Test

Are you investing enough time doing enough marketing activities to create income?  Or, does your marketing plan need a makeover?

Take the quiz and find out. Answer each question honestly.  Your answers will shed a light on gaps in your marketing plan and help you identify areas for improvement.

For each statement below, choose the best answer.

1. One of the first things I have scheduled to do each day on my calendar is:

A. Call to follow-up with prospective clients or connect with joint venture partners

B. Check my Twitter, Facebook and other social media feeds and post or comment on others’ updates

C. Check my email – or go through the cards of people I met the last few weeks and send them an email to see if they need my services

D. Do the laundry, clean the house or do whatever needs to be done before I start work

2. The number of times per week I get out to meet new people is:

A. 2 to 3 times per week – I am focused on meeting new people, as well as people I already know to foster deeper relationships

B. I rarely get out to live events because I’m focused on building an online business

C. I may get out 1 time per week, but sometimes I don’t

D. I rarely get out

3. If I were to estimate the amount of time I spend on Facebook, Twitter and other social media DAILY – for work – I would say that I am online for:

A. 30′ – 1 hour total

B. 2 – 4 hours total

C. I do social media daily maybe 1 or 2 times per week

D. I rarely do social media for business purposes

4. In an average week, I spend this much time doing marketing and sales activities:

A. 8 hours – or even more if I am delivering discovery sessions to prospective clients

B. If social media counts as marketing, about 15-20 hours per week

C. 1 – 3 hours per week

D. I am not sure how much time I do marketing or sales, it varies from week – to -week

5. When it comes to launching new programs and making offers, it can be described as:

A. ”Planned” – I know what my next three launches and offers are going to be

B. “Connected” – I listen to what people want and then offer something according to what I hear

C. “As Needed” – When I need cash flow I decide then what to offer.  I generally don’t have things planned out in advance

D. “Hopeful” – I don’t have any offers planned, because I plan on getting most of my business by referral and word-of-mouth

6. For the most part, I feel this way about my marketing plan:

A. ”Optimistic” – I have a plan to market my business and I work it, and course-correct as needed

B. “Raring to Go” – I’m spending a lot of time on social media and have a lot of friends and likes on Facebook and a lot of Twitter followers – but it has not converted to sales – yet

C. ”Anxious” – I am not sure what is working, and what isn’t working, so I keep trying a lot of different things

D. ”Okay” – I’m sure business will start coming in soon

7. In a typical week I have this many conversations with potential clients:

A. 3 – I have a steady flow of people interested in working with me

B. Hard to say – when I email my list and offer sessions I get some takers, but this doesn’t happen every week

C. 1 to 2 – the weeks after I network and meet new people

D. 0 to 1, but usually none – since I don’t network or speak much – I am waiting for referrals and word-of-mouth to take off!

8. When it comes to marketing I generally use these tactics on a weekly basis:

A. A mix of offline (networking, speaking, attending live events, leading workshops) and online (teleseminars, online joint ventures, article distribution, social media) –  I invest time doing both both

B. Mostly online.  I do a lot of social media, and offer teleseminars or am part of a joint venture – I network or speak here-and-there, but don’t have a networking or speaking plan – except online

C. I do both offline and online activities, but only do one or the other a few times per week

D. I don’t have a weekly marketing plan, because I do things as I need to do them

Mostly As = “Superstar!”

Congratulations!  You have a great understanding that marketing is one of the most important activities to do in your business.  You also regularly implement a mix of online and offline tactics which increases your visibility and expands your reach.  You are goal-oriented and have a plan.  There’s a great chance you will meet your goals.  To supercharge your marketing, continue to refine your market, message, and offerings.

Mostly Bs = “Social Butterfly”

You are no doubt busy every day.  The problem is spending too much time on social media may seem like a good investment in marketing time, but it probably won’t pay off in the way you’re hoping.

Social media is great for building community and conversations.  But, it takes a very long time to convert social media followers’ into paying clients.  You will grow your business faster by incorporating some offline marketing activities into your marketing mix.  By decreasing the amount of time you spend on social media each day, this will be easy to fit into your schedule.

Mostly Cs = “Invisible”

You’re doing some marketing, so good for you,  But, you’re not doing enough, and enough people aren’t “seeing” you.  Include some more offline marketing activities, such as networking, speaking, or becoming part of joint ventures.

