I've got a question for you. Ready?What do Apple, Lululemon and Morton's Salt all share in common?Take a minute to ponder each brand. What imagery does it conjure up? More importantly, what feelings do those images create inside you?When I think of Apple products, I think of elegant, simple design and the feeling of effortlessly getting stuff done. Lululemon brings back that sensation of looking amazing when I'm working out (even if my workout itself feels less than amazing). And Morton Salt? I think of my mom's kitchen cupboard, which feels warm and nostalgic and makes me want to go bake cookies.Here's the answer to the quiz: all three of those brands share the power of fascination.Fascination, as my podcast guest Sally Hogshead defines it, means an intense focus."When you’re fascinated by a person or a brand, you’re completely consumed in that moment. It’s that feeling you have when you’re working on a project and you’re totally in the flow. You feel creative, you feel confident, you feel focused and energized by what you’re doing. Or when you’re out at drinks with a friend—the time flies by, and you seem to be building epiphanies together in your conversation."Click here to listen to the full episode with Sally.For years, Sally's day job was helping big name brands like Nike and BMW find the perfect words to describe themselves. The first half of that search was understanding what they offered to their customer base that nobody else did; the second half was knowing how to capitalize on that uniqueness and capture it in language.At a certain point, Sally realized that nobody had really brought that idea over from products to people. Business owners were all about finding the right words to get customers fascinated with their products, but they weren't finding the right words to help people understand who they are and how they add value.These days, she parlays her understanding of what works in advertising world into a training to help entrepreneurs understand how people perceive them through their communication.

I know that I've talked a lot with you about webinars this year. The fact is that I've been learning a ton about them myself, and every time I learn a new technique or crack the code on a revenue-boosting system, I can't help but pass it on to you! This week, though, I'm doing something a little different. Rather than walk you through a step-by-step system, I'm going to focus with you on one very specific strategy that I learned from Tim Paige, the host of the podcast Conversion Cast and the leader of all LeadPages webinars. Today is all about an engagement strategy that I've just begun applying it to my webinars. I’ll be sure to let you know how it's going, once I really get it off the ground. But I'll be completely honest with you: it's a little awkward, in the beginning. I've done a lot of webinars, and I still am finding my sweet spot. The thing is that Tim, in addition to being a pal, is a true webinar ninja. This man has done 410 webinars to date! (Who knows--he may be up to more, by the time this episode airs.) No joke--his application is pending for the Guinness Book of World Records for most webinars done in a 12-month period. This is a guy who really knows the ins and outs of webinar success. So when he tells me this strategy is worth working through, I believe it! Listen to the full episode to get all the details on this amazing strategy from Tim Paige. You can also check out Tim putting this revolutionary engagement strategy into action--just click here to join his latest webinar. EPISODE FREEBIE Get Amy and Tim's Engagement Focused Webinar FREE DOWNLOAD We all know how important engagement is for our webinars. There's nothing worse than crafting and delivering a dynamic, informative presentation only to hear crickets during the Q&A. Scratch that--there is one thing worse: delivering your presentation and seeing only a faint dribble of sales by the time you log off for the day. What you're looking for is that special spark that sets fire to your content and gets your audience fired up in response to it. Early on, I wanted to test the idea of taking every opportunity I could throughout the process of presenting a webinar to look over in the questions box and start answering questions live as we went, as long as they were relevant and weren’t off topic. I found in answering questions, not only did I see a 98% stick rate (98% of the people that joined the webinar in the beginning stuck around all the way until the end) but in one split test I also saw a tripled revenue from one webinar to the next." Um...did you get all that? A 98% stick rate and a 300% revenue increase? I'd say this strategy is well worth trying, wouldn't you?So how does this work? If you're like me, you may be already thinking about how taking questions in the middle of your presentation will interrupt your flow. What if the questions make me get ahead of myself? Am I allowed to not answer questions if they aren't on topic? How is this supposed to work with replays and automated webinars? ...And just what is it about this strategy that makes it so incredibly powerful? Listen to the full episode for all the answers--it's a short but intense masterclass on a single technique that is a true webinar game changer. Do you want to see Tim’s webinar engagement strategy in action? Click here to check out his special LeadPages webinar and pay close attention to when and how he asks questions and engages with his audience. EPISODE FREEBIE Get Amy and Tim's Engagement Focused Webinar FREE DOWNLOAD  

