Meet Christina Marie Noel

Today we’d like to introduce you to Christina Marie Noel.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?

I’m a social entrepreneur, marketing strategist, business coach, and keynote speaker who specializes in helping mission-driven organizations thrive. My journey started back in 2011 when I was sitting at a bar with one of my friends trying to figure out what to do with my life because I wasn’t happy at my job. My friend asked me, “What would you do if you didn’t have to worry about money?” I immediately knew the answer was that I wanted to help people. I made a commitment to myself that day to go after my dream of living a life focused on making a positive impact. Since that day, I’ve had the opportunity to work with more than 70 mission-driven organizations to develop and improve their marketing and business strategy.

My ultimate mission in doing this work is to create great, purpose-driven jobs for people around the world – jobs that pay well, are meaningful, drive positive change in their communities, and allow employees to still have a life outside of work. I see this happening in two ways: (1) by helping innovators & entrepreneurs found their own companies, or bring more purpose into their work and (2) working with mission-driven organizations to help them scale, so they can create more great jobs for more people. We spend more time at work than we do with our family and friends, so that time should be meaningful and about more than just making a profit.

To transition my career, I went back to school to get an MBA. During that time, I landed a life-changing internship with B Lab, the non-profit behind the global B Corp (Benefit Corporation) movement. Certified B Corporations are businesses that meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose. B Corps are accelerating a global culture shift to redefine success in business and build a more inclusive and sustainable economy.

My B Lab internship opened my eyes to the inspiring impact that businesses can have on their communities, employees, and the stakeholders they serve. During my time at B Lab, I spent a summer visiting ten different mission-driven companies.

The most memorable, by far, was Ben & Jerry’s. We spent the day doing a behind-the-scenes tour of their ice cream factory, which was essentially like Willy Wonka (except not scary…) We could smell the massive vats of chocolate, and we were given ice cream fresh off the line. More than that, we had the opportunity to talk to employees about how working at Ben & Jerry’s made their life better. We also could see how this one company made a positive impact on its community – it brought tourism, it sourced its ingredients either locally or ethically, and the employees we interviewed told us that working at Ben & Jerry’s changed their life for the better.

Since my summer spent working with B Lab, I’ve been actively involved in the B Corp movement, and I’m now proud to be the owner of a Certified B Corp, Noel & Co. We are a marketing & strategy consultancy that helps companies develop a go-to-market strategy to grow their triple bottom line. I’m also the founder of the Figure Your Sh*t Out Accelerator, a 6-month program designed to give early-stage, mission-driven entrepreneurs a safe space to test their ideas, hone their business models, and figure their sh*t out in the community.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?

Actually, it has been quite the bumpy journey at times to get to where I am today. The first “big step” I took towards creating a meaningful life was being willing to commit to building a career focused on making a positive impact. To be quite honest, that initial decision to begin putting my dreams “out there” in the universe felt terrifying at the time. Not everyone I told about my goals was fully supportive. Some people questioned whether I’d be able to support myself. Others thought I was naive to be so focused on prioritizing making a positive impact first when it came to the career I wanted to build. I was reminded often that there are only a “limited number” of well-paying, impact-driven jobs. Thankfully, the number of mission-driven jobs is growing, and the next generation is demanding that organizations care about more than the bottom line.

After I got an MBA from the University of Georgia, I went to work for what I thought would be my dream job. It was a B Corp with an incredible mission. I learned a great deal from this experience, but after three years, I had made the impact on the company I had the ability to make. Also, over time I began to burn myself out, often putting my focus on work and making an impact on my health. When I finally put in my two-week notice, I was sick, burned out and showing autoimmune-like symptoms. It was time for me to take the leap into entrepreneurship.

However, not long into my entrepreneurial journey, I discovered the ugly truth about entrepreneurship that nobody ever truly discusses: not only is it hard, but it is lonely. I struggled to connect with others who were at a similar stage in their journey as I was. I also craved the strategic support of peers and a system of accountability. I couldn’t find a relevant accelerator program to join because they were all “bro-ish,” tech-favored, and focused on high-growth startups. I knew I wasn’t the only founder who was looking for a program that was created with community in mind, not funding, so I set out to create a program that could help these mission-driven entrepreneurs. I launched the FYSO Accelerator in September 2019 with nine mission-driven founders during a 2-day kickoff workshop in Raleigh, NC, followed by six months of ongoing virtual support. We’ve since run two cohorts and worked with a total of 42 mission-driven founders.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?

Apart from FYSO, I also own and operate Noel & Co. which helps mission-driven businesses working to scale their positive impact and achieve sustainable growth through a comprehensive marketing strategy that allows businesses to “cut through the clutter” and connect with their ideal customers.

We custom design each project to meet our client’s unique needs. Typically, we focus on gaining customer insights to support clients in nailing the right market positioning, value proposition, and marketing strategy to either scale their existing brand or bring a new product to market.

Our services fall into three main offerings that go hand-in-hand: Market Research, Marketing Strategy Development, and Fractional Leadership.

Market Research: We specialize in conducting comprehensive market research. During our strategic engagements, we’ll dive into understanding our client’s customers on a deep level, leverage the wisdom of their team, and conduct a competitive assessment to strategically position their organization for success.

Marketing Strategy Development: We work with clients to develop a marketing strategy that will resonate with their customers, meet them in the channels where they already are, and clearly differentiate them from the competition. We also help ensure that they build a timeless brand that is going to create raving fans.

Fractional Leadership: We’ll guide the implementation of the new marketing strategy in a fractional leadership capacity. We’ve helped our clients hire talent when helpful, and we’ll support them until they have a fully empowered marketing team that’s set up for success.

At the end of the day, all of our service offerings are designed with a mission in mind – to support mission-driven organizations in creating a positive impact in the lives of all of their stakeholders and create more meaningful jobs.

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?

Seth Godin has been a huge influence on both my life and work. From his blog, which is an insanely helpful free resource, to his many books, Seth has helped me understand how to be an impactful marketer and entrepreneur. I also find it incredibly inspiring that much of his great work is available for free on his blog and in his podcasts.

It’s a bit stereotypical at this point, but I’ve found Brene Brown’s books and podcasts to be transformative both on a personal and leadership level. More specifically, her book The Gifts of Imperfection was an eye-opener for me, and Daring Greatly has inspired me to live an authentic, more vulnerable life. I definitely fall into the category of “recovering perfectionist,” and learning to overcome my fear of being imperfect, fear of allowing myself to be vulnerable, and fear of failure have been key to ultimately building a meaningful and happy life. To do great things, you have to be willing to take risks and fall on your face a few times… and Brene Brown is an incredible resource to lean on as you work to transform your life.

As for apps, I’m a huge fan of Notion. ⁣My team and I use it to organize our business operations, and it’s the resource I most use throughout my day. Here’s a video I created that talks a bit about the app and why it’s so valuable. (https://www.instagram.com/tv/CCenMR3nXvr/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link)

Many of my other favorite tools and resources, specifically for founders, are shared in this free 100+ page digital founders guide I wrote (fun fact: this guide features photos from across the Triangle of the small businesses and creative places that most inspire me). The digital guide is completely ungated, i.e. there is no requirement to share your name or email to download it, but for anyone that signs up for my e-newsletter, I share five of the most important and non-obvious insights from the guide for anyone that wants the ‘cliff notes’ version. (https://mailchi.mp/64190012906c/fyso-guide-sign-up)

Contact Info:

• Email: christina@noelandco.io
• Website: https://noelandco.io/, https://christinamarienoel.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/christinamarienoel/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/blondeandnerdy?lang=en
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmMrhckzAIiM85dc13ZCwjA