Build Your Online Audience: Generate income fast by creating a Power Hour for your business

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Generate income fast by creating a Power Hour for your business 0

Mar 16, 2020

Why not create a Power Hour: an online consultancy session, where people pay a one-off fee to pick your brain/get advice about a topic you have expertise in?

In the short-term - where you may not be able to physically deliver in-person services due to the Coronavirus pandemic - it can help you continue to serve your ideal customers/clients.

In the longer-term, it can be a great way to generate additional income for business - without having to leave your desk/studio.

It can also be a great way to deal with people who ask for help - but don’t seem to want to pay for your time. So the next time someone says: ‘I’d love to pick your brain about xxx,’ you can invite them to book a Power Hour.

But how do you choose a topic for your Power Hour? What tech will you need to deliver it? And how much should you charge?

That’s exactly what I’ll cover in this podcast episode - along with tips on how to promote your Power Hour.

{Click on the player above to listen to the podcast episode and/or read on for a detailed overview. Scroll down to the bottom to read the show notes including all the links mentioned in this episode}

As with anything in your business, the more specific/niche you can be the better. So while you can offer a general Power Hour (where anyone can ask you anything about your expert topic) you’ll almost certainly get more take up if you hone in on a specific type of customer/client and/or a common problem your customers/clients experience.

Here are some examples of Power Hours created by my current/former clients:

So for example, Facebook ads expert Laura Moore has a power hour that focuses on increasing ad conversions.

Virtual assistant Catherine Gladywyn offers a power hour for VAs who are stuck on something in their business.

Architectural technologist Jon Clayton has created a power hour for design and architecture

Amy Caiger has a Power Hour that focuses on helping business owners find their niche.

If you have a product-based business, you can still create a Power Hour. You can either offer something that relates to the problem you solve. For example, I sell a Social Media Diary & Planner. Although I don’t currently do this, I could offer a content planning Power Hour for people who want help creating their content plan. I could offer these sessions to existing diary owners as an upsell. Or I could open them up to anyone who needs help with content planning and offer the diary as an upsell at the end of a consultancy session.

Or you could offer a Power Hour to other product-based businesses on how to do something specific that you are already doing successfully but they might be struggling with e.g. creating a marketing plan, setting up a shop on their website.

How to deliver your Power Hour

You can use video-conferencing software like Zoom which allows you to share your screen and participants share theirs with you. You can also share documents and chat ‘live’ with participants. And you can send them the recording afterwards in case they want to go over anything again. Zoom starts from £11.99 a month.

Alternatives to Zoom: Go To Meeting, Team Viewer, Join.me, Google Hangouts, Meet.me & BlueJeans.

If you’re worried your clients will be overwhelmed by the tech, it’s a good idea to send them written instructions and/or a video using a free tool like Loom showing them how to use it (including how to join).

How to ensure your Power Hour is productive

To ensure the session is productive, I’d recommend you do the following:

Create a dedicated page on your website for you Power Hour that includes information about the session and a link to book
Use a tool like Calendly or Acuity Scheduling so clients can book straight into your diary
Send a pre-call email on how to prepare for the session (including any information they might need to bring to the session) and an outline of how the call will be structured.. PLUS instructions on how to use the video conferencing software from their phone/desktop. I’d recommend sending this information immediately after booking, then at least one reminder email before the call
Send a follow-up email within 24 hours of the session, with a link to the recording, a short follow-up report with details of what was discussed and up to three key action points (one side of A4 should be plenty).

These emails can be re-used and adapted - saving you hours of time in the long run. In fact, the whole process can be automated so people can book straight into your diary, are delivered the link to join the call and reminders before the call.

I include template/swipe files for these types of emails in my How To Turn Your Offline Services Into Online Offerings masterclass.

If you’re worried that what you teach/coach can’t be delivered online, I’ve personally worked with a pilates instructor, bread making teacher, psychologist, personal trainer and jewellery- making teacher - all of whom deliver their training/consultancy online. And if they can do it, so can you.

How to price your Power Hour

It can be tempting to base your pricing on what others are charging in your industry. But this can lead to you vastly undercharging - or even overcharging - for your services.

Your pricing should reflect the transformation you can create for your client - not how long it takes you to prepare and deliver the session. So if you can share information/advice/guidance that can save them tons of time, money and/or help them generate income in their business - because you’ve spent years honing your craft - your price should absolutely reflect that.

I’ve generated over a million pounds in sales from the copy I’ve written for my website, sales pages, email marketing and social media. And the reason I’m able to create engaging content is because I spent the best part of 20 years writing and editing for national newspapers. PLUS I’ve invested huge amounts of time (and money) learning about copywriting - specifically for online business. This means I can look at a sales page, social media post or marketing email and immediately see what needs to be changed. Which is why I charge £500 + VAT for a Power Hour - not £50+ VAT.

That said, I haven’t always charged that fee. I started at around £99 + VAT and gradually scaled up as I got more experienced and gathered more testimonials.

So start by thinking about the transformation you can create for someone and the impact that could have on their life/business.

It can help to spell out the return on investment for your clients. So for example, if I could give you some advice on your sales copy that would help 5x your investment, would you think £500 +VAT was expensive? Probably not. It’s all about how you frame it.

But you do need to have the experience to match your pricing. You can’t charge £500 + VAT for your Power Hour just because someone else in your industry is doing it (well you can, but you may not make any sales).

So if you haven’t yet delivered any Power Hours it can be worth offering a number of discounted sessions so you can gather testimonials. I wouldn’t recommend offering them for free. People generally don’t value what they get for free. Which means they’re more likely to cancel/show up late to the session and less likely to implement your advice. Even a modest fee will ensure they have some skin in the game.

How to promote your Power Hour

If you already have an email list - great. Simply email your list, tell them about your Power Hour and (providing you’ve created the right offer for the right audience) you should get bookings. I’d also recommend doing some social media promotion too. If you have a blog/podcast/Youtube channel, it’s also worth sharing information about it there.

If you don’t have an email list (or only have a small list) you’ll need to use proactive outreach. That means making a list of people you know (e.g. current/former clients) who might be interested in your offer. PLUS asking for recommendations/referrals from friends/colleagues. If you’re not sure how to get started with proactive outreach, the first module in my Build Your Online Audience programme focuses on exactly that topic (and includes email/message templates you can adapt for proactive outreach).

Need help building your email list? Check out: https://www.janetmurray.co.uk/39-surprisingly-easy-ways-to-increase-your-email-subscribers/

I also have an email list building programme inside my Build Your Online Audience programme

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Podcast shownotes

The context for this bonus podcast episode (01:44)
Find out about my Emergency Response Plan (4:32)
What is a power hour and how you can use it in your business (06:50)
Why power hours are great for getting rid of the tire kickers (8:37)
Why you should choose a niche topic for a power hour (09:04)
Examples of successful niche power hours (12:57)
How to create a power hour for a product-based business (14:11)
How you can use a power hour to upset and get future business (16:15)
How to use a power hour to decide if you want to work with someone (17:57)
How to deliver a power hour and apps you can use to deliver (19:30)
How to make sure your power hour is productive and take payment (22:10)
Tools you can use to make it easy to schedule a power hour in (23:04)
How to prepare people for the power hour (and why you need to) (24:54)
How to follow up a power hour and what you should include (27:10)
How to plan out a power hour call and manage expectations (29:29)
How to price a power hour and think of the transformation you offer (30:04)
Why you need good testimonials (and how to get them) (32:42)
How to promote a power hour (and what to do if you don’t get a response) (34:25)
How to promote a power hour if you don’t have an email list or audience (36:09)