Coaching Session with 4 ladies - podcast recording
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[00:00:00]
Kaelynn Priest: We're gonna switch things up today. Instead of bringing you one podcast guest, I've invited four amazing business owners to come on and let me coach them. And these amazing ladies agreed to let me record this session, and I think you're gonna be so grateful because the topics and things we discussed are so relevant.
They're things that I've uniquely experienced, and just, you know, those things that people just don't talk about unless you own a business. Sometimes there are just weird things that come up that you just need another person who has business expertise to get a second opinion on. So part of the reason why I'm so excited for this particular session is that this session I am walking these four ladies through my keep, change, release, multiply method that I'm gonna be teaching in my upcoming wor- workshop called Simplify and Multiply.
A principle that I learn and relearn and that God reteaches me over and over and [00:01:00] over in my business is that small and simple things are how great things are brought to pass. And when I overcomplicate things, when I get super stressed about things, when I start working too much, that's when things get messy.
That's when growth actually slows down. It's very counterintuitive and always hard for my brain to wrap itself around, but especially in these conversations, you're gonna hear a lot of examples of ways that simplifying your business will actually help you make more money. So watch out for the link in my show notes for the Simplify and Simplify and Multiply workshop, which is coming on Thursday, September 25th.
You can grab a ticket to come, and there's a lot of extra amazing bonus resources that I'm gonna be providing. Basically, it's gonna be a 60-minute workshop where I'm going to walk you through a workbook where we're gonna figure out what needs to change in your business. What do you need to simplify?
What do you maybe need to release or let go of so that you can multiply the fruit of your business, [00:02:00] AKA the sales, the money, the growth, the impact? So without further ado, here are these four amazing coaching conversations
Kaelynn Priest: okay, should we do it? All right, Amy, why don't you go first? And each of you, will you give us a quick little intro? Some of you I know a little bit about your business, but assume that none of us know anything about your business.
Give me the intro, and then tell me what you would love support with today.
Amy Jacobs: Okay. I am Amy Jacobs. I am a mindset coach for rodeo athletes. I have a full mental performance program that I take my athletes through. also a certified health and life coach, but I don't do a ton with that right now. And I think today, one of the things that I would love help on, I think I struggle a lot with just feeling kind of, like a failure in the other areas of my life because I get so consumed with my [00:03:00] work, and then that kind of like cycles around and also makes me feel like I'm not showing up good enough for my work either.
And I kind of like fall into this cycle of just like imposter syndrome and struggling with what I'm doing, if that makes any
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah. No, it makes total sense. Can you give me a specific scenario of something that's driving you crazy?
Amy Jacobs: Yeah, so like, for example, this is like, I feel like it's such first world problems. But for example, I get a lot of DMs every day, and I just like have a really hard time keeping up with the DMs, and it overwhelms me. So then I procrastinate on it, and then I get more DMs. And I just feel like I have, like, of those little monotonous tasks
that I need to do every day, and I usually end up not, like, doing them in a
Kaelynn Priest: Yep
Amy Jacobs: fashion, and it all just kind of builds up. And then when I am spending time with my family or when I [00:04:00] am when I do have time to just, like, hang out with myself, I think I really struggle feeling like I should be moving things along and working
Kaelynn Priest: Mm-hmm. Yes. Okay. I'm so glad we're talking about this. Okay, so first tell me... Okay, actually first, I want to really just, like, n- let you know that I so see you, and that this challenge is not just, you know, this is not, like, just a superficial challenge like, "Oh my gosh, I have so many DMs."
This is actually, like, a bottleneck on your business, because I would bet that it's requiring so much emotional energy, mental energy for sure. Even when you're not sitting there actively responding to them, you are thinking about them, which means that your creativity is now away from your business and on something else, which has a cost, right?
So just know this is not, this is a... I don't wanna say... This is a big problem we need to solve. This is a super real problem, and I'm so glad that we're gonna work on it today. [00:05:00] So first, give me some, like, what does the content of these DMs look like? Is it people asking you questions? Is it people who wanna work with you?
Give me a rundown.
Amy Jacobs: It's typically a mixture of people asking me questions and then people who do want to work with me as well. It's
usually, like, 50/50 Okay. That's, like, the best problem ever.
I know. I feel like I feel horrible even talking about it 'cause I'm like, I feel like
Kaelynn Priest: No
Amy Jacobs: this is kind of first-world problems, but also I just get And I think it just, like, transfers into so many areas. Like, I stopped posting just, like, in hopes that can just chill for a couple weeks, and I
Kaelynn Priest: Yep
Amy Jacobs: posted in probably six weeks or so, which is costing me what I feel
like more potential, like, clients and people
Kaelynn Priest: Yep.
Amy Jacobs: can help.
You know what I
Kaelynn Priest: Yep, for sure. Okay, so it sounds like this is a bottleneck that we need to figure out a, a solution for, obviously. So let me throw some ideas out at you, and you let [00:06:00] me know what you think. First would be to build s- some automations that can automatically reply to people. Second would be to hire someone who can respond to your DMs for you.
If you just had those two options to choose from, which one sounds like a bigger relief?
Amy Jacobs: Maybe you can help me with that because I would love the automation, but I also struggle, like I don't- I struggle feeling inauthentic on my social media anyways. And so that one's a little bit hard for me. Hiring someone to do the conversations, I've done that in the past and I, I didn't love the first person that helped me. The second person did. She's actually on maternity leave right now, so I'm going
Kaelynn Priest: Gotcha
Amy Jacobs: month of not having that. But I just like have a hard time finding someone like her that I would really trust to handle those things.
So I don't know. I feel like that's where I'm also struggling is
I don't know which one I would like more[00:07:00]
Kaelynn Priest: Does one feel like It would take more off of your plate in the long run
Amy Jacobs: Yeah. I think the automations would take more off my plate in the long
Kaelynn Priest: Okay. Let's play with that. I'm like
You know, we can... Here's another thing that I've learned too, is we can train your audience to engage with you in a certain way. So I want you to, instead of thinking of, you know, being inauthentic in the way that you engage in your DMs, instead I want you to think of your DMs like your secretary, where they have to go through some things in order to even get access to you.
Like, if I were to call the dental office right now, I probably wouldn't be able to talk to the dentist. I would most likely talk to at least one secretary or a nurse or something, right? So I want you to think about your DMs that way. This is not you being inauthentic. This is actually a beautiful way for you to prioritize serving your clients better.
Amy Jacobs: I love that
Kaelynn Priest: So with that being said, I think some automations would [00:08:00] be great. And I would even say, like, let's put something in your bio that says, like, "DM me this specific keyword." We could set up a ManyChat automation so that when it get- when they get... they send that specific keyword, they get a certain response from you.
And that way you can also kind of remind yourself, like, it's my client's, future client's job to send me the right keyword, right? To use all of the steps that I've asked them to do to be respectful of my boundaries to be able to get the best response from me Tell me, tell me what's coming up for you
Amy Jacobs: Yeah, I love that. I think I've kind of had this belief of like I need to be personally, like, responding to people and texting people, and I do consults with them anyways before they sign up for my program. And so I agree with you 100%. I think if someone needs the service that I'm offering, I [00:09:00] think being able to make it more functional for me so that I'm not bottlenecking my business in that way, I really like that, and
Kaelynn Priest: Yep.
Amy Jacobs: inauthentic.
Kaelynn Priest: It's not. It's actually... And I really want you to remind, I'm like, I'm thinking like a specific situation that I've been through is like I had to remind myself this is good for them too. It helps me serve them better. If, it would be one thing if you were like, "I actually love chit-chatting with people in the DMs."
But if you're like, "I don't like this,"
I think we can use the relief of not having to do that as information that there's something about this that is not aligned with your soul, so let's create a different process that works better
Amy Jacobs: Yeah. I think I struggled with that for a long time, because when I first started my business and first started doing it, I did love chit-chatting with people in the DMs. But just, like, as I've shifted, I think I'm like, there's less value in that for them too. Like, there's
less value in that for [00:10:00] them,
and there's more value when they're able to, like, actually step into this new program, and I'm able to actually give more time to those people who actually want the conversation more.
So that's, like, a really good realization that I'm just barely having.
Kaelynn Priest: Yes. Yes, yes. And also, I would add this to it, too. This was a really great model I learned from one of my coaches years ago. She calls it friction versus flow. So basically, like, in the beginning of your business, you're like, "I will take any DM from anyone. Please DM me," right? So you're like, ask... You're, in your stories, like, "DM me if you want this.
Tap the story button. Fill out this question box," trying, in an effort to increase the amount of DMs that are flowing into your business. And then at a certain point, the flow becomes, like, overwhelming, becomes an overflow where you can't serve everyone the way that you want to. So then we almost have to, like, constrict the flow and add friction.
So I think that's the phase that you're at right now. That can look a lot of different ways. It could be even, like... [00:11:00] It could be an automation that sends to everyone that says, "Hey, I don't respond to DMs. Please go to the link in my bio and tap if you want to schedule a consult or get on my email list."
That'd be a really easy automation you could set up today, right?
