Feedback. We all know it's important to get feedback from our clients, customers, and even from people who are not customers yet.
We're told to get to know our ideal customer, get to know what they are struggling with, what they need...
And then when they buy things from us, we are called to find out what results they achieved, so we can share their stories with others and begin the cycle of selling and serving.
Today, we're diving into the topic of feedback and different ways to get it from people in a respectful way...and at the right times!
For full show notes, check out https://annesamoilov.com/177
The past few weeks have called me to be calm in the face of things I cannot control.
Grace under pressure and uncertainty. Fearless under fire.
Now that we’re on the other side (mostly) of the solution, I am seeing all the lessons learned from such a common thing that can happen when you run an online business.
Websites go down. Servers get compromised. Information gets lost. But it’s not the end of the world. How we react is key...and I gotta pat myself on the back for being stressed but not losing my shizzle and sizzle.
Instead of going back to "business as usual" as if NOTHING happened, I decided to bottle up the lessons into a 4 Step Process...
Use this process to face ANY difficult or complex challenge you're facing in your business (or life)!
See full show notes here: annesamoilov.com/176
Ever have a week that left you feeling overwhelmed, behind or questioning – did I actually get anything done?
We all have. Sometimes it feels like productivity is a moving target.
But lately, with the help of this week’s guest, I’m reminded of all the things that happen when we stop pushing so hard, stop working so hard…
When we work less – we actually can achieve more.
But it’s not done simply by sitting back and doing nothing. It starts with some really key steps and then continues with a really interesting process along the way.
Now, I know that this might seem like a huge shift for you – especially if you’ve been following me, learning how to plan your launches, reach your ideal customers, and communicate more effectively…
But it’s actually not…listen/watch to hear why…and how to start manifesting more today.
For show notes and more, join us over here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/175
Let me ask you something…
How would you like to be more magnetic and attractive?
Not just in your daily personal life, but in your business. How would you like to put out products, webinars, do Facebook Lives...that attract more of the right people - people are so aligned with who you are and what you do that they can’t help but want to be around you.
If you’re not sure...ask yourself if you’ve ever felt oddly drawn to someone online - in your industry...a teacher, a business owner, a celebrity. There was something about them that drew you in...right?
We can all use more magnetism when we’re launching. Not so we can unnaturally pull people toward us but to make sure the people who do mesh with our message - find us, buy from us, and join our world!
But where do we get started?
Today’s guest is Sally Hope - creator of the Wild Heart Revolution and Life Coach, Yoga instructor, community building expert...and creator of the 40 day Meditation Challenge.
Listen now. See the full show notes here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/174
How many different income streams, creative pursuits, or straight up businesses are you juggling right now?
I guess it’s the nature of what I do and the places I go - but seems like so many people I’m meeting have not just one passion based business, but multiple things they are building.
Does it mean they’re distracted? Not focused enough to build one thing? Or has this “thing” evolved over the years?
Are you a multi-passionate entrepreneur?
Today’s episode is for you...
My guest today started her entrepreneurial journey as a blogger. She rocked her blogged for years and years and years until things started to change.
She then launched a business podcast for other creative blogging women…
But then - by “accident” discovered a totally separate passion that she decided to pursue and is quickly become her reason - her why…
Listen now!
See the full show notes here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/173
If you’ve ever caught yourself thinking or saying, "I am not ready to launch yet. I just don’t know enough."
This episode is for you.
One of the very first things I discover when working with many business owners (whether they are just getting started or are currently in business) is that many feel like they are really NOT ready to launch.
Does this sound like you?
If so, maybe you just need a few practice launches before you do a “real” one.
There is a spoiler alert here though… in the process of doing a practice, you’ll get over the hump of going the process, build confidence and experience a launch from start to finish.
Your practice launch is a test like all the other tests you’re doing in your business.
Calling it a test may take the pressure off until you realize something…
See the full show notes here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/172
Today’s encore replay-interview dives into the topic of success, productivity…with one of my favorite people in the world.
Marie Forleo and I talk about the 7 Key Things You Need To Do Whether You’re Just Starting Out or You’re Already In Business But Want To Grow!
I think we’re trained to believe that people only want new and fresh stuff...and while that might be true on some level, it’s the foundational work, it’s listening to that album you haven’t heard since college, it’s reconnecting with an old friend...that’s where you get to deepen your experience and cement your memory!
