The level of desire will depend on your individual circumstances. If you are in a decent job and leading a comfortable lifestyle, you may want to make some extra cash on odd occasions by selling excess items from around the home.

However, if you find your household income suddenly reduced, as I did a few years ago, the matter becomes more pressing and quick, simple ideas need to be actioned quickly. And with soaring fuel and energy bills at the moment, many of us are looking for ways to increase our income to help with the strain on the household budget.

The best way I have found to make money is to find something you enjoy doing and turn that hobby into something profitable (selling on eBay was not something I enjoyed at all!!!!!).

These days, working from home seems to be what increasing numbers of people are talking about. Working from home seems like a great situation. The problem is trying to find ways to earn money that you enjoy doing and is sustainable for the long term.

Ideas how to make money from home

Sell your skills

Everyone has a skill that someone else either can’t do or doesn’t have the time for. It’s time to start thinking of these skills as a viable way to make money from home. Advertise your skills in your neighbourhood. Maybe you could do the ironing, dog walking, gardening or babysitting.

Create an online course

What do you know that others would love to learn? Create an online course and sell. This can be done in a variety of ways.

• Video yourself teaching your expert subject
• Create a written course or ebook
• Record a PowerPoint presentation with a voice over

Online courses can be a great way of making money from home as once you have your course created, it can be sold repeatedly and with no limit on how many you sell. Also, there will be minimal additional costs once you have the initial set-up done and dusted.

Turn your hobby into a business

What do you love doing in your spare time? What do you never get tired of doing? There are so many hobbies and yours will be personal to you but here are a few ideas:

• Love baking – sell cakes
• Writing – offer blog writing services
• Playing music – teach others online or in person
• Gardening – offer gardening services in your local area
• Photography – offer photography services and sell images to stock photo companies
• Crafting – sell at craft fairs or online on handmade sites such as Etsy and Not on The High Street

Become a freelancer

Freelancers tend to work with business clients rather than the general public. In the same way as thinking what hobbies you love doing above, what aspects of your job, current or previous, did you enjoy the most and/or were best at?

This could be things such as:

• Graphic design
• Writing
• Organising events
• Bookkeeping
• Web design
• Social media
• and the list goes on …..

Think about services you could offer to businesses on a freelance basis. And if you have a wide variety of skills consider becoming a Virtual Assistant.

Sell on eBay

Who doesn’t have a treadmill or box of clothes sitting somewhere collecting dust? Gather up all of the things that you don’t need anymore and sell them on eBay. Some people find that they really enjoy doing this and continue after they’ve cleaned their own house by purchasing things cheaply at garage sales and then reselling them on eBay. You can also buy things at wholesale prices that you can then turn around and sell for a higher cost.

Affiliate marketing

You can make money from home by recommending products. Affiliate marketing pays you a commission every time a person buys a product that you recommend. It’s usually done online so best if you have a website of your own that generates a decent level of traffic. The great thing about affiliate marketing is that once you’ve set up the process, you can keep earning money residually.

Multi-level marketing

Direct sales or multi-level marketing is another popular method to make money or start a home-based business. You will get a commission on products that you sell through direct sales. You can also choose a multi-level marketing (MLM) system which pays commissions through several levels of sales reps. Whichever method of sales you prefer, there are hundreds of products you can choose to sell. You can sell anything from books to vitamins to skin care.

If you decide to go down this route, do your due diligence. There are too many companies that will lure you in with the promise of high levels of income that are highly likely never to materialise.

By now you should have some idea of what you want to do. Don’t forget there will be rules and regulations you will need to follow when starting a home based business that you will need to abide by.

And remember you should always try to have fun when you work from home. It will keep you motivated to keep earning. Good luck with whatever you choose to do.

*Do you need a little help to get your idea off the ground?  Become a member of The Small Business Kit today.

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There is a huge 69% abandonment rate for online shopping carts is partly blamed on complex checkout and clunky payment processes that confuse customers. Once those customers are gone from that site, the danger is, they may never return.

How many customers may you be losing because you have a clunky system or make the payment process drawn out and convoluted? One pet hate of mine is when I want to buy something or book an appointment but to do so I must email the business first. Why?? Why not have an online payment or online booking system where I can make the transaction instantly? I don’t want to have to wait for the business to email me back and then go back and forth to book or pay. By this time, I may well have had buyer remorse or bought from somewhere else where I could buy more easily. Yes, there may be certain circumstances where this needs to be done and I am a total hypocrite here as I don’t allow immediate booking for one of my ongoing coaching services! But now I’m sitting here thinking about it I could streamline the process somewhat – guess what’s on my to-do list today? If you’re unsure how your customers want to pay, go ask them. Run a survey and find out what they want. Also, if you have an online store look at your statistics to see what your abandonment rate is. If it’s high, you know you have an issue somewhere.

