$4,500 Launch to 80 Brand New Instagram Followers: Taylor’s TDE Story

Megan Yelaney (00:01.89)

Hello and welcome back to Business Not as Usual. I am so excited for this TDE client case study interview with Taylor Thompson. Taylor is just such a freaking powerhouse in business, but I love Taylor’s story because I have helped a lot of people in this program who are very similar to me in the sense that we have had success in business, but then something happened, life happened, whether it was just a sabbatical, whether it was having a baby coming back.

No, whatever it is. And so when you come back to your business, you can feel this like, wait, what even is it anymore? Like, what do I actually want to do? Who am I? And Taylor is a beautiful, beautiful, beautiful example of this. She is no novice to business. She’s a 15-year entrepreneur. She helps entrepreneurs make more money and work fewer hours by really designing the business around the life that they actually want, not just an arbitrary revenue number.

That they were told to chase. We talk about a really cool tool and skill that we helped her like really communicate effectively inside of this interview because that description can sound kind of like vague. We talk about how we make it really, really specific. And then how we pulled out a very specific thing that she does really, really well within the AI world and helped her create a whole program because of it. She had to start her social medias completely over. Hers were hacked. So she literally went from zero to.

She had went from 80 followers on a fresh Instagram to having a $4,500 launch to that 80 follower Instagram after having to completely start over. Again, completely called audience program. She basically carved out of her framework that we created and ran with. I’m gonna link Taylor below. She’s such a pro, but this is such a great example and story of.

If you’ve had experience in business, you’ve had success, and yet you’re like feel like you’re starting over in many ways and need that direction, need to go back to the foundations, how this program really can help you. I feel very connected to her story because I felt very similar when I came back to business postpartum. So if you’re in that arena, that area, this episode’s really gonna hit. Make sure you go to the link in the show notes to check out Taylor and of course go to apply for the distinctive edge, Meganyulaney.com forward slash TDE.

Megan Yelaney (02:18.904)

Hope to see inside.

Megan Yelaney (00:02.154)

Welcome back to Business Not as Usual. I am so, so excited to have Taylor Thompson on the podcast, one of our awesome TDE grads. Taylor, welcome, welcome to the pod. So happy to have you here.

Taylor Thompson (00:14.264)

Thanks for having me.

Megan Yelaney (00:16.222)

So Taylor completed TDE a couple months ago now. I feel like I’ve kept in touch with you. So I’m like, did you just finish or was it like way longer than I remember? But I know. Yeah. You’ve been doing so many cool things since. So it’s been really, really fun. and Taylor’s coming in to talk to my mastermind. Like, we’re just she’s freaking crushing it. So anywho, for for people to get to know you a little bit, of course, we’re gonna drop Taylor’s information in the show notes so can go stalk her. but a little just a recap of who you are, what you do, who you help.

Taylor Thompson (00:44.556)

Yeah, absolutely. So I have been in the entrepreneurship space for over 15 years. And that I know we’ll touch on in the episode as well is one of the reasons I joined TDE. just a very large variety of experience in the entrepreneurship space, more heavily in the health and wellness world and also the business coaching business coaching world. So I have

had a couple sabbaticals in my time as well. And so that has been, you know, with a lot of life transition lately, something that has been a focus of mine. But this year in 2026 was the year for me to get back into my business. And yeah, most of what I do is helping entrepreneurs make more money and work less hours by really finding a business model that fits them and their unique goals.

not just business goals, but also their life goals and really what fulfills them, how much money they want to be making for what their dream life requires, how much time, what that’s what their dream schedule looks like, and also the legacy that they’re wanting to build and being able to weave those four things into their business strategy and really helping them create that cohesion within their business model.

Megan Yelaney (02:12.15)

You just put that so beautifully. And I’m like, there’s your framework. there’s like it’s so cool to see the pieces of the of like your edge come out. And I I love it. One of the first things I I get I get like this, you know, especially we did VIP, but I get such a cool bird’s eye view into everyone’s business. not bird’s eye view, d I should say depth, in depth view. And I one of the things I remember reading in one of your reviews or just us on a call is a client that thought she needed

I forgot how much it was. many millions. I forgot. Do you remember the number I’m talking about?

