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Tips & Talk 18 – Let Them Steal Your Stuff!
8th July 2021 • Gift Biz Unwrapped • Sue Monhait
00:00:00 00:14:51

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By keeping your business too close to your chest, you're limiting your ability to attract new customers, get new sales and expand your product line. Plus, it puts you in a position of management through paranoia. NOT a good feeling ever! I explain in today's show why this is not a good way to run your business and the only time it actually makes sense. Yes, there's always one exception to the rule. But OMG - once you truly get this, it's so freeing! CONNECT with me here: WebsiteFacebookInstagram SUBSCRIBE to the podcast: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify PAY IT FORWARD by leaving a rating and review. I'd love to hear your comments. Tell me how the show has helped you or a specific guest or point that had an impact. You can do that right here. Thanks for listening!

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Transcripts

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Hi there.

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It's Sue.

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And thanks for joining me for tips and talk day.

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These are bite-sized topics that I pull from community questions and

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things that I'm observing in the world of handmade small business.

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If you'd like to submit a topic,

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DME over on Instagram at gift biz unwrapped,

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Yes. Go ahead.

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Let them steal your stuff.

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People are so concerned that other people are going to figure

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out techniques,

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steal a design,

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copy, something that they're doing.

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And instead of going on and building their companies,

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they're limiting their ability to grow.

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So I say,

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go ahead.

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I want you to have the mindset that other people can

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steal your stuff.

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I'll hear people saying I'm not going to talk about my

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products. I'm not going to show anything behind the scenes that

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I'm doing.

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I don't want anybody to know because if they know they're

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going to totally copy my idea and my business won't grow,

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I won't have a business,

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but that very thinking of keeping everything so close to your

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chest is exactly why you won't grow.

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And let me explain this to you in three different ways

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that this affects your company and inhibits your ability to grow.

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If you're just starting out,

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or if you're already an existing business,

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you could probably reflect back.

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You have the idea of starting a business.

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You don't Know for sure if it's going to work or

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not. And it's scary,

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right? Getting started all the anxiety,

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all that mindset,

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all that fear comes up.

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And so what do a lot of people do?

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I'm not going to tell my friends or my family about

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this until later until it's up and running and I can

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tell them over coffee one day,

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oh yeah,

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I have this business.

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Now it's up and running.

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It's great.

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What's wrong with that.

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Your friends and family are the very ones who are going

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to support you and help you grow.

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If you're in this situation right now,

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where you're thinking about starting your business,

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I want you to tell your friends and family,

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when you actually open a business,

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go to your very first craft show,

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get your website up and running.

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These are the people who are going to be the most

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accepting. If something goes wrong,

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have people who are your friends or family place,

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a first order so that,

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you know,

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everything is working.

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Have people give feedback on your product?

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Is that class that you used on this shawl,

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not tight enough,

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should it be a little bigger?

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Is it difficult to wear?

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Because it's scratchy even,

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you know,

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whatever it is,

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all that feedback comes so much easier with people who are

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friends and family.

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When you're starting business,

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you don't want to keep it a secret from your friends

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and family,

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because they are the very ones that can help you really

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start to get traction,

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smooth out your system and get your business up and running.

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Now, when you are,

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we're open for business,

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then there's that fear of,

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you know,

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everyone's telling me to show behind the scenes,

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but if I show up the scenes,

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people are going to know how I actually put things together.

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Maybe they're going to find out some of my sourcing.

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If they see my production studio,

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then they're going to be able to create something just like

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that for themselves.

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And then they're going to steal my business.

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I don't want to talk about how I create the products.

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I don't want people to see my operations,

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but here's the thing.

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Here's why that is a fallacy.

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And that also inhibits your growth.

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When people are able to see the behind the scenes,

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they're also seeing how much it takes to run a business.

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Let's face it.

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Not everyone is cut out to do this entrepreneurial owning and

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running a business thing by far.

