change

Wheeling and Dealing for Today’s Economy

May 5, 2010 By Cara Lumen

Today’s economy demands that we get very creative when it comes to packaging and pricing our services. On Good Morning America recently in Mellody Hobson Personal Finance segment she was talking to a teen ager who having little success finding a summer job. Mellody suggested she get really basic with what she was offering to do – like babysitting. The teenager said people were not spending much on that. And the Mellody suggested she lower her price – if her normal price was $10 an hour then offer to do it for $8 an hour if she would be guaranteed a specific number of hours, a compromise on price in exchange for guaranteed employment. She stressed how important it is for all of us to be innovative in today’s marketplace when it comes to positioning our offerings.

Create different levels with specific results and obvious benefits

In every business there is some core work that must be done before you can proceed. For instance, you have to have defined your target market and your niche before you create a blog or write an ebook. When I first began coaching people in creating web sites I would say we would need six coaching sessions. But then we would start and find they had not done their basic branding and marketing plans and we had to back up and do that before we could develop the site. That stretched our coaching time into 10 coaching sessions and of course increased the price. So I now divide my work up into several levels. If you have your core marketing work done you can quickly move on to level two or even three.

In modernizing your business for today’s economy set up small packages with achievable and visible results and price them both as separate packages and as a special price if they sign up for levels one, two and three for instance. Be certain specific goals are achieved at each level and the progress is measurable. Levels are also easy to promote because there are specific results and obvious benefits from each level. Think smaller steps with tangible levels of achievement when marketing to today’s economy.

Create a collaborative partnership that offers greater results

My Magnetic Blog Builders partnership with Nancy Hendrickson is a perfect example of two people being able to offer more than just one person can. She is a WordPress Wizard, I’m a Writing Wizard, between us our Ready, Set, Blog package gets people on the fast track to a magnetic blog in 30 days.

But I have set up another program to compliment that offering. Build Your Blog Community Coaching is for people who already have their blog set up and are ready to move on to a structured blog content development plan that will help them build their blog community and attract the people they are meant to serve. And I have added an optional aspect that helps develop your writing strengths.

Both of these packages are honed down to the most important essentials so the results can be immediately perceived and appreciated. And they get people up and running fast.

Think collaborative partnerships. Think individualized packages when planning for today’s economy.

Give them choice

We’re all looking for ways to make our pricing more “acceptable” in this economy. My Build Your Blog Community series has two components. The core offering is a monthly brainstorming, half hour accountabily coaching session in which we continue to build cornerstone content and plan all the post for the next 30 days. We also explore leveraging opportunities for future signature products. The client can then spend two days writing and scheduling their posts and complete their blogging for the month! It’s a small monthly investment in a coaching partnership to maintain strong and accurately targeted content. That’s the core package.

The other optional, additional feature is to increase the coaching calls by 15 minutes and use that time to develop your writing skills as you learn to strengthen some aspect of the crafting great blog posts. This can be headlines or lead paragraphs, or setting up a system for tracking internal links, or how to become a guest blogger. The topic choice is the client’s. They can add this 15 minute classroom to their calls or not. It’s very tailored to their needs and their current needs.

I set a time element on this basic program. Five months total – 1 major intake session to brainstorm cornerstone content and focus your blog plus four half-hour editorial calendar and leveraging sessions with or without the added writing skills development segment. Five months is long enough to establish a habitual pattern of success. And because of the flexibility, the writing skill development segment can be dropped as the client continues on with their monthly idea-focusing sessions.

To position yourself in today’s economy, give your clients choices in a variety of combinations. Let your clients pick exactly what they want at this point in time and give it to them. This accommodates their time schedule and their current budget obligations. Let each person select what they want and need right now.

Offer to do ordinary tasks

What do you love to do that others often do not? I love to find internal links and optimize posts. I could offer that as part of my service if I wish. It takes a bit of time to set up an emagazine account. You need a good bio, a strong research box, and you have a lot of decisions to make. But once it’s set up posting an article is just a matter of time. If I choose to offer those task I would charge more for the set up because I will be certain their contact information is compelling. But I can lower the price on simply submitting articles. Now we’re back to the idea of the baby sitter cutting her price if she gets a certain number of hours. It’s in the bundling.

Are there some ordinary tasks you would be willing to do in combination with your major offering that would serve your clients and give you more work?

