Celebrating wins and fighting loneliness [Smart Digest]

[The SMART Digest: Useful content, powerful tools, and exclusive deals from Pat Flynn and Smart Passive Income] Hi, {NAME}! This week has been incredibly fun and rewarding because I've been welcoming new students into my podcasting courses for the past several days. It always gives me such a sense of satisfaction watching new people experience and benefit from the courses that we've spent so much time and energy on here at SPI. Shout out to a few of the folks who just signed up! - Kat Elizabeth - Luis Duque - Kasey Reid - Samantha Nolan-Smith - Mike Miller - Antonio Piricone - Jennifer Tyler Thank you to you and to so many other new students who are taking the next step in their journeys with these courses! I'm so thrilled to have you on board. I also launched a brand new program called the [Power-Up Podcasting Bootcamp](—an 8-week guided experience where we'll walk you step-by-step through the process of launching a successful podcast. The first group is starting soon, so [click here to learn more and sign up](. In other news, we have some fantastic podcast episodes for you and a blog post about a topic I'm really passionate about, so keep reading! Have a great week, and stay strong #TeamFlynn! Pat Flynn, Founder and CEO SPI TIP Email Marketing Use the Yes Ladder to Your Advantage. A two-step opt-in process out-performs a normal one-step opt-in process. Ever since the redesign of the SPI blog, Team SPI has been building the email list on the site with a two-step opt-in process, and the numbers don’t lie. Even though there are fewer opt-in forms throughout the site, conversions have increased by over 25 percent. If you are unfamiliar with a two-step opt-in process, it works like this: Instead of showing an email and/or name field directly on your webpage, you show a button. When that button is clicked, a small pop-up box (or “lead box”) appears, which then asks for the visitor’s information. There are three reasons why this particular sequence works so well: - When a visitor lands on the page, you’re not immediately asking for that person’s information. You go from looking like a “taking page,” to a “giving page”—one that shows you have something to offer first, instead of wanting their email address first. - When the button is clicked, that’s one action that your visitor has already taken. It’s like a virtual “yes ladder,” which is a scientifically-proven persuasion technique that helps close a sale. They’ve already said yes by clicking the button, and are likely to say yes again by filling out the form. - When the pop-up appears, the visitor has only two actions they can take: fill out the form and submit, or click the (x) to leave. Since they are in “yes mode” and the distractions are gone, you’re likely to capture that email address. To be fair, setting up a two-step opt-in process isn’t 100 percent easy right out of the box. The free method would be to set up a button that links to a separate page with the form on it, although a pop-up or lightbox effect will convert much higher. ConvertKit offers this functionality in their redesigned forms. But what if you're using a different service provider that doesn't offer popups? That's where LeadBoxes comes in handy. LeadBoxes is a specific feature in [Leadpages]() that creates the two-step opt-in process for you. All price points of the Leadpages software have access to LeadBoxes. You don't even need an image or button to call the pop-up—you could even just have it be a link. [Full Disclosure: Pat Flynn is a compensated advisor and affiliate for Leadpages and ConvertKit.] ​ A Step-By-Step Course to Launch a Successful Podcast Go beyond the basics of just starting and podcast, and learn how to overcome your fear of the microphone and truly launch a show. You'll learn: - All the tools you need to get started (it's less expensive that you might think), from microphones to editing software to file hosts - How to master the technical side of podcasting, so that you can produce your episodes with confidence - How to launch your show with a bang, so that you can draw in listeners from day one [LEARN MORE](=) ​ NEWS AND UPDATES SPI 457: The Secret to Taking Risks & How to Make It Work – Behind the Scenes with Katie Kimball Katie Kimball's story is a heck of a journey, from a short career in teaching to the birth of her first child, to her husband losing his job after his boss was arrested by the FBI for white-collar crime . . . Totally crazy — you can't make this stuff up! So take a step behind the curtain of Katie's business with me today. We're diving into her origin story, the ins and outs of the decisions she made along the way, her secret to taking risks, and the strategies she's used to bring her business to the next level — like giving her $150 course away for free during COVID-19. Katie's businesses have impacted so many people in an amazing way. By listening in, you'll be inspired to apply these takeaways towards your journey too. [Listen Now](=) AP 1153: How Do I Best Describe and Position My Business and Work to Others? What Do I Say? Jay is at a critical point in his career — he just got laid off in May due to COVID and he's going all-in with his online business. Jay's business is called W2Capitalist, which features a mastermind group and a podcast. But now that Jay's out of the W2 workforce, he's having trouble finding his lane with his messaging. Getting this aspect of your online business right is absolutely critical, so today is about coaching Jay through finding his groove, including examples of how to think about positioning and branding. Jay asks: How do you fine-tune your messaging? How do you know when you've nailed it? We're going to dig into all of that and more on today's coaching call, so let's get going! [Listen Now]() 5 Ways Entrepreneurs Can Conquer Loneliness and Feel More Connected Entrepreneurs suffer from loneliness at alarming rates, but it's hard for them to talk about it with friends or family members because they feel pressure to succeed and "fake it till they make it." On the blog this week, we discuss this often-taboo subject, and also offer 5 tips to help entrepreneurs feel less alone and more connected. [Read Now]( (Some of the links mentioned above are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you.) --------------------------------------------------------------- See you next week! P.S. We’ll be accepting new members to SPI Pro beginning January 25! [Submit your application now]( or you’ll have to wait until April. --------------------------------------------------------------- = = --------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from The SMART Digest, click here: [The SMART Digest Unsubscribe](. To unsubscribe from ALL Smart Passive Income emails, click here: [Unsubscribe](. Did I call you by the wrong name at the top of this email? Help me out by updating your profile: [Update your profile]( SPI Media, LLC, 8910 University Center Lane #400, San Diego, CA 92122