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- [00:00]
A
It's totally different now than it was when I started in 2015. It's more doable than ever for beginners to come in and people who are just starting out. So I hope the people listening here don't ever feel like, man, I'm too late to the game. Like, it's just a saturated market. There's nothing new for me to create. There are plenty of places where you can plug in and start to meet the needs of people who are looking for those specific products. But using tools like Ever Be, that's like a research tool or ChatGPT, that's like an AI assistant for you to just brainstorm. And there's so many different ways that you can jump in and get started even now.
- [00:31]
B
Hey there. I'm Cody McGuffey. I'm a husband, dad of three and the founder of Ever Be. Ever Be. Ever Be Everbee, where we serve over a million creators across the globe, helping them grow thriving online businesses. I believe every single human is a creator, and I believe every single creator should own a business. A business that gives them the freedom to build the lives that they dream of. Built online is where creators, entrepreneurs, and leaders get real insights, real stories, and the edge to build something that actually lasts. This is where the next generation builders get built. Kate, what's going on?
- [01:07]
A
Hi, I'm so glad to be here. Super excited to chat all things Etsy, digital products.
- [01:12]
B
Ever be all the things E commerce, online business.
- [01:15]
A
Yeah.
- [01:16]
B
Growing a financial freedom, maybe life, of course.
- [01:20]
A
Oh, my gosh, yes.
- [01:22]
B
Yeah, I'm excited. Thank you very much for coming on. This is the second time you're coming on, actually.
- [01:27]
A
Yeah. We had a great conversation our first time around, but it's been a while, so it's nice to catch up on things.
- [01:32]
B
I know. I think it's been over a year. I'll have to look back on the specific episode name so people can go rewatch it if they want. But Kate and I agreed that we would just kind of start from. Start from zero again here in this. In this episode. So don't feel like you have to watch that last episode. But Kate, who is Kate Hayes and. Yeah. What's your journey been like? In a nutshell, I guess.
- [01:56]
A
Yeah. So I am a wife and a mom to three kids and have had over 10 years now of experience with my own online business and now helping others grow their online businesses. And it all started back in 2015 when I was. I had a baby and a toddler. At the time, I was working two jobs outside the home. So I felt I was just kind of constantly hustling, like running between my jobs and trying to have time with my kids and my family and just really feeling burnt out and exhausted. Like, I just felt like I was not on the same schedule as my husband. We were just passing each other. There was really no like quality time together and there was really no room in the budget either. We had a very tight budget. We're pretty much living paycheck to paycheck. And it got to a point where I just realized like, something has to change. And I have always been sort of a creative at heart and an entrepreneur at heart. I've tried little projects here and there and so I was always drawn to the idea of trying to sell my own products online and had kind of dabbled in it a little bit. But at that point I was like, I really need to try to go all in on this and just try it and see what happens. And so I, I opened up my own little first Etsy shop and started, I mean, I had no clue what I was doing, just kind of like creating things I liked. Like, I think I started with some like canvas signs that I would paint with like little quotes on them and stuff and like using stencils that I bought at Michael's, you know, stuff like that. And I would just of throw it up as a listing on my Etsy shop and hope it would sell. And it was very slow. I mean, no sales for a long time. And I, you know, with a lot of trial and error and just kind of like testing and trying different things, I think I realized like, I've got to like research this a little bit and I'm sure there's, there's something people are doing here to like have these successful Etsy shops. And I'm not tapping into it currently. So that's when I really like dove in like several months in and tried to research and figure out like the strategy behind having a successful shop. And so when I started really being intentional about that is when I finally started to see some sales trickle in. But again, still very slow. But just over time. It definitely was not an overnight thing, but over time I got to where I was finding I was getting more consistent sales. I was able to sort of level up my product photos and make things look more professional. And it just sort of grew over time to where then it really did scale and it was, it was like a full time thing. So at that point I talked to my husband. I'm like, you know what, I think we could actually really make this something. And I'd rather work from home and have, like we talked about, have that freedom of working from home and making money online than running around to these jobs that I had. So I left my jobs, went full time with my Etsy shop and it kind of just all bloomed from there. So.
- [04:41]
B
That's so crazy. So, so cool and so inspiring. I could tell. I know people are like in their seat right now or they're probably driving in between maybe lunch breaks or something like that from work. Probably just like, so inspired by that story. I know that I was totally like that. What were. Just to kind of set the context a little bit. What were you and your husband's jobs? What were you doing or what was your jobs maybe? And what was your husband doing? What was. What did that life look like?
