January 2021 - Focus Guru

New Business Process have you implemented one?

Starting a new business can be a complicated minefield, especially if it’s your first business venture after a lifetime of employment. You’re setting things up from scratch and no-one’s telling you what to do, how to do it or when. A new business process is a structured way to start your business the right way.

A Focus Guru Power Hour will help you get the right processes and procedures in place.

To help new business owners, especially those starting MLM businesses. I can provide a no-nonsense look at effective and proven strategies to manage your productivity, energy and time. I’ll help identify your time thieves, brain drains and squirrels. I will show you software and tools to make the most of your working hours. Not sure what I mean by Squirrels, then check out my blog “Squirrel! Squirrel! Squirrel! How to Beat Your Distracting Squirrels”

I give you control of your time, freeing up hours so you do the things you really want to be. It starts with the “Right Attitude”.

New Business Process – Right Attitude

I believe everything starts with the right attitude and it comes down to the way that you speak to yourself. If you say, “it’s too difficult” or “I haven’t got time” or “I’ll do it tomorrow”, your brain listens and the task becomes more difficult, time consuming or never gets started. Equally, don’t listen to the nay-sayers and negative people who, if you let them, will erode your positivity.

“The right attitude starts with confidence and self-belief.”

New Business Process – Track Your Progress

Almost anything within your business can be tracked, monitored and adjusted where necessary. At Focus Guru I help business owners track everything from tasks, to time, to sales, marketing and accounts. Everything is measurable eg visual charts / graphs gives you an overview of your current and projected workload and finances. Would you like to know how much time you give your number one client each month? Or whether you’re on target for this week’s sales? I can show you software tools and apps to measure your progress and I will work with you to help you stay on track.

“Without tracking, how do you know how you’re doing?”

Outsourcing

It doesn’t matter if you’re just starting your business or have been running multiple companies for years, at some point you’ll find you can’t grow while trying to do everything yourself. You’ll either run out of time, or energy, or both. At the same time the quality of the products or service you’re providing may suffer. Consequently your customers may leave to go elsewhere. I work with business owners to identify key areas that can be outsourced. Review and set up safety nets. You will see how much you’re saving in time or money compared with doing the tasks yourself.

“Never outsource something you don’t know how to do yourself.”

Not sure how you could chose what to outsource, check out my blog “How A Time Intensity Grid Will Help You Choose What To Outsource”

These are just some of the tips I give you in the Focus Guru Power Hours. If you’re starting out in business or fancy a fresh look at how technology could save you time and money, please book in a free 15 minute call.

Rachael Chiverton, Focus Guru – Giving You Your Time, Your Way with No Squirrels

How To Follow Up Your Networking Meetings Efficiently And Effectively

How many times do you go to networking meetings each week? At each meeting you’re likely to see twenty people or more. Over the course of a month you might have made over a hundred contacts. But how do you know who will buy from you? Do you need a Focus Guru Power Hour to help build an efficient and effective follow up system?

It’s not as complicated as you might think. Some of the clients I’ve worked with are amazed how easy it is to connect with people from meetings they attended today, last week or even last year. It’s never too late to follow up.

If it’s that easy, why don’t more people do it?

If it’s that easy, why don’t more people follow up after a meeting? Have they sold a product or service to everyone in the room? Has everyone bought from them already? Are they too busy? Or are they procrastinating, thinking it’s too difficult, too complicated, or not going to make a difference?

With only a small percentage of people following up from a meeting I can guarantee it will make a difference. The simple act of sending a message, email or card to someone you met at a networking meeting shows your attention to detail and that you care about them as a person.

I explain more about this in my Focus Guru Power Hour, showing you efficient systems and software you can implement to simplify your follow up process and to make it much more effective.

These are three of my top tips to help you get started:

Follow up Tip 1 – Make a note of who was at the meeting

When you make a written record of who attended the networking meeting it’s much easier to remember who you have met. I recommend making a note of each person’s first and last name, their company name, email address, website and a summary of the products and services they offer.

If you can also collect any extra information, such as their location, dog’s name, favourite car, last holiday, or other detail, this can kickstart a conversation in the future.

