Let's be honest, business dry spells suck. There's no mincing words here, because I've been there and I get it, but as an eternal optimist, a part of me does secretly find these slower times to be telling and even beneficial in some ways, hey my name is Jenna Kutcher and I am obsessed with all things: business marketing numbers and helping you to navigate both the messy and the magical seasons of this thing called life. I'm a small town mama who took a three hundred dollar camera, grew a successful photobiz, and now I work from home and run a seven figure online business. I teach you the tried and true secrets to building a career. You adore shy away from the real talk, no way money, hardship, growth, wash and marketing are all topics we discussed here. Think of this as your one stop shop for happen. The hour with a gal pal mixed with business, school, pull up a seat, make sure you're cozy and get ready to be challenged and encouraged. While you learn this is the gold digger podcast one make

part of business- I don't think you necessarily can expect or can I was planned for in the beginning- are the dry spells or those slower seasons, There's this natural ebb flow to business, busy seasons followed by quiet seasons and unless those slower times are built into your line of work like when I the wedding photographer in the MID West and could only work about six months of the year just no way of knowing when or why or how long yourselves might be down for its totally normal responds to get a bit flustered when it happens for the first time to like you're watching me is growing, grow and then suddenly something shifts life happens or sale. Slow down in your left wondering what happened. Where did you wrong and what the heck should you do, even the second third or through slow down, might feel different than the rest and throw you for a loop. All of those

poster in voices that tell you you're, not men for this or you're, not good at it or you ve clearly lost all momentum come barreling in and you start to wonder if you'll ever seen, uptake and business again, you'll be able to this thing running for the long haul. Is wild that your brow can literally discredit something you spent months or even years on in a matter of seconds, but our human brain plays tricks on us and we tend to question every breathing the moment thing shift, they can actually be scary, when it happens, especially the down to get you to something you can't control outside circumstances that you have zero power over like the economy, taking a downturn or I don't know a worldwide pandemic, causing people to change the way they shop spend and one has everyone reevaluating. Our spending habits, like I said, there's not always away to predict what might cause the eggs in the flows in our sales in profits, and yet I found

using the slower periods of time in my business, for intentional growth for maintenance optimization and creative solutions can be one of the most powerful ways to boost things up and at least give my business on the path towards more sales and healthier numbers, but before We get into a few ways to evaluate and glow up your numbers, things slow down unexpectedly. First, I just want you to know that downturns and business are totally and completely normal scary absolutely and they can take you by surprise, especially when you're not season or when you're just starting out. But ever single business out. There goes through drier seasons of sales, even the giants like Google and Amazon, and to me it's what you choose to actively do in those seasons that determines how you get out of them. If you focus, son using the slow down as this time for improvements for optimization and for adjusting what may not be working. You will

Only set yourself up for better when things pick back up again and I promise you things will pick back up again so let's on in and cover what it is that you should be doing during the slow down so that you're ready for when things pick backup and your back to putting the busy into business my go to platform for sending and signing contracts, tracking payments and managing the paperwork side of my business is Honeybook get started with this seamless project management system. Right now start your honey book free trial plus get fifty percent off. Your annual subscription agenda could turn dot com, slash honey book start and grow your email list in twenty twenty one with flow desk start a free, thirty today trial, no credit card necessary, plus lock in at fifty percent off your monthly subscription. When you fall in love, agenda, goods or dotcom, flash flow desk, that's generator

calm, Slash, F, o o d s Kay. When I was a wedding photographer, I actually loved the ebb and flow of my calendar year. I reserve six months of the year for heavy shooting in editing and then the other six months were all about system structures and updates to make sure that, when the business hit again, I was ready to hit the ground running in a way that supported my much bigger goals. I welcomed slow seasons after all, the craziness, because it help for me to ensure that my business Foundation was strong and was built lasts, It was also in those slow seasons that I bird things like this podcast and my online courses and all the official marketing that I do so have to remind myself sometimes that just in life and the clothes that your mom wore twenty years ago, every being in business is cyclical when Things are really amazing. There might