- [05:05]
A
Yeah, so I actually was a theater major in college, so I was an acting coach. And I loved that job. It wasn't like a terrible job. I enjoyed coaching these. I coach kids and teens and acting classes. And then my other job was, again, it was theater related. It was for a missions organization where I was planning, like drama ministry stuff. So again, I loved that job. They weren't. I know a lot of people are like, in jobs that they hate. It wasn't that kind of scenario, but it was. It was two different jobs where I was just constantly sort of running around. The schedule was never the same. My husband at the time was a police officer, and then he eventually left that and went into sales. So he's done several different things as well. But we both had like very full plates at that time.
- [05:47]
B
And did you have kids at the time?
- [05:50]
A
Yeah, so I have three kids at the time. I only had two. So toddler and baby. I mean, young, young. Both in diapers. You know, it was just again, like a juggling act, basically.
- [06:00]
B
Crazy. Okay, cool. And I want to just jump forward again just to kind of anchor us back to what you've done to date so far. Do you have like a revenue number that you're like, okay with sharing, like, what you've done, like in that 10 years of time or per year, Per month, whatever. You will feel like sharing. Just so we can understand. Kate started here and now she's been here and then we could talk about the how and all that stuff.
- [06:23]
A
Yeah. So I think it really hit me when there was one month in my Etsy shop. It had scaled and scaled and then at one point it hit 70k in 30 days. That was like the turning moment when I looked at like my Financial dashboard and was like, did we really just do this 70k in 30 days? It was insane. I mean we were working, but we were hustling too. Like that was like physical products. We were filling ourselves with our own hands, you know, like it was a lot of work but. But that was the first moment. And then it just scaled to the Etsy shop, scaled to multiple six figures after that. I mean consistently sales coming in and then when I came into the coaching space. So now I coach people on how to grow, how to start and grow a profitable online business. So now I have a seven figure business that's also consistent. But it sort of shifted. I still have my Etsy shop, but it's shifted also into helping others by providing courses and resources and tools and all of that. So th, those are kind of the big, the big ones. But yeah, that first, that first like big month was, was the turnaround point.
- [07:23]
B
That, that's a life changing moment. Yeah, I think we talked about this I think a year ago too. I remember this. But it's such a fun conversation to kind of revisit because that moment right there is, is probably so validating. Probably.
- [07:34]
A
Oh for sure. Yeah. I mean it was like it was to the point where we weren't prepared for it. And I think there's a whole conversation around that. Like when you don't accept, expect that kind of growth and then all of a sudden it just hits and you're not prepared for how to fulfill all of those orders. It is very exciting, but also kind of nerve wracking because I, I mean I was working from like, it felt like from sun up to sundown every day just to keep up. But you know, me, my husband were like, should we like turn our shop off for a while just to like catch up? And we couldn't do it. We're like, we can't turn it off. We got to keep this momentum going. So we just hustled and like got it done. But I will say that was also the moment I was like, maybe there's something to be said about passive income because as fun as it was to make all of that in one month, we were having to fill all of those physical product orders. And that's when I started sort of looking into digital products as a means to like have a passive revenue stream where I wouldn't have to be filling things, you know, like just hours and hours of like physically making and shipping products.
- [08:37]
B
Sure, I think there's a lot of power in that too, but I think you needed that other Thing to pull you and almost like you a little bit. I remember having some of those moments. I still have some of those moments, but particularly with physical products, you really feel it when you, like, go viral or somehow you kind of, like, catch the algorithm, right? And it's like you catch the market perfectly. And all of a sudden, the market. The demand is getting pulled out of you. It's like, almost like you're selling out and you're, like, having to scramble. I remember having to go to, like, literally five stores in a day to try to get materials for one of my products, and they were, yeah, find them. And you're just like, wow, I never thought I'd have this problem. I never thought I was missing a material that I need to fulfill the products. But same with us. We were in the. In the basement fulfilling orders, trying to. Oh, man. We were paying, overpaying for certain materials for the products. This just to be, like, how to put some on stuff in reserve. And just like, we're talking to store owners about, like, no, you need to keep that material for us, please. You know, and, like, just doing things that you wouldn't normally think you'd have to do. But what I remember looking back on, I'm curious if you could relate to this is that I remember thinking, this is like, how entrepreneurships are, like, entrepreneurship is, like, built. This is, like, the true test of will I. Will I. If I make it through this, I deserve to be this. And that was a cool feeling, for sure.
- [09:59]
A
I think it's those moments of, like, trial, you know, where it's. It's not easy, and it's very challenging. Whether it is, like, an influx of orders like that or even the opposite side when you're starting to grow your business and they're. The challenge is that you don't have that yet. You know, like, any of those challenges or trials that we face are kind of like milestones, like things that we have to work through to get to the point where you can eventually look on, back on your business and say, I didn't get here, like, overnight. It wasn't easy. I worked through those different challenges, and I made it through. So I totally agree.
