7 Ways To Prep Your Online Business For Profits This Year

I can’t believe this year is almost over. In fact, we are about to enter into an entirely new decade!

You ready?!

Well, as we approach the last days of the year, it’s a good time to check-in on your business to make sure it’s ready to profit in the new year.

I love helping other entrepreneurs focus on the mindset and marketing strategies they need to create, brand and grow a profitable online business. And because there is so much important stuff to think about, from product creation to marketing, I want to cover the details that many times get overlooked but can make a huge difference in your profits.

Let’s go!

Do not go into the new year without a purposeful plan for your business. I can’t tell you how many entrepreneurs I talk to who have no clue what they need to achieve from month to month.

They may say something like…

• I want to make more money
• I want to grow my subscribers
• I want to create a course

Well okay, that’s nice BUT what does that mean?

When it comes to making money in your business, whether it’s making money blogging or building a profitable e-commerce site, you have to set tangible goals you can measure.  And, setting intentional goals for your business is something you should do for the start of every new year.

If you want to make more money, write down how much money you want to make down to the cent. Every single year I set a profit goal. This way I can map out an appropriate plan of action to hit that goal.

The things you need to do to hit $5K a month are very very different than what you have to do to hit $50K a month.

A lot of entrepreneurs don’t know “their numbers” and as a result, they have no clue as to what it’s really going to take to hit their goal in a realistic and doable way. You have to know the endgame so you can draw up the right plays to win.

I use my WomanpreneuHER Profit Planner to map out my business goals every year and I use the planning and stats tracker sheets to create a yearly, monthly, daily gameplan that keeps me moving toward that overall profit goal.

A really solid business takes into account all levels of products (at all price points) as well as all the steps your ideal product avatar might be on in her journey.

For example, a business coach might have products ranging from $97 to $1,997 or more. They may range from beginner-level courses to platinum level private coaching, or they may focus exclusively on beginner, intermediate, or advanced strategies.

For example: if you’ve ever seen a Geico commercial you know they sell Car Insurance. But did you also know that they sell more than just car insurance?

They have created this entire customer product map that caters to their customer’s needs at different points in their life journey.

They work really hard on getting loyal customers when they are young – driving them toward what many would call their flagship product offering – car insurance – and then provide products (at various price points) that fit in with all the steps their ideal client might be on in her journey.

So you’ll want to begin picturing in your mind not only what products you’ll be selling now but how your products lead from one to another and potential products your customer will need after you solve this first problem for them.

Now you probably already have a good idea which products or services fit together naturally.

For example, if your top-level coaching program is a 12-month, high-touch VIP group for bloggers transitioning into product creation, then your product map might look like this:

Step 1: A freebie offer that attracts bloggers who want to create info products.

Step 2: A $97 intro offer for a workshop teaching bloggers how to develop a product
in a weekend using content they already have.

Step 3: A $497 multi-module online course designed to teach bloggers how to turn multiple products into a membership site.

Step 4: A $1997 16-week group coaching program to help members scale their business by integrating systems and high-level marketing strategies.
or even better…

If recurring revenue is on your mind and you want to have a product that serves those customers who want to stay engaged with your business long term, then a membership site or subscription product would be a great way to achieve this.

At each step along the way, you should be able to say, “This product relates directly to the primary problem I help my clients solve.”

So I CHALLENGE YOU to map out your customer product map. You do not have to create these products right now, but I do want you to begin thinking about other products your customers will need as they move along their journey.

A new year offers a fresh start and it’s the perfect time for us to freshen up our blog and social media pages! As an online brand and business, you want to keep all of your information up-to-date.

Make sure your sites truly reflect who you are as a brand. If you’ve made a shift in the products or services you provide take time to update that information as well.

You need to update all of your pages, but here is a list of some of the most important pages you will want to give priority to:

There’s nothing worse than a broken sales funnel. Take time to optimize your existing sales funnels and remove old funnels that are underperforming or no longer relevant to the products and services you provide. Add new sales funnels based on your product launch dates and make sure you test, test, test!

Your sales funnels are the lifeline to automated sales so this should be a priority for you and your business. You want to check your entire funnel from the opt-in page and thank you page to the sales sequences and product pages. You also want to make sure there is a follow-up system in place and that subscribers who purchased are tagged and segmented.

Get your sales funnels right ladies! Don’t leave money on the table because you didn’t take the time to optimize your systems.

If you don’t have a content calendar yet, get one!

Too many times, business owners take the “just winging it” approach when it comes to creating content. But if you’re using content to market a business and make sales, you want to create content that is specifically and strategically designed to help you achieve your desired outcomes.

Every piece of content you create should have a purpose. Your blog posts, email marketing, ebooks, podcasts, social media captions, ad copy, etc., needs to fit into your overall business goals.

Having a content calendar is a great way to stay on top of all the content you need to create, brand or sell within a certain timeframe.

You can use a pen and planner to create your content calendar, but I recommend transferring your weekly and daily content goals into a digital calendar, like a google spreadsheet or google calendar (which is what I do).

This makes it easier to edit and shift information around when needed.

Not sure where to get started with a content calendar? Hop on over to the WomanpreneuHER FB Group, search the tag #15daysofcontent and you’ll get access to an entire 15-day mini-course on how to create a content marketing strategy that works for you!

I am BIG on accountability. Whether you stay connected with a friend, a family member, a mastermind partner, or a mentor, make sure you always have someone who can help you stay on track with your goals.

You don’t need to share your dreams and goals with everything, but there should be someone you trust who you can check in with and lean on on a regular basis.

You can have an accountability partner for just about anything (business, self-care, a parent partner, etc.) and if necessary you may need to ditch the one you have currently or get more than one.

When you’re in the thick of things it can be hard to drop everything in your business and take a break. But, to avoid burnout it is imperative that you schedule down time. And trust me, burnout is no joke!

Whether you take a couple hours out of the week to just love on yourself, or whether you schedule an entire R&R month during the year, make sure you are making room for self-care.

A self-care break is a great way to unplug and restore balance in your life. It’s time you can spend getting mentally and physically recharged.

For all you workaholics out there, I know it can be hard to step away but if you are looking for longevity and staying power in your industry, take care of YOU first.

So if you’re struggling to schedule your self-care start with a daily 20 minutes of doing something for you.

Here are some ideas:

Adding self-care into your daily routine makes it easier to find balance. It also allows you to keep self-care top of mind so you can make sure you’re showing up as the best version of you at all times!

I hope this post has helped you think about some of the necessary to-dos you need to plan to ensure you’re ready to hit the ground running in the new year.

Let me know in the comments section below, what do you do each year to prepare your business for success?