← The Goal Digger Podcast | Top Business and Marketing Podcast for Creatives, Entrepreneurs, and Women in Business
The Goal Digger Podcast | Top Business and Marketing Podcast for Creatives, Entrepreneurs, and Women in Business
872: Validate Before You Create: Stop Wasting Time on Offers That Don’t Sell
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Jenna Kutcher
What if your content could keep working for you, like long after you hit publish? Well, Pinterest isn't like other platforms. Your pins don't disappear in a day. They keep going, bringing traffic, leads and visibility on autopilot. And for the first time ever, I am hosting a live five day experience called the Pinterest Power Bootcamp to help you kickstart that kind of Momentum. For just $27, you'll join me live starting April 27th where we'll spend five days dialing in your profile, discovering what your audience is searching for, and mapping out a plan to get your content seen. This isn't the full Pinterest strategy, but it's the perfect jumpstart that you've been waiting for. Head to pinbootcamp.com to grab your spot. That's P I N bootcamp.com and I'll see you live on April 27th. This episode is brought to you by Shippo, your one stop solution for shipping labels. Helping small businesses like yours save up to 90% off retail rates for a limited time, Shippo is offering listeners $25 in Shippo credit. When you spend your first $25, that means shipping your first few packages is basically free. I'll never forget those early days after launching my online shop. Our living room was filled with products and I was taping up boxes late at night, printing shipping labels manually and paying full price from the big carriers. It was really exciting, but shipping was hands down the most stressful part. That's why I wish I had Shippo sooner. With Shippo you can manage all your orders from one dashboard, get the best discounted rates from top carriers, connect your stores and print labels in batches. It is a total sanity saver. So head over to Shippo.com Golddigger and claim your spend 25 get 25 offer today. That's S-H-I-P P O.com Golddigger split test different ideas before you get too far into wasting time and money and energy on something that people don't want or they don't know they want. You want to ask first and build second. Make sure that your message and your angle can connect with your audience and what they say they want and need before you get too far in creating it. I'm Jenna Kutcher, your host of the Gold Digger podcast. I escaped the corporate world at the age of 23 with nothing more than a 300 camera from Craigslist and a dream. Now I'm running a seven figure online business that feels even better than it looks. All from my house in small town Minnesota with my family here, we value time as our currency. We mix the woo and the work, and we are in the pursuit of building businesses that give us the freedom to live lives that we love. I've always loved turning big goals into reality, and I'm here to help you do the same. This isn't just a peek behind the curtain. Come along with me and my guests as we tear the whole curtain down. Every week we tackle practical, no fluff marketing strategies and host honest discussions on what works and what doesn't. Join me and my expert guests for actionable insights to help you grow your dream business with confidence. Pull up a seat and get ready to be challenged, inspired and empowered. This is the Goal Digger podcast. Have you ever spent hours, or let's be honest, maybe even days or weeks building out an offer that you were sure people would love only to launch it and be met with crickets? Oh, I've been there. I've poured my heart into creating an offer, crafting a landing page, recording the content, setting up the funnel, all of it. And then barely a click, maybe a sale or two. And in those moments, it's not just discouraging. It literally makes you question everything. Was this a total waste of time? Like, did I miss something? Do I even know what my audience wants anymore? Here's what I've learned over the years. The problem isn't always the offer. Sometimes it's a timing, sometimes it's a messaging, and sometimes it's that I didn't validate the idea before building it. The truth is, 42% of business and product failures happen because there was no market need. That's nearly half. And I don't know about you, but I don't want to spend my precious time and energy creating something that no one asked for. So in today's episode, I am walking you through a five step process that I use to validate my ideas before I ever create. Whether it's a new course, a digital product, a freebie, a full blown offer, these steps help me move forward with confidence and clarity. And if you've already launched something that flopped, stick around. I've got a bonus section in this episode just for you with ways to revive that offer instead of scrapping it altogether. All right, without further ado, let's dig on in. Okay, what do you think? I think we should just literally dive into this five step validation framework. Because here's what I think. I think that a lot of times the one thing that entrepreneurs are Missing the most is a filter, like something to run our ideas through. And I'll speak for myself here. I love being a visionary. I love generating ideas. Like I could never be bored. I am sitting on top of a hundred ideas that I'm doing nothing with because I don't have the time or the bandwidth or the energy. But what often happens is we get excited about an idea and we start running. And there is a part in this five step process that I think is going to transform your life in so many different ways. But what I want for you to consider is that you need to have a filter that you are running your new ideas through. So before you waste your time and your money and your energy, you know that, hey, people actually want this thing. People will actually give me money for this thing. This is going to be worthy of the investment I'm going to put into