Do these things before your next launch with Natasha Pierre

Akua Konadu
As business owners, launching a new product or service can be a really fun and exciting time in your business. But it can also be a lot. And so today on the podcast, Natasha Pierre, who’s a video marketing coach for small business owners, and hosts of the shine online podcast walks us through how we can create a sustainable launch to see success. What I loved about this episode is that Natasha shared with us some fun and innovative ways that we can take our launch to the next level, and that there is more than one way to success. Now let’s get into the episode. Hey, everyone, this is your host, Akua konadu. And you’re listening to the independent business podcast, more people than ever are working for themselves and building profitable businesses in the process. So on this show, I get to sit down with some of the most influential authors, entrepreneurs and creators to break down the science of self made success so that you can achieve it too.

Akua Konadu
Hello, Natasha, how

Natasha Pierre
are we doing today? Doing well, excited to be here?

Akua Konadu
I know, we’re so excited to have you. I’m so excited for this conversation. Because, you know, a lot of us have obviously been planning for the new year, but a lot of us, you know, have already in our calendar, our launches that we have coming up. And I was like, Who else would be better for this topic than you? So I was Yeah, so I was so excited. But let’s hop into it. Because I want to know, what are some of your hot takes when it comes to launches?

Natasha Pierre
Yes, I think the biggest thing is when people hear a launch, they equal to stress, they think it’s going to be stressful, they think it’s going to be overwhelming. And I think that a lot of the ways we’ve heard about launching or even done launching, if if people have launched before, they’ve probably felt a little stressed and burnt out. So it’s why they’ve associated that. But I really do think that there’s a way to prepare for a launch just structure launch, where it just like feels good, and it’s flowing. And that’s really when it’s going to convert the best. And I think the other side of that is that launching needs to be boring. I think a lot of people are like, I don’t want to do a crusty webinar. And I don’t really like this doesn’t really feel good. Like I think we’ve been launched to so much. It’s not like we are totally naive to it anymore. Where people are like, that doesn’t feel right, I don’t really want to do that strategy. And what’s great is that we have so much opportunity now to innovate and update and tweak the kind of basic things that we see with launching and really make it unique to ourselves. And really just the association with launching of that. I don’t launch, I have an evergreen launch offer, I can’t launch I don’t know how to launch, when launching is simply like selling for a dedicated period of time. That’s all it is. So you can do it for an evergreen offer. You can do it for services, you can do it for high ticket, low ticket products, literally anything. It’s essentially just a dedicated campaign or promotion. They’re all interchangeable. So I think when we’re able to kind of debunk a few of those, like hot takes, we’re able to see launching in a way that can really benefit our businesses.

Akua Konadu
Yeah, because I’m definitely have heard that in regards to launches, right? That it can be an extremely stressful thing. And especially like if you’re a solopreneur. You know, I’ve heard comparing it when it’s your first launch, or you’re doing it on your own to, you know, down the road where you now have a small team that’s helping you out, people seem so stressed. I’m praying for my very first launch, and I’m stressed. But you know, I’m like, Oh my gosh. But I think the main advice that somebody gave me was like, just plan as much as you can and like, do what you can and plan ahead. And that really, really helps. But another thing that I wanted to talk with you about of what you just said to with your hot take is it’s true. I feel like a lot of us feel like there’s only one type of way to launch whether you know, like a live webinar, I feel like some of us kind of feel like that’s the only option or I’m really curious to know, just to add on to what some of your hot takes. And just going a step further is how are you innovating your launches? What are some other ways that people can launch that you have seen be very successful compared to like the very general, very commonly known ways that people do a product or service launch?

