I have a love-dislike relationship with the beginning of the year.
I love that most people are in a positive, goal-oriented state of mind. I love that my favorite stores have amazing sales (hello, Anthropologie!). And, I love the ‘I get to start fresh’ feeling floating through the air.
I dislike going out to lunch with friends and feeling a tad bit guilty that I’m the only one not ordering a salad consisting of iceberg lettuce, two cherry tomatoes, a sprinkling of carrot shreds and two pieces of congealing grilled chicken with low-fat, no taste dressing on the side.
I dislike that yoga classes fill up a week in advance with people who won’t be there in a couple months cause they’ve given up on fitting into their skinny jeans. Who needs skinny jeans when you’ve got Friends on Netflix, right?
And, I really dislike when dreaming gets in the way of action.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m all for dreaming BIG.
But, it can turn into a cycle of procrastination uglier than your great aunt’s extra large baby pink silk granny panties that are riddled with unidentified stains and have a hole in the crotch as large as your fist.
You know what I mean.
The people who dream and plan and research for hours upon hours, leaving no time to actually do anything they plan or dream about.
I groan every time I read an email or social media update that says something like, “I’m going to start my business in six months after I finish my research” or “I’m going to create my first digital product in three months after I finish taking an Illustrator course, researching the competition and planning it out.”
Yes, there is absolutely a need for planning and research. But, don’t use it to procrastinate.
Dreaming and researching isn’t going to pay for a new Macbook Pro or medical bills or the ticket to that retreat you really want to attend to hang out with other creative entrepreneurs.
In the beginning of your business, it’s important to start making money for a few reasons: 1) It gives you a boost of confidence that you can do this. 2) You can pay your bills and invest in your business. 3) You can send that blogger who gives you great advice an Anthropologie gift card. Insert diabolical laugh here. (Just kidding.)
But seriously. You’re running a business, so money is an important factor.
With today’s post, I’m going against the grain of the normal “how to achieve your goals in 2015” or “my dreams for this year” blog posts you see at the beginning of every year.
Instead, I’m going to give you five actionable tasks you can do this month to start making money from your business.
You ready to stop dreaming about earning money from your passion and actually do it?
Did you say yes or just grumble?
Once more with enthusiasm?
Okay! Here we go:
1. Ask for the sale.
Before you give me the ‘but I don’t want to come across as too salesy’ excuse, I’ll let you in on a little secret. Business is about selling things. You provide a product or service and in return you get money. Fancy concept, right?
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve worked with creative entrepreneurs who have NEVER really sold their stuff to their blog readers, email list, or social media following for fear of sounding too pushy.
These people fall into the ‘I hope they find me and fall in love and buy my products’ business death trap. Ninety-nine percent of the time, it doesn’t work.
Depending on the size of your email list, blog readership and social media following, you can probably get at least a handful of sales if you…yep, you guessed it…sell to them.
Mark a day in your calendar right now to send an email to your list and publish a blog post in which you highlight and sell your best-selling product from last year. People want what’s popular, so letting your audience know what your best-selling product is can boost your sales.
(If you didn’t have any products to sell last year, you can still do this step. Just pick the product you’re the most proud of right now and highlight it.)
Tip to make this work for your business:
Don’t JUST sell. Tell a story. Write with charisma and personality. Spend time on the email/blog post, carefully choosing each word. Entertain or educate and then sell.
2. Launch your next product or service.
Instead of simply adding your next product to your offerings or Etsy shop, launch it. Build up anticipation through social media updates, blog posts, emails, guest posts, videos, and interviews.
When you release your next product, you’ll have a group of people ready to buy. Cha-ching!
Don’t let the word “launch” intimidate you. You’re the boss which means you decide how big or small your launch will be. It could be as simple as posting on your Facebook wall three times, sending out five tweets, publishing two blog posts and sending one email newsletter.
If you work on your launch material for twenty to thirty minutes a day, you can get all of the above done in a couple weeks.