Top tips for making payments easier

Online sales

• Make sure your website is optimized for speed, so it loads quickly
• Make sure your website is responsive to mobile devices
• Add call-to-action buttons making it clear how to pay
• Set up a one-click payment process
• Provide a FAQ page to address common issues
• Have a live chat facility for any pressing questions
• Have clear delivery and returns policies

Offline sales

• Carry a secure mobile payment option – many customers no longer carry cash
• If you only accept cash (aarghhh!!!) ensure you keep enough change with you
• For cash only carry a receipt book – some customers may need one

I’d love to hear your thoughts and how your customers prefer to pay. Leave a comment below.

What is the difference between a newsletter and a blog?

Newsletters for business

A newsletter is sent to a specified group of people that have subscribed to your mailing list. This group can also be segmented down according to their interests, location or any other criteria you set. This allows you to target specific people with tailored messages.

Newsletters can contain a range of content on different topics. A newsletter can be as short or as long as you want.

Once a newsletter is sent, the reader will not be able to see it again after they have opened it unless they save the original email.

Blogs for business

A blog is available for anyone in the world to read who visits your website. It helps position you as an expert in your field and if written in line with Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) best practices can help drive traffic to your website.

A blog usually focuses on one specific topic. A blog should contain at least 300 words but 1000 is recommended.

Blogs can be updated as and when you need to as they stay live on your website until you remove them.

When should I use a newsletter?

You should use a newsletter to keep in contact with your subscribers, provide valuable and relevant information and promote your products and services. This helps create a relationship with your subscribers and to keep you top of mind for when they are ready to buy.

Newsletters should be sent on a regular and consistent basis so your subscribers don’t forget who you are. This should be a minimum of once every quarter.

When should I use a blog?

A blog helps position you as the industry expert in your field. Regular blog writing can help drive valuable traffic to your website and if you add an opt-in can help gain new subscribers to your newsletter for tailored marketing.

Blogs should be written on a regular and consistent basis at least once per month.

What should I put in a newsletter?

Newsletters can include:

• Latest industry or company news
• Top tips
• Updates on new products and services
• Special offers and discounts
• Case studies
• Product reviews
• Link/s to blog posts
• Behind-the-scenes content
• Request for feedback/survey
• Recommendations on anything from useful resources to books, software etc
• Seasonal greetings

What should I put in a blog?

A blog should be written about a specific topic related to your business. It’s useful to listen to what your target audience is talking about and what questions they are asking and use this as your topic.

It should include:

• Introduction
• Main content
• Summary

I would suggest these three additional items at the end of each post.

• A call to action telling people what to do next.
• A comments box to encourage people to interact
• Social sharing buttons to help people share your content with others.

Blogs should be written in line with SEO best practices to help them be found by the search engines.

Which is better – a newsletter or a blog?

Both newsletters and blogs are a valuable part of any marketing campaign, and they should be used in conjunction with each other.

Your blog will help attract visitors to your website where they will see what you do and be directed to get in touch, buy or make a booking. It will also direct people to your newsletter for targeted marketing.

Your newsletter will build relationships where you can promote your offerings and direct people to your site to find out more about you and see what else you have on offer.

Now you know the difference between a blog vs a newsletter but are you still unsure how to proceed? If so, take a look at the resources below. Learn all about blogging for business with a step-by-step course or get your content written for you via The Small Business Kit hands-on services.

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Valuable resources:

Blogging for Business Course

Access the Blogging for Business course with workbook and planner for just £27. It includes everything you need including how to come up with ideas on what to write, how to create an attention-grabbing headline, how to build your audience and how to write for the search engines (Top SEO tips)

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Copywriting service

Get your blog written for you with The Small Business Kit’s hands-on service.