Follow up Tip 2 – Connect with the attendees via social media

Don’t wait for other people to connect with you. Be proactive and send a greeting. Ask to connect with each person via LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. If you don’t know what to write, try using these template messages (you can copy/paste or change the text):

“Hi, It was great to meet you today. I’m sorry we didn’t get to chat in the meeting, would you like to arrange a 121 to share more about what you do?”

Or, if you had a 121 and want to continue the conversation, try this instead:

“Hi, It was great to meet you today. I enjoyed our 121 chat during the meeting, and I would like to continue our conversation. Would you like to arrange another 121 with me this week?”

If you wish to personalise the message, include their name and the meeting you both attended.

Follow up Tip 3 – Be proactive and arrange the follow up call

After sending your connection requests and receiving the replies, now is the time to arrange those follow up calls. One of the popular methods for keeping control of your time whilst making yourself available for clients and prospective clients is to use an online calendar appointment booking app such as Calendly.

With Calendly you choose when you’re available and send a link for people to book your time. You may find this uncomfortable at first, but the app provides a structure to arrange your working hours. Booking specific timeslots helps you and the caller to focus on the call objectives, whether to get to know each other better, to arrange a future meeting, or to close a sale.

Bonus Tip

Remember, the follow up conversation isn’t supposed to be a sales call. The purpose is to get to know the other person and turn a stranger into a friend. If this sounds odd or unfamiliar remember the saying that “people buy from people they like, know and trust”.

If you’d like to find out more about follow up calls, how to record prospective customer details, how to set up Calendly, or any stage of the follow up process, please book a free 15 minute call let’s get started.

Rachael Chiverton, Focus Guru – Giving You Your Time, Your Way, with No Squirrels!

Top 5 Tips for Successful Networking

Would you like more leads? More enquiries? More sales? To find your next customer you might consider attending a business networking event (nothing to do with computer cabling), where business owners and decision makers get together to talk about products and services. Maybe we’ve already met at a 4Networking face-to-face or online meeting.

Also ask yourself, do people actually know what I do?

When running a business, it’s essential to be able to explain what you do as easily and quickly as possible. Being able to describe your business in 40 seconds in an interesting and engaging way is important, especially when meeting new people at 4Networking meetings.

When you’re in a room with 10, 20, 30, 40 or more people from local, national and International businesses, it can be difficult to stand out. It can be harder to stand out if you are in the same industry as someone else in the room. It’s not uncommon for two web designers to attend the same event, or two electricians, or two accountants.

My top 5 tips are:

Successful Networking – Tip 1 – Be You

It sounds simple doesn’t it? Be You. There’s no need to change who you are and those who do soon get found out. This means don’t over-egg or exaggerate but equally don’t undersell yourself or make light of your achievements. Brad Burton, founder of 4Networking, says: “Be you, because you can’t be anyone else.”

Successful Networking – Tip 2 – Everyone is Nervous

Yes, even that person centre stage talking confidently to anyone and everyone. They were nervous once. It takes practice to be confident at anything and networking is no different. Equally, look for those who seem nervous, speak with them, make them feel comfortable. They’ll thank you for it and could even become your next customer. Also make sure people know what you do. If you are unsure how to do this check out the blog I wrote called ” What Do People Think You Do And Are They Right?”

Successful Networking – Tip 3 – Prepare, Prepare, Prepare

I call this “Know What To Expect”. Anything you can find out in advance about the venue, parking, toilets, coffee station, whether you can bring a roller banner, offer samples or advertise an event is always helpful and these details can usually be obtained from the meeting organiser. Some meetings have a structured format, and you may need to prepare a 40 second introduction or elevator pitch. Arriving in plenty of time is a good way to avoid nerves and help you relax and enjoy the meeting. If you struggle with timings, check out this blog I wrote called, “Squirrel! Squirrel! Squirrel! How to Beat Your Distracting Squirrels”

Successful Networking – Tip 4 – Relax, Smile, Enjoy the Meeting

It’s often said that “People Buy From People They Like” and one of the best ways to be approachable is to be relaxed, smiling and welcoming. A friendly “hello” can make a big difference to someone who’s nervous or attending the meeting for the first time. When you’re relaxed it shows in your face and your voice. Take your time delivering your 40 seconds introduction, remember to breathe, speak slowly and clearly and take a sip of water before you start.

