or scroll down to get the highlights

How to add recurring revenue to your business

Way back in late 2016 I thought it would be a great idea to start a membership. I called it the Inner Circle, and it was for people like me. Ecommerce store owners who were trying to grow their sales.

I opened the membership to about 70 people. I did it because I thought it would be the easiest way to offer support and teach them what I had learned the hard way.

I couldn’t have been more wrong. It just about killed me, and 5 months after I started, I was ready to close the doors.

What I know now is that a Membership is a great way to provide ongoing training and support.

The truth is that I was doing it wrong.

In early 2017 a friend recommended I follow Stu McLaren, because he knows how to set up a Membership program that really works for the students, and doesn’t almost kill you, lol.

I followed Stu, joined his program, and learned how to build an amazing Membership program.

That was almost 7 years ago. Since then, we’ve taught thousands of store owners how to grow a profitable eCommerce business, and the Inner Circle has generated millions of dollars in revenue.  We have an amazing team of 20 women. I’m so proud of how they help our members make progress, and I am thrilled to be able to pay them very well, and provide a flexible workplace.

I’m sharing this with you because a few years ago I realized that what I have learned about memberships for services can also be applied to eCommerce stores.

In fact, eCommerce store owners can set up memberships that generate enough revenue to pay their bills every single month.

I’m sure you can imagine what’s possible when you have thousands of dollars of recurring revenue coming into your business every single month.

If you’d like to learn more – watch this conversation I had with Stu McLaren about how eCommerce store owners like you are implementing profitable Memberships right now.

If you prefer to listen, click here.

RELATED LINKS:

Register here to get the free workshop: Turn What You Already Know, Love, And Do Into A Profitable Membership Business
https://membershipworkshop.com?ref=ftlmi

The workshop starts April 4th and runs through April 12th

New FREE Course

GROW YOUR SALES

(without breaking the bank)

Conversion School is a step by step process to grow your sales,
without spending a fortune on risky ad strategies, or discounting your products.

Works for Ecommerce stores at all stages.

Start getting consistent sales, and see significant sales growth every month.

New FREE Course

GROW YOUR SALES

(without breaking the bank)

Conversion School is a step by step process to grow your sales,
without spending a fortune on risky ad strategies, or discounting your products.

Works for Ecommerce stores at all stages.

Start getting consistent sales, and see significant sales growth every month.

or scroll down to get the highlights

That Time I Did Something Desperate

The road to ecommerce success is lonely. I know there are probably days when you feel like you’re never going to reach your goals, and you don’t have anyone nearby who understands what you’re going through, or who can give you words of advice or encouragement.

That’s why today I wanted to share a story that might just change your day.

Listen to the podcast HERE or keep scrolling for the good, the bad, and the ugly that I know you’ll relate to.

The Desperate Act That Turned Everything Around

Back in 2014 I purchased a toddler shoe company called Wee Squeak. And at the time the business relied heavily on attending trade shows, taking wholesale pre-orders, and shipping huge containers full of product to the US. It was incredibly expensive, and after a while I decided I wanted to let go of the wholesale side of the business.

It was a hard decision to make, but I just didn’t see a way to move the business forward the way we were going. Only problem was, all that was left was our website and it was far from generating the revenue we needed to stay afloat.

To cut expenses we moved out of our 15,000 sq ft. warehouse and transitioned to working with a 3PL (third party fulfillment) which significantly reduced our overhead, but I still had a LOT of shoes to move and bills to pay.

At the time I hadn’t the faintest idea how to run Facebook Ads, but I did know that I needed to figure it out FAST if I was going to sell these shoes. I felt pretty confident that if I could just build an email list, I’d be ok. But how to get people to my website? Facebook seemed like the answer.

So I signed up for three different Facebook Ads courses. Not all at once; I did them one at a time, diligently following all the steps.

Not. A. Single. One. Worked.

Huge failure. I was so frustrated, I even named one of my test campaigns “Please Work” like a child, because I was desperate. (It didn’t work.)

I kept going only because I had no other options. And eventually, methodically testing and iterating and following what seemed to be working, I figured it out. Low and behold, our sad little list of 3k grew to 18,000 in a year. It was rough, but I finally gained the confidence that I could make this happen. And I could even teach others how to make it work, too.

And that’s how Reliable Revenue was born.