Make yourself indispensible

I am naturally enthusiastic and full of ideas. The people that choose to come work with me to build their blog content and community will be inspired and motivated and kept on track each month. I’ve always been an over-deliverer. And I’ve priced this offering modestly. I think people will find this combination of coaching, accountability and motivational inspiration will not only move their blog forward but spill over into the other parts of their life. I am "Your Idea Optimizer:" and love to leverage ideas into new products, new articles, new services. Your own unique blend of who you are and what and how you offer it will make your Indispensible

See how you can make yourself indispensible in today’s ecnomy – offer tremendous value and achievable and rewarding results.

Narrow your niche

The narrower your niche the more extensive and targeted your products and services can be. For this new offering I’m focusing on people who use the Writing Strategy for one of their major marketing tools. This still leaves me a lot of things to offer. For instance, I can coach people in curriculum development for teleclasses and radio shows, ebooks and other signature product development; I can help strengthen a book proposal; I can write a workbook to go with a published book since I’ve already done three of those for major authors. All of these come under the niche of using writing to promote your business.

When you narrow your niche you will expand the specific offerings you can make.

Write cornerstone pieces about your narrowed niche

Now that I have focused on this new segment for my business I get to write a series of Cornerstone Content about the value and usage of the writing strategy. I can write about how to write and what to write and… you get the picture. I can do radio shows on those topics and look for places to guest post and bring guests on my show and talk about how to get the most out of the writing strategy.

I actually don’t like the terms “wheeling and dealing” that I used in the title but we do need to stay flexible and accommodating in order to move ahead. Right now in order to attract clients in the current economy, we do have to look for new approaches and new offers and new ways to connect. Today’s economy calls for some new thinking. What can you do that’s different?

What You Need to Change Now to Get Ahead

April 12, 2010 By Cara Lumen

What got us here won’t always get us there. Let’s talk about what you can do to identify what you need to change and how to make those changes.

Passionately On Purpose Radio with Cara Lumen, Your Idea Optimizer, who keeps you passionately on purpose while you make a difference in your world. During these shows we’ll talk about how to uncover your passion, define your purpose, identify your path, make money from what you already know and attract the people you are meant to serve. But most of all, we’ll help you believe you can!!!

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Trust. Do You? Do They?

April 4, 2010 By Cara Lumen

by Cara Lumen

Trust is the cornerstone of all relationships. It is a two way street. We have to learn to trust in ourselves, in our judgment, and our choices. And as a friend and business person we have to earn the trust of others.

There are so many powerful synonyms for trust: faith, belief, hope, conviction, confidence, expectation, reliance, and dependence for starters. When I read those I wondered how many of those I had going for me.

How much do you trust others?

The issue of trust is coming up for me because I’m going to have knee replacement surgery in a few weeks and I have to trust a lot of people I have never met before. I’m new in town so I followed my insurance to the orthopedic surgeon. I simply called up the office and said, “Who does knees?” It turns out this surgeon has an exceedingly fine reputation. So I trusted my instincts that had me ask for the one who does knees and trusted that this unknown choice would be the right one. I have faith that I have been guided to the right team of people for this particular moment in my life. And I have the expectation of getting literally “back on my feet” easily and rapidly. Faith and expectation – both elements of trust.

There are a lot of people that I don’t yet know that I now have to rely on. The operating team, the nurses, the physical therapist. I have to trust that these people are well-trained, love their jobs and are doing their best work. I have to expect that – its part of trust.

So I’m sitting here thinking about how we are inspired to do our best work when we are with our ideal client; how they motivate and inspire us. And I wondered, what can I do to be the ideal patient so those people are inspired to do their best work on me? I’ll remember their names, or try to since I think drugs are on my agenda. My daughter who has done orthopedic surgery three times says I’ll hurt but I won’t care. I have to be prepared to do my best work as a patient: do the exercises I am given, send healing thoughts to my body so I recover rapidly. And I’m at a bit of a disadvantage because I’m the recipient, not the giver. How do I become a cheerful, cooperative, appreciated receiver?

I have never before been so aware of how I must trust others and how I can inspire them to do their best work – on me.

Do you trust yourself?

I’ve had a really good life so the idea of signing up for pain with this surgery had me worried. I did some EFT Emotional Freedom Technique) and I can no longer get a rise out of that concept any more. I’m a Reiki Master Teacher so I’m already sending energy ahead to the whole experience. I can’t drive for six weeks so the thought occurred to me that I would be lonely. But I’ve figured out that before I go in I’ll go to the library and get books on the history of the Kansas City area – the Indians, the pioneers, all that took place in this jumping off place for the untamed West. That would be fun. If I read a business book I’ll want to get up and create something, so I want balance there. I have confidence on my inquisitive mind to keep me entertained. Confidence and expectation – both elements of trust.

Why do others trust you?

Now that I’m on the need-to-trust others half of trust I have a better idea of how I can earn trust in my own life and my business.