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• Logged into my laptop to find 58 new emails and 22 tasks flagged up by my CRM to be completed.
• My brain went into overdrive! Stress levels started to rise. Brain fog descended with so much to do.
• Looked at emails. Looked at CRM tasks. Glanced at my notepad at a new idea. Started on new idea. Aimed to just map out a few basic points to come back to.
• Got completely sidetracked! Suddenly realised I had missed a client call!!!!!! How did I miss it? When I checked my phone reminder was on silent.
• Stress levels rose dramatically.
• Called the client and apologised profusely. Looked to rebook asap and my diary was chaotic. It didn’t look like I had time to breathe let alone book another appointment.
• Spent an hour moving things around in my diary.
• Started working through emails. Each email seemed to lead to another half dozen things to do. Three new requests for one-to-one coaching. Two enquiries about The Small Business Kit.
• Head now in a complete spin. I felt completely and utterly snowed under and simply didn’t know how I was going to fit everything in.

And then I stopped. And I thought about what I would advise my one-to-one clients. And I started to put it all into practice myself.

What to do when you’re snowed under with work

Declutter

Just look around you. Do you have a clean, welcoming, organised workspace? Or are you surrounded by half-drunk mugs of coffee, half a dozen notepads, sticky notes and scraps of paper, a scattering of business cards and various pens? Clear your workspace and clear your mind. Honestly, it works. Having only what you need in front of you helps you to retain focus and work in a more organised manner.

Create a to-do list

The next thing is to write down absolutely everything on your to-do list. Yes, everything. List down all those things swirling around in your frazzled brain, scribbled down on notepads, post-it notes and emails. Get everything out of your head and onto paper.

Prioritise

Now you have your to-do list you need to sort it out in order of priority. I use an online spreadsheet called Airtable. I list everything in there and then give each item a ranking as follows:

1. Needs doing as a priority
2. Needs doing this week
3. Needs doing this month
4. Would like to do it asap
5. Would like to do it if I ever get the time

You may find you have more than one to-do list. If you do, it can help to put everything into one list. You can add a column to state what the item relates to if you have more than one business or business sector. When you are going through your list delete anything that has been on there for what seems like years and realistically is never going to get done. Also, delete anything that now doesn’t seem like such a good idea or is outdated. I had quite a few of those! Now simply sort them in priority order.

Plan your diary

Open your diary or online calendar and block out times for 5-star priority items. Set 90-minute blocks of time. This time allows you to get laser focused to get stuck into the task without distractions. It’s long enough to get good quality work done but not too long that your brain starts to get frazzled. After each 90-minute block, set yourself 10 mins to check any incoming emails. Send a holding response if necessary so as not to let them take you off track unless urgent and they cannot wait. Then go stretch your legs and get some fresh air for 20 minutes. I promise you the change of scenery and fresh air will allow you to be far more productive than sitting at your desk for hours at a time. This way you will get 3x 90 minutes of focused work done each day on your priority tasks. If you complete all your priority tasks, move on to your 4-star ones. Below is a very simplistic example of what your diary could look like. This will of course depend upon your business. Your 5-star priority may be a client meeting which may take longer than 90 minutes so adapt accordingly.

Set up your workspace for the next day

At the end of each day, plan for the next. Re-prioritise your list moving 4-star items to 5-star if all the 5-star have been completed. Set out your workspace with just the items you need to complete your work for the next day, so you are all set and ready to go when you come back in the morning. It’s very therapeutic coming to a clean, tidy desk with everything set up rather than having to search through the clutter for what you need first thing.

Shut off

Now you have set yourself up for the next day’s work, knowing exactly what you are going to be working on and with everything ready to go, switch off. Yes, easier said than done I know but it’s so important to shut off from work to give your brain a break. It’s the same as if you are training for something such as running a marathon. If you push your body by running long distances every single day, eventually your muscles will give up, and you will become injured and won’t be able to run at all. Your muscles need a break to recover. Your brain is the same. Do whatever you enjoy to relax. Now, if you have a young, demanding family this may be a difficult thing to do. But take at least 30 minutes each day just for you. If you love reading, go to bed half an hour earlier and read. It’s important to have time for yourself so you don’t start to resent work and life in general.

Are you still snowed under with work?

But hey. What if the above is not enough? What if you never manage to clear your 5-star priority items and more work is coming in? What if you really can’t keep your head above water?

Review your prices

Firstly, look at your pricing. If you have more clients than you can handle, put your prices up! This way you can work smarter, not harder. You will be able to earn the same, if not more, money for the same number of hours. Now when I speak to my own clients about this, they tend to hate putting prices up. They don’t want to hack off existing clients. But business is all about supply and demand. And if you continue to run at a hundred miles an hour every day and continue to be snowed under one of two things will happen:

1. You will start to make mistakes (like me!) And I can promise you if you continue to make mistakes that will certainly hack off your clients and you will lose business.
2. You will get so stressed you become ill and won’t be able to work which will be a huge detriment to both you and your clients.