it. And so consider this your filter. This framework will be your filter for all future decisions that you're going to make about your brilliant ideas. Okay, let's dig in. So step number one is listen before you lead. Now, I have learned that great offers don't just start with brainstorming because a lot of times our minds can run wild. Like I am someone with adhd, my mind can go from idea to idea like at the drop of a hat. But a lot of times great offers don't start with brainstorming, they start with listening. And what I think is so important about this is that if you start to pay attention, your audience, the people in your life, your community, your friends and family, they are always telling you what they want and they're doing that. But a lot of times we do not slow down enough to actually hear it or to intentionally listen. When you pay attention to the questions people ask you, the comments people leave you, the struggles they might share with you, either privately or in your DMs, that is where the gold is. A lot of times we are too close to our own genius. Like we don't even realize what it is that we're good at or what people want to learn from us. And so when we get quiet enough to actually listen, to pay attention, to ask questions back, you will start to understand the path that you should go on if you want to create an offer that people actually want from you. And so before I create anything new, which, let's be honest, I haven't created a lot of brand new stuff or ran with a lot of new ideas in years, and it's because I asked myself, have people asked me for this, like, is there a consistent pain point here? Is there a theme here? And do I feel competent to deliver exactly what it is that they're asking for? Because if nobody's talking about it, they are probably not ready to buy it. And one of the biggest disconnects I see happen with entrepreneurs is that they create a really awesome offer, right? Like, they create something that really could change somebody's life or that is this amazing offer. But if people are unconscious about the fact that they need it or that it will benefit them or that they actually desire that end result, the path to get somebody to buy that offer is really challenging. And so if you've ever launched something, it might not even be that your offer stinks. It probably doesn't. It's probably a good offer. But there could be a disconnect in your audience even being aware that they need that offer. Years ago, I had this idea. So I was working with my virtual assistant at the time. Her name is Caitlin. I've talked about her a lot on this show, and we were just talking about, like, different times in my entrepreneurial journey where I was able to, like, scale or where there was a huge shift. One of the biggest shifts, the easiest shifts to, like, really identify, was when I finally hired my virtual assistant, Caitlin. So we were talking about, like, what were my pain points? Like, why was I so hesitant to get help? What was scary to me about outsourcing? What was I afraid of in letting someone in? And she was a really great virtual assistant. And we had this idea where we're like, we should record a course about, like, how business owners can hire the first virtual assistant. And then Caitlin would teach the portion on, like, how virtual assistants can support the business owner. And I was like, this is genius, right? Because it was such a huge pain point for me. But I was so resistant to it. And so we were, like, outlining the course. We were so excited about it. And then I was like, you know what? Hold on. I know that this would change people's lives, but I know that I was also in a place where, like, I was not ready to hire somebody. Like, it took me years to get to that point. So I was like, before we get too deep into this, let's just make sure. Like, let's validate this idea. And so I was like, I'm gonna record a podcast episode on this topic. I'm gonna do a blog post, and I'm gonna create a freebie. So I was kind of taking the guts of what we were planning for the offer, and I'M like, let me just like throw spaghetti at the wall. Put this out into the world and see what happens. And we put it out into the world and it was like the response was so underwhelming, it was almost laughable. I still think that's a great idea and a great offer, just not for us. And the interest just wasn't there. And I am so thankful that we paused long enough to say, hold on. Before we like produce this whole thing and create this whole thing and run too far, let's just make sure that people actually want this. And I think that intrinsically it is something that people would want, but they might not be ready yet. And that's what we were coming up against. And so just taking a minute to listen before I was leading off with this idea in this project saved me so much time and energy. And I was able to put that time and energy into offers that already existed that I knew people already wanted. And so what I want for you to consider is how can you listen, how can you ask questions, how can you pay better attention? Whether you set aside maybe 20 minutes and just do some data mining, whether it's in your own community or like minded communities and look at what are the questions people are asking, where are people getting stuck? What do people come to you for? Do a little like investigative research into your own world of your own genius and make sure that anything that you're considering creating is something that people want. Listening and adjusting based to your audience needs can increase your product market fit by up to 38%, according to Nielsen Consumer Insights. So if you want to increase your product market fit, which you do by almost 40%, take time to listen. I promise you that the amount of time that it'll take you to do this little bit of research, it's going to save you so much time and energy in the long run. So step number one is listen before you lead with an idea. I will never forget one of the first big