1. Advertising
1.1. It's all in the EMAIL LIST!!!!!!
1.1.1. people do actually check their email
1.1.2. you can track and measure
1.1.3. opt in & out
1.1.3.1. you actually have to pay more for dead weight
1.1.3.2. your open rates matter and show good content & engagement
1.2. Growing Email list via your Website...
1.2.1. "Inline Content"
1.2.1.1. Not just newsletter - download content, get a reward...
1.2.2. PopUps
1.2.2.1. irritating but really useful...
1.2.2.2. timed - or -with exit intent - or - content related
1.2.3. Push Landing Pages
1.2.3.1. description of specific content and then a specific opt in - webinar Wednesday - or a present - or something else....
1.2.4. Pixel Data
1.2.4.1. we then know things about you
1.2.4.2. but then you can ask people/facebook to advertise to you??? Basically it's like you're going a group of FB users
1.2.5. Culling your email list
1.2.5.1. If your open rate goes down, then you should go through and cull the deadweight from your list so that you get back a higher open rate!!!
1.2.5.1.1. 20% is standard these days...
1.3. MECHANICS
1.3.1. Content
1.3.1.1. Opt in Form (Lead Pages type form)
1.3.1.1.1. CRM
1.3.1.1.2. And whatever they were specifically signing up for (attachment, webinar, etc)
1.4. Lead Magnets????
1.4.1. when they opt in - it becomes a conversion event
1.4.2. don't make it a short quick easy win....
1.4.2.1. YouTube CheckList from DottoTech
1.4.3. a thank you gift for sharing an email address list - tutorial or event or download.....
1.4.4. it should be
1.4.4.1. solving a real problem - shows you understand the community and their issues
1.4.4.2. promises a quick win, can't be drawn out. gives a quick success to the person.....
1.4.4.2.1. FB live events don't get email addresses, so aren't a lead magnet
1.4.4.3. high value - give away your best stuff!!!
1.4.4.4. instantly accessible - not something they get or watch later
1.4.4.5. SHOWCASES YOUR AUTHORITY
2. research
2.1. Market Research
2.1.1. to decide what markets you should be in, what products to build and who to target!!!
2.1.1.1. advanced
2.1.1.1.1. surveys
2.1.1.1.2. analytics
2.1.1.2. Competitors
2.1.1.3. amazon book reviews
2.1.1.4. reddit
2.1.1.5. quora
2.1.1.6. FB GRoups?!?!
2.1.1.7. ***** Social Media Examiner Industry Report
2.2. Content Research
2.2.1. Answer the Public
2.2.2. BuzzSumo (paid)
2.2.2.1. find top influencers
2.2.2.2. what questions people are asking
2.2.3. Fraze
2.2.4. Basically TONS of ways to find who is big in the industry and what questions people are asking
2.2.5. BuiltWith
2.2.6. AppSumo???
2.2.6.1. club that you join where you learn about online tools
3. PRODUCT
3.1. making YouTube Videos of my own garden & smaller ideas/process
3.1.1. first step in designing, etc, etc, etc
3.1.2. the land of my crazy endless ideas
3.2. VIDEOS of Going Thru a process with someone - a friend/client
3.3. YouTube interviews with designers & construction guys
3.3.1. walk through a site with someone and talk about decisions they made
3.4. EML/NEWSLETTER - of monthly tasks to do in the garden, challenges, etc
3.4.1. maintenance calendar.....
3.5. LANGUAGE LEARNING - How to identify what you like and don't like. And express that to people!
3.6. Trello - making a garden page to track your plants and hold ideas!!!!!
4. Make Money??
4.1. sooner
4.1.1. Affiliate Marketing
4.1.1.1. we recommend it and then someone clicks on our link......
4.1.1.1.1. low barrier to entry
4.1.1.2. online places - seeds, cheap plants, etc
4.1.2. Advertising Revenue
4.1.2.1. include or attach advert to a course/video/article
4.1.2.2. run a banner on the side of your page or something like that
4.1.3. Sponsorship
4.1.4. crowd funding
4.1.4.1. Patreon Style
4.1.4.1.1. eventually put older material behind firewall
4.1.5. Membership to Group??
4.2. later
4.2.1. Recorded Class
4.2.1.1. Create a series of videos all together that may summarize how to do the master design and create a plant list?
4.2.2. Live Class
4.2.2.1. Going through this process with a group of people working together!!
4.2.3. Service: Hourly Coaching/Consulting
4.2.3.1. working with individuals to help them figure things out
4.2.3.1.1. calendar apps
5. Who am I?
5.1. Business Experience
5.1.1. Accountant/Finance
5.1.1.1. Accounting! doing ap, ar - talking to execs about finances, state filings - helping people understand rules
5.1.1.2. system designer for new processes
5.1.1.3. Data Visualization & Analysis
5.1.1.4. Great at creating communications that people actually read
5.1.2. Landscape Design
5.1.2.1. dealing with crews
5.1.2.2. planning designs
5.1.2.3. talking to people to figure out what you want
5.1.2.4. knowledge of plant material
5.2. Universal Challenges
5.2.1. there are a LOT of people in the field - in the "real" world - not necessarily online!!
