Your brand isn’t just how your business looks — it’s how it works. It should attract the right people, support your growth, and make it easier (not harder) to scale. But what happens when it stops keeping up? When your business outgrows the brand you built?
That’s exactly what today’s guest, Polly Lavarello, experienced firsthand. Polly is a scaling strategist and mentor who helps already in-demand online business owners turn their strengthiest skills into industry-leading offers that sell on repeat. Since 2020, she’s supported over 500 founders (yes, you heard that right!) in optimising their funnels, fixing their ads, and scaling their businesses with strategies that actually work.
Because in Polly’s world, when you’re brave enough to play, you always get paid. And fun fact: She and I have worked together twice on her brand as her business grew and evolved!
When I asked Polly about the one industry myth that needs to die, she didn't hold back:
"The whole concept that there is only one way to do things."
Here's what actually matters:
Some people are amazing on camera. Others are introverted wordsmiths who could thrive on Substack. It's about finding the platform that suits you and where your ideal clients actually are.
Polly's worked behind the scenes with seven and eight-figure coaches, and she’s noticed that most of them are hot messes. But that "hot mess" energy is actually what makes them successful!
They're mavericks. They're not afraid to find their own way. They throw themselves into something that might work, might not work, but they're willing to see.
Let's rewind to Polly's first rebrand with me.
At the time, she'd been the "girl next door" brand. It was reflective of her journey — she'd started out as a single mom in a tiny flat, being propped up by benefits, recording videos from a balance ball next to her windowsill with her laptop propped up on books.
Her success had happened very suddenly, and it was taking a while for her brand to catch up.
When she reached out to me, she'd probably just hit around the £200K mark. And there was this sense of: Let's really show that this chick is here to stay. Let's add a level of gravitas and maturity that isn't so vanilla girl-next-door.
Oh, and because she knew evergreen was the niche she wanted to be in, she needed green in her brand (obviously).
Here's the funny part: When I suggested during that first brand questionnaire that her brand felt "happy," Polly was like, "No, I'm not a happy brand. I want to be the mature older sister of who I've been up until now."
But here's the thing about trying to force yourself into a brand that isn't fully you: it doesn't stick.
Eventually, Polly came back to me and said:
"You know that time when you said my brand's happy? And I said no, I want to be serious? You were right. I am a happy person and I need to insert more joy."
And THAT'S when the magic happened.
That's when the pink came in. That's when the towel-on-her-head photo shoot idea was born.
But this didn’t all happen automatically. When Polly started building her Pinterest mood board, it began very beige — picture sheepskin rugs and ceramic mugs by the fireplace.
But then vintage pinup photos started popping up. Women in fur coats with heart-shaped sunglasses. Women pretending to eat spaghetti that was actually bowls of pearls.
Suddenly, the board morphed from bland to bold.
"I just felt so much joy looking at it, and it just landed," Polly said.
She sat on that mood board for an entire year because she didn't think she could actually bring it to life.
Sound familiar? How many of us have a vision of what we want our brand to be but don't feel confident enough to embody it in the present moment?
Polly almost didn't do it. But when the opportunity came, suddenly the dream shoot was happening.
Let's talk about that photo shoot.
Polly invested around £8,000 in the shoot, plus another £1,000 for the venue and £2,000 for clothes and props. Not cheap. But also one of the best investments she's ever made.
"If you're finding yourself saying 'I've outgrown my brand' every six months, that was just representative of the fact that I just hadn't thought big enough in the first place."
Those photos were shot at the end of 2023. We're now in 2025, and she's still using them. Because they're iconic and actually reflect who she is.
Now when Polly goes to networking events, she says, "Yeah, I'm the lady with a towel on her head," and people immediately know.
"If it doesn't make you feel a bit uncomfortable, it's almost not worth doing."
If your brand doesn't make you feel a little stretchy, a little vulnerable, a little "am I really doing this?" — you're probably not thinking big enough.
The photo shoot happened at the same time everything was breaking out politically in Israel and Gaza. Polly felt weird launching such a joyous, playful brand when there were so many serious things happening in the world.
But here's the thing: The world is always going to be heavy. Between pandemics and wars and elections, there are constant challenges.
If we wait for the "perfect time" to bring joy to the internet, we'll be waiting forever.
As Polly said: "The world is winning when it steals our joy."
Bringing playfulness to the business space isn't tone-deaf. It's revolutionary. It's a reminder that you can run a business in a way that feels joyous. That success doesn't have to look like power poses and black-and-white headshots.
And for a lot of us, our business is our bread and butter. Stopping every time something terrible happens in the world isn't even an option.
You can care about what's happening AND still run your business. Those things aren't mutually exclusive.
So what happened after Polly's rebrand?
The first week was rough. She deleted everything and started fresh on Instagram — and lost about 400-500 followers out of her 2,500. But she was glad. Those people weren't for her.
She went bold because she wanted to repel wallflowers. She knew that to succeed in the online business space, you need to be visible.
And it worked.
Now she's at 3,700 followers, growing faster than ever. Her clients are "vibey as hell." For the first time, people are asking, "What's the most premium way to work with you and how can I pay you in full?"
Her podcast has landed industry heavyweights. People DM constantly saying, "I was just on your website. It's such a vibe."
Everything is working about 10 times harder than it used to — just off the back of having such a strong brand.
If you're sitting here thinking, "Is it the right time for a rebrand?" here's Polly's advice:
"If you're thinking about it, it means it's going to have to come off at some point. So you may as well just do it."
You wouldn't be thinking about it if what you had was working. Trust your intuition.
And even if your rebrand doesn't make crazy opportunities fall into your lap right away — if it gives you the confidence to go knock on those doors instead, it's already worth it.
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✦ THE EXTRAVAGANZA: Create your industry-leading first impression.
✦ Follow her Instagram
✦ Check out her Website
✦ Listen to The Make More Money Podcast
✦ See Polly's Case Study
✦ Say hey on Instagram
✦ Get my Uncaged emails
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This episode was co-produced with Adrienne Cruz.
Evergreen Marketing Coach
Over the last 5 years as a Brand & Marketing Designer, I’ve helped freaks like us design their unconventional brands so they can step onto the main stage & own their weird. Because if you wanted to be, look or sound like everyone else, you wouldn’t be where you are today. Now it’s your turn.
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