How to Grow a Successful Wedding Business - Katie Lyth and Roxy Bond

In August '23 I was particularly fortunate to be a guest on the Deep Dive Podcast with Ali Abdaal. For those who don't know Ali has 6 million subscribers to his main YouTube channel. That one single podcast interview generated 1,500 leads for my business in the subsequent 90 days, which led to 80+ sales calls and over £150,000 in booked revenue. It blew my mind how one podcast interview could make or break the fortunes of a business owner, and so in this episode I disect what steps I went through in order to get this podcast booked. My blinding flash of the obvious was that it was all down to the Partnerships that I built that this podcast even came about. From doing the Key Person of Influence course ten years ago with Daniel Priestley, to my friendship with author Simon Alexanger-Ong they all played a part. The 5 Steps for Partnership are: Be intentional about the 10-20 people you would like to partner up with and how the partnership will benefit both you and them. Ensure you a rephysically in the same room with your partners regularly. Yes we live in an online world but nothing beats a hand shake and looking into someone's eyes! Be helpful and add value. Finding your inside man/woman. The "Silver Platter" methodology for sealing a new partnership. To Apply for a FREE Coaching Session with Robin Use the following link: https://www.robinwaite.com/app To find out more about Fearless Business:  Join our amazing community of Coaches, Consultants and Freelancers on Facebook: >> https://facebook.com/groups/ChargeMore  And check out the Robin's website: >> https://www.robinwaite.com  

I get asked very frequently what my process is for producing a podcast episode, and in this episode of the podcast (a bit meta!!) I break it down for you. My Podcast process is quite simple: Come up with an overall topic for the episode. Generally this is either from questions I get asked throughout the week from clients and prospects or I might look for a topic on Google which is highly searched for. These are topics which I know will get traction because people are talking about the topic already. Once I've chosen my topic for the podcast, I'll do a quick bit of research and write down a bullet point list of what I want to speak about. This is where frameworks are quite helpful, so something like my "Silver Platter Patnership" Framework might be made up of 5 steps. So if I do a 2 minutes introduction and backstory, along with 2 minutes for each step (or bullet point) and then 2 minutes for an outro, that equates to a nice succint 14 minute long episode. I try and record monologues in one-take because I get into flow, and I'll only go back and re-record that short segment. Without thinking about it I send it to my awesome Podcast Editor, James Ede, and he normally has it back to me within 48 hours. This means I can get a very simple podcast episode up in a very short period of time. The other things to consider on your podcast are: Monologues vs Guest Interviews: I found when I was solely doing guest interviews my downloads were generally quite low because I was selecting relatively unknown people with small audiences and my guests weren't promoting the episode. When I switched to 3 monologues to every 1 guest interview my downloads went up fourfold and people enquiring after my lead magnets also shot up, plus the guest interviews got a lot more traction. Platform: Choosing the right platform is paramount, originally I was on Anchor.fm which was good enough, but I didn't find the distribution was as wide as I wanted it to be, when I switched to Podbean again the management of the podcast was easier but the downloads increased dramatically because of the wider distribution. Reviews: ASK PEOPLE FOR REVIEWS!!! Spring Clean: Spring clean your podcast periodically. During th e100th episode relaunch I went through and SEO optimised all of the episode titles and descriptions, removed some of the lesser downloaded episodes. Ordered the episodes into seasons. And again on doing all of this the downloads went up. Hope you found this helpful, let me know if you did!! To Apply for a FREE Coaching Session with Robin Use the following link: https://www.robinwaite.com/app To find out more about Fearless Business:  Join our amazing community of Coaches, Consultants and Freelancers on Facebook: >> https://facebook.com/groups/ChargeMore  And check out the Robin's website: >> https://www.robinwaite.com  

