#92 - Ask Kate anything

I would recommend that they take a second and just think about like if this takes you three to five years to actually make any money, do you still want to do it?

This is the Doing It Online podcast with your host, serial entrepreneur 6 and 7 figure funnel strategist and super nerd Kate McKibben, where every week we're here talking, nerdy and sharing the things that actually work to help you do what you do online. But better, easier and with a ton more profit it too. Are you ready? Let's do it.

Hey, hey there guys. It is Kate here from. Hello funnels and welcome to episode number 92 of the Doing It Online podcast. Today is actually a special episode because this week is my birthday week. I actually turn 40 this week. Obviously I'm recording it slightly in advance. I'm still living in denial, happily in I'm only in my mid to late 30s land. But by the time this episode goes live, I will be the big 4o. To celebrate, I thought we would do a Ask Kate episode. We haven't done this in a while. We put it out there to our lovely community. What were their burning questions that they would love me to answer? And I've pulled together some of my favorites and today I'm going to answer them for you and hopefully they answer some questions for you as well without any further fanfare. I will save that for all the birthday party celebrations. Let's dive right on in. First up, our very first question, and this was actually asked by many people in various forms. I thought I'd just bring them all together, but the question number one is what is your current tech stack? People ask me this all the time. What tech do I love? What tech do I recommend? It ebbs and flows a little bit over time, but because we're always looking to improve where we need to, but we have been, I would say, with very similar tech for quite a long time. The tech we use right now is we have. Our website is built and designed using show and we have the ShowIt+ WordPress option. That means that our blog is run on WordPress, but it's all integrated with ShowIt. All looks the same and it's nice and it keeps also the hosting cost really reasonable. Runs really well. Love, love, love. Haven't changed that in years. Email service is ActiveCampaign. Again, that is where life is with ActiveCampaign. We've used them forever. And then our shopping cart is ThriveCart. That's another one which again, we literally have lifetime access to that. That's One of the things we love about them and again we've used them for a really long time, our courseware. So where our courses and all our programs and all that goodies are hosted is currently Kajabi. But we are in the process of moving to Mighty Networks. We'll do a whole different episode on that and how it goes when we finally make it happen. Because my gosh, I thought this would be a simple thing and it has not turned out to be that way. Absolutely nothing against Kajabi. The main issue that we had with Kajabi is we really only use it for a very small amount of their what it can do. But we're paying obviously for the. The full thing. But we really are just using it to host courses. Like we're not even using their checkout. We have a different checkout that we use. And for how we are going to be restructuring our program and delivery of our program, we actually needed a lot more. One of the caps that they have on Kajabi is a number of courses or offers that you can sort of sell. They call them different things. And we were going to need like 20 more than. Because we're basically taking all of our content and we are breaking it down into a whole bunch of mini courses just to try and I won't confuse people now but to try and make it as easy for people to get what they want when they need it and nothing else. Yeah, we were going from. We were pretty much at our limit of the courses you could have currently and we're going to need like another 20 more and that was going to make it crazy expensive. And I was like there must be a better way to do this because we're not really using it or needing any of the other stuff they did. That's why we thought we'll go to Mighty Networks. That also means we can bring a whole lot of things together like our community, like our video calls, all that stuff. That's still. I'll let you know whether that decision was a good one coming up. But that's pretty much what we've been using for our customer support. We are now using an app called Krisp which allows us to answer DMs as well as answer emails and things all sort of in one space. That's been really awesome. And for social media scheduling we use later. Not necessarily for any reason other than that's just what we were using. It's worked fine for us. I know they keep. There's so many others and they keep improving. There's possibly better ones out there. But there's no real big enough pain point for us to move. That's our tech stack one parts of it. There's a bunch of other things that we also use. The sort of second part of this question which a lot of people were asking was what do I recommend for beginners for a beginner tech stack or for people just getting started? Again, we still recommend ShowIt and WordPress as a really great easy way, beautiful way, very reliable way to get your website up running, have your blog and have all the benefits of having a WordPress blog without all the hassles. We absolutely recommend ActiveCampaign to everyone, beginner or advanced. They do. They are one of the best email platforms out there and pricing wise they as just, they're the same as mailchimp or something like that. But it's just such a good solid system. Then where you go from there really depends on what you need. For most people we just want them to keep it simple. They've got page builder, website, blogging all included with the ShowIt. They've got ActiveCampaign which does all of the funnel stuff that you need. And then it's about where do you host your programs, how do you take payments? That's where something like Podia is one of the ones we normally recommend for people getting started. They're