In this episode of The Long Game podcast, I’m diving deep into understanding human nature and behavior, and learning how we can apply it in our digital businesses. Ever heard of the Hawthorne Effect? Well, applying this century-old observation will change your approach to online courses and memberships for the better.

The Hawthorne Effect came from studies of behaviors in the workplace from nearly a century ago. It refers to the phenomenon where individuals behave better and improve their work when they know that they are being observed or watched. But this is only good in the short term. Over time, mental attitudes, proper supervision, and informal social relationships experienced in the workplace proved to be the key to improved productivity.

“When we dig in and we find the data backing up our claims, it opens up a whole new arena of confidence in our approach.” – Sandra Scaiano

How can we apply these studies in developing our courses and programs, and in all aspects of our business?

Here are 3 practical steps:

• Establish a system of accountability
• Keep in touch
• Track progress

“Value is not more time online. Value is helping your students move through the material.” – Sandra Scaiano

By leveraging our knowledge of the Hawthorne Effect and other behavioral studies, content and program creators can make sure they develop a dynamic learning environment that empowers and encourages participants to finish their goals and succeed. Understanding human behavior is key to driving engagement and maximizing the impact of our online offerings. It’s when we know, understand, and apply that we get to improve what we produce and keep playing the long game.

Links from Today’s Episode:

How the Hawthorne Effect Works

A New Vision An Essay by Professors Michel Anteby and Rakesh Khurana

The post How Observation Affects Success: The Hawthorne Effect appeared first on Web Design | SEO Strategy | Kajabi Expert.

In this episode of the Long Game, we dive deep into the world of online courses and memberships. If you’re a course developer, you’ve likely asked “How can I make my course better?” We all want to produce content and materials that are effective and transformational. We want to provide value and help people, and this episode will give you insight on how to do just that.

“We want to make a bigger impact because of course, we want to help as many people as we can.”
– Lesley Clavijo

We’re joined by Lesley Clavijo, an instructional designer who believes that teaching is more than just the transformation of information, it’s about the entire learner’s experience. She helps course creators elevate their programs so that their students get results so good that they can’t help but tell everyone about their results.

Three points discussed in this episode are:

Lesley introduces us to her recipe for transformational courses, the “Premium Program Pie.”

This pie has six essential ingredients: intentional, interactive, inclusive, intuitive, inspirational, and infinite. By incorporating these elements, your course can go beyond just being transactional. Having these ingredients will deliver better results, create more impact, and be transformative.

“Your course is never done. You’re going to continuously improve your course over time.”
– Lesley Clavijo

Ready to transform your course into an unforgettable journey of growth and learning? Listen to the full episode to start your transformational journey today.

Links from Today’s Episode:

Lesley Clavijo’s Website

The Premium Program Audit

Lesley Clavijo Facebook

Lesley’s Instagram

The post Turn your Course from Transactional to Transformational with Lesley Clavijo! appeared first on Web Design | SEO Strategy | Kajabi Expert.

I’m starting a series with one of my favorite topics; online courses and memberships. There’s so much to review here and I’m breaking it up into a series so I can cover it all. I jumped into this a couple of years ago with some of my clients and I want to share what I’ve learned.

First, let’s cover where we are today. The Women in the Workplace 2020 report breaks down what most of us already know; women are being significantly impacted due to the COVID outbreak and necessary life changes.

Working women have always done a double shift. Even as they became more powerful at the office, home dynamics still haven’t changed. The pandemic has exacerbated this trend. Many women are looking for new options that allow them to work in a new way, and on their own terms.

We are seeing success with online learning in general and specifically, women who have launched courses are seeing success. Even those just starting are finding a place for their online offers.

Here are a few reasons why this trend is going so well.

The specifics of online courses:

How memberships work:

Some things to think about:

Courses and memberships are long game strategies that really work. It allows you to take your expertise and monetize. It can be an opportunity to work in a new way or reach new people.

Links from Today’s Episode:

Women in the Workplace 2020 Report

The post What is Possible with Online Courses and Membership Sites appeared first on Web Design | SEO Strategy | Kajabi Expert.

We always want to build out a runway of content before a course launch or new offer. You don’t want to be that person who never communicates until they are trying to sell something.

After all, customers want to know why they should buy so make it easy for them! When I brainstormed with a client recently, we came up with 20 ideas that she could use as part of a series to share before her upcoming launch. That’s what I’m breaking down in this episode.

A series is a collection of content based on a theme. It can be one big topic broken down into smaller segments. It can also be multiple ways to approach a solution or a variety of perspectives about a single strategy.

Creating a series also allows you to go deeper on a topic. We have all seen the post title that sounded intriguing that ended up being a bullet point list that was on point but ultimately not that helpful.