The wedding industry is a world of dreams, where every couple envisions their special day as perfect, memorable, and stress-free. As a wedding industry professional, your mission is not just to meet these expectations but to surpass them. In this illuminating podcast episode, we dive deep into the wisdom of Robin Waite, a seasoned expert in business. He shares invaluable insights on pricing strategies, the art of sales, and building a successful wedding business that leaves both you and your clients feeling fulfilled. Katie Lyth is one half of The Wedding Business Hub alongside her business partner Roxy Bond they make a dynamic team and are wedding industry experts. They are dedicated to helping small businesses in the wedding industry achieve remarkable financial milestones. With a passion for entrepreneurship and an in-depth understanding of the unique challenges and opportunities within the wedding sector, They are a trusted guide for aspiring and established wedding professionals alike. What We Discussed on The WedPro Podcast Offering Value: In the wedding industry, it's essential to offer experiences that resonate with couples, providing peace of mind and stress-free planning. Money-Back Guarantee: Consider offering a 100% money-back guarantee to showcase your faith in your services while ensuring you work with the right clients. Pricing Confidence: Don't fear raising your prices gradually, focusing on delivering exceptional experiences that justify the cost. Conversion Rates: Aim for a conversion rate between 20% and 40%, focusing on quality over quantity and gaining feedback through lower conversion rates. Six-Step Sales Process: Implement a concise sales script to boost confidence during sales conversations, navigate objections, and guide clients toward positive decisions. Sales Roleplay: Live roleplay exercises offer practical insights into handling objections, adjusting tonality, pacing, and perfecting body language. WEDCON Event: Beyond pricing and sales, WEDCON celebrates success and well-being for wedding professionals, offering a supportive community and relaxation. Financial Buffer: Build a financial buffer to enhance business stability, boost confidence, and approach bookings more strategically. Connect with Katie and Roxy: Instagram  Facebook: The Wedding Business Hub Learn More About WEDCON Here To find out more about Fearless Business:  Join our amazing community of Coaches, Consultants and Freelancers on Facebook: >> https://facebook.com/groups/ChargeMore  And check out the Fearless Business website: >> https://fearless.biz and https://www.robinwaite.com  

I had a really fascinating conversation between Business Coach, Robin Waite and Darren Ockenden, founder of Motion to Profit, about the benefits of Video and Podcasts for small business owners and why it's wortwhile investing the money into building these as a marketing asset. Having served as a police officer for 14 years, Darren is the visionary behind Motion to Profit, a top-rated marketing agency specialising in Video Production and Podcast Management.  The podcast discussion covered a wide range of topics related to personal branding, content creation, and business growth. Here are some key highlights from the conversation: What We Discussed With Darren Ockenden Podcasting and Video for Personal Branding: Podcasting and video are powerful tools for building a personal brand. They allow you to connect with your audience on a personal level, create trust, and engage with your target audience effectively. Consistency and Quality: Consistency in content creation is essential, but it should not compromise quality. Focus on delivering valuable content that resonates with your audience and aligns with your brand's message and values. Transparency and Authenticity: Building trust through transparency and authenticity is key to personal branding. Share your journey, including successes and failures, to connect with your audience on a deeper level. Diversify Content Formats: Diversify your content formats to cater to different preferences within your audience. Offer a mix of blogs, podcasts, videos, and social media posts to engage a broader audience. Networking and Collaboration: Building a network within your industry and collaborating with influencers can open up opportunities for growth and exposure. SEO and Online Visibility: Optimise your online presence for search engines to reach a wider audience. Use relevant keywords, meta descriptions, and backlinks to improve your website's search rankings. Monitoring and Adaptation: Regularly analyse your personal branding efforts, monitor engagement metrics, and adapt your strategy based on what works best for your audience. Seek Professional Guidance: Consider outsourcing tasks that aren't your core strengths, like content creation, to professionals who can help you maintain consistency and quality. Stay True to Your Values: Never compromise your values or authenticity for the sake of personal branding. Your brand should reflect your true self and the values you hold dear. To find out more about Fearless Business:  Join our amazing community of Coaches, Consultants and Freelancers on Facebook: >> https://facebook.com/groups/ChargeMore  And check out the Fearless Business website: >> https://fearless.biz and https://www.robinwaite.com

