Service professionals and other business owners often struggle with two important details in their businesses:

1. Having a product to sell
2. Having an audience to sell TO

Creating a simple expert interview series is a great way to kill two birds with one stone, metaphorically speaking of course.

But first, what is an expert interview series?

An expert interview series is simply a compilation of audio interviews with experts on one specific topic or a variety of topics that, when combined, create a valuable information product.  For instance, the first audio product that I created for my company, Charge What You Deserve, was a compilation of expert interviews on the topic of fee-setting and how service professionals can actually attract better, more eager clients if they start charging more for their current services.

I combined these audio interviews with word-for-word transcriptions and a short outline into a valuable, best-selling information product.  By the way, all of the interviews were done over the telephone.

An expert interview series can come in physical form, such as CDs and a transcription workbook, or it can be delivered in a digital format, such as MP3 audios and PDF workbook.

So, as you can probably guess, the act of conducting and compiling the interviews yields a very valuable product that can now be sold.

The next step is to build a list of prospects who are eager to buy the interview series.  This is actually very simple if you plan ahead and arrange for your experts to share your project with their “fans”, newsletter subscribers, blog readers, social media followers, etc. by sending them to your website for a sample of the interviews.  Then you just need a way of capturing contact information, such as a simple opt-in or sign-up box, in return for the sample you provide.

Don’t let the technical aspects trip you up.  The entire “flow” of building a list of prospects, creating an interview series, and generating an income from it is actually quite simple and the project can be very rewarding and a lot of fun.  This doesn’t, and shouldn’t,  have to take months to complete either.  The key is setting the intention and moving forward.

Hopefully this has helped to inspire you to create an expert interview series of your own.  Remember, the content that you share can be life-changing for those who are ready to receive it.

If you would like to learn more about how to pick a hot topic, find your experts, and create a valuable information product you will be interested in the Interview Wealth Home Study System.  You can get all of the details here: Interview Series Profits

Getting traffic to your website is the lifeblood to your business if you want to make money online.  There are so many ways of doing this that it can be pretty overwhelming.  I want to share 3 ways that I’ve used to get quality traffic to my website.  By quality, I mean having people visit my website who are actually interested in being there.  You can buy, swap and trade traffic all day long, but that does NOT mean that it is quality traffic.

1. Write Content-Rich Articles

The entire internet is driven by information.  This is what makes article marketing such a powerful tool to generate traffic for your online business.  Even if you own a brick and mortar company, you can still leverage the internet to generate a ton of business and stand out from the crowd.

Write short (350-500 words) content-rich articles and submit them to EzineArticles.com.  Search engines love EzineArticles.com because they actually have human beings who check articles to ensure they are unique and relevant.  You can simply add a link to your website and a reason for visiting in the resource box that’s found at the end of each article.

2. Social Media

I know this isn’t the first time that you’ve heard this, but social media is an incredible way to get traffic to your website and/or business in record time.  Submitting articles is very effective, but it takes a bit of time and consistency before you see measured results.  With social media, you can set up Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn accounts in a few minutes, start connecting with like-minded people and get traffic to your website in a jiffy.

As with article marketing, be sure to give people a reason to visit your site, such as a free report, list of valuable resources, coupon for a one-time-only discount, etc.  Here in the internet marketing ranks we call this an “irresistible offer” or an “ethical bribe”.  Whatever you call it, it’s effective.

3. Video Marketing

Don’t worry…you don’t have to be Lawrence Olivier to create effective videos that will begin driving tons of traffic to your site.  In fact, in some markets being too “polished” might even work against you.  The idea is to create a quick tip that you can record with a video camera (your digital camera is probably sufficient) or screen-capture and share it on Youtube.  Once again, be sure to remind viewers to head over to your website for your juicy, irresistible offer.

All three of these tips are free and will work.  However, you must be consistent.  Here’s a quick formula for being consistent without spending countless hours doing the above.

