Tag: increase conversions

About Last Week’s Rookie Mistake

Posted on by Amanda Bedell

Last week, I inadvertently sent my weekly email to myself instead of addressing it to the people on my email list. It was an oversight from my adaptation to a new CRM, and I deeply regretted it as it caused confusion and seemed unprofessional.

The funny thing, and I think you’ll relate to this, is my assistant texted me the minute she saw it and promptly said, “Why don’t you have me handle these emails?!” It’s a valid point, and I could come up with countless excuses, but the truth is, I’m deeply committed to personally writing you each week, ensuring timely and relevant topics are addressed. However, there’s often little time between my desire to communicate with you and when I finish writing.

As entrepreneurs, we tend to hold onto tasks, many of which, in retrospect, seem insignificant after a major mistake occurs.

This reminds me of a lesson I learned from my bakery business when I hired my first general manager. I used to come in around 9:30-10am, wash my hands, grab a cup of coffee from behind the counter, put on my gloves and then proceed to rearrange the display, adding pastries here and there to make it look fuller. This went on for months until the GM pulled me aside and asked, “Why do you rearrange the display when you come in?”… I replied, “To make it look more full.”… She responded, “After you’re done, it doesn’t look that different, and when you do that it undermines the work of the staff.”

That conversation was truly eye-opening for me. I realized that I didn’t want my actions to undermine the efforts of my staff, even though I disagreed with how the display looked after they handled it. From that enlightening discussion, we delved into my vision and the importance of a display that appeared abundantly stocked (as a person with Celiac, I understand the disappointment of seeing limited options). We explored the psychology of customers and their purchasing behavior. Together, we established parameters and designed a daily display plan, allowing me to let go of micromanaging.

So, while I won’t stop personally writing about timely topics that I believe will alleviate the chaos of running a business and bring you closer to profit and tranquility, I have decided to give my assistant the time to execute the email with her remarkable attention to detail and organizational skills.

Now, let’s turn this on you and your business. What tasks are you doing that someone else could do better? If you don’t know, start with my Time Audit sheet >>

Let me know what you discover!

 

Remember,

✨Rome wasn’t built in a day.

✨Walt Disney was fired from a newspaper because he had “no good ideas”.

✨Abraham Lincoln lost eighteen elections before finally becoming president.

✨Thomas Edison endured 10,000 unsuccessful attempts before perfecting the incandescent light bulb.

And, there isn’t a record of a successful company history that was ever built by a single person.

Until our next communication, remember I’m only an email, text, DM, or phone call away.

Dedicated to your success!
Amanda

 

P.S.: I’m beta testing a new product, Flash Coaching, a unique, streamlined system designed with a busy schedule in mind. It’s a blend of self-paced learning (powered by a series of targeted videos you watch at your leisure) and unlimited high-impact 15-minute coaching sessions. This is a perfect way to dip your toe into what it would be like to have a business coach on your side. Intrigued? Let’s connect >>

Unleash Your Business Potential: The Path to $1MM in Revenue Awaits

Posted on by Amanda Bedell

Today, I had an epiphany while writing this blog post, realizing that what I had planned to share might not be what you truly need to hear right now. So, allow me to take a different approach that I hope resonates deeply with you.

Let’s set aside the noise and focus on Web2 — the powerful realm of social influence that holds immense potential for your business. As a small business owner, the social aspect may have been unintentionally overlooked. Take a moment to reflect on your website. Does it simply resemble an online business card or, dare I say, an outdated Yellow Pages ad? If so, it’s time to shift gears.

Consider this: the conversations your prospects have with their peers carry more weight than any message you can create, regardless of its brilliance. Recent research confirms that peers have become the most trusted individuals globally, making their trust and endorsement crucial for the success of your product or service. This holds even more significance as we navigate an AI-driven world. Building authentic relationships and cultivating social proof will be the key differentiators that set you apart from the competition.

Now, let’s explore the essence of our discussion: how can this understanding propel you toward achieving $1MM in revenue with a high net profit?

  • Clarity: The first step on this transformative journey is gaining a crystal-clear vision of your desired outcome and truly comprehending your market-dominating position. When you possess unwavering clarity, everything falls into place.
  • Focus: Once your vision is defined, it’s time to narrow your focus. Identify the ONE pivotal task that will make everything else on your plate either easier to tackle or entirely irrelevant. Honing in on this priority will pave the way for significant progress towards your revenue goals.
  • Consistent Action: Success isn’t born out of sporadic bursts of effort but through a steadfast commitment to taking consistent action. Remember the sage advice: “Consistency beats talent every time.” Embrace the power of daily, purposeful actions that align with your vision.
  • Results: Armed with clarity, focus, and consistent action, you hold the keys to building the business of your dreams. The transformation you seek is well within your grasp.

