Brian Basilico — June 26, 2017 — June 26, 2017
Secrets?
Let me ask you a question. Are you satisfied with your business? Do you feel that you’re achieving as much as you possibly can? Are you making as much money as you want to? Do you know what that number is? I do, and I can give you some examples as we go through this as to how I know. I’m not going to give you numbers, but I’m going to tell you how I know how to get to that point. What we’re going to discuss today is the Five Hidden Secrets of Business Success. Now, are they really hidden? No, they’re not hidden. What’s hidden is the sequence in which you need to follow them, because chances are you’re probably doing a lot of them. The question is, are you doing them in the sequence that’s going to make the biggest difference for you and your business?
Systems
Let’s start out with the first one, which I call systems. Do you have systems in place that you use? A system is a repeatable set of steps that you can do over and over and over again. My podcast is part of a system, my blog is part of a system, but it all falls into place. I have courses about productivity, about Google Analytics. Those are all parts of the system. Do you have a system in place? Now I use a system, and I’ve worked this system for years. I also learned a lot from hiring coaches to get this system in place. I tried it on my own and then I was able to work with clients, and show them how to do it. It eventually became my mastermind, called the Bacon System, which is a 12-week course that I teach. It is expanded into a system for LinkedIn, and I can constantly do this over and over and over again. However, I invested in figuring out how to do this, so let me tell you the next steps that are necessary to make all this stuff work.
Networking
The second piece of the puzzle other than creating a system — we’ll come back to systems at the end — is networking. That involves getting out and meeting people face-to-face where they are. Now, there are a lot of different philosophies about networking, but the thing I’m going to tell you is that networking is not about finding clients. It’s about finding people that you can help and stay top of mind, so are you getting out locally, nationally, going to conferences, doing something where you’re meeting people who are influencers or people that could potentially recommend you to somebody else. The thing is, you have to go into it with a servant leader’s heart.
You have to go in saying, “I’m going to network to see if I can find people who I can help through all of the contacts that I have built up.” So you have a Rolodex (old term) of your contacts on your iPhone so that when somebody needs something, you can provide them a connection, or you make a connection via email or LinkedIn or something like that. The concept of networking is getting that face-to-face time so you become top of mind, and letting people know that you’re there to help them and not necessarily sell them what you’ve got. That’s the first piece, is getting out and meeting people, and finding ways to connect and build relationships – that’s what it’s all about. It’s not about selling people stuff. It’s about creating relationships.
I have a current client that I’m working with who is a coaching client. Somebody sent her a direct message today, asked to connect, and immediately said, “Hey, I’m a coach and I can help you do your brand and all this other stuff.” She says, “Do you know this guy?” I didn’t know him from Adam, but he connected up with her and sold her within 10 seconds. He tried, but it didn’t work because he never established a relationship. It’s just somebody trying to sell something, and networking is not about selling. It’s about helping and trust me, on social media if you just post and run, if you sell and run, the chances of success are pretty slim. You might get some people to buy into it, but very few.
Follow-Up
The third piece is following up. When you go to meetings, what do you normally do? You collect business cards, right? Okay, so the thing here is, don’t try to sell them anything. Say to them, “Hey, it was nice meeting you. Let me know how I can help you.” Do that follow up. Invite them to join your email list, to listen to your podcast, to read your blogs, whatever it is that you’re doing. If you’re not doing any of those things, part of my Bacon System is how to set all of that stuff up. You’ve really got to go out and follow up with these people, and say, “Nice to meet you. How can I help you? And follow me on all these different things” if you have those things for them to follow you on. That’s part of the system, is creating tools where people can continually follow up. Maybe it’s Facebook. Maybe it’s LinkedIn. It doesn’t matter, but use that follow up to continue the relationships.
Content Marketing
The next thing is content marketing. I am huge in the content marketing and that’s what the Bacon System is all about: creating great content that provides that servant leadership style influence that also is used to build upon the networking that you’ve done, so you can see how all of this stuff builds upon itself. The content marketing is used as additional follow up from the networking and it’s part of the system that I have created, and that other people have created and literally grown their businesses beyond their wildest dreams. Now I’m not talking about the kind of stuff where, you know, people go from a thousand dollars to a million dollars. I’m talking about people that have doubled, maybe even tripled or quadrupled their business because they followed all of the things that I’ve shared, and this is what’s in the Bacon System. It’s creating the system, the networking, the follow up, and using content marketing as part of that follow-up system.
Coaching
The final thing that I want to talk about is coaching. I always say that every doctor needs a doctor, every mentor needs a mentor, every coach needs a coach, and so I have invested in the last three years thousands of dollars in learning skills or overcoming mindset issues with various coaches. All I could tell you is it has helped me incrementally grow my business to the point where it’s going to explode this year. I’m really excited at where I’m at this June, and that this is going to be the best year I’ve ever had because I was willing to listen to somebody else and get outside of my own box. As business owners, sometimes we cannot see the forest from the trees, so I suggest that you invest in some coaching. The coaching is what got me through these five steps.
Time To Take Action
I’ve learned how to do systems better, and I’ve learned how to network better. I actually get out and give speeches, and those speeches are part of the networking in getting to meet influencers who I get on my podcast, so when you hear these expert interviews, chances are I’ve met them at a conference live. I do lots of follow up on Facebook, on LinkedIn. If I can’t do it in person, at least I’m connecting with them and I’ve got the tools to be able to do that. I use content marketing to drive them back to my website to generate more business and I use coaching to grow myself.
I would love to hear your stories, thoughts, and comments on this subject. Comment below and share if you have developed a strategy or system that has helped you grow your business!
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