Initially, I worked as a low-paid hairdresser in order to support my two children. Then I decided that what I had to do was to create my own business and create a fortune from writing a book.
My sweet spot was learning how to build a business from books. And so there are plenty of gems for me to drop.
I had a disaster when I first entered the industry. I didn’t set out to become a speaker or a transformational leader. I just wanted to do my part to help my community.
It was my great desire to share the hard-won knowledge I had.
Often clients would say to me, “Susie, I love what you do. Do you have a book?”
I’m like, “No. I don’t have a book.”
At the time, I worked as a hairdresser and had no plans or idea how to write a book. But a lot of people talked about me writing a book, so I gave it a try.
When I first approached publishers with my book, they rejected it. So I decided that since they don’t want me. I’m going to open my own publishing company.
I remember the day when all the books arrived. 2000 books sounded like a small pile when I ordered them, but when they dropped them off at the curb, Oh my God, that was the best, the scariest, the worst day ever.
I had no idea what I was thinking. When I thought about writing a book, I thought I would become famous instantly. That’s not the case. What I realized that day was the hard part wasn’t writing the book, it’s how to sell it.
And when I went to my first event and there were about 300 people. I remember it clear as day. It was at the Fisherman’s Wharf. It was a beautiful sunny day. I was like, “Oh, I have arrived. I’m going to have a book signing and people are going to buy my book.”
I did my talk and I watched people stand up and go to my line. It was so joyful and exciting for me. I was sitting there and the next speaker got on and the next speaker was talking.
I was in the back of the room with my calculator, figuring out how many books I sold. If you sold 150 times that $20, it was $3,000 that day. Now, that paid for my expenses, that paid for me being there. Then I watched this other speaker get up on stage. He was pitching a $2,000 product!
At that time, I had a limiting mindset and belief about what people would spend, and I was limited in what I could spend.
He was talking to the audience. I thought, “They’re not going to buy this.“
Literally, I watched the same people that bought my book, stand up and go his line. The same 150 times $3,000 was $450,000 that day. And that’s when it dawned on me that I was doing it wrong. It felt like somebody punched me in the face.
There’s a cap on what we can sell books for, but the intellectual property in the book can make you MILLIONS.
That lead can make you millions. How?
Companion product
I want you to think about what companion product you can put together. You want to create that companion product so it’s juicy, it’s valuable. If we create videos with the companion product, that product goes up higher. It’s so crazy.
You can do audio and if you look at books on audio, you’re still going to have a cap on what you can charge. The minute you turn a video on yourself and create that interactive dialogue with homework and exercises, you’re just bringing the book to life.
When I look at my book, Power Your Profits, it has multiple touchpoints and multiple products. The book itself is $20. Then we have our next course, which is Propel Your Profits. That’s the companion course.
It’s a video. It’s each chapter, but I bring it alive in the video. I bring it alive in homework. I bring it alive in action steps.
Guess how much that product is, very similar to what that first author did with me.
My product is $1,997. The exact same content just delivered differently.
Create more intimacy
The more access they have to you, the more intimacy they have with you, the more touchpoints they have with you, the higher the price point.
The next one is, where I’m going to go from the companion course is what we call our Boot Camp.
Our Boot Camp is only three chapters of the book. It’s a video and it has workbooks and interactions.
Then they get a coaching call with me. Then they get a mastermind call with a group and they get accountability.
Build a Mentorship Program
The next stage is the product that costs $7,500.
That core product is still the book and then the highest level is what we call Our Global Leadership.
Our Global Leadership is a year-long mastermind. We have other experts come on and teach their expertise in what they’re doing in business.
I want to support my clients with businesses so that we can really look at, how we can grow their business. They’ve over 72 modules. Again, breaking the book down into bite-sized chunks.
Each sub-chapter in the chapter becomes a mini-lesson. They get mastermind calls with me. They get coaching calls with me. They get a business lab to implement the work. It’s a big product. We do some Done-for-you Services.
I wrote that first book, it was on sinking sand. I didn’t have a strategy. I didn’t really have a financial plan. I had hope, I had a dream and I wanted to make a difference, but that’s not enough in business.
My journey of 30 years in this business has taught me a lot of great and painful lessons. You’ve got the book that makes up the nucleus, the center.
You go out in the world with different products, but the core is still the same. Now, that’s STRATEGY!
If you want to learn more juicy business strategies, don’t miss our next ScaleUp MasterClass happening in August. Date is TBD.
We will discuss:
- How to use our Operations Assessment to determine where you are at in your business currently.
- How will having a strong organizational plan create opportunity for additional wealth for a scaling business.
By the end of this workshop you will be able to:
- Determine what you need to put in place & do next to scale your business
- The It, the tools and the strategies on what you need to put in place to increase your operations assessment scores.
- Learn how to EXPAND your business (even if you think you’re at capacity) with less stress, more ease and grace.
- Know how to create a solid business plan to increase your profits.
- What to hold your team accountable for so you aren’t just winging it.
If you are interested in this masterclass and want to be notified when we nail down a date, just add your contact info below.