I’m sharing this because I want you to understand that you’re going to learn the most valuable lessons by actually doing things. When you start, it might not go well—even the 20th attempt might be tough. But persistence and paying attention will eventually lead to success. I’m telling you this from my experience transitioning from a brick-and-mortar wholesale business to an online-only store, despite not being tech-savvy. It’s about having grit and doing much more than you initially think is necessary. This journey is normal, and you can succeed just like I did.

Remember, you ARE intelligent and capable of solving problems.

My own learning curve took three years, but that’s exactly why I’m here. To help you fast-track your process and get there quicker than I did. Even if you haven’t joined our Reliable Revenue program, you can still make significant progress

This year’s Reliable Revenue course just kicked off and I know a lot of you just weren’t able to make it work. If that’s you, I’ve outlined four steps for you to follow over the next year, and I’m confident that if you commit to these actions, you’ll see a remarkable transformation in your business.

1. Commit to emailing your list at least once a week for a whole year.

Get over yourself. Just do it. It won’t be perfect. It might be ugly, but just email your list weekly and include a “Call To Action” (CTA) that brings people back to your site. It can be a button, or hyperlinked text, or both…just give them ONE thing to do, and that’s click through to your site. Whether it’s a product page, blog post, or collection. You don’t have to narrate the entire story in the email; give them a reason to click through. If people choose to unsubscribe, that’s okay. The key is consistency. By maintaining this routine for 52 weeks, you’ll gain valuable insights into what resonates with your audience.

2. Commit to partnering with an e-commerce peer for a monthly collaboration.

You don’t need a big agenda, just celebrate each other as small business owners. Send your subscribers to their site, and they’ll send their subscribers to yours.  Invite your readers to sign up for their pop-up.

Listen to this episode of the podcast to get some inspiration:
https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/a-year-of-results-that-will-shock-you-episode-120/

Then track your results. Web visitors, emails collected. Repeat this monthly to build momentum and broaden your network.

3. Make Data Your Bestie

For Inner Circle members (non-members can find helpful information in our podcast episodes, which I’ll link at the bottom of this post), focus on building your sales funnel, tracking audience size, website visitors, conversion rates, and sales. This tracking is truly 50% of your way to success. You’ve got classroom resources and monthly calls to assist with this.

4. Gift yourself one call with the same coach every single month

Share your goals and your sales funnel every month, and ask that Coach for ONE strategy to grow – whether it’s grow your sales, grow audience, or grow traffic, each and every month. Working consistently with the same coach will allow you to make faster progress because they will get to know your business, and you’re not constantly having to bring them up to speed.

If a call is not in your budget, go into “Get Sales Now” in your classroom and choose a monthly sales event, aiming for 12 events by year-end.

And if you’re not in the Inner Circle, I want you to run some sort of promotion in your emails and on social media that actually asks people for a sale once a month. And what I know is if you do these four things for 52 weeks, I know that your business is going to be in a different place next year.

Do these 4 things for an entire year, and I PROMISE you will be ready for Reliable Revenue next year.

You’ll feel so much more confident, and you’re going to have a whole year of results under your belt.

I’m encouraging you to focus on what’s essential and commit to these steps, as they will significantly benefit you and bring peace of mind. Don’t go chasing after shiny objects – buckle down and do the work.

And that’s all for now. I hope you found this information useful. I’d appreciate any feedback on social media and would love to know if you’re planning to implement these steps!

RELATED LINKS:

A Year Of Collaborations

https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/a-year-of-results-that-will-shock-you-episode-120/

The Powerful Work That Will Get You To Your Goals

https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/the-powerful-work-that-will-get-you-to-your-goals-episode-159/

New FREE Course

GROW YOUR SALES

(without breaking the bank)

Conversion School is a step by step process to grow your sales,
without spending a fortune on risky ad strategies, or discounting your products.

Works for Ecommerce stores at all stages.

Start getting consistent sales, and see significant sales growth every month.

New FREE Course

GROW YOUR SALES

(without breaking the bank)

Conversion School is a step by step process to grow your sales,
without spending a fortune on risky ad strategies, or discounting your products.

Works for Ecommerce stores at all stages.

Start getting consistent sales, and see significant sales growth every month.

or scroll down to get the highlights

Seven Habits Of High-Performing Store Owners

As I sit down to write this, I’m about to embark on an 8 week journey with a group of fellow ecommerce entrepreneurs on our annual Reliable Revenue course. It’s a unique journey compared to our ongoing Inner Circle membership (where the trainings are regularly updated to reflect the changing landscape of ecommerce) , because it will be two months of very focused and intensive work. Students implement the strategies weekly, and by the end of 8 weeks they’ve put in place a system that consistently drives revenue to their online stores so that they can focus less on selling, and more on what they need to grow their businesses.