be something that will take it down a notch in that, isn't me being Adobe Downer, that's me giving you permission, do not always be striving for more and be disappointed when things take a quick left wondering ship debate, and your business feels like it's on this path towards shambles there ways to take control and focus on improving tweaking and pivoting, so that you can get back on track. By the way you will, because you are strong and your capable and your beautiful and your bottlenecks, nice and your talented mri, so is Take a little grit, it's going to take some planning, maybe a few late nights and hack lots of creativity, but I believe that our slower periods of business are we show us most clearly what we need to be doing where we need to shift pivot or evolve, and the reveal where we need to be showing up best to reach the most people, make the biggest impact and ultimately regain control of ourselves? So I have four methods for you to keeping

back pocket today into use whenever you experience slow seasons of business, so that you can work towards boosting those sales and getting back in the game and no but if you're walking through one of these seasons right now, I see you and I acknowledge the difficulty of even making some of the simplest decisions in all fields: really hard and heavy and pivotal during those times, and I hope it nothing else. These four methods give you a little more confidence and serve as a reminder that you are still in control. What you do, who does matter, and there is always something you can do to keep moving forward. Even if it's just tiny little steps each day forward is forward. So, let's get into number one first. Things first you're in a source he's in a business. Take that time to update portfolio so that it is your latest and your greatest work and its truly or active on where you are in business. Things are slow? A lot of time

keep ourselves busy while doing things that aren't really moving the needle. We try to implement all these crazy strategies when, in reality, we could spend a day or two really fine tuning some of the more neglected pieces of our business, I know updating. Your portfolio may not seem like the most imperative action to take and you're busy convincing yourself. You just did a few months ago when in reality is probably like two years ago, but it's likely time for an update and refresh it's easy to convince yourself that only or social media matters are that's where he will look for your current happenings in its common line. We tell ourselves that updating our portfolio or our home on the web definitely won't feel like something that's going to directly affect your sales, but I promise taking the time to thoughtfully update your portfolios, one of the best ways to attract and Honan on your perfect clients and customers is one of those things

just fall by the wayside when you're in the fast in furious rush of a busy season. If you're What I mean by updating your portfolio or, if you're, not in a business that has a technical portfolio like those old fashioned folders, with your best work, all laminated and shiny, that you hand over to a prospective client in a meeting. It's important that you, get how you're showing up digitally as a reflection of your own portfolio. This means that you can still evaluate all of your marketing materials to make sure they are aligned and up to date with what you do and who you serve, for example does your website match how pretty and thought your instagram, peat, is so I do not mean entrepreneurs and I asked them for their websites to which they usually respond with things like, oh just gotta, make Instagram. That's where I share my best work or make sure you go to my sight on your computer. The mobile version is a mess. Can you relate alone

at times. We share our work on social media posts that live and die within twenty four hours. If we're lucky the very rarely do we spend time updating our website so take some time to to your site with your latest work projects, freebies and photos you, Why your website to be just as prettier, even prettier than social media, because that's where people were actually land to book or buy from you and is. Should we place that you're proud for people to end up on your website is your home on the internet, the place where you can decorate an own. You have control, over, and it should be the landing place for your prospects. Take time to make sure that your website is applied sat serves. People speak to the pain, or challenges they're facing that your business can solve, gives them a taste? experience of what working with you would be like and provides clear direct calls to action to capture that audience it's an invite them to engage so that you can serve them even better

Updating your website might also look like updating your rate card, refreshing. The data and stats you share about your services. Refreshing photos those in headlines and finally adding that new section dedicated dear newest offerings and why we're here. I need to hold myself accountable. I realized month that we hadn't updated. The gold digger podcast page details for a long while, like the numbers we proudly shared on gold, digger, podcast com, we're trailing behind our actual downloads by about thirty million. In downloads like that big deal, especially when sponsorship opportunities in big name, gas tend to use numbers as a gauge for the shows success and whether they want to be a part of it or not. Do you sections like that on your website. Do a quick audit after you finish this episode and update anything, that's potentially

old are out of date? This is a super simple way to speed up your corner of the web, so it's ready and accurate for when even more clients come pouring through when business takes off again you know, I'm a longtime fan of that whole done is better than perfect philosophy, but when business is slow and you have the spare minutes to review what you've previously created just to get it done and cross off your list during a crazy busy season. Go back and comb through your work, double check things to see if you can prove fine, finalize anything that was simply just getting the job done, but could be better optimized. I promised you spend even just one day, updating your photos and your copy and making sure you're, showing your best projects, products and work focused on enhancing that experience, beer, dream, clients, your position, yours, help in a way that will help you grow. Also we're here now is that