girl moments I had in business. It was when I finally released the white knuckle grip I had on my business and I finally decided to hire help. I was so excited to get help, but I quickly became so overwhelmed because I didn't know the first thing about payroll or how to stay on top of taxes as a business owner. And trust me, I just wanted to do it right without spending hours buried in paperwork. Now, if only I had had gusto back then. Gusto is the all in one platform that makes payroll, benefits and HR feel doable, even if you're Not a numbers person. Whether you're paying W2s, 1099s or offering health insurance and 401ks, Gusto's got your back. You can run payroll in just a few clicks and Gusto will automatically file and pay your taxes at the federal, state and the local level. With no spreadsheets and no guesswork. Over 400,000 small businesses across the country, including Min Trust Gusto because it is so simple and so intuitive. If payroll's been sitting on your I'll figure it out later list, this is your sign. Right now, Gusto is offering three months for free. When you run your first payroll, head to Gusto.com Gold Digger to get started. That's Gusto.com Gold Digger so the other day I went down this rabbit hole of finding really cute matching summer outfits for my girls. I had my cart full, my dog was asleep in my lap, and of course I didn't have my wallet on me. And so I was just about to abandon it, telling myself I would circle back later. And then that purple shop pay button popped up. One tap, it's done. It's kind of dangerous how easy it is, but it's also totally magical. Well, that little purple button, that's Shop Pay and it's powered by Shopify. It remembers your info so that checkout can be instant. And for business owners, Shopify makes it just as easy to run your store as it is to shop. One Shopify powers 10% of all E commerce in the US from brands like Gymshark and Mattel to businesses just getting started. It is everything you need to launch gorgeous templates built in tools for payments, inventory and marketing. It's all in one place. No code, no hassle. And that purple shop pay button, well, it's not just cute, it is why Shopify has the best converting checkout on the planet. If you want to see less carts being abandoned, it is time for you to head over to Shopify. Sign up for your $1 per trial and start selling today at shopify.com gold digger go to shopify.com gold digger shopify.com/gold digger. Okay, step number two is this. Ask first and then build second. And this is so important because most people flip flop this. They build first and they ask second. Ask first, build second. So again, this is coming from a place of instead of making an assumption. I don't know if your mom said this, but my mom. Shout out mom, you always said this. If you assume you make an ass out of you and me, don't assume you know what your audience wants. If you are in this place where you are just creating these assumptions, I would say hit the brakes and ask. You can ask your audience in so many different ways whether you use Instagram story polls, if you have a newsletter, sending out a little survey in your newsletter, Facebook posts. If you're a part of Facebook communities, you can ask. We have an amazing community, our Gold Digger podcast insiders group. There's tens of thousands of you who listen to the show every week in there. But I think asking questions like which of these would help you more? Or what are you struggling with when it comes to X? Or what keeps you up at night when you're thinking about your topic now, these questions seem so, like, generic, but what's so important about them is that they are very open ended, which allows people to use their own language to describe their problems. Because another piece of a disconnect between your offer and your audience receiving your offer can be the language that you're using. Sometimes we are so deeply ingrained in our industry, in the world that we're in, that we use language that people don't even understand. I will never forget I had this one teacher. He was a lovely person, but he taught chemistry. And for some reason chemistry was really tricky for me. And I always just felt like he had no idea what it was like to not know any of this. Like everything was just so natural and second nature to him that when he described it, it sounded like a oh, duh moment. But for me it was like a oh crap moment because I had no idea what he was talking about. And I think a lot of times entrepreneurs can do that unintentionally because to us, what is common sense to someone else is life changing or earth shattering. And so when you ask questions like which of these would help you more? Or what are you struggling with when it comes to X, you get clarity, but beyond that, you get the exact language that people use. And that language is what helps you connect later, when you're ready to write copy, when you're ready to promote it, when you're ready to explain and tell people about your offer. And so this step is so huge when it comes to validating your offer, but also just validating how your audience talks about their needs around that offer. Now, there are so many different ways where you can test out ideas. A few of my favorites include this. So let's say people give you some good responses and you're like, okay, here's a good example. This is a real life example. So before we had our children. My husband was in the health coaching business. And before he even created his business, I told him he had to start an email newsletter. Now, I've been talking about email lists for almost a decade. I know that you're probably tired of hearing about them, but they are the most important piece of your business. They are the asset that you own in your business. So before my husband had a website, had a business name, he started a newsletter. And initially his business concept was that he was going to create a business around at home workouts, no equipment required for busy entrepreneurs. So he saw