And so this year I’ve really been pondering how to empower our members to maximize their success. What I’ve learned in the past 15 years of teaching is that there are a handful of habits that seem to really predict whether a store will thrive.  And these aren’t advanced tactics, they’re habits that every single one of us can build, regardless of our stage in business.

So I’m really excited to share these with you. The following insights are meant to help you, and especially our Reliable Revenue participants. Apply them strategically to your e-commerce endeavors and your ROI will continue to grow.

Listen to the podcast HERE or scroll down to get the seven transformative habits that can propel your ecommerce business to the next level.

Habit 1: Attention to Detail 

The first difference I see between store owners who get a lot out of this training, and those who seem to be just treading water, is attention to detail. They intentionally set aside time to watch the lessons, and make sure that they implement the training that week. And they don’t multitask while doing it; they set themselves up for success by giving themselves the time and space to focus on one thing at a time, and get the work done. They finish that one thing, and make sure it’s done right, before they move onto the next.

Habit 2: Manage Expectations

Success is a marathon, not a sprint. The first time you try anything new, it’s never going to be your best outcome. And it’s probably the case that anything in life that you’ve achieved and felt very proud of didn’t happen overnight, and wasn’t handed to you on a silver platter. You put one foot in front of the other, persisted through challenges, and little by little achieved your goals.

When I say that a key habit to success is “managing expectations,” I mean both mentally and monetarily. Nobody likes to talk about it, but building a successful online business costs money. And it just isn’t realistic to think that you’re going to get a return on that investment in a matter of weeks. There will be times when you feel like you’re losing money – and you might be – but that’s part of the process. Running out of patience, or feeling like you’ve failed because your store isn’t further along after three years, is generally a symptom of poorly managed expectations.

When you accept that the road to achieving your goals may be long and winding, you’re better able to enjoy the little wins along the way. It’s about trusting the process and knowing that every step, no matter how small, is a step forward in your journey.

Habit 3: Break It Down To Beat Overwhelm

Even the most overwhelming projects become manageable when divided into smaller, bite-sized pieces. The truth is, when we take on big projects in our businesses, we may not even be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel. But that shouldn’t stand in the way of getting started. When you find yourself spinning in circles are unable to move forward because the task seems so big – break it down into more manageable pieces.

For example, which seems more doable: building a welcome email series, or deciding how many emails should go in a welcome series? The latter, right? It’s just a decision. And once you’ve made a decision, the next step will become much clearer. So the next time you sit down to do something that’s big and scary, don’t try to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.

Habit 4: Define Success

This is a big one, and so many people don’t do this. When you don’t take the time to define what success looks like, it’s a little like getting in the car and driving without a destination. So your first question shouldn’t be “how do I do this?” it should be “what do I want this to look like when it’s done?”.

By defining your end goal, you create a roadmap that guides your decisions and strategies, ensuring every effort is aligned with your ultimate objective. Like a beacon, a clear definition of success will keep you focused and driven even when you encounter obstacles.

Habit 5: Be a Problem Solver

Life is full of mysteries, but one thing you can count on is that you will run into obstacles. You are guaranteed to come across some challenge that you think is too hard for you.

But successful store owners don’t immediately seek help at the first sign of trouble. They do the heavy lifting themselves. For example, if you’re watching a Reliable Revenue training, and you feel lost halfway through, pause for a moment, then keep watching until the end. Make notes, jot down your questions, take a deep breath, and then watch again. Stop and start the lesson if you need to and break it down into steps. Each time you’re able to solve some of your own problems, you build confidence and faith in yourself.

Search Google if you have to, even if it’s a technical thing that seems beyond you. Finding a YouTube How-To video and learning how to do something yourself that you never thought you could is empowering. Whereas getting outside help immediately can lead to feeling that you’re dependent on someone else to move you forward. Successful store owners take responsibility for their own success.

Habit 6: Be Tenacious

Time and time again, I see store owners quit too soon. They say they’ve “tried everything” but in reality they’ve tried something for a few weeks, gotten discouraged, and abandoned that strategy for a new one. They swear it just didn’t work for them, when their only mistake was giving it too little time. 

But if they had just stuck with that first thing for three months instead of three weeks, they might have really gotten the hang of it and started to see results. When you quit too soon, you end up wasting a lot of time and learning nothing. 

