This is a value based email. We have talked about how comparison is the killer of success. The aim of this email is to inspire the reader to embrace what it is that makes them unique in their business. --- Comparison is the enemy of your success 😱 “Personality begins where comparison leaves off” – Shannon L. Alder How many times have you compared yourself to another person? We all do it, every single day of our lives. Most of the time, we’re not even aware we’re doing it. There always seems to be somebody else doing it better. Maybe you see them thriving where you struggle, and you start doubting yourself. The friend who always gets lucky breaks. The business partner who has better ideas than you. A competitor who constantly stays one step ahead of you. Life is full of people who seem to be succeeding faster than you are. Does comparison help your business thrive? Some might argue that you need to see what the competition is up to. By comparing what they’re doing against what you’re doing, you can match up. That’s fair, sure. But does it actually help you to succeed? I would counter that it doesn’t. A comparison could actually be holding you back. Comparison is simply trying to adjust yourself to a competitor’s standards so that you measure up. But by focusing on their success, you’re already preventing yours. When you get stuck in the comparison trap, you’re limiting yourself to other people’s goals and forgetting your own. Once you get stuck in that trap, you’re no longer unique. That’s what kills your progress. If you compare yourself to everybody else around you, you’re never going to reach your own amazing potential. That competitor who seems to be doing all the right things hasn’t latched on to some magical formula. There’s no secret ten-step program to instant success that they’ve discovered. They’re simply offering a unique experience that resonates with their customers. You have something unique to offer too. Authenticity. This doesn’t need to be rocket science either. You don’t need to overthink this. Just let your unique personality shine through in your business. Find something that resonates with your audience, and you’ll stand out to them. Forget what your competitors are doing and focus on what you have to offer to your customer base. If you spend your time copying the competition, then it will be competition forever.

This is a value based email on the topic of making your website sticky. We’ve given five tips in the email that the business owner can make sure they have in place on their website. --- Your website needs to be sticky. When I say that your website is sticky, I mean that it engages your visitors and keeps them reading. When someone visits your website, you only have a few seconds to capture their attention. Usually, this will be around 5 - 10 seconds. If your website isn’t “sticky”, the visitor won’t stay. Instead, they’ll head back to the search engine results page and click on your competitor’s website instead. So what can you do to engage your visitors? How can you encourage them to keep reading your content and stay on your website? Here are five things you can do to capture the attention of your visitors: • Use engaging content - Make your visitors feel like you’re talking directly to them. Try and refrain from using “I” or “we” too often. Your content should be about your visitors. When you’re creating content, imagine your reader is sitting on the other side of your desk. This will help you to use a conversational tone that draws the reader in and encourages them to read more. • Use media effectively - This works really well with blog content but is equally applicable to any page on your website. Using images and videos in your content helps to keep a user engaged. Media is great for breaking up large sections of content and adding different options for your visitors to engage with what you have to say. • Make sure your website is easy to use - This might seem obvious, but it’s something that companies can easily miss with their websites. When was the last time that you viewed your website from the perspective of a potential customer? Make sure you do this regularly. Your website should be easy for them to use and really easy to navigate. Ideally, a user should be able to get to any important information within 3 clicks. • Use good design - Design can be subjective, but one thing is clear - website visitors will react better to a website that is well designed. It doesn’t have to be “pretty” or full of fancy features. There’s no need to go over the top and create something that isn’t user-friendly. You’re simply looking for a design that is clean and trustworthy. • Have consistent branding throughout - Branding is about more than just your logo. Your website should have a consistent look and feel. This helps users to feel comfortable as they browse your site and engage with your content. Consistent branding goes hand in hand with good design when it comes to making your website feel trustworthy to your visitors. You may have some of these elements in place already. If you do, that’s great, but don’t ever rest on your laurels. It’s important to review your website periodically. This will help you to make sure that you’re continuing to engage and capture the attention of your visitors. How sticky is your website right now?

This is a philosophy that many of you will know is very dear to our hearts. It’s an important approach and one that business owners should consider adopting so that they create better relationships with their audience. We’ve talked about why value based content is important to a business owner and the benefits it will bring to their business. --- Delivering Value First One of the best things you can do for your business is to adopt a “value first” approach. What do I mean by value first? A value first approach is when you focus on delivering value to your audience before you sell to them. This might seem counterintuitive so let’s talk about that. The traditional selling approach is to present your products or services and give your potential customers an opportunity to make a purchase. Think of it like a market stall, where everything is laid out and someone can walk up and buy something. The problem you have is that the vast majority of visitors to your website are not ready to make a purchase. In fact, the percentage of visitors who are ready to buy can be as low as 2%. If you’re only focused on selling, then you’re missing out on all of the potential customers who weren’t ready to make a purchase when they visited your website. This is where having a value first philosophy can make a big difference to your business. One example of “value first” would be to create content that speaks to the problems that your audience has. These are the problems that you’re solving with the products or services that you sell. Creating content that acknowledges these problems helps your audience to know that they’re in the right place. They know that your business is the one that can help them. Your content will educate, deliver value and ultimately position your products or services as a good solution. See how you didn’t stop selling? You can still do that. You’ve simply moved the sale to the point after you’ve delivered value. This doesn’t just work for new customers. It’s perfect for your existing customers too. Delivering value consistently helps you to retain customers. For example - sending out valuable content in email newsletters, writing blog posts and sharing on social media. These are all ways you can stay in front of mind and share great content with your customers. Value-based selling and a value first philosophy is a powerful tool for your business. It helps your business to stand out from the crowd and to be memorable to your existing customers. What could you share with your audience? What problems are you solving that you could write about? If you’d like to talk more about value-based selling we can schedule a free 30-minute call. I’d be more than happy to talk to you and see how we can help.

