 “I’ve never been good with money.”
“I hate budgets.” “I’ll never be a 6-figure earner.” “My market won’t pay premium prices.” If you’ve ever heard these statements come out of your mouth—or even in your head—then you’re engaging in a damaging habit known as negative self-talk. By telling yourself these lies (and yes, they are lies) you’re reinforcing the beliefs that go along with them. What you visualize and believe is what becomes true. READ MORE: Top 10 Ways to Grow Your Facebook Page Tell yourself that you’re not good with money, and you won’t be. Believe that budgets are horrible chores to be reviled, and you’ll resist creating one. Convince yourself that you can’t earn a 6-figure income, and you won’t. It’s not “the secret.” It’s a scientific fact. Known as a self-fulfilling prophecy, This kind of self-talk results in poor performance simply because we act as if it’s already true. If you tell yourself that you’ll never be a 6-figure earner, you will not do the things that 6-figure business owners do. You won’t work to grow your mailing list (“No one reads my emails anyway”), you won’t increase your rates (“It’s not like I’m some top-earning entrepreneur”), and you won’t build a brand worthy of a 6-figure income (“A beautiful brand isn’t necessary at this income level”). READ MORE: Top 10 Ways to Grow Your Facebook Page By contrast, if you act and think as if you already are a 6-figure earner, you’ll approach your business quite differently. Your confidence level will increase. You’ll present a very different brand to your prospective clients. You’ll go out of your way to connect with those who can and will afford to pay your higher rates. How to Combat Negative Self Talk The first step toward changing your negative self-talk is to simply acknowledge that you do it. Tick a mental checkbox every time you catch yourself making negative statements, whether out loud or in your head. Make a note of the ones that come up most often for you, and identify their origin if you can. For example, if your ex-husband continually berated you for your spending habits, chances are your “I’m no good with money” mantra can be laid right at his feet. It’s time to turn that thinking around. The next time you catch yourself saying “I’m no good with money,” take a minute to recall 5 instances where you were good with money. Maybe you paid off your credit cards or saved for a house or built an emergency fund. Rephrase your self-talk to, “I used to be bad with money [if that’s true], but now I make smart choices to achieve my goals.” READ MORE: Top 10 Ways to Grow Your Facebook Page Just as negative self-talk becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, so does positive self-talk. Reframe your thinking, and your business finances will certainly improve. To Your Success! Lindsey x www.digital-duchess.com
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 Are you struggling to grow the fanbase on your Facebook page? Creating a page is one thing, but unless you’re a celebrity or a really well-known brand, it can take you some time and effort to have a substantial number of fans. Despite this, there are a few simple things you can do to increase your Facebook page fans really fast. READ MORE: 7 social media myths busted wide open 1. Add photos & videos Photos, memes and videos are the best ways of getting people to like your Facebook page. They can help you show off your products, services ,brand and so on. Facebook’s photo & video upload function is really easy to use .If you’ve just created a page, consider adding introduction photos and videos of yourself. Facebook loves video- especially Facebook Live. The first couple of times you do it can be a bit scary but you soon get into the swing of it and the rewards for your page will be awesome as a result. 2. Use the “Like" tool on your website/blog Adding the "like" button or box to your website or blog posts can make it easy for other people to find your Facebook page & "like" it. Make sure you place it where it’s clearly visible (preferably at the top of your website). READ MORE: 7 social media myths busted wide open 3. Be consistent Another tip on how to grow your page is to show consistency in posting and interacting. This does not necessarily mean that you stay logged on the whole day, but your fans do need to know you’re there. Simply come up with a schedule and remain consistent. 4. Monitor your page Even when you’re not logged on it’s imperative that you are aware of what is happening on your page and respond appropriately (for example delete spam or respond to feedback.) The best way to do this is via email notifications . READ MORE: 7 social media myths busted wide open 5. Promote your page on other social media sites If you have accounts on Twitter, LinkedIn or other major sites, be sure to share links to your Facebook page. That way, your curious followers on the other sites can find & connect with you. 6. Participate in other pages Search for other pages similar to your own (people in the same niche) and add comments or like their posts regularly but reasonably. If you’re consistently the first to post a comment, you’re likely to get good results. READ MORE: 7 social media myths busted wide open 7. Organize contests Every once in a while, have your fans compete to win something. It can be a discount coupon, a sample of your newest product, or just something simple. No one hates free things so you can expect more and more people to like your page. Just ask people to like your page and share your post to be in with a chance of winning your prize. 8. Advertise on Facebook One of the best ways to get page likes it to boost a blog post on your Facebook page. When I say 'boost' a post I mean pay for your post to be seen by an audience outwith your current friends on your Facebook page. Always boost content that will provide value to people who will like your page. Never boost products you want to sell as you will get no or very few page likes. READ MORE: 7 social media myths busted wide open 9. Ask questions Apart from posting valuable content and information about your offerings, you can ask your fans simple questions like fill in the blanks/true or false questions. Give them a quick and easy way to participate. 10. Write a blog post about your page If you have a blog, consider blogging about your Facebook page. Try to show people why they should like your page and offer incentives like a free download for anyone who likes the page. To Your Success Lindsey x www.digital-duchess.com   Social media marketing is crucial for any business success.
It's such a powerful promotional tool that allows us to engage, interact and build a relationship with our audiences and potential customers. Yet, there are still businesses that hesitate to get stuck in because of myths associated with it. READ MORE: How to use Facebook Live in your business to grow your brand and make more sales Social networking is more than just a pastime that involves random tweeting on Twitter or commenting on blogs and posting Facebook status updates. Here are 7 social media myths we are going to bust wide open: 1. Unless you are on every social media network, you can't succeed This alone puts off most business owners because the time investment is significant. Spreading yourself thin over a number of sites without specific goals and action can indeed be a waste of resources. Rather than the number of networks, it is more about how the business leverages and uses a particular network to get results. It is best to focus on one network at a time, get established and then proceed to the next. My advice is to start with Facebook. READ MORE: How to use Facebook Live in your business to grow your brand and make more sales 2. It can substitute direct marketing The fact is, while social media is certainly popular, it can never replace direct marketing. Online networking is convenient but human interaction is always preferred. 3. If you use social media you don't need a website Websites are a necessary component of any businesses online presence. No matter how many social networks you belong to, publishing to a website or at least a blog is mandatory and there is a solid reason why. Content is the acknowledged King that drives search traffic. You need a website to host all your amazing content because Google won't recognize the SEO on your social media networks. READ MORE: How to use Facebook Live in your business to grow your brand and make more sales Even if you have profiles on many networks, the ultimate aim is to motivate people to visit your website where there is unique content. A website is a branding tool where you can control your content, display and sell your products and services. You own your website and complement it with your social media presence so that you can reach your prospective customers. 4. ROI cannot be measured In business, it is important to monitor and measure the return on investment for every activity in order to be profitable. Social media ROI can be measured using analytics tools through which visitors and their actions can be tracked. This helps you decide on what to focus on and which links are most active. If you have a business page on Facebook then click on the 'Insights' tab at the top of your page to view your stats. READ MORE: How to use Facebook Live in your business to grow your brand and make more sales 5. It is too time-consuming Social media marketing can be achieved by just dedicating a few minutes a day and using social media schedulers to plan and schedule posts. It is about the effective use of various tools to use it to your advantage. A good free social media scheduling tool is Hootsuite.com and it's easy to use. 6. It is not suitable for our business Any business that intends to succeed, build its brand, attract new customers needs social media as part of their marketing plan. READ MORE: How to use Facebook Live in your business to grow your brand and make more sales 7. My customers don't use it That's ridiculous. Customers, new and old are on social networks. It is where people connect. and receive information these days and by thinking your customers aren't using Facebook, Twitter and Instagram could really hamper your business growth. To be a success on social media it takes research, active participation, dedicated effort and a commitment to a strong strategy. You won't become an expert overnight and I'm urging you not to stress about it. READ MORE: How to use Facebook Live in your business to grow your brand and make more sales Just dive in and see what works for you and your business and have fun while doing it. To Your Success! Lindsey x www.digital-duchess.com  It is just a simple fact that mediocre content will achieve mediocre results.