Also, be aware of how much time you’re spending doing things like refining your website, re-doing your business card or logo – i.e. what’s called “hiding out”  You’re busy, but no one is seeing this work.  To get client now you’ve got to get yourself out there and become visible.

Mostly Ds = “Hobbyist”

Chances are you’re treating your business more like a hobby, and aren’t taking it seriously enough to grow a viable business.  This isn’t a bad thing if having a hobby business is your intention or if paying the household bills and funding a future is not dependent on your business or income.

Referral and word-of-mouth marketing doesn’t work until you’ve built up visibility and credibility.  Get out there!  Work with mentor who knows about marketing and will help you create a plan.

QUESTION: What did the quiz reveal about YOUR marketing savvy?  Share your results and “a-ha”s in the comment box below.

Plan to attend the Make More Money Event: “A Surprisingly Clear Approach for Women Entrepreneurs How to Accelerate Business Growth!”  Click here to get the details!

At the start of our coaching call my client’s voice broke as she said to me, “I have only 3 people signed up for my program.  I was hoping to get 10 people, but it won’t happen.  My marketing strategy isn’t working.” 

This was my client’s first group program she was enrolling.  I knew this was new territory to her and was stretching the limits of her comfort zone.

As her coach, my request was, “Tell me what you’ve already done to market your program”.  She voiced off an inventory of activities that took her a mere 5 seconds to list.

The problems with her marketing immediately became clear to me.  She -

• wasn’t marketing enough
• was giving up too early

As entrepreneurs we are responsible for creating money in our businesses.  With that comes the objective of remaining as emotionally neutral as possible so that we can make the best decisions in our businesses.  When we let emotions rule, we lose objectivity and the ability to “think straight”.

I totally understand that when we get disappointed in our marketing results we feel all hope is lost and we want to give up.  I’ve been there.  But, when we start thinking things like, “I shouldn’t be doing this,” “I’m not good enough,” “I should  just go get a job,” this is a sure sign we are letting our emotions rule, and these thoughts simply aren’t true.

Think about it this way…

If you’re watching the Kentucky Derby and you have three horses approaching the finish line neck-and-neck, would you expect any of the jockeys to ease up on the home stretch because they thought they were going to lose?

Of course not!  The same is true for you.  Keep driving and marketing until you cross the finish line!

Here are common ways entrepreneurs “pull up the reins” before they cross the finish line – so you don’t do the same!

Pulling up before the finish line: A potential client says “no”

An entrepreneur  calls a potential client and gets a “no”.  They figure the person is not interested in ever working with them so they throw away their business card.

Driving to the finish line:

A “no” now is not a “no” forever.  Just because the timing is not right now doesn’t mean in the future this person won’t be interested.

Note in your marketing and sales calendar a future date to follow up.  Invite this person into another program and make an offer.

Pulling up before the finish line: Changing your mind and backing out of a launch

You want to put on a live workshop.  You get excited about it.  But, when it comes time to launch it you change your mind because you’re not sure how many (if any) people will register.

Driving to the finish line:

You plan a marketing strategy that includes offline and online marketing activities.  You ask friends, joint venture partners or affiliates to help you promote and fill seats.  You plan well and “work your plan”.

Pulling up before the finish line: You stop marketing even though you didn’t fill your program

You launch your group program and only 3 people register.  Your goal was 10 people.  But, you start your program.

Driving to the finish line:

You keep marketing with the goal of filling those seven seats.  You keep marketing and enrolling people into your program, letting people know, “There’s still time,” “It’s not too late to get in” for the next two weeks to two months (depending on the term of the program).

Pulling up before the finish line: You are short of your monthly income goal and stop

It’s the 25th of the month and you are short $5,000 from your monthly income goal.  You think it’s too late to generate any more sales this month, and you’ll wait until next month.

Driving to the finish line:

You still have 5 days to generate income.  You call people and invite them into a discovery session.  You don’t discount those remaining five days of the month as lost.  You keep offering to be of service and selling.

I’m sure by now you get my point: keep driving until you cross the finish line.  More races are won or lost in the last few feet of the race.  Keep striving to win, and you will!

Let me know how you will keep “driving” to the finish line by posting your comments below.

Marketing and sales are critical to business success.  Join me in the Make More Money Event to learn how to market your business in a high-impact way to generate more clients and income.  Register now because there is limited seating!  Get all the details here: http://bonitarichter.com/makemoremoneyworkshop/.