Natasha Pierre
Yeah, definitely. Something that I did in 2023 that I’m going to continue to do is I took the core concept of a webinar that is obviously proven to work really well. And essentially I took that and I started to use that to essentially just create a launch event. And so I tried a lot of different launch events. I did open houses I did is this for me calls I’ve done summits I’ve done co working sessions, I’ve done workshops, like I kind of have tried a little bit of everything. And really with the goal of how can I introduce people to me, how can I introduce them to my philosophies, my framework, kind of my way of thinking and how can I give them a taste of what it’s like to be in my offer? Or literally just create a safe space for a sales conversation? Like my Is this for me calls for my offers like I’m literally like you come you ask Is this for me? You ask your questions and we like hash it out on those also they’ve always converted. So I think just taking the concept of a webinar and kind of reviving it has been so fun. And there’s like just so many options you can implement. Yeah,

Akua Konadu
and a question I’m really curious about, because I’m one, I love that I think that is such a great way. And I think also too, it takes some of the pressure off when, you know, having to create a launch, there’s so many different areas that you have to get ready for the launch. And so, and one of them being like, oh, my gosh, the big webinar where you’re trying to get everybody to register, but I love how you’re taking the concept of a webinar and innovating it in a different way, that also just like makes you more relatable, approachable, and gives that accessibility for people to come and connect with you just more on a one on one level. And, to your point, I love what you said more of a safe space, it really gives people like a taste of what it really is like to work with you. So I can really see why that is be able to convert a lot easier. So a question I also have within that, when you’ve done something like that, compared to like a traditional webinar, I guess, what’s the data? Have you seen, like where your conversion has been a lot higher? Because we just mentioned like, right webinars, they do do very well. So I’m really curious to know, when you have kind of leaned more into those tactics, how has that benefited your business?

Natasha Pierre
Yeah, definitely. So just some kind of numbers off the top of my head from last year. For those like dedicated kind of group sales calls, essentially, I always got a new client from those. So they never, they never got a lot of people signing up for them. So I want to kind of give that preface there weren’t hundreds of people registered. And sometimes there was only one or two people, right. And so I think that it was really intimate. But to always get a client from it. I think that is a really, really powerful number. For me summits has definitely been one of the things that have converted really well. I’ve done a summit for the last three summers. And this summit specifically converted really well, for a few different reasons. I really adjusted my content for the summit to really be addressed that what was every objection people had about video content, because that’s what my main program is about. And so every session, we were like pushing past those barriers, I was giving them solutions, I was kind of changing their perspective on things. So they weren’t thinking, I don’t even know if I want to use video, but they were totally sold on video and could see how my program was kind of a next step. And so that was definitely something that’s been my top converting event even compared to a webinar. And kind of the last one is actually something that isn’t live, but it’s actually evergreen. So I created a five day free challenge based on one of my favorite concepts when it comes to video of like stock content, how can you make video easy get viral video footage that you can use for trending audios. And so I made it into a self paced, really simple challenge that people could tap into. And what I’ve seen is for my signature program that this leads into, every single person that joined last year, went into that challenge at one point. So really show that it was a really powerful tool for introducing them to me, getting them in my world, getting them on my email list, which of course is what makes these launch events so helpful, but actually eventually leading to that conversion. So those are kind of a few things a challenge, a summit. And then of course, those group sales calls that have went really well.

Akua Konadu
But I love that though. And I think again, leaning to your point, like just getting a client each time that is powerful, like really honing in on that, because I think a lot of the times with launches, we have it in our mind that, you know, we want to get hundreds of clients and all of these different types of things. And what I love that you’re leaning into more is quality over quantity. And I think that is just so key, like you’re gonna be able to you’re working with clients that you know that you love, that you guys have gotten to know each other really building that relationship. And I just love that I love that you have some really innovative ways. And it just, it makes me excited about wanting to get ready for launch, right? Like I’m like, oh, yeah, like there are you don’t have to go the traditional way, right? I mean, that’s fine. If you want to write, like to your point, again, webinars can absolutely be successful. But if you get bored, or you want to try something different lead into other areas and see what comes up of that. And so I love thank you so much for just sharing and being transparent within your business with some of those results. And so a question I have for you is what are the some of the common mistakes that you’re seeing, that independent business owners are making when it comes to preparing for launch in regards to their products or

