Struggling? I get it…

Hello!

It’s been a while… hope your summer has gone well…in fact where has it gone? I’ve been back at work and some days it’s a real struggle! There’s been overwhelm and pressure.. still for the most part I love what I do! I’ve been updating my online course… done! Lots of additions, lots of good information too- if you’re already signed up? You have lifetime access so guess what? You can go back through it now! And I hope you will.

It’s back to school time! A good time to learn a few things yourself! And It’s the best time to sign up to learn new things and guess what? If you have new products, September is said to be the best time to launch new products! So, you’ll want to do that!

What I really want to talk about is Struggle. There are so many things we struggle with, yet also some things we can let go of and stop struggling with, then there are other things that we just will have in our lives that often create struggle. Struggling is a part of life. I’d love to share a story with you-

‘As a child, I loved to go to the County Fair- I particularly like the Incubators in which the eggs were struggling to become baby chickens- it was messy. The shell would be slightly cracked or you could see part of a baby chick. The shell was restricting the little bird’s progress, the egg would roll around.. a little kick, and the crack would become larger. I could see damp feathers, and perhaps little feet. I admit it was a struggle to hold back- I knew I could help the baby chick. Why I could break the shell open myself if I could get inside the incubator!

The baby chick wouldn’t have to work so hard. The chick wouldn’t have to struggle breaking the shell that it had outgrown. One of the instructors at the show explained- ‘If you break open the shell, instead of letting the baby chick do it alone, the little legs will not be strong- the baby chick’s whole body is being strengthened by the struggle to get out of that shell.’

‘The Problem of the Eggshell’ is a lesson, it’s the ‘Power to Become’- the struggle strengthens us. Without it, we will not be strong… ‘ This is an excerpt from my Book: Four Days the Lazarus Principle.

Here’s the Thing- I know it might seem obvious- Life is messy. We won’t understand all of anything when we are living in the midst of our life. So? What to do?

For me, it’s getting quiet. It’s listening to my Instinct…that Godgiven gift. It might say- Do this, or Wait. Don’t go there. or even this: Take the Next Best Step

.Instinct is what makes the baby chick keep kicking. That’s really all its little life knows to do. The shell might not crack according to plan. It’s definitely messy. It might not even make sense. The chick could get it into its head that Things aren’t Going Right.

As good as Goals are.. and they are. The Next best step might be to just keep on going… or kicking as the baby chick! So how do we know if we’ve reached our goal? For the chick? It is when it’s released from the confining eggshell! With a mess all around it- the baby chick stretches its little wings, walks on wobbly feet and a new goal is set!

Again, when you’re in the middle of something or some sort of work or business you may not think you’re making a difference. Or maybe you don’t think you’re making progress. Here’s the thing.. No matter where you are, in the long run if what you do- helps someone else, improves the lives of others, enriches the life of yourself, your family and friends.. well, it’s worth the Struggle.

And remember this, As good as it is to plan, sometimes something comes along you didn’t expect. Good or Bad. It interrupts the plan. So? Instead of giving up. Go back to your Instinct. Listen quietly. Allow your Intuition to inform you of what your Best Next Step should be… and remember, the Struggle is making you stronger, if you’ll allow it.

And that’s the point of it… Struggle often makes us stronger. Pressure when we use it for good- is like coal becoming diamonds or combined with heat? This southern girl knows heat and pressure make Biscuits Rise! oh yes it does.

The Problem with Overwhelm is that we aren’t really taking care to take care of ourselves. We need breaks, we need to decide the importance of what needs to be done- as we take frequent breaks and it’s then we need to let our minds go blank. Break the cycle of overwhelm. Take deep breaths, get out in nature. This will help us regain our strength and creativity. Realize that we’re sometimes our own worst enemy. We need to ask…

What’s holding you back? Is your mind asking- ‘What if I’m not good enough?’ Yet- ‘What if you are?