As you are building up your business and starting to see some solid success, sooner or later you're going to arrive at a certain point.A point where you, as the founder, brand visionary and chief hustler, cannot do everything alone.This is the moment where you need to hire some people.Not just anyone will do, of course. You need to build out a dream team inside of your business so that you can spend more time in your areas of genius, the areas that you really excel, the areas that you love to spend time in where your skill set is the strongest, so that you can make a bigger impact for your audience and on your bottom line.There is nobody I know who is better at this dream team creation thing than my friend Melanie Duncan.The first thing you should know about Melanie is that she runs a multiple-seven figure empire. In other words, she's an authority on this whole online entrepreneurship thing.The second thing you should know is that the ways she's developed her business are, in large part, the result of her amazing hiring system. She has a process for hiring that is extremely unique--it takes quite a lot of effort and focus, but it's allowed her to find amazing people that are the perfect fit to support her business. And let's be honest, when you love the people you work with, everything seems flow a whole lot better on all fronts.But what's even more to the point is how her hiring system has also changed her perspective on hiring. I’ve seen her go through the transition of hating to hire to absolutely loving the hiring process. And as we all know, loving an IMPORTANT process you used to hate is a cornerstone of achieving the success you want.If you're ready to dive into Melanie's amazing system, click here to listen to the full episode now.Below, I've got the bullet-point version to get you primed for what you're about to learn. Make a Dream Team List Create a Revenue Goal Hire with a Sales Page Hire to Fit Wondering how long the process should take? Cringing at the thought of sifting through resumes? Want to know how to spot a truly stand-out candidate from the crowd? Get all of Melanie's detailed insight on how to hire people for your dream team. Click here to listen to the full episode now!

Over the last few weeks on this podcast, we’ve been doing some intensive tactical trainings. We’ve talked about adding upsells to your sales promotions, adding bonuses, when to add them. We’ve talked about the mindset of list building, and then we’ve gotten really specific about what you need to do to build your list. Today I want to step back a little bit and look at the big picture and look at our team and how we’re running our business and setting things up. I thought there was no one better to do that than my new friend, Dale Partridge. You probably already know Dale, either from Sevenly (the company he founded that became one of the fastest growing social-good startups in history), or from his many keynote speeches and feature interviews on the topic of doing business with integrity, or maybe from his recent book People Over Profits. Dale is a creative leader whose mission is to influence an industry to rethink the models of how we do business today. And I invited him on the show today to help you (and me) learn about how to set a solid foundation for our long-term success. One thing Dale's book really dials into is the importance of recognizing the pivotal moments in our businesses when small decisions could have major impact. Dale went into business for himself at 18 years old...which means that even though he's still a young man, he's old in entrepreneur years. Within that time, he says, his whole mindset around business shifted from making major profits to making a major difference in people's lives. "In the search for purpose and meaning I wanted to create a company that was more than just putting money at the bottom line. It wasn’t until I really shifted my thinking from how to make a million dollars to how to help a million people that really pushed me into business." This is the core of Dale's "people over profits" message . . . and what I really want to stress in today's episode is that it's never too early in your business to think about how you're prioritizing people against your profits. When you're in the early years of building our business, you're all too aware that every interaction in every business relationship matters. You're hyper-focused on bringing real, personal value to your customers with your unique talent and expertise, because you know that it's the key to your success. But Dale points out that greed, dishonesty and customer contempt are not relegated to big corporations . . . that's just when they get caught in a big way. It's super