Part 3: 3 Ways to the Fastest Path to Income Virtually From Home

Part 3: 3 Ways to the Fastest Path to Income Virtually From Home

by | May 28, 2018 | Everyday, How She Quits Show

Welcome to the How She Quits Show – Episode 17

Today is Part 2 of a 3 part series on the How She Quits show…… we’re going to go rapidly through the most important advice for any mom running an online business today.

Part 1 Covered 3 ways to grow your 1-on-1 services business immediately. Watch Here
Part 2 Discusses moving to packaged services and 1-to-Many offerings (such as online courses or memberships). Watch Here

Now that you’ve learned what’s involved in starting your own online course or membership program it’s time to talk about scaling it up.

This episode will show you what it takes to grow the revenue and profitability of your 1-to-Many program. If you are a Virtual Professional, this is also good information to have for your clients.

Show Notes

In this episode: 

  • Why Online Courses and Memberships are an entirely different business than 1-on-1 services.
  • My Automated Online Business Framework I use with my personal 1-on-1 clients
  • The money map for Online Businesses
  • What you aren’t being told about selling Online Courses.
  • Top Tips for your Opt-In, Traffic Drivers, Ongoing Nurturing and Sales Offer

The Key Components

In Lesson 2 of this series I shared “all you need” to sell an online program. Let’s review:

  1. Program name and logo
  2. Sales Page and a way to collect payments online
  3. Email list to market to
  4. Social Channel to market to
  5. Website/Tool to deliver the program itself (ex. membership area)

Those are the tangible things you need in place, but what’s really going to drive your sales is People. The right people. Looking at your sales page and wanting to buy your product.

You’ve created a great online product that people should want to buy! But the science, math and strategy to get them to do that is not as simple as it sounds.

The Money Map

Online courses range from a $17 video series on bible journaling to a $3000 training on how to build your coaching business. And the marketing tactics to build each are a bit different.

You need to know your numbers when you’re building your business.
Remember: Higher Conversions + Lower Cost per Lead = Winning!

What you aren’t being told about selling Online Courses

  • Many dollars are poured into testing the right offers in advance of a launch
    (Then the ad dollars are poured in, or the JV partnerships are forged, to increase traffic volume)
  • Launching / Promotions are a high dollar skillset. Don’t expect to understand this immediately.

Dialing in the perfect SEO, perfect ad, perfect offer is the key to success of the big launches that inspire you
Even those with large audiences sometimes fail here

Top Tips

Your Sales Offer
It is pragmatic to look at this first. Begin with the end in mind, as they say.
Determine, what are you going to sell and to whom.

Traffic Drivers
Go where the right audience is.
Pick 1 main channel plus a second if you can handle the time.
Paying for traffic brings faster results.
Partnering / Guesting can be the difference maker.

What is your free offer?
Listen to the words of your audience, then use these exact words in your marketing.
Give them a quick win that leaves them wanting the full solution.
Test, test, test!
Decide if you want evergreen or a launch mode.
Leads can come from many different needs to the same offer.

Ongoing Nurturing
Email marketing is harder, but not dead. Email is noisy right now, but there are other ways to nurture your audience.
Continue to give in the email sequence to show value.
Regularly clear and freshen your email list.
Know what your audience’s email habits / tolerance is.
Also use FB retargeting to get back in front of them.

Now you Test!
Is the freebie appealing? Is the offer what they want? How do we know?
Referencing back to the Automated Online Business Framework will help you to understand where along the process adjustments need to be made.

 

Scaling and Growing an Online Course / Membership is an art of its own that takes time to learn and refine.

(I can sound like a dream crusher when sharing how to do this, but,  I prefer to set you up for realistic expectations instead of selling my own course to make it look unrealistically simple and give you heartbreak.)

If you believe in your course,
have the perseverence for the journey,
And can wait for profitability…..
Follow your calling and build that course!

If you want my help, I encourage you to join the How She Quits Collective. This is a community of women who are growing their 1-on-1 services business or building an online course or membership and is the place where I offer support through weekly office hours and group calls to answer the wide range of questions that come up as you’re growing your online business.

The Work From Home Summer

The Work From Home Summer

by | May 25, 2018 | How She Quits Show, Uncategorized

Have you researched work from home options and come up unimpressed or confused?

Let me simplify: It’s not MLM or direct sales. You can use skills you already have. I’m going to show you how to build your mom-life-friendly professional work from home business this summer!

