Positioning the Exceptional. Build your post-exit venture in public ✍🏼 Ghostwriter + Strategist.

If you want to :

- Sell your B2B services through Linkedin that CFOs beg to buy
- Close $1M in deals (minimum) without building a personal brand
- Cash in on sales through LinkedIn everytime you post  
- Outsmart every competitor in your market

DM me "window" for early access to my private program



Stéphanie Lauer

When you realize the handshakes at $100K trade show booths aren’t actually booking the $1M projects you travelled 38 hours for (even if the whole team showed up in matching shirts) and then you see the logo you flew in for, right there at booth 21…

…that’s when it hits you.

You are so done competing over an RFQ that has been mentally awarded to your competitor 6 months to ago.

By day two it dawns on you: the real buying decision already happened somewhere else.

When their loyal supplier fucks up. Quality issues showed up. The domino effect are millions lost had procurement on chokehold - “we need a second source.”

That emergency has procurement in search mode.

The stack of business cards thick enough stopped convincing yourself it was working.

60–70% of B2B buying decisions are shaped before the first sales call.

You’re often competing in a conversation that already started without you.

And today that conversation is happening in one place more than anywhere else:

LinkedIn.

I see it constantly in my clients inboxes.

A buyer reads a precise post about a production crisis they’re already dealing with.

They send a message.

A few exchanges later…

It turns into a $500K–$1M opportunity.

A post can you past any gatekeeper: it’s compressing exactly what your buyer needs to hear at the moment they are facing a real crisis you solve:

- a supplier they no longer trust
- a production delay threatening a launch
- a redesign cycle burning six months
- a CFO asking uncomfortable questions

Do that 3–4 times a week and you start conversations that skip multiple trust layers almost instantly.

Especially in manufacturing.

Because right now?

Most of the industry is still spending 6 figures to shake hands…While the vendor decision gets made in silence months earlier - without you.

I partner with founders (at $5M–$30M) so their buyers say yes to 1M+ deals. Subscribe below:

It’s 9:12pm after a trade show…You spent $100K on the booth in the corner. Got 187 business cards. And you already know Monday will be your team chasing gatekeepers.

You sell a $1M+ solution…but you’re still trying to sneak past assistants like it’s 2009.

Meanwhile the VP of Ops you want is scrolling LinkedIn on the commute.

They read a post about:
- a $2M supplier switch mistake
- a delay that killed a launch window
- a redesign that burned 6 months

They send it to the CFO. Now your name is in the room.
No more gatekeepers.

A call gets booked…Your rep closes. Onboarding starts on Wednesday.

Most CEOs hire more reps, buy more lists. Send more “quick question” emails. 

While the budget gets allocated to fund your competitor.

Because your competitor has credible positioning.

I fix client acquisition systems so $500K–$1M manufacturing deals start in DMs instead of trade show booths.

60–70% of B2B decisions happen before the first sales call.

They reach out with a Linkedin message telling you how one delayed production cycle burned $500K–$2M in redesigns, supplier changes, and missed launch windows.

No gatekeeper can block a name that’s already trusted

Less than 10% of manufacturers do this well.

Most are still dialing.

You’ll forecast another $200k-$500k per quarter in projects when you stop sending linkedin inquiries away to your email.

Everytime i read about a big opportunity in my clients messages, we ask a few questions first to: 

(1) qualify the lead before wasting everyones time. I usually ask at what stage they’re in, which always tells me how much capital they’re then willing to invest with us next.

(2) build tension. asking questions before sending them your calendly link builds curiosity instead of killing it with “sure send me an email”.

The people who understand this close $200k - $500k projects directly out of messages. 

Sometimes even without going on calls.

Niall Cleaver

Documenting the journey of crafting a timeless coffee cup brand | CEO & Founder of Cupsly

My story isn’t about a polished entrepreneur. My journey hasn’t been traditional. I left school without an English qualification, uncertain of what the future held. 

That failure shaped me, it forced me to think differently, fall into business, and ultimately embrace creativity, resilience, and the belief that change is possible, even when doubted. Fast forward to today, I’m growing and scaling businesses while sharing the real lessons that come from it.

Founder

Are you struggling to grow an engaging community for your business or personal brand.

Stop right there, I think I have you covered ⬇️

This is me (Niall), I'm a 22-year-old who is fascinated by growing communities in the online space. Actual communities that have meaning and purpose. 

The services we provide at Social Library 

➡️ Personal Branding (LinkedIn)

➡️ Guidance & support consulting


Drop me a message to discuss your social media strategy, review how well your current socials/posts are doing, and research how we can build your community and gain you more followers and leads.

or you can email us @

hello@sociallibrary.co.uk

Execution will humble you in more ways than advice ever could.

And this, by far, has been my best realisation.

It's actually scary how much advice is in the world we live in. And normally, it's not the correct advice. The truth is, advice that will improve your business is hard to come by because everyone is sharing an opinion online.  

But there's one thing that beats any advice:

Saying you'll do something and actually doing it.

In my teens, I told myseIf was going to go all in on business, and that meant learning many things I once never knew. How? Real experience.

Less talking, more doing.

I didn't have a background in marketing, I learned.
I didn't have a background in brand, I learned.
I didn't have a background in R&D, I learned.

And here's what I found out...

When you start facing real situations, real problems, and real outcomes, you quickly see who’s telling the truth and who isn’t.

You learn who to trust.

Advice has its place. But execution is what changes things.

Growing @thistlescientific and sharing the lessons while I do

What if I told you... I don't post every day to grow my brand.

I hear the same advice here all the time:

"Post more"

And it makes you feel like it's the only way to grow your personal brand as a founder or someone working to grow or scale a business.

But I've learned something different. Build your business first because that ultimately gives you the content ideas that actually make your brand.