Over the last ten years, I’ve looked into the eyes of thousands of women entrepreneurs and have seem them struggle in their businesses.  The struggles most commonly point to:

• not having enough leads
• not having enough clients
• not having enough cash flow and income

There are many reasons why a woman entrepreneur does not have enough clients or cash flow in her business.  Many times it boils down to her having some blind spots she’s unaware about.

Until she gets clear about how she’s stuck, it’s almost impossible for her to successfully attract enough clients and generate enough cash flow in her business to create the lifestyle and freedom she wants.

How can a woman entrepreneur tell if she has blind spots blocking her way?  Here are some common tell-tale signs.  She -

• knows the marketing she needs to be doing to attract new clients and generate cash flow, but can’t seem to do it on a consistent basis (or get results)
• is plagued by cash flow and money issues and feels trapped in “survival mode” financially
• procrastinates putting herself ‘out there’ in the market – she’s “idling” and doesn’t know why (or knows but doesn’t know how to fix it)
• needs a business coach but can’t ever seem to find the money
• is stuck at that 5-figure place of $30,40,or 50K – just enough income, but can’t seem to get to that place of having enough money for the home she wants, to save for retirement, or to support someone else

Blind Spot #1. Knowing she needs to build a list but she’s not doing enough about it.

Here is how not paying enough attention to growing her list shows up. A woman entrepreneur does not-

• see her list size grow by at least 100 people per month
• have a strategy in place for doing online marketing activities (ezine, social media, teleseminars/webinars, SEO, driving traffic to her website, etc)
• have a steady stream of new client prospects entering her sales funnel

The limiting beliefs at work here are - 

• if she sticks up a free offer on her website people will gladly get on her list
• she doesn’t like email marketing and to become a “Spammer”

The TRUTH: Every small business owner needs an audience of prospects to make offers to so they can generate cash flow and income.  If a list does not exist to market to she doesn’t have a business.

To resolve this blind spot, a woman entrepreneur must realize that it is crucial to consistently do list-building activities to being new people into her sales funnel.

There are over 50+ authentic list-building strategies a small business owner can do.  Many of them are free and can be easily implemented immediately.

An entrepreneur who commits to building a list of highly qualified prospects and develops a relationship with their list, based on trust, will consistently acquire new clients and cash flow.

Blind Spot #2. No formal business training or experience.

This is a blind spot we don’t hear enough about. For many entrepreneurs, they struggle and struggle to grow their businesses, and no matter what they do, things just don’t work out well for them.

If this speaks to you, dear reader, know that if you do not have business experience or training, and you are struggling and feeling bad about it, that maybe you’ve been mislead by all the programs promising quick and easy results, and fast money.  These promises are myths in the ‘Land of Easy Money’.

Starting a business is easy. All someone has to do is tack up a shingle next to their door, register their business, get some business cards, and start attending networking events.

But, growing a successful, sustainable business is not easy.  It’s hard. All we have to do is look at the business shutdown statistics and the median income of a coach being $29,100 to know this is true. (Source: 2012 ICF Global Coaching Study.)

These statistics are heartbreaking.

My experience is many of those coaches earning $29,100 are working very hard for that amount of income.

The good news is circumstances can be improved with the right training, coaching, and experience (which just takes time to acquire).  But - every small business owner who is struggling has to recognize, 1) it’s not easy, and 2) they really need to get professional help.

Here is how a lack of business training and experience shows up. A woman entrepreneur -

• is a DIY-er and is trying to build her business by doing everything herself (or only invests in “free” or low-cost trainings under the guise she’s “saving money”)
• is working hard, long hours and doing the best she can, but she’s still not making enough money
• has been in business 2, 3, 5 or even 10 years, but her business is not where she thought it would be by now in terms of cash flow, income, clients
• saw her business fall apart after the recession because she didn’t have a strong business foundation
• loves what she does but dislikes having to manage her business – the money/budgets, sales, marketing, measure business performance, etc

The limiting beliefs that are causing this to happen are she -

• knows she’s really good at what she does so the “clients will come”
• doesn’t need to learn about sales because people will refer her
• thinks by researching and “piecing together” all she reads about business, marketing and sales topics she is saving money
• knows “ultra-successful business owner A” who grew a successful business, generated lots of cash flow, and didn’t have a business background
• believes (naively) that anyone can grow a successful business

The TRUTH: No one has a successful business without having some sales, marketing and business experience themselves – or they’ve hired expert help.

