How Suburban Witchery Uses Squarespace To Cast a Spell

• Industry: Spiritual Services
• Founders: Hana O’Neill
• Company Founded: 2019
• Company Location: Brisbane, Australia
• Website: https://www.suburbanwitchery.com/
• Website Builder: Squarespace

“Having a website has been a critical piece of the business growth puzzle!”

“Suburban Witchery began in 2019 as a place for me to sell my tarot and astrology services. Being someone who grew up in the Pentecostal church, with friends and family still within the religion, I had been previously very careful in who I offered readings to. It was all done in secret. But then we had an interstate move from Victoria to Perth which removed the obstacle of “being seen” and so I took the plunge and started my business!

At the time, I also had a two-year-old running around my heels, and the giant move meant I had to leave my part-time sales job. I am so thankful that my husband smoothly suggested “Why not start charging people for your witchy stuff?”, otherwise I wouldn’t be where I am today!

Creating my own business, on my own schedule, has allowed me the freedom to work the way I want around parenting, multiple interstate moves, and navigating a disability.

These days, my business has grown to include teaching people how to read the tarot and their astrology chart, plus so much more. What really sets me apart is my knowledge base, down-to-earth teaching style, and the way I manage to inject an element of fun into everything I do. People say they feel validated by the way I share my religious experience and that I make witchy stuff seem a lot less scary.”

Gradual Growth

“The business has expanded, evolved, and grown so much since the humble beginnings in 2019! I now service clients all over the world, with over 50% of my clientele being in the USA. My social media accounts are thriving (126k on TikTok and 30k on Instagram), and I’m making a lot more passive income now than before, which opens up time and space for more creative projects (like writing a book and a tarot deck!).

I’m also really proud that my revenue has increased by over 50% for each financial year that I’ve been in business.

At first, I didn’t have the resources to get outside assistance. I was lucky enough to have a friend show me the ropes on InDesign, and my husband gave me some SEO tips from his marketing degree. Apart from that, I researched, watched YouTube, read articles, and fumbled about until it clicked.”

“The classes came about by public demand. People were begging me to teach them, and once I realized I could make more money and impact, with less time and energy, it was a no-brainer to include them. Each class is about 2-3 hours of my time and has meant less one-on-one services and more money in my pocket to grow, invest, and expand. Classes have been a lifesaver this year as my disability worsened, and I was unable to work most days.

Digital goods were always a pipeline dream when I began, but it took a while to learn how to create ones I would be proud of – I’m self-taught on InDesign and Illustrator. So figuring out how to actually get them to people was tricky at first. Thankfully, Squarespace has added new features to help with this and now it’s easier than ever.”

Tune In

“As an avid podcast listener, I had always dreamed of creating my own podcast. Thankfully, the whole thing felt very natural to me and I was very lucky to get some incredibly big-name guests right out of the gate. I’m not afraid to try something new, and Gary Vee has always said “voice” is the next big thing, so start yesterday!

Squarespace itself hasn’t been the best place to promote the podcast, although I do link new episodes in my weekly newsletter. I am hoping to start aligning my blog and podcast episodes more in 2024 to capitalize on the SEO to promote the podcast.

The podcast has over 40k downloads now and I’ve been lucky enough to interview some huge names in the industry. From Mat Auryn, Don Martin, and Matthew Remski, to M. Belanger (coming April 2024). I have fangirled so hard when prepping for these interviews and need to pinch myself for being so lucky.”

More Information

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“I love how different every day and every month is. I can essentially do whatever I want, whenever I want.

I follow the joy, and do the things that are lighting me up.

Today, for example, I spent the morning at PT, then came home and sent out 10 “word of the year” card readings. Then I spent the afternoon perfecting my sales page before editing a chapter of my book with a hot cup of tea. Bliss!

I have the flexibility to take a day off whenever I need to look after a sick kid (I have two kids now) or if I’m having a big pain day. I’ve created new services that I can do from the comfort of my bed if need be. My office is in my home, there’s no commute, and with everything online, it makes our constant interstate moves relatively easy for me, work-wise.”