The struggles
The achievements
The new hires you made

That's the content that's actually engaging.

Stop posting every day with the hope that a piece of content will hit. Just document the situations you've been through, and you'll be surprised how many people find this style of content engaging.

That's what makes it worth the read.

Build first, then document.

I’ve just landed back from a week in the mountains.

And it reminded me how easy it is to forget what really matters.

I know I talk a lot about business because it's something I'm passionate about, but let's be real, it will never be as important as family. 

Scaling a business takes a lot out of you, early mornings, late nights, and missing certain celebrations. It's honestly brutal sometimes. 

Because it never stops!!!

You always have something that needs implementing, changing or improving, but what I've realised is that time away with your family allows you the space to think, enjoy and realign. Never take this for granted.

Honestly, had the best couple of days... now super exctied to get back and execute on the plan we've set out over the past couple of months.

We did it!!! Thistle is rebrand ready...

Over the past few months, we've completed a full rebrand at Thistle Scientific, one that has pushed, tested, and shaped the new direction we're heading in. These will be the months I'll remember forever, but...

I want to talk about what goes into a rebrand:

The late nights thinking decisions through.
The transition phase throughout the organisation.
The alignment through the internal team and external partners.

They all hit you! But in a good way.

Because eventually, you see all the pieces of the puzzle coming together, and you appreciate all the details and hard work that went into every part of it.

But this whole process got me thinking about one thing, "change", and how so many of us are nervous about it. This is a good feeling to have. 

It means you're pushing yourself.

Take it all in!!!

The most important skill of an entrepreneur is to do the basics first.

I used to fight this idea because it sounded too simple.

Sticking to a routine 
Doing the things you promised.
Being open-minded to the problems. 
Interacting directly with your customers.
Executing the plan you set out with your team.

It really is simple!!! 

At the start of this year, I told some of my closest friends what I was going to do. Less talking and more just focusing on what creates the moment. 

And I can already feel it. It hasn’t been anything out of this world, it's just been staying focused on what matters most in the buisness. And normally, these are the tasks you repeat.

You've got to understand that most people will dislike doing the basics over and over again, becasue it can become boring and not fun. But these are the tasks that create the difference that changes your life and business. 

It may be boring, but it works.

3 years ago, navigating a merger, improving systems, and building a stronger foundation.

Since then, Thistle Scientific has grown year on year, hired across multiple countries, and deliberately focused on scale. Why?

Equipping scientists around the world requires collaboration, obsession, and teamwork. It’s understanding what will help each researcher improve the work they’re doing.

But there’s an even bigger reason…

Scaling allows us to support even more researchers, and the better support they get, the more impact their work can have on the rest of the population.

Any researchers here... would love to chat with you.

One of the best decisions I've made as a 25-year-old growing a biotech business was to... spend time with people who have already done it.

Not people who're trying to sell you something.
Not people who shut down your ideas every five minutes.

But the people who have lived and breathed the problems you are facing.

The real operators. And what I've noticed is that they don't try to sell you online they are heavily focused on real outcomes. They have this credibility where they've been there and done it. You can just feel it!!!

So, if you're going to surround yourself with successful people:

Do your due diligence
Ask the important questions
Don't waste your time and especially theirs.

That's where real change is created.

Evean, now I've got so much to learn and it's so important to remember that the moment you think you've understood it all will be the moment you stop making progress.

We had a chance to showcase our new design in Thailand.

I pulled it... You only get one first impression.

We had an opportunity to move fast on some new design work. It would've lined up perfectly for our ASIA distributor meeting in Thailand next month, so I pushed for it. 

I thought it would be:

Great to share the new innovation.
Great to share the new Thistle identity.
Great to share our new direction with them.

But I was chasing speed over execution.

The lesson wasn't "slow down". I still believe in moving fast.
The lesson was "speed" without clarity is just expensive.

Coming straight out of a rebrand, it’s easy to chase momentum. But when you do that, you can lose the bigger picture and that costs you.

Growth never happens when you move without clarity. You only get one chance at a first impression, so we are making sure ours is worth it.

"TEST THE LIMIT"  that's what our rebrand was built on.

When we started to plan our rebrand, we didn't view ourselves as successful. We saw ourselves as a challenger brand. A brand that wanted to do things differently from others in our industry.

This was our starting point.

From the first conversations I had with our team, they were all open-minded to it and wanted to be aligned on the bigger picture, but there was something I noticed more special. 

They all wanted to be a part of it.  Contributing, debating, and just being fully curious. Through my years of learning business, I've noticed that one of the best traits in any business is the team being curious. They like to get stuck in. And here's what I've seen:

They adapt quickly to problems and solutions.
They build better products and services.
They spot opportunities others ignore.
They make better decisions.

Being curious is lethal (in a good way)

There's something special about being around an open-minded team. A team that wants to play an even bigger part in this journey. It's pretty cool.

Very proud to announce the next chapter of Thistle Scientific.

Thistle has expanded a lot over the years as a team, company and scientific partner.

Today, we’re updating our entire visual system to convey a clearer, bolder expression of who we are and the purpose we stand behind. Now the time feels right to step into our next chapter and announce the rebrand of Thistle Scientific.

One that will demonstrate the connection and deeper understanding we have for researchers and global organisations who are changing the world for good.  

Just like research, brands must evolve too. We must listen, adapt and strengthen. That's what we're here to do. Committed to the direction we're heading, and that's to equip scientists to be relentless in changing the world for good. 

One hypothesis at a time. 

Welcome to Thistle 2.0

Because science is never done. So, neither are we.

taplio

The Battle

Stéphanie Lauer

Niall Cleaver

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taplio

The Battle

Stéphanie Lauer

Niall Cleaver

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Stéphanie Lauer's LinkedIn Performance

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