spi 251 (in the middle) launching a ... - smart passive income · pat: this is the smart passive...

SPI 251

(In the Middle) Launchinga New Course with New Entrepreneur, Sarah Argenal

February 1, 2017

Show NoteS: http://www.smartpassiveincome.com/session251

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Pat: ThisistheSmartPassiveIncomepodcastwithPatFlynn,Session

#251.Let’sdiverightin.

Announcer: WelcometotheSmartPassiveIncomepodcast,whereit’sallabout

workinghardnowsoyoucansitbackandreapthebenefitslater.

Andnowyourhost.Hewaveshishandslikeaconductorwhena

goodsongcomeson,PatFlynn.

Pat: Hey,what’sup?Thankyousomuchforjoiningmetodayinthis

sessionoftheSmartPassiveIncomepodcast.I’mveryhappy

towelcomeawomannamedSarahArgenal,whoI’vegottento

knowverywelloverthelastsixmonthsbecauseeversinceshe

startedbuildinghercourseI’vebeenfollowingherprogress.Back

inepisode136,youmightrememberthatonewithDavidSiteman

Garland,hetalkedabouthiscoursecalledCreateAwesomeOnline

Courses,gaveawayatonofgreatinformationonhowtobuildyour

onlinecourse.Well,inconjunctionwithDavidandthepromotion

ofthatcourse,Ihadofferedabonusforpeoplewhosignedup

throughmyaffiliatelink.Thatwasforatimebeingthreeorfour

accountabilitycallswithmeafterwardsinagroupsetting,andSarah

wasthereoneachandeveryoneofthem.Itwasawayformeto

holdpeopleaccountableandmakesurethattheyweredoingthe

work.Sarah,byfar,outofeverybodywhowasattendingthoselittle

sessionsthatweweredoingtogether,wasputtinginmorework

thananybodyandactuallytakingaction.

I’mexcitedtobringherontodaybecauseifyouseethetitleofthis

podcast,itstartswith,intheparentheses,“IntheMiddle,”meaning

she’sinthemiddlerightnowbythetimewe’rerecordingthis,in

launchinghernewcourse.We’regoingtotalkaboutwhatit’sbeen

liketoputittogether,whatit’sbeenliketomarketit,andwhat

someofthestruggleswereafterputtingitoutthereandmaybenot

seeingasmanysalesasshewanted.I’dgivehersometipsand

thingsthatsheshouldthinkabouttomoveforwardand,yeah,and

thingsshewishedshewould’vedonedifferentlyorbetter.Butshe’s

ontherighttrackandwe’regoingtotalkwithSarahtoday.

Thisisadifferentepisode.Sarahhasyettofindthatsuccessstory,

http://www.smartpassiveincome.com/

http://smartpassiveincome.com/session251


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butshe’sinthemiddleofbuildingitrightnow.I’mexcitedforyou

andforSarah,solet’sgetrightintoit.ThisisSarahArgenalfrom

workingparentresource.com.Heresheis.What’sup,everybody?

I’msohappytowelcomeSarahArgenaltotheSPIpodcast.Sarah,

thankyousomuchforjoiningustoday.

Sarah: Thankyousomuchforhavingme.I’msoexcitedtobehere.

Pat: Absolutely.Forthoseofyouwhoarelisteningin,SarahandI,

we’vemeteachotherafewtimesintherecentpastatsomelocal

meetupsthatI’vebeenhosting,whichhavebeenalotoffun.Sarah

alwaysisoneofthefirstonestocomeandshe’sjustsoawesome

andhasanamazingpersonality.Andwhat’sreallycoolissheisin

themiddleoflaunchinghercourseandgettingthingsdone.Ilove

it,becauseI’vebeenabletofollowherprogressalongtheway.I

wantedtobringherontheshowtodaybecause,unlikemanyofthe

otherpeoplewhohavebeenontheshowbeforewhohavethat

sortofexperienceandhavehadthatsuccessstorytosharealready,

Sarahisinthemiddleofbuildinghersuccessstory.We’regoingto

getsomegoodinsightfromher.

Butanyway,Sarah,again,welcome.Telluswhatitisthatyouare

doing.Ithinkthat’sthefirstthingIwanttoask.Whatisyourbusiness

thatyou’recreatingandwhatareyouinthemiddleofrightnow?

Sarah: Oh,thankyou.Yeah,Iambuildingaprogramthat’scalledWorking

ParentResource.It’sawebsitethatsupportsworkingmomsand

dadswhoalsoaretryingtojuggleworkandahomeandafamily

andjusthaveallofthatcrazinessgoingon.TheprogramthatI

createdtogoalongwithmywebsiteiscalledFrazzledtoBalanced.

IoriginallydidasurveyrightwhenIwassettingupmywebsite,

andtheonethingthatjustabouteverysinglerespondentsaidwas,

“Ihavenotime.Ineedtime.”Thatwastheimpetusforcreating

thisprogram,becauseit’ssomethingthatIwentthroughmyself

asaworkingmom.Ihadnotimewhenmysonwasborn.Iwas

commutingthreehoursadayintoSanFranciscoandback.Ilived

intheEastBay.Iworkedinalawfirm.Iwasexhaustedallthetime.I

feltlikeIhadabout30minuteswithmysonbeforehewenttobed.




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Hewassick.Wewerejusttalkingalittlebitaboutillnesses.Itwas

constantsicknessinourfamily.Itwasn’tfun.

Overthecourseofayearorso,Icameupwithsomesolutionsand

aprocess.Ihaveabout15yearsofexperienceinmarriageand

familytherapyandinprofessionalcoachingandinteachingandin

projectmanagement.Iwantedtotakeallofthatresearchandallof

thatexperienceandputittogetherinaframeworkforpeoplethat

theycouldtakeandjustdostepbystep.HowdoIgetthroughthis?

