Business Focus. Focus in general. It’s certainly the flavour of the month at the moment.

If you are like me you’re probably sick of all the ‘planning’ advice that is available at the moment. Yes I know it’s important and I’ve done it (mostly), but I want to know how people are moving their business forward.

I’ve always been one for behind the scenes, pull back the curtain and show me everything.

Last year I shared an email on my business focus for 2017 and it was very popular, so here I am ready to share my business focus for 2018.

2017 for me, business wise, wasn’t very good.

I didn’t put in the time required and had no focus.

This of course is reflected in our financial bottom line. You may remember recently I shared about how to make massive changes in your life and what I was doing to improve my energy levels and health.

It’s constant work which I need to focus on to make the changes I desire. Like anything right?

And for me, I lacked focus everywhere. My health, my business and my life in general.

Don’t get me wrong, life wasn’t horrible. I’ve got an amazing family, we sorted out our personal finances and I’m feeling better all the time.

Business wise, we also had some wins. I launched two new courses – SEO Accelerator and Nourish plus The Business Hub which is my membership site for women who want to market their business online. It’s full of actionable courses in areas such as Facebook content, email marketing, websites, SEO and so much more.

But overall, I wouldn’t consider 2017 a very good year for my business.

With a new year, a new attitude and some better systems I’m already confident that 2018 will be great. Awesome in fact!

I wanted to share with you what I’m going to focus on in moving my business forward.

2017 saw me take on some external work where I’ve been working with a creative team on copywriting, project management, email marketing, website etc.

This was great for regular stress free income and honing my skills but it did come with plenty of distractions for what I wanted to create in my own business.

SeeMe Sucked

I’ve felt that over 2017 I wasn’t very good in the SeeMe part of the sales process. At times I felt invisible.

The SeeMe phase is about being known or seen. It’s like being famous to your target market. The people who are most likely going to become your best paying clients. This way, when they are looking for your product/service you are the only choice as you have been on their radar.

For me this is lots of visibility on social media – particular Facebook, as this allows me to grow my email list. My email list is how I build a better relationship with people and of course sell my courses such as The Business Hub.

When I’m in sync I’m posting regularly on Facebook. I’ve got my content planned in advanced and it’s relevant to what I’m going to promote. I’m also investing in Facebook Ads and running value adding things such as webinars, challenges, ebooks, etc.

This year I’ve done hardly any of this, so to get me up and running I’m committing to weekly Facebook Live videos. Wow. I’m still playing around with a day and time but it will most likely be Monday evenings around 7:15pm Qld time.

Why Facebook Live?

While Facebook Live can be a little scary, it’s awesome for your business on so many levels.

Facebook loves live content, so if you have been struggling for organic reach, Facebook Live is your answer.

Video is personal. I’m not a big video watcher and would personally prefer to read a transcript but give me live video or instagram stories and I’m all over it.

The good news it that it doesn’t have to be polished or formal. I watch videos where people’s  kids are jumping into the shot and husbands are asking questions in the background.

For me, and my audience it adds to your relatability.

Facebook Live is free. Yep. When bottom lines are tiny you need to get creative with your marketing. And Facebook Live is a perfect way to build your SeeMe Bank and community. I’ll be creating a Facebook Live course soon to share all my tips.

Adding Value

For me this means – listing building, regular newsletters and consistent regular blogs (or content).

When I do this, I can move people into my passive income sales funnels.

So how does this all work?

I grow my list by offering awesome free premium content such as a webinar, cheat sheet  and now in 2018, Facebook Live videos.

If people sign up for this, it tells me they are interested in that particular topic – think SEO, website traffic, online strategy, or reducing overwhelm.

Often this means that people want more … more information on how to make this transformation in their life or business.

Once I’ve provided value, I then ask them if they want more help in the form of my paid course.

Only a certain percentage of people will say yes immediately, others require more time, more relationship building, more nurturing. And this is completely cool – we are here for the long term, 2018 will be my tenth year in business.

This is when I use a combination of email marketing and content marketing (blogs, social media post, etc.) to provide more value and again ask for the sale. Remember you need to ask for the sale more than once.  

To increase your BelieveMe Bank and your conversions from your sales funnels, you want to provide your audience with regular consistent content for free without expecting anything in return.

This is blogging, social media content, podcasts, videos, live streaming, etc.

So there you have list building, consistent regular content and passive income sales funnels.

And what I love about business today, is that you can choose exactly how you want to structure your business and sales funnels.

Forgot all the rules and do what works for you and your lifestyle. Choose what you want to focus on in your business.