Amy Jacobs: That would, yes. I love that
Kaelynn Priest: What else is coming up for you? Anything feeling sticky or not good about that?
Amy Jacobs: that honestly feels really good. I feel like I'm just having this ... You're helping me having this enlightening moment of, like, I don't have to micromanage every single task
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah。Yeah
Amy Jacobs: 'cause I definitely feel like w- if my hand's not in it, I almost get this, like, panic of unknowing. Like, did that person get taken care of? Like, did this task get taken care of? And just kind of knowing that that actually wouldn't be a problem with those automations in place, and I wouldn't actually have to worry about those anymore, that's very [00:12:00] enlightening
for me, and not even something that I really considered at
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah.
Amy Jacobs: all
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah. So two additional things that I wanna say about that. One would be, I think I kinda mentioned this earlier, but, like, you can put some of the responsibility back on your people. Instead of you being like, "I'm scrambling over here trying to take care of everyone," you can kinda reflect that back to them and be like, "If you want to work with me, you know how Instagram works.
Here's the link in my bio. Click the button. Schedule the thing," right? So that's the first thing. The second thing that I wanna say, and I'm only saying this because this is something that I found for myself, is I want you to sort of take this snapshot situation as a template, and then think, "Where else am I doing this?
Where else am I secretly, maybe even subconsciously, feeling pressure to take care of everyone instead of either setting up systems or boundaries to take care of me or asking more from them? 'Cause I'm delivering so much [00:13:00] value. I'm posting free content. Where can I ask for some of that love and responsibility back from them?"
Might be an interesting journaling question
Amy Jacobs: I love that journey- journaling question. I think that's something that I've done a lot of work on this past year more in my personal life, 'cause I was definitely that person, just like micromanaging everything, keeping everything above water, doing all of the things. And thankfully, this past year, that has eased a lot as I've been just, like, kind of working through that.
But I didn't apply that to my business
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah. Yep
Amy Jacobs: business has been 100% on me trying to micromanage and keep everything above water. So yeah, I love that
Kaelynn Priest: So good. I really want you to think about, I think we'll be talking about this a lot with each of you. If we take the the framework of simplify to multiply, how beautifully that [00:14:00] applies in this situation. Like, by simplifying this process that not only takes your time, but requires a certain amount of invisible mental, emotional load, what else could you go create in your life, in your business with...
if we could re- redirect that space in your brain to building your business? So cool
Amy Jacobs: That is so cool to think about. 'Cause I think I do, like, when I'm doing really well mentally and I'm, like, not feeling overloaded or overwhelmed or like I have too much to do, I do... And I'm not, like, a naturally super creative person, but when I am not so stressed, I do feel this, like, wave of creativity, and I have really exciting ideas that I absolutely love, and I feel like so many of them just never actually happen because
I spend all of my time doing things that aren't even, like, producing anything [00:15:00] anyways
Kaelynn Priest: Yep. Such a good, such good awareness. Also, you are naturally creative. Don't tell yourself you're not. You are. You are, like, divinely creative.
Amy Jacobs: Thank you. I have
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah
Amy Jacobs: felt that way, and I think I need to s- keep, like, continue to look inward at that because I've never felt creative at all
Kaelynn Priest: Look at the business that you have created. Like, it may not be like cute Canva templates,
Amy Jacobs: Yes,
Kaelynn Priest: but
Amy Jacobs: does not,
Kaelynn Priest: you have created something amazing that still exists in physical form
Amy Jacobs: Yeah. That's a really cool way to look at it, 'cause yeah, it is a creation in and of itself even though it's not creative
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah,
Amy Jacobs: the cutesy way.
Kaelynn Priest: yes, yes. Like
Amy Jacobs: that
Kaelynn Priest: it, it's a different kind of physical manifestation of an idea that you had in your head. Still creative
Amy Jacobs: Yeah. [00:16:00] I love that
Kaelynn Priest: How's that feeling?
Amy Jacobs: It feels really good. It, and it kind of like makes me feel a little bit... It kind of reminds me of this other problem that I feel like I'm running into also as a business owner who primarily, like, markets on social media is feel like I have a really hard time showing up authentically as me on social media. I feel like I do a really good job, like, bringing in clients and bringing in leads, but at the end of the day, I don't really feel like people truly know who I am as a person. And I think that is somewhat of a bottleneck because when, sometimes when people do, like, get on consults with me, and I feel pretty confident in my sales as well, but I do feel like when people get on consults with me, it, they feel like they're getting on with a stranger. I think that's also, like, an area as a business owner that I'd like to improve on also. But I also struggle with just debilitating [00:17:00] imposter syndrome about showing up as me on social media. I think I've hid behind my business, especially for this last like year, and I've marketed, like, the business and, like, done the business thing.
And now I'm like, "Wow," and nobody, like, really knows me, and no one, like, actually feels connected with me unless they're in my program
Kaelynn Priest: Okay. I have some thoughts on that. My first question for you is, does showing up on Instagram feel like something that you actually really, like, does it feel like a desire in your heart, or does it feel like something you should do?
Amy Jacobs: It feels like a desire because I think, I think I do the things that I should do, and I put my desires to the side and do the things I should, should do first. And that's what I've done. And now I'm just like, have this sense of almost like Well, I don't know if I'd describe it as, as loneliness, but just like [00:18:00] inauthentic and like lack of connection.
Like, I as a person just like love connection and want people to feel like they have a place at my table, and I don't feel that at all,
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah
Amy Jacobs: my social media presence at all
Kaelynn Priest: So the first thing I was... The reason I asked that question is because part of me is like, you could also think of Instagram, like the way... You could also think of it like a boundary. Like, I don't connect with people for free unless they're in my paid programs.
And in that case, like what you're doing is great.
But because you said, "I want to create content and I want to be more visible," I'm like, "Let's solve that problem."
So tell me what is slowing you down from creating content?
Amy Jacobs: I just have this, like, voice in my head that's like, "No one cares. No one cares about your life."
Kaelynn Priest: Do you feel like you have time to create the content that you want to?
Amy Jacobs: I actually do. Like, I feel
Kaelynn Priest: Okay
Amy Jacobs: a place in [00:19:00] my life now where I do feel like I, I have time for that, and I think just what keeps me from doing that is feeling like anyone would care anyways, even though that's the point of why I want to do it.
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah. Let's play around with this. Let's massage this a little bit. Do you feel like... Do you feel excited about the results that your clients get?
Amy Jacobs: I am, yes
Kaelynn Priest: They probably really care.
Amy Jacobs: Yeah.
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah?
Amy Jacobs: You're right.
Kaelynn Priest: Right?
Amy Jacobs: Yeah
Kaelynn Priest: When you say nobody cares, does it feel like literally no one cares, or it's just a small, small, small percentage of people who care?
Amy Jacobs: Now that you say that out loud, probably, not that nobody cares, probably just a small percentage
Kaelynn Priest: So in case you guys missed it, Amy is a rodeo coach, a coach for rodeo athletes. Yes.
Amy Jacobs: Yes
Kaelynn Priest: I don't know any rodeo athletes personally, so this is a [00:20:00] super... It's a great niche. I was gonna say a super small niche. I don't think that's actually even true. It's just a great niche. So I wonder if part of the disconnect is, like, knowing that your ideal person is out there, but m- like, a large percentage of people aren't going to feel, like, super called to watch content about rodeo athletes
Amy Jacobs: Yeah. I think I do feel that way. And yeah.
Kaelynn Priest: Ja?
Amy Jacobs: is, it is, like, it's not a small niche, but it definitely is, like, a niche. You know what I mean? And so I do think that part of it is that, like, oh, Amy goes again just, like, talking about this that only rodeo athletes care about
Kaelynn Priest: Okay, but this is the thing, and I- u- use me as an example because I just have experienced this in the last, like, three months, so this is super fresh for me, right? I've been creating content, [00:21:00] like, educational marketing and c- content for course creators and digital product creators for the last, like, three years.
Only the last three months I started saying LBS entrepreneurs, and you've seen my account grow. People like you have landed in my Zoom room, which, like, we didn't know each other three months ago, right? So use my story as an example that the more niche you get, the faster you grow.
And not even just, like, a I don't know.
I think, like, sometimes we forget that pe- there are a certain number of people who will be obsessed with your content, and there are a certain number of people who won't care, and that's a good thing. I'm like, the more we can make it so that more people don't care, that means we've made your content more magnetic.
Because in order for a magnet to work, it has to have polar opposites. It has to [00:22:00] attract, and it has to repel
Amy Jacobs: That totally makes sense. Yeah, I think there's this, like, people pleaser part of me, which I'm not, like, a super, super people pleaser, I don't feel like, but I do feel like there is that small part of me that's like that's what I thought that I needed, was just, like, for everyone, like,
to bring value to everyone's life,
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah
Amy Jacobs: I took that responsibility on.
But totally makes sense. Like, not everyone's the same,
Kaelynn Priest: Yes
Amy Jacobs: why so important
Kaelynn Priest: And that's why it's gonna feel super not fun to create content too, right? 'Cause if you're trying to create content for someone like me,
Amy Jacobs: Yeah
Kaelynn Priest: who doesn't even know anyone who's a rodeo athlete, it's like, what, what can I possibly say that would make Kaelyn care, right?
