#200: How to Make More Money Online

ByJillian Leslie

Who doesn’t want to grow their online income? You’re in luck. In this episode, I’m interviewing business coachKim Garst, on how to make more money online. This is her specialty.

Her strategy is all about clear messaging, showing up on video so people get to know, like, and trust you, and using your email list to drive sales and repeat sales.

Also, as the online world becomes more crowded, it’s even more important to dial in all of these pieces.

Also, as a way to grow your income, come to my live training on Nov. 17th at 12:00pm CT on How to Set Up a Paid Workshop in 60 Minutes. It’s only $10 and it might transform your business!

How to Make More Money Online | The Blogger Genius Podcast with Jillian Leslie

Show Notes:

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Intro 0:04
Welcome to The Blogger Genius Podcast brought to you by MiloTree. Here’s your host, Jillian Leslie.

Jillian Leslie 0:11
Hello, my creator friends. Welcome back to the Blogger Genius Podcast. I am your host, Jillian Leslie, and I live and breathe growing online businesses.

Before I get started, I wanted to announce that tomorrow, Alisa Meredith and I are hosting our live training, all about setting up a paid workshop.

So, if you feel like you’re giving away a lot of content for free, and that you’re not able to monetize in the way that you want, I say come to our live training, it’s $10. It’s one hour, and you can start building a whole new revenue stream for your business.

We go step-by-step. At the end of it, you’re going to get a checklist so you can set up your own paid workshop, you’re going to use MiloTree Easy Payments, which is our new payment platform, the easiest platform out there. That’s how we built it.

And it’s going to be a lot of fun. So, please head to workshop.milotreecart.com to sign up and I’m charging money, $10. Not a lot, because I want you to have skin in the game, you will show up differently.

The details again, this is happening on November 17th at 12pm Central Time, we’d love you to show up live but if you can’t, we’ll send you a recording so you won’t miss anything. There are lots of goodies and bonuses.

But really this is about you leaning into monetizing your business while serving your audience, learning from your audience and creating superfans. Hopefully, I will see you tomorrow. Again, go to workshop.milotreecart.com.

I am really excited for my guest today. I have Kim Garst on the podcast. When I started, maybe 10 years ago looking into social media experts. She was somebody that I stumbled upon. So, I’ve been following her for a really long time.

And she agreed to come on the show. And I was super honored to have her. And what I love is how her advice is so simple and so direct. If you go to her website, here’s what it says it says “Make more money online”. The end.

We talk about clear messaging and how to get yourself noticed. And I think she has some great tips. So, without further delay, here is my interview with Kim Garst.

Kim, welcome to the show. I’m super happy that you are here.

Kim Garst 3:01
I am super happy that you asked me to be here. So, thank you. Thank you so much for that.

Jillian Leslie 3:06
Oh, and I have been a fan of yours for a very long time. We are both OG just social media people. We’ve been at this a while I’ve been on your email list for ever. But I don’t even know your story.

So, would you share how you got into online entrepreneurship? And how you grew your business and where you are today?

Getting Started in the Early Days of the Internet

Kim Garst 3:29
Absolutely. So, I was actually on my way to law school. And I was working as a paralegal at the time, my husband was in the military. And we got pregnant with our first son.

The moment they laid him in my arms, I was like, yeah, okay, this is not my plan. I’m not going to work any longer. For those mamas out there, they probably get that, babies come along, and they change our focus.

Everything, priority shift, maybe that’s a better way of saying it. So I was like, okay, and we were young, and we thought we could go from two incomes to one and I would say we were young and naive, because we believe that we could do that.

And the first year or so it was okay, financially, but slowly, but surely we had to put more stuff on the credit cards. We got to a place where we were borrowing from Peter to pay Paul. And I’m like, “Okay, what am I going to do?”

I’m either going to have to go back into the corporate world or, got to figure something out. He was born in 1991. And I basically started figuring it out about that time I was like, if I could do something from home what would that be?

And of course, that was when the internet was just getting started. It wasn’t super. The dial up, that little noise. And computers were crazy expensive. There were no resources, no business resources.

There was no Google, there was no YouTube, you couldn’t watch YouTube videos until your eyes bled to try to figure out how to do things. So, I was like, okay, and I would use the AOL business chat rooms and b2b boards, that’s how far back I go.

Dating myself of course, it’s been 30 years. I got an opportunity to have my first client, and he needed a website, and I had been trying to teach myself to code and had to go to the Barnes and Noble and buy a book.

Jillian Leslie 5:47
What’s a book?

