Is Your Business Organized For Profits?

July 2, 2016 By Leave a Comment

I’ll admit it, I’m a bit of a neat freak. Personally, I know it makes me feel calmer and more clear headed when I walk into a space that’s clean and tidy. There is also a lot of research to back up the physical and psychological benefits of keeping things organized.

Here are just a few…

You reduce stress.
You are happier.
You eat better.
You have better relationships.
You are more productive.
You sleep better.
You even reduce your risk of heart attack!

However, there are also important financial reasons to being organized, especially in your business.

When you have systems and structures in place, you create space, ease and flow for money to come into your life.

Think about the physical space of your office. If it’s a mess, your mind is distracted every time your eyes fall on something that isn’t pertinent to your priorities. Distraction equals lost time, mental focus and creativity. How are you going to create the next amazing project if every time you walk in your office, you see piles of unfinished tasks.

If you work online to any degree and even if you don’t, you also have to think about the flow of your business model. Is it organized for profit?

If you don’t have a very clear sense of how your business model should be set up, it is a lot harder to bring in and keep money flowing through your business. Whether you call it a funnel, a pyramid, a money mountain or anything else, you need to know where and how to funnel leads and clients through your processes. If you don’t, you are leaving money on the table.

When you are just starting out, your business model will be simpler and in some ways, that’s a very good thing. Having fewer options makes it easier for you to get very skilled at selling the offerings you do have. However, as your grow, you’ll want to develop a more robust menu of products and services, not only because it will allow you to express your genius and creativity, but because it will also allow you to bring in and keep more clients.

However, more options requires more clarity. You need to know how the pieces fit together and the flow of your funnel. Doing so will make you life so much easier for you and provide more value to your clients.

Here are few things to think about to set yourself up for maximum profits:

1. How/where do the majority of leads come into my funnel?
2. Do I have enough options to sell different levels of clients into my programs?
3. Do I know how to present my offers in creative ways without lowering prices?
4. Do I have up-sells and down-sells ready for sales calls?
5. Do I have lateral options available that might be attractive to current clients?
6. Do I know the best logical order to move clients through my model?
7. Do I know how to bundle services to give juicy sales incentives?

Building business models can be very overwhelming, but once you get the hang of it, things get really, really fun. Suddenly, you feel more confident and grounded in your business. You recognize who is right fit for you much more quickly and sales calls get a heck of a lot easier.

What I know for sure is no model=no money. It is so worth the time to get organized in this part of your business. I can’t promise it will prevent a heart attack, but it just might. After all, what is a better stress reliever than knowing your profit house is order?

If you’d like to know more about how you can maximize your business model for profit, apply for a free strategy session here=>Session Application

Until next time, here’s to hitting all your notes!

Filed Under: Brand Building, Business Building Strategies, Careful Packaging, Increasing profits, Running a successful business, Success Strategies, Winning Strategies Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

The Hills Are Alive With The Sound Of Money

November 29, 2014 By Leave a Comment

Last weekend I went to a fabulous children’s production of the Sound of Music in my town. The costumes and sets were great and the kids sang their little hearts out.

As a mom and a community member I really enjoyed the show. However, as a singer with a critical ear, I also thought there were some really talented kids up on stage, in particular the girl who played Maria. Her voice was clear and had a pretty, youthful vibrato. And the ease with which she played her character really impressed me. I thought she could actually make a go of it on Broadway someday if she worked hard.

Of course, very few people ever make it on Broadway, and a lot of musical hearts have been broken trying, but there is so much to be gained from learning how to perform on stage, not the least of which is MONEY!  I’m not talking about getting paid to sing, although that is lovely, I’m talking about the ROI you get in your non-musical career from learning how to get comfortable in front an audience.

After all, what is marketing? It’s performing. It’s presenting yourself to the world, telling your story, trying to connect with and engage people. Unfortunately, it’s an area with which a lot entrepreneurs struggle.

When I was first thinking about transitioning from singing to business, I had real self-doubt about my value. What could I possibly offer that would be helpful to entrepreneurs? I had been a singer and performer all my life and now I wanted to help people grow their business. How on earth was I going to do that???! I was going to have to start my career all over from scratch.

What I didn’t realize then that I do now is what I know as a performer is one of the biggest assets anyone can have to create a lucrative business. So often entrepreneurs get caught up the “business” part of business they neglect the softer parts which is a huge mistake. You can create the best product out there, but if you can’t sell it, you have zero profit.

I see it all the time, smart, talented entrepreneurs who lack the poise, sophistication and CONFIDENCE to communicate their true value. They are leaving money on the table! It so frustrating to witness. I’ve met 7-figure business owner who could easily be 8 or 9 figure business owners if they were just more polished.

