As I was picking up pizza last week for my kids I had a very interesting conversation with the owner about his business. It illustrates what fear of selling can do to an entrepreneur.

With some stores in the shopping plaza closing he shared that his business was slow. He said people weren’t even calling for deliveries. As a regular customer I had no idea he even offered delivery. Clearly he was not communicating this information.

“Why not put it in a big sign in your window to capture the traffic from plaza?” I asked.

“Oh, they should know that I deliver. All pizza places deliver.”

The fact is it’s very easy for an entrepreneur to blame the economy but the truth is no one will buy if they don’t know what you’re selling.

Here’s another example…

One of my favorite clients called me to say that she was discouraged that she hadn’t made any money from an information product she’d created. She felt frustrated that she wasn’t getting it done.

As we backtracked a bit, I asked her what she’d done to spread the word about her product. “Nothing,” she said, “I was scared that if I told them I was selling something they’d think I was being salesy and get off my list.”

Now the plot thickens…

The interesting thing about this woman is that she (like most of us) has something REALLY helpful that she’s created and would like to share with her community and sell it. She’s got a product that can help a lot of people.

The question then is “what’s getting in her way of putting it out there?”

Fear of selling. Fear of “someone” thinking she’s selling something. Fear of people dropping off her list because she’s doing more than just sending out nice content newsletters. Fear that she’ll be perceived a certain way.

Remember the Value of What You’re Offering

The good news in her case was I knew the prescription. It’s clear (at least to me) that the “simple” action she needs to take to get it done and achieve her short term goal of bringing in more money is to write an email to her list sharing with them what she’s offering. She needs to overcome her fear of selling.

Simple task but overwhelming to her because that email feels scary and has lots of strings attached. But I reminded her, “You’re not selling heroin, or used cars, you’re selling a product that makes people feel better.”

She’s offering a valuable service. I’d even go as far as to say that if she doesn’t offer it, she’s being selfish with her gifts.

Will some people unsubscribe from her list because they think she’s being salesy? YES

Is that okay? YES

She’s in business and the definition of being in business means that you make money by providing value to people. The more people you, the entrepreneur, help, the more money you make.

You can’t make money if you don’t let people know what you have to offer. Having the fear of selling is a mistake that a lot of entrepreneurs (especially women) make over and over again.

If you’re ready to move forward, but are still struggling with the fear of selling, check out my next blog. I’ll share with you 3 tips on how you can get the right mindset to sell so that you can attract more clients, make more money and have more fun!

Many entrepreneurs struggle with how to find the right prospects for the great products and services they have to offer. During the Metromom Online Success Telesummit, I spoke about this with Alicia Forest, founder of ClientAbundance.com.

With only one sign-up page Alicia has very effectively grown her business to six figures! She shared with me how she did it and some great tips that you can use to grow your list in a way that people will ultimately want to do business with you.

There are two foundational pieces that have to be in place to start building your list:

1. Develop a “free taste” to offer to anyone signing up. Alicia recommended a five-part written e-course (a series of emails sent over a short amount of time) on a topic that will benefit and interest the people in your particular target market.

2. Have an “invite site” they have to sign-up on in order to receive the information. This is a single, one-page website where they will put their name and email address. There are ways to approach this invite site:

· A squeeze page will require them to enter their information before they can see the rest of your website.

· A slide page gives them the option to click on a button to enter the site first (so they can check out if this is truly where they want to be) and when they do sign-up it will be because they really like what you have to say.

Here are 5  effective (and free) strategies Alicia Forest shared for inviting new subscribers:

(more…)

I like to describe affiliate programs as a complete circle of giving and receiving. It’s a win-win situation, providing a way for the individual and the entrepreneur business owner to exchange connections and sales! Affiliates receive a commission for doing what you do naturally – sharing what you know and love with those you know. Entrepreneur business owners gain leads and/or sales that they otherwise might not have. I want to share with you some powerful tips on building an effective affiliate program for your products and services.

