Hey, this is #2 in a series about getting your first client. You can find #1 here. 

 

 

Here is the deal, my friend.

In the beginning, customers don’t just come to you. You gotta WORK for them.

If you are in this place of “well I built it, where ARE they?” you are going to be waiting for a really long time.

Remember last week when we talked about how to answer one of those posts you always see floating around for help? We are going to take it to the next level.

IMAGINE that you really need something and you find someone who not only tells you that they can help you but takes the extra step of emailing YOU and showing you how they can help you.

 

That would rock, right?

 

Let me go back to my health coaching example again. I still haven’t really made a firm decision because I am so overwhelmed with options. I don’t WANT to hunt. I just want the right person to appear in my inbox, so I don’t have to look anymore.

 

People WANT you to be the person who will solve their problems.

 

If you truly believe that you can help them, you are doing them a huge solid by emailing them. Let me REPEAT that, yo.

We WANT you to be the one. You are not bothering us. You are helping solve our problems.

 

Let me tell you a little bit about my story:

Hot Brand Action made it’s big debut January 2012. I didn’t have much of a list (I think it was around 120 people) but I had a desire to sell out the class so instead of using traditional launch methods (doing the webinar and the big show to go with it), I just emailed the people that I thought would really love the class.

I sent lots of emails during that time but I also filled the class.

 

These were people who had been responding to my blog posts or folks I met through classes and most of them signed up. While most of us have a fairly complicated relationship with our gmail accounts, we can feel nothing but happy when the right person lands in our inbox. 

 

So let’s do this!

 

How to Write Your Email

Make sure you have at least had some contact with them. Maybe you haven’t talked to them a lot but you know them well enough to know that they need what you have. Try not to send random emails.  You won’t get great results and you’ll just end up agitating them.

This also hits on a greater problem that a lot of people have. If you don’t spend time getting to know people and reaching out to your community, it’s gonna be a HELL of alot harder to get that first client. 

 

It takes TIME to develop relationships and a following and allow yourself the time to create that — you’ll feel more confident emailing people that you know already like you and truly enjoy what you create.

 

Keep the email short and sweet. Get straight to the point and don’t try to dress the email up as something different. YES you are sending this email because you would like this person to be your client. Guess what? That is OK.

Mini-template 

1. State their problem using THEIR words. This is one of the best ways to make your copy REALLY effective. Make sure you are not talking about the problems the way you would be really locking in on the way THEY talk about those problems.
2. Introduce yourself and your solution

3. Give them an action to take.

4. Make sure you leave them your contact info

 

5. Bonus: include a link that demonstrates that you know what you are talking about. This is a really great thing to do if you are emailing someone from a forum who doesn’t really “know” you that well. 

 

Example:

 

Hey Neo,

You mentioned in the Matrix that you have been trouble dealing with being “The One.” I totally get it. Being the one is a BIG deal and I know that I can help you find some life balance so that you can actually ENJOY the world that you are trying so hard to save.

I love working with people who have found themselves in the middle of an epic adventure but still have trouble dealing with what that means for their day-to-day life. How do you go back to getting coffee at the Starbucks when you know that the coffee isn’t even real?

I created Being the Chosen One + Having a Life for people like you because I know that despite the fact that you are saving the world, you can still make time to have your morning coffee and read the newspaper.

You can learn more about the program here. 

I would also love to chat with you on the phone about it this week. That way, we can get to know each other a little more and I can tell you more about the class.

Do you have some availability this week?

 P.S – I just wrote a post about life balance over at my blog. Check that out here. 

 

Your email will evolve as you get more practice. As you start emailing people, you will start to learn what works and what doesn’t work. It’s all experimentation. This is a great way to get practice becoming MORE comfortable with selling and it also helps you get better at articulating the value of your offer which is one of the keys to selling, yo.

 

Your Action for this week:

Respond to someone’s call for help AND email them personally.

 

Heads up! I have 1 opening  available for June and two spots open for July for my SHAZAM sessions. If you have a big idea that you are eager to get out in the world but need some help making it a reality, fill out the application and let’s talk! 

