Natalie is the CEO of her own communications agency, Commetta. What she started alone while still in business school has now grown to an international digital agency whose mission is to help companies shine online. With diversity at the core of both her personal and professional background, Natalie got to see just how much creative artists and small business owners needed help to get the word out about all the good they’re doing. She is now educating entrepreneurs from across the globe about inbound marketing and helping them spread their message.

Natalie’s Growth Story Book Title:  

“Rise and Shine”

The “Rise” story winks at the personal journey, the need to rise from difficult situations, rise above and beyond the way that the world has been, the systems that have been running us not so well. Being a woman in business is a very big challenge where I need to rise as well. And “Shining” is really what we are all about at Commetta and the whole intention behind it: shining online and contributing good things. 

What you’ll learn:

• Natalie’s parents were very young when they had her. They were artists and didn’t even have a bank account. Growing up and learning life with them brought her a great sense of responsibility and the ability to have faith in herself, and to stand on her own.
• Natalie started the first version of what would eventually be her business while still in university.
• Aside from marketing, Natalie has had many personal and professional interests in other fields for her own enjoyment and to put herself through school such as practising and teaching yoga, plant-based nutrition, writing music and singing in a band, being a makeup artist.
• Natalie shares her childhood challenges including relating to sexual abuse & the #metoo movement.
• Natalie practices mindfulness and meditation, which helps both on a personal level to overcome challenges but also as a professional in managing business relationships.
• Her best tip for anyone launching a business is to be rigorous with the “money part” from the start and to get help from the right professionals to do so.

Notable quotes:

• “I love bringing marketing to a sales conversation.” – Natalie about her approach to marketing and building websites as a sales tool.
• “Some people think I’m anglophone, some people think I’m francophone, I speak Spanish also. I feel like a Montreal hybrid.” – Natalie about Montreal as a mix of culture and language, and how that represents herself very well.
• “The money I made to start my business was actually through being a yoga teacher and make-up artist. You’d think there is no money in arts & crafts or that it’s harder to make a living, but it was harder for me to convince entrepreneurs to pay me to help them in their business.” – Natalie on her personal experience showing it’s not necessarily easier to make a living in business VS in the arts.
• “I was recommended to go to YES Montreal as an entrepreneur to get support, they told me to make a business plan which I still haven’t managed to do in 10 years because I’m so busy working. When they found out what I’d been doing, they asked me to start teaching other entrepreneurs right away.” – How she got to see just how much other entrepreneurs wanted/needed to learn about marketing and business.
• “I want to bring the knowledge of how to do communications, how to do marketing to people who will do good with it.” – On why her company Commetta targets social business primarily.

Show notes: 

02:44 – Natalie Riviere is the owner of the digital and inbound marketing agency Commetta Communications.

03:00 – Natalie hosts the Montreal FuckUp Nights or FUN Montreal.

05:25 – Natalie is also involved in marketing with the company of her friend and co-host of FUN Montreal, Josh Miller, who hosts the radio show “Today’s Entrepreneur” on CJAD.

05:55 – Josh’s company is called FL Fuller Landau.

10:00 – Commetta is a HubSpot partner.

11:00 – Natalie also uses HubSpot’s FREE CRM.

12:34 – For the first five years of her company, it was only herself working as a contractor.

13:30 –  Natalie grew up in Laval, in Fabreville, and she has 3 younger brothers.

18:45 – Natalie’s family moved to Montreal’s West Island and she went to school to Royal West.

20:40 – Natalie went to a FUN event in Playa del Carmen, where the event concept is from, and the entrepreneurial community over there nominated her to bring it to Montreal.

21:25 – She studied business in CEJEP at John Abbott College and again in University at John Molson.

47:25 – David refers to Simon Sinek’s theory about finding your Why.