There are so many courses and resources you can tap into as an artist to help grow your business with your art, but none of these will move the needle for the short and long term if they don’t fit into your strategy.
Strategy to your business is like technique to your art- it forms the foundation upon which your work emerges. If you don’t have technique, no matter how passionate, knowledgeable or committed you are your work will never reflect a level of expertise and beauty as it would if you had the technique to back it up.
In business, knowing how to craft a strategy is the same as honing your technique with your art: it takes a skill set, practice and basic tools combined to help you make the right decisions for your business in the moments that count the most.
90% of small businesses in the U.S. fail every year, in large part because the owner doesn’t have the right combination of purpose, revenue and ideal client awareness to ensure the business stays on track. A large majority of these businesses are owned by creatives who are passionate about an idea and want to execute it their way without having the foundation in place to create a no-fail plan for the business to springboard off of.
If you don’t have a strategy, there is zero guarantee you will have control over your business. Instead, it will pull you in whatever direction it starts to move in as a result of decisions you make that may feel good in the moment.
Luckily, there are simple, easy ways to remedy this problem immediately, no matter where you are in your creative business life, which is what today’s episode is all about.
The Power Of your WHY Worksheet:
Yesterday, in Episode 137, I talked about how connecting with your true ideal client allows you to effortlessly form a relationship with those you’re meant to serve in your business with your art and selling them exactly what they want and need. And how selling actually becomes an afterthought as they’re so completely in the market for what you have to offer.
I also mentioned that the ASK Method Masterclass, a state of the art program created by Ryan Levesque that helps you discover, find and connect with your true ideal client just closed for enrollment for the rest of this year, but that you can get on the waitlist to be notified the next time enrollment begins (and I highly suggest you do so). Just go to bit.ly/askwaitlist.
But today I wanted to discuss what happens when you actually find your true ideal client and know they are in the market for what you have to offer, tell you they want to invest in that offer but at the last minute decide they need to “wait.”
Sometimes there are extenuating circumstances that will force a person to wait— timing or personal issues that prevent them from taking that step. And you will often know that those circumstances are out of their control.
But most of the time there is simply a block that comes up that stops them from making that purchase or investment. Something happens right before they take action that causes them to hesitate and then ultimately back away entirely, leaving you wondering what the problem could possibly be.
None times out of ten, the problem is actually that you didn’t help them enough to make that purchase.
In today’s discussion, I explain exactly what I mean.
Almost every artist I know is afraid of sales. When I bring up the fact that selling is an essential part of growing any business, I get one of or a variation of the following replies:
I’m not a salesperson- never was and never will be
It’s not in my DNA to sell
I don’t want to bother people
The problem though is that if we don’t learn how to sell our own art— or any offer in the business we own— no one is going to do it for us. Which is why 9 out of 10 artists fall into the category of businesses that fail every year.
The fear of selling is understandable especially when you don’t know how selling actually works, or the tools you need to sell in a way that serves those you most want to serve because you feel like you’re being forced to push something onto someone and leave them between a rock and a hard place to decide whether to give their money to you or disappoint you by saying no.
This has to do with a true misconception of what selling really means, because that scenario— painted for me by the majority of artists in my community— could not be further from the truth. Unless of course you try to sell to those who are not in the market at all for what you have to offer and try to ram your offer down their throat, which I can guarantee is not what you want to do.
I recently offered a special point of entry to the ASK Method Masterclass created by Ryan Levesque, which is a highly specialized training program on how to discover, find and connect with your true ideal client. The opportunity to take that program is over, but if you would like to be added to the waitlist for the next time it becomes available, go to bit.ly/askwaitlist and I will notify you the moment enrollment begins again.
In the meantime, I have a special Ideal Client Discovery series that begins with The Artist’s Guide To Discovering Your True Ideal Client worksheet, which you can download right now at bit.ly/yourtrueidealclient.
Get that worksheet now, and be on your way to discovering your true ideal client in your business so selling becomes a delightful experience for both you and those you are meant to serve in your business with your art.
Callum Hardingham is a personal power facilitator who works with entrepeneurs, business owners, athletes and coaches who want to upskill their practice, break through their internal barriers and create a life they love. His Mission is to make personal development cool and bring it to the same pedestal as math, science, and English!
In our discussion, we talk about how much the money mindset comes into play for artists being able to grow their businesses in a way that becomes lucrative and opens the door for unlimited financial growth. Artists, I'm certain this is an episode you don't want to miss!
