Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

Transcription

1 Thrive 365 Workbook Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday by Tracie Rollins

2 Contents Beyond Small Business Saturday 4 Introducing Thrive Getting Started with Lifecycle Marketing 6 Life Cycle Marketing Planning Worksheet 7 Attracting Interest 8 Attracting Interest Worksheet 9 Lead Magnet Prioritization Matrix Worksheet 10 Topic Brainstorming Worksheet 11 Capturing Leads 12 Capturing Leads Worksheet 13 Building Strong Relationships Nurturing Prospects Nurturing Prospects Plan Worksheet Convert Sales 17 Convert Sales Worksheet 18 Deliver & Satisfy 19 Wow My Customers Worksheet 20 Getting Repeat Business 21 Upsell Customers 22 Upsell Customers Worksheet 23 Get Referrals 24 Get Referrals Worksheet 25 Thrive 365 Days a Year 26 About the Author 27 2 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

3 Small businesses are woven into the fabric of the American economy they create jobs, drive innovation and are a point of local pride. But despite their importance, many small businesses struggle to achieve success amid a crowded market of big box stores and online mega-retailers. 3 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

4 Beyond Small Business Saturday Nestled in between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Small Business Saturday is a day dedicated to supporting local small businesses. The movement has inspired thousands of Americans to shop locally and it s making a big impact. Last year, consumers 4 spent an estimated $5.5 billion dollars with local retailers on Small Business Saturday. As a small business, Small Business Saturday is an opportunity for you to gain visibility, attract new customers and grow sales. But one day of strong sales isn t enough. Imagine if every day was Small Business Saturday. And imagine if all small businesses could benefit. Not just retail shops, but dry cleaners, dentists, dance studios and everything in between. It is possible to Thrive 365. Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

5 Introducing a movement that supports Pam Slim - Author of Escape from Cubical Nation Blue Chip Athletic Team - Founder Gonz Medina (right) Casey Graham - Founder of The Rocket Company The idea behind Thrive 365 is to give you the strategy and tools to achieve success. In this workbook, you ll find helpful exercises to identify the gaps that are preventing your growth, as well as proven strategies to get organized, grow sales and save time. You ll be able to make the most of Small Business Saturday and every other day of the year. Preparing for Small Business Saturday and Beyond Unlike big companies that can leverage extensive marketing departments to prepare for the Black Friday holiday shopping frenzy, small businesses have to be a bit more resourceful in their efforts to get noticed. However, the ability to be creative, coupled fast strategic decision-making, can help you stay one step ahead of your behemoth counterparts. With a comprehensive game plan, you ll be well prepared for the win. Becky Crosby (right) - Founder of Whippy Cake 5 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

6 Getting Started With Lifecycle Marketing Lifecycle Marketing model Strategic planning is essential to the success of your business, but it can be hard to know where to start. The Lifecycle Marketing model provides a systematic approach for how you can promote, sell and distribute your products or services. It can be applied in any business regardless of size, industry or business type. There are seven stages that make up the Lifecycle Marketing process. They are: Attract Interest Capture Leads Nurture Prospects Convert Sales Deliver and Satisfy Upsell Customers Get Referrals Thrive 365 Action Step: Using the worksheet on the next page, assess how ready your business is to thrive. 6 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

7 Lifecycle Marketing Planning Worksheet 1. Assess where you are in each stage of the Lifecycle Marketing process by answering the questions below. 2. After you ve answered all of the questions, select the stage that you want to prioritize first. see page 8 Attracting Interest: What are you currently doing to attract traffic to your website, online store or retail location? see page 12 Capture Leads: What are you currently doing to gather contact information from visitors to your website or store? see page 15 Nurture Prospects: What are you doing to stay in contact with your visitors? see page 17 Convert Sales: How do you know when your visitors are ready to buy? What actions do they demonstrate that help you understand when they are ready to buy? see page 19 Deliver & Satisfy: What do you do to ensure your customers are happy? Are they wowed by your products and services? Upsell Customers: What are you currently doing to sell more products and services to your existing customers? see page 22 Get Referrals: Are you asking happy customers for referrals? How do you manage the process? see page 24 Which of the stages above is the most challenging to your business? 7 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