Amy Jacobs: Ja,
Kaelynn Priest: I want you to think about your past clients when you create content.
What did you say to them? What did you work on with them? What exercises did you do? What conversations did you have that made an impact for them? And create content for them. And remind your brain, like, I'm only [00:23:00] looking for a small percentage of people out there who this feels relevant to, and that's not a bad thing, that's a good thing
Amy Jacobs: Yeah. Yeah, that feels really good. 'Cause that's my, like, that's the people that I enjoy connecting with anyways lot of the
Kaelynn Priest: Exactly.
Amy Jacobs: know what
Kaelynn Priest: Exactly
Amy Jacobs: and I feel in what I can bring for them anyways, and I also think that I've known this logically, but I haven't really felt it on the deeper level till now, is, like, I that I have what a lot of them need, and by me not expressing that and, like, showing up to bring that to them is also kind of robbing them of the gifts that I feel like God blessed me with also
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah. I think you said that perfectly because what you just said, if more of us thought about sales that way,
Amy Jacobs: Yeah
Kaelynn Priest: we would stop feeling so weird about sales, right? It's like, no, I just know that I have what this specific person could greatly benefit [00:24:00] from. Yeah.
Amy Jacobs: Yeah
Kaelynn Priest: I want to help you. In order to do that, let's trade.
Amy Jacobs: Yeah.
Kaelynn Priest: That's all it really is. Sometimes we get weird about, like, the exchange of money and charging people money, and it's like, no, it's just an exchange. You are giving them value. They are giving you value. We both grow and increase together, and that's really good for them. It's good for you. It's good for your families.
It's good for the world
Amy Jacobs: I love that. Yeah, that feels really good
Kaelynn Priest: I like that. And by the way, I'm probably still gonna watch your content just because I'm, like, fascinated by your niche even though I know I'm not your ideal client. I would probably not hire you.
Amy Jacobs: I love that. It
Kaelynn Priest: Right?
Amy Jacobs: happy to know
Kaelynn Priest: So if you see people like me following you still and you're like, "Why is she watching this?" Just know it's because we actually do care, and it's interesting, and it's cool
Amy Jacobs: Well, thank you. I appreciate that so much
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah. You're super welcome. Is anything else on your mind, Amy?
Amy Jacobs: Nothing off the top of my head. That was just, like, super [00:25:00] insightful and helpful for me, so thank you so much
Kaelynn Priest: Good. I'm excited for you.
Amy Jacobs: Thank you, Carl
Kaelynn Priest: You're so welcome. All right, Caitlin, I'm coming over to you. Are you ready for this?
Kaitlyn B: Yes, I am.
Kaelynn Priest: Let's go
Kaitlyn B: All right, so my name is Caitlin Benincosa, and in my line of work, I get a lot of brides that are trying to find a wedding veil that truly represents who they are as a bride and what their wedding theme represents, and that's where I come in. I make wedding veils from floral embroidery tulle so that they can have a veil that truly feels like them. And the thing that I feel like I recently have been feeling stuck on with my business is I feel like probably multiple times a week, probably multiple times a day, I feel like I get lots of like promptings that are, you know, ideas of new things that I can implement within my business to better myself as a business owner [00:26:00] or to better my business.
And I feel like I get so many ideas, and I write them down, and then it's like every month they keep on moving to the next month because it's like I'm just like, either I just am like, "Is that like really... Is it a good idea?" Like, or am I just making stuff up? so sometimes I just feel like I'm like prolonging like ideas that I'm getting from Heavenly Father to like help with my business. For example earlier this year I had an idea that I needed to like completely like discontinue a certain length that I offer and then bring in a different length of wedding veils that I offer, and I literally sat on it for like six months. I was like, "No, like I shouldn't get rid of this length," and, "Eh, like maybe the new length might be too confusing or maybe unnecessary." And then last month I finally was like, "You know what? I'm just gonna do it." And so I went through all my listings on my [00:27:00] website, and maybe that was one of the reasons was because I knew it would take a couple of
hours to make the change on my website. And so I finally went and took a couple of hours and made the change, and then after I made the change it was like, okay, like it wasn't that scary.
And I feel like, you know, later on I was like, okay, that's why like I was getting a prompting to make that change and switch this around. so yeah, that's the thing that I feel like I get stuck on is I just have many ideas, and I feel like I get scared of those ideas
Kaelynn Priest: Okay. Again, I'm like, I can totally relate to this. I can think of projects that I've had just in the last couple of months that I, like, joke that they live at the bottom of my to-do list, 'cause, like, I don't want... I want them to stay on my list 'cause I don't wanna forget about it. I just have these other, like, recurring tasks that are more urgent every single day that that one just lives at the bottom of the list.[00:28:00]
So here's some of my questions for you, Caitlin, is let's, let's back up a little bit. First, does it feel true? Tell me how much you agree or disagree that... Or maybe I'll ask it this way: What percentage of the ideas that come to you, do they feel like Good ideas like revelation, or do you feel unsure whether they're good ideas in the first place?
Kaitlyn B: Feel like, like I know it's revelation, but then I feel like I'm just like second-guessing myself.
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah
Kaitlyn B: it's just I'm not feeling confident enough to trust the revelation. So
Kaelynn Priest: Okay. My next question for you is
Tell me if this is true or not, but in terms of, like, availability, my guess is probably that you are fully booked. Like, your availability is full.
Kaitlyn B: Yeah.
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah?
Kaitlyn B: Definitely
Kaelynn Priest: So, which, side note, I'm [00:29:00] gonna put everybody's Instagram handles in the show notes. Go look at Caitlyn's veils. They are unreal. Your handle's, it's Belle Botanical Creations, right?
Yeah, so go look at
Kaitlyn B: Creations. Yeah
Kaelynn Priest: these veils. They're next level. With that being said, it sound... Well, I'm like, I, I feel like I have a guess about what the problem is, but I want you to come up with it yourself. I want you to come up with the answer yourself. Do you feel like you have the amount of support that you need?
Kaitlyn B: I, I feel like I do. I mean, to be honest, I feel like maybe it's time to look at maybe hiring help for, like, certain things, like on the virtual aspect. Like kind of like what was talked about earlier, was maybe considering more automations or, like, hiring, like, someone to answer emails and DMs and all that kind of stuff. 'Cause I- it's definitely something I've considered, but then it kind of, know, [00:30:00] gets thrown off of the to-do list, and it goes onto the next week 'cause it's like
I'll look for people, and then it's like, "Well, I don't feel like I'm finding the right person," so then it
just gets moved to another list.
Um, but yeah, so I definitely think it could be related
Kaelynn Priest: so too. Yep.
Kaitlyn B: that.
Kaelynn Priest: If, this is one of my favorite things is sometimes, you know, we get in our heads as business owners and we're like, "Oh, I'm doing this because I'm scared or because I, I'm not sure the right thing to do," when actually, this is my prediction. You tell me if it's correct or not. I actually wonder if you just don't have the availability to do the things that you want to do
Kaitlyn B: Yeah, definitely.
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah.
So, and I'm saying that 'cause I've experienced that myself too, where it's like I have this thing I really wanna do. I don't even have an hour to spend on this anytime in the near future that I can think about. That to me is like we've gotta outsource that. We've gotta hire someone to do that. So tell me if you like this idea or not, but I think we should brainstorm either who we need to hire [00:31:00] for you next or where you're gonna find them.
So if I just ask you that question point-blank, who's the person that you need to hire? What's the role that you need to hire or want to hire next? What comes up for you?
Kaitlyn B: Definitely a virtual assistant that can answer emails, answer DMs, and least, you know, pretty much all of them hopefully.
Kaelynn Priest: Yep
Kaitlyn B: Um, yeah, and I think one idea that I had was maybe I need to, like, start looking on Instagram and, like, finding people that, like, advertise their virtual assistant, you know, doing Google searches. And, 'cause a lot of them offer, like, hey, like, a free 15-minute consultation, and sometimes it's like, well, like, I wanna get to know them, but it's like maybe I don't have time to, you know, do all these consults
Kaelynn Priest: Yep.
Kaitlyn B: different people.
Kaelynn Priest: Yep
Kaitlyn B: maybe it's just something that I just need to do to figure out, like, okay, like, am I gonna find someone to help me with communications in my business?
Kaelynn Priest: [00:32:00] Yep
Kaitlyn B: would open up space for doing more stuff that I feel like I need to keep on doing with.
Kaelynn Priest: yep. W- the way that I would say it is let's get some of these recurring tasks that anybody could do, you know, anybody in air quotes, so that you can do the things that nobody else can do. Like, I want your calendar working on the things that no one else can do, which probably looks like creating ideas for your offers.
Like, probably people could help with pretty much everything else if we let them, right? Which that's a whole layer. So my first question for you is, as far as a virtual assistant, is there a specific, Qualification or experience that you would love for them to have
Kaitlyn B: I would love for them to have experience being a business owner.