 

A little preview of what I help people do:

 

 

 

 

 

So how do you get a new client? What makes people choose YOU over the million other people doing the same thing as you?

If you are in business, you are most likely a part of a forum or a group where there are lots of potential clients just waiting to work with you. Often times in these forums, people post questions asking for advice or help.

 

I find that the response always goes a little something like this:

 

I can help! Email me!

 

Let’s talk about why this does not work.

1. Most people hate sending emails, especially emails for the first point of contact. It’s awkward and it takes too long to figure out what to say.

2. How can you help me? Why do I think YOU can help me?

3. Do NOT make prospective clients contact you if you are answering them personally. It makes the other person feel like they are not actually important to them. Let me repeat this. Do NOT ask people to email YOU if they want your help and you are responding to their posts. 

 

We are going to use my experience looking for a health coach this week as our model.

 

Ok, let’s look at my post where I clearly outlined what I was looking for:

 

 

Let’s pretend that you are a coach and you see my post and decide that you can help me. What do you do next?

Apply your point-of-view to MY problem

 

Point-of-view is SO important because it distinguishes you from other people. This is especially true for coaches. There are SO MANY COACHES out there. You need a voice to make your mark. 

 

Let’s compare approaches.

 

Hey Shenee, I can help! Email me!

or

Hey Shenee! I know exactly how you feel and I know I can help. I believe that it’s all about making small changes and creating simple (20 minutes or less) meals that will make it easy for you to eat well. I know that you are really busy and don’t have time to spend a lot of time thinking about what you are eating and when. You can check me out here.

 

Which one makes you want to get in touch? The second one, right?

 

How about this one?

 

Hey Shenee! I totally get it and I think it’s all about figuring out how to train your body to not even WANT the food. Can you imagine just saying NO to the pasta because you don’t want it? That is what I teach my clients to do.

 

This one is even better because she is using my language and pairing it with HER point-of-view.

 

You can even turn this information into a post that you create in a forum to attract clients and get people interested in what you do:

So, do you ever feel like you can NOT read another book or post about how to “eat well.” Are you overwhelmed with all of the options out there (so many FREAKIN’ recipes) so just decide to grab a pizza instead? Do you KNOW that you are overeating but can’t seem to stop?What if you could wake up everyday and have everything you need already ready for you to eat. What if you could eat just enough and avoid your daily date with your pepcid-ac? I can help! Check this out.

 

See how specific that is? If I saw that in the forum, I would stop and take notice because you would be telling me everything I need to know.

 

Need a point-of-view? Start by thinking about your beliefs. What do you believe? What do you know about your topic that they don’t know yet?

 

Action step:
Practice this! If you see someone on facebook or on a forum complaining about something YOU can help with, couple your point-of-view with their pain points and see the difference it makes. Try to put your point-of-view in one sentence.

 

But of course, we just don’t stop there.  That’s not enough to get that new client. The next step is REACHING OUT. We will be covering that in the next post next week. Want to make sure you get it?  Be sure you are on my list. You’ll be the first to know AND you’ll get a free profitable branding course.

 

Oh! And in case you missed it, I launched my 1-on-1 offering yesterday. We have a FEW spots for people who want the special deal. Here is a testimonial from one of the people who has received SHAZAM.

 

“Shazam is right! I’m a published author, so I thought I was pretty set on writing copy for my own website. I also have an MBA from Harvard, so I figured I knew most of what there is to know about convincing people to buy what I’m offering. It may sound arrogant, but it’s really how I felt! I was truly astounded at how much Shenee’s input, advice, and changes transformed my copy from good to GREAT! She helped me understand how to get into the mind of my potential customers, empathize with them in just the right way, and communicate the value in such a way that people would come running to buy what I’m offering. Honestly, my session with Shenee transformed the entire way I think about my whole business. I now value what I offer much more, and realize that if I don’t do all I can to learn how to market and sell the holy baby Buddha out of what I have to offer, I am truly keeping my talents and skills from the many people who really want them and need them. I’ve been a long-time fan of Shenee’s but working with her 1-on-1 on getting an idea out of my head and ready for delivery to my audience was truly a game-changing experience. Thank you, Shenee!”

