Unlocking the Perfect Balance: Leveraging Free and Paid Content for Growth [368]

Ever wondered how you can build a thriving business with the perfect balance of free and paid content? From my own experience, I've leveraged free 15-minute strategy calls to grow my business and showcase my expertise. While many people don't value free advice, the exchange of money drives them to pay attention and take action. Let's explore how you can make the most out of free resources and paid services to resonate with your audience and help them achieve their goals.

OMNI - Become Known, In Demand, and Confidently Visible
With a visibility strategy that works harder than you do.

OMNI is your group coaching experience where you learn how to create visibility that works harder than you do. A strategic blueprint to become discoverable on the feed, search and AI. https://thevisibleceo.com/omni 

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Transcript

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Build Business With Free & Paid

Speaker 1 0:02

As I am chatting about giving things away for free , as per always , use discernment , try things on , see how they feel for you . This is totally from my experience , so I want to clarify that right now , and when I say giving things away for free , i mean more one-on-one and individual , free attention . I believe that we build our business by giving away free knowledge , obviously with our content is free on social media platforms . My podcast is free On any podcast platform you want to download it from . My YouTube channel is free . My email is free , right , i do live videos and reels with short , impactful information all the time for free , and so there is a lot of free out there , and I do believe that having free resources is what builds your business Free lead magnets , free downloadables , free challenges , free masterclasses all those things right . They play a huge role in building our business , positioning us as the expert , as the authority , and bringing people into our world in a free capacity so that they can really see how we coach , how we teach , how we mentor , how we talk . Like does it land with them , does it resonate with them , like . It's a great way for people to see is this person my person or does she annoy me ? Or does she not teach in a way that makes sense to me ? Like , everybody has a different brain , our brains work different ways , and so I love free content for that , for that meaning .

Speaker 1 1:50

Now , before I get into this deep conversation , i also built my business on free 15 minute strategy calls . So I used it because at the time I wasn't as comfortable going and creating like master classes . But one-on-one calls felt really , really comfortable to me . And when I say one-on-one calls , they were not Zoom calls , they were phone calls . So because I didn't want to be on Zoom any more than I had to be , and so what I would do in these 15 minute free calls is they were all pure strategy action . Blah , blah , blah . You can do what you want , right , you can do . You can take it and do it or not , or just walk away . But oh , that was nice , i should do that and never do it . And then , after the 15 minute call , then I would send them an email with the action steps and then also my recommended like what program they should join or what I had available . So I said I wouldn't sell on the calls and it would be all strategy . And it was .

Speaker 1 2:50

And it's interesting because I can't tell you how many . I mean . I want to say like that upwards of 80 , maybe a hundred phone calls that I did for free when I started my business , and I know of one person out of all those free calls that actually did the thing . Now some of them may have started doing the thing , but they weren't consistent with the thing , right . And I know one person who did it , who literally rocked every word that I said . She was on the edge of her seat taking action and it was phenomenal to see , right . But what percentage is that ? Like less than 1% of people that did it and like literally along the way , telling me I implemented this , implemented that , like it's funny , because she was part of a network marketing company at the time and she went to their annual conference and she said I don't even know why , like I went to the social media because you've taught me more than that person taught me and I could have taught the whole class better . And the person was like looking at me for answers because she didn't know some of the answers of people's questions and I was like that's interesting , but again , it's part of that person that you know . Did she end up buying stuff from me . Yes , but she was implementing the free stuff that I told her and I think that is huge and a mentor .

Speaker 1 4:28

I heard recently tell this story and I think it was very , very interesting . And she said when we give free coaching , it's free advice . And what do people do with free advice ? They don't value it , they don't honor it . Oh , thank you for your advice .

Speaker 1 4:47

Right , like moving on , and she told this story and she said you're a personal trainer and you go to the gym every day with your friends and your friends . They have no idea what to do . You're telling them what to do . They're doing it , they're working out , they're showing up , blah , blah , blah . Right . Then you decide you're gonna create a business and you will go to the gym with people , but you're gonna charge them because that's your knowledge . How many people are still going to go to the gym if they have to pay you ? How many people value your knowledge when there is an exchange of money ? And to me , that was very , very powerful because , honestly , i have a gym membership . But when I paid my trainer , that's when I showed up , that's when I was consistent , it was an exchange of energy , that's when I did the work . Now , when I got home , i could have been like , okay , she's not around , i can lay on the couch , i can eat whatever . But I didn't , because I saw her every single day and I was paying her and I knew I was gonna show up because I was paying her right . And so it was a very big eye-opener that when we pay , we pay attention , especially when there's accountability .

