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What you’ll learn in this episode:
In business, we need to make sure that we are leveraging things in the best way so we can streamline our operations, make our lives easier, and then generate as much money, especially profit, as we can. For some of the things that we do, we get into this habit of what I call “baking bread” every single time. We end up creating things over and over again, things that could be very similar, for reasons that we definitely don’t need to be doing. When we do this, it takes a tremendous amount of our time and energy, and frankly, it costs us a lot of money.
In today’s episode I break down the top reusable resources that you have in your business, and why it’s crucial that you start leverage those so you can create greater returns in your business – more time, more resources, less human consumption – resulting in these resources “paying you” several time over.
Here’s a glance at this episode:
- Understand what reusable resources are, and why it is critical to identify them and create them once, while continuing to leverage them in the future
- Learn the top 5 resources that are the most important (and easiest) to reuse
- Get a glimpse into how I’ve created some of these resources, and how I use them in my own business
Mentioned in this episode:
Canyon Ranch Fall 2023 Retreat
Work/Connect with me:
Consults That Convert FREE Training
Jessica Miller
[0:00] Hello, everyone, and welcome back to the It’s Your Offer podcasts. I’m Jess Miller and I’m so excited to be here with you this week. Today I want to talk to you about harnessing the power of reusable resources. As business owners, we need to make sure that we are leveraging things in our business the best that we can to streamline our operations, make our lives easier, and then generate as much money, especially profit, as we can. For some of the things that we do, we get into this habit of almost like what I call “baking bread” every single time. We end up creating things over and over again, things that could be very similar, for reasons that we definitely don’t need to be doing. So maybe we’re, you know, recreating calendar invites every single time someone wants to speak to us. Or every time we onboard a client, we’re having to manually put them into the system or manually fill out a form or do something like that.
Jessica Miller
[1:02] When we do this, it takes a tremendous amount of our time and energy, and frankly, it costs us a lot of money. It also results in us needing, leaving money on the table. Because when we are not efficient, and when we aren’t really reusing those resources that we have put so much time and energy into creating, we are slowing our business down. And we are making the lift for us in our business to make it work and to generate results so much heavier. I believe that if you want to have a business that is profitable, that is growing, and that is streamline, you need to learn to harness the power of the resources in your business that you can reuse.
Jessica Miller
[1:43] So as I was thinking about this, and speaking to some of my clients about this this week, I wanted to share with all of you what I do in my business, and some of the things that I find are the most important things to really reuse, to really think of as resources in your business that continue to sort of pay it forward for you, and they allow you to run your business in an easier way, and in a more impactful way. I also want to add that some of these things can also result in quite a bit of savings. Because if we can automate or standardize or streamline some of these resources and reuse them, it actually cuts down on the human capital that we need. And I personally love investing in people for my business, but I want them to be doing creative, strategic things. And when they’re doing tactical things, I want it to be things that can’t be reproduced some other way. I feel like that is where I get the most sort of bang for my buck for the investment in people that I put into my business. So by learning to harness the power of these reusable resources, I am able to take my human capital and actually also use it in my business in a much more powerful way.
Jessica Miller
[2:59] So I want to share as an entrepreneur, the several repeatable, you know, resources that I use in my business, that really can enhance your business’s success. And I want you, if you don’t have some of these things in your business, or maybe you have them, but you’re thinking like, dude, is this an area where I can really, you know, dial it up and see these efficiencies? I want to be the one to tell you Yes. Like everything that I’m going to mention in this podcast today, you probably have it, you’ve definitely heard of it, and it’s something that you should look at, and try to really create a way to reuse these resources because it will pay off immediately.
Jessica Miller
[3:37] Okay, so here we go. Number one is SOPs, Standard Operating Procedures. Developing standardized process across your business, whether it’s in productions, operations, customer service, marketing, all those things, it is crucial. Doing this ensures consistency, efficiency. It also allows you to scale and grow when you document these processes. And whether, whether it’s in a manual or a guideline, or if you want something more formal like an SOP. It allows you to replicate them easily, and then it also allows you to pass them on to other people on your team; whether it’s someone that’s already on your team, or it’s a new employee. I know that this sounds very like, ‘duh, of course, Jess’, and you’ve like heard this a million times. I worked in corporate for 20 years, we lived in died by standard processes. It took me a long time in my business to figure out that I really needed to implement this. And I am really horrible at sitting down with a blank document or even a template and kind of like typing out every single piece of the process.
Jessica Miller
[4:40] I’m like, ‘oh my goodness, my brain just does not work that way.’ One of the things that I implemented in my business that I love is I use Loom or any of those, those types of software that will allow you to capture your screen and talk at the same time. You could even do this on a Zoom. So all, all of the processes in my business are now captured as the short, like five-to-10-minute videos max. And so as I’m talking through the process, I am recording my screen so people can see exactly what I’m doing. I cannot tell you how much this is streamlined my life, has made my team happier whenever somebody comes on, or maybe they’re taking on new responsibilities. I’m like, ‘Here, go check the video on how we, you know, file this in Google Drive’, for example. It was a game changer. And because of this, we are able to move business through our ecosystem within our business, move work through that, in a way we never could before. So standard processes is one of those reusable resources that is crucial, and it really saves you a ton of time and effort: frees up your calendar, your mental space, all of it.