Kim Garst 5:49
Right. You couldn’t get the knowledge like you can, then there was no knowledge. Now we have knowledge overwhelming. So $60, for what I quoted this gentleman. And I was like, “Okay, I need a programming.”

But back then front page was big, website design program was $97. I’m like, “I don’t have $97. What am I going to do?” And, there’s no room on any of our credit cards, like, we were just maxed out.

And my husband had a travel card, he was in the military, and he was in Special Ops. So they, issued a credit card for any time that he would travel. And I was sworn to never use this card. Because it would risk his security clearance.

And here I am, trying to make this decision, I’m thinking, okay, he could lose his job or his security clearance over this, he’s going to be terribly mad, so I’m risking my marriage, but I did, I went ahead and use that credit card to purchase the $97 program.

Knowing that I had a 30 day window to make it work. I’d been struggling I’ve been trying super hard to get clients and it’s been about a five-year window of trying to figure all this stuff out.

And I purchase the software, and he didn’t find out for 13 years. Long story short, is I made it work. I paid it off in 30 days, he never knew I’d use the card.

And, I basically created my first seven figures from our dining room table with my littles, playing on the floor with their Legos.

Jillian Leslie 7:54
Wow! That is very impressive. So, you have watched the internet, I feel like we have to just evolve and evolve and evolve, and how people use it and how people make money from the internet.

And even, just the idea today of like, what we’re doing, we thought this would be insane. And we are just looking at each other on this call. And even pre-pandemic, this might have been weird. So wow, I think then you must be very flexible.

Why You Need to Be Constantly Pivoting

Kim Garst 8:28
Yes, and I’m very much what I would call a pivoter. Where if something isn’t necessarily serving me, or if it’s no longer working? I’m like, “Okay, let’s figure out the next thing.” Because that’s when actually my husband has often said.

And I think it’s because I’ve been around for so long, that I see the next thing, in some cases before someone else does, just because, again, I’ve been around for so stinking long that the internet has evolved in so many ways.

So many things that are no longer a thing, from banner ads and one would say, okay, look, now what’s happening with Facebook, Facebook ads, where will they be in, five years, even 10 years? Will they still be a thing?

There’s just so many evolutions, and if we don’t evolve as well, then we will, in my opinion, stagnate and go by the wayside eventually. So, we have to be fluid. I’m a big, big proponent of being able to shift.

And of course with COVID so many business owners that were kind of lockstep and didn’t want to, adjust have had a tough time of it.

Versus some business owners who got super creative and did amazing things and opportunities just like flowed to them because they were open to new ideas. So, we just have fluid.

Jillian Leslie 10:15
So, what would you say where are the opportunities today? Let’s say somebody comes to you and says, “Kim, I want to build a business on the internet.” Like, that’s all they said.

And you’re like, “Whoa, I think you might need more of an idea there. But alright, let’s go with it.” How do you do that?

Kim Garst 10:32
Well, let’s assume it’s tougher than ever, I think because there’s just so many intricacies today, like, it was easy, you could throw up even an ugly website, and you could do your thing.

Now, I personally believe that there is one core thing that, I would say, 99% of businesses, even if they’re successful, are doing very poorly today.

And I think that if we don’t, as a collective, fix this problem that the people who do fix it are going to step ahead of those who are unwilling to fix this problem. So the problem is, and again, in my opinion, is clear messaging and actually building your house.

People they put their business online, and they’re like, okay, but they don’t really decorate, if you will, like, there’s no curb appeal. Their website, doesn’t look awesome, it’s just a placeholder.

And then they run to social media, thinking social media is going to be the end all be all. And then people go back to their website, and they’re like, “What can you do for me? It’s not clear.”

So I think if we do not fix our home, because it’s the only place we really own online is our website, and our email list. So, I’ll talk about that tomorrow, if you want. But you have to own our real estate.

And it has to tell people very clearly in three seconds, what you do for them. It’s no longer about us.

Jillian Leslie 12:14
No, no.

Why You Need to Be Super Clear in Your Messaging as an Online Entrepreneur

Kim Garst 12:17
Especially for personal brands, I’ll speak to this real quick, feel like traditionally personal brands have been all about the person, like, I’ve done this, I’ve got this accolade, I went through this school, or I’ve been featured here. Nobody cares about that anymore.

Not until they know what you are going to do for them in some capacity. How are you going to solve a problem for them, and then maybe, your details will matter? But it doesn’t matter in that three second window.

And so I feel like that clear messaging is going to be because people’s time and attention. “We are day traders of attention,” to quote, Gary Vaynerchuk.

And if we don’t get super clear, wherever we show up our website, social media, or our ads, if we’re paying for ads, everything needs to grab people’s attention in a manner that matters to our person in 30 seconds or less.