Kaelynn Priest: Okay
Kaitlyn B: I feel like I, I see a lot of people that, like, to be a virtual assistant and they, they just don't have experience [00:33:00] being a business owner, and I need someone that would understand, I guess, that side of world.
Kaelynn Priest: I love it. I love it. How many years of experience would you love her to have?
Kaitlyn B: Maybe like five to 10 years
Kaelynn Priest: Okay. Anything else? Like, does she need to have experience with the textile industry, wedding industry
Kaitlyn B: Definitely wedding industry, and then also, you know, another thing would be marketing. Like, they need to know marketing like the back of their hand, 'cause emails are pretty much marketing, you
Kaelynn Priest: Yep.
Kaitlyn B: reach out. So
Kaelynn Priest: I love this.
Kaitlyn B: yeah
Kaelynn Priest: Okay. That sounds like a pretty solid list. Anything else that you would love if you could, like, pick from a menu your ideal person
Kaitlyn B: I can't think of anything else off the top of my head, but I probably will later.
Kaelynn Priest: Okay. Do you know what I would actually do? Have you ever posted to your Instagram that you're hiring?
Kaitlyn B: No, I have not.
Kaelynn Priest: [00:34:00] I think that's actually what I would do for you. I was gonna tell you, like, we could get on Fiverr and find a virtual assistant, but it sounds like you want someone who can be a little bit closer proximity
Kaitlyn B: उहं।
Kaelynn Priest: post on your Instagram because your biggest fans are already hanging out there,
Kaitlyn B: That's true
Kaelynn Priest: and your ideal person's probably gonna come from your fans
Kaitlyn B: Yeah. That's true. I didn't even think
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah. Like I would... You could even make like a super simple Google Form application if you wanna do that part of the screening process right now or be like, "If you fit these, these three qualifications, send me a DM and let's chat." You have an audience that's sizable enough that I'd be surprised if nobody appeared.
And
maybe, maybe we even say someone's gonna know someone, or, you know, if, if for some reason you, I'm imagining you put this in your stories and nobody responds, I want you to do [00:35:00] it three more times 'cause there's just gotta be somebody in your audience that would love this and fit this
Kaitlyn B: Okay. Yeah. I like that idea.
Kaelynn Priest: Ja?
Kaitlyn B: It feels good to finally have a sense of direction.
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah. I would do that, and the great news is that takes five minutes, right?
Kaitlyn B: Yeah,
Kaelynn Priest: But I might also block out some time on your calendar that looks like instead of, you know, time that we would normally be like, "I'm gonna go respond to emails," I want you to, like, put an X on that on your calendar and be like, "This is the time I'm gonna look for the person who can answer the emails for the rest of forever," you know?
Kaitlyn B: Yeah. I like that.
Kaelynn Priest: I like that for you too. And then, you know, speaking of simplify and multiply, right? I wonder if, kind of like how I was saying with Amy too, I wonder if we could use this as a template too for other things. 'Cause when you get this off of your plate and you're like, "That just opened up four hours [00:36:00] of my week.
I had no idea I was spending that much time answering emails.
Kaitlyn B: Yeah
Kaelynn Priest: do I wanna create? What else do I wanna get off my plate? Or what else do I want support with? Do I wanna work less? Do I wanna scale my business more?" That's gonna open up some options for you
Kaitlyn B: Yeah. I like that
Kaelynn Priest: How's that feeling?
Kaitlyn B: Feels good. I feel so much better. Like, I feel like a weight has been lifted off of my shoulders, 'cause I've
Kaelynn Priest: Good
Kaitlyn B: dwelling on it. And it's interesting how, like, when you go and try to pick apart one problem you're dealing with, you find, like, three or four other problems,
Kaelynn Priest: Y- yes.
Kaitlyn B: those problems too.
Kaelynn Priest: Yep. And I'll add this too. When I go down the road of hiring someone, my brain... I have, like, a process brain where I'm like, I already need to start thinking about, like, how am I gonna train her, and, like, do I need to make, like, templates for the way that I want her to respond to things? Don't let yourself go too far down that systems route yet.
Let's find the person first.
Kaitlyn B: [00:37:00] उहं
Kaelynn Priest: There was some- somewhere I was going with that train of thought. Oh, it was about, like, how sometimes hiring someone can feel like it adds a huge chunk to your to-do list. Honestly, it might feel like that for a short little while, where it's like I gotta train her, I gotta catch her up to speed.
But just remind yourself that you are saving yourself hours and hours in the future. This is a long-run, long-term investment, but it's definitely worth prioritizing getting... You know, reallocating some time to this project so that you can have more time to s- to spend on the projects that actually create revenue for you, right?
Kaitlyn B: Yeah
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah. So cool, Caitlin. I love that for you.
Kaitlyn B: Thank you.
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah.
Kaitlyn B: help
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah. Anything else on your mind I can help with?
Kaitlyn B: No, I think that was pretty much it
Kaelynn Priest: Okay, cool. And I love your content.
Kaitlyn B: Thank you.
Kaelynn Priest: Your work is so beautiful,
Kaitlyn B: Thank
Kaelynn Priest: I love it. You're so welcome. All right, [00:38:00] Kelsey, I'm coming for you next. You ready for this?
Let's do it
Kelsey Stratton: All right, so I'm Kelsey Stratton. I'm, I'm not new to, like, starting businesses, but, like, this is... This one's newest for me, where, like, I've been coaching and feel like my problem is the foundation of it. Like, who am I is my ideal person? I have changed it so many times like, my Instagram bio, I've changed it so many times.
And I feel like as I'm posting more, I feel like it's coming more clear to me, if that
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah
Kelsey Stratton: um, like, my ideal thing is, like, I just wanna take, like, women on adventures, you know, a couple times a year or even, sell some digital products on there too. But I just, I want that to be fun and, and meaningful.
Like, I- I've done a retreat before and, like, afterwards these girls were, like, starting careers and things. You know, I just, like, want to ignite that spark in
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah.
Kelsey Stratton: again to,
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah
Kelsey Stratton: overcome fears, go [00:39:00] after your dreams. So anyways, that's kind of where I'm at, but I feel like I've changed my ideal person so many times and it's hard to feel like to just go all in and stay grounded in that foundation,
if that
Kaelynn Priest: Yes. Yeah. First, when you were describing, "I've changed my ideal person so many times," I'm like, "Same."
I've changed my bio so many times. I just want, you know, I'm thinking about you just like I just want you to know this is so normal, and I'm thinking about all the people listening too. It's like same.
Sometimes we just are, like, figuring it out. So all the love to you in this season of figuring it out. So I'm remembering I feel like I saw content on Instagram about your retreat. Tell us a little bit about how it went. Did you absolutely love it? Are you like, "I would, I wanna do this more"? Were you happy with how it went?
Kelsey Stratton: So before the retreat, I did like six weeks of coaching, like group coaching.
Kaelynn Priest: Okay
Kelsey Stratton: once a week we would meet, and I like fell in love with [00:40:00] that. Like, I felt so in flow with I, I loved the retreat too. It felt a little more stressful for me, 'cause
that just felt new.
But I still want to do it again. Like, our even ideal would probably be like a one-day event, let's go rappelling, let's talk about like the hard things,
Kaelynn Priest: So cool
Kelsey Stratton: things like that.
So, um, I would probably have to partner with some like outdoor adventure companies, but that's like my, my dream inside of me. the, yeah, the retreat, it was mostly just... didn't... it was mostly just, you know, young, 20s, 30s moms that... And afterwards, like these girls started, you know, some started becoming content creators, some went and invented, don't know, like a workout thing.
Just, you know, just different things that I was just like, "I want them to get creating again," and it brings me
so much joy to see
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah
Kelsey Stratton: So it's just how to word that, 'cause I feel like if you're just like, "Oh, I'm gonna get you creating
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah.
Kelsey Stratton: that doesn't
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah
Kelsey Stratton: And, um, I think too, just [00:41:00] doing the outdoor adventure stuff helps them like wake up their fears.
Like, you know how you do one thing, how you do everything, it
feels
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah,
Kelsey Stratton: So anyways, long answer short,
Kaelynn Priest: No, I get it. Tell me about... It, it seems like Would you love to attract a person who already loves outdoor adventures or get the girl there who's like, "I've never been rappelling before"?
Kelsey Stratton: Either
Kaelynn Priest: Okay
Kelsey Stratton: I'm, I'm good with just like helping them work through their fears. It doesn't, either Yeah. I- This is what I'm actually imagining for you is instead of, instead of thinking about, like, who's the ideal person that we want to have come, the way that I feel like I would create the messaging would be like, "Here's what we're gonna do when we get there. We're gonna be going on this ATV adventure.
Kaelynn Priest: We're gonna be rappelling. We're gonna be..." I'm trying to think of more cool things that I've seen you do. Mountain [00:42:00] biking. And almost, like, make that the promise. Like, here's what we're gonna be doing together. If you're on board for that, come, and then almost let the coaching transformation be, like, the beautiful side benefit, unexpected transformation that she gets as part of the experience.
