When it Comes to Marketing, Ever Feel Like You’ve Been "Kissing Frogs"? - Jessica Koch

YBOP Intro/Outro: 00:00:06

Welcome back to Your Brain On Positive. All the love and support you need is residing inside of you. And we're going to make it easier to turn it off.

Jackie Simmons: 00:00:23

The fun part about the world, according to Jackie, is that I get to walk into the worlds of amazing people. And I get to take you with me. So thank you for listening. And right now we're going to walk right into the world according to Jessica Koch. Jessica, happy to see you.

Jessica Koch: 00:00:41

I'm always happy to be in your world. We we spend so much a wonderful time together.

Jackie Simmons: 00:00:47

We do we do. And it's interesting because I had no clue who you were what you did anything about you. And now our worlds are entangled imagine connected

Jessica Koch: 00:01:02

in a lot of different ways. together like a beautiful tapestry. Well,

Jackie Simmons: 00:01:08

that's a great way to describe it. So I love to put story ahead of the facts. So take us into the story of who you are and how you became who you are.

Jessica Koch: 00:01:21

So I am the Italian mother of seven, and a sales and marketing consultant, and LinkedIn and social media trainer. And now I have this VA program. And the world of sales started for me. In high school, actually, I got my first dip in the water in high school. And then and my early, early years, early 20s. I started work for radio advertising sales. And I did work for a big marketing company that handled big campaigns for companies like Disney and Verizon. And we did business business to business promotion. So I learned how to divide territories and hire sales people and train manage people and manage salespeople and motivate salespeople. All of the things of sales, I learned so many things I learned about government then I moved to another company where they started shipping me all over the country to speak at National Associations for large conferences on huge stages in front of 1000s of people. But I was too young to know I was supposed to be afraid of public speaking I told me that. So I just got up there and said what I was told to say and so I've been speaking for over 25 years. And I learned to speak at some of the largest trade organization, government National Association, organization events, as well as fortune 100 and did all kinds of speaking all over the country and just had a blast. And now I've been speaking for 25 years nationally, both in person and virtually as well as the for about three years internationally and kind of love my life a lot.

Jackie Simmons: 00:03:06

What made you come off the stage and get behind the rest of us and provide all so I'm

Jessica Koch: 00:03:12

not off the stage. Actually, I'm still speaking I still keynote I still I'll probably be traveling and doing more in person again this year, which that hasn't happened. While most of it's been virtual duel. I speak for a lot of everything from small intimate groups to very large virtual summits. And then I've also done some intimate training for like, last year I did project for I have some more slated hopefully to do more work with about 40 of Microsoft's executive team leaders in a workshop basis. And I've done stuff for

Jackie Simmons: 00:03:49

it oh, by there's some kind of thread that's going to pull this tapestry together for because what you would talk to a group of Microsoft managers is might be a little different than what you would speak on a summit to a bunch of entrepreneurs. Yes, yeah. So can you give me a clue about the topics?

Jessica Koch: 00:04:15

Yeah. So one of my goals for this year is to publish an ebook of over 100 talks I have I have 100 talks and trainings I've done. And some of those include communications. So I am certified in six different intelligences and that is one of the communication and intelligence is that I did for the Microsoft program and Okay. Elaborating on so

Jackie Simmons: 00:04:44

what what is six different intelligences? I mean, is that like a thing that in a box and a thing you get certified in is what it sounded like. Yeah.

Jessica Koch: 00:04:53

So it is a certification through a particular organization and it's emotional intelligence, spiritual intelligence. sales, business, personality and artificial.

Jackie Simmons: 00:05:06

And I missed a couple in here. I missed one on personality and artificial. Yes. Thank you really? Yeah, I'm going the intelligence is you can audio visual kinesthetic. Yeah. But that's not what you're talking about. Oh, and

Jessica Koch: 00:05:27

I do a lot of sales talks, I do a lot of social media and platform and software trainings and talks and marketing and different things like that. So I like I said, I'm putting together an actual book that will have descriptions and multiple titles that can go for the same talk and giveaways that I do with it, and gifts and handouts and articles that go with them and videos that go with my building this beautiful

Jackie Simmons: 00:05:57

book of Jessica. Yeah, well,

Jessica Koch: 00:05:59

because I have so many people come back to me, for example, I have a government contract where I do trainings, for businesses, and the government pays for the training, the businesses show up for free. And so I'm constantly meeting with them quarterly and like, Okay, what else you got? What else can you do? And so I'm constantly pulling together topics and descriptions and titles and, and all of this, and we're pulling the next thing and the next thing and the next thing? And I thought, wow, wouldn't it be wonderful if I just had this book, and I could just say, well, here you go browse the book in the book, and let me know what you'd like me to speak on this quarter for your group. And so that's kind of where the idea went. But I thought what a useful tool for other speakers and on my other place as I talk and just for other people just to know about what's inside the head of Jesse.

