Archives for March 2013

How to Make $117,000 in 67 Minutes… Starting From Scratch… With Just What You Already Know How to Do Best!

March 25, 2013 by influexwp Leave a Comment

This isn't something I teach much on these days, even though it's been a key component of our business success (because I've been so focused on teaching you the Money Map and LIFT topics that no one else covers).

But you clearly want this and we've gotten loads of feedback that says you love what we've got to say about it — and that you have a way better understanding of what other folks out there seem to be hiding the ball about.

On our recent free call, “How to make $117,000 in 67 Minutes… Starting From Scratch… With Just What You Already Know How to Do Best!” (listen to it here) I shared the story of my first failed product launch and how I invested $15,000 in creating her product just to sell about 2 at $397. A very bad ROI.

Then, through a series of twists and turns, I met a man named Dave Dee who I paid $30,000 (you've got to listen to the audio for the whole story of how Alexis met Dave — it's worth hearing) to teach me everything I know about launching products online.

Dave held my hand through the process of doing my first real online product launch and we sold $117,000 of my 2nd product (which wasn't even finished!) in just 67 minutes.

I went on to sell more than $200,000 of that product within 6 weeks and it became the foundation of a multi-million dollar business.

The story itself was great (listen to it here).

Here is a summary of the other important points I covered on the call …

First – here are the Product/Program Launch mistakes you want to avoid:

Mistake #1. Spending thousands of dollars (even 5 figures) creating your first product & trying to sell it, and making nothing back.

How to fix it:

Don't complete your product before you sell it.
Sell your product, then finish it (so you're actually getting paid to create the content).
Create the sales process first actually tells you exactly what the content needs to be.
If you make it first, then sell it, you lose out on that process + there's no guarantee your marketplace will want it. Instead, sell it, then finish it. Then you'll deliver it live the first time, record it all, then sell it again at a higher price.

Mistake #2. Paying for advertising that goes to your sales page (or asking JV partners or friends to mail to your sales page) – it doesn't result in any purchases, and you just lost that money.

How to fix it:

Host a free teleseminar.
Invite people to it via an email campaign (you can start small with your own network, or online forums/social media).
Send invitees to register on an opt-in page for the call (so you are building a list).
Learn how to deliver a call script that converts sales (we have a bonus gift to help you with that, read to the end for more).
Then once you have a product that converts on a teleseminar, approach JVs who are at your level and do cross-promotions to mutually build your lists & sales revenue.

Mistake #3. Marketing your product & not knowing how to speak to people about it, which results in them either not showing up for your sales call or not buying when they do.

How to fix it:

First you have to know what moves people to buy – their pain, and their desires.
Find out what those are, from their point of view, and craft your message around them.
Then, invest in Lisa Sasevich's 6-figure Teleseminar Secrets Program with the link I'll give you below (it'll help you craft the entire campaign sequence to get highest attendance & conversion rates for your sales call), and we'll also give you a bonus gift of two proven 6-figure teleseminar scripts you can model (details below).
Or, apply for our Launch Done For You service & we'll take all of the guesswork out and eliminate your learning curve. (You'll learn from our success, not from your mistakes.)

Mistake #4. Investing thousands of dollars in a video launch because it's what the big guys are doing – but then it doesn't work, and you've lost all that time and money.

How to fix it:

Start small. None of those big names did a video launch their first time out of the gate.
First, refine your ability to sell during teleseminars.
Then work your way up once the money starts flowing in.
You'll notice that I've made millions on product sales, and I'm still not doing video launches. And, if you are paying close attention, you'll see that all the big gurus using video launches are still including a teleseminar, webinar or both to close the sales.

Second – here are our top Product Launch tips for ya:

Tip #1. How to launch within 8 weeks, even if you have no list at all (before Alexis' $117,000 launch, she didn't even have a database).

Step 1: pick your launch date.
Step 2: systematically move forward getting everything ready for launch, either by following Lisa Sasevich's step by step 6-Figure Teleseminar Secrets program (link below) OR by having us do it for you.
Step 3: do not skip any of the launch steps or try to take shortcuts.

Tip #2. The key to creating a product, program or course that practically SELLS ITSELF!

See Mistake #1 above.
You create all of the sales materials for the course, product or program FIRST and only complete it once you know what your marketplace wants you to deliver.

Tip #3. The one thing NO ONE IS TELLING YOU about product launches that could get you so discouraged that you throw in the towel before the game even really gets going.

They're a LOT of freakin work. They can cause total adrenal burnout!
There are so many details to handle, so many tweaky little things to go wrong, so many risks and on top of it all you've got to step into the spotlight and deliver.
Most importantly, you've got to keep your energy up throughout because that's what's going to sell your product and deliver something amazing.
We can make it easier. If you're the right candidate to get your launch done for you, Alexis will personally interview you & have our team handle all the nitty gritty. Plus you'll learn how to replicate the process next time. Much easier!

