CX Fanatics Podcast

Getting Your Business Mojo Back - Reflecting On 2021

2021 has been another year for the record books.  If you're like most of the world, you probably convinced yourself at the end of 2020 that 2021 would get us back to "normal" (whatever that is anymore).
Alas, 2021 has been another year of ups, downs, and turbulence that would give even the bumpiest airline flight a run for their money.
Shifts in the economy, in politics, in the job market with COVID - nothing seems certain anymore.
Alas, all of that uncertainty can lead to stress, overwhelm, and exhaustion.  When entrepreneurs are exhausted, their mojo is in serious jeopardy of crashing.
I've been struggling with my mojo for the past few months, and in this week's episode, I share three things that have helped get things back on track.
There is a bonus, so be sure to stay tuned until the end because it's a MUST hear suggestion that will surely impact how you show up in your business in 2022.
Grab the guide that accompanies this episode and the one releasing next week. It will provide you space to reconnect with your mojo as well as lay out a success plan for 2022.  You can download your free copy at alisaconner.com/2022
I can't wait to see what you have up your sleeve next.
So kick back, relax and tune into this week's show so you can reignite your mojo and set yourself up for a GREAT 2022.
Until next week,
Be well, stay safe and take care.
~Alisa

Help! No One Is Opening My Marketing Emails

This week's episode gives you the latest stats on email marketing open rates, click-through rates, conversion rates, and more. 
With all of the changes to online business in the last year, email marketing is STILL the best return on investment for your marketing dollars.  For every $1 you spend on average you get a return of $42.
This week's episode also shares 3 big reasons emails are being ignored and why it's only getting more and more competitive in the inbox.  But don't worry, you won't be left hanging, you will also learn how to be seen in the inbox, stand out from the vast number of other emails received, and most importantly how to turn those hot email leads into sales.
Jump into this week's episode to learn how to power up your email marketing so that you can start getting more sales with an audience who already wants to know more from you.  Email is powerful - put it to work in your business today.

123. Help! No one is listening to my marketing!

The state of marketing has been forever altered. 
Yes! That's a bold statement, but the state of our world has also been forever altered.
This is one of the reasons it is getting so darn hard to get people's attention.
In this week's podcast and video gain an understanding of why COVID is having a ripple effect on things like attention span, anxiety, overwhelm, and tangible things like the cost of advertising.
Also, learn three ways to circumvent the mainstream crowd so that your message gains traction, you get noticed and you pull the right people (read potential buyers) into your sales funnel.
Listen to the entire episode for all the details. Or watch the video here.
Looking for a way to stay in front of your audience on your terms?   Join me for my upcoming training Own Your Audience and learn the 5 step system that keeps you in front of your audience, creates conversation, and gets people purchasing your stuff at 4 times the rate of any other marketing tactic.  Register for this free training here.
Until next week, be well, stay safe and take care!
~Alisa
 

Why Facebook Changes Shouldn’t Matter To Your Business.

