As entrepreneurs and small business owners we all have the same question.
And that is, how to grow a small business?
And that answer is a combination of things including customer testimonials, SOP’s (standard operating procedures) and automations!
Today, I’m joined by Dolly DeLong. Dolly, is a workflow and systems educator and a launch integrator for small business owners. One of Dolly’s superpowers is that she is super organized and intentional with systems and workflows which means she has some amazing ideas when it comes to organizing the back end of your business!
How important is it to have a community around you as an entrepreneur and having people speak into you?
Dolly notes it’s so important and she’s realizing this more and more every day as her business continues to grow.
As much as Dolly love people so much and meeting with people, she’s also an introvert and enjoys being a homebody.
And she can get in a rut of not really, collaborating and meeting other business owners, and it can feel very isolating.
And so, when she gets to points like that, she knows she needs to make an effort to have other small business owners in her life, and not just for her benefit, but they also need encouragement because we are not meant to blossom alone.
We are meant to encourage each other and to build each other up, and, it’s very, very important.
Why are product testimonials so crucial for your business and how to grow a small business with them?
People want to buy from people.
There are 4 different buyer types, which you can learn more about here, but a large portion of a buyer’s decision-making process comes not from the features and benefits but from word-of-mouth and what other people are saying, the transformation that was provided for the customer.
And the customer who is making the decision, they may read the bulleted list of features and benefits, but seeing a testimonial of the transformation that your product created is so beneficial.
We might think it’s silly, oh, this is only a $37 product, but what if it has caused transformation for a lot of specific business owners?
Dolly notes that she thinks that all business owners really need get those transformational testimonials and learn how to utilize them across the board to benefit not only their business, but also to serve their clients well.
Dolly uses my podcast producer Liz and an example. I had met, not met in person, but had been introduced to Liz through a bundle that Liz had been a part of.
And because of her quality of product, it spoke volumes to me to the point where I had to reach out to this business owner and work with her.
She provided transformational value for me, and I want to continue this relationship with her.
And that was from a product that was not a high-ticket offer, because in bundles traditionally they are a lower cost price.
So, it wasn’t like I had to spend thousands of dollars initially. I got to know her from a very low ticket offer and saw the value.
So, going back to that point of if you are like, I only have $37 products or $57 products that’s ok.
How will those products provide transformation?
And that transformational value doesn’t always have to come from a paid product.
It could come from and I teach a lot about how to create freebies and lead magnets to help grow your audience and just providing that initial value.
What are first steps that you would recommend taking when starting to automate the testimonial process when it comes to how to grow a small business?
Dolly says, I want listeners to look at the entire client journey from start to finish.
And while that can be very overwhelming you can breakdown what the process looks like.
What do you want to happen when a person purchases the product from you?
Obviously, there is delivery of the product. And then is that it? Hopefully not.
There should be post buying steps that include a workflow.
And Dolly encourages you to incorporate some sort of automated automation in that post buying process.
Utilizing automations when growing your product-based business
When a person purchases a product from you, make sure you create some sort of standard operating procedure (otherwise known as an SOP.)
Automate an email that can be like
- A check-in. Such as, how is this helping you?
- Send a reminder like, hey, if you’re feeling stuck. Or you don’t know how to use the product, you can share a corresponding content piece. Share a blog post that you’ve written, or a YouTube video or a podcast episode. Just remind them of the value that they have purchased and the transformation that is awaiting for them. Because you want them to feel good about their investment with you. Because that puts a really good taste in their mouth.
So, again, deciding what you want the client journey to look like on the back end of the purchase.
Because a lot of your revenue will come from either returning customers who actually used your product, and they’re like, oh, I want more of this, or, they have become raving fans, and so they’re sending people your way.
And so don’t just think like, oh, I just need to find new people. New people, new people to buy, buy, buy. Because when you are focused on that, you forget to serve the people who’ve already purchased from you.
You need to really love them and cherish them.
You don’t have to become best friends with everyone who buys a product from you. But you should let them know you appreciate them. You value them. And you want to continue to serve them even after they purchase from you.
So, again, set up some sort of a purchaser sequence on the back end of that purchased product.
That could be you sending out a purchaser confirmation email, letting them know where to get their product.
Reminding them how to access it. A lot of people buy things and then forget how to access and then it’s called the digital dust collects. And so, you don’t want that to happen for them. You want to remind them where it is.
And then maybe a few days later or even a week later, do a check-in. Remind them, hey, this is why you purchased this. If you still haven’t dug into it here’s your friendly reminder to do so.
If you already have some testimonials, share those.
Another email could be, asking them for their feedback about it or asking them if they’ve had any wins.
How to set up automations and how to grow a small business with them
Dolly loves keeping things very low overhead as much as possible because it’s just her.
So, she uses google surveys to collect her testimonials.
You can do this for free through Google survey.
You can create an evergreen survey for this product. And then offer an incentive to entice them to fill out a survey.
And you are probably thinking okay, Dolly, like, an incentive?
What does that mean and do I always have to be monitoring this email?
If this is evergreen, choose one day a month and do a drawing and email the person who won that drawing.
The incentive could be a $10 Starbucks gift card or an Amazon gift card.
Or to keep it truly evergreen give them a discount code for another product.
If they fill out the survey then they will get an email. You can set it up on the back end in Zapier, or you can set up in the back end of your client relationship management tool to where it triggers an automation with a thank you confirmation email. You filled out the survey. Here’s, like, a $50 off coupon for whatever product you want.
So, give them incentives in these emails. And don’t just ask once because people have to be asked several times.
So, maybe you can ask again, in a more evergreen way in another email.
Or, you can set this up on a quarterly basis and also in an evergreen sequence.
So, for the purchaser sequence, once a quarter on your calendar, literally emailing out your list and asking for a review of or a testimonial or feedback for that product.
Dolly does this in her business and uses a 3-part email sequence that is spread out over time.
So, if you are ready to learn how to grow a small business listen to my full conversation with Dolly. It’s all about testimonials, SOP’s and automations!
Check out Dolly’s upcoming Systems & Workflow Magic Bundle: the SEO Edition – going live on August 19th, 2024
Connect with Dolly
- Website – https://systemsandworkflowmagic.com/
- Systems & Workflow Magic Podcast – https://systemsandworkflowmagic.com/podcast
- Instagram – @dollydelongeducation
- YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@dollydelong
