Brandmerry Blog Archives
How to Conduct a Quarterly Small Business Audit
BY MICHELLE KNIGHT
At Brandmerry, we are big fans of planning.
Planning for the year.
Planning for 6 months.
Planning for each quarter.
But, we also know that planning is only half of the battle.
Having plans and never checking in on their progress can easily lead to a lack of progress.
Things can shift so quickly in online business that if you’re not consistently checking in on your progress, what’s working, and what’s not, you might get caught off guard a little too late.
And that’s just in reference to your data. Now let’s talk about your personal life - how often are you checking in on how your business goals are fitting into your personal lifestyle?
This is something I do regularly as a business owner and every quarter (i.e. 90 days) I’m checking in on my goals, the data behind them, and most importantly, how I feel about the work I’m doing.
For me, this is key to building a sustainable business and something I encourage my clients to do as well.
Today on the podcast, I’m sharing my top questions and tips to Conduct a Quarterly Small Business Audit.
Listen in to the episode for the full rundown of each question below and additional tips for evaluation and then come back and copy these questions for your personal audit.
I recommend completing this audit at the end of every quarter.
Then take the information you have in front of you and make adjustments to your goals.
This is a fantastic way to stay on track and make sure you’re making aligned decisions in life and business.
QUARTERLY SMALL BUSINESS AUDIT QUESTIONS:
Part One: Reflection
What did you love about your work this quarter?
What didn't you find joy in?
What felt draining or not in alignment?
Looking back, what would you have changed about this quarter?
Were there actions you knew you should have done, that you didn't get to?
Looking back, what did you accomplish? Let's celebrate that!
What do you want to bring into the next quarter?
Part Two: Data Audit
What is your current email list size?
What is your current website traffic for each month of the quarter?
What activities generated the subscribers? (base this off of your marketing efforts - examples include: Youtube, Instagram, Website Traffic, Pinterest, Podcasting, Reels)
If multiple offers, which offer brought in the most money?
How much did you spend on that offer in advertising?
What offer had the biggest ROI (return on investment)?
What was your cash income for each month in the quarter?
Your best income month? Why?
Your lowest income month? Why?
What was your cash income for the quarter as a whole?
What is your goal for the next quarter? Think revenue, launches, hires, marketing, etc...
Tune in now on Spotify or Apple Podcasts to hear the full episode and all the tips.
P.S. Ready to get your brand seen and paid without the pressure of social media? I'm teaching my top strategies inside of my new free class, "How to Build a Brand That Gets Seen and Paid!" You're invited to tune in and learn my signature 3-part framework for a sustainable 6-figure brand. Sign up to watch for free at Brandmerry.com/class
- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -
DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES
LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS
MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR
- READ THE LATEST POSTS -
MEET MICHELLE
Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.
I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.
I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.
This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.
Learn the Top Consistency Myths Business Owners Believe
BY MICHELLE KNIGHT
Consistency is the cornerstone of a strong marketing plan for every online business owner.
It's with consistency that you're able to test your content topics, gauge what's working and what's not, and of course build trust with your audience.
Consistency is essential as a business owner, but so many entrepreneurs are carrying around old definitions or beliefs around consistency.
I know it feels like consistently showing up online is a struggle.
I know the concept of consistency feels so fluffy and hard to understand, what does it actually mean?
I know the idea of posting content daily is overwhelming.
That's why, today on The Brandmerry Podcast, I'm busting three myths around consistency!
Tune in now to learn:
The three myths most entrepreneurs believe about consistency and how they are keeping them from showing up.
How to remove the overwhelm of posting daily on social media and what to do instead.
How to redefine consistency in 2022, so you can show up, build community and make sales...consistently!
Tune in now on Spotify or Apple Podcasts to hear the full episode and all the tips.
P.S. A great way to master your marketing and take the pressure off of social media is to join Brandmerry Academy. Inside, we're teaching a holistic and sustainable approach to marketing your business without relying on social media! Learn more at brandmerry.com/academy and get an entire year of marketing courses and support!
- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -
DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES
LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS
MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR
- READ THE LATEST POSTS -
MEET MICHELLE
Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.
I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.
I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.
This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.
Online Business Tip: Is There a Secret?
Is there a secret to running an online business? While I don't believe it's a single strategy, template or checklist, I do believe there is a secret sauce. Find out on the blog.
BY MICHELLE KNIGHT
The context and inspiration for this blog came to me on my morning Peloton ride.
I then found myself scrolling on social media, which doesn’t happen very often, and came across an ad, marketing, after marketing, after marketing, that was talking about quick results in business.
Some of the language was 10K in 10 days. We're all familiar with that. And it got me really thinking about what I wanted to share with you on this topic. So that led us to the secret sauce in business.
Which, if you know me, you know there isn’t a very specific, copy and paste, universally used secret sauce that you might be looking for.
It doesn't exist. But, when I was riding on my Peloton yesterday, Cody Rigsby, my favorite instructor on the Peloton app kept saying, "Do the work, do the work, do the work."
And I started thinking maybe that's the secret sauce.