Jillian Leslie 13:17
I could not agree more you are preaching to the choir. I believe that back when, for example, when we started Catch My Party in 2009, it was all about this one-to-many model.

We’re like a magazine, we’re kind of like on a mountaintop going, “Hey, you want party ideas? Here you go people.” And as the internet has gotten so much more crowded, it now becomes one-to-one, “How am I going to help you?”

Not everybody. In fact, the smaller the more focused my niche is the better because then I can understand what you’re dealing with, and speak directly to you.

And I say this all the time on my podcast. It’s not the Jillian show. That is like my mantra. And I like it because it’s humbling.

How to Make More Money Online | The Blogger Genius Podcast with Jillian Leslie

Know Your Avatar

Kim Garst 14:05
So, I think that is the number one thing and traditionally we’ve taught people they need to know their avatar, and in most cases, we do that through the lens even before they sold their first thing. Okay, who are you going to sell this to?

And I believe if we got super clear on our messaging, and we say, this is what we do, our person will self-select in, they’ll say, “Okay, I’ll want that.” And your avatar will be spit out on the other side of that. Now your avatar may be who you think it is.

Because of the clear messaging, like, for example, that it’s certainly been true for me, I do attract women between the ages of probably 35 to 55.

And that has held true, by the fact that I’ve seen that I’ve gotten clearer and clearer on my messaging, and they’re still saying, yes, I want that.

Let’s say you’re a dentist, for example, and what do people want from you, they don’t care where you went to school, they want to know, when they come your way that you’re going to give them a beautiful smile.

Or, you know, if you ask the question, what do people want from me? Why do they want it? Why, if you can really nail down the why people want what it is that you do for them, and speak to that.

You’re going to hook them very quickly, and they will self-select in, as long as you give them a very clear path to working with you, do you want them to book a call? Do you want them to, get this freebie?

Sell The Transformation for your Audience

Put them on the path to working with you, and making that very clear at the top of your page. What’s the transformation they’re going to get? And then give them a one call to action to put them on that road.

I think it’s a huge and missing component. And I feel like if we do not fix this, like soon, the people that are fixing it are probably going to bypass a lot of others.

Jillian Leslie 16:15
Okay, so let’s break that down. What you’re saying is on my website, I need to identify what problem I am solving for somebody, communicate that very clearly and go deeper.

I liked what you were saying about the dentist, I want a beautiful smile, not just like I want to go to the dentist and get my teeth clean. Like there’s something that triggers in me who doesn’t want a beautiful smile that will make me feel pretty.

That will make me feel good about myself like stroke, a part of me that’s deeper than just go to the dentist and get clean teeth and no cavities. Speak to like an inner desire.

What woman doesn’t want to have a beautiful smile? So it’s like, okay, how can you tap into something human? A human desire.

Kim Garst 17:06
Yes. It’s the why do they want, for example, there’s so many, let’s say you’re a bride looking for her wedding cake, you’re getting ready to get married, and you want a beautiful wedding cake. That’s like the first thing.

But you also want a cake that tastes good. So, there’s a lot of wedding cakes out there, bakeries that will create a beautiful wedding cake, but they don’t taste so good.

So, let’s say if you’re the baker and you’re trying to attract that bride, a wedding cake, that’s beautiful. And maybe your headline is, something to this effect, a wedding cake, that’s beautiful, but it tastes amazing.

And you book and come in and you do a taste testing. That’s the call to action. I’m a bride, and I’m looking for that, I go to the website, and it says that at the top, that’s the headline. I’m like, they get me they know I want a beautiful cake.

But they also know I want it to taste good. I’m going to book a console, go in or taste testing, go in and taste test. And then it gives them a very clear path. You book, your taste test, you order your cake, and then we deliver it. Three steps.

Boom, super, super clear. So, people don’t have to figure out how they’re going to work with you right.

Jillian Leslie 18:33
Now, what if I’m this baker and I’m also vegan, and I do the most cutting edge beautiful cakes and all this stuff and I’m kind of confused because I feel like I do everything?

This is where I noticed when we’re coaching people, I have to kind of pare them down, because they’ve got so many ideas and they’ve got so many things that they offer, that it’s muddy.

Kim Garst 19:05
Yes. Well, like in this particular case, again, maybe it’s not just a bride. But at the end of the day, what it is that you do? So, sometimes you really have to work to get it to a top down vision for your business.

For example, most of the people who come my way, if they want to create a business or they want to learn how to use social media, or they want branding or whatever.

At the end of the day, every time we do the client on-board or the client consults on the front side. The same theme comes up they want to make more money online. So I started leading with that message.