A few years ago I invited Marie Forleo onto the program - and at the time, I wasn’t working with her, but we’d stayed in touch since our days working on the first B-Schools together.
Cut to now and I’ve been fortunate enough to jump back into the B-School world, witness her amazing team, the heart and hard work they all do…
Today’s episode we talk about launching, workflow and really the things that NEVER change no matter if you’re launching for the 1st time or the 20th time. Success doesn’t change the process, especially if the process works.
As you’re listening, you may want to take notes, so pull out your notebook and go to it.
See the full show notes here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/171
Have you ever found yourself watching other people’s launches and wondered, how can I do THAT?
Well, today’s episode is for you.
A lot of people come to me with an idea of how they want to launch.
It’s usually because they’ve seen someone else do “something” - a type of launch or a type of event in their launch...and they want to use the same strategy.
Kinda feels like a hairstylist.
You know - people bringing me pictures of the cut or style they want, but not really knowing what it takes to maintain the style, do it themselves, how often it gets trimmed, and do I even need to mention that their hair texture might not be the same??
I digress.
This never surprises me because - if you’re running an online business of any kind, you have the opportunity to see tons of different businesses and how they promote, market and launch their products & services. You might buy products, you might just watch…
We are always watching.
See the full show notes here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/170
Let me ask you a question… and be honest with yourself...
Do you truly believe in yourself? Do you believe you have value to share? Do you believe you can figure out how to use all the online tools to deliver something to people you’ll call customers?
Do you think your ideas are worthy? Do you think you are good enough?
Do you think that you are experienced enough/pretty enough/the right age/etc. to impact people?
Do you think you can stick to a schedule or a plan? Are you confident you can deliver this week’s newsletter?
How do you react or respond when your “plan” goes off the rails? When you can’t do something on your own?
If you want to know why asking these questions is important to your next launch, listen today.
See the full show notes here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/169
Last week, I shared my personal case study of how I launched a beta for my new online program The Message Lab.
The one question that kept coming back from you was how much do I charge for my beta?
Should I charge for my beta? Or let people in for free?
If you have no clue how to price your beta program, you’ll want to listen today as I focus on three options to consider.
Spoiler alert: you’re still going to have to make the final call and pick the final price, but I’m hoping my advice gets you closer to your decision!
See the full show notes here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/168
One of the best ways to develop an online course or create and perfect a new product is to do a beta launch of it before you go live for the masses.
Even with a small audience, doing a beta launch - takes the pressure off, let’s you experiment with everything from the product all the way to how you get people interested in that product.
So, last summer…
I decided to create a brand new program...and instead of hiding out in a cave for 3 months to create it, I invited 18 people to go through the content with me, as I created WITH THEM.
So, I wasn’t sure I would share this story with you now...but honestly, when I was reviewing the beta I ran during the summer of 2017...not only how I felt about it, but what my participants gained, I realized now was a great time to share that with you.
Why?
See the full show notes here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/167
Look around you.
Chances are… you work from home and if you’re anything like me, your eyes went directly to the places that probably need a bit of uncluttering.
What do you see? Is there a ton of clutter? Stacks of paper? Dust?
The beginning of any year begs us to take stock of our lives, of our work...and look for ways to improve, clean things up and make a fresh start.
But there’s a bigger reason why it’s important to pay attention to our physical environment, especially if we’re launching, working and growing our businesses from home.
Clutter could be ruining your launches, causing you unnecessary stress and making you an unhealthy entrepreneur.
Today we’re talking to Joann Krall - a home and personal organizer who knows firsthand the impact of clutter. She’s made it her life mission to give people the tools to overcome clutter.
I had a feeling clutter wasn’t going to be just something you need to clean up before the in-laws come over...nope, in this episode we talk about the impact it can have on your launches, your productivity, your creativity...the way you work.
And if you work from home - this isn’t something you can just sweep under the rug if you care about the future of your business.
See the full show notes here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/166
The end of the year seems like a great time to create our top 10 lists!
But instead of sharing the top 10 list and being on my merry way, I knew it was important to share with you WHY and how you can do your own review.
What’s so darn important about knowing your top 10 podcasts, posts, videos...or top 9 Instagram posts?
It’s all about the themes.
We’ve already covered how to plan your year for success and reviewed your top launch lessons.
Today - we’re going to look at the top podcasts by download for the year.
See the full show notes here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/165
Last week I talked about some of the questions to ask yourself to do an end of the year review. So, today I thought it would be fun to gather some of the launch lessons you’ve shared with me!