Maybe the secret sauce isn't some brand new strategy, or this template, or this platform, or this launch messaging.
Maybe the secret sauce is doing the work.
When you look at the entrepreneurs, and the business owners, and the brands that see results maybe quickly, maybe in three months, six months, maybe in a year, you can see that the thing that connects them is that they're willing to do the work.
They're willing to show up. They're consistently showing up and doing the work. They're committed to doing the work. They don't shy away from it.
So since this isn't a very, "Hey, apply this to your business and go make 10K in 10 days,” strategy, I wanted to break it down for you.
What does doing the work look like?
How do you do the work?
And what are some things that you need to keep in mind?
What is The Work?
What am I talking about when I say “the work?”
There are four key pieces that I believe require you to show up and dedicate time and energy to as a business owner.
Some of them, you do it once. You don't need to circle back to it very often. Maybe every year, every two years, depending on your business.
Some of them are ongoing.
FOUR PILLARS OF A SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS
PILLAR ONE: Clarity on Your Business Goals
How do you know what work to do and how to measure the impact of the work that you're doing if you have nothing to measure it against?
If you don't have goals, if you don't know why you're showing up every day and doing the workaround, what your end result is, then you're constantly going to feel like you're just busy.
And when I say do the work, I don't mean busy work. I don't mean piddle over here and change this color over here, and change this font over here. And let me update this page that nobody visits anyways over here.
I mean do the strategic work.
To figure out what that is, you have to first start with your goals. The first thing you need to identify is what you are moving towards. And that will allow you to reverse engineer and set those goals.
Recently, I released a YouTube video on planning six months in your business. In that video I break down how to look at the big picture and reverse engineer, to break it down into smaller more manageable steps; the same applies to all goals!
The first goal is to get clear and specific with your goals. And just like we learned in school, make them measurable. If they're not measurable, how are you going to know your progress? You're not going to know how things are working out for you and this measurable piece is going to play a role in the kind of work you ultimately do (more on that later).
PILLAR TWO: Brand Foundations
The second piece of doing the work is your brand foundations.
If you want to grow scalable and sustainable, meaning you're not losing your mind in the process, online business, you have to have a solid foundation. Newsflash, you have to have a solid foundation for everything in life. Anything that you want to keep growing or scaling, there has to be a solid foundation.
In an online business, that just happens to be your brand.
When we're building the brand foundations, we're focused on your niche. We're focused on your ideal customer, focused on your messaging, and focused on your offer. I believe that your offer is part of the branding process because when you have this early on you can create your marketing plan to match. And then, of course, that emotional branding component, which plays into the aesthetics.
Now here's the beautiful thing about this work. This is not work that you do every day, every week, every month. You take the time and dedication to do the work around your brand foundations, build that solid foundation and then determine how often you want to revisit it.
Is it once a year?
Are you going to be rebranding?
Do you need to go back to it and freshen it up? That's one of those things that's not constantly changing. And that's why it's important to dedicate the work to it right from the get-go.
I love to have my clients give themselves a deadline. In my course, You! Branded, we encourage clients to complete it in three weeks, so make that a frame for you to show up and do the work. Do the work, the worksheets. And then implement it in your own life. And then we get to move on, but it is essential.
If you want to learn more about You! Branded, head here.
PILLAR THREE: Set Up Systems
I keep hearing all these entrepreneurs talk about how incredibly stressful scaling is because they never had systems in place.
If you know me, you know that I'm all about systems. And I credit that to the fact that I've been able to have a small team for so many years. That I was able to do most things by myself for a long time when I couldn't necessarily invest in team members and be a woman, and a mother, and show up for myself.
It always came back to my systems, and these systems have continued to serve me as a business owner and continued to serve as we scale.
When it comes to setting up your systems, here are some things to consider.
Think about your client onboarding and the process that you go through to bring on a new client. What does this look like for your business?
I have a blog and video available if you need inspiration.
When you think about this, can you automate any of it?
Are you manually scheduling your clients?
Are you manually sending out invoices and contracts?
What does that look like?
Take some time to look at your business and see where you can streamline and automate things to improve your overall systems.
What about your workflow?
Do you know how you’re creating content every single week in your business?
Is it a copy, repeat, copy, repeat, copy, repeat type of system? To the point where you have it set up in a task management software. And when you mark it as complete, it kicks it to the next week.
What about your SOPs?
How do you do things in your business? When it's just you and you're just getting started, document what you're doing.
If someone's a new client, what's the process?
What do you do?
Do you send them an invoice first, a contract?
Do you email them?
Do they get tagged with anything?
Just start documenting that in a Google Doc or a Word doc, so when you hire team members, you just get to hand them that information.
I think so many entrepreneurs skip over the systems piece of it and find themselves feeling overwhelmed with the process. Everything can be streamlined, even if it can’t be automated.
And this pillar is ongoing. I'll be honest with you. They're going to be updated. You're going to create new systems as you expand and as you do new things.
But this is an area where you've got to sit down and do the work.
PILLAR FOUR: Marketing
And then we come to one of my favorite topics, the ongoing, happens every day in your business. Even if it's automated, it's still happening every single day, whether you are manually posting it or not.
