The Product Boss Podcast - Marketing School, Social Media, Ecommerce Sales Online Traffic, Women In Business Startup, Side Hu

Today, we’re interviewing some incredible product bosses who are handmade business makers and owners. Half the members in our community are makers, so we know that showcasing their success is something that can really inspire you to level up your business and your profits. We’re joined by Sarah Waggoner, Emily Gallardo, and Mindy Keegan – three of our Multi-Stream Machine students who’ve seen amazing results since signing up. Sarah is the product boss behind unique bottle and jar sellers, Heartland Lettering, Emily Gallardo is the owner and founder of EJ Clay Co who sell handmade clay earrings, and Mindy Keegan is the mama behind Made for Mama Shop who sell unique mugs designed to become a meaningful part of your life for years to come. More than just inspiring, their stories are packed with lessons to be learned for anyone, whether you’re just starting out or looking to take the next step forward. The one common factor between all three of them is that Multi-Stream Machine is what allowed

You have an incredible business, but if you’re relying on one platform or one main stream of revenue, you may find yourself in trouble in the future because we never know what the future will bring! What would you do if your main stream of revenue no longer existed? Or if the platform you rely on went down? Let's discuss how you can protect your business when you don't have control of the platforms you're selling on.If you’re relying on one platform, it doesn’t matter how established it is, you might find that something happens and suddenly you’re left without your key, or only, revenue stream. For instance, one of our Multi-Stream Machine and Mastermind students had three successful Etsy shops, but she accidentally used a word that was trademarked and Etsy shut down her shops and she had to start from scratch again.A second example comes from another one of our Multi-Stream Machine students who has her business on Etsy. A customer complained about her bestseller – the one product she built her entire busines

In this episode, we are bringing you the replay of Day 1 of our LIVE Best Seller Secrets Challenge. Today was all about Discovering Your Untapped Opportunities and writing down your 3 best sellers!Every day at 12 pm EST this week, we are going to teach you (for free) what to do to grow your business with ease and profit and HOW to lean into best sellers to put more money into your pocket as a profitable business. Over the course of the next four days, you will:Day 2: Create your best offers to take advantage of your best sellers.Day 3: Your Year-Round Plan: How to Make More Sales and Grow a Profitable Product-Based BusinessDay 4: Learn how to grow your business with EASE by tapping into timing of your best sellers strategy.Day 5: Discover how to AMPLIFY your best sellers and get the word out!Sounds amazing, right? There's still time to join us! When you sign up, you'll get access to the Facebook group where the live trainings are taking place, the workbook and a VIP exclusive audio experience with special bon

For the first time ever, we're so excited to announce our exclusive private podcast for the Best Seller Secrets Challenge! It's a VIP audio experience, so you can take the free 5-day challenge into your earbuds. It's only available for a limited time, so you'll be able to binge as we'll be dropping episodes during the Challenge straight from our LIVE trainings to the private podcast feed, along with bonus episodes that won't be anywhere else. So sign up for Best Seller Secrets Challenge and you'll get access to this exclusive audio experience.Go here to sign up: https://theproductboss.thrivecart.com/best-seller-secrets-challenge/

This is the thorn in the side of so many small business owners: how do you get customers to find you? A big business can grow quickly and easily because they have a budget to back up whatever they’re doing. But what about small businesses? There are several strategies you can use to boost your visibility at any level, so let’s discuss them.Trying to promote and market your business can be daunting – after all, many of you probably didn’t become a product boss because you wanted to spend all your time in lead acquisition. A lot of people think “sales,” but they forget to think “marketing.” And when you’re starting out, you need to make sure that people know about your business, otherwise you’re not going to be as successful as you deserve to be. People can’t buy something unless they know about it!We’re big fans of bootstrapping, which can take many forms. In pre-COVID times, it often meant going out on the road to conferences and trade shows, making sure you had an in-person presence at important places and e

There are a few things that come up again and again when we talk to makers. These mental roadblocks don’t serve any real purpose – they just get in the way! That’s why we’re dedicating this episode to taking some of them apart, explaining why you should stop listening to the nagging voices of doubt in your head, and why you’re a true product boss!A lot of you are makers because you’re creatives at heart. It makes sense: get so good at making things and it’d almost be silly not to start selling them. The problem is that so many of you run into this mental block as you try to build a business where you think, “I’m not a business person; I’m a creative!” It might seem strange at first, but there’s absolutely no reason why you can’t be both.Your customers don’t care who is actually making your products so long as the quality stays the same. Think about the products you buy and the brands you support. Would you be upset if you found out that the founder of the company wasn’t personally making each product themselv

It’s really easy to feel like you’re stuck on a hamster wheel. You’re busy – really busy. It’s not like you’re not working hard. You’re moving and doing all the things, but when you stop and look at your progress, it doesn’t seem like you’re actually getting anywhere. We all feel like this at some point after starting a business. It’s completely normal. You just need to learn how to get off the wheel and start taking steps forward. There are a few basic rules to remember that can completely turn your company's growth around. A lot of you are scared of change. But remember that that’s also normal. Change is a good thing and it’s what we want to achieve so that your business can grow.The first major tip we cover in this episode is the importance of needle movers. A needle mover is something that takes little effort but pays off with lots of return on investment (ROI). We like to focus on small things that either save time or earn money in the long run. One of the most common things people view as a needle