Focus on creating smart, compelling content and your audience will look forward to the next installment. A challenge is a good example of this. A series allows you to build momentum for your audience.

You can create a custom page for your series. This is just one of the ways you can repurpose your content and use it as part of your customer journey. That’s a long game strategy I love to use.

Lastly, planning and batching this can be a huge time-saver. Once you’ve identified the idea, you can plan it out, record it at once or write it in a batch. This will make the process much more manageable. Engagement and relationships are key. Use a series to demonstrate your expertise while providing content that’s valuable and helpful for your audience.

The post Creating Content Series appeared first on Web Design | SEO Strategy | Kajabi Expert.

Today I’m talking about streamlining your offers.

This is something that comes up for my clients and for me as well. I see so many people spending time and energy on their offers, with mixed results.

In the past year, I’ve worked to streamline my own offers and it’s allowed me to scale my business up one more level.

Entrepreneurs are plagued by the list of good ideas we’d like to implement. Add to that mix the fact that many of us are multi-passionate and neuro-divergent and we end up with a jumble of information that we want to share. Nothing is landing because we’re not specific or targeted as a result.

What is streamlining?

To me, streamlining is about flow. It’s about putting systems and processes in place that give us ease in our work. Flow feels good.

Hear how I define streamlining as it relates to offers. I think it will resonate with you as well.

Note: This is not about pigeon-holing you into only doing one thing. It’s about being known for expertise in one specific area. This allows you to leverage your offers while keeping them streamlined.

It’s also about clear messaging. People need to hear your message more than once and keeping a focused approach will help people recognize how you can help them.

Examples of streamlining offers:

Hear how I breakdown the way this can work for an email marketer. You’ll see how easily the messaging and offers complement each other with a variety of options. Similar messages with varying offers = streamlined.

What if you have expertise in multiple areas? This is where you must be intentional about your messaging, and the timing of content and offers. Hear how you can create a runway of messaging so that it’s clear and not confusing.

This long-game strategy is one that will pay off again and again. Streamlining will help you stay in control and feel confident about what you offer, and the messaging that supports it.

The post The Long Game is… Streamlining Offers appeared first on Web Design | SEO Strategy | Kajabi Expert.

There is a concept out there in the course/membership industry, that gets talked about and taught by coaches. It’s a legitimate strategy, but like all strategies, there’s a time and place to use it and you’ve got to do your homework to know if it is the right strategy for you.

What strategy am I talking about???? Pre-selling.

Pre-selling is when you begin to sell your course or membership before you have it fully created. It’s a way of validating your idea – with sales – prior to making the full investment of time, money, and energy.

You’ll hear coaches and other notables in online business tout the benefits of the pre-sell. Mainly that you aren’t expending all the energy on building out a course until you are being paid for it (by making pre-sales) or you fully know that your market wants this type of product.

Pre-selling can be a smart strategy for the right entrepreneur, but it’s not for everyone, especially those at the start of their course creator journey and that’s where I find issues with it.

Going through the process of course creation is so important:

“There is magic in the process”

And there are major sticking points to Pre-Selling:

For less established digital business owners, every piece of the pre-sale promotion adds a layer of questions.

Being a digital entrepreneur is about finding out what works For YOU! What FEELS good for you. So you’ve got to listen to the advice out there through the lens of your own experience, through the lens of the level you are at, and your own trajectory.

I’m mapping it all out about Pre-Selling in today’s episode so you can make the right choice for yourself.

The post Is Pre-Selling for You? appeared first on Web Design | SEO Strategy | Kajabi Expert.

I’ve been having conversations with digital course creators and membership site owners. They’ve shared what’s going on for them and what’s next. Digital courses are business streams, not just revenue streams. It can be the foundation of your business.

That’s what today’s episode covers. How to understand what’s working now and the mindset around all of it.

Here’s what I’m hearing:

Do you see yourself in any of these examples? We often want to make things more difficult or get stuck when we think there is only one right way.

My advice: slow down. Take a step back and map out your customer journey the way you WANT it to be.

Need help? Book a call and get outside perspective. We can all benefit from that now and then!

The post What Course Creators Are Telling Me appeared first on Web Design | SEO Strategy | Kajabi Expert.

You know what you have mastered. You know the work you do better than anyone. And you’re ready to teach it to the world! With so many pieces to create and focus on, it can be overwhelming. Today I am sharing one idea, that if you embody it, will help you create an amazing online course.

Let’s talk about courses and memberships as experiences.

There are two experiences to consider:

“Experiences in the way I’m talking about mean that things have been thought out, guests are taken care of, and members are put in the best position to absorb the knowledge that you are dishing out.”

The Student or Member Experience

This experience begins at purchase – and even before then. This means mapping out a proper entry sequence and being aware of the student or member’s first impression.