 

  Entrepreneurs-How To Create An Affiliate Program [Metromom Podcast] [5:35m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Entrepreneurs – if you want your affiliates to do a good job for you, you want to make it as easy for them as possible. I am an affiliate for many people whose products and services I love and I really appreciate those who make it easy. Many send me pre-written tweets, email blasts, and other content that is properly embedded with my affiliate code so all I have to do is tweak it to be in my voice, copy, paste and drop it in.

In contrast, there are people for whom I’ve become an affiliate (because I love what they’re doing) but they don’t make it that easy for me. I have to go digging through their back end, hunting for their banners, and seeing what I can dig up about their copy to do it. Realistically, few people will invest that time. Regardless if they love what you do, they’re busy and if it’s not easy, or even worse if it’s confusing, chances are they won’t do it.

So this means that you, as the entrepreneur, have to spend the time creating the content for your affiliates. The beauty of having an ongoing service or product is once you’ve set this up you can create autoresponders (automated emails) to go out on a predetermined schedule.

When you sit down to write to the person who has signed up to be your affiliate think about how you, the entrepreneur, can serve them. Ask yourself, “How can I give this person every tool I can so they can do the best job for me and so I can pay them the most amount of money?” This will help your copy to flow.

I’m so appreciative to all of my affiliates. They do a great job for me and I love having them in my circle of giving and receiving. Please click here to learn more about the Metromom Affiliate Program.

FYI – If you’d like to set-up your own affiliate program and you want ALL the steps check out the upcoming Get It Done Challenge at www.TheGetItDoneChallenge.com. This is the perfect opportunity for entrepreneurs to get an affiliate program –  or any important project – done before the New Year.

I like to describe affiliate programs as a complete circle of giving and receiving. It’s a win-win situation, providing a way for the individual and the entrepreneur business owner to exchange connections and sales! Affiliates receive a commission for their promotion and entrepreneur business owners gain leads and/or sales that otherwise might not have.

Most of us could use a little extra cash right now – especially during the holidays. By becoming an affiliate you can earn a passive income just by doing what you do naturally – sharing what you know and love with those you know. Women make great affiliates because we’re loyal customers who love to share what’s working for us.

But, how do you manage the other side of the affiliate partnership? How can you put together a strong affiliate program? I think this is something many women entrepreneurs need to do as a way to reach a much larger audience. So I want to share some tips on building an effective affiliate program for your products and services.

It starts with a generous mindset.

When I first launched Metromom, I was paying a 10% affiliate fee. Then I thought, “If I say that I care about my affiliates and need their support to help me spread the word about Metromom, who’s going to do that for 10%? Why would they waste their time?”

Then I decided to adjust it to 50% and after making that decision everything shifted for me internally. The first question my husband asked me was, “How can you afford to pay them 50%? That’s so much.” I said, “You’re looking at it from the wrong perspective. I wouldn’t have even known about Mary if Susie hadn’t sent Mary to me. So I’m thrilled to pay Susie a generous percentage because she just brought somebody new into my life who I never knew about.”

As an entrepreneur, it’s all about your mindset and how you look at the affiliate. When you really look at them with this great appreciation, you think, “Thank you so much for expanding the network of people in my world who are learning about my products.” You feel that gratitude as you sit down write them their checks or send them a PayPal payment.

When you feel generous and appreciative this shifts the entire way you promote your affiliate program. When I review my old emails when I was paying 10%, my emails didn’t have a good energy. When I shifted it to 50%, the voice with which I wrote changed. All of a sudden I thought, “Wow! I can’t wait for you to promote this product. I’m going to pay you 50% on this product.” That’s a lot of money. Honestly, it was so much fun for me to write affiliate emails.

Now I’m not saying 50% is the magic number, but I am suggesting that you choose a percentage – or even a flat fee – that feels good and generous to you. This will really enhance your ability to communicate with passion. And as an entrepreneur, you will see your circle of giving and receiving grow.

FYI – If you’d like to set-up your own affiliate program and you want ALL the steps check out the upcoming Get It Done Challenge at www.TheGetItDoneChallenge.com.