The Fierce Business Babe Podcast Ep 92: Starting Your Online Business

In today’s episode I will be diving deep into starting your own online business. I will be sharing with you valuable information about setting up the right foundation for your business along with a ton of valuable information to help you get started attracting and building relationships with your ideal client and so much more!

Starting Your Online Business

By: Melissa Lin

I'm excited! We are diving into some goodies today, all about starting your online business. Your business foundations, your why, determining your niche, and what that really looks like to start your online business. So if you are in the new stages of your business, if you are a business owner and you've been doing this for a while, you're still going to get something out of this. This will be an incredible podcast for you to really ensure that you've got your foundations put together. I see so many new business owners and even business owners that have been in business for a while that feel they have their foundations together; but in reality, they don't.

Finding Your Why

So I definitely want to dive into this today with you. And I'm going to dive right on in and get to this, because this is one of the most important things. This is going to be what helps push you, motivate you, and inspire you. It's your "why", something that you get to ask yourself over and over. And this may shift over time, you're "why" can shift and change. But why are you starting your business? Why are you wanting to do this? If you are wanting to start a business to simply make more money. Okay, well, what else? Is there more to it? Are you wanting to create and impact in this world? What is it that you're wanting to accomplish and what is it that you're wanting to do? Because money will not be enough of a motivator for you to continue to grow. Having that money as your "why" is only going to get you so far. You get to have a bigger vision, a bigger "why", a bigger reason for why you're starting this. So what is that "why"? Your why is your entire reason that you are working on your online business.

So my reason, for example, for having my online business, is that I could be free of the nine to five life, which I had been free of for many years now. I can work my own hours. I can go to bed and not need an alarm to wake me up on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, whatever day I want. I mean, as long as I don't have an early morning appointment, of course, sometimes those do happen, but not too often. So most of the days, I don't set an alarm in the morning. I let my body sleep when I work my own hours. I can work from anywhere I want, with COVID, it's been more so working at home, not so much traveling and coffee shops. And that's OK. I can work on the couch. I can take half a day off if I choose to. I am my own boss. So, as I mentioned, whether that's me working at home and my PJs, me outside in the lawn, whatever it is, I get to decide that because of this business I've created. And I also want to impact as many people on this earth that I can. So time, money, freedom of my time and money; all of these things are a result of a business. But you need a reason why, you need that mission and vision in order to get those results.

So what is it that really drives you? And this is something that you may want to journal on. I did a podcast episode that really drives into how to determine your mission, your vision, your core values. So definitely go back and do that. It was within the last two months or so. And so you need that reason, you need a mission in order to get those results. So ask yourself and journal about this today. What is it that drives you? And it's okay if it's something different than it was six months ago. Your why can most definitely shift over time and continue to evolve. So I started my business because I wanted to create a bigger impact in this world. Yes. Freedom of time and freedom of money are both things I desired.And again, those are results of my business.

Now, my mission is to help women find their own freedom through entrepreneurship. So again, ask yourself, what is yours? And I don't have that answer for you. This is something you get to dig deep into determining and figuring out what that big mission is. And once you've got that, start to brainstorm, take some notes. Share with me. I'd love to hear what you come up with and what your "why" is. I love hearing why you're starting your business. I love hearing your mission, your vision. All of those things.

Creating Your Foundation

And keep in mind that as you get going and as you get started in your business, there's a lot of things that you don't actually need that you might think you need. I know when I started years ago, I was spending so much time trying to make things so perfect. I thought I needed a full blown out website. I thought I needed all of the certification. I thought I needed a logo. One hundred free clients, more followers. I thought that there were so many different things I needed to invest into more software and more things when in reality I didn't. I was over complicating.

That's where a lot of us fall into because so many of us are perfectionists. We love to do more, do more, do more, because we feel like doing more is going to help us move forward in our business when it isn't always the case. So I want to go through the overview of starting a business so that you have a good idea of what it is you need and don't need. And I can even go into different examples of software as I've used, especially in the beginning stages of your business, because you don't need too much. There's very little overhead. There can be very little overhead. If you choose to keep it simple, there can be very little overhead as you get started. In your online business as an online coach or service based provider.

Establishing Your Mission

So starting a business, the first thing you've got to determine is what is that problem you can solve? What are you solving? How can you help people with your gift? What is it that you're so passionate about? And you could be so clear about this. I'm going to help you define what that actually is a little later into this podcast episode. But what is it that you can help people with? What can you solve? So, for example, right now, in this moment, I help women start online businesses. I help them scale their online businesses to six figures and beyond, because that's something I've done myself with my own business. Actually, two of my own businesses, my online fitness business and then now my business coaching business as well. It's something I've been able to solve for myself. Now I can help others solve problems. And of course, I've taken many courses and gone through different things. I have worked with many mentors.

So I definitely mastered this over the years. But what is it that you can solve? And also, what excites you? Just because you can solve a certain problem, like if it doesn't excite you, if you aren't waking up every single morning so excited to do this work, then why are you doing it? Life is so short and you get to be working and being in the space of something that excites you so much where it doesn't even feel like work. You're creating a transformation that just excites you in and out. So what is it that you can solve now?

A lot of the times you aren't sure what this is. Think about things that you will overcome yourself. What are things that you've been able to overcome or things that you've accomplished yourself that you can help others with? Or ask yourself what is something that you've helped others accomplish that you love helping people do that you can continue to help others accomplish, overcome. Give them that solution. Provide that solution for them with a program course, online service, whatever that looks like. So usually it's something you've been able to really overcome and solve yourself. Most of the time, not always, right? So that's the first thing. That's the first thing in starting a business. You've got to determine what is that problem that you can solve. You've really got to figure out; with this problem, what does that actually mean? Who am I actually helping and what am I actually helping them with? We get to dig into what that niche really is. So that's the first.

Relating To Your Ideal Client

Now, the second is you get to relate to your ideal client. Once you've determined what your business is going to be, what problem you're solving. And keep in mind, this gets to expand over time. So when I first transitioned over to a business coaching, for example, I was helping women start and build their businesses and scale the five key months. And then as I continued to master and achieve 10 K, 15 K, 20 K in my own business, I was able to start to really master helping other women do that in their business as well. So now, years later, I am helping women, of course hit the five key month, 10 came on. And now also the 20 came on 30 K, 40 K, 50 K because I've been able to achieve that myself. So I've been able to expand upon that problem solving. I'm heading to it and still pretty niche, but I'm expanding into the different things I can help solve because I've got many different programs, many different containers that help each of those.

So you get to start to relate to your ideal client. Now, whatever you're launching, whatever offer you're really wanting to position towards. You didn't relate to that ideal client. So share your story in that moment. So if you're helping somebody hit 10 key months in their business, think back to when you were achieving that. What was going on in your head? What were your experiences? What were your struggles? You had to relate as much as possible. Let's say you're a branding coach. If you are just now getting the branding, you have definitely helped other people brand themselves. Maybe you've branded yourself years ago and now you're starting to help others do more and more of it. Think back to when you were just starting it. How are you feeling back then? What were your experiences? What were you struggling with? You get to relate and share your story. If you're an online health and fitness coach, and you're helping women get into flexible dieting and create a balanced lifestyle. What were you feeling when you were going through that yourself? What was your story for when you got started? Why were you getting started? You get to share all of this.

The more that you can share, the more that you can connect and relate, the more that your ideal clients are going to continue to hang out and watch and listen and absorb, because they get to like, know and trust you in order for them to go from a lead to a paying client. So you get to relate, relate, relate.

Providing Value

Then number three, you have to provide value every single day, every single day in your business. You're providing value. So let me give you some examples of how we provide value right now in our business. So this podcast is massive, massive amounts of value. So we've got that. I have a free Facebook group community where I go live every week. We add tons of value there. I do many Instagram story training sessions all of the time. I'm always adding value. Every platform I have, I'm adding value. I'm giving and providing educational tips. I am sharing my story, sharing things that have worked and haven't worked. I share behind the scenes in my business so that others can see how it can look. And sharing my favorite tools that I use in my business. I'm sharing so much and adding value in these different ways. I'm sharing client wins because that's helping my audience see what's possible for them, too.

So there are so many different ways you can do this. You get to do it daily to add value every single day. Because for anyone to go from a lead to a paying client, they get to know and trust you so much. It takes anywhere from seven to 10 touch points to go from that lead to a paying client. So you continue to add touch points. One piece of value content from you is a part of a touch point. And I can definitely talk about touch point and things like that a little in this podcast. And then we'll continue to do so in the next few podcasts episodes that we've got lined up for you. So you've got that.

Building Relationships

Now, what you need to do is you get to continue to build those relationships. You get to continue to build trust. So most of you probably already have. If you've started your business, you most likely have a lead tracker. Track those that you're talking to, track the relationships you're building, and continue to build them. I mentioned a minute ago that it takes anywhere from seven to 10 touch points to go from a lead to paying client. So you get to build those relationships to build up those touch points. For example, a message in the DMs could be half a touch point. A comment from you on one of their captions could be a quarter of a touch points.

So there's different touch points that you can add to get to that seven and 10 touch point range, which is usually where most fall when they make that transition from lead to paying clients on average. So keep that in mind. So build relationships, build trust. Selling is all about connecting over and over. So you're starting to build your relationships. Then you get to promote your program. You have to actually ask for the sale, promote your program, let people know what you have to offer, that incredible gift that you have.

Don’t Be Afraid To Sell

If you're afraid to sell, if you are not showing up and promoting actively on your social media platforms, you truly are doing a disservice to the world. You're doing a disservice to your audience because they don't know how you can help them solve their problem. They're looking for the solution. I can promise you that they are looking for the solution. And if you aren't out there sharing that you have the solution for them, you're doing them a disservice. A huge one. So you've got to get out there and actually promote your program and ask for the sale. If you're chatting with a potential client, ask them if they've looked at your sales page. Ask them if they've considered hopping on the phone or ask if they've considered applying for your program, whatever it is you're offering.

You get to ask for the sale. Every day you're doing some type of sales activity to your business. Keep in mind, you're a business. When you go to the grocery store, for example, they're selling everywhere you go. When you go to a department store. Everywhere you turn. Boom. They're talking about their offers. Boom. Here, there, everywhere. And so you get to do the same in your business. You get to be selling every single day. There's so many different sales activities. And this is actually a great idea for another podcast's episode; going through sales activities. So maybe I'll create one where my top five sales activities that I love to do and that I love teaching my clients to do as well. So promote your program. Ask for the sale. And then once you've actually asked for the sale, you get to close the sale.

Now, you have to close the sale. You get to handle objections, right? So when you ask for the sale, you will most likely hear an objection. Most of the time, people will have some type of objection. It may be very slim. However, there may most likely be an objection. So you get to close a sale. You get to handle that objection. Walk them through. No running away from that first note that you hear. You get to work through that objection with your potential client. That "no '' is giving you the opportunity and that permission slip to actually continue the conversation because they're saying no. And they may be saying that, oh, I can't afford this. However, there's a deeper objection that you get to help them work through because ninety nine percent of the time it isn't the money. There is more to it.

You get to continue and have that conversation and really dig into what it is that's actually holding them back and then work through that true objection. So those are the six things to really focus on, on starting your business. You don't necessarily need a full blown out Website. I did not put my full Website together that I have now until we had hit consistent 10K months in the business. It just wasn't necessary. I believe once we hit the 10K mark range before we put the full, blown out Website together and put the time into that, we had one sales page and then an application page as well. We only had one program offer on the table and we were reaching and hitting 10K month's over nowhere. And you can do the same.

Keeping It Simple

So there's definitely a difference between you being busy and doing things, then you being actionable and working on sales focus activities that are going to help your business move forward very quickly, especially in the beginning stages. So no need to stress about having everything, all the tools, all the platforms keep things simple. I can promise you things are going to feel easier and be easier as you keep things simple in your business. We keep things so simple in our business. We have a few platforms that we invest into, like software. I mean, all platforms with software that we invest into. And then, of course, I have my team now, but I'm years into my business. So as you're just starting, there isn't a need for tons of overhead. So, for example, if you're looking for a project management system just to help you organize your day or tasks, Asana has a free version. There are so many free versions of software you can start to play around with. Even email list servers. There are free versions you can get started with and dip your feet into to see if you actually like that platform, that software and onward.

Your Niche and Ideal Client

Now, as you continue to dig into all of this, you need to continue to be crystal clear about what you're doing. So I want to spend a little bit more time diving even deeper into your niche and your ideal client who it is that you are serving and helping. And so we get to be so crystal clear about what you do and who you do it for. When somebody comes to one of your pages, whether it's your Instagram page or your Facebook page or maybe you're on LinkedIn, whatever platform you're on. You have about two seconds before that person that's going to decide to stay or swipe away. And we of course, we want them to stay if they're an ideal client. And so if they're an ideal client and they do stay, what's going to happen? And they are going to start to go through your content. And what does that do? That starts to add touch points. Remember those touch points we had mentioned earlier, start to add touch points between you and them.

So you get to then continue to add the foundations to your content that you have your content pillars and things like that, which I definitely will dive into in the next podcast episode. But for now, we get to be clear about what you do and who you do it for. That's going to be enough to actually grasp the attention for them to stay on your pain, which is the goal. So just like that is an example, let's say you work in human resources and the business you work for is looking to hire for a new position.

You're probably going to have a stack of 50 resumes. How long do you think that person's going to spend through looking through a resume and reviewing a resume? Typically, they say, I want to say it's usually like five seconds or less. That was a number when I last looked up that data point. And it was less than five seconds when I looked this up last time. So with social media, it's even less the attention span. Instagram is even less so, within two to three seconds. They are making that decision to stay or swipe away. So let's break through how we can help them stay. We won't be so crystal clear about how they can make that decision to stay or go away. So I'm going to walk you through my I-help formula, my help statement, and how you can create this for yourself. And so what you can do is write this down. This is definitely something you get to bookmark and write down. I help this type of person create this type of result by taking this type of action. And so whatever this sentence is that you're putting together, this seems to be something that they can tangibly visualize. They get to be able to visualize this.

It gets to be something that they know what this can look and feel like. So if you're helping people lose 10 pounds, they can visualize what they're going to look like and how they're going to feel. If you're helping somebody sign their first three clients, they can start to visualize what that's going to look like and what it's going to feel like. So if you're, for example, a mindset coach and you're helping with mindset, help them visualize that end result with something they can see in their hands. They need to be able to visualize what that result is going to be. And you can definitely do that in your I-help sentence. So as you're creating your sentences, start to put them everywhere, start to put them in your Instagram bios, your Facebook bios. And keep in mind, these can evolve and they most likely will evolve and will shift. I would say actually it's been a while since we've changed our sentence. However, it's not outrageous to say that you'll change in six months from now. It is very possible that you'll be shifting. And maybe it's just a word or two. Or the transformation as you continue to grow and you continue to educate yourself and become even more of an expert in that field. You may be expanding upon that. For example, how when I first started, I was only helping women hit 5K months of their business. Now I'm helping women hit 20, 30, 50K months in their business as well, depending on what my container is that my ideal client are looking at because we have such a diverse product suite in the business, because we've really taken the time to expand that customer journey for our clients.

So when you get to do it, think about your why, journal about it. What is your why? What is the reason that you've started the online business? What is the impact that you're wanting to create in this world? Dig into some of those things. And I asked you, what's the problem that you're solving? What is that big problem you're helping people solve? Who is your ideal client? What does that look like? What is your I-help sentence? What do you do? Who do you help and how do you help them? We get to be so crystal clear about this. The clearer you can be, the easier it is going to be for them to make that decision to stay or swipe away.

So let me give you an example of what I mean by "be clear". When I was a health and fitness coach way back in the day when I first started, I was very vague about what I did and who I did it for. I would say things like, I help people eat sustainably. I help people lose weight. And when people would see this, their idea of eating sustainably could be very different from my idea of it. And so it was just too vague. I back then was trying to help everybody and serve everybody and had not niche’d down.

So I finally decided to niche down and I went from helping people eat sustainably to I help women fit back into their favorite bikinis while eating their favorite foods. So it's very clear about what it is I was doing, how I did it, how I helped them, and who I was helping. So we're going to be so crystal clear. And so that formula will help you in creating that clarity for your audience, your ideal client, as they come to your page. So I cannot wait to see what you put together as you are generating and creating your formulas. Let me know. Share with me so that I can see how you're formulating yours. I cannot wait to see the takeaways and we will be seeing you in the next episode. So many goodies coming your way or diving into content, expanding your business, sales, and sales activities. So definitely mark your calendar. Subscribe if you haven't yet so that you can be notified when these episodes get released so that you can start taking action, start to implement ASAP as soon as the episodes come out within the minute.

Topics we cover include:

Finding Your Why
Creating Your Foundations
Being Relatable
Providing Value
Getting the Sale

And so much more!

Times to check out:

(4:39) Finding Your Why

(9:00) Creating Your Foundation

(13:14) Relating To Your Ideal Client

(15:58) Providing Value Every Day

(19:01) Don’t Be Afraid To Sell

(26:03) Capturing Your Ideal Client

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