Don’t be afraid to try, to struggle or even fail. Let the ‘Problem of the Eggshell’ help you grow stronger…

​

My struggle in the last few weeks has been Updating My Online Course! It wasn’t the updates- it was the technology! I’ve learned a few new things. I’ve struggled with it. And it’s Ready! Is it perfect? No it isn’t. Here’s what my goal was when I wrote the course in the first place-

I was going to keep the cost as low as I could. The price of the platform had to be factored in and a few other expenses, yet, I wasn’t going to buy fancy equipment. I wasn’t going to have it professionally recorded. I wasn’t going to add all the bells and whistles. I was going to create a valuable product, with valuable information at a Reasonable Price! Courses with 30+ videos, a 50+ page downloadable Workbook and Lifetime access – including All updates are usually quite an expensive investment- I didn’t want it to be out of reach for the average person to pay for.

Here’s the thing about online courses-

I’ve have developed friendships with those who’ve tested my course, and who’ve taken my course. These friendships are sooo valuable to me! And currently a special group of folks I’ve coached or who’ve taken my course are participating in a Group Challenge of the Week! Altogether, we have the potential to reach 25.000 folks as we post and share! We’re already gaining new audiences and having fun too!

That’s the thing about online courses that isn’t talked about enough! I took lots of masterclasses, bought small courses and one large one that was reasonably priced. I do believe in investing in lifetime learning!

I met so many wonderful people in that online course! We are cheerleaders for each other! Some I have made purchases from, some I have coached along, some are friends and mentors too! That’s another benefit of taking an online course that isn’t talked about enough! And there’s this: Taking an online course gave me the confidence that I had something to share, to teach… there’s no dollar value on that! However… if you don’t truly take the lessons in courses, interact with others in the courses, you miss out on a wonderful bonus! Here’s the downside of online courses…

Some online courses cost well over $1000 or more! I’ve been tempted by them. I couldn’t justify the expense. Here’s the thing: Folks often can’t afford to make a $1000 investment in themselves. They know they need the knowledge, they’re just not ready for a large cash outlay. So when I wrote and produced mine, that was a goal to make it affordable.

My course is actually 5 mini courses in one! The breakdown is less than $50 per mini course. I’ve checked with the platform that hosts my course- they’ve told me that my price is too low. Well, not for me it isn’t! Why? Because most affordable online courses don’t have this much information and I want folks to be able to afford to invest in themselves! I want to serve others and that includes making sure they get value and it’s at a reasonable price.

I want to show up to give- give you something that will help you and your business. I Love to See Your Progress, Help you when you’re Struggling, Watch you Succeed! And one more thing- whether you sign up or not? I plan to keep showing up for you, showing up to give you value. I hope it’s worthwhile for you to stop by. I thank you for it. It is one of the things I don’t ever struggle with… Thank you for being here! You are the Best Folks anywhere!

Love y’all. Brenda

If you think Be Unforgettable Beginner’s Guide to Visual Marketing would be for you, Here’s the Link to information about my course:

https://camellia-s-cottage-blog.mykajabi.com/about-course-copy-1-ed7ee1ac-4438-4133-968b-ffee43106f2b: Struggling? I get it…

A Cybersecurity Engineer, a Food Inspector and a Tugboat Captain…

Subscribe to continue reading

Subscribe to get access to the rest of this post and other subscriber-only content.

Already a subscriber?

How to Run a Successful Giveaway!

My last post was about My March Madness Giveaway! Thank you if you entered! The winners were notified personally and in my last newsletter! I had a great time! And I promised I would let you know some things I feel you need to run a successful giveaway. So here goes!

Choose a Prize for Your Giveaway – This may seem obvious, yet I think there’s a skill to it. Choose something or things that will be valuable to your audience. Valuable enough that your audience will want to win what you’ve offered.

Decide on the Outcome You Want and Where Your Results will show up best– For me, I wanted to increase the number of folks who receive my Newsletter! I try to do this newsletter once or twice a month. It’s full of tips you can use in your ‘Cottage Industry’ , small business and more.. And, that’s where the Details for my Giveaway appeared! That and some posts on Instagram.

Best Tip: Make sure you make the Entry to your Giveaway, easily achievable– and I have to add this, please, please value every email address you have! Folks don’t give those away lightly- we’re already overwhelmed as it is! Right?

Choose Which Social Media Platform(s) you’ll Use for Your Giveaway I used my Blog- right here! which automatically posts to several social media sites! I promoted it on my Blog and the other social media site I used regularly was Instagram. Why? Well, it’s my favorite along with this blog, yet I think Instagram is the best social media platform for me to use right now, and some think Giveaways are more successful on Instagram and Facebook. Of course, use the best platform for yourself- where you have the most growth and interaction.

