Enroll Clients on Repeat with this Proven Strategy w/ Michelle Vroom

Courtney Elmer  0:00  

What's up, this is the AntiFragile Entrepreneurship™ podcast, and I’m Courtney Elmer. It's Episode 98 where we’re talking about effective marketing and business growth strategies through social media. I'm glad you're here today because today's special guest is going to hand you her repeatable process for finding, qualifying and enrolling new clients. And, she's going to show you how to position yourself as the go to experts online for them, so that you can increase your conversion rates into your courses and programs, and do it authentically. That's all coming up next. So stay tuned. 

Courtney Elmer 1:58

As a small business owner, I wear many hats and burnout can be very real, especially when it comes to marketing and different business growth strategies. . But this episode gave me ideas on how to implement some best practices to keep growing while being efficient and effective. I believe Alex is referring to Episode 97 with Angela Henderson, where we talk about the difference between stress and burnout and why understanding this difference is so important for you as a small business owner. So Alex, thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review. 

Courtney Elmer  2:27  

Now listen, I'll be completely honest with you here, not that I'm ever not honest. But total transparency, one of the biggest struggles in my own business through the years, has been generating consistent lead flow. And there was a time in my business where I wanted to burn everything to the ground. Because sales were so difficult to make. It wasn't because I wasn't good on a sales call. I could close people all day long. But the problem was consistent lead flow, I didn't always have people to jump on sales calls with me. And I certainly didn't want to be live launching all the time. That was just a huge energy drain for me. 

Courtney Elmer 3:20

And it's just been one of those things where until recently, I really haven't had a viable system in place for generating consistent leads. So that was why I was very excited when Michelle, my special guest today, reached out about sharing her repeatable process for finding and enrolling new clients with you here on the show. Now, Michelle has over 15 years of digital marketing and PR experience. And she has transferred that now to running her own business and helping other small business owners grow to six figures, with her proven methods for visibility, and most importantly, for relationship building. 

And today, she is here to show you the number one secret to standing out from a crowd online, namely, marketing and different business growth strategies. And she's got a very simple step by step process for growing your audience organically and enrolling them into your programs and courses. This was such a delightful interview to record because even for me, this is one system in our business that we are still tinkering with. And that's the thing about systems and here's what I want you to understand when it comes to systems. They're meant to grow with you. They are meant to change and grow as you do. I used to think that systems had to be this cut and dry set in stone thing where you get the system up and running and then boom, you don't have to ever touch it again. That couldn't be further from the truth. systems are designed to support you in doing the work you do best. Sometimes those systems are going to have to change drastically over time as you grow. 

That's a good thing, because it's a signal and an indicator of your growth. So as I mentioned, getting consistent lead flow, and getting that operating like a well oiled machine and our business is still a work in progress. We are still tinkering with that. And we are still figuring that out. I learned so much from Michelle today, and I'm excited for you to hear from her too. And I think the thing that you are going to love the most, because I know I did, is how sincere she is, you are not going to find any sleazy or offhanded marketing tactics here. This is just a straight up sincere approach that when done consistently is going to help you find new best fit clients, and enroll them as new customers and students without much effort on your part. Michelle Vroom, welcome to the AntiFragile Entrepreneurship™ podcast, I'm really excited to have you here today to discuss marketing and different business growth strategies. 

Michelle Vroom  5:47  

Thank you for having me, I'm pumped to have this conversation on marketing and different business growth strategies. 

Courtney Elmer  5:51  

You know, whenever I first saw and I you know, of course, we've got our guests on the show that apply to be on the show, and always feel like checking out their website and their Instagram and like to see what they're up to in the world. And what I love about you is not only your background in marketing and in PR and the experience that you've had in helping businesses grow, but how you've taken that now and applied everything that you know, from that world to the small business world, in really helping entrepreneurs apply those same kind of principles and systems and processes for success in their business to help them get to that six figure mark. And then of course beyond. Because no matter where you are in business, you know, we all have those financial goals we want to hit. 