Jackie Simmons: 00:06:50

So Jessica, or Jesse?

Jessica Koch: 00:06:53

Well, Jessie, for my friends, and just Jessica in business, but most of my friends are my business. So many people call me, Jesse.

Jackie Simmons: 00:07:01

So may I call you, Jess?

Jessica Koch: 00:07:04

Of course you can.

Jackie Simmons: 00:07:06

So Jesse, what you just laid out is probably one of the most useful tools that any entrepreneur can create for themselves, which is write the book of you, so that people and then you put it up on your website, and then people can go, Oh, I didn't know you did that. You could put it up on your LinkedIn profile. I didn't know you did, that. The number of people who have no idea that I published a book, actually more than one that I've got books out is staggering, because I never dawned on me to mention, yo, hey, yeah,

Jessica Koch: 00:07:44

because you should all speakers should have a speaker sheet. And that should be your main talks and your main topics. But for me, I'm so extensive, and I've just been, I'm not a spring chicken, I'm going to have a birthday in a few days. I'm 48. Fabulous right now. And I've just have a lot of topics and knowledge that I can teach on and I love to teach up. And so I want to be able to provide a speaker sheet as a tool, not your first step in this direction, and then the unabridged dictionary, or the more extensive piece to accompany that speaker sheet, because that should just be a one pager glance at it, and you're done. But that ebook I'm creating is that extra deep dive for the organizations again, who keep having to come back again and again and again, and want me to do different and new and interesting things. This way, they can just browse the catalog if you would.

Jackie Simmons: 00:08:40

So for you and your team, that just saves you all a ton of time, rather than creating a new new new proposal for them every time. You know, here's the updated catalog.

Jessica Koch: 00:08:53

Yeah, and if I reply, if my team replies for me for call for speakers or call for presenter, proposal submissions, they have all those resources, they have the different talks, they have the description, they have the freebie that goes with that. We've already organized all of that. So we've been building out these things for many years, because of course, I've, you know, been speaking for a hot minute.

Jackie Simmons: 00:09:16

Yeah, I get that. I can understand why you started getting into the VA work and training virtual assistants to help entrepreneurs because you had to do that for yourself anyway.

Jessica Koch: 00:09:27

Yeah. So I never stopped being who I was I just added to division. So I have multiple divisions to my company. And because I'm a speaker and an entrepreneur and a consultant, and all these things, I know what it is that they need, and how to train the people to do the things that need to be done. And I also know the things that need to be done. So that is another key piece I had so many people point to me and they say, Well, I've got a tiger by the tail. I have a VA but I don't know how to get the best return on investment or what the heck should they be doing? And that was The number one question we get from people who I would run into, would be drawn to me who I've got a VA. Now what you know, and so I've created a program for that as well. So I'm creating a mastermind consulting space with training resources and a training library of what the heck it is your VA should be doing, how to get the best return on investment, how to organize and manage all your projects. And that's for just a small annual membership. So instead of using my agency, they're using the person they found, but they're getting that support and guidance from a community of people. And when is that community going to be out? So we are launching the first meeting for that in February and we're just beginning to to promotion. On that annual membership and library. We have the library started, we already have our first videos, we have training done, we have lots of things checked off the list,

Jackie Simmons: 00:10:53

audit, Khalid everybody watching the world, according to Jackie, this is how business gets done. Yes, I do I need to do in order to get that resource inside my one year coaching certification program, because I certifying people in the conscious transformational coaching, it's a one year program, I want to be able to give all of these coaching entrepreneurs, the resource of that library,