for me, at that stage of my life, it was really challenging for me to get movement in. I was just sitting behind my computer all day, every day as an entrepreneur. And so he wanted to create these really easy, at home, effective workouts. And so that was the business idea. But we use his email list to split test and we went between workouts and nutrition. Okay? And so the first freebie that he created was five at home workouts, no equipment required. And it was like this really beautiful freebie. We hired somebody to illustrate it. Like, we put, we put some money into this freebie. The second freebie that he created, and this is hilarious, was our weekly grocery shopping list, including our meal prep recipes. Guess what? The meal prep recipes in the nutrition side 10x the workouts, like it crushed it. There is no comparison. And I am so thankful that we tested out these two differing ideas because then he was able to take his business in the direction that people actually wanted, which was more accountability, help and support in the nutrition side of things. And so that is a perfect example of like figuring out, okay, here are your struggles. Now here are a couple possible solutions. Let's test out which one feels like the best fit. And that doesn't mean that you can't pursue the other idea, but let's shelf that one for a little while until you validate and get results with the first one. And so when Drew went to launch his business, we ended up changing the copy around it, the brand around it, and the offers around it, knowing, oh my gosh, the people have spoken. This is what they need more help with. You can also use Pinterest to split test ideas. Pinterest is an amazing place to split test different ideas, headlines, titles, all different kinds of things. And it's like a very low risk way. It takes you two seconds to make a pin in Canva and you can upload it and you can start seeing the data of like how many people are saving or clicking on it. What does that look like? So there are many different ways and spaces that you can split test different ideas before you get too far into wasting time and money and energy on something that people don't want or they don't know they want. And so you want to ask first and build second. Make sure that your message and your angle can connect with your audience and what they say they want and need before you get too far in creating it. Now here's a stat for you on this. Companies that regularly collect audience feedback see conversion rates increase by up to 30%. Conversion rates meaning sales people that actually convert from followers to purchasers. That's huge. And so make sure that in your process, in your planning, you are collecting feedback and you are actually hearing. So ask first, build second. Okay, step number three is to pre sell or to soft launch. This step has saved me way more than once. Pre selling is when you offer something before it is fully built. So think of it as like a beta launch or a founding member version of something. This is huge and this is a brilliant thing to do, especially in today's market and climate because you get to put something out there and watch how your audience responds. And this is different than the last step because you're making people put skin in the game. I have seen so many people where they'll put out like a little poll of like, hey, I'm thinking about creating this thing. Would you be interested? And they get tons of comments. People are like, yes, I'm interested. Yes, I'm interested. When they go to collect people's credit card information, suddenly people are not interested anymore. And so if you do a pre sell or a soft launch, you are getting money in hand. So cash in hand to help you float through this idea. But you are also getting people who are putting skin in the game. Like those who pay pay attention. Those are your people. So here's a story about this. So. So when I first got into the online course world, I decided I was going to do a beta launch. So first I brought in people to take my program for free if they offered to give me feedback. So that was like the first thing. So that was not necessarily cash in hand, but that was feedback and that was testimonial. So I said, I'm gonna take. I don't even remember how many people it was. It was quite a few, I think a hundred people through this process. And all I want is you to commit to doing it and giving me feedback. Okay, step two was I started to build out my bigger signature course and I took 25 clients and in their experience inside of my course, I did three one on one calls with each of them. Now if you're doing the math, that was 75 calls. Never again. You can imagine I never did an offer like that again. But I learned so much in that process. I learned and got to hear from my clients over and over and over again. Where they were at, what they were struggling with, what their goal was, what questions they had. It totally helped me to deeply understand my ideal client and also make sure that I help lead them towards results. And so this was a method that was high to get high touch. It was a pre sell before I decided to scale this offer at a lower price point and a lower touch. But it was amazing. And again, I wouldn't do it like that again. But if you are just starting out or you are trying to validate an offer or you are trying to figure out who is my ideal client, what are they actually struggling with? What can I actually help them with? Consider pre selling or soft launching something. If people are willing to buy something before it's ready, that is a very clear sign that there is demand for it. Like that is like a green light move ahead. This is awesome. People are ready to go. Now if nobody bites, that will also tell you something that can one save you a ton of time and energy and going down the wrong path. But it will also allow you to shift your energy elsewhere before you spend all of that time building out this thing that nobody actually wants. Pre selling can increase