PODCAST: Season 7, Episode 37
Ever feel like your branding is “fine” but something still doesn’t sit right? This week I’m joined by Vanessa Jennings, founder of Bake Brands, who spent a year building a “neutral” personal brand before realising it was the exact opposite of who she actually is. We talk about ditching the coach label for strategist, why bold branding attracts the right clients, the AI slop ruining content right now, and what actually makes a brand magnetic online. If you’ve been quietly rebranding in your head for months but haven’t pulled the trigger, this one’s for you.
Key Topics Covered
In this conversation with brand marketing strategist Vanessa Jennings, we get into:
- How to know when your branding isn’t aligned with who you are
- Why she moved from “neutral” branding to bold, colourful, and unapologetically her
- The difference between positioning yourself as a coach versus a consultant or strategist
- How five redundancies in the fashion industry built the resilience to run her own business
- What actually makes a brand feel magnetic to the right clients
- Her honest take on using AI in business, including why AI-written content is killing trust
- The stat on personal branding and employee advocacy most business owners are sleeping on
- How human design and gut instinct shaped her rebrand
Featured Breakdowns
Why Your Branding Might Be Wrong Even If It “Works”
Vanessa spent over a year building her brand, Bake, around a neutral colour palette because she assumed a brand marketing strategist needed to look “safe” and professional. It didn’t feel aligned, so she shelved it for a year of client delivery before coming back to it and leaning fully into bold colour, big personality, and the parts of herself she’d been toning down. The lesson: alignment isn’t a nice-to-have, it’s the thing that makes everything else click.
Coach vs Consultant: Why Positioning Yourself Correctly Matters
For a long time Vanessa thought her issue was audience, whether to work with female founders or product brands. It wasn’t. The real problem was that she’d structured her business like a coach when she’s actually a marketing strategist and consultant. Once she repositioned, everything from her offers to her messaging settled into place. If your offers feel off, the fix might not be your niche, it might be how you’re positioning yourself entirely.
Resilience, Redundancy, and Building a Business From the Wreckage
Vanessa had five redundancies from the fashion industry, the last one at the start of 2024, before she committed fully to her business. We talk about how repeated setbacks build a kind of business resilience you can’t fake, and why the people who judge you for “prancing around on Instagram” were never going to pay your bills anyway.
What Makes a Brand Actually Magnetic
Magnetic branding isn’t about a personality, it’s a two way street. Vanessa breaks down how authenticity plus making your audience feel seen is what creates real connection, and why every founder story has a “lightbulb moment” for their ideal client hiding in it, even if they can’t see it themselves.
AI, Authenticity, and the Rise of AI Slop
Vanessa uses AI daily in her business but draws a hard line at using it to write content. She’s watched AI strip the specific, human nuance out of a client’s brand story in real time, and she’s noticed her own critical thinking dulling when she leans on it too much. We also get into why AI-generated comments and DMs are the most pointless trend in online marketing right now.
The Personal Branding Stat Businesses Are Ignoring
Employee generated content gets significantly more reach than content from a company page, yet most businesses are too nervous about staff leaving to invest in it. Vanessa explains why that fear is costing businesses a genuine revenue and lead generation channel.
Reflect On This
- Is your branding actually aligned with who you are, or just safe?
- Are you positioned as a coach when you’re really a consultant, strategist, or something else entirely?
- Where is AI helping your business, and where might it be quietly costing you your voice?
- What’s the one story from your own life that your ideal client needs to hear?
Resources Mentioned
Connect With Vanessa Jennings
- Instagram: @VanessaEves
- Business Instagram: @bake.brands
- Website: bake-brands.com
Let’s Connect!
- Come say hi on Instagram @mills_gray — I love sending voice note responses to your questions
- Share this episode to your stories and tag me for a happy dance
- Check out my book, The Rebellious Leader: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0H3PB1TPD
Take Action
- Audit your own branding. Does it actually reflect you, or is it playing it safe?
- Get clear on whether you’re positioned as a coach, consultant, or strategist, and whether that’s actually working.
- Look for the story in your own history that connects to your ideal client’s problem.
Remember, as I always say: your gut always knows, trust it in business and beyond.