George Kao explains how solopreneurs should spend time on interactions that actually move people toward buying. Test demand by announcing offers before you build them. Focus on clients and referral sources, not casual social media fans.
As a solopreneur, or what I like to say, Sol preneur. Your time is so limited here. As a solopreneur, you are here in this life to learn certain things with your soul, for your soul, and to express your soul in your work. Right? That's all. That's what we all wish to do. The problem is that the people that your business can best serve. So who are the people that your business can best serve? It's not necessarily your social media fans, by the way. Right? Because you may be followed by a lot of people that maybe find you entertaining, or they might be just supportive friends and colleagues who just, you know, like your posts and whatever, but they're not really the people that your business can best serve. The people your business can best serve are your clients, people who actually end up paying money for your services, programs, offerings, who have done so in the past or who are currently doing that or who are likely to do it. Meet people who are similar to the people who have paid you money. So your clients. And then secondly your referral sources, the people who have an audience or a network of people who are like your clients. So some of your colleagues and some of your friends really do have a social media audience or a network that are filled with people like your clients. Well, those are people that your business can best serve too. Because when you create content or when you have an offering and they say, oh, wow, this is something that's good for my network, this is something that's good for my audience, of course, that's wonderful for you. So again, truly productive actions are valuable interaction with the people that your business can best serve. So now we know people your business can best serve. We understand that what are valuable interactions? It's whenever you do something that gets these people to take a step closer into your business. So for example, let's say you post a piece of content and your clients and your, your referral sources, your colleagues who can, who have your clients in your, in their audience, they genuinely like that piece of content. They comment on and say, that was really helpful or that was really entertaining or that was really inspiring or wow, that's really your personal purpose and your purpose here and your values, etc and your vibe, like what your energy signature is that you actually want to express. So what is valuable action instead? Here's how I define it. Truly productive actions for the solopreneur means valuable business interaction or, sorry, valuable interaction with the people that your business can best serve. I'll say that again. Truly productive action in your solopreneur business is defined by valuable interaction with the people that your business can best serve. So what is valuable interaction? Valuable interaction is when you do something and someone else says, that was helpful, insightful, motivating, or whatever in such a way that they take an action closer into your business. So valuable interaction with the people that your business can best serve. So who are the people that your business can best serve? It's not necessarily your social media fans, by the way. Right. Because you may be followed by a lot of people that maybe find you entertaining, or they might be just supportive friends and colleagues who just, you know, like your posts and whatever, but they're not really the people that your business can best serve. The people your business can best serve are your clients, people who actually end up paying money for your services, programs, offerings, who have done so in the past or who are currently doing that or who are likely to do it. Meet people who are similar to the people who have paid you money. So your clients. And then secondly, your referral sources, the people who have an audience or a network of people who are like your clients. So some of your colleagues and some of your friends really do have a social media audience or a network that are filled with people like your clients. Well, those are people that your business can best serve too. Because when you create content or when you have an offering and they say, oh, wow, this is something that's good for my network, this is something that's good for my audience, of course, that's wonderful for you. So again, truly productive actions are valuable and impactful. To me, that was touching for me, whatever may be, you're like, okay, that piece of content really made a positive difference for the people that my business can best serve. Or when you make an offer, when you post your service or your program or your webinar out there and your clients sign up, or the colleagues who have an audience, they email you back, okay, that's a really good idea. And maybe then they're willing to share your webinar or your offer with their audience. Right. What productive actions are not is like endlessly researching another blog post that you're writing. Because, like, I think about three stages of content. If you don't know what that is, please look it up. The three stages of content creation. Google knows my blog post about it and you can read about it. But if you're, like, working so much on a piece of content that has. That hasn't already been proven in the past, like you posted it in the past and it got traction from the People your business can best serve. Why are you working on it so hard? Right? If you're creating like a service or a course or whatever, and you haven't even announced it to your audience, how do you know that they're going to be interested? I always announce something before I create it. I really hope you will take on this mindset too. Don't create a course. Don't create a service before you announce it. George, how can you do that? Yeah, you first. Quickly brainstorm what that service or that. I don't work hard on the sales page. I don't work hard on a sales page before I announce it first. You notice what I always do, right? You see what I do? I first announce something and say, hey, don't have a sales page yet. I don't have, you know, everything worked out. But do you like this idea? And if my clients and my colleagues say, this is a great idea, we'd like to share whatever, then I work on the sales page. And once people sign up, then I start working on the course, not the other way around. That's not productive to work on something and then try to sell it and then nobody buys it, as some of you probably have done. Right? So I have a whole blog post on this called Truly Productive Solopreneur that gives a list of the truly productive actions and the questionable actions as well. You might want to look it up. As of this recording, I'm just updating it today and I'm going to have it up in the next two hours. I'll have it up, but the old version is just fine too, so you might want to look it up. And I hope this is helpful. I really hope this helps you. This video, but also the blog post helps to make your days much more productive so that you can express more of your soul in your business in a way that's sustainable financially. So that you can keep doing that. Thanks for joining me and I'll see you next time.
