Jodi Carlton, an autism relationship and neurodiversity expert, serves autistic and neurodiverse individuals and couples worldwide by educating and coaching.
Spectrum Relationships provides coaching in adult autistic relationship dynamics and communication. Jodi created a unique coaching program and ground-breaking model that helps partners and couples gain clarity and a focused direction in their lives.
The Challenge
“As my coaching program is growing, we are needing to be a lot more present on social media,” Jodi says. “I already had all of the social media platforms. My YouTube channel has grown a lot in the last few years, but LinkedIn was dead because I didn’t have time to coach, create content and interact.
“My Facebook groups have close to 3,000 [people]. There was just a lot of me to go around, and my own VA [at the time] couldn’t get it all done, and I needed more.
“I am one of the world’s experts in what I do because of [my] niche, but I didn’t have enough time to get myself in front of the people who need to know I exist.”
BELAY matched Jodi first with Virtual Assistant Madison Casey and then Social Media Manager Meagan Roper shortly thereafter.
The Solution
“The fit was just amazing because they came with the skillsets I needed, they matched my communication style, our personalities have gelled so well, they’re the self-starters I need them to be, and we just get along well,” Jodi reflects.
Having a VA and an SMM on her team has allowed Jodi the freedom to coach and create teaching content.
“We all have personalities that seem to match well,” Jodi says.
Jodi is working with a web team to migrate to a new website, and because of the extra help she now has, she can concentrate on that process more.
“This past weekend, I had a bit of time where I didn’t have to work over the weekend, “Jodi shares.
“It almost felt uncomfortable because I was so used to having to just do everything myself and being on the clock 24/7. And because they have taken so much off of my plate, I had some time – and it’s been incredible.”
Meagan has been able to help Jodi set up systems such as Later and repurpose the content that Jodi has already written and filmed to have a full schedule of content and consistent posts.
“She’s staying on the pulse of what’s going on in the industry, and then alerts me [of] it, and we can adjust what we’re doing accordingly which is great because I don’t have the time to look into that,” Jodi says.
“We gave her tasks to do and she did them; she came up with ideas and she followed through.”
The Result
Having a VA and an SMM has proven to be a great combination for Jodi.
“I’m starting to see improved engagement with customer service because Meagan is engaging with people as they contact us in a different way, and people are following through with booking calls,” Jodi remarks.
“With Meagan, when you look at my Instagram stats, it’s crazy how much my engagement and interaction has gone up. My following is starting to grow, engagement is sending people over to my website, and I’m having more people contact us.”
“As a business owner, it was an important move for me to recognize when it was time to make some changes,” Jodi admits. “It was stepping off a cliff for me. I was at that make-or-break-it place where I had to make some major decisions to grow.
“I wasn’t going to survive if I stayed where I was. My clients need me and I need my business to grow, but it was a major investment financially.
“It’s been affirming for me to recognize when it’s time to invest in my business and now to find a quality contractor agency.”
Now that she has the help that she has been needing, Jodi has been able to take a step back and look at the bigger picture.
“I have a daughter who is autistic, and so much of why I’m in this field is because of her,” Jodi shares. “When I hear back and people communicate to me that something they’ve seen and we’ve put out there — some kind of video or Instagram post – makes sense, I see someone else’s life-changing.
“Meagan and Madison are helping me to get that [content] out there so people’s lives can be changed. It doesn’t feel like it's a job to them. They really both seem like they’re very invested in what we’re doing.”
MADISON CASEY
Virtual Assistant