In this episode of the Fearless Business Podcast, Rob Moore joins seasoned business coach Robin Waite to talk about entrepreneurship and money mastery.  Rob Moore is a self-made property investor, entrepreneur, accomplished author, record-breaking individual, dynamic speaker, skilled pilot, and proud father. He holds co-ownership in seven companies specialising in property, lettings, and finance. Rob has forged partnerships with some of the most prominent names in the business and household spheres. He has made appearances as a business mentor on prime-time TV shows, including those on Living, Channel 4, the BBC, The Independent, and The Business Channel. Moreover, Rob is dedicated to mentoring individuals striving for success, helping them attain greater financial prosperity and recognition in both business and life. He is the acclaimed author of bestsellers like "LIFE LEVERAGE" and "MONEY" and serves as the host of the widely followed DISRUPTIVE ENTREPRENEUR podcast. In the world of entrepreneurship, there are those who play it safe, and then there are those who embrace the challenges with a fearless attitude. Rob Moore, a renowned entrepreneur, author, and coach, undoubtedly falls into the latter category. In this insightful interview, we had the privilege of delving into Rob's world, exploring his journey, mindset, and the secrets behind his remarkable success. What We Discussed with Rob Moore on the Fearless Business Podcast Fearless Entrepreneurship: Rob Moore's journey from art to entrepreneurship highlights the importance of embracing change and making data-driven decisions in the world of business. Role of Mentorship: Mentorship plays a crucial role in accelerating entrepreneurial growth by providing valuable insights and guidance to avoid common pitfalls. Data-Driven Decision-Making: Rob Moore's success is built on data-driven decision-making, using available information and market insights to make strategic choices. Harnessing Fear: Fear can be a motivator for entrepreneurs, driving them to make better decisions and confront challenges head-on. Money Mastery: Rob Moore is an expert in money mastery, with a focus on helping others understand financial management through books like "Money Matrix" and "Money Loves You." Rob.team: Rob's platform, Rob.team, empowers entrepreneurs with a wealth of resources, courses, and a supportive community to help them succeed. Community Support: Being part of a supportive community is vital for entrepreneurs, allowing them to share challenges, seek advice, and celebrate successes together. Future Impact: Rob Moore's fearless approach and commitment to empowering entrepreneurs make him a leader in the field, with a growing impact on the world of entrepreneurship.

Andrew and Pete; international keynote speakers, ATOMIC founders, authors and YouTubers, are the multi award winning business duo who help small business owners scale their business so they can stop swapping time for money. What will be discussed on today’s show:  How do you prioritise time for sales? What should we be focussed on selling? What things do you see are holding people back from selling and making more money? How do we do all this, without working every hour of the day? What's your best sales tips? How do you get more people on the phone? How do you not get ghosted? What are Andrew and Pete Working on Right Now: ATOMICON23 - https://atomic.site/atomicon/  How to get hold of Andrew and Pete:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andrewandpete/  Linkedin: https://uk.linkedin.com/company/andrew-and-pete Twitter: https://twitter.com/AndrewAndPete  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/andrewandpete  Website: https://www.andrewandpete.com/  To find out more about Fearless Business:  Join our amazing community of Coaches, Consultants and Freelancers on Facebook: >> https://facebook.com/groups/ChargeMore  And check out the Fearless Business website: >> https://fearless.biz and https://www.robinwaite.com  

In this episode of the Fearless Business Podcast I hand over the reins to one of our certified mindset coaches, Paul Wilson, who runs a group coaching/hypnotherapy session to help our members to gain clarity over what their objectives for the month ahead look like, what is getting in their way and the key results. Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) are something I discovered in the book Measure What Matters by John Doerr. He uses some fantastic examples but what really stands out for me is why OKRs are better for businesses than traditional goal setting. Paul now hosts a regular monthly OKR sessions once a month with the members in our business accelerator to lock on their objectives for the month ahead, with remarkable results. A bit about Paul Paul uses Advanced Conversational Hypnotherapy to quickly and easily resolve some of life's most difficult problems such as anxiety, erectile dysfunction and female sexual dysfunction, driving and passenger anxiety, smoking & alcohol dependence and phobias without the use of medications and months of talk therapy. Based in Folkestone with online consultations for any timezone. I also coach business owners to let go of Procrastination, Perfectionism and Imposter Syndrome - letting go of beliefs that are holding them back from success in their field. To find out more about Fearless Business:  Join our amazing community of Coaches, Consultants and Freelancers on Facebook: >> https://facebook.com/groups/ChargeMore  And check out the Fearless Business website: >> https://fearless.biz and https://www.robinwaite.com   