Speaker 1 6:26

Now , there's a lot of dualities on this episode , i know . So listen up and do what feels right for you and do what feels good for you . Can you build your business doing free coaching calls ? Absolutely . Are those people ever gonna pay you ? The majority probably not .

Speaker 1 6:52

And here's the thing and this is just something I had a conversation with somebody yesterday about is that , yes , i love to sell things . Don't get me wrong . It's part of my business , right , It's part of being a business owner . However , i don't like selling things that people don't do . That doesn't bring me joy . Like , if I have a free masterclass and you don't do it , does it do me any good ? Does it do you any good ? Nope , it does not . If you pay $77 for this three day program but you don't do it , does that make me happy ? No , no , it doesn't make me happy .

Speaker 1 7:34

I don't just want your money , i want you to work on yourself , i want you to see results , i want you to have a transformation . And I think that's a big difference and that's definitely a growth for me , because it used to just be exciting that people said , yes , whether it's free or paid , but then I realized that you're not doing the work . You can't have a transformation if you don't do the work right . And so it's like free or paid coaching right , it gets to be paid . And then also it gets to be somebody who is aligned and really wants to make the change and is really willing to do the work and make the effort right .

Speaker 1 8:21

And so , as you grow your business , at the beginning it's just like I need people in the program . I want people in the program . I don't care what they do after that , but you will , and that's all I'll say . You will . You want people to show up , you want people to participate and you want people to be a part of it and really just have a whole moment and blow their own mind . And at the beginning it can totally be ego , right , like I want the numbers . I want the numbers . I want the numbers , but then it becomes I could care less . Don't again . Do not show up just to listen and then walk away and never do anything with it , like when I stopped going through the motions and started really meaning everything I did on my mentors' calls . Also , when you pay $1,000 a month , you mean it . When you pay $3,333 a month , you mean it . When you pay $1,000 for a membership a month , you mean it Like you do the things right . And I think again discernment , everything I say discernment , do what feels good to you . This is my

The Value of Repetition in Learning

Speaker 1 9:38

experience .

Speaker 1 9:38

Only I found that really for me , i can't just listen to a training one time . It does not . I will have a lot of a ha's from one time . But there are trainings . There's a training that my mentor did that I have listened to this thing , i'm gonna guess , eight times . Now It's a . I think it's a three , three or five video training , so that's three to five hours , and I have listened to it over and over and over .

Speaker 1 10:19

And there is a reason , because I take something different away every single time . I'll never forget watching the Think and Grow Rich Search and Movie It's . If you haven't seen it , it's amazing . You could buy it online and watch it online , and I remember watching that and I remember them talking about reading the book And somebody said this is your manual to grow your business , or for life , basically Because it was more than business owners on there . But they said this is your manual and every single year you should read it again , because every single year you will have a totally different takeaway and something that you didn't see before , that you didn't need before , that you need right now , in this moment , and I think that's why I started , especially when it's mindset focused , or action focused , or growth focused , or emotional intelligence focused . That's why I started listening to things over and over , because I know there's something I'm going to take away .

Speaker 1 11:14

And besides , yes , there are moments in my car that I want to jam and I want to listen to . That probably dated me by saying that , but I want to listen to music , right . And then there are times that I just want to listen . I need my mentor in my ear and I need to hear her voice over and over to send me in the right direction . And maybe that's what you do with podcasts . Maybe you've been to these podcasts and you do just that And I hope it serves and support you .

Speaker 1 11:39

But one time is just not enough for me anymore . I want all the value and I want it to sink in and literally , in a way , i want to be brainwashed by the people that admire . I want to be brainwashed by the people that are , you know , are doing amazing things and creating beautiful spaces and having the time of their life Like truly . That is what I want And that's what I'm striving to work towards And that's what I will continue to work towards , and I hope this going from free to how I learn podcasts gave you some takeaways and gave you some ah-has and really helps you think about as you deliver content to your audience , as you deliver free coaching to your audience And as you pay and participate in programs and containers . I hope this helps you think of things in a little different way . That works for you .