“My core business value is “kindness” and I believe that treating people with kindness is the best way to build genuine customer relationships. I have the privilege and the honor of guiding people through some really tough moments in their lives, and my goal is to give them the respect and kindness they deserve during those times.”

Using Social Media

“It’s how people find me, it’s how people get to know me, and begin to relate to me. Plus, it shows that I’m a real person, not a scammer. My content is fun and bright, and for people with religious trauma, they say my content makes them feel less scared and like it’s okay to explore these topics.

I use Threads to share content in a more unhinged, stream-of-consciousness way that’s relatable – I don’t use Threads to sell, it’s not here yet. I use TikTok for video creation, short-form educational content, and to direct folks to my long-form resources. TikTok has the best in-app editing. I use Instagram to repost the TikTok videos as reels, plus put some graphics up now and then. I mainly use it for connecting to folks via DM. YouTube isn’t technically social media, but I think it’s moving that way. I do have my channel monetized and I try to upload a long-form video weekly to help people find me through SEO.”

More Information

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“I love being really transparent with my business because so many people keep the money and numbers hidden behind closed doors – usually because it was taboo for so long, but also they’re usually fearing judgment.

I have no fear of judgment because I only measure success against myself. In my first two years of business, I worked two days per week and was pregnant for one of those years. In year three, I went to three days per week with a newborn. And, this past year, I’ve been working four days per week, but these are not full days – they’re school hours (9-2:30).

I also navigate a chronic illness and a disability, meaning I am unable to work for 10+ days per month. I somehow juggle this with being a mother and a solo parent 50% of the time (my husband is overseas a lot for work).

I’m saying all of that to show that there’s no point comparing myself to a non-disabled person working full-time with no dependents.

I am incredibly proud to bring in an average of $2,500 per month but have had some amazing months of $6,000 when launching my courses. This is with minimal expenses, and I have a whole lot of fun doing it.

I couldn’t imagine doing anything else with my life, to be honest!

I have 70 5-star reviews on my Facebook page and 29 5-star reviews on Google which is amazing and more than many small businesses can say. The most impressive part is not just the reviews but the impact what I’m doing has had on people. The additional DMs, emails, plus tears of gratitude and healing, carry me through the toughest times and show me that I’m doing what I was born to do.”

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“Having a website was one of the first priorities I had when starting my business. Instagram and a website. It’s how people make sure you’re legit and it’s the easiest way to accept payments. These days, I use my website to host my private membership, build my email list, and use my blog for SEO to find new folks.

I looked at every single “comparison” web page I could find. I read Reddit threads about choosing a website to make sure I was making the right choice. In the end, I am very happy with my choice as Squarespace is very intuitive to use, they have great features, and I love that it’s “all in one”.

Originally I began on the lower plan – I think it was the Business one – as that was all I could afford and all I really needed. Now, I’m on the Advanced plan which is the highest one, and that was a recent decision when I chose to move my private membership from Patreon to my website.

I love how fun my emails look, and how easy it is to create pages, blogs, emails, etc. that all look similar, so people can easily recognize my stuff.

I can’t remember when they rolled it out, but the new way of segmenting web pages, and moving things around has been so much fun to explore! Every update they’ve made has been great.”

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“It doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to be done! Or, buy bigger external hard drives and back everything up!

Authenticity is key. People will see straight through you if you try to be anything other than who you are. Tarot and Astrology are for everyone, and the methods can be incredibly varied. There is room enough for everyone, so collaboration rather than competition is something to remember too. You also need strong ethics to do this work effectively.”

“In 2024, my goal is to release more classes centered around deconstructing from Christianity since my clients are begging me for it. I can be a perfectionist so I’m in my deep dive research phase right now. These classes will eventually be condensed into a course to guide people through that deconstruction with ease.

I also have a tarot deck I’m creating, so 2024 is the year I birth that into the world. Plus, every year, in November, I take the whole month off to write – I run a word witches Discord page and I’m writing a supernatural adult fiction book series. Book 1 is complete and once mercury retrograde is over, I’ll begin querying literary agents, so that’s exciting! The book is a blend of my witchy occult knowledge and the apocryphal books of the Bible.”