What you are missing is this:

  1. Where are these jobs?
  2. What are my marketable skills and how do I present them?
  3. What about all those “scary business steps”? (Hint: There aren’t any. This is really simple.)

The start of summer is a classic time for the work-from-home dream to beat incessantly in our head.
School ends and the nice weather begins and we want more fun in the sun. More family time. No more stuffy air conditioned office.

Or perhaps we’ve been a SAHM and want that extra cash for a nice vacation, or to just get back into the workforce a bit and use that part of your brain that’s been momentarily interrupted with motherhood.

This show is a Memorial Day Special. Inspired because the first day of summer was the hardest day of the year when I was working in corporate. Let’s boost your end of the 3 day weekend spirit with a plan and a path to move into work-from-home life.

Show Notes:

In this Episode:

  • The fastest path to work from home
  • Defining virtual work
  • How to set real life goals for your business
  • Next steps to get you started working from home this summer

All the Ways to Work From Home

Have you tried any of these? Starting a blog, Direct Sales/MLM, opening an online store, freelance, consulting…the list goes on and on. Different paths will yield different results and there is one road to work from home that is faster, simpler and more profitable than the others.

Here it is in a nutshell:

You say, “I do______, for $_____”. And someone else says ” OK, do you prefer check or Paypal?”

This type of work goes by different names, Freelance, Consulting, Client Services Work or Virtual Assistant/VA. That’s because this is an evolving market that lacks some definition, but that also means there’s a ton of opportunity and potential!

Let’s Define Virtual Work

  • Selling your services to small and medium (and sometimes large) sized businesses
  • Solo or with a small team
  • Working from home
  • Being paid hourly or by the package
  • Receiving a “1099” or simply invoicing as a small business
  • Using professional skills – Graphic Design, Video Editing, Copy Writing, VA, etc.

Freelance work is the most flexible for working moms. It is capable of yielding high income potentials especially as you hone your craft to command top pay. You also have the ability to pick and choose the projects you want based on a variety of factors such as time commitment, areas of strength and even client personality.

There is a ton of work out there, and if you’re able to prove yourself as a candidate who shows up and works professionally, you can easily become solidly booked as this can be a trait that goes undeveloped by some in the industry.

Math Is Not Emotional

You should make your business plan with targets based on math. Then determine what that looks like in your families life.

Start by asking yourself these questions:

  1. How many clients do you think you can handle per month?
  2. What would you like your hourly rate to be?
  3. How many hours do you want to work each month?

Run these numbers based on conservative and stretch goals. Now you know “what” you want to accomplish, next plan the “how” with these goals in mind.

You’re All In! But…

  • Where are these jobs?
  • What are my marketable skills and how do I present them?
  • What about all those scary business steps? Hint: there aren’t any, this is really simple.

The first thing you should do is head to VirtualWorkFinder.com. This is where you can get our weekly emails with hot job opportunities our team is finds available each week.

Still trying to figure out what is the right path for YOUR work-from-home success? Take this short Quiz to access your skills and situation for suggestions to legit, professional, sustainable work that fits you.

Key Take-Aways

  • Start with one-on-one client-services work that relates to your past experiences – There’s so much work out there!  VirtualWorkFinder.com
  • Study the market to find the hottest skills that match your gifts – Check out this blog post on “Hottest Skills you need to increase your rates”
  • Get a mentor- Can I be your super affordable, personal mentor?
  • Become a PROFESSIONAL
    • Simply show up. If you are watching this and aligning with the message then YOU ALREADY GET IT.
    • Sadly, many online freelancers do poor quality work and are unresponsive. There is room to PROFESSIONALIZE THIS INDUSTRY!

Ready to Work From Home?

I hope this episode has you fired up. The opportunities are out there for you to work from home and you likely have questions as to the specifics of your personal situation or logistics to get you started. You need to keep this momentum in order to make meaningful steps toward your goals. Here are some next options to keep you going.

Virtual Work Mentoring

This course will teach you, at your own pace, everything you need to know to find your perfect clients, price, package and pitch your professional services.

Part 2: 3 Ways to the Fastest Path To Income Virtually From Home

Part 2: 3 Ways to the Fastest Path To Income Virtually From Home

by | May 15, 2018 | Everyday, How She Quits Show, Virtual Professional

Welcome to the How She Quits Show – Episode 15

Today is Part 2 of a 3 part series on the How She Quits show…… we’re going to go rapidly through the most important advice for any mom running an online business today.

