Build A Business You Love - BIZ BESTIE BUNDLE EDITION

absolutely love and that you absolutely cherish, then you are in the right place because today we're going to dive in. I've got a group of wonderful women with me today. We're going to explore this topic of building a business that you truly love. And we hear a lot of entrepreneurs who want this dream, myself included. You know, my journey began in 2013. Cheryl Plouffe here, video strategist, former TV broadcaster. And for me, in 2013 is really when the dream began. We're going to actually explore this topic. And what I'd love for you ladies to do right now too is to, you know, share this out with, you know, your platforms as well, if you see fit, if you're watching this. And I think this is really going to help a lot of people understand the true, you know, the true challenges that come with building a business that you love. But on the flip side, we have a solution for you, and it's called the Biz Bestie Bundle, which we're going to get into and explain what it is. It's a great opportunity for you to learn. So ladies, welcome! This is going to be a lot of fun. We're going to spend about 30-40 minutes really diving into this topic. I'm excited to have you here with me today. Lynn, I want to start with you since you are our fearless leader. You are our Biz Bestie leader. I'd love for you to share with us, you know, what, what it is that you've built. Tell us a little bit about Biz Bestie Bundle and how we all, 5 of us, have come together.

Yeah, so one day I had a dream. No, it actually, it goes back to the fact that I started off as a solopreneur. I've run several businesses as solopreneur. And you know, after a while you discover, you form connections with the people, you network, you collaborate, and you discover that going the solo route can have its benefits, yes, but going the route with biz besties, with other people alongside you, it's just so much more rewarding. It's so much more fun and it's really hard to go back once you start developing relationships with other people. And so what I'm doing with this Biz Bestie Bundle is my hope is that we'll reach other people, online business owners who can discover ways to, simple strategies and ways to create a business that they love with the help of Biz Besties. They don't have to do it alone. They don't have to learn everything on their own. They don't have to Google solutions. They can work with people who already have proven systems that are willing to share with them and that are ready to be their new business too. So that was my dream.

Well, on behalf of all of us, those of us who are contributors and for those who are going to be attending, thank you. No, thank you for setting this all up because I think a lot of people are going to get the help that they need in terms of growing the business that they want to grow. And all of us, so again, any one of us would be happy, just connect with us, send us a message to whoever you'd like on this screen right now, and we'd be happy to send you a link to participate and to register for Biz Bestie Bundle. Okay, so we're not going to put any links or promote any particular links right now. We just really want to express to you that this event is coming up and it's an amazing one. But for the purpose of today, we're really going to dig into story and find out, you know, from all the ladies here how they were able to build a business that they love and some of the challenges that they face, but also really what some of the rewards. And I want to start with you, Krista. You are someone close to my heart because you're in Northern Ontario. Which is where my hometown is. I'd love to hear your story and how you became a marketing strategist.

So it's been a journey. I actually went to post-secondary school for marketing and then tested that out. And when you get out of college, like, what are your options? It was door-to-door or telemarketing. And I did attempt the door-to-door thing. I think I lasted 3 days and I was like, no, no, thank you. I'm not interested. And so then I jumped into doing other things. And what actually led me to starting my business, The Minty Green Company, is that I was in network marketing and I am still in network marketing, but in enjoying that and walking through it, I realized I was missing something. And it was that desire to create impact at a greater scale, that desire to be able to connect with people in the social media realm.. And I had different people within that network marketing company reach out to me and be like, hey, I see that you're doing these different things on Instagram. Instagram was up and coming. Like, can you come and do a training for our team? And I jumped in. I was like, yeah, of course I'll do a training for the team. And I walked out, I was like, wow, I love that. I love that. And I was working with a not-for-profit and they asked me to help them with their social media and just kind of— and I did a strategy session. I walked out, I was like, I was like, oh, this is amazing. And so it just slowly kind of like morphed into what I'm doing now. And it was like, and so I've tried all different types of things in within the marketing realm of doing like strategy calls and then building social media content for people and mapping out those things in the social media world where I focus most of it on to even then moving into What is your message? What is it, the things you're trying to say to people? Because I think that in all of the marketing world, that's, that to me is key. The number one thing is what is that message you're trying to come across and share? And like, is it authentic to you? Is it the thing from your heart? And when you show up online, are you the same person they meet when they meet with you one-on-one?