the success rate of a product by up to 60%. And I just think this is a really smart way, especially if you are going to build out something that is going to take a substantial amount of time, money or energy or all of the above. Because then you are validating it before you build it and it is a great way to one, pay attention. Who are these people that want this and how can you find more of them? What is it that they're telling you? What are you learning in this process and how can you over deliver so that when you go to launch it out to the masses or to the public or however you want to do that, you are going to have awesome testimonials, you're going to have incredible insight and you're going to be able to tailor that launch to all the things that you've learned in that pre sale or that soft launching process. So that is step three. Pre sell or soft launch. If I were to create a brand new program, I would probably go this route right now. Just to make sure that there is enough demand, that it feels worth it so that you don't go out and launch something. You're like, oh my gosh, I would have never done this if I would have known only 10 people needed it. And so this is an amazing, amazing way. So step three, pre sell or soft launch. Okay, step number four of five is start small before you scale. So start small. You do not need to create a massive offer or a giant course or a full program right out the gate. Whatever your offer is, you do not need to go to the moon and back before you get started. Sometimes starting small is the best way to test out if people actually want and like what it is that you're offering. So here's kind of an idea of what this could look like in real time in my own business. So for the last eight years, I have taught my program, the Pinterest Lab. So this is my signature program. It teaches people my one hour week process for using Pinterest to drive traffic. And I am obsessed with this program. It's probably like my favorite program to launch. It's just such an amazing, underutilized marketing channel and I won't go too deep on it. So here is how this is looking in my business, literally as we speak. Okay, so starting small before I scale. So for the last eight years I've taught my signature program, the Pinterest Lab. The Pinterest Lab is like the complete one hour a week system to drive traffic using Pinterest. So if you're using Pinterest just for fun, awesome. But if you knew that it could be a secret weapon in your content strategy, getting tons of traffic and eyeballs to your offers, to your website, to your, even your Instagram page, you can use Pinterest to do that. Now I am obsessed with the Pinterest Lab. And essentially for the last eight years, I've done the same, same launch. My business is very rhythmic, it's very cyclical. So I'll do different master classes, then I'll tell people about the program, the people that want to learn the next steps in the system, join the program, etc. But I wanted to try something different this time. I feel like energized and excited about trying something new. And so I figured, okay, I'm going to start small with this idea, but let's try it. So right now you could join my Pinterest Bootcamp. So if you listen to this episode when it drops, I am doing a Pinterest Bootcamp. It is a five day live experience and it's $27. Okay. So it is a fraction of the price of my full program. And this is a lower priced, high impact workshop that is live. So every day I'm getting on, I'm teaching for 15 minutes. I'm walking you through a part of the Pinterest puzzle so that you can take quick action and start to see results in those five days. And so I'm so excited about this lower priced offer and just this entry point. For people that have been curious, been cautious about trying Pinterest, this is the perfect offer. And so I created it to help warm people up for considering what would it look like to implement a one hour a week Pinterest system. And what's amazing about this offer is that it is doing so well. It is doing incredibly well, actually. And as I was planning this offer out, I was kind of like, this is like a big question mark. Like, I have no idea how this is going to go. I have never done this before. I want to keep my launch the same launch that I've done in the past, but I kind of want to just like toss in this new offer and test it out and validate it and see if it's something that people want. Starting small helps me collect tons of feedback. I get to see what's resonating. I get to see the light bulb moments for people, which I love. And then I also get to build demand for my bigger offer, which is the Pinterest lab. And so this is so exciting. If this sounds like something you want to do and you're listening to this when it first airs, you can jump in at Pin bootcamp. Com again. It's five day live experience. I'll be teaching for 15 minutes a day, answering some Pinterest questions afterwards. And then on the last day, there's a full masterclass where we review everything we've learned. I'll help you set up your profile. Right. I'll help you start to understand the strategy and I'll help you see the gold mine of content you're already sitting on that will do so well on Pinterest. So I'm so excited. Again, it's pin bootcamp.com you can join for 27, but you can literally watch how I am validating this idea before I ever go to scale it. Like this is happening once it's five days, I'm testing it out. If it works, awesome. If it doesn't work, no sweat. It's not taking up a ton of time and energy, but I am just so excited to be in community, to hear what people struggle with when it comes to Pinterest and to watch people get their first wins on the platform. I'm so excited. So again, pin bootcamp.com it's $27. Jump on in if you want to watch how I validate an idea but also if you want to get started with Pinterest. I'm so excited about that. Okay, real talk. You know when you get served an ad that makes zero sense for you. Like for weeks I kept getting ads for these high