When a prospect has taken the time to read your article or post it is crucial that they are engaged by what you are telling them. Some entrepreneurs are just naturally talented at putting words together in a certain way to achieve targeted results, while others will need to work a little harder to achieve the same results. If you fall into the latter category don't be discouraged. There are a few things to keep in mind when you are in the process of creating new content that is sure to step up your game. READ MORE: How to go from being a dreamer to a successful entrepreneur Even if you have little to no writing experience, an enticing title and informative content works wonders to build an audience and gain the likes that you are after. 1. Good Title? The title of your content is the very first impression that your readers will see. That makes it a very important piece in the puzzle of good content creation. A solid title will get a second look more often than not if it is seen by your targeted audience. Because we all have different interests and tastes, there is no "one size fits all" style of title, but 2 make up the majority. If you are writing an article for a medical magazine your title would need to be professional with little to no personal expression involved. But if you are in a more casual writing environment, coming off too professional will not be as engaging as it would be if your title was intriguing, funny or has some sort of shock value. You can think of it as one style of reader is straight to the point, the other is usually looking for a more entertaining atmosphere. READ MORE: How to go from being a dreamer to a successful entrepreneur 2. Let the Content flow! A lot of time some business owners will try to copy another writer's style or try to come off as being knowledgeable about topics that they are not. It is best to consistently be improving on your own style and write on topics that you are familiar with. If you compare an article that you write on a topic that you aren't educated on and an article on something that you are passionate about and have experienced first hand, you will probably notice that the second one mentioned will flow better and will reflect more of your individual style. You will enjoy your writing more and you will achieve more favorable results in a shorter time frame. READ MORE: How to go from being a dreamer to a successful entrepreneur 3. Don't Forget to Like...... So, you have racked your brain to come up with an eye catching title and have put a true effort in creating engaging content, all in the hopes of getting your content read and liked. You have done all of this work, now give your readers a call to action. Whether it be a like you are after or a new subscriber, take the time to ask that they show there appreciation by whatever action you are wanting them to take. It sounds very simple, but you would be amazed at how many people don't bother to make this small request. READ MORE: How to go from being a dreamer to a successful entrepreneur It takes time to be awesome at creating Online content, however, keep practicing and make sure you are constantly monitoring what type of content is working well for your business and is getting the most engagement then just simply create more of it. Soon enough you will get into a content flow and you will be able to create a formula that works well for your business. To your success! Lindsey xx www.digital-duchess.com  Here’s the number one question I hear—not only from new product creators, but even from seasoned business owners: “How do I find a good idea?” What they really mean, of course, is “How do I find an idea that will sell?” No one wants to spend days or weeks or more planning, developing and launching a course only to hear crickets on the big day. You want to know you’ll have at least some measure of success. READ MORE: 4 Proven Ways to Market Your Business But don’t overthink it. The answer is simple. Just give your audience what they are asking for. Check out the competition. What are they creating? If you serve a similar audience, then what sells for them will very likely sell for you. Now, before you break out the “But it’s already been done!” line, keep this in mind: No two entrepreneurs are alike. You may create a similar course, but your voice, your experience, your teaching style, and your personality are all very different. No one else is you, and for some customers, YOU are the only one who will resonate with them. Pay attention to your ideal client. What questions do they ask in private groups, in your help desk, and elsewhere? What posts are they reading on your blog (check your Google Analytic stats)? These are all valuable sources of intel about exactly what they need and wants from you READ MORE: 4 Proven Ways to Market Your Business Ask. Still not sure what your dream client is looking for? Ask them. Create a survey and ask them to tell you what they struggle with, what keeps them from realizing their success, and even what they've tried before in an effort to solve their issues. Check the bestsellers list. Which books in your niche are outperforming others? These are the ones that offer answers your clients are seeking. Flip through the table of contents and read the online reviews to dig deep into the topics that really resonate with your audience. READ MORE: 4 Proven Ways to Market Your Business Read the FAQs. Check the frequently asked questions section on competitor blogs and in forums and Facebook groups. Also check blogs for “Start Here,” and “Quickstart” pages. Many times the most common questions and concerns are addressed here. Review the available resources. Which are the most common resources your colleagues and competitors are recommending? There are often questions surrounding the use of software and other tools, and these can be great ideas for eCourses. READ MORE: 4 Proven Ways to Market Your Business Check your email. If you’ve been in business for more than a few months, chances are you receive questions from friends, clients and even strangers on a daily basis. What are they asking about? Look for common themes and trends. Revisit your keyword research. Review the terms and phrases that your community most frequently searches on, and use them as a basis for your own research. READ MORE: 4 Proven Ways to Market Your Business Check your search terms. Google Webmaster Tools allows you to check which terms are sending visitors to your website. Since people often search on questions (“how to design a logo” or “how to start a business”) this can be a rich source of ideas. Ideas are everywhere. Your potential buyers are sharing them with you each and every day, if you just know where to look. So don’t let your insecurities hold you back. Develop the course they are asking you for. To Your Success Lindsey xx www.digital-duchess.com   The world is filled with great ideas and broke business owners with fabulous products but no sales. The fact is, ideas are not what drives most business success. Marketing does. So before you quit your day job to branch out on your own, it pays to have a solid marketing plan in place. Start with these 4 ideas to get your creative juices flowing. READ MORE: Build a business, not another job Free Webinars For information product sellers, coaches, and service providers, one of the best sources of new clients is in free training webinars. No matter what your niche, the promise of in-depth training at no cost is enough to entice potential clients to part with an email address (which you’ll be able to market to later) and an hour of their time. Not only that, but webinars are a fantastic way for those potential customers to get to know you better. And the better they know you, the more likely they are to buy. READ MORE: Build a business, not another job Content Marketing Not comfortable hosting a webinar? Hit the keyboard and start sharing your thoughts and ideas via your blog, ebooks, guest articles and other written content. For internet marketers, this gives readers a taste of what they can expect from your product. If you sell physical products, it provides the perfect opportunity to share usage tips and other important information with your buyers. Of course, there’s another important benefit to content marketing, too: search engine optimization. Google and other search engines index the words on your website and use the information to present search results to their users. Content marketing is a tool you can use to make the most of these results, and to bring more potential buyers to your website. READ MORE: Build a business, not another job Paid Advertising Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Google and plenty of other sites all offer paid placement, and with today’s powerful analytics tools, it’s easy to create ads and drive traffic inexpensively. Consider starting with Facebook, since the cost is low and it’s easy to target your ads to your ideal client. Once you’ve perfected your funnel, you can branch out into more costly ads with a larger reach, such as Google AdWords or another ad network. Facebook Live However, by far my favourite way to market a business at the moment is by using Facebook Live. Yes it can be scary getting in front of a camera but I guarantee you once you have done it a few times it will become a lot easier. With Facebook Lives your clients can see your face and get to know you in a way they never will through a blog post or meme. Plus, Facebook will show more of your followers on your business page your Facebook Live that they will ever show any of your other posts. And it's FREE. READ MORE: Build a business, not another job Don’t limit yourself to these four marketing methods though. There are dozens of others you can try, including affiliate programs, JV partnerships, automated funnels, direct mail campaigns, and even television advertising. The key is to keep testing and tweaking to make the most of every marketing effort, so that your business continues to grow. To Your Success! Lindsey xx   If there’s one thing that holds promising entrepreneurs back from launching their business, it’s this: a lack of confidence in their products. Sure, you think that new course or workshop or service is a great idea, but how do you know it will sell?
