business insights
A funnel is not a website. It’s not a single email. It’s not an overpriced software platform someone tried to sell you in a webinar. It’s the journey someone takes from “Who are you?” → “This is interesting...” → “I need this in my life” → “Take my money.”
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100 Profitable Digital Product Ideas
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Launch Simply in 2021
If there’s anyone that knows a thing or two about launching, it’s us. In the past 5 years we’ve been in business, we’ve launched more times than we can count with a multitude of different products and services as our business transitioned and grew.
During the different seasons of our business, we’ve had big launches, small launches, and everything in between, so we’ve also picked up on how to do it without being so stressed. We think the number one important thing about launching is that it’s fun and simple. Otherwise, who the heck would ever want to launch anything?
So, today, we’re going to share with you a little about our plan for launching simply, and show you our little secret for making launching even easier.
A New Way to Plan 2021 That Actually Works
2021 is right around the corner, and last week we talked all about the never-ending cycle of being super super motivated to crush your goals in the new year, and then as the year goes on, momentum starts to fade ever so slowly.
We even talked about the importance of reflecting on your goals the week before and how doing so can help you plan strategically and intentionally, so you aren’t just writing down goals that aren’t realistic or reachable.
Now, what about the actual planning process? At the end of 2019, we tried a new technique that helped us plan for 2020 tremendously, and we’re going to break that down for you today.
How to Stay Motivated by Making Your Goals Visible
The month of December (a.k.a. the month of goal-setting) is one of our favorite times of the year. Nothing fuels us more than to sit down with each other and discuss our aspirations for what we aim to achieve in the new year. For some reason we’re especially fueled this month, probably because we can’t wait to leave behind the chaos that is 2020 (or soon to be was).
However, a struggle for many of our fellow creatives is actually staying motivated all year long. We know the feeling– you’re pumped to crush your goals while you’re planning them, and you still have the ball rolling through Q1, but then.. it slows down.
And it keeps getting slower.. and slower.. and slower until you reflect on your year, realize how shitty it’s been, aim to change that in the next year, get all pumped up again, and the cycle repeats.
So, how do you break the cycle?
How to Host Your First (or Next) Instagram Giveaway
No matter what type of giveaway you end up deciding to try first, the foundations of running a successful giveaway are generally the same. If you follow these eight basic steps, you’ll have a clear control over your giveaway and can potentially reach a lot of new people.
7 Places You Should be Showcasing Client + Customer Testimonials
Client and customer testimonials are one of the most crucial pieces of your marketing strategy. The journey you want to take people on to lead them to a sale consists of three main parts:
The “Are you in my head?” stage when you relay their pain points to them
The “Yeah, that actually would be nice..” stage when you have them envision what their life would be like if those problems weren’t problems
The “Okay, I’m ready to buy!” stage when you present the solution as your product or service
But– hold on a minute– hardly any one is just going to be ready to buy after seeing your thing. First they want to know if it will even work, and that’s when you bring in the big guns. (Big guns being testimonials, if that wasn’t clear.)
Testimonials can sometimes be the single defining moment of someone ready to hand their money over, or not. You probably wouldn’t purchase a product on Amazon if it didn't have a single review, would it? We as consumers count on those reviews as the proof of a product being worth the investment or not.
So, what makes your products or services any different? You can use those testimonials strategically in your marketing plan to be the final push that gets someone over the line and to the checkout page or paying their first invoice.
That’s why we’re going to share with you 7 places you should be showcasing client or customer testimonials, if you aren’t already.
How to Automate Your Client Testimonial Process
We all know that testimonials are a crucial part to a functioning business. Unfortunately, many of us are met with fear and anxiety just from the thought of having to ask clients for testimonials/feedback.
“What if I’m actually not doing a good enough job to warrant a great testimonial?”
Thinking of actually bringing it up to your clients almost makes you want to run away or barf (or both). It can even seem like a super awkward conversation, like you’re saying, “Hey, I know we’ve working together for a while, and I think I’ve been doing a great job, but can you just confirm that by writing a testimonial that will potentially be shared with thousands of people depending on how good it is?”
Okay, so you won’t actually say it that way, but it can seem like it! So today, we’re going to walk you through how you can put this task on autopilot so that you can avoid the testimonial-asking anxiety. Or if you’re just simply the worst at remembering to ask for them, these tips are also for you!
Pulling Back the Curtain: How We Launched Our Top 30-Ranking Podcast
It’s been over three years (really, close to four) since we launched The Strategy Hour Podcast. Since then, we’ve made the ranks of Apple’s Top 30 Business Management Podcasts, have been featured in multiple blog posts about business-related podcasts, have had X total downloads on Apple Podcasts alone, and we’re coming up hot on the heels our 500th episode (that’s a lot of freakin’ recording time!).
And while we’re so grateful that our podcast took off the way it did and has influenced thousands of lives and launching it was a blast, in no way has it always been easy. So, today, we’re going to be pulling back the curtain on how we launched our podcast, the challenges we faced, all of the hustle we put in to launch, how we plan and upload new episodes, the whole 9.
If the idea of launching a podcast has been tossing and turning in your brain, our totally candid and honest experience will hopefully help you determine whether this is the right next move in your business journey!
How to Boost Your Organic Reach Using Instagram Reels
Instagram recently released their new feature, Instagram Reels, and it’s catching like wildfire due to the similarities with its rival, TikTok. The reason TikTok is such an amazing platform for businesses is all thanks to the possibilities you have of organically reaching a large audience, and now Instagram has adopted this capability.
Accounts have been able to grow by the thousands after landing on Instagram’s explore page and gaining views from hundreds of thousands of people (similar to what happens when a TikTok video lands on the For You page). If you tailor your content to catch the attention of the right people, the opportunity to grow on Instagram is higher now more than ever.