Yesterday I published my interview with Callum Hardingham, founder of The Mindset Guy, about one of the biggest issues artists have when it comes to building businesses: a business owner mindset. And that mindset has less to do with a willingness to spend money on more things, like many artists tend to believe, but more with a willingness to invest in the Vision they have for their art.
We all have a greater purpose to serve in the world as artists, and an innate ability to follow through with that purpose when we feel free to do so. Your purpose, which comes directly from your own mind’s eye, is what in the business world is called your Vision: the wildest, largest, most grandiose dream you have for the work you’re meant to do in the world.
But when we begin to entertain the notion of what our Vision actually is, 9 out of 10 artists begin to censor that Vision immediately because it simply seems entirely out of reach. They cap off their dream because they think they have to, not realizing what a huge mistake this is for their art and for their business.
So today I discuss the importance of clarifying your Vision in order to create a clear path to your own business’ inevitable growth.
I have a series of guides that will help you understand how to safeguard your Vision without compromise, and begin to build a framework that will give you a map to fulfill that Vision one step at time. And as a result you will learn how to make wise investment decisions for your business that lead to inevitable growth and revenue, which you need for your business to thrive.
Go to bit.ly/artbusinessguide to download the first worksheet in the series, The Power Of Your WHY.
99% of all artists see identifying their true ideal client as their single greatest challenge in growing their businesses with their art. Finding the right people who resonate with your work and knowing where to find them specifically both online and offline is the greatest challenge most businesses have and having a strategy in place to streamline this process can make all the difference in the world to a business' growth.
Go to bit.ly/artistidealclient to download The Artist's Guide To Discovering Your Ideal Client Worksheet now!
Having an employee mindest is the biggest hurdle that holds artists back from creating revenue in their business. This episode is about why that is true and how we can surpass it with no problem, moving into the mindset of revenue flow.
Starting with one offer is often looked upon unfavorably by artists in their businesses because it feels too restrictive, and it's understandable considering all the amazing work artists have to share with the world.
But in order to grow the kind of business you are meant to and create the kind of change in the world that you envision being able to achieve with your art, it's essential to build a business that has a solid revenue stream from which to springboard from.
Once you create a strong revenue stream for one offer, you can repeat the process for others-- but getting one truly automated takes more work than may appear at first glance. In this episode, I discuss the best way to approach your own offer while not letting go of anything else in your body of work as an artist.
Knowing your Mission as an artist in business is the key to creating a framework from which your business can flourish and thrive. There is no better way to fulfill the vision you have for your work than to create the way in which your business will begin to fulfill it. And once you do, you find the most surprising results on the other side!
In today's episode, we discuss what a mission statement actually is to help you create your own right now.
Every artist has a vision for what she wants her art to accomplish in the world. This vision can often seem like a far-off dream or one that could never come to fruition because it is so large. Yet, it is the most important to bring forward and declare before putting your actual business plan together. Because if you don't, your business is bound to fall short of what you know your art can really do for you and those it serves.
In this episode I discuss how to mind can be extra tricky in keeping us from declaring our visions and how to get past those restrictive stories to get right to the heart of what we know our art is meant to do in the world, as well as how our businesses can ensure we fulfill our visions one step at a time.
I remember when I was offered to play the role of The Princess in a dance-drama of Shakespeare’s Love’s Labour’s Lost on Martha’s Vineyard one summer when I had just finished grad school. As a dancer-turned actor who relished the creation of eclectic performance art, I was drawn to this piece for many reasons, mainly because I was going to get to dance a pas de deux with Rosaline in a corset and hoop skirt (who in their right mind would pass that up?).
But there was something about the production that wasn’t sitting well with me: the producer was planning to sell the show without noting to the public it was a dance drama. So when people came to see it they would be shocked to find there was no dialogue, only dance! Everyone involved, including the brilliant choreographer and director, was trying to justify the reasoning behind this, even though they didn't agree with this approach at all. The producer was clear that she would not fund the show if it was done any other way.
The decision I made ultimately led me to building a six+ figure business as an artist, and helped me help others do the same and I discuss how and why in this episode.
As an artist, there is a hustle involved in selling work or getting hired for your work. This is implicit, and the main reason I believe artists are hardwired to run the best businesses in the world. There is no successful business that did not begin with an incredible amount of hustling, especially in the beginning when the work lies in marketing, finding your ideal clients and defining and redefining your point of view.