Jessica Koch: 00:11:19

well, easy peasy, because first step is, if they don't have a VA at all, we already have available a video training and guide on demand, you click and buy it for 127 bucks is the launch price. I have an affiliate program for it. And they can watch that and buy that now. And then the annual membership for that continual hold hand and support and monthly check in to make sure they're getting a return on investment and for the person they found is starting in February. So we are putting we're building all the pieces so that we can support your world. Jackie? Yeah,

Jackie Simmons: 00:11:52

well, we're gonna be talking about how you're going to support my specific community. Because the world of coaching 2018, the article came out about the bubble of coaching and what was inflating it and what was going to probably pop it. And I realize that coaches are really struggling to come across as confident. And there are two reasons for that. One I address and the other I think you address the piece that you well, I'll go with me first, because then we'll deep dive into yours. I mean, I addressed their ability to stand up and guarantee results. Because the minute I realized that I could guarantee results, my business changed. And so now are the coaches in my program. So being able to have that certainty. But one of the things that are roads, that certainty is the back end of the business, trying to manage it all.

Jessica Koch: 00:12:55

And it's everything from gathering leads, following up with leads and networking, newsletter newsletters, social media, creating their ebooks and their speaker sheets and their pieces they need keeping their websites up to date and finding them the podcast is speaking and finding them speaking engagements and, you know, filling up their master classes and webinars and things so that they can have more clients and helping them build those joint venture partner relationships and nurturing all those relationships. All that stuff has to happen in order to be a successful coach. And I have to tell you, I don't believe the bubble is gonna burst, we will always need good consultants and coaches, the world will always need them, there will always be vast amounts of money for them. So don't believe what you read. Because

Jackie Simmons: 00:13:40

Wait a minute, you better read this article, we're going to tangle because this article is not talking about coaches who get results this article about is about coaches who've learned to sell, but not get results. That's the bubble they're talking about, then, and I actually was in the programs that taught me how to sell but not how to deliver. Yeah, that was really a wonky few years for me. And so I know that it exists that these programs do exist. And they the challenge.

Jessica Koch: 00:14:14

Yeah, but interesting enough, they will always attract a buyer. So there's you know, again, all you will attract buyers, whether that's the right place for them or not whether, you know we all

Jackie Simmons: 00:14:26

go Kissing Frogs and so with it just trying to limit the number of frogs people have to kiss.

Jessica Koch: 00:14:35

Yeah, and the ones I'm still trying to limit the ones I have to kiss to because that's for everyone. No matter how talented or advanced you are. I have to pay attention to what I invest in what networking groups I pay for, what directories I pay to be in which ones I can do for free what software's I choose what tools I'm using and am I really using them and how often do I pay do I pay one time a lifetime fee? Do I pay monthly like you have ought to watch it all. Because those are all forms of frogs, man get some warty lips in this world.

Jackie Simmons: 00:15:08

So before we totally overwhelm the world today. So you're Why would anybody want to be an entrepreneur? You started out with all of these different corporate gigs, God trained and all of these different things. When did you decide to step out and be an entrepreneur and with seven kids, why?

Jessica Koch: 00:15:31

Oh Lord, I didn't. So I have what I call my Jonah in the whale phase. So I left the corporate America who was paying me paying for all the travel, getting all the gigs, getting all the clients, I was showing up and shining, taking my salary plus commission, and having all my assistants do all the work that someone else paid. And, you know, I just did my own personal taxes, I didn't run a business and want to run a business, I was living the life and then things shifted and time change after like 15 or 17 years or whatever, this one particular company, and I, I got myself bruised and hurt trying to find the next thing where I could go be that business development person,

Jackie Simmons: 00:16:14

you're gonna have to take us there. thing shifted is a, an acronym, no, a a metaphor for what? Well,