Asanewparent,andaworkingparentwho’soverwhelmed,how

doIgetmytimeback?HowdoIgetmylifebacksothatI’mexcited

aboutit?That’stheprogramthatI’mcreating,andIjustlaunched

itacoupleofmonthsago.You’reright.I’mrightinthebeginning

phasesofeverything.

Pat: Nice.Didyouhaveawebsiteorablogtostartoutwith,orareyou

literallystartingwiththecourseandprogramfirst?

Sarah: Istartedwithawebsite.Atfirstitstartedbecauseafriendofmine

wasaskingmequestionsaboutallofthisstuff.Severalfriends,

actually.Iwassendingtheselongtextmessagestothem.Ifigured,

“Youknowwhat?MaybeIshouldjustputawebsiteupthathasmy

favoritebooksandarticlesandpodcastsandotherresources,just

havethatinoneplace.IfIwantIcanjuststartblogging”,whichis

whatIdid.InSeptemberof2015Iactually...MyfamilyandImoved

toSanDiegothesamemonthIstartedmywebsite.That’swhenI

createdthesurveyandIstartedbuildingawebsitearoundwhat

peopleweresayingtheywanted.Overthecourseofmaybefourto

sixmonthsIwroteabout30blogpoststhatjustidentifiedsomeof

myfavoriteresourcesandjustansweredsomeofthequestionsthat

werecomingupformemost.

Istartedwiththat,andthenIwaskindofthinking,“Okay,doIwant

tomakethisabusiness?IsthissomethingthatIwanttodevelop

intosomethingelse?”ThatwaswhenIwastalkingtoalotofpeople

aboutalltheissuesthattheywerecomingacross.Idecidedtoput

togetheraprogram.Itwaseitherthatorstartdoingone-on-one

coaching.ButsinceIworkfulltimeatalawfirmandIhavemyson




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andmyhusband,andactually,we’reexpectingasecondbabynow.

Pat: Oh,yay!Congrats!That’sawesome.

Sarah: Thanks.Wehavealotgoingon.Iwantedtospendmytimeona

programthatwouldhelpmorepeopleandthatIcould...Ididn’t

wanttostartdoingone-on-onecoachingandthennothavetime

tobuildtheprogram,soIdecidedtostart,createthatasset,and

thenIcandowhatIwantwithitfromthenon.Icanintegrateitinto

alargergroupcoachingprogramorjustutilizeithoweveritseems

likeit’llfitinthefuture.

Pat: Awesome.ThefirsttimeIheardofthisprogram,foreverybodyout

therewho’slistening,waswhenIhadpromotedDavidSiteman

Garland’sCreateAnAwesomeOnlineCoursecourse.Throughthat,

Iofferedacouplebonuses,whichweremeetupswithmeorwhat

didcallthem?Accountabilitygroupcalls,essentially.Youwereon

those.That’swhenIfirstheardtheideaofthis.Thenwe’vemetin

personacoupletimes.Eachtimeyouaretakingstepsandyou’re

blowingmeawaywithjusthowmuchactionyou’retakingdespite

havingalltheseotherthingshappeninginyourlifethatyou’realso

takingcareof,too.Howareyouabletogetthingsdone?Ithink

alotofpeoplewouldlovetodothisandlovetoevengettothis

point,eventhoughyou’restillinthemiddleoflaunchingit.Youhave

somethingtolaunch,andyou’vemadeaplan.Howareyouableto

actuallymakethathappenamongstallthisotherstuff?Imean,this

tiesdirectlyintowhatyourcourseisabout,actually.I’mcuriousto

knowwhatyou’regoingtosay.

Sarah: Oh,I’mtemptedtosay,“Gogetmycourse,”butIwon’t.Iguesstwo

answerstothat.Theoverallpictureofitis,numberone,oneofthe

thingsI’velearned,specificallyfromyoubecauseI’vebeenlistening

sinceIstartedthiswebsiteandallofthat,wasthatjustintime

learning.Thatconcepthas,Imean,it’sbeenimperativeformeover

thelastyear-and-a-halfor,becauseit’ssooverwhelming.There’s

somanythingsthatyoucando.I’vejustdecidedtoputonefootin

frontoftheother.IhavethetwomaintoolsthatIuseareEvernote

andTrello.I’llgetintothatinaminute.ButIbasicallyjust...Ifit’s




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somethingthatIthinkwillbehelpfulinthefutureIthrowanote

down.Ithrowawebsitelinkdown.Ithrowacopyandpastefrom

anarticle,orwhateveritis.IputitdownsomewherewhereIknow

Icangettoitlater,butIdon’tthinkaboutit.Idon’tuseit.Idon’t

lookintoit.Idon’tresearchit.Idon’tgetcaughtinthatbright,shiny

objectsyndrome.

ThefirstthingthatreallyhelpedwasfocusingonwhatIneeded

todoineachmoment.Formycoursecreation,thatmeantIbroke

itintophases.Thefirstphasewascreatingtheoutline,theoverall

outline.Iknowyouliketodomindmaps.I’mfromthelegalfield,so

IjustbulletpointthingsoutintermsofwhatIwantedittolooklike.

ThatwaswhenIstartedtheDavidSitemanGarlandprogram.Ijust

walkedthroughthatwholeprogramwithyou,withhim,andIjust

madesurethatIwasn’tlearningalone.Iwasn’tjusttakingnotesand

listeningandconsuming,butIwastakingactionandimplementing

oneverystepthatItook.Thatwaskey.

