166. Monetize Your Expertise Through Workshops and Live Events with Jeannie Spiro
Live events are back, baby! In spite of all the attention given to virtual gatherings, there’s nothing that replaces the energy of in-person gatherings. Right?
And if you’re a coach or consultant doing 1-1 work, then you know the problem with growing your business once your client roster is full and you simply don’t have time or bandwidth to bring on anyone new.
Well this week’s episode is all about transitioning into working with more clients by harnessing the power of live events.
We took a dive into how you can monetize your expertise through boutique-style workshops and masterminds that foster deeper client connections and, yes, make you more money.
Business coach Jeannie Spiro came on and revealed her unique approach to growing your coaching business through intimate workshops and shifting from high-volume marketing to nurturing high-touch relationships.
So, if you’ve ever wondered how to craft successful live events that drive business growth and what are the best strategies for filling your event – listen up!
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Transcript
Jeannie Spiro:
Video is incredible, and it’s an amazing way for people to get to know you, and an even better way is when they can get into the room. I kept thinking well, how do I get more people to get to know me and be in the room with me so that they could understand who I was, how I could serve, what I knew and how I could help them? And workshops and small events and intimate events became the way of marketing my business, giving value, supporting them and then inviting them into my mastermind or my coaching program.
Brad Powell:
Welcome to the Standout Business Show, where it’s all about making a bigger difference by doing business differently. I’m Brad Powell, and if you’re a business leader who refuses to blend in, if you’re ready to create a bingeable brand that can’t be ignored, if you want to create loyal customers so pumped that they’re sharing your stuff with all their friends, you are in the right place, Because today we’re talking about how to monetize your expertise with intimate, boutique-style workshops and masterminds. Well, today’s guest business coach, Jeannie Spiro, is coming on to break down how you can transition from your one-on-one work into a model that serves a lot more people, so you can multiply your profits, maximize your impact and bonus enjoy your life more. Genie Specialty is helping coaches and service-based businesses develop intimate style workshops, masterminds and hybrid coaching programs. So stay tuned and let’s start the show. All right, Jeannie, welcome to the show.
Jeannie Spiro:
Brad, thank you so much for having me. I’m thrilled to be here.
Brad Powell:
Yeah, and to get us started, I want you to talk a little bit about some of your experience. Like you, have come on to this very specific way of not only marketing your own business but helping everybody else that you work with do the same model, and there are so many ways that one could approach marketing. Most people who are teaching marketing are looking at high volume, traffic based reach out to as many people as possible, and if you’re able to do that, then sometime in the future you will be successful. And, of course, there are so many people you know, so-called influencers on sites like Instagram, who have millions of followers but they do not have a successful business, and yet you found this way of working with people that seems to work extremely well, both from a point of view of relationship building as well as actually successful business building. So just talk a little bit about that transition and how you found this model.
Jeannie Spiro:
Oh, absolutely Well. So I consider myself a little bit on the lazy side and also because I wanted to do something that I knew worked in my past life and my past life I was in sales. I had worked for many, many years in sales and service and account management and I was always responsible for enrolling clients and also retaining my clients. And so what I found early on was that the better you serve your clients, the longer that they stayed. And so when I thought about growing my business, it was never about I’m going to create a course or a membership program. It was how can I serve my clients the best way I possibly could?
Jeannie Spiro:
And it became high touch, high impact programs, and I used to approach my marketing in I have to do everything everybody else does and I need to go out and do the same amount of marketing and a lot of marketing to get more clients. And I realized wait a minute, I don’t have to do the same amount of marketing because I’m not looking for as many clients as everybody else who might be looking to sell a membership program or course or something like that. I needed less clients. So I really scaled back my marketing because of how I decided to serve at high impact, high touch, and that’s when everything started to click, Like I didn’t have to do the same things that everybody else had to do, and sort of my lazy approach became a really smart approach to how I could grow my business and I started teaching clients to do the same.
