Lively Biz For Lifestyle Entrepreneurs With Alicia Forest

As we head into the season of giving, now is a great time to show appreciation to your clients and customers. Taking the time to give thanks to your clients will set you apart, increase loyalty, improve retention, inspire more sales, and deepen relationships that last long after the initial sale.

As I'm wrapping up a slew of private retreats with clients this month, it's become clear that it's time for me to get focused on practicing what I've been preaching - or more specifically, to put myself through the same intense process and plan that I take my clients through.

I had many lightbulb moments during my three days in Dallas at SHINE this year, and I wanted to share with you 10 of my top take-aways: 1. Opportunities come through people, not your computer Think about that for a minute. Yes, you can build good relationships with people over email and social media. But when it comes to the really juicy opportunities, those are going to come through meeting people and spending time with them IRL (in real life). That's one reason why it's so important to get out there at least a couple of times a year.

One the biggest mistakes I see entrepreneurs make is creating what they think their market needs instead of what it wants. Then they're left disappointed, discouraged and with little to no sales - and maybe even unwilling to try again. So if you're creating products/programs/services that you think your market needs - offerings that seem the most logical to you that will help your prospects do, be or have better - but you're not selling many - or any, then keep reading.

Here’s a question I get asked all the time: "I don’t know you how do it, Alicia…with two little ones to care for and so few hours in the day to actually focus on your work. Somehow you manage to write your weekly ezine, hold a bunch of teleseminars each month, run your group and private coaching programs, AND be creating and promoting new offers and new products all the time. I’m so impressed and inspired by you, but more than that, I want to know how you do it all!?"

While the message and the market of your business may be different, there are some stumbling blocks that seem to pop up for even the seasoned entrepreneur.

As part of your launch strategy to boost your online sales, create partnerships with colleagues, and increase the overall value of your product or service, add a bonus (or several) to your offering.

Want to increase your sales BEFORE you launch your product or service? The following are some of the most effective ways to do just that.

Do you get discouraged or stuck in building your business because you think there's too many others to compete against in your niche? A lot of solo business owners feel this way, especially when they're first starting out. I don't want you to give up before you really get started, so I'd like you to consider thinking about your competition in a different way.

Do you know that one of the best ways to build a successful online business quickly is through joint ventures?

Basically, there are two things that must be in place before any of your offerings can be successful (read: profitable). One is that it must be designed for a niche. So, there must be a group of people who you are targeted to offer your product/program/service toward.

If you're reading this ezine, it's likely that you've participated in a teleseminar, whether it be mine or one of my colleagues. You've probably been on some that have been very good, where you got tons of really valuable information. And you may have found yourself on a few that were nothing but pitch-fests for the host's lastest product.

An annual trip we make each summer is a visit to the spectacular Castle in the Clouds. The Castle’s original name was “Lucknow”, which struck me when the staff posed us for a photo of us in the tea room, complete with period hats. It seems wherever we go with our daughter Chloe, she attracts these opportunities – she’s pulled out of line to get special attention, she’s picked to go on stage, or the line we’re in puts us in the front seat. It happens so often, we couldn’t help but notice it – sure, she’s super cute and friendly (she’ll strike up a conversation with anyone) – but there seems to be something about Chloe that brings her luck now. Now, if we could just bottle that… ;-)

A question I often ask my target market is, "what's your biggest challenge with building your business online?" And one answer I get frequently is this: How do I make my website earn money?

I have a successful business because I know what to do and I do it. I make a good income, I work with clients I enjoy, I get to be creative and I get to do all of that in a way that serves my family and my life.

After you've worked hard to put your product or program together, and spent the time and effort to write a compelling sales page for it, you don't want to lose your potential customer or client right at the moment they are sitting there with credit card in hand - at the order link or order form

Did you know there's a super-simple way to leverage your gifts, talent and know-how into lucrative, highly leveraged income streams? It's your Signature System, and it's your step-by-step formula for multiple streams success. So, what exactly is a Signature System? It's the work you're ALREADY doing with clients, packaged into a highly marketable, step-by-step system they'll want to buy.

I've personally invested over $100k in my own business education (not including my MBA) and I've leveraged that investment into well over a half-million dollars in the last few years. I've said before that I will make my million - in my time and on my terms. And because I'm sensing this strong undercurrent of desperation in many businessowners about making 6 or 7 figures, I wanted to invite you to take a different tact: Ask yourself, what's the least income you can make right now and still live a happy life?

Do you get stuck when trying to figure out what to offer to your market next? Do you wonder if they'll buy what you put together for them? Just follow these three steps to easily create your next successful offer.

Chloe has a children's book titled Milton's Secret: An Adventure of Discovery through Then, When, and the Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle and Robert S. Friedman, which really simplifies the concept of living in the present moment, and how the practice of that will, for the boy in the story, eliminate fear and worry.