really good time to ensure that you have a solid way on your website to capture someone's email address, to keep the conversation going. Often social media and your website don't assume that people are going to bookmark your page to come back to you don't focus solely on putting a ton of effort into making your social media the best of the best. Remember you don't own. Your followers or control these platforms, so instead started thinking of your website as your cosy, incomplete home on the internet that communicates what you do. How use others and how they can keep in touch with you, allowing you to take them on a journey through their inbox and, ultimately, after you served, served, served and served them some more by from you A slower season is the ideal time to start that email list you've been putting off or if you've already got your list going to update your email or sequence and pop back into the inboxes of your subscribers email

building? Is my gun free bread with extra butter? So I have dozens of resources for starting growing and serving your list they're all in in place for you at J K, email is dot. Com you'll find it so Jack Line, cheat sheet, email templates, more pie, gas episodes on the topic of email is building and access to free zero to two. Fifty email is building challenge, which is basically this epic mini course in starting and growing. Your list complete with tutorials walking you through every single step, again you gonna, do J K. Email is dog home for all of these resources and more number two next year, for you to really take this time to dig into your data and your numbers? I've numbers like a lot for jobs because so much of entrepreneurship is surprisingly rooted in emotions like there's, no employee handbook year, your own hr, your manager year the sales department, it's riddled with things that you have to feel in order to figure out obsession,

and distractions that drive you off course and wise deeper than the ocean. But for me to plus two it's the same answer every time and they say the numbers don't lie so when it seems like everything else, deceiving you you go where you can touch something solid and dependable Now I know not. Everyone is a data lover, but I'd invite you to get really curious about what is and working in working in your business. From the number standpoint of times when we dig into the numbers we find out that one to two things move the needle forward the most, and yet we try to make our job to master and do a hundred new things without understanding understanding where efforts result in true results never. I dig into numbers. I generally have a revelation that we don't need to do more. We simply need to optimize and strategize? What's already working, which is like a big, fresh gulp of air in the form of relief? Look at what is spikes in your email list or dips in your website views see if there's specific content topic.

That consistently outperform others look at where most people are ending up on your website form, you might think from Instagram when, in reality, its pinders driving most of your traffic. These our power full stories brought to us through numbers to help us understand what is actually moving the needle for us so that you in double down on those efforts that have worked really well in the past and he's up on the things that just aren't landing you're thinking yourself, ok, she's about to call me out, because I don't have numbers to dig into I'm, not creating content. What the heck do. I do first things. First, don't be hard on yourself here and instead look at this slower period as the opportunity you needed to put content into place. That will help for you to attract new clients in the future. Even if you. Not writing in depth. Blogs are releasing sixty minutes. Pod gas episodes, youve likely created kind in some form that will give you some insider information into what your audience your potential clients,

and enjoy scroll back through most recent instagram posts and pick out the top three posts with the most life's common saves. Another engagement, if you have a creed business account, you can tap insides for an even more in depth view and, if not just pull the numbers and use them to guide your creation process. Fine. Now, when I share about family life and body positivity, my engagement goes up. People are innately curious about the scenes behind the business? I know that I'm the same way as a consumer, and when I look at the numbers its clear by instead of just pop, being out more pictures and my adorable little daughter, a note of what I was saying in the caption and consider how that could translate into a longer more indepth piece of content. Where can I take that even further what is a message that resonate with people, and how can I tell the story even better through my follow up content? What without look like for you

well, let's just see your business is graphic design and a Facebook post where you shared a recent digital illustration, got tons and tons of comments. You could write a blog post featuring seven ways to use a digital illustration in your business or for ok where digital illustration makes a great gift see how spirals off from a simple social media post I'll bet you have posed performed well, because they were entertaining or educational or empowering- and you could absolutely expect, on those smaller posts and make them into a larger piece of content that will serve and attract your audience into taking actual action with your brand. If you're feeling stuck, when's. The last time you did some research like whenever you set aside time to really dig into what the data is telling you some time today. If you dont have a business yet to research. What's already out there. That's aligned with the offer that you want to sell happen depends or Google and type in a few keywords that resonate with your product or offer, because those

it will show you more of already out there and health for you to imagine your own product showing up their explorer click. The links investigate what other items are showing up? What are the generated key words that follow your idea in the guided search function, are there reviews that would give insight on what's missing our new Ideas coming to mind you haven't establish business. Let's pretend you're gonna go on shark tank, because obviously this is one of my favorite things to pretend. Do you confidently know your numbers: would you be able They tell the sharks when you're best selling product is what's moving need offer you most what, We're getting strategies are yielding the best result. What you're profit margins are what you use them, more funds to do information, It truly is power and the more than you know about the ins and outs of your own business, the more than you can tweak and just where you're spending time time your your energy and use your resources, the wisest way possible possible down

