Tenant Profile: Ellen of Word Person, Doodle Person & Teeny Bead Co.
Update - Ellen has now moved up (further North) and is no longer based at Harland Works. Her businesses are still going strong and you can find info through the links.
Second in our Tenant of the Month series is Ellen Holcombe, wearer of many hats and multi-business owner! She tells us about her varied creative passions and how she has built her businesses around them.
(Profile image by @alexandrawallacephotography)
How would you describe what you do?
This is a tricky one... I do various things!
My main role is as a freelance copywriter under the name Word Person. Wearing my writing hat, I use words to capture what makes brands different in a voice that makes sense to their customers to help them sell more. I predominantly work with small to medium sized independent brands on their web and product copy.
On the side, I'm also a watercolour and digital illustrator. Under the name Doodle Person, I sell building illustrations — from pubs to house portraits — as either original pieces of art or as prints and greetings cards on my Etsy shop. I have a great collection of Sheffield pubs and iconic buildings if you're from round these parts!
My second side-business is Teeny Bead Co. where I make delicate, eco-friendly bead jewellery that can be personalised with hand-stamped disc pendants. This is my newest venture and is really taking off — helped by the fact we're now in the Christmas shopping period!
Why did you create your businesses?
I started my copywriting business because I desperately wanted to work for myself. I made a list of all the things I was good at, all the things I enjoyed, and all the things people might pay me to do. I found that writing fell into all three lists, and set off down my path as a freelance copywriter. It's something I'd done in all of my roles up until then — writing to change behaviour — but I never knew it had a name.
My other two businesses happened by chance. I've always been a crafty person and love making and creating. With both my illustrations and jewellery, I posted pieces I'd done on social media and people started asking for commissions. From there, I took the jump to setting up online shops for each.
Where do your different business names come from?
Word Person started off a little tongue-in-cheek. I actually started off as Professional Word Person: I was a person who worked with words in exchange for money. But it kind of stuck, and I decided to drop the 'Professional' and create a brand as Word Person. Doodle Person is a natural extension of Word Person, and Teeny Bead Co. came from working with teeny, tiny beads.
What do you love about running a small business?
I love being able to be in charge of my own work-life balance. This is something that's really important to me, having worked myself into the ground in previous full-time roles. And although it's hard sometimes, I try to make sure I work to live, not live to work.
But aside from that, the best part is that I bloody love what I do. Every day is different; one day I'm making jewellery, the next painting someone's childhood home, and the next writing web copy for a brand new local business.
What do you like least?
Talking about money. Tax returns. Phone calls.
Any tips for anyone thinking of setting up on their own?
Make sure you have a chunk of savings before you start. There's no guaranteed income each month, particularly at the beginning, and while one month you might be rolling in it, the next you may find yourself not taking a penny. Freelance life is like that.
What would you say to anyone else running/setting up a small independent business thinking about getting a unit at Harland Works? What works (or not!) for you being here?
Come and work here! Even at the minute with social distancing and lockdown, you can feel the sense of community here. In fact, we're looking for a new tenant in our studio, so if you're a freelance creative looking for somewhere to base your business, get in touch (ellen@wordperson.me).
What's your favourite social media platform and how do you feel it works best for you in building a relationship and community with your customers?
For Word Person, it's definitely Twitter. For Doodle Person and Teeny Bead Co., it's Instagram. And it's easy to see why; Word Person is a wordy-based business and Twitter is a wordy-based platform. Instagram is visual and so are Doodle Person and Teeny Bead Co.
On Twitter, as well as building a community with customers, I've found it amazing for joining the online community of copywriters. The copywriter industry is a lovely one — from my experience we don't see each other as competition and pass on work if we know someone better suited to the job. And what goes around, comes around.
How can people find out more about buying your work?
To hire me to write words for your brand, drop me an email at ellen@wordperson.me or check out more of my work on my website.
To commission a house portrait or to buy a print, head to my Etsy shop
To buy a piece of jewellery that doesn't cost the earth, head to the website
And checking your social media:
Twitter: @ellenwordperson
Instagram: @teenybeadco & @ellendoodleperson
Facebook: /teenybeadco & /ellendoodleperson