If we study any successful entrepreneurs, whether they’re guru coaches in the industry or Bill Gates of Microsoft, a common thread we’ll see is that they got business training, coaching or hired the right help. This is true in every success story.

Also, by trying to learn how to do everything yourself, it takes a lot of time. It is almost impossible to gather all the pieces you need; there are knowledge gaps that occur simply because business, marketing and sales are massive topics to learn.

This represents a huge opportunity cost in terms of unrealized sales. Working with a mentor or coach will massively shorten your learning curve, and accelerate getting clients and cash flow.

And – if growing and managing a business is so easy, why are MBAs and finance professionals some of the highest paid professions in the marketplace?  The reason is because business development and management are complex, technical topics that the best business leaders learn over many years of training and practical experience.

Growing a successful business that generates the desired amount of cash flow is not easy, and it’s not enough to be good at what we do. To be successful in business, every woman entrepreneur needs sales, marketing, and business management skills – and help from someone experienced in business to navigate the right path for her.

To resolve this blind spot a woman entrepreneur can:

• hire a business coach or mentor who has real-world business training and experience (and runs a successful business – they are an entrepreneur)
• take key business courses, like financial and managerial accounting, budgeting, economics, marketing, and sales
• continually invest in acquiring business knowledge

Next week, I’ll share more blind spots that are holding women entrepreneurs back from creating consistent cash flow.

I am very excited about a new program I’ll be announcing soon which is about how to create consistent cash flow in your business, using PROVEN business growth strategies.  If you want to be put on a Priority Notification List – contact us by clicking here.  You’ll get the chance to attend this program FREE - our compliments.

Amid all the marketing noise and clutter in our world today it’s hard to get our clients’ attention. 

If they don’t notice us, we can’t help them, and we don’t generate cash flow and income.  The task at hand is to market our businesses in a way that captures our audience’s attention and connects to their hearts. 

Marketing analytical business facts and pleas to our clients’ logic will largely go unnoticed and quickly be forgotten.  This is because our clients won’t be emotionally moved to take action. 

Emotions connect us to pleasure and pain.  When our emotions are stirred, this is what creates desire to create pleasure or relieve pain.  Emotion don’t just happen; they are stirred by stimuli – and in a business context marketing messages that resonate with us.

For example, seeing a fully decked out red ’13 BMW 335i xDrive makes my heart sing.  I can imagine what the car will feel like hugging a sweeping turn, and the way the wheels grab a beckoning open road. 

I can also imagine the sumptuous feel and ‘new car’ smell of the leather interior, and the visual pleasure of seeing this beautiful machine in my garage every day.  Emotionally - I want this car.  After wanting it emotionally, then the analytical, logical mind kicks in to justify a purchase.

How do you connect to the hearts of your clients? Here are three tips how to stir their emotions so your marketing sticks and gets noticed amid all the noise.

1. Walk in their shoes.

To connect to your potential clients your marketing messages have to resonate with them.  What this means is something you say has to “ring true” to them.  To do this you have to know your target clients, what they struggle with, and what their life is like.

Find that common ground between them, and what you have to offer to help them solve their problems.  Know what it is like to walk in their shoes.

Get into their head and understand their dreams, visions, fears, what they worry about, what they’re afraid of, and what hopes, aspirations, dreams, and desires they hold in their hearts.

This is connecting to their heart.  Speak to them from here.

2. Make your client the hero of their own story.

Storytelling is the oldest form of communication.  Humans love stories because they tell about transformation, and about other people successfully overcoming roadblocks and challenges.  People see themselves in the story, and this gives them hope that they can overcome the same challenges and be the hero.

A good story has three key elements to be effective:

• A hero
• The hero faces difficulty or a challenge they must overcome
• The hero overcomes the challenge and emerges from the experience transformed

Good stories create a sense of tension and release by explaining the gap between “what is” and “what can be” over and over.  By telling a story in this way, it becomes apparent that the current status quo is unappealing, and what can be – what is possible – becomes more alluring and desirable.

The typical way we are taught to create our stories is to follow the Hero’s Journey story format.  However, when marketing and campaigning, it is usually us who shows up as the hero in the story. 

You want to make your clients be the hero.  You do this by taking the position of mentor – the trusted advisor with the magical gift, special tool, or insights to help your clients get unstuck. 

3. Add drama.

To be seen and heard don’t blend in, but CLASH! with your environment. 

If you don’t clash, it’s just like you’re wearing camouflage in the forest.  You’ll simple blend in and won’t be noticed.

