market like a mofo Archives - Page 3 of 7 - ⚡️Kristen Kalp

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Climbing Mount Visibility: get your work seen without driving your customers crazy

Being in business is a lot like being on a trek in the mountains. You’re putting one foot in front of the other, day after day, and you’re not exactly sure you’re on the right path. The conditions change, you question your choices, and you feel good or not so good. You keep going. You’re climbing Mount Visibility, getting the world to notice your business and what you have to offer.

How do you reach the summit without burning out or driving your customers crazy?

1.) Stop hiding.

It’s the hardest step, and it’s not freaking easy. Are you willing to be seen?

Are you ready for it to be embraced, beloved, and generally chatted up like a Kardashian at a champagne mixer in Vegas?

Are you willing for your work to be brushed over, ignored, and misunderstood?

You’ve got to be ready for both sides of the coin when you decide to let your work, your business, your products, and your services truly be visible.

When you stop hiding, you consistently tell the world you’re up to, you promote your work on the regular (the 30-second marketing campaign can help), and you collaborate only when it’s interesting and fun instead of when it’s a “sure thing” but leads only to money, not fulfilling feels in your belly.

2.) Consistently create something worth seeing.

A daily, weekly, or monthly promotion is a great place to start. Ayup, you STILL need a marketing calendar, friend.

Whether you’ve got your Instagram hashtag, a regular blog posting schedule, killer e-mail marketing campaigns, a referral-letter writing regime, or a series of networking events in which you pimp your wares harder than a Venetian with a surplus of blown glass in Renaissance Italy — create something worth seeing.

Yes, you’re a photographer. You expect people to hire you because they’re suddenly hit by the “I need images” fairy’s lovestick, but that’s not how it works. We need reminders that you’re alive, that you’re creating, that you’re a consummate professional who will blow our minds when it’s our turn in front of the camera.

Show us what you’ve created.
Tell us what we can get by working with you.
Let us fall in love with the clients who love you by sharing testimonials.
Help us hire you by telling us how many spots you have left.
Reward us for booking in your off season with prizes, extras, and delights.

In other words…

3.) Woo us, baby. Woo us.

Leave treats behind for your peeps. Reward them for sticking with you, for letting you know what they think, and for paying attention to you on the regular.

Whether you share knowledge, inspiration, behind-the-scenes glimpses, funny stories, secrets, insider tips, your podcast, gorgeous work, or the secret to life on the planet…share. Think of your social media and blog posts and marketing efforts as leaving cupcakes behind on the way to your bakery…or pretzels behind on the way to your hummus volcano…or pages behind on the way to your library. You’re enticing readers to stick around and pay attention. The higher the quality of the woo, the longer they’ll listen.

4.) Thank your peeps and really freaking mean it.

Gratitude is a buzz word like “manifesting” these days, but truly. Be grateful for what you’ve got, because the opposite is off-putting and repels the crap out of people.

I’ve watched colleagues earn what they used to earn over the course of a year in a matter of mere days, then brush it off as if they hadn’t just struck gold. No grand thanks, no weeping, no donations to charity, no celebrations and reveling in success. Just nose-to-the-grindstone business as usual.

How very…uncreative. And boring. And fucking ungrateful.  (Yah, I said it.  Ungrateful is the WORST.)

5.) Celebrate!

Being grateful is nice, but it’s often quiet. I want to see you CELEBRATE.

If you’ve made your corporate salary in the course of a month or even 11.5 months instead of twelve, fucking hold a jello wrestling party for all your friends. Go skinnydipping in an exotic locale. Eat only ice cream for a whole day, then get a 3-hour massage. Race your friends at Go Karts, then play arcade games until you run out of quarters, THEN move the bunk beds to make room for doing more activities, Stepbrothers style.

Don’t give the finger to the universe.

Let the powers that be know that you’re grateful, that you’re enjoying what you’ve got, and that you aren’t going to waste your good fortune by adding more zeroes to your savings account and then quietly going about doing your work in exactly the sort of ho-hum way you do every day.

It robs both you and your colleagues, friends, loved ones, and family members of the opportunity to celebrate the good that life has to offer.

We want to celebrate the good with you.

We want your business to flourish.

We want your life to have meaning.

We want to see your artwork on walls and your products in stores and your calendar all booked out and your pockets full of quarters at Chuck E. Cheese.

We want good things for you.

Help us give them to you, please.

Go on and climb Mount Visibility — and when you get to the top, PLEASE enjoy the freaking view.