How to Make More Money Online

Jillian Leslie 19:45
Oh my God, it’s on your website. I was like you go girl that was very bold, in a good way, meaning I know what you do. And in fact, I write up questions before and I send them to my guests.

And one of the questions I wrote was, where do you see the opportunities today to make money online? And I got that wording directly from your website. So, that resonated with me.

Kim Garst 20:26
Yes. And my website is still a work in progress, because I’m getting ready to pivot some. But still, when we tried to come up with what is it that people want from me, and then the lanes that I help people, like, whatever it is.

At the end of the day, it still leads to the same thing more money online, more money online, more money online. So, that was what we started messaging. And I think another thing that is going to be super powerful.

You Must Show Up Live on Video So People Can Know, Like and Trust You

And we all have heard it for years, this is not something new. It is video. And I personally believe that all of us need to start creating what I’m going to label evergreen, organic funnels for anything that we sell.

Jillian Leslie 21:25
What do you mean by that?

Kim Garst 21:27
Using the power of video. So, if you sell a coaching program, for example, all the questions that people ask that would lead them to say, hey, you can help me with whatever my situation is.

So, you do videos on all those things, you put them in all the places, you put them on YouTube. I want to focus a little bit on two places that I feel are social platforms where you can still get organic reach. So, that’s YouTube, and Pinterest.

Everywhere else really, you’re going to have to pay to play if you’re just starting because it’s just gotten to a place where reach is just nothing on most of these social platforms. But YouTube and Pinterest are search engines.

So it doesn’t matter how many subscribers you have on your YouTube channel, or how many followers you have on Pinterest. If someone is searching for your content on those platforms, you can come to the top if you’ve optimized your content correctly.

And therefore by byproduct of that you can grow your followers on Pinterest, you can organically without having to pay to get in front of your person. And same with YouTube.

In fact, 80% or over 80% of searches on YouTube are organic people are finding content organically. It’s not through sponsored content. So, there’s such an opportunity.

And the reason I’m saying this is because eventually paid advertising will either be more expensive for the average person to even consider affording.

Or it will be less effective, which we’re already seeing Facebook, for example, with the new iOS update is less effective now than it has been previously. So, what are our options?

If you don’t have the funds to invest in your business, then what are we going to do? So, I feel like there’s going to be a real need to build evergreen content that will lead to anything that we sell in our business.

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Jillian Leslie 24:36
Okay, so let’s go back then to the baker who makes wedding cakes. And you say this to the baker what kinds of videos do you recommend they create?

Kim Garst 24:50
Well, one he or she depending doesn’t really matter. I’ll just say he for purposes of us talking about this but maybe he does, behind the scenes, showcasing him actually creating the cakes. That would be one type of touch point that he could do.

He could interview the people when they come to do the taste test, like was this good? What did you really like about this? What flavor are you looking at? All the things. So that would be another.

He could answer the questions that he gets asked most frequently. Like, if they ask depending on what those questions are every business owner, depending on what it is that they sell, gets asked specific types of questions.

Answer the questions, because if you think about it from a search capability, and think about how you even search for things, when you’re looking for content or answers to questions that you’re looking for, how to, whatever.

Create How To Videos So They Show Up in Search

So the “How To” videos are going to be super powerful, and the people are going to find you that way. And whether it’s, you’re doing it through a combination of video, again, it’s such a powerful medium to connect versus, straight up text, a blog.

If you’re blogging, blogs are very powerful, too. But insert your video into that blog, so again, it’s just another touch point for people to be able to see you, hear you. It builds know, like and trust factor at a super accelerated rate versus, just a standard blog post.

Jillian Leslie 26:40
Or pretty photo. I totally agree. In fact, it’s funny, because again, I feel like I know you, I’ve seen you, I’ve watched your videos, I know your voice. So when you popped in, I’m like, oh, we’re friends, even though you don’t know me.

So it’s like, I already have those feelings toward you. Because you’ve been building this relationship. You don’t know this, but you’ve been building a relationship with me, or I’ve been building a relationship with you for a very long time.

Kim Garst 27:10
Yes, and it’s really the important thing, I think, for all of us to understand. And this is an interesting stat. So, I’ll share this real quick. If somebody sees you on a video maybe one or two times, this is an interesting thing.

They can’t remember whether they met you in person, or they saw you on a video. Now you’re like, is your mind blown? Because it was mine I was like, that can’t be right. Like, is that right? But it is right?

To your point, like, I will be out I’ll be at an airport or something. And somebody will say, I know you I’ve seen you on a video. I’m like, okay, that’s a little weird. But no way that happens. It’s you build a connection with people that are attracted to your vibe.