Thesecondphase,afterIstartedthatprogramandIwalked

throughitwithDavidSitemanGarlandandwithyou,Iputtogether

allofmyslidedecksandmyscriptwiththebulletpointsIwas

goingtousethroughoutmyvideosthatIwasgoingtomake.Once

alloftheslidedecksweredoneIthentookaboutamonthandI

recordedeverything.ThenoncethatwasdoneIthenfiguredout

mywholelaunchplan.Isetasideaboutsixweekstodothatto

makesurethatIwasn’tgettingcaughtupinthatwhileIwastrying

tofinishuptheprogram.Iwasjusttakingconsistentstepstoget

througheverything.Thatwastheoverallprocess.

WhatIwasmentioningbeforeisthetwotoolsthatjustcamein...I

mean,I’dusethemeverysingleday...wereEvernote,whichwas

wheremyto-dolistwas.IjustmadesureIwasdoingatleastone

thingaday.ThenTrellowashowIkepteverythingorganized.Itwas

myprojectmanagementsystem.

Pat: Nice.Itsoundslikeyougoteverythingthatyouneedtodoto

actuallymakeprogress,andyouhadgivenyourselfthatsix-week

window,whichIalsothinkisreally,reallyimportantbecausewithout




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thatyou’renevergoingtolightthatfireunderneathyourselftoget

thingsdone.Iwanttorewindandgobacktowhenyourwebsite

started.YousaidSeptember2015,right?

Sarah: Yes,exactly.

Pat: Thenyouhadmentionedasurvey.I’mcuriousbecausemost

peoplewhentheystartawebsite,theyhavenobodytosurvey.Tell

mewhathappenedinbetweenwhenyoustartedandhowdidyou

getenoughpeopletotakethesurveytogiveyouinformationon

whattodonext?

Sarah: Firstofall,Ihadanetworkofmoms.Justmommyfriendsand

peopleatmyofficeandjustpeoplethatknewmybackgroundin

therapyandcoachingandeverything,soIhadapersonalnetwork

already.Imean,mostlyIjustusedFacebook.IcreatedaSurvey

Monkeysurvey.IthinkatthatpointIhadheardyourpodcast,Ithink

withRyanLevesque,ontheAskMethod.

Pat: Yes,mm-hmm(affirmative).

Sarah: Ireallyhadonequestiononthere,whichis,“Whatisyourbiggest

challengewhenitcomestobeingaworkingparent?”Ididn’tget

toomuchdeeperintoit.Iaskedsomedemographicstuff.Ithink

ittookthemabout90secondstotwominutestoanswerthis

dependingonhowindepththeywantedtoget.AttheendIactually

alsocapturedtheire-mailaddressiftheywantedtolearnmore

aboutitasIcontinued.ButImean,IsentthatSurveyMonkeylink

onmypersonalprofileonFacebook.AtthetimeIwasamember

ofacoupleofothermommygroupsandworkingmomgroups,and

Ijustputitinthereandsaid,“Hey,thisiswhatI’mdoing.Ifyou’re

interestedorifthisissomethingthatmightapplytoyou,goahead

andanswer.It’lltakeabouttwominutestofinishup.”IthinkIgot

about75responseswithinaweekortwo.

Pat: Whoa.

Sarah: Yeah.Ididn’treallyknowthatthatwasgood.Iwaslike,“Oh,




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hundredsofresponsesshouldcomein.”Itkindoffeltnotgreatat

first,butitdefinitelywasplentyformetoseethepatterns.From

thatsurveyaloneIhadmaybemyonetotwotopissuesthatIknew

peopleweretotallystrugglingwith,thenIactuallyhadsecondary

andtertiaryissuesthatIsawwerecomingupaswell.Itwaskindof

easy.IactuallyhaddraftedmostofmywebsitebythetimeIputthe

surveyoutandgotthoseanswers,andItotallyrevampeditbased

onthoseresponses.I’mlike,“Oh,okay,actually,thisiswhatpeople

arelookingfor.Thisiswhattheywant,”andbasedmywebsiteon

thatinstead.

Pat: Nice.Youthenstartedthethingaboutaprogramthatcanhelp

servetheseissues,andthenwalkusthroughtheprocessofthat.I

mean,havingsurveyresponsesguideyouistheultimatefirststep,

obviously,butdidyoudoanythingmorethanthattovalidatethe

ideabeforeyoustartedputtingsomegoodtimeintoit?

Sarah: ThethingIdid...Ihadbeendoingblogpostingforaboutfour

tosixmonths.Iactuallyalsowentthroughtheinternetbusiness

masteryprogramtojustfigureout,whatisthisgoingtobe?Isthis

goingtobeabusiness?What’smymodelgoingtobe?Ididallthat

foundationalworkoverthefirst,maybe,sixmonthsofmybusiness.

RightaroundthetimeIstartedmyprogramIhadtofigureoutwhat

Iwantedtodowithallmytime.Ionlyhadacertainnumberofhours

inaweek.IdecidedtostopdoingblogpostsforawhilesothatI

couldfocusontheprogram.InthemeantimeIactuallyalsostarted

aFacebookgroup.

Thatbecamemyfocusgroupoverthecourseofthenextfew

months.Iwasabletotalktopeople,askquestions,tellthemwhat

wasgoingonwithmyprogram.Itoldthem,“Hey,I’mworkingon

thislessonrightnow,orthismodule.ThisiswhatI’mthinking.Any

tipsordoyouguyshaveanysuggestionsoranyquestionsthatare

comingupforyou?”Iwasabletocommunicatewithanaudience

fromthere.ItwasstillgettingbuiltasIwasdoingit.Itwasasmaller

groupasitstarted,andthenitgrewfromthere.Butthatwasreally

helpfulformetojustkeepapulseonwhatpeopleweregoing

throughandwhatquestionstheyhadthatwerecomingup.Ijust




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gearedeverythingaroundthat.

Pat: Verynice.Now,creatinganonlinecourseisahugeundertaking.

IknowbecauseIcreatedonemyself.Howdidyougetthework

doneinit?Howdidyouactuallybreakitdownsothatyouknew

exactlywhatyouweresupposedtobedoing?

