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How to Overcome the 4 Most Common Struggles of Every Entrepreneur

4 Most Common Struggles of EntrepreneursWhile the message and the market of your business may be different, there are some stumbling blocks that seem to pop up for even the seasoned entrepreneur.

Here are four of the ones that I frequently coach on with my private clients:

1. Not moving ahead even when they know what to do.

Almost always, this is a fear-based immobility. Whether it’s fear of failure or fear of success (the later seems more prevalent for entrepreneurs, including myself).

We come up with all kinds of excuses as to why something isn’t getting done, but most often it has nothing to do with anything other than fear of the possible result of moving forward.

If you’re afraid of failing, remember that in our online world, we get to test things out with very little risk. My favorite strategy is to ‘fail fast’. Put it out there, see what happens, tweak until you get the result you want.

If you’re afraid of success, then you need to take a look at your Big Money Why (BMW – see #4) to see how you can make it more powerful and motivating (tip: money is never enough of a motivator, believe it or not). And you need to put a process in place for how you will handle the abundance that’s to come.

2. Being self-disciplined enough to make and stick to self-imposed deadlines.

The wonderful thing about being an entrepreneur is that you’re your own boss. The tricky thing about that is most, if not all, of our deadlines are self-imposed. Which makes them very easy to move, doesn’t it? I know because I’ve struggled with this one more than once.

If we go back to knowing what your emotionally driven motivator is for the success you desire, you’ll be more likely to stick to those self-imposed deadlines – but only if that BMW is strong enough.

Here’s a simple but very powerful tip for you in sticking to your own deadlines: Make them public. When I launched my first info-product, I told my ezine list that they would be able to buy it on a certain date, which gave me about 3 weeks to get it done. And done it was.

3. Claiming leadership status and fully stepping into the role of the CEO of your business.

Once an entrepreneur gets the foundational pieces in place for their business, it’s actually easy to stay in the start-up phase, because it’s comfortable. And because often they don’t know what the next step is, what the next layer of the business should look like, to take them to the next level.

The sooner they can take on the leadership role, by becoming the CEO of their business (even if they don’t call themselves that), the faster the growth of both the entrepreneur and the business.

One of the ways you can step more fully into that role is by delegating. So if you’ve been in business for a couple of years and you’re still doing too much of the managing of it, and especially if you’re doing all the admin work, and you haven’t hired an assistant yet, it’s time. Start with one small project and add from there.

For every task in your business, ask yourself, “Is this something I should be doing?”

Because remember, even if you CAN do something doesn’t mean you SHOULD.

If the answer is no, then pass it off to a capable assistant.

4. Having an emotionally driven motivator for your Big Money Why (BMW).

This is probably the most important one…

Money is NOT enough of a motivator, no matter how much you want it, or are attached to the ’6-Figure’ or “million-dollar’ mark. There has to be a reason behind wanting it, something that is so strong that it drives you and the business forward, no matter what.

If you find things aren’t moving as quickly as you’d like, or it feels too hard much of the time, or you just aren’t using your time and talent effectively, take a look at your Big Money Why. And if you haven’t done this before, then that’s your coaching homework.

In as much detail as possible, write out why you want the financial success you do. Is it to give to your family, is it to give to others, is it to create a charitable foundation, is it to take care of elderly parents, is it to enable your children to get the best education you can give them, is it to travel and expand your world view, is it to buy a nicer home for your family, is it to give experiences to those you love – they are a thousand reasons why, but you need to be very clear of what they are for YOU before you can make them happen.

Inside the Lively Biz Business Club, we focus a lot on your Big Money Why, as it’s one of the most powerful exercises for shifting the members into passionate action in their business.

Click here to get on the wait-list to be first to find out when the Club re-opens

Upsells, cross-sells, down-sells and un-sells

I first learned that there are only 3 ways to make more money in your business from

Jay Abraham (marketing genius):

1. increase the price

2. increase the number of client/customers

3. increase the frequency of purchases from the existing client/customer base
As business owners, we tend to focus more of our efforts on the first two while neglecting #3 to a great degree. Maybe we do so because we think it’s easier to increase the price or get new clients and customers when in fact, the ‘easiest’ sale often comes from someone who’s invested with us before.

Here are 4 simple ways you can implement #3 to increase your sales today:

1. Upsell

An upsell is simply suggesting a higher priced product or bundle during or immediately after someone has made a purchase from you.

Think about your offer for a moment. Consider what’s the next thing you can invite them to? What’s the next logical step they could take with you?Then make the answer your upsell.

For example, if someone purchases your homestudy system, you could offer a couple of private sessions with you to help them implement that content as an upsell.

Where in your business could you add an upsell?

 2. Cross-sell

A cross-sell is simply suggesting a related additional product or service during or immediately after someone has made a purchase from you.

Think about your offer and consider what else you can offer them that complements what they’re buying.Then make the answer your cross-sell.

For example, if someone buys your book, you could offer a companion workbook as a cross-sell.

Where in your business could you add a cross-sell?

3. Down-Sell

Offering a down-sell is simply giving someone a lower-priced offer instead of letting them go altogether.

For example, let’s say you have a membership program for $97- month. A current member contacts you to cancel. Instead of just canceling the membership, consider offering them a ‘lite’ version of it for $47- a month. A percentage of people you offer this down-sell to will take you up on it, earning you more money than if you had just canceled the membership.

Where in your business could you add a down-sell?

4. Unsell

The Unsell technique is simply when you step back from the buying decision and allow your client or customer to choose No over Yes.