Taylor Thompson (02:46.51)

Yeah. I have it. I have it in so many places. but and I’m I’m typically good with numbers, which is hence like why I help people with this. She thought she it was like eight million. Yeah. It was around eight million dollars. So yeah, basically like she came in and was like, What’s your business goal? She’s like, I need make eight million dollars. And one of my first questions is always like, Why? And for her, she was like, That’s what I need to live my dream life.

Megan Yelaney (03:14.158)

And then you guys calc you went through your whole process that you do with clients. and we named tools and all these cool things and realized I think it was more like two.

Taylor Thompson (03:22.786)

Right. Yeah, she was at the million dollar mark and realized she just needed double her business, not like s you know, eight six fit.

Megan Yelaney (03:28.832)

Yeah. Yeah. What is that? I need to do math a lot. Yeah. so that’s pretty incredible, exactly. And so you helped her realize, wow, I’m actually way closer. And I just I wanted to make that distinction because that is such a part of your edge. You’re not just like, hey, I’m gonna help you make more money. Your thing is no, no, no, no. I’m not gonna help you make unnecessary money because there is unnecessary money, because what people don’t want to admit is to get to certain levels.

You need to s make certain sacrifices. You need to have certain team members, certain investments. And if you don’t have to actually do all that, because that adds a whole level of headaches and layers, you know, you what you and your husband do is a totally different business. And there’s a lot of layers to that. It’s complications people don’t actually want. And so you really help them go, what truly do you want every day? What’s the life you want to live? Okay, let’s reverse engineer the plan. And so I just thought that was so cool because it was definitely a different take than just like,

I’m making you all the money you want. It’s like, I’m gonna help you make the money you actually really want. You just don’t know what you want. So, anyway, so cool. Wanted to point that out because that was such a fun, fun experience. so you kind of alluded a little bit to it, and we’ve had a lot of people join the program. Not surprising because this all came out of my postpartum journey of my sabbatical and coming back. So I feel like a lot of people connect with that of just like restarting from for whatever reason.

but you came back after sabbatical. So tell us a little bit more about why you felt the pull to this program and were like, I’ve had all this experience, I’m very seasoned entrepreneur, but I still feel like I need help in this area. What was it about TDE that drew you to it?

Taylor Thompson (05:04.524)

Yeah. I mean, for me coming back, it was really I’ve, you know, had so many different variations of my business over the 15 years and really thinking about like, you know, not only like what do I want my business model to look like and trying to also do for myself what I do for clients and really thinking that through. And I think the biggest thing that I was really struggling with was what is that transformation? And it was almost like

Because I had so much experience in many different areas inside like business coaching and business strategy, was like, I don’t even know where I want to focus. How do I even like package this up into something? You know, because previously I was doing, you know, before my sabbatical, I was focusing on personal brand.

Coaching and strategy and helping people build personal brand businesses. And I loved that. And I really loved it. But there was some misalignment with my ICA. And I didn’t know that prior to starting the program. But thanks to Meg’s framework, I was really finding out when I went into the ideal client exercise, which as somebody who’s been in business for 15 years, it’s kind of like, like I have to go back to the basics. It’s like,

Don’t skip the skip the basics. There’s a reason. We all have to go back to them. There’s a reason. Like I got so much clarity with that. but anyways, it was, you know, I knew that I didn’t want to do that exactly. And there was some misalignment, and I wasn’t quite sure at the time what that was. And also I just felt like there was kind of a cap on like what I could charge with that. And yeah, it was just, it was a lot of kind of like limiting beliefs in my mind.

Like going back to that. And so I knew I kind of wanted to shift away from that. And I wasn’t sh quite sure how. And so definitely like TDE was, I mean, you sharing your story about yeah, coming back postpartum is like, what do I want to do? Like I’m different now. You know, I had taken a year off of my business. We, my husband and I started a wellness clinic. We had like moved states. I had like

Taylor Thompson (07:16.852)

an endometriosis surgery, like we had kind of a lot going on. And I was a different person than I was, you know, when I had started my sabbatical. And so coming back, it was like I, I don’t know, I don’t know what I want. And so a lot of it was, yeah, you, Meg, sharing your story and realizing that I really needed to go back to a lot of these core business principles. And even though I also teach a business strategy, I believe that, you know, we all need

somebody outside of ourselves helping us with the thing we help people with, right? Because I was just completely in my head about it. And so yeah, that was a big reason was you sharing your story and me seeing myself in that.