Part 1 Covered 3 ways to grow your 1-on-1 services business immediately. Watch Here

So what comes next? If you are maxed out with one-on-one work and want to elevate your income further…you are ready to move to Package pricing and 1-to-many programs such as online courses or memberships.

In this episode I’ll share the basics of package pricing, what questions to ask before starting an online membership or course and how to expand an already successful online course or membership program.

Part 1 in this series focused on the fastest path to cash, 1-on-1 services.

Bust you may be maxed out with that model. If you have raised your rates and have great clients, the next thing you need is efficiency. A way to make money that doesn’t require your 100% presence. Or maybe you have a dream to offer a group program in your specialty area. This lesson is for you.

Let’s talk about 2 paths to go beyond 1-on-1 services:

  1. Package Pricing
  2. 1-to-Many Programs (Online courses + Memberships)

Package Pricing

This is where you sell “service X” for $500 instead of charging hourly at $/hour.

Selling Packaged services requires 2 things:

  1. Value to the client in the package
  2. Specific measurable results

Your packaged services must make sense to your client…not simply be services you like to do at a fixed price.
(If prospects are asking you adjust packages, its’ a sign you don’t have the right packaged service.)

Because you aren’t measured by hours anymore, you must be clear and specific with your packaged services.

1-to-Many Programs

Starting an online course or membership requires:

  1. A clear or shared pain point that can be solved with your method
  2. Eyeballs. Traffic. Leads. (Meaning you need ways to drive lots of people thru your marketing channels who gain trust in YOU and your method)

Lightbulb Moment: Running an online program is building an entirely new and different business! Don’t be scared…get prepared.

Before starting your own online program, ask yourself:

Do I have the time and space to build a new audience?
New logos, new social posts, new groups to engage in, new channels to promote.

Am I prepared to wait?
Courses don’t sell instantly. Can you spend a few months without pay building an email list and social following?

Do I know how to do everything I need to on my website?
Collect leads, give them an amazing freebie and follow up with a compelling email sequence.

Do I have $$ to make this go faster with some ad spending?
This isn’t the viral growth era we experienced a few years ago.

Do I have proof my course is needed and wanted?
And are you confident your method will bring results?

And here’s your simple checklist to start selling online programs:

  1. Program name and logo
  2. Sales page and way to collect payments online
  3. Email list to market to
  4. Social Channel to market to
  5. Website/Tool to actually deliver the program itself (member area)

Most importantly…Does your program produce results for its’s participants? Focus here and all the rest is “marketing details” Bring results and the rest finds a way.

Are you ready to get started or feeling overwhelmed?

My own packaged services help people like you start, launch and grow online courses and memberships.

And I have courses available to help you move to clearly defined packaged pricing for your business.

My business is building yours.

Let’s talk about moving your business forward.
Fill out this simple form, I personally respond to each one.
LoriMercerCTO.com/talk

Then check out my small group program for action takers at HowSheQuitsCollective.com

Taxes, Insurance, Legalities: Basic Steps to Start Your Virtual Professional Business

Taxes, Insurance, Legalities: Basic Steps to Start Your Virtual Professional Business

by | Mar 13, 2018 | Everyday, How She Quits Show, Virtual Professional

Welcome to the How She Quits Show – Episode 10: Taxes – Insurance – Legalities

These can seem like big scary topics that end up being mental blocks to moving forward in your Virtual Professional Business.

Listen, there are simple black and white answers to all of this. We’ll push the noise out of your head so you can move forward to more important steps…. like landing that client who’s going to give you the money

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Show Notes: Taxes, Insurance, Legalities

This video is for you if: 

  • You are considering starting an online business of any kind and aren’t sure of the legal and tax implications
  • You are a VA or Virtual Professional still operating as a sole proprietor or without contracts or insurance

The Simple Steps You Need to Start Your Online Virtual Professional Business Off Right

6:07 Determine your legal entity (sole proprietor, llc) – You can start today as a sole proprietor without any heavy legal process.

10:50 Register your legal entity officially in your state/county as required

17:27 Have a simple contract in place for clients – A simple contract can cover many freelance / VA client-service work agreements. Don’t let that hold you back from applying.

Track your income and expenses

11:45 Understand your tax laws and file your taxes

18:25 Protect yourself with the right insurance – Some clients may want you to have your own liability insurance. Don’t worry. It’s affordable.

25:45 Your business name does not have to be your website name (and probably shouldn’t be).