Jessica Miller
[5:50] The second thing is product or service templates. So creating any templates for the products or services that you have in your business can save a ton of time and effort in the production or delivery process. So for example, if you offer a software product, developing a template with like reusable code components can really accelerate the development of future versions or new projects, for example. Similarly, if you’re in a services type of a business, creating templates for proposals, contracts, project plans, anything like that can streamline your client process, onboarding, or whether or not they’re in your business, like anything that you could sort of systematize around that. I also want to say that templates that you create for your clients to enhance their results, anything that they might need, that you can template, where when they need it, or when you have the foresight that they’re going to need it, you can just give them this thing, because it’s templated. Huge, huge, huge for them.
Jessica Miller
[6:50] One of the ways I do this, in my business, as all of you know, I focus on offers. One of the biggest hurdles that people have when they are creating offers, especially if they’re earlier in their business, is getting that offer on to a landing page or in some capacity out there to share with their audience. It is a huge, huge lift for people, especially if they haven’t done it before. Well, my team and I went into Canva, and we created essentially like a standalone PDF type of a document or something that you could, you could put it on the web too, but we created a template that was essentially for an offer. It is plug and play; you go in and you tell people what it is you tell them what the results are, you give them all the features, you have a place for the price, there’s a hyperlink to something else, like a forum or something like that, where people can buy it, giving them that asset in that way, so that they can use it and get their offer out into the world. So they can actually make money has increased the results our clients have seen, like tenfold. And when their results get better, guess what? Our you know, it’s good for our business too, obviously. So anything like that, that you can sort of, you know, predict that people are going to have a problem getting over this thing. And you can create a template around that. That is huge. So both internally for your own team and externally for your clients. product or service templates are one of those reusable resources that are super powerful.
Jessica Miller
[8:19] The third thing is marketing collateral. So developing a library of your marketing collateral is one of those things you could reuse over and over and over. I don’t know if you’re listening to this, and you’re anything like I was like two years ago, but I used to think I needed to make everything real time and it needed to be new. Here’s like marketing 101: You don’t. People need to hear the same thing over and over and over and over again. And if you can capture it, you only need to create it once. Yes, maybe you’re going to tweak it, change the date, whatever. But having a system and a library with that collateral so that you can actually reuse it is gold, it is so gold. So anything like brochures, social media templates, email campaigns, website content, like anything that can help you put your message and yourself out into the world is going to make it so much easier for you to be visible and show up. It also helps you have a consistent brand identity and a message across a variety of channels. Because when you take an asset and you just put it in a different forum, everything sort of stays the same. It’s kind of locked. So you’re not repeating things differently in different places. And it is a game changer so people can really, you know, understand your brand, understand your messaging, and it’s, it’s really powerful.
Jessica Miller
[9:42] You can also customize these things for different campaigns and target audiences, saving you the time and effort in creating marketing materials from scratch. So you can hold these things constant, but you can also tweak them enough so they are relevant in different spaces, or you can evolve them for other campaigns. So I have done this several times with challenges that I’ve run or webinars that I’ve won, I have a really awesome sales page, I have a great landing page, I’ve got great visuals. I’m just going to go in, and I’m going to change the title of the program and the dates. I’ll make it a good, give it a little bit of a different look like maybe switch out some of the visual assets, because maybe it’s for a different target market or different time of year. And bam, the thing is done. And I keep it stored in my ClickUp, and I can just reuse it. It is so great. So that’s another thing marketing collateral.
Jessica Miller
[10:33] Fourth thing is your CRM system. So implementing a CRM system that allows you to centralize and automate all these customer related processes. So lead generation sales, pipelines, customer support, any post sales activities, which, of course, are huge. So by leveraging your CRM, you can establish these sorts of repeatable workflows, you can track your customer interactions, streamline your communication, like keep everything in one place. And it really ensures consistent and efficient customer management, the people in our ecosystem, the potential client, and the paying clients are where it’s at. Everything that we do, needs to revolve around them. So when you have that CRM system that allows you to go in there and, and really sort of systematize that and automate it and centralize it, you can reuse those resources over and over. And as you grow, it also can grow with you, because many of those CRMs are very robust. And it’s something that you can continue to, you know, use and harness as you get bigger.