Courtney Elmer 6:10

And sometimes we're just not really, we can't really see the forest through the trees, . Or however that saying goes because you get so muddy, we get so in the weeds of trying to get leads and trying to close clients and not really maybe having clear systems or processes in place for either one or whatever systems we might have. Maybe we know they aren't functioning as well as they could be. So I'd love to dig in with you. And talk about that because you have a repeatable process for getting clients. So let's start there. Tell us more about marketing and different business growth strategies. 

Michelle Vroom  7:01  

Yeah, absolutely. I think a lot of this stems from my days in PR as well in public relations and just learning how to stand out from a crowd so that you get your cut of your story covered by the media and like crafting subject lines to capture attention. And like all of that stuff has been really transferable to helping entrepreneurs stand out online, which is really the focus. So a lot of what I do and and I'll start here, because I think this is an important starting point for your listeners, you know, the basis for my repeatable system to getting clients is having my own audience. So for me, that looks like a Facebook group. 

Michelle Vroom, 8:00

For you know, your listeners, it might look like a lot of different things. The point is, I have my own hub, if you will, virtual hub virtual party that I am, you know, continuously curating, meaning new leads are flowing in. I'm building relationships and pre-selling those people, and then selling them into working with me and marketing and different business growth strategies. And because I have that audience, it creates the basis and the foundation for a system that is repeatable. And so I want to just start off with that, because I think that there are a lot of people out there, you know, making marketing way more complicated than it has to be like any good system is at its core simple.

Courtney Elmer  9:05  

Because this is something I think, a guess I'm glad you started here because this is the foundation to marketing and different business growth strategies. And I would imagine for those listening  now that might be struggling on the lead gen side of their business. 

Michelle Vroom  9:31  

Yes. So that's the first system. How do you get them in there? So you've got this hub, you first have to determine, what is the hub, who went where are you spending time, what platform is ? And then once you have that that direction, then it's about okay, how do I get those people in because you're you know, whether you have a Facebook group or an Instagram or email marketing, like whatever, whatever email list, whatever your hub is, it's useless if you're not bringing people in in the first place. And so, a lot of people make this really, really complicated. And I want to offer a simple system for you to go to where your people are. So where are your people? Where are the people that you are trying to target? What is your marketing strategy? What business growth strategies will use you? 

Chances are, they're in multiple places. And so for me, I discovered that my people were hanging out in other Facebook groups, I think that's probably going to be the case for a lot of your listeners. And so I needed to have a system because I don't want to fall down the Facebook rabbit hole where you spend, like, you know, you think you're going on for like a half an hour. And then next thing, you know, four hours have passed, like, I don't want people falling down that trap. And so for me going into other groups and creating a system to be able to make connections that then you know, lead to those people coming into my world like that is how I built a six figure business. 

And so one of the ways that I teach my clients to do this is really just getting focused on two to three core groups. So this may involve some testing and refining. You know, I typically recommend that people join a lot of different groups at first, knowing that they're going to whittle those down, they're not going to try to keep up with 1020 different Facebook groups, ? So really getting clear on Okay, where are the people that I'm looking for? Like, where are they searching for information on their problem and their challenge? Like, what's their motivation for being in that Facebook group, and then identifying which groups are sending you the best leads, like which groups have, you know, a good majority of their members, fitting the bill of your dream client, ? 

So picking two or three really allows you to be able to go into those groups and have a deeper, richer conversation. Because when you're trying to keep up with 10, or 12, different groups, it's like you're dipping in and out, but you can't, you're not making the most of your time, you're not using your time efficiently. And so I highly recommend that you start with two or three groups that you are going to commit to going into every single day. And when I say every single day, people freak out, they start sweating. They're like, wait, I have to be present all the time. 

No, you don't have to be present all the time. What you do need to do is devote time each day to doing it. And so for me, that looks like 60 minutes a day, I set a timer. I literally have a timer on my phone set so that I don't lose track of time. And I go into my top groups, and I search for keywords, meaning what are people searching for? ? Like if you think about your ideal client, what keywords are they using to describe their problem? It's probably not in some cases, the words that you're using to describe the problem. So for me, like, a lot of people don't know they have a marketing problem, ? They don't always know they have a lead generation problem. They have a problem because they want more clients, ? 