tech gaming chairs. Hi. I don't even game. I'm a mom. I'm not a twitch streamer. That's what makes LinkedIn ads stand out. They actually get your message to the right people. That's why I love what they can do for business owners. LinkedIn ads gives you access to over 1 billion professionals. That's billion with a B. And you can target your ideal buyer by title, industry skills, and even revenue. It takes the guesswork out of who's seeing this and helps you get in front of decision makers who actually are ready to take action. So instead of casting a super wide net, you can be laser focused and let your budget work smarter. LinkedIn will give you $100 credit on your next campaign. Just so you can try it for yourself. Go to LinkedIn.com goal that's LinkedIn.com G O A L Terms and conditions apply only on LinkedIn ads. This episode of the Gold Digger podcast is sponsored by Mercury, a business banking solution built for the way modern entrepreneurs actually work. Lately, I've been exploring new tools to better support my business finances. And when I started asking around, my friend and fellow entrepreneur Hala immediately said, jenna, you've got to check out Mercury. She's been using it for her business and had glowing things to say. So of course I had to look into it. And honestly, I get the hype. With Mercury, you can track cash flow, send international payments, issue virtual cards, and even apply for capital all from one dashboard. Their credit cards come with a 1.5% cash back. And if you're working with international vendors, Mercury offers free domestic and international wires in US Dollars. So if you're in that same season of figuring out what's next for your business finances, Mercury just might be the partner you've been looking for. Mercury is a technology company, not a bank. Check, show notes for details. Deposit $5,000 or spend $5,000 using your Mercury credit card within the first 90 days in order to earn $250 or do both for 500 in total rewards at mercury.com goal that's mercury.com goal. Years ago, Drew and I took a month long sabbatical. It was our first real break in a really long time. We rented a little Airbnb on a tropical island. And during that trip, something clicked. We experienced how powerful it can be to walk into a space that's been thoughtfully prepared for you. To rest, to reflect, to make memories and just be. And we started wondering, could we create that kind of experience for someone else? Could we be the hosts that make people feel the same sense of ease? That idea quickly took root. Eventually, we found a small property, poured love into every detail, and opened the doors. Over the years, we've had the honor of welcoming hundreds of guests. And it all started because we experienced the magic of being a guest first. Of course, hosting has its own learning curves, especially when your property is far from home. If we'd have had Airbnb's co host network back then, I would have jumped at the chance. It lets you team up with a local co host who can manage bookings, message guests, and handle all the on the ground details. So you're not doing it all yourself. It's the kind of support that helps you start small, start smart, and still give your guests a five star experience. So if you've ever wondered if you could host, this is your sign to explore it, find your co host and get started@airbnb.com host. Okay, on to step number five, which is probably one of the most transformative things I've ever started doing in my life, both when it comes to offers, but also just in general. I'll share how I do it in general as well, which is pause before I push. Now, I am a very excitable human being, especially, like, if I'm in somebody else's energy and we're like sharing this vision on this idea. Like, I could literally get started that day and start running. In fact, that is one of the things that I love about myself and also something I've had to learn to tame down is like, when I am bought into something, I move quickly and I want people to move at the speed that I move. I can get excited about an idea in the moment, especially if someone's like, yes, this is the idea. And I'm like, yes, this is brilliant. But if I have learned anything, and I've learned a lot, it is that not every exciting idea needs to be acted on right away. This is something I've worked so hard on since I became a mom six years ago because before I became mom, I would like get an idea and run with it. Get an idea and run with it. Like, like the trade off of time and money and energy felt worth it. And then for me personally, when I became a mom, it was like, okay, if I am gonna run with this idea, here's what it's gonna cost me, whether it's in my life or with my kids or in my business. And I started introducing this idea of pausing. Now let me tell you where this idea originated because it's kind of funny, but when we were first sleep training our daughters and just trying to get consistent sleep, I'll never forget with Coco, I was like, like struggling, I was so tired. And there is this notion when it came to sleep training called les pause, which is French. I'm pretty sure that's why they say lay in it lay pause. And essentially the idea was, if your kid wakes up and they start crying, give them a minute. See if they can self soothe and settle down. It was literally just this idea of like, before you rush into the rescue, just give them a minute. I'm still utilizing this practice in my life right now with my 3 year old. So this is where that idea came in. Then I started applying this idea to my personal life in when people would invite me to things, my immediate reaction is always, yes. If it's somebody that I love and they're doing something awesome, yeah, of course I want to be there. But I started inviting in the pause to help me get back into my own energy, to help me evaluate my schedule, to help me look at. Okay, if I say yes to this, it's an equal no to this. And to really just make sure that before I move forward with something, whether