As you listen to some of the most common lessons you sent me, ask yourself what you’ve learned this year, what you’ve yet to try - dig for the lessons that will change the way you launch your products and services in the new year.
Look for yourself in each of the lessons - and ask what you can apply to yourself. I’ve purposely picked ones that are universal and more evergreen so that they apply to a wide range of product launches.
See the full show notes and learn more about each contributor here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/164
2017 has been a doozy of a year.
How’d things go for you?
If you want to set your new year up to be any different, better...now’s the time to get focused and set the year in motion before it starts.
But it doesn’t start by planning all the things you want to do...or filling in your calendar with the launches, the new products...not yet anyways.
First we need to acknowledge, measure and understand what happened this year.
Today's episode shares the secret to setting your new year up for massive success and fulfillment.
See the full show notes and download the Launch Recovery Strategies PDF here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/163
You’re in the middle of a launch and you wonder, how do I get more people to pay attention, how do I make more sales? Whether everything is working but you know you can improve your launch OR nothing’s working and you’ve got to dig yourself out of that launch hole.... Today’s episode shares 5 simple strategies for improving WHATEVER is going on in your launch.
See the full show notes and download the Launch Recovery Strategies PDF here: http://www.annesamoilov.com/162
A few years ago when I was working on a bunch of different higher profile launches, I made a huge realization…there were some specific things people at all levels of business were doing.
At least outwardly.
No secrets.
Nothing extra fancy.
Just straight forward stuff really.
So, it’s easy to see how you might follow what you see and think - wow, I did exactly everything the same I did NOT get the same results. Yikes, what happened??
Well, today, I’m going to share some of those things that set big launches apart from ones that fall apart or fail.
Before we do that though - I think it’s important to say that failure comes in different forms. Your win is another person’s failure. Another person who thinks they had a stinky launch - you’d settle for ANY OLE DAY OF THE WEEK.
Listen in to learn the true performance indicators of a "good launch".
Today’s Episode:
Over the next couple of weeks I’m going to do a series about some of the simplest ways to have better launches. We all want to have those breakout launches, but these happen after having a series of better launches. These next couple of episodes are for those new to launching, but not new to online business. These episodes are also for those of you who may be tired and disillusioned, but still ready to dig in and really figure out what is going on.
This episode probably isn’t for those who have been launching for years who have done it all and seen it all. You probably won’t discover a shiny new tactic. Although, it doesn’t hurt to get back to basics. If you are just starting out and don’t have a business yet, then there are better training programs to get you started. By the end of these three episodes, you should have a complete picture of what it takes to have a successful launch at any stage of your business.
If you have the openness to go back, ask questions, and dig in you are someone who will have longevity. It’s time to take the same steps that people years ahead of you are taking. When it comes to taking online courses what should sway you are your behavior, beliefs, and ability to take action. It takes a mix of compassion, intuition, and practical know how to make someone an effective teacher and guide. Over the next few episodes, I commit to giving you launch insights that you will not normally get from other programs.
Today, we are going to talk about three ways we are killing our launch progress before it even starts and a few key shifts that could change everything. In the next episode, we will talk about the truth of having a profitable launch and avoiding those bad launches. Then, I’m going to share the five invisible but powerful steps that often get overlooked when we follow someone else’s done for you system or just copy someone else’s method.
Show Notes
[12:45] Three ways we unintentionally kill our progress are self-talk, bumpers, and starting earlier.
[13:07] Self-talk. Do you ever find yourself saying that this isn't really a real launch? How you talk about your launch will have an impact on your launch.
[13:49] Turn it around and talk positively about your launch and share your excitement. Put passion behind it, because if you say it isn't a real launch, it won't be.
[15:32] Creating bumpers. Bumpers are things that give you stability. You can't ramp up your launch in one day. You have to adjust and go into launch training mode.
[16:41] Find the regular ritual activities that will impact your launch. You have to understand where you need to show up to talk to your audience.
[17:00] Having a virtual assistant or a podcast editor is a bumper because they are waiting for you to give them stuff. Slowly but surely, think what your stamina is and what you can actually do. Give yourself exercises to build your stamina.
[17:57] Building your launch stamina also helps build your audience stamina.
[18:17] Rushing. When you rush around it seems like something is wrong. By starting earlier we improve our decision making ability.
[19:58] Being stressed out your decision making is not so great. Make creative decisions way before the launch.