And that's marketing.
That is getting people familiar, introducing them to your brand. Building trust with them. Telling them about your offers. Then continuing to show up and serve them even after they become a client, yes that is also part of the marketing strategy.
This area is ongoing, and this area requires your commitment, and your dedication, and your consistency.
Don't look for an easy out when it comes to your marketing. If someone comes to me and says, "I'm just looking for a way where I don't have to do any marketing. I don't want to market."
I'm like, "You're going to have an issue as a business owner. You're going to have a really hard time."
The first step is to create a clear marketing strategy.
How often are you creating content?
What platforms are you showing up on?
What is your weekly workflow?
How are you repurposing your content?
What are the core pillars and topics that you're talking about?
You can set those up, and you can say I'm going to dedicate 30 to 60 or 90 days to this strategy.
I recommend a minimum of 30. I try to push for 90 days now because I know sometimes, it just takes a little bit of momentum and testing. But give yourself a clear period of dedication and commitment.
The reason for this is the consistency will show you want needs to be improved upon. You need to do the work to know what to change. There is always work to be done with your marketing.
One of the biggest myths that I see entrepreneurs believing is that automation means they don’t have to do anything. I believed it for way too long.
We think that if we are creating a course or creating a funnel, we're automating something in our business that we make, and we get to walk away from it. And we never need to worry about it again. And that is so far from the truth.
Once your automation has been optimized, it will help with consistent revenue in your business, depending on what that automation is. But it doesn't mean that you don't have to check in on it. It doesn't mean that you don't have to look at the data. It doesn't mean that you don't have to make changes. You absolutely do.
It’s so important to choose a simplified marketing strategy, like the one we teach inside of Brandmerry Academy, and implement it for at least 30 days to know what should be improved upon.
HOW DO YOU DO THE WORK
So nothing is just done. It's always evolving. So how can you do the work more efficiently?
Let's talk about that. I've got five key pieces that I want you to walk away with today.
How do you actually do the work?
What are the things you need to keep in mind?
NUMBER ONE: Make Time For It
Schedule a very specific time to make your business a priority so that your business becomes a priority. On the flip side of that, schedule a very specific time to make your business a priority so it doesn't interfere with your other priorities.
I'm a big fan of scheduling every part of my business because it allows me freedom.
An example of this is what I just wrapped up doing. I prepared 90 days of content. It's something like 16 videos and 18 podcasts.
The reason I'm putting in the time and the energy and I am committed to doing this is because I'm going to be in Greece for three months. I want to work 10 hours or less every single week and still hit my monthly minimum cash goal.
So I am making time to do the work. I am scheduling early mornings on Saturday because that's what I want to do so I have all this extra free time. I'm scheduling every little thing in my calendar. I'm scheduling my workouts. I'm doing all of that.
So make time to do the work. Schedule it or you won't do it.
We'll keep pushing it off and saying, "I'll do it later. I'll do it later. I'll do it in two weeks, whatever." And then finally you're like, "Wow, okay. I haven't done any of that." So now I have to spend tons of time going back through that process.
NUMBER TWO: Set Clear Objectives
So this is kind of a piggyback of what I shared in the first part, which is all about clarity on your business goals.
How do you know what work to do if you don't know where you're going? It's all reverse engineering. That is the best strategy for a business owner.
Where are you headed? Now break it down step-by-step in how you're going to get there.
When you're talking about the step-by-step, set clear objectives for yourself. This will help you know how the work is playing out. So you might be doing something and you might be doing it consistently and you're like, "Man. I just don't know if this is working."
Look at the data.
Let the data drive your decisions.
What does the data say? And then make adjustments. But you don't know how to shift things, or change things, or know if that particular thing isn't working anymore unless you have clear objectives.
NUMBER THREE: Be Open to Evolution
Be open to things changing. All automations, as I mentioned before, will need adjustments and changes to keep optimizing. We have to be open to looking for those small shifts.
We can't be stuck in our ways as marketers. We have to be open to change, and new opportunities and switching things up.
Going back to the clear objectives, those will tell you when it's time to switch things up. It doesn't have to be a guessing game. Marketing is not a guessing game.
It's based on data.
NUMBER FOUR: Test
The fourth piece of doing the work is giving yourself plenty of time to test things. Stop saying, "I'm going to work for 48 hours and see how it goes." Going back, we don't have enough data. We can't decide off of just 48 hours of work.
So you have to give yourself time to test the work that you're doing.
Let’s say you want to test Reels. You know how fun and engaging they can be and you’re looking for more reach in your business.
Do one reel every day for 30 days. Now that's some testing. Especially for a platform that changes every five hours.
Let’s say you want to start blogging and see how it impacts your SEO ranking.
Make it a point to blog every single week, once a week for 60 days.
You've got to be willing to test. That is part of doing the work.
NUMBER FIVE: Evaluate
Finally, and I think what brings all of this together, is evaluation.
Put your marketing lens on, look at the data. Look at the time that you were testing, and evaluate what's happening with the work. Remember, this isn't about busywork. I'm not saying sit down and just work for eight hours.