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And when you're able to show,

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walking into production studio this morning,

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here's how I get started before I start working on my

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pottery for the day or here's how I lay everything out

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so that these decorated cookies are all ready for.

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When my employees show up to do the decorating,

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the frosting,

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most people aren't going to do that.

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But they're curious.

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And what you're doing is you're helping develop a level of

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interest in your business so that people feel like they know

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you. They trust you.

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And that behind the scenes deepens the relationship that you have.

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Even if you don't know some of the people who are

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following you or watching you on social,

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reading your blogs,

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coming to look at your website,

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they feel like they know you better because you're giving them

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a peek behind the scenes of you.

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So instead of keeping everything buttoned down where nobody gets to

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see the behind the scenes,

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what you're doing is you're actually inhibiting the ability for people

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to know you develop a relationship with you and want to

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buy from you feel comfortable enough to be able to buy

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from you.

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There's another thing that happens in social that makes me absolutely

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crazy. And I guess now would be a good time for

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me to bring this up to Instagram private accounts.

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When I see new people following me on Instagram,

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one of the things that I'll do is look over into

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their account and see,

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Hey, is this somebody that I want to connect up with

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too? So that I have a relationship with them in the

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future. I can see what they're doing.

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Are they in alignment with the handmade product industry?

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But I would say,

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I'm not even kidding you.

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Probably 50% of the accounts that I go look at are

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private. How many people are those accounts missing?

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And I'm sorry if you're one of them change off private,

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unless you have a really,

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really good reason.

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And aren't looking to attract business,

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change your account to be not private so that we can

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see you because no,

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one's going to follow you if it's private.

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And if you're worried that people are going to steal your

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stuff, or if you're posting things that aren't for business eyes,

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then make a separate account.

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You know,

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on Instagram,

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all you do is you connect up accounts via emails,

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right? So just create another free Google email account,

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have one for your business.

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And one for private,

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if that's the reason why you're private,

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okay. Enough of that,

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the other way,

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that being so fearful about sharing,

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what you do is limiting you is it's also limiting your

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ability to expand your product line.

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One of the things we all know with being handmade products

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is if you're the one that's making your product and you

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don't have outside employees right now,

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then you're limited in how many products that you can make.

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And there are many people who don't want to hire a

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staff, but they also want to make more than they're making

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now in terms of income.

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So one way that you can do that is expand the

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products that you present out to the market.

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One way to do this.

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And something that you can consider is an online tutorial or

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direction kit of how you create one of your products.

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And if you're so worried that people are going to share

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what you're already doing,

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you can never take that next step.

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Another part under product expansion,

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which I'm seeing a lot of people doing right now is

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online classes or in-person classes,

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teaching a very basic product that is in alignment with the

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main product that they sell.

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So let's say it's art.

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You've seen these stores open up around us,

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where you can go in and you can have some wine,

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you know,

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sip and draw type things or classes that are done at

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Michael's or Joann's where you can go in and learn how

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to make whatever's being offered that day.

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Well, we could put on those classes too and make additional

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money teaching classes either online or in person.

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And I get kicked back when I suggest this sometimes with

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some of my coaching students,

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because they'll say,

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why would I want to teach somebody what I'm selling?

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Because then they don't need to buy the products for me.

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Here's the real truth behind that?

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Most of the time,

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when you are going to do some type of an online

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tutorial, you're attracting a completely different an audience than people who

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would actually devious,

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analyze what you're making and start a business out of it.

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They're not interested in doing that.

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You're going to attract a whole different audience than people who

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want to come in and learn a little bit of the

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basics as a form of entertainment,

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totally different person than the people who are going to come

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and buy your products directly from your site.

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So you're able to expand your audience reach when you offer

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different types of options around your product,

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you have online products to sell or things that you can

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sell in the craft shows.

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And then also,

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by the way,

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for those of you who are interested in trying your hand

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at this candle,

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making soap,

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making, join me in my classes,

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and we can do this together.

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I'll show you how it's done to different audiences.

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So you're able to gain new customers who are interested in

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a different thing.