And you know what, Krista, what I think is interesting about that, and just as a little bit of an aside, I too, even when I was a broadcaster, I was also looking at those network marketing opportunities too, because I really looked at it as kind of a turnkey type of business. It turned out that in the long run it wasn't really for me, and it's not to say that it isn't ideal for some people. It's great for a lot of people, but I think we had a similar path In that what it was about that, that really endeared me to it was the idea of communication. And it was an observation of mine. It's like, okay, it's just, it's the marketing part. It's the communication aspect of it is what actually drew me in. It wasn't necessarily for me. And did you find it challenging on that path to be able to figure out what your message was and what were some key things that you did in order to get more clarity?

So I think our messaging develops over time, right? And we think that we come in and I'm like, what I said when I first started this business is not what I said now. It's the same thing with my network marketing company. The reason why I started is not the reason I continue. And so I don't think that we always realize how often things change and develop. And so when I started, it was like getting Instagram people like started for your business, right? People were like, okay, Instagram was not where it is now and they were looking to just build a presence. So I would help people build a presence and I would talk about that, focus on that. And then it moved into like really me diving into who am I? And I think a lot of our messages come out even as business owners and entrepreneurs, it's who am I and what, what's authentic to me? 'Cause what's authentic to me is not authentic to you, and it's that real key to finding out what is that message. And when I help you find your message, everything will align. And like even with your business, everything aligns. So then I can stand out because there are two other marketers in this call. In the industry, but we are all different. And so it's like, how do we stand out? And for me, it's because I, my focus is so much on that messaging that goes with everything else that makes you feel like you can then speak out and stand out.

What I hear you say too is that it is a process. Um, it's always a process. I think that can be better forged with help. Because we're often too close to what it is that we do to see the forest for the trees, right? And so having someone who is able to help you see something that you might not otherwise see, I think, is important. And I know that you are— obviously we're all contributors to the Biz Bestie Bundle. What is the, uh, what is it that you have contributed to the bundle specifically, Krista, that people should know about as they, uh, decide to register for the event?

Okay, so, um, I, I want to know how many of us have gone through where we get a training, we create our social media because we're inspired, and then we stop. We create a— we go to a training, get inspired, and stop for our social media. And that happens over and over again. And so what I am offering is kind of a taste of what my Learning Academy is, and so that you As entrepreneurs and business owners, sometimes, a lot of times, we're the only ones in our business. And so that you can get in this learning academy, you'll get community, you'll get accountability, and you'll get those little mini inspirational trainings to help you keep going with being consistent and showing up in your social media so that you're not alone with this.

Yeah, so that's great.

Yeah, it's about valuable. Yeah, so there's resources and things like that which are really cool that you get, you get in that, but you get a taste of what my actual 6-month Learning Academy is.

Okay, fantastic, Krista. Thanks so much for sharing that. That's really helpful. Um, I'm gonna go over to Dena next. Dena, hello. Hello, how are you?

Um, I'm good.

Yeah, I would love to know. You're a business sidekick. Right. Um, I think we all need a sidekick when we're, when we're starting out, for sure. And I just kind of hinted at that with Krista too, right? It's like you can't be in a silo. Don't go this alone. I think that's the, the piece that you really help, um, fill in. What are some of the challenges that you see early stage entrepreneurs facing that you can give some tips around today?

Um, I think that one of the biggest things that I see is— I guess there's a couple things, um, and I— and we talked about this earlier before we hopped on here— was they think they're farther along the journey than they really are. And so they start trying to work with the wrong people— the right people at the wrong time of their journey, which can be very frustrating and deterring to growing your business. And then recognizing that when you're in stress mode, when you're in survival mode, there is a way to step out of that. When you're working on trying to find a harmony between your home life, your faith life, your business life, and just trying to find a way— a lot of people say work-life balance is what they call it, um, but trying to find how to lessen the stress level, how to slow down while still building a business that you love and not letting yourself get burnt out, I think is— that's the number one thing I see with my clients. But then, like I said, the second thing is trying to jump too far ahead when they're not ready because of where they want to go.

Yeah, I feel like I did that in the early stages, you know. I probably hired people too soon, or certain people too soon in my journey. But I think it's the common thing that I, is that, you know, you don't know what you don't know. You don't know where you are at. You don't know what stage you're at. You don't know necessarily who are the right people or what you should be focusing on. And I think that's what I hear you say, is that you're going to help them understand, okay, focus on this, focus on that, then go there. And giving people an order in which to do that is really important.