Have I built a reputation of being really good at what I do (like my surgeon has)? He obviously is skilled, he keeps up with the latest innovations in his field, and he loves what he does. And from the experience I’ve had with his staff so far, he over-delivers.

Can people tell I care about them and what I can do for them? I have seen my surgeon for about 5 minutes so far because I think that’s the norm with surgeons but I have spent 45 minutes with the former surgical nurse who he has selected to orient me to my choices. She was kind, articulate, and thorough and I felt well informed and well cared for.

Does my team reflect competency and caring? The scheduler for my surgeon was warm and efficient. There have been great follow up literature to assure me all is well and will be fine. I have some special class room orientation with a nurse that will give me information on what to expect. Good follow up is an important part of building trust.

Do I offer high quality services and follow up? My sense of the mid-west is that this is the most kind and caring community I have ever met. So yes, I expect to be well cared for.

Being in a position to need to trust others because they have skills I do not have has been revealing. It has given me ideas of how I can build trust. I can anticipate needs, give the best that I’ve got, be reliant in my delivery, and show up consistently so others know they can depend on me. I can help them get great results so they have confidence in me and believe that what I offer will make a difference in their lives.

Think a minute about who you trust and why. What do they do that makes you trust them? Then go forth and do likewise.

How Are You Spending Your Attention Budget?

March 15, 2010 By Cara Lumen

by Cara Lumen

What we focus on is what shows up in our world. So it makes a lot of sense to notice where we are placing our attention. Chris Brogan looks at attention as currency and that got me thinking about how I spend that most valuable asset.

Do you hang out in the past, present or future?

Do I spend my time remember the past and wishing I had made a different choice? Do I sit around making lists and dreaming up things for the future? That has its place but what is the proportion of time spent on “what if’s.” Or can I be in the now, the present, the moment at hand, and savor it and absorb all the moment has to offer.

What are your moment to moment choices?

Seth Godin had a great blog post listing all the things you could do if you didn’t watch TV. It includes things like starting an online store, or writing a book, or hey, something really life changing like proposing to someone (that’s mine, not his)

I often go back to work on my computer in the evening. Sometimes I do small organizational things and sometimes I tackle something big like write a new radio script, or work on another draft of my ebook. I do watch the rhythm of my body during the day – I get up and move around when it hollers loud enough at me. I’m usually willing to sit in the afternoon sun and read awhile and I’m not adverse to a short doze while there.

And when my young cats Sebastian or Sabrina come to sit on my lap I actually take time to not only pet them but to focus on how much I love and appreciate them. Sometimes they interrupt me and I don’t want to stop for them but maybe they sense the need for me to pause and are actually taking care of me when they ask me to take a break. Do you focus on the moment? Every moment? Each moment? Do you appreciate its richness? Its texture? Its gift?

Where is your attention in your business?

I’m spending a lot of time on my blog because I love doing it and it helps me build community. I also love my radio shows because there is more time to develop an idea and talk about it. And it helps me reach people who prefer to listen rather than read. I also spend time creating more information products. I’m a teacher at heart and helping people learn new things is very special to me.

And I volunteer. Right now I am adding content ideas to the revision of Michael Port’s “Book Yourself Solid.” I’m adding information on blogging and radio that were not in the original book and adding more how to the information product section. Other Book Yourself Solid Coaches are adding information on social media. We will be given credit in the book but meanwhile we are helping create the very program we teach.

I write copy for others. Sharon Sayler’s new book “What Your Body Says and How to Master it” will be out in June and I’m writing landing pages and reports for her.

And I coach. My focus is on helping people build an internet presence – a profitable internet presence.

What I get to do with my attention is continually figure out how to add more value in these areas, how to draw more people into my community and serve them better, how to write that eye-opening, insight-giving book that will change some lives, and how to inspire others to believe they can!

What is your attention focused on? What are you attracting because of it? Change your focus, change your life.

How to Stay True to Yourself in the Face of Negative Feedback

February 16, 2010 By Cara Lumen

Passionately On Purpose Radio with Cara Lumen, Your Idea Optimizer, who keeps you passionately on purpose while you make a difference in your world. As a Business Coach, Content Developer and Educator she talks about how to uncover your passion, define your purpose, identify your path, make money from what you already know and attract the people you are meant to serve. But most of all, she’ll help you believe you can!!! Join her Mondays onwww.blogtalkradio.com/passionatelyonpurpose

The Show

It’s easy to get lost when you let others tell you who you are. Let’s talk about what you can do to shut out negative feedback, be true to yourself and stay passionately on your particular purpose.