And they know very quickly, like, somebody is listening to you talk about, something, and you’ve helped them in some capacity. The next time they see you, they’ll be like, okay, let’s hear what she has to say. Or let’s hear what he has to say.

So, it’s a very, very powerful medium. So that would be the second thing, I think, is something that we need to be aware of and should be doing.

And then I think you mentioned it earlier, which is, we’ve always been in a place where we wanted to be able to scale things. And we got lazy with social media, frankly, and a lot of people have used it as a broadcast system for a while.

Work Toward One-on-One Conversations with Your Customers

But it is shifting, and we need to move people to one-on-one conversations. I think that’s the next thing I would say is a powerful thing if we start talking with people, one- on-one.

One of the best ways that I found to do that is Instagram, or even Facebook, I do a lot of voice messaging, not just texting, but voice messaging with people.

Like if somebody asked me a question, I will respond with a voice recording. And that has been super, super powerful for me.

Jillian Leslie 29:26
I love that idea. I forget to do that. So thank you for reminding me. It was easier in many ways, but then you get to go, “Oh my God, Hey, it’s me. I’m here for you. I hear you. And let me answer your question.”

So, I’m the baker. And I’ve got my website and I’m all about my cakes look beautiful, but they also taste good. And I’ve got video that I’ve put on my blog, maybe on my homepage, where I’m talking about all the different flavors.

And I’ve got people going, “Oh my God, this tastes amazing, the best wedding cake ever.” And I’ve set myself up as an expert. You can see behind the scenes, I’m baking a cake.

I’m posting it on social media, I’m doing video on Pinterest and YouTube, because I want to show that I know what I’m talking about. And you see me connecting with clients and really hearing what they’re saying to me.

And now and I’ve got one call to action button on my blog or multiple times, but the same idea, book a call with me, book a tasting, book a tasting, come talk to me, share your questions with me. And now, where does email fit into this?

How to Make More Money Online | The Blogger Genius Podcast with Jillian Leslie

Your Email List is Your Most Undervalued Asset

Kim Garst 30:44
Email is probably the most undervalued overlooked, don’t want to do whatever word you want to say that I have found that entrepreneurs across the board just don’t focus enough time and attention on.

And yet, it’s probably, well it’s not probably it is where the money is raised.

Jillian Leslie 31:06
It is.

Kim Garst 31:08
It is where the money is. So, I’ll give you a quick example. I spoke at an event a couple of weeks ago, and I talked about the number one marketing shift that I see coming, which was this whole messaging conversation.

And after I spoke, it was like, how do we hire you? How do we hire you? And then one gentleman asked me a very interesting question. And that highlights and speaks to exactly the question you just asked me.

He’s like, “Okay, if I have, this on my website, and people sign up for, a free consult or whatever.” Which is what we are doing now, but he says only about 25% of those people actually come in and make the appointment, get into the office.

And he said, “What do I do about the rest of those people? And so what happens when that person signs up for a free console?”

I say, “What are you doing with those names and emails? Do you have a nurture sequence? Are you communicating with them? Are you reminding them to come in for their appointment via text?”

He’s like the deer in the headlight look. No communication with these people. They’ve totally forgot about you, dude. So, the point is that email is a powerful, powerful thing.

And you need to be communicating with your people who, sign up for taste testing, if you’re the baker, nurture that relationship.

Let them know, we’re looking forward to, having some sort of a nurture sequence where you let people know that, you’ve booked your cake, you get closer to the time you’re looking forward to, creating this masterpiece for them or whatever.

But staying connected in this particular case, your customer. But what about people that have already purchased from you or haven’t purchased from you yet?

So, even though they’ve already purchased, you’ve already fulfilled on that particular bride, for example, she’s already gotten her cake. Well, who does she know that might be getting married? You still have to stay connected to those people.

So, that’s a whole segment of people and I’m assuming and since we’re using the location of the baker, it’s a location specific business, they’re not putting a wedding cake in a box and shipping it.

So, from a location specific perspective, how do you continue to stay front and center with people who would refer business to you?

Jillian Leslie 33:45
And how do you let them know you do birthday cakes, you do holiday cakes? There might be a baby shower down the road.


You stay in their inbox. You stay in there, you communicate the things, you tell the stories, you share the things that you do, you have coupon codes that you send out periodically, you stay connected.

Kim Garst

And for a lot of business owners it’s why I think they don’t do it is because they don’t exactly know what to say what to send out.

It goes back to that clear messaging and understanding that there’s so many ways that that one person could ultimately be a financial resource in your business. Just because the bride has had her wedding. Her parents might have an anniversary.