We're talking about that commitment and that clarity on the work.
What specifically are you working towards?
How can you measure the progress that you're taking?
And then be open to evaluating and making those changes as well. If you are not open to evaluating, I really think that's how people get burnt out. Because it's like you just continue to walk into a wall over, and over, and over, and over again when there's a door and another avenue like right next to you.
We're just like, "I'm just doing the work. I'm just being busy. I'm just working today. I'm going to work every single day on my business." But we need to be intentional with the work that we're doing.
The only way that we can be intentional is through this process of having clear objectives, of being open to things changing and modifying based on the data, to give yourself time to test.
And of course evaluate, evaluate, evaluate. And see not only what's working based on the data, but also how does it feel?
DATA-DRIVEN DECISIONS IN MARKETING
We talked about measurable goals. Let those be an indicator for the work, and also what needs to be adjusted based on the work.
Let’s say your webinar is in one week and you want 100 people on the webinar.
How can you show up and do the work?
What haven't you tried?
What haven't you done?
Where could you give a little bit more?
These are the types of evaluations that we have to be making.
So when you're first starting as a beginner, what can help determine where to focus your energy is where and how do you enjoy showing up online?
What comes a little bit more naturally to you?
I'm not saying it's easy. You have to be uncomfortable a little bit, you don’t just want to take the easy route, but what would you enjoy the most.
For myself, this was video. Even early on, it worked with my schedule. I didn't have to write a bunch of stuff. I could just show up, deliver content, repurpose it. This worked for my business because my audience loves video and I love making it.
Where is your audience? Where are they spending their time and their energy the most?
Where do you enjoy showing up? What medium?
If you need permission to focus on one area, here it is!
That's one of the reasons that we decided to drip the content inside of Brandmerry Academy every 30 days, because I didn't want someone jumping into the academy and saying, "I'm going to do SEO, Pinterest, and this all in 30 days."
No. It's not going to work. It's going to be so hard.
When I first started, everyone was on Instagram, but Instagram intimidated the crap out of me. I did not want to edit photos. I was stressed about choosing the right photos.
What if the photo is not good enough? I was nervous about it all.
So I just went all-in on Facebook and Facebook groups. That's all that I did in the beginning. Not my favorite strategy and not what I recommend today. But five years ago, it definitely was. Video was just getting started on Facebook at the time and it made sense to focus on one area.
So that's all I did. And I would think about going on Instagram. And I would maybe dabble a little bit. And then I'd back off a little bit.
Then, when I felt solid in my Facebook strategy I looked for ways to repurpose my content on Instagram. Then Pinterest was of interest to me and I hired someone to take that on because I didn’t want to add more to my plate.
Remember work does not mean busy work.
CONCLUSION
Speaking of doing the work, I’ve done a lot for you!
I’ve compiled all my favorite lessons inside of this free eBook that I put together for you, where I am sharing the 15 lessons to propel your online business. It's really the ultimate guide of shit I wish someone would have told me.
I talk about a lot of the elements that I see holding entrepreneurs back from reaching the income level and the impact that they desire. And as you can probably imagine, I made the same mistakes.
So whether you're just thinking of starting your business or you're three or four years into it, I recommend that you head to brandmerry.com/lessons to download your free eBook.
Because even if you get one little golden nugget from this eBook, I know it is going to support you in achieving your goals in 2021. Head to brandmerry.com/lessons to download your free eBook today.
This is only available for a limited time.
- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -
DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES
LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS
MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR
- READ THE LATEST POSTS -
MEET MICHELLE
Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.
I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.
I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.
This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.
How to Plan 6 Months at a Time in Your Business: A Step-by-Step Guide
Planning in your business is essential if you want to avoid overwhelm and know you’re always moving forward toward your goals. Now, many business owners plan month to month or at the most, 90 days, but I’m going to encourage you and give you the step-by-step to plan 6 months at a time. Read the blog for all the details.
Have you started thinking about the next 6 months in your business? What if I told you that you could plan 6 months as a small business owner and entrepreneur and feel confident in your business plans as we head into your next phase? Half of your business success comes down to having a plan, and this 5-step process can help. Learn how to make your 6-month calendar for content, launches, and main focuses in your business. Learn more at brandmerry.com! #businessplans #6monthplans #endoftheyearplan
In March 2021, I released a Reel over on Instagram that showed a quick look at how I prepare for every quarter in my business.
The video showed my giant calendar wall in my office where I have exactly six months visible to me at all times. I showcased the process of me planning with my Post-it notes, and the response was, "Michelle, we need a video about this. Michelle, we need to know how you're doing this, all of the details."
So here we are.
We’re jumping in with a six-month, step-by-step, behind-the-scenes look at planning.
Now, before we get into those step-by-step pieces, I want to take a few minutes to talk about why I think planning is important and also talk about one of the key things that I do before planning for six months.
WHY PLANNING IS IMPORTANT
Some of you might be here because like me you love planning!
Some of you might be teetering a little bit. You might have been gung-ho about planning. You might try to do it a lot and then find that you fall off the wagon, but you get back on again, and you keep doing it, and you keep trying new strategies over and over again.
