"A Business Helping Others Relax through Sound Bowl Meditation" with Emily Basford of SolFreshLife
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Photo Credit: Satvik Gangam Photography
Emily’s passion for wellness began at a young age. She has been practicing yoga and clean eating for more than ten years. Trained in Economics and Business, Emily spent four years in the corporate environment working in data analytics before transitioning full-time into the wellness industry in 2017. She worked with individuals, couples, and corporate organizations in Miami for four years before recently moving back to Tampa, FL. She lives in Apollo Beach, FL with her husband and daughter.
Can you tell our readers about your background?
I started my career in Data Analytics. After 4 years working in corporate, my passion for wellness drove me to study different aspects of wellness. I traveled to India to study yoga, meditation, & Ayurveda, attended the Institute of Integrative Nutrition to study holistic health coaching, studied with NASM for personal training, and studied under Brian Weiss for past life regression hypnotherapy. My work is mainly focused on sound bowl meditation sessions, though I also offer private yoga instruction. I learned about this type of therapy while in India. While I’ve attended various trainings, I am mostly self-taught and work intuitively.
What inspired you to start your business?
While studying yoga in India, my meditation teacher introduced the class to sound bowls. I was mesmerized by these instruments, how they sounded, and the impact these bowls had on me. I bought a set and performed sound bowl meditation sessions on my fellow classmates. My passion for this healing tool grew hearing their feedback about the sessions as well as feeling how facilitating the session impacted me positively. After returning to Florida, I gained confirmation on the power of sound bowls and the experience a session could have as I received testimonials and positive feedback from both enthusiasts and skeptics of holistic health practices.
Where is your business based?
My business is based in Tampa, FL.
How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?
After creating the formal framework of my business (name, logo, website, social media, legal, etc.), I sought out different creative ways to host group events-- at wellness centers, condo buildings, women’s retreats, corporate wellness days, and industry events. The first year of my business was a lot of experimentation with trial and error.
What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?
The most effective way of raising awareness for my business has been having an online presence. I built a clear website, listed my business on Google, asked clients to write reviews, and posted on Instagram. Strangers can view my portfolio and gain an understanding of my business and me. Most clients find me through Google.
What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?
While people who are familiar with this therapy are often enthusiasts, my biggest challenge has been reaching people who are unfamiliar with sound bowl meditation. To overcome this challenge, I have partnered with businesses for corporate wellness days as well as mental health practices to share this offering with language that meets people where they are on their wellness journey.
How do you stay focused?
Every Sunday, I have a check-in with myself to review the business’s progress, setbacks, and opportunities. This helps to maintain focus on large goals and set smaller actionable items to achieve long-term goals. I write the tasks for the week and check things off as I work towards them. When working on the computer, I set the intention to stay focused on my task list and ignore any distractions or urges to check my email or phone unnecessarily.
When providing my service, maintaining focus is not challenging. I step into each session with the intention to focus on the client. My mind often eases into a flow-state and has a single focus.
How do you differentiate your business from the competition?
While sound bowl meditation is the service, I view myself as the differentiation from competition. For a service this unique and personal the client has to feel comfortable and able to connect with the facilitator. I try to share my personality, energy, and style through my online presence as well as in person conversations.
What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?
Having a strong, clear online presence for SEO has been very effective for me. More specifically, a Google business page with customer reviews creates the strongest impact. Potential customers can view photos as well as understand what past clients’ experiences were. It takes effort for somebody to write a review (often with no reward), so potential customers see these reviews as powerful insights of my services.
What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?
Build authentic relationships with other successful entrepreneurs. One of my friends is a successful entrepreneur. We go on runs together and talk about our business challenges and successes. These conversations help keep me motivated and focused as well as are supportive guides when I need a new perspective on a business situation.
What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?
My favorite app is Insight Timer. This meditation app has many resources to help me achieve my specific intention for the day. Some off the offerings are music and guided meditations to help support my goals-- no matter if I am looking for support in helping me increase motivation or in support to help relax my mind.
What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?
Google Calendar is a simple answer but is an extremely powerful business tool. It helps keep me organized and reminds me of tasks/events both big and small. If it's not on my calendar, I’m highly unlikely to remember. My calendar is color-coded to give me a quick-glance understanding of how I’m spending my time. Some of my categories are: revenue generating activities, networking/marketing activities, and personal time.
Who is your business role model? Why?
My business role model is Sarah Blakely, founder of Spanx. Hearing the story of how she began was very motivating. Blakely knew what she wanted and committed her full effort until her dream became reality. She is fierce, fearless, and driven. Also, she is a successful business owner with a big heart and desire to help other female entrepreneurs advance on their journey.
How do you balance work and life?
As a new mother, I’m still exploring what the perfect balance is and how to achieve my perfect balance of work and life. I’m clear on my goals, priorities, and required tasks. Daily check-ins help me see what areas require more attention. I try to always have a leisure outlet or educational book to help keep me on track with options for bringing balance to life. I’m embracing the challenging days as they remind me that other business leaders and caregivers have their own struggles with work/life balance and could benefit from the services that I offer.
What’s your favorite way to decompress?
My favorite way to decompress is to sit in bed with a book. I think it's the combination of the calm, quiet evening and single-action engagement for myself that makes time seem to move slower whenever I get the chance to do this.
What do you have planned for the next six months?
Over the next 6 months, I am focusing on building meaningful relationships with business leaders in my local area, exploring effective modes of outreach for my new market, increasing my efforts with SEO, and providing powerful wellness sessions at corporate events. I recently moved cities, which means my business is being reborn in a new city. This has been a fun process, as I’m able to repeat the things that were successful the first time I built this business as well as experiment with how marketing and client engagement works in this new location.
How can our readers connect with you?
Instagram: @solfreshlife
Website: www.solfreshlife.com
Email: emily@solfreshlife.com