Yeah. And, and part of that too is, you know, we're not We're solopreneurs. We work online and we work at home for ourselves. We don't need a big CEO or COO, or we don't have a business partner or whatever that looks like, to have that person to walk alongside of us, to reel us in when we're getting a little crazy with our ideas and running down all the rabbit holes. We don't have that person to, um, have a sounding board or to you know, we don't have a coach or a consultant or someone to advise us who's already been through it to help us. And one of the things that I found in my many years in business is if I don't have that accountability and that support person who has the wisdom and knowledge, I will start grasping at straws and trying to do all the things, and I'll be doing them at the wrong time. And a lot of that is Where are you at in your business? What do you need right now? Who do you need right now? What does that look like in your overall plan? And how do you get there and stay on track? And not having that person to walk with you, you find, well, I need a coach, I need a coach, so I need this big program. And that's why I chose to step into this role and step back from a lot of my one-on-one coaching and add this in, is because I needed this person too when I first started, and I needed something that I could afford but also invest in other people, but would also help me find who I needed and not feel like they were the end-all be-all of everything I was doing. And so that's how this, this space came about with what I'm doing now.

And I'd love for you to share what is it that you've contributed to the Biz Bestie Bundle so that when people register, they're going to be able to get access to all these amazing things.

Sure. Um, I, I brought in two things. I have a Choose to Shift ebook and action journal as part of the standard bundle, and that's just something that helps you prepare mentally and emotionally for what could come down the road so that you have a less chance of getting stuck in that. So there's an ebook to read and a journal to walk through and map that out for yourself and really have some self-confidence in Knowing that, okay, these things might come. These are things I didn't know. I didn't know I needed to prepare for. It doesn't matter what part of the journey you're on. There's always something we don't know. And so just taking the time to read through and map that out for yourself is a great tool. And then in the premium bundle, I added in 2 months free of my Business Sidekick membership, my Put Down the Plates level, where everything is focused on implementation. And so we have working sessions, we have planning sessions, we have focused time for different things. And then I drop in trainings throughout them, you know, through every month for them as well. So I gave them 2 months of that to help them end and start their— this year and next year well.

So that's awesome. Lynn, I want to jump to you just for a quick second because everyone's talking about the premium, the Zen, you know, can you kind of lay the foundation of what we're talking about here? That there's a value associated with all the things that are being bundled together. And I'd love for you to share. I think that value is exponentially risen here in the last few days. I'd love to get the latest figure on what the value of all that is. Can you share it with us? Oh, I think you might be muted.

Let me just pull it up real quick.

Okay, cool.

Okay, so to date, actually, this was as of end of last week, we have inside of the Standard Bundle, we have products and services that are $50 or less in value. Not to say that, that they're not worth anything, but they're just lower tier value. And then we have the premium bundle where we have products that are $50 or more in value. That mean— meaning that's what we sell those products and services for currently. But when you purchase the bundle, you'll be able to get access to them without paying anything except the bundle fee. So inside of this— inside of the standard bundle, we have over 60 tools and resources with a total value of $2,900 and more. And then you get all sorts of other perks, including a private Facebook community and featured, um, the live featured Biz Bestie experts panel where you get to talk with some of our experts. You get an action plan, you get to win prizes inside of the community. So all of that is a total value of over $5,000. Now inside of the premium bundle, you get all of that plus 105 and more premium content products. And you also get access to several live sessions with the experts. So we're talking about Ask Me Anything Q&A sessions, Get Stuff Done coworking sessions, and my favorite, the networking happy hour sessions. Um, and all of that is a total value of over $24,000.

$24,000, is that? Yeah. Wow.

Okay. That's incredible.

I knew the number went up.

Well, that's the total value. So the gifts alone, the gifts alone is, uh, $20,000.— wait, I'm trying to do the math— $21,000, a little over $21,000, but with all the other additions, it's over $24,000.

Well, just a reminder to, if you are watching this, that you can connect with any one of us, right? You can connect with any one of us through whatever platform you're watching this because we are streaming this out to all these platforms, I think 13 different platforms at the same time. So any one of us would be happy to send you the links for you to register for it. So just so you know, I want to go over to, let's see here, we're going to go to Amanda next. Amanda, brand strategist, designer.

Amanda.

Yes, hello. Gracio, as I mispronounced it. Amanda, tell us a little bit about what you're seeing in terms of what are some common mistakes that you're seeing in the brand and design field right now that entrepreneurs and business owners are making?