You might think, “This all sounds great, Amanda, but how does this work for real?!”

Imagine you set a goal to lose 20 pounds. You have a crystal-clear vision of wearing a specific dress at the upcoming summer family reunion (clarity). You know precisely what steps to take, such as cooking more meals at home, adding exercise to your daily routine, and creating a schedule (focus). And most importantly, you take consistent action (consistent action). When we set out on a goal, the first days are great! But the middle days, like days 17, 18, and 19, can feel discouraging – they last forever, and you feel like you get nowhere. But, if you persist, you’ll reach days 30, 31, and beyond while watching pounds melt away (and a need to buy new jeans!).

Let’s apply this concept to your business efforts to sort through the chaos. What can you do differently over the next 30 days to test the concept? 

Simply reply with how you’ll test this out, and I’ll hold you accountable for the next 30 days.

I hope these insights resonate with you and offer a fresh perspective.

 

P.S. I’m beta-testing a new program, Flash Coaching— a streamlined system designed to accommodate your busy schedule. It provides a unique blend of self-paced learning through targeted videos and unlimited, high-impact one-on-one 15-minute coaching sessions.

This is a perfect way to dip your toe into what it would be like to have a business coach on your side. Intrigued? Let’s connect >>

Marketing Tips for Entrepreneurs Part III

Posted on by Amanda Bedell

Here we are! The last in my series of marketing tips for entrepreneurs! 

If you haven’t read through the last two blogs, grab those takeaways here Marketing Tips for Entrepreneurs Part I and here Marketing Tips for Entrepreneurs Part II.

Now, the most important piece is this: of all these tips, what is ONE thing you can use to grow your client base this week? Send me a note of what you decide on so I can keep you accountable.

 

Create a Great Marketing Plan

A great marketing plan doesn’t need to be complicated. I understand marketing can be elusive and a little intimidating. But, I promise that you don’t need fancy technology or an all-in-one solutions…. You can start simple and you can start manual.

Pick up a regular paper calendar. Decide how many days per week you want content to be posted. Remember, you can start small! There’s no need to create content every day of the week or send out multiple emails. Maybe it’s simply dedicating 1 hour a week to social media, posting twice a week, and an email one time a month. 

Once you know what content you want to begin with, simply take that calendar and color code days of the week. Each color represents a pillar from your content pillars document. (If you haven’t received my content pillars template, email me and I’ll send it to you, for free!). 

Remember starting small is OK; you can always build on your marketing plan when you get into the habit of consistently creating content for your business. Fine-tune and refine your marketing plan based on your data and feedback.

 

Make Sure Your Marketing Fits Your Branding

There’s nothing worse than hiring a marketing company for your mountain-town vacation rental for them to post a picture of a couple walking along a beach! Ensure your social media, newsletter, lead magnets, and blog content have the same look and feel. The voice and style should make your brand recognizable among all your platforms. And, you’ll want to ensure your marketing and advertising fit your company image, products, services, and quality.

 

Review Your Current Marketing Plan

Remember the 80/20 rule? For business, the principle states that 20% of what you do is generating 80% of your income (revenue). With this lens, review your current marketing plan. What is bringing in clients? What isn’t? Make a plan to improve on the things that are working and drop the ares that aren’t. You don’t want to be spending money on marketing that isn’t giving you a good ROI (return on investment).

 

Educate Your Clients and Leads with Value-Driven Content

People don’t buy because of your fancy logo or cute tag line. If your materials aren’t addressing the problem your prospect has that they don’t want and doesn’t provide a result that alleviates the pain they are in, the marketing simply won’t work. Rather than pushing your company name and bio out to prospects, consider develop all your ads, campaigns, and sales materials with attention to compelling and factual information that solves pain points for your readers. Don’t worry about giving away too much information – when you’re in service of your audience, the right customers will be attracted to you.

Marketing Tips for Entrepreneurs Part II

Posted on by Amanda Bedell

In Part I of Marketing Tips for Entrepreneurs, I shared 5 ways to increase your sales through small changes to your marketing. And that was just the beginning! As you adjust your marketing plan, take a look at these additional tips to ensure your marketing is optimized for more sales. 

 

I challenge you to start working on just one of these tips for 30-days straight and record your results. Let me know what happens! I’d love to hear your results And, if you have any questions, I’m always just an email away! 

