The HBW Podcast is Houston's go-to podcast for business owners, founders, and corporate professionals who are done figuring it out alone. This is where the blueprint gets shared. In our founding episode, you’ll hear from the Houston Business Women Board as they pull back the curtain on how a 25,000+ member community gets built, what women in Houston's business community actually need, and what's coming in 2026. In this episode, you'll learn about: → Why HBW built a podcast, and why it's a strategic move, not a marketing one → What real amplification looks like for a woman in business → How philanthropy and professional growth are more connected than most people think → What the board had to unlearn about ambition, leadership, and success → Everything coming from HBW in 2026: the magazine, the Summit, and more Chapters: 00:00 Welcome to HBW 00:26 Meet the Board 1:45 HBW Mission & Growth 2:24 Why We Started a Podcast 5:02 Platform vs. Amplification 6:41 Stories This Community Needed to Tell 9:11 Why Top Leaders Are Listening 11:54 Philanthropy & Building a Business 13:18 Summer Events Lineup 18:41 HBW Membership Paths 20:36 Behind the Scenes: Building at Scale 27:33 HBW Three — Rapid Fire 29:27 Books & What We're Reading 31:13 Milestones & What's Next 36:12 What Success Actually Feels Like 38:59 What's Coming on HBW Podcast Meet the Board: Jessica Howell — Executive Director & Host Abrielle Laurent — Director of Marketing Ema Poi — Director of Events Hana Atherton — Director of Philanthropy Danielle J. Martin — Director of PR Interested in The Unlocked Magazine? https://houstonbusinesswomen.org/magazine/ Want to be an HBW Podcast Guest? Contact pr@houstonbusinesswomen.org. 2026 Summit Tickets: https://houstonbusinesswomen.org/hbw-summit/

If you've spent money on paid ads and wondered why they're not working — this episode will tell you exactly why, and what to fix first. In this episode, Jessica Martin-Howell is the founder of ELEVATE x Marketing and Executive Director of Houston Business Women. Jessica breaks down the foundation every business owner must build before running a single dollar in paid ads. Most entrepreneurs skip straight to advertising before their brand, content, and offer are ready to convert. Jessica explains why that's the most expensive mistake you can make — and what to do instead. YOU'LL LEARN: → The #1 reason most paid ads fail (and it has nothing to do with your budget) → Why posting every day can actually hurt your reach — and what to do instead → The truth about email lists vs. social media: which one actually converts to paying clients → How to build brand presence authentically so that when you're ready for ads, they work → The exact foundation to build before you spend another dollar on advertising TIMESTAMPS: 04:40 Visibility As Next Step 05:09 Biggest Digital Mistake 06:07 What Digital Marketing Is 07:11 Startup Vs Mid Size Plans 08:58 Organic Content On Budget 09:42 Posting Frequency Myth 10:27 Followers Vs Quality 11:32 Own Your Platform 14:26 Funnels And Content Phases 17:33 Organic Vs Paid Ads 21:42 How Elevate Began 26:05 Agency Leadership Edge 27:21 Houston Businesswoman Community 30:28 Networking for the Hesitant CONNECT WITH JESSICA: Instagram: @jessicamartinhowell READY TO SHOW UP ON CAMERA AND BUILD YOUR BRAND? → Join the FREE 5-Day Camera Charisma Challenge: https://www.cameracharismachallenge.com/ → Download the FREE Content Creation Equipment List: https://stan.store/daniellejmartintv/p/my-personal-equipment-list #PaidAds #DigitalMarketing #MarketingStrategy #WomenEntrepreneurs #PersonalBranding #ContentMarketing #EmailMarketing #SocialMediaStrategy #WomenInBusiness #BrandBuilding #MediaCoach #AuthenticMediaPodcast #MarketingForEntrepreneurs