important, he says, to set the foundation of your business integrity in these early years, while you're small, and learn how to self-correct in those moments when it's easy to make small compromises. "I don’t want to be the most successful person that nobody respects or that nobody trusts. And I don’t want to create the biggest company that has great products but people don’t really connect with it." Dale has done some impressive research on the most successful companies (and the ones who fell the hardest) of the past century. According to his research, the companies (and leaders) who really stood the test of time have seven core beliefs in common: People matter. Truth wins. Transparency frees. Authenticity attracts. Quality speaks. Generosity returns. Courage sustains. Listen to the full episode to hear Dale explain more about how these principles show up in online business practice, and how we can train ourselves to build businesses that uphold them. "Whatever your dream is, make sure you crush on it because it’s not about you, it’s about them." In the end, Dale says, our businesses' potential for growth is dependent on the integrity we build into our relationships with clients, vendors and colleagues. It can take real courage to honor a long-term relationship over short-term convenience. But that kind of courage is what creates a brand that really stands the test of time.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!First of all, can I just be a little corny and express my gratitude for all of you? It's hard to believe we're up to 85 episodes of the Online Marketing Made Easy podcast . . . and with those episodes have come lots of free weekly giveaways, 17 interviews with the biggest names in online business expertise, 1.6 million audio downloads. Oh, and one very exciting mention on MSNBC as a Top 5 Online Business Podcast!I am truly thankful for each one of you in this little community of go-getter entrepreneurs. Every time you opt in, leave a Facebook comment, write a review of the show or share this podcast with your friends, my heart is genuinely touched. Nothing makes me happier than to know that what I'm sharing is valuable and helpful to you. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.Whew! Okay, on to business.1) Masterminding and finding a business coach.EPISODE 85 Sign Up for Amy's Free Masterclass: How to Create a Wildly Profitable Webinar (Even If You Don't Have a List)SIGN UP2) Finding your marketing vehicle sweet spot.This one is about platform. I’m going to show you what it looks like in my business and how it made such a huge impact. Then I will give you some actions to start investigating this in your business.3) My partnership.You may or may not know that I actually have a business partner. I’ve never really talked about him much, and I want to share with you how that happened, when it came about, why it came about, and what it looks like in my business (if you’ve ever thought about maybe adding a partner to the mix). This one will be really transparent. I’m going to share things I’ve never shared before, but I think it's time for me to talk about it. Click here to listen now.4) Affiliate partnerships and my philosophy around affiliates.Again, I’ve talked about this in past episodes but I’m going to put a little more personal slant on it in this week's episode, end give you some tips to build you own affiliate partnership strategy.5) Consistency.If there is any marketing lesson I need to be even better at and really focus on more and really take seriously, it’s consistency. We’re going to talk about that, what it looks like, and how we can add more of that to our business.As I look back on my past 6 years in business, I feel incredibly thankful for these lessons, as they have shaped my professional and personal life tremendously.EPISODE 85 Sign Up for Amy's Free Masterclass: How to Create a Wildly Profitable Webinar (Even If You Don't Have a List)SIGN UPDon't forget, if you want to learn how to create a five-figure webinar (even if you don't have an email list) you can sign up free for my webinar training. Click here to sign up now.If one of these lessons really resonated with you, I'd love to hear about it! Talk to me on Facebook or Twitter and tell me which one you’re going to focus on.Have a wonderful holiday, everyone. Thank you for being part of our tribe.Mastermind Opportunities:Each of these mentors have offered mastermind opportunities in the past but their masterminds might not be currently accepting new members at the moment. Do some research to learn more about each.James Wedmore's Inner CircleJamie Tardy Jeff Walker Fabienne Fredrickson Victoria Gibson's Breakout Success Mastermind The Shine Academy Natalie MacNeil's Conquer Club Leonie Dawson's Glow Academy

In this podcast, they discuss the importance of lead generation and creating lead magnets to grow an email list. They also explore the use of lead boxes and promotional freebies to attract subscribers. They provide strategies for driving traffic to lead magnets and emphasize the need for consistency. Overall, they give practical tips for building a lucrative email list.

