Badass Is The New Black (Season 4) Episode #24- 5 Things Working For My Business In 2022

small business growth and marketing strategies Aug 31, 2022

In the last two years a lot of things have changed for business owners around the world. The ability to pivot is one of the most important skills we can have as entrepreneurs. Today, I'm going to share with you 5 things that are actually working for my business RIGHT NOW and these are things that I have heard other successful business owners share about as well.

5 Things Working For My Business In 2022

Before we dive into this incredible episode, I have a huge announcement for you, Claire, my sister and business partner, and I are hosting our very first live in-person retreat happening October 13th through 16th. This is a chance for you to check out of your day to day and come connect and create with women and dive into your purpose. We're going to have exercises to help you get rid of those roadblocks, holding you back in everything that you're doing in life and in business. We're going to have business clarity sessions to help you get a really clear vision of what it is that you want and how to get it. Plus a full day of content creation with a professional photographer and a professional videographer. And he's an expert in drones. So I know we're going to capture some amazing footage for you, and don't worry if you have no idea what you want to create or what kind of real you want to create, we're going to have a session dedicated to helping you plan that out. We're going to have plenty of downtime as well for a paddle boarding, kayaking, napping. If you want to take a nap, come take a nap, sunset boat, cruises, bonfires, and wine, and a whole lot more. And did I mention that there's going to be a private chef there cooking us delicious meals. It's going to be an incredible weekend of rest renew connection creating. So if you want to come join us, there are some spots left, open, still spots are limited. So head over to the KrissyChin.com/retreat for more details to download the full flyer and to claim your spot before they are gone, we cannot wait to see you. And that's it. Let's dive into the episode.

A few weeks ago, I found myself sitting on zoom with 30 incredible women in the industry talking about all things business. It was a virtual mixer. So I was personally invited by Linda Sindhu, an amazing quiz creator. And she put together this pop-up virtual, a mixer for networking and just learning from each other, kind of like a mini mastermind, but just no pressure to continue on, you know, for an extended period of time, it was just, you know, show up and let's really give each other value and help each other out. And so throughout this mixer, she asked a couple of questions and then you could raise your hand on zoom and participate in the conversation and share. And one of the questions was what is working for you now in your business in 2022? Because it could be very different than what was working last year, the year before. And so I found this question incredibly fascinating, and I started writing little notes in terms of what was working for me in my business. And as each woman got up to share what was working for them, I was like, yes, that's, I'm doing that in my business. And that's working, yes, I'm doing that. And that's working.

So instead of sharing one thing that was working, I wanted to share five things with you that are working for me in my business, but I realized that it was actually working for these other women in their businesses as well. So, you know, my, my hope is that maybe these are things that could really help you in your business in 2022, maybe even into 20, 23 and beyond. And if I do reflect back, they are things that I have tried to do, you know, throughout my business. And, and some of them have been there from the beginning and some of them are a bit newer. So I hope that you gather just one little nugget from this talk today on the episode and can pull that into your business and say, maybe I'm going to work a little bit harder at doing this one thing. All right. So let's dive right in there in no particular order. I just wrote them down. So I'll just go through them.

SIMPLIFY

But number one is to simplify what you're doing and then teaching that thing really simplified. So this is something in my business with two businesses, things have gotten out of control with, in terms of what we offer, how much we offer different funnels that are set up. I mean, I have so many different freebies. I was having a hard time keeping track, and it was very evident when I had to move all of my content from one Kajabi platform to another Kajabi platform. Won't get into that story for another day, but I realized, oh my gosh, I have all these things, all these different funnels, these different freebies. And I'm not really taking care of them very well, meaning I'm not making sure that they're still working really well. I'm not really paying attention to the analytics there to see if things needed to be modified or how they're functioning. So while it might be bringing people into the list, I don't, I'm not really keeping tabs on it. And it was just almost feeling like there was too much going on to keep track of and take care of. And so before even someone shared that I had shared with Claire, my sister and business partner, if this is the first time listening, you'll me talk about her a lot. But I had sent her recently when we were switching everything to Kajabi, I said, listen, my word for the rest of the year. I actually didn't set one at the beginning of the year. I've done that before. But as in my word for the rest of the year it is simplify. Like we just have to pull back the curtain, pull back the layers and simplify. I just want a couple of few. My daughter is always like a couple is two.