8 Attracting Interest Getting Started With Lifecycle Marketing How are you going to get anyone into your place of business or to your website if they don t know where to find you, or that you even exist? Attracting Interest is the Lifecycle Marketing stage that sets your plan in motion. The purpose of this stage is to increase visitors to your business location or website. There are many methods that you can employ to attract interest in your business. The table below provides recommendations for online and offline methods of attracting interest. What is a Lead Magnet? Strong shareable offers are often called lead magnets because they attract visitors to your business location. A lead magnet is something of value that can be exchanged for contact information, such as a free report and quote. Examples include a free or discounted educational offering, e-book, product sample, or consultation. If you don t have the time or resources to do thorough research on your target market, spend some time thinking about who your customers are and what they would value in an offer. Methods for Attracting Interest Online Methods Offline Methods Sponsored ads Pay-per-click advertising Well-designed websites Strong sharable offers Review sites Community forums and groups Direct mail Advertisements Telemarketing calls Signs Tradeshows Door-to-door flyer distribution Partnerships Social media Videos Affiliate marketing Blogs Webinars E-books Resource worksheets Podcast Banners Magazine articles News coverage Sponsorships Networking Coupons Thrive 365 Action Step: Using the worksheet on the next page, brainstorm methods that you can use in order to attract interest to your business. 8 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

9 Attracting Interest Worksheet Getting Started With Lifecycle Marketing Instructions: 1. In the first column, write down as many ideas for attracting traffic to your business as you can. There are no bad ideas. 2. For each idea, estimate a budget amount that you want to allocate to this activity. Write your budget allocation in the second column. 3. In the third column, estimate the amount of time that you ll spend on each activity. Attracting Interest Ideas Approximate Budget Time Allocation Example: Run targeted advertisements on Facebook to attract traffic to my website. $50/month 1 hour/week Example: Hire a sign twirlling gorilla to attract more customers to my cell phone shop. $250/month 30 min/week Remember: Evaluate the effectiveness of the methods that you implement. Your goal in this stage is to increase the number of visitors to your site or store. Consider continuing the methods that provide a positive return on investment. 9 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

10 Lead Magnet Prioritization Matrix Worksheet Getting Started With Lifecycle Marketing In this activity you ll prioritize lead magnets that you want to incorporate into your business. 1. Write down the magnets that you have or want to implement in the matrix below. 2. Include the ideas that you wrote down in the Attracting Interest worksheet. 3. Determine which magnets will be most attractive to your visitors. 4. Focus your efforts on those magnets first. Exists Doesn t Exist Not Valuable Really Valuable I already use this magnet and it s working really well. I should use it more. I already have use magnet, but it s not working. I should trash it. This magnet would be really valuable, but doesn t exist yet. I need to create it now. I don t need this magnet Examples of Lead Magnets: E-book Resource guide Training Webinar Downloadable audio book Special discount VIP program Membership to a special club Free gift Contest/Sweepstakes entry 10 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

11 Topic Brainstorming Worksheet Getting Started With Lifecycle Marketing Now that you ve identified magnets that you should create, it s time to brainstorm ideas that you ll include in those magnets. Whether you re putting together a resource guide, writing an e-book or providing a video, the questions below will help you discover topics that will resonate with your target customers. 1. Answer each question in the space provided. 2. Brainstorm topics relevant to each answer. 3. Substitute the words in the brackets [ ] with your topic. 1. What are some common mistakes that you can help people avoid? Brainstorm topics relevant to the answer you ve provided. Substitute the words in [ ] with a topic related to your answer. 5 Mistakes You Can Avoid When [Buying Your First Home] 5 Tips You Can t Afford to Miss When [Landscaping Your Yard] 2. What are the frustrations that people have when they buy from your competitor? Brainstorm topics relevant to the answer you ve provided. Substitute the words in [ ] with a topic related to your answer. 3 Questions to Ask Your [Hairdresser] Before Your First Visit The 3 Most Common Mistakes [Accounting Professionals] Make When [Completing Your Taxes] 3. What are the underlying goals your customers have? Brainstorm topics relevant to the answer you ve provided. Substitute the words in [ ] with a topic related to your answer. 7 Ways to [Generate More Leads] With [Content Marketing] 7 Steps That You Can Take to Successfully [Fix] Your [Garbage Disposal] 4. What are your customers curious about learning? Brainstorm topics relevant to the answer you ve provided. Substitute the words in [ ] with a topic related to your answer. 5 Questions I Always Get Asked About [Car Buying] 5 Things I Wish I Would Have Known Before Becoming a [Investment Analyst] 11 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