TIP #1 Plan the next steps after they enter your digital product thoughtfully – How you do this sets the tone!

4 things to know about creating the Inside Course experience:

1. Make amazing content, start selling, and then go back and refine your creation.

2. Roadmap the customer path, think about how people will navigate your content and what you want them to do next.

3. Know where and how people ask questions and get support.

4. Create human touchpoints, they support success – experiences are related to emotion. Emotion is the ultimate experience.

TIP #2 Leave the comment section of the online course open. This section gets overlooked because of Facebook groups and other such communities. With Comments, people can share and engage in the content together and ask questions – at the moment.

The Business Owner / Team Experience

When you enjoy what you do, you can continue doing it long-term. The experience you create for yourself and your team determines how well you enjoy a creative living. Make this an experience worth pursuing. Embrace working joyfully every day by using automation and creating systems to support you.

“You do not rise to the level of your goals, you fall to the level of your systems.”

James Clear

TIP #3: Start hanging out with other course and membership creators

I mentioned a couple of possible 5 day-challenges I would like to host for you. Let me know if you would be interested in either one or if you have any other ideas:

**Interested in private small strategy group: Coming Nov. 1st

Links from today’s episode:

Atomic Habits by James Clear

Sandra’s Facebook

SandraSky Website

Sandra’s Instagram

The post Creating The Ultimate Online Course Experience appeared first on Web Design | SEO Strategy | Kajabi Expert.

Making sure that your business serves the life you want to live is not a nice-to-have, it’s a necessity for you to feel abundant and be able to thrive and love what you do every day. Coming from corporate jobs and years of 9 to 5 training is not an easy habit, just because you work for yourself now.

Alexandra Taketa joined me back in January to talk about our money mindset on The Money Amplifier Effect episode. She’s a business strategist, coach, and founder of the Money Mastery Academy.

This time around we’re talking about having clarity and a practical business model in place to make sure that you’re not living to just serve the needs of your business. Break free from the 9 to 5 corporate mentality.

“You’re the CEO, you get to make up the rules, […] your business should serve your life, not the other way around.” 

Alexandra Taketa

What we’re talking about:

Having an abundance mindset is something that most of us have struggled with at some point. Rethinking your business strategy through the lens of what will create abundant experiences that are motivating and compelling is a game-changer.

Alexandra’s Abundance Planning Tips:

Alexandra highlights a very important point; no matter who you are or what stage you are in your business, “even the people who are eight-figure, […] they’re still having doubts, lacking confidence or worrying…”

The thoughts you and I have about money, planning for the future, how to grow your business, and trying to look normal in the process are completely normal.

“Next levels start with clearing all those money blocks, like literally doing the decluttering work making space.” 

Alexandra Taketa

What to know about the value and pricing of your services and products:

Links from Today’s Episode:

Alexandra’s Website

Facebook of Alexandra

Alexandra’s Instagram

Free 3-Day Workshop of Alexandra

Alexandra’s Facebook Group

The post Money Breakthrough with Alexandra Taketa appeared first on Web Design | SEO Strategy | Kajabi Expert.

Before we jump into this episode, I want to say thank you for all the nice feedback. It’s so great to hear from you directly and I’m so grateful you are here.

Today’s show is about one of my favorite topics. Digital courses. You know how much I love this as part of a business model.

All kinds of businesses can support an online course – no matter your area of expertise. If sharing your knowledge with others is part of what you do, or if you want it to be then this episode is for you!

It all starts with knowing what problem you solve and how you communicate that to your audience.

Learning leads to transformation. We know that it works but how do you get from caterpillar to butterfly?

How do I turn what I do into a course that leads to transformation?

The number one thing to know is a course allows you to go from one-to-one work to one-to-many. It allows you to reach and help more people while scaling your business. That is the ripple effect you can create.

Here are the things you’ll want to know before jumping into course creation.

A digital course can generate other opportunities, some you haven’t even considered. Bringing your expertise to new audiences can be another avenue for growth in your business.

Be open to the possibilities. Often, we pull back if we think teaching others our “secrets” might mean less business for us later. Or, we worry that someone else might copy us.

In Episode 38, Alexandra and I talk about this money-mindset issue. Listen to it again if this is what is stopping you from launching a digital course.

Lastly, a digital course doesn’t have to be your entire business or maybe it’s exactly the transition you want to make. Start with one course, with one focus and one message.

You’ll find out where people want more and begin to scale. Have questions? Wondering if it’s time for your digital course? DM me on Instagram or book a call. I’d love to know what kind, of course, you’d like to create.

Links from Today’s Episode:

The Money Amplifier Effect with Alexandra Taketa

The post Method to Digital Course appeared first on Web Design | SEO Strategy | Kajabi Expert.