Defining your point of view is perhaps one of the most important parts of creating and growing a business that lasts over time, as there is no other factor that defines your business more than that. Having a strong point of view is what allows two businesses that sell the exact same products to stand side by side and sell the same products to two completely different groups of clients. The reason for this lies in the fact that we do not purchase based on logic. We make purchases based on our emotional connection to a product, whether it is art or clothing or household cleaners.
So a strong point of view leads to true wealth in your business- and we discuss how and why in today’s episode.
Running a business as an artist is a bit different than running a traditional business, but the core principles to building a solid foundation are exactly the same. Learning these principles will not only change your business but can change your life in ways you have been dreaming about.
It's really not just about having all of your ducks in line, but having the RIGHT ducks in line for your specific business and phase of development.
There are three cornerstone sections (aka: DUCKS) to make sure you have in place in order to give yourself a foundation that will enable you to achieve guaranteed results, which is what we discuss in today’s episode.
The sense of overwhelm that often comes with running a business based in your passions and skills can feel daunting to say the least, especially when your mind is focused on the creative side of your work. However, having some fundamental tools you can put into place to help alleviate overwhelm and help you make the decisions you need to move forward in the ways that feel right for you and your art can prove irreplaceable to you and the life of your business.
There are two distinct sides to running a business: the creative side, which includes your work, your message and the content through which you share your message with the world, and the technical side, which includes your personal and business finances, the structure of your business and everything that is needed to build that structure.
Usually, when we first start a business, especially as artists, we are steeped in the creative side, passionately involved in bringing new creations to life. Most small businesses begin with an idea we know we must share with the world, so we nurture the spark of passion we have into a fire we can share with others.
The problem we run into while in this state of creation is switching over to the technical side while we are in the creative part of our brains, especially in terms of building a business for the first time.
But there is a simple remedy for this, which is what we discuss in today’s episode.
A few months ago I had the most amazing question pop up in my inbox that I have a feeling everyone can relate to. It was truly profound in its simplicity yet deep in its complexity. I paused on it for a long moment as I took it in, knowing the answer needed to be explored, communicated and shared.
Dear Alexis,
How do I get past my fear of taking the next step in my business as an artist without feeling like I’m going to literally fall apart and die? I want to create a new scenario for my art and my life, and I see how it could unfold as I write this. But the fear I’m feeling makes me want to shut it down, turn away, so I don’t have to feel like I’m in agony any more. What is your insight on this? I feel like an addict who is addicted to old behavior and I want to break the habit, now.
Sincerest Thanks,
Marla
This question touches my heart deeply, as Marla is speaking to so many of us (dare I say all of us?) when it comes to fear. Fear of the unknown is one of the most charged concepts for the entire human race, and fear around money, which is so deeply ingrained in our social consciousness on a global scale, is in the top four categories of the most stressful fears to deal with.
Yet there are two sides to fear when it comes up for us that if we keep in mind can truly help us nip it in the bud, which is what I discuss in today’s episode.
One of the biggest issues artists have in their businesses with their art has to do with time: there is not enough time to focus on all the things you need to get a business up and running, never enough time to get past the learning curves necessary to learn all the new tech skills you need to sell online and certainly not enough time to spend selling your work to the right people because you don’t know who those people are or where to find them.
But what if you had a way to streamline your whole process by focusing on just ONE method that not only took you directly to your most ideal clients but helped you understand what they’re looking for on such a deep level that you basically know exactly what to sell and how to sell it at all times?
This is what the ASK Method, developed by bestselling author and my mentor Ryan Levesque, can teach you. Ryan has helped thousands of businesses strike gold, literally, by genuinely and authentically connecting with their most ideal clients, and I want to share this method with you so you can do the same in your art business.
This is why you need to go right now to bit.ly/asklaunch to access Ryan’s free training, The ASK Method Masterclass. I promise you, this will be ONE masterclass you will never regret taking.
I am excited to share it with you, and I look forward to seeing you on the other side.
This week I’m so excited to offer you access to the most incredible free training in discovering your true ideal client for your art business: The ASK Method Masterclass. I’m quite passionate about this training because it was created by my mentor, Ryan Levesque, who has helped literally thousands of businesses connect to their true ideal clients in the most genuine and authentic ways through this groundbreaking methodology.
And this week, you get to have access to the training for FREE when you go to bit.ly/asklaunch. I’m so excited for you to experience it.
There is one vital piece of advice Ryan shared with me when I first started working with him, and that was to always utilize the Power Of ONE in my business. We can get carried away as creatives with ideas that can carry us from one extreme to the next, making us think we will have the time, energy and resources to implement all of those ideas in due time.