really quite cost friendly, they're really simple to use, they look great, they do all the things you need if you're for the basics. If you start getting more complicated and want to be able to do upsells and downsells and some of that more specific granular stuff in your checkout, then you probably add a third party to replace the Podia checkout like a Thrive cart or a Sam cart and then that would be. But that's not something you need to do right now. Their checkout will work, work perfectly fine. That would what we recommend for beginners. I'll try not to waffle on on every question. This is gonna be the longest episode ever. So next question is what is your best advice for someone getting started? This is a good one. I first of all is I would recommend that they take a second and just think about like if this takes you three to five years to actually make any money, do you still wanna do it? That's something I think is really important for people to think about. Like is there a bigger reason besides the idea that you might be able to make some extra cash for why you are wanting to actually work for yourself or create your own business? Or have offers or create something online. Because realistically, for most people, particularly for the first few years, you probably would get paid better staying in your current job. It would be less stressful. It would be less work. I think what a lot of people need to realize is when you decide to take the jump, and I'm not saying that it's not totally worth it, and I don't think that people should do it. I'm just saying you need to have a bigger. Why you need to have something much stronger than just earning money generally to. To make you be able to do what you need to do and sacrifice what you need to sacrifice and do the work and be. Be able to push through those really, really hard times. Because there will be hard times. There'll be times when things just aren't working and you're really frustrated and you're like, oh my gosh, why did I do this? And you don't have that extra money in the bank. You're not getting that that reason ticked. There needs to be other reasons, like that you just love it, that you really want to help people, that you've seen a problem and you want to solve it, that you have a much bigger vision or bigger dream and you want to go after that. Like, you need to have that. If you have those, then you are. Then get it and get started. Find the second thing. As long as you've ticked that box, the second thing would be, I would recommend that you find someone to help you to kickstart it off. If you have an existing job already that can help fund you to start off with, stay there. Use that to help you to pay for the help that you need to get a coach. Do some courses, do get on the fast track. Don't try and Google and guesswork your way into this. Like you want to start and start quickly. You want to go find someone who you really look up to, you really admire, and who can help to mentor you in whatever way. Jump in, invest, and that's going to help you to move leaps and bounds faster. That'd be my two biggest pieces of advice. Next question. It says, help Kate. I'm four months pregnant and I want to baby proof my online course. What should I do? We actually have a whole episode dedicated to this, and I literally could talk about this forever. So I will just cover off the basics here. But I would 100% recommend. Hayley, if you're listening, to go back, scroll back through and find our baby proofing episode. Because I did one on that right back at the Start after I'd done our own baby roofing. I think the main thing is that over these next, realistically, four months, I wouldn't say you've got a whole five because you never know when bubs are going to arrive or also how you're going to be feeling in that last month. So don't count on it. You need to sort of look at a few things. Like one, what are some of the systems you need to put in place, batching that you need to do and even to start doing now, that frees you up. You can be doing some of the other work, the more important work, to help you get the revenue coming in. So look at any schedules you have for content and things like that. Troll back through old content and go, all right, I want to have, like, I actually did a six month content, six months of content for when I took my, you know, quote, unquote maternity leave. And then we ran it twice and I had it started and was running before I. Before I actually left. So that it was just one thing that was just done and I didn't have to worry about. And I would go back and I'm gonna say, write six months of content. You might have to create some of it, but go back, figure out a schedule that works. Maybe it's two Instagram posts and one of those is a quote and something like that. So then you have to come up with really just four fresh posts a month for six months. That's 24 posts. You can sit down and write. You can sit down and do that. You absolutely can. And then you can go and find 24amazing quot and then you can just pop them into a scheduler and repeat them. And then the same with emails. I sat down, I went through all our old emails, even all our old Instagram captions, and I pulled together a. I think we had twice, was it once a week email? We may have done it twice. I can't actually remember now, but enough emails for once or twice a week for that time. And I ran, added, put our entire list through it, and then anyone who was new who joined went through that again. There's just one less thing you need to think of. Things are going to still be ticking over. The second thing is you need to get like, ideally you want to have something that is going to be making you some sales in that time. Again, it really depends on how your business is set up. Because also you need to have a look at delivery. How can you be delivering if you are selling something? So usually what we do inside Ecourse Empire is because we've had quite a few people come to us who do who are expecting babies is to look at what offers do they have