Sarah: That’swhatIdoinmydayjobatalawfirm.I’mbasicallyaproject

manager.ThewaythatIwould...Ijustappliedthoseskillstothis

course.Itookitonestepatatime.Ihadmyoverallplanandthat

wasmyoutline.Myoutlineendedup...Icutitinhalf,basically.I

thinkthereweremaybethreemodulesthatItotallygotridof.It

brokeitdowntothreemodulestotal,butIsimplifieditasmuch

asIcould.ThenI,basically,everyweekonSundaysorMondaysI

wouldgothroughandsay,“Okay,whatdoIwanttoaccomplishthis

week?”Iwouldtakelike,“Hey,here’swhat’sreasonable,”andthen

bumpitupanotchortwoandjustputinalistinapriorityorder

whatdoIneedtodofirst?Iwouldbreakitdownto15,20minute

actionssoIwasn’ttotallyoverwhelmedandwouldprocrastinate.It

wasalwaysreallysimplethings,likesetupthiswebsitelinkorgo

researchthisthing,orwhatever.ItwasalwayssomethingIcould

withinanhouratlunchorinaneveningwithoutbeingoverwhelmed

andfeelinglike,“Eh,Idon’twanttogothere.”

ThebulkoftheworkIdidwason,usually,eitherafulldayona

SaturdayorafulldayonaSunday,orIwouldbreakbothweekend

daysup.Iwoulddividethetimebetweenmyfamilyandthenthe

program.Iwouldjustjumponmylaptopfirstthinginthemorning

andstartwriting.

Pat: Nice.

Sarah: Ijusttookitonestepatatime,brokeitdownintostepsthatwould

make...andtheywereactionablesteps.Itwasconcretethingsthat

Icoulddo.ItriedtojustbeaspracticalaboutitasIcould.

Pat: Awesome.That’sperfect.Intermsoflaunchingyourcourse,which

iswhatyou’reinthemiddleofrightnow,talkabout...Iactuallywant




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toknowexactlywhatyou’redoingrightnowrelatedtoyoucourse.

Whatisit?

Sarah: Ilaunchedmycourse,whichwastechnically,Iwouldsay,mybeta

launch.Weweretalkingaboutit,callingitafoundingmembers

course.That’sbasicallywhatIdidinSeptember.Iwantedtodo

twolaunchesandrealizedthatthatwastooambitiousoverthefall

period.Mycoursewasfinished.Itwastotallydoneandpostedand

readytogoin,IthinkitwastheendofJuly.Istartedmyoutline

inaboutMarchof2016.That’sprobablyaboutfive,sixmonths.I

tookallofAugustandthenhalfofSeptember,Ihadaliveevent

thatIwashostinginSanDiegointhemiddleofSeptember.Ihada

harddeadlinethatIwantedtoleveragewhereIhadtheprogram

completelysetup.ThequestionformewashowdoIwantto

promotethis?IknewIwantedtousesocialmedia,butIwanted

todosomethingthatwouldnumberone,increasemye-maillist,

becauseIhadaprettysmalle-maillist.I’mstillgrowingmye-maillist.

Idecidedtodoalivechallenge.Itwasafive-daychallengethat

talkedalittlebitaboutthesametopicsthatwererelatedtomy

course.Fromthere,IthinkIgotabout65e-mailsubscriberswithin

aboutaweekortwo.IdidFacebookadsleadingtothat.Icalledit

abootcamp.Thatkickedofftheweekaftermyliveevent.Igotto

promotemyliveeventinthemiddleofSeptember.Thefollowing

weekwasallmybootcamp.Thatledimmediatelyintomyopencart

periodformyprogram.

Pat: Okay,reallyquick,onthebootcamp,whichIthinkisagreatideato

runthatchallengetogetpeopleinterested,togivepeopleataste

ofhowyourteaching.Ithinkthat’sareallysmartwaytoleadinto

theeventuallaunchofacourse.Howdoyoudeterminewhatto

makeabootcamporaminicourseorachallengeaboutrelatedto

amuchlargerpieceofcontentlikeafull-oncourse?

Sarah: ItookthispieceofadvicefromAmyPorterfield.Kindoftake

yourcourseandtakeateenysliceofitandthenexpandonthat.

That’swhatIdid.TheexercisesthatIhaveinmybootcampareall

actionable.They’reallthingsthatpeoplecandowithinabout30




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minutes,andthey’reallthingsrelatedtomycoursebutit’snotthe

samematerialaswhat’sinmycourse.Itooksomeoftheconcepts

andcreatedsmallerversionsofthem.Intermsofvalidationand

testing,itallcamefromthesamesources,likemyFacebook

groups,fromthesurveys.Justunderstandingwhatmyaudience

wasstrugglingwiththemostandtriedtocomeupwithactionable

thingsthattheycoulddothroughoutthatbootcampthatwouldgive

themrealresultsrightaway.ThatwasmygoalwhenIwascoming

upwiththeexercises.

Pat: Canyougiveussomehardexamplesfromyourcourseandwhat

thatbootcampwasabout?

Sarah: Yeah.ThebootcampandthecoursearebothcalledFrazzledto

Balanced.Thebootcampitself,oneofthefirstthingswetalkabout

isyourenergylevelsandhowinsteadoffocusingonyourtime,

insteadtrytofocusonthethingsthatareeitherdepletingyour

energyorgivingyouenergy.Theveryfirstexerciseondayoneis

gothroughandmakealistofthethingsthataretakingyourenergy

awayinyourlife.Whatactivitiesandwhatpeopleareremoving

energyfromyourday?Whatthingsaregivingyouenergy?What

thingsfillyouupandmakeyouexcitedandgiveyouthatjuice?Just

makealistofbothofthosethings.