Courtney Elmer  13:12  

This is so simple, as you said, , that good systems don't have to be complicated. I think we have a tendency to overcomplicate because we think that earning success, or having success has to be hard, it has to be a struggle. Oh, and it doesn't, it doesn't. And so what you're describing here is an hour a day, going into these two to three core groups that you've identified. And this is where the best leads are coming from of those that have come to me, you know, and have kind of entered into my world and looking for what came to mind was like the problems under the problems, ? Like you said, yeah, they might be saying I'm having trouble getting clients and no one's converting all my sales calls. 

Well, it might not. That might be a sales call problem. But it could also be a marketing problem. Maybe you are not attracting the  leads, ? Maybe they're not qualified or you're not qualifying them somehow. so and so. Okay, my next question for you then is this, which is when you see that post, and you're like, okay, this person is someone who I could potentially help. How do you enter that marketing conversation? What other business growth strategies will you use?

Michelle Vroom  14:09  

Like a human, and this is going to sound like I can hear people chuckling ? This is going to sound so basic, but so few people do it. Because we're motivated by what we want, ? What we want the outcome to be. And so your motivation has to be on the other person, it has to be to serve them without any attachment to whether they join your world or sign on as a client or whatever the goal is, ? 

Courtney Elmer  15:53  

as well, just to just re-emphasize that because I think we've all been on the receiving end of the piano that throws us the stuff, ? Like when you've gone to a Facebook group, and I've had this experience. So I've gone and I've asked a question. And when you think about where you are in that space, when you're in a space of confusion, or without clarity, are you feeling stuck  in, you're just a problem circling in your mind? And so this is kind of where you're asking the question from, and then all of a sudden, everyone's in there. And like you said, everyone's kind of self interested, ? Because that's our tendency. 

 This is just making it harder for me to figure out what I need. And it just feels overwhelming. And so you tend to discredit, disqualify, and essentially shut out those people who are just kind of throwing this stuff at you. And so your approach there, and the two words that jumped out at me were empathy, and understanding and approaching it from that perspective. And looking at that person as if they were already your client, what would you say to them? What would you say in your marketing and different business growth strategies?

Michelle Vroom  17:27  

You're developing that rapport with marketing and different business growth strategies. And so from there, , it's about doing the two things that I just mentioned, showing empathy, you know, coming from that place of just serving them as if they were already a client. 

Michelle Vroom 18:24

So you have to make sure that you are aware of every single group's promo rules, you know, some groups are stricter than others. So this isn't just a like template, take it, it works the same for every single group. But a lot of the promo rules are in place to prevent like unsolicited link dropping, meaning people just going into a Facebook group, dropping a random link and leaving  not participating. 

Michelle Vroom 18:45

What you've done so far is you have shown empathy and offered a valuable tip for this person. And so it's completely appropriate to say, Hey, listen, I've got a Facebook group where I share more details about this. Would you like the link to join? Now, if a group allows it, if they're a less strict group, you can put the link  there? If they say yes, you're doing permission based marketing and business growth strategies, which is powerful, ? You're asking them for permission. First, you're not just dropping, dropping a link that goes a long way with people. 

Michelle Vroom 19:45

If some of the group is really, really strict, and it won't even allow that. And sometimes you find out just by testing, and drawing and maybe getting your hand slapped, it's fine and happens to all of us. But if a group is stricter than you could simply say, like, if they say yes, then okay, cool. 

Michelle Vroom 20:01

Here's the link. And I have had all of the lurkers meaning that people who are quiet but have the same question but are too afraid to post, there are a lot of those inside of these Facebook groups, those people join as well. So it's not just me sharing the link with one person and having one person at a time. join my group. It's multiple people, just from one comment, one interaction, that's the power of this, you know, it's an organic strategy, meaning it's not going to be an overnight process. But if you can commit to doing this consistently, for 60 minutes a day, like, think about the power of that, , you're showing up and it's relevant, it's personalized to that individual. That is what works in marketing and different business growth strategies.