But the truth of the matter is that 90% of small businesses in the U.S. fail each year because they don’t have a clear enough focus on bringing in revenue, and the majority of them fall into what is considered “shiny object syndrome”- trying to do too many things all at one time and not taking the time to focus on the ONE offer in their businesses that has the potential to bring in 80% of their revenue.
Once you have that ONE offer clarified, you can truly hone in on who your ideal client is, and then you may as well have struck gold.
In Ryan’s free training, The ASK Method Masterclass, he walks you through step by step how to apply the ASK technique to finding your ideal client with ONE single offer. Do not miss this- I know firsthand that gold lies on the other side.
Go now to bit.ly/asklaunch.
There’s a specific method I use when building any new business that begins with the end in mind: understanding who your true ideal client is. The importance of understanding how to find your true ideal client can save you countless hours of preparation, hundreds of thousands of dollars in marketing costs and increase your revenue in your business threefold.
But the key is to understand how to cut through all the mayhem and chaos to connect with the right people, fast because you need to get the right people onto your list to ensure your business has a chance to grow.
Your list essentially forms the backbone of your business. Without it, you wouldn’t be able to create a consistent and predictable revenue and you may find yourself in a fight or flight situation that no business owner wants to be in.
The key is to get your most ideal clients- those who truly resonate with your work- onto your list and keep everyone else off. Doing this takes a specific understanding of how to identify this person immediately, and this is no easy task. If it were, everyone would have a thriving business making millions of dollars.
The truth is that it’s not easy, which is why 90% of small businesses in the U.S. fail each year. But the silver lining is that it is easy to learn how to approach this task, especially when you have the right person helping you to do so.
Luckily, I have had the privilege of working with a mentor who knows exactly how to uncover the true ideal client of any business, and to do so in the most genuine, honest way possible. You may have heard me talking about him all last week, as I just spent several days working with him and his team on fine-tuning my own approach to better serving my ideal client.
Ryan Levesque is the man I’m speaking of, and luckily for me and you, he has created a free training on how to apply the ASK Method step by step in your art business. It’s one of the most comprehensive trainings I’ve ever seen, and it’s completely FREE. And because I’ve been working side by side with Ryan and his team, I’m able to offer it to you FIRST, just as Ryan has released it for viewing.
So without further ado, go to bit.ly/asklaunch to get the training right now!
We’ve been looking at how to create a thriving business with your art, your way and the steps necessary to take in order to ensure you have a solid financial plan in place that cannot fail you. We've discussed how to clarify your verticals, how to identify your ideal client and how to establish the financial baseline of your business. The big question though is how to tie all of these together to make them work for you, and more importantly, how to figure out where to begin!
Creating harmony between your work and your business is the key to creating a lasting, sustainable income with your work. Knowing how to balance the business side of your art while creating the work you’re meant to do in the world is the way to ensure you have a lasting foundation upon which you can grow and prosper continuously.
Yet let’s take a look at what the word harmony really means to those of us who strive to create the best work that we can in the world. When you create a piece of art, think about the ebbs and flows you go through while in the process of creation. There is a feeling of the unknown, never knowing where exactly you may go with what your initial idea is, where it will take you, what unexpected turns you may make along the way that could cause you to shift gears completely, making something completely different than, yet more in line with, your original intention. This is where the magic happens because you are confident about one thing:
Nothing is certain within an act of creation.
Staying with your creative process, trusting the adventure it takes you on, is what ultimately results in creating harmony for your life as an artist.
So what gives you the confidence to move forward each time you take on a new art project, knowing you are walking directly into the absolute unknown? Being sure of your craft allows you to dive in, or step in gingerly, to begin each time. You have honed your craft enough to know your starting point, and you know there is more to learn each time as you allow the creative process to guide you. You expect to learn new ways that you hadn’t explored or discovered before by trusting your instincts and giving yourself the time you need for the work to come into fruition. There is no linear sense of time as we think of in the day-to-day world when you’re working on your art. Instead, time becomes relative to the work itself, even when you are working on a deadline.
The same holds true for your business. There is absolutely no difference in the way you approach your art and the way you approach your business. Your business grows based on the way in which you shape it, mold it and alter it to suit your needs, your lifestyle and your purpose in the world. The only reason you may not feel this way is because you don’t have the same solid set of techniques to apply to your business that you have with your art, so you feel stuck with how to grow it. You feel discord.
The one single fact that many of us as artists tend to misunderstand is that running your business is a creative act in the exact same way as your art. It is as malleable, waiting to be shaped by your hands, at your will. The reason it may not seem this way to you in this moment is because you may not yet have the tools you need to craft it, and so you feel you cannot yet begin.