Write to your clients and explain that subject to a business review the decision has been made to increase prices. Don’t be afraid of losing a few. As mentioned, if you get your pricing structure correct, you will be able to make the same amount of money with fewer clients.

Let go of ‘less than perfect’ clients

This could be the perfect opportunity to go through your client list and let go of any who are no longer ideal for you. How about that over-demanding client who no matter what you do, is never good enough. How about the one who wants you at their beck and call 24/7 and has no respect for your private life. Which ones make your heart sink when you see their number pop up on your phone or their email arrive in your inbox? Go through your list and select any that aren’t right for your business anymore and write that email or letter to cancel your contract. Make it polite and professional but let them know after a review of your business, you do not have the capacity to work with them anymore. If possible, recommend someone else for them to work with.

Review your workload

What jobs are you simply not getting done or which do you hate doing and take up far too much of your time and contribute the most to your feeling snowed under? Make a list of them. Once you have the list, you can determine if there are ways of streamlining them. If there are jobs you really do hate and take up too much time, consider outsourcing to someone who could complete the work in a fraction of the time and possibly better than you. This could apply to your bookkeeping, marketing or blog writing. Now, look at the time you spend with prospects and clients.

• If you get a lot of phone calls or email enquiries when people visit your website, set up an enquiry form to collect as much information as possible before you need to speak to them. This can save a huge amount of time.
• How do you book appointments? Do you go back and forth via email? Set up an online booking system that does everything for you including taking any payments required.
• Do you spend a lot of time answering the same questions? Set up a FAQ page on your website and direct people to that.

Download my Client Touchpoint checklist to help you get thinking about how you deal with clients and the time it takes. The Client Touchpoint checklist helps you identify the touchpoints you have with prospects and clients and think about ways to simplify and streamline the process of how you deal with them. The first sheet just gives a few examples. The second sheet is for you to print and complete. By following the steps above you should feel more in control and able to take an objective view of how your business is running and what you need to do to stop feeling snowed under with work. If you’d like a chat to review your business and identify areas for improvement, take a look at my one-to-one services or get in touch if you have any questions.

Whilst on holiday, I got chatting to a chap who having retired at the ripe old age of just 42 appeared to have the key to creating a successful business.  From what I could gather he was a very wealthy individual and I had to dig deeper into what he did to become so successful at such a young age.

The very short story is that he took over a failing company, built it up, sold it for millions and retired.

When I asked how he built the business up so quickly, he told me he focused purely on customer service. Yes, the product had to be up to scratch but he concentrated on giving the best customer service he could, and then some. And the interesting thing is that after a year of him selling the business, it had started to fail and has since fallen bankrupt.

I can totally relate to this, as those of you who know me, will know I bang on about how the customer is the person who will make or break your business and if you are serious about creating a successful business, you need to give exceptional customer service at all times.

Aeons ago, I built up a failing estate agency practice to become one of the most successful in the chain of offices by focusing on customer service. As many of you may have discovered for yourself, customer service is severely lacking in the majority of estate agencies. I made sure every single vendor and buyer was contacted each week to let them know what was going on with the sale and purchase. I made sure every single person looking for a property was contacted at least once a month to update their details and discuss what was happening in the marketplace.

All our clients and contacts knew we were working behind the scenes to do the best for them and that our staff cared. This resulted in a HUGE turnaround for the agency and we won many awards.

Focus on customer complaints

• Customer service review sheet to score your business in different areas
• A client touch point sheet with examples of how to ‘wow’ your customers
• A sample follow-up plan to stay in contact with your customers
• A client contact sheet template

Access the module now.

Women who work from home are increasingly oblivious to their own health and safety.  We work for long hours, usually seated, whether at a computer or making things.  We forget to eat regularly and healthily and forget to get up and move around.

Well, I do anyway.

We end up hunched over our desks for hours upon hours each day and soon find ourselves struggling with backache, shoulder, arm, hand and even finger pain!

I have regularly been a victim of this myself so recently I decided to undertake a health and safety audit. No, not of my business, but of myself.

After deciding to review my self care when working from home and undertaking my health and safety audit, I decided to invest in a few items to help me take care of my own health and safety in a more proactive manner.

Items to help with self care when working from home

Activity tracker

Firstly, I set up my Garmin activity tracker. As most people know, activity trackers do what they say on the tin. They record your activity during the day.  After you have been online and put in a few details about yourself, it sets you a daily goal to ensure you undertake some physical activity during the day.