Resources Shared:

Note that we can google anything and it will put us in a ballpark of answers. But for complete answers in the legal and tax space, you should consult a local professional in small business. Here are a few examples of resources from around the web:

First Time Freelancer’s Guide to Taxes

Example state sales tax resource (from consulting service, check your local resources)

While you probably want this to be all steps 1-2-3, and much of it is, the most important aspect is setting yourself up right for financial gain and the right level of risk for you. the best book on this topic currently is called “Profit First”. http://amzn.to/2DykgAs

 

 

Here’s a description of the Profit First methodology:

Conventional accounting uses the logical (albeit, flawed) formula: Sales – Expenses = Profit. The problem is, businesses are run by humans, and humans aren’t always logical. Serial entrepreneur Mike Michalowicz has developed a behavioral approach to accounting to flip the formula: Sales – Profit = Expenses. Just as the most effective weight loss strategy is to limit portions by using smaller plates, Michalowicz shows that by taking profit first and apportioning only what remains for expenses, entrepreneurs will transform their businesses from cash-eating monsters to profitable cash cows. Using Michalowicz’s Profit First system, readers will learn that:

  • Following 4 simple principles can simplify accounting and make it easier to manage a profitable business by looking at bank account balances.
  • A small, profitable business can be worth much more than a large business surviving on its top line.
  • Businesses that attain early and sustained profitability have a better shot at achieving long-term growth.

With dozens of case studies, practical, step-by-step advice, and his signature sense of humor, Michalowicz has the game-changing roadmap for any entrepreneur to make money they always dreamed of.

Next Steps:

I hope that wiped away some unknowns that have been holding you back. If you’re fuzzy, go back to the simple steps and knock them out one by one. If you still have questions specific to your online / virtual professional business, the How She Quits Collective is a great place to have them answered. (or if your husband has questions, you can ask them for him there too. We’re getting a lot of “My husband wanted to know…” questions lately!

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4 Piece Framework for Busy Moms to Build a Simple Online Business

4 Piece Framework for Busy Moms to Build a Simple Online Business

by | Feb 19, 2018 | Everyday, How She Quits Show, Kids and Family, Virtual Professional, Virtual Work Finder, Working Moms

Simple-Online-Business-Busy-Moms-Episode-8

Welcome to The How She Quits Show – Episode 8

This week we’re going to take a bird’s eye view of your business and talk about the 4 cornerstones you need to have in place in order to enjoy a SIMPLE Online Business that is successful, even as a busy mom.

You might be expecting to talk about streamlining your social media posts, optimizing you blog or how to start a podcast. It’s true these things can be helpful tools to use, but I’m talking about real mom life things. You need to go deeper, and I’m encouraging you to consider aspects that will impact your work/life balance in a really meaningful way.  When this 4 piece framework is in alignment you can achieve the holy grain of running a SIMPLE Online Business that works for you and your family life.

4 Piece Framework to Build a Simple Online Business

First most important question: Will my business strategy work? Am I clear on my model, what I’m selling and how I’m selling it?

#1 What Do You Know – You’ve got to be clear on this or you’re going to hesitate in your work.

#2 What Do You Do – What does your day to day really look like? How is that serving you?

Getting solid on these first points are a great start but where you’re at with the next two can mean sabotage or success for your online business.

#3 What Do You Believe – Your thoughts impact your actions.

#4 What’s Going On in Life Around You – Reality Check.

 

Now that we have some perspective, let’s dial in. Check out the video for more examples for how to apply these steps to your online business. Then get practical with these tips on how you can gain clarity and tighten up this framework to keep your business simple and sustainable.

#1 What Do You Know 

  • Get clear on your expertise and the skills you have. What do you do well?
  • Make a list and plan for the things you don’t know but want to learn.
  • Compare yourself ONLY enough to to be sure your expectations are accurate.

#2 What Do You Do

#3 What Do You Believe

  • Get alone with your thoughts. Journal, meditate, pray, LISTEN.
  • LET GO of something that’s causing you struggle in this space.

#4 What’s Going On in Life Around You

 

So much of the advise out there right now oversimplifies or leaves out the additional responsibilities we have to consider as busy moms. This framework is high level, if you’re off in one of these areas this episode may only serve to bring more awareness to that which needs attention.

The How She Quits Collective is a community build with real life working moms in mind. It’s the place to talk with other moms that desire run an online business that is simple and sustainable. It’s a place to feel supported and well advised in your endeavors. We would love for you to join us!

Join the Collective