Step #1: Write a short, informative article at least 2 times per week.  Once you get the hang of it you shouldn’t spend more than about 20-30 minutes per article.

Step #2: Create a quick video tutorial using the content from your article and submit it to Youtube.

Step #3: Share a link to your Youtube video on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

That’s it.

I hope this helps you get quality traffic to your website!

I’d love to read your comments, so be sure to share your thoughts below.

If you have a great process or program to help a client achieve a specific goal thenthe money will seldom be the REAL reason they don’t move forward with you. The fact is that most people can come up with the money if they are ready to commit.

What REALLY prevents people from working with you is their lack of confidence that they can actually achieve what it is that they want to achieve.  Sometimes people have been burned before or maybe they’ve struggled their entire life trying to achieve this goal without any success.

As the coach or trainer it’s up to you to alleviate this fear and lack of confidence.

Here are a couple things that you can do:

Be honest and let them know that REAL work is involved in achieving their goal. You aren’t offering some “get rich quick” scheme or the promise to safely lose 100 pounds without having to exercise or improve their diet.  The fact of the matter is that a LOT of people have been sold into believing all of this before and there is a good reason that they are unwilling to really invest in achieving their goals.  Unfortunately, a lot of these people continue to invest on the low end with the same results they’ve always gotten…NONE!

Offer to work with them until they achieve their goal…provided that they DO THE WORK! Your clients MUST be responsible for their own actions.  My good friend and colleague, Suzanne Evans, told me once that you are responsible TO your clients, not FOR them.  Provide your services with the utmost integrity and you are doing your part.  The client is responsible for putting what you share into action.  If you truly believe that your clients can achieve great things by working with you then there should be NO fear in offering this type of guarantee.

So the next time a prospect tells you “I can’t afford that” be sure that they know what the price is for NOT doing anything and let them know that they CAN achieve this goal; but they won’t do it by doing what they’ve been doing in the past.

Now, go Charge What You Deserve.

Peace
Tom

Here are the details if you’d like to listen to the call.

3pm EST/Noon PST

http://AttendThisEvent.com/?eventid=11374176

The call this afternoon will be about how you can have the confidence and knowledge to

Charge What You Deserve and Get It, but I HIGHLY recommend checking out Lou’s

information if you’re ready to take your marketing up 10 notched by using online

video.

Cheers

Tom

Here are three quick tips to help you attract
more clients and charge what you deserve and
get it.

#1: Define your niche and increase your visibility

It’s very important to take a stand and pick a
niche that you want to play in.  Once you do this
it is very easy to be seen as a “go-to” person in
your marketplace.  Sending out regular press releases,
submitting articles to ezinearticles.com, and holding
teleseminars with business owners who already serve
your ideal market are just a few simple ways to
increase your visibility and expert status.

#2: Outline the value that your programs offer

You need to define programs in a way that makes people
want to BUY from you, not THINK about buying from you.
Focus on the value that you have to offer your clients
and where they will be if they do NOT hire you.

The “when” and the “how much” should come later.  Let
these be minor details to cover after your prospect has
already decided to begin working with you.

#3: Stop trading time for money

You HAVE to shift out of the “time for money” business
model and start focusing on a “value for investment”
model if you ever want to charge what you deserve and
get the best results for your clients.  As long as you
are stuck in the time for money mentality you will
never be able to fully express or share the true value
you have to offer your clients.  This is an unnecessary
shame.

Tip: Stop naming your coaching programs with a time and
dollar amount.

No more “60-Minute session for $125″ and “90-Minute
session for $175″!

This causes potential clients to instantly compare your
valuable service to other, totally unrelated services
they’ve bought or considered in the past.

To learn how to price your programs for maximum profits
and create compelling, near impossible to resist offers,
check out the upcoming teleclass series that I will be
holding.

Cheers
Tom

P.S. I would love to hear from you so be sure to chime in
and leave your comments below!

Here are three ways for you to improve your perceived value without investing time and money.