Natasha Pierre
services? Yes, definitely. And I think you kind of already touched on it when you said like lots of prep involved. And a mistake that people are making is that they don’t actually dedicate time to three very different launch phases. So the first phase is that pre launch phase, right. And this is actually the phase that you want to spend your most time in and is actually going to be the longest because you want to get people excited. You want them to know about your offer, you want to share that launch event. You want to get a lot of momentum. So once you are actively launching, promoting and selling people are already warmed up and ramped up and you’re not selling to an audience that’s cold and literally does didn’t know what your offer is. So pre launch is really, really important for kind of that ramp up period. And then we actually go into that launch phase, right. And with that launch phase, kind of depending on your offer, you can test that a lot of fun things, if you find that a shorter period works really well, if you’d like to do an entire month long launch. Remember, it’s just a dedicated period of selling. So you can kind of adjust that as needed. But kind of the, the phase that I find that people neglect the most is after the launch, whether we’re kind of like switching gears, we’re ending the promotion, we’re maybe the the cart is closed, a bonus expired, a promotion, whatever it is, people launch and Ghost. And it’s really important to focus on your post launch. And I like to keep it really, really simple. So at least two weeks after your launch ends, we want to prep just like you’re prepping launch content, just like you’re prepping pre launch content, you also want to prep that post launch content. So content can be flowing, it can be nurturing people, it can be celebrating your launch, it can be celebrating your clients, it can be sharing what that next step is, it could be sharing a waitlist if people missed it this time. But essentially, we don’t want to sell and warm people up that might buy in the future. And then literally just leave them hanging or even the people that did buy, we don’t want to like sell to them, get them excited, get them in their offers. And then we don’t bring them into our content and create that community to run UGC. So I feel like that’s one big thing is people focus so much on the launch that they forget maybe about pre launching before, or post launch and really nurturing people after,

Akua Konadu
I love that you shared that because that is a common misconception. A lot of the times we’re not putting in the work into the pre and post launch. And we’re so hyper focused on launch. And then we get frustrated. And if we’re not making the necessary, we get frustrated, we haven’t met the goals that we wanted to hit. And so I love that you emphasize that because it sounds like that has been key in your into your success. And so in regards to the pre launch, right, I’m really curious to know, number one, like what types of content are you building? How are you nurturing, but also, you said, your email list plays such a major role. And so as you’re in that pre launch phase, what strategies are you implementing during that time to get people to know about you? And again, how are you providing value?

Natasha Pierre
Yes, definitely. So pre launch is a really great opportunity to share behind the scenes, especially if you’re working on your launch, or creating an offer, creating a product like making people feel like they’re a part of something, it’s also a great opportunity to start to educate people. And the goal here isn’t to like give them everything, it’s really to start to introduce them to small wins or small shifts that can essentially prep them and warm them up for your offer. For some industries, not every industry, there is a layer of like awareness that needs to happen, right? Of sometimes people don’t even know what the solution could be. And so this is a great opportunity to really use your content for this. And so that’s kind of really what you want to be focusing on during this period of time, along with starting to just build awareness around your offer, and giving them a place to go whether it is a waitlist on your email list, or if it is actually signing up for that launch event. But we want to get them ready. So they know what’s coming. And they’re actually prepared. And they know what their offer is. I know so many times I’m coaching my clients. And they’re like, I don’t know why I’m not making sales, and I go to their Instagram, I go look at their content. I’m like, I don’t even know the name of your offer, I don’t know which offer I should do, I don’t know where to focus on. And so I think sometimes just really dialing in your content to that very specific person that’s made for your offer, you’re able to get people really excited. And I like to add calls to action to every piece of content I create, whether I’m having them engage, or if I’m telling them to go to that next step to get ready for the launch.