Decide on Length of Time for Giveaway I ran my giveaway for 10 days.. personally I think this may have been too long- though I was going by a statistic that only 4% of your audience even looks at your posts daily. So, that guided my decision on how long to run the giveaway.

I’ve seen two giveaways lately- one for a Travel Sitewith lots of prizes and their’s lasted a Month! It was highly interactive and frankly too much trouble for the average product or service giveaway. The software alone would take a major amount of time to create is you’re running your business mostly on your own. Another Giveway I saw was a 1:1 with two major retailers who joined forces and offered this! They were Mickey Drexler and Bobbi Brown. This giveaway was for? 5-7 days.

What will be Your Entry ‘Fee’?– Be sure to list the Rules for your Giveaway– As I said before, my Entry ‘Fee’ was to sign up for my Newsletter! Yours could be an actual product you sell, it could be a coaching session, a PDF with valuable information. It could be a short video training… just make sure it’s Good Enough that folks will really want what you’re giving away!

Why sign up for my Newsletter? Well.. I’ve been giving out Marketing Tips for well over 2 years! And, with a 70% plus open rate- you may want to add it to your reading list! Also, when I did the giveaway, I wanted to reward my existing newsletter subscribers! That’s coming up soon- If you sign up- well, you’ll get the Bonus too!

Tip: Make it Easy! Mine was very easy- I have a Sign Up Form that is linked on my Instagram and I put links where my blog was posted and I’m very happy with the results! Here’s my link again:Sign up for my Newsletter! I hope you’ll sign up for mine!

here’s that link again; https://skilled-author-7671.ck.page/74d4fe914d

You will need to Plan Your Posts! Blog, Newsletter, Social Media This is important! When you decide to do a Giveaway- Plan plan plan! Plan the Images, Plan the Wording of the Giveaway (mine were actually done in a Quote Format, Plan your Content. Send out multiple reminders- for me this meant sending out additional emails. It also meant doing the posts in different formats- I wrote a Blog post, I wrote a Newsletter, then sent out an ICYMI repeat of my newsletter, I did at least 5 posts on Instagram and multiple Stories, even a Reel or two! It wasn’t hard to plan, yet I realized that the preparation for it- made it easier while the Giveaway was running.

Choosing Winners isn’t Easy. This was perhaps the most difficult part of the Giveaway for me. So? What can you do to alleviate the stress of it? I had some input from someone I trust. I also ‘gave points’ for the Enthusiasm level for the contest or what their response was to a certain gift I was giving away! And.. I also gave points for folks who shared my giveaway to their Instagram Stories or shared a post I had done about it. Because after all, that speaks to how much they value their community and the prizes they needed or wanted!

Contact Winners, they may or may not Accept the Prize Before I ever awarded the prizes, I had narrowed my ‘winners’ down, some categories had several people who had earned the ‘points’ yet, and this is a Big Yet- Would they accept the prize if it was offered? Because let’s face it- it they don’t want the prize- it’s not really helpful to you and for sure puts that person in a bad situation, if their name is announced and they just can’t accept it because of personal or professional situations that just aren’t right at the time of the giveaway. Be sensitive to that- I think this part is important.

Where will you Announce the Winners? I chose to announce my winners through my newsletter because that was the way participants entered the contest. I also sent that out twice because there were a few that had signed up yet for some reason, the newsletter bounced or even may have gone to their spam boxes if the newsletter was new to them. I also followed up with the winners through a private direct message.

Check Your Results! This might be the most important part of the Giveaway! Did you achieve what you wanted the giveaway to achieve for you? I checked my analytics. I had gained subscribers to my newsletter! I was actually amazed to see it in black and white. And… the newsletter has grown even more since the the giveaway has ended? Why? Well, it’s because I had told my loyal newsletter winners that they would also Win? Whether they won a prize or not, I will be giving them something special through my newsletter- (a link to this blog post for one thing) and a short video training and PDF that they can download!

So! Do I recommend doing a Giveaway? YES! I hope you’ll try it, and I’d love to know how it goes!

Love y’all, Brenda

Is it Madness to Run a March Giveaway?

Okay, maybe. Yet, I don’t think so! I think having Giveaways all year round work! I’m preparing a March Madness Giveaway starting next week! I’ll tell you more about it, but first…let me tell you a bit about Giveaways for your own business.