- [10:28]
B
Yeah, that's awesome. And congratulations on. On all of that. And I know there's more, more, more coming as we speak and more, more coming in the future. It's so cool. Okay. Specifically, you talked about passive income, and you talked about. You kind of, like, changing your focus at some point. So you kind of went through that, those. Those amazing, exciting times. But you Also you, you learn more. And so now that you do, you do better. And so now you're focusing on more passive stuff and you've transitioned over to like digital products. Is that correct? Can you talk a little bit more about that?
- [11:00]
A
Right, yeah. So it was kind of that just almost burnout that brought me to looking up digital products. I had kind of heard of it before, and when I first started back in, I don't remember digital products even really being on the scene at that point. I didn't know about any of that. But then a few years in, it started to kind of rise in popularity as people were wanting more and more of these sort of tools and templates and printables and things like that online. And so I did some research into passive income. Not just digital products, but just passive income. I mean, there's, there are passive income streams other than digital products too that are out there. So I kind of just did a broad search on like, what can I do that would build some passive revenue in the background? So when I say passive, it's, it's kind of the idea of like you're creating something once up front you're putting in. I guess it could be semi passive because there is some work in the beginning to get the product created, to get it all set up, the listing, whatever, but then it's the kind of product that can sell on repeat. So that's all the work you have to do is in the beginning, and then it sells over and over again. If you're driving traffic to it, that's really the only thing that you have to do continuously is make sure people are seeing it right. But then it, it can bring in income. You know, we hear people say all the time, like while you sleep or while you're on vacation or. It's true, though. It's kind of cliche, but it's true because I've, I've experienced that in my own life. Sales are coming in while you're not actively working on something which is different than physical products. Because with physical, you're having to fill these, order by order with your own two hands or even with. Well, print on demand is great for physical, if you're wanting passive, because print on demand allows a way for you not to have to like physically make it and ship it yourself. But if you're not doing print on demand and you're, you have physical products, it's just going to be trading your time for money. You're, you're limited by the number of hours in the day that you can actually work on this and fill the orders and ship them. And you're limited by things like we talked about, like materials, like, what if you run out of inventory? What if you run out of materials from your supplier? There's all kinds of, like, headaches with that. So that's when I sort of. I looked into digital products and thought, you know what I've heard people asking me, like, for help with growing their Etsy shop when they saw what I had done with mine. And like, I bet I could create some digital products to support other business owners that could be helpful for them and serving them, but also a passive revenue stream for me. So that's when I started creating courses and templates and tools, downloadables, guides, all kinds of different things specifically to support business owners. But, you know, the people I teach who sell digital products can do. You can do this in any niche. Doesn't have to be just to support business owners. You could be a fitness coach that's creating tools and templates for fitness enthusiasts or for homeschool moms. This works across the, across the board in lots of different niches. So I've seen great success with digital products. My students have seen a lot of success. It's just an amazing way to be able to scale. So then once you have that running in the background, you can shift your focus on the next thing that still continues earning for you while you're building the next thing, and you can scale from there.
- [14:05]
B
Well, that you specifically say, I teach entrepreneurs how to start and scale a profitable online business to build freedom and flexibility back into their lives. What is freedom and flexibility look like? Because I think, I think we all have this ideal of what that looks like. But what does it mean? What does it look like to you, and what does that mean for you and the entrepreneur that you serve?
- [14:29]
A
Yeah, to me, I mean, a lot of the people I serve are parents or, you know, married couples who are wanting time together. They're wanting quality time. They're wanting to be able to spend time with their family and not feel like they're having to clock in on someone else's schedule. So to me, at least for me personally, it's felt like having the freedom because I have set up those digital products to run and earn for me in the background that I'm now able to take time off if I want to take, like, we just went to Disney for a few days. We were able to just kind of up and like, go off for a few days with the family. I wouldn't have been able to do that before if I had had physical product orders to like have to sit down and work through and ship out, you know, in those few days. So to me it looks like just freedom and flexibility in your schedule and being able to spend time on the things that are truly important. I really value being able to have a business that serves me and not the other way around necessarily. I want to work hard and I'm not, I'm fine with hustling if I need to hustle for a season, you know, but I. The ultimate goal is to build it to the point where now it's serving me and it's providing that flexibility and freedom for me. So it's, it's that time and location freedom that we hear so often, but it's also financial freedom. It's being able to again have a business that's scalable so that I'm not just limited by one revenue stream or one type of product. I can build one and then like set it to be passive and run automatically and then build the next one and then set that one and then build the next one. So it's sort of the revenue stacks on top of each other, those streams, dreams, and you're just building that over time. So eventually you end up with this pretty solid system that's like generating revenue for you and providing that financial freedom. So for me, that freedom is being able to take trips and vacations with my family, that's being able to pay for my kids schooling or extracurricular activities that they want to be involved in. That's being able to be generous to people and not feel like I can't give. If I want to give to a charity or to a friend that's in need or something like that, it's, it's just all of those things. Feeling the freedom to be able to like have room in the budget for those things.