that could be delivered in the most hands off way possible first, because that's the thing you need to like, it's all very well and good to be worried about sales, but you've also got to be concerned about delivery. Like if people are buying things, it still needs to be something that's working for them, getting them great results. Whether it's taking an existing program that you have and making a DIY version of it or breaking off a few modules. And it's just that is something that you know, people could do realistically by themselves. And maybe you do a once a month call or something like that. Like maybe you can give baby away to somebody for an hour and jump on a call. And then while you're breastfeeding, if you need to be looking in a Facebook group and answering questions here or there a couple times a week, maybe that's what you do. Like think about and again think worst case scenario, think colicky baby getting no sleep. Like what do you think you'll be able to do? And bank on that. And you can always add more, but always plan for those minimal as possible. And if you want to do nothing, that's two. That's my gosh, I'm starting going to the whole episode. So having that in mind of like what do you want your maternity leave to look like? What's important for you? For some people it's about I just need to get cash now I'm going to come up with like what is that program or that offer that I can sell now that delivery will be done, delivery of the program will be done before you deliver the baby. And I want to not work for like three months, six months, whatever it is. And they will go and just do go all in on promoting live launching that other people are like I just want to have consistent revenue and I'm happy to check in a bit here and there for those people. Yes, I'd still recommend doing a couple of launches while you can to try and get some influxes of cash in and have that sitting there in the coffers. But you know, really it's about using one of those to create the assets you need to set you up with an evergreen. With an evergreen web, maybe it's webinar funnel, some other kind of funnel, something that's churning away in the back end that can be selling a program that you can Deliver in that hands off way that we talked about and then the final piece is going, how do we now get people in here? And that's when you're going to have to think about, oh, am I, do I have budget to outsource some Facebook ads? Can I set up some really simple evergreen ads and am I happy to, to sort of play with those? Maybe it's not Facebook for you, maybe it's Pinterest, maybe it's lining up some JV agreements for while you're away. Have other people promoting your stuff at certain times while you're on your maternity leave. There's lots of different options out there. But about kind of figuring out what do you. Firstly, how can you simplify and get, as I said, those bitsy things off your plate, that things can keep on turning? And I would do that as soon as you can. Then what do you want your maternity leave to look like? What do you need? And then go for it. Couple big launches and how can you set up your evergreen if you want to have that, make sure that offer is appropriate for evergreen sales and how you're wanting to show up after Bubs arrives. And yeah, oh my gosh, there's so much more I could go into. But that's, that's the basics. I should get you started. And obviously if you are in Ecosystempire, happy to chat more and more detail on that. Next question. When is the right time to hire a va? Usually the right time is after you really, really need one. It's like one of those catch 20twos is that people generally are not pushed enough to. They're not, they have to be really feeling the pain of doing all the things and not having the time and feeling really burnt out and not having time to do everything they need to do to take that leap. Because it's both a time investment and a financial investment. Obviously hiring somebody and going forward, find that person, face whatever fears you had around hiring somebody because we've all got some there and you know, then obviously you're already busy and now you have these extra tasks of training that VA before they can start to take things off your plate, you're going to have to spend some time actually training them and watching what they're doing, giving them feedback. So it's this, like I said, it's a bit of a chicken and egg and usually if you're starting to consider you're ready, you're ready. And actually, I think for anybody, if you have any income coming in or if you have any budget at all, for business I would absolutely suggest that if you can afford even five hours a week to hire out five hours a week to start with just to get in the practice of handing tasks over. Having someone who is then potentially can grow with your business who is going to know things from the ground up and who you can maybe move up to 10 hours a week and more over time who can potentially train other people for you. I would get someone in as soon as you can. It really is the longer you leave it the harder it's going to be. And trust me when I say that it's, you know it is definitely a practice that you want to be in from day.if you can. Next question. How do I know if a funnel will actually work for my business? Great question. I love this question. Really the only thing like I've yet to come across someone who a funnel won't work for. It's just really ignoring what the question isn't will it work for me? Because I if you have an offer that sells then yes it will work for you. It's more what kind of funnel will work for me and which program or which offer that I have is going to be the best and most funnel friendly offer that I can put into a funnel. Because some programs aren't designed for funnels, some programs don't aren't designed for Evergreen. I was having this discussion actually with one on one on one session with a client today and she was kind of going back and forth because she has this really great program. It sells really well on launches and the