Giveaways have always been a good marketing idea. Why? Folks love Free Stuff. Folks love Free Samples. Folks love the Idea of Winning Things. Free Gift with Purchase? Still works. Buy One Get One, yep, that too. I love all of that myself!

So many successful business owners started out Building their Brands giving away their products or services. Just in the last few weeks, I’ve read about relatively new businesses which over and over again said something like this:

‘We gave lots of our products away in the beginning and still do to boost Brand Awareness.’

Why would they do this? They want and need Reviews. They want and need Suggestions for how to make their products better. They know that these new folks will often share the news with their friends. Brand Recognition is always a smart thing to do!

Even, as their business grows. Successful Businesses do some type of Giveaways. Why? They want and need to Create a Buzz, by Attracting New Audiences, Reaching more Viewers. Giveaways do this almost immediately. These new audiences who participate in Giveaways are more likely to become customers in the Future. That’s what the experts call- Brand Loyalty. Are you convinced? I hope so. In the next blog post, I’ll share my best advice on how to run a Giveaway…

Here’s my March Madness Giveaway! *and no, it doesn’t have anything to do with basketball! I’ve done giveaways for decades when I worked in Retail for 30+ years! I’ve done Giveaways since I published my online course last year. I started with a belief in what I could share with others. I also began with the commitment to give away my course from time to time, for all the reasons above but mostly because the idea was born during the pandemic when folks were in danger of losing their businesses or jobs.

So! Here’s what’s in the March Madness Giveaway!

• 5 Complete Course Giveaways! Value? Almost $200 each!
• 4 Instagram Grid Upgrade Suggestions- *this is your Virtual Shop Window!
• 3 Instagram Bio Upgrade Suggestions- *this is your worldwide Business Card!
• 2 One on One Coaching Sessions with me- *a $75 value each
• 1 Grand Prize- This is a Complete Course with the Choice of a Coaching Call or Both the Grid Upgrade and Bio Upgrade

And, I’m not leaving out those folks who have already gone through my online course- ‘Be Unforgettable- Beginner’s Guide to Visual Marketing’ – they can notify they’ve taken the course and they will automatically be entered for a Grid or Bio Upgrade or to Be Featured in the updates I’m doing to the Course! There may be more prizes – hopefully for anyone who enters! Stay tuned…

So how do you enter: https://skilled-author-7671.ck.page/74d4fe914d Sign up for My Newsletter! That’s the only entry required! Folks already on the list will be entrants and the Winners will be announced through the Newsletter too! I hope you’ll take me up on this.

That’s It! The Giveaway begins March 20, 2023 and ends March 30, 2023! So I hope you’ll sign up and get All the Details!

And, Good Luck on your own Giveaways- coming up next blog post will be How to Run a Successful Giveaway!

As always, love y’all, Brenda

https://skilled-author-7671.ck.page/74d4fe914d

Marketing Newsletter Sign Up form

That’s It! *not sure how those big blocks got there 🙂

Brand Ambassador or Not?

Hello!

My Newsletter went out this week, lots of marketing and social media advice. If you haven’t signed up and you’re a writer, creator, artist or small business or a dreamer who’s thinking about it, I’d love to have you there! The first thing we talked about was the Super Bowl! Yep. I’m pitiful when it comes to understanding the rules of football, but I sit up and take notice of the Ads!

Let’s get down to the marketing part of the Super Bowl. Research has shown that last year’s 30 second Super Bowl ads cost an average of $7 million each! And from working in Retail, I can tell you that $7million that Big Brands spent doesn’t include the production of the Ad! Think of it! For a mere 30 seconds, albeit a highly rated and viewed event, that’s an amazing amount of money! Last year’s Super Bowl was said to be viewed by 112 million people!

Still. In contrast, there are Social Media Brands that generate of 350 million views! I know most of us don’t generate that kind of audience. I sure don’t. Yet, the good news here is that

Big Brands are rethinking where and how to spend their Ad dollars. Big Brands are looking for:

• UGC– that’s user generated content. I know I had to look up when I first saw it!
• They are looking for Reviews they can use- which can add to your audience views too!
• Big Brands are also looking for folks who have an Engaged Audience, not necessarily a sizeable audience.
• Big Brands will also connect with some folks who will do Sponsored Posts.
• And, they will often use Brand Ambassadors! These are folks who work with them on contract.