If you’re struggling pick up the phone to whoever invited you, explain you feel nervous and they should address you’re concerns. If even picking the phone up is out of your comfort zone, check out my blog “How you can easily overcome a lack confidence when speaking on the phone.”

Successful Networking – Tip 5 – Don’t Ignore the Follow Up Process

Whether you’re networking online or offline a key part of your networking process to gaining new customers is closing the sale. By this, I mean following up with your potential customer and asking for their business. Unless you’ve made a sale in the room, you’re going to need some sort of follow up process otherwise it can quickly get out of hand. If you attend 4N Online meetings you might meet 20 people in a meeting, perhaps 150 people in a week. How are you going to measure the success of the meeting? How will you know who to contact afterwards? Do you have an effective sales process, a CRM system, or is it all in your head and handwritten notes?

If the answer is “no” please contact me for your free 15 minute chat and find out more about which Focus Guru Power Hours would help your business.

Bonus Tip – Focus on One Thing

Try to focus on one piece of information you want people to remember about you and your business when you deliver your 40 second introduction. It can be hard if you have multiple businesses, have a “side hustle” or “wear many hats”. But, trust me, 40 seconds is just the start of your conversations with people in the room and there will be plenty of time later to let everyone know what you do and why they need your products and services.

I expand on these tips and much more in my Focus Guru Power Hours. For a free 15 minute chat about your business and any areas you’d like to discuss, book your call today.

New Year, New Start – What Are You Changing?

There’s something about the new calendar year that triggers a sudden flurry of activity. It doesn’t matter how hard you worked until the end of the previous year. You quickly forget how many sleepless nights you spent worrying about your work, family or health. As the clock strikes midnight on the 31^st of December it’s as though the slate is wiped clean and a new year brings a fresh new start.

The 1^st week of January is the perfect time to announce your “New Year, New Start”. By letting others know what you intend to do, you make yourself accountable to them and to yourself. Writing down your targets and the steps to reach them re-enforces your good intentions and makes your goals much more likely to happen.

So, my “New Year, New Start” question to you is:

What are you changing?

Is it something at work? Or at home? Do you want to expand your business? Or plan a holiday?

Everyone has a different goal, but many goals have similar skills you’ll need to achieve them. I can help you discover your hidden strengths and use proven strategies to motivate you to finish the variety of projects you’ve started.

I’ve changed and launched my power hours.

I do this through my Focus Guru Power Hours. These are sixty minutes of targeted business focussed knowledge, systems, processes and skills that will fit into any part of your day.

“Rachael’s understanding of my needs and concerns gave me the support I needed to overcome my blocks.” – Elissa Dobson

How does it work?

Your Focus Guru Power Hour begins with a straightforward, no nonsense conversation. You don’t need to prepare anything and there’s no need to take notes as I’ll send a report with action steps afterwards.

You can choose which Focus Guru Power Hour suits you best or combine Power Hours to sharpen multiple skills. For example, you might choose the Focus Guru “Outstanding Content” Power Hour alongside the “Hootsuite” and/or “Mailchimp” Power Hours.

Or if you’re struggling with overwork or overwhelm, the Focus Guru “Time Management” and “Overwhelm” Power Hours could be for you.

“Rachael has been amazing helping me set up mailing campaigns for my Sammy Rambles books and dragons! I feel confident I can send my own mailshots after my Focus Guru Power Hour.” – Jenny Leggott

The first step is to choose your Power Hours and you’ll see areas from social media, technology, general business and niche areas. Each Power Hour is 121 via Zoom and available for you or a member of your team to participate.

Focus Guru Power Hours:

Streamyard
Calend.ly
YouTube
Hootsuite
Mailchimp
Time Management
Procrastination
Overwhelm
New Business
Zoom
Outstanding Content
Follow Up
General Networking
Track Your Finances

Remember, you can combine Focus Guru Power Hours. Would you like to improve your Zoom or Streamyard knowledge? Maybe you’d like to combine this with a General Networking Power Hour or New Business Power Hour?

Focus Guru Power Hours will help you learn a new skill or enhance your existing knowledge in a variety of business sectors. To book your Focus Guru Power Hour, please arrange a free 15 minute call and let’s get started.