Tip #4. In a nutshell – a SIMPLE three-step formula for having a real deal information products business that takes all the head-scratching out of how to turn a product into an action business … and makes it easy.

Step 1: Sell first version as a beta before it's complete. Discount pricing because it's the beta version.
Step 2: Use the recordings from the beta version to sell beta 2.0 and deliver live Q&A to go along with the original program call recordings. Improve your sales and marketing and upgrade your handouts.
Step 3: Take all the feedback from the first two versions and deliver the program all live, marketing it as the last time the program will ever be offered live — at full price.
Now, you've got a robust home study course that can become the foundation of a solid business model.

Third – here's where you can get help:

If you want to learn the step by step 6 Figure Teleseminar formula we recommend, in a simple way that you can do yourself, Lisa's program is the one for you. Buy with this link (it's our affiliate link) and we will throw in two of Alexis' proven 6 Figure Sales Script Templates for you to model: www.eyeswideopenlife.com/blog/lisa (email your receipt to support@eyeswideopenlife.com to get your bonus Scripts)

If you want our help in the future with knowing who your audience is or critiquing your sales page, get on the wait list for our small group programs, coming soon

If your gut says “I want Alexis & her team to do this for me,” apply now: www.eyeswideopenlife.com/productlaunch. There is a $2500 application deposit (refunded if your application is not approved, minus $250 application fee to pay for the time we'll spend consulting with you to determine if it's a good fit, which will be a tremendous value in and of itself) – the deposit link will be on the page that opens after you fill out the application form. Launch Done For You Investment = healthy 5 figure minimum depending on package level chosen. You'll get a team working on your campaign that you'd have to make a 6-figure per year investment to hire on if you were to hire just one member of the team on salary. It'll be totally worth it if you are serious about making your program, course or product the foundation of your business. Only apply if you have the financial resources to move forward, if you are accepted.

Please click on the comments below, tell me what your big AHAs are from this article, and ask any questions that you have!

How to Fix a Broken Back-End Business Model

March 22, 2013 by influexwp Leave a Comment

Most people wouldn't know that we're struggling here in the Eyes Wide Open business.

Our #1 core value is “show up naked,” so I'm going to tell you — we are.

Imagine this:

You've got a list of more than 13,000 people, all the top Joint Venture partners you could want, products that convert extremely well to sales, and you're bringing in $50-60,000 a month in revenue. But you're barely making ends meet.

How could that be?

As the CEO I'll tell you, it's very simple: our overhead is way too high for our profit margins.

Our front end products just aren't profitable enough to carry the business forward without MUCH higher volume. And our business model has some serious holes in the back end (there are some much higher-profitability back end options on the table that we simply can't say yes to because of constraints around Alexis’ time and willingness in this business — for example, she’s not willing to provide one-on-one coaching, high end masterminds or live events.)

So for the past few months I've been struggling with this question — how do I (within the constraints I’ve mentioned) maximize our assets, increase our profitable revenue streams & reduce expenses as lean as I can while we choose the right back end business model or ramp up volume on the front end in a way that is sustainable?

This is the joyful challenge that faces every entrepreneur.

It's the juiciest problem and I totally love it.

The constraints: our brand & our front-end funnels are built around Alexis and the work she’s created. We need back-end products that have higher profitability than our front-end, but the back end can't be built around Alexis — because she only wants to work 3 hours a week in this business. She also doesn't want to coach people 1 on 1, lead mastermind groups or host big events. (All the traditional back-end models for Online Businesses.)

So we've been exploring this question:

What business model is right for us given our weaknesses & strengths?

I'm still brainstorming solutions to this (if you'd like to have input, take our survey) that will allow us to scale – but in the meantime, we've decided to do something that is so needed in our industry AND meets all the requirements of our constraints, leverages our highest gifts both individually (me and Alexis) and within our whole company (talents already on our team) that will allow us to relax deeper into the discovery process around our own work.

“Product Launch Done for You.”

Alexis has “launched” several million dollars of products and programs online. It’s second nature to her. I’ve developed a launch management structure that makes it feel easy. And our team so understands the process that there is no strain, struggle, adrenal burn out or stress leading up to a launch anymore.

Done for you product launch leverages our skill at being able to quickly & effectively launch products and programs, Alexis' brilliance at interviewing people & structuring offers and sales calls, our high-converting copywriting experience, our Launch Campaign project management, and our ability to pull a high quality product out of thought leaders.

It meets Alexis’ requirement that if someone is going to pay us big money, they’ll not just get coaching, but actual implementation as well. Plus, we won’t just be giving them fish, but teaching them to fish too so they aren’t dependent on us.

So we did a call to our list a couple of weeks ago called, “How to make $117,000 in 67 Minutes… Starting From Scratch – With Just What You Already Know!” We got a huge response, with 800 people immediately registering in just two days and 40% live call attendance.

