07 How I Scaled from Zero to 16 Staff in 5 Years | Hazel Woodward | What One Thing

Social media agency founder Hazel Woodward shares how she turned her COVID startup into a thriving 16-person business in just five years — and the one thing that made the biggest difference. From winning her first clients in 48 hours to hiring internationally, building SOPs, and bringing on an investor, Hazel’s journey is packed with lessons for UK business owners in professional services, marketing, and beyond.

Whether you want to grow your team, improve profitability, or build systems that scale, you’ll find practical strategies you can apply today.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• How to win your first clients without a marketing budget
• Pricing for profit (and fixing early mistakes)
• When and how to hire your first employee
• Scaling from 3 to 16 staff using SOPs and processes
• Hiring international team members without losing culture
• Working with an investor for strategic growth

Resources & Links:

• Connect with Hazel: https://liftsocial.co.uk/
• Corbar Accounting – : https://corbar.uk/
• Affirm IT – https://affirmit.co.uk/
• Subscribe on YouTube – https://youtube.com/@whatonething?si=Xp8ym6-aLVUME9dN

Listen on Your Favourite Platform:

• Apple Podcasts – https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-one-thing/id1819926559
• Spotify – https://open.spotify.com/show/6mrmJ6HsKoH4LhNU39gpbs?si=26630e0f2dd04b9e

Follow Us on LinkedIn:

• Hayley Baxter – https://www.linkedin.com/in/hayley-baxter-/
• Phil Davenport – https://www.linkedin.com/in/phil-davenport-affirmit/