I Grew My Company To $45K/Month In 1.5 Years [By Myself]

Published: June 26th, 2022
Priscilla Blevins
$45K
revenue/mo
1
Founders
0
Employees
Keto Girl Nutriti...
from Austin, TX, USA
started September 2019
$45,000
revenue/mo
1
Founders
0
Employees
Discover what tools Priscilla recommends to grow your business!
email
social media
productivity
Discover what books Priscilla recommends to grow your business!
Want more updates on Keto Girl Nutritionist? Check out these stories:

Hello! Who are you and what business did you start?

I’m Priscilla Blevins, I have my Masters of Science in Nutritional Sciences and am a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist. I am the founder of Keto Girl Nutritionist. I started out in healthcare working in hospitals where I specialized in thyroid health and nutrition. I was tired of seeing patients come in, get on medication, provide the diet, and never see them again.

I wanted to make a difference as I knew the right diet can be life-changing when coupled with support and accountability. This led me to open my virtual private practice. I am now the CEO and owner of the multi-six-figure company, Keto Girl Nutritionist. I offer a high-ticket group coaching program for women with a thyroid imbalance. I provide a holistic mindful keto approach for women to consistently lose 1-4 lbs a week, reverse their Hypothyroidism or Hashimoto’s and get off of their medication; all while having their taco and margarita.

I went from making $150 a month to $45,000+ a month within one and a half years, and still scaling to be a seven-figure business.

keto-girl-nutritionist

What's your backstory and how did you come up with the idea?

There was a time before I became a Registered Dietitian when I felt extremely frustrated with how I looked, and I felt so confused about how to eat to manage my weight and hormones.

My passion for keto stems from my health journey – from being diagnosed with a heart murmur at birth as well as Shone’s Complex, a very rare congenital heart defect consisting of multiple left heart obstructive defects. At age 12, I was 30 pounds overweight and my “well-meaning” heart doctor told me “you can never get fat or you’ll die.”

I was left struggling with my self-confidence and insecure in my body. Although I was only 12, I felt so uncomfortable in my skin and motivated to make a change. Determined to lose weight, I began cutting down on my portions and following low-calorie diets. This led me to cut out fat, starve all the time, and develop unhealthy eating behaviors.

It wasn’t until I began studying nutrition that I realized my entire approach to “dieting” was ALL WRONG!

After navigating low-calorie diets that left my social life in shambles and food guilt at an all-time high, I got accepted to pursue my Master’s degree in Nutrition, and my entire mindset towards nutrition and weight loss changed forever!

This was when I began to realize an anti-inflammatory approach to keto for weight loss is essential for women with Hypothyroidism & Hashimoto’s

I noticed that when I applied the same keto method to my clients with Hypothyroidism and Hashimoto’s, they started to finally break that barrier and lose consistent weight, improve their mood, and energy, and even get off medication! It’s about understanding the underlying factors that are contributing to your weight gain and addressing those so that you can lose weight!

My approach to keto weight loss is simple, anti-inflammatory, and sustainable! As a Registered Dietitian, I took my struggles with poor body image and disordered eating to create a successful online private practice where I get to show women how to lose weight consistently, reverse their Hypothyroidism and Hashimoto’s, get off thyroid medication, and create sustainable eating habits so they can be the best version of themselves, empowered to finally live their BEST LIFE! Before my private practice, I spent years in a hospital where I specialized in thyroid nutrition. I became tired of the doctors putting patients on medication and telling them they needed to be on it for life, with no solution to get off. The diets that were recommended were of no help as well. That is when I decided to open my private practice to provide a solution to get off medication and lose weight for good. I combined the research that I gained from being an adjunct professor, and I slowly started seeing that clients not only felt better and lost weight, but they were going back to their doctor who was reducing and even taking them off their thyroid medication; this was simply through the Keto Girl diet alone, without supplements.

keto-girl-nutritionist

Take us through the process of designing, prototyping, and manufacturing your first product.

I initially started with offering 1:1 client coaching sessions, which as a Dietitian, many offer for around $150/hr. This is not a good strategy for growing a successful practice while working fewer hours. I worked with a Dietitian business coach who encouraged me to expand to offering premium 1:1, 3-month packages. I increased pricing to $1500 for the package, however, I again found that I only have so many hours in a day, and for fast growth, this is not optimal and is draining. I again worked with my business coach to create a 3-month group coaching program, of which I included modules, weekly group coaching calls, weekly meal plans, and a private Facebook group for group members. I went from charging $1000 per client, to now charging $4,500 per client to be in my high-ticket group coaching program. I went from spending 20 hrs a week coaching and bringing in $10,000/mo, to 3 hrs a week coaching and bringing in $45,000/mo. This was a no-brainer!