But for those people who aren’t experienced with TikTok and the culture that’s now been brought over to Instagram, it can be super difficult determining what kind of content to post, how it works, etc. So, with that, we want to give a breakdown of Instagram Reels, how to use it, and what kind of content to post so you can increase your organic reach!
6 Reasons You Should Be Using Video Pins + How to Make Them
There are nearly 300 million daily users on Pinterest. That’s 300 million potential customers and clients out there just waiting to scroll upon your content. In fact, 97% of searches on Pinterest are unbranded, which leaves a huge opportunity for your content to show up. But how do you make them stop scrolling to check it out?
Since Pinterest is a visual search engine, you can bet that there are millions of beautifully stunning images already, but images are static, so a great way to catch someone’s eye is by creating a video Pin.
They’ve been around for a while, but their popularity has been rising exponentially in the past couple of years with the amount in 2019 increasing six times what it was in 2018. Even though video Pins are gaining traction, they’re still less used than images, which means there’s a huge opportunity just waiting for you to increase your visibility on the platform.
Another great thing about video Pins is that they automatically start playing when they’re halfway on a user’s screen. In a sea of static images, that’ll immediately catch someone’s eye and, hopefully, entice them to click through to your website. Why else should you create video Pins, though, and how do you create them?
How to Use Dubsado When You Don't Have a Website
“Do I need a website to use Dubsado?”
“How will I be able to use it for all the things I need to launch my business?”
We get these questions tons. The short answers are no, you absolutely do not need a website in order to make Dubsado work for you. And yes, you will be able to use it for every aspect of your launch and beyond. In fact, Dubsado could actually completely replace your website.
Evenmoreso, although Dubsado is a CRM, it can serve the same purposes as many other softwares, especially for someone who might be new to being in business and doesn’t have the extra income right now to invest in other tools.
So, keep reading if you want to deep dive into all things Dubsado, how to use it if you don’t have a website, how to use it to launch your business, and how to bypass the headache and set it up in just one or two days.
The Dos and Don'ts of Email Marketing
The great thing about having an email list is that it’s yours, and you’re able to market to people who you know are interested in hearing more about you and what your business is up to. It’s amazing for building lasting relationships with your audience, which is the key to making consistent sales and seeing growth.
However, like many aspects of business, there are a few dos and don’ts that are important to remember. Otherwise, it’s super easy to break down your relationships and see a large increase in unsubscribe rates and, ultimately, sales.
That’s why, today, we’ll be going over these do’s and don’ts. Some we’ve experienced ourselves and others we’ve seen firsthand with other businesses. And if you really want to up your email game, stick around till the end!
What the Heck is the Instagram Algorithm and How Does It Work in 2020?
The Instagram algorithm, A.K.A. this seemingly mythical being that’s confusing the heck out of tons of people. You may see it talked about a lot either by Instagram gurus or in Facebook groups, but one piece of information that seems to get left out is what it is and how it even works.
We’re all aware that a few years ago, Instagram stopped showing posts in users’ home feed by chronological order, so now it almost feels more like a popularity contest. (We miss those simpler times!)
Everyone is scrambling around searching for information on how to beat this beast, so we pulled together a list of our top tips for making Instagram’s algorithm your very best friend.
How to Create a Sales Page That Converts (+ Copy That We've Used to Sell Thousands of Dollars)
When was the last time you were excited about creating a sales page? When was the last time you felt empowered to create something that was going to put your amazing offer out into the world?
If there’s anyone that’s been around the block a few times with sales pages, it’s us. That’s why we want to spill our secrets and give you the rundown on how we create highly converting sales pages and how you can, too.
Sales pages can sound super scary, especially for someone who’s never created one before. There are a lot of things to think about when it comes to not only the copy but the design and how they work together as a whole.
How easily will visitors be able to read it? What information needs to be first? How do you coerce them to the checkout page? Do you have too much? Too little?
Why are My Canva Images so Blurry and What Can I do About It?
There’s no worse feeling than pouring your heart and soul into a graphic you’ve made in Canva that you’re so proud of, only to see that it ends up blurry and overall just crappy quality when you upload it to your website or social media channels.
You try again to no avail. Still blurry. Still suck-y.
So, why are your Canva images blurry, and what can you do to fix it?
We’re here to walk you through how to make sure your creations look clean and crisp every time (and don’t worry, we tried to limit the language to normal-person speak).
How to Tell The Future of Your Business: Find Conversion Rates, Lifetime Value, Profit Margins and More
Conversion rates. Analytics. Measuring growth. Lifetime value. There are so many business buzzwords that get thrown around that can feel really intimidating to the average creative business owner.
However, knowing this information is super crucial to your profits, your growth and the decisions you make every single day in your business.
Keeping track of your business’ numbers allows you to make strategic decisions instead of just saying, “Well, I feel like this is going well, so I’m going to keep doing it” or “I feel like this new thing could really help, so I’m going to try it.”
Honestly? We’d rather make business decisions rooted in facts and data instead of basing everything soley of feelings. We love us a good “gut instinct” and we like to back it up with cold hard facts.
Knowing how much weight a product or service is pulling for you or if it’s time to let it go, the rate of growth across all of your channels, and your overall progress is so important in order to plan and set goals realistically in your business, both short and long term.
So how do you find this information (or sexy math as we like to call it)? Where do you begin?
It all starts with your analytics.
Welcome to My Blog
Hey, I’m Abagail Pumphrey!
You know when you are so deeply passionate about something you can’t help but share it? That’s how this blog has felt for the last decade. I’ve written about my latest strategies, tech how-tos, experience with scaling and so much more. I hope you find just what you’re looking for. We’re here to help!
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