For the last several podcast episodes, we've been covering all manner of marketing tactics. Creating webinars, building urgency, writing copy. And we've taken a deep soul-searching dive into the personal "why's" and "how's" of online entrepreneurship.This week, we're bringing it all back home. It's time to refocus on the foundation of every successful online business:Your email list.This week and next week, I'm devoting the podcast to some list-building straight talk.And if you're thinking "Come on, Amy--I want the black-belt stuff that will take my business to the next level!" ... then this episode might be especially for you.Here's how you know if you need this episode: If you’ve been working on your business for over a year now and you have less than 4,000 people on your email list If you’re not growing your email list by at least 75 new leads a week If you already have a solid list but it’s not converting into sales or sign-ups If you are struggling with confidence in your business and are feeling "less than" or comparing yourself to everybody If you ever launched anything in your business and your results were lackluster (i.e., you sold only one or two of your products when you thought you were going to sell 100) If you truly love the business you're creating and are passionate about seeing it succeed--in other words, if you're in this for the long haul If you answered yes to any of those things, here's the first thing I want you to do after listening to today's episode. Download the short one-page inquiry that I created just for you. It's going to help you sort through the obstacles that are holding you back from building a healthy, growing list.EPISODE FREEBIE Get Amy's Cheat Sheet: "Uncover Your List Building Obstacles" FREE DOWNLOADLet me say at the outset that, for all my talk about the crucial importance of list-building, I truly understand the difficulty involved. When you're in the beginning days and months of your business, it feels like every opportunity is more important than the simple, daily effort of building your email list.But I learned from the sad experience of my very first product launch just how essential the list really is. Listen to the podcast episode for the full story--it's eye-opening. For now, let's just say that with all the bells and whistles of my program design and the sparkle of my marketing strategy, the promotion totally tanked.The reason? I had a weak email list.I couldn't understand it. I'd been networking with all the right people, even getting invited to speaking engagements and guest blog spots, and I'd spared no effort to create an amazing product.But because I was not actively focused on list building, I wasn't able to build the business that I really wanted.(By the way, when I say “actively” focusing on it, I mean that I would think about my list every day...but it was that horrible “I should be doing this, I’m far behind, I know I need a list" kind of thinking.)Everything else about my business just seemed more important, in those stressful early days.That's why I've created this download for you--to help you think through what is pulling your attention away from the cornerstone of building your business. Once you understand why it's so easy to focus on other things, you'll be able to turn the trend around and start seeing the results you want.EPISODE FREEBIE Get Amy's Cheat Sheet: "Uncover Your List Building Obstacles" FREE DOWNLOADListen to today's episode first--it will really help you with the mindset around list-building, and allow you to process the questions honestly.And when you're done, drop me a comment to let me know what you're thinking! What is your mindset when it comes to building your list? How are your efforts coming along?

Hey there! I have a fun topic to cover in today's episode:The Online Entrepreneur's Worst Nightmare. (Cue spooky music.)Sorry...I couldn't resist. Blame the post-Halloween sugar overload.The actual topic is how to keep your Facebook account from getting shut down.Now, this is a topic that I know truly does scare some of you...maybe you've received warnings from Facebook about your content, or maybe you know somebody whose account has been shut down.I know how upsetting this can be, not just to the people it occurs to, but to every other online entrepreneur in their community. It's just like that feeling when someone you know gets their house or car broken into. Suddenly it feels like the whole world is out to get you.I don't want you going through your business day freaking out about this. That's why I'm devoting this episode to defusing the scare out of this "nightmare." Seriously...breathe. It's going to be OK.EPISODE FREEBIE Get Amy's 10 Commandments of Protecting Your Facebook Ads Account FREE DOWNLOADSo what is an online entrepreneur to do? Answer: get creative! (Click Here to Listen to the Full Episode!)As you're reading through the list of ten tips about protecting your Facebook ads account, try to adopt an innovator's perspective. Rather than feeling defeated, think about how you can beat Facebook to the punch by creating content that makes all users feel amazing, hopeful, inspired, uplifted. That's a win for everybody--Facebook, your audience, and you.Tip #1: Add a privacy policy to your registration page.Tip #2: Disable all pop-ups on the page where you are sending your ad traffic.Tip #3: Pay attention to your reputation on Web Of Trust.Tip #4: Use the Lead Pages plug in on your WordPress site.Tip #5: Your landing page must accurately reflect what is being promoted in your ad.Tip #6: Be mindful of your ad copy.Tip #7: Create a feel-good story.Tip #8: Stick to your account’s regular activity.Tip #9: Pay attention to your overall activity because it all adds up.Tip #10: Focus on the relationship.Like I said at the beginning, this isn't something to freak out about. I just want you to be informed. Yes, it might take a little time to revamp your approach to ads, but in the long run, it's going to make for much stronger, more effective Facebook advertising for your business.

