This week, Rachel and Lynne are chatting with freelance writer Mat Patterson (morehumancontent.com), who argues small and medium businesses and freelancers should lean into being personal, flexible and customer-close rather than copying big-company systems and jargon.

Mat shares his path from web design to customer support to writing, explaining how support work builds communication skills through fast feedback. His work includes newsletters, podcasts and articles for customer-centric SaaS and customer experience companies, focused on clearer, more engaging messaging.

We also chat about:

• Customer marketing via happy customers
• Why good service requires leadership giving staff authority
• How generative AI will increase the value of unique human perspective amid generic content

Connect with Mat via: https://morehumancontent.com, https://www.linkedin.com/in/mathewpatterson/ and https://www.helpscout.com/resources/supportive-podcast/

Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com

Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au

Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au

Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Looking to take advantage of the discount for Rachel's List Gold Members? Email us at: hello@rachelslist.com.au for the details.

Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co

This week, Rachel and Lynne are chatting with freelance business coach Leticia Mooney about building an "engine room" of systems across customer experience, sales and finance so clients feel safe, payments are smoother, and work is easier to deliver.

Leticia says freelancers often skip systems because they assume their work is unique, but writing includes research, analysis, delivery and communication, all of which benefit from good processes.

It's a great discussion about how to make your business run better and free yourself up for creative work. So many tips, including the PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) cycle with frequent review, how to do client updates to reduce anxiety, and walking through agreements on sales calls to prevent questions and ghosting.

Connect with Leticia via her website: Https://leticiamooney.com

Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com

Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au

Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au

Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Looking to take advantage of the discount for Rachel's List Gold Members? Email us at: hello@rachelslist.com.au for the details.

Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co

This week Rachel and Lynne discuss luck, visibility, and career resilience with guest copywriter Mel Barfield, managing partner at Copy or Die, host of the Indie Business Club podcast, and a Freelancer magazine columnist.

Mel shares her career shift into freelancing after moving while pregnant, how expectations and mindset can block opportunities, and why "luck" is largely created through action, relationships, and optimism. She talks about creating and noticing chances, acting on hunches, reframing setbacks, and expecting good outcomes. Practical tips include breaking big goals into chunks, building personal authority, asking for opportunities, avoiding overly negative public posting, networking with curiosity, and using LinkedIn strategically to connect with ideal client job titles without cold pitching.

Connect with Mel via:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melaniebarfield/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allcopymel/
Substack: https://indiebusinessclub.substack.com/

and the agency she runs with Dave is https://copyordie.co.uk/

Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com

Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au

Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au

Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au ), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Looking to take advantage of the discount for Rachel's List Gold Members? Email us at: hello@rachelslist.com.au for the details.

Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co