Brad Powell:
I really like that, the lazy approach to successful business growth. Yeah, there’s something in there around like. The other thing I want to underline is the better you serve your clients, the longer they stay. And, and I think, when it comes from a marketing perspective, for people like both you and I who have these high ticket, high touch type of experiences that we’re doing with our clients, high touch type of experiences that we’re doing with our clients, what needs to happen before people come in the door and hire us is we need to build a relationship with them that’s genuine and they feel like, oh, you get me and you, in particular, are the one that I want to come and work with. It’s that relationship building part. So talk about how the way that you work from a marketing perspective is really focused on relationship building.
Jeannie Spiro:
Yes.
Jeannie Spiro:
Well, again, early on in my past career, what I realized was we were always hosting workshops in my job and we were gathering people and I noticed that level of intimacy and you obviously know this because of the work that you do.
Jeannie Spiro:
Video is incredible and it’s an amazing way for people to get to know you, and an even better way is when they can get into the room. And so I kept thinking, well, how do I get more people to get to know me and be in the room with me so that they could understand who I was, how I could serve, what I knew and how I could help them? And workshops and small events and intimate events became the way of marketing my business, giving value, supporting them and then inviting them into my mastermind or my coaching program. So, once again, it wasn’t and I won’t call it this lazy approach. It was really a dialed in approach Like how could I do this that would work for my business? Because, again, I was in transformation, still am high touch, high impact, and to make a bigger decision in working with someone in that capacity maybe high touch, high ticket, longer term you need to get to know them, and what better way to do that to then to be in the room, and especially in intimate space.
Brad Powell:
Yeah, so can you describe, at least, maybe at a high level, what your model like, the functioning of your model, what it actually looks like?
Jeannie Spiro:
So I do work with clients privately as well, but I also have a hybrid program and I have for over 10 years and the hybrid program works a little bit like this now is what had happened and this can happen to a lot of business owners is you do a really great job with your marketing and people start referring business to you. You do a great job with your marketing and and you get business because you’re doing a great job with your marketing and the great thing happens. What we all want is we, our business, grows and we do well. But in the high ticket, high touch space, if you don’t address how you’re working with clients one-on-one at some point you’re either going to burn out or you’re not going to be able to take more clients. And if you want to work with more people, you have to change your model. You have to change the way you’re serving.
Jeannie Spiro:
So for me personally, how it ended up happening was my business got busy, I had too many private clients. I had to figure out another way of serving and I did keep and still do have private coaching, but I expanded how I was serving into hybrid, and what that looks like now is I have a curriculum, I have coaching in a group community environment. I have live intensives where clients come and learn in person, but we also have inside with me as an expert, and also I have other coaches on my team. We’re supporting clients when we need to, at certain milestones privately as well. So I that’s the hybrid model is being able to still be high touch, but do it in a community space.
Brad Powell:
All right, Now I’d like you to describe how you are getting people in the door. I love in-person events. I like to go to them, I like to lead them. I know personally, like my experience with facilitating especially relatively small groups, is a place, that’s an environment, where I really thrive. I feel like when I go into a room like that, I’m really getting energy from the group, and the other cool thing is that the group itself is doing cool stuff with each. You know each other, People are learning from other people there and everybody gets good energy from that, and it’s something that’s really irreplaceable.
Brad Powell:
Like you know, for all the virtual event and for hybrid stuff, you can’t really replicate that virtually entirely. As much as a video advocate that I am, I know that in person, when you’re actually there with people, we all get good stuff from just being in the room with people. So talk about how you actually are bringing people to the room, because I think that that is a lot of folks are looking at it going. Well, sure, I’d love to lead workshops or I’d love to lead something like this, but how am I going to get whatever the number is 40 or 50 people to come to my event?
Jeannie Spiro:
Yeah, absolutely. So I want to talk a little bit about the event style that I have and then the marketing that I do.