Imagine spending weeks or even months of time—plus the cost of document design, video editing and all the other pieces that go along with it—only to discover it’s not what your audience wants or needs. How frustrating would that be? You don’t have to leave it to chance, though. There are plenty of ways to test your idea before spending the time and energy on a full launch. Just Ask This is the simplest way to get a feel for what your market needs and wants. Simply ask them. Create a survey with Survey Monkey (or even a Google form) and send it out to your mailing list. For best results, keep it short, but do ask:
These three pieces will tell you everything you need to know to create a program that’s practically guaranteed to sell. Listen to Their Complaints If you have a community (or are part of one) of ideal clients, pay attention to what they’re asking about the most. These are the things they need help with. For example, if you’re a business coach and your Facebook group is filled with questions about running Facebook ads, then clearly there is a need for some training in that area. Study Your Competition Hopefully you have a list of competitors and you’re reading their blogs and emails, and lurking in their Facebook groups. This is a great way to gain insight into what they’re doing—not to copy them, but to discover what’s hot right now. Consider buying their paid products as well. Again, you should never copy them, but you can either:
Creating products in a vacuum is a great way to waste a lot of time and money on programs that won’t sell. Instead, pay attention to what your market is asking for, find out what they’re willing to pay, and delve into your competition’s offers. The information you gain from these three activities alone will give you incredible insight into your market and what they want and need, and make it easy to create your own hot-selling program. To your success! Lindsey xxx www.digital-duchess.com  Many people dream of working for themselves, being their own boss, and having the freedom to only take on clients and projects they love. What they don’t realise, though, is that there is a huge difference between building a business and being self-employed. READ MORE: 50 Things Your Website Needs to Make More Money Business owners scale their income. Self-employed people trade time for money. Business owners leverage the skills and talents of others. Self-employed people rely only on their own skills. Discouraged yet? Don’t be. Every business owner started out self-employed. Just don’t stay there. These tips will help you build a sustainable business instead of just another job. Don’t Try to Do It All Yourself Building a sustainable business requires that you leverage the talents and time of others. While it might seem cost-effective to simply do everything yourself—especially in the start-up phase when you likely have more time than money—it’s a path to burnout and stress. READ MORE: 50 Things Your Website Needs to Make More Money Instead, separate your tasks into those that you love and are especially suited for (such as marketing) and those you dislike and aren’t good at. Then make a solid plan to get those that you aren’t good at off your list of things to do. If you feel like you can’t afford to outsource it all right now, start with what you tend to procrastinate the most on, even if it’s just a few hours each month. Don’t Allow Yourself to Work All the Time The trouble with working at home is that you live at work. And that means that there’s no clear line in the sand between your work day and your home life. READ MORE: 50 Things Your Website Needs to Make More Money Since there’s always work to do, it’s easy to find yourself working every available moment—often to the detriment of your family relationships. You can help avoid this by:
Vacations and Downtime Are Important Don’t create a business that requires you to be “in the office” every day. At the start, you may need to be available more, but you should definitely be planning for the day when you can be “off the grid” for extended periods of time.
While you might not be able to hit the road with no internet access for weeks at a time, at the very least you should be able to reduce your workload to a daily check-in. READ MORE: 50 Things Your Website Needs to Make More Money Sound impossible? It’s not. With some forethought and planning, you can create a team—and the systems they need—to successfully run your business without becoming overwhelmed and overworked. To your success! Lindsey x www.digital-duchess.com Email Marketing: From Hot Mess to Mega Success in 7 Days  Want to know what sets the uber-successful apart from the wannabe entrepreneurs? It’s not money, or brilliant ideas, or even powerful friends. READ MORE: Uncover The Real-Life Copywriting Strategies That Can Turn Your Sales Pages And Content Marketing From “So-So” To Super! All of those things (and more) are nice to have, but they’re not a requirement of success. What is a must-have, though, is a good attitude. Without the proper mindset, you’ll constantly be battling your own brain, and that’s exhausting.