Listen to that call here: www.soundcloud.com/alexisneely/productlaunch

In it, Alexis shares her product launch history from losing $15,000 on her first launch by doing things the way most people do them to making $117,000 in 67-minutes on her second launch, going on to have several 6-figure launches and building two entire million dollar plus businesses by following a proven model that she lays out in detail on the call.

By choosing a back end business model that meets our constraints and leverages our highest talents, we are able to focus on the work we are truly called to do — helping you integrate the reality of business as a path to awakening — without the constant struggle of running a business payroll to payroll.

We get to help more people bring their Great Work into the world.

And, we love what we do.

If you’d like to be considered for our Done For You Product Launch Service (we only handle 1 per 4-6 weeks), get on our waiting list with your application here: www.eyeswideopenlife.com/productlaunch

Remember That Money Breakdown I Told You About?

March 21, 2013 by influexwp Leave a Comment

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote to you about the money breakdown that happened where our companies weren't going to make payroll and my ex-husband lost his income all in the same week.

What I didn't tell you is how all of that led to one of the biggest breakthroughs I've experienced yet.

Well, my friend, you'll be glad you waited, because today's the day and I know it's going to shift things for you too.

So, you'll recall, when we last left off in my little tale, we were basically financially fucked. And I was freaking out.

In the past, the way I would have handled this sort of financial stress would have been to sell something. Anything. And fast.

My mind would go into creative overdrive. What can I sell? What can I do? Frantic, frantic, frantic action.

And hey, listen, that's worked in a limited fashion. It's gotten me by. But, it's never gotten me ahead.

This time, I did something totally different. It had a far more feminine feel. It was more in line with my Human Design (something I'm learning about from my friend Christopher Power that has had big impact on my awareness — hit reply and let me know if you want an intro).

Instead of doing more, I shifted my being. I made the choice to relax and consider the real resources I had available to me. I counted my blessings.

And then, an idea came to me that I would never have considered in the past.

Instead of selling something, I would ask for help.

[gasp], ask for help? How could I possibly do that? From a place of weakness, no less.

But, yes, it was clear, asking for help was the right thing to do.

So, first, I got clear on the help I needed.

I needed to be able to pay for a program I wanted to attend that I wouldn't have the immediate cash flow to cover. The program was something that had nothing to do with business and everything to do with me connecting even more to my feminine.

The old me would have canceled it. Justified it with the cash flow crunch and put even more effort into the business.

The new me simply can't do things the old way anymore.

So I asked 4 of my girlfriends to loan me the money for the program. That. Was. Big. It. Was. Scary. They. Said. Yes. 🙂

Well, one of them said she wanted to help me get more empowered around my financial situation and that I could promote something of hers in exchange for the loan.

I said no. I am more empowered than I've ever been around money and that's why I am not doing it the way I've always done it. Thank you, but I am finding another way.

Here's the funny thing.

It turned out I didn't need to borrow the money after all. Or promote something for my friend. Or sell some new creation just for the purpose of covering the shortfall.

The process of asking, feeling supported and allowing myself to receive opened up something in me.

I can't quite explain it, there's not really any words.

But all I know is that we made it through the cash flow crunch (it turns out that more money came in than we were expecting from various sources) and the following week had the biggest enrollment we've ever had in our lawyer training program.

Now, let me be clear here … I didn't stop working during this time.

I didn't stop moving forward with the enrollment we already had scheduled.

I didn't stop moving forward with the big project that had to be completed before we could do that enrollment.

I didn't stop creating.

I just didn't allow myself to get off course by reacting to the cash flow crunch.

I looked at what I really needed, I waited for inspiration re how I could get it, and then I asked for it.

By the way, one other thing I did was to hire a lawyer to work with me on attracting investment capital for the business so we could take it to the next level and that also involves a whole lot of asking, waiting, and opening to receive.

This is all really new to me. The idea of asking for help without offering anything in exchange (other than my deep gratitude and repayment, of course), is new.

I never even asked my parents for money growing up. I bought my first car at 16, put myself through college and law school, and always had a strong feeling that I had to do it all myself.

That's shifting now. And it feels good.

Tomorrow (I hope!), I'll share with you the rest of the story that leads up to this past weekend and a big lesson for all of us around a new way of being and doing things.

Until then …

Alexis

PS — while you are waiting for the next part of the story, you might want to listen to this recording from my soul sister Liyana Silver.

http://www.embodimentexperience.com/preview-tele-class/

It's only available until tomorrow, so I wanted to get it to you now because the doors are closing on her mentorship program and so much of what she's talking about here has direct application to what I'm sharing with you in these posts.

She puts words on the experience I am having in a way I simply cannot.

If you do decided to join Liyana's mentorship (and call in more of the types of experiences I am describing, make sure to send me your receipt and I'll give you a bonus private session with me to integrate it all).

Sorry guys, this one's just for the ladies.

My Money Breakthrough

March 20, 2013 by influexwp Leave a Comment

I thought I was going to die. A series of unfortunate events led to the reality that we were not going to make our payroll. In either of our companies.