Does the thought of creating images, brand statements, and style guides put a big smile on your face?

I wrote this post a while back about creating a branding system for your business, and since then I’ve learned so many things that I can’t wait to share with you.

Now, to be fair, I can’t say that branding is my favorite topic just yet. To do it right, you’ve got to be relentless about every single detail and element. Ugh.

And does “branding your blog” even sound half as sexy as getting thousands of subscribers?

No to that…

But that’s not the question we should be asking. The real question is Why do we need to brand ourselves at all?

I’ve been thinking about this one for a while, and here’s what I’ve got:

• First off, if we don’t define our brands, other people will do it for us, and that might not be a good thing.
• If we’re going to stand out the way we truly want, branding is something we can’t afford to overlook.
• Branding with purpose and intention will help us attract more of the right people to our blog.
• We want visibility, baby!
  

We’re not building wallflower businesses here, k? We’re building climb-to-the-top-of-the-mountain, shout-me-loud brands that people notice.

So what are the things you can do to make sure your brand stands out above the rest? Let’s take a look!

1. Be consistent

This is one of the most important aspects of building a strong brand. There are a gazillion ways that people will find you and a gazillion different brands out there.

How do you rise above all that noise?

Pay attention to everything. Deets like your website, social media, fonts, colors, vibe, voice, the people you hang with, the emails you send, the way you respond to blog comments…all of it frames the way people think about you and your brand.

Your goal should be to present a consistent and harmonious brand image everywhere, online and offline.

For example, if you saw your pin in your Pinterest feed, would you immediately recognize your brand? That’s the kind of consistency and detail we’re aiming for!

The best way to stay consistent with your brand is to use The Build My Brand Toolkit and choose styles for everything…colors, fonts, images, social media, messaging, web copy…all of it. It’s like a “brand in a box” FULL of everything you need to build an epic brand that attracts your ideal customer. It may be just what you’re looking for! Learn more about The Build My Brand Toolkit.

2. Take a stand

You may not think this is an important step, and I get it. Trust me though, it’s a biggie.

Not only for the reasons listed here but because taking a stand will help you guide your brand in the right direction. Think of this as if you’re drawing a line in the sand between your tribe and everyone else.

Everything you do with your brand is going to etch that line deeper and deeper. With me?

Being 100% confident in what you stand for is one of the things that will help you effortlessly attract more of your dream customers. Those who heart what you heart will naturally be attracted to your brand’s purpose.

No better way to stand out than that, in my book…

3. Let your personality shine through

So, this thing just happened that’s a perfect example…

I’ve been creating some nutrition products with my brother, Dave, and yesterday he sent me a video to review.

Now, I didn’t have the heart to tell him this, but I started watching the first video and nearly fell asleep in less than 20 seconds.

His voice was literally knocking me out cold! It was completely dull, flat and lifeless. I honestly didn’t even want to hear what he was saying.

The funny thing is that I was so mesmerized by his earlier videos… I listened straight through each of them, stopping and pausing to take notes and rewinding to make sure I got all of it.

See the difference here? I wanted to hear more vs. couldn’t listen to another minute!

#LONGSTORYSHORT It’s your shiny personality (even more than what you say) that makes your brand truly stand out. Don’t be afraid to show the real you! Your audience will love you all the more for it, plus you’ll have a much easier time driving traffic to your posts. Promise.

4. Be your brand every minute

Hmmm…this one can be scary.

Truth is that building an epic brand isn’t something that just happens. You have to steer the ship, and one of the best ways to steer it in the right direction is to live and breathe your brand ALL THE TIME.

When I asked my brother what happened with his videos, he said that he just “wasn’t into it anymore”. He’d been working on those video trainings for so long, he just wanted to be done already.

Sound familiar?

We’ve all been there, where you feel like you can’t muster up the energy for another post, podcast, video or freebie. Creating content requires a huge amount of effort!

But what happened with Dave is an example of what happens when you forget to be your brand every minute.

Your content will start sounding off-brand and just plain icky, like you’re talking to a corpse. Definitely not the way to make your brand stand out!

#MORALOFTHESTORY Don’t push yourself through a funk just to “get it done”. This is one of those things where, if we really want to stand out, we have to be fired up and in character all day, every day. If you need to, walk away for a bit and come back when you feel more energized.

5. Tell your story

Want to really stand out among the hundreds of people in your niche doing the same thing as you?

It’s right there on your About Page! Bump.

No one in the universe has the exact same story as you, special girl. When you share the why behind your brand, and the experiences that make you so uniquely qualified to solve X problem, that’s where the magic really happens.

When you think about it, telling stories is a natural exchange. It’s what we all do when we make new friends. See how I worked my brother’s bit into this post?

What ways can you infuse your story into your content? How will you shake hands with your peeps to let them know that you get them and give them a peak into your world too?

6. Host a challenge

This one is so exciting! I’m about to launch my first challenge and have to admit I have a butterfly-in-my-stomach feeling around it. Wonder if you guys are going to like it or not? Guess I’ll find out soon!

If you’re curious, it’s the Higher Purpose, Higher Profit Challenge. It’ll walk you important things like:

• Narrowing down all of your amazing ideas to just one
• Finding the sweet spot in your business
• Gaining clarity over the one thing you were born to do
• Building a tribe around your brand

If you’re interested in this, let me know in the comments and I’ll keep you posted when the challenge starts.

I get excited by challenges because I think they’re a great way to connect with you guys and get a feel for where you’re at in your business, what you’re struggling with, and how I can tailor my content to help you.

7. Create a brand style guide

I know you’re probably thinking Do I really need a style guide right now? There are so many other things I have to focus on with my blog business. I can’t even get my head around this yet!