So give yourself some grace, and don’t give up so easily. Learning something new takes time, but when you’re tenacious you keep adding tools to your toolbox. 

Habit 7: Master Before You Multiply

This one is hard for so many people. But remember – you’re not born with habits, you build them.

The last habit is to master one thing before you move on to the next. You’re so much better off making what you already have perform at 100% than leaving it at 70 and adding something else into the mix. When you allow yourself to pause and perfect, you build  a strong foundation that will support your business’s future growth and resilience.

This is why so many Reliable Revenue alumni come back and do the course every year. They’re refining their systems. They know it works, but they’re committed to making it better rather than leaving it on autopilot and moving on. There are a lot of ways to win the race, but I guarantee that if you don’t pause and perfect 1 or 2 things that are working for you, you’ll end up with a lot of underperforming strategies and the terrible feeling that you missed out on your golden egg.

To Recap:

The 7 Habits of Successful Store Owners

1. Take the time to do the work, and focus on it 100%
2. Learn to manage your expectations, and celebrate small wins along the way
3. Break big projects down into smaller, more manageable pieces
4. Define what success looks like before you start
5. Build confidence by becoming a problem solver
6. Don’t quit too soon
7. Perfect one thing before you move on to the next

These seven habits are more than just practices; they’re the building blocks of a successful e-commerce business. Embrace these 7 winning habits and watch your business soar.

RELATED LINKS:

Want Better Results? Do This First.

https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/want-better-results-do-this-first-episode-128/

How Long Will It Take You To Reach Your Goals?

https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/how-long-will-it-take-to-reach-your-goals-episode-203/

Here’s What To Do Differently In 2024

https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/heres-what-to-do-differently-next-year-episode-195/

How To Reach Your BIG Goals This Year

https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/2024-how-to-reach-your-big-goals-this-year-episode-197/

New FREE Course

GROW YOUR SALES

(without breaking the bank)

Conversion School is a step by step process to grow your sales,
without spending a fortune on risky ad strategies, or discounting your products.

Works for Ecommerce stores at all stages.

Start getting consistent sales, and see significant sales growth every month.

New FREE Course

GROW YOUR SALES

(without breaking the bank)

Conversion School is a step by step process to grow your sales,
without spending a fortune on risky ad strategies, or discounting your products.

Works for Ecommerce stores at all stages.

Start getting consistent sales, and see significant sales growth every month.

or scroll down to get the highlights

A Winning Pricing Strategy For Your Ecommerce Store

There’s one thing that every store owner should do right now, early in the year. I’ve talked about this before – but right now is the very best time to set yourself up for more profit this year.

In this post, we’re delving into how we set product prices in ecommerce, and I’ll share a pricing strategy that most store owners don’t use. Once you understand how it works and start implementing it in your store, you’ll have the potential to be much more profitable. And you’ll have the confidence to pay yourself, hire help, and make the investments in your business that will lead to long-term stability and growth.

Listen to the podcast HERE or read on to open the door to increased profit.

Don’t Make This Mistake!

Most people have their own system for setting retail prices. Many store owners use a target gross margin percentage, and apply that markup evenly to every item in their store. Others simply set their retail prices at a multiple of the cost of the product.

Even though these strategies seem solid, it doesn’t guarantee that you’ll be profitable.
It’s completely possible that you could find yourself losing money every month, because the actual profit in dollars and cents is not enough to cover your expenses. OR you could be accidentally setting a cap on a given product’s profit.

So many store owners struggle with cash flow. And when you have to let employees go, or cut your ad budget, or can’t pay your bills, it takes an emotional toll. It’s embarrassing and exhausting, because it can feel like a reflection of our abilities.

It’s About Dollars, Not Percentages

When most store owners set prices, they’re often looking only at margin percentages or simplistic markups, but getting strategic with your pricing is more nuanced than inputting cost into a standard equation that “feels” right.

Instead of using a markup formula, try setting your prices based on Margin Contribution dollars. You decide on a minimum amount of Margin Contribution revenue your products must generate.

When each product must contribute a minimum profit in dollars, you can avoid costly pricing mistakes and meet your minimum Margin Contribution by bundling products together or even eliminating products that don’t generate enough profit.

The Pitfalls of Pricing: Karen’t Story

In Episode 166 I talked to Karen Steuer, a long time client, and owner of Tangled Roots Herbal, who has been struggling with cash flow for some time. It’s worth a listen. Fortunately Karen was keeping her financial information up to date, which allowed me to help her take control of her money problem. It’s nearly impossible to troubleshoot cash flow problems if you don’t have your numbers in order and readily available.