- [16:38]
B
I love that. Okay. And do you feel like I want to get a little bit more granular here too? Do you think the best vehicle for that? So it sounds like we've nailed down the vehicle of okay, Digital products is a great vehicle for this. Maybe not the, we're not saying the best, but like it's, it's a great vehicle to achieve that financial location this time. Freedom Digital Products. Got it. Now let's say that I am starting a brand new business or let's say that I'm like, hey Kate, this sounds awesome. I want what you just said. Like I literally. That's my dream life. I want that. What is my Next step of, like, what do I need to do in order to do that? If you can kind of get a little bit more granular here, for sure.
- [17:19]
A
Yeah. I mean, the first step is to decide what type of product you would want to sell. So if you're like, yes, I'm all in on digital products, but I don't really know what type. There's so many different types of digital products out there. You could do a little bit of research just to, like, narrow in on that first. You know, the first big ones that come to mind for me are templates. That's something that sells really well online when you can create something like a canva template where you're selling the link for someone to go in and actually edit that template themselves and use it how they want. Because a lot of people just don't want to start from scratch. You know, I've heard people say, well, why would I sell a template? People can go on and like, just make their own thing. And that's true. But a lot of people either just don't have the time or energy to start from scratch and design something them themselves, even if they can, or they don't know how to design and they're like, really? I mean, I don't have any clue how to start with this. Right? So templates for things like, I mean, for me, when I sell templates that support business owners, I'm thinking of things like Instagram post templates that people can use for their marketing on Instagram or Pinterest pin templates, or slide deck presentation templates, or workbook templates. Like, there's so many different things that fit into that category. So that's one. There's also like printables. So there are a lot of different types of things that can be made to just instantly download and print out. Could be printable wall art. There's so many different, I mean, guides, so many different things. It could be courses. So I love to sell courses. That's a little bit more of a robust type of product where you're gonna have to like, sit down and really, like, film yourself doing the lessons and put together a course. But hey, if you. If you feel like you. That's the direction you want to go in and you want to help people through providing like educational res like that, that can be huge too. That can do really well. So lots of different types. I would say the first step is to look into those different types and figure out what you want to sell. And if you're like, how do I even do that. Chat GPT is an amazing tool. I feel like I am more and more on Chat GPT every day like asking it to brainstorm with me for different ideas for things. So you can just go on Chat GPT and say, hey, I'm interested in selling digital products. Give me A list of 20 different types of digital products that would fit, fit this, this and this. And you can give it like some of your interests, some of the things you like to do or create and it'll spit out, you know, a list of 20 things for you and you can start to get ideas from there. So that would really be the first step is to kind of just narrow down what exactly you want to sell.
- [19:45]
B
Yeah, I completely agree with that. You know, and you mentioned so many things in there that was golden. My wife is, is a creative. She's very, I would say artistic. She's really good at drawing, she's really good at using Canva. But she buys Canva, she buys templates all the time for birthday parties, for nephew thing and she'll buy it for her son's birthday party or our daughter's. She could have designed it but she just, she didn't want to start from scratch. To do it's worth sometimes $20 in order to buy the template, have it done for you or print out the thing. Maybe it came with a bundle and it came with a pack where you could also like print out the thing. And it's like it's, there's a lot of creative ways to do this and, and just a shameless plug here. Like if you have an idea, just literally go to ever be research and just like type in template and you're going to see templates, you're going to see planners, you're going to see ADH planners that are doing a hundred thousand dollars in you know, a month. Sometimes you're going to do like anxiety overcoming planners, you're going to like fitness planners, you're going to see so many cool things and it's all data packs like that could be just validation for whatever your ideas are. You could do that manually too on Etsy, but that would be a quick way to do it. And then you were gonna say, you were saying something else I wanted to comment on too. Oh chatgpt, you just mentioned like use it as a, as a brainstorming thing. I completely agree with that. I use it all day, every day to think about ideas and then I go deeper on the ideas. And I've seen courses, I've actually bought courses on very Niche things that you would never expect. I bought one. My son wanted to learn how to do a backflip. He's six. He's learning how to do. And it's like he wants to do one on the. On the ground. And I'm like, oh, cool. I'd like to do a backflip on the ground too. Might not do it on trampoline, but let's do it together, you know? Sure enough, I see this ad. It's how to do a backflip. I'm like, it's a course, and it takes you from zero, you know, from here to hero, here to here. And I'm like, I'll pay a hundred dollars for that. No question. Yeah, I paid a hundred dollars and like, super cool.