In this Small Biz Founder episodes, we’re highlighting the amazing work of Jenny Tse and her business, Sipping Streams Tea Company. She’s a certified tea specialist and Sipping Streams has won multiple prizes (including 1st place) at the North American Tea Championships. But how did she get there and how does she and her partner keep everything running?Jenny was born in Hong Kong and raised in Alaska where she was active in the local community, selling her family’s vegetables at the local farmers market. After traveling to visit various Chinese tea farms, she was inspired to share the knowledge with her local community. With restaurateur parents, and after pursuing two previous careers – one of which was as a high school teacher who taught tea classes – Jenny decided to open her own tea room. From there, the rest is history. Jenny published a book filled with her knowledge, has won multiple awards, and was invited to speak at the World Tea Expo. Just this summer, she started the world’s Northernmost tea

We tend to hear the same limitations over and over, specifically from our makers, which is why in today's episode, we want to make sure that you are thinking about things in a way that will benefit you and serve your business. Oftentimes we see this idea of the starving artist mentality in the maker community, either "you don't want to charge too much for something" or "maybe you don't find that there's value in it" or the most common one we hear is "it has to be made by me."As a handmade business, its really easy to allow this mentality to take over, but when it comes down to it, if you're getting stuck in the belief that other people can't do something the same way you can or people won't buy your product if it isn't made with your own two hands, then you'll eventually hit capacity and won't be able to scale. It's time to break some of these limitations down so that you can move forward with your business.The most common story we hear  is, “I have to make all of my products with my own two hands.” Mayb

We know time is finite. It’s one of the scariest things people think about when they start leveling up their businesses. “How will I find time for the other important things in my life?” We’re here to give you a secret. (You can use money to buy your time back!)A fear of success is completely normal and it’s something we’ve been talking a lot about on The Product Boss lately. There’s a reason for that! It’s very common. When we asked about it during our last Bosses and Breakfast, so many of you put your hands up. That shared experience has stuck with us.The big reason we find it so scary is the worry that your priorities will shift so dramatically toward your work obligations that you won’t have time for anything else in life – especially important things like family, socializing, and self-care.Think about pre-cut fruit and vegetables. Some of you may buy these in the supermarket already because you’ve decided your time is worth more than the few extra cents it costs to not have to chop them yourself. Running

Chances are, reaching $100k with your business is a lot more realistic than you think. You just need to start running things like a $100k business! Easier said than done, though, right? That’s why we’re laying out these five simple steps that can turn your business dreams into reality.The first step is simple: can you identify the product that works best in your lineup? The second is a little bit trickier, but still easy: are there any holes you can plug in your systems and processes? Where can you improve things? Once you do both of these, it’s all about upleveling your messaging, which can be as basic as making sure your product photography is on point. Last of all – and you’ll hear us talk about this again because we believe this is your true path to profit – leverage other people’s platforms. Collaborate, partner, and make use of services like Amazon and Etsy. This isn’t just about pointing you in the right direction. You’re going to come back to these easy steps, time and time again. Especially if,

The second Friday of every year is National Quitters’ Day. Why? Because it’s the day that, statistically, most people give up on their new year’s resolutions. Why is it so difficult to make the changes we really want in life? We know the obvious answers, but have you ever considered that maybe you’re scared of change – of success? Let’s really dive into what that means and what you can do about it.Let’s compare your business resolutions to a resolution that a lot of people make at the beginning of the year: trying to lose weight. Losing weight couldn’t possibly be scary, right? Well, for many people, it can! There’s the fear of committing to a new way of life, the fear that your lifestyle changes will make you feel less comfortable, and the fear of failure, all of which can contribute to you being afraid to make that change. Business resolutions are no different!Change is scary – especially when you are wanting to take that next step in your business to become successful. You may experience thoughts such as "

We often expect our customers to hit that “checkout” button without being prompted or convinced to do so. But that isn’t how people behave. They buy on desire, needs, and wants, and, as a product-based business owner, it's your responsibility to share with them the benefits that your products will bring to their life. Here’s how you can set yourself up for success with customers who are ready to buy.For starters, you need to consider the "tried and true" foundational method of marketing, which is... know, like, and trust. Better known as… the customer journey! So how can you start building your customer base? First, you’ll want to curate a healthy mailing list – popular advice in our space, but so many of you don’t use it enough! One email a week should be the minimum for most product businesses because, remember, most of those emails won’t be opened or read. Your subscribers are fans, so they’re on your side. You’re not going to upset them by sending too many emails. Instagram is another good option. It

Our female founder this week is Suzanne Godbold of Three Best Bakery and one of our Masterminders. She opened her bakery business just three months before the pandemic hit and pivoted her approach to secure a six-figure 2020! Suzanne decided to take the leap and turn her baking passion into a profession. Her products were flying off the shelves and tasted delicious, but she lacked the systems to scale long term. She ran out of ingredients every day and felt she couldn’t increase volume without sacrificing quality and brand authenticity. We reflect on our transformational first session with Suzanne and the importance of mindset. With a bit of mindset work, Suzanne built the confidence to double her prices, which contributed to her success and ability to take bigger steps in hiring resulting in her being able to make more room for creative control and growth.You can hear in her voice how her confidence is growing by the minute, and her sales are reflecting that mindset shift. She’s even created a soli