 

 

It’s natural to complicate things. I mean, when it comes to business there are SO MANY THINGS you could get wrong. So much research to be done.

It’s easy to become a collector of information. Ask tons of questions. (“What ____do you use? What do you do about _______?) Read a ton of books.

But you know what happens when you do that, right? You can’t pick! What is the BEST way? What should I do now?

And a confused mind? It doesn’t take action.

And that is what keeps most businesses from growing. Most likely, you are confused. You don’t know what to do because in your mind, you have SO many things to choose from. As a result, you wait around for months — not doing much. You are waiting for it to all make sense.

 

It’s a crazy mindfuzz. In an effort to learn more and do more, we end up not doing anything at all.

 

I am known for my accelerated approach to business. I make it a habit of teaching people to do things in 1 day that usually take months to complete. And I do the same for myself.

 

I create quickly and as a result, my business has grown. Really fast. And without spending 30,000+ to get there.

 

How do I do it?

SIMPLICITY + ACTION = BIG BUSINESS GROWTH

 

Let’s break this down.

 

Simplicity

 Have an idea for something you wanna do? How can you deliver this in the simplest way possible? Instead of solving a million different problems, how about one?

Which one of these two scenarios seems most likely to become a reality?

 

Option 1: Your FIRST product or program you are planning is a giant 6 month program with a billion bonuses and you want to launch it by doing 20 interviews and a webinar (GAHHH)

Oh and p.s — you have never launched anything before

 

Option 2:Your first product is a small mastermind group with 3-4 people that you invite personally at a great price

 

THE SECOND ONE, RIGHT?

 

Simplicity is key.

When you make things simple in your business:

• You are able to make changes WAY easier. You can revise. You can try again. When you have created something really big and involved a million other people, you can’t.
•  Things are way easier to sell when we someone can look at it and know EXACTLY what it is and the program or product becomes way easier to talk about, which is key.

This doesn’t just apply to products but marketing efforts and content-creation. If your blog posts are so loaded and full with information, you never want to write them. Just talk about one thing.

 

Action

Action = making decisions.  It’s about making a decision and not turning back, backtracking or changing your mind. So many people make a decision to go a direction, hear crickets and decided they must be doing in wrong. This will keep you going in circles. Pick a name. Launch it. Just do it.

This won’t always work out perfectly but it will strengthen your business owner muscles.

Think about facebook. People hate the changes facebook makes but they NEVER backtrack on a new feature. Ever. And we all just get used to it, don’t we? Nobody leaves because of a crappy feature.

 

Yes, we want to listen to customers, experts and friends but ACTION is about listening to yourself.

 

You can NOT run a business in the long run if you need to be constantly told what to do. There is no way. Practice picking something and trusting you made the right decision.

 

Awkward, yo  was based on a conversation I had with a friend. She clearly articulated a problem that I believe so many people have. How do I get ONLINE when everything is so freakin’ awkward?

Next step: Figure out how to solve this problem in the simpliest way possbile.

I could have easily waited and created a huge class for it. I could have done a week-long challenge and launched it. I just wanted to get it out. I wanted to see if this type of product would work.

So, what did I do? I wrote the copy and released it. No fan fare. No launch. Just an email and a simple optimizepress page.

 

I did my first week-long facebook challenge almost 2 years ago. 4 people participated in it. I was there everyday, responding to their questions and learning.

Next time I did it, a few more people participated. Maybe 12

I kept engaging. I kept creating simple ideas for facebook challenges.

My latest 5 day challenge? 400 sign ups.

 

When you  approach your next steps  with simplicity + action in mind, your business grows faster because you MOVE faster.

 

Making everything a “big deal” makes your business clunky and inactive because it takes WAY too much energy to do anything.