And before you know it, you’ll have talked yourself right out of launching your new program, asking for a JV partnership, or writing your book. In no time at all, you’ll be back at your day job, working away on someone else’s business because you don’t have the confidence to create your own. But a simple mindset change can make all the difference. READ MORE: Uncover The Real-Life Copywriting Strategies That Can Turn Your Sales Pages And Content Marketing From “So-So” To Super! Dress for Success Ladies, this one is for you. When we work at home, it’s easy to fall into a habit of wearing sweatpants and T-shirts to the office. After all, why dress up just for the dog? But if you’re looking for a quick and easy way to instantly shift your mindset in the right direction, ditch the yoga pants and break out the lipstick. You’ll suddenly find you feel more professional, more confident, and sexier, too. (That last one won’t help your business, but it might just help your love life, and that can’t hurt, can it?) READ MORE: Uncover The Real-Life Copywriting Strategies That Can Turn Your Sales Pages And Content Marketing From “So-So” To Super! Never Let Fear Drive Your Decisions Too many would-be entrepreneurs operate with a scarcity mindset rather than approaching business from a place of abundance. Rather than telling yourself that you can’t afford to hire a virtual assistant or work with a coach, try reframing your thoughts. Rather than thinking, “I can’t afford to attend that event,” ask yourself, “How can I earn the money to invest in this trip?” READ MORE: Uncover The Real-Life Copywriting Strategies That Can Turn Your Sales Pages And Content Marketing From “So-So” To Super! Rather than saying, “I have to do everything myself because I can’t afford to hire a VA,” remind yourself that your hourly rate potential is much more than you’d pay a virtual assistant. Then fill those hours you’re saving by outsourcing with money-making tasks of your own. By reformatting your thoughts, you’ll turn that negative money talk into positive solutions that help you grow. To Your Success! Lindsey www.digital-duchess.com Uncover The Real-Life Copywriting Strategies That Can Turn Your Sales Pages And Content Marketing From “So-So” To Super!  When dealing with Facebook ads the terminology used can sometimes seem like a different language. Over time, countless acronyms and jargon terms have emerged and this can make it all a little hard to keep track of. LEARN MORE: FREE Course: How to Create the Business of Your Dreams Here is a handy guide to all of the most common terms that will hopefully make the Facebook Ads process a bit easier for you: PPC To begin with, what is PPC? Simply, this is ‘Pay Per Click’ and means that you’re only paying once an advert gets clicked. If your ad is ignored, then you don’t pay a penny. LEARN MORE: FREE Course: How to Create the Business of Your Dreams CPC CPC stands for ‘Cost Per Click’. The term can be used interchangeably with PPC, or it can be used to describe the actual amount that you’re paying for each individual click. CPM While Cost Per Click tells you how much you pay for each click, CPM tells you how much you are paying for your ads to get seen. Specifically, this means ‘Cost Per Impression’ but actually refers to the amount for every 1,000 impressions. You can choose to pay on a CPM basis rather than CPC on Facebook but it can also be a useful metric that shows the average amount you’re paying for your ads taking into account impressions and CTR. LEARN MORE: FREE Course: How to Create the Business of Your Dreams Impressions An impression is whenever your ad is shown on a page. CTR CTR is ‘click through rate’ and tells you how often your ads are getting clicked. Often, the higher your CTR the better – but only if those clicks are later leading to sales! LEARN MORE: FREE Course: How to Create the Business of Your Dreams CPA CPA is another method for pricing ads. This means ‘Cost Per Action’, which in turn means that you’re only paying each time someone takes a kind of action on your site. Action An action can be anything from buying a product, to liking a Facebook page, to signing up for a mailing list. A ‘Call to Action’ is a button that encourages said action. LEARN MORE: FREE Course: How to Create the Business of Your Dreams Remarketing Remarketing is a type of marketing where you’re targeting people who have previously been to your website. Targeting Targeting means that you’re approaching particular demographics for your ads and trying to avoid people who might be unlikely to buy from you. LEARN MORE: FREE Course: How to Create the Business of Your Dreams Maximum Bid This is the most you are willing to pay for each click on an advert. To Your Success! Lindsey www.digital-duchess.com FREE Course: How to Create the Business of Your Dreams  Your presence on social media is a great representation of your brand. Your blog attracts and engages with new audiences. Your email list keeps you connected with fans and followers. Each tool in your marketing toolkit has a job to do, but the one with the most power by far is your published book. LEARN MORE: How would you like me to manage your social media? Your name on the cover of a tangible, hold-it-in-your-hands, printed-on-paper book is the one thing that can take your coaching business from somewhat successful to rock star status. As an Author, You’re an Instant Expert Pay attention to the “experts” you see interviewed on morning news shows, talk shows, and on radio and podcasts. Notice anything? They’re almost always introduced as “The author of…” There’s a reason for that. Those who have the expertise to dig deep into a subject just so they can break it down in a way that others will understand clearly know their stuff. Books don’t just skim the surface of a subject. They follow the rabbit trails and make new connections and explore unknown corners. LEARN MORE: How would you like me to manage your social media? If you’ve written a book, you have almost certainly earned your “expert” status. Writers Are Committed and Driven Not only are authors seen as the experts in their field, but they’ve proven themselves to be more committed than most. Think about the time and energy and frustration that comes from writing 150 or 200 or even 300 pages of content about the same subject. Not only that, but those pages must flow together in a logical order, make sense out of difficult to grasp concepts, and be engaging, too. LEARN MORE: How would you like me to manage your social media? That’s a tall order, and for those who pull it off, the kudos are well deserved. When your book is published, you deserve to walk a bit taller and hold your head a bit straighter. But even if you don’t, others will see you through new eyes, simply because you’ve written a book. Books Offer a “Foot in the Door” When Nothing Else Will When it comes to publicity—be it in the form of interviews, speaking engagements, JV invitations, or just more traffic to your website—you really can’t do better than a book. Books open doors that no other content marketing tool can. LEARN MORE: How would you like me to manage your social media? Books get you noticed by top-tier influencers in your niche. Books make you a more memorable speaker. And believe it or not, self-published books even turn into traditional publishing contracts, and all the benefits that go along with it. LEARN MORE: How would you like me to manage your social media? With all the advantages that come with having written a book, what’s holding you back? No matter what your niche or who your market is, there’s room on the shelf for your unique insights. You owe it to your audience, and to your business to get that book published. To Your Success! Lindsey www.digital-duchess.com Would you like me to manage your social media?  Live streaming video is the hottest new thing for marketing your business but if you can’t get eyes on your video, it won’t work as well as it could. And let’s face it; traffic is the toughest nut to crack, no matter which technique you’re using. FREE COURSE: How to use Facebook Live to boost your brand and your profits Here’s how to easily draw a crowd to your next live video event: Promote Ahead of Time This is key. You have to build a buzz about your live video. While you can (and sometimes should) go live in an impromptu manner, this should be the exception, not the rule. A far better choice is to let your fans and followers know ahead of time that you’ll be hosting a live video, and how (and why) they should join you. Use the tools already at your disposal—your blog, your email list, your Facebook and LinkedIn groups, and your Twitter following—to make sure everyone knows when you’ll be on, and why they should be watching. And be sure to remind them as the day gets closer! FREE COURSE: How to use Facebook Live to boost your brand and your profits Offer a Giveaway Here’s one sure way to get fans to show up—offer something free. Checklists and worksheets are ideal if you’re teaching a strategy or technique. Readers can follow along, and refer back to it later as they work through your strategy. By delivering your gift via email autoresponder, you can take the opportunity to grow your mailing list as well. FREE COURSE: How to use Facebook Live to boost your brand and your profits Another great giveaway—especially if you’re launching a large course—is to offer a scholarship. Ask your applicants to write a blog post, record a video, or in some other way share why they want to take your course and how they’ll benefit from it, and then announce the winner via streaming video. Make a Big Reveal Send out a few “teaser” emails promising big news; post about it on your other social accounts; create a Facebook event and schedule paid ads to invite interested people. FREE COURSE: How to use Facebook Live to boost your brand and your profits Then use the live video to answer questions and announce your launch, perhaps with a special introductory or fast-action price. Cover a Controversial Topic We all have opinions, and not all of