Today we’d like to introduce you to Amber Baird.
Hi Amber, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
March of 2022 birthed the beginning of my business. I had left my corporate career less than 3 weeks prior, had a 5 year old, a 6 month old and was a newlywed. My previous company is a huge corporation that hadn’t had an employee to have given birth in about 20 years and when I returned from maternity leave, they didn’t know exactly what to do with me or how to accommodate my needs as a new mother adequately. Couple that with a small child and a new baby at home… you can only imagine the stress levels I climbed each day. Although I was sad to have left, I was looking forward to being a stay at home mom. Until the itch kicked in. Although managing a household is tough and should always be well respected, I felt this pull to do something more.
I have a very diverse background when it comes to my past careers. Ranging from being a marketing research firm confirmation specialist, a PE and Music teacher for a preschool, a restaurant manager and bartender to a school photographer of a well known company and the administrative assistant to the Executive Assistant to the President of the big energy corporation slash accounting clerk. Pretty eclectic if you ask me. But in each of these roles (and more), I have always been a quick learner and performed at the top of my position on a consistent basis.
I knew I wanted to be an entrepreneur, but I wasn’t sure what industry I wanted to jump into. As I continued to browse around online, a Bookkeeping course kept showing up in my discoveries. I ended up taking the course, even learned the most popular, yet well loathed, Quickbooks Online. I failed to become a certified ProAdvisor and cried my eyeballs out… only to pass 2 months later when I was allowed to retest.
That first year I followed all of the local businesses, networked online, raised my baby at home, spoke with roughly 45 businesses and gained not ONE client. It was terrible and I felt like a huge failure that wasted a lot of money on a course that wasn’t reaping any fruits of my continued labor.
But the NEXT year…. my business bloomed! I started attending a local networking group in person and gained a business mentor that encouraged me to refocus what I did and could offer. AmberFaced Bookkeeping became AmberFaced Business Solutions! Once I made the transition to offering more, I started gaining clients. All entrepreneurs and from various industries. I made fliers for a musical nonprofit event that really wowed the founder, set appointments for a Medicare agent during the AEP season, went onsite weekly to assist one of the top Mary Kay teams in the country by inventory control (and still do to this day). I’ve made business cards, logos, slideshow presentations, executed customer service correspondence, business errands…. the list just continues to grow.
I continue to take courses in relevant subject matters for my clients and get certified where needed. I presently have my Quickbooks ProAdvisor and a HIPAA compliance certificates. Currently I am training in property management administration and transaction coordination. I have/have had clients in insurance, carpentry, Medicare, landscaping, technology, real estate, artisan baked goods, handmade memory bears, Norwex, home improvement, travel, and a couple of other industries.
The more I go to networking meetings and meet other entrepreneurs, I have come to find that most are a company of one. A hardworking individual who dreams big and does it all on the front and in the back of their business. Most are overworked and overtired. A lot feel overwhelmed too. And that is where you can find me. Doing everything I can in the back office to set them up for success. I genuinely meet my clients where they are at and provide what some may call “fractional assisting” and then some. I have been dubbed a “Back Office Bestie” and live up to the hype. I learn everything I can about my clients’ business so that I know how to help them like their best friend would. Because who wouldn’t want to work with their best friend all of the time and grow their business, am I right???
Connecting with others and growing my business has also allowed me to be more present than I would have been in my children’s lives. I get to take my oldest to and from school, attend award ceremonies, class parties and field trips. I get to wake up late on school holidays and potty train my youngest without relying on someone else to do it for me (although it’d be great because my youngest is stu-bborn). Most of the time, my hair is in a messy bun on top of my head because that’s how we moms look when we’re being super heroes in the world and taking care of business. 😉 And I wouldn’t have it any other way! I’m grateful that my clients meet me where I am, just as I do for them. It’s a beautiful thing to collaborate and help with the small wins everyday.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road. Having to share a car with my husband for almost a year, I learned to allot my time wisely and effectively for my clients’ needs. And that first year was definitely a doozy, trying to be a great mom to a new baby while building a business. But I am grateful for what has unfolded since then in my business and all of the people I have encountered a long the way.
As you know, we’re big fans of AmberFaced Business Solutions. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Well, I am most known for my logo. Most find that it’s unique and creative. I’m very proud that it’s stood the test of time thus far.
I specialize in assisting small businesses in all things administration…. spreadsheets, event lists, fliers, business card design, email campaign execution, customer service correspondence, calendar management, appointment setting, inventory control, business research/errands, CRM management, data entry, etc… a combination of these things and more.
I would love for the readers to know that they aren’t in their business alone. There are plenty of people willing to help and will be just as excited to participate in raising you up to the next level. And if you can’t find them, reach out to me – I’ll always be cheering you on and willing to help take something off your plate to lighten the load.
Do you any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
Oh wow, there are so many. I’m the oldest of 6 and have a diverse family culture so it’s really hard to choose. I’d have to say my favorite childhood memory would be whenever we’d go over to my Vietnamese grandparents’ house for a party (they happened often). The food was delicious, the music was fun and there were always a bunch of cousins running around. Mass chaos on the happiest scale!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://amberfaced.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/amberfacedbs