Uh, yeah, that's a good question. Um, two main things really. So one is that people are so excited about their business idea, they just want to get it up and running like immediately. And so they kind of dive in without stopping to think about how to set it up for the long term, about how to build it strategically so that they're actually building a business the way they want to build it. And not just, you know, throwing stuff together haphazard. So that, that is one. They don't take the time to like stop and be intentional with it. And the other issue I see a lot of times is, you know, a lot of us are solopreneurs, so, you know, our business is just us. But that doesn't necessarily mean that your personal preferences, like your favorite color, your favorite fonts, are necessarily the right visual fit for your business, for your target audience, for what you're trying to communicate about your business. So there's a little bit of a learning curve with having to separate your personal preferences with what's right for your business, and that's something I help with as well.

Yeah, I love that. It's so true, right? We might have a personal preference of what font and color that we'd love, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's aligned to the brand or the identity that you want to put out there, who— or more importantly, who you want to attract. And that there's so much more that goes into that. I think, you know, we often— listen, when you're in the first stages and you're kind of bootstrapping your business, you might have to do some things just to kind of like create that proof of concept. But once you're beyond the proof of concept, what are some ways, or what are some things that you recommend in terms of steps that people can take toward that end, toward actually getting to the point where it's like you feel confident that this is the brand you know, design or identity that's really going to help your business grow?

Yeah, um, also a great question. So the first step is like carve out some time to sit and go through, you know, all the kinds of things about like, what do I actually want this business to be? You know, what is unique about my business? Who am I wanting to serve? And not everyone, you've got to be more specific than that. Um, you know, what kind of qualities do I want my business to be known for? What kind of personality do I want my business to give off? Like What is my vision long-term for this? You know, kind of all of those intangible, like heart-centered questions about like why you're even in this. Um, sit down and actually think about that. Write down your answers, have it laid out, and just going through that process can give you so much clarity on what you're actually trying to build with your business.

I think it, it does come part and parcel back to what Krista was talking about with your message. Right? Like, if you don't really know what your message is, it's really going to be very difficult to do the stuff that you do or to be able to go to that next level. So understanding who you serve, what your offer is, what your message is, those are all fundamental things that need to be done. Would you agree, Amanda, in advance of coming to you to do the design and to the, to do the brand strategy?

Well, that's part of what I help with in the brand strategy. But yes, absolutely right. I think having that clearly laid out can inform the design direction, can inform the messaging and copy direction, can help you in so many other areas of your business. Because then you can, you know, you're not just throwing spaghetti at the wall seeing what works. You know, you can be more intentional and strategic about like, okay, I say this is who I'm trying to target, you know, audience-wise. Where do they hang out? Okay, you can focus on that channel instead of trying to do 5 different channels, you know, that kind of thing. So it just really helps you focus your efforts instead of just spreading yourself too thin everywhere.

What is it that you have contributed to the bundle?

Um, actually something that will help with this. So my contribution to the bundle is a Clarify Your Core Brand masterclass and workbook. So it actually is a video recording of me walking you through all of those questions to help you get clear on what you want your brand to be. And it has a workbook where you can put down all your answers and everything. And so when you're done, you'll be in a much clearer place, uh, than before and have some actual like goalposts for what you want to do with your brand.

Yeah, that's brilliant. I love that. Thank you for sharing. That's brilliant. Um, I wanted to just sort of share a little bit too about what, um, what I'm doing because I'm obviously a contributor as well. I think that when it comes to getting clients, when it comes to getting especially referrals or getting speaking engagements, which I really believe is like the trifecta of success, right? That if you have clients, referrals, and speaking engagements. Only good things can come in terms of business development opportunities. One of the things that I like to share, and this is what I'm going to be sharing as a contributor to this Biz Bestie bundle, is the idea of profitable, profitable podcasting, which is how do you attract your high-ticket clients. So if you're an agency owner, you're a high-ticket service provider, one of the challenges that you're faced with is that your clients are probably not as much scrolling through social media as much as they are less attainable that way, right? So if you have a high-ticket service that you're offering, it can be sometimes challenging to be able to connect with your ideal prospects or clients, and we recommend using a profitable podcast to do that. Um, so the thing that I'm contributing to the bundle is the tech tools. It's like a tech tools guide on what are the tech tools, that you would need, including this platform, which is Restream, but a host of other things that we use in conjunction with one another that integrate with one another in order to give you a way to produce your podcast in only under an hour per week, to be able to do it in an editless fashion, which saves you a ton of time and energy and frustration, and it saves your sanity. Aside from that, it's also the way that you can be more efficient. And that's the world that I come from, is from broadcasting. So that's what I'm contributing to the bundle, and I'm really pleased and honored to be part of this with you ladies, as well as a whole bunch of other people. Lynn, how many people, how many contributors are there total now in the event?

Over 100.

Over 100, awesome! That's fantastic.