 

Work on the Front Lines

Step down a notch and work on the front lines with your sales and customer service staff. Find out what they are doing, what’s working for them, and what needs to change to improve their work environment or the process they are doing. Get feedback on how they enjoy their job, and make an effort to improve their job, if possible. Take notes to show them you are authentically concerned about how they feel in their work environment. A happy employee stays with you!

 

Show Appreciation to Your Staff

Too often, we get caught up in the day-to-day dealings of our small businesses. A great way to show your workers and staff that you care about them is by appreciating their work. Continuously acknowledging your staff, vendors and customers is an excellent way to increase productivity, mood, and satisfaction. Sending them a hand-written card goes a long way! Everyone works and shops better when they feel appreciated.

 

Get Feedback from Staff and Clients

Always listen to feedback from employees and customers, even if you don’t like the feedback. Follow up and ask them why they feel the way they do so you understand their perspective. Chances are that if they have a complaint or compliment, someone else will likely also share their concerns. Ask them what they would do to change the situation and see if you can take steps to better or continue what’s doing well in your company.

 

Test and Use Data Analytics

Continuously test markets, ads, and marketing techniques. This is the only way to stay successful and know what’s working and, more importantly, what’s not. Using Google Analytics, social media stats, and other data to see what’s working and utilize those actions repeatedly to duplicate your success.

 

Educate Your Clients

Offer more information in your marketing with your blog and social media. The more information you offer, the more products and services you sell. When you educate your clients or leads, they will understand why they need your services.

McMinnville Business Mastery Lunch & Learn

Posted on by Amanda Bedell

EVER FELT LIKE MARKETING, STAFFING, AND GROWING YOUR BUSINESS WAS LIKE NAVIGATING A DIFFICULT MAZE?

What if you could follow a proven and time-tested roadmap that provides you the EXACT steps to more cash flow and freedom?

At my Business Mastery Lunch & Learn events, join area business owners as we tackle the business challenges of the day. In each session, walk away with no-cost strategies that can be implemented immediately.

Lunch and beverages are provided but registration is required.

To register for an upcoming event, click on the date you want to attend:

January 25 – Topic: Finding & Keeping Employees

(POSTPONED) February 8 – Topic: Position Your Business for a Bank Loan

February 22 – Topic: Exit Your Way – Grow with the Exit In Mind

March 8 – Topic: Pricing Workshop (details coming soon)

March 22 – Topic: No Cost Conversions & Sales Strategies (details coming soon)

Past events included Non-traditional Ways to Find & Keep Superstar Employees, No-cost Lead Generation Strategies, Increase Conversions and Sales With Small Tweaks, and more!

What these events aren’t:

NOT a disguised sales pitch

NOT a boring presentation about buying ads that don’t result in new customers anyways

NOT a place for me to listen to my own voice for a whole 90-minutes 🙂

 

What you will get is:

REAL strategies that you can implement yourself

INSPIRATION that can only come from being in a room with like-minded business owners doing the same work at the same time

The PEACE OF MIND knowing that you’re focusing on the business activities that really make a difference so you can work smarter rather than harder.

30 Ways to Effectively Market Your Business

Posted on by Amanda Bedell

A step-by-step guide to creating and executing a successful advertising campaign

Have you spent thousands of dollars on radio or Facebook ads and seen zero sales from the advertising spend? Maybe you’ve been burned by a marketing consultant that promises the world only to fail to deliver results… today, I want to lift the veil on how to create a successful advertising campaign. 

To do that, first, we must understand why people buy products or services. Every purchase is an emotional response. People always buy a higher emotional state. They’re buying for one of three reasons

  1. to solve a problem or stop pain
  2. an experience that feels good 
  3. for certainty 

To develop emotion and a call to action, the majority of successful professionals use a succession of information-based commercials. What we find is that information-based advertising is much more effective compared to usual brand-based advertisements.

Here, I want to share with you that the principles used to put together high-impact (and oftentimes, high-priced) ads can be adapted to fit your needs and offer you similar results. 

Here are some ideas for creating and executing a successful advertising campaign:

  1. Put together a short report that you’ll automatically send to prospects when they contact you. This should include a short description of your business and what you specialize in. Don’t forget to include case studies, samples, or other proof of your success.

  2. Develop value-oriented “yellow page” like ads.

  3. Consider newsletters as a way of educating and informing customers about your industry and the services offered.

  4. Offer a free lecture or webinar to raise awareness of your business, but make sure the content is relevant to your target market and that the presenters are well-known in the field.