Unless you live under a rock, you are probably well aware that Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp all shut down a few weeks ago.  And, the saga continues with Facebook sitting in some pretty hot water for some of their business practices.  But, you may be wondering - eek what would happen if social media shut down for more than a few hours.  Then what?
One of the most often questions Second Act Entrepreneurs ask is “what should I be posting on social media?”
In this week’s episode discover that answer and more.
If you’ve been listening to the podcast for a while - the best answer to a question usually comes in the form of another question.  In this case, I would typically ask “where do you want people to go next after they’ve interacted with you on social media?” Most of the time that question leads to a lot of hemming and hawing and a deer in the headlights look.
But, you don’t know what you don’t know - here are the facts.  
Social media is a business.  Owned by business owners who only want one thing - to make money.  
They don’t really care if you’ve built a channel of a bazillion youtube subscribers - what they care about is how that makes them money.  So they change the rules to ensure that they are making as much as possible at all times.  Because, I repeat, they own a business.  
It’s very similar to people who start blogs and deliver free information again and again and again and then realize one day, “hey this is a lot of work and I’m not getting paid for it.”  Ultimately, they either give up or figure out a way to make money. You can only leave the open sign of a store open for so long without charging before you have nothing left to sell.
As social media aligns its priorities with profitability you will see ad prices increase, rules change, and monetization policies shift.  All in the name of what you and I would do similarly in our businesses.  You aren’t going to run a business on popularity - or if you do - you won’t be in business long.
Here are two tried and true rules to follow to ensure that you have profitability at the center of your business:
Don’t build your business on social media.  Move people offline and onto your email list as soon as possible.  Especially with all of the privacy rule changes that are happening, this puts the ball in your court to find out what more about your audience, stay in front of them in their inbox and move forward with solving their problems with your stuff sooner.
Don’t put your financial fate in the hands of other people.  I was checking out different YouTube channels the other day, and so many of these channels don’t have a way to move subscribers to an offline platform.  Many of them are running their entire business from that platform.  What happens when YouTube starts charging you to use their platform?  What happens if YouTube goes down permanently?  What happens to your business when they change the rules to benefit them without any concern about your channel or your business?
Instead, wouldn’t it be better to focus your energy and intention on moving your audience in a new direction and off the platform,  so you aren’t surprised by businesses making business decisions?
One of the best ways to do that and to take control of your audience is through email marketing. Email marketing is one of the best ways to stay in front of and sell to your audience. But so many people struggle with how.  This is why I’ve created my upcoming free training Own Your Audience - so you know exactly what to do to harness your audience through the power email.  Enabling you to stay in front of your ideal people, create conversations, and swiftly turn more subscribers into sales.  
Registration for this free event is open now.  Visit alisaconner.com/ownyouraudience and join me as I share my proven step-by-step system to take control of your marketing, time, and energy and forget what Facebook, Youtube, LinkedIn, or Instagram are doing today, tomorrow, or next week.

Organizing Your Marketing For Results

The marketing gurus would love to have you believe that you just snap this, post that and people will come running to buy your stuff - but the reality (if it hasn’t soaked in yet) is that it takes work, strategy, and consistency to get people to the finish line of pressing “pay now”.
In this week’s episode, learn the three-step system to simplify your marketing creation process that will ultimately save your sanity so that you can move people more quickly toward buying while you take your time back.
Start at the end of your sales funnel. This may sound counterintuitive, most 2nd Act entrepreneurs are smart, driven, and able to create content in their sleep. 
But just creating content without intention will quickly lead you to burnout.  Worse, all that effort rarely leads to results.
However, if you start with the end first, you naturally will lead people down a specific path to purchasing.
Just a quick reminder to at the end of the episode I’ve included a bonus tip.  You won’t want to miss this game-changing tip, so be sure to catch it in this week’s podcast or video.
Plan your content and topics quarterly.  Choose 4 topics related to your business and write them down.  These become your quarterly topics and the time frame in which you will talk about each.  One per quarter.  Once you have your topic areas you can outline the 12 pieces of content you will create for each quarter.  Keep in mind that each quarter relates back to step #1 (your sales funnel).
Repurpose your content after you create it.  This is the sneaky trick that all of the “big wig” marketers use to stay in front of your eyeballs all the time.  You start to feel like you are seeing them everywhere.  Because you are.  You or someone on your team can then take the content you created for your blog, videos, podcast, etc., and turn them into social media posts, downloadable content, paid ads, emails, etc. Creating more time for you to focus on your business - and not worrying about your marketing.
It’s time for this week’s bonus tip.   Tune in to the entire episode to get this DON’T want to miss tip.
Now you’re ready to batch your content and take your time back. But, there is still one little piece that many 2nd Act Entrepreneurs leave to chance.  That’s assuming that their audience will follow them from social media, or even their blog to their checkout page.  
Instead of leaving your sales to chance, wouldn’t it be easier to have your audience watching out for you?
Email marketing is one of the best ways to stay in front of and sell to your audience. But so many people struggle with how.  This is why I’ve created my upcoming free training Own Your Audience - so you know exactly what to do to harness your audience through the power email.  Enabling you to stay in front of your ideal people, create conversations, and swiftly turn more subscribers into sales.  
Coming up November 17th,  registration for this free event is open now.  Register here to learn the step-by-step system to take control of your marketing, time, and energy and forget what Facebook, Youtube, LinkedIn, or Instagram are doing today, tomorrow, or next week.  