P.S.  No really, stop hiding. Here’s how to start.

Nab my ultimate newsletter template.

Ah, the newsletter. Bane of every small business owner’s existence. Source of much strife and procrastination, many viewings of Game of Thrones, and infinite excuses for not sending today.

You hem, you haw. You “don’t want to say anything unless you have something to say,” so nine months pass between communications.

Or worse, you’re bored by what you’re saying but you send it out anyway. And no one responds. No one takes any action, so you write the newsletter off as useless.

It doesn’t have to be that big a deal to create and send a regular newsletter.  (I know it is in your mind, because ASSHOLE BRAIN, but it doesn’t *have* to be a big deal.)

Let’s start with three simple elements you can use to make ANY newsletter/missive/communication better, okay?

The Ultimate Newsletter Template involves engagement, value, and a call to action.

Start with element #1: engagement.

To keep your readers engaged, you’ve got to be engaged first. There’s no wrong way to engage your readers — whether you want to talk about the latest book you’ve read or movie you’ve seen, some of the most rewarding work you’ve done lately, or the ways in which you’re changing your freaking exercise habits.

Draw your reader into the newsletter with details that will matter to ’em. That might mean a personal story from you and your life; the latest research relating to your business or your field of expertise; or a recent experience that relates to your business in some way. So long as you keep it short and you actually find it interesting, trust that your readers will feel the same way.

THEIR engagement doesn’t come from YOUR sense of obligation.

If you’ve got yourself a formula for how to write the best newsletter ever and it says you have to start with talking about the weather, or your horoscope, or your latest business achievement — and that thing doesn’t feel good to you — then you’re bumping up against obligation. That dreaded sense of “Oh, I have to say THIS” will ruin your communication right from the start, which means people don’t read the whole thing or will click away two second into it.

Related: how to find, refine, and actually USE your voice.

Then add element #2: value.

Once you’ve got your peeps engaged, it’s time to deliver value. Value, meaning: you improve your reader’s life in some small way with this piece of communication.

This value is going to look different for every business owner on earth, but here are some ideas to get you started.

Value-add option: your creative solution to a problem

Natural problem solvers want to help other people solve problems. (Humans are really straightforward that way.) If you already teach people how to do stuff, your newsletter is a place to share the free knowledge you offer that leads to deeper work. For example, teaching people to plant their produce might be one of your free tutorials — but teaching people how to get the maximum produce from their garden over the course of the growing season might be your paid work.  Likewise, I teach people to do breathwork for zero dollars — but you can always book a 1-on-1 session with me if you want to go deeper, or pick up a breathwork class if you like what you find.

Value-add option: how-to/DIY tutorials

Not a teacher or person who teaches people how to do stuff? Actually, you can still teach people how to do stuff. 😉

If you’re into crafting and making, you can deliver DIY tutorials that keep your peeps engaged. Even if you’re a wedding photographer, delivering DIY value could mean helping peeps square away their wedding decorations, their florals, or their craftiest and quirkiest wedding favors via helpful Pinterest boards or interviews with other rad humans who are really good at what they do. Complementing the work you do with DIY help means you’re delivering tremendous value to your peeps. (Or at the very least, passing along your favorite vendors!)

If you’re into sewing, that tutorial for those cute little pillowcases might lead peeps to demand that you make more for ’em — and then you might have a whole separate business selling those pillows. Just ’cause you were sharing your creative impulses with your peeps.  Personally, I show my work when it comes to my painting, and use the proceeds to fund charity work.

Value-add option: inspiration & curation

Some people are natural stylists. Everything they touch seems like it could appear in a museum. If you’re one of those people who photographs your shoes in twelve different positions for Instagram before putting ’em on your feet, you’re a natural curator.

Why not use your newsletter to share what’s inspiring you and what’s interesting to you at the moment?

Sure, you sell a product or service (here’s a tutorial for that), but you’re free to share the other products or services that go best with yours. Trust me, we’d rather have our favorite nutrition expert share the best protein powders for our smoothies than have to go through the trial and error of purchasing all those chalky, chalky powders ourselves.

Round it off with element #3: the call to action.

Without a call to action, newsletters can feel a bit aimless — leaving your reader feeling like, “You’re contacting me WHY!?” instead of inviting further engagement. And by engagement, I mean people being excited about what you’re doing in the world.

Personally, I assumed that people would respond to my newsletter “naturally” if they felt it was interesting, but I get at least five times more e-mail responses when I add a simple “Reply to this e-mail and…” at the end.