A lot of work on my end.

Yes, no doubt, no doubt about that. We want to thank you so much for putting it together because it's fantastic what you've done. And I think you and I have known each other for probably over a year and a half or so now. But what are some other, you know, what is it that you hope to be able to really give people who are going to register for this event? What is the ultimate outcome that you want for them?

I would love to have people come in and there's going to be a whole array of tools and resources covering all sorts of different topics from sales and marketing to podcasting to marketing, all of that. You're going to be able to— legal, finance, you're going to find all sorts of tools in there. And so I'm hoping that people will be able to find at least 1 or 2 things that are— that they can start implementing in their business right now that's really going to make an impact. And there are going to be some people who find quite a few things that they want to implement. And so that's why we have a resource tracker in there as well, to give people guidance as to, okay, these are the 10 things I want to sign up for. That's overwhelming. What do I do? So that resource tracker is going to help people identify what is that one thing that they can work on in the next couple of weeks that is going to make an impact in their business. And so it could be grabbing Krista's tool so that they can— her gift, one of her gifts— so that they can really refine that messaging in their business, or grabbing Amanda's so that they can understand branding isn't just colors, it's not just images, it's that core message that you need to get to understand. You need to understand the people Who are the people that you're trying to serve and how do you reach them? How do you communicate with them? Whether it's visual or via wording. And then with, with, um, you know, with Deena over there, the whole, you don't know what you don't know. And so going it alone is really hard and lonely and makes your business, you can actually hit the point where you're resenting your business because you're not enjoying it. And no one wants that. We don't want that for you. So the business besties inside of this bundle are there to help you. Prevent that from happening and to give you that extra piece of knowledge of, I don't know what I don't know. Well, we're here to help you. We're here to give you some of that information. And, you know, Cheryl, I was just thinking as you were talking, I am definitely grabbing your gift because I'm in the process of creating a podcast with a couple of biz besties and oh my God, of what you're offering, like, ah, I need that so bad.

I think you'll like it.

So it's this experience, like I'm just listening to you guys and thinking, I could definitely use this. I could definitely use this. This is something I would want to implement. I'm at right now, or maybe this is something that maybe in 6 months I can hit. So that's the kind of experience that I want people who are attending and buying the bundle to walk away with.

What I would recommend is if you're watching this right now, whatever platform it is on and you're interested in accessing the, you know, the $20,000+ value of all these different amazing things that are in the bundle, you're going to want to come and register for the event. Comment bestie, you know, wherever you're watching this from, and, and one of us or all of us, we will collectively make sure that you get the link to be able to register for it. We really want to see you there. And Lynn, what I loved about what you just said was that, listen, Rome wasn't built in a day, right? This isn't a thing where it's like, hey, you've got to do all these different things all at the same time. No, we're going to be able to provide you with guidance around, okay, you know what, here, you should, you should start with this thing, you should start with this, like just one step at a time, as opposed to it being— no one wants it to be confusing. It isn't going to be confusing. It's going to be targeted to what it is that you need. And I think that's a really important approach because that's what we're all here to do. We all are— we all feel— and I think let's do raise of hand, how many of us have a business that we love? Show of hands. Yeah, we all have businesses that we love. And the important thing is that we want this for you, right? We want you to also have a business that you love and that really provides you with the lifestyle that you aspire to have. And I think we're all proof positive that it's possible, right? It's possible to do that, but we all have come through our own struggles and frustrations in the path to doing what we do today. Um, and that's why we're paying it forward. And we're doing it through Lynn's guidance and through Lynn's event, which we're honored to be doing. So just comment bestie in the comments wherever you're watching this from. We'll make sure that you get a link to be able to register for it. Lynn, I want to give it to you for parting words. What would you like to say to the audience who are considering joining this event?

Yeah, I, um, you know, it's, it's okay to ask for help. It's okay to not think you have to do everything on your own. And it's also, um, you know, one of the things that when I first started out was I had to do all it on, uh, do all of it on my own because I couldn't afford to go and buy this course or to sign up with this coach. And I think that the Biz Bestie Bundle will help you get a little bit of that, um, assistance, that help that you need at an affordable way so that you can benefit from having a little Biz Bestie here, a little Biz this bestie there. So that, that's my hope.

That's awesome. Thank you so much, Lynn. Thank you so much to, uh, to Krista, to Dina, to Amanda for being here today to join me in this live stream. I think this is going to help a lot of people. So thank you, ladies, for being here, and look forward to being in the Facebook contributor, uh, group and the main group with you as well in this event. So thank you so much for being here.