Relying Too Much On One Space
You need to protect your business by adding layers.
As a solopreneur, it can be extremely difficult to be visible everywhere. Many try. Many become burnt out as a result.
It’s not necessary to be everywhere to have a business that is consistently successful.
But there has to be some balance here.
The pendulum can swing both ways - being too visible can hurt you, and not being visible enough can also hurt you.
In this post I want to talk about not being visible enough from the perspective of safeguarding your business.
Let me explain.
Things are always changing in business. Online and off.
Take this most recent change.
As of 29th August 2025, the USA is introducing shipping tariffs for goods imported.
This means that as of 29.08, any small business owner in any country away from the USA, will have to start to pay tariffs in order to be able to ship products to customers in America, no matter whether those products are mugs or ear-rings, or crochet cushions.
The impact of this tariff on any small business in any country away from the USA who has a large American audience will be profound.
I’m already seeing female business owners all over social media publishing posts letting their followers/audiences know that with effect from 29th August, they will no longer be able to ship to the USA.
There will be more than one business outside of America devastated by the introduction of these tariffs, in particular those businesses who have leant to heavily on one form of product (shipped to door), to one main audience (USA).
I’ve spoken to the ladies in my community many times about the risk of putting all your eggs in one basket.
Whether that basket is relying too heavily on a customer base in one country, or relying too heavily on shipped to door products only, or relying too heavily on one platform to sell from (such as Etsy), or one social media account to run a business from, the level of risk in doing this is high.
One change could devastate you.
We’re always at the mercy of countries, platforms, governments, shipping companies, social spaces and more when we run our businesses. And things can change very rapidly, without our involvement or ability for us to have our say.
Even though I recommend not being everywhere as a solopreneur (that’s burnout strategy for sure), I do recommend you have enough ‘layers’ in place, that should something happen in one area of your business that has a big impact (like the new USA tariffs), you still have enough other layers protecting you, that enable you to continue trading.
Layers include:
Having more than one social media space you’re visible (but in the same breath not being everywhere to the extent it dilutes you and your time too much).
Serving audiences in different countries without reliance on just one.
Having other spaces in addition to social platforms, that add another layer of protection (for example, a blog, a YouTube channel or a podcast).
Always having a mailing list and growing that list as quickly as you can (it is the one space you’ll always be able to sell from, should anything happen in other spaces you’re visible).
Having a back up to your website/ecommerce/Etsy store (I’ve seen many successful Etsy stores shut down without notice in recent years).
Selling not only shipped to door products, but digital assets too. This mean that in the event there’s a postal strike, or tariffs for shipped to door products are introduced or increased that slows you down or stops you shipping, you’ll still have the ability to sell those digital assets.
In the short time since I started my journey on Substack, I’ve seen any number of creators here speak about how they’ve left all of their other spaces, to focus purely on this platform.
I get why. Substack right now is a lighter and much more refreshing space to be.
But so was Instagram once upon a time.
We don’t know what the future for Substack will be, therefore it is common sense to make sure you have other spaces to support your business, rather than rely purely on this space.
This applies to all things and all areas in your business.
Layers.
You need them. They are your safeguard.
You need enough layers in place to protect your business, without you introducing so many, that doing so completely overwhelms and burns you out.
It’s a fine balance for sure.
But one I would suggest it is important to pay attention to.
Do you feel that you have enough layers in your business to protect you? Are you limiting yourself too much? Will you be impacted by the upcoming USA tariffs?
If this post has resonated with you, I would be delighted if you would share it with your audience (and thank you so much if you do!).
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I appreciate and value this perspective so much! It's all about balance and setting yourself up to be nimble as needed. We have to be able to take a detour from our roadmap if we ever want to get to a different view. I really enjoyed reading this, thank you!