How you stand out and get noticed is by taking your ideas and presenting them in a unique context your clients haven’t seen before – you show them something they will remember.

For example, in her TEDxFiDiWomen talk, ‘Mama Gena’ Regena Thomashauer, Founder of the School of Womanly Arts, was carried onto the stage by three men with the sound of Pitbull’s, “I Know You Want Me” pulsing from the speakers.  When the men set her down, she began dancing and screaming, “Come on, dance with me!”  This was a memorable moment which people are still talking and writing about today!

To connect to the hearts of your clients show them that you “get them”.  Make them the hero of their own story.  {tweet it}

Communicate how you can help them triumph over the challenges they’re experiencing.  Deliver your marketing messages in a way that stirs their emotions, empathizes with their dreams and struggles, and presented in a way they’ll remember.

Connecting with your clients through your marketing messages is crucial so you help them improve their lives, their community, and their world.  This serves you by helping you live out your purpose, passion, and achieve your dreams and goals.

Let me know what you plan to implement in your marketing from learning these three tips.  Post your comments below.

Do you want my help fine-tuning a marketing message that will be noticed by your clients, so you get better results from your marketing?  I have opened up 3 spots for 1-day VIP Intensives.  To apply for one of these limited spots contact us by clicking here.

Finding new clients who will buy is the number one frustration I hear from women entrepreneurs.

We all have such amazing work that we do – we can help other people solve problems they’re struggling with, and lead more successful and fulfilling lives on many different levels.

Why is it so hard for them to say “yes” to what we offer?

Not having enough clients and income causes stress, anxiety, and worry about paying our bills and meeting our future needs. And, we don’t live the lifestyle we crave and dreamed about when we started our businesses. Then, many times, women entrepreneurs secretly wonder if they can really make this “business thing” work.

Following are some of the reasons why you may not have all the clients you desire, and ideas about how you can get your “marketing mojo” back, and get more clients flowing to you.

In the check list below, circle “Yes” if you’ve got each reason handled, or “No” if this is a gap in your client-getting activities:

The 10 Reasons

1. Marketing to a “too general” market niche.
Your marketing speaks or relates to no one. The people reading your marketing communications don’t feel you’re speaking directly to them or their problems.

YES  NO

2. Marketing to a niche that is not viable.
Your chosen market has no money to spend. For example, you’re a career coach for unemployed individuals. Even though your service is needed, and will help your market find employment, they don’t have the money to invest in your services.

YES  NO

3. Your ideal clients are unsure why you are the best person to solve their problems.
There is no evidence, testimonials or endorsements of how you have helped other people achieve similar results they’re seeking.

YES  NO

4. Inconsistent or not enough time invested doing marketing and selling activities.
This is a BIG problem. You need to market everyday using a variety of online and offline activities to build your visibility in your market.

YES  NO

5. Your offers don’t solve an urgent, daily problem.
The problem you solve has to be a “big stone in their shoe”. If it’s only an occasional problem, they won’t be motivated to invest any money to solve the problem.

YES  NO

6. Message is not clearly stating the value / impact / results / benefits or answering the question your market is asking, “WIIFM?”
No Results-Based Language = No Sales. Your clients logically evaluate the value of your offer by comparing the investment/cost to what they’ll get – the ROI (return-on-investment) – and ask “What’s in it for me?” Much of this analysis is done subconsciously.

YES  NO

7. Your message is “plain vanilla” and not energizing to your market.
Your message doesn’t capture their attention, they’ve “seen it before”, it is not compelling, and there is no pain or pleasure clearly stated.

YES  NO

8. Your trying to sell something to your market they don’t have a history of investing in.
This is called “selling upstream”. If you are trying to sell something to a market that you have to educate them why they need your solution, this is a losing battle unless you have the financial resources of a Fortune 100 company.

YES  NO

9. Your fees are too low.
Fees that are too low seem “too good to be true”, potential clients think the service or product mustn’t be “that good or worth it”, and this fosters mistrust. It is better to charge what you and your products and services are worth in terms of ROI (return-on-investment) for your potential clients.

YES  NO

10. You’re not making offers or invitations for people to buy - you’re not “asking for the business”.
Many women entrepreneurs are afraid to “ask for the business” or ask for the sale. No one will buy unless you make an invitation, which means getting over any fear or dislike of selling.

YES  NO

From the check list you completed, for all the statements where you checked “No”, these are areas where you can focus on improving the marketing and client attracting activities in your business.