The good news is that whether you realize it or not, you’ve already started! Your art, by default, is considered a business if you’re making an income, and if you’re not making an income directly from your art you still have the business structure in place and simply need to learn how to fill it in and build it up. Once you have the basic tools- and there are only a few essential ones necessary to run a business that thrives- you then have the ability to put those tools into action to create your business, your way. To make it thrive in the way that makes sense for your lifestyle and for the work you were meant to create in this world.
There is one finite answer to determine where exactly you need to begin:
Right now, in this moment.
This very moment is where you can build upon what you have already so masterfully laid out for yourself and the life you are in the process of creating. This is where you choose which tool to pick up next and learn that will help guide you to filling in the blanks that are missing for your business as an artist. This is where finding the harmony between your business and your art begins. This is where you fine-tune the discord into a breathtaking harmonious tune.
There is one of three major places you are right now:
1. You don’t yet make enough to cover your basic expenses.
2. You are making enough to cover your basic expenses but now need to take your business to the next level of development.
3. You have a thriving business and need to determine your next step to fulfill your larger purpose for your life as an artist.
Regardless of where you are, the One BIG question I get from artists serious about growing their businesses is how do you figure out what to sell without knowing what a person wants? This is such an important question because the truth of the matter is that people actually don’t know what they want- if they did, they would be able to tell you exactly what kind of art to create or services to offer. However, everyone, for the most part, knows, without question, what they DON’T want. And this is a very important distinction to be able to make.
This is why I use the ASK Method in my business, a methodology developed by bestselling author and business developer, Ryan Levesque. And this week I’m going to be sharing with you an invaluable training Ryan has put together to show you, step by step how to apply the ASK Method to your art business to align your work with your most ideal clients. So be sure to tune into tomorrow’s Episode 122: Why Your List Can Make Or Break Your Business to find out how to access this free training now.
When you think about running your business as an artist, do you ever worry that it will overtake your time in the same way a survival job can? Do you hesitate to take action because you imagine it will take away your joy while trying to create your work? Do you wonder how you will be able to manage it without dreading the work it could force you into?
There is one major difference between a business and a job that, once you understand, can help you avoid falling into a joyless rut once and for all. A business is a series of projects designed to yield an exchange of value-for-value. It offers a product or service to those who want or need it for an exchange of value in the form of money. Each project needs to be broken down into bite size pieces in order to be carried out and executed successfully.
A job, on the other hand, is a bite-sized portion of a business project that requires consistent, repetitive action to be taken over a period of time. If the job is done as needed, the project can be carried out successfully. Each job within a business is designed to help execute a small part of the bigger whole.
The reason your business could ever start to feel like a job is when you run into a problem that you may not know the answer to. This can cause a feeling of chaos, as well as not being sure what action to take. So the most common approach is to start taking the same action you had been taking, hoping it will lead you to better results. However, taking the same action in hopes of seeing different results is the beginning of the end of your joy! Because this type of action leads to keeping yourself and your business in the exact same place- the exact definition of a job. It is this pivotal moment that your business has an opportunity to grow, which is exactly what it is meant to do, and it’s a matter of stepping back enough to assess what it really needs and how to bring that to it so it can expand.
The place where almost every small business owner struggles the most with- 90%, to be exact- is discovering their most ideal client. This holds true for every art business as well- even those where you don’t sell product but instead your services as an artist, like actors, graphic designers, and choreographers. Knowing how to discover your true ideal client is the key to building a business that has found that sweet spot of consistent and predictable revenue from clients who love and resonate with what you have to offer.
This is exactly why we as artists are cut out to run the most successful businesses with our work. Like any creative project, you often have to walk away to consider why what you’re doing is not working, search for answers, and come back to it when you’re ready to try something new. There is always an answer that will work well for you, and you often find it through a variety of resources. This is part of the artistic act of creation. This is also the exact approach the most successful business owners take in order to allow their businesses to thrive. The moment you look at what is not working is the exact moment you enable the space for growth to continue.
I have spent the last nine months working side by side my mentor, Ryan Levesque, author of the book ASK. and creator of the ASK Methodology, which has become the most refined method of discovering your true ideal client on a special training for you to use this method to uncover your true ideal client, and that training is coming up this week! I can’t wait to share it with you, so be sure to mark your calendar for Wednesday, July 5th and listen to Artists In Business Podcast Episode 122 for details on how to access that training.