Meet Angela Bryant, founder of Angel Rated
Angela Bryant (48) is the founder of Angel Rated, an independent directory and user review site focused on the products and services most frequently used by female online business owners; and is also the co-founder of Cowork Crowd, an online coworking and accountability community for women in business.
She is also a podcast host, certified health coach and travel blogger. In her spare time, Angela enjoys year-round wild swimming in the Thames, singing with her choir and brain-training with cryptic crosswords and logic puzzles.
Tell us about your experience prior to launching your business?
After studying a degree in Maths at the University of Southampton and my Master’s in Operational Research, (which is basically maths for business), I entered the corporate world. I worked for well-known companies including British Airways and Vodafone, yet after a number of years, I realised that I had allowed my personal ethics, morals, and beliefs to slip down my priority list. I found a role leading a sustainability consultancy, then moved on to run a climate change charity; pivoting to work with organisations that were making a change in the world and which were closer to my heart.
However, in 2012 I suffered from burnout and quickly realised that I was working long hours and putting everything into my work in order to make someone else’s dream come true. I decided that in order to create the impact that I wanted, I needed to make a change for myself and so I left the corporate world to go traveling and refocus on my goals. I established several businesses, qualified as a health coach and created the UK Health Coaches Association, but still felt I hadn't found my calling.
In 2017, after spending my time researching and creating different online businesses, I had a realisation about where my focus should be placed, and that started the next step of my career.
What inspired you to launch your business and what is the end goal?
Once I had spotted that there was a lack of unedited and unbiased reviews relating to the digital tools and online courses that I was using to build my businesses, I realised there was a gap in the market and all of a sudden the seeds were planted. These seeds grew into what is now known as Angel Rated, an independent review site for online business owners, that came to fruition in 2019.
One of my goals is to continue helping other female entrepreneurs to embrace their love for what they are doing and to make a difference.
What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt so far as an entrepreneur?
At the start of this year I had been a ‘solopreneur’ for 12 years, and the year began like any other year – with the added fact that we were all still reeling from the impact of COVID and lockdown. Throughout COVID I had been part of an informal peer accountability group, and every so often we would have a virtual coworking session, which was transformational. It really helped with loneliness, structure, accountability, procrastination and so much more.
It was in July 2021 that I co-founded Cowork Crowd with a fellow entrepreneur, to offer other business women that same support. This was the first time I’d had a business partner and I have learned so much from the experience.
There is an African proverb ‘if you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, go together’ and that by far has been my greatest learning of the past year. By having a business partner to share pressures and responsibilities, and to check in with every day, it has meant that business growth looks totally different to that of a solopreneur. My partner has a completely different set of skills to me, and it has been such a lesson in how sharing the workload can increase progress, while reducing stress.
What does your business offer its target audience?
Angel Rated offers safety and security to the women who use the site, giving them the confidence that the product or service they are choosing is well-reviewed, that others have had genuine success with it, and that their investment is well placed. It gives the product and service owners accountability for those reviews and visibility to their target audiences.
Cowork Crowd offers its members a sense of community, accountability in terms of their schedule (showing up!) and in the tasks they say they will complete, and enables them to increase their productivity. It also gives them the chance to make friends who understand the business journey they are on - in the online business world, which can be quite lonely, this is invaluable!
With all the success stories around entrepreneurship and how innovative people have to be to take the leap. How do you think you’ve innovated your sector and why?
Angel Rated, the first website of its kind, helps female online entrepreneurs find the perfect tool, course or person for the next stage of their growth, in a time-efficient and informed manner. The platform also provides increased visibility and independent reviews for the businesses listed, and offers reviewers the opportunity to share their knowledge and experience of the different products and services. As stated before, the first of its kind.
What plans do you have for Angel Rated over the next two years?
I have so many plans for both of my businesses!