Akua Konadu
I love that so much. I feel like you shared just so much goodness, number one being very clear with the next step that you want people to take. But also to honing in knowing who he is that you’re speaking to. But bringing people into the journey of what it is that you’re creating, I think some of us are so guilty of like, we feel like the product or the service that we’re wanting to launch has to be perfect. So we’re not bringing people and building alongside them right Braelyn the product alongside them to where it can heavily serve them. And I think again, it’s like perfectionism, we get nervous, we’re afraid. But that is a crucial time. Because then as you’re getting ready to launch and officially do launch, people are excited people want to engage they have seen the work that you have done with them in mind to build this product or service. So of course they’re going to be like, Oh my gosh, I absolutely want to buy and so I think that’s something that with what you said that entrepreneurs we really need to continuously lean into, like, be honest, like, Hey, I’m getting ready to launch this course or hey, I’m getting ready to do this, like, come alongside me. Here’s what I’m working on today. That B roll right whether you’re in your email list as well, just talking about some of the small shifts that you’ve made I like that too. Like it’s not, that’s a really great way to get started is the small shifts that you are getting people to make as you’re prepping them towards launch. It doesn’t have to be this major, big thing like, what is something that’s happened in your life in business that week that has really changed your perspective? And how can it change your audience’s perspective about your about whatever problem it is that you’re solving. So I love that so much. I think that is so key. And then I loved also to what you said is, especially in post launch, of how that is just so key of being able to follow up that experience that you provide for your clients, because again, they’re not going to buy today, but they could buy tomorrow. And one of our previous episodes, Lucretia Davis, she said that there’s money in the follow up, and now I keep reminding myself like, there’s money in the follow up, even if they don’t say yesterday, they can say Yes, tomorrow and be an amazing, amazing client. So I love all of that so much, it has been really, really great.

Natasha Pierre
What I was kind of thinking of a few other mistakes I see when it comes to launching is kind of two things you touched on here of like, first of all, like being okay to take up take up space. And this is where so many people struggle with launching is like I’m worried to sell too much. I’m worried people won’t be interested, I’m worried people will be annoyed by me. And you have to be okay with taking up space. Because yeah, if you’re pre launching your pillar lodging, your posts launching, you’re talking about your offer, you’re doing your events, it’s going to feel like wow, I am taking up space, I am talking about my offer I am selling. But it’s really important to understand that as essential as a business and that you are serving people by giving them that deeper transformation with your offer. And I think coupled along with that is really just setting goals that are realistic to you. I think there could be so much great inspiration out there of really incredible huge launches. But you have to kind of go into your own numbers and see what numbers actually make sense for my launch where yeah, maybe I’m pushing a little bit, maybe I’m stretching, maybe I’m like seeing what we can achieve. But what if like, it really is just five people for your launch, like not enough people talk about what if like a five person, group program launch is like the new standard, because it makes sense for your business. I feel like that, when I’m thinking back to my first launch, actually, my first launch five years ago, I made a course. And I literally enrolled zero people. And I remember being so excited about that, not really not excited about that. But I was so excited about that launch, because I got so much information about launching about selling about just competently talking about my offer. And then the next time I launched I did get sales. So I think what we’ve kind of touched on is this, like fear of launching this, this this, like overwhelm really comes down to this layer of like, I’m afraid people won’t buy, I’m afraid people won’t listen, we’re afraid people will get overwhelmed. And I think we have to be okay with taking up space and also creating a new standard for ourselves to compare that success to, yes,