Jessica Miller
[11:40] Another area is around training and onboarding. I mean, this kind of, is self-explanatory. But you want to make sure that you have training and onboarding materials for your employees or partners, so that you can maintain consistency in the way that your business operates. I also want to say that this is extremely important for your clients when you onboard your clients. Or if there’s information that they need to have to make their experience, the best that it can be that onboarding process, or that ability to communicate with them is really important. It is such an important piece of the customer experience. It’s also a really important piece, in my opinion, it is a piece of the puzzle that is the mirror or the example of kind of what your company is about is, in my opinion, a sort of a branding tactic. Like when people see that and they interact with you when they’re onboarding and they’re, they’ve bought something and now they’re in that post, you know, purchase phase, it’s a really important time because people are forming their opinions about you. And you want that to be seamless and streamlined. That is the way that it works.
Jessica Miller
[12:50] So you’re kind of putting your best foot forward, you want them to be comprehensive, and you want it to be, you know, a really great experience. So you know, anything: online learning modules, training, programs, onboarding, all those things, it allows people to come into and through your business very quickly and smoothly. It makes them feel great about their purchase. If it’s a client that we’re focusing on with these type of onboarding materials, and if it is people in house, it’s really important because it enables you to quickly onboard new team members, and ensures that they understand what, where things are and what your values are, and what the processes and expectations are, that just make that higher, able to be more efficient, and, and frankly, more productive for you and for your business.
Jessica Miller
[13:35] And then another piece, and this is last but definitely not least, what another reusable resources is, your intellectual property. So as an entrepreneur, it’s crucial to protect and leverage your intellectual property. When I talk about this with my clients, I tell them the way that we solve people’s problems, though, the way that we go about giving them a solution is their intellectual property. If I think about my own business, as a growth strategist, there are many growth strategies out there. But the problem that I choose to focus on really looking at people’s best options for growth, the easiest and the most near term, and identifying those gaps and how I help people fill those so that they can grow quickly, and make money quickly, is unique to me. That intellectual property, and that concept of, you know, optimizing your offers for profits, that is something that I, that is really the backbone of my business, and I reuse that resource and the things that I create my formulas, my frameworks, all around my business. I repeat them a lot. I talk about them a lot, whether it’s in my podcast or on my social media or whatever, it’s really important.
Jessica Miller
[14:50] And this also, you know, bleeds into you know, anything that’s patented, trademarked copyrighted, you know, any proprietary technologies that you have that are associated with your part products or service are processes. That’s all part of it. And, and thinking about those things, and how you can leverage those, and reuse them to really make your business grow and thrive. And it is super important. So securing any rights around that, you know, and establishing those reusable resources that can be licensed, franchise monetize; they all contribute to your business’s long-term value.
Jessica Miller
[14:50] So those are the six things that I think are the most important things that you really want to look at when you think about reusable resources. And if you want your business to grow and thrive in a robust way, you need to learn to harness the power of your reusable resources in your business.
Jessica Miller
[15:49] So just in summary, any standard processes, standard operating procedures, any product service, or service templates that you have, anything that you can template, both within your company and externally for your clients, any marketing collateral, develop that library, get organized on what you have, and how you can use it again and again, and again. Anything related to a customer relationship management system where you are able to pull all that information, and centralize information and automate any customer related processes, anything that touches your lead gen, your sales, pipeline management, customer support, especially post sales activities. Any of those things around your CRM are one of those reusable resources that are really important. Any training or onboarding materials, both for your team or for your clients. Super important.
Jessica Miller
[16:44] When people come in contact with your business for the first time, they are forming an opinion. You want it to be that you are a rockstar, and you’ve got your stuff buttoned up. So as much as you can make that smooth and streamlined, the better it is.
Jessica Miller
[16:57] And then last but not least, anything around your intellectual property, anything around it. When we talk about again, when we think about offers, when we think about creating hell yes offers, when we think about optimizing your offers for profit, the thing that makes you uniquely you is your intellectual property around the things that you sell, and especially around the way that you either design or communicate the problem, and especially the way you solve the problem. That is the key. Most of these problems people know that they have, they just don’t know how to fix it, they don’t know how to solve it. And when you come up with something that’s uniquely yours, and you can really capture that IP, and then you can leverage it again and again, and again, that reusable asset is so important. It’s important for branding, it’s important for the results that you create, and it’s really important for being the engine behind the thing that is making your business grow. Because at the end of the day, as we have all heard on this podcast, it’s your offer. And the more hell yes your offer is, the more binge worthy. And I like to say, the more it will sell and the more it will sell before you ever even talk to anyone.
Jessica Miller
[18:11] So I want you to take the time to go back, look at your business, really think about these reusable resources, think about how can you harness the power of them. How can you take them and make them work for you again and again and again? You want to put that investment in once and you want it to pay you 10 times over. That is the power of the ROI. And that’s what you’re looking for in every piece of your business. How do you work smarter? How do you leverage the things that you’ve already created and spent money and time on? And how do you then free up other resources, time, energy, mental capacity for you to do the things that you love, and that allow you to create all of those amazing things that are going to keep your business thriving for a long, long time? Okay, everyone, until next week. Cannot wait see you then.