I first met Lewis Howes back in my days of working with Social Media Examiner. I liked his technique with video interviews, and wrangled up a lot of interviewees for him; he liked my Facebook trainings, and asked me to put together a book. That was not only the beginning of my career in online training courses; it was, as they say in the movies, the beginning of a beautiful friendship.This week, Lewis and I got the chance to reconnect over the topic of "greatness." Sound a little abstract? Let Lewis persuade you otherwise.Lewis is a true expert in lifestyle entrepreneurship--a business coach with a top-rated podcast, a huge online educational program, earnings in seven figures, and a recognition from President Obama as one of the Top 100 Entrepreneurs in the country under age 30. Truly a great example to all of us working on our online businesses!And you'd better believe Lewis didn't get to this level by aiming for "good enough."His recent book School of Greatness is all about the importance of striving for greatness--in our personal lives, our health, our relationships and, of course, in our businesses.What Does "Greatness" Really Mean?As entrepreneurs, we're a little obsessed with the idea of "success." The symbols are always changing--this year it might be making a decent profit, next year maybe it's hitting six figures, and the year after that, it could be landing a book deal or paying off your house or...who knows?This is the danger of becoming too obsessed with success--the target is always moving. Which means we run the risk of never being satisfied, no matter how much we accomplish.But by focusing our sights on greatness, Lewis says, we're able to experience satisfaction with where we are in our business, and so much more besides."Greatness is discovering what your greatest gifts are, your talents, what you were born to do, maximizing those gifts, and impacting the maximum amount of people in the world with those gifts."8 Principles of GreatnessLewis' book breaks greatness into eight simple steps:1. Clarifying Your VisionBefore you set out on your personal quest, you have to clearly see the action steps to make it happen.2. Embracing AdversityChallenge and struggle are a natural part of growth.3. Cultivating a Champion's MindsetYou can't guarantee that you'll win every time, but you can always set yourself up for the opportunity to win.4. Committing to HustleA willingness to do whatever it takes will take you where mere talent can't.5. Mastering Your HealthYour health (emotional, mental and physical) can either hold you back or drive you forward--which way do you choose?6. Practicing Positive HabitsWithout intentional habits, life turns into a nothing but a series of reactions.7. Realizing You Can't Achieve Greatness AloneA powerful, reliable team is the key to building something that’s bigger than yourself.8. Being of Service to OthersThe crowning moment of greatness is giving your gift to the world.This is just a summary of Lewis' eight principles--you need to hear these in detail! So click here now to listen to the full podcast episode.Going DeeperMy chat with Lewis did more than just outline what it means to be great. It illuminated some of the finer points that past experience had "muddied up" for me.There's so much in this interview, I hope you'll take the time to listen to it today. But for now, I want to leave you with one final quote from Lewis that I thought was particularly...well, great:"The biggest impact we can make is when we become a symbol of inspiration because we follow and chase our dreams. It is our greatest gift to follow our dreams...we are robbing ourselves and others around us when we cop out and don’t chase it out of fear."

It's time for another edition of Ask Amy!Every now and then, no matter how good your business system is, you reach a moment where everything kind of splinters. I'm having one of those moments this week, trying to reassemble my podcasting setup after moving it into a bigger home studio.While I'm glad to have this bigger space devoted to my podcast, I don't have the acoustics worked out yet--which means I'm a little bit stalled in terms of production. Little issues like this can really bother me, if I let them!I'm sure you've experienced this, too. Think with me about an area in your business where you feel stuck because something else has to happen before you move forward. Maybe something’s not working properly and you have to figure it out first. Or maybe you’re just not comfortable moving forward and you’re not sure why.All of today's questions deal with different things, but they all center around this core issue of obstacles holding back the progress of our business.Let's take a look!Question #1: How early do you contact affiliates if you want them to work with you to promote your course?Question #2: Remembering back to the first product you created, what would you tell us now that you wish you would have done differently back then?Question #3: What do you do when you see another site steal your content and sell it?Question #4: As an entrepreneur, how do you stay focused on what is at hand and not get distracted with wanting to start new projects, create new things, try a new form of social media? How do you stay focused?Final ThoughtsA lot of times, those feelings of being held back or stuck are rooted in bigger fears or a lack of confidence we have in our business or message.The truth is that a lot of the time, if I go ahead and move forward anyway, I'll mess it up once, figure out what went wrong, and now know what to do. I'll also have overcome the fear of failure because guess what? I failed and it didn't ruin my life!I would rather be making those little mistakes along the way but still be moving forward. When you get the confidence to not really care about those little mistakes, you will usually fix them, keep moving forward and BOOM--you are way ahead of yourself, way more than you thought you would be!