The #1 Way To Increase Email Conversions

One of the biggest struggles I hear from new entrepreneurs is why isn’t anyone paying attention to my social posts?  How do I get people to buy from Facebook?
 
The reality is - you don’t.  Facebook and the lot are in business to make money.  Which means they make and change the rules on a dime.  The recent Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp outage only proves my point.  You have no control over what happens on social media.
 
The gurus will all tell you to build your email list - and I 100% agree.  
But what they don’t tell you is building your email list is only one piece of the conversion funnel that gets people to buy.
 
Once you have that email list built, you’ve got to get people reading your emails and moving forward to buy - otherwise, all your hard work is in vain.
 
In this week’s episode, learn the top 5 reasons people aren’t opening your emails and discover the #1 thing you can do to get more people buying your stuff.
So, why aren’t people opening your emails?
A business model change has occurred.  Either theirs or yours. We live in one of the fastest-moving societies in history.  Business is constantly evolving.  Most entrepreneurs are finding that narrowing down their expertise and audience is critical to expediting success.  With this evolution comes a narrowing of the information we take in.
People on your list no longer need what you got.  We all know that 2020 caused a massive disruption in the way the world works. More people are moving online, people are changing jobs at a record pace and they just may not need what you’re selling and have forgotten to unsubscribe.
This is a biggie - you haven’t been consistently emailing and they don’t know who you are.  How many times have you signed up for an email list only to have the person on the other end drop off the face of the earth for 6 months or more? Then they show up one day and you don’t remember who they are or what they do?  Consistency in your email is the best way to keep people up to date on changes and shifts in your products, services, or business.
The people on your list have already bought what you are selling.  Now before you freak out - you’re not for everyone and that’s ok. Sometimes, people need to try out different options before making a decision.  They found the right fit for where they were, and if one of the above is true - they weren’t meant for you.
This leads to the last key reason people aren’t opening your emails, they are just not a good fit for you.  This could be a variety of reasons including they aren’t ready for you or your service yet, you have a mismatch in energy and just don’t jive on the same level, or any of the reasons listed above.  
 
The #1 thing that will help you keep your sanity is to not take it personally.  
Years ago I heard the Q-Tip analogy.  Quit Taking It Personally.  People make buying decisions based on many factors - we can’t get inside people’s heads - so all you can do is show up and be the best version of yourself to serve those who do need you.  The rest, let it go, and Q-Tip it. 
 
So, what is the #1 way to increase your email conversion rates?
Clean your email list, regularly.  Inside my signature program that is opening up in November, I have a step-by-step breakup process that makes this step much easier.  Including templates.  Because sometimes breaking up is LITERALLY hard to do.  You don’t know what to say, how to say C-Ya, or let those people go.  You worked hard to get them on your list after all.  But if they aren’t reading, opening, or buying from your email - it’s time to let them go.
 
Why does cleaning your email list increase your conversions?
You’re not sending out to a bunch of people who aren’t opening your emails or that are sending them to spam.  This will automatically lower your conversion rates.  If people aren’t even opening your emails - you’re going to have a REALLY hard time selling to them via email.  So boot them off, they can resubscribe when they are interested again.
Cleaning your email list also improves your spam rating.  When your emails end up inadvertently in the SPAM or Promotions tab - people may miss them.  This can affect your future email sends and it’s also harder to retrain people to find your emails if they are not in their inbox.
You are only sending to people who REALLY want to hear from you and naturally, this increases engagement.  They are more likely to open and click on the links in your emails as well as buy when you send a sales email.
There you have it, the top 5 reasons people aren’t opening your emails and the #1 way to increase your conversion.  
Tune into the entire podcast or video to hear extra stories, examples, and more.
As you may know, email marketing is one of the best ways to stay in front of and sell to your audience. But so many people struggle with how.  This is why I’ve created my upcoming free training Own Your Audience - so you know exactly what to do to harness your audience through the power email.  Enabling you to stay in front of your ideal people, create conversations, and swiftly turn more subscribers into sales.  
Coming up November 17th,  registration for this free event is open now.  Visit alisaconner.com/ownyouraudience and join me as I share my proven step-by-step system to take control of your marketing, time, and energy and forget what Facebook, Youtube, LinkedIn, or Instagram are doing today, tomorrow, or next week.