Then,actually,daytwoisjustgothroughandstarteditingyourlife.

ItakefromtheEssentialismbook,wherejuststartminimizingthe

thingsinyourlifethatdon’treallyworkforyouanymore.Getridof

thethingsthataren’tservingyou.Minimizeorreduceorgoover

relationshipsthataren’tgivingyouwhatyouneedinyourlife.Asa

workingparent,youjustdon’thavethatmuchtimesoyouhaveto

maximizewhatyouhave.Thoseare,Iguess,twoexamplesofwhat

peoplecandotogetmoretimeintheirlife,whichistheultimate

strugglethatIheardpeoplewerehaving.

Myprogramgoesalotmoreindepthandwetalkalotmoreabout

creatingaholisticlifestylethatdoesn’texhaustyouanymoreand

whereyoudon’tfeellikeyou’reoutofcontrolandyoufeellike

you’retheonewho’slivingwithintentionandfocusingonthethings




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thataremostmeaningfultoyou.Itwasalittlebitmoreofabroader

conceptwhenyougointothecourse,butIwantedtomakethe

bootcampreallyactionable.

Pat: Howdoyougetoverthemindsetof,“I’mgivingawaypartsofmy

courseforfree.HowamIgoingtogetpeopletoactuallypayformy

coursedowntheroad?”

Sarah: I’veheardsomuchaboutthat,actually.Imean,you,ChrisDucker,

AmyPorterfield,MarieForleo,Ijusthaveallthesevirtualmentors.

Youguyshavealwayssaid,“Youknowwhat?Giveyourbeststuff

awayforfree.That’showpeoplelearntotrustyou.That’show

peoplecanconnectwithyou.”I’vealwaysfeltthatway.Ijustcome

fromthisplaceofabundance,whereI...Idon’tknow.IfeellikeI

havealotthatIcanoffer.Thecourseitselfisabigpackagedthing.

It’sastep-by-stepprogram.It’sasystem.Idon’tthinktakingone

piecehereorthereisgoingtogivethewholethingaway.That,

alone,Ijustneverreallywasconcernedaboutthat.Imean,from

thegetgoIthinkIwasreallyluckythatIwaslearningfrompeople

whohadthatmindsetgoingin.Ijusttookthaton.Ijustboughtinto

that,Iguess.

Pat: Nice.Thebigquestionisdidyourtargetaudiencebuyintoit?How

didthelaunchgo?

Sarah: Ihad98people,Ibelieve,onmye-maillistwhenIdidmylaunch

andIsoldonecourseinthatfirst10-dayperiodduringmylaunch.I

mean,Idon’tknow,intermsofpercentagesIguessthatvalidatesit,

butintermsofwhatIwant,whatittellsmeisthatIwanttogrowmy

e-maillist.Iwanttocontinuetogrowmyaudienceandthenlaunch

itfromthereandseeagain,butthosearekindoftheresultsthatI

gotfromthatinitiallaunch.

Pat: 98people.Thosearepeoplewhohadtakenthatinitialoffering,the

bootcamp?

Sarah: Therewereactuallyonly65peoplethatwereinthebootcamp.

Yeah,actuallyonly65inthebootcampitselfandthenthosewere




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thepeoplethat...Ithinkeverybodygotledintothelaunchseries,

though,eveniftheydidn’tdothebootcamp.Therewere98people

totalonmye-maillistatthetime.

Pat: Nice,okay.Let’stalkaboutthis.Let’sunpackthis.Inyoureyes,

howdoyoufeelyoudidoverallwiththelaunchbasedonthese

numbers?

Sarah: Iwashappywiththeresults.Ihadnoidea,really,whattoexpect

goingintoit.Ialsohaveheardfromsomanypeople,including

DavidSitemanGarland,yourlaunchisjustyourinitiallaunch.Thisis

anassetyou’llhaveovertime.Ididn’twanttoputatonofpressure

onitfromthebeginning,butIalsowantedtoseehowitwouldgo.

Imean,intermsofpercentages,Iwasokaywithit.Iwaslike,“You

knowwhat?Ifeelgoodaboutit.”DuringthesalesprocessIhad

talkedtothepersonwhoboughtthecourseandIwaslike,“Here’s

whatitdoes.Here’swhatitoffers.”Shewasinterestedinitsothat

wasgreat.Idon’tknow.

Idon’tknow.It’shardtosay,“Iregretthis,”or,“Iwouldchangethis,”

but,Imean,intermsoflessonslearnedIdefinitelywanttoincrease

mye-maillist.Ithinkthatthat’llhelp.Ialsothinkitwould’vebeen

nicetomaybedoasmall,tinytestversionofitbeforespending

severalmonthsdoingthiswhole,bigprogram.Maybedosomething

onUdemyoronThinkificorTeachableorsomethingwhereIcan

testitout.Iknowyoutalkalotaboutvalidation.IthinkIread“Will

ItFly”towardstheendofmyprogramafterIhadstartedthewhole

process.ButIthinkthatthatwould’vebeenareallyvaluabletool

toseewhatarepeopleinterestedinandisthissomethingthat

they’regoingtobuy,oristhisjustsomethingthattheysaythey’re

interestedinordotheyreallywantit.

ThatpartiswhereIamrightnow,isstilltryingtofigurethatout.Is

thisanumbersthing?IfIgetmoreexposureit’llbesomethingthat

peoplewant,ormaybeit’snotevensomethingpeoplewant.Maybe

Itakethisassetanddosomethingdifferentwithit,ormaybeItotally

scrapitaltogetherandstartfreshwithsomethingelse.I’mnotsure

howit’llallpanout.