it's going to an event or speaking on a stage or going to a mastermind, that the trade off is worth it. And so instead of saying yes in the moment, I always say, let me circle back with you, let me check my calendar and I'll get back to you. That's where the pause came in. Now, the pause when it comes to an offer is so important. And I have been working with a few private coaching clients and it has brought me so much joy. And one of the biggest things I have noticed with them is something that I saw in myself so long, is that we do not let ideas breathe. We move so quickly because we're passionate, we're excited people. That's awesome. I don't want us to lose that piece of it, but if we can learn how to pause and sit with an idea a little bit longer, we might see, A, that idea isn't really the idea that we care about. B, that idea is something that we could pursue at a better time. Maybe it's three months, six months, a year from now. See, that idea was never my idea to start with, or D, that idea and the pursuit of it means that I'm giving up something else that I said was important, whether that's in life or in business. And this has been so huge and hard for me because I, again, get super excited. But I have learned that in pausing, a lot of times, the ideas were never really the idea or they weren't in alignment with what I said I wanted. And I've had to learn to just let the idea breathe, to pause, to check in with myself, to make sure that this idea is, in fact, aligned after a few days or weeks or months. And so I basically have a notebook where I just jot down ideas and when I can release them from my brain and know that they're safe and know that they're not going anywhere and that I can pursue them if I choose to in the future. It helps me to free up space to focus on what I say really matters. And if you've ever met somebody who talks a big talk about what their values are or what matters the most to them, but their life does not exemplify that. Like, you look at them and you're like, okay, you say this matters, but you're doing this. A lot of times I would argue that they are in the pursuit of too many things that aren't in alignment with what their values are. And I believe that, like, I have been able to run my business from a place that is true to my values and what I say is important, that is important in my life. Because of step five, pausing, I have paused. So many things, so many ideas. I've hit the brake pedal in so many aspects of my life, especially since becoming a mom. I know where the gas pedal is. I've not forgotten. I know where it is. I have my idea notebook. It is filled. It is still there. It will be there if and when my life opens up and suddenly I have a ton more time. The pause helps me sort the noise from the true next step. If I come back to this idea when the time is right and I still feel excited and I validated it, I've seen interest, then I can move forward with this idea with confidence. So pause before you push. Okay, let me do a quick recap of steps one through five, and then we've got a little bonus section in this one. So step one Listen before you lead. Start paying attention. Bring this practice into your life every single week of just noticing. What are people asking for? What are they talking about? What do they come to you for? Step number two Ask first, build second. Ask people which of these would help you more. What are you struggling with when it comes to X? Listen to their language. Step number three Pre sell or soft launch. Get cash in hand. Make sure people are willing to pay so that they pay attention to what it is that you're building. Step number four Start small. Before you scale. Consider experimenting, trying out different things, creating lower priced offers and pieces to the puzzle so that you can get people results and wins. And step number five Pause before you push. Now here's a little bonus action for this episode. So if your offer flopped but it's already built, like maybe you have already built the thing, you've spent your time, you've poured your energy into it, maybe you invested some money into it and you launched it, but it didn't land the way that you hoped. Before you scrap it completely to move on to the next shiny thing, I want for you to pause and ask yourself, how can I give this a second chance? Because here's the truth. The hardest part is already done. The content is built, the bones are there. Let's not waste it. And let's remind ourselves. When we spend so much time on the insides of an offer and we don't actually get it out to the people that we intended to receive it, that offer is not getting to create the impact or the income that you intended it to. I don't want for you to waste it. So here are three things I want for you to try before you totally walk away from the offer that didn't sell the way you hoped it would the first time. So first, rework the messaging. Sometimes it is not the offer, it is how you are talking about it. So go back, look at the headline you use, look at the title, look at the hook and the way that you describe what it is that someone will get if they purchase this offer and ask yourself, is it crystal clear what this thing is or what problem it solves? Am I using my language or am I using their language? And does the promise feel strong and specific? These are super tiny tweaks that you can make in how you position your offer that can make a huge difference in how it lands and how it's received. We do not want to be clever, we want to be clear. You can also bring in any of the copy you wrote about the offer and ask Chat GBT these questions, is it crystal clear what this solves? Am I using my language or the language of my ideal audience? And does the promise feel strong and specific? You could import in all your copy and say, what is the promise of this offer? And see, is it strong and specific? You could import this in and say, what problem am I trying to solve? And work with Chat GBT to rework your messaging. But oftentimes