Reaching Out To Make It Happen

1. BUSINESS NSW - WESTERN NSW CONTACT

On the Business NSW website I located the contact for the Western NSW region. I sent her an email asking for any assistance or advice with relocating my business to Dubbo. She gave me a call to discuss my move and gave insight into the region. We discussed the benefits of choosing Dubbo over smaller towns nearby. She also provided me with contacts for Dubbo Regional Council and Dubbo Chamber of Commerce.

2. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TEAM AT DUBBO REGIONAL COUNCIL

I reached out to the team at Dubbo Regional Council to ask about any support or advice for relocating. One of my biggest challenges was securing a rental property for my family as this needed to be secured before even thinking about moving my business. They were kind enough to send through the list of real estate agents and recommended contacting them directly to discuss our situation and not just through rental applications. He even suggested dropping his name to help get some traction or attention with the agents.

3. REAL ESTATES

The first stage of our relocation plan was to secure a rental property before looking to buy a home. We wanted to get to know the area and also build solid employment. We applied for around 30 rental properties and felt lucky when one real estate agent took interest in our situation. She was able to get our application approved for a property.

One fun part of this relocation story is that my husband moved to Dubbo before the family. When we knew we were going to move and his workload was still significantly impacted following lockdowns in Campbelltown, he decided it would be best to get a job, move closer to be accessible for rental inspection. For six weeks he lived between pubs, donga at a worksite and came home some weekends. I stayed in Campbelltown with our two young boys, packing the house and continuing to work full time to see clients until our move date was set.

After a particularly stressful 48 hours which included floods, a large tree crashing into our yard and a drunk neighbour climbing the fence then sleeping at my bedroom window, I was almost ready to give up. But on that day, our rental application was approved so we began our next adventure.

Setting Up In My New Town

1. FINDING SPACE

While commercial Real Estate agents were my first port of call for a premises for my business, I also started to get creative and look at working alongside other health practitioners. I reached out to a Physiotherapist, who turned out we shared a mutual contact and asked about space with her. Turned out that the room she worked from was rented from a Psychologist, so she put me in touch with him. The rent was affordable and a lower commitment to help me get started. I was able to set up my massage room alongside health practitioners who are supportive and were quite keen to get on the massage table for treatment themselves.

2. GOOGLE

When researching other businesses within my industry, I noticed that there were not many with a strong marketing presence. Most likely because they were already booked out but as a new business to town, I needed to build that presence. I had my website in place so I updated the contact details for Dubbo, while also updating SEO for my new location. I was determined to get my Google Search ranking number 1 for Remedial Massage so while it took some work on the actual google set up, it also meant making sure my website reflected the same information and was easily searchable. The majority of my new clients come through Google, including those that have to come to town for shopping, medical appointments etc and are now able to book their Remedial Massage online which was found on google.

3. NETWORKING

Business networking has been a very important part of my business for the past 8 years so I knew I needed to tap into new networking opportunities here in Dubbo to get myself known, as well as learn more about the businesses here. I joined a local community membership at The Exchange and started to attend masterclasses to meet new people. I have since presented a masterclass for them as I wanted to give back for helping me get started. I also attended the Women in Business event hosted by the Dubbo Chamber of Commerce.

4. CLIENT NETWORK

One interesting thing I discovered in the move is how connected we all are. I was able to reconnect with an old client who had also relocated to Dubbo, 7 years after last seeing her. I also had my Campbelltown clients referring their friends and family in my new area. These became my first clients while I continued to work on improving my presence.

5. SOCIAL MEDIA

On top of the usual content shared on social media about myself and my services, I made sure I added my location on posts and location hashtags to get found. I also used the #dubbo to find other businesses to follow and connect with on Instagram. I genuinely looked to connect with businesses that I resonated with and not just for vanity numbers. I connected with one business in particular who I fell in love with straight away. Her business name is The Baby Loss Mentor and I thought this woman is doing something important. While we initially started to like each other’s content, I walked into the room of the Women in Business Chamber event and there she was standing in front of me in real life. We immediately clicked and have become great friends. We share my clinic room, spend days co-working and are each other’s biggest business cheerleaders, as well as support each other through our unique grief experiences. The power of social media is that it works alongside the real world. Online connections can lead to significant in person connections too.

Before I share the successes of our decision to relocate, I also want to acknowledge some of the challenges we faced so you get the full picture. Childcare places were in short supply with many centres only taking names for their waitlist. Once securing childcare, I was also the default parent who needed to take time off if my son was too sick for daycare.

And we had so many germs come home last year. In the past my husband and I could have juggled our schedules but his job meant working 6 days a week, 10 hours a day and as a casual, no paid leave. I really had to fight to keep going with my business. I did not want to waste all the knowledge and experience that was needed here but it was definitely a challenge to find a way to make it all work together.

On to the good stuff. In January, we purchased our very first family home and are settling into the fun of making the space our own. My business is thriving and massage bookings are filling up each week. I won two awards at the end of 2022 at the Altitude Awards for the Purpose Driven Award and the overall Inspiring Individual of the Year for my bravery in relocating and rebuilding. I was then featured on the front page of the local newspaper, as well as mentioned on ABC Western Plains Radio for my wins.

I have built a wonderful network of friends and small business owners here in Dubbo. I am preparing to launch a new chapter of the Women with Altitude networking group, to allow more women in the Western Plains region to connect together and be supported in business. And maybe there will be a place for more women like me who choose to make a change for their family, to achieve their goals and thrive in a new town.

Fearless Health

Melissa Woodward is a multi-award winning business owner of Fearless Health. She is a Remedial Massage Therapist and Personal Trainer focused on supporting women through the significant physical and emotional changes that come with pregnancy, post natal recovery, motherhood and menopause. She now calls Dubbo NSW home with her husband and two young boys.

Keep In Touch With Melissa

Web: fearlesshealth.com.au