This is not an all-inclusive list of problem areas in marketing, but it is a great start! To help you shorten the time it takes to get clients, consider working with a mentor who has experience marketing and achieving the results you want to get. By doing so, you’ll be that much closer to getting the clients and earning the income you deserve!

Let me know how this check list helped you by posting your comments below.

To get your “Marketing Mojo” back on track, join me for my Fiery, Feminine & Free Virtual Sisterhood, a 5-week course designed to lay a strong foundation for getting clients, charging the fees you deserve, and achieving your vision and desired lifestyle.  Click here to register. 

As a solo entrepreneur, I know how isolating it can be … how blindspots can trip us up (that we don’t even realize) … and how it is to have no one to share ideas with when we need them.

That’s why I’m planning on leading a 2-day Master Mind, where I’ll be teaching business and financial management skills you need to make your business work.

And then each participant will get 45 minutes to present her biggest roadblock to the group—and get coaching from me and feedback from the other smart people in the room so she can propel her business forward like never before.

I have one question that I’d really appreciate you answer for me:

“What’s your biggest challenge to adding 6 figures of income to your business this year?”

To answer please visit this survey link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/GRPL5MN

You have my deepest appreciation for helping me out!

~Bonita

I see it all the time. 

A woman entrepreneur sets an intention at the beginning of the year to create a certain amount of income.  In January, she’s excited for the money breakthroughs she’s certain she’ll create this year.  By March, she’s already stressed out because her marketing efforts aren’t working, she’s looking for … no needs clients … and she’s feeling desperate. What’s going on?

Setting intentions and goals are all important.  But, without a specific plan about how to reach the goal, and consistent marketing, your chances of success are Slim to None …. and Slim just left the building! 

The problem is many women get overwhelmed by the planning process, and confused by all the seemingly endless detail that goes into creating a marketing calendar.

The solution? Seek a streamlined, simple process to create your marketing calendar.  Doing this will ensure you will fill your programs with less effort, and create the income your desire.

Here are four simple tips how to create your marketing calendar.

1. Set your Annual Bold Money Goal

How much money do you want to create this year?  To calculate this dollar amount, add up your personal living expenses, total business expenses, taxes, and the “fun” money amounts; those amounts you want to create for vacation, and put into investments and retirement accounts, college savings, etc. 

Add up all these amounts.  The total is your Annual Bold Money Goal, and is the GROSS AMOUNT of income you want to earn in 2013.

2. Decide which programs you will offer this year to create income.

Be intentional about creating cash flow and getting clients.  To start, take an inventory of your current offerings.  Here is an example list of a few of my programs:

• Diamond Empowered Woman 6-Figure Business & Marketing Mastery Mentoring, Coaching & Training Program
• Art of Income Creation 90-Day Private Program
• 6-Figure Platinum Program Secrets 1-Day Private Intensive
• Brand Your Brilliance 1-Day VIP Intensive

3. Decide how many clients you want to enroll in each of your offerings.

Okay, you know your Annual Bold Money Goal.  You know which programs you want to offer.  Now it’s time to decide how many people you want to enroll into each program to meet your money goal.

Tip: Create an Excel® spreadsheet that has a column to list your programs, number of people to enroll in each program, the dollar amount of each offer, and the total dollars.  Add up the total dollars and compare it to your Annual Bold Money Goal.

4. Decide the timing of each offer and create a marketing launch calendar.

Now decide the date when you will offer each program during the year.  To market each program to your email list, be sure to give yourself enough time.  My recommendation is to plan 6 weeks of active marketing to market each program, and 2 to 4 weeks for post-launch activities.  Here is each step of the marketing launch sequence:

• Pre-launch activities (taking surveys, seeding, “I’ve got a question for you”, building anticipation)
• Launch activities (previews, sales open period, email promotions, timing of disappearing bonuses)
• Post-launch activities (making the sale stick, collecting testimonials, client care activities)

If you are hand-inviting people to fill a program, your marketing time may be as little as 2 weeks, or even faster!

Tip: Print a blank calendar template and fill in specific marketing activities you will do on what date.  Follow your calendar to implement your launch plan!

To get clients and create income you must plan to consistently market your offerings.

You must also consistently implement list-building activities so you have a steady stream of new clients prospecting entering your sales and marketing funnel.

By creating a plan, and then implementing it, you will “hit your target” and achieve your income goals with greater ease!