Jeannie Spiro:
And what I found a long time ago was when I decided that I wanted to start hosting events or workshops to start my business. I was looking at the model, which was always more people the better, and you know, low price tickets and and then get as many people into the room as you possibly could. But what I learned from that was there were a lot of people who would come and they weren’t necessarily looking to learn and they weren’t necessarily. They weren’t there to network or they were there for a variety of reasons, and what I wanted to do was create a space that it would be a true workshops experience, that people would be able to come and they would take something away and that they would learn something while they were there. And, on top of it, I didn’t want them to necessarily learn from me, because I don’t believe I have all of the answers. I know that it’s important to get in the room with people who also have the answers and you can learn in a community together. So it’s networking, masterminding, connecting and learning. So my events have always been that a chance to learn, a chance to explore what you’re doing, a chance to be able to strategize and, yes, I deliver in my zone of expertise and I want them to have the takeaway. So what I always did was I was sort of like the opposite of everybody else, like butts in seats it was. I was strategically out there talking about how you could come to the event and have a workshop experience and get something done and find collaborative partners and network and mastermind, and so the way I started promoting it was that it was beneficial for them not only for their business to learn, but beneficial for them to get something done and get ahead in some area of their business. When I started talking about in the developing, the messaging for it, everyone started telling everyone that they knew about it and I didn’t really have to do that much work to fill it, which was fantastic.
Jeannie Spiro:
But what I still do and what I still do is I every year I treat it as a launch and I am inside of what I do.
Jeannie Spiro:
I’m a sales and launch strategist as well, so I help my clients fill their programs and services through launching either evergreen or live events, and a workshop is a live event launch. So, strategically every year. Now what I do is I get out and speak. I speak on stages, I speak on podcasts, I invite people to come, and on top of that, I have a system inside of my business after doing it for this many years is I have a wait list. I invite people who want to come early to join the wait list and get on early. I have a bring a friend system in place. I have tiers to how I approach my launch that have come from over 10 years of doing it, and then I add new strategies. For example, this year, what I’m finding is reels are working for me, live interviews on Instagram are working for me to fill seats, and so I keep adding in strategies, testing them, see what works, and then repeat what works and try more the next year.
Brad Powell:
Yeah, that’s cool. Yeah, I think I really like the idea of live interviews on Instagram. I Instagram is just as a bit of an aside here. The platform is set up so that when you’re going live and you go live with somebody else, both of you are sending notifications out to all of your audience that you’re live and people see that in real time. And not only does that happen, but it’s happening like every 15 minutes. Like a bunch of stuff goes out and then, if you’re still on, 15 minutes later, more notifications will go out, and then, 15 minutes after that, more go out. And I’ve seen people who are doing things like they treat it like a call in show. You know they go live and then they anybody wants to, can they’ll bring them on, and then what’s happening is their people will get notified that they’re live, you know, and so it builds on itself. And I think you know, for in the realm of live streaming, instagram is a really cool place to be doing this kind of thing. Yeah, it’s working. Yeah, all right.
Brad Powell:
So you just said a whole bunch of stuff. I took a bunch of notes here, and so when I look at this, the thing that is intriguing to me about. You know, like putting all these things together. You’ve got the possibility of not only learning stuff or getting ahead in your business, but also networking and finding collaborative partners. All of this is people going. Yeah, and you’re putting the word out there so that people are excited enough to come, that they’re starting to bring their friends. Yes, that seems terrifically good. Yes, and the other thing about it I don’t know if you do this, but if there’s a size thing like you’re in a room and it’s a physical space, so obviously only so many people can fit in that space, no matter how big it is, and I assume that your spaces aren’t gigantic.
Brad Powell:
So, and you mentioned the waiting list, and is the part that I want to underline the waiting list part, I think, is brilliant, because what you’re doing there is you’re creating a kind of transparency that here’s a waiting list you can’t get, you know like you’re not registered yet. There’s a waiting list and if you’re saying things like well, I’ve got whatever it is, you know a thousand people on my waiting list, but only a hundred people can come, or whatever. Everybody knows that when the doors open, they have to be quick or or miss their chance. Yes, there’s a big festival in the UK, glastonbury. Have you ever heard of this?