I’m with you on this one. I didn’t even think about creating a style guide until I was 2 years into my business.

Here’s the thing though:

I started noticing that my brand was looking a bit fragmented and all over the place. I was feeling fragmented too, and I knew my confusion was seeping into my brand materials.

Every time I created a pin, I’d start with a blank canvas, which for me was a big huge playpen. Every pin was an entirely new creation and experiment. Looking back, everything took much longer as a result. Oooh, let me try this pretty font. I really like this photo too, can I make that work? My pink color won’t work with the photo, though. It needs a peach color – lemme change it real quick…

Can you see things unraveling here?

There’s nothing wrong with creativity like this. But when you freestyle your brand in this way, things can start getting confusing for both you and your audience FAST.

So if you want to really stand out (and I know you do!), you have to create clear boundaries around your brand’s style.

It’s ok to experiment a bit until you find your voice, but at some point, you’ll need to pull in the reins and decide exactly which colors, fonts, imagery, and graphics you will use for your brand.

Since we’re on track to build an epic brand AND blog biz, and since all successful brands use style guides, we need one too, don’t ya think?

A style guide is just ONE of the many brand elements you’ll create with The Build My Brand Toolkit. It’s a complete done-for-you branding system that includes all your visual brand elements (logo, colors, fonts, social media templates, style guide) PLUS your brand copy (About page, Home page, blog tone and style) and more! Click the image below to learn more.
8. Check your online presence

Next up, take a look at your entire web presence and make sure it all fits your brand’s style and purpose.

Here’s a quick list of places to look:

• Blog or website
• Blog posts
• Blog post images
• Secondary post images
• Opt-ins + forms
• Forms
• Buttons + links
• Landing pages
• Pins
• Social media image templates
• Social media profiles

I’m sure there’s more to add to this list. If you think of any others, please share!

As you go through everything, ask yourself these questions:

• Do I have the same colors, fonts, and graphics everywhere?
• Will people be able to spot my pins right way?
• When someone reads my blog, is it fun and relevant to them?
• Are there any odd graphics/images that jump out in an icky, outdated way?

You know what to do here…update, tweak, edit, delete. Woop Woop!

9. Update bios and descriptions

Your biz probably has experienced a lot of twists and turns as you’ve learned more about your audience and your business.

So my question for you is:

Are your bios and descriptions right there with you every time you shift gears or are they a few steps behind? If you’re like me, you check your Twitter profile every now and then and think Huh? That’s not me. That was like 6 months ago.

Let’s whip our bios into shape. We want to take people on our amazing ride, not leave them behind, right?

Here are a few places to look, edit, update:

• Author bio
• Blog sidebar bio
• Speaker bio
• Media kit
• Social media profiles
• Blogger outreach
• Short description
• Long descriptions

10. Master social media

Gotta get visible, baby!

Speaking of which, I wrote this post on creating a social media strategy that will help you stand out, get visible, and drive traffic.

What you want to do is to pick 1-2 platforms and really master those first. Don’t worry about trying to be everywhere at once. It’s not going to work (trust me, I’ve tried). Once you’re really making progress on those, move on to the others.

If you plan on starting with Pinterest, here’s how to get massive traffic from it.

What you’re really going for is to create a social media system where you engage and share on autopilot. That means your goal is to spend as little time on social media as possible. Social media can be overwhelming and time-consuming, so you don’t want to fall into a rabbit hole with it.

Ok, don’t shoot me for saying this, but…

When you’re starting out, you will need to spend more time than you want. If you hang in there with me though, this is another one of those things that will save you incredible amounts of time later on, once you set up scheduling, automation, and maybe even outsourcing. Pinky swear.

If you really want to level up your social media game, grab this social media cheat sheet and content calendar with 24 days of content to share.

11. Blog consistently

The second half of visibility, and something we can’t forget, is to post consistently.

It doesn’t have to be every day, and it doesn’t have to be 2x a week like some other bloggers tell you. I’ve tried like crazy to post more than once a week and just can’t do it! Grrrr…so frustrating!

Still, staying consistent with my blogging schedule (1x a week) has made it possible to grow my traffic to over 35K in just a few months.

So, we get it. We know that we have to blog regularly.

I’m so excited about the new content calendar template I created. It will help you plan the content you’re going to share so you’re always one step ahead of blogging instead of five steps behind. Been there, done that! You can download the done-for-you calendar template right here.

You’re probably thinking How do I get ahead of blogging? I always feel like I’m falling behind schedule!

Honestly, I’d love to know the secret to this one myself! Seriously though, there are a few things we can do to maintain a consistent schedule:

• First, block out time at the beginning of the month to write all of your blog posts (you can use my time blocking template if you want).
• Keep a laundry list of blog post ideas, arranged by theme. Use Evernote or Google docs for this.
• Gather ideas in Trello. I’m so pumped about Trello, guys. I’ve just taken a peak and can’t say a whole lot yet, but it looks like you can create boards/cards for just about anything. Editorial calendar, anyone?
• Create a weekly schedule where you write, proof, SEO, create images, and promote, all on separate days.

That’s all I have so far, but I’ll be looking into more ways to get ahead of blogging, because we need it!

Related: 32 Insanely Easy Ways to Boost Your Blog Traffic for Free

12. Watermark your images

Yep, you have to brand everything.

Add your logo, colors, fonts, and other brand elements to your blog and social media images. This way people will recognize your brand in their feeds.

And if you’re curious about how to share photoshopped images on Instagram, I highly recommend Planoly for uploading and scheduling posts directly from your desktop. Woo!

Related: How to Create Branded Social Media Images with Photoshop

13. Host a webinar

Another one I’m excited about. I’m no master of webinars yet (Amy Porterfield is all over this one). Buut, I have done 2 and they were much easier than I thought. Scary, but easy.