Don’t assume people will naturally reach out and buy/call/e-mail/chat without a bit of prompting! We’re all busy, and we’re all trying not to step on one another’s (busy) toes. Inviting connection speaks volumes about you, your values, and your business.

In the end, every newsletter should end with a call to action. You don’t want your reader to read the e-mail and feel done.

Here are 7 simple calls to action that work most anywhere: Click here, Start here, Read this, Add to cart, Buy now, Call me, Reply to this e-mail.

Simple, short phrases like “Click here” or “Start here” or “Read this” or “Add to cart” or “Buy now” or “Call me” or “Reply to this e-mail” are all calls to action that get your readers doing what you’d like. It’s up to you to shape business communication to be engaging.

By using these three elements and making damn sure you want to read your own newsletter, you’re off to a good start.

P.S. More newsletter rehab right here.

Photo // my own from time spent in Njabini, Kenya with Flying Kites

Find $1,000 in your inbox.

Sometimes our brains are really awesome, like when they remind us to take the cookies out of the oven. And sometimes they’re really terrible assholes, like when they tell us we don’t have “enough” money. No matter how much money we actually have, and regardless of whether we managed to keep ourselves fed, clothed, sheltered, and internet-ed in the past month.

Here’s a really fun, quick way to make money when your brain says you don’t have enough.

I call it the “$1,000 in your inbox game,” and it’s not scammy, scummy, sleazy, or slimy. Watch and learn.

For a more detailed talk of sales follow-up — which is what this game involves — head on over and read this article.

Now, go send that first e-mail. It’s the hardest one!

You can absolutely send ten e-mails just like that first one today, and I bet you’ll be THRILLED with the results.

The only way to fail at this game is refusing to play. 😉

P.S.  If you need help coming up with ideas for that limited-time promo you’re going to offer: how to get people buying and booking whenever you want.

P.P.S.  If you’re totally new to the land of offering incentives to your clients, you might also want to check out 5 reasons your last promotion fell flat.

Why the “next level” for your business doesn’t exist.

A couple weeks ago, I opened up an e-mail and was immediately reading about “taking my business to the next level.” And then, in an online video from a guy I usually love, I was pitched about “taking my business to the next level.” And for a retreat I really wanted to attend but ultimately decided against — guess the reason?  You got it: I could “take my writing to the next level” if I attended.

Here’s the thing: there is no fucking ‘next level.’

Saying ‘next level’ implies that I’m conscious of where the last level ended and the next one began. It implies that I could see it coming — oh, clearly, making ten grand in a week gets me a power-up and one step closer to saving the princess — when nothing could be further from the truth.

This idea of ‘next levels’ out there in business makes everyone who doesn’t see and experience these levels feel like they’re a fucking nutjob. (Well, let’s all join the Nutjob Society, then, ’cause I still can’t figure out which level I’m on. Maybe the “makes six figures but then takes bigger risks and thus ends up with slightly less dollars than usual” realm, or the “meeting more people in person and feeling more fulfilled because it isn’t all about cash” realm.)

May I introduce an alternative to all this ‘next level’ talk?

I vote that we talk about business in terms of realms. For a while, you wander around all lost and mostly amateur with absolutely no idea what you’re doing — that’s a realm. Eventually, you take a big scary step that can clearly be defined, in retrospect, as having been “the” step that shifts you toward growing your business. And then…well, you’ve probably wandered through the “I don’t know shit about marketing” realm and the “I’m pretty sure I can’t pay my rent next month” realm. You’re also familiar with the “this is lonely as shit” realm and the “OHMIGOD THAT PERSON PAID ME REAL DOLLARS TO DO SOMETHING I LOVE!!!” realm.

Each realm, I’ve found, is pretty brief, and always leads to another. Each realm is designed to shift your perspective, to teach you something valuable, and then to send you along your wandering way. If doing business is like taking a long and winding path through entrepreneurship, learning as we go, realms are just the accompanying scenery. They can shift overnight. And unlike levels, we recognize their impermanence. Some days we’re in the “I LOVE THIS SO MUCH” realm and grateful to the max — and other times, we’re stuck in the “Just gotta get this done” realm.

Doing business better is not about getting to the next level.  It’s about making sense of the realm you’re in right now — the space you’re occupying this very second.

If you’re trying to make sense of what you want to do with your business — that’s a realm. If you’re confused about marketing or want to quit the internet — that’s a realm. If you just want your freaking videos to go viral — another realm! The thing that makes this whole doing-business thing harder is that we don’t talk about the bad realms.