And then there are a few of you that are here because you're super intrigued, but you also have a lot of resistance when it comes to planning because it can feel very restrictive.
So I want to take an opportunity to share with you the mindset shift that completely changed the way I view planning in my business.
I've always been a big fan of planning. Even since I was a little girl, I used to plan out, on note cards (thanks, Mom), my goals for the year.
Then I'd tuck them away, and I'd never look at them again. I think we can all agree that's not how you plan effectively 😂.
Over the years planning took on two different emotions for me, I’d either have these big ambitions to plan, but then I’d feel as if I was setting crazy unrealistic expectations for myself and freeze.
Or the idea of planning would feel restrictive; as if I couldn't do anything else, and so I never really followed through with the plan.
It wasn't until I became an entrepreneur and started my business in 2016 that I realized that I was constantly sitting in overwhelm without a plan.
I would question:
👉 How am I going to make money?
👉 What am I going to share today?
👉 What am I going to email?
👉 How am I going to get new clients?
👉 What am I focusing on?
And every day, I would repeat that kind of overwhelmed feeling, because I didn't have a plan.
This season of life made me realize that by having a big-picture plan in place, I was able to be more creative in my business. By having this roadmap in place I moved out of overwhelm, and I had more opportunities to create and be in my zone of genius, and that has served me as a business owner in so many ways.
So if you're coming into this like me where you might have had a little bit of resistance about the idea of planning and having it all mapped out, I hope that this blog changes your view on what planning is.
So if you're worried about being restricted when it comes to planning for six months, I want to encourage you to look at it a different way, and look at it as a roadmap guiding you, allowing you to be in your zone of genius and have more time and space for more creativity.
PLAN YOUR FOCUS FOR THE YEAR
On my office wall, there are six calendars, one for every month. Now every single day doesn’t need to have something on it, remember this is big picture planning, but the purpose is to map out where you’re going.
So the first thing you need to determine before you start mapping out your steps, is what is the main focus for the year.
Now, many of you watching this video are most likely small business owners and entrepreneurs and might find that your yearly goal is a specific dollar amount, but this works for anything and I often follow the same structure when I determine how many trips I want to take in a year.
When I'm heading into the year, I like to figure out:
What is my purpose?
What is my focus going to be for the year?
How much revenue do I want to bring into the company for the year?
How is that broken up into each quarter?
How is that broken up into the individual offers that I have, or that I'm planning on putting out?
So I never go into six months completely blind. I definitely know, "Hey, by December 31st, 2021, this is what I want to achieve," and this allows me to reverse engineer, and it makes the planning process easier.
So although I'm not going into all the details of planning for 12 months at a time in this post. I want you to know that thinking of the big picture is important, and you want to have at least a number, or something measurable, tied to your yearly goal so you can move forward with mapping out six months, quarterly (every three months) and monthly actions in your business.
5 STEPS TO PLAN 6 MONTHS
Don’t move on until you’ve got your big picture goal established.
Ready?
Ok, let’s dive into it!
PLANNING TIP #1: START WITH THE BIG PICTURE
Number one is kind of a piggyback on what we just talked about, and that's thinking big picture. When you're planning for six months, which can feel like a lot of work, you're thinking about focus.
You're thinking about the bigger picture of…
What am I trying to achieve for these six months?
What are going to be my big three things that I want to hit?
That is going to allow you to figure out all the nitty-gritty details needed to get there.
Sometimes people think when we're talking about content, specifically, that we're planning content for six months. I'm not saying, "Tell me the title of every blog post that you're going to create for the next six months."
That's not necessary, at this stage. That comes later, in step five.
But you do want to understand what the focus will be over the next six months.
So think again:
What is the yearly goal?
Okay, how does that play a role in the next six months?
How does that play a role in the next 90 days?
Because in case you didn't realize, you have to go through the 90 days to get to the six months, and the six months to get to the year.
So reverse engineering from the big picture goal for the year to the focus every six months and 90 days will give you the stepping stones to get to your end result.
PLANNING TIP #2: CREATE YOUR WORKFLOW
Step two is to create your workflow.
Now, in a recent episode of Monday’s with Michelle, I talked about the process of creating a workflow. As entrepreneurs, workflows are so important. If you want to achieve your goals, you need to have the systems in place that are going to support you in achieving your goals.
One of the things that I did a couple of years ago, that changed my business completely, was this idea of creating a very clear content workflow.
So every week, I know how many blog posts I'm creating, how many videos I'm creating as part of Mondays with Michelle, how many podcast episodes I'm putting out there, what emails are coming from that content, where I'm showing up on social media or other platforms. And I have a clear workflow every week that resets.
So we go through our week, tick the boxes, and it resets the next week. The topic will change weekly, but what we're doing behind the scenes to get the content out there does not change.
Having a workflow is going to help you plan out six months with ease.
This calendar that I'm looking at, says every Monday there's a Mondays with Michelle video.
Every Thursday, there's a blog post.
Every Wednesday, there's a YouTube video.
Every other Friday, there's a podcast episode.