- [21:52]
A
Did you learn how to do the backflip?
- [21:55]
B
Completing the course is another thing than it is taking the course, as we all know. Yeah, but I'm like, I'm almost there.
- [22:03]
A
Okay, okay.
- [22:05]
B
The point is, there is. Is it could be learning how to play chess. Like, if you know how to play chess, just teach the beginners how to play chess and charge a hundred dollars for it. People will pay for it. So, anyway, I'll pause there. What are your thoughts?
- [22:20]
A
Yeah, so many good things. I think it's so true. People are like, well, I'm interested in creating a course, but I don't know what I would teach. And it's. It's just like, it really can work for any niche. Like, like you mentioned very specific things that you wouldn't even think there is somebody out there looking for that, even if you don't think there is. So look at what you know, what your number one, of course, what your interests are, if you already kind of can identify something you're really good at or really knowledgeable about. But, like, what are people asking you about? Do you have friends and family coming to you and saying, hey, how did you do this? Or how did. How do you, you know, can you help me do that? Could be cooking, could be. Even if it's not a course, but like a digital product, a recipe book or something like that. There's so many different types of products and ways that you can fit it into any niche. So, yeah, I totally agree with that.
- [23:06]
B
And I want to debunk, too. I agree with that. I want to debunk, like, the people right now that are probably in the phase. Well, that just, like, I don't have any skills to bring to the table or everything. I'm just too late to the party. It just seems like this has been going on for so long and I'm just late. So I'm not, I missed the train. I would like to say to that person, like trends are changing all the time, constantly. Like there's new AI tools. There was no AI courses six months ago. A year ago there was no AI courses. But now you're going to see AI courses and there's going to be the next thing, there's going to be a new game. Pickleball came out of nowhere right. How many years ago? Like, like it's like pretty soon there's like pickleball certifications and courses and like trainings and all this stuff too. So there's always something that is, is, is opportunity for you. What would you say to that person?
- [23:49]
A
Absolutely. Yeah. And that's where I would really encourage people to use some of these research tools that are available like ever be because it's like you kind of, you want to take the first step but you don't really know sometimes when you're first starting out like, well, where do, where do I find products that are selling really well? Because we talk about identifying in demand products that are already selling really well and not trying to like, at least that's something I try to teach is like we don't have to reinvent the wheel. We're looking for what is currently in demand and already selling well and just sort of putting our own spin on that. But people don't really know where to start. I remember not knowing where to start with that and thankful for tools like ever be where you can go on there and do a search and see which things are doing really well, what's selling consistently, what search terms are people looking up consistently. So again when I go back to my story and I'm like really the turn turning point for me was when I started to be research based and like really care about the data and making data driven decisions and not just sort of like guessing and throwing things out there. When I started to research and look at the data is when things started to change for me. I started, I kind of shifted from just creating things that I liked personally to meeting that market demand for things that were already selling.
- [24:59]
B
That's really cool. Yeah. For me as well. And still to this day, and it's really, really valid, validating too. And it's really fun when you like, you see a need. Cause we all, we're all humans listening to this and we all like to serve people. Otherwise you wouldn't be listening to this podcast. Like we're in Business to. Yes, to. To grow our. Our own personal lives. But we know that the only way to do that is by serving humans and providing value. And so when you see data, for example, telling you that, oh, people want this thing, they're, like, buying this thing, and then we get to come in and slide in and, like, serve those same type of people. Mm. It's a really cool feeling because you felt like you took all the guesswork out of it. You're like, oh, I created that opportunity by identifying it, and I slid in and created it, and I took advantage of this opportunity, and I help people in the same time. Such a cool feeling.