Akua Konadu
taking up space and creating a new standard for ourselves, that’s gonna be my model for 2024 girl. I love that so much. And it’s just such an important thing. Again, we get so caught up in people’s highlight reels, and you know, in seeing their business success, and you know, you have to take the time to look at the data at your own business and create you know, your launch based on a way that feels good to you where you’re so honoring yourself your needs, and then also to being able to still provide that value, so that you can feel good about what it is that you’re creating. And then also to to the fact that, again, I love the transparency as well that where you just shared like your first launch, you made $0. And I know that there’s so many business owners who can relate to that. And again, it’s like, don’t take that as a, you know, as a failure. This is a learning experience collecting the data that you can utilize to carry on into the next launch, I think, you know, again, we get so hyper focused on this one specific launch. And it’s like, this is not the end all be all you can absolutely you’re gonna launch again, right take that information, take that data, and utilize that to strengthen whatever skills, you know, fill those gaps in as you prepare for the next launch. So I love that that is so so valuable. Another thing I’m really curious about because you shared this, which is called you know, there’s a lot of tactics, you know, that we that are leveraged in regards to when people are launching in a process of a launch of their products and services. And we see a lot of people use scarcity tactics, right like, which is very common in the marketing world is something that we learn about all the time, but I heard you use a term called ethical urgency. And so I would love for you to touch on that and what some like and provide some examples on that as well. Yeah,

Natasha Pierre
definitely. I think when it comes to launching naturally a launch is that dedicated period of time where we do want to create urgency of like why should people buy now versus waiting and procrastinating and not taking that next Step. But it’s really important that when we’re guiding people through that selling process, and taking that next step that we’re adding in urgency that’s natural. And we’re not making it artificial. We’re not creating it, we’re not adding it in just to make a sale when, yeah, the card is actually open when you close it, or there actually will be another promotion, even though you said you’re never going to do another promotion again, right? So I think we need to be very careful with those very finite definite terms when we’re talking about a launch. And really just know that when you’re empowering someone to make a purchasing decision that they’re competent in, you’re going to feel good, and they’re going to feel good. And that’s what you’re wanting to do. So whenever I think about urgency, I like to think of like, genuinely, why should people buy now, right? If I’m thinking about people joining my video program, right now, in the beginning of the year, maybe they want to work on their video strategy. Maybe they want it, they want to use video more in their launches. Maybe they want to save time on video next year, those might actually be desires people have right now. But they don’t want to wait for three more months or six more months to achieve in so I think when we can think about not only the result they want, but also think about different elements of your launch, where maybe you’re doing a bonus, or you’re doing a discount, or you’re doing a special thing, like a special event that you only get live when you join, or whatever those different elements are think about where those urgencies are kind of naturally built in whatever you’re selling, or you can add it in in a way that feels really fun and great, and lean into those. But don’t lean into the you will never be able to buy this ever again until you buy it right now. Like that just doesn’t feel good. Anyone we can like leave that behind. And last year. Yes,

Akua Konadu
and I definitely have seen some of those types of conversations in like threads. And you know, just where, you know, commonly a lot of us business owners just like to chat. And that is kind of the thing that I’m seeing that people have said they’re really tired of that scarcity marketing, where a lot of the content is just so heavily negatively focused on their pain points. And people just feel extremely burnt out with that. And so even in terms of launch, have you, I just feel like especially what you’ve shared in regards to the ethical urgency, of just leaning into where it feels good to you. Because naturally within your launch, there’s going to be areas that already feel urgent. So like, you don’t have to double down, be like, buy this now and present it in a way that nobody’s ever going to purchase. I think a lot of business owners, I think a lot of us will appreciate that honesty, and then again, it just builds up more of that trust, even if people bought from you at the time or didn’t. And so, again, I think even just from a reputation standpoint, it’s just really nice as well, where you’re just being really honest about where you’re at like, yeah, so I really liked that a lot. And so another question that I had, too, is, so what things should we be implementing as business owners when it comes to creating a launch? I really kind of want to break it down into two questions for somebody who is getting ready for the first or thinking about it right? What are some things that they need to be thinking about some key strategies that they need to be implementing, and then people who may not have seen the success that they would have liked to in regards to their recent launch? And how can they refine their steps? What are things that they need to be thinking about to refine to be able to move forward for a better outcome?