Megan Yelaney (07:59.99)

Yeah. I am so grateful for you for sharing that. And it’s one reason I was really excited to have you on because I think that’s the hardest. It’s sometimes we’re the most stubborn. And I’ve been in this because I’m like, I know how to do this. I literally do this to other people. Why can’t I do this for myself? And we just I get help with it too. I literally get help with exactly what I do for other people. Cause it’s like, what’s that phrase you can’t see the prescription bottle from inside the bottle?

You can’t see business. Something like that. Right. It’s like you can’t. And it’s you’re so close to it. And sometimes it just takes that other person going, okay. That’s what it is. So love that you shared that. And then also just another nod to like, guys, you cannot share your story enough. Like, I have shared my story s pretty much every week, over and over and over again from different angles. It’s a huge thing we focus on in the program because of exactly what Taylor’s saying. That’s what d what

really instills that trust with people so much faster, especially now in the time we’re filming this, September 2026, with AI being huge and just content is just like wild over the last six months. What’s been happening with content? Story is never gonna die. It’s never gonna die. It’s always gonna be the thing that stays. So really nailing that down and then using that constantly is what’s gonna help people like remember you too. They’re gonna remember those stories. So thank you for sharing that. I appreciate it.

Okay, so any, I’m curious, any hesitations that you had before joining anything pop up that you’re like, I’m not sure about this.

Taylor Thompson (09:27.65)

Yeah, I think for me, coming from lots of experience was just I think my biggest hesitation was internal, honestly, of just the feeling of being a beginner again. And feeling like, you know, because because exercises like, you know, framework and ICA like typically feel

you know, they’re foundational and they’re things that you typically do at the start of a business. Yeah. I it was like, yeah, just swallowing a pride pill of like, I need to, I have to go back to these things. And I I would recommend every entrepreneur, no matter if you’ve been in business a year or 20 years, go back to these things very regularly because it was completely transformational for me to do so. And I think that yeah, my biggest hesitation was just

You know, having 15 years of experience and feeling like I need to be in a scaling program when no, I don’t because I’m I’m restarting my business. So I have to go back through these things and I’m excited to continue to go back through them and make sure that all these things are in l in alignment because these are the core foundational things that your business is built on, you know. And so I think that, you know, me thinking back to like a lot of my clients, like

I wish that they would go through this. Like they need to go through this because I think entrepreneurs who have had lots of experience or been in the industry a long time think that we need advanced strategies when actually most of the time it’s the same thing with health, right? Like I relate a lot of things to health when it’s like, man, I’m just not feeling great. And it’s like if you identify as somebody who is like into wellness and you know, you’re like, I need all these fancy biohacks and stuff, which I love that stuff too.

But sometimes when we get down to the core of it, it’s like, man, the last couple of days, like, have I drank enough water? No, I haven’t. So guess what? Like, I need to do that. It’s super foundational. I love that. We have to we have to go back to these things because that’s yeah, it’s like what our business is built on. So for me, it was more of an just an internal hesitation of just, yeah, okay. I am like starting fresh. And I want to make sure that.

Megan Yelaney (11:27.148)

Yeah.

Megan Yelaney (11:31.82)

Such a good analogy, yeah.

Taylor Thompson (11:50.368)

As I start fresh, I’m doing it on really solid ground.

Megan Yelaney (11:54.21)

Yeah. I love that you shared that. And that’s I’ve totally been there postpartum. I was the same. I was like, all right, we’re going back. We’re being a beginner again. And it’s humbling. And all these you should know this is, but it when it’s a different business, anyone, even a someone who’s a multi-million dollar company, if they’re starting a new one, they’re going back to the drawing board. Who’s the client for this new company? And it’s it’s so good to get it’s honestly. I have when you can get into that beginner mindset mindset, I have fun with it. I’m like, ooh, this is exciting. and I just find too.

It’s kind of a snarky response. But if someone says to me, well, I I know I don’t client, like I’ve done that work. And I go, Great. So do you know your main message? Do you know, like, is your content converting? Do you know exactly what you should be known for? And they’re no. And I’m like, great, we need to go do it again then. Because you don’t actually. Yes. You know, it’s like if it’s all working and running beautifully, then yes, you’re ready for a scaling program. But if you’re like, I do not know my main message, I do not know XYZ, we need to fill those gaps. Cause then you’re just scaling something that’s really shaky.