Here’s why you and I both want to do more of them:

Everyone’s blogging.
Not everyone is webinar’ing.

So if we host more webinars, we’re sure to stand out from everyone else.  Let’s set a goal to do at least one webinar by the end of the year, k?

14. Review your offers

Silly question, would you rather be:

• A commodity (just like everyone else)?
• The go-to-authority (people seek you out for your expertise)?

Uh, duh… Of course, you’re the expert.

That means you have to be fierce about narrowing down your offers to just those things that you’re crazy passionate about and/or know really well.

The reason is that when you try to be all things to all people, you actually water down your brand and confuse the customers you most want to attract. They just won’t get that you’re a good fit for them.

The way to switch that all around is to review your offers every 3-6 months and make sure that they:

• Fit your current brand statement and mission
• Are unique enough to charge premium prices
• Solve one specific problem for one specific person

If you want help here, grab my Find your Niche workbook, which covers all of this and more. Click the image below to download.

 

What you’re aiming for is to wrap your offers in a pretty peach bow (insert your brand color), so your peeps know what box you’re in. 🙂

15. Update blog categories

Categories are easy to overlook because, well, you just don’t think about them every day, right? I happen to be going through a rebrand right now, which is why they’re fresh on my mind (and how I know that as your blog biz shifts, your blog categories will too).

Is it better to have tons of categories or just a handful?

It really depends on your preference, but here again, I recommend cutting the fat where you can. The more focused you can be, the better.

First of all, when you give people too many categories, they won’t know what to click on. Even I’m confused by the laundry list I see when I’m selecting categories for my posts.

Since we’re really shining brightly now, let’s get rid of this last fuzziness, shall we?

Take a look at your categories and narrow them down to just the ones that are relevant to your brand and audience.

Tip: If you have a WordPress blog, leave your existing categories as is, meaning don’t delete. It gets a little funky with SEO and XML sitemaps when you do this. Instead, add new categories and then manually update your posts.

So there you go! Those are my top 15 ways to make your brand stand out. Which ones are you working on?

 

 

For a while I thought that being successful in business came from sheer luck or chance. It seemed like some businesses I launched were destined for success and others not so much.

Now I know there’s more to it than that. There’s a formula I’ve seen emerge from the businesses that work, and the successful ones always have the right mix of the right things at the right time.

The trick is figuring out what that right mix of the right things really means.

First, let me say, there’s no such thing as failure. I know you’ve heard it over and over again and it’s true. Failures are speed bumps and your goal should always be to get over them as quickly as you can to get to the other side.

Which leads me to my 25+ tips for being a successful entrepreneur. Follow these tips to get over your speed bumps so you can enjoy the freedom, fortune and amazing ride of being your own boss.

1) First, trust that you can be your own boss

Being an entrepreneur is like sailing out into a big blue sea without a compass. It’s much different than working in a corporate environment where the infrastructure, systems and team are in place to assist in getting things done. The boss who held you accountable in your previous job is now you, and those team status meetings may feel lonely for a while. Be okay with that. It’s going to take some moxie to navigate the waters until you can steer yourself in the right direction, and you can do it. Over time you’ll create systems and processes for your business. The real payoff is that you’re about to create your own compass for your business and your life. And that’s the thrill of being an entrepreneur, isn’t it?

2) Your most important asset is Staying Power

My father is my #1 business coach and mentor (thanks dad! not sure if you know this but it’s true). I always reach out to him when I’m stuck or can’t see my way to the other side. So when he told me that the secret to being an entrepreneur is to have “enough staying power until you figure it all out”, I listened. He’s been successful in business for 40 years and has navigated some pretty murky waters. It wasn’t always pretty, but he hung in there. I can’t even count the number of times he changed his business model until it all started clicking. You have to hang in there too. Things may not come together at once or even the way you planned.

Your first few years are about putting your ideas to the test. You’re going to refine your business model, positioning, products, brand, target markets, and sales processes many times before you hit the sweet spot. The big takeaway here is that you need to be able to sustain yourself until you do. That means you need money to pay the bills, money for product development, money for sales and marketing, money for food, and so on. Whatever you do, DO NOT blow your entire budget on any one thing. It will paralyze your next move and slow things down tremendously.

3) You’re going to need to take calculated risks

It’s not exactly like jumping out of an airplane, but you are taking a leap when you start a business. You need to accept the inherent risk with that and meet it head on. That said, you wouldn’t jump out of an airplane without a parachute, would you? Create a business plan, establish concrete goals to work toward and document a timeline, along with milestones and a plan to achieve them.

4) Know what you’re passionate about

I used to think my passion was being creative. It was how I defined myself and how I wanted people to view me. What a big mistake that was. Those ideas I had about myself led to some really poor business decisions, ones that took me years to recover from financially and emotionally. Once I got clear on my true passion, both my financial success and my confidence soared to new levels.

Yes, it takes passion to be an entrepreneur. At the same time you need to have eyes wide open so you can see things that are staring you in the face. Just be real with what you’re passionate about and what you’re not so passionate about. Know that you’re amazing either way.

5) Is it a business or a hobby?

Yes, you can turn a hobby into a business and many people will tell you to start there. Other people start businesses because they can’t find something they want in the market and that’s fine. I started a clothing line like that and then realized that I was really designing tops for myself and didn’t care if any one else liked them.

That’s a hobby.

Generally speaking, passion for business is one thing and passion for a hobby is another. Yes, the two can be the same, you just need to analyze your resources and business model to determine if your hobby would translate well into a business before you jump in with both feet. Most of my successful businesses have been driven by looking at where my ideas fit in the market. So you can love making blueberry muffins, you just need the right ingredients (ahem) to turn it into a business.