  5. Buy an existing business, improve marketing and grow this new business faster than a “from scratch” business.

  6. Always test different versions of your ads to determine which ones are the most effective.

  7. Use direct mail marketing to grow your business.

  8. Put together a database of previous customers and send them new information.

  9. Offer incentives such as frequent purchasing benefits, loyalty programs, or referral programs.

  10. Approach large firms who may need your services and negotiate a deal to be their exclusive expert in your field.

  11. Offer a 24-hour information line with a regularly updated recorded message. Make this available to all current and prospective customers/clients.

  12. Donate time or materials to local charities to show support in your area.

  13. Offer public clinics for the general public to come along and discuss what they need that’s free and approachable.

  14. Organize seminars your customers/clients can pay to attend by putting together a high-perception value package.

  15. Approach local newspapers by offering to write a weekly column about your area of expertise. Don’t ask for a payment, just a byline, and bio.

  16. Develop a weekend or other destination seminar for customers/clients, not only does this give you an action-packed weekend with the most important people, it gives them a tax-deductible business adventure.

  17. Take a good seminar and turn it into written form as a home study, member site program, audio, or video program.

  18. Approach large companies and offer to give seminars to their employees, investors, or management.

  19. Be proactive with your marketing plan.

  20. Trade for your marketing. Offer products or services instead of payment.

  21. Be willing to bring in new clients, even if at an initial loss because it will likely pay off later.

  22. Adjust your marketing budget to maximize the potential income from them for the following year, and try to postpone advertising costs for the following year to offset your expenses.

  23. Make offers to target markets or target market businesses to pay them for referrals or shared databases.

  24. Offer loaner products to replace equipment that’s being repaired or refurbished.

  25. Give away something free to everyone who brings in a print version of your advertisement. This is a great way to see which ads are giving you the most bang for your buck.

  26. Continually consider what new products/services you can offer to current customers/clients.

  27. Develop a mail order division of your company.

  28. Offer a proposition to your competitors to trade customers/clients you were both unsuccessful in selling to.

  29. Use different marketing tactics as an excuse to attract new customers/clients with new offers and goodies.

  30. Offer a “you-pick-a-price” program. This is especially good for products you just can’t seem to sell.

So now you have it: 30 ways to market to other professionals and businesses. Other great ways to get your name out there for little or no money are as follows:

  • Get engaged in your community-volunteer, donate to local events, etc.

  • Join your local Chamber of Commerce and attend networking and other activities throughout the year.

  • Join local, state, or regional professional associates for further networking opportunities.

  • Become a board member of a local organization.

Advertising should never be your only method of marketing strategy, there are numerous ways to get your name out there in a way that feels personal to potential customers/clients.

 

“Many companies have forgotten they sell to actual people. Humans care about the entire experience, not just the marketing or sales or service. To really win in the modern age, you must solve for humans.” – Dharmesh Shah, CTO & Co-founder of Hubspot.

 

If you’re not sure where you start with your marketing plan or how to reach out to your local community, competitors, customers/clients, and others who could influence your business in a highly positive way try our GUIDED TOUR to experience the tools and resources we have to boost your business to the next level and beyond.

5 Ways to Stop a Consumer in Their Tracks (and look at your product instead of someone else’s)

Posted on by Amanda Bedell

In order of importance here are the five major components to great advertising copy: 

  • Command Attention
  • Showcase Benefits of Products/Services
  • Prove the Benefits
  • Persuade People to Embrace the Benefits
  • Call to Action

Advertising is sales; so you’ll need to think about the unique benefits your products/services offer and showcase them in a persuasive way. In short, you need to emphasize results, not features.

Let’s take a minute to talk about each of these components:

  1. Command Attention: This is usually accomplished with the headline. You need an attention-getter that makes people want to know more about your products/services. The best headlines give a vivid portrayal of the benefits or show how a problem can be solved with your products/services. The headline is the advertisement for the advertisement.
  2. Showcase Benefits: You have to showcase the benefits of your products and services and, more importantly, show how they solve or surmount an obstacle.. Customers need to know what’s in it for them. Include useful, factual, and clear information to show precisely what the benefits are and how they are going to work.
  3. Offer Proof: This is where you prove what the advertisement is offering. You need to establish you have a method to deliver. Consider information that establishes credibility and past performance.
  4. Persuade: Add compelling reasons for your potential customers to purchase your products/services. Use a hard-sell approach and create scarcity. This motivates your potential customers to act now, not delay and risk losing an opportunity. Which leads into the last component.
  5. Call to Action: You need to compel your potential customers to do something. They need to check out your site, sign up for your newsletter, purchase your products, contact you about services—something.  Offer a freebie like a booklet, sample, product, bonus, demo, consult, limited-time price, etc.