Brad Powell:
Yes, they do this. You know, every year they have a waiting list and they say, well, next is this date and you can get on the waiting list, and they’ll have, like I don’t know what the number is like a million people on the waiting list. You know some really large amount of people and they can only fit a few hundred thousand in the concert and everybody knows that. Yeah, and so the moment that they open the thing and say, okay, registration is open, you can buy your ticket. Now they sell all their tickets in about an hour every single year.
Jeannie Spiro:
I know I’m not at that point yet, brad but I’m hoping we can all aspire. I do aspire to that, yes.
Brad Powell:
Right. Well, I mean, if there was some really glamorous, wonderful aspect to it and people go, I really have to be there. This is the event of the year I really need to go. Right, it could be like that, yes.
Jeannie Spiro:
Yeah.
Brad Powell:
Well, anyway, I just think that all these elements that you mentioned I think are very clever and creative, and it’s also interesting to hear that you are continually evolving and adding things like doing interviews on Instagram, that kind of stuff.
Jeannie Spiro:
Well, I think, at the end of the day, really what I do is I teach my clients as many strategies that work for me, and also because I am behind so many launches from my clients every single year. So I’m learning, I’m researching, I’m testing, I’m not afraid to do it, and it all comes down to remembering what works, sort of at the foundation and then adding more strategies in. And because a lot of my clients will come to me, especially like this year. This is a different year. Every year is different, and it’s not that this year is an anomaly, it’s that things are always changing and if we don’t change with it, we’re not going to see results in certain cases, if something stops working and we don’t try something else. So that’s why I try different things.
Jeannie Spiro:
But I know, at the end of the day, my events have always done very, very well when I invite people to put their name on the wait list and say if you’re interested in coming back. You know I only have a certain amount of seats. You want to be the first to come, be the first to register, and I’ll remember, never forget. Last year, someone actually said to me we were like three hours late in opening the doors and she said I’ve been waiting, are the doors opening today? And I thought, wow, that’s exactly what I want to have happen. So, anyway, all these strategies are things that I do, learn, keep working on, and then I teach my clients to help them through their launches as well. So I love it. To me it’s enjoyable and interesting.
Brad Powell:
Yeah, so are you doing things in the meantime, like you’re building a waitlist over a fairly long period of time? What are you doing with those people who are on the waitlist prior to announcing the doors are open?
Jeannie Spiro:
prior to announcing the doors are open. Yeah, so over the course of the year, so let me just back into this. So the event I have is called Amplify, I have it every.
Jeannie Spiro:
November and it is one of the ways that individuals enroll in my program, but it’s not the only way. It is one live strategy, but I use evergreen enrollment systems throughout the rest of the year to enroll people into my program. However, it is a really effective way and it also what I’ve found is, after the event ends, I send out a questionnaire to everyone and I include in there do you want to know what other events I have coming up and do you want to be on the wait list? And pretty much everyone signs up for the next year. So they’re already on my list for the most part because those individuals are there.
Jeannie Spiro:
And then over the course of the year, I strategically start inviting people to know more about the one event that I’m having over the year, and I do that usually about six months before I have it hey, this is coming up. Then, about three months before I start to open the doors to it, to the wait list first. So those people who’ve been on the list before they’re on my general waiting list and I send periodic emails. Don’t forget it’s coming. You’re going to want to know this date. The doors are open and if you want to make sure you bring a friend, tell them to join the wait list too. So that’s kind of another way of doing it, but they’re on my general mailing list.
Brad Powell:
Yeah, yeah, sure, all right. Well, one other thing that I’d like to touch on is just the event itself. And so you’ve got this event and it’s positioned as a very helpful, valuable experience for people the better you serve them, the longer they’ll stay kind of event, and you’re obviously going to make an offer somewhere in the middle of this event. So talk about the structure and cadence of how that works in the way that you do it.