Craig White gained his first coaching certification at the age of just 16. Now 51 he has been coaching professionally for over 28 years. Long history coaching and consulting in pro rugby (Tigers/Wasps/Ireland/Wales/British Lions) Background in sports coaching, leadership, culture building, yoga, meditation, and men's work Creator of Men Without Masks. What will be discussed on today’s show:  Challenges of Being a Man in today's world How MWM can help men to move through those challenges Business as a sacred practice The changing world of male leadership  What is Craig Working on Right Now: Craig and his amazing team run retreats for men throughout the year; you can download Craig’s free e-book, Secrets of a Man Without His Mask How to get hold of Craig:  Websites: https://www.craigwhitementoring.com/ and https://www.menwithoutmasks.com/  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/craigwhitementoring/?hl=en Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/craig-white-mens-coach/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/craig.white.165  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MenWithoutMasks  To find out more about Fearless Business:  Join our amazing community of Coaches, Consultants and Freelancers on Facebook: >> https://facebook.com/groups/ChargeMore  And check out the Fearless Business website: >> https://fearless.biz and https://www.robinwaite.com   

This Podcast episode covers one of the most commonly asked questions I get during coaching sessions which is, “Should I advertise my prices on my website?” The very short answer is, “No!” don’t advertise your prices on your website. There are several reasons for this which I go through in the podcast episode and I’ll also outline below: 1. You Could be Qualifying Prospects Out Too Soon In the example I walk listeners though in this episode of the Fearless Business Podcast, I talked about a beauty business that I worked with. They were so focussed on getting more customers via marketing as a way to grow their business, they were ignoring just about every other metric within the business. I looked at their finances and the business wasn’t looking shabby profit wise, but growth had slowed down dramatically. The numbers, which did look interesting to me, were on their cold leads into warm enquiries. It transpired many of their customers were “price sensitive” and were asking for prices up front in Messenger and via email. And my client was giving them the prices. This isn’t a big issue in its own right however it quickly became apparent that many of their prospects were uneducated buyers. I challenged their belief that giving away prices was a qualifier. It can be used to qualify prospects, but only when demand is so high there are few other ways to qualify prospects. They were adamant about giving the prices away as their belief was that, “If we don’t give prices when people ask then we are being dishonest!” and they believed in this quite strongly. I suggested we focus on a campaign to get prospective buyers into their clinic before giving their prices away for 30 days and see if it made any difference. I offered to match any drop in sales if they felt strongly my way contributed to losing clients. After 30 days their conversion from cold lead to warm prospect went up by 40% and this continued through into the profit and loss account 60-days later. By inviting prospects into the clinic they could see how amazing my client was, how professional their clinicians were, the quality of the services they provided and above all could learn about the treatments they were interested in buying.  There was no pressure selling, just an opportunity to experience what it would be like to visit the clinic and experience a treatment and consultation. 2. You May Still Be Adjusting To New Prices If you’re going through a process of increasing your prices, then I’d recommend not publicising your prices. Pricing is mostly based on mindset and confidence. Today you might not be so bullish about your prices, business or yourself and so it’s “easier” to fall back on your prices that are black and white on your website. However, tomorrow, for whatever reason, you might be feeling really confident having listened to a podcast from Robin about increasing your prices…but you can’t increase your prices…because they are in black and white on your website. I don’t know who made up this stupid rule about putting prices up maybe once a year and by only 5-10% if that…what a stupid rule, who decided that one? When you’re adjusting and testing new price points for your products, you might adjust your prices 6-10 times throughout the year until you reach a natural point of supply and demand. Imagine having to do 6-10 updates on your websites and marketing material. So, while you’re testing new prices, remove all traces of your price list from websites, social media and your email marketing so that people have to enquire about your products and prices to find out more. If you’re worried about this then please go back and re-read my comments in the section above. 3. Pricing Is a Conversation Starter People buy for many reasons and your prices only make up a small percentage of that buying decision, here are some example of other reasons why people buy, or at least enquire about your products: Referral - They heard someone talking about your business/brand and want to know whether your products or services can help them. Intrigue - There is something interesting they read in your marketing which prompted them to enquire about your business. They’re not educated buyers but interested to know more. Education - They know they need a service similar to yours but want to know more about how it works and most importantly will it work for them. Trust - They may trust you more or less than the competition so want to find out whether their hunch is right about your business. Speed - How quickly can you provide a solution to them? Quality - Can you do it better than your competitors? Window shopping - casually browsing potential solutions to their problems. Affordability - They like it but can they afford to buy? Do you offer payment plans to help them with this? To find out more about Fearless Business: Join our amazing community of Coaches, Consultants and Freelancers on Facebook: >> https://facebook.com/groups/ChargeMore And check out my personal business coaching website.  