But I think what you're actually selling is that end experience, whatever, you know, whatever it is for this particular event. I wonder if... Tell me, tell me what you feel about that, first of all.
Kelsey Stratton: I feel like originally I would agree, but I also feel like need to do something online to, like, call in the people more. Does
Kaelynn Priest: for sure
Kelsey Stratton: I'm, like, just being a young mom, I don't wanna be doing, like, a ton of outdoor adventure things in person. Like, I
wanna be home more and make some money online too, like with a digital product.
So sometimes
I'm like, "Well, should I..." 'Cause I've gone from 12-hour shifts to [00:43:00] having businesses so that I can have more freedom at home, you know? And so I'm like, do I try to call people in to do that?
that's kind of where I've been leaning towards recently. But So it's more of like a sort of business promise
I know, but I don't know why. Like, I feel like I'm not a business person. You know what I mean? Like, I have businesses, but I feel like I'm not... Like, I don't wanna be a business coach. Does Yes. It totally does
I just kinda wanna ignite the, like, wake up the dreams. The, The beginning stage.
Kaelynn Priest: उहम्।
Kelsey Stratton: to go after it, if that makes sense
Kaelynn Priest: Tell me more about your story
Kelsey Stratton: that's the pro- I have a lot of stories.
But I just feel, I know it's hard to have, I feel like someone tell you what to niche down to when I feel like it's kind of comes from within you, if that makes Yeah。
I I mean, I was a respiratory [00:44:00] therapist for 12 years. I actually, I loved my job, like I would want to do it forever, but I, I had some like...
My kid was diagnosed with autism um, we, you know, we had to go to certain schools, and I just knew I needed to be home more. And we were able to, you know, start Airbnbs um, vacation rentals, rentals, and that helped me, like, replace my income so I could be home more. so, like me and my husband together, we like starting businesses. And so, like trying to start this one when it's kind of been more by myself, it's
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah
Kelsey Stratton: This is this is I, I need some of that
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah
Kelsey Stratton: energy. But it's it's, I just feel called to do it, if
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah. Yes, it totally does. Okay. I feel like
There's a lot of angles we could take, yeah
But it sounds like the one that feels... The, when you first told me your story about what you loved about your retreats was the businesses that women went on to create next. Yeah? Yeah. I feel like that's the promise we should [00:45:00] rally around
Kelsey Stratton: I've kind of been feeling that to some degree Yeah. And I'll tell you from my experience with this account, like I mentioned, like, this is super fresh and always an ongoing experiment. For me, I feel like right now in my audience, there... It's probably a third of people either have a super concrete idea of the business they want to start or they have started the business.
Kaelynn Priest: There's a third that are in the super early stages, so they, you know, they, they know what they wanna do, but they haven't really taken a ton of action steps yet, and then there's a third of people who don't know what they wanna do.
So I'm almost like, I wonder if you were choosing between those three groups of who you would love to serve the most, not that you only can serve one, but I'm curious if there's one that sounds most fun to you to serve
Kelsey Stratton: Probably like the very beginning stages. Like maybe they're not sure what dream, or maybe they kinda have a, idea, but that would probably be my idea [00:46:00] is like, let's help you gain that confidence and like wake up
Kaelynn Priest: Yep, yep. I love that. And like I said, I know people are chomping at the bit, 'cause I get DMs every day from people who are like, "Can you help me figure out what business to start?" And I'm like, "No."
I don't like to do that, but you can talk to, you know... Like, I'll refer people to Kelsey if you like helping people do that.
But That was the first thing I wanted to say, and the second thing is that I want you to turn the volume up 10X on your story. I want you to talk about leaving your respiratory therapy job and starting Airbnb rentals, and how that made it so that you could replace your income. Because that is your authority story.
That's what makes me go, "Kelsey has walked the walk." Like, anyone can get on Instagram and be like, "I'll help you create a digital product and sell it for a million dollars." But the people who I'm most interested in following are the ones who have actually done the thing that was really, really scary, and took the action [00:47:00] steps, and figured it out, and did it successfully, that I feel like I have something to learn from them
Kelsey Stratton: Yeah. I like it. I feel like we're good. G- in a good Yeah.
Kaelynn Priest: Like I, and sometimes it might even feel like, like I want to give you full permission to like brag it up. You're gonna feel like, "Oh, but I don't wanna call any attention to myself. Oh, but I don't wanna sound like I'm bragging." I'm like, "No, I want you to brag because no one else is going to do that for you."
No one else is gonna be like, "Guys, did you know what Kelsey did?" So you may have to be a little bit bold and tell people exactly what you did. I was able to replace my income. I was able to leave my full-time job. I know how to start a business. I can help you do the same thing.
Kelsey Stratton: Okay. Here's Yeah, I
Kaelynn Priest: here's what my business looked like.
We went down the, the rental route. I would bet you'll probably get people who are like, "We wanna go that route too." Like, "If you know [00:48:00] how to do rentals, can I ask you questions about rentals?" But we'll figure that out in phase two. But for starters, boldly saying, "I've done the thing. I can help you do the thing," will make your content really pop
Kelsey Stratton: Okay. Yeah, I I feel like I've had a hard time knowing, like, should I niche it down, like religion? I don't know. I've never felt like I should do totally LDS, but I wanna be able to talk about sense? So just do that
Kaelynn Priest: I don't have an answer for you on that. Pray about it and see if something comes through. I still think, like, people who believe in God, Christians, is still a really strong group of people. I would bet, this is from my experience, people will be able to tell you're LDS. Yeah. And so they'll be super, they'll be super drawn to you because you're LDS, whether you say it or not.
So a lot- I would bet there will still be a [00:49:00] large percent of your audience that will be LDS, is
my prediction
Kelsey Stratton: Yeah. I even made a post calling out my bishop teasing him, so I
Kaelynn Priest: Yes. Okay, that's the perfect example. Yeah, we all know.
Kelsey Stratton: I was like, I feel like I'm going sideways. You know what I mean? Like, sometimes you go, like, down these rabbit
holes just for
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah
Kelsey Stratton: and I'm like, "Okay, bring it Kelsey. What, what, who's my person?"
Kaelynn Priest: I'm like, "No, don't bring it back. Keep giving us the fun, spontaneous
Kelsey Stratton: fun. thoughts from Kelsey. I love it."
Well, thank I'm, I'm all over the place, as I, you can tell. But
Kaelynn Priest: You're not.
Kelsey Stratton: coming. I feel like it's coming
Kaelynn Priest: It's coming together. I really wanna give you permission to, like, first of all, have so much fun gathering all the information, and also give yourself full permission to change your mind at any time. Again, using myself as the example, like, I haven't been talking to... Like, I am the perfect example for what you're asking about.
Like, I had a [00:50:00] pro- a marketing program for two years that I sold. If I had ever done a poll to see what percentage of people in it were LDS, it probably would've been, like, 95%. But I was like, "No, I don't wanna talk to LDS content creators, LDS business owners." And then when I finally did, it made it way easier to grow my audience and for more people to find me.
So give yourself permission to try lots of different things, to figure out what you like, figure out what the people like, and permission to not have to have the answer today, that you can figure it out as you're going, too
Kelsey Stratton: Yeah, I love it. Yeah, I'm excited. I feel like that's g- this is giving me some
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah. What else is coming up for you? Is there anything else that's feeling sticky or like it's in your way?
Kelsey Stratton: I think sometimes I feel like I'm jumping from one, probably 'cause I don't have the foundation, but it's like I'm jumping from like, oh, like Stand Store or Leap. You know what I mean? Like, I, like all these [00:51:00] different things of which one do I just nail it down? But I think part of it's 'cause I don't know who I'm talking to quite yet, or I change it.
Like, I'll be like, at first I was like, "Oh, let's do ADHD moms," and then I, you know, start a, what's it called? I don't remember. A school. So I feel like I've been on every single platform and I've
never stuck with any of them
Kaelynn Priest: Yep. Relatable. Also I was gonna say this earlier, but your experience as an, a parent of a child with autism is very useful, like very useful, if you ever feel called to share content about that. So here's what I would say about as far as platform. I think there are certain platforms that make more sense when you decide what you want your offer to be, for sure.
So what's your favorite thing? Have you sold any offers yet besides your retreat?
Kelsey Stratton: not, no, not just the group coaching r- haven't, I haven't really sold anything else.
Kaelynn Priest: I feel like you,
Kelsey Stratton: figure it
Kaelynn Priest: [00:52:00] you could create a killer... I'm just gonna throw this idea out there. There are no strings attached to this. It will not hurt my feelings if you hate this idea. I think, I feel like you could create a killer group to help people figure out what business they want to do
Kelsey Stratton: That would be fun.
Yeah
Kaelynn Priest: there's, like I said, just because I have people a- like DM-ing me every day asking, like I, I will literally like refer people to you.
It would be a super great group coaching offer, and if you do go that ri- route I would hang out with probably Stan just because as far as I know, it's pretty user-friendly. Another great option would... Not to give you another platform. Here's what I... In far, in terms of choosing a platform, I want you to have a super easy way to collect payment and a super easy way to email market.