Marketers talking about the “next level” are almost exclusively talking about dollars and earning more, as if money is the magic balm that levels you up and reduces your struggle factor to zero. There is no such level.

So let’s stop talking about the next level, okay? It doesn’t exist. Let’s acknowledge that we’re all wandering through realms, shifting by the minute.

If you’re in the ‘just need to figure out marketing’ realm, grab a copy of Go Your Own Way and go straight to the appropriate chapter.

If you’re in the “feel so freaking alone” realm, check this out. We’re never as alone as we think.

If you’re in the ‘super fucking depressed’ realm, click here without further ado.

If you’re in the ‘WTF AM I DOING WITH MY LIFE’ realm, read this book.

If you’re in the ‘EVERYTHING IS OVERWHELMING’ realm, read this.

But please, don’t go on believing that there’s a magical book, class, workshop, mentor, friend, moment, or activity that’s going to cue the fireworks, summon the parades, or launch a thousand ships in your honor.

P.S. I’m proud of you, regardless.)

Why playing psychic equals booming business

This is one of the most powerful exercises I have to share in doing business.  It draws the right people to you, helps your ideal peeps feel more at home, and pushes away those individuals who aren’t a good fit without any hard feelings.  It’s also free and fast, so holy crap you should keep reading. 😉

“Playing psychic”  means you’re going to make a series of statements that feel specific but that are actually quite broad, just like psychics do when they’re giving a reading.

For example (imagine my eyes rolling back in my head while I gaze into a crystal ball): you have a father and you own a pair of pants. You hate trying on bathing suits and love ice cream.

See? Easy. You could be like, “Holy crap! HOW DID YOU KNOW!!!??” or you could see what I’m doing: playing psychic.

Here’s why telling your people who they are matters: people want to feel seen. They want to feel as if you know exactly who they are and what they want. When you tell them exactly who they are and what they want, they freak out and heart you really hard.

If you’re reading right now:

You’re a creative, intelligent entrepreneur.
You’re not terribly offended by swear words.
You want to make meaning, connection, and cash as a result of your work in the world.
And (of course!) you want to go your own way, ’cause life as usual is for the birds. 

Playing psychic in these statements enlightens the reader by helping them to know they’re in the right place.

If the first statement on a website in no way aligns with the reader’s values, they’ll probably go away.

That’s good. We like going away. People who don’t fall into these loose categories you’re creating aren’t going to be a good fit for your business.

The tougher the filters your clients have to pass through to work with you, the more confident you can be in the compatibility of your services and their needs.

The people who get your vibe and are your ideal clients will gobble up what you’re saying. The peeps who feel all ‘eeeeesh’ or ‘eh’ or ‘meh’ or ‘no thanks’ about you will hit the road, never to be heard from again.

Playing psychic helps them to go away faster. With less pain and wasted time and refunded money.

Statements like the ones we’re about to create make the time between a client’s meeting you and saying ‘yah’ or ‘nah’ much shorter, so you can focus on clients who GET you. Clients who GET you hire you, refer you to others, and come back for more when they need it.

Your turn! Think of the one dream client you’d like to clone over and over again. Write directly to that person in these statements, as you’re trying to attract more of the same.

You’re __________________ and probably __________ as well.
You are ______________ and _____________________.
You are not ______________________________________.
You love to ______________________, especially when _____________________.
Your ______________ could use a little help, and that’s where I come in!

Let’s try it again, Mad Libs style:

If you’re here, you’re probably __________________.
You’re ______________ and _____________________.
You’re definitely not ______________________________________.
You love to ______________________, especially when _____________________.
You know your ______________ could use a little help, and that’s where I come in!

Now, go off the rails and strike out on your own. Tell me 10 things about your ideal clients. You’ll find that they tend to share characteristics like “love fresh flowers” or “hate jazz music” or “really dig True Blood” or “like to be near water.”

Those characteristics aren’t coincidence — they’re signs of an ideal client! So think of every client you’ve ever loved, and play a game with yourself to see how many characteristics those peeps have in common.

No matter where you decide to feature this playing psychic copy, this tiny piece of writing is going to attract more of the right people for your business to you!

Hint: if you can’t think of things your people like or want to do or struggle with — what are the things YOU like or want to do or struggle with?  Start there, and I’ll bet you’ve got at least 80% of what you write down in common.

P.S.  How to be weird in a way that attracts your peeps and builds your business