#BEYOUROWN MEETS LADYM

This week #BEYOUROWN have a dose of Rachel Montague-Ebbs, a Social media & brand strategist. Best known for helping businesses make their Instagram “AWESOME”. Now adding her latest venture as an Arbonne Independent Consultant to her name, the former Editor-in-Chief of online lifestyle and fashion magazine Lady m Presents, keeps us in check with 5th Day and life since being featured in Management Today’s 35 under 35 women in business in the UK for 2015.

Who are you and what do you do?

My name is Rachel Montague-Ebbs and I am a brand strategist and social media consultant; I run my own business 5th Day: Business of Brands.

I am a former fashion blogger; I started the world famous LadyM Presents: Business of Style in 2010.  I have been a brand ambassador for La Redoute, Dolce Gusto, and Kaleidoscope and I ran the successful online fashion and lifestyle magazine for six years.  Providing a platform for up and coming designers to showcase their work and presenting great brands I wanted to share with my readers.

At the same time I worked my way up the career ladder in a male-dominated industry; the fresh produce industry. I now sit on the board of three berry companies as Supply Chain Director and I am a Non-Exec Director for Curious Drinks; a British craft beer company.

Why did you start a blog?

I started LadyM Presents when my boyfriend at the time went to work in China and I had more free time.  Blogging was just becoming popular and I loved writing as a child so I thought I would give it a go.I soon struggled with what to write about so I focused on my career; I wore a dress to work every day in my male-dominated environment and photographed it for the blog and the rest they say is history! I have covered London Fashion Week for over 5 seasons and have attended New Zealand Fashion Week as an international VIP twice.  I have helped many up and coming designers showcase their work and many even featured in my own wedding.

So we see you’ve closed LadyM Presents: What is your new venture?

5th Day: Business of Brands came about having engaged with many small businesses and brands through my blog.  I often got feedback that business owners liked what I did on Instagram and how I built my audience, but they didn’t know how to do it. So I started giving out tips for free but soon realised that there were many people I could help with this.  So I took the plunge and launched 5th Day.  I asked to go to a four day week with my day job in order to do something more creative and now it’s gone full circle as I manage the PR, Communications and social media for the fruit businesses too!

Tell us more about brand strategy – how can you help small businesses?

5th Day is a  brand strategy and social media consultancy focusing on small businesses with a story to tell.  I want to help entrepreneurs to take their companies magic formula; their passion and great products and tell their story to your ideal consumer and to those who don’t yet know they are the ideal consumer!

It’s a simple equation;

The right content + the right audience + the right platform + right time = Social Media Success

Whether its brand strategy planning from concept to delivery or how to make your Instagram account awesome and plan social media content.I can build a personalised package for business with my unique formulas for success.

You were featured in Management Today’s 35 under 35 women in business in the UK for 2015, how has what you do in your day job link to your new business? 

As a Board Director with a focus on brand strategy in fresh produce and a focus on strategic management, I know how hard building a strategy can be.  You need someone to listen to your concerns over a coffee, you need someone to give you general counsel and you need someone to throw you some curveball questions every now and again.  This is where I step in.  Maybe I’m your brand Fairy Godmother, maybe I’m your worst nightmare.  But together we will drive your business forward.

Going back to fashion, what is the one trend that you love?

I want to write a book called “The Girl in the Breton Stripes”.  I am such a lover of them. On my last count, I had one Breton striped skirt, two dresses and over 15 tops and t-shirts. I need help! I’m a big lover of French fashion but I also love the history behind this trend. It’s easy to wear, to dress up or down and is superbly comfortable.

I feel most powerful in skinny jeans, my favourite Breton top, a blazer and a chunky necklace, that’s how I present to my clients in an outfit that I know I feel great in.

What’s your top tip for boosting your Instagram feed?

For all your lovelies wanting to ramp up your interaction and engagement on my favourite social media channel that is Instagram…. Use your hashtags! You have 30 available to you; research them wisely for your target audience.. Don’t just use mainstream common ones, look at those ‘related’ tags using the search button

People use them more than you think, make your posts highly searchable and build your audience

Twitter: @5thdaybrands | Instagram: @5thdaybrands

Website: www.businessofbrands.co.uk