12 Capturing Leads Getting Started With Lifecycle Marketing In the Capturing Leads stage, your job is to encourage visitors to share personal information and give you permission to market to them. Lead magnets are key in this stage. Always ask for customer information before you provide the lead magnet. Methods for capturing leads online and offline are included in the table below. Lead Capture Methods Online Methods Offline Methods Provide a valuable gift or resource with a web form for capturing information. Use a landing page to solicit opt-in addresses. Use an online form to collect entrant information for a contest or giveaway. Ask visitors to leave a comment on your blog with a way to contact them. Remember: It s important to place offers on well-designed landing pages with a web form to capture visitor information. Set out a fishbowl for business cards and contest forms. Place a kiosk or tablet in the store for newsletter signups. Use a business card scanning app such as Snap by Infusionsoft when you re networking. Provide onsite training and classes that require customers to provide their contact information. Have your assistant write down the information for everyone who walks into your store on a piece of paper or in a software program. Thrive 365 Action Step: Use the worksheet on the next page to identify methods that you ll incorporate to capture your leads. 12 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

13 Capturing Leads Worksheet Getting Started With Lifecycle Marketing Once you ve identified the topics that you want to include in your magnets, it s time to determine how you ll collect the customer information that you ll receive. Complete the fields in this worksheet for each topic that you listed on the Topic Brainstorm worksheet. Magnet to Capture Customer Information Method for Capturing Lead Example: Create a resource guide that provides five tips you can t afford to miss when landscaping your yard. Webform Landing page Contest form Fishbowl to collect cards Store kiosk or tablet Other 13 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

14 Building Strong Relationships Once you ve identified how you ll attract traffic and capture leads, you ll need to execute your strategy for developing strong relationships and closing more sales. If you have a brick-and-mortar business, talk to your staff about making every customer feel welcome. Ensure that they know how to help each customer and that they work hard to meet their needs. For online businesses, ensure that your website is as userfriendly as possible. Make navigation easy so that visitors can find what they are looking for. Is it easy to get ahold of you? Be sure that your contact information is easy to find. The Crew at Blue Chip Athletic 14 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

15 Nurturing Prospects Building Strong Relationships In the Nurturing Prospects stage, you ll work to build the relationship with the visitors that gave you permission to market to them. When businesses nurture prospects, they build upon the relationship and stay top-of-mind. This helps prospects remember your business when they are ready to buy. As you re developing your Nurturing Prospects plan, you ll want to consider interactions in the past that have led to success. Think about these questions as they relate to the customers who have purchased from you in the past: 1. What interactions or steps were necessary in order to lead the customer to purchase your product or service? 2. Is there a sequential order that emerges from your brainstorming? 3. Is there an offer that seems to lead to success more than others? Once you ve identified steps that have been successful, you ll want to implement actions that make this process scalable. The table below lists activities that are helpful in the Nurturing Prospects stage. Methods for Nurturing Prospects Online Methods Offline Methods Send s Send an e-card Provide webinars Make videos Share valuable resources and content Create podcasts Send cards Send mailers Gift a printed book Send samples Follow up with calls Provide individual coaching and consultations Remember: The key is to provide something valuable that builds the relationship. Thrive 365 Action Step: Using the worksheet on the next page, identify the steps you ll take to follow up with your prospects. 15 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

16 Nurturing Prospects Plan Worksheet Building Strong Relationships Think about the previous interactions that you have had with your customers, then answer the questions below. What interactions or steps were necessary in order to lead the customer to purchase your product or service? Write down the steps here: Example: 1. Sent a follow-up but customer did not respond 2. Offered a free e-book and the customer clicked the link 3. The customer downloaded the e-book 4. The customer signed up for my special offers newsletter 5. I sent a follow-up with a free book offer with purchase 6. The customer purchased Is there a natural order to your purchase cycle? If so, draw it here. Are there offers that are more likely to encourage purchases (such as a coupon or free gift)? List them here. 16 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