And I'm like, well, I meant three. She's like, that's a few. So maybe three really powerful free offerings that really hone in on my target audience and have a really amazing funnel that I'm monitoring regularly. Or the team is monitoring regularly. We're making adjustments as needed instead of having all these different things I've created over time. And yeah, that can be great.

There's a lot of different ways to bring people in, but really just simplifying, simplifying the way that you bring people in, simplifying the offers that you have, simplifying the process that you have. So kind of this generalized simplify and apply that to different areas of your business, really simplifying maybe who you're talking to. That was something that I definitely honed in on.

I was kind of all over the place with this Krissy Chin brand in this podcast that serves entrepreneurs from, you know, basically any entrepreneur could listen and get value, right. But really honing in on who it is that I tend to attract and do I want to serve that community? And I realized that I really attract people who are in direct sales, call it direct sales, network marketing, call it whatever you want to call it. So people who are in that industry, I attract those people to me. Why? Because I've experienced it, I've been in that industry. I've I've I know a lot about direct sales, but the other layer to that of who I attract are the multi-passionate people.

So direct sellers who are multi-passionate, they have a lot of different interests. Maybe it started with those, the topic around those products that they sell, but they realized, oh, there's actually more that I really like talking about and this other angle, and I really want to blend the two things together. I want to offer maybe one-on-one coaching wellness, coaching along with my products.

So I want to blend these two together and build these businesses together. And I realized I have a real niche and, and kind of skill in helping people do that. I've done a whole podcast episode on being a multi-passionate entrepreneur. I link that in the show notes, so you can take a listen to it, but it's how to blend multiple passions into one brand, one website online and have them all feed off of each other. So you can build one really powerful brand, but keeping it simplified and not over-complicating, it is really important. And we've done that with, you know, who we're targeting. We've done that with the programs and offers like a very clearly defined path. Take the quiz, sign up for the masterclass, join us in digital duplication academy to build your website in your funnel, and then join us in scale to six coaching for ongoing support. It's a very simplified, clear process that we can support people from the beginning and continue on in their journey. Okay. So just, I want you to think, just write down the word simplify, or keep it in your head or in your notes, voice memo it, and we're out or whatever you want to do. And, and just think about your business. What is getting too complicated and overwhelming that it's kind of pushing you away, maybe causing you to stall out or get stuck or not be productive. How can you simplify this to keep moving forward? So that's number one to simplify what you do.

And, and I guess I didn't get too much into it, but I wrote down also teaching, teaching what you do. So being really specific about what you're good at, what you're doing, and then teaching that simplified. Okay.

Get Out Of Your Comfort Zone

Number two is getting out of your comfort zone. So this is something that I've been working on for a long time.

I think I've always tried to push myself outside of my comfort zone. It's very nice inside your little comfort bubble. It's comfy, it's cozy. It feels good. And when you kind of put your foot outside that bubble, it's a little bit scary. It maybe feels a little bit unsafe, right? Are these stories that we're telling ourselves inside our head or is it actually truth?

Speaking on stage for me, was something really scary? Was I in danger? No. You know, but it felt scary to me. And so I really had to push myself to step outside my comfort zone and do that. And what did it do for me? I met some really amazing people. I brought more people into my community by being able to speak on stage.

I added that to the list of the things that I've done. I explored it to see is this something I want to continue to do or not? And I realize while it's really scary and I'll probably get nervous each time, cause I've done, I've spoken on stage twice now, pre pandemic. I actually realized while it's really scary, I got a huge rush from doing it.

And I would love to speak on stage again. And so I will, I will seek out those opportunities. So pushing yourself outside your comfort zone can be really impactful for your business. It certainly has been for me and has been for these other women that we're sharing on this virtual mixer. Things like attending a retreat, maybe where you don't know anyone, you're traveling by yourself, you're experiencing new people, you know, attending a virtual mixer and just raising your hand to talk gosh, 30 people that I don't know and big, powerful names that have really amazing successful businesses and like being like hesitant to like raise my hand and share my thoughts, but it could be as simple as that doesn't have to be stepping on a stage.

It could be literally raising your hand and asking a question or for those in digital duplication academy or our scale to six community, it could be just getting yourself to ask the question on the community board. That alone for someone could feel really scary. You're putting yourself out there. You're asking a question. Maybe you think, oh, is this a dumb question?

What are people going to think if I don't know this? So if that is something that is scary for you, I want you to try and harness the energy behind that and use it for good. And actually do the thing. Ask the question in the community. Raise your hand in the virtual Missy mixer, sign up for the retreat, get out of your comfort zone because that's where the impact happens.