them are popular. That’s part of what sets you apart from your competitors, in fact. If you have strongly held opinions about your industry, or how a specific topic is being taught, video is a great place to make your point. FREE COURSE: How to use Facebook Live to boost your brand and your profits By taking to the airwaves with a live video and a controversial topic, you’ll instantly draw a crowd—half of which will agree with you, and half of which who will not. Imagine how lively the conversation will be! Just be sure to keep it respectful, and to not get your feelings hurt when someone disagrees with you (because they definitely will). Live video is definitely a marketing tool that belongs in every business owner’s toolbox. But using it without a plan to attract more eyes will be an exercise in frustration. Use these four strategies to get more people interested in your videos, and they’ll work far better for you and your business. FREE COURSE: How to use Facebook Live to boost your brand and your profits To Your Success! Lindsey www.digital-duchess.com FREE COURSE: How to use Facebook Live to boost your brand and your profits  Live video is undoubtedly the hottest new marketing tool to come along in a while. Apps such Facebook Live make it dead easy to anyone with a smart phone to grab their 15 minutes of fame. And if you’re consistent, personable, and have just a bit of luck, you might just find yourself with thousands of new fans and followers, all thanks to these short video events. LEARN MORE: Facebook Live- How to Build Your Brand, Grow Your Audience and Boost Your Profits But if you know anything at all about marketing, then you know the last thing you want to do is create a piece of content that has a limited lifespan. After all, once that 15- or 30-minute event is over, it’s gone, right? Wrong. Depending on the platform you’re using, there are plenty of ways you can leverage that video to continue to attract an audience for months or even years to come. Upload to YouTube The “big daddy” of video marketing, YouTube enjoys its status as the 2nd most searched website only—behind Google.com by only a slim margin. Well-optimised videos can attract thousands or even millions of views, and help drive traffic to your website, your blog, your product pages, or even the landing page of your choice. LEARN MORE: Facebook Live- How to Build Your Brand, Grow Your Audience and Boost Your Profits Don’t miss the opportunity to profit again and again from the effort you put into creating video. Be sure to upload it to YouTube and:
That’s it! Add this to your workflow for each of your live videos, and you’ll quickly build up a library of YouTube videos that drive traffic to your offers every day. Post to Your Blog Sometimes you want to take the conversation out of Facebook and interact on your website. LEARN MORE: Facebook Live- How to Build Your Brand, Grow Your Audience and Boost Your Profits Adding recordings of your live videos allows you to:
Share With Your Partners & Colleagues Just as video works well for your sales efforts, so to does it work for your affiliates and JV partners. Consider offering replays of your better videos for affiliates to use in their own blog posts, on social media, and anywhere else they’re promoting your offers. It will help their audience get to know you better, and give them a sense of your personality and style before they invest in your products or services. LEARN MORE: Facebook Live- How to Build Your Brand, Grow Your Audience and Boost Your Profits No piece of content—whether written, pre-recorded, or live—should ever suffer the fate of being used only one time. Put all your content to work in multiple locations, and watch your influence—and your profits—soar. To Your Success! Lindsey www.digital-duchess.com LEARN MORE: Facebook Live- How to Build Your Brand, Grow Your Audience and Boost Your Profits  It’s a rare person who loves public speaking or appearing on video. If that’s you, you can stop reading right now. But if you’re among the (much larger) crowd who suffers sweaty palms, racing heart, and uncontrolled butterflies—and you’re letting these get in the way of your video marketing dreams—then read on. FREE COURSE: How to use Facebook Live to boost your brand and your profits Here’s the thing: We all get nervous. Even those who love public speaking and appear so natural on video are often shaking on the inside. They’ve just found a way to deal with their fear and make it work for them. Practice Makes Perfect The first time you do anything, you’re likely to be nervous—especially if it’s a public performance. The only way to lessen the fear is to do it. And do it again. And again. And again. FREE COURSE: How to use Facebook Live to boost your brand and your profits That means not only should you practice your webinar or speech ahead of time, but you should also take to the stage—whether virtual or real—as often as you possibly can. Don’t pass up any opportunity to appear on video, on podcasts, in a webinar or on the stage. And if you need a place to practice in a judgment-free zone, consider joining a group such as Toastmasters, where you can work to reduce your nervousness in front of a live audience. FREE COURSE: How to use Facebook Live to boost your brand and your profits No Pressure Sometimes, the worst judgment comes from our own head. Don’t let that voice lie to you, though. There really is no need to pressure yourself to perform, or to be perfect, and there’s certainly no need to berate yourself for all those small mistakes you make. Instead, acknowledge that no one is perfect, that you’re doing your best, and that you’re improving with each and every event—because you almost certainly are! Be nice to yourself, and recognise that there really is no need for perfection. FREE COURSE: How to use Facebook Live to boost your brand and your profits Just Be Yourself Here’s the biggest hurdle we can face: trying to be someone we are not. We see professional news anchors, actors, and others who appear poised and polished on every video clip, and we think that’s how we have to appear. FREE COURSE: How to use Facebook Live to boost your brand and your profits That’s simply not true. Your audience wants to get to know you better, not the person you think you should be. So be your fun-loving, mistake-making, self-forgiving self. It will resonate so much better with your audience that everything else will be easier as a result. To Your Success! Lindsey www.digital-duchess.com FREE COURSE: How to use Facebook Live to boost your brand and your profits  Facebook Live video is clearly the hottest marketing tool to use at the moment and business owners in every niche are taking advantage by hosting their own events. FREE course: How to use Facebook Live to build your business and boost your profits Some of them are good. They’re well attended, fun to watch, and you feel like you benefited from attending. But some of them feel like they’re an afterthought, put together at the last minute, and don’t really bring out the best in the host. If you’re thinking of hosting a live video event, you don’t want to fall into that latter group! Here’s how to avoid it. FREE course: How to use Facebook Live to build your business and boost your profits Promote, Promote, Promote A Facebook live video event is just a few clicks away. You can literally plan and host a video in just a few minutes, and an impromptu event can be fun. But with a little planning, you’ll have a much better turnout. And that planning must include promotion. Let your private groups know about upcoming events. Email your list. Post a blog. Even consider running paid ads for your upcoming video event if there’s the potential to grow your list or increase your sales. FREE course: How to use Facebook Live to build your business and boost your profits In short, don’t just throw a party without extending invitations to your friends! Interact with Your Audience One of the biggest draws of a live video event is the opportunity to interact with the host. Your viewers want to get to know you better. They want to chat with the other participants. They may have questions to ask. Don’t make the mistake of ignoring them. To do so is to say, “You’re not important to me.” FREE course: How to use Facebook Live to build your business and boost your profits Instead, take the time to chat up the audience, acknowledge their presence, and answer their questions. Even if it takes you out of the flow and you lose your place momentarily, it’s worth it to make viewers feel respected and as if they’re a part of the event rather than just a passive viewer. Remember to check the comments later, too. If your video is available for viewing after the live event is over, encourage the conversation in the comments. Nobody is Perfect Here’s what you don’t need to worry about when it comes to live video: Perfection. FREE course: How to use Facebook Live to build your business and boost your profits No one expects you to look like a cover model or to speak like a news anchor. In fact, if you do look that perfect, it might actually negatively impact your results, simply because your audience loves to feel connected to you. They know they aren’t perfect, and if you can show off your imperfections, it will help create a stronger connection. To your success! Lindsey www.digital-duchess.com FREE course: How to use Facebook Live to build your business and boost your profits  If you’ve ever looked at another entrepreneur and wondered how they manage to get it all done, the answer might surprise you. They have got good systems. It’s true. The most productive people all have one thing in common: they don’t reinvent the wheel every day. Instead, they’ve figured out the best, most efficient way to do every task, and they create a system to do just that. READ MORE: 17 done-for-you forms you can use right away No matter what business you’re in and what projects you find yourself tackling, a systemised approach will help you:
The Magic of Templates How many times do you answer email from potential clients? What about responding to customer complaints? Or mailing your JV partners about an upcoming launch? READ MORE: 17 done-for-you forms you can use right away All of these tasks and more become effortless when you create fill-in-the-blank templates that can be re-purposed for specific cases/people. Templates can be as simple as a “canned response” in your email client or help desk, or you can use software such as Text Expander (for Mac) or Phrase Express (for Windows). You might even create a template document in Dropbox or Google Drive to house all your templates for easier access. While templates will undoubtedly save you time, the real beauty is that once they’re created, you can easily outsource things like email and even sales. Simply instruct your assistant on the proper use of your templates, and you’ll be free to do other, more important things. READ MORE: 17 done-for-you forms you can use right away Checklists Prevent Mistakes It might seem counter-intuitive, but when you perform the same tasks over and over again, it’s easy to miss a critical step. You might think you paid your affiliates this month—you might even remember doing it—only to look back and see it was never completed. But when you implement checklists, it’s suddenly much more difficult to miss an important task. READ MORE: 17 done-for-you forms you can use right away You can easily create checklists for all your common tasks and projects using nothing more than a text document. If you’re managing a team, checklists in your project management system allow you to see exactly what tasks are complete, and which are still outstanding. Templates and checklists turn smart business owners into productivity superstars, and it’s easy to get started. The next time you answer an email you’ve answered before, save your response. The next time you set up a new product in your shopping cart or create a new opt-in page, take the time to record the steps. These documents will make future projects easier and faster to complete, and best of all, you can hand them off to your assistant to do instead. READ MORE: 17 done-for-you forms you can use right away To Your Success! Lindsey x www.digital-duchess.com   As any smart business owner knows, the key to passive income is a well-established (and full) funnel. So of course you’ve optimised your opt-in pages and monetized your download pages and encourage more buyers through well-placed upsells and downsells. READ MORE: Email Marketing: From Hot Mess to Mega Success in 7 Days But what about the follow-up? Do you contact customers about the products or services they didn’t buy? Do you encourage them to use the products they have purchased? Are you making sure they know about all your other wonderful programs? If not, you’re missing the boat. But the good news is, this can be easily managed with just a bit of simple automation, and when done right, it will smoothly lead your customers from one purchase to the next, at the exact right time for them to take advantage of your best offers. READ MORE: Email Marketing: From Hot Mess to Mega Success in 7 Days Segment Your Audience Many autoresponder services allow you to target emails based on reader action. Want to sent a follow up email to those who clicked a specific link? Create a segment and mail away. Want to re-engage with those who haven’t opened your emails in a while? Easy to do, and you can potentially recover subscribers who have gone missing. In more sophisticated systems, such as Infusionsoft or Ontraport, you can dig even deeper, and move people from one series to another based on their buying habits. That way you’ll never promote a product a reader already owns. Not only that, but you’ll always be able to offer the very best next thing, no matter where a subscriber is in your funnel. READ MORE: Email Marketing: From Hot Mess to Mega Success in 7 Days Still another way to segment your list is according to what they do not buy. If a subscriber has been on a list where you’re promoting your top-level coaching program, and they have not yet purchased, it may simply be too expensive for them at this time. Consider moving these readers to an autoresponder series promoting a lower cost option instead. All of these tactics require that you know your audience and your products exceptionally well. Study your stats. Know your open and click rates. Pay attention to the promotions that work, as well as those that fall flat. With information in hand, you’ll be better able to effectively segment your lists and make the most of all the parts of your funnel. READ MORE: Email Marketing: From Hot Mess to Mega Success in 7 Days To your success! Lindsey xx www.digital-duchess.com   How compelling is it when you see this on a sales page? “Peek over my shoulder while I…” It doesn’t matter if the seller is demonstrating how to bake a cake or how to build a website, we want to see. There’s just something intriguing about the opportunity to see an expert do what they do best. And that’s just what makes these types of products best sellers in nearly every niche. READ MORE: Need help with your presentation or speech? We want our methods justified. We very likely already perform the tasks this “over the shoulder” product teaches, but we question if we’re doing it the best, most efficient way. Is there a newer method that works better? Is there a less expensive or time consuming technique? Or do we know a better way (that feeling of smugness is its own reward)? By purchasing the products that show us exactly how others work, we’re finding out how we can work better, while still building up our confidence. READ MORE: Need help with your presentation or speech? We want the tried-and-true approach. When we’re just starting out (or even if we’re not) it can be helpful to cut through all the trial and error and get right to what works. After all, if you can skip the months and months of learning—not to mention the expense—why wouldn’t you? If you trust that the seller really does have it all figured out, purchasing the over-the-shoulder training can be a great shortcut, and you can always refine the methods as you go. READ MORE: Need help with your presentation or speech? We want to know the “secrets” of the pros. Occasionally, we fall into the trap of thinking that there must be a “secret.” If only we had the right template, we’d finally be able to write that novel. If only we had the right interview questions, we’d finally be able to find a VA. If only we had the right dating profile checklist, we’d finally get a date. Of course, there’s more to success in any niche than a checklist or template, but when we can dig into what is proven to work for others, it gives us that boost of confidence we need to continue moving forward. READ MORE: Need help with your presentation or speech? So next time you see a product or program that offers to share an expert’s proven system, ask yourself why it seems so compelling to you. What’s triggering your interest? Chances are, it’s one (or more) of these reasons. To your success! Lindsey xx www.digital-duchess.com   What Is The Ideal Length of Your Content On Social Media Platforms? How long should a Twitter post be? Well, how long is a piece of string? In reality the 'ideal length' of any content is likely to vary depending on your niche/industry, your target demographic and the intent of said post. That said though, statistically speaking there are some useful guidelines to keep in mind when deciding how long to make any given post. Here we will look at what has been shown to be most successful across a variety of platforms… On Twitter the ideal length for a post is apparently 100 characters. This is according to Twitter's own 'best practices' guidelines where they state that tweets of 100 characters or less enjoy 17% higher engagement. That's not an insignificant stat… so keep it short and Tweet! READ MORE: 50 things to blog about Research though only somewhat supports this claim, finding that retweets peak for Tweets of 100 characters while longer ones do better than shorter ones. It seems that 100 is definitely the Tweet spot (sorry). It seems that brevity is also preferred on Facebook where 40 characters and less seem to do best. Jeff Bullas conducted a study on retail brands on Facebook and found that short posts and particularly those below 40 characters would receive 86% higher engagement. READ MORE: 50 things to blog about Many more studies have similarly supported the idea that shorter-does-better on Facebook. The point to remember is that people are in a rush. All the time. And especially on social media. If your content is really long, chances are they won't read the whole thing. Google+ On Google+ your headline should be less than 60 characters. This doesn't only maximize the impact in terms of content but also the readability and appearance due to the way that Google+ works. If your content is too long then it will be truncated or it will appear on multiple lines. READ MORE: 50 things to blog about That said, there is value to the longer headline seeing as it can be more enticing as click-bait. Find balance and experiment with both for your business. Note that your first sentence will also often show on Google+ and you can definitely use this to your advantage in piquing curiosity. Blog Posts While it's not social media, chances are that you'll be integrating your social media strategy with content marketing… So how long should a blog post be? READ MORE: 50 things to blog about Research shows that a blog that gets the most attention is 1,600 words, taking the average reader 7 minutes to read. It seems that a little more depth is actually a good thing at this point! However, blogs that are 300-500 words long also have their place and they are my preferred length. To Your Success! Lindsey www.digital-ducess.com   As a Digital Marketing coach, it can be difficult to watch the lack of progress of so many promising entrepreneurs and coaches. They’ve dreamed for so long about creating a solid, sustainable business, and yet, all they do is dream.