And you don’t feel confident and you can’t you can’t scale that. You’re gonna hit a limit. So I love that

Taylor Thompson (12:59.598)

And also like my optimization brain, I’m like, okay, you know, we have so many entrepreneurs that are like, I just need to throw more money at ads. And it’s like, okay, you can do that, but if what you’re throwing ads at is not converting well already, like converting some, but not the best that it can, like, why are you wasting your money doing that when you can go back through like Meg’s framework and get so dialed in?

that your stuff is converting so much higher and then throw like money at ads. Like if something’s converting at one percent and w going through these exercises and getting so dialed in can make things convert at five percent. Like that’s really working smarter, not harder.

Megan Yelaney (13:42.986)

love that you said that. That’s that’s super helpful and just like a nice way for people to think of it too. It’s we didn’t start ads until a year after fully launching. I think I had three full launches to go, I have a lot of data. I know what works, I know the order. And we had really good success with our first launch with ads. I was like, okay, cool. This is why we waited. You know, we wanted to make sure it converted organically first. So yeah. Because man, have I done it the other way. And that was

waste of money. So yes. you can have a great program. Doesn’t mean your program’s not great, but you just it’s you all experimenting. So experiment for free first if you can. Okay, that’s super helpful. So what were some of the results that you are just excited that you experienced or things that you’re like, I got clarity on XYZ during the program or you know from from the process that you went through in the program.

Taylor Thompson (14:31.842)

Yeah, definitely. so a couple of things like within the program that helped me a lot. Honestly, the ideal client was huge because that was really again, you know, I think as somebody who’s been in the space for a while, was like, like, yeah, I’ve done ideal client exercises a lot, which I will tell you, anybody who’s listening, Meg does it differently. So number one, she does it differently. And number two, we just all have to like be going through, we just all have to be going through this because

that was an unlock for me of just like realizing that while I’ve loved everybody that I’ve worked with in the past. the previous before my sabbatical, the previous ICA I was working with was just not right in like my sweet spot wheelhouse of like energy giving, like the best, you know, most optimized way that I can like help somebody. Like when I think about like what thanks, you know, thankful for feeling, you know, understanding what my edge is now.

And thinking about the ICA that that works well for. That was actually something that Meg and I did. It was helpful to like work with Meg one on one because I actually I think I believe I figured out my edge first and then I did go back to the ideal client. because I was more passionate for me. I was more passionate about what I did than the person that I was helping. So I really wanted to nail what it was that I was doing and find the ideal client for that and really realizing there was a huge disconnect previously. So

It was really good for me to go through that process. and then another piece that I really loved was the proof points. that was actually just one of my favorite things. And I feel like, you know, it’s so simple, but I had never really truly gone back through the data of like results, testimonials, feedback things that I’ve gotten from clients and seeing the patterns, seeing the themes.

was very helpful in, you know, what it is that I’m best at. so those were some things that I loved throughout the program. And then in terms of results that I got from the program, I was able to def define my edge and get really clear on my framework. And so you know, kind of the two biggest pieces that I help people with is like the revenue piece and the time piece. I’m a big numbers girl, like, and I love kind of

Taylor Thompson (16:54.882)

you know, helping people optimize their business model for those two numbers. Cause I feel like those are two numbers that are really stressful for entrepreneurs. It’s like it’s never enough money and, you know, we’re working too many hours. And so at my point, kind of in my season of life with lots of personal changes, my husband and I are moving our business location, things like that. I was able to take here’s this broader you know, framework that I have. And for me in my life, I wasn’t ready to

launch, you know, I really want to get back to the group program model. I love that. I wasn’t quite ready to launch that yet. So what I was able to do was able to find like even kind of a micro niche within my own framework and take that out. And I kind of ran that as like a mini program. And so that’s kind of what I’m currently doing is teaching on AI, right? Because that’s a big thing right now. And the time piece

Helping entrepreneurs, you know, build AI systems or like teaching them how to build AI systems to save them time. So one of my big results, like coming out of the program, was with a completely cold audience. because right before my sabbatical, my Instagram had gotten hacked. so I was kind of starting from like really, really starting from scratch, coming back. and with Meg’s help, I was able to, you know.

put together like a much more like back end strategy and like utilizing her really good content frameworks. and just with a cold audience, I have like 80 followers on that Instagram account. I was able to have like a $4,500 launch. And that’s nothing like crazy. You know, I used I was used to like the five figure months and stuff, but coming back, I was super happy with that and being able to create kind of this evergreen program I’m currently running live.