Her cousin might have a birthday. She has friends that are getting married that she’s going to refer business to you if she has a positive experience. But you want to stay connected to those people, and do so in a creative, connect it human.

You just got to be human with the people that come into touch with your business, but you got to communicate with them, you can’t just assume they’re going to come back and do business with you again or even do business with you the first time.

Jillian Leslie 35:25
Absolutely. And if somebody has purchased from you, and you’ve provided value, you can nurture those people into your evangelists, if you deliver, you have to deliver. But if that cake is delicious, because you promised a delicious cake.

If that necklace shows, is amazing. Guess what, right when that person receives whatever it is and if you delight them, that’s your biggest fan. That’s when to ask for a testimonial, that’s when to to call them.

That’s the other thing I’m a big believer especially as we’ve talked about this, going from one-to-many down to like one-to-one, get on the phone with them. Ask them what about that experience they liked and what they didn’t? What could you do better?

Kim Garst 36:18
Absolutely. Or send them an Instagram DM especially from a bride air quotes, “probably” of a generation where they are on Instagram and active there.

So reach out, like, three months later and say, “Just checking in, How’s married life?” Boom, you’ve had a touch point. And they’re like, “Oh my gosh, they remembered me.”

Jillian Leslie 36:46
And send a photo of the cake. Do something where you’re like, this was our connection.

Kim Garst 36:53
Right. Or things like, obviously the topper. Every wet bride keeps the top and you save it. Or some tips that they could freeze that cake, or keep that cake. Those are types of things.

And, you can even follow up with them like a week later and say, just making sure that you were able to store your cake and your cake topper. So, there’s just so many things that could even be a sequence and email sequence.

Like, you know, that you follow up with them, you know, day after or two days after the wedding is over, or even prior too so that they know how to store the cake. Depending on how you want to do it. There’s just 1,001 ways.

People just assume that they have this brain cramp. And they’re like, but I don’t know what to do. There’s so many unique, surprise and delight ways to connect with your person.

Jillian Leslie 37:55
Okay, so based on I’m like loving this, and I love all these ideas. I’m like, oh my God, I’m not a baker and you’ve sparked me to now want to be a baker. But somebody comes to you. And they’re like, “Hey, I want to build an online business.” And you go through this.

And then I go, “Oh, my God, this sounds so overwhelming. How do I put all these pieces together?” We’re talking about video and a website and I need to have messaging and then I need to do email. And how do I think about this?

Kim Garst 38:30
That’s the problem because it can be overwhelming. There are really amazing resources though today that can streamline the complexity of what it is that you want to do.

For example, if you want to sell your knowledge, there are platforms where you can just sign up for that platform, it is a great place to house your content, it has a feature that allows you to process your payments.

There are tools out there today that make our lives so much easier. It’s just a matter of, what is it that you want to do? There are resources that allow us to basically create a business without even a website these days.

Now, I’m not a proponent of not having a website I will say that but if you’re just starting and you want to get going and you want to get some money coming in the door, you can do that.

Technically, you can do that with a Facebook group, where you’re charging a specific amount of money for something and the community and what you’re doing to fulfill on that is not in a Facebook group.

Jillian Leslie 39:50
Wait I have to stop for one second to do a plug for MiloTree Easy Payments, which I’ve been talking about.

Kim Garst 39:55
I was hoping you would.

Jillian Leslie 39:58
Okay, well you can monetize your Facebook group, like easy peasy, like done, you’ve got an audience, you got a buy button. I mean, that easy. And by the way, I asked you this question because I get this question a lot.

You’re talking about all these things on the podcast. And you and I, we’ve been at this for a long time. So sure, wish we had started growing our email lists even years before. Yeah, but we’ve got systems in place, and I’ve got my sequences and all of that.

And, my piece that I wanted to build on, what you were saying is, I teach this concept called B-minus work, where you put it out there and it’s not polished, and you test it, and you try it.

And I always say this, get a little embarrassed, like, be a little embarrassed when you press post, or you put that video up, and you start and be human, because people will eventually start talking back to you. And if they don’t you go chase them.

And you say, “Hey, I’m seeing you online. And I’d like to communicate with you.” And you kind of put yourself out there in a kind of messy way. And so you start building.

Kim Garst 41:19
Yes. So I feel like as somebody who’s just getting started, there’s a couple of strategies that I think will work for anyone, regardless of where you are, if you’re just getting started. It’s in you want to build an online course.

Because that’s like gold standard, it seems like today. Everybody is trying to package their knowledge and having something that will create, that passive revenue stream for them. But what if you don’t exactly know what that looks like?