- [25:50]
A
Yeah. Yeah, totally. Because it gives purpose to your work. Right? Like, it gives. Of course, we're doing this as business owners to make money and to have financial freedom and flexibility for ourselves. But when you're serving people and you see that you're meeting a need for people, you're truly helping them. And that just takes it to another level of, like, I have purpose in this. I'm enjoying doing this because I'm helping people. Like, it's not just all about me. I'm really, like, meeting a need for people. And I love that. And I think it's. It's interesting, too. I was noticing if you look at yourself as a consumer or as the buyer, like, put yourself in that, because we all are consumers, too. When you're looking for something, are there gaps in the market where you're seeing, like, I have a need, but there's nothing here to meet it. Like, I think of just recently, I was on Etsy looking for a friend I wanted to buy. She's. She's a friend who, like, loves plants. She's like a gardener. She loves doing all kinds of things with plants. So I wanted to get her, like, a sweatshirt that was, like, something to do with, like, plant lady or something cute like that. I'm like, etsy is the best place for this. So I'm looking on Etsy, and they had some. That had some cute little plant phrases, but I wanted it to be, like, modern looking. Like, I wanted the font to be, like, modern. And then there had. There was a different. It wasn't plant lady. There was a different phrase that I found that I liked. I think it was like, like, don't hate, propagate or something like that. It was really cute. But I'm like, okay, I like that phrase, but I want it to be in this, like, modern font. So surely somebody has, like, made a sweatshirt like this. And I found some with that phrase, but it wasn't in. It wasn't giving me like the modern feel, you know, And I'm like. And so I go off of Etsy and I just do a Google search. I'm like, maybe it's somewhere else online. Could not find a single thing with like that phrase and that, that style put together. I'm like, how has no one done this? This is a huge, like, not a huge gap in the market. It was very specific, but like, for me, I had a need that was not met. Nobody had provided that product. So I'm like, if you can identify those, like, look at yourself as a consumer. When you have not had a product, meet your need and say, you know what, there actually are gaps in the market. It can be hard to identify sometimes, but there are. And thinking about how to like, sort of cross niche or even take something that's popular in this one style, but make it in a different style or put a different, different spin on it, you'll probably be tapping into an area of the market that people are looking for products, but like, there's nothing there yet to meet their need.
- [28:05]
B
I completely agree. And I think that right there is experience of just being in the game long enough.
- [28:11]
A
Yeah.
- [28:11]
B
And so for people listening to this, don't feel like you have to do that today, but you just naturally will get like that. To where Kate just like identifies a market that like, it seems, it seems so simple and easy. And it is simple and easy when you have experience. But yeah, that's, that's exactly the truth. I completely agree. I see things all the time. Like, why has no one invented that? I don't understand. It's like right there, people are begging for it. I'll, I'll, I'll pay for it. You know, it's just how it works. It's. That's entrepreneurship. So cool, for sure. We're already at 27 minutes and I want to get. I didn't get through anything that I wanted to talk about, but specifically, it's so fun already. What are you most excited about, Kate?
- [28:50]
A
Gosh, there's so many things coming up that I'm like super pumped about. I just feel like with, with, especially with the rise of AI, that's a whole different conversation. But like, it's, it's becoming easier and easier. Well, maybe not easier, but like more accessible to have tools like chat, GPT and these. I mean, there's AI tools everywhere that you can use to help. So, like, it's totally different now than it was when I started in 2015, it's more doable than ever for beginners to come in and people who are just starting out. So I hope the people listening here don't ever feel like, man, I'm too late to the game. Like it's just a saturated market. There's nothing new for me to create. I just want to like encourage you that there are gaps in the market. Just like we just said. I just had one the other day. There are plenty of places where you can plug in and start to meet the needs of people who are looking for those specific products. But using tools like ever be, that's like a research tool or chat GPT, that's like an AI assistant for you to just brainstorm, man, there's so many different ways that you can jump in and get started even now, so it's not too late. I know a lot of people tend to feel like that. So hopefully we can overcome a little bit of that and know that there are new shops popping up all the time that are having success in the first month, two, three, because of how many tools are there for you to use and help you have success. So yeah, there's just so much possibility.
- [30:07]
B
For on your side of things too. And I hope that time we publish this, it'll work out timing wise. But you're doing some really cool stuff as far as like holding people's hands to actually help them start their launch their businesses too. Can you talk a little bit about the upcoming event that you have?