Welcome to 2022 – we made it! Now, it’s time to take stock of where our businesses are and map out where we want to take them over the next year. That’s why we’re bringing you The Product Boss’s Guide to Your Best Year Yet. To prepare, we spend this episode exploring how you can step into the role of boss in your business, now matter who you are or how you feel about being a leader. You might look at other people and wish you could be as forthright and self assured as they are. Rest assured, you can! It all comes down to confidence, and shifting your mindset about yourself and your business.For example, there’s no need to worry about how everyone perceives what you’re doing because you’re not here for everyone. Your business has its own customers and it appeals to its own demographic. Spending time trying to please everybody or over analyzing what other businesses in the same space might be doing can be a real waste of time. Do you! And remember to own it.To understand what that really means and more, li

Our female founder this week is Erin Port, the Founder of Simple Purposeful Living, and one of our Masterminders. She took her engaged readers as a blogger, and her informed background as a teacher, and created a product that would give her audience value.Erin represents another inspiring story of someone reformatting their own personal journey into easy-to-apply lessons that people can take and apply to improve their own lives.Like most of us, she’s had past businesses and brands that didn't work out, so she knows all about self-doubt. She candidly shares with us the thoughts she had before launching Simple Purposeful Living, and how an encouraging bedtime nudge from her husband lit a fire in her that’s yet to burn out.It’s moments like that that truly drive her. Her voice glows as she describes her family as her why, how launching the brand and driving to financial success was all meant to fund the adoption of her son, and so much more. It’s clear her heart is in the most beautiful place.We talk about her h

Happy new year! We’re really, really, really excited for the year ahead (knock on wood). We want this to be a very big year for your business, which is why now is the time to make sure you don’t have all our eggs in one basket, and that you’re prepared for anything that 2022 might throw at you.The best thing you can do to level up, and take your business further than ever before, is to make sure you have an amazing marketing strategy. But if there’s one thing the last year has taught us about marketing, it’s that you can’t rely on just one stream. Your marketing strategy needs to look more like a spider web than a straight line. Any one specific website or platform could go down without warning (remember the Facebook shutdown of 2021?!), or they might change their algorithms (yes, we’re looking at you Instagram) in a way that prevents you from getting the traction you’re used to or rely on for income. It’s time to stop betting it all on social media and focus on POP marketing, instead. Don’t just us

We believe it’s good to reintroduce yourself regularly, and often – especially when you’ve grown or evolved since your last introduction. So here we go again: we’re Jacqueline and Minna, nice to meet you!We kicked off the Product Boss podcast back in January of 2018. We all know a lot has changed since last week, let alone in the last four years. The same certainly applies to us as we’ve written a few new chapters in our own stories. So, we’re dedicating this episode to letting you know who we are, now, and what our journey has been as to how we ended up here.We all remember the first day of school; reintroducing yourself can feel weird. But, as you may remember, the more you do it, the easier it becomes! Reintroducing yourself is a great habit to build as it reinforces the story of your brand and product so that everyone knows who you are and what your business is all about.In a world where connections mean everything, don’t forget that offering a deeper understanding of yourself invites the same from others

If you’re like us and you’ve lost track of time through the pandemic, now is as good a time as any to reground and reset yourself to have your best year yet. 2021 has been a devastating year in many ways, but in purely business terms, some of you have seen some amazing profits. Either way, it’s time to start thinking about the new year ahead. Human beings need to reset and recalibrate every now and then, so let’s do just that as we step into 2022. Our top advice for 2022 is to level up… level yourself up! Whatever level you’re at, let’s kick things up a notch. It might seem daunting at first, but – trust us – you’ll look back in 2023 wondering why you didn’t take these steps earlier. Everything you do this next year should be with one thought on your mind: How am I going to take my business to the next level? And if that all sounds too lofty or unattainable, let’s focus in on one of the easiest, most tangible things you can actually do to make it a reality: invest. Don’t worry, we’re not asking you

In this episode, we are bringing back Kevlyn Walsh, founder of Festive Gal, who you may remember from episode 155 of our Pivot & Sell series back in May of 2020. We have had the honor of working with Kevlyn, for almost a year now, in our Mastermind program and she is going to share with us where her business is at now (hint: it's multiple six figures!)At the start of her journey, Kevlyn was a school teacher who knew she wanted to leave the the education field when her school went on strike in 2019. Since Festive Gal was making about the equivalent of her teacher's salary, she knew it was time to leave her old life behind to become a full-time entrepreneur. Now, Festive Gal brings in multiple six figures!Kevlyn’s major growth during the pandemic had her worried that her success was a total fluke and that it wouldn't last in 2021.  She was able to strategically implement and lean into some new things which has allowed her business to continue growing and scaling to new levels.As a result of these actio