Courtney Elmer  20:43  

Yes, that consistency, I think this is the thing that people get on the struggle bus with, it's like, Okay, I'll do it. And I did it for two days, and then something came up, and then I'm just not going to do it anymore. Because I can't be consistent with it's like, no, just get back to it, you know, don't give up altogether. And just because you missed a day, you know, and I think we all have a tendency to do that. It's kind of like when you're dieting, , and then you go off the rails on the weekends. And you're like, well, what's the point? It's just you kind of giving up altogether? 

Michelle Vroom  21:15  

This is a reoccurring, I block it off as if it were a client call. So even if there are days where I don't want to do it, and there are  days where I'm like, I don't feel like showing up for whatever reason, it's on my calendar, , the system is already in place. Like I think that's a big part of how systems have supported me and my business is because they remove the emotional component, ? 

Courtney Elmer  21:58  

And you know, what else I love about this method, too, is that, so let's say, you know, You've nurtured them through that little conversation back and forth in the comments, you've dropped the link, of course, pending the group rules, and then the lurker see it ? And that's an evergreen post, unless that post ever gets taken down. 

Other people who join that group in the future searching for answers to their questions about the same problem, have the opportunity to see that post, go through the comments, see the help that you've already provided, and then click that link. So that's what's so cool about this and what you're describing. You know, a lot of times, it's easy to think that our efforts on social media are very short lived, and some of them are, they do have a very short life cycle, you know, in terms of maybe an Instagram post, but something like this has a much longer life cycle. 

Michelle Vroom  23:01  

1,000%. And even if it's a strict group, where you know, you aren't able to put the actual link there, I guarantee you because I've seen this time and time again, with myself and my clients that there are going to be people who think that what you offered is so valuable. They're like, wow, she was a real human being. 

Courtney Elmer  23:47  

And for you listening, imagine you being that person for someone else. I mean, how valuable would that be? With whatever? He says, yes. Okay. So Michelle, take us to the next step. And now they're in your group, they're in your world. And let's talk about next steps from there. How do you continue to nurture that relationship? How are you going to improve your marketing and business growth strategies?

Michelle Vroom  24:05  

So I want to emphasize that this is the beginning of your relationship with them, not the end. I think for a lot of people they view you know, someone joining their community as Okay, got them in and got another number. Now I'm, you know, on to get more. And while you want to continually grow your community using what I just shared, you also want to have the perspective that like, this is the beginning of the relationship that I get to build with them. And if you can have that perspective, I think that it is just number one, you know, gives you so much gratitude for every single person who joins your world. I think sometimes we get so caught up in numbers that we forget to do that. 

And then number two, it sets the foundation for the relationship and for the pre-selling piece, which is really the next step here. You know, they've joined your world, they liked what you had to say. But that doesn't mean that you're entitled to having them sign on as a client. 

Michelle Vroom 25:00

And how do you do that in a couple of ways. Okay, so there's a couple of things that I do to pre sell the people inside of my Facebook group. Number one, I share client testimonials, ? Once a month, we have a client tell all where we've got our clients popping in our Facebook group, my client success manager interviews them. And so people are getting, you know, get to see that behind the scenes look at how we serve our clients, okay. And that's a system that we have in place, like every month, she's going to do a live, she's going to do a clientele. All , she chooses the client, she maps it out, like it's a system at this point that we have in place, okay, and I don't, you know, if you don't have a team, like you can still create the system. 

And then it's something that you can pass off to your team, which is, which is great. So client testimonials, client stories, for sure. I also have what I refer to as like thought shifting content. So it's not content that's just designed to get engagement, engagement really, at the end of the day does not play as big of a role as you think, when your content shifts people's perspective about their problem and why they're having it and then positions you as a solution. That is what you know, creates demand, , which is what pre-selling, marketing and different business growth strategies are.. 

And so we have an entire Google doc of content that I have written in the past, that pre-sells , like pre-sold content. And so my team can take that content, they put it into clickup, we have a social media calendar, they compile a week's worth of pre selling content, they put it into clickup. And that's how it gets scheduled inside of the Facebook group. And so people are always like, you're showing up all the time. You're posting all the time? No, I'm not like we're reusing content all the time. 