Not just alone on our comfy couch with our doors and our windows closed. Okay. We've got an open our windows going to open our doors and we have to step outside to make the magic happen. All right. So that was number two, getting out of your comfort zone, number three, hiring more people. So I remember the very first person that I hired in my business was someone to just be a support person.

Hiring More People

So I was having to confirm people were getting a Facebook community alongside their membership access to the, all of their content and GROworkspace. And so I had to verify if they were a paying customer paying member in order to let them in the Facebook community. So every evening I would climb into bed, Michael would grab the remote. He turned on a show, I'd grab my computer,

I'd open it up. And I would start copying and pasting emails into Kajabi to see, are they a paying member? And if yes, I would accept them. And if not, I would send them a message. And it was just this very repetitive action that was happening in my business. And I didn't really have time for it in the day.

So I waited until the evening and then realized, this is something I could hire out. Like I could find someone else to do this. I could teach them how to do it. And it happens again and again and again and again, and, and they could do it. And so instead of me opening my computer, we could watch a show together or we could do something together and he could have my full undivided attention.

So that was the first thing that I hired out. And from there I realized like the silver lining of hiring people when you can, when it's in the budget, when it's the right move. But what is working in 2022, like hiring people has always been great, but what's something specific in 2022, that's different hiring the right people for the right role and expanding that team with the right people and then acting like the boss, stepping back and letting them do the work so that I can work on the business and not just in the business. Okay. So more my macro than micro, Hey, that's been working, let's talk about hiring the right people for the right role because sometimes that doesn't always happen. So a great example is Nicole, who does so much for us, she's now our project manager.

When she started, she was a content creator, content writer. She actually really hounded us. She really, really, really wanted to work for Claire and I, so she hounded us. We didn't even have an, like, we had an open position and then I don't remember what happened with it. We didn't end up hiring her. Maybe we didn't hire anyone.

I can't remember. Maybe, maybe we hired someone for support and we weren't even hiring anyone. And a few months later she reached out and she's like, I really want to work for you guys. I really want to work with you. I love what you're doing. I love your energy. I want to be a part of it. You know, I want to leave my job that I'm doing. And so, you know, I'll do anything. And we're like, okay, we actually need someone to help write content. So she's like, oh, okay. Like I could try it. So we tried her in that role and she didn't love it. She wasn't horrible at it by any means like she was doing a good job, but she didn't really love it. And we really want people to love what they're doing, because if they love what they're doing, they will stay there longer and do it longer. And she's been with us for a years now. So we brought someone else in to write content and we're like, you know what? We kind of need someone to manage all of these projects.

And she is a, she's a cucumber cilantro, cucumber margarita. So if you've taken the margarita quiz, the marketing quiz, that is someone maybe you got that result, that someone who's very, maybe analytical, very organized, you know, information driven. They want the, they want the information, they'll be able to keep it organized. They're, you know, very analytical. And so that was her. And so that was actually the perfect role for her. It really fit her personality. She didn't have to try and channel a different energy to be really good at the role. She could just be herself, do what came naturally to her, which would cause her to thrive in that position. So we moved her from content creator to project manager, and that was a huge blessing for the business. And she's with us years later, she does an incredible job. And we got someone else who is really, really good at content creation. So not just hiring people, but hiring the right people for the right role. I always remember a coach, an old coach of mine saying that they hire people based on personality because they can teach them the role, but they want to make sure that it's a good fit. And so I thought that was interesting. And I've always thought about that when hiring as well, like, is this going to be a good fit? Are you going to, you know, come into the community and be a team player? And your personality is one that will fit well, or are you going to rub people the wrong way?

Is there going to cause a lot of friction, you know, so thinking about those things, so that's number three, hiring more people and not just anyone but hiring the right people for the right role so that you can work on the business and not just in the business. Okay.

Be Honest, Assess and Reassess

Number four is being honest about what is really going on and assessing and reassessing to find out why the results aren't there.

So one of the girls on the virtual mixer said, she's like, oh, I totally cringe. Every time someone says, like I made a million dollars during a pandemic, or, you know, I had a six-figure launch during a pandemic right. In 2020. And she was like, it rubs me so much the wrong way because we were all booming in 2020.

Like that was the time where business was just flourishing. And when things got shut down, your brick and mortar stores were not thriving, but online business, what we do, was thriving. Like it was the time to create a course. It's not too late. It's not too late to create a course or a program don't get discouraged.