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Pat: Well,thankyouforbeinghonestwithallofthis.Ilovethe

enthusiasmyouhavedespitenumbersthatsomepeoplewouldbe

like,“Well,thisisacompletefailure.”Youhaven’tevenmentioned

thatall,sothat’sfantastic.Idon’tthinkit’sacompletefailure.Idon’t

eventhinkit’safailureatall.There’safewreasons.One,onesale

ishuge.Thatmeansthatthisissomethingthatpeoplearewilling

tospendmoneyon,andyoujustneedto,likeyousaid,grow

youre-maillist,getmoreexposureforit.Inanidealsituationyou

would’vedonewhatIteachin“WillItFly,”whichismaybelaunch

withjustthefirststagewithouthavingputthattimeandeffortinto

thebackpartofit,tofirstvalidateit,likeyousaid.

Butnowyouhaveitallbuilt,whichisgreat.Youvalidatedit.Some

person’sboughtit.Youreallywanttomakesureyouunderstand

whythispersonboughtit.Ifyouhavebeenhavingcontactwith

themalreadythat’sfantastic.FollowupandtrytogetonaSkype

callwiththatpersonandtalktothemjusttogetdeepdown.What

madethemdecidetobuy?Myguessisthatthere’salotofpeople

whoyou’vebeenabletonurtureovertimewhoareonthefence,

andmaybebecauseitissonewthatthey’renotyetreadytobuy.

Ithinkyou’reveryclosetothattippingpointwherethingswillstart

toworkout.Likeyousaid,youalreadyhavethecoursemadeso

you’reatanadvantageatthispointnowhavingputallthatworkin

upfront.

There’safewthingsIwillsay.Youcanalsoaskthepeople,

especiallythoseinyourbootcamp.Ithinkthisisgoingtobe

reallyinteresting.Ifyouweretofollowupwiththosepeopleand

askthem,there’saspecificstrategythatRyanLevesquetalks

aboutinthebook,“Ask,”calledtheDoYouHateMe?strategy.I

wouldn’taskthatquestion,butIwouldasktheprincipleofwhatthat

questiondoes.Thatis,essentially,saying,“Hey,yousaidyouwere

interested.Youtookthething.ThenIofferedthisthingandyou

didn’tpurchase.Why?”Obviously,you’dphraseitinyourownvoice

andyourownway.Ryan’ssubjectlineis,“Doyouhateme?”That’s

moreofa...increasingtheopenratesofthate-mailbecausewho

wouldn’topenane-mailwiththatsubjectline?




14

Anyway,thepointbeingyouwanttofollowupwithpeoplewho

hadtakenthatbootcampbecausetheysaidtheywereinterested.

Youknowthey’reinterestedinthistopic,butthenyoucanask

themquitehonestly,“Hey,howcomeyoudidn’tbuy?”You’regoing

togetsomeveryhonestanswers,andthat’sgoingtohelpguide

youonwhatyournextstepsare.EverytimeI’vetoldpeopletodo

thatwhentheyfeellikethey’vehadfailureorhavehadalaunch

thatdidn’tgoasexpected,gettingeventwoorthreepeopleto

respondwithveryhonestfeedbackcanopenupthelightinterms

of,“Oh,that’swhypeopledidn’tbuy,”or,“Wow,theyjustneeda

littlebitmoretime,”or,“Wow,theygoteverythingtheyneededout

ofthatbootcampalready.Nowondertheydidn’tbuy,”whichthen

yourcalltoactionisdon’tofferthatfullyinthebootcamp.Maybe

dosomethingelseinsteadofthatchallenge.Youwon’tknowuntil

youask.That’sthecoolthingaboutwhereyou’reatnow.Youdon’t

havetoguessanymore.Youhaveapositionandaspacewithwhat

you’vedonealreadytogofindtherightanswersforwhattodo

next.Doesthatmakesense?

Sarah: Yeah.Actually,partofmyfollowupseriesincludedaquestionlike

that.Like,“Hey,Ihaveaquestionforyou.Whatwasitaboutthis

programthatwasn’ttherightfitforyou,”or,“Whatheldyouback

frompurchasingatthispoint?”Itwasinterestingbutalsoalong

thelinesofwhatImighthaveexpectedgoingin.Ilookedatthis

asanexperimentgoingin,becauseitwasmyfirstlaunch.Itwas

myfirstprogram.It’sallnew.Itwashelpful.Itactuallyhelpedme

reallyunderstandthepsychologyofmyaudienceandahurdle

thatIthinkI’mgoingtohavetoovercome,actually.Becauseone

ofthethingsthatIreallygointoinmyprogramisaboutselfcare

andputtingyourselffirst.That’soneofthebiggestchallengesthat

myaudiencehas.That,Ithink,isgoingtobeoneofmybiggest

hurdleswithmyprogram,actually,isconvincingpeopleorgetting

infrontofthepeoplewhoarereadytoinvestinthemselves

becausethat’stheirspecificproblemisthatthey’renotwillingto

investtimeormoneyinthemselves.

ItbroughttolightsomethingthatI’mlike,“Okay,sothat’sgoing

tobeeitherahurdleIhavetoaddressinthesalespageorinthe




15

programitself.”Comeupwithabonusorsomethingthataddresses

that.ThatwasoneofthebestpiecesofinformationthatIgotfrom

thatfollowup.You’retotallyright.Followingupwiththepeopleand

askingwhytheydidn’tfollowthrough.Thosewerethetwobiggest

reasons,weremoneyandtime.

Pat: Andthentryingtobridgethegapbetweenwhatyouknowthey

needversuswhattheythinkthatwantisgoingtobereally,really

important.Thatiswherethesalespageplaysabigrole,anysort

ofwebinarrelationshipbuildingthatyou’redoingbeforethesale

orbeforetheygettothesalespageisgoingtobereallyimportant.