Courtney Elmer  27:49  

So I want to circle back to content recycling, because I had a question about that. So first of all, it's such a smart idea, because you're going to be getting new people in all the time who haven't seen that old content, but who that content could be very relevant for so why not reuse it or repurpose it? And then of course, I know that little voice always comes like, but what about for the people who've already seen it, they're going to think that I'm just like, I don't care because I'm recycling content, ? Or whatever the little voice might be saying to you. So do you have a system in place in terms of like, how long you wait, before you recycle stuff in your marketing and your business growth strategies?

Michelle Vroom  28:31  

You know, by the time we go through and recycle things, it's usually about 60 to 90 days, which is good, because it's like enough time for even the people who saw it to like, forget they saw it. And even if they remember, I've had people come up to me and say, Michelle Vroom, I read this post, you know, back when you first posted it, but for whatever reason, I'm seeing it again, and it's hitting me differently, like something else is coming up, like people need to see and hear things, the same messages, at least 10 to 12 different times before they buy. And people underestimate that, ? They think that it's like, well, they're all they only need to see it once and if they don't buy then they're not going to buy regardless of your marketing and different business growth strategies. 

Courtney Elmer  29:23  

Yes. Think about it this way. It's like a book that you might have read a year ago or two years ago, you realize oh, wait, that was on my bookshelf. Yeah, I need to read that again. And you read it again. And it is totally a totally different book. It's a totally different race. Yes.

And I know some people struggle with doing that. But really, when you do it in a sincere way, you know, you're doing it in a way that celebrates your client. It has nothing to do with you and your ego. . You know, I mean, yeah, it feels good that you helped this person get that win, but at the same time, that person did the work, they earned the win. And so you are celebrating them and sharing that thought shift  there can help you know, if you were someone listening who struggles with kind of sharing these testimonials that you've gotten, or even asking for testimonials to be able to share. 

Courtney Elmer 29:50

And then the thought shifting content, this is a huge one. This is a huge one, I coach, my mastermind students all this and I say everything you will ever do in business is shifting people's beliefs. It doesn't matter what you teach, it doesn't matter what you do. It's helping people shift their beliefs about that thing, and helping them shift their perspective. And that is so powerful. And you know, I think often, and I would love for you to speak to this a little bit, if you would people think that their content has to be how to content. But in a Facebook group or on an email list, they're not in a program yet. And so technically, they are still at the top of your funnel. And so I always say keep your stuff behind a paywall, but you need to be telling them what to do and why. 

Michelle Vroom  30:56  

I would totally agree with the why and the what's possible. . Like they have to believe that it's possible, like whatever that desired transformation is, they need to have some form of belief that it's possible to do the work and take the How to action steps, . It's like if you give them the How to action steps before, you know shifting their thoughts and their beliefs, it's going to come up empty. Like that's not the best way to serve those people, given where they're at in the journey. Yes.

Courtney Elmer  31:23  

And I really liked what you said too, about getting personal with them and tracking what their specific problem is that they've come to you for help with. And then tagging them with the  resources and sending those to them. And not just being like, you know, this blanket approach. Everybody gets the same stuff. You know, it's like, no, this is what you came to me for. This is how I can help you with this. Go read this post, go listen to this episode, wherever that might be.

Michelle Vroom  31:47  

Exactly. We do that once a week when we welcome new members, we also send them personal messages. And you know, ask that question. Not everybody gets back to us. But the ones who do are like, Wow, thank you. Yeah, you know, it's like, oh, there's some personalization here. Like I wasn't expecting that. And it's almost like the surprise and delight factor. And so it's what keeps them coming back. And what keeps us top of mind for them in our marketing.

Courtney Elmer  32:11  

Yes. And this, you know, we talk about a deliverability system having that, and often when we talk about it, and when I'm teaching our mastermind students, we're talking about it in terms of how they're delivering their programs or their products, services, things of that sort. But the truth is, you're always delivering, you're always delivering. And so you're delivering at the top of your funnel you're delivering at the middle you're delivering at the end. 

So it's your client's experience view, and what are those little wow factors, like sending a personal message like that, that makes them stop and go, this is different. She's different. This is totally totally different from what I've experienced. Okay, I'm impressed. I'm paying attention, Michelle Vroom. 