So whichever platform gives you both. I know that Stan has emails. I think it costs extra,
Kelsey Stratton: Yeah,
Kaelynn Priest: right? There's a- have you tried Flodesk?
Kelsey Stratton: [00:53:00] Yeah. See, I tell you I've
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah, I'm like, if you have a Flodesk account I would hang out with Flodesk if you're gonna sell a group coaching offer just because all you need is a way to take their payment and a way to collect their email address so that you can send them emails.
Flodesk is usually like my first go-to recommendation 'cause it's pretty cheap. For anybody listening, it's pretty easy to find like a referral discount code for Flodesk too. That's what I would choose for you first. And then, you know, once we start really building up your audience of people, then we could go to something like Skool and create a membership. But I'm like, I wouldn't want you to create Skool until you have a pretty sizable group of people who are obsessed with your authority story.
So let's start there first
Kelsey Stratton: Yeah. Okay, perfect. Yeah, I'll just keep... Like, that's where I feel called to right now. I'm like, I feel like I'm more in the beginning stages where I'm like, I just feel like I need to build my message and build my
Kaelynn Priest: Yep.
Kelsey Stratton: you know,
Kaelynn Priest: Yep.
Kelsey Stratton: that
Kaelynn Priest: And I want you to hear [00:54:00] me. I'm saying this to you, but I'm also saying this to anybody listening, so I'm gonna repeat this again because I can't ever say this enough, that part of what... Probably the thing that will grow your audience the most is when you be super bold about your story.
Everyone who I can think of who I followed recently, it's because she said, "I am a blank, and here's how I got here," and tells her story. Then I'm like, "Follow." Like, those are... You know, you can create the fun trending reels all the time. That's great, too. The reason people will follow you will be because of your story.
So don't be afraid to say it. Don't be afraid to say it three times a week. I'm like, I want everyone to make a post about their origin story and just, like, schedule it to repost every month. We've gotta be, you gotta be telling that story a lot. You're gonna feel like you're repeating yourself. You're gonna feel like everyone already knows this.
I'm being annoying. I promise you, they don't. It'll be the first time they've heard it, [00:55:00] even if you're sharing it all the time. So be bold
Kelsey Stratton: Love it
Kaelynn Priest: So good I'm excited for you. How's it feeling?
Kelsey Stratton: It feels good. Like, I feel like... How do I word this? Like, because I feel like I know, like, my purpose now, like, 'cause I've done some work, so now it
makes me want
me to do that to other people
just talking about you, as you're like,
oh, it makes me feel like I want to wake other people's purpose so they go after the business that they
want to. So it feels very, like, aligned with this is, like, what I should do. Does that
Kaelynn Priest: Yes. Yes. Okay, I actually wanted to ask you, like, what action step are you gonna take next?
Kelsey Stratton: I think I honestly to just share my story more, like create the content for that. keep growing my Instagram, and then I really do want to, you know, sell some digital products and... [00:56:00] I don't know. I think, I feel like the group coaching and retreat's gonna come later, but I just feel like I need to start at the beginning. Does that sound good?
Kaelynn Priest: I want to switch it a little bit.
I actually think if you like group coaching, I literally think you could sell a group out today and have to spend zero minutes creating it
Kelsey Stratton: उम्म!
Kaelynn Priest: Like you could get in your Instagram stories today and say, "Hey guys, I'm creating a six-week coaching group to help you figure out what the heck you wanna sell. And it's gonna be X number of dollars. We're gonna go live once a week for six weeks.
Kelsey Stratton: Hmm.
This is You make it sound so easy. But yeah, that's like a good point
Kaelynn Priest: Like, I actually think what people in this phase of business need is not another digital product that they're gonna buy and learn from and do nothing with. They need accountability.
Kelsey Stratton: Yes,
Kaelynn Priest: a person to bounce ideas off of. They need [00:57:00] community. And if you like group coaching, that's one of my favorite offers to sell because it requires zero minutes to create
Kelsey Stratton: That's a good point. Oh my gosh, 'cause I've been like, "Oh, I need to film my course or whatever," and I just haven't done it
Kaelynn Priest: This is what you're gonna do. If you wanna turn it into a course, you're gonna record these group coaching calls, and those are gonna be your course. But you might even find you don't need to come... You don't need to prepare any content in advance. This is just open coaching. Everyone who joins, you might even say, "I'm gonna cap the group at 12.
Everyone gets five minutes of time in the hot seat to bounce their ideas off of the group. I'll open up a breakout room. We'll split into a group. You can chat with people." You know, lots of options. But you don't need to spend any time creating a course. Actually, I forbid you from [00:58:00] doing that. Just because I know for myself that it takes so much time, and people don't wanna buy information.
We can get that from AI. What we are craving is community and accountability, and you can do both of those things in a group better than you can in a course
Kelsey Stratton: Hmm. Yeah, it's so true. Do you recommend like... Well, I don't know, 'cause I always-- I love, like, in person. I just Okay
but I just feel like... Or like, "Hey, we can meet at the end," you Ja Or, or, is that, like, a hindrance for people? They go like, "Oh, well, I can't be there. I don't want to do that."
Kaelynn Priest: I think, not that it would be a hindrance, you would attract two different types of people, right? Like, if that's part of your promise... Are you in St. George?
Kelsey Stratton: Yeah
Kaelynn Priest: would attract people only in St. George for this offer, which can be amazing and super compelling because it's so, like, relevant to them. If you wanted to open it up to literally anyone anywhere can join this, we're doing it [00:59:00] on Zoom, that's great, too
Kelsey Stratton: It'd be nice not to have to worry about planning
all the in-person stuff. You know what I
mean?
Kaelynn Priest: I, I know, you know, they both, they both have pros and cons, right? Like, people also will feel like you and be like, "I wanna sit in a room with real people 'cause I don't get to do that very often." And there will also be people who are like, "I would love to do that, but then I have to find childcare instead of turning on a movie for my kids and just hopping on a Zoom call."
So they both have pros and cons. N- either is right or wrong. That would be one I would pray about and see if you get any revelation for
Kelsey Stratton: Okay. Yeah, this is good.
Kaelynn Priest: I love this for you. First, and let me also just keep talking because I'm on my soapbox now. Some things that I wanna point out for you and for others listening, the reason why this offer works is because there's a super specific person and a super specific outcome at the end. [01:00:00] Like, if you had come and said, "I just wanna help, like, stay-at-home moms feel better," I'm like, "Okay, we've gotta choose, like, one specific problem that stay-at-home moms are facing and craft the group around that."
So I just wanna use that as, like, a template for why my prediction is this will sell really well, especially if we pair it with your authority story, is that this has a super specific problem that it solves and a super specific transformation people can expect by the end. That'll make it a lot easier to sell.
So that's why I'm excited about it
Kelsey Stratton: Mm-hmm. I love it. Yay.
Kaelynn Priest: I love it too.
Kelsey Stratton: That was so helpful. Thank
you.
Kaelynn Priest: Yay.
Kelsey Stratton: thank
Kaelynn Priest: Yay. Okay, keep us posted. I wanna hear what ends up happening. Super fun.
Kelsey Stratton: dude, I will.
Kaelynn Priest: Okay.
Kelsey Stratton: absolutely.
Kaelynn Priest: You're awesome, Kelsey.
Kelsey Stratton: You are too. Thank you so much. All of you are awesome. I love hearing your stories, all of
Kaelynn Priest: So good. Okay. All right. Emerald, do you have time for us or are you in a time crunch?
Emerald Peterson: Nope, [01:01:00] I'm good.
Kaelynn Priest: I did. Yay, amazing.
Emerald Peterson: for me, if that's
Kaelynn Priest: I absolutely do. Yeah. How are you?
Emerald Peterson: Good. Busy, but
Kaelynn Priest: Good. Catch us up to speed on what's on your mind.
Emerald Peterson: Okay, so basically for some background context, I started, like a membership product type things which basically teach homeschooling kids and parents about different countries and cultures. And so, like the main hope and idea behind that is a lot of times in our world a lot of people have a lot of misunderstandings, and so there's a lot of judgments and things that happen.
And so my hope is, is to help teach kids at a younger age to be more open to people of different backgrounds and cultures and religions and things like that. And so I basically... I've been trying to focus on homeschooling moms as kind of like the main people and then maybe later like branch out to other educational things. Mostly what I'm kind of struggling with is that I feel like I have a lot of interest, [01:02:00] and a lot of people like will email me or message me and be like, "This is so cool." And then I can never get them to like
commit to
it, if that makes sense.
And so I've been going back and forth a lot of like trying to figure out how to help people commit to it, 'cause I have like s- like products that are smaller, so it's like just printable products.
But I wanted to kind of create like membership where like I can have a lot more resources. We can have like a community where we can share ideas, and they can post about things that they're doing and experiences that they have. But I know that sometimes like a lot of people are more nervous about membership type feelings and things like that.
So I've just been trying to figure out, one, how to get people to go to that next step and, two, kind of lean them more towards like a
membership type vibe, if that makes sense, 'cause I just
like the idea of having a community. And part of the resources too is I [01:03:00] have recipes, I have traditional games, I have like people from other countries that have come in and recorded videos of how to teach the kids how...