because of the content of the program people tend to actually get better results when they go through it together because it's really that it's a very emotional based thing and having that extra support of people moving through at the same time makes them feel a lot safer, a lot more supported. She was trying to figure out should I try and evergreen this? Is there a way I can evergreen this? And yes there absolutely. Even in this scenario there is. You can definitely change how slang is delivered to still create a really great experience for people in Evergreen. But it's about what feels. Does it make sense to if you have multiple offers maybe that offer is one that you do just do live and you have a different offer that's available forever Grain like there's a lot of different questions in here because you know I hand on my heart believe that everyone's business is different and every what everyone needs for their business to be successful to them is different and you should design your business to work for you and work for your offers and for your audience and for how you're wanting to show up. How do you know if you have. If a funnel will work for you? Literally the only, the only thing you need to ask yourself is, do I have an offer that I've been able to set successfully? Like, if you have offers and it still feels like you're getting blood out of a stone, then probably you're not quite ready for a funnel yet. You might still need to be spending your time and attention tweaking and perfecting that offer. Usually best way to test that is through mini live launches. So that would be probably where you're at. But as soon as you go, hey, some people are buying this like it's hitting the benchmarks it needs to hit. And if you don't know what they are again, go check a previous episode. We talk about them all the time. We go into them. That's one of the things I love in a course empire is we make sure everyone knows the benchmarks that they're aiming for. To know when things are working. And yeah, when it sits, you have an offer and it's ticked that benchmark. And quite often people are surprised that benchmark isn't like 50% conversion or anything crazy like that. Then you absolutely can and should have a funnel. Because the thing is, funnels are an asset that you can create even right when you're getting started with your business, and then they will grow with your business and they will help your business to grow. Even if right now you're maybe getting a handful of people a month on your email list, and what if one or those people purchase maybe like one extra sale a month? You're like, yeah, well, that's not exciting. It's still an extra sale for not having to do anything. But as your business grows, as that trickle of people starts coming in, as you're able to focus more on going out there doing the various different types of list building of as you're growing your expertise and your authority and you're growing your platform, more and more people start coming in and they all get going through this funnel and more and more people will then be purchasing it. Start it pays to have it there early. If you're doing any kind of list building at all, because that list building is going to then become the sales system that is making sales for you on autopilot, which is obviously what a funnel does. We've got two last questions. I'm gonna try and keep this under half an hour. We'll see how we Go. The next question is Sticky one. What is your best advice for growing on Instagram if you're starting out today? Ugh. I think if anyone listened to our episode a couple of weeks ago where, which if you haven't go listen to, it was like, whether we think you even need to do social media anymore, you'll know that I am so far out of love with Instagram and just social media in general that I really am not the person to advise on this. Like, my best advice as far as what we are doing is create content that you actually enjoy and that you'd want to see is step one, don't spend all your time doing it because it's quite. It's not always. Like a lot of people, I know a lot of people who spend like 50% of their time or even 30% of their time working on their business on creating content on Instagram. Like, the ROI is just not there. And then as soon as you can get an offer that works, get a funnel in place, start running some ads on social media, and guess what? Because of your ads, you'll start growing on social media. And then also you don't need to rely on the organic stuff so much. Like, that's my honest advice for how to grow and how to make Instagram work. I know there's people out there far better at the organic Instagram stuff, and that's why I do not teach it. And for some people, it just works. It makes sense to them. They love doing video. They're so much more that type of creative. For me, it's like. Like I said in that previous episode, it just feels like a toxic relationship. You give, give, give. You get very little in return. I'm just. I'm breaking up. I don't have advice for you there, but maybe there's. There's people out there who are amazing at. I'll probably go and chat to them. Final question is, what is working in funnels for 2022? If someone was to create a funnel right now, what kind of funnel would you recommend? I love this question. And in fact, I love it so much that I've decided to dedicate an entire episode to it. And that is going to be next week. So you're just going to have to hang around for seven days. Come and join me next week. And we're going to be diving into the what is and isn't working in funnel right now. It's going to be a doozy. I hope. I can't wait. I hope you're excited about it. As well. And until then guys, keep doing what you do and I'll see you online.

Thanks so much for listening to the Doing It Online podcast. If you love this episode, don't forget to subscribe and leave us a review. And if you're ready to take your online course sales to the next level with your own six or seven figure funnel, let Kate show you exactly how today@stealmyfunnel.com Sam.