Do you feel that way? Like you are constantly walking through mud and that every step just feels….difficult?

 

 

Yeah. Treat yo self to SIMPLICITY + ACTION!

 

Gonna turn this over to you! What do you think? Have you ever found yourself STUCK because every direction felt like it was going to take so much work? Have you ever stopped because you read something about a way things could be done differently? Let me know!

 

 

 

P.S — Awkwad, YO IS HERE! Have you picked it up yet? I just added a tutorial that will help you create your header. It’s awesome!

So if you are WAITING and wishing to get online but don’t know how to take the big leap from just collecting info and saving money for a designer or copywriter to actually showing up, making money and making connections, this is just the mini-workshop for you.

And it’s only $25!

What the whaaaat?

Do iiit

 

Melissa is a PR SUPERSTAR AND A Idea to Income graduate! Today she is sharing her Idea to Income story. It’s a good one! Yeahhh sold out!

 

Here’s the sales page/landing page (http://www.make-headlines.com)

 

 

Why did you decide to take Idea to Income?
While I’ve launched many things in the past 7 years, it’s always hard to create “space” to launch something new. It always feels like drudgery, and I’m constantly second guessing my decisions and launch plan.

My theme for 2013 is “Create” and Idea to Income proved the perfect opportunity to make space and create a class that I’ve taught in fragments for several years and piece it all together into something juicy + awesome.
What were some of the tangible results of the class?

I launched my DIY PR class – Make Headlines – a few weeks after I took Idea to Income and officially had 87 paying members, which is just shy of $13,000 in revenue (we just wrapped the class last week).

I also took Shenee’s suggestion to create a free challenge prior to “launching.” This netted me an additional 500+ people to my list and I decided to continue the challenge for the entire year so I’m consistently getting new sign-ups. Many of my challengers have already become students or hired me for private coaching. Plus, we have a total blast hanging in a strong community of people that want an irresistible business and have a mutual adoration for guilty pleasure TV.

I already have a waiting list of around 130 people for the next time I run Make Headlines live.

What changed for you and your business?
The success and response to this class really gave me the confidence to move my entire business from 1:1 consulting into classes for small business owners who want to become totally irresistible to customers + the media. It’s easy to do the revenue projections, and I now have a simple system to roll out new classes (I have 2 more classes launching this year plus a hot digital experience.)

 

What kind of skills did you learn in the class?

:: To create something for people to get them pumped and excited, but not to do an icky sales pitch at the end
:: That if you put your mind to it, you can create a brand-new offer in one day. No more procrastination!
:: That you don’t have to follow the same old dumb-dumb rules for “launching” – you can make it your own, have fun, and pull in some awesome revenue

 

What was your favorite part of the class?

I really enjoyed the pre-work so once the class started, it was just about sharing + tweaking what I put together during the week prior. Then I was ready to rock + roll by the end of the day!

Anything you want to say to someone on the fence about taking Idea to Income?

DO IT!! I’ve taken tons of classes on launching and creating programs/offers. No one breaks it down as simple + easy as Shenee and puts it in a real “get shit done” format. Plus, Ryan Gosling is basically the class mascot, so….who doesn’t want that?!?

 

—

 

You totally want in, right? This is your LAST CHANCE to get into Idea to Income, YA’LL. This is it.

Sign up!

 

 

 

Ready? Take a deep breath. It’s time. THIS IS IT, yo.

Time to make the decision. The big choice! No turning back. Indecision, be DAMNED.

Next. level. shiz.

 

Let’s decide to do what it takes, to move forward and never look back. Let’s make our happiness the true measurement of our success. Let’s decide to not just live but thrive.

Time to commit to the next chapter. Go all in. Balls (or ovaries) to the wall. This is IT. No more playing it small.

Decision = made.

No compromise.

We might crash and burn.

We  might fail.

We might not make the sale.

Things might not work out.

People might start talking.

We might make total ASSES of ourselves.

What if it doesn’t work?

 

Everything could change.

And…..

It could be awesome.

We could make more than we  could ever imagine.