Kaelynn Priest: Oh my gosh
Emerald Peterson: and so things like that. And so like I want to make it like a really immersive experience for them, and then also have the support of like a community too of people that
Kaelynn Priest: Oh my gosh that's amazing. What a cool resource you've created for people. Tell me what's your bestseller?
Emerald Peterson: So right now I have had... So I don't know if you've heard of like Teachers Pay Teachers. So I
Kaelynn Priest: Yes.
Emerald Peterson: there. Love
I've sold a lot of like, I've done like holidays and stuff too. So those usually really sell well. China usually does well. Mexico usually does well. And then I've kind of taken it and tried to expand it further and deepen it kind of for the purpose of like a membership where there's just so many resources that I feel like it would be easier to like hand them like a [01:04:00] more membership thing where they get one every month, like a new country, a new like that.
Kaelynn Priest: Okay.
Emerald Peterson: those kinds of
Kaelynn Priest: Interesting. So I'm gonna be...
Emerald Peterson: to different things too. So
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah, yeah. I'm gonna be totally honest. I don't have a ton of experience with homeschool offers, so I might, like, defer to Caitlin and Kelsey if you guys have any ideas on this too, since you're both still on here. Give me a, You've already created the membership. People are reaching out telling you they're interested. They're not converting
Emerald Peterson: I have some people, it's just, like, I'm having a hard time getting people to commit to it. But I've had, like, cohort stuff, so it's basically, like, small groups of homeschoolers that have reached out and wanting to do
Kaelynn Priest: Okay
Emerald Peterson: like, people emailing me be like, "I love this so much," like, "Can you give me more information?"
And then they ghost me. So I've
Kaelynn Priest: Interesting
Emerald Peterson: like, I don't know what is happening from them reaching out to
them, like, nothing. And a lot of people tell me that it's a really good idea, so I don't know if it's my messaging. I [01:05:00] don't know those types of things, so
Kaelynn Priest: Kelsey's asking, "Are you a vendor with Utah Fits All?"
Emerald Peterson: No, but that's a good idea. I don't... How do you even do that?
Kelsey Stratton: You can apply... So Utah Fits All is a scholarship from the state that helps pay for homeschool curriculum,
Emerald Peterson: OK
Kelsey Stratton: and I- we use it for my, my kids. you can get on there, be a vendor, and right there, people that have the scholarship, they're, they're searching how to spend these funds,
and they will eat that right up.
I would eat it right up. So, um, you could do that, and you can even advertise. Like, you could start creating ads that say, "Hey, I'm a vendor for Utah Fits All," or whatever, on Instagram if you want. And people immediately... I've done that. I've seen the ads, and I'm like, "Oh, I wanna use that." So that's a way to get more people in the door, I always feel
Emerald Peterson: Okay
Kelsey Stratton: There's some other scholarships too, I think, I can't think what they're... Open Ed, and j- just different ones. [01:06:00]
Emerald Peterson: OK
Kelsey Stratton: Fits All, I would highly recommend.
Emerald Peterson: Okay. That's really helpful. Thank you. Yeah, 'cause I've, I've heard about these scholarships, I just have never, like, been able to figure out, like, how to apply to get on kinds of platforms
and stuff
Kelsey Stratton: Yeah, they got... Check their website. It, it tells you exactly,
Emerald Peterson: Okay.
Kelsey Stratton: steps to do it.
Emerald Peterson: Perfect. Thank you. I appreciate it
Kaelynn Priest: What's the price point of your membership, Emerald?
Emerald Peterson: So I've been playing around with prices. So the way that I've done it too is it's for all elementary school. So I have it broken up into, like, three different age groups, so that way, like, the literacy activities are catered towards whatever age the kids are. so I have, like, pre- pre-K and kindergarten, first and second grade, and then third through sixth. And so what I had done was have about, like, $15 for the one, and then do, like, 25 for all of the grades together.
Kaelynn Priest: Okay
Emerald Peterson: what I've purposely tried to do is that I know a lot of homeschool parents do different age groups, so [01:07:00] all of the units and stuff match together. It's just that the actual work is based for individual academic levels.
So
Kaelynn Priest: Угу
Emerald Peterson: just the kids on their own level too. But I don't know if it's too high. I don't know it's...
Kaelynn Priest: I don't actually know if it's the price point, but I wonder if... Sometimes I found this happens with membership specifically, if people are... There's, the, the reason why people don't convert is because there's something that scares them. There's some- It's, or it's something that's unclear to them. I don't think it's a clarity thing, 'cause people are reaching out and telling you they want it.
There's something that scares them about joining the membership, which makes me wonder if it's like, "I'm scared that I won't use it. I'm scared that I won't utilize it month over, month after month." I actually wonder if people would rather buy it like a digital product. I don't know for sure. Like, I'm gonna be totally honest, I wish I had more experience with, like, the Teachers Pay Teachers industry so I could have better data for you on that.
But I almost wonder if it was like you can [01:08:00] buy a specific country for $14, or you can buy all the countries for, I don't even know. You guys will have to tell me on what a price point is for this. That to me would feel like, okay, cool, I can just buy it. I know I'll have the files on my computer. When I have an open spot in my curriculum, I'm just gonna slip in one of the countries
Emerald Peterson: That's a good point, too. Yeah, I've thought about doing it where I could sell, like, not per se, like, the whole, like, all of the stuff, but just, like, a smaller portion of it. So, like, an
Kaelynn Priest: Totally
Emerald Peterson: coloring page, like, craft as, like, a
Kaelynn Priest: I love that
Emerald Peterson: and then if they can, like, test it out, and then if they want more in-depth stuff, then maybe it could lead them to a membership later.
So they kinda,
Kaelynn Priest: I love that
Emerald Peterson: test it out, too. And I also have tried to do... Like, I have almost 1,000 people on my email list,
Kaelynn Priest: Amazing.
Emerald Peterson: And so some, like, a lead ma- magnet that I've tried to use is I have, like, a seven continents one where basically they get a free [01:09:00] test of what it would be like in hopes that they would get more comfortable
Kaelynn Priest: Okay
Emerald Peterson: too. But I'm wondering if, like you said, maybe I just do one units, and then they can fit it in, and if they want more, go
Kaelynn Priest: How are people getting on your email list?
Emerald Peterson: So I have done ads, like Facebook ads,
Kaelynn Priest: Amazing
Emerald Peterson: to get more, like,
Kaelynn Priest: I love that.
Emerald Peterson: is very small still. So I've
Kaelynn Priest: Yep.
Emerald Peterson: ads and stuff
Kaelynn Priest: Okay, so you're just running a Facebook ad to a free... Are you running it to your lead magnet?
Emerald Peterson: Mm-hmm
Kaelynn Priest: Cool. Okay, amazing. So people are opting in for the seven continents lead magnet. Amazing. Do you know what I would actually do?
Emerald Peterson: Yeah, please.
Kaelynn Priest: I would send out a survey to your email list and ask them what's stopping them from buying, how urgently do they feel like they need a membership does that feel like more than they need?
That could be the case. Maybe they do feel like they need it. I don't know. I think we need more data to work with, and I would ask your, the people who are on your email list. I would keep it [01:10:00] super simple, like it takes them three minutes or less to respond to this survey. Honestly, I would put this in ChatGPT and be like, "Here's what's going on.
Make me the most simple survey that I can send to people that collects the most urgent data points that I need, like price point, like digital product container. Do people want bigger digital products? Do they want smaller digital products? How do they want things grouped together? Do they want them grouped together by activity, by country," right?
I have no idea. This is all just off the top of my head. I think we need to collect more data from your audience
Emerald Peterson: Okay. So do like a, a survey to ask
Kaelynn Priest: Yep. I would do a survey. You might even say, "I'll choose three of you randomly to send a $5 Venmo gift card to."
Emerald Peterson: Okay
Kaelynn Priest: That always kind of bumps up my engagement. Yeah. Like, I, I don't wanna come on here and be like, "I don't think people need a membership," when I actually have no idea. But what I do know for sure is that memberships can be hard to build with a small audience, [01:11:00] and then make them bigger. Most people that you know that have a membership had a huge audience, and then launched a membership.
So not that you can't do it, it's just memberships are challenging, right? Because there's lots of... lots of data pieces to work with. People opt in, they opt out. There's lots of different reasons why. So especially where you're just getting started out, I know for sure you could sell a digital product, no problem.
So I don't want you to leave this call feeling, like, discouraged about your offer. There might be some things we can play with with the container of it.
Emerald Peterson: Okay.
Kaelynn Priest: amazing.
Emerald Peterson: Oh, perfect. Thank you
Kaelynn Priest: Kelsey just sent a link to the scholarship in the chat. So good.
Emerald Peterson: Thank you
Kaelynn Priest: How's that feeling, Emerald?