You know the people I’m talking about. They attend conferences, sign up for free webinars, buy paid training, and sometimes even work with a coach or two. And yet week after week, month after month, year after year, they fail to make any progress toward their dreams. READ MORE: Here is the secret to more business, more profits and more free time Are they just lazy? No. It’s something worse. They don’t know how to move from a dream to a plan, and they’re stuck. Start With the Long-Term If you’ve ever been on a job interview and were asked, “Where do you want to be five years from now,” you might have thought it an odd question. But as a business owner, that might just be the most important consideration you can have. READ MORE: Here is the secret to more business, more profits and more free time Without knowing where you’re headed in the long term, it’s impossible to create a map to get there. You need to know what your destination is, so that every day, week, month, and year you can check your progress to be sure you’re still headed in the right direction. Create Milestones Once you know your ultimate destination, you can draft a plan for getting there, and create the interim goals that will help you stay on track. READ MORE: Here is the secret to more business, more profits and more free time For example, if in five years you want to be free to travel for 8 weeks every year, then you need to have a few pieces in place before that can happen:
Create Small Goals If you say to someone, you need to move from $60,000/ £45,000 to $150,000/ £113,000 in five years, that’s a pretty overwhelming task. After all, it’s a $90,000/ £68,000 increase, and most people will look at that and immediately dismiss it as impossible. READ MORE: Here is the secret to more business, more profits and more free time But when you break it down as we have above, and then again into smaller steps, it suddenly doesn’t look so daunting. In the first year of the plan we have outlined here, your income needs to increase only by $10,000/ £7500. That’s less than $1000/ £750 per month! Surely that’s easy enough to accomplish! You can further break that down by week: $1000/ £750 per month is just $250/ £189 per week. If you sell just one more group coaching package, or five more of a $50/ £37 training program, you’ve already reached your milestone. READ MORE: Here is the secret to more business, more profits and more free time That might mean sending one more email to your list, or investing an additional $20/ £15 per month in Facebook ads, or perhaps reaching out to one more JV partner. The point is, reaching this much smaller goal is far easier than thinking about that five-year plan. So what’s your big dream? How can you deconstruct it into achievable milestones, workable goals, and finally, daily and weekly tasks? If you can do this (and you definitely can) then you can achieve anything in business and in life. To your success! Lindsey www.digital-duchess.com  It’s not enough to dream of success. It’s not even enough to set goals. The only way to truly achieve your dreams and build the business you’re meant to build is to sit down and just do it. And that’s where many of us…well, fail is a strong word. But it’s the doing that trips us up more times than not. READ MORE: More Important Than Money: Understanding Why You Really Do What You Do We overbook our calendars until today’s to-dos become next week’s past dues. We procrastinate on the things that are important while attending to things that are merely “nice to do.” And sometimes we simply take on too much—even when we know better. The answer? Embrace these five productivity hacks that top entrepreneurs use to get more done in less time. Rituals and Habits: Simply put, a ritual or habit is a consistent way of doing something. You have a morning ritual (wake up, brush your teeth, work out, shower, and head to your office), evening ritual (check homework, tuck the kids in, watch the evening news, and hit the sack), weekend ritual (sleep late, mow the lawn, catch a movie, visit your mom), and many others. READ MORE: More Important Than Money: Understanding Why You Really Do What You Do The trouble is, if you’re not careful with your rituals, they can turn into productivity killers. Is checking Facebook or email a part of your morning ritual? Is turning on Skype a part of your at work ritual? Distractions such as these can turn even your best intentions into hours of wasted time. Take a good look at your rituals. What are you doing that you should not be—or that should be moved to another part of your day? Make your rituals more efficient, and you’ll automatically get more done. Calendar Management: Want to know how much time you really have available for that new project? Try blocking off time in your calendar for all your existing projects. Fill in all your client calls, your business administrative tasks, time for meals and breaks, outside appointments, and everything else you’re committed to. What’s left might just shock you. READ MORE: More Important Than Money: Understanding Why You Really Do What You Do Make it a habit to block time in your calendar for every commitment, and you’ll never again over-promise or over-commit. Learn to Let Go: Here’s a news flash. You do not have to do everything in your business. You can (and should) hand off those low-level tasks to someone else. Hire a VA to create your documents and manage your calendar. Let your tech support person manage your blog and email. Turn over your bookkeeping to an accountant. The time you free up will allow you to work on what’s truly important—and that only you can do. Work Hard, Play Harder: You are not a machine. You cannot work all day every day and hope to be at your best all the time. READ MORE: More Important Than Money: Understanding Why You Really Do What You Do Take a day off. Get some rest, or relax on a long, slow hike. Take a friend out to lunch. Go shopping with your kids. See a movie or a play. Do something—anything—other than work. Not only will you return to the office feeling much more refreshed, but you’ll find yourself more creative and productive than before as well. Focus: Multi-tasking is impossible. You cannot efficiently create a new Online program while you’re simultaneously surfing Facebook, keeping an eye on the kids, and answering the phone every time it rings. Instead, use your calendar to block time off for important tasks, then turn everything else off so you can focus. No phone, no Facebook, no kids or husbands or neighbors or pets demanding “just a minute” of your time. Tune everything out, and you’ll find your work getting done much faster. Managing your time and turning up your productivity is not something that comes naturally to most people, but when you learn to master this skill, you’ll find your business grows right along with you. READ MORE: More Important Than Money: Understanding Why You Really Do What You Do To your success! Lindsey www.digital-duchess.com   Imagine you had a client who consistently failed to complete their tasks for the week.
They couldn’t find the time to get their email opt-in page completed. They were too busy to write the next chapter of their book. They were working too hard and completely forgot to put together their webinar presentation. READ MORE: Beyond SMART: Goal Setting for Entrepreneurs It wouldn’t take long before you sat them down for a serious talk about the future of you relationship—and their business. A client such as that is a frustrating waste of time. Why, then, do you continue to accept these and other excuses from yourself? Why is your lack of business development allowed to continue, even when you know how important those tasks are to your future growth? Now, before you go thinking I’m being way too hard on you, know this: we all struggle with this very issue. We all put our clients, our family, our friends, and even the neighbour we barely know before ourselves. READ MORE: Beyond SMART: Goal Setting for Entrepreneurs But I’m giving you permission right now to stop doing that, and start treating yourself as the VIP you really are. It’s time to put your business growth ahead of that of your clients. Only by doing that will you be able to reach a larger audience, help more people, and achieve the goals you’ve set for yourself. The simplest way to do this is to just make appointments with yourself. That hour or two you have free on Thursday afternoon? Don’t book a client call in that spot. Book yourself. Mark it on your calendar, and treat it as an unbreakable appointment, just as you would an appointment with a client or your doctor or your accountant. READ MORE: Beyond SMART: Goal Setting for Entrepreneurs Spend the time working on the things that are important to the continued growth of your business.