Put yourself in the shoes of your buyer for a moment. They want to feel like they are investing in something valuable, something special. If they are going to plop down $100,000 to work with you, they have to feel like you’re worth it! They want to feel led and secure their needs will be met. If you do not come across as a confident, skilled, savvy leader, they are not going to feel confident or excited about jumping into bed with you.

So think about how you are showing up. Do you sound confident when you are speaking? Do you know what to say and how to say it to sound compelling? Do you look confident? What does your body language say? How clear are you on your message? How skilled are you at delivering that message? Do you get nervous speaking in front of crowds? How about speaking one-on-one in high-end sales calls? How do you perform on camera?

All of those things matter. Often you only have one shot at a new client or big opportunity. Don’t think for a second people aren’t checking you out. If you want to speak on big platforms or have access to high net worth circles, you’ve got to show up as a player who can sing! Otherwise, you are just one click away from becoming irrelevant.

If you think you might be leaving big money on the table because your performance chops aren’t up to snuff, I invite you to apply for a Complimentary Consultation with me to get you stage ready in no time by CLICKING HERE: http://bit.ly/1G9OUNW

Until next time, here’s to hitting all your high-notes!

x0

Heather

 

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , ,

What are you waiting for?

July 24, 2014 By Leave a Comment

When I was a kid, my mom had this very cool pink pajama set. It had palazzo bottoms and a filmy top a la “I dream of Jeannie.” You can imagine,  as a girlie girl, I used to love putting that thing on and playing all kinds of make-believe. Even though it wasn’t something my mom really ever wore, I still always had to ask permission to play with it.

Because it wasn’t something I could grab on a whim, I would covet that pinkalicious guise. It would make me sad or even angry that my mom was keeping it from me. After all, if she knew how wonderful it made me feel, why wouldn’t she just give it to me? I guess maybe she imagined wearing it to some cool retro pool party in them there hills of northern Wisconsin.

Don’t you just hate it when you have to wait for what you want? Or worse yet, when you have to ask someone one else to give you something you crave? I know, I sure do. I hate it. I hate the feeling of being at the mercy of someone else’s judgment.

As kids, we need to have our parents monitor our decisions. Believe me, I have three kids and the words “You need to ask permission first.” have passed my lips many, many times. For example, “You have to ask permission before you use my Channel lipstick to paint flames on your face for action figure day at camp.”

Most of the time when I require my kids to ask permission for something it is to keep them safe. I wouldn’t want them going off where I didn’t know where they were or using a really sharp knife and risk cutting themselves. It’s all well-intentioned, but here’s the thing. Kids need that kind of supervision , adults don’t.  However, as adults most of us are are still waiting for others to give us permission to do and have what we want.

For entrepreneurs all this waiting can be deadly. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Life Lessons, Risk Taking, Success Strategies, Winning Strategies Tagged With: , , , ,

Are Sales Slipping Through Your Fingers?

May 25, 2014 By Leave a Comment

There is one pretty clear rule in business, no sales equals no money. Ugg. Wouldn’t it be great if clients would just enroll themselves? You wouldn’t have to do those uncomfortable sales calls.

Making sales calls is something a lot of entrepreneurs dread. In fact, a lot of entrepreneurs actually avoid making them which is a shame because by doing so they are leaving money on the table. I have to admit I used to be one of those people. The idea of picking up the phone to ask someone for egads, money, made my palms sweats. What was that rule again? Ah, yes, no sales=no money.

There you have it, sales calls have to be done.

But why does it seems so scary?

A lot of it is wrapped up in self-worth. Have you ever had this thought “Who am I to ask for so much money?” Maybe you’ve never had that exact thought, but there are other gems we tell ourselves. Here are some you may recognize:

-I don’t want to be seen as greedy.
-I I don’t want to seem stuck-up.
-I really am asking a lot of money for what I’m offering.
-I don’t want to bother/annoy/pester anyone.
-I don’t want to be perceived as one of those sleazy, high-pressure sales people.
-This person seems so nice, I’m just going to charge them _____ instead of my full price.
-I don’t want the other person to get mad or be offended by my prices.
-What if they don’t have the money, I don’t want to put anyone out.

We all struggle with limiting beliefs when faced with potential rejection, but we have a choice. We can either succumb and suffer the consequence, or we can learn to shift our mindset so we get get what we want. 

Here are a few tips to make your sales calls go from fearful to fruitful: [Read more…]

Filed Under: Increasing profits, Sales Tagged With: , , , , ,