For example, when you’re in an enrollment conversation with a potential client, and they keep coming back to you with ‘yeah, but…?’ and you start to feel like you’re having to convince them to work with you. Simply put ball back in their court by suggesting that perhaps this isn’t the right time for you to work together, or that this isn’t the right program for them. Allow them to convince themselves (and they will, if it’s truly right for them). For your part, you want to always be committed to someone making a decision but don’t be attached to what the decision is.

 

Top 2 Tips for Highly Effective Emails

Top 2 Tips for Highly Effective Emails

Are you struggling with low open rates and even lower click-through-rates on your emails?
In this video, I’m sharing 2 of my favorite tips on how to make your emails far more effective.
 
As a busy online entrepreneur, we want to make sure the time and efforts we spend on writing emails for our subscribers, we want them to be as effective as possible, yes?

Tune in for more!

And if you haven’t registered for the free Masterclass 6 Simple Steps to 6 Figures, even if you’re starting from scratch be sure to do so here:

 

https://aforest.lpages.co/6-simple-steps-to-6-figures-masterclass/

 

Because of snow days…

Lights flashing through the bedroom windows, the scrape of the plow as it clears the snow from the driveway – ah, the sounds of a 4:30am wake-up call… 😉

As I write this, we’re in our first real snowstorm of the season, and while normally it would have been a snow day for the kids, they had to make a quick shift to remote learning this week due to their first positive case, so alas… no day off just yet.

It reminds me, though, of one of the very reasons I wanted to be my own boss…

and that was so I could skip the stress when the kids’ schools called a snow day (which happens quite frequently in the northeast).

I didn’t have to get permission from a boss to take the day off or use a personal or vacation day.

I’ve never had to have a discussion with my husband about who was going to stay home from work to be with the kids.

Plus, come on, snow days are just FUN. 😉

So, after the kids finish classes today, maybe we’ll go play in the snow, or (more likely ;-)), maybe we’ll light a fire and watch a movie – just because we can.

And I LOVE that about my business – the flexibility of it, the freedom of it… and that’s probably one of the reasons you’re your own boss too.

This year has likely been one when you’ve needed to have a lot of flexibility, especially if your kids have been remote learning, or if other members of your family needed care, or if your own business was forced to change due to the pandemic.

Wherever you are today, I firmly believe that our best times lay ahead.

I’ve been spending time, energy and money in preparing to both make that happen and enjoy it when it does.

I’ve simply refused to let this time in lockdown be in vain.

So while we may not be able to control what’s happening externally, we CAN control what happens in our business and our life.

I’d love to share more about this with you in my free mini-workshop that’s coming up soon.

I’m calling it the Online Business Reset – because I believe that’s exactly what we all need as we turn the calendar to a new year…

… a reset that includes more freedom and flexibility for you. 

Reserve your free spot here

If this was helpful, I’d love it if you’d share it using the buttons below – thanks so much!

The snow as it piles up in our backyard this morning….

5 Simple Steps to Creating a Fresh Compelling Lead Magnet

Is your current Lead Magnet in need of a refresh or replacement?

Here’s the thing…

If you don’t have a really compelling free Lead Magnet to offer to your audience, you won’t have an audience to make your paid offer to.

My first Lead Magnet was ugly and had too much content.

But that Lead Magnet was the key to my converting over 40% to those who opted-in into buyers of my first digital product.

If you don’t get this piece right, it’s an uphill battle.

Here are 5 simple steps to creating a fresh and compelling Lead Magnet:

Step 1. Choose it

Before you create a new free content opt-in, be sure it’s something your audience wants. If you don’t know what that is, just ask them.

Ask your prospects a simple, open-ended question, like “What’s your biggest challenge with building your business online?” or “What’s the one thing you’d like to learn more about that relates to balancing your work and family life?”

Tailor the question to your area of expertise and use the answers you get to help spark ideas for your new freebie.

Remember, your market will tell you what it wants, if you’ll just ask them. 😉

Step 2: Write it

Once you know the topic of your freebie based on your research, it’s time to write it.

(Even if you’re filming a video, you’ll still need some form of written content to to help your viewers consumer your content – plus it doubles as your script).

I find the easiest way to create new content is to write an outline first and then fill it in.

Remember to keep it short so your reader actually consumes your content.

Step 3. Design it

Once you’re done writing your content, decide how to package it for your subscriber.

Here’s some of the most simple and highest-converting options:

Quiz
Checklist
Cheat Sheet
Short Guide
One-Page Blueprint
MP3
Infographic

If design is not your forte, use Canva.com

Step 4. Deliver it

Once your freebie is ready to be released, create your opt-in page and thank you page and connect it to your email list service provider.

To make the entire process a snap, I highly recommend Leadpages. http://leadpages.pxf.io/c/491472/390538/5673

Step 5. Promote it

Yay! You’ve done the hard work, so now it’s just a matter of letting your market know that your fresh and compelling Lead Magnet is available.

The first thing I like to do is send it to my existing list (it’s a surprise bonus to them for already being on my list) and share it in my paid program groups. I’ll ask them to share the Lead Magnet with their circles as well.

Then we set up an automated system for sending out the Lead Magnet promos on a consistent basis so we can consistently build my list.

There you have it… 5 simple steps to creating a fresh compelling Lead Magnet!

When yours is ready, I’d love to see it. Feel free to share it inside our free Facebook community here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/livelybiz/

I’m leading a workshop in this topic soon and we’re gathering an “I’m interested” list – click here if you’re interested too

If this was helpful, I’d love it if you’d share it using the buttons below – thanks so much!