That's what I'm able to visually see on this big-picture calendar that I've got up, and that helps guide my efforts. So make sure you have a workflow in place, and if you don't have one, there's an entire video and blog teaching you how to create your own.
PLANNING TIP #3: DETERMINE IMPORTANT DATES
Step three, when planning out for six months, is to determine any big launches, promotions, dates, and vacations. Any big these-are-set-in-stone dates that aren't super flexible.
You want to put those on your calendar because that is going to impact a lot of your content that you're creating. It's going to help you look ahead and say, "Oh, I'm opening the doors to the Academy."
Which I am, at the end of May. Just a heads-up 😉
I know that that's happening and it’s already on my calendar. This helps me determine what content to share leading up to that. I know The Academy is focused on marketing your business, so my content will be marketing-focused.
This clear focus will help build know, like, and trust with my audience so that you're most likely to join me inside of the Academy.
It's also going to allow me to put my promotion dates on there. If you're doing a challenge or a masterclass, what day you're going to open the cart and what day you're going to close the cart. If you're going to run ads, when are you going to run ads?
So putting your actual promotion dates on your calendar will allow you to reverse engineer and add in the smaller details needed for a successful promotion.
So step three is to determine those big launches, promotions, or any specific dates that you have.
Think of EVERYTHING!
Maybe you're launching a podcast. What date is that?
Maybe you're thinking of launching or putting a new product out there. What date is that?
Maybe you're putting out a freebie. What date is that?
Putting these markers on your calendar will help you get ahead of the game and help you embrace more of a forward-thinking mentality so you never “feel behind.”
One of the biggest things that I see entrepreneurs doing is that they aren't planning this far in advance.
They'll do maybe 30 days, and then the end of the 30 days comes, and they're like, "Oh, I have no idea what I'm doing next month." And then they're like, "Oh, I want to start a freebie, and I want to put it out next week." And then they're scrambling and doing mediocre work to get it out there.
Give yourself space.
By me looking at September, I can kind of, in the back of my mind, start thinking about all the things that I am doing and start formulating ideas around that. So when it comes time to create that stuff, it's not just coming out of thin air.
PLANNING TIP #4: PUT UP A 6 MONTH CALENDAR
Now, and only now do we physically put the calendar together.
I like seeing my calendar all of the time in my office, it’s incredibly helpful for me and has been for my clients as well.
Sometimes people feel overwhelmed because things change, but again when we’re planning for 6 months we’re not focused on the tiny, tiny details we reserve for our Google Calendars, we’re focused on “What’s Happening!”
Once you’ve determined your physical calendar, then you want to take those dates that you've determined from step three and use Post-Its to pencil in.
I like Post-its because you can move things around, as things change, which they will and not have to start over.
So once you have your calendar up and Post-its ready you want to do the following:
Add you’re important dates. Think launches, sales, promotions, vacations, etc…
Add your weekly workflow to the calendar. Think blogs, podcasts, videos, live streams, etc… If you write a blog every Wednesday you need a Post-it for every Wednesday.
What this is going to allow you to do is support you in the last step, which is adding the details for the next 90 days.
PLANNING TIP #5: ADD DETAILS FOR THE NEXT 90 DAYS
Now, I am not going to sit here and lie to you and tell you that I know what I'm talking about in September. I don't know what I'm talking about in July, but I know that I will be showing up, and that is super clear.
But what I do know is what's happening in the next 90 days in my business down to the detail.
This blog that you're reading right now, if you are reading it on May 6th, when it's released, was recorded for a Monday’s with Michelle on April 6th. It's an entire month ahead, and that's because I have a clear workflow.
So one of the things that you want to do in step five is add those individual details OFF of the calendar. I prefer a task management platform or Google Calendar for the details because your calendar can get super messy and you’re not able to list out all the tiny micro details on your physical calendar.
We use ClickUp, as a task management tool, and put those tasks and the workflow inside of there.
This allows your 6-month physical calendar to showcase the big picture and focus and your task management software to map out the smaller details needed to achieve that focus.
Or, if you’re visual like me a little something like this:
BIG PICTURE YEAR GOAL
👇
6 MONTH FOCUS
With important dates, general workflow, and promotions
👇
90-DAY FOCUS
Specifics on what you’ll be sharing in your content, topics, etc...
HOW PLANNING LEADS TO CONSISTENCY
While I do have a team to support my business efforts today, I've been doing this since I was sailing the ship by myself. Having a clear idea of how I was showing up every week for my audience allowed me to continuously grow my audience and make sales.
As an online brand wanting to build a revenue-generating business you don’t want to disappear or ghost your growing audience, this is why creating consistent content is important.
Consistently creating content and putting your brand out into the world will allow you to continuously attract new people who have never seen you before, lead them through the process, and ultimately to the sale.
And rather than constantly feeling overwhelmed with, "What should I talk about?" How would it feel if you just took an hour, every quarter, to plan all that out?
I promise you, you get faster at it, and it gets easier.
RECAP
So let's quickly go through the five-step process again, and then I'm going to let you go on your way and start planning the next six months in business. I like to do this every quarter, adding on the next three months, but you can start this now, whenever you're reading this blog. It does not matter, but getting yourself in the habit will do tremendous things for your productivity and creativity.