But the point is, that doesn't mean anything like everyone was booming and flourishing. And then 2021 businesses, online businesses started going down for most people. And I thought it was just me. Like, I'm going to be totally honest here. I thought it was just me. I was like, dang, what happened? And then in different communities paid masterminds that I was in paint communities that I was in where people actually share the truth and what's going on.

Right. Cause they're not going to be blasting on social media, like businesses down this month. But like, let me coach you. Right? So where people actually share the real stuff in the paid communities and groups, people just across the board were like my membership's down, or, you know, we've lost customers or it's harder to get people through advertising.

That doesn't mean you're a bad coach. Now things change the way that ads work on Facebook and Instagram. They completely changed at that time. It was like November of 20, 21, 20 20. I can't remember. Anyway, during that time, the whole iOS thing changed and that dramatically affected things. So I loved this tip from someone in this virtual mixer of being honest about what's really going on and assessing and reassessing to find out why the results aren't there and, and thinking about it. That's something that we've definitely done in our business. Like being really honest about why maybe we're not getting as many leads as we used to like 300 new members a month, you know, and that dropped in 2021. So what is really going on and assessing and reassessing and looking at the analytics and then shifting and taking action around that shift to turn it around.

The truth is what we did in the beginning of GROworkspace to bring people in the door is not the same as today because things shift that was four years ago, 2017, he did 1920, like four or five years ago. I can't do math quick. So we've had to shift. My strategy, like, you know, what the strategies have to shift and change sometimes based on what's going on. Ads aren't as powerful or as easy or cheap, I guess I should just say, ads aren't as cheap anymore as they used to be. It costs more to bring in a lead.

It costs more to create a conversion. So then figuring out, okay, is, are we going to put all of our money there or do we really need to put some money into, you know, our efforts to do some more organic marketing, you know, not paid ads, but maybe we are, you know, I don't know, focusing on that aspect, we're spending more time and energy on the PR on getting on people's podcasts, on doing guest blog posts on, you know, whatever it is to get your name out there a bit more organically. And that's going to lead really well into number five. So number four was being honest, like pushing your ego aside and just being honest about what's going on so that you can take action and make a shift.

Partnerships, Collaborations, Affiliates

Number five is partnerships, collaborations, affiliates. Someone mentioned this and other people were nodding their heads. Yes. This is something that I have done from the very beginning. And this really, I think comes from my background in direct sales and having that affiliate, just affiliate background and knowing that having a whole team out there sharing the message is so much more powerful than just one.

And so taking that concept and bringing it into business has just been incredibly powerful since the beginning, but it's still working in 2022 and more and more people are doing it and, and it's becoming normalized. And so therefore it's even easier. It's easier and harder at the same time. Like, let's be honest because there's more and more people wanting to do partnerships, collaborations and things like that. You're kind of fighting for people's time a little bit more. I mean, literally in the last week I had three people that I have relationships with, asked me if I would promote whatever it is that they're doing, their virtual summit, a workshop that's coming up something else. And while I would love to promote everyone stuff, I just can't. The last thing you want is me to literally be emailing you once you're on my email list every other day with someone else's thing. So I have to be strategic about when I do collaborations and partnerships with people so that it fits in our marketing calendar. So just to be honest, like emailing me, maybe like, Hey, can you share my new book or my new virtual thing or whatever it is next week?

Like chances are probably, I'm not going to be able to do that because we plan way ahead, like months ahead, we know what we're promoting. So you're going to have to get to me for next year. You have something next year. You want me to promote and it fits with what my people are looking for and what they want. I love collaborations, you know, and I love ongoing collaboration. So that's something that we're looking for in our business are people who want to collaborate and be affiliates. So what kind of dive into this affiliate space into be affiliates with us and for our programs, not just one time, but ongoing. So for digital duplication academy, the program that we have that helps someone literally establish their brand, set the foundation of their business, create an amazing website, learn how to write, copy, learn how to design, do the tech with our step-by-step tutorials and our templates and all of that thing. And put an offer out there. Like we're offering people to be affiliates, to promote that program and receive compensation for that. Why because more voices are powerful than just ours.

And if we can help and serve their community by offering, and I can, you know, make it worth their while by sharing some of the money with them, why not? Right. It's why people that are in direct sales get into direct sales, like affiliate marketing. It's pretty amazing. And then this extra layer that differentiates affiliate marketing from, from network marketing and direct sales, it's like the extra layer of having other people build teams under you, which benefits you won't get into the details on that. But it's kind of this collaborative effort where like in GROworkspace we always say like, for your team below you, if they grow, you grow. So like it's in your interest to help them thrive and succeed.