Tip to make this work for your business:
When planning your launch content always keep in mind that: 1) You want everything related to the launch to prime to your audience to buy. 2) You want to attract your ideal customer to your product which means you need to “know” her really well and speak to her.
3. Consider what worked last year.
When it comes to marketing, you want to do more of what works and less of what doesn’t.
Jot down the things that you did to market your business last year. What worked the best? Do that again (or something similar) this month.
My top marketing strategies last year were (in no particular order): speaking engagements, boosted Facebook posts, well-written emails/blog posts that contained a link and brief introduction to a product, frequently asked questions emails and blog posts, blog tours, and interviews.
If I ever want to boost my income, I know I can pick one (or more) of those things and I’ll most likely see an increase in sales.
4. Strategically use social media.
We both know that social media can either help or hinder a business. If you’re always wasting time on social media, it’s a hindrance but if you have a plan and stick to it, social media can absolutely help you increase your income.
For this month, pick one social media platform to focus on (preferably the one that your target market frequents and that you enjoy using), spend thirty minutes developing your plan for the next thirty days focusing on building your following and selling your products, and spend ten to fifteen minutes a day implementing your plan.
Example: Let’s say you’re a jewelry designer and you want to focus on Pinterest for the month. The beginning of your plan might look like this: establish boards that your target market will want to follow, pin 20-50 pins a day including one of your jewelry items each day (that links to where people can buy it), and write a blog post about why your blog readers should follow you on Pinterest.
You’d want to get even more specific but that’s a pretty good direction to start. By the end of the month, if your strategic plan worked, you’ll have made sales from people who found you and/or follow you on Pinterest.
Whenever I do this, it works for me. If I’m focusing on Facebook, I’ll notice more traffic and sales coming from Facebook. If I’m focusing on Pinterest, I’ll see that more traffic and sales are coming from Pinterest. It’s all about making a plan and sticking to it.
5. Collect and use testimonials.
Most of us have been burned from buying online (shame on you ebay seller who sold me a Vera Bradley purse ten years ago, took my money and never sent me the purse) and we don’t want a repeat of that experience.
One of the best (and easiest) ways to build trust is to share the lovely things your customers say about your products and business.
When people see that others have bought from you, received what they expected to get, and really enjoyed their experience with your business and products, there’s a level of comfort that helps them hand over their credit cards.
Think about your online purchases.
Do you read reviews? Do they sway your buying habits?
Aren’t you more likely to buy that gel nail polish when you read that other women love it and don’t mind paying more because they only have to paint their nails once a week or less because their nails don’t chip and always look shiny and newly polished?
It’s human nature.
Collect five testimonials for one of your products. Add them to the product description or sales page. Then, highlight the best testimonial in your next email newsletter or blog post.
Tip for making this work for your business:
Ask specific questions to get quality testimonials. (Examples: What is your favorite feature of ________________? Why? Would you recommend this to a friend? If so, why?)
There you have it: five ways to start making real money from your business this month. If you can only do one, that’s totally fine. If you can do them all, you’ll see that they build upon themselves. Get ready for an influx of cash!
Share in the comments below an action that you’re taking in the next thirty days to make money from your business. I’d love to hear your plans for making 2015 a profitable year.
Reminder:
If you want to join myself, Bonnie Christine, Lisa Jacobs, Kerry Burki, and Paige French at the Movers and Makers Summit February 27th to March 1st, secure your spot here. The early bird price ends in four days and almost half of the spots are already claimed. It’s going to be an amazing weekend.
You can find all the details here.
Yes, yes, yes! Dreaming is fine for a bit but then you have to ACT. Great advice, especially about the testimonials. My sales go up when I share new testimonials (video ones are extra good!).
In the next month, I’ll be prepping my annual Birthday Bundle Blowout sale with 2 digital products that are oldies but goodies and 1 brand spanking new digital product. It’s super fun and a fabulous way to get sales on older products.
Thanks for sharing, Sage! Happy New Year!!!
Your birthday bundle sounds awesome. I’m so happy for you and can’t wait to check it out.