Want my personal help creating your marketing and income-generating calendar for 2013?  Then join me for my Illuminate the Path to Profits 2013 Business Planning Secrets Virtual Intensive.  It’s next week!  All the juicy details are here.  There are still a few seats open that are eleigible for a special prize from me, so hurry!

You’ve invested in yourself, bought programs, hired coaches, had a professional design a website for you, and read all the business books you could get your hands on. You feel you’re doing everything you’re supposed to do to make money in your business.

Yet, you keep secretly wondering to yourself, “Why aren’t I consistently making more money?”

The ebb and flow of cash in your business can be emotionally exhausting.  The good news is with some simple tweaks you can get your business’ cash flow back on track.

In today’s article I will share with you 3 tips about the fastest way to generate cash in your business, in a genuine, heart-felt, “being of service” manner.

1. Fill Your Practice with Private Clients

The fastest path to cash is to fill your practice with private clients. You can do this by offering 1-day VIP sessions or multi-month coaching programs.

This idea may not be new to you. But, what I am going to recommend to you about HOW to fill your practice will definitely push a few buttons with some of you!

2. Ask these Questions

Getting the cash flowing quickly in your business means finding the right people, and have one-on-one conversations with them either over the phone or in person.

Ask yourself these questions:

“Who is already in my inner circle, my sphere of influence, that I know is looking for help?”

“Who do I already know that’s hungry for a solution to a problem?”

“Whom can I access quickly?”

3. Pick up the Phone and Call (Right now!)

Now, pick up the phone, right now at this moment, and call the first person on your list. If you find yourself having “pre-call anxiety,” repeat these words out loud to calm your nerves:

“It is my genuine desire to be of service and help [name of person] solve their problems. If I do not reach out to them they will continue to suffer. My service is a gift. [Name of person] and I will just be having a conversation. If they say, “No,” that is okay. This call is about helping them; it is not about me.”

When you call, have a feeling of giving and generosity in your heart. Here is a short script to help you get the conversation started:

“Hi, [name of person]. It’s [your name]. It’s been awhile since we’ve spoken, and I was wondering how you are doing. How are things with your business? I am very interested in getting up-to-date with what’s happening for you, what’s changed, and what’s new.”

As the conversation flows, ask them—

“What are you most challenged by right now in your business?”

“What problems are you struggling with?” 

“What do you want instead?”

If you feel, genuinely in your heart that you can help them, offer your solution, and stand confidently in a space to inspire them to take the step forward to solve their problems and meet their desires through your offering.

3. Do this if the Call Doesn’t Work Out

If the conversation doesn’t work out for you, pick up the phone again and call the next person on your list. Keep having one-on-one conversations, and by the end of the day you may have generated thousands of dollars!

My coach’s request of you is to come up with a list of people to call, and get on the phone today!  If you consistently take this approach to reaching out and following up with people, you will create a stream of steady cash flow in your business.

Have you ever poured your heart and soul into a program, offer it to your list, and then no one signs up? 

Program launches that fizzle are frustrating, leave you short of cash, and you don’t meet your income goals.

Here are 5 key mistakes women entrepreneurs make that sabotage the success of their program launches:

Mistake #1: Making low-priced offers

Many women entrepreneurs spend a lot of time and energy launching a low-priced product, such as a $37 eBook.  Launching a low-priced product online will require hours of energy and time to create any significant level of cash.

If you need cash and clients, your time is better-invested focusing on selling one of your higher-level programs.  For example, if you are selling an $897 1-day intensive or 30-day program, and want to create $5,000 in revenues, you must enroll only 6 people.

Mistake #2: Launching a ”Hail Mary” pass

The second big mistake women entrepreneurs make is thinking too big in their launches.  What I mean by this is having the mindset of “if this launch does not work my world is going to collapse!”  If you find yourself betting everything you have on this one launch to be successful, this will make you totally stressed out, and puts a lot of pressure on you.

How do you balance “too small” and “too big” thinking?  Plan to launch something you can energetically step into.  If it feels small and uninspiring, increase the money price point.  If it feels like a “Hail Mary” pass, opt to launch something smaller, and experience success.

Mistake #3: No demand

When no one buys, there isn’t any demand for your program; the people on your list don’t want to buy what you are offering.

To ensure there is demand for what you are offering, focus on solving problems clients urgently want solved; not what you want to offer. Get very clear on what they want, and what problems they need help with, and will pay to solve. 