Number 1: Think big picture. Remember, we're not talking nitty-gritty details for the next six months. We're looking at our goals for the year, and we're saying, "What is my focus going to be the next 90 days, the next six months? And how is that going to get me to my end goal?"
Number 2: Make sure you have a workflow in place. If you don't know what that is, or you need a step-by-step, go ahead and watch this video and grab this free gift. That is going to help you with this process.
Number 3: Determine any big dates, any big launches, and promotions. if you're going to launch a new freebie if you're launching a podcast if you're going on vacation. Whatever it is, it goes on your calendar, so you can work around it and reverse engineer any necessary promo.
Number 4: Put the six-month calendar up. Make it visible. Don't hide your plans. And if you can put it on a wall in your office or have a binder or something like that, go ahead and do that. But get that six-month calendar up. Put the major dates on there that we talked about in step three, and then put your workflow, blogs, podcasts, YouTube videos, all the different things up there, with Post-its or dry erase or something.
Number 5:Add the individual details for the next 90 days. We add these details into ClickUp but you can use any task management software. Again, the calendar that I'm looking at behind me has very specific dates. How I'm showing up, launches, promos. But all my emails aren't up there. All of that stuff is in my task management platform, ClickUp. This is my big picture. This keeps me focused. This is my roadmap.
CONCLUSION
So I hope that this blog supported you in starting to think about the power of planning and how it can ultimately help you feel more aligned, make better decisions as a CEO, and be more creative.
Let's remove the overwhelm with a plan! And this roadmap is going to make a difference.
Be sure that you save this post, so you can come back to it and you can repeat this process time after time.
If you want to take a look at this layout, I've also linked the reel that I shared with you, if you want to physically see what this calendar looks like.
And make sure you check out the workflow video to walk you through creating your repeatable workflow. And for additional support, go to brandmerry.com/repurpose to grab a complete repurposing guide that talks about creating your workflow.
Watch the full video here!
P.S. Have you tuned in to The Beautiful Climb podcast? I release new episodes every other Friday on topics around productivity, motherhood, habits, goals and going after the life of your dreams! Check out past episodes and be sure to subscribe at thebeautifulclimb.com
- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -
DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES
LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS
MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR
- READ THE LATEST POSTS -
MEET MICHELLE
Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.
I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.
I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.
This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.
4-Part Framework for a Simplified Online Business
Looking for a simplified way to build your business? What if I told you it could happen if you focus on one piece at a time over a 4-part system? I’m sharing all the details in today’s blog.
4-Part Framework for a Simplified Online Business
BY MICHELLE KNIGHT
I learned pretty quickly that the mainstream way of starting and growing a business wasn’t going to work for me.
I started my business with a one-month-old and a desire to leave my 9 to 5 within the year. As I grew my business while working full time I started to recognize the complexity of most business strategies. I made modifications as I went to scale my business to 6-figures.
Then, when my family sold everything to travel full time I made even more shifts to simplify my approach.
What I’ve learned along the way is that there is a simpler way to run your business and it comes down to implementing this 4-part framework.
And this framework isn’t just for people who travel, it’s designed for the woman who has a lot on her plate. You’re busy running a household, taking care of family, working your “other” jobs, you’re so ready for a simpler way to build a business.
Think of the framework as building blocks. Each one leads to another, if you skip one you’ll feel lost and overwhelmed, and that’s no way to grow a business.
By stripping away the access, just like in life, we can’t focus on the areas that yield the best results - this framework is all about that!
ENTREPRENEUR GROWTH PROBLEMS
Look, starting and running an online business can be hard. As we’ve mentioned previously things like a saturated market and imposter syndrome can really hold you back.
But, there’s another piece of the puzzle and that’s all the information online. It can be super easy to consume bits and pieces of information and try to piece it all together, but then you’re left with quite a few holes.
You might find yourself doing all the things, working for hours in your business, but experiencing little to no results.
Or taking in all the hodgepodge of information and questioning yourself and what you should be focused on to see results or your ability to build your business.
And worse, what I like to call SOS or Shiny Object Syndrome. You go down a path and then see something or hear something and think, “Wait let’s do that instead!”
These things are holding you back because not only are you doubting your ability to do it, but you’re also all over the place (said with love)!
The fastest way to grow is to create a path and give it dedication for at least 30 days. Based on your data, numbers, and feedback you can then pivot (you’ll see this when we talk about marketing below).
By having a clear framework to follow and repeat you’re able to simplify the entire process, optimize your time, and see results.
Ok, let’s get into it!
**If you want to watch the full video and details of the 4-part framework you can watch the video below.
LEVEL 1: BRAND FOUNDATIONS
Every brand needs to start here. These are the foundational pieces of your brand and business and integral in the overall growth and success.
This level includes identifying your niche, ideal customers, messaging, core offer(s), and the emotional or connection side of your brand.
The great news is this stage doesn’t have to be revisited often, if you put in the work now, but it does require work so people skip it. If you skip it you’ll find yourself constantly spinning your wheels and wondering what’s missing.