Natasha Pierre
Yeah, definitely. So if you’re launching for the first time, what I think’s really important is to get all the logistical things done on the back end, what I mean by that is have clear messaging and copy, have a like, have your offer, mostly done. I know there’s a lot of different thoughts on like fading, or testing or pre orders, and all those different types of things. But I think it is important to have an offer done so you can feel competent, really talking about it. And then kind of just using content that you already actually created. Because if you’re already creating with a strategy where you know who you’re speaking to, you know what you’re an expert at, chances are, you can start to take those pieces of content that have really resonated, and start to tie that into your offer and add calls to action really naturally. So that would kind of be my recommendation. And when you’re choosing kind of where you want to launch is focused on one to two platforms that you already are established on keeping in mind, this doesn’t have to mean 100 million followers, 100 million subscribers, you can launch with 100 person email list, or even 100 followers on your Instagram. So don’t let the numbers deter you. But that would be kind of my first recommendation. And then if you already have launched and you haven’t been super excited about the results, I’d like you to actually go back and see what has converted. And if you don’t already have this in your process, I highly recommend having it where you’re getting feedback from customers and clients. I think this is so incredibly valuable. Whenever I onboard a new client, I’m like what piece of content influenced your decision to buy? Where did you discover me from? What are your goals? I literally try to get their link Which as soon as they join, and I think that can be really beneficial to see, oh, maybe it’s not that my launch didn’t work, but I just need to do more of one thing. And then I want you to just think of opportunities. Because if you’re already launching, that means you’re probably already established on some platforms. So where can you add in new platforms or more content. And my launch no might sound like a lot. But I like to pretty much enlist all my platforms, Instagram, podcast, email list, even my YouTube channel as well, because I really want to create this omnipresent of my content, and really touch on all the different types of places that people might be hanging out. And I like to implement bumper things like series and really getting, like really getting creative with the content that I’m creating, and how I’m delivering it and kind of up leveling that launch every time testing out things that you can use, like launch events. And of course, as a video marketing coach, I have to say that I think almost every single person could probably be using a little bit more video in their launches. The reason why is people can, if you have a physical product, people can see how it moves, how it looks like how people are using it, if you are a coach, people can see how you’re coaching, they can see your personality, if you’re a service writer, they can see your process and how you work with people. And it is one of the most dynamic ways that you can launch your offer. So for the beginner for the experienced person, use as much video content as possible. Because I often find during launches, people kind of default to this stage where they like create a bunch of graphics, they create a bunch of kind of boring, boring captions and, and they’re like, let me create launch content. And then they kind of lose all their puzzle and their personality, because they’re in launch mode. And I’m like, let’s add some fun to this, let’s add some more dynamic elements. So your launches don’t feel as stale. And you’ll notice a really big difference. And what’s great is that if you already have a sales page, you already have created launch content, I like to gather all of that and create a launch content bank. So I can grab from the copy and these like quotable moments and these different elements. And I can use those for videos where I can use this for a topic for a live video. Or I can use the breakdown of my product. As a story where I’m taking behind the scenes of my product, I can prep those ahead of time. Or I can also just do a talking video and do a script or I can do kind of like a B roll video where I’m adding text on top. So you can really plan out almost all of your video content very easily by already just taking all that copy and emails and stuff you’ve already done and giving it new life and videos. So those are probably be like kind of my next step for people.

Akua Konadu
Just silence on my end. I got excited I go oh my goodness. And I say, I know and I love it. Because I My mind is just so many questions I wanted to ask him as well she’s on a roll, let it let me let her keep, like so many questions. Because it is so good and so valuable. And so uh, one thing that I want to touch on that you said, especially like, if you are starting a launch, I think to your point, I feel like a misconception as well that we have to build everything from scratch. And it’s like there is content in front of you that you may not even realize, and you just gave such great resources on that, like you can repurpose your content. And I think that is just so valuable. And it gives you a great place to start. And then you can also use that as inspiration to create more content if you would like you know, you don’t have to, you don’t have to start from scratch to be able to launch. It’s absolutely doable with wherever you’re at in your journey. So I just loved that. And just the strategy as well with video. I mean, we already know that video is plays such a key, it’s literally it’s not going anywhere, it will never go anywhere. And so a question that I do have with you is people who are struggling with video, how, how, what are some really simple and unique ways that we can implement that into our launch to create it to have a more dynamic launch?

