customers. They've felt the frustration of inconsistent marketing. They know something needs to change.
The challenge is understanding what professional branding actually provides beyond a prettier logo.
When you create your own logo on Canva, you get a visual. But you don't get:
A strategic positioning framework that answers "who is this for?"
Clear brand guidelines that make every marketing decision easier
A cohesive visual system that works across all your touchpoints
Messaging clarity that helps customers understand your value immediately
The confidence to show up consistently in your marketing
That business owner I mentioned? Her real problem wasn't that her Canva logo looked homemade. Her problem was that she was making every single marketing decision in isolation, without a strategic foundation to guide her.
Every Instagram post required her to start from scratch: What should I say? What colors should I use? What tone feels right? Should I be formal or casual?
This is exhausting. And expensive in ways that don't show up on a balance sheet – wasted time, missed opportunities, diluted messaging, and the mental toll of never feeling confident in your marketing.
What the Folsom business community gets right
Despite these challenges, what struck me most about Thursday night was the collaborative spirit.
There was no sense of competition in those conversations. Women shared resources, made introductions, and genuinely celebrated each other's successes. When someone mentioned a challenge, others jumped in with recommendations and support.
This is what makes the Folsom women entrepreneur community special. We have the foundation of support and collaboration. What we need now is better education about how strategic branding can multiply that success.
The branding education gap
The conversation about rebranding often focuses on aesthetics: "Should I update my logo? What colors are on trend? Do I need a new website?"
But branding isn't a design problem. It's a strategic foundation problem.
When I work with established businesses, the design phase is actually the shortest part of the process. The valuable work happens before I ever open a design program:
Competitive positioning: Who else serves your market, and how are you meaningfully different?
Target audience clarity: Who are you actually for, and what do they deeply care about?
Value articulation: What transformation do you provide, not just what services do you offer?
Message hierarchy: What's the most important thing customers need to understand about your business?
Visual strategy: What design choices will communicate your positioning without you having to explain it?
This strategic foundation is what makes marketing easier. It's what allows you to make confident decisions about everything from social media content to website copy to networking conversations.
Without it, you're always guessing. With it, you have a framework that answers most marketing questions before you even ask them.
Why established businesses struggle with the investment
Several business owners mentioned that pricing was the main barrier to working with a professional brand strategist. And I understand that hesitation; especially when you're not entirely sure what you're getting for that investment.
But here's what I want Folsom business owners to understand: the cost of not investing in strategic branding compounds over time.
Every year you spend:
Creating marketing content from scratch because you lack clear guidelines
Missing opportunities because your positioning doesn't clearly communicate your value
Competing on price because you haven't differentiated yourself strategically
Feeling uncertain about how to present your business professionally
Losing customers to competitors with clearer, more confident branding
That's not just opportunity cost. That's real revenue leaving your business, real time wasted on marketing that doesn't convert, and real stress from never feeling confident in how you show up.
The businesses I've worked with don't just get a prettier brand. They get a strategic foundation that makes every subsequent marketing investment more effective.
What this means for Folsom's business community
Thursday night revealed something important: we have an incredibly strong, collaborative community of established women entrepreneurs who are ready to level up their businesses.
The support system is here. The talent is here. The market opportunity is here.
What's missing is education about how strategic branding creates the foundation for sustainable growth.
If you're an established Folsom business owner who's been considering a rebrand but wasn't sure where to start or whether the investment makes sense, here's what I want you to know:
Your instinct that something needs to change is probably right. That frustration you feel every time you try to market your business isn't because you're bad at marketing; it's because you're trying to build on a foundation that was never strategically planned.
You don't need to figure this out alone. You don't need to keep guessing at what your brand should look like or how to present yourself consistently.
Strategic branding isn't about making things pretty. It's about creating a framework that makes every marketing decision easier, clearer, and more effective.
Moving forward together
The Folsom Women's Expo reminded me why I love working with local businesses. There's something special about supporting the women entrepreneurs in your own community – watching them succeed, seeing their businesses thrive, and knowing you played a small part in that growth.
To everyone I met Thursday night: thank you for sharing your stories, your challenges, and your wins with me. Your passion for what you do is inspiring, and I'm honored to be part of this incredible community.
And to the business owners who are struggling with the questions I heard Thursday night – about whether to invest in branding, how to get started, or whether it will really make a difference – I'd love to continue those conversations.
Because the gap between where your business is and where it could be might be smaller than you think. Sometimes it just takes the right strategic foundation to unlock that next level of growth.
Ready to understand your brand foundation?
If Thursday night's conversations resonated with you; if you've been wondering whether strategic branding could solve some of the marketing challenges you're facing, I'd love to help you get clarity.
Take my free Brand Audit to discover exactly where your current brand might be holding your business back. You'll get specific insights into:
How clearly your brand communicates your unique value
Whether your visual identity supports or undermines your positioning
Specific gaps that might be costing you customers
Actionable next steps you can take immediately
Because you've already done the hard work of building an established business. You shouldn't have to keep struggling with marketing that feels difficult and unclear.
Let's build on the foundation you've already created – together.