6) Test your ideas early on

As an entrepreneur, it’s easy to get emotionally attached to what you do. But those ideas…boy, they can steer you in the wrong direction if you’re not careful. Early on I thought that everyone in the world would want my clever invention because, well, I made it. I was so immersed in product development that it took me three years to realize that both the market and profit margin were so small I would never sustain myself. If I had only stepped back from my idea, mapped out a business plan and tested the market beforehand, I would have saved so much time and money.

The last thing I want is for this to happen to you. Find out if your ideas match what people want before you develop the “wrong” product. For info products this means offering a free course to gauge interest in a larger program, and for consumer products this means prototyping and user testing before going into production.

7) Find customers first and figure it out later

One of the biggest mistakes entrepreneurs make is perfecting things before they get out there. Now I’m a Virgo and a perfectionist by nature, so I get it. But I’ve also had enough businesses to know that customers don’t really care. They don’t notice those tiny imperfections. Get your prototypes together and find your customers. You’re going to need their feedback to fine-tune your products and the faster you get something in front of them the faster you’ll know what to tweak.

8) Have some kind of business plan

It doesn’t have to be formal, especially if you’re bootstrapping the early years. You just need something on paper that speaks to what your business is about. Here’s where you identify the market size, brand, value proposition, competition, costs, breakeven projections, timeline, management, and so on. This way you can see any gaps in your concept right there on paper. Take the time to tweak your plan until everything adds up and makes sense. Trust me, this one step will save you tons of time and money later on. Besides, this is all the stuff you need to know in order to create and market your product, so why not do it now?

➤ If you need helping creating a business plan, I walk you through what to include in this post.

9) Don’t get hung up on tactics

There are a million ways to find customers these days and tons of ways to market your brand both online and offline. When you’re first starting out, there’s only one thing that matters and that’s getting your first customer. Whether you do that through networking, trade shows, SEO, social media, offline, online, email campaigns…doesn’t matter. Start with what you know and learn as you go. Social media, content marketing and list building all take time. Think about the quickest way to reach your customer and don’t get hung up on tactics. Your customer is out there and you’ll reach them. What you need to be clear on is what to say to them when you find them.

10) Don’t try to educate the market

Everyone loves a niche market. With fewer players, it’s easier to stand out from the crowd and differentiate your brand. But when you’re so “niche” that you find yourself explaining why people SHOULD want your products, you’ve got a problem. Trying to educate the market is trying to fit a circle in a square. You may be too early or too late to market, or the pendulum just isn’t going to swing your way on this one. Move on. The last thing you want to do is try to sell people something they don’t realize they need. Find a hole in the market first and work back from there, or repackage what you have into something people DO want.

11) Pivot often and quickly

Positioning, products, pricing, marketing… it’s all going to change more times than you can imagine. Expect it and plan for it. It’s just one of the growing pains of being your own boss.

You’re going to have to get good at listening to what people say. I’m not talking about your friends and family, they’ll support you no matter what. I’m talking about people who don’t have to care about what you do. What are they saying? What do they really want around your business?

I promise what you learn will catapult your business, as long as you take notes and change what you need to change as fast as you can. For your business to explode you need people to buy your products, and aligning your business with what they want is the fastest way to get there. You may find that you already have exactly what people want. If that’s the case, high five! Your next step is to get the word out.

➤ Related: How to attract your ideal customers

12) You’re running a marathon not a sprint

Someone told me once that a successful business takes three times longer and costs three times more than you think. Is this true? Could be, then again maybe not. One of my most successful businesses was hugely profitable within the first two years. It really depends on your timing in the market, your business, costs, overhead, forecasts and so on. Every business is different and you’ll need more time to learn the nuances if you’re going in cold. You’ve got to go into business knowing that you’re running a marathon and will need stamina. Forget about how fast everyone else seems to be moving. Set your eyes on five years out and grab on to your Staying Power.

13) Find a way to create a recurring revenue

A steady cash flow is critical to your growing your business. When your pricing is hourly or project-based you can get caught in a feast-or-famine cycle where you either have tons of business or none at all. Try to offer retainer programs instead, where customers pay you monthly rather than all at once. If you’re a coach think about 6-month coaching packages and for a service business, offer monthly programs or annual contracts and think about turning your services into info products for a passive income.

14) Keep moving

I touched on failure before and here it is again.

You’re going to make mistakes.

What you thought was a smart thing to do will turn out to be not so smart and cost you money you didn’t have to spend. That’s okay, give yourself a break. You’ve got to keep moving and not get hung up on it. Learn from each obstacle so you can dodge the next one. In the marathon of running a business, you’ve got about zero time to feel sorry for yourself and zero time to beat yourself up.

15) Don’t compare your start to someone else’s finish

Comparing your start with someone else’s finish is like playing your first-ever game of tennis against Serena Williams and expecting to win. It’s not going to happen. When you compare yourself with big brands and competitors, the trick is to reverse-engineer their starting point and envision the next move they would make given your same resources and bandwidth.

I’ll give you an example. When I started my design business, I knew my website wasn’t up to snuff. Now I’m a designer so that’s kind of a big deal, but I didn’t care. I saw what established designers were doing and they were light years ahead of me at the time, so why would I compare myself to them?

And really, your focus should be on everything in between your start and your finish. That’s where the secret sauce is. What’s the next step that will bring in one more client? Keep your eye on what’s right in front of you and you’ll get to the Finish line soon enough, I promise.

➤ Related: The 6×1 Formula for Getting High-Paying Clients

(NOTE: Have an amazing product or business idea and not sure where to start? Get my 6-Step Blueprint on how to supercharge your launch. Learn what you need to do and when to position yourself, validate your concept and turn complete strangers into excited buyers.)

