In this episode of Small Business, Big Engine, Grant sits down with Flora Voelcker, founder of Voelcker Design, a creative studio helping entrepreneurs and small businesses build premium, trust-driven brands that command higher prices.

Flora’s philosophy is simple but powerful: people buy from brands they trust, and trust starts with how you present yourself online. Yet too many small businesses underestimate their first impression. They might have great products or services, but a generic website or dated visuals can instantly lower perceived value. Flora believes that strong design isn’t about being flashy or trendy — it’s about communicating credibility, emotion, and confidence from the first glance.

Flora shares her journey from Berlin to Cape Town, how freedom and creativity motivated her to start a business, and what she learned building an international client base across Germany, Switzerland, the UK, and the U.S. She opens up about discovering the gap between design and marketing, and how combining both disciplines became her studio’s unique advantage.

Inside the conversation, Flora and Grant discuss:

• The connection between design, trust, and pricing power

• Why most small businesses still treat design as an afterthought

• How to tell when your brand visuals are holding you back

• The right time for a rebrand versus incremental updates

• How to navigate client conversations when you need to challenge their visuals

• The importance of repelling the wrong clients to attract the right ones

• The rise of AI in design and why human creativity still matters

Flora also talks about premium positioning — how raising prices actually attracts more serious clients, not fewer — and why brands that look and feel trustworthy can sell with less friction.

Whether you’re a designer, freelancer, or business owner trying to elevate your brand image, this episode will challenge how you think about the role of design in business growth. It’s a reminder that design is not decoration — it’s strategy in visual form.

Connect with Flora:

• Website: voelckerdesign.com

• LinkedIn: Flora Voelcker

Follow Small Business, Big Engine:

• Website: singlestack.io/podcast

• Instagram: @grantmfisher

• LinkedIn: Grant Fisher

B2B buyers live on LinkedIn. SteadyRev founder Austin Futers shows how to capture a true founder voice, choose the right post mix, repair low reach, and connect comments to real sales outcomes. We cover network hygiene, when to use video vs text, authentic relationship building, and whether Sales Navigator is worth it.

What we talked about:

• How to build a founder-led LinkedIn content system from one monthly interview

• The current post mix that works: 1–2 videos weekly, strong text posts, smart carousels

• Fixing low reach by cleaning irrelevant connections and tightening ICP

• Commenting and DMs that open deals without spam

• When Premium or Sales Navigator pays off, and when to skip it

• Simple RevOps habits that convert LinkedIn attention into pipeline

Connect with Austin:

• Austin Futers on LinkedIn

• SteadyRev

If your direct-to-consumer (DTC) playbook is starting to stall, this episode is your wake-up call. Chuck Heckman, co-founder of OneBillion Agency, joins Grant Fisher to unpack what it really takes for DTC brands to scale into retail, and how to win once you get there.

With decades of experience leading global campaigns for brands like Verizon, P&G, Heineken, and Clorox, Chuck brings a deep understanding of both digital and in-store growth. He explains why customer acquisition costs (CAC) are climbing, why “CAC inflation” is killing profitability, and why omni-channel brands consistently enjoy higher lifetime value (LTV) than pure DTC models.

From shopper marketing and retail media to distinctive brand assets and buyer psychology, Chuck lays out the Billion Dollar Brand Playbook: a proven roadmap that helps emerging brands go from one or two retail partners to category dominance.

• The DTC Ceiling: Why the tactics that built your online success will not work at the shelf.

• CAC Inflation Explained: The real reasons digital acquisition costs are climbing across every platform.

• The Retail Mindset Shift: How to go from hyper-targeted digital ads to mass reach and frequency.

• Distinctive Assets and Category Positioning: Why blending in kills recall—and how to stand out without confusing customers.

• When to Rebrand vs. When to Refine: How to know when small tweaks aren’t enough.

• Revenue and Margin Reality: What founders overlook when they first enter retail.

• Small Brand Advantage: The creative agility and consistency lessons smaller teams can borrow from Fortune 100 players.

• The Future of Retail: What’s replacing the social-media gold rush and how in-store experiences are making a comeback.

Chuck Heckman is the Co-Founder of OneBillion Agency, an omni-channel brand and media strategy firm helping DTC brands transition and scale into CPG retail. He has led strategy for world-class brands including adidas, Heineken, Hilton, P&G, and Verizon, and brings a rare mix of agency expertise and C-suite leadership experience.

Connect with Chuck on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/heckchuckman
Explore OneBillion Agency: onebillion.agency
Check out Posted.Careers, his startup connecting marketing, HR, and creative professionals: posted.careers