This is a value-based email. This email discusses simple ways to break out of work mode, a common issue for many business owners. We have used an example below, but if you have a specific story or method of your own, feel free to add it! Ideally, this email should be kept sales free and encourage conversation with your reader. --- How I break out of work mode ⌛ You’re enjoying some much-needed time off, and just as you start to relax, work pops into your head. Does that sound familiar? Being stuck in work-mode is a huge problem for so many business owners. Myself included. In fact, it was so bad, even my dreams were about work! Any email notification immediately had me reaching for my phone. Every book I read was business-themed. I would even steer conversations towards a work-related idea I was cooking up. I knew something had to change. Work was starting to seep into every part of my life. I had to find a way to leave work behind when it was time to go home. So, I started sticking to a set of rules that helped me to break the pattern. • Set a stop time and stick to it. Commit to stopping work as soon as the clock reaches stop time. If that’s 5 pm or 2 am, make sure that you stay consistent. I switch off as soon as the clock reaches 6 pm. I made a promise to myself not to think about work until I was back in the office. • Put your smartphone down. While smartphones are invaluable for keeping you connected, they can keep you too connected. Make sure your email notifications are switched off when you’re not working. It’s too easy to grab your phone when you hear or see a notification. I made a habit of leaving my phone in another room while I relaxed. • Resist the urge to ‘quickly’ check your emails. It might seem fine just to have a quick glance at your emails. However, each time you do it, you’re forming a habit. Resist the itch to pick up your phone or open your laptop. • Find a new hobby to get lost in. Do you have an interest that’s been left on the shelf? Think of something you wish you could try and make time to pursue that. I’ve always wanted to explore photography, but instead of picking up my camera, I would end up checking my emails.Now I spend a few hours each week improving my photography skills, and it feels great. When I’m out taking pictures, work is the furthest thing from my mind. (Btw, it's been a while since I last time updated my Instagram) • Remember your priorities. When you can’t break out of work mode, it starts to tamper with the important things in your life. Make a list of your priorities, i.e I want to spend more time with my family. I want to focus on my health. Focus on your priorities the next time you start letting your mind drift to work. Now, imagine going home, relaxing, and knowing you don’t need to give work a second thought until tomorrow. How do you switch off?

This is a value-based email. In this email we explore the power of storytelling in business. We go through the benefits effective storytelling can bring for you and your customers. --- You’re never too old for stories 😀 You might think storytelling is limited to a dusty novel on the shelf or a whimsical blog about somebody's distant travels. It doesn’t really belong in business, right? Actually, storytelling is one of the most powerful marketing tools you can have. Now, I’m not talking about those fake backstories that you might see from some less than sincere companies who are just trying to appeal to their market. We’ve all seen them. Storytelling should never be used as a slimy tactic. I’m talking about real, honest stories. Stories that your customers can connect with, and in turn, let you connect with them. Great stories bridge the gap between you and your audience. I love that, don’t you? You’ve probably guessed I’m a pretty big fan of storytelling by now, so let me tell you why. I could write a novel about my love of storytelling, but I’ll rein it in a little for this email and focus on what it means for your customers. • Identity - A relatable story guarantees a captive audience. When a customer can identify with something in your story, they are far more likely to be engaged with what you have to say. There’s a saying amongst writers: “Make your reader the hero of the story”. This applies to the stories you tell your customers. If they feel involved, they will be eager to read more. • Emotion - Emotions are a tricky thing when it comes to business. Storytelling allows you to express emotion in a way that your customers can instantly identify with. As much as we love to deny it, many of our decisions in life are based on emotion. It’s what makes us human. • Connection - Storytelling humanizes you. That’s not to say you’re secretly an android, just that a story can help you to express your own humanity. Humans love to connect with other humans. When a customer connects with your story, they are connecting with you too. With connection comes trust. • Conversation - When you share a story that really resonates with your customer, they are far more likely to reach and connect with you. You will have established common ground with the customer, engaged them, and started to build trust. The best thing about this is that the customer will likely have a story to share of their own! Do you have a story you could share with your customers that you think would resonate with them? I bet you do, and I’m sure your audience would love to read it. I hope you enjoyed this email. I was thinking of turning this into something a bit more detailed like a blog post. If that’s something you would be interested in reading, please feel free to reach out. I’d love to know.