As I (Rach) sit here closing out our fourth year of Rise Marketing & Creative, I can honestly say this has been our biggest and best yet, and not because we scaled wildly or hit some magical business milestone, but because this was the year everything really clicked into place. 2025 has been the year Rise found its rhythm, its people, its process and its direction. Let me tell you what I mean.

When I first started this business, I truly believed all I wanted was a handful of clients whose digital marketing I could manage by myself. Just me and my laptop, somewhere in the middle of nowhere with a camp chair and a flynet around my face. If you had told me at the beginning of this year that Rise would soon be made up of a collective of specialists who are not only brilliant at what they do but genuinely passionate about doing it, I think I might have asked you “on what planet?”

I couldn’t imagine a version of Rise that had grown enough to bring in the best of the best. Yet here we are, and gosh it makes me giddy!

The year the team expanded

The biggest highlight of 2025 has easily been the expansion of our team. It’s a unique little ecosystem we’ve built over the last twelve months. Every person who supports our clients each week is a business owner in their own right. Creatives. Digital wizards. Operational specialists. Analytical brains, you catch my drift. All working cohesively, all embracing the Rise approach without missing a beat.

What has made me SO proud is not just the talent in this group, but how naturally they adopt what Rise has become known for. We step into a client’s world fully. We integrate into their team. We build strategies that feel intentional and grounded in real goals and real people. We care deeply about doing the work well and doing it with them, not for them.

You’ll often hear me say that we are not an agency. Expanding the team meant revisiting that message. I wanted to be clear that while we’re growing, we haven’t lost that personal, relational style of working that so many small to medium businesses value. Today, I can confidently say we’ve kept that heart, only now we have more hands and more expertise to support the work we love.

Asking for help (turns out you’re allowed and no one thinks less of you for it)

I hired a business coach. And not just any business coach. I started working with, in my opinion, one of the most incredible women…Michelle Broadbent. Let me tell you, this has easily been one of the best investments Rise has ever made.

I was sceptical at first. I’d heard a few not-so-great stories about people who’d invested in coaches and hadn’t felt supported. More than that though, I wasn’t entirely sure what I even needed from a coach. What do you ask? How much do you share? Is there such a thing as a silly question? Will they actually understand your business?

Almost twelve months on, I can say that Michelle has been a turning point. She brought clarity when I was foggy. She helped set goals that felt realistic and exciting. She taught me to step back far enough to make good decisions. She supported the operational and strategic side of Rise but also made space for the emotional side of being a business owner.

Most importantly, she reminded me I don’t have to do this alone. And if you’re a business owner reading this, I just know you know how powerful that is.

Getting crystal clear

One of the biggest outcomes of working with Michelle was getting clear on our offering. It sounds so obvious, especially for someone who works in marketing, but when you’re knee-deep in the day-to-day, it’s easy to become a yes person. You say yes to every project because you don’t want to miss an opportunity. You want to help. You want to grow.

But saying yes to everything comes with a cost. You lose clarity on who you want to work with. You dilute the type of work you actually want to do. And you end up busier than you ever intended.

This year, we reset. We refined our offering. We built a process that not only allows us to do our job better but gives clients a solid strategic foundation tied to their goals and audience. It also helps them understand the value of intentional digital marketing.

It’s a process we’re proud of. It benefits our clients first and foremost, and it gives us the structure to deliver the kind of work we’re genuinely excited about.

The right people and the right work

With a clearer offering, stronger systems (Thank you thank you thank you Organised by Adrienne and a team that feels like pure magic, we have been rewarded with the calibre of businesses we’ve partnered with this year. I can confidently say 2025 has been home to some of our strongest strategy, best creative work and most successful campaigns. And we’ve done it alongside clients we truly adore working with.

Lessons from a very full year

If I had to sum up what this year has taught me, it would be this:

• All of us are learning every single day
• There is strength in support and I don’t have to do it alone
• Whatever you’re experiencing in business, someone else has lived a version of it too
• Community matters
• Connection matters
• It’s ok to charge what you’re worth
• Resting really does make you more productive (who woulda thought?)
• I might just be the luckiest girl alive
• Some days you’ll simply be getting by and others you’ll be operating at 120%

A few fun stats from the year

• 15 new websites launched
• 11 tailored brand and digital strategies created and rolled out
• 3 events sponsored
• 7 major SEO projects completed
• 39 businesses supported across Australia
• Countless coffees
• Approximately 56,975 social posts scheduled (totally kidding, but that’s what it felt like)
• A team of seven talented specialists across websites, copywriting, design, social media, email, ads, strategy and operations
• And one very grateful girl from Seaham who started a business with a dream to work with intention, live in balance and build something meaningful

One thing I will never take for granted is being referred or recommended by someone who knows how we work. That trust means more to me than I can put into words. So if you’ve ever passed a referral our way, mentioned Rise in rooms, tagged us on socials, or recommended us in any way, know that there’s a small business owner in a home office hearing that little ‘new client’ ping, texting the team and still feeling genuinely excited to do what we love.

The team’s favourite moments

I asked the Rise team to share one of their highlights or biggest takeaways from the year. Here’s what they had to say:

Bec:

“One of my biggest highlights this year was stepping into my role as a Social Media & Content Strategist. It felt like everything I’ve learned so far finally clicked into place, and I realised this is exactly where I’m meant to be in the digital marketing space. I’ve had the chance to work with businesses across a range of industries, all with different voices, audiences and goals, and I’ve genuinely loved shaping content that fits each one. It’s been a year of clarity, growth and a bit of a “this is my lane” transition.”

Adrienne:

“Since joining the Rise team in July of this year,  a huge highlight for me personally has been seeing our internal systems and processes evolve. As a growing business with a growing team, it is so important for our systems and processes to work smoothly so we can all focus on what we do best, delivering amazing digital marketing services to our clients.”

Lara:

“My highlight this year was definitely the phone call from Rach inviting me to officially join the Rise team. After collaborating for so long, it felt so special to be welcomed in. Our Friday catch-ups with the loveliest group of women (and a strategy day that went way too fast) have honestly been a joy."

I’m so grateful to be working with people whose values align so naturally with mine, collaborating on meaningful projects for wonderful clients. It feels really good to do the creative work I love as part of a team that genuinely helps businesses thrive.”

Wrapping up the year

So here we are at the end of 2025. Grateful. Ready for a break. And still energised for what’s coming in 2026.

If you’ve read this far, thank you. This little business has grown in ways I never expected, and I’m excited to step into another year of doing what we love, with people we adore, for clients we care about.

Here’s to what’s next...
Rach