17 Convert Sales Building Strong Relationships In this stage, businesses use the information that they ve received in the Nurturing stage to prioritize prospects that are more likely to buy. The activities in this stage are the same for brick-andmortar and online businesses. They include analyzing past interactions that have led your customers to purchase your product and then assigning point values to those interactions. This is known as lead scoring. Lead scoring is a simple technique that can help you identify when to present a relevant offer to your prospect. Simply use the sequence that you identified in your Nurturing Prospects Plan worksheet and assign a value to each interaction. Convert Sales Example: In the example below there are four activities that lead to the purchase. In the first interaction the customer didn t respond, and therefore zero were assigned to the lead score. The customer then engaged with a free e-book offer and received five towards the lead score. Corresponding activities increase the score to twenty. In this example twenty is considered a hot lead and a relevant offer was made to convert the sale. Interaction Lead Score 1. Sent a follow-up but customer did not respond 0 2. Offered a free e-book and the customer clicked the link 5 3. The customer downloaded the book 5 4. The customer signed up for my newsletter 10 Total Points 20 The lead is ready. I sent a follow-up with a free book offer with purchase, and the customer purchased. Thrive 365 Action Step: Use the worksheet on the next page to create your lead scoring plan. 17 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

18 Convert Sales Worksheet Building Strong Relationships To define your process for converting sales, you ll need to review your Nurturing Prospects Plan worksheet. Based on the sequential order that you listed, determine how many you ll assign to each interaction with your prospect. Interaction Lead Score Total Points 18 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

19 Deliver & Satisfy Building Strong Relationships In every interaction, you want to wow your customers. You ll not only want to deliver what you promised, but go above and beyond their expectations. This will ensure that you keep customers and earn additional referrals. In the Deliver and Satisfy stage, you ll go above and beyond your customers expectations. Provide great customer service, offer additional discounts or gifts to loyal customers or send a simple, hand-written thank you note. This additional step will set your business apart from your competitors and gain lifelong customers. Winning lifelong customers requires the ability to not only get a customer to buy again and again, but to do so happily. The benefits go far beyond inspiring loyalty and repeat business. Happy customers become advocates for your brand and drive referrals by sharing their experiences with friends, colleagues and social networks. Wow your customers and you ll win them over for life. Thrive 365 Action Step: Select simple ways that you can wow your customers from the worksheet on the next page. 19 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

20 Wow My Customers Worksheet Building Strong Relationships 1. Place an X in the box next to the items that you ll want to use to wow your customers. 2. Add additional items that you want to incorporate in the space provided. 50 Cost-effective Ways to Wow Your Customers Fulfill orders on time Follow-up with s Answer questions that they pose Send a $5 gift card with every purchase Start a rewards or loyalty program Provide a surprise discount Send a book with a personal note Send a pizza or a pizza gift card Provide special private shopping hours or prizes during certain hours Throw a party for all of your customers at your next major event Provide a gift card for an item in your store or on your website Provide offers to customers who contribute ideas or engage with your company online Celebrate an event, such as a birthday or anniversary Celebrate a milestone, such as number of years as a customer Send a gift card for a free car wash Offer free wrapping for product purchases Name a star after their company Send a box of office supplies Send them a Payday candy bar Provide group/bulk order opportunities Follow them on Twitter Give them bonus items Send personalized address labels Send samples of new products Give a night out at the movies Respond to complaints Call them and say thank you Send a handwritten thank you note Send a lottery ticket with every purchase Feature a customer on your website Send cookies, fruit, or flowers Donate on behalf of your customer Plant a tree on behalf of your customer Meet up with customers in the cities that you are visiting Randomly select a few customers to receive a product that you upsell Provide an upgrade for free Send unique swag, such as a guitar pick earrings for music lovers or sippy cups for parents with kids Schedule lunch at your office and invite customers to attend and share feedback Tell your customers how their feedback was implemented Give them a free song download Include a free USB flash drive with their order Send a laminated reference guide or chart Create a video message and send it via Send a small gift Upgrade their shipping to priority mail Hire them Pre-order exclusive items Give them an inexpensive photo album Provide a make-over related to your product Send them a travel mug filled with tea 20 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

21 Getting Repeat Business Following up with your customers is the key to earning repeat business and referrals. Keep them involved by asking for feedback and suggestions on products and services they need. Send them useful content and updates regularly, but don t overload their inboxes. Post pictures and content on your social media platforms to keep the discussion rolling. Continue to make personal connections with your customers. This personal connection will facilitate both the Upsell and Referral stages of the Lifecycle Marketing process. Jermaine Griggs - Founder of Hear and Play 21 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