Jeannie Spiro:
Sure. So I’m very transparent in that I always tell them at the beginning, just like I do with webinars if you want to go further with what I’m teaching, you will have an opportunity. I do have a coaching program and you can work with me in this capacity or this capacity. You’re going to learn more about it during the course of the event and I’ll share more details. So it’s not a surprise, and I think that what I’ve found is everyone gets really triggered when they’re like, oh no, I didn’t see a sale coming or an invitation coming. I don’t subscribe to that. So instead, it’s transparent. So, as far as the cadence of the content and the offer and how I do it, this year Amplify is, so it’s in November, it’s the 14th and 15th, it’s two days. In the past it has always been three days or two days, right. And so what I do in the midst of Amplify is I talk about it, I talk about how they can go deeper and further, and then I extend the invitation, which is an application process.
Jeannie Spiro:
Not everybody can necessarily join me. In fact, you’re going to think I’m probably crazy, but I’ve had people have come to my events and I’ve told them I’m thrilled you’re here, but this program is not right for you yet and I will talk to them strategically about what they need to do for their business before they can apply next. It’s kind of like a voice. You know the voice, you know, come back, try out again, and other people they apply. So it’s an application process, it’s a conversation. Sometimes I’ll even talk to people at the event or post event about whether or not the program was right for them. But the core concept is you’re meant to be there, you’re meant to take something away and you’re meant to collaborate, connect and find other referral partners when you come to the event and this is simply if you want to keep going further, here’s an invitation to learn more.
Brad Powell:
Yeah right, that’s good. Well, I think for every, especially for coaches. Every coach needs to be really clear about who they can work with and who is not a good person to work with. And and, of course, if somebody is not at the place where you can actually help them, that’s not going to work very well because they’re not going to get the result they’re hoping for and your experience and their experience won’t be optimal.
Jeannie Spiro:
Let’s say Right, and I’m always a believer of. I want them to know what to do, and because I would want someone to extend that kindness to me.
Jeannie Spiro:
Here’s what I think would be helpful to you. So I like to be in that role. Do this next. This can support you and, if I’m right for you, when you’re complete with that, let’s talk, let’s connect again. Clients have come to Amplify. I’ve been doing this for 10 years but clients have come to Amplify and or people have come to Amplify and then they’ve come back a couple of times and what I found is some people have come to me even five years after attending the first Amplify and then they’re ready to work with me. I’m good with that. That’s okay, because you know when you’re ready, you’re ready.
Brad Powell:
Yeah, right, exactly yeah. It reminds me in my previous life. One of my previous lives, I was the director of an Outward Bound program, and one of the roles I had was to train and hire all of my staff, and so during the season, I would have a couple dozen instructors who were the ones who actually went out in the field and ran these programs. This was a sailing program, and to run a sailing program, there were a lot of technical skills that you had to have, and there was also a bunch of what we called soft skills that you had to have, and there was also a bunch of what we called soft skills that you had to have in terms of facilitating whatever could happen when you’re out with a group of young people for three weeks in the wilderness.
Brad Powell:
And we would do a staff training for all the staff, including people who were basically applying for the job, and every year there were a few people who would go through the training and, for one reason or another, it was just like well, you’re not ready, you’re just not ready. And I never told them look, I will never hire you. It was much more of like well, here’s what I see, and if you want to be in this kind of job. Here’s the place that you need to go work on and then, when you come back with those skills, come again and we can see how you are. That’s great.
Jeannie Spiro:
Hugely valuable.
Brad Powell:
Yeah, yeah, and I think that completely translates into the work I do now. All right, well, you’ve mentioned a couple of times your event, so before we go, let’s plug it. It’s coming right up in November, so you said tell me the dates, tell me how people can get engaged with it.
Jeannie Spiro:
Absolutely. It’s in Middletown, rhode Island, and it’s called the Amplify Event at theamplifyeventcom. And yes, it’s November 14th and 15th. And strategically, what we’re doing is looking at how you can make a bigger impact through your work and how you’re serving our clients, and then also what are the sales and launch and evergreen and marketing systems that you need inside of your business, that support filling your services. So we only have a few seats left and I’m excited to have it again this year.
Brad Powell:
All right. Well, jeannie, thanks so much for coming on today. This has really been great and helpful, and I’ll make sure that links to your site and how people can register are in the show notes.
Jeannie Spiro:
Great. Thank you so much and thank you for having me.