SK was created by two female founders to solve the email challenges that the other platforms just couldn't solve flow desk is a favorite. Among my students, with over forty five hundred gold diggers on the platform today to start grow or refresh your email is strategy with gorgeous customizable templates, sleek and easy to install forms simple this a body in segments and automated workflows, try flow desk use my link. To lock in at half off your subscription. That's nineteen dollars a month for life at Jennakutcher COM flow desk flow desk is in easy to use intuitive and beautiful solution to email marketing need to learn how to be a copywriter graphic designer and website developer to start and grow. Your email list flow desk includes beautiful Fifthly, design templates many with pre written copy in use and adapt for your own brains, voice. You can create forms, and up for options, even if you don't have a website yet plus behind the

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two system is honey book had digest, good you're dotcom, slash, honey book for a free trial plus fifty percent off your annual subscription honey book is to all you need to create a real system for your invoices contracts, messages, questionnaires, timelines and more, and it's all in one place and the cool thing is that it integrates with things like Quickbooks, Calendly, Google, calendar, Gmail, Zapier and other apps and tools that you might already be using in your business? Listen full honesty. Here I have all of those stacks of papers and file folders for years they were scattered all over the place, and I was just kind of saying a prayer that I didn't forget a fine detail, but now I have and and project tracking, and all of that important paperwork in one place had to Jenin. Could you dotcom slash honey, but for a free trial, plus fifty percent off your annual subscription? When you sign up the third man

that I have for you and sales are slow, is to find a way to create scarcity and hit the trenches. Have you ever heard of the scarcity principle an article from Investopedia defines it like this. The scarcity principle is an economic area, in which a limited supply of a good coupled with a high demand for that good, results in a mismatch between the desired supply and the demand equilibrium. It goes to say that marketers commonly use the principle to scarcity around a product or a good making it him in order to generate a demand for it so how does this economic principle translate to you when things are slow scarcity can create the buzz you need to make people take action and to increase your bottom line. The problem. Is that a lot of times you put offers out into the world and we don't set a timeline or a deadline or any sort of limit around the offer? People, I believe that they can make a decision later, and thus they We decide its are fatal, flaw,

we put something out there and tell ourselves people find it when they're ready, one of the greatest. Yes, you can give someone is a timeline to make a decision, regardless of they decide. Intention Choosing versus having time make the decision, for you is an accomplishment for consumer while evergreen animals or timeless offers are great The demand meets a supply scarcity offer work a little differently. It creates a cycle logical desire for people to buy in because they don't want to miss out or be left behind on a short term offer. So how does this work? creating a limited time offer something that will either go away in a week or two or an opportunity where the price will increase exponentially after that amount of time. Or civic number of an offer that once it's gone, it's gone, do a concentrated push meaning year. All about this. You're unapologetically, showing up to communicate it and sharing the scarcity within the offer itself

loud about it like invite in questions from your followers and email subscribers and actually take the time to respond with voice text or video dms am I recent launches this personal touch of audibly are visibly reaching out to the people in my dms has been one the biggest Lynch pins in my launches people, want to hear from you and see that you care that you're actually invested in their journey be willing to put self out there and get in the trenches, like you might have in the early days, share your for in the value of it and promote yourself. The key here is and to create something that people only by because they feel like if they don't there, never gonna find success that table marketing leaves a bad taste in people's mouths and rightfully so there's nothing good about being bullied into a purchase this type of scarcity. More so pushes you to really get yourself out there and to communicate so well that the people whom the offer is created for will know that with certainty in creating this