Mistake #4: Wanting “online” to do all the selling

This happens when women dislike selling, and having sales conversations.  Online marketing is a passive marketing activity.  So, it’s really easy to “hide out” and hope online marketing will do all the selling work.  They put up the sales page up, send some promotional emails, and hope the money flows in. 

The fastest way to get to the money is by having rich conversations with potential clients.  This can be accomplished with both online launches, say through delivering a preview teleseminar, and then inviting people into a strategy session conversation.  Or, through offline launch methods, such as with hand-inviting people into a program. 

Mistake #5: Not having a well thought-out launch strategy

Even if you do have a large list, a launch strategy that’s not well planned will be a disappointment.  Launches have a lot of moving pieces and dates to keep track of. 

It’s important to have a launch sequence that carries through all the activities you must do.  For a successful launch you will need:

• a detailed pre-launch, launch, and post-launch calendars with key dates
• a free preview teleseminar call to announce the program
• a teleseminar opt-in page
• to write your sales and thank you pages
• to set up your shopping cart
• to write promotional emails about the teleseminar
• to write articles about the topic and send to your list
• to post your articles on your blog
• to advertise your teleseminar on seminar posting sites
• to create social media posts and blast them to your networks
• to send follow-up emails after the preview teleseminar
• a strategy to deal with launch lulls after the preview offering and launch end date

These key launch activities have to flow and dance together in harmonious movement to create a successful launch.

Before your next launch, set an inspiring ‘cash creation’ goal, think about the pricing of your offering, and how many units you want to sell.  Then, put your launch plan into play to generate maximum sales and create a lucrative cash flow stream.

Are you looking at every opportunity in front of you to find new clients?  The truth is opportunities to find  clients are everywhere, often times, right in front of your nose! 

But, the problem is when you are in the place of looking for clients (and feeling you need them), you can get stuck inside of a ”glass jar,” as one of my clients tells it.  Even though you have your nose pressed up to the glass, you can’t see outside the jar.

Here’s how you turn your client opportunity radar “on.”  Every day, begin by asking yourself—

 “How can I help?”  

“How can I add value?” 

“Who can I help?” 

“How can I help this group of people?” 

“How can I serve people at this event?” 

Everywhere you are, be open to possibilities about how you can help, rather than why something won’t work, or thinking to yourself, “these people aren’t my market.” 

When you’re looking to build your business or fill your practice, it’s always a great idea to look at who is already in your world, and how you may serve them!  When you shift your awareness, you will be surprised at the number of opportunities that are already right in front of you.

Your clients are already in your world.  This is a huge opportunity that is overlooked by so many people in getting clients.  The reason is because when you get frustrated, your mind gets foggy and you can’t gain clarity. 

Also, many people decide they don’t want to work with particular people because the person does not meet their target market criteria; they aren’t open to seeing a way to serve them.

Now, you do need a niche.  You do want to work with your ideal clients.  However, when you are trying to build momentum in your business, and get clients so you generate cash, the perfect ideal client may have to be pushed a bit to the background so you can begin to serve others, and get out of being stuck.

Look at people in your world already, and determine what they are struggling with.  Be careful not to talk yourself out of these opportunities.  Creating opportunity increases momentum for yourself, by creating something specific for them.

Here are twenty places to look to find potential clients:

1. Current clients – approach them with a new offer

2. Past clients – go back to them with a new offer

3. LinkedIn list of connections 

4. LinkedIn groups you belong to

5. Facebook contacts

6. Twitter followers

7. Chambers of Commerce – review members of your Chamber and other Chambers (lists are usually posted online!)

8. Networking groups you participate in (or want to speak at)

9. Online forums and discussion groups

10. Professional organizations your market niche belongs to

11. Workshops and seminars you attend

12. Joint Venture Partnerships

13. NING membership sites

14. Free seminar offering by you – invite people to, and promote the free workshop

15. Your email subscriber list of contacts

16. Alumni groups

17. Ask for referrals from influential people you know

18. Ask friends and family for referrals

19. Hobby and recreational groups you belong to

20. Your peers

Action Step: Make a list of 50 people in your world, who you can hand-invite into your V.I.P. Intensive program, or another program offering you’re excited about!

When you open your eyes and look around you, there are potential clients everywhere, who are already in your world.  Be open to the opportunity to serve them.

When you do, you will be rewarded by helping people who need you and your unique gifts, and you will generate cash and be on the way of building your business.