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The other thing that happens when you do these online classes

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is you'll see that they will recognize nice that making the

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product, which they thought could be so simple,

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actually takes more skill and talent and time than they would

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want to invest on a regular basis.

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So take candles for me,

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adding the scent,

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mixing it up,

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pouring candles,

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letting it cure all the things that you need to do.

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Not to mention that I wouldn't have the wax,

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the wicks,

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the containers,

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or any of the tools immediately on hand.

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It will be fun to do at one time,

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but then I'm done over.

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I'm not doing it anymore.

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I would much rather buy it from somebody.

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And I appreciate it even more because I understand now what

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goes into making it so they get hands on understanding of

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the depth of experience and skill that you need in making

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your product.

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And, you know,

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maybe they'll make their own in a simplified manner,

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but the more advanced ones sense,

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the larger ones you're special jars made with your special he'll

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touch. Those still need to be purchased from you.

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I'm going to summarize here.

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Here's how you're limiting your business.

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If you're so afraid that people are going to steal your

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stuff. When you're starting shit,

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they're with friends and family,

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they're going to be your first loyal.

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Porter's second.

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As your businesses open,

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don't be afraid of showing what you do with the process

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of your business,

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behind the scenes.

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Some of the designing that you're doing,

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because it's going to endear your customers to you,

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where they're going to develop a relationship and they're going to

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want to support you.

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And then as you're ready to expand your product line,

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consider adding classes,

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either online tutorials,

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online live classes,

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face-to-face classes,

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because this is a way that you can bring in more

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income. It's a different stream of income into your business that

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you're not doing with just selling your products,

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worst case.

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And this is what everyone fears.

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Someone copies you,

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you have a certain way that you design the tops of

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your soaps with lavender,

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or you add in like,

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like an embossing or whatever it is that makes your soap

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special. Someone sees it and integrates,

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let's say exactly the same thing into their product.

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Guess what?

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They still cannot totally copy you.

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Nobody can be exactly you in terms of the personality that

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you bring forward,

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the way you do your packaging.

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If you do handmade notes,

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whatever else you do that people wouldn't see if they're just

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seeing you online and then how you speak,

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how you show up.

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Even if I gave you the exact script.

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If you read word for word,

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what I've just said,

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it would still come across differently than the way I come

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across. This is the same thing with your business.

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No buddy can copy exactly what you do.

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Now. Having said all of that,

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I do have one exception because there's always an exception to

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the rule.

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And that is if you're an inventor,

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meaning you've envisioned specked out,

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designed and created a brand new product.

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This is a product that then could be patented.

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Then I wouldn't share it until you have the proper protection

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in place.

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So this is the only exception that I have.

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And most people who are doing this are having this mass

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produced in a factory for the most part.

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So for 99% of the people here,

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that is not the case because we're specializing in handmade products,

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but this would be one exception to the rule.

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Really the reason and the importance,

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why I bring this up is to adjust your mindset on

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this idea,

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that if I show people what I'm doing,

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people are going to steal it.

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So I want you to stop that mindset and go the

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totally opposite direction and say,

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okay, go for it,

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steal my stuff.

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Because truthfully,

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this is just a fallacy that we're telling ourselves.

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And when you recognize this,

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it's so freeing,

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because then you understand that what you've been telling yourself is

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not the case.

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And you can become open and generous in sharing what you

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do with your products.

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And what's going to return to you is audience growth and

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sales, because there's absolutely only one.

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You, if you are limiting yourself,

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because you've got this message in your mind that people are

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going to steal my ideas,

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they're going to take and copy what I have to offer.

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This is us talking to ourselves and putting up barriers that

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prevent us from going after our dreams.

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So don't do that to yourself.

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Let them steal your stuff.

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That's a wrap.

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I'm a get to the point kind of girl.

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And this is what you can expect from these quick midweek

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sessions. Now it's your turn.

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Go out and fulfill that dream of yours.

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Share your handmade products with us.

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We want them,

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