Download my free workbook, Profit Jolt for actionable strategies you can implement now.

This is how to Guarantee a rockin’ Q4

This is how to Guarantee a rockin’ Q4

Posted on by Amanda Bedell

Hello fellow rockstars,

I’m jumping in to talk about why this is the perfect time to start the 90-day Jumpstart. Why on earth would you do a program in the middle of the summer as we’re exiting a pandemic?

It’s natural for some businesses to slow down during the summer — pandemic or not. After talking to businesses in a variety of industries, it was clear to us this is the optimal time to embark on the 90-day Jumpstart.

We have one goal: to make Q4, rockin’ for you!

This summer, get everything lined up:

  • Hone in on marketing messaging that directly speaks to your ideal customer and market position systems using the three marketing fundamentals and the marketing equation.
  • Attract employees and onboard them in a way that you can rely on them during your most valuable season
  • Create efficiencies and systems that enable you to take Q4 and run with it.
  • We are exiting a pandemic. Yes! We need you to take care of yourself right now. Get out, enjoy friends and family safely, take a vacation… but, I want to see you participating and working ON your business rather than do it. I have a vision of someone logging in from a beach. Wouldn’t that be so cool?

What is the structure of the 90-day Jumpstart?

The reason why the program is structured the way it is, comes from an experience I had in 2017 when I was a part of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses (10KSB) program. It’s kind of like an accelerated MBA where they pair you up with businesses that have at least $150,000 in revenue and four or more employees. To say this program was life-changing for me is an understatement. It was so awesome to be surrounded by entrepreneurs that had the same issues that I did. All of our businesses were in different stages and different industries but experiencing the same things. The camaraderie that developed was amazing.

I made my big life choice of leaving my bakery business based on a relationship that I had with someone in my 10KSB class. They asked me, “why was I hanging on so tight to the business when you have so much more to do?” My point in sharing that is that these deep relationships could stick with you for a lifetime.

As a business owner, I know that it can get really lonely, especially when you’re working day-to-day with managing employees and you — we all — need someone to listen to us, to help us see blind spots, and support us through challenging choices. That’s why 90-day Jumpstart is structured in a very intimate way where we have, at most, eight people in each cohort. So go ahead, click on the 90-day Jumpstart link and fill out the application if this at all interests you at all. The next step is you and I sitting down (virtually) and talking for 30 minutes about your business — and it’s free.

If the summer one doesn’t work for you, still fill out an application if this feels like a fit. We offer the program year-round and can stay in touch when the next cohort is available. There’s nothing more that I love than to hear about what you are doing. The passion fellow business owners have for their businesses, customers, and employees are so cool to me.

I look forward to speaking with you! Thank you for jumping in, considering the possibilities of upgrading your lifestyle by sustainably growing your business, and creating the life you want.

Let’s dig in!

5 Strategies You Will Master By Signing Up For The 90-day Jumpstart

Posted on by Amanda Bedell

90-DAY JUMPSTART 

Are you asking yourself, why aren’t more customers buying from me? You invested in social media or a shiny new website but aren’t seeing conversions? Learn why your marketing doesn’t work and, more importantly, how to fix it NOW.

WHAT: 90-day Jumpstart is a structured virtual program where you will learn, practice, and implement a number of strategies that begin to grow your business immediately. Best of all, you’ll continue to see these strategies pay off for years to come.

After taking this course, you will never again ask yourself what you need to do and how to do it to increase sales, increase cash flows, increase efficiencies, or how to grow and attract dedicated staff.

Past participants have experienced 2x, 5x and even 15x growth in the first year these strategies were put in place.

HOW: You might be asking yourself, how is this possible?! You’ve likely been trying to get more customers forever but nothing sticks and you feel like you’re on a hamster wheel creating content with little to no engagement. Or, you’re getting engagement but not seeing sales. At the base of the 90-day Jumpstart, you’ll learn these strategies:

  1. Position your business in a league of its own
  2. Attract your soul-mate customer or client
  3. Attract and retain your ideal employees
  4. Increase your number of transactions
  5. Decrease your costs

WHO: Business owners in business a minimum of 2 years and generate $50,000 – $1.3M in revenue a year.

WHEN: The next cohort starts

Are you in? If it’s a hell yes! Fill out the application here >>

If you’d like to see more information, learn more here >>