By Pon Angara, VisionReady storyteller

I’m big on subscriptions: online publications, software, recipes, food, music, business tools, skin care products, healthcare, you name it! If I know I’m going to need it on a consistent basis, even at varying levels, I just hit the SUBSCRIBE NOW button. I choose the frequency of delivery and my bank account or credit card is automatically charged. I know I will always have the product on hand or be able to access a program or get help from an expert at any time that’s convenient for me. And I don’t have to worry about forgetting to pay a bill.

Start by digitalizing your brand experience.

This requires reframing your brand story by plugging it into a digital setting. How will your customer engage with your product or service? Will it be happening entirely online? Partially? Is the mechanism for personalization happening virtually? How about delivery? When will follow-up happen and how? Rewarding your customers for their loyalty is another opportunity for enhancing the brand experience through digitalization.

Do as they say, and as they do.

Like me, plenty of consumers find the “set it and forget it” approach to be the most convenient model for getting what they need. So why not have a business model that mirrors exactly what customers want? The beauty of this model is its consistent revenue without having to market repeatedly to them. You can send them regular, strategically timed emails about new features or special offers to keep your brand top of mind. Don’t forget to also send customers a regular Thank You. It goes a long way.

Get to know your customer on a deeper level.

The subscription model enables you to track customer behavior and how they interact with your brand in a more intelligent way. Assuming you’re gathering meaningful data, you’re able to create a more personal experience for your customer as your brand can speak to their needs in more specific terms and in a timelier manner.

In the long run, a subscription business model helps to build trust along the way especially if you’re transparent about how you use data about your customers’ journey. As long as they consistently have a high-quality experience, receive messaging that’s relevant to them, and get prompt responses to their questions or feedback, your business will thrive in the metaverse, and beyond!

VisionReady helps businesses owned by women and people of color to thrive through digital transformation. For more information, send an email to info@visionready.org or call (305) 791-2610.

   By Pon Angara, VisionReady storyteller

I recently took my son to visit an engineering trade school in a suburb of Illinois to check out what they have to offer an 18-year-old who’s passionate about the automotive industry. Anthony wants to be able to work under the hoods of cars, especially flashy sports cars that, in his mind, will help him attract the girl of his dreams. At this point in his life and in my parenting, I figure, “…whatever works to get him into a serious path toward a stable vocation!”

We walked out of the school’s open house very impressed with the facility, the program, their job placement, and their staff. Looking back, I recall seeing a room packed with potential student enrollees that were all male. A handful of staff attending to guests were female, but I wasn’t sure if they were faculty or support staff (i.e., admissions, financial aid, student housing, etc.) who were professionals in the trade.

Maybe that day was a fluke, and the reality is that the number of women has been rising exponentially in the historically male-dominated automotive industry. Or maybe there’s still a long way to go.

“The industries in which my company operates are highly male-dominated,” points out Jessica Billingsley, Chairman of the Board & Chief Executive Officer of Akerna. In June 2019. she became the first CEO of a cannabis-technology company to be listed on Nasdaq. She co-founded MJ Freeway in 2010, where she served as president until April 2018, and later as the CEO until MJ Freeway was acquired by MTech to form Akerna.

“Go to any industry conference or event and you’ll see it firsthand,” says Billingsley. “Being among the small percentages of women in leadership in the space, I often find myself invited to conferences with an agenda full of male leadership, only to be offered a spot on a women’s panel — and nothing else. When launching Akerna’s flagship product, MJ Freeway, we invented seed-to-sale tracking for the industry. And yet, many who organize these conferences think I can only speak to being a woman in business. I code, I sell, I scale, I lead, but to them, I am merely a female CEO, a checked box on a diversity-and-inclusion initiative. And I know my fellow female peers across a variety of industries have experienced the same.”

So how do we fix this gender discrimination that is so deeply baked into business today?

“It starts with the language we use,” suggests Billingsley. “Words have power. Let’s drop the qualifier when highlighting women who achieve. Countless amazing organizations seek to bring women into business and develop them into future leaders, but we still have miles to go.”

“Ultimately, equal representation will be crucial for women to be seen as what we are: businesspeople delivering value, innovation and skill to our individual companies and missions,” says Billingsley. “I hope for a future where women leaders are categorized by skill and success — not by gender. Yes, I am a proud female founder. But I am so much more than just that.”

VisionReady regularly highlights the contributions of women in all sectors of society and the impact they’ve created—and are continuing to create—for people’s lives. For more information, send an email to info@visionready.org or call (305) 791-2610.