Because when they thrive and succeed, you'll thrive and succeed. I've loved the hashtag collaboration over competition, you know, or that phrase for a very long time, like instead of working against each other, let's figure out how to work together so that I can help you and you can help me. And I'm totally honest with the fact that so much, so many times when we're connecting with people, it is like all scratch you scratch my back. I'll scratch yours. Like, that's just the reality of it. That doesn't mean I'm cold and don't want to have a relationship beyond that. But that's just, that's how it is. That's the truth of it. And it doesn't mean I'm not going to be your friend, unless you promote something of mine.

That's totally not, not the case. Now what I'm trying to say here, but just the fact that like partnerships collaborating together, you know, offering affiliate partnerships has been really impactful for my business. You know, even recently we've generated income off of being affiliates for other people's programs. And then we have helped people generate income by being affiliates of ours.

We've grown our community and our network of people through collaborations, through doing things together, through networking and just all of that. So that's something else to be thinking about in your business. Are you networking with people? Are you collaborating with people? Are you, if you have a course or a program, does it make sense to set up an affiliate program with your offer and have someone else share it with their community in general?

And they can generate income from it? Maybe it does. Maybe it doesn't, so something to think about and it doesn't necessarily have to just be a collaboration for paid something. It could just be something with, you know, podcasts. Hey, you come on my podcast. I'll come on your podcast. Right. Speaking of collaborations. Okay. So that was the five abrupt stop simplify, getting out of your comfort zone three, hiring the right people for the right role, for being honest about what's really going on and then taking action and then partnerships collaboration. So those were the five speaking of collaboration, it doesn't happen without networking. And I mentioned that talking about number five, networking is so important because the truth is if you just reach out to me and I have no idea who you are and you say, can you promote my thing, send it to your email list. The chances are no, because I have plenty of other people who I have a relationship with that are asking me to do the same thing. So networking is so important and it's for the long game, it's not just show up to this one little networking thing and you know, you're going to have 30 new best friends.

No, it's an ongoing process. It takes work, attending some virtual events, and attending some in-person events. So that being said, I want to announce out there that Claire and I are hosting our very first in person retreat. And it's going to be a great place to network, to grow, to relax, to restore, to renew. I'm trying to think of any other words I could think of, but it's happening October 13th through 16th, it's going to be at my beautiful lake house. It's newly renovated. So it's not like a little old cabin. Like it's very nice for multi-passionate female entrepreneurs. We're going to be eating delicious chef prepared meals. We'll be catering to, you know, allergies, I'm gluten and dairy free. So, you know, we'll essentially be doing that.

And then whatever your needs are, we would love to accommodate that during this time that you're here, we're going to connect. We're going to collaborate and we're going to create, so we've got some really cool workshops lined up for day one to help you get clarity in your business, we'll have a full day of content creation. We've hired a professional photographer, a videographer that are going to spend private time with each attendee to help capture images and videos to help you market. Since we will get clarity in your business, you'll have a clear vision of what you're doing. Then we'll create that content for you to help promote that. So that you're going to leave with having a really clear vision and then real content that you can use for emails or social posts, posts, or whatever to market what you're doing to put your business out there. Don't worry. We'll have plenty of time for resting. We've got paddle boards, we've got kayaks. Even if you want to take a nap, there will be time in there for you, whatever you need. We just want you to come and enjoy. We want to meet you in person.

You know, I want to open up my space, the place that we spend every single weekend MOS and bring family and friends to. And I really just want to open it up and invite you in to be a part of it. And to let us help you, you know, renew all the things and get new inspiration and get excited and have some new ideas moving forward.

So if you want the full details, you can visit the Krissy Chin dot com forward slash retreat. We're only accepting a small group of people. So it's first come first served. So go ahead and there'll be a, you can download a flyer. That's going to have a lot more details and whatnot. So this is happening in Gainesville, Georgia. So fly into Atlanta if you're coming from very far away and it's a pretty easy drive up there.

So I hope to see you there. I hope that you fill out the information and come, and if it is booked up by the time you listen to this or it's over, you'll see a wait list for the next one. So this has been amazing. I hope that you got some golden nuggets from this that you can go and take and maybe focus on a little bit more in your business for the rest of 20, 22 and even beyond until the next time take imperfect action.

And I can't wait to see you later.