Karen’t gross margin was 48.8%, so roughly double her cost, but she still wasn’t covering her monthly expenses. So while she assumed her pricing strategy was “standard” and therefore sufficient, it was draining all the profit out of her business.

You Can’t Afford To Sell Anything For $10

Let’s say you make or purchase a product for $2.50, and your standard practice is to double that and sell it for $5. So each time you sell this product, you’re contributing just $2.50 to your margin. Sell 100 of them? You do all the work to ship those hundred orders, and you’ve only kept $250 for next month’s expenses.

So let’s say you quadruple it and sell it for $10. After 100 orders, you’ve still only got $750 to cover next month. For most businesses, that’s just not enough. I’m not saying you can’t sell $10 products, but I am saying you must consider either bundling them or up-selling something else so that your total order value makes it worthwhile.

What Does It Cost You To Wake Up Every Day?

What does it really cost you to run your store? What is the monthly cost of your Shopify site, your email platform and other apps you need, your shipping materials, your employees, etc? Take a look at all of your monthly expenses and divide that number by 30. That’s the cost of just waking up each day and having an online store.

So if your monthly “run rate” is $6,000, then your daily “wake up” rate is $200. Your sales need to generate more than that number each day to be profitable.

Don’t Forget Yourself

If you’re going to take the time to sit down and implement this strategy, you really must include compensation for yourself. Even if you’re not paying yourself yet. This amount needs to be included if you are to price your products in a way that will get your business to the level you want it to be eventually, where you can hire things out and grow a team. Say you’d like eventually to pay yourself $3k per month. You’ll need to add $100 per day to your margin contribution. Build a pool of margin into your business that will allow you to get help when you’re ready for it.

5 Steps To More Profitable Pricing

1.Set up a call with your bookkeeper, OR if you don’t have one, review your income statement for the last 3-4 months and note your gross profit. This is the  money you have to pay your monthly expenses

2. Compare your monthly expenses to your current gross profit margin. Are they close, or is there a big gap?

3. Jot down your “wake up rate” somewhere you can easily reference it, like a sticky note on your laptop or bulletin board. This number is your new goal.

4. Go back and review your pricing. Consider which products you could add a dollar here or there to in order to boost your profit margin.

5. Consider your unique selling proposition – what is it about you or your product that makes it different from every other product your customers could be purchasing. What are the things people value? What problems do your products solve? You’ll (probably) never be able to compete on price, but you will add value either in the uniqueness of your product, the ease which you provide it to your customers, or even you as a person they want to support. How can you present your product differently so that this value is clear to your website visitors, and you get the sale?

Strategic pricing is about more than just covering costs – it’s about maximizing your business’s profitability sustainably. If you’re still scratching your head, check out this quick video that I made. In it, you’ll learn how to:

• Calculate the amount of margin you need in $
• Set your minimum viable average order value (so you can pay yourself)
• Change your pricing strategy to set yourself up for success

This strategy really will get you closer to earning a paycheck, or having the confidence to hire out the things that will allow your business to reach new heights. I know that chatting about the dollars and cents in our ecommerce stores can feel like a hairy, scary thing…I’ve been there.

But if you’re ready to get off the rollercoaster, there’s never a better time to set yourself up for more profit than early in the year. Spend an hour reviewing your pricing. It might be your most profitable hour of the year.

RELATED LINKS:

The Secret To Getting Paid

https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/the-secret-to-getting-paid/

A Lesson On Fixing Your Cash Flow

https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/a-lesson-on-fixing-your-cash-flow-episode-166/

Grow Up Your Business And Get More Profit

https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/grow-up-your-business-get-more-profit-episode-77/

Gross Profit: Will You Take Charge And Pay Yourself More?

https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/gross-profit-will-you-take-charge-and-pay-yourself-more-episode-188/

New FREE Course

GROW YOUR SALES

(without breaking the bank)

Conversion School is a step by step process to grow your sales,
without spending a fortune on risky ad strategies, or discounting your products.

Works for Ecommerce stores at all stages.

Start getting consistent sales, and see significant sales growth every month.

New FREE Course

GROW YOUR SALES

(without breaking the bank)

Conversion School is a step by step process to grow your sales,
without spending a fortune on risky ad strategies, or discounting your products.

Works for Ecommerce stores at all stages.

Start getting consistent sales, and see significant sales growth every month.