So I have one final question that I ask every guest who comes on the show? It's my favorite question to ask because the answers are never the same. And it's so cool to see everyone's perspective on this, so I'm just curious to hear your take. What does it mean to you to live an EffortLESS Life®?

Michelle Vroom  33:00  

To me, it's prioritizing the important things, The non negotiables, the things that matter. So for me, taking every Friday off to be with my kids. I really like prioritizing that family time, especially given the stage of life that we're in. It’s also leaning into what I do well and letting go of the desire to have to be perfect or improve all of my weaknesses. 

Courtney Elmer  33:51  

I mean, whenever you are doing what you have been created to do, it is effortless. There's no other way to say it. So I love that. And yes, prioritizing the important things is easier said than done. But when you make a habit when you make those shifts, and you actually are able to start doing things, it's amazing. It's amazing what opens up for you when your needs are being met. And I mean, if you have been a longtime listener, you've heard me say this before, but if you're not prioritizing your needs as a visionary leader of your business, your business cannot thrive. Because it can't thrive without you. It can't grow without you. So if you're not growing and thriving, how can you expect your business to be exactly awesome, 

Michelle Vroom, this was such a great conversation on marketing and business growth strategies. Thank you so much for all that you shared here super valuable, and would you leave our listeners with where they can find you online and connect with you and learn from you on marketing and different business growth strategies?

Michelle Vroom  34:43  

Yes, my Facebook group is the best place to connect with me. It's the best place to get more details regarding some of the things that I've talked about today. The Facebook group is called Market Like a Boss, so definitely find me there. I'm also on Instagram @marketlikeabossmv I also have a podcast called Market Like a Boss.

Courtney Elmer  35:38  

I hope that you enjoyed Michelle Vroom's interview on marketing and business growth strategies as much as I did. This was a fun one to record. And I feel like I was sitting there taking notes for my own business as well, things that we could tweak and implement along the way. 

Now, one quick implementation tip, whenever it comes to putting something new into practice, in order to reduce that feeling of overwhelm that may come up, what I want you to do is start practicing giving yourself a definite time frame and then evaluate. So for example, Michelle shared so many things that you could walk away from this episode, and go apply to your business today. The problem is, if you were to try to put all of them into place today, you would immediately feel overwhelmed, and you would struggle to get any of them implemented. So what I want you to do is just choose one thing, just one thing that you heard today, and book it into your calendar every day for the next 30 days. 

Courtney Elmer 36:25

Even if your intention is to only help one person a day for the next 30 days, then that 30 days being the definite time frame at the end of those 30 days, pause and evaluate. And ask yourself, Is this working for me on a scale of one to 10? Where do I feel like I am now having implemented this for 30 days compared to where I was when I started? 

Courtney Elmer 37:00

What tweaks might I need to make in order to continue this and maintain this consistently going forward? And is there anything I might need to tweak or change or am I ready to add on another layer to this for the next 30 days, having that definite time frame can be a game changer to getting rid of overwhelm and procrastination. Now speaking of saving time, and quitting procrastination, because this is something that we all experience as business owners, if we are being honest with ourselves, are some new tools that I have been creating behind the scenes to help you grow your business by automating recurring tasks. 

So this is going to save you time, so that you can spend that extra time in your zone of genius. Now, the latest thing that I've been working on for you is a plug and play email automation that's going to help you increase your subscriber retention rates. And when you implement it, you're never going to have to worry about ghosting your list again. 

Courtney Elmer 38:00

The moment you send out an email again, you immediately get this whole wave of people unsubscribing because they don't remember who you are, you're not top of mind for them anymore. And they've probably forgotten at that point why they even signed up for your list in the first place. So this plug and play automation is going to keep this from happening. If you want a copy of it, go to theeffortlesslife.co.

Courtney Elmer 38:38

Next week, our guest is going to reveal how to put financial well-being at the heart of your marketing and business growth strategies, especially if you aren't one of those people who is motivated by money. Because whether or not you're motivated by money, we all know that a business needs money to survive, much less thrive. So be sure to join me back here next week and get the three step blueprint to creating real wealth. I'll see you back here next time. Until then, go live your EffortLESS Life®.