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the pride of Africa's women entrepreneurs

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Unfiltered: Proven Strategies to Start and Grow Your Business by Not Following the Rules by Rachel Pedersen

June 18, 2022 Melanie Hawken

Rachel Pedersen

Book review

If you have ever wondered how to move the needle quickly to build your business, then Rachel Pedersen, author of Unfiltered, has just the advice and experience you are looking for. In 2013, Rachel was a single mum, freshly off of food stamps and struggling to get her life on track. Three years later, she was leaving her 9-to-5 job to launch a consulting business with her husband. Today, she is the founder and CEO of two multimillion-dollar companies and an expert in every aspect of social media, helping businesses with massive, needle-moving growth.


Using personal stories that both instruct and inspire, Rachel Pedersen’s new book, Unfiltered: Proven Strategies to Start and Grow Your Business by Not Following the Rules, shares the lessons she has learned on her incredible journey from welfare to millions. She encourages women entrepreneurs to take a new way of thinking about what success can look like in their own lives. Readers will find:

  • practical strategies for starting and building a business using social media marketing

  • real-life examples from Rachel's clients and her own experience

  • essential practices you can't take for granted - from cultivating good business habits to building a solid circle of support

  • advice for hanging on when your entrepreneurship journey becomes an emotional roller coaster

  • a roadmap for finding your own way to get ahead - without sacrificing the things that matter most

Author Quotes

Chances are you are facing some hard decisions. My hope is that this book will inspire and guide you on your business growth journey and provide you with the wisdom and best practices gleaned from my own trial and error that you can return to time and time again.

I am an expert in all things social media. I delight in empowering businesses with social media strategies that support massive, needle moving growth.

My book, Unfiltered, gives you a new way to think about what success can look like in your life.

About the author

Rachel Pedersen is a Social Media and Digital Marketing Strategist who partners with entrepreneurs to create disruptive, creative campaigns that generate exponential returns. Pedersen overcame the statistical odds as a college dropout, alcoholic, and single mother in poverty and has dedicated herself to creating life-changing business growth that emulates the radical change in her personal life. Through her digital marketing agency, The Viral Touch, Rachel helps business owners break through the ‘glass ceiling’ of opportunity. Her campaigns bring results that change the narrative, such as achieving 7134% growth for an organic skincare company, generating $3 million in one year for a fitness company, and reaching over 12 million people for a coach. Rachel’s passion for helping others change their life stories is apparent in the energy and wisdom she brings as the founder of Social Media United, the leading online education platform for social media managers. With more than 1100 students from 70+ countries worldwide, Pedersen’s platform supports and trains students - predominantly stay at home parents, single moms, and college dropouts - how to develop and leverage their skills to become successful social media managers. Pedersen has landed global coverage in print and digital outlets, including the Today Show, Cosmopolitan, The Daily Mail, The Huffington Post, Funnel Magazine, and Content Marketing Institute.

www.rachelpedersen.com


Why LoA loves it…

We all know that social media can be a great way of getting exposure for our businesses and brands and connecting with potential customers who need to see and hear our brand messages. But the trick is knowing how to get the edge when there is just so much messaging out there. Rachel Pedersen’s new book Unfiltered is a very honest, practical experience-led read that provides great insight and advice on how to really move your growth needle in business by harnessing the power of social media. It is a great, engaging read for any woman entrepreneur who has real and lasting business growth at the top of their ambitions list. — Melanie Hawken, founder & ceo, Lionesses of Africa


In Essential Tags Books
← Are you tough enough to make the difficult decisions AND show you care?Follow Your Bliss →

Tech FoundHER AFRICA CHALLENGE

MEET THE 10 FINALISTS — We look forward to announcing the winning women founders on 19 November 2025.


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Silk Sensation…Nothing is quite as luxurious as silk, that’s why we love the ‘Africa on Silk’ collections from Eki, founded by Hazel Eki Osunde. Eki is known for its signature soft silks and ethereal c Image of the Day / ‘57 Chocolate

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Handcrafted home decor …We are big fans of the work of Manuela Kamadjou, an interior architecture and design entrepreneur who transforms homes and spaces in Cameroon through her business, Kebe Home. Her new Echo V Image of the Day / Pichulik

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Vibrant textile design…This striking textile design by Eva Sonaike caught our eye this morning. Like the rest of the world, we love the African aesthetic which is increasingly finding its way into global interio Image of the Day / Adèle Dejak

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