5.2.2. rates are really really low
5.2.3. everything is very very situational and particular for the individual and the landscape
5.2.3.1. however there are design constants & universal questions to ask
5.2.4. plants are very particular to the regions - as are the maintenance schedules
5.3. What am I good at? Special Skills??
5.3.1. talking to people and helping them relax
5.3.2. being hilarious :)
5.3.3. design/problem solving
5.4. Who are my customers?
5.4.1. people who can't afford a landscape designer
5.4.2. People who want to create their own landscape - not just have someone do it for them
5.4.3. people who care about contributing to their local environment via their home
5.4.4. people who want to feel magic when coming home
5.4.5. Families who want to get their kids out in nature?????
5.4.6. people who want to learn more about gardening
5.4.7. People afraid of making mistakes
5.4.8. People without money
5.4.9. People who don’t know anything about landscape design and want to figure out what kind of garden they want
5.5. WHO IS MY COMMUNITY????
5.5.1. who needs help
5.5.2. People who don’t know where to start with their garden design
5.5.3. what's missing??
5.5.4. People who want to garden and design on a budget
5.5.5. Gardening for Mental & Spiritual Health
5.5.6. Middle to low income people with a little bit of a yard to work with
5.5.7. People who want their design to reflect them. Speak to them.
5.5.8. People who don’t know where to start
5.6. What's my passion??? Hobby???
5.6.1. Gardens
5.6.1.1. where did I learn what I know??
5.6.1.1.1. training
5.6.1.1.2. authors???
5.6.1.1.3. who blows me away????
5.6.1.2. where are those people that share that passion?????
5.6.2. Rearranging Furniture
5.6.2.1. & decorating with weird stuff
5.6.3. Planning/Productivity Tools
5.6.3.1. Paper Journals (NO crafty BuJo's)
5.6.3.2. Online systems
5.6.3.3. White Boards!!!!
5.6.4. French Cooking
5.6.4.1. num num num num
5.6.5. Nerd Culture
5.6.5.1. SciFi, etc
5.7. What is my Super Power?
5.7.1. Informal, Humorous Communication
5.7.2. Design
5.7.3. Empathy
5.8. RESEARCH & Work STILL NEEDED
5.8.1. What's HOT in my market place???
5.8.1.1. what's going on in these communities
5.8.1.2. what's disruptive????
5.8.1.2.1. there are some cheap online design sites... I don't know how well they do!!!
5.8.1.3. in landscape market?
5.8.2. Where are there buckets of money???
5.8.2.1. where is the risk???
5.8.2.1.1. people stop landscaping as one of the first things when the economy goes down!
5.8.2.1.2. Gardens take maintenance work - not all people like to do that.... but my audience hopefully would!
5.8.2.2. who is spending the money??????
5.8.2.2.1. individuals
5.8.2.2.2. Housing Authorities
5.8.2.2.3. Rental Complexes
5.8.2.2.4. Property Management Companies
5.8.2.3. who is cutting back on things?
5.8.2.4. do I see where changes are coming??
5.8.3. who makes a living at my passion or hobby???
5.8.3.1. Questions.....
5.8.3.1.1. how do they do that?
5.8.3.1.2. what is successful about them?
5.8.3.2. General Designers with SHOWS
5.8.3.2.1. Monty Don.... kinda
5.8.3.3. Instagram or FB garden people??
5.8.4. what's changing?
5.8.4.1. maybe that they don't know about??
6. PLATFORM
6.1. what do I do?
6.1.1. I teach & inspire,
6.1.2. I empower home gardeners
6.1.3. I amuse
6.2. what do I make??
6.2.1. video content that inspires people to get creative with their home landscape
6.2.2. some writing - basic lists & information for reference
6.2.2.1. but I am a hilarious writer...
6.2.3. self tests??
6.2.3.1. learn your garden design style!
6.3. where am I??
6.3.1. youtube?
6.3.2. facebook?
6.3.3. instagram??
6.4. what do i say??
6.4.1. YOU CAN DO IT
6.4.1.1. you can design your own garden
6.4.1.2. you can come up with something fun and creative all on your own
6.4.1.3. it doesn't have to be all at once - a master plan is always helpful even if you can't do anything now
6.4.1.4. it doesn't have to be expensive
6.4.2. Make it as native as you can - but give yourself a break
6.4.3. Don't limit yourself to normal - celebrate uniquely you
6.4.4. Gardens & Nature teach you joy in mess, joy in changes, joy in "inperfection"
6.5. who are you??
6.5.1. values?
6.5.1.1. no negativity - except about grass
6.5.1.2. no "right" answers
6.5.1.2.1. "pretty" is subjective
6.5.1.3. Every bit of Nature we can add makes a difference
6.5.1.4. our environment matters - let it speak to you of your dreams and bring you joy
6.5.1.4.1. not of other people's expectations
6.5.2. energy?
6.5.2.1. funny, upbeat
6.5.3. crew?
6.5.3.1. team
6.5.3.1.1. grafton as husband, consultant and foil
6.5.3.1.2. kids as customers giving feedback and asking questions
6.5.3.2. partners
6.5.3.2.1. WHO HOLDS THE CAMERA?
6.6. THEY ASK - YOU ANSWER!!!!!!!!
6.6.1. Fires starter
6.6.1.1. build audience
6.6.1.1.1. all my gsd friends
6.6.1.1.2. work friends
6.6.1.1.3. local garden group
6.6.1.1.4. Natick Mom's Group!
6.6.1.2. serve audience
6.6.1.2.1. WHERE ARE THE QUESTIONS ONLINE?????
6.6.1.3. discovery
6.6.1.4. build reputation
6.6.1.5. discover content
6.6.2. Get started
6.6.2.1. what questions are my people asking???
6.6.2.2. where are they asking the questions??
6.6.3. how can i best answer them??
6.6.4. affiliates or brands??