We  could save a life.

Change the world.

Buy those pair of shoes.

Find freedom. TRUE FREEDOM.

We could do that thing we have always wanted to do. That thing we have been waiting for. You know! That thing that we said we would do when the list got to be the right size or when we learned JUST enough. The thing we said we would do when the weather got better and when the kids (or dogs) stopped getting sick all the time.

Yeah, that thing.

Let’s do it.

No turning back.

This is the day we decide. What do we want our life to really look like and how BAD do we want it?

Today was a week of starting at the bottom.

I am a skillshare addict. There are so many classes to take and I am taking one in particular that is really challenging. LETTERING. BAH!

Now let me start off by saying that I am not a fan of being bad at things. I am all about putting yourself out there and trying but there is no way around feeling like you suck at something you really want to be good at.

Let me present to you, my very first lettering sketch.

 

NOT GOOD, right? NOT GOOD. I am in a class full of people who don’t actually NEED the lettering class. People who are really good and are mostly just showing off their skills.

To be honest, I’ve been a little shy to post. SUPER shy to get feedback and help. And I practice. I practice a LOT and I don’t feel like I am getting better.

I hear a lot of stories like this with my clients and friends.

“I am trying and it’s NOT getting better.”

“Everyone is better at this (busniess) and I can’t seem to get it right.”

“Shouldn’t something be happening by now?”

“I am not one of the IT bloggers.”

I GET IT, YO.

When I was in school, I used to take art and design classes and I wasn’t good. At least, not in the traditional way. I am not a “artist” in the traditional sense. I can’t draw. Or paint. And it used to drive me CRAZY.

BUT! I had a style. It was my style. I loved stories. And I loved typography. I would create little narrative stories and digital works that allowed me to play to my strengths. I loved to bring the real world online.

So I got better, but in MY own way.

When I first started my lettering class, I was trying to be like everyone else when what I SHOULD be doing is trying to find my own style and approach to lettering. That is what I am focusing on now.

Now, back to business. If you are trying and trying and not getting anywhere, check in with yourself. Are you trying to be like someone else and failing at that? Because if so, getting better at being like someone else will ALWAYS be hard. How about doing things your own way? What should “getting good” and “rising to the top” look like for you?

I remember when I was trying to “build my list.” It just WASN’T working. And then I asked myself a simple question:

What if I DIDN’T build my list? What if I just got to know more of the people on my list?

What if I tried to make my newsletter the BEST it could be every week?

And my list grew, my business got better and it was all in MY own way.

I am not saying that lettering will not still be hard for me but when you are in the zone and feeling authentic to yourself, you see progress everywhere. You FEEL like you are getting better. And it doesn’t hurt so badly.

Here are some questions to ask yourself if your business just isn’t working!

1. Could I do this better if I did it my way?

2. What does “getting good” really look like for me and my life? What do I really want?

This is so important. In my lettering class, a lot of my classmates are creating super curly and feminine type. That’s not even my STYLE. Why am I even trying to do that?

3. What if I stopped pushing where I was getting the most resistance and focused on what I do best?

Are you desperately trying to build your list or sell one of your products? What if you leaned in somewhere else instead? What are you really rocking at right now?

4. Is this what you REALLY want? 

One of the hard truths of entrepreneurship is that a lot of people like the idea of working for themselves and don’t really want the lifestyle that comes with it. It’s the hard truth, yo. So check in with yourself. Do you want more of whatever you are doing right now? If not, ask yourself what else you could want. DOWNER. But totally true.

 

So, what do you think? Have you ever found yourself at the bottom and feeling crappy about it? Do you have any tips for people like me (haha) starting at the bottom and trying to keep the faith while trying to get better?

 

OH SNAP. Have you heard? It’s IDEA TO INCOME time, yo! I have run this class 3 times and I LOVE IT! We even have a special new payment plan! You can sign up now for $95 dollars! AH! CRAZINESS!

So, how well do you know your customers? No, seriously. How well? I am not talking about the fact that they go to Whole Foods or they love Danielle LaPorte (this describes just about everyone) but do you actually know them?