16) Know what you can do and what you can’t

Before you jump into any business, you have to look at the fundamental requirements of the business itself. Are you planning on designing, manufacturing, and marketing the product yourself? You’ll need to find another way, because that’s going to be challenging.

If you’re a service business, how will you scale beyond a Rollercoaster Revenue that comes from the “sell-then-do” cycle? Can you stand on a handful of products or does your business require a slew of new products every quarter? If it’s a new industry, how much time will it take to learn and can you sustain that learning curve?

The fundamentals of any given business are pretty much set in stone and wishing them away may make you feel better, but it won’t change the facts. As an entrepreneur you’re about more than feeling good, right? Focus on the business requirements and be sure you have the resources to fulfill them before you commit.

17) Trust your instincts

When I started my first business the Internet didn’t exist. If I wanted to find out what other entrepreneurs were up to I either had to join a networking group or go to a library.

Nowadays, it’s hard to put one foot in front of the other without feeling like you’re missing something. Everyone else has got the key and if you just read one more article, you’ll have the key too. So you look for more stories to validate your own journey, and wind up feeling further away from where you want to be.

Half the battle here is monitoring your social time. The other half is deciding to trust your own gut and instincts. Listen to your story more and others less. Deep down somewhere you know exactly what your next move is. So shut down the computer, turn off the TV and crank up the volume of your inner voice. Then muster up enough courage to take the step you KNOW you have to take. Trust me, you already have the key.

18) Create a partnership

I’m not talking about a referral partnership here, I’m talking about taking on an actual partner in your business. You can go it alone and you can hire business coaches, still nothing beats having someone in the trenches with you every single day. You want someone whose skills compliment your own without overlapping.

I once partnered with my best friend who did the same thing I did, which meant neither one of us did all the other stuff. And my best partnerships have come about organically where we were naturally a good fit. So if you’re the creative arm, find a partner who has business development or sales experience to balance out your skills.

19) Market, market, market!

I can’t emphasize this enough. I’ve seen so many entrepreneurs forget about marketing and it kills me. You can’t put all your money into product development and leave nothing for sales and marketing. There’s just no place in the business universe where you can justify spending $50K on things like materials, labor or structural improvements and $0 on marketing.

Here’s the deal. If nobody knows you exist, then you don’t, period. People have to be able to find your business and they won’t be coming out of the woodwork to do that. It’s up to you to wave your brand flag and let them know you’re here, and it takes time and money to do that. If your marketing budget is small, be prepared to put more time in to things like social media, email, PR, and so on.

If you’re short on marketing ideas, check out this post where I list over 100 ways to market your business. The possibilities are endless!

20) Prioritize goals and tasks

It’s easy to get stuck when you’re staring at a huge To-do list and not quite sure what to do first. I know I’m a lot more pumped when I’m checking the box and getting things done.

Time management really boils down to three things: 1) factoring in everything – work, exercise, shopping, kids, date night…all of it; 2) getting better at estimating your time; and 3) breaking each goal down into sub-components. So if your goal is to launch a webinar, you’d break that down into smaller tasks like this:

• Research webinar platforms (2 hrs)
• Pick a topic (1.75 hrs)
• Find a presentation template (1.5 hrs)
• And so on…

➤ Related: How to Get a Massive Amount of Stuff Done Each Day

21) Find ways to automate things

Being an entrepreneur means wearing many hats and one of your biggest challenges is how to get more done wearing fewer hats. The great news is that a lot of the things you find yourself doing over and over again can be automated.

I used to spend hours each day scouring Google, LinkedIn, and Data.com for prospect lists. Then I’d research the email addresses, craft each email and send them out one by one. With automation I was able to create an email system that downloaded lists, gathered emails and scheduled email sequences without me ever lifting a finger. I now have my own “virtual assistant” reaching tons of people around the clock and the best part is that it freed up about 3-4 hours a day.

What hats can you take off? Start thinking about systems you can install to replace recurring or repetitive tasks.

➤ Related: How to Prospect Like a Pro on LinkedIn

22) Focus on one thing at a time

Feeling overwhelmed by all the things you need to do? The first thing to do here is to pinpoint the single most important thing you can today do to move your business forward. Make sure you block out time for that each week and do it. Then take a breath and know that everything will get done. Be okay with doing one thing at a time and follow it through to completion before you move on.

23) Get support when you need it

In the corporate world, team status meetings usually go something like this: one person brings up an issue and then everyone chimes in to find a solution. Somehow you need to play all of these roles in your business, and that’s where business coaches can be tremendously helpful.

I worked with coaches when I was starting out and still turn to them for guidance whenever I make major shifts in my business. Try to find someone who understands your business and can provide clarity and direction so you can keep moving your business forward.

24) Don’t procrastinate

The biggest reasons entrepreneurs procrastinate is because they don’t know what to do next – and deep down – they don’t really want to find out how to do it.

I get it. It’s a whole lot more fun to play in a sandbox, but being an entrepreneur means taking action. Have the courage to put your brand out there. Stop doing what you want to do and start doing what you need to do to skyrocket your business.

Yes, it’s hard to navigate social media, list building, Facebook and all the rest of it. You still have to do it. Don’t let confusion lead to procrastination here. Start with one channel, get comfortable with it, and then move on to the next. Before you know it you’ll know exactly what you need to do and when.

25) Know when to fold

So you want to be in it for the distance, but just how far will you go? How much money and time you will invest in your business before you expect to make a profit?

➤ This is where having a business plan is crucial.

You have to set reasonable expectations for your business so you know what success looks like, when to keep pushing and when to call it. Your business plan is where you’ll project milestones for breakeven and profit points. Obviously you need some wiggle room, but the bottom line is this: what’s your strategy if you’re not profitable within that time frame?