Yay for ACTION steps!!! So far my action steps have been to make Clear & Precise DOABLE goals for the year broken down by quarter & month {inventory production makes moolah}, got laser sharp on FB & just did a “boost campaign” which resulted in 2 new likes & hopefully these will convert down the road, and planning a blog post on customizing heirloom jewelry.
I recently received some crystal from someone that wanted it made into a necklace. It was her grandmother’s crystals. She had tears in her eyes upon delivery & thanked me at least 10 times! It was the BEST feeling! She was soooo happy! Thus my idea for the post above to spread the word about what I can do to revitalize granny’s jewels. I want to spread that happy feeling!
Thank you so much for sharing your plan. I love hearing about what others are doing and working on–I think it’s so inspiring.
Isn’t so great when we work with the right people? The people who appreciate what we do and are sooooo excited about what we can do for them? It sounds like you’ve found one of those right people and almost always that will turn into a lot more “right” people because happy customers like that spread the word.
“…your great aunt’s extra large baby pink silk granny panties…” Seriously, you make me laugh so hard! I know what you mean though. Sure, I have lots of big plans, but this year is all about being dedicated to make things actually happen. I’ve said it before, your advice on writing the actionable steps into my planner has helped me so much. Now when I get overwhelmed by my big plans, I just look at my day planner and say “Oh, that’s what I need to do today to get where I want to be!” and then I do it, and I feel so good about it.
All 5 of these things are totally going to help me rock my business this month! I especially am going to try to strategically use social media. I actually even get hooked up with IFTTT today which is going to help. Yay! I literally can’t wait to make things happen…I’m action-ing right now!
Ha! Glad to make you laugh. 🙂
YAY YAY YAY! Digital high five! It makes me so happy to read that when you get overwhelmed, you step back and look at what you can do today to get closer to your goals. That’s what it is all about.
I’d love to hear how using social media intentionally goes for you this month. Come back and share! I’m sure that everyone else would love to know, too.
Love this April!! It took me at least a year to do #1 – Ask for the Sale!
When I did, I didn’t feel sleazy at all. Matter of fact, I was like…well, silly me, how come I didn’t do this earlier!!
It’s all about taking consistent action, getting over the fear, and getting out there.
This month, I plan to revamp and market my one on one program: the Jump Start Sessions!! I really enjoyed working one-on-one with women last year.
Thanks for the advice. Definitely a great read for the start of the year (oh, and Happy New Year by the way!)
Often when we wait a long time to ask, we do wonder why we didn’t do it sooner because it ends up not being so scary or awful.
I felt that way when I waited waaaaay too long to start Blacksburg Belle. I kept waiting until everything was going to be perfect. Finally, I realized I was being silly…it isn’t ever going to be perfect. And, to this day, it’s one of those things that I would do differently if I had it to do all over again.
Love your plans! I hope you have an amazing year…you deserve it!
These are GREAT tips! I’ll be honest and say that I haven’t created a business plan yet (slap on wrist!!) and this has given me motivation to start. Thanks again for the great pointers!
I forgot to include my plan! I already use social media (faves are currently Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest. I haven’t had much luck with Facebook) and I plan to use those sites to launch my new bracelet line. I’ve taken your advice to be a bit more aggressive with asking for sales instead of only putting myself out there. Thanks again for the help! xo
Hey Julie! Thanks for sharing. I’m really excited for you and hope your launch is super successful.
It’s completely fine (and pretty darn normal) to like some social media sites more than others. And, to focus on certain sites more than others because they work for you and your business. It’s best to focus on the ones that do work rather than waste time on ones that don’t.
Ask for that sale!
I have my plan to do a few of these already! Hooray! I’m learning!
I planned the launch of my new product today even! I created a FAQ list that I will now turn into a post and I wrote an ask for the sale email yesterday.
I am devoting focused time to Pinterest all winter.
Now…about those testimonials. 🙂
AWESOME! So happy for you, Kelly. I can’t wait to hear how your launch goes. I hope you have a lot of success with your FAQ post and sale email. I’m rooting for you. 🙂
Get those testimonials added and you’ll be well on your way to an amazing 2015.