Jessica Koch: 00:16:25

the two owners of the company kind of bought each other out and left me out of the equation. They were wonderful humans, I learned a lot for them. I am grateful for many, many things from them. But it didn't end the way potentially I felt like it should have. And however, it ended the way it should have ended for me, because this ended up being better. So but I was broken for a little while. So I tried three other positions. I did prayer research, all kinds of stuff to find peace and meditation and all that before I took them. And then I was with each of them for very short periods of time. But with each one of them, I gained high intensity in a short amount of time, skill sets. I didn't have any context I didn't have. But at the end, I didn't see that right away and was a little bit cranky with my Creator. And I was just I was it I was done. I told my husband, I am never selling anything. Again, I am never working for anyone again, I am done. I am out, I will market your business and you will keep us you will take care of us. He owns his own company. And within a few he said, Well, you know, he had kept his business open. But he had been our daughter's full time caregiver and I was the full time breadwinner for our family because we just had a new baby. And he literally our company would fly him out to the summits where I would speak him and the baby would come with they would fly him to follow me around the summit or my go speak or teach a class and then he'd meet me somewhere. It's like a nurse the baby it was it was I mean, we were really like the modern family that once all that kind of came down. He said, Well, I've got my license and my business open technically, but I don't have any clients how we're going to do that. I said, Do you know who you're married to i, within a matter of a few weeks, get a six month waiting list. I had him sign up to network referral groups. I attended a few things for him, man, he was done. So okay, now you're good. And I'm just gonna homeschool our kid and sit on the beach and play with her. And that's what I did. And I was that was my journey in the middle pillar. I literally wouldn't walk over the threshold of our home office, I wouldn't go online, I didn't check email. I didn't go on virtual. I didn't go on any social media. It was almost two years. And the economic the executive director of the local chamber called me seven times. And seven times asked me to come and teach a LinkedIn class for them. And I said, I'm very honored that you're asking me, but I don't work for anyone. I'm not a chamber member right now. I don't want to work for anyone have a business, I want a business. I'm out. I'm checked out stop calling me is it Look, we're in a rural area, you know, this stuff. We know, you know, this stuff. And I had spoke. So I had sounds like I'm bragging but every major employer in our region where I live had been my client. So we're talking county governments, hospitals, public school systems, power company, everybody through through the first year through my own position, and I had been a speaker at their biggest conferences, it throughout the country, you know,

Jackie Simmons: 00:19:19

the local celebrity.

Jessica Koch: 00:19:21

I mean, you know, sort of sounds terrible. If you're watching from a local around the block, but we have kind of a megachurch here and I finally did say yes. And I said, Look, I'll come and teach and I'll leave, I'll come I'll teach I'll leave. I said, I'm not going to join the chamber right now. I love chambers, but I'm not interested in that right now in my life, and I'm not going to work for anyone but I will come I will teach and then I will leave. So I think he put something out along the lines of she's coming out of the woodwork and when I got there it was standing room only. And I was humbled beyond humbled and I got really excited about the Energy I felt teaching this. And because all I could hear and all you could hear in the room was I kid you not the scratching of paper, the frantic scratching on paper. And I thought, huh, everybody doesn't know this, they really need to know this. And the energy they were giving back to me when I the aha moments that were coming as I was teaching them about how I leverage LinkedIn to get at some of the, you know, I worked with one of the largest power providers in the country, that was my client, I worked you know, I had meetings in person at Staples with CFOs of New Balance and their executive team and, and staples and new balance in the same two day period. You know, I mean, I did all these things. And I did it all through LinkedIn, and my process, right. And so I was teaching that and they were going nuts. And I thought, Hmm, maybe I do know something. And this was a little bit fun. And so I got the energy from them. And but I was still out of the game, I'll tell you, but it took me about an hour to get out of there. Because after I finished talking people stood and offered me jobs and asked me to work for them. And did I divide everything? I said, No. But I help people for free because people matter most. And ultimately, that was what pushed me to say, yes, people matter most. So they need this, I'll come, I'll teach, I'll be done. And so about six months, I went on helping people for free, because I had no desire to do business. But I'll help you, I don't want you to be without what you need, I'll help you. And I kept saying that. And then they called me back again, because they had gotten such a response from my class and asked me to be a keynote speaker at the woman's conference at the college locally. And at that point, my husband said, Look, suck it up, buttercup, you got a business, whether you like it or not, he said, You need to register this puppy. We need to get a bank account when you do things legally, you might have charging these people. And so that's kind of how my business support and for the first year, I was like this with my business. I said, Okay, Lord, whatever opportunities come as long as they're within my value system. I will say yes. But other than that, I am not marketing it. I'm not peddling this. I'm not chasing people. That was my business plan. If an opportunity came in the door, and it was within my values and my moral compass, I said, Yes, that was my deal with God. And that was my first year's business plan. And I got all kinds of amazing opportunities and clients and business and every now and then I get a call, and I would just stop after the call and look up and go, Okay, now you're just showing off

Jackie Simmons: 00:22:37

a piece you and God kissing me?