Most business owners I know are stuck in the “sales cycle of doom” meaning that they are constantly having to market, sell and deliver their services just to get by. Rarely do I see successful small businesses producing any level of profit. Growing a sustainable small business requires the owner to: Save up for a rainy day fund - we recommend saving 6 months of operating expenses should the worst case happen and you are unable to work, at least your business has a small survival fund while you get back on your feel. This might take 2-3 years to save up. Reinvest in your business - business requires investment in order to grow, if you’re sucking all the profits out of your business by way of a salary, it is never going to grow. Create profit - Turnover is vanity but profit is sanity. The goal in business is not to collect customers. It is to make profit. It is much better to run a business that has a turnover of £150k and profit of £80k rather than a £1m revenue business making a loss of £80k. Why is it important to watch your costs? For every £1 you bring into the business you will have: Direct costs of sales VAT to pay (if you’re over the threshold) Staff to pay (if you employ people) Corporation tax to pay Other overheads and expenses By the time you deduct all of those it means your £1 is probably worth more like £0.50 or even less in many cases. Therefore every saving of £1 you can create in your business means you have to bring in £2-3 less in revenue on the top line. Which means you need FEWER clients. Not more. This is a more sustainable business. Imagine a coaching business which has a group coaching programme which it sells for £4,500 per seat. And that coaching practice has several subscription softwares which it pays for every month. If that coaching business can cut it’s subscription costs by just £200/mth, when you extrapolate that out over the course of a year, £2,400. Based on the maths of £1 saved leads to £2 less in required revenue this means that coach can afford to NOT HAVE TO enrol one additional client that year. £200 doesn’t sound like a lot, however the effort required to enrol a coaching client might require: 5 few consultations to be sat per year - that’s potentially 5 hours plus the admin saved. 35 fewer conversations with prospects needed - we have a rule in Fearless Business called 70-10-2. 70 conversations leads to 10 consultations which leads to 2 client enrolments. How much time needs to be invested into each one of those prospect conversations? 20 minutes each perhaps, so that’s another 12 hours saved. All of the extra marketing efforts which go into creating those initial conversations. So, you can see, a saving of just one client per year frees up at least 17 measurable hours for that coach, consultant or freelancer and countless amounts of energy in marketing. * as a side note, you may be looking at that thinking a 20% conversion rate is low for a business coach. Not if they’re qualifying prospects and only taking on the best clients. 20% is a typical conversion rate for a coaching business. But I need to do marketing which costs money Yes…and no…if you’ve listened to other episodes of the Fearless Business Podcast you’ll have heard me talk about Marketing Assets. If you build marketing assets such as: Writing a book A podcast Brochures YouTube channel To name just four assets, you can create these assets and they will start conversations for you while you sleep. When you’re next tempted to buy a “shiny” marketing thing for $5k from a hipster bro-marketer who wows you with “guaranteed” results…think twice. Most people miscalculate the ROI required for that investment to make sense, and think they just need to recover a single client (if they’re worth $5k to you) to make an ROI. WRONG! You will need at least 2-3 clients just to BREAK EVEN and probably more like 8-10 clients over the following year to justify the investment. As generally these investments become rolling payments that you need to make month in and month out irrespective of the results. They will also blame you should they not produce the results they promised you. That’s a podcast episode for another day. The moral of the story is: Keep your costs low and your income high. To find out more about Fearless Business: Join our amazing community of Coaches, Consultants and Freelancers on Facebook: >> https://facebook.com/groups/ChargeMore And check out my personal business coaching website.