Emerald Peterson: I think that's good. I've been kind of thinking more about on that idea too of trying to do more digital. So would you offer, like, everything in a digital product and just make it, like, price it higher and then see how that goes? Or would you do, like, a smaller digital product
Kaelynn Priest: I would ask your [01:12:00] audience
Emerald Peterson: Okay
Kaelynn Priest: in a survey about that just because like I said, I'm not even a homeschool mom, so I don't even buy homeschool offers. Otherwise, I might have some info for you on that. Another thing I want you to take away from this conversation is that it sounds like you have a ton of resources that you created that could be a bajillion different digital products.
You could hire someone on Fiverr to, like, take your curriculum and turn it into as many mini digital products as possible and list those on TPT for you. There was another idea that I had, though. Let's see if it comes back to my brain
I want you to leave this conversation with the takeaway, people really want this. There's something that's making it feel hard for them. Once I figure out what that is, this is gonna be so easy to sell. And feel like, I want you to feel like excited by it and not feel discouraged by it, that it's probably one small little tiny thing that will make it easier for people to buy and it's gonna be so much fun.
Like, [01:13:00] it sounds like the quality is there, the quantity is there. It sounds like you have done more than your homework on this project. So I want you to like leave feeling excited about it
Emerald Peterson: Okay, perfect. Thank you. Yeah, I like the idea of a survey too, and just kind of get thoughts. 'Cause
Kaelynn Priest: Yes
Emerald Peterson: been feeling like, I'm like there's something that's scaring people away from not wanting
Kaelynn Priest: Yep.
Emerald Peterson: that. So,
Kaelynn Priest: It's not your offer.
Emerald Peterson: that's great
Kaelynn Priest: It's, it's something about the container of it that we can play with. And I'll also say this too, some of my best business ideas have come from Instagram story polls. Like, you could put the same thing in your story polls. You could get on a phone call, like a Zoom call with people, and ask them questions like this.
I'm thinking about myself when I was in the beginning stages of my product business, where it was like, you know, I, I was basically selling a wooden baby gym that was priced to be, like, a luxury product, but I'm, like, not a luxury customer. So it was like, I was [01:14:00] having phone calls with ladies in, like, Manhattan and Los Angeles that are like, you know...
Th- in terms of income level, we are in a different tax bracket. But it's just like, I don't... I need to know how your brain thinks about this so that I can create an offer that makes sense for people who think the way that you think. So just to give you some permission to have fun collecting data from people, I think that will be great for you
Emerald Peterson: Perfect. Thank you. I Yeah.
Really helpful
Kaelynn Priest: Good. What else is on your mind? Anything else coming up
Emerald Peterson: I guess the only other thought I had too is the hope of growing more on Instagram too. I've been trying to figure out, like, like telling story and being more personable, but also, like showcasing things too. So I've been trying to figure out, like how often would you, like showcase the product or things like that versus like just getting on and talking about, like myself, my story, and things like [01:15:00] that too.
Kaelynn Priest: I would say I feel like in terms of a number of times per week, I don't know that I have a good answer for you because I think that both types of posts lend to the same goal, that you become known and liked and trusted. So I would say, if I was just off the top of my head, I would say I want you to share something personal about you once per week.
And okay, I was gonna ask that question to you, Kelsey. I wanna hear, like, about the product you created once a week, and I wanna hear your story once per week. Why, why did you create this? Why are you so passionate about countries? What's your story?
Emerald Peterson: Yes. So I'm a former elementary school teacher actually, so I taught for five years. I taught kindergarten, or third grade for two years, and I taught third grade... Oh my gosh, sorry. Brain. I taught third grade for two years, kindergarten for three years. So I have, like, an experience with, like, a wide range of kids, [01:16:00] and when I was teaching in school, a lot of the kids were not per se mean, but they just, like, didn't know how to handle kids of different backgrounds and differences. So they would make comments like, look really weird," or, "Why do they wear clothes like that?" Or, "Why do they eat food like that?" And it wasn't that they were per se trying to be mean, they just had never been exposed to like that before, and so they just didn't know how to, like, process that.
And I also, my little sister is actually Chinese. She's adopted from China, and
Kaelynn Priest: Oh my gosh
Emerald Peterson: viewed a lot, she had a lot of racism in her life growing up in a white family in a
predominantly white community. She didn't really have... People were very naive about how, like, of saying things to her of how she looked and things like that. And so I just am very passionate about showing kids, like, I really believe that if we expose kids to differences young, then it's not weird for them when they see someone who has a different skin color than them, or speaks a [01:17:00] different language than them, or has, like, different religious views than them.
Like, I feel like it's, it's truly not that they're being mean, it's just they're just not exposed to it, and when you're not exposed to something, can view it as weird or unsafe or things like that. So my hope is is to do that by showing them diversity so that they can be curious instead of, like, weirded out and afraid of it
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah, I'm obsessed. Kelsey put in the co- in the chat box, "Sold." Like, just by you telling your story right there, I'm sold. I feel the same way, too. I also think that will make super engaging content that will grow your audience, too, especially when you talk about, you know, I had a sister who was adopted, and she experienced...
This was her experience. And then I thought, you know what? I'm an elementary school teacher. I could create a curriculum that could help kids normalize this so that it's not... So this is something that we talk about frequently instead of feeling like this weird taboo thing. Super compelling story, and you also have, like, six different origin stories there that you could [01:18:00] tell.
Like, you could break those all into little tiny micro pieces of content. I think it's almost like this is the biggest thing that I feel like helps product businesses grow their Instagram content, is when we shift the, the reason why you're following me away from the product to the problem. So for example, when I was selling wooden baby gyms, a lot of my content was, like, support for postpartum moms.
'Cause a baby, a mom that's using a baby gym, their baby's usually 3 to 12 months, probably even less than that. And so it was like, it was content like, "I see you, Mama. I see you, like, struggling to get the baby down for the nap and waking up in the middle of the night." Like, that's the problem that they're dealing with, and I feel like it's kind of the same for you, too.
Like, you, I still want you to talk about your product often, but it's like, it's gonna be like the side note, like the little call to action at the end instead of being like, "You follow me because you're interested in countries and homeschool." It's like, no, you're, you feel the same urgency about this [01:19:00] problem that I do, will help your content pop off really well.
Emerald Peterson: So that is something that I feel like I've been trying to figure out too, because I don't want to per se, like, like, call people out by being like, "Well, you're not exposing your kids enough, and so therefore they're gaining all these terrible mindsets," which most of them aren't. Like, they're being good parents and they're trying to teach their kids things.
So I'm trying to figure out, like, how do I word it where I'm, like, passionate about this and can show that, but not be offensive and make them
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah.
Emerald Peterson: they're not doing what they're supposed to be
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah, for sure. Yeah. I would angle it like, "Here's been my experience as a, with a adopted sister and a school teacher for three, four years." I can't... Five years? How many years did you say? Five years.
Emerald Peterson: Mm-hmm
Kaelynn Priest: "Here's my experience," and just say it like that. Like, "I don't know if anyone else feels this way.
I don't hear anybody else talking about this, but here's what I've witnessed or seen or noticed." That way it's like, "This is just my own personal experience. You can agree or disagree. Doesn't hurt my feelings [01:20:00] either way, but this is truly what I experienced." And I bet people feel like, "Yeah, no, we, we see that too."
Emerald Peterson: Okay. So kind of go more off of like, "This is the experience that I've
had. Like, I don't know if you've experienced
that, but this is what I've seen, so that's why I wanted to
Kaelynn Priest: Yep,
Emerald Peterson: this." Okay. So it's not like per se calling people out, it's just, "From my experience, this is what I have seen."
Kaelynn Priest: Exactly
Emerald Peterson: I like that better, 'cause yeah, like I'm, I'm very passionate, and I definitely like at a lot of things in our world today, like it's definitely an issue, but I don't wanna make people feel like they are
doing that.
Because a
Kaelynn Priest: yeah
Emerald Peterson: it's not that they're even doing it on purpose. They just sometimes don't think about it. Like, they don't think that they
Kaelynn Priest: Yep.
Emerald Peterson: do that.
Kaelynn Priest: Yep
Emerald Peterson: So, okay.
Kaelynn Priest: that. So cool. I'm really excited for you
Emerald Peterson: I'm excited too. It's been really fun to watch this grow. I've been slowly trying to grow it for the past couple years or so,
Kaelynn Priest: Yeah.
Emerald Peterson: really cool
Kaelynn Priest: So amazing. Your story and the [01:21:00] need, like, this is the perfect example of where we need more of this kind of light in the world. And so cool if you benefit financially too. I love that for you, and also the world really, really needs this. It's really beautiful.
Emerald Peterson: Thank you.
Kaelynn Priest: Hey, it's kaelynn here. I hope you loved this episode of the By Their Fruits podcast. Thank you so much for listening. And I also wanna let you know that if you did love this episode, you might also love my weekly email series that I call Book of Mormon Business. Every week, I write a little insight about something that I either have learned or am learning from the Book of Mormon or the Bible about how to run a business with God's help, how to make God the co-founder of my business.
And if that sounds like something up your alley, go to kaelynnpriest.com/bookofmormon. The link is also below in the show notes. And get on the email list, and I hope these little weekly insights lift your spirits and help you feel the spirit and hear Him more easily in your [01:22:00] business