Natasha Pierre
Yeah, absolutely. Oh, I think the biggest thing with video, there’s so many tips I could share but I think it’s really figuring out how you can make video feel easier. I think a lot of times video isn’t quote unquote working for us because we do what’s viral for other people or we do what we think is trending and popular and like the formula we should be following when I like to think that video is simply just a format that we can use. So if you want to keep it casual if you want to make it more produced if you want to do it in your routine if you like filming clips versus Talking clips or you love talking or you love live and you don’t like editing but you like the energy of people really lean into your strengths because what’s great about video is there are so many places you can create it it can be casual on stories, it can be interactive as alive, it can be short and snappy as a real It can even be long form. And so I really think that don’t think there’s one right way to create video lean into your unique strengths and what feels the best? I know it’s kind of like a fluffy answer. But I swear, that makes such a big difference when we’re creating in a way that feels good, because video is energy and people will feel your energy if you absolutely hate the types of videos you’re creating.

Akua Konadu
Absolutely. And if you feel you have to feel good about it right to where you’re, if you feel good about it, you’re more than likely to do it again. So it’s not a flood, it’s, I guess it’s considered fluffy. But it’s and it’s simple, right? But it’s an important thing, right? You have to lean to into your gifts and do something and do things that feel good to you. Because then the odds of you doing it, again, is extremely high, instead of feeling discouraged, and kind of pushing it to the side. And so another thing that you also talked about, you know, how you don’t have to be on all platforms. And I think that’s something that’s really important with for business owners to hear is that in order to have a successful launch, you don’t have to be on all platforms. But how do you figure out of where are the best areas to spend your time, especially if you are on your own in a solo launch?

Natasha Pierre
Yeah, definitely. I think start where you already have an established community where you’re already familiar most familiar with the platform like if you’re brand new to Tik Tok, and you’ve never consumed content on Tik Tok don’t launch on Tik Tok, we don’t want to put ourselves in those situations. So really focus on like, where you have a community where you’re most familiar. And I like to kind of have a balance of at least two different platforms, one is going to be something that’s going to not only like, get you in front of people, but then we’re also going to have that like extra nurture kind of content. So I think something like social media, a podcast is a really great way to like, bring in new people, but nurture a community. But we want to make sure we’re taking them to this place where we’re having more of a connection, like on a thing like email. And I often find that people kind of pit like platforms like Instagram and email against each other like, well, you should be on email, because the algorithm and mobile but like there’s like this war, but I think they should absolutely be used together. And when you put all your pressure on a social media platform to hold your launch, you’re always going to be disappointed because of the lack of control. But you can’t have an email list without people to get on the email list, which is where a platform can be so powerful for growing it. So I kind of like to use a way to get that visibility, but then also make sure you have a place to like stay connected with that person, which is like social media, and then like an email list would be a great start.

Akua Konadu
And that is such a key point. That is true, right? Like we always kind of view social media and email lists as if they are enemies, you know, and they’re not like, Absolutely, they feed into each other. They’re connected, whether you realize it or not. So I love that I think that’s a really good mindset shift for people of like in a positive way of how you can utilize social media to, you know, bring traffic to your email list, build your email list, and then you can be able to sell there. But again, I think what you share is just, it’s very digestible. These are very digestible, easy tips that you can take with you to be able to build a launch that feels good. And then similar to what you said with video that, you know, there’s no wrong way to do video, I feel like in certain areas of a launch, there’s no wrong way to do it, like really build it in a way that feels aligned with you, which I think is really encouraging and just overall, like really, really inspiring. So another question that I have is, you know, especially now with I asked question all the time, but I think it’s just so so important. I feel like the landscape, entrepreneurship is changing, right? It’s evolving. A lot of us as business owners, we want different things, you know, the things that worked before it doesn’t maybe necessarily work now, how are you approaching launching your own products and services in the new year? Yeah,