It is easy to just create products or put offerings out there based off of some vauge description or understanding we have about our ideal customer. I have done it.  BUT! iit is WAY more powerful and profitable to take a few extra minutes to really get to know who your customer really is.

Most copy and content I read from clients is written in “expert speak.”

Expert speak = the language/words we use to describe what we do. We need to know how our customers talk about what we do.

We want our copy to be what I like to call REAL TALK. Yep, it’s in all caps.

REAL TALK = the language/words your customer uses to describe their problems 

Example:

Expert speak:
I help women heal their relationships with themselves.

REAL TALK:
Why do I hate EVERYTHING I PUT ON? Nothing works on my body. Must. eat. less. crap.

See what I mean?

What sounds more real? What sounds like something someone would really pay for?

REAL talk can be difficult to get, especially if you don’t really have the same problems as your clients. Here are 2 ways to get more REAL talk in your copy, your blog post and all your other content.

 

1. Talk to your clients

Well, actually LISTEN to your clients. Over the last year, I have talked to over a 100 women about their struggles around business development, copy, branding and everything else. I am pretty much FLUENT in REAL TALK.

Action: Know of someone who really digs your stuff? Offer to jump on the phone and jam. Listen to what they have to say. Let them talk as much as they want.

 

2. Do a survey

We talk a LOT about surveys in my classes. The key to creating a great survey is to let your customers write as much as they want about their business. Keep questions open-ended when you can. In fact, one of my favorite questions EVER goes like this:

So, what are you struggling with right now?

LOTS OF REAL TALK, YO.

Action: Create a survey for your favorite clients/blog readers and start collecting REAL TALK.

REAL TALK = the reason why you buy products, read blog posts and love the content creators you really love.

If you want to start making a BIGGER impact with your writing, getting more REAL is a great way to start.

So, let’s talk about REAL TALK. Do you struggle to identify with your customers? What questions do you have?

Idea to Income is coming April 16th and the cart will be open REALLY SOON. Want in? Sign up for the list!

 

Tuesday was a very interesting day.

So here I am a 24 year old one woman show promoting my class at the same time as the well oiled machine that is B-school. I must be crazy, right? Well, for a while on Tuesday I did feel crazy. And I felt…. frustrated.. And a little sad.

I am very proud of my classes and I really believe that I offer something special to my students but  sometimes it just feels like climbing up a hill and  for some reason, the B-school hooplah got to me this time.

So here is the question:

What do you do when someone else is doing the same thing as you on a bigger scale? How do you keep doing what you do when it seems like other people are doing it better or at least seems like more people know about it?

 

I have since gotten over my b-school hang-ups and I think I have 5 ways to deal with it if it happens again:

1. Decide what you want more. Do you want to feel shitty or make your mark on the world?

First off, I realized that I didn’t really have a choice. What is stronger? My desire to watch someone else do things or my desire to help people in my own way? What do you want more?

This goes to my point about how entrepreneurship isn’t for everyone. If your goal is to be famous or to be known and you don’t have a reason for it, you shouldn’t be here yo. We are here to make a difference, right?

So now that I KNOW my goal is to help people, I have no choice but to keep going forward because I love my work more than my ego.

2. Refine your strategic advantage / get clear about your “niche”

Obviously we all know that there are PLENTY of fish and the sea and one person can’t have ALL the clients but often times, we don’t think about it. What makes you different? What do you do that someone else can’t? Most people start businesses because they believe they have something truly unique and special to offer. What is it? Maybe you work with less people, maybe you know more about a weird version of what you are selling? Maybe you work with a specific audience.

I am convinced that defining a niche is really only good for this purpose. People who work with a very specific type of person struggle with this a lot less because they don’t have anyone to really compare themselves to and as a result do more and make more money.

So if you find that you struggle with this a lot, it might be time to start getting more specific about who you serve.
Think about your people as a whole, can you get even MORE specific? For example, if you do tech help, maybe you could focus on helping classes. If you do marketing or copywriting, maybe you can focus on product descriptions or kickstarter campaigns.