line for decision making your equally inviting in those to say, hey it's at the right time or fate or offer price point just as your inviting those ready to take the next step with you so many times are marketing is the bare minimum or it's on autopilot, and we trick ourselves into thinking that people already know our offer exists that they'll buy it. It take advantage of it when or if they're ready, but people sometimes need a reason to make a decision and a scarcity offer, creates that sort of urgency a decision is made in a vacuum and people want to feel cared for and thought about, so help people to either say yes or no. Be be willing to get out there and have more one on one interactions and those those to collect feedback insight and to help qualify, clients number before and finally, when sales are slower work on enhancing the client experience when

where things are going south. I always challenge people to look at every single touch point. You have other prospect like from them. When someone? Here's your name and says? Oh I've never heard of that to this second, they click purchase it's important to think about all the steps someone would have to take in that process and optimize in simplified, entire thing for them. Literally, begin their start with what I like call the mom test, and I love this. Because moms or motherly figures in inner life are always honest and they'll. Tell you what you need to know in a way that builds up your confidence without ruining and allow times and we create we create for our peer group unknowingly instead of creating for our dream clients, and so when you ask someone outside of your world to help you they're insight is going to have you understand the mind of your consumers, so Essentially, I want you to ask your mom or someone you trust, to go to your website to click through the.

Pages as though there interested as a client or a customer, and you them to go all the way through the process to book you order by a specific product from you watch alone as they navigate and click where they think they should count. How many clicks it takes or where they might take a wrong turn do say anything do not direct as they're navigating your site, just silently watch and take action and take note on how many clicks or pages that takes for them to find where they hit perches the All of this is to see how clear it is for someone else to figure out how to work with you or how to buy from you. You ultimately want to eliminate any unnecessary clicks where you could confuse or lose someone, and you want to make sure super easy and straightforward for them to follow through quickly and easily to become a client and removing any and all obstacles or assumptions along the way investigate every touch point that you have with the client how you can make their expense.

Better or more special from email, communications and invoicing to shipping notification. Genes and refund policies? If you're a servicebased business, could you record a video for each new client who inquires telling them about you, your experience and what working with you would be like in the context of their specific request or need for product based, businesses could usually show different uses for your product or help. People understand which product would be the right fit for their needs or how they can in court into their life even easier in form, fellow digital entrepreneurs. Could you all connect people to your off in an easier way and help them qualified themselves with confidence and less clicks were often so close to in familiar with our own offers that two eyes, it just seems so common sense, easy to navigate and find solutions? Having some outside perspective will help you tying up your computer. Patients easier line to purchase and make the entire I experienced more thoughtful and simplified, which makes all the

events in the world for someone who's on the fence for buying your product or service. All right. That is the logic, if may be an idea. So let's put some action items into a list for you. As you start thinking about how to leverage the time you have in a slow season and turn it into future opportunities. First view the many different visuals of your business, your portfolio, website, graphics, one sheets, freebies, media kids, email and so on and shoes to update the wine or components of one each day. Next dig to whatever numbers you have and reflect on what resonated with your audience, make a list of Florida, five pieces of content. You, can create that build off of what already did well for your business in the past then have

on with a new offer or an existing offer that you could release for a limited amount of time, choose a release. Date set a timeline and test out a mini launch format that not only gives you earning potential in a slow season. It'll be a learning experience to see how your audience responds. Finally, audit the experience from how you show up in their email inboxes down to the steps they need to actually take to click. By now on your incredible offers, let's be honest, business dry spells suck. There's no mincing words here, because I've been there and I get it, but as colonel optimist. A part of me does secretly find these slower times to be telling and even better, official in some ways they allow us to dig into the nitty gritty and create new processes and strategies that are tighter and even more aligned with our goals and our purpose, while they might tent you to freeze or going to desperation mode, resist temptation and hang on to the truth that what you You do matters,

how you show up matters, and the small actions and forwards upset you take today can impact you in your as for years to come so keep moving, just keep refining and you're sure to hit your stride again so soon. I truly truly believe that until next time. Gold diggers keep digging biggest cause, and thank you so much for turning into another episode of the gold digger podcast I'm over here giving you a virtual high five, because you just finished another episode of the gold digger podcast tobacco thy way too fast for anyone else. You want more head over to gold, digger, pod, guess, dot, com for show notes and all the discount codes from today's sponsors and, if you're, looking for a new crew of movers and shakers like you'd, have bounce ideas and ask questions be sure to join my exclusive community for gold diggers on Facebook. The links waiting for