You may need to tweak the timeline, or maybe you underestimated the resources you’d need. This happens a lot, so be flexible and fluid. It could just be that your first projections were off and you need to update your business plan. Just know that if you’re not showing a profit at year five or even year seven, it may be time to walk away. And remember it’s not what you’re walking away from but what you’re walking to that counts. Make an objective decision about what’s working.

26) There are some things money can’t buy

There’s a strange correlation we sometimes make between spending money versus spending time on things. I used to think that the sheer fact I was spending money related to my business meant that I would see a return on it, so I’d kind of sit back and wait for the sales to roll in.

But here’s the thing: money won’t solve poor positioning or a weak concept.

Spending money doesn’t replace the hustle you have to put in to your business. If your messaging or product doesn’t connect with people, then your cost of acquiring customers will be high.

So before you roll out a big campaign or make a huge purchase in your business, put the time in and make sure your products, offers, positioning and marketing techniques are all spot on. Once you do that, you’ll actually be able to spend LESS money to get those same customers, so your customer acquisition costs will be lower (and your profit margins higher).

27) Learn by doing versus reading

You can Google anything you want and spend hours searching for a solution, a path, the answer, a secret formula, the missing ingredient…or you can try something, see how it goes, learn from it, and create your own experiences. This is really the way you’re going to learn and move forward with your business. The bloggers you’re following are only walking you through what they’ve already tried or experienced and the difference between you and them is that they’re doing it and you’re not. So just start doing it too. You’ll get more confident as you go and light years ahead with your business this way.

(NOTE: Have an amazing product or business idea and not sure where to start? Get my 6-Step Blueprint on how to supercharge your launch. Learn what you need to do and when to position yourself, validate your concept and turn complete strangers into excited buyers.)

About 2 months ago I made the switch to ConvertKit and fell in love.

So today, I thought it would be fun to share my email marketing journey, plus the simple and effective ways I use ConvertKit to get 1,500 subscribers a month.

Here’s what I’m covering in this post:

• Why I switched to ConvertKit (and why I stayed, even when Infusionsoft offered me a 70% discount)
• Why I love ConvertKit
• How I use it every day to build my list and sell products
• How to set up ConvertKit and use it to grow your business

This post contains affiliate links.

1) First, here’s why I switched to ConvertKit

I highly recommend using ConvertKit to manage your subscribers and build your email list.

The reason is that I’ve used Infusionsoft, MailChimp, and Aweber, but none of them hit the sweet spot for me. Infusionsoft was too complicated. MailChimp didn’t have the functionality I wanted. Aweber seemed a bit outdated.

Let me share my Infusionsoft story.

I signed up for Infusionsoft a year and a half ago after taking a list-building course. My instructor used Infusionsoft and I thought Kamila’s successful… I want to be successful too. Let me try it.

So I did. Even though the monthly fees were steep, I was happy with my decision. Seeing subscribers pop up every day was a thrill. Woo! What a rush…

After a few months, though, $249 a month seemed like a lot (yes, that’s what it cost).

Still, the thought of migrating my campaigns to a new platform was a big fat turn off, so I stayed with Infusionsoft even though the high monthly fee was starting to make me sizzle.

Then one day a light bulb goes off and I decide to cancel my Infusionsoft account. By this time, I know that ConvertKit is an amazing platform with better pricing options.

That’s when this thing happens:

Infusionsoft drops their price to $199. Boom. Just like that. They even offer additional free training, which I accept because I really (really!) dread switching to a new provider.

So we’re all good until a few months later, when this other thing happens.

I see a message on my dashboard:

You’ve reached 2,000 contacts. Either delete contacts to continue (really?!) or upgrade to $349 a month (say whaaa?).

I can’t even access my dashboard unless I pay $349. Right then and there, I sign up for ConvertKit. And here’s where it gets even better:

I spend the next 3 days migrating my list, learning the ConvertKit interface (which is super intuitive), importing contacts, creating tags, testing, and so on.

Once I’m all set, I call to cancel my Infusionsoft account again.

On that call, Infusionsoft offers me $99 a month FOREVER. No increases. Ever.

Come on, Infusionsoft, really? You just bumped me to $349. Now your “customer experience” rep drops the price to less than one-third the price you bumped me to, for the same exact service? Did somebody just say “shady pricing”?

X to that.

Now, maybe I would have stayed with them for that price. But 3 days was all it took for me to become a die-hard ConvertKit fan, which I’m going to tell you all about right now.

Click here to learn more about ConvertKit’s pricing and services.

2) Next up, why I love ConvertKit and how I use it every day

There are 3 things I love most about Converkit:

• Their insanely straightforward pricing
• Their bend-over-backward customer service
• The interface itself

Let’s start with their pricing:

After my experience with Infusionsoft, transparent and honest pricing is a biggie for me. Here is ConvertKit’s pricing:

Easy peasy, straightforward pricing that scales as your business grows, so you don’t get walloped in the earlier stages of your biz.

ConvertKit’s customer service

ConvertKit’s support stood out to me, and I’ll tell you why.

First off, I half expected it to be lame after my experience with Infusionsoft (long waits, curt responses). But the folks at ConvertKit are on the case the minute you pop in with your question. Boom. Someone’s on the other end asking How can I help?

That’s just the tip of it. The best way I can describe it is to say that their support team feels like they’re YOUR team. This is huge when you’re a team of one or two, no? We need peeps in our corner. Until ConvertKit’s support team resolves your issue, they’ve got nowhere to be except right there in the trenches with you.