- [30:19]
A
Yes, yes. So I have a brand new upcoming. It's an implementation workshop. It's called Business in a Weekend. So it's totally brand new. I've released courses and trainings and master classes, but this is the first time I'm actually providing, providing like a very direct way to work with you through implementing what you need to implement in your digital products business, to sort of just start it and build it from the ground up and get it done in two days. So it's going to be a very focused Friday and Saturday. That's why it's called Business in a Weekend. We're going to get it done on a Friday and a Saturday. So everything from setting up your shop and optimizing it to be found in the search and to be, you know, high converting to. Well, even before we do that, we're going to be validating your digital product idea. So if you're like, I kind of want to do this, but I have a lot of different ideas. I don't know what to go with or is my idea Something that is in demand. We're going to go through validating your product idea and actually building out your whole product offer and packaging it with click worthy photos in your listing. Talking about SEO. So search engine optimization, how to use the right keywords, building out your listing, building out your shop and then even talking about marketing. So you walk away with, with all of that completed and built in your shop and then also walk away with a 90 day growth plan for your marketing to make sure that you're getting visibility, you're driving traffic to your shop full of your ideal customers. So all of that is happening as like an implementation thing. So we're working through building all of that out in your shop in real time during that event. So I'm super excited. I'm going to be there with you working through it all with you, showing you how to do every single thing. And we have tons of different templates that we're going to be using. So we're providing, providing you with all the templates, all the swipe files so you're not having to start from scratch. But we can like quickly implement things and get them going in your shop. It's gonna be on. Yeah, all virtual. Thank you for bringing that up. Yeah, it's not in person, it's virtual so anyone can come. It's live virtual and it's happening on September 12th and 13th. It'll be from 10am to 2pm Both of those days. And yeah, it's just going to be a great time for all of us to sort of of hunker down, get it done. The idea is if you've sort of been dragging things out in your business or you like, I'll get to that eventually. This is a time to just get really serious and focused and like just get it done in two days. And I'm the kind of person that I'd rather just like clear my schedule for like a few hours each day and get it done and like have it ready to go rather than sort of dragging things out. So I hope this will be helpful for people if they feel like they're in that spot. So, so it's, it's specifically for digital product sellers who are selling either on Etsy or Shopify.
- [32:58]
B
Very cool. And for people that have listened to this or listening to this episode after this event has passed, I guess it depends. Maybe depending on how it goes you may do more of these events too. So is there a specific link that we should drive them to?
- [33:11]
A
So yeah, you can go to kate-hayes.com biw like biw is all in caps. That stands for business in a weekend. So just kate-hayes.Com biw that's where you can grab your ticket for it. And right now we're in the early bird discount phase. So if you grab it soon, you'll get that early bird discount if it's anytime before September 5th. So on the 5th it's going up to our standard pricing. But right now you can grab your early bird discount.
- [33:38]
B
So very cool. And we will link to all that stuff in the show notes in the description for anyone wondering or missed that link. So look, look there. Let's wrap up with the rapid fire questions. You ready?
- [33:50]
A
Sure.
- [33:50]
B
What's your favorite business book?
- [33:53]
A
Oh gosh. Oh man. Come back to that one. I have to think about that one.
- [33:58]
B
What's one thing that you wish that you knew before starting your business?
- [34:03]
A
I wish I knew about the research tools that were available to me because it took me a while to figure out that I didn't have to just sort of guess at things, but there were actually tools that were out there that could have helped me.
- [34:14]
B
Super cool. What's the worst advice about business that you've ever received achieved?
- [34:19]
A
Oh, I think the worst advice would be not to niche down. And I know that can be maybe sort of like a controversial topic. So sorry if you are someone who thinks you don't have to niche down. In my experience, you will get there so much faster if you niche down. And at least especially in the beginning, picking something specific to focus on instead of trying to offer 100 different types of things in one shop because to me that just creates confusion for the buyer and no one can really identify what you are an expert at. And that's the thing that creates that subconscious sort of level of trust and credibility with people is feeling like you're the expert at this one thing. So not to say you can't branch out later and sell multiple types of things, but especially in the beginning, focusing in and niching down to me is really important. So I know a lot of people say not to do that. So to me, just my personal opinion, that's not great advice.
- [35:13]
B
I, I agree with you too. I tend to agree with the niching down pretty extremely. I would say though that I do empathize with people that are struggle with that because when you're a creator, when you're a creator and you're an entrepreneur, like you have lots of ideas, you know you can do lots of stuff and even it can be really hard, it's really Hard. Yeah. Like we've built products within ever be that I wanted to just build because we can. And just because you can doesn't mean you should. And it's, it causes confusion. That's very hard to understand and quantify the confusion with people. But yeah, like, even I struggle with it. Kate, I know you, I'm sure you struggle with it too. Like, it's very important for us to like stay almost like within our niche and just because there's more gold to hit there. And the way I think about it is imagine if you're drilling for maybe waters too. Maybe if you're trying to find gold on this big, huge acreage of land, right, you'd probably start with a couple holes here and there. Like probably a hole here and a hole here and see if you like to kind of catch some sort of vein or something. But pretty soon, as soon as you like kind of see hint of gold, you're not going to just like pick up and just like go start another hole, right? That would be, that would be silly. And so then you, you keep on hammering up to the same hole. The same hole, the same hole. And then you break that gold vein right open. And that's the same thing as niching down is there's more under that niche. Like keep going in that specific niche. There's more than you need for sure.