Youwantthemtoknowwhatthebenefitis.It’shardbecausefor

thingslikethis,it’slikesellingacourseonconfidence,right?How

doyouconvincesomebodythatthey’renotconfidentortheydon’t

wanttoadmitthatthey’renotconfident,ortheymightnoteven

knowthatthey’renotconfident,right?Tryingtoreallyhoneinon

therightlanguage,whichIthinkyoushouldmaybeevengoback

tothesurveyanddeterminewhetherornotthelanguagethat

peopleuseintheirresponsesisthesamelanguagethatyouuse

onthesalespage.Becausealotoftimes,weinfopreneursand

usentrepreneurs,wespeakfromwherewe’reatasthecourse

creatorsinalanguagethatisdifferentthanthosethatwouldbe

understoodbyourcustomers.

I’veseenitbeforewheresometimesit’sjustalanguagechangethat

needstohappenonthesalespagetoreallymakethosenumbers

gobackup.Othertimesit’speoplemaybeneedalittlebitmoretime

togettoknowwhoyouare.Perhapsanotherfollowupsequence.A

lotoftimespeoplebuythesekindsofreallybig,lifechangingtypes

ofcoursesnotonthefirsttimetheyhearit,notonthesecondtime,

butsometimesthethirdorfifthorthetenthtimetheyhearit.Again,

likeIsaid,it’sthereandIthinkit’shelpful,anditshouldcontinueto

staythereandbeofferedovertime.Ithinkyou’regoingtofindthat,

overtime,you’regoingtohavecustomerswhowillbuythesecond,

third,orfourthtimeafterthey’vehearditbefore.

Sarah: Yeah.Whatyouwerejusttalkingaboutremindedmeofoneofour

accountabilitycalls.Weweretalkingabouthowtoconvertthose

softbenefitsintohardbenefits,becauseit’salso...Imean,whatI’m




16

sellingisn’tnecessarily...It’snotabusinesscoursewhere,“Hey,

youcanmakethisamountofmoneyorsavethisamountoftime,”

orwhatever.Thatwasoneofthechallengesforme,too,wastrying

tofigureoutwhatconcreteresultstheyweregoingtogetfromthe

courseandhighlightingthatandusingthelanguagetomakesure

thatthatwasnaileddownaswell.

Pat: Right.Areallyimportantphrasetoknowis,“sothat.”

Sarah: Right.

Pat: Thisisforeverybody.Youmighthaveatonoffeaturesandamazing

modulesandlessons,butwhyarethoselessonsthere?Sothat

yourcustomercanwhat?Youwantthemtobeableto,asthey’re

readingthroughthatsalespage,imaginethistransformationthat

they’regoingtohave.They’renotgoingtobelike,“Oh,Ilovedthat

lessononthis.”They’regoingtosay,“Wow,thislessonallowedme

todothisorhavethistransformationorexperiencelifeinadifferent

way.”Ithinkifyoucantapintomaybealittlebitdeeperwhatthose

painpointsareforparents.It’snotnecessarilyaboutgettingmore

time.It’ssoyouhavemoretimesothatyoucanbewithyourkids,

sothatyoucanbeagoodparent,sothatyoucanhavetimeto

stayhealthy,sothatyoucanfeelmoreconfident,sothatyoucan

performbetteratwork,sothatyoucanprovidemoreforyourfamily,

sothat...Imean,itcankeepgoingonandonandonandon,but

that’s...Thedeeperyougothemorelikelyitisyouaretohitone

ofthosetriggersthatpeoplearegoingtosay,“Oh,yeah.Thisis

somethingIneednow.”

Sarah: Thatbringsupanotherpoint,too,isthatIknowIheardinoneof

yourpodcastsearlyonbeforeIevercreatedmyprogram,inablog

postorinapodcastorsomething,toreallybeclearaboutthatpoint

AtopointBtransitionthatyouaregoingtohelpthemachieve.I

keptthatinmindwhenIwascreatingmyoutlineformycourse.That

waseverylesson,everyexercise,everyslidedeck.Everythingthat

IcreatedItriedtokeepthatinmindaswell.Thathelpedalotwhen

Iwascraftingthesalespage,becauseIhadthose...“Here’swhat

you’llaccomplish.Ifyou’restartingatthispoint,you’llbeabletoget

tothispoint.”I’mgladIhadthatinmindearlyonasIwascreating




17

theprogram,becauseIthinkithelpedalotlaterwhenIwastrying

todescribewhattheywouldbegettingoutoftheprogram.

Pat: Nice.Thewayyoudescribedithereontheshowshowsthatyou

knowwhatyou’retalkingabout.Youareobviouslysomebodywho

canbetrustedtosharethiskindofinformation.Ithinkit’sjustgoing

totakealittlebitmoretweaking,moreexperimentation,beforeyou

gettothat,likeIsaid,tippingpointorthatinflectionpointwhere

thingswillstarttohappen.I’mreallyexcitedtoseeit.BeforeIlet

yougohere,Sarah,thishasbeenanawesome,insiderlookat

somebodywho’srightinthethickofitrightnow.Thankyoufor

sharingallthisandbeinghonestaboutitandpartlyacoachingcall,

Iguess.Idon’tknow.Whatareyournextsteps?

Sarah: Actually,whatyouweresayingbefore.IthinkoneofthethingsI

reallywanttodoistoconnectwithmyaudience.Idon’thaveas

muchtimetodothatasIwantedtooverthelastyear.Ihavemy

program.Ihavemybootcamp.Allofthatstuffiscreated.Nowit

isjustabouttweakingthatandmanipulatingittoworkwithwhere

myaudienceis.ThemainthingthatI’mworkingonrightnowisa

podcastthat’sgoingtobelaunchedinJanuaryof2017.It’salso

calledTheWorkingParentResource.It’sgoingtobeallthesesame

conversations.Thisgoesbacktowhatyouweresayingabout

givingawaytoomuchforfree.Ijustwanttogetthisinformationout

topeople.There’ssomuchoutthere.Itcanbereallyconfusingfor

workingparents.Whatinformationisreliable?Alotofitconflicts

withotherinformation.Justhelpingpeopledistillallofthatdown.