1. Offer a strong guarantee

Consider adding performance or satisfaction guarantees. This shows that you’re confident about your product or service and are willing to stand behind it.  A word of caution: be careful about performance guarantees.  You MUST be realistic and avoid any possibility of deception.

2. Use testimonials

Social proof is a simple way to add value to your offers.  Let your prospects see that others have already benefited from what you are selling.  If you don’t have testimonials, begin today.  Go back to past customers and clients and ask for authentic feedback on their experience with you and your business.

3.  Improve your visibility

The more people see you and hear about you, the more they will trust in what you have to offer; provided, of course, that what they see and hear is positive.  There are many ways that you can improve your visibility including submitting press releases, being interviewed, speaking at associations, writing articles, etc.

Take a look at what you are offering your market right now.  Where are some areas that you can improve upon your perceived value?

Write down at least three ways that you can begin improving your perceived value and start doing so right away.  Before you know it, your market will expect you to be charging more that you currently are.

This was a great opportunity for me to find out why so many service professionals are refusing to charge what they deserve. One of the points that kept coming up was, “I don’t have the experience” or “I don’t have thus and such certification”…

…you get my point. I stopped one person right in her tracks with four simple words when she began to explain that she had a difficult time convincing clients to pay her what she was worth since she is just getting her business started…regardless of the fact that she has an incredible array of relevant skills to offer.

What were those four words?

“How do they know?”

How do your clients know that you are starting a new business or don’t have umpteen years of experience? Probably because you told them… NOT because they asked.

Charging what you deserve and attracting great clients does NOT require the following three things:

1) More experience
2) More certification
3) More time

Charging what you deserve DOES require the following:

1) Finding a market that has a clear need or desire for a service that you offer (or can offer)
2) Clearly expressing that you have a solution for this need or desire

Your path to a profitable business will be much shorter if you focus on these two areas rather than equating your income with your experience. The value that you offer your marketplace has very little to do with the next certification that you obtain.

Listen, we are always learning. We will never know it all. Understand that you have something incredible to offer your market right now!

Start focusing on the value that you deliver (and realize that you can deliver that value today) and you will start building that successful business you’ve been dreaming of sooner rather than later!

1. Create multiple offers for your market.

It’s incredibly important, especially in today’s economic climate, to create multiple opportunities for your prospects and clients to say, “Yes!” You can offer audio recording, e-books, group coaching or training programs, multiple levels of private coaching or training, etc.

2. Share social proof or testimonials of your work.

Even if you’re just starting out, it’s very impacting to provide testimonials about what people have achieved by working directly with you or by working with systems or programs similar to what you offer. An example would be a brand new life coach who can present testimonials from people who can explain how life coaching in general has been a helpful and valuable tool in their lives.

3. Focus on the value that you offer and not the process that you take clients through.

In the simplest of terms, people want out of pain and into pleasure. They aren’t very concerned with the step-by-step process to getting there; as long as they know they can get there.

4. Be the “bridge” between where your market IS and where they want TO BE.

When you provide the tool, system or support for getting your clients from where they are to where they want TO BE, you’ll find it’s a simple task to convert them into happy, paying clients. But remember, don’t describe the color of the bridge; just take them across.

5. Add video and audio to your marketing approach.

This provides a very personal touch to your marketing and let’s prospective clients get to know, like and trust you much quicker than others who are competing for their business.

For an amazing interview series with dozens of valuable tips from service professionals who bring in an average of $700 per hour, visit: http://chargewhatyoudeserve.com/eis_dig.php

Today we spent 30-minutes sharing valuable resources that we’ve used and highly recommend.  The topics included:

>>Teleconference lines
>>Audio recording
>>Websites
>>Domain hosting
>>Shopping carts
>>Affiliate management sites

You can listen to the playback here:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Donna-and-Tom

We will be covering even more resources on next week’s call, so be sure to put it on your calendar.

Cheers

Tom

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Donna-and-Tom