With Angel Rated, we will be continually adding new products which are used by online business owners. This will include online courses, services, coaches, and programmes. We will also be continuing to grow awareness of the site to ensure that each product has as many reviews as possible, increasing the usefulness of the listings to the online business community. Finally, we plan to put a lot of effort into our marketing channels, focussing on the blog and podcast so that more people are exposed to the reviews and product comparisons we offer, as well as giving product owners a platform to share what they offer.
For Cowork Crowd, the newer of my two businesses, we plan to initially increase the membership with a view to appointing community managers. This will allow us to increase the number of sessions available and the number of time zones we cater for. Longer-term we plan to build our own digital platform to host the coworking sessions. We also intend to expand the membership to include courses and other resources which will further support the members with their productivity, time management, and focus.
Finally, I will be continuing with my personal goal as an entrepreneur; each year I donate a percentage of income to charities chosen by Angel Rated’s reviewers, and that will continue. However longer-term I plan to establish a foundations to fund research into alternative approaches to everything from energy to health.
What social media channel would you say has worked the best for your business and why?
For Angel Rated it has definitely been Facebook, but specifically Facebook groups that are dedicated to online business owners. These are often places where people are asking a lot of questions about which courses to buy / coach to hire / tool to use and they frequently ask for recommendations. Pointing them towards Angel Rated allows them to see multiple options and independent reviews in one place rather than relying on whoever has seen their post to answer their questions.
For Cowork Crowd, Instagram has been working well so far especially as we start experimenting with more lives and reels.
What impact would you like to have on women around the world through your business?
Through Angel Rated I would like to give women the knowledge and confidence they need to make decisions in their business, whether that is in terms of where to invest, what to focus on, or who to work with.
Through Cowork Crowd I want to support women so they have the network and community they need to succeed, knowing there is always someone available to work with and to hold them accountable.
Describe your business in three words.
Innovative, empowering, and supportive.
Why do you think your business has had such a positive impact across your industry?
As my business is women-focused I believe that I have made a positive impact across my industry with regards to taking a step towards gender equality. There are still fewer female entrepreneurs than male, and it isn’t seen as a valid career choice - for instance, it’s not suggested in schools - so the more we can do to support and encourage women into starting their own successful businesses the better - and that is why I think both Angel Rated and Cowork Crowd have had such a positive impact.
What are your top tips for entrepreneurs wanting to get their business out there?
Based on my journey, I would say that it’s never too late - you can totally change your life in your forties (or later!) and you don’t need to follow the path that is expected of you. If the corporate world isn’t for you, that’s ok. If you want something different from the 9-5, that’s ok too. Make your life and your job work for you and what’s important to you. And don’t ever stop searching for your true purpose in life! I would also say that success takes hard work and it’s important not to get sucked into all the flashy stories online about ‘overnight’ success - there is no such thing!
What’s the most important question entrepreneurs should be asking themselves?
What is their vision for what they want to create in the world, and how can they bring their unique combination of skills, passions, and experience together in their business to bring that vision to life? That way they always have a bigger picture that is pulling them forwards, and they are building a business based on who they are rather than trying to fit into a mould or be someone that they are not. Figuring out how to have fun along the way is also super important.
Do you prioritise self-care as an entrepreneur?
100% - and the way I do that is through wild outdoor swimming in the Thames - come rain or shine!
As a certified health coach, I was already aware of the many health benefits available. However it was when I founded two businesses in quick succession, Angel Rated and Cowork Crowd, that the mental health benefits became really applicable to me. I now swim in the Thames three times a week, no matter the weather or temperature, and only wearing a swimsuit!
Swimming in cold water feels to me like the most intense meditation or mindfulness session. You can’t be anywhere but in the here and now. You can’t think about anything except your movement through the water, whether you’re still warm enough, or if it’s time to get back to the bank (at which point your focus switches to swiftly bundling on as many layers as you can and getting a hot drink inside you). Then comes the massive hit of euphoria. It feels like a reset for my brain and that anything I turn my mind to is now possible. If I can get into water that’s in single digits wearing just a swimming costume, then I can handle anything that running two businesses can throw at me.