[20:27] You have to have an outline or a sketch of what you are doing. You can create during this time, but straight up decision making can be tough.
[21:19] If you have an idea for a launch, write it all out as much as you can. Get it all out while your brain is on charge.
[21:48] How do I create this plan if I don't know what the process is. We will talk about that in the last episode.
[22:26] Learn more at FreeLaunchWorkshop.com
[22:55] Are you guilty of calling what you do not real? What bumpers have you created for yourself to be launch ready? Are you prepared to stop rushing?
Links and Resources:
This week, I'm going to take you behind the scenes a bit. You see, I'm recording a special walkthrough of my Launch Workbook and Planner. All you have to do is go over to http://bit.ly/launch-planner, download a copy, print it out and work through it right along with me.
All launches start at the same place - and these 10 steps will help you get the SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT thing you need before you launch a new product, a new service or business... and that is Clarity.
If you've ever felt a little confused as to where to start, how to get organized and how to pull all the pieces together, join me today in taking this 1 step toward your launch. If you're launching in 6 weeks or more from now - THIS IS perfect for you! Even if you're launching in a few weeks, you may gain clarity and understanding and FINISH the work you've been putting off.
See you on the inside.
Also - if you like this episode and working through the workbook, Fearless Launching is now open for enrollment (as of the date of this recording). Check it out at: fearlesslaunching.com
Today’s episode is inspired by an interview I watched with Danny Meyer, a NYC based entrepreneur. He’s known for his fine dining experiences as well as his popular Shake Shacks.
I’m paraphrasing but he spoke about giving people an amazing experience. The “easiest” way to do that is to figure out what they need to feel good. To feel important.
“Everyone walks in with a sign around their neck saying — make me feel important.”
Of course, there isn’t just one way to make people feel important.
As we’re building our businesses, we start to see what our peeps like and don’t like. On a universal level, people need, want and like two things - to felt heard and to feel important.
Today we talk about some of the ways we can make our soon to be customers, our past customers, and maybe even ourselves feel more important.
So I ask you today on this very very short episode of the podcast….
Instead of asking how to connect, reach your audience. How do I grow my list, get more sales…
Join me in asking…how can I make more people feel important?
Visit the show notes and share two things - what makes you feel important and heard? And - how can make others who do business with you or come to you for help feel important?
http://www.annesamoilov.com/158
In this episode, we wrap up the series all about how to communicate more effectively by having some real, honest talk about how to connect with new people….by building rapport.
I was surfing through You Tube videos and came across this powerful one from Tony Robbins where he talks about this topic of Rapport… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meLbMg7ySU4
You might think you don’t need to build rapport in order to gain new customers or clients, but rapport is the real thing people look to when they’re making the decision to buy from you. You might have the absolute perfect solution, but if they don’t either see themselves in you or aspire to be like you, they likely won’t buy from you!
Here’s what you can expect to find in this episode:
1) recap of the entire communication series
2) a personal story of why connection is so important to me
3) why you can’t rely solely on your words to communicate to your audience
4) 5 ways to build rapport online that you might already be using
5) Steps you can take to build rapport with a new audience
Mentioned In This Episode:
Re-listen to all the episodes in this series -
Episode 155
Episode 154
Episode 153
Episode 152
Many members of Fearless Launching have been asking about quizzes. Today’s show is all about quizzes and how to use them, create them, and incorporate them into a launch. I have recently seen online quizzes and online assessments used as part of some amazing launches, so it will be great to learn more.
Today’s guest is Josh Haynam from the the online quiz platform Interact. I have been taking quizzes as long as I can remember, and they are something that everyone can and should incorporate into their business and their launch or the lead up to their launch. Josh shares how Interact got started, what it is, and how everyone can incorporate quizzes into their online business.
You can find Josh here:
Interact on Twitter @tryinteract
Josh Haynam on Twitter @JHaynam
Show Notes
[04:19] The history of quizzes and taking quizzes in pubs in the 1700s.
[04:50] How quizzes are a proven thing with a history of people liking them.
[05:11] Adapting a quiz to whatever subject you are promoting.
[06:15] The psychology of quizzes and how everyone is seeking self-awareness.
[06:50] How quizzes allow us to talk about ourselves and find out information about ourselves.
[09:30] Using quizzes to build interest level and give people what they want.
[11:07] How a quiz can be a tool to understand what message to share with consumers.