This can vary from jogging for an hour, walking for a couple of hours or up and on your feet doing light housework for 7 hours (really!!).  It also counts the steps taken in a day and calories used.

The key bonus for the one I have is it sends an alert when I have been sitting inactive for too long.  The fatal flaw with some activity trackers that I had in the past was that whilst the alert flashes on the wristband if I was wholly engrossed in a piece of research or sat on the phone, I didn’t see the flashing.  Therefore, I made sure my most recent purchase vibrates to make me aware of the alert.

When wearing my activity tracker, I am so much more aware of my daily activity levels and keep checking to see how much more movement I have to do to reach my goal and to get the ‘fireworks’ going off on the display when I have reached my target (small things please little minds).

Computer alert

If you don’t have an activity tracker to wear on your wrist there is a fab little program you can install on your computer called Workrave.  As their site states, Workrave is a program that assists in the recovery and prevention of Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI). The program frequently alerts you to take micro-pauses, rest breaks and restricts you to your daily limit.

When I installed this program a while ago, I was amazed at how quickly the time goes by when working on my laptop and how lapse I was in taking breaks previously.  The fun, but very useful, part of the app is that on the longer breaks, it gives you a set of exercises to do.  (check out my article on some fun office exercises)The break lengths are pre-loaded but these can be customised to personal preferences.  I can certainly recommend this one. And even better, it is free.

Ergonomic office chair

My third purchase has been a decent ergonomic office chair.  When in employed work, I had always managed to find a chair that suited my back but when I started working from home, I have made do with an old chair that I had, as so many of us do.

As the days and weeks went by, so my lower back pain increased.  And therefore I decided to invest in a decent chair.  And what a difference it made.  After the initial fight of having to put it together myself, once constructed, I took a seat and wow!  What a difference.  My back was firmly hugged and supported.  Could this be the start to pain-free work?

Ergonomic keyboard and mouse

If you spend a lot of time typing, an ergonomic keyboard and mouse can be super helpful in avoiding RSI and carpal tunnel syndrome. They can help relieve arm and wrist pain and help support your posture.

Yes, they can take a bit of getting used to but persevere and see what a difference they can make for you. They are designed to support your hands and wrists and take off the pressure when you are working for long periods of time.

I swear by my Microsoft ergonomic keyboard.

It’s slightly bulky if you have a tiny desk but in my opinion, it’s the best I’ve found. If you’re looking for an ergonomic mouse there is a huge range to choose from. Prices vary hugely and there are a variety of colours. I personally use a low-cost wireless Tecknet mouse that does the trick for me.

How about you take a few minutes out of your day to assess your self care when working from home. Take a close look at how you work and become aware of what action you may need to take to protect yourself from aches and pains and the detrimental impact to your health when sitting for long periods and not moving.

If you were the MD in a large corporation you would want your staff to be comfortable and protected in order to do their job to their best ability wouldn’t you?  So do the same for yourself.

Just recently, on my coaching calls, more than one person has had the same feelings.  They were feeling uneasy because their businesses weren’t fulfilling them as much as they had expected.

They weren’t full of excitement when they thought of doing what they are doing now in 10 years’ time.

They had come to the realisation that rather than following their absolute true passion, they had taken the easy option of doing something they were good at and brought the money in quickly.

Whilst this could be viewed as a sensible option to start with, it’s just not sustainable.

Two particular ladies were going through difficult times and had lost all excitement and enthusiasm for their business.  They just felt as though they had fallen off track.

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.” Charles Darwin

What you need to learn in building a successful business, is to be adaptable.

You need to be prepared to amend your success plan and goals subject to mitigating circumstances.  We never know what is around the corner and how our plans may have to change.

Take circumstances over the past two years as an example.

Covid hit, business tightened their belts when they couldn’t trade, and many business owners say their customers dwindle, myself included.

I had to diversify as business coaching clients dropped off and members of The Small Business Kit started to cancel.  I joined forces with another businesswoman I knew and we set up a new marketing company to do the hands-on work to get businesses seen online so these could still attract customers through the lockdown.

I had no idea this new marketing business would become all-consuming. We were run off our feet and turning work away, even after taking on additional help.

Lockdown finished during which many people had decided they didn’t want to return to their 9 – 5-day job. They valued the time freedom they benefited from during the lockdown. But as I had been so busy with the marketing company, I had taken my eye off The Small Business Kit. I had been taken down a different route and found myself running from one thing to the other and getting more and more frustrated as something didn’t feel right. I was in a complete muddle – can anyone else relate?