To show you how ConvertKit’s support makes you feel all warm and fuzzy, here is my very first experience:

Right after I signed up, I tested my sequences and noticed that some emails went straight to the junk folder. I was concerned about what this meant for email deliverability, so I popped into their chat support.

I couldn’t believe how thorough ConvertKit was with their response. They walked me through a few standard things to start. Then they kept digging. Here’s the first email I received from them:

Can you see how amazing these guys are? This one response helped me to write better emails and avoid the junk folder. From there, they continued to troubleshoot. They added over 400 test subscribers to my account with various Outlook, Hotmail, and Gmail accounts, all to make sure that my emails were indeed making it to the inbox.

That’s impressive, in my book. ConvertKit spent a whole week running tests. Just shows you how much they care about our success.

The easy-to-use interface

As a visual person, the look-and-feel of things matter. The biggest difference between ConvertKit and other email providers is the intuitive interface. I just love ConvertKit’s navigation. It’s simple and effortless. No poking around in submenus trying to find what you need.

Here’s a look at the ConvertKit dashboard:

See the blue bar at the top? Those are the sections you’ll use to grow your list and sell products. You’ve got Forms, Sequences, Broadcasts, Subscribers, Automations…all the tabs you need right at your fingertips.

This is worth a li’l happy dance. Great design = seamless experience, which is exactly what ConvertKit provides here. With Infusionsoft and Aweber, I always had a hard time figuring out what to click.

Let’s dig into each of these tabs, k?

How I use ConvertKit Every Day

Forms

I use ConvertKit forms to create an opt-in form, which is your first stop for growing a list. You can style the form, add a custom image plus your text, and embed the form directly on your site.

But you know me…I love my Thrive Leads, so I create forms in ConvertKit that “speak to” the Thrive Leads forms. Even if you use SumoMe or Thrive Leads for your opt-in forms, you still need to create a mirror form in ConvertKit (minus the styling) which is a simple 1-2-3 process. Takes seconds.

Sequences

I use ConvertKit sequences to build a relationship with my subscribers by creating value-packed emails that are automatically delivered to them once they sign up. Sequences are all pre-written and pre-scheduled, which takes more time upfront for sure, but well worth it. These are essentially set-it-and-forget-it sequences that work for you behind the scenes once you set them up.

I also use sequences for my automated product funnels, which means I make money on autopilot.

Broadcasts

I use ConvertKit broadcast emails to offer even more value to my readers or share a new post or product. These are weekly or bi-monthly emails that are one-offs (separate from automated sequences). I don’t schedule broadcasts unless it’s late in the day and better to send the next morning.

Subscribers

Here’s where I can see my list of subscribers, the freebies they’ve signed up for and the products they’ve purchased. I can also filter my ConvertKit subscribers by emails opened, links clicked, freebies downloaded, products purchased, and so on. This filtering is based on tags to help you segment your list and send specific announcements to only those people who signed up for X freebie.

Automations

In ConvertKit, automations are If This, Then That conditions where one action triggers another event or state.

Think of it as an iPhone. You can’t dial anyone without putting your fingers on the keypad, right? Your iPhone sits there waiting for an action to trigger a call.

Sequences and forms are a bit like that…they wait for an action. The only difference here is that instead of taking an action, you create an action that triggers the call (or in our case, the email).

That’s what Convertkit automations are all about. You create an automation rule that says When a subscriber opts-in to X freebie, add them to X sequence. Then that action triggers the sequence to be delivered. Make sense?

4) How to Use ConvertKit to Grow Your Business

First thing you need is a freebie of some kind. It can be a cheat sheet, PDF of your post, template, workbook, Ebook…anything that provides extra value to your readers and extends on your post.

Make sure you include a call-to-action within the post. A simple Yes, I Want! graphic will work perfectly. If you need help here, I’ve got 9 ways to optimize your website where I drill down on freebies, CTAs, and more.

Once you have your freebie, it’s time to head over to ConvertKit and create your first form.

Creating forms in ConvertKit

From the main dashboard, select the + Form button.

You’ll be redirected to a page where you can select a form or a landing page.

I use Thrive Architect and LeadPages for landing pages, so a form is all I want here. If you’re looking for a landing page builder, you can easily select one of ConvertKit’s landing page templates in addition to (or instead of) the form.

Otherwise, you’re good with just the form.

ConvertKit has 3 form variations:

Once you select your form, you can easily edit the text, upload your freebie graphic and change colors to fit your brand.

I use the name of my freebie/product as my form name.

Next, select the Settings tab. If you created a form, make sure you select “Just a form to embed on my site.” Below that, you’ll see an option to “Redirect to another page”. I like to send subscribers to a custom page where I thank them for signing up and let them know the freebie is on its way.

Psst…LeadPages has beautiful thank you pages.

Almost there. Next, select “Incentive Email” from the left column. Here’s where you can select single or double opt-in. If you’re curious, single means that a person becomes a subscriber as soon as they fill out your form. Double (or incentive) requires an email confirmation first to make sure the email address is correct. This prevents your emails from bouncing and gives people a better chance to receive your freebie.

Creating your first sequence

Sequence time. This part is super easy!

Each new sequence kicks off with a mini-tutorial courtesy of ConvertKit:

You’ll want to write a compelling subject and change the delay time (tip: set your first email to 0 days so subscribers receive it immediately!). Then select either Draft or Publish. Make sure you preview your email before sending it.

As I mentioned above, my emails ended up in the junk folder during testing until I adjusted the length and number of links. Bottom line, you want more copy and fewer images + links. If you stick to that, you can feel confident that subscribers will receive your emails.