[13:14] Personalized marketing as opposed to traditional marketing and taking the time to ask people what they want.
[14:26] Educating as opposed to selling while aligning the interests of the customer.
[18:07] How Josh has created a massive amount of blog posts and guest posts. He has done the work to know how everything comes together.
[20:06] The process for creating quizzes with Interactive using templates. Then changes are made in the builder. Adding links and hooking up your email and then publishing and the quiz is ready to go.
[24:06] Selecting a template versus creating a very specific quiz from a blank menu.
[26:00] The upside tree analogy for starting with templates then diving in and customizing.
[27:56] How the templates are similar to WordPress themes when it comes to getting up and running, but they can be customized later.
[30:06] Cool things people are doing such as "What type of therapy dog are you?" or "What type of Red Cross volunteer are you?"
[34:33] The importance of timing and quiz creating before a launch. The Elephant Pants used the quiz to fund their Kickstarter campaign.
[36:39] How quizzes are a very shareable piece of content that can go viral.
[38:19] A listener challenge to create your first quiz.
Listener Challenge
Links and Resources:
Interact on Twitter @tryinteract
Do you ever feel like you are struggling to reach the right people and the right amount of eyes. Making sales can be a struggle. Teaching what you do is one thing, but seeing where you actually need to improve is sometimes more difficult. If you want to improve the impact of the things that you are putting out into the world and get people to look at your product and buy from you, all you have to do is tell stories.
Stories are so important for getting your point across and showing why your product is unique, special and relevant to the buyer. Today, I am going to talk about six stories that you need to share before anyone buys from you. You don’t have to tell all six, and I’m not going to tell you what to say, but these are things that your customers need to hear before buying from you.
Show Notes
[04:17] The importance of telling stories and how well Vanessa Chase does it.
[04:52] How Anne read stories about people who have gotten great results with essential oils. Stories are social proof in a way that is not salesy.
[06:53] How stories are the future of selling.
[07:57] Story #1: The problem they have now and why they might be ready for the solution I have. The first critical story is to tell your customer that they are in the right place and why it is important to solve the problem.
[08:38] Take the time to find out who your customer is and what their most relevant challenge is.
[10:25] Story #2: Tell your own story and share what inspires you and why you created your product or service.
[14:51] Story #3: Before and after. How someone tried your product and learning something unexpected.
[15:40] Story #4: Before and after. A case study of how someone transformed as a result of one or more selling points of your program.
[16:03] Before and after stories are super powerful so be sure and look for these in your clients and customers.
[18:00] Story # 5: Someone who has tried everything else, but your program is the one that worked for them.
[21:46] Story #6: The potential future of the person who uses your product or works with you. The glimpse.
[23:00] Using hope and proof to promote and sell your product.
[23:40] Sharing the story of someone who has achieved their dream. These are inspiring stories that inspire the idea of this could be my future.
Now It’s Your Turn
Links and Resources:
It’s been awhile since I have talked about tools. Last week when I talked about underrated communication triggers, I mentioned a few tools that I was testing out and received a number of questions about those tools. So today, I am going to talk about tools that can help you make your communication more consistent without having the added stress of wondering what to say and when to say it.
One of the things that is so important is responding and creating that first touch. We aren’t always ready and waiting in front of the computer, so it is important to automate that first response. It’s also easy to get lost and lose track of all of the forms of social and other communication so having scheduling tools in place creates organization and consistency. Time management and batching go together, so I also talk about tools that allow work to be done in advance.
Show Notes
[05:59] Communicating about the content I am publishing and sharing.
[06:33] Creating more engagement on Facebook business pages using ManyChat and Facebook Live.
[07:56] Creating an entire communication path through Facebook.
[08:22] Focusing on lead generation through Facebook Live.
[09:07] Planning posts out in advance on Instagram with Planoly.
[10:19] The Planoly grid looks exactly like the Instagram grid along with features like discover.
[10:45] Using tailwind for scheduling Pinterest and Instagram marketing.
[11:30] Continual for posting videos to Instagram.
[12:17] The importance of email for communicating with people.
[12:50] Receiving less email, but still staying connected with multiple touch points.
[14:15] Using messaging capabilities through programs other than your email provider.
[16:43] Voice memos are another great format for connecting with people.
[17:35] Embedded Google forms on a contact page are a great way to get information.
[18:17] Trello for managing projects and communication.
[20:03] Try one new tool at a time and give yourself time to learn to use it.
Links and Resources: