The Startup Ladies, an entrepreneurial organization that advocates for more women participating and starting scaleable, high-potential businesses. Every month, The Startup Ladies feature notable Indiana speakers giving talks on various topics in and around Indiana. This month’s speakers were Caroline Dowd-Higgins and Lisa Whitman. Both experienced businesswomen in media and marketing gave an excellent crash course in entrepreneurial storytelling to the attendees.
Caroline Dowd-Higgins is a powerhouse speaker, author and executive coach. She authored the best-selling book and maintains the blog: This Is Not the Career I Ordered®, which showcases her savvy professional development advice and women who are thriving after a career transition or reinvention. Caroline writes for: Medium, Huffington Post, Ellevate Network, Thrive Global and a column for The Chronicle newspaper in Indiana.
Lisa Whitman is the founder and CEO of Digital Stories Media Group and has spent thirty years exploring, writing, filming and sharing the stories of people, companies and organizations. Her ability to bring a narrative to life is the cornerstone of her media company. From her experience in Moscow, Russia as a video journalist, to her experience in teaching, advertising, television and marketing, she has a broad business perspective and vast knowledge in multiple brand strategy roles. She is active in women’s mentoring organizations and is an advocate for women in business.
The talk consisted of putting participants through a session of generating a consistent branding story about your company, and the importance of generating buzz, particularly through video, and through more conventional means by recording yourself on your phone, even to just practice your storytelling skills. Participants were encouraged to develop a rough script that they could later hone into a pitch.
The Startup Ladies is a membership organization that identifies, educates, connects, and increases investment in women entrepreneurs starting up and scaling businesses. Through their “Startup Study Halls,” for founders and “Startup Investing 101” programming for first-time funders, The Startup Ladies provides an effective educational model for first time founders and investors. The Startup Ladies also sponsors a “She-Suite” program to promote emotional psychological and social well-being for entrepreneurs.
The next Startup Ladies event in Bloomington is a Startup Study Hall with Indiana Business Journal Editor Tom Harper at Hoosier Energy.