Try Packaging Your Knowledge and Selling It

So, we’ve talked about video and how powerful video is. So, one of the things I did in the early days of COVID, is the community needed to learn how to package their knowledge as quickly as I could teach them how to do it.

So, I did a, I call it “PDF to profit,” because again, how are we going to get the delivery mechanism in a format that’s easily delivered to our person. But I hosted the course, it was a live, I delivered the content live.

So, the content was a day to day, it was like a 10 day, 7 days for this. PDF to profit was a 7-day course. And I was basically teaching them how to build a mini-digital product, and meaning something small to get people to spend that first dollar with them.

I sold it before I had the content created.

Jillian Leslie 42:46
I love that.

Kim Garst 42:46
And then I delivered the content live every day. So, I didn’t have it done when I sold it. And in some cases, I was creating it day to day.

So, I was delivering the content live, I was talking with my students, I was interacting, interactive. I did it messy so very clear that I’m trying to get this information out to you guys as quickly as possible.

And, then I iterated the course I think we’ve iterated it six or seven times now and I’m going to turn it into an evergreen. But this is the amazing thing that happened.

I was spending time with people I was answering their questions, I was physically there, I saw the transformations take place because they were doing the work. When you have a course where you just pay for it and you log in, you talk yourself out of it.

You know what I’m saying? It’s like, “Oh, well, I’ll get back to that.” Or how many of us have done that. But it was so powerful to actually be with my students, spend time with them, because everybody was on the same road.

And it’s like, well, if she can do it, I can do it. In some cases, they got ideas from one another, it was a beautiful, amazing thing. And then when they got to the end of the course they’re like what’s next?

So, I was able to sell them something else, which was the next piece, which was how to create their sales page, once they have their thing to sell, they have to have a mechanism to sell it right.

So, and I did that with lists. But the next thing was once you have your sales page, you have to have an audience if you don’t have an audience, you need to be list building.

So I had PDF to profit. VSL which I taught them how to create a video sales letter was the next piece. And then the next piece was list building to profit. So I created three courses, using live video

Jillian Leslie 44:43
And listening to your audience.

Kim Garst 44:45
And listening. Yes.

How We Came Up With MiloTree Easy Payments

Jillian Leslie 44:47
That’s the thing like being so responsive. And by the way, the way we came up with the idea for MiloTree Easy Payments was people in our coaching group were like, “I want to start a membership and I don’t know how.”

And I said, we’re kind of experts. So, I’ll hack together a solution for you. And as I’m hacking this together, I’m going, nobody would be able to put this together, because she didn’t want to spend a ton of money. So, I’m connecting this to this to this.

And I turned to David, who’s my husband, and partner and I go we can build this, and help somebody monetize exactly what you were just doing.

Which is what I say go test your idea in a Facebook group or on Zoom, put up a money button and get people to pay for it, and then go do it, and learn and connect and be human.

Kim Garst 45:33
That’s exactly, what I did. And I think challenges are another thing that are super powerful for somebody who’s just getting started. As long as you have something to sell them into, if you’re going to do like a five-day challenge, it’s free.

I’ll give you a quick example of one of my mastermind students did a challenge. She had 30 people in her challenge. So, it wasn’t a ridiculous number 30 people.

And then 9 of those people opted to take her up on her coaching package. So, she created like $22,000 from a five-day challenge. Nine people.

Jillian Leslie 46:11
And what was she teaching?

Kim Garst 46:14
She teaches people how to become bestsellers.

Jillian Leslie 46:17
Oh, hmm.

Kim Garst 46:18
Yes. Yeah.

Jillian Leslie 46:19
Wow. Okay, so in terms of trends, you’ve identified some and I just want to make sure we’ve kind of covered how you see the world. Because what you said is, you’ve been at this a long time, you can start to kind of see things evolving, even before they evolve.

So, the trends that I feel like you’ve been sharing, and you can tell me what you think. And if I’ve missed any, or if there are more that you want to add, I would say it is all about showing up showing up on video, answering people’s questions.

Being super clear about your messaging, how you are providing value to somebody else making their path like, read my website, read my value proposition and click that button. We’re not going to send you on a wild goose chase.

Kim Garst 47:07
Right. And I think your website needs to look good, and have some curb appeal. Think about it. I’ll give you a quick example I used it at this event that I spoke at. I have been taking care of my dad for the past four and a half months.

And so our puppies needed, a groomer up here in Virginia. And so, I Googled it. And I found a groomer, that kind of resonated, none of their websites were awesome. But like, she used the term for a baby. And so I was like, Okay.