Once you’re happy with email #1, select Add Email from the left side and write emails #2, #3, and so on. Depending on your sequence, you might follow up with:

• A reminder to download your freebie
• An exclusive tip
• A roundup of your top posts
• Case studies + success stories related to a product
• Your story
• A link to a video

Before you publish your new sequence, jump over to the Settings tab real quick:

Here’s where you can do things like:

• Specify how you want your sender name to appear (I had to adjust mine to include my name)
• Select your preferred send days and time
• Exclude subscribers – if someone has downloaded X freebie, you can and should exclude them from X freebie sequence.

You’re doing great! We’re just about ready to wrap this up. Ready for it?

3) Set automation rules

Remember those triggers and actions we talked about? Here we go, baby! ConvertKit’s automation rules confused me at first, so if this part seems overwhelming, I get it. But really, this is the quickest part. It takes less than 10 seconds.

First, select + Add Rule. Here’s what you’ll see:

For the trigger event, select “When someone subscribes to a form” and select your new freebie form. For the action, select  “Subscribes to a sequence” and select your freebie sequence.

I recommend testing your opt-in form using your own email address to make sure:

• Your email is added as a subscriber in ConvertKit
• You are added to the correct sequence
• You receive the first email in the sequence

That’s all there is to it! You’ve just kicked your email funnel into high gear. So what’s next?

Get busy blogging. The more content you share, the more traffic you’ll drive to your blog, which means the more people will sign up for your list. I also recommend creating as many freebies as you can. You never know which ones will capture people’s attention and outperform the others. It’s helpful to have a few cheat sheets and Ebooks you can put into rotation.

And of course, I recommend signing up for ConvertKit. You can start building your list for only $29 a month. Click here to learn more about ConvertKit’s features and services. Woo!

Let’s talk about branding!

I remember when all you had to do was pick a logo and a color palette. Maybe you’d even create a tagline, but that was about it.

Anything more than that was for the big brands like Coca Cola. They had (and still have) 50-page style guides for everything – logos, fonts, images, graphics, placement, scale, proportion, ads, brochures, storyboards, radio, TV, web, print…all of it.

But a style guide for a small brand? That was just redundant. As a small business, your marketing was maybe a trade show booth, a brochure and a quarter-page spot in a local magazine.

Building brand awareness on a massive scale just wasn’t affordable for smaller brands.

Now everything has changed. Today every single brand is a publisher.

Can you see how amazing that is? We are publishing companies. Doesn’t matter if we have a team of one or a team of one hundred. We have the potential to reach the exact same audience as Coca Cola and get massive exposure for our brands.

What this means is that we need a whole lot more than a logo and a color palette. We need an entire brand system for everything so that all our brand elements work harmoniously together and are consistent everywhere.

If you look at all the places where people will experience your brand: your website, emails, landing pages, sales pages, CTAs, ads, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest… It’s a lot. And you need a documented system for things like social media posts, images, content, calls to action, web copy so that you’re not chasing these types of things at the last minute.

Here’s what you need in your brand system:

• Tone. How do you want people to feel when they experience your brand? Loyal? Creative? Bold? Humorous? Pick three words you want to be known for and use them to set the overall tone of your brand.
• Logo. Your logo should be simple, bold, and instantly recognizable (especially on profiles and favicons). It should work equally well in color and in black and white. For more on designing a logo, check out this post.
• Fonts. Choose a font or font pairings that speak your brand. Think about what fonts you want to use for your logo, and what fonts to use for headings, body copy and emphasized text.
• Colors. What colors support the tone of your brand? Bright and airy, warm, vibrant, dark and edgy, neutral and balanced?
• Image library. What types of images and textures reflect your brand personality? Smooth, soft, edgy? Start creating a library of images so that you have them handy. There are tons of free or inexpensive stock photo sites with amazing images. A few of them are listed here.
• Graphics. Same thing for graphic elements. What graphic elements will you use for your brand? Circles, squares, icons? Freepik and Flaticon are great sources for icons and graphics.
• Blog. Think about your short term and long terms goals for your business. How will you use blogging to achieve them? What types of content will you share? What content themes will you work with to provide the most value to your audience? I drill down on 14 ways to grow your blog audience in this post.
• Social media. Who is your target audience and what channels will you build a following on to reach them? Create profiles on each and mark down specific goals. For social media profile and cover image sizes, check out this post.
• Share images. Use Photoshop or Canva to create image templates for social media. Make sure you brand the share images with your logo, fonts, and colors so that people can instantly recognize your brand.

To make it extra easy for you to pull all of these elements together, I created the Build My Brand Toolkit. If you want a ridiculously in-depth, step-by-step system FULL of everything you need to build an epic brand that effortlessly attracts your dream customers, the Build My Brand Toolkit may be just what you’re looking for! Click the image below to learn more:

While you’re brainstorming your brand system, spend some time researching other brands that stand out to you. Look for quotes, images, textures, fonts, and so on that catch your eye. Pinterest is great for this. You can create a private board where you gather and refine your visual inspiration.

Once you have your brand system together, your next step is to document it in a style guide (yes, you need one!). Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow. But at some point you will, and here’s why:

• Posting on social media will take you minutes instead of hours.
• Your ideal customers will easily recognize your brand.
• Your image library will make creating blog title images effortless.
• You will know exactly what to blog about, why and for whom.
• You won’t get caught using off-brand colors and fonts. You will know exactly which fonts to use, how you want to juxtapose them, and what colors to use for each element.
• You’ll have the confidence to hit the ground running knowing that your brand is consistent everywhere and that everything works seamlessly together.

A brand style guide is just ONE of the many brand elements we’ll cover in the Build My Brand Toolkit. With this kit, you will create an entire branding system that includes your visual elements (logo, colors, fonts, social media templates, style guide) AND your brand copy ( About page, Home page, blog tone and style, and more). Learn more about the Build My Brand Toolkit.