I’m getting ready to transition over into my new role at work that’s fully on-site five days a week which also means Adaptive Marketing is getting ready to pivot into a new chapter. While I’ve been used to holding hour-long sessions with my clients, I won’t have the same capacity that I do now to get those sessions in. I’m opening my books to hold recurring sessions Tuesday through Thursday from 5:30 until 6:30 PM. 

I currently have three regular clients that I’m hoping will accommodate my changing schedule. I’ve been working with them since the very beginning of my business, so I’m pretty confident they’ll stick with me during the transition period. 

I’m faced with a conundrum of how I will pivot to keep work, and money, coming in. I have so many skills that I could monetize to help people complete certain tasks. In no particular order, here’s some of my favorite skills and the ones I think could be most marketable. 

• Graphic design with Canva to make videos, business cards, virtual backgrounds, flyers, social media posts, and more. 

• Video editing for YouTube. 

• Audio editing for podcasts. 

• Squarespace website design and customization. 

• Creating landing pages and sending mass emails with VipeCloud (CRM). 

• Creating invoices, client documents, pricing guides, and contact forms with HoneyBook (CRM). 

• Designing print products such as planners, notebooks, calendars, and more with Canva and Adobe InDesign. 

• Scheduling posts on social media, specifically Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram. 

• Scheduling videos to go live on YouTube. 

• Editing raw images captured from a DSLR camera. 

• Creating Google Forms and transferring ownership once completed. 

• Organizing and renaming Google Drive documents.  

• Proofreading and editing blog posts. 

• Creating, writing, scheduling, and posting blog posts. 

• Posting listings for sale on Etsy and Facebook Marketplace. 

Another skill that I’ve put in the hard work of fleshing out is photography. When I was in college and first learning how to work a camera, I took graduation pictures for a few of my friends to practice shooting and editing. Fast forward to now, and I still have all the equipment and software to start holding shoots again. It’s fun helping people take pictures at their favorite spots on campus to celebrate one of their greatest accomplishments. 

I’ve edited my website to include some pictures in my portfolio and I’ve created a booking form along with a branded price guide. I looked to some photographers for inspiration on decisions such as travel fees, pricing, number of edited images, and so much more when putting together my package. 

I have a premature goal to book two shoots during October, November, and December. I’m not sure how close I’ll come to attaining that goal, but since it’s September, it’s time to start promoting the service and hopefully creating some buzz. Since Kris’ aunt works for Gwinnett County Public Schools, I’ve had the thought to see if anyone she knows needs any photography work for homecoming or even senior portraits. I can also ask my local clients for referrals and even offer a referral discount to those who help spread the news of my services. 

One of the hardest things for me is putting myself out there to get new clients. I know the value that I can provide, but I’m not sure how to communicate that to strangers in a way that makes them trust me and want to do business with me. Earlier this year, I invested in a CRM software to send mass emails to my customer base. It’s been a major help for planner announcements, sales, and new releases, but there are a few issues that have cropped up. 

For starters, while I see a lot of people open and click on the emails, sometimes the trails go dead. People also don’t necessarily read the emails thoroughly and will respond with a question I’ve answered plainly in the original message. There’s also the conundrum of finding new people to add to my email group so it keeps growing. I would love to figure out a way to get email subscribers for my blog posts so people stay updated with new drops and can be part of a growing community. 

As a way to alleviate some of those concerns, I got the bright idea to create a Facebook group with my offerings and invite the contacts on my marketing list to it. It’s just getting started, but I think it might help solve some of the communication issues that crop up when only using email. I’ve also started to change my mindset from being worried people may not like what I’m offering to simply understanding that if people want to, they will. 

There will be people out there who absolutely love the planners I create just like there will be people who hate them. The same can be said about my training sessions, postcards, video editing, and any and every other thing I create. Nothing is perfect in this life, so there’s no point in stressing over the things I can’t change or control. The most important thing is to just find your tribe that appreciates the skills, products, and assistance only you can offer. 

I’ve always thought if I ever got to the point where I expanded to hire a team, one of the first people I’d hire is a sales professional who can find prospective clients, vet them, and also discuss pricing. Sometimes I get nervous saying a price with my chest since I’ve been talked down so many times over the lifespan of Adaptive Marketing. I ruminate over pricing to ensure it covers my operating costs along with enough to make a profit. I try to think of potential complaints before they arise so I can reduce the amount of back and forth that’s bound to happen. 

Since my business is a Passion Project, I don’t have to beg and plead for orders or work as if it were my only means of living. That’s a blessing all in itself. At any given point in time, if it’s taking too much time away from my family or if there’s a task I completely despise completing, I don’t have to sacrifice the things and people that truly matter just to make money with Adaptive Marketing. 

If you enjoyed this episode, let me know by giving this video a thumbs up, leaving a comment, and subscribing to my channel. I’ll see you in the next episode! 

Signed, 

Jessica Marie