Thank you, April, for the tips!! Pinterest is definitely high on my to-do list, and you’ve given me the incentive to get right on that!! I have a brick & mortar shop. I’m ALWAYS asking for the sale, helping customers get the right item, and giving them positive reinforcement about their purchasing decisions. Thanks again, and Happy New Year!!
Happy New Year!
Thanks for sharing. It’s really interesting to me to read about the experiences of those of you who have brick and mortar shops–and how this kind of stuff works for you.
I hear you April. For the past month or more, every single blog post and challenge has been about planning and planners. I’m going to admit that this was good for me because I have never been much of a planner. And I recognize that it’s really important. But enough is enough. Now it’s time to take action!
I don’t have a product yet, but I’ve given myself a tight deadline and I KNOW I’m going to make it. The word “launch” is a bit scary but reading this post helps make it a little less daunting.
Just want to mention also that I just started watching Gilmore Girls. BEST SHOW! (Rory just had the 3-month anniversary with Dean. Well you know.) The only problem is I can’t stop! My sleep is suffering!
So glad that you’ve given yourself a deadline! That definitely helps move past the perfectionist mindset of “if I just spend a little more time, I can make such-and-such even better.”
Don’t let the concept of launching freak you out. You’re the boss which means you can do a simple launch that feels good for your first product. Do what feels right while pushing yourself a little out of your comfort zone.
OH MY GOSH…If I hadn’t watched Gilmore Girls before and just started, I doubt I would do anything but watch it for days…possibly weeks. 🙂 And, it gets better and better. Some shows tend to decline and Gilmore Girls never does. It’s soooooooo good.
Errr….
This feels very much like my ToDo list for my first quarter 😉 Thanks, as always, for keeping me honest April. I’ll be going now…to work on that sales page…I mean it!
xo
K
YAY! Go Kris…Go Kris…Go Kris! I’m cheering you on from Blacksburg.
Oh lord! I almost woke up the hubby with the snort… your great aunt’s extra large baby pink silk granny panties… Hilarious! I also tend to dislike the beginning of the year resolutions, hence why I started my weight loss program back in November, and why I purchased/watched/took action on the Build a Successful Creative Blog this past December. This month I will be working on the selling piece. I am a direct sales representative, but I’ve only done it as a hobby, not a business, so it feels a little weird to “sell” on my blog, specially since it’s so new. A little extra income outside of my 9-5 job would be nice though. So, I’ll have some work to do figuring out the right balance.
Hahahahaha! I just imagined you explaining to your husband why you accidentally snorted and woke him up. Glad he slept through it. 🙂
I hope you got so much out of Build a Successful Creative Blog. I had the best time working on and teaching that course.
Congrats on making these shifts. The first time you “sell” on your blog, it will probably feel a tad weird (maybe a bit scary), but it gets easier. Once you start getting positive feedback, it makes you feel good to sell because you know people are enjoying your stuff.
Yay for making some extra money in 2015!
My first reaction was: “Wait… What? Don’t tell me this. I don’t want to hear this.” But as usual, you are right. I thought about it yesterday actually. This same thing you said. I seem to have problem with time management – I have big order right now and I only do this, so marketing and selling my other knits are somewhere far back in my to do list with workout and cleaning my home. I just need to find away to do everything a little bit. Also, asking a sale should be mastered…
Long story short – THANK YOU for a wake up call. I really needed it.
You’re so very welcome! I think we all go through times when time management is a struggle. I dealt with that when I became my own boss. One of the things I had to do was figure out how to not get distracted by all the things around me (like the pile of dishes or overflowing laundry) when I was working. Now, I’m a pro at it…but it didn’t happen over night. It took time.
I hope you have an amazing year!
Such awesome advice and so very true. My focus right now is a little more on building up traffic to my blog while I create some new products to sell but in saying that, I did add one of my very few existing ones to my first newsletter for the year. I am still a bit of a newbie but have such big goals for 2015 so fingers crossed they all become reality.