How To Create Conversations In Your Marketing

Standing out in today's marketplace doesn't have to be as difficult as you might be imagining.  There is one little tweak you can make to your marketing efforts that will immediately separate you from all the other coaches and consultants out there. You can get the entire scoop by tuning into this week's podcast episode or video.
Why do online entrepreneurs seem to lose all their social skills as soon as they hop online?
Because they have been misinformed, or simply just don't know any better.  But the #1 way to increase your leads and ultimately your sales is to start talking to people, not at people.
During this week's show, I share the three ways that you can add conversations to your marketing efforts. These may seem simple, but I challenge you to look at your most recent marketing efforts to see how many you have implemented.  Even better, try on on the list below and share your results with me over on LinkedIn.  Send me a DM, I love to make new friends.
Meanwhile, let's dive into those three tips:
1. Ask open-ended questions.  Most people naturally ask yes or no or one answer questions.  If you practice asking open-ended questions instead, you will find people respond naturally with more words.  The more words, the more the algorithm takes notice - the more likely you will show up in more people's newsfeeds.  I share two specific examples during the podcast episode and video. Tune in to hear some client success stories using this method.
2. Listen, listen, listen and then talk.  Listening is hard.  No one tells you it's hard, but let's be real - you are busy, distracted, and most likely interrupted regularly.  So is your customer!  But when you actively listen to others, you will hear exactly what they are saying and then you have the opportunity to deliver the answer they are hoping and praying for. When you do this, you then become the go-to person for future issues and solutions.
3. Consistency, consistency, consistency.  Yes, you've heard it before. Are we always perfect at being consistent?  No. But does it matter if we are? YES!  Tune into this week's episode or video to learn the most important reasons showing up consistently - especially now is critical to online success.
Want a bonus tip? Catch the whole episode including the bonus by listening here or watching here.
If you enjoy the episode, please share it with a friend - it's you and your support that help spread the word.
Until next week, be well and take care!
~Alisa

Why Targeted Marketing Will Get You Clients Faster

One of the biggest struggles I see Second Act Entrepreneurs make is to try and sell to everyone.  It is a battle that is hard fought to narrow your niche, but it is also the fastest way to the promise land and selling your services. This week's episode unpacks the three reasons why. Listen to the entire episode.
Why do Second Act Entrepreneurs struggle with narrowing down their audience?
There are two main reasons people don't narrow their niche:
1. They want to serve everyone. Their product/service works for everyone. It makes sense to market to everyone if you aren't familiar with the current marketing landscape.  But, between the influx of businesses hopping online in 2020 and the number of people ignoring marketing because they are frankly "over it" - marketing must resonate with people at a deeper level if it's going to grab their attention.
2. They are afraid to narrow down their audience. It can be scary to narrow down to a specific person and create marketing that speaks to that person. But the more poignant the message, the more likely you are going to grab attention.
In the episode I talk about the big "a-ha" that I realized recently when trying to convince a client to narrow their marketing.  We have to spread our marketing message wide, but ensure that our messaging is very very narrowly speaking to a specific market.
There are three key reasons why specific messaging increases sales quicker.
1. Narrowing your message affords you the opportunity to create conversations.  There is a misnomer out there that you need millions of followers to make a lot of money.  The reality is - online businesses are still successful because conversations are happening between two people.  Relationships are built, trust is earned.  People crave connection, more now than ever and by creating an environment that nurtures connection, you are building both trust and conversation.
2. Narrow messaging helps people self-identify when you are speaking to them. Automatically causing them to stop the scroll, listen a little more intently and want to know more and most importantly helping you to stand out from all the other "noise" on the internet. When you can get people to stop and pay attention, but you have the opportunity to continue the conversation - if they scroll on by, there goes your chance.
3. When your people self-identify with what you are saying, you are building an emotional connection. You become relatable, trustworthy and it becomes easier to move them toward purchasing and working with you. 95% of buying decision are based on emotion. When you can connect with someone on an emotional level, it increases the speed of getting to "yes".
Want a few more examples or ready to dig a little deeper? Watch listen to the entire episode.
If you enjoy the episode, please share it with a friend - it's you and your support that help spread the word.
Until next week, be well and take care!
~Alisa