Go back to the drawing board to get your business back on track

I had to go back to the drawing board.

I looked at what my original plans were and knew I wanted to go back to focusing on The Small Business Kit. I had to limit the number of online coaching clients I had and stop taking on any more marketing clients. I started passing any new client to my fabulous and more than able colleague so I could put my full focus into updating The Small Business Kit and getting it relaunched once again.

This was where my passion lay and I loved it and missed it. I knew it helped so many women starting and growing their businesses, many of whom tell me they wouldn’t be where they are today if they hadn’t used it. I have members who have gone from home baking to opening retail premises. I have members who were struggling to make ends meet and who now have six-figure incomes. And I wanted to return to help more do the same.

If you wake up one day and realise you aren’t where you want to be, you need to find a way to get your business back on track.

If you aren’t feeling the love for your business anymore, dig deep to find out what your passion truly is and look for what changes you can make to keep your passion, and business, alive long term.

You probably already know that Google is the top search engine in the world, but did you know that Bing is second?

And more importantly, did you know that both Google and Bing allow you to promote your business on their platforms for FREE?

But MOST importantly, ARE you promoting your business through both these search engines?

If not, you’re missing a trick. You’re missing the opportunity to promote your business in front of endless more people without having to pay a penny. Why would you not want to take advantage of that?

Google Business

When you type a search term into Google you will see local business listings appear at the top of the page with a map showing their location. This is where you can place your business.

Google Business allows you to list your business and add information such as your website, opening hours, list your products and services and post updates. And it’s absolutely free!

The other thing with Google Business is that it allows your customers and clients to leave reviews which can help build your credibility.

Once your listing is set up it’s super easy to go in and amend any information whenever you want. You may want to post updates about your business, add a new product or service, or amend your opening hours such as at Christmas time.

You can find out more about Google Business and get questions answered on the Google Business FAQ page. And to get your business set up visit their How To Claim or Add Your Business page

Bing Places

Bing Places basically works in the same way as Google Business by allowing you to list your business and add your website, photos and opening hours. It’s currently not possible to create new posts as you can on Google Business but you can add deals and discounts.

You can find out more and how to add your business on the Bing website

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Take advantage of free marketing

It really is worth getting your business listed on both these platforms, particularly if you trade locally. As search results tend to show businesses local to you, having your business pinpointed on a map in the local search results is essential. It’s great for directing visitors to your website so is a great tool for SEO (search engine optimisation).

Anything that helps increase your online visibility can only be a good thing and with free marketing for your business, it’s a win-win. Block some time out in your diary right now and go get set up.

If you find the whole thing quite daunting and don’t know where to start, do get in touch. As part of The Small Business Kit Hands-On Service, we can do it for you.

For someone starting out what advice would you give to build your online audience?

Here is my short and sweet answer:

How to build an online audience

• Identify your ideal audience
  • you can’t talk on the same level as someone if you don’t know who they are
• Identify what their biggest challenges are
  • you need to be talking about what they want help with, not just posting pics of your dinner and walks with your dog.
• Be clear on what your page/group/list is going to be about and include and what your chosen audience will get out of it.
  • A little planning goes a long way in saving a lot of time with meaningless ad-hoc posts
• Ask yourself why they would want to join.
  • If you can’t find a reason, keep thinking! Get creative and find a compelling reason for others to join and stay.
• Create a mix of posts to include tips on how to solve their pain point and posts to encourage interaction and engagement. Run competitions.
  • Constantly posting the same old thing gets boring. Your audience will turn off.
• Answer all comments. You want to work on building relationships and trust.
  • Ignoring people who have taken the time to interact with you is plain rude. They won’t bother again.
• Give loads of support to your audience. Again, this builds trust and helps position as the expert to go to.
  • By giving good quality advice and support you will start to create an environment where people will want to buy from you when they need the products or services you offer.
• Post valuable content consistently and persistently. It will take time.
  • Don’t give up or let your posts become sporadic if you don’t get a good response from the beginning. People will be watching you behind the scenes.
• Interact in other groups and invite people to join your page/group/list
  • (if in groups check what the rules allow – pay close attention to this!)
• Add the link to your online channel everywhere – on your website, bottom of email signature etc
  • Don’t waste any opportunities for people to join your online tribe.

And if you need more help coming up with ideas and planning to build your online audience, come on over and join my member’s club. Everything you need is right there.