Jessica Koch: 00:22:39

Yes, we did. We did. And that is how I got pulled out of the whale by my ankles, because I was quite happy to be in there. And I noticed. That was my Jonah in the whale period. That's my story. So

Jackie Simmons: 00:22:57

the power of being willing to just let yourself experience yourself as handmade knowledge? Mm hmm. Yeah. Like you said, you're you're a woman of a certain age, and you're such a baby compared to me. And I'm just laughing because I'm going. It took me a lot longer to figure it out. I didn't go the corporate route. So maybe that's where I went sideways on my

Jessica Koch: 00:23:27

No, I have a home daycare story in my background do I was a licensed daycare provider too.

Jackie Simmons: 00:23:35

Oh, my God. Okay. know my story, because you interviewed me on your way I might be sorry, I shared that story with you.

Jessica Koch: 00:23:45

Of a different color, horse of a different

Jackie Simmons: 00:23:47

color, the ability, Jesse to see that. You're being handed opportunity after opportunity. And it's like that old story of the guy whose house is flooding and they come by with a boat, and they're like jump in the boat. And he says no, God will save me. And then it gets a little higher and they come by and eventually they come by with a helicopter because he's up on the roof. And I know God will save me and he drowns and he gets up to the pearly gates and he says, God, you didn't save me. He says, Well, I sent a jeep. I have a boat and a helicopter. Yeah. We don't always recognize the Hand of the Divine

Unknown: 00:24:28

Right? That's so true. Yeah.

Jackie Simmons: 00:24:31

So this is it's a divine thing for me to be interviewing you and to be able to share with people that your story is just your story. We all have our Jonah in the whale, we at moment because that's what life is about. And what pulls us out is what pulls us out and there is no difference. The point is that we get pulled out we are not allowed to hide in this lifetime

Jessica Koch: 00:24:58

and our life does There are two valuable and that was the reason like, you know, because I my complaint was, look, I have all these kids I've worked all this time can I just this last one, just be a stay at home mom and not give out to the world? And the answer was no, because the gifts he's given me and blessed me with in the light he's blessed me with doesn't just belong to me it isn't for me, the gifts were given as individuals are not gifts given for ourselves are given for the world. And it is our responsibility to share them in my opinion with the world.

Jackie Simmons: 00:25:33

It's an interesting place right now, I think is probably the best moment of opportunity in the world, for people to discover how to how to share their gifts with the world because we are no longer geographically limited. You know, we have access to the world through our computers and through our phones and the world has access to our wisdom, if we are willing to share it.

Jessica Koch: 00:25:59

That's absolutely true. And it doesn't matter whether it's sales knowledge or big corporate knowledge or whatever it is. And a great example I'll take two seconds to share is I found I was I was homeschooling Kara. And and till my business launch so big I couldn't. She's at a Montessori school now, but when I was part of that Co Op, I was teaching one of the classes. And one of the things we wanted to do was have the kids make a scarf. So I found on YouTube or Pinterest or somewhere someone had posted how you take not it was not felt it's flannel or not flannel, fleece, you take fleece and you're able to cut in these certain shapes, and you're able to weave it together. So wasn't a sewing involved and, and made these beautiful rainbow scarves, right? Well, we taught the children to make these and then they also made an additional one. So they made one for themselves. And they might want to put in a box and send out to a child somewhere else in the world who needed it. And so the gift and the light that the shine came from this person who decided to put this Pinterest or YouTube video or wherever, she'll never know that she has touched the lives of not just the children who are in our co op class. But these children that we were able to send these little gifts to in a box all over the world. And all because she took the time to take her light and gift and record it in a way that social media can be such a blessing. It doesn't have to be this cyber bully space, this evil place of stealing information and following us and all these things. It can be this beautiful collaboration of knowledge that gets to be this blessing that spread across the world. And that's one of my favorite stories of how it doesn't matter what kind of light you have or gift you have. When you share it, you touch people that you won't know until later, you'll get to meet them later.