Also try to get OUT of your existing social circles. Can you bring your skills to an industry that doesn’t have anyone like you in it? Yoga for CEOS! Marketing for Vets!

3. Create something awesome

Most of the time we don’t necessarily want to BE the other person but there is something about their situation that we want for ourselves.

Best thing you can do?

Do something that gets you closer to that goal.

Maybe you admire the list-size/fame of a peer. Instead of whining about it google “list-building” in google and see what you come up with. Start writing a new book/freebie. Make the decision to hire a designer to help you rework your opt-in. Want more press? Check out a blog about PR. Buy a book.

Taking action always feels good and helps you forget about what you were even upset about.

It also helps us face the fact that sometimes we don’t even want to do what it takes to get the thing we might want.

4. UNPLUG

B-School is pretty inescapable but for the most part, it’s pretty easy to forget that you have any other competition. I unsubscribed to most of my blogs a while ago and only get a few and even those go into a special folder. I don’t get the jealousies very often because I am pretty ignorant to everything that is going on.

Control your environment so that you forget. Only keep the blogs that energize and inspire you. Do not read blogs JUST so you can compare yourselves to them.

5. Gratitude

I HAVE THE MOST AMAZING CLIENTS EVER. ALL CAPS. They are smart, compassionate and really nice people. When I indicated on facebook how I was feeling, I can’t tell you how many of them came to my aid and talked to me. I was reminded how lucky I am to be doing the work I am doing and that I am in the right place right now.

Think about your clients and the people (even if there are not many) that love you RIGHT NOW! How awesome is that?

The best way to deal with the fact that there is someone out there doing things bigger?

Go big for yourself.

Do your work and know that if you LOVE this, like really love this work — you don’t have a choice but to keep going.
How about you? Do you feel compare and despair syndrome? How do you deal with it?

Annnnd speaking of my little class
Your First Time is HERE! I am SO PROUD of this class. It’s gonna be awesome. I am running it at a beta price right now but in the future it will be around $400 bucks so you are getting in for half the price now.

I will be covering everything there is to know about creating your own class. It will be fun!

Check it out and enroll here.

We even have payment plans! HOLLA!

 

 

 

 

REAL TALK.

I am gonna make a bold statement.

You may not be cut out for entrepreneurship.

I have been doing a lot of watching (haha) and I have noticed a trend among people who are having trouble getting clients or having trouble getting traction.

They are collectors. They buy lots of products. They spend a lot of time on other people’s sites.
They collect.

Their question is always this:

“What is everyone else doing?”

First of all, I get it. I used to really admire a business mentor (who was a complete sham, btw) and wanted to know her point-of-view on everything.

But here is the truth:

If you do not trust yourself to make a decision and go in a direction (even if it is wrong), you should not be doing this.

That is painful for me to say but I hate watching people waste their time and money because they are hoping for someone else’s intuition and confidence to show them the way.

I see so many people circle the drain for YEARS because they are constantly collecting information and validation. We are obsessed with asking questions and we are WAY too invested in other people’s answers.

Here is the bottom line:

No one knows more about your business. No one will EVER know more about your business than you. If anyone tells you that they can tell you something that you in your heart don’t know, they are full of shit.

Advice is just advice. There is no “way” to do anything.

And so what happens when you don’t trust yourself more than someone else?

• You waste money. A LOT of it.
• You sit on ideas for months (maybe years)
• You suffer from compare and dispair syndrome on a regular basis
• You get advice that isn’t right for you. Lots of it.

I want to protect you from all of the bullshit that people say and protect your wallet from all of the investments you have NO business making but I can’t.

I want YOU to realize that you most likely KNOW enough to start so just do it.

What would your business look like if you stop researching and started doing? What would happen if you invested in experiences and REALLY showed up for the ones you actually needed? What would happen if you stopped trying to see what everyone else was doing?