Don’t be afraid to niche down and target a super-specific audience. People will pay a premium when they finally feel heard, seen, and understood.

I was initially worried clients would not value group coaching. However, I learned that clients buy results, and that is exactly what I sell them. Results improved in the group coaching as well. Clients are in a group of like-minded individuals who suffer from the same thyroid struggle and also are encouraged to know they are not alone.

Describe the process of launching the business.

90% of my clients come from Instagram where I primarily market. I went from 1000 followers to over 24,000 followers in 1 year after niching down and being very specific with my marketing strategy.

I initially marketed as a low-carb nutritionist helping anyone lose weight. I was afraid to stand out and label myself as a keto expert due to my medical background which greatly frowned upon keto as a diet, except for Epilepsy.

However, my deepest desire was to help the woman that could not lose weight no matter how hard she tried to be healthy. This is when I formulated my method and saw how it aligned with Hypothyroidism & Hashimoto’s. I now only market to women who have a thyroid imbalance to lose 25+ lbs, reverse thyroid symptoms, and get off thyroid medications. I found being true to my desire has helped me effectively help more women and be the go-to expert for a thyroid condition when it comes to weight loss and getting off medication.

My marketing strategy via Instagram consists of daily posting the problem and providing the solution. I have created Standard Operating Procedures for my virtual assistant to be able to create basic posts via Canva and schedule them Later for me. I then do video reels 4-5 times a week where I show my face. I have learned that people want to know who is providing a service and feel like they have a connection. All of this has been key in growing from 1000 followers to over 24,000 followers.

Since launch, what has worked to attract and retain customers?

Along with my marketing strategy on Instagram, I utilize email marketing. I do provide an email subscription with the freebie being a 3-day meal plan that includes my basic principles of the Keto Girl Method; gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free and keto. This has proven to help people on the fence to see 5 lbs of weight loss in just 3 days while testing out the meal plan that I provide for clients. They receive 5 email sequences checking in on their progress, providing client testimonials and program FAQ. I have grown my subscribers to over 6,000 in 6 months via my email marketing of ConvertKit.

How are you doing today and what does the future look like?

I have invested in an SEO company that is improving the searchability of my website. Within 4 months, I am now showing up on the first page of Google! One of the biggest SEO strategies that my team is utilizing is posting blogs 2-to 4 times a month. They sprinkle in keywords that are ranking on Google. Google is favoring websites that consistently post blogs. The key is consistency.

In addition, I have since hired a CFO who applies the Profit First methodology. I cannot recommend this enough. The Profit First principles have already proved to be effective at laying the foundation for a profitable company. Before hiring a CFO, I was paying expenses, setting money aside for taxes, and paying myself the remaining money. It caused me to feel like I was in a hampster wheel every month, feeling like I was in a famine or feast mode. Since hiring my CFO, I set a percent aside in each account, allowing me to have several months set aside for expenses, and taxes, and am paying myself a set salary. This allows me to breathe and feel like a “real” business and contribute to the profits and set money aside for hiring.

Through starting the business, have you learned anything particularly helpful or advantageous?

Mindset has been my biggest challenge, as I am my worst critic. Charging my worth as a woman was the biggest obstacle. However, I have an amazing business coach who has challenged my mindset and worked with me to have a growth mindset, which has been life-changing.

What platform/tools do you use for your business?

My favorite marketing platform is Instagram. It is where people get to know me and trust me. I have clients who have followed me for months and finally invest because they fully trusted and believed me.

I love Asanafor managing projects with my team. I find it very simple, organized, and helpful with reminders while keeping on track with multiple tasks.

ConvertKit has been my email marketing platform, and I am extremely happy with the flow of how everything works along with their amazing customer service.

What have been the most influential books, podcasts, or other resources?

My favorite book that gave me insight on how to read people well while selling my services was Never Split The Difference. An ex FBI negotiator that goes into the psychology of people and selling people what they want while getting what you deserve.

Advice for other entrepreneurs who want to get started or are just starting out?

Don’t be afraid to niche down and target a super-specific audience. People will pay a premium when they finally feel heard, seen, and understood. They buy outcomes. Know your audience and know your worth.

Lastly, show your face via marketing. People are relational and want to see the person whom they intend to buy from.

Where can we go to learn more?

If you have any questions or comments, drop a comment below!