Jackie Simmons: 00:28:01

This is true when they talk about the ripple. A gift given sets off a ripple. And it doesn't matter what the gift is but sharing something. And you're right, we're in a world of so much restriction and negativity, then people are starting to hesitate to share which is the one thing that keeps the world glued together is when we share. So I love that story that you can share your gift. You don't have to build a business around it. Share your life, I am working diligently to help people understand this very idea that if you have the ability to do anything that brightens the world, we need you to brighten our lives now. Whether it is by how you make a scarf without needing to sell anything, or how you bake the best cookies in the world. Or how you read a story that can put a three year old asleep great skill, or how to read a story that will keep an audience awake. It whatever your skill set is. Put on your zoom camera, record yourself doing it, share it with the world, the venues into the world are free. You can use a free Zoom account and record for hours. I don't recommend that I would keep it in short pieces. But that's just my professional speaker take on the world. Share it, share what you're good at. I think that is such a lovely, lovely message. You have found multiple ways to share what you're good at from starting on teaching LinkedIn. What was the next thing you added? I'm just curious as I'll get out

Jessica Koch: 00:30:00

Yeah, so I started with LinkedIn classes. But really, that always led me into what they needed for sale systems and processes, which really was my expertise. like LinkedIn was just kind of the opening conversation that people were most curious about and most ready to act on and excited about. But then when we would deepen dive, find, to be the case is when they didn't have actual systems and processes for their entire team of how they were approaching or how they were onboarding a salesperson and how they were tracking and maintaining at their different locations. And so I ended up with a lot of clients like that, that needed that support. So I did a lot of sales consulting. And then I continued to add to my certifications and talent and knowledge and the VA agency only it was added a year ago. And that came because the week of July of last year, well the year before that, because now we're in 20, did you

Jackie Simmons: 00:31:02

want a 20? We're in July of 2020.

Jessica Koch: 00:31:06

I got in one week, I got the same question. 10 different ways from 10 different people. And it was basically oh my gosh, Jessica, you're everywhere and doing everything. How do you do it all? Is the how do you do it all question and or they were feeling overwhelmed. And I just don't know how to get it all done. How do I do it? Jessica, that question kept coming back to me from clients from referral partners from everyday conversation, all in one week. And so I did some meditation on it and some prayer and my first knee jerk reaction was, hey, I'll go build a course and teach you how to do it. Because I had 12 people that were doing all my stuff for me based on project based on need, I figured it all out, I was doing it because I didn't want to do it. My motivation was pure laziness, like I found and figured out how to do all that by trial and error and research because I didn't want to do any of it. I wanted to play Yahtzee with my kid work on the boardwalk. And I didn't want to do any of the sales follow up. So I knew how to do it. I just didn't want to do it.

Jackie Simmons: 00:32:03

Slow down here, you didn't want to do any of the sales follow up. So we're talking from your networking, somebody else took it over?

Jessica Koch: 00:32:13

Yeah, so I show up on a zoom networking. For example, one of the first things that started was I would show up on a zoom networking event. And I was doing lots of those, because I was speaking also at lots of those, and you get the chat at the end of 3050. Sometimes it was, you know, 150 to 200 people for these places I was speaking and then it needs to be put into an excel sheet and from the chat to an Excel sheet, then import into your CRM, then you need to reach out to connect with them on LinkedIn, then you need to send them an email and invite them to a one on one or getting to know you call our group getting to know you or some free something so they can learn to get into your space a little more. So we can see if we can each other's referral partner or clients. Well, that's a lot of stuffs. I don't want to do any of those. I want to play yeah.

Jackie Simmons: 00:32:57

Okay, so you say you're going to slow down, and you're going to list those steps again, cuz I want everybody to hear what these steps are. Most of us missed this course in entrepreneurialism.

Jessica Koch: 00:33:10

Yeah. So if you're going to some sort of virtual networking event and say there's 15 to 30 people on there, that's pretty average.

Jackie Simmons: 00:33:18

And they all put their contact information in the chat. And so you save the chat. That's right. I know how to do that much. I know how to save the chat, it's on my computer. And then that's usually where it stays. So that next step was to put it into an Excel spreadsheet. Yeah,

Jessica Koch: 00:33:36

so my team, then we'll take that chat information because it's in a horrible text document, and put it into an excel sheet. And then we import it into our CRM system, because the we map the fields to match from the spreadsheet to the CRM system, so your contact record management system, so however you're tracking your clients, now, this is not to say you upload them to your email auto responder, because that's called spam. Okay, you can reach out individually and email everyone and connect with them on LinkedIn, because that's called Business Communication and try to establish a getting to know you call and professionalism. But if you add them to your email newsletter, and auto responder news list, that's spam. And you need their permission to do that first, right, you need them to opt into that, but you don't need them to opt in to just follow up and say, Hey, we were both at this great networking event. I would love for us to get to know each other more and see how we can help each other. Here's my calendar link. You don't have to get their permission to do that.

