Episode 7 // Running an Herbal Business Q&A (plus how AI is changing the game for small businesses)

This episode closes out the business series with two major behind the scenes topics and a round of listener Q&A. Arielle and Meg unpack how influencer growth, PR, and AI are shaping what people see online, then shift into the realities of pricing, sales, and staying financially sustainable as a small wellness brand. They also get candid about the emotional side of running a business, from feeling pressure to discount work to realizing that growth often looks very different from the polished version people see online. Key topics In this episode, Ari and Meg revisit the idea that some influencers are not growing organically at all, but are being backed by wealthy investors and amplified through bots, repost networks, and controversy.They discuss the trad wife influencer phenomenon, including how extreme conservative messaging can be used to promote male control while presenting a woman as the face of the message. They break down how PR-driven listicles can influence what shows up in AI search results, with ChatGPT and similar tools pulling from paid editorial placements and reinforcing the same bought recommendations.Meg shares why she has become more cautious about using AI and search tools, especially when scraping blocks and AI-generated content start feeding each other.The conversation shifts to whether you need to become an influencer to succeed in a small wellness business. Meg shares a lesson from her own pricing journey: if you don’t count your time, your knowledge, foraged ingredients, overhead, labor, and profit, you are undervaluing the business. They also talk about how industry standards matter, especially for newer brands trying to price realistically without undercutting themselves. The episode ends with reflection on how overwhelming it can feel to run a small business as a mother, and how seeing the hidden machinery behind other brands makes it easier not to compare yourself unfairly. Timestamps 00:49 - The rise of billionaire-backed influencers and manufactured reach 01:19 - Andrew Tate, trad wife content, and extremist messaging 03:09 - What is the endgame of these influencer-backed narratives? 04:26 - How trad wife and manosphere content reinforce male control 05:30 - The irony of the young trad wife creator’s real-life setup 06:41 - Influencer personas, wellness pressure, and unrealistic standards 07:29 - Why “sudden virality” may not be organic at all 09:25 - How PR listicles feed AI search results and reinforce paid placement 11:23 - Why brands without PR may struggle to be found at all 12:25 - AI search, scraping blocks, and why search is changing fast 15:39 - The podcast equipment situation and why Ari won’t use the full kit 17:26 - First big question: do small wellness brands need to become influencers? 19:06 - Why money and paid ads can replace influencer presence 20:23 - Faceless brands, influencer marketing, and the two main growth paths 22:05 - Can you help people and still make money? 23:36 - Why customers sometimes expect wellness businesses to discount too much 24:17 - Priorities, access, and why some people can make it work while others cannot 25:55 - Sliding scale lessons and why discounting can attract the wrong behavior 26:39 - Why sale customers often generate disproportionate support issues 28:20 - How people prioritize money, time, and healing differently 30:08 - Historical context: healers and herbalists were compensated too 33:12 - How to price products: materials, labor, overhead, and profit 34:37 - How to value wild harvested herbs 38:16 - Do they ever feel pressured to sell something they do not love? 38:25 - Ari on the one product she did not personally crave 40:01 - Meg on loving every Motherland product, even if favorites shift seasonally 42:14 - Running a business as a mother with almost no margin 43:16 - Why the behind the scenes reality makes comparison less painful 44:04 - A reminder that small businesses can still be small even with strong branding