Well, I’ll tell you what happened to me when I went guru-free. I quadrupled my income.

I had no clue what I was doing MOST of the time but I learned to TRUST myself to go a direction and commit to it. That is what makes you an expert. It’s what makes people want to buy from you.

It seems cliche but I promise you this will make ALL of the difference in the world. Just the simple act of making a decision and committing to it makes everything happen.

You become an expert. You build the confidence (in action). You make money.
You WILL figure it out.

So, here is my challenge for you this week! Spend 1 week without asking questions. Spend 1 week with your gut. Make decisions and just do it. GO.

 

 

 

Hey Shenee is going through a sexy rebrand (that is slowly driving me insane)!  This week has been a rough week for the new site (haven’t made much progress) so I needed to go back to the drawing board and use some of my old-school branding and web design tools to help me with the new design. This week I am gonna share with you some of the steps I take when redesigning or revamping a site. These steps also apply if you are planning on working with a designer.

 

Before we get started, there is 1 essential thing you need before you redesign anything:

 

A clear core message and vision — If you don’t have these, you should do more tweaking to your site but no overhauls because your site will most likely change sooner rather than later. If you feel like you KNOW what you want to do and that you have a clear vision of your business, rebrand away!

 

 

Before the process begins:

If you aren’t into design, start studying up on basic UX design and design principles, I created a pinboard with some of my favorite resources and websites. Get to know color meanings, basic design and typography rules so that you UNDERSTAND how a site works. This seems like a pain (especially if you are hiring this part out) but if you KNOW this stuff, your brand will be better for it and your website will look amazing.

 

 

1. Develop your strategy

This seems obvious but each site will be different. Have you noticed everyone has opt-ins everywhere? That means that goal #1 is for them to get people on their list. Your goal might be different. Maybe you want them to buy something first. Maybe you want them to check out your posts. Make sure you are clear about your intentions.

 

 

Here are some question to ask yourself:

1. What is the purpose of the site? What do you want them to do first, second, third?

2. What does your site NEED to have in it? For example: about pages, places for freebies, opt-ins, testimonials?

3. How do you want the site to feel? If it was a place, where would it be?

4. What do you want people to KNOW about you and your vision once they leave your site?

5. What do you NOT want your site to look and feel like?

 

1.5 Now vs. The Rebrand 

What do you love about your site now? What do you want to change?

 

2. Go DARK.

DO NOT VISIT ANY SITES. ESPECIALLY sites within your industry. Don’t read any posts or advice. Just sketch with your purpose in mind. Do some wireframing. If you have been to a site before, think about what you loved about it. I collected some wireframing resources on my pinterest. I link to it at the bottom of the page.

 

3. Redefine your brand style

This is when you can start pinning. Create a mood board. What are some of the colors, textures and vibes you want to express. I always tell people to think about your closet. What is your favorite outfit and where would you be going while wearing it?  Build out from there. From that, you’ll develop a color scheme and some other visual branding details. Create a vision board if that is your style.

 

4. Bring it all together

This is the hardest part. If you are hiring a designer, I would develop your own brand book (we do this in my class, Hot Brand Action) which includes:

1. Your Design Strategy + Website goals

2. Scanned photos of your wireframes and ideas

3. Link/screenshot to your moodboard/inspirations

I created one for you too! Check it out at the bottom of the page. 

If you are doing it yourself, create your brand book and print it out and start playing. Open up photoshop and start moving things around. The wireframe step is so important and it gives you a place to start. Even if you are feeling blocked, start by laying out each of your wireframes and let it evolve from there.

Rebrands take a LOT o’ time and the design will evolve but you’ll know it when you see it.

 

Some more tips: 

Simplicity + Clarity trumps all. Aim to be clear FIRST then worry about the other stuff

Your site is NOT your business. Don’t make it be the beginning or end of your business. It’s just a tool.

 

Want more? I created a brand book for you to print out and use to plan your own rebrand? It’s in The Brand Vault, instant access for subscribers! Sign up below to get it! 

 

Pinterest for wireframe resources