Jackie Simmons: 00:34:40

And if you have any doubts about your CRM, and who's helping you and you've ever been tempted to email all in your CRM, don't use the spreadsheet. Don't put them in your CRM, you know, when they get an appointment with you, they can end up in your CRM can that's different, because that's permission based because they know you, you know, they want the reminder of the appointment. We all want Yeah,

Jessica Koch: 00:35:06

and you also can send them your free gift. So whatever it is you have to add them to you can create free gift planning pages for Active Campaign MailChimp, whatever converter, get whatever you're using for your autoresponder. And then when they opt into that, then they'll be added to your newsletter or your events list or whatever because they've chosen to do that based on it's a trade, you get a gift, I get you on my newsletter, everybody knows the deal. We all know the deal. It's a it's a handshake in the deal trade.

Jackie Simmons: 00:35:37

There's that scary piece in between, I've got the chat. Now what do I do with it? Oh, now it's in a spreadsheet. Now I have to pick up the phone or connect with them on LinkedIn, or something to start with all

Jessica Koch: 00:35:51

three. So rope is strongest when it has three strands, there should be an invitation to connect on LinkedIn, an email that goes to them, and eventually a phone call it goes to them. And the phone call can be I have a great tool and I have a link for it for a ringless voicemail drop. That is your voice that sounds very personal. Because hey, I was at this event with you. Last week I sent you an email and an invitation to connect on LinkedIn. I would love for us to set up a meeting my calendar links in the email, I hope to hear from you soon. This is Jackie Simmons, thanks so much bye.

Jackie Simmons: 00:36:22

And it voicemail without rain,

Jessica Koch: 00:36:25

spam compliant, it never rings her phone, and it drops that that were pre recorded message of your own voice into their voicemail, and allows you to give a personal touch without spending 500 hours making 500 phone calls. So it's not that I don't believe in handwritten notes and real live calls that you dial into and one on one appointments. But I also believe that we have to leverage our time. So that's a nice blend, in my opinion.

Jackie Simmons: 00:36:57

That is a beautiful series, thank you very much for slowing down, hacking that and not because my understanding now is so different than it was when I started. Now I'm not looking to talk to everybody. I'm looking to talk to people who are both interested in who I am and what I do. And not just so that I can become their client. Also looking for people who are qualified to work with me. But on both sides, because I'm, I've been a startup, I've ran the woman entrepreneur network for many, many years. And I'm not a startup anymore. But there's a lot of guidance I would love to give to the people who are starting up and that's part of the world according to Jackie, I think it is incumbent upon us to grow into reaching back and pulling up and sharing it's time to harvest your knowledge and share it with other people. And I'll bet most of the people what listening to this, it's your time to be harvesting your knowledge and sharing it. And it's an abundant harvest. So don't be afraid to share it freely. That's my takeaway from this. Don't be afraid to share your harvest freely, and allow the people who really are the right people for you to work with, to hear your authentic voice and find you.

Jessica Koch: 00:38:31

And I would add to that because in the beginning when I first started the business, I had a hard time discerning how much is too much to share and give for free? And the answer is there isn't ever too much to share and give for free because the more you give out there as far as training and resources and information you could give your whole secret sauce formula. And I mean if let's just pretend let's pretend first of all, it's healthy. And let's pretend Second of all, every one of those foods were addicted to in the fast food lines gave every single one of their secret recipes down to the directions of how to do it. How many people are going to save that's it I'm going to be their competition or I'm going to start making that for my family at home every day. And then how many people are still going to go drive through the drive thru and get it now I want you to eat healthy food just for the record and none of that. That was a really good example is the fact that you give all you could matter of fact the more you give the better because the more they set the light goes on if I need help with this, I want to do all that you know so give away your secret recipes because most 97% of the planet doesn't want to bake your pie you know seriously. They want to just come and get it from you pre done prepackaged already set up and out and out the gate and they need your help you know So don't worry about giving away too much information. I almost intentionally give information overload. Not in a mean way, because why I just have this desire in my heart to tell you everything I know right now.