All of those types will get exposure for their own sites. Quite often they will offer to provide you with a product for doing a Sponsored Post. This is the most common. If you have a highly Engaged Audience (yes, they notice!) They may offer you a paid Sponsorship. For this: Some brands like food photographers, food stylists, even Lifestyle stylists and photographers the same thing. And let’s not forget Travel Bloggers with a Social Media component. Paid or Product is generally the compensation offered.

I personally don’t use sponsored posts, though I have in the past. I also don’t allow ads on my site. Why? Essentially, there’s no control of the advertisement and I just didn’t think ads for ‘Fatty Liver Disease was appropriate with a Recipe! Another thing, it’s never paid enough. Some folks really work this angle and my hat is certainly off to them! Here’s what I can tell you for sure! Agencies are looking for folks just like you! When my blog focused mainly on Lifestyle, I was contacted by a New York Ad Agency– yes! I checked them out and so should you! I spoke with a very nice lady too. The agency asked me to do sponsored posts for a Stationary Company- it was a product for post agreement. I did a few and honestly? At first it was worth it because I use paper stationary thank you very much! They transitioned to an Online Only Stationary Business and I just wasn’t interested in that. It was a wonderful company, just didn’t fit in with what I use.

Then, this same ad agency contacted me about sponsorship for using a plug in for Recipes- this would generate a grocery list for the Name Brand Products I used in the recipes. I tried that as well, because there were some significant Name Brand businesses who were doing it too. Honestly? The plugin cost about $99 to use on this platform, ultimately it just wasn’t worth the cost and revenue for my particular audience. That doesn’t mean it won’t be for you! It was very flattering yet also a bit too much trouble to do every. single. time.

I say try out brand sponsorships and see if they work for you! Here’s an interesting side note- I posted a photo of Camellia’s Cheese Straws from my blog to Instagram. I received a Direct Message from a major Brand asking if they could use that photo. I agreed. There was No compensation. There was exposure and that company location in Los Angeles still follows my account. That! was definitely worth the exposure for me! Still is, as a matter of fact.

Okay, that was my experience 4-5 years ago. Now? The trend is continuing in an even bigger way! If this is something you’d be interested in exploring- you may want to check it out. How? Do a post and give the Name or Social Media Handle or Product Link, you never know- they may like what they see and love your posts. Make sure those posts are Unforgettable. (I can teach you how) Some also do what’s called Media Kits and approach brands that way too. Just make sure what you’re doing is absolutely gorgeous and absolutely does make their products look amazing!

Being a Brand Ambassador Depends on What you Do.

One Big Social Media Brand- they are Marketing Coaches yet there is also an element of Wellness in what they do.. They say they receive Passive Income from sponsored product-based brands too. They aren’t salesy about it at all. Mainly, they just show a short video opening the box of products! Yes, that’s All. This company considers being Brand Ambassadors is a ‘white space‘ that has opened up in the marketplace. Why? simply this: Big Businesses know where the audiences are, they know that…let’s say- Super Bowl sized ad budgets don’t go as far toward real authentic sponsored posts by even smallish social media influencers when it comes to promoting their products or services.

This Marketing Trend is good news for small to medium size social media sites- small businesses, coaches, product or digital based businesses.

Why? Well, Big Business knows these folks have truly engaged people who read and listen. Also, folks are weary of doing business with Big Brands that don’t always have good customer service. Today’s marketing trends toward the consumer actually Knowing, Liking and Trusting small businesses. Consumers want Real Connections! If that’ You, remember this- you must treat Social Media for what it is. Social. You must treat folks like you’d want to be treated. Work on that Know. Like. Trust factor. Become a Trusted Resource. Show up as You. Show your workspace, your hobbies, your process. And the best Tool you have? is You. Unforgettable You! Happy Valentine’s Day! and don’t forget..

Love y’all, Brenda

If you’d like to receive my Marketing Newsletter– send me an email! I’ll add you to my list! My email is; brenda@brenda-wyatt.com

Join over 500 visitors to my Free Be Unforgettable Pro Tips Masterclass! Here’s the link:

https://camellia-s-cottage-blog.mykajabi.com/sales-page