Ifeltlikethatwouldbeareallygoodplatformtogettoknowmy

audienceandtohaveaconversationwithmyaudience,togetto

talktoexpertsandotherworkingparentswhoaregoingthrough

reallifeissuesaswell.That’smynextstep,isbuildingthatplatform

sothatIcanengagewithmyaudienceinalittlebitmore...I’mable

todoitintheFacebookgroup,butIwanttodoitinawaythatI

thinkmyaudiencemightactuallybeabletoengage.They’realways

onthegoandit’shardtositandreadalongblogpostorwhatever.

ThisiswhatIthoughtmightbeagoodwaytogetintouchwithmy

audienceandteachthemandtalktothem.LetthemknowwhoIam

andletthemknowwhatIhavetoofferand,“Allthisotherstuffis




18

availableaswell.”That’swhatI’mworkingonnext.

Pat: Sweet.Well,wewillbeseeingeachotheragain.Moreoftennow

thatI’mgoingtobedoingmoreregularSanDiegomeetups.We’ll

befiguringoutwhenwecanstartcollectivelyinvitingtheSPI

audiencetothesethings,too.We’rekindofkeepingitprivatefor

now,andthenslowlyscalingit.Wewanttodoitinaverysmartway.

I’mexcitedtofollowupwithyouinthenearfuture,Sarah,tosee

howthingsaregoing.I’msurethateverybodyelseintheaudience

will,too.Perhapswecanrevisitthismaybelaterintheyearandsee

whereyou’reat.

Sarah: Iwouldloveto.That’dbegreat.Thankyou.

Pat: Awesome.Thankssomuch,Sarah.Iappreciateit.Bestofluck.Oh,

wherecanpeoplegotofindoutmoreaboutallthisstuffthatyou’re

workingon?

Sarah: Everythingrelatedtomywebsite,myresources,mypodcast,my

blog,everythingisatworkingparentresource.com.It’skindofthe

hubforeverything.

Pat: Nice.Allright.Keepitup.Thankssomuch,Sarah.

Sarah: Thanksalot,Pat.I’lltalktoyousoon.

Pat: Allright.IhopeyouenjoyedthatepisodewithSarah.She’son

therightpath.She’sbeendoingalotofrightthingsandmaybe

wishshewould’vedonecertainthingsdifferently,buthopefully

that’salessonforallofyououtthere.Icannotwaittofollowup

withherandseehowthingsaregoinginthenextcouplemonths.

We’llcheckinwithherinthefuture,butSarah,thankyouagain

somuchforyourtimeandforbeingopenandhonestthroughout

thisprocessherewithmeandforeverybodyelselistening.You

can,again,findherandherworkatworkingparentresource.

com.Ofcourse,youcangettheshownotestothisepisodeat

smartpassiveincome.com/session251.

Ialsowanttotakeamomenttothanktoday’ssponsor,whichis




19

99designs.com.Ifyou’rejuststartingoutandyou’relookingfor

somedesignworkforanything,fromalogotoyourwebsitetoa

landingpageto,Idon’tknow,maybeyou’restartingafoodtruck.

Afoodtruckraporat-shirtbusiness.Youcangett-shirtsdesigned.

Whateveryouneeddesigned.Ifyoucan’tyetaffordthatone

designerwho’sgoingtobeonyourteam,whichisverydifficultto

dowhenyou’rebootstrappingandstartingout,99Designsisa

greatsolution,becausewhatyoucandoisputupyourspecsfor

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aregoingtocompeteforyourfavoritedesign.Yougettopickyour

favoriteone.That’showitworks.It’sprettyawesome.Ifyou’renot

happywithanyofthesubmissionsaftersevendays...That’show

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back.Ifyouwanttocheckitoutyoucan.

Foraspecialdealheadonoverto99designs.com/spi.That’sthe

link.Onemoretime,99designs.com/spi.That’lltakeyoutoapage

whereyoucanget$99freethatyoucanputtowardyournext

designproject.Checkthemout.I’veusedthemmultipletimesin

thepast.Ievenusedthemoncetoconvertablogpostintoan

infographic,whichwasverysuccessful.Iusedthemforalogo

formyson’ssoccerteam,andabunchofotherthings,too.Other

peoplelikeTimFerrisshaveusedthemaswell.Anyway,check

themout,99designs.com/spi.

Thankyousomuch.Ilookforwardtoservingyouinnextweek’s

episode.Untilthen,keepmakingmistakes,guys,becausethat’s

howyoulearn.Keepmovingforward.Takecare,andI’llseeyouin

thenextepisode.Bye.

Announcer: ThanksforlisteningtotheSmartPassiveIncomepodcastatwww.

smartpassiveincome.com.




20

ReSouRceS: WorkingParentResource

FrazzledtoBalanced

CreateAwesomeOnlineCourses

Evernote

Trello

SurveyMonkey

SmartPassiveIncomeEpisode178:TheAskFormula—How

toDiscoverExactlyWhatYourAudienceWillBuy(EvenIfYou

Don’tHaveaFollowing)withRyanLevesque

Udemy

Thinkific

Teachable

SpoNSoRS: 99Designs.com




http://workingparentresource.com

https://finconexpo.com

http://workingparentresource.com/ftb-bootcamp/

https://www.createawesomeonlinecourses.com

https://evernote.com/

http://trello.com

https://www.smartpassiveincome.com/surveymonkey




https://www.udemy.com/courses

http://www.thinkific.com

https://www.smartpassiveincome.com/teachable

http://99designs.com/spi


spi 251 (in the middle) launching a ... - smart passive income · pat: this is the smart passive...

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