Yay Holly! It sounds like you’re on the right path. I hope you have an amazing year!
Thank you, April!
As usual, you are very generous with advice that you offer. I appreciate that.
Working on those products and posts.
Lexie
Thanks Lexie! Glad you enjoyed this one.
Great advice, as always, April! Getting to action is actually one of my big goals for 2015. I’m still in the beginning of my business journey and I’ve been learning and getting inspired by other people for several months of the last year and recently I’ve been feeling that its time I really start acting. I don’t know if I can actually launch a new product this month, but a new line is in process and when its ready I’ll be using your advice to actually SELL it to people, not just add it to my online shop. Social media strategy is another big thing I need to work on and I have started doing that already by concentrating on Pinterest and Instagram for now. I’ll be planning a more clear strategy for them during this month. Really excited for this year and happy new year to you, April, and all your readers here!
This is great, Sasha! When you’re in the beginning, you have to set goals that work for you. For instance, since you’re working on a product line, you can set actionable goals like “finish a specific piece by _______” and “share a picture of one of the products I’m creating on Instagram with a teaser like ‘coming in March 2015’.”
I hope you have such a great year. The first year of business is such an exciting one.
Great article – thank you April! I’m launching my first digital product this week (eee!), so here’s hoping that I’ll get enough sales to send that anthropologie gift card your way. 🙂
Hahahahahaha…yay! 🙂
Congrats on launching your first digital product! That’s awesome. Go you! Let the money start rolling in soon…
Love the article and taking this month to get more organized.
Thanks Cynthia!
April – am so grateful for this list. As an introvert, I already spend a fair amount of time thinking and processing. At this time of year it’s easy to get stuck. I took your advice and wrote a blog post (my first of the year!) and included my Top 7 selling candles. After someone commented on the post, they spent $25 in my store! So I’m awake and in action now! Thank you!
YES YES YES! I’m so happy for you. See…this stuff works…it really really does! 🙂
I can’t wait to see you in February.
Hurray for action! I love planning, but I love making things happen even more. Last year things were pretty slow so I’m eager to make this year different. My first action will be to get my online shop up and running – I don’t know how to do it so I kept putting it off and relying solely on really sporadic craft shows. I finally made plans to buy my brother dinner and have him show me how to do it. Next I’m going to create a Valentines themed card, put it in the shop, launch it using my email list, Facebook and Instagram, and I will remind people that I sell heart shaped sculptures that would be perfect for Valentines Day. I’m also working on bumping up my Instagram following – posting more often, using hashtags and engaging with others. Exciting times!
Yay Stephanie! I hope selling online opens up so many more options for you. Are you setting up your own shop or are you selling on a specific site like Etsy? Whichever it is, I hope it’s as painless as possible. It can seem really intimidating at first (I was really intimidated when I decided to start blogging and had no idea how to set up a blog) but after you take the first few steps, you might realize that it’s not as hard as you think. So glad your brother can help you.
Sounds like you’ve got a good plan moving into 2015! I hope you get lots of sales for Valentine’s day. 🙂
Thank you April for clear and simple ideas that I can implement! I am going to be laser focused on one platform each week to get the wheels turning starting with You Tube.
You’re so welcome! Thanks for reading and commenting. 🙂
Happy 2015! Great list, April. I keep saying I am going to work on #5: Testimonials but I haven’t made the commitment. I am putting it in my planner right now!
Got my first 2 digital products in my Etsy shop thanks to you and your fab CL course, and already checked off one of my New Year’s Resolutions! Woot! 2015 is going to kick ass.
xo,
rs
PS that granny panty image is burned into my brain so thanks for that.
Happy New Year!!! Get those testimonials girl!
Yay for already rocking 2015. I’m so excited for you. I can feel it in my bones that you’re going to have a wonderful year.
P.S. Hahahahahahahahahahahaha…
April, thank you for speaking to me. I am so glad I found you and through you (without even knowing it) I found a group of amazing women- The Supers- who share the same passions and dreams with me. I believe in the power of dreams, but also believe that they come true if we have the courage to pursue them (like Walt Disney said).