This stage should take 4 to 6 weeks to complete. I say this very specific timeline because one of the pitfalls of this level is that so many entrepreneurs never leave it.
They stay here rethinking and reworking all the details until they realized their one year into their business and haven’t made any money. This is why guidance at the foundational level is so important!
Remember, this stage is less about creating your logo, picking your colors, and designing your website, and more about the market research, becoming better at messaging and gaining clarity on your niche and offer.
If you want to scale your business, then the foundational pieces are key.
LEVEL 2: COMMUNITY GROWTH
Once you know who you are, who you want to attract, and what you want to offer, it’s time to build that community.
You have nothing if you don’t have someone to sell too and so many entrepreneurs, especially that first year in business make the mistake of assuming they’ll sell to no one - we all know it doesn’t work like that.
Here’s where you gain clarity on and design the method in which you’ll grow your community - the lead magnet and funnel.
When it comes to the lead magnet you want to create something that solves a problem and is in alignment with your core offer. I see so many entrepreneurs go too wide at this stage in an attempt to grow their community quickly, but then they are left with a large list of random people and no ideal clients (paying clients).
Some common mistakes to avoid at this stage are:
Being too general with your lead magnet/ freebie
Not solving a problem for your audience (no one needs more stuff)
Creating a resource that’s not wanted by your audience.
The goal is to attract and bring in your ideal customer, the one that is the best fit for your paid program.
From there, and during this level, you want to create your onboarding funnel or lead magnet funnel. Think of this as the conversation!
If you were at a party and met someone, who might be interested in your services, what would you want them to know about you, your work, and your offers?
So many entrepreneurs make this crazy complex in the beginning, but it’s really just about making sure every person that joins your community knows who you are and can determine in those first few automated emails if you’re the right fit for them!
At this level, once you have these two pieces in place you begin to move into the goal of daily community growth. That’s why this stage is so important because it gives you the tools you need to do just that.
LEVEL 3: CLIENT ATTRACTION
Continuing with our building blocks we enter into level three. Now, level three is where marketing or client attraction starts to happen in full force.
With the simplified business model, every day you’re focused on three things:
Growing your community
Nurturing your community
Making a sale
So, you never fully move through this level, you are just constantly testing, tweaking, and scaling.
This level can look like utilizing social media, blogging, Pinterest, SEO, Youtube, podcasting and so much more.
Personally, I love evergreen types of content as a way to build my community and nurture my existing one. Evergreen content means content that keeps performing, it doesn’t disappear after a few hours, but rather continues to drive traffic and bring in leads.
In my business, this is blogging + Pinterest, which also gives me a major boost with my SEO. So my leads are coming in from Pinterest and Google Searches mostly.
No matter what you choose, all though I HIGHLY recommend evergreen content, you need traffic. Consistent traffic and leads entering your funnel and into your community is key to growing a business.
It ensures you always have someone to sell too!
The key here is consistently creating content, whatever that means for you. And remember, consistency doesn’t mean posting daily (that’s not simple), it means finding a schedule that works for you at this stage and sticking to it.
If your current approach to level three feels exhausting because you're posting daily on Instagram or engaging for 30-minutes every day in Facebook Groups it’s time to rethink your strategy. Consider one of the evergreen platforms above and the art of repurposing to optimize your time and content strategy.
Remember, this level is going to expand and grow as your business grows!
LEVEL 4: AUTHENTIC SELLING
At this stage, you have people coming into your community and inquiring about your services which is amazing! Now, it’s time to improve your conversions.
Think of it like this; if you have a landing page for your lead magnet and it’s converting at 20% would you choose to scrap the entire thing and start over or make some small adjustments and improve the conversion to 50%?
Hopefully, you picked adjustments because it’s the simpler and less time-consuming approach. Well, sales are the same.
You have to start somewhere and so many entrepreneurs start worrying about how they are going to sell, the conversation or script, etc.. rather than focusing their energy on Levels 1-3.
You need these levels to get people on the phone with you or in your DM’s and then you can fine-tune it from there.
Authentic selling looks like improving your sales conversations, your client onboarding and client retention - because we all know it’s easier and cheaper to keep an existing client than to find a new one.
CONCLUSION
I hope you’ve picked up on the theme here, it’s not about doing more or working harder it’s about making smarter decisions.
I witness so many entrepreneurs get too ahead of themselves. They're worried about the sales call and how they’ll do before they even have someone interested in chatting.
They’re obsessed with their website and making it perfect, but don’t have a marketing strategy to then drive traffic to the website.
The reality is driving traffic to a lead magnet landing page, in the beginning, is a better use of your time!
As you’re thinking of your own business and some of the holes that might have been exposed while working through this framework, I want to invite you to check out Roadmap to Freedom.
This exact 4-part framework is what makes up my signature group program designed to support you in making money on your terms and create a life of abundant experiences and impact.
Learn more at brandmerry.com/freedom.
Watch the full video training + some insider tips below.
- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -
DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES
LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS
MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR
- READ THE LATEST POSTS -
MEET MICHELLE
Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.
I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.
I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.
This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.