To your Success! Lindsey www.digital-duchess.com  What do super-successful coaches and small business owners all have in common? It’s not experience. It’s not extraordinary skills. It’s not even a powerful drive. Although all of these things can definitely help your business grow, they’re not a prerequisite for success. After all, no one is born with experience or skills, and plenty of successful people lack drive. READ MORE: Here is the secret to more business, more profits and more free time The one thing that does make a difference, though, is your “why.” Why did you decide to become an entrepreneur? Why do you spend too many hours in front of your computer every week? Why do you stay up too late and get up too early, just so you can work on growing your business? The “why” is what ultimately drives us to success, but here’s the thing: it’s different for everyone. Your why is not my why, and my why is not her why. It’s a deeply personal choice that can have great meaning…or not. For example, a survivor of domestic abuse might happily spend 60 or 70 hours each and every week mentoring other victims of abuse, or counseling couples on how to break the cycle. Her big why is a strong desire to prevent other women from suffering in the same way she did. READ MORE: Here is the secret to more business, more profits and more free time A mother of small children may be saddened at the thought of sending her kids to daycare just so she can go to work to (barely) pay for it. Her big why is a drive to spend as much time with her kids as she can, while still supporting her family. A young, fresh out of school entrepreneur might resist taking the same path their parents took, working for a corporation for 40 years, only to retire and find themselves with barely enough to live on. Instead, they dream of having the income (and the time) to see the world while they are still young enough to enjoy it. So what’s your big “why”? It might be the freedom to travel, the option to spend time with your family, the ability to take weeks off at a time, or even to earn enough money to support a charity that’s close to your heart. READ MORE: Here is the secret to more business, more profits and more free time Whatever it is, your “why” is the driving force behind every action you take. When you’re deciding whether or not to take on a new client, ask yourself if it’s aligned with your “why.” When you’re setting goals for the year, ask yourself if those goals are moving you closer or further from your big why. Thinking of branching out into a new business venture? Make sure it’s in alignment with your big why, and success is suddenly much more attainable. To your success! Lindsey www.digital-duchess.com Check out my Freedom Academy- Click my pic  If there’s one thing we know about goals, they have to be SMART, right? After all, that’s what we’ve been told for years. The only thing that matters is that your goals are specific, measureable, attainable, realistic and timely. While that looks great on paper—and clearly it’s easy to remember—it doesn’t go far enough for those who want to achieve big things. READ MORE: FREE Checklist- Never be Stuck for Blog Ideas Again Think about it. Do you want to be stuck with “attainable” and “realistic” goals when what you really dream about is a 3-day workweek, frequent international travel, and enough money to fund a mission trip (or three). Seems pretty clear that those safe, smart goals aren’t going to get you there. In fact, they might even do worse than simply “not get you there.” They may actively hold you back. Consider what happens when you set an “attainable” goal of earning 10% more than you did last year. You might work 10% more. You might spend 10% more on ads or product creation. You might even reach out to 10% more potential clients. READ MORE: FREE Checklist- Never be Stuck for Blog Ideas Again And you’ll likely earn about 10% more. “Not bad!” you say. After all, that was your goal. But did that 10% goal inspire you to work harder? Or did it create a subconscious ceiling on your earning potential that you’re unable to break through? Rather than focusing on goals that are attainable and realistic, savvy entrepreneurs know that the key to incredible success lies in creating lofty goals that feel out of reach—maybe even UN-attainable. READ MORE: FREE Checklist- Never be Stuck for Blog Ideas Again They don’t strive to earn 10% more than last year. They want 50% or even 100% more. They stretch themselves. They find new—and better—ways to do things, so they don’t have to work twice as hard, but they remain open to the possibility of doing so—at least in the short term—when it’s necessary. Of course, you cannot simply declare crazy goals and expect the universe to hand them to you. And that’s exactly why putting aside those smart goals is so…smart. When you shun the attainable in favor of the “holy cow, how will I ever do THAT?” goal, you push yourself beyond those self-imposed limits and reach for the stars. READ MORE: FREE Checklist- Never be Stuck for Blog Ideas Again Sure, you might not double your income, but you’re almost guaranteed to do better than a mere 10% increase. So push your boundaries. Set big, audacious goals. Even if you fail, you’ll be much further ahead than those smart goals would leave you. To your success! Lindsey www.digital-duchess.com FREE Checklist- Never be Stuck for Blog Ideas Again  We’ve all seen those old-style sales pages filled with yellow highlights and screaming red text and lots of “BUY NOW” buttons, and when we think of copywriting, that’s often what comes to mind. While that style of sales page can be effective, it’s not the only way to make sales. READ MORE: Check out the Digital Duchess Freedom Academy In fact, by taking a more subtle approach, you might even find that you generate more interest—and potentially more sales. Stories Sell One effective way to entice readers to click through to your sales page is with stories. These can be your stories or those of other people, with the goal of helping your readers to see themselves in the same situation. Did you help a client turn their chaotic household into a calm oasis with better organizational skills? Their story on your sales page will get more clicks than all the yellow highlight you can buy. READ MORE: Check out the Digital Duchess Freedom Academy What about that time you trashed your entire business plan and started over because you simply weren’t passionate about your work? Your potential business coaching clients will be anxious to learn more, and will click through without you even asking. That’s the power of stories, and you can use them everywhere: in your blog posts, in your emails, on your sales pages, and even in videos and on social media. Be Genuinely Helpful Want to build a reputation as the go-to person in your niche? All it takes is to help people. Answer questions on social media, volunteer to speak to groups who need your advice, write blog posts that address the most common issues your readers face. READ MORE: Check out the Digital Duchess Freedom Academy By volunteering your time and knowledge, you’ll attract a wide audience of potential customers who may need your services in the future. Who will they turn to? That very helpful person who went out of her way to offer assistance in the past. Now we’re not saying you have to give away all your time, but if you really want to show off your expertise, you can’t do better than a little volunteer work. Not only will you make an impression with the person you help. But chances are good she’ll share with her friends as well, further expanding your audience. Of course this doesn’t mean that there is no place in your business for a strong call to action. “Click here to buy” and “Learn more right now” are still useful (and even necessary) on sales and opt-in pages. The key is to know when to make a subtle offer, and when to offer a bit more hand holding. To your success! Lindsey www.digital-duchess.com Check out the Digital Duchess Freedom Academy Do you want a lifestyle friendly business? Learn more here! |
AuthorLindsey Archibald is a Journalist, Broadcaster, Digital Marketer, Author and Business Coach. Archives
February 2017
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