22 Upsell Customers Getting Repeat Business As we ve shared in the previous steps of Lifecycle Marketing, consistent communication with customers is essential and this shouldn t end once a first sale is made. Customers who had a positive experience with your company are more likely to think of you the next time they need a similar product or service. Continue to develop relationships by letting customers know about new and complementary products and services they might enjoy. The best way to accomplish this is to create automated follow-up activities in the form of s, direct mail, and other nurturing activities that you learned earlier in this workbook. You can target these communications to feature new products, services or promotions based on your customers previous buying history. For your Upsell strategy, consider new and existing products that pair nicely with each other. You may want to review previous purchases that were made by your customers to determine if there are any products that are usually purchased together. VIP Auto Appearance - Founder Charles Mack Jr. (left center) and Team Thrive 365 Action Step: Create a list of products that complement each other in the worksheet on the next page. 22 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

23 Upsell Customers Worksheet Getting Repeat Business Instructions: 1. List the products or services that you offer in the left column. 2. List current or future products that pair nicely with each item in the right column. This Product/Service Example: Hot chocolate mix Example: Bookkeeping service Goes Well With This Product/Service White mugs Tax preparation service 23 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

24 Get Referrals Getting Repeat Business In the Referral stage, businesses attempt to obtain new customers through wordof-mouth. The easiest way to gain additional referrals is to simply ask happy customers to refer their friends, family, and acquaintances. Businesses can establish referral reward programs, which work well in almost any business type. Make it easy for customers to share content or write reviews online. Other examples include providing reward cards, discounts, tickets and coupons, or simply calling customers to ask for referrals. Thrive 365 Action Step: In the worksheet on the next page, list activities that you can implement that will increase the amount of referrals you receive. 24 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

25 Get Referrals Worksheet Getting Repeat Business 1. List activities that you can implement to increase referrals in your business. This Product/Service Goes Well With This Product/Service Example: Provide free movie tickets to customers when they refer a friend. Example: Provide an in-store credit of $50 for every review posted on Angie s List. 25 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

26 Thriving 365 Days a Year The real value of Lifecycle Marketing is the integration of the individual actions into a single system, which leverages the interconnectedness and interdependencies of each stage. Implementing a sales and marketing plan based on this process will help you rediscover the joy of running your own business AND give you more time to focus on the things you love. Launch a new product. Start an online store. Watch your daughter s dance recital. Read a book. Whatever you hope to accomplish, it will be well within your reach. Thriving 365 Days a Year Infusionsoft Customer Bonus Whether you need to capture more leads, generate more sales or upsell new customers, Infusionsoft s Done-For-You Campaigns are ready to help you achieve your goals. Our experts have built end-to-end marketing campaigns that include everything you need. Simply import the campaign into your Infusionsoft application, edit the s to fit your business and click to publish. From focusing on your hottest leads to generating repeating sales, these free campaigns help you get organized, grow sales and save time. Need help creating your plan or figuring out how to implement it? Click here to see if you qualify for a free consultation. 26 Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday

27 About the Author As the Thought Leadership Manager at Infusionsoft, Tracie Rollins helps small businesses succeed by educating and sharing innovative approaches to solve small business challenges. Tracie has nearly two decades of experience in training and curriculum design for large corporations, small businesses, and government agencies. Tracie Rollins As an entrepreneur, Tracie has appeared on KTVK s Good Morning Arizona show, and has been featured in the Institute for Industrial Engineering magazine, Woman s World, Arizona Republic, and multiple local publications. She and her husband, Lonny, help small businesses stand out amongst the competition with The Rollins Advantage, LLC. About Infusionsoft At Infusionsoft, we re dedicated to a single purpose: help small businesses succeed. We do this by understanding the challenges faced by our customers. Then we find ways to help them meet those challenges with small business education, strategies to convert leads into customers, answering technical questions, and more. Our solutions, including Infusionsoft all-in-one sales and marketing software, make it easy for small businesses to get organized, attract traffic, grow sales, and save time. For more information on Infusionsoft all-in-one sales and marketing software for small businesses, visit Infusionsoft.com or call Your Guide to Skyrocketing Performance Beyond Small Business Saturday