Natasha Pierre
definitely. I think one thing that I’m actually doing I know, we talked a lot about launching, but I think I’m finding a little more balance with launching an evergreen, that’s like a big goal. For me, I feel like relying 100% on evergreen or 100% on launching can be really overwhelming for either. So I think kind of finding a little bit more of a balance. And I think it can actually really help your launches do better when you have great evergreen sales as well. So that’s definitely something I would like to focus on more. I think another thing is I’m really seeing people be interested in like paid events that aren’t like really, really big investments, but where they can pay for it on its own, get a transformation on its own. And it can maybe lead into kind of like a bigger offer. So that’s definitely something I would like to do more of which is something I’ve tried before. And I think something people don’t think of is those launch events that I told you about. You can make money from those. I think I was actually I was literally just looking at my profit and loss from last year. So it’s kind of fresh in my brain is that from our summit, which was paid. We made a few $1,000 Just from hosting the summit, which was paid right and I also think it’s a great opportunity to really kind of get people that are qualified and are ready to buy actually buy things because they’ve already have that that buy in so I think paid events for your launches is definitely something I want to do more of. And the final one is like collaborative launches of not only launching together with some On but launching a joined offer or product or promotion or campaign. So that’s definitely something I’m excited to try more of this year.

Akua Konadu
I love that. And I’m really excited to see because you’re also very transparent with whatever it is that you’re doing in your business, which I love that. So I’m really excited to see how that turns out. Because I think that’s something that a lot of us can learn from right. Again, there’s more than one of different ways to do launching. And so really experimenting and seeing what works for you to move forward. So this has been wonderful. And I have loved this conversation. And so to close out, we have one last question that we always ask every single guest is what do you think is the biggest differentiator between the businesses that succeed and the ones that fail?

Natasha Pierre
Hmm, I think it’s being okay to fail, being okay to fail being okay to mess up. We’ve talked a lot about video being okay with posting imperfect content or content that doesn’t go viral. I think when we take the pressure off of things being perfect, or in its final stage, or hitting this point where we’ll reach success, we’re able to use all those failures as lessons to really fuel our decisions and do better for the next time.

Akua Konadu
Oh, I love that being okay with failure. Yes, that is such such an important reminder as business owners, because success is never linear. We are all going through it. And so being okay with failure. Thank you. Thank you so much, Natasha. And so for our audience who wants to connect further with you? Where can they find you? Yes,

Natasha Pierre
definitely. This has been so fun. So you can connect with me over on Instagram at shine with a Tasha. I’m also on YouTube, if you like kind of longer for more tutorial based content. And I actually have an entire series over on my podcast, the shine online podcasts where you can listen to wherever you’re listening to this podcast, where I break down for different episodes all about sales content. So we dive even deeper into things like calls to action, Lola video for launches and even buyer psychology like different buyer types. So that’s really a great place to start binging. If you were like in your sales launching mode. You’re like inspired to make some money. That’s a great place to continue. Yes,

Akua Konadu
I’ll definitely check it out girl because I’m always inspired to make love. Yes, absolutely. Thank you so much, Natasha. This has been so much fun. And thank you to everybody listening and until next time. That ends our episode of The Independent Business Podcast. Everything we’ve discussed today can be found at [email protected]. Head to our website to access for show notes, relevant links and all the resources that you need to level up. And if you’ve enjoyed today’s episode, be sure to subscribe to the podcast to make sure you never miss our future content. Drop us a review and leave our guests some love on social and thank you again for listening