it might not be the offer itself. It's the way that you're talking about it and the way that you're trying to sell it it. Number two, another way to revive a debt offer is to create a nurture one way. So it is possible that your audience just wasn't ready yet, right? Not because your offer was wrong, but because they weren't fully aware that they needed it. Remember at the top of the show when I talked about my idea of the virtual assistant course? It's a great idea, but a lot of times people don't even know that they need it, or they're not aware that they're ready for that next step yet. And so think about how you can create supporting content that can warm your audience up, that can bring this into their awareness, that can raise their consciousness around this problem that will then position your offer as a solution. Maybe it's a podcast episode, maybe it's a blog post, maybe it's an email sequence or a freebie that helps tee up the problem that your offer solves. Sometimes you have to remind people, hey, this is a real problem and there is a real solution for it. And again, do not sleep on Pinterest. Here it is perfect for this step. I've used evergreen content on Pinterest to quietly drive new eyes. I'm talking like thousands of new eyeballs to different lead magnets or nurture pieces that lead people right back into an offer or that serve them better until they're ready for that offer. So it's a great way to build momentum without burning people out. But again, think about, like, what are the steps? Or what do people need to understand? What is the what and the why that people need to understand before you can deliver the how, which is your offer? And then lastly, consider relaunching with a fresh twist. So instead of doing the same thing that maybe didn't work the first time all over again, think about how can you position the offer to bring in fresh energy so you could bring the same offer out into the world in a whole different way. You could run it as a challenge. You could offer a back by demand bonus. You could have a limited time incentive to drive urgency. You could have some sort of freebie or a free touch point with you. Sometimes all it takes is just a new launching angle and the right energy behind it to make people pay attention. And remember, just because your offer flopped, it doesn't mean your offer sucks. It could have been bad timing, it could have been bad messaging. It could have been bad price point. It could have been so many different variables. So don't just kill your dead offer. Bring it back to life and give it one more chance. Give it another chance. Please. I'm begging you. Now here's what I've learned over the years. You don't always need a new offer. You might just need to tweak things if something flopped. Do not beat yourself up. It's not a reflection of you. Let's just rework it, reframe it and revive it. You've done the hard work, right? You've created the thing. So now we just got to get it out into the world. And I saw something the other day and it was just so blunt and true. But I think a lot of times we pour ourselves into the creation piece because it feels exciting, it feels creative. We're energized about the actual creating. The promotion of the creation feels vulnerable, right? We feel like we're standing naked on a stage. And so be willing to get vulnerable and promote this thing that you've spent your time, money and energy on so that it can make the impact that you intended it to make. So, as we conclude, before I create any new offers, here's what I asked myself. Here's what I want for you to ask yourself, have I listened to what people are asking for? Have I tested the idea with real feedback? Have I seen signs that people are ready to take action? Can I start smaller before building something big? And do I still feel aligned after I pause and check in this process? This five step process has saved me so much time, energy and stress. It's helped me build a repeatable, dependable, rhythmic business. And I hope that this process helps you do the same. If this episode gave you any clarity or aha moments, I would love nothing more than for you to share this with a friend. Share it with a friend who is working every night and weekend, who always has the new idea, who is always chasing the next thing. Share it with them and say, I will help hold you accountable to this process so that you can get your time, your energy, and your life back. And if you're testing a new idea right now, just remember to follow through on this process. There are so many pieces that will help you validate it to make sure that when you push it out into the world, there will be people lined up waiting to take advantage of the amazing thing that you have created. Your work deserves to make the impact that it is created to make, and the way to do that is to make sure that the people that you are creating it for are ready and willing to buy it. I hope you love today's episode. It was so fun recording it for you again. If you want to join me inside of my Pinterest bootcamp, go to pin bootcamp.com it's five days, it's live. It's 15 minutes a day. The last day we do a live masterclass. I can't wait to spend time helping people get their first wins, and I can't wait to see what this small offer can lead into. And until next time, Gold Diggers, keep on digging your biggest goals. Thank you so much for hanging out with me today. It was such a joy to spend this time with you. Thanks for pulling up a seat for another episode of the Gold Digger Podcast. I hope today's episode fueled you with inspiration, gave you information that you can turn into action, and realigned you with your true north in life and business. If you've enjoyed today's episode, head on over to gold digger podcast.com for today's show. Notes, discount codes for our sponsors, freebies to fuel your results, and so much more. And if you haven't yet, make sure you're subscribed so that you never miss a future show. We'll see you next time, Gold Diggers.