I have started businesses before, worked so hard, been successful, but have stopped because I have not been consistent enough and have not been courageous enough to do what it takes to make it as big as I dreamed it.
But this year, I have already taken important steps to finally START. First, I already registered my LLC. Second, I decided that no matter how much work I have to do because I can’t leave my day job yet, I will restart my handmade stationery business. Finally, taking your words, January 30th I will launch my wonderful product. Aside from this, I already advertised the craft classesin the school I work at and classes will start Jan. 13!!!!!
So, here’s a to New Year filled with blessings, challenges, courage, lots of work and happiness!
“Start where you are, Use what you have, Do what you can.” Arthur Ashe
Yay Blanca! That is so wonderful! And I love that quote by Arthur Ashe. One of my faves and one we should all follow in every area of life.
xo,
rs
http://www.theredscorpio.com/blog/newyearsres/
This is so lovely, Blanca! Thank you so very much for taking the time to write such a thoughtful, inspiring comment.
I’m so glad you found me, too.
Congrats on all of the steps you’ve taken so far and the goals you’ve set for this year. It sounds like you’re determined and that’s really half the battle.
I can’t wait to read a comment from you near the end of this year…I’ve got my fingers crossed that it contains lots of successes!
Great actionable steps thank you. Cant believe youll be 2 hours away for makers and shakers summit. Would love to attend but seems its more inspirational? Read info on site but not fully understanding it. Will read more
Hey Feuza! If you have any specific questions, you can always email me.
The Movers and Makers Summit is a retreat for twenty creative women who want to connect with other creative entrepreneurs with similar goals and values and learn from those of us (Bonnie, Kerry, Lisa, Paige and myself) who have built successful businesses while also getting professional pictures taken by Paige who is professional photographer.
Each of the hosts are putting together a two to three hour presentation which will include lots of details on how we’ve built our businesses as well as actionable tips on things the attendees can apply to their businesses. We’re also leaving plenty of time for the women attending to ask questions (get feedback on their businesses and ask us questions about our businesses).
So, yes…I hope that it’s very inspiring and that every woman who attends is inspired and motivated to do amazing things in 2015. But, it’s also very action-oriented as well.
Great post, April! I like #2 – launch your new product or service. I hadn’t even thought of that. I will do that on my next offering!
I will admit, I fall down the research rabbit hole sometimes. Having people to hold me accountable has really helped me curb that habit. Knowing someone will ask me if I’ve taken action keeps me focused on moving forward. I love it!
I’ve fallen down the research rabbit hole more times than I’d like to admit so I totally get it. It’s easy to procrastinate with research and some research is often necessary…but once you’re just putting off action with research, it’s time to stop. That line is often hard to spot until you’re well over it, right? That’s why I give myself a specific amount of time for research and planning. When I reach that time limit, no matter if I have that yearning to do more research or not, I make myself take action. That’s helped me a lot. 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
April, I love all your blog posts! They are so helpful for me. Right now I’m working towards making purposeful plans, so I haven’t quite developed everything yet. But what I’m going to do in the next 30 days in launch my Senior Rep Program (I’m a photographer), launch a new website, and I’m making a blogging schedule to stick too.
Those are just 3 of my action steps. I’m excited for what this year will bring.
Keep inspiring!
Love,
Hope
Thanks Hope! Those are three fantastic action steps–thanks for sharing. It sounds like you’ve got a great plan for the beginning of this year.
You are just the best, April. I get more valuable info from your posts and programs than any of the others I read. Keep up the good work! Gee, ask for the sale–why didn’t I think of that??
XOX
Vicki
I just started a brand new business, something I love, personal training will these tips also help me even though I do not have a creative business?
I probably should have read this a month ago, but I’m a bit behind on my blogroll. Thanks so much for your insight. I just launched my blog so I’ve trying to focus on creating quality content and building my email list this month. I love your idea on focused social media usage, though I’m still a little to shy to ask for the sale!