And when I called, she said, she’d moved her business back into the home during COVID. And I was like, okay, that’s not a problem. But when I go to take my puppies, it was kind of a sketchy place.

And I’m like, if it had been a wonderful home with a curb appeal, I would have probably not even hesitated to knock on the door. So, I want you to think about your website, as in that light. When somebody comes to your website, are you sketchy?

Make Sure Your Website Looks Professional So You Don’t Turn Off Your Customers

Because if you are, think about how you show up in the context of your competition. Because if you’ve pre-qualified people.

And somebody goes to your website to buy something, because they’ve had a conversation with you on Instagram, they’re not necessarily going to care, because you’ve already had the conversation with them.

But cold traffic, people that Google and are looking for you, and they don’t know who you are. Think about how you show up in the context of you and your competition. Do you look sketchy? If you look sketchy, you need to fix your website, you all. Okay.

Jillian Leslie 48:57
I like that. I like that. And then the other thing you were saying is paying for traffic, or paying with ads is probably going to get more expensive. So, you need to figure out how to stand out and how to stand out quickly.

Because that back button is a really powerful thing. I always say people just assume when somebody is on your website, they’re on their phone, and they’re watching Netflix in the background.

Kim Garst 49:22
Absolutely.

Jillian Leslie 49:23
So, is there anything I have missed? Where you go, “Ooh, here’s something I’m seeing.”

Kim Garst 49:29
I think the other thing is, and it’s definitely a COVID thing for sure. But there is a lot of people coming online that starting businesses as primarily information businesses, where they’re trying to package the knowledge that they have.

There’s a Lot More Competition Today

And so for those of us who are doing the same thing, everything that we just talked about is going to be more tuned in, dialed in. Because there’s a lot more competition coming into the space.

And we need to get our stuff lined up. So that we attract our person, we sell our knowledge, our systems, our processes, overtop of our competition for sure. Those things are going to be super powerful for us.

If we can do the things. If we can talk to our person one-on-one. If we can be found, and people understand what it is that we do for them in two hot seconds.

And we answer the questions that people are looking for, again, in the context of leading them back to us so that they can follow the path using video.

I promise if you do those things you’re going to have an amazing business that probably won’t need a lot of influx of paid ads.

Jillian Leslie 50:57
Wow. I love that. Okay, Kim, how are you pivoting? What is next for you?

Kim Garst 51:03
That’s a great question. I’m in the middle of doing some research on some things that I’m very interested in pursuing. I’m just not quite sure which lane I’m going to go down yet.

I’ve built all the models online, l’ve had a successful agency, I’ve had a successful coaching business, I’ve had a successful membership. I’ve sold my knowledge and courses and whatnot. So I’m like, okay, what is the next evolution for me?

I’m still doing some of those things. I have a small boutique agency, I sell my knowledge in courses, and I have two memberships. So, I still have some of the things. But I want to step into a bigger role.

I’m not quite sure what that is with definity yet, but it’s coming. I’m really close. So, I just don’t want to say yet because I haven’t 100% made my decision.

Jillian Leslie 52:09
Got it. Now if people want to reach out to you learn more about you, where should they go?

Kim Garst 52:15
Send me a DM on Instagram or Facebook or wherever, honestly I’m in all the places. But I love the personal one-on-one connection. And I promise you you’ll probably get a voice message back from me if you do message me.

I am very engaged. People reach out to me if you have a question, feel free to ask me. I will answer.

Jillian Leslie 52:42
I love it. And it’s Kim Garst everywhere.

Kim Garst 52:45
Yes, it’s Kim Garst on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest. The only variation to Facebook and YouTube is it’s kimgarstbiz. B-I-Z on Facebook and YouTube.

Jillian Leslie 53:01
Well that is so great. Well, I just have to say, I feel very inspired after hearing our conversation. Thank you so much

Kim Garst 53:10
It’s always online. I love talking about this stuff and I love sharing the lessons, the business lessons I’ve learned. Life lessons. I struggled so like I shared with you on the front side of the interview to make my first $60.

So, my why now is very different than it was then. And that why is to shorten the learning curves for others, help them get to the money faster. Take the complex and make it simple.

So, stuff like this feeds myself. So thank you for asking me to be here. I appreciate it.

Jillian Leslie 53:50
Lots of solid themes. I really respond to this idea of making your messaging so super clear. Also, showing up live on video so people get a sense of who you are. And three, I say this all the time use your email list. It is so incredibly powerful.

And my final announcement for tomorrow’s workshop head to workshop.milotreecart.com. This could really change your whole trajectory.

Hopefully I’ll see you tomorrow, but if not, I will see you here again next week.

Other Blogger Genius Podcast episodes to listen to:

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