Jackie Simmons: 00:40:15

Well, you talk really fast. Sometimes I have to slow you down, because I want

Jessica Koch: 00:40:19

to tell you everything I know. Right? Yeah. The thing I've learned is interesting enough, my giving heart and that reciprocity has served me because people are like, Wow, it's so much. Can you help me? Can your team do it for me? Because I just that was a lot.

Jackie Simmons: 00:40:35

Yeah, absolutely. Space, there is a lot. So it's a lie. And you can also keep it simple. Because I built my business without a computer without a website. I still don't have a beautiful website up

Jessica Koch: 00:40:48

if my website is not stellar. i It's not. It's a it's a really, it's a placeholder. It's a professional placeholder for me right now. Now there are websites that are high level money generators, are there any good website? So not knocking the website world? But I believe with you websites, don't you can have idea is

Jackie Simmons: 00:41:09

that you can start simply, well, yeah, point it wasn't about website or not websites, it's about the fact that we can start simply, yeah, I agree absolutely. with you about giving away because I'm doing weekly master classes for free on the client results guaranteed. You know how to guarantee your clients, even if your industry says you can't use that word. Yeah. And so I'm giving that away now, because this is where the need is so great in the industry, among healers, and coaches, to be able to stand and actually talk credibly and with certainty about what they do. And we've lost the ability to do that, because we've bought into the complexity of what businesses appear to be. And I've invested time, talent and treasure on things that never produced a return on investment for me, says, that is why it is so wonderful to talk with you because you actually give people things they can use. And then if they want to grow and scale and add team and be able to leverage and do all of that. You've got all of that help, too. But you don't insist that people start complex. And that was one of your greatest gifts into my world. And when does someone know that they're ready for help that they're ready for a VA? If you could give us the two questions that somebody could answer that they would say, Oh, I'm ready for a VA. And it can't just be overwhelmed, because social media overwhelmed me every time I go near it.

Jessica Koch: 00:42:52

So my favorite client story is a customer that was about three months into their business, they only had two or three paying customers. And they still had a long list of things to do for follow up and business and creation and content and posting and emails and all these things. And they just did not have any desire to do them. And they didn't want to be a burden because it was a new business. They didn't want to be in the red. And they didn't know where to start with this. They'd never done it before. But they decided to look around the house and put a few things they weren't using up on Facebook marketplace and decided after selling that stuff. They were able to make a couple $100. And they said, Okay, this couple $100 is for my test for a virtual assistant. And then they were able to take that little pot of money and make sure that 1/3 were follow up actions that made money 1/3 were admin and 1/3 was social media. So they were getting a high level of return on investment from the money they were putting into the VA so that they can put more money into the VA. And that story of that favorite customer is me. That's how I started four years ago, I was only a few months in, I immediately knew I didn't want to do the work. I sold some of my daughter's clothes and toys that she wasn't used anymore that were really in good shape on Facebook and I said okay, this is my nest egg. And that is how I scaled and now I have almost 50 virtual assistants from all around the world and clients we serve in countries all over the world and scaled it just with that process. So anyone when they start their business is ready. You got something in your house you are not using.

Jackie Simmons: 00:44:33

You're looking to you're ready because a VA will make it possible for you to focus on what you're good at. And funding it can be as simple as clearing out some clutter.

Jessica Koch: 00:44:44

That's exactly right. And, and not to use my agency at that level but to use the $127 video training guide that will walk you through every step of the process including how to interview how to write the job post, where to find the people how to you know to onboard that new person, what tasks should they be doing? Everything. So it's very inexpensive and truly, including my training and including hours and hours of work for a VA to start with you a few $100. You need. Yeah,

Jackie Simmons: 00:45:17

that's a doable first step. So we'll make sure our link to that is in the chat, show notes, whatever the world's got which venue I'm on. So make sure that people have that information. Yeah, Jessica. Thank you. I'll get used to calling you Jesse now that we're so thank you so much for being willing to come on the world, according to Jackie and walk us into the world according to Jessica and be that light that says, share your light.

Jessica Koch: 00:45:52

Yeah. Thank you for having me.