- [36:40]
A
That's a great analogy. I love that because it really is like doubling down on what's working. That's something I always come back to is it is so hard. And I, I totally empathize too because as creatives we, we do have all these ideas and even in my coaching business, I'm like, oh, I could offer this thing or that thing. And it's just like my husband has to always remind me like, let's focus this in. Like, let's really think about what has worked and what we know will continue. What do people need need what has. What will continue to work and, and it's just doubling down instead of. Not to say there's never a time to try a new thing. I think obviously I'm doing this brand new event that I've never done before. So there are times to try something new, but I think especially in the beginning, like that's where the momentum comes from is like you said, finding that little pocket of something that like shows a little bit of life or potential and then doubling down on that.
- [37:28]
B
Yep, that's exactly right. Who do you think should be a business owner? What type of person?
- [37:37]
A
I think that a Lot of people could be business owners that maybe don't think they have what it takes to be a business owner. I think that to be an entrepreneur or a business owner, you do have to have a certain level of, like, motive, self motivation and being able to get in there. And sometimes there are seasons of hustle. I'm not a big, like, hustle culture fan. You know, I love to, to have flexibility and freedom and like, I think rest is also very. But there are seasons of hustle when you're an entrepreneur and you're trying to grow something from the ground up. So I do think it takes a person that has a little bit of grit and a little bit of, like, willingness to hustle if it, if that's what it means for a while. And being able to just motivate yourself and remind yourself even during the hard times of, like, this is not always going to be easy, but it's worth it, right? I'm going to continue building, and especially I think the biggest thing for me has been having a willingness to pivot and be flexible if I'm going one direction with my business. And it just doesn't seem to be working. Like, after months and months or maybe even years of like, just not seeing any momentum, I'm going to be flexible. I'm going to pivot to something else, and I'm not going to give up, but I'm going to just find what is working. So it's sort of like this drive to like, I'll try and then if I fall, I'll try again, and then I'll try again and I'll try something different. Right. So it's okay to be flexible and just to continue going and not to give up just because the first thing or the second thing you try doesn't really work.
- [39:00]
B
I love that. I really, really like that. I agree. I. I would say to, to piggyback on that is like, anyone that has a vision for their life, maybe it's financial freedom, maybe you want to be a millionaire or whatever, you want to be a multi, multi millionaire. Okay, cool. Like, there's only a certain amount of vehicles to probably get you that thing. And if, if business is one of those potential vehicles to get you that life, to that life freedom, then and you really, really care about that vision, and that's the vehicle, then you have no choice whether or not to be entrepreneur. Like, that is the only vehicle that you can go to do that. And so if that is like, in your heart, that's like God's whisper, like, saying like, hey, you have a vision. I put this vision in your head, vision in your heart. Like, go, go, go. Like, that whisper is deep down, it's hard to. To explain what that is then that you are. You need to. To follow that for sure.
- [39:53]
A
Yeah, I totally agree. And you kind of know, like, if you've got that sort of. I call it the entrepreneur, like, book, like, you've got that thing inside of you that you felt maybe since you were a kid that's like, you always want to try new projects, you always want to build something. You. You see the potential of being able to make money, that that's there for a reason. And so, yeah, I think there's so many things that can weigh us down or cause us to be doubtful of that or, like, am I really supposed to do this? Is it really going to work? But, man, we've heard it said so many times, like, imperfect action. And that's what I always go back to, is like, it's never gonna. It's never gonna be the time that you feel totally ready. I've never once, even in my life, my 10 years of business, like, have ever once felt totally ready to do the thing I'm about to launch. It's always imperfect. It's messy. I'm figuring it out as I go. But then afterward, I'm so glad that I did it. So I. Yeah, totally agree with that.
- [40:43]
B
Yes, totally agree with that. Embrace that imperfectionism. Kate, thank you so much for coming on. This has been so much fun and so valuable.
- [40:53]
A
Thank you for having me. I love chatting and catching up, and hopefully this will be encouraging to somebody listening, listening.
- [40:59]
B
Guaranteed it will. And if it changes just one person's life, then it's more than enough. More than enough. Where can people find you, follow you, learn more about you and all those good things.
- [41:08]
A
Yeah. So I'm on YouTube, just my name, Kate Hayes. Instagram, all the places. And then that. That Same website, just kait-hayes.com is the main website.
- [41:18]
B
Beautiful. Kate, thank you so much again. Excited to do this again. We'll have to do this more, a little bit more regularly than just one year. Maybe every six months. Like that update.
- [41:26]
A
Yeah, that'd be great. Thanks so much, Cody.
- [41:29]
B
Thanks, Kate. See you soon.