And I’ve had inquiries from that about working with me one on one. And it’s kind of just spun into this thing. And a lot of it was because I got clear on my message, like my new framework. And I was able to just kind of take this piece out of my framework and teach that completely on its own. So for me and my logical type A brain, it was nice to see my whole framework together and like, these tiny pieces, like this could be a speaking topic. This can be, you know, like a mini program. This could like be a workshop and

Taylor Thompson (19:14.316)

And it all tie back to the same place. for my multipassionate brain, just feeling like I was always so scared.

Megan Yelaney (19:22.436)

I love that. Thank you for sharing that. Cause I think that’s such a great, like, we’ll figure out what your, like you said, your main message or edge. And sometimes it’s not that you’re gonna start with the program that does all of that. Sometimes it is gonna be an entry offer, a piecemeal, and what just matches the energy you have to give in your life right now, too. You know? And so I love that you went all in with that. I got so excited about that as we were working through it. I’m like, wait, I want this. Help us. And this is like so timely and needed. And

A really good entry into your world. So and low ticket kind of challenges and offers like that are just really on the uprise right now. Like they’re they’re doing really well. So I love that you you shared that. That’s awesome. And you’re doing continuous speaking gigs around that topic. And and it’s just I love that you leaned into that because I think sometimes people are like, well, no, I don’t want to just be the AI girl. It’s like great, you don’t have to be, but that can be an entry back in and

It is such a part of your optimization piece. So it’s so in line with your big umbrella brand message, which I love. that’s huge. Okay, amazing. So you listed out a couple of those resources, parts of the program that you especially enjoyed. So anything else in relation to that before I ask you that last question? Any like other little pieces of the process or stuff that we kind of go through the way we coach that stood out to you?

Taylor Thompson (20:40.34)

Yeah, I mean everybody if you’re thinking about joining TDE, just do the VIP. Just do it. Like I know like Yes. so like, yeah, get in early. yeah, that was like I know for me, like I’m such a verbal processor. And so being able to have one on one, I know is you know, important to me. And so like anybody listening, like you know yourself, like you’ve probably been through programs before, like if

Megan Yelaney (20:46.734)

Yeah.

Taylor Thompson (21:09.708)

that is a piece that you need. Just definitely do it because it is so worth it. Like Meg is highly efficient and effective in her time and like what she gives back. Like it truly is like everybody in the program is just like, how does she do it? How does she do it? Like and it is, yeah, you’re very like efficient, organized with everything because things that I get back is material reviews and everything is like, I

It looks like you spent eight hours on this. How like how did you do this and managing everything? So, anyways, that has been like a huge piece for me and just being able to verbally process things out. and yeah, that was one of my favorite parts of the program.

Megan Yelaney (21:53.558)

I love it. Thank you. I appreciate that so much. And the cool thing is too, even if you’re base, you get five reviews back for the core pieces story, framework, your bio, your domino belief, which is like your main message and then your offer. So even if you choose that that route, you’re still gonna get a lot of hands-on feedback as well as in Slack and the calls and all that jazz. but yes, that’s something that I really am like, I’d rather take less people and be able to give more.

And you know, we talk about that in the program as well, but I think that’s just like such a big, big part of it. So I appreciate you for that. Thank you so much. That means a lot. you’re incredible, Taylor. I will link below, but where can everyone go to find you, talk to you, learn about your AI program?

Taylor Thompson (22:36.238)

Yeah, absolutely. So I on Instagram, I am at Business with Taylor. And that’s kind of like my only place online right now. I do have a substack that’s called the Business Behind More Life. but I have that linked in my Instagram as well. And there’s lots of AI content up there right now, and I’m excited to get back to regular content creation and getting in the groove now that I’ve launched this program and

Yeah, so those are the two best places to find me.

Megan Yelaney (23:07.426)

We’ll link that below and go to the link also in the show notes to apply for TDE Magnolini.com forward slash TDE. Remember, an application is just to start the conversation. DM if you have any questions. Thank you so much, Taylor. This has been so much fun and just so good to see you again too.

Taylor Thompson (23:23.082)

Yes, so good to see you too. Bye everyone.

Megan Yelaney (23:25.134)

Five.