Most business owners are looking for ways to accelerate the growth of their business. Well how would you like 10X your business inside four years? That's exactly what Christine Williams did as a member of the Marketers Club. In this episode Christine reveals the mindset shifts she had to make and the key strategies she applied to take her business from a $50,000 turnover to over $500,000 in a few years. If you want to know the secrets to rapid growth this episode is a must listen. 

00:00:11:04 - 00:00:25:21

War: Welcome to the Marketers Club Podcast. The show all about helping you work smarter, earn more and accelerate your success. And now here's your host Paul McCarthy.

00:00:29:06 - 00:01:09:21

Pau: Well, hello and welcome to Episode 5 of the Marketers Club Podcast. I'm Paul McCarthy and I'm here to help you learn how to market your talent so that you can earn what you're worth and ultimately you can make more of a difference in the world. Now in today's episode I'm going to be joined by a member of the Marketers Club Christine Williams. Now, Christine is the winner of our 2017 Marketer of the Year Award. It is an award that we present each year at our marketing super conference and it goes to a member who has successfully implemented many of our strategies and as a result has experienced significant growth in their business and Christine certainly achieved that.

00:01:09:21 - 00:02:20:08

Pau: Now when Christine first joined the markets club her business was turning over around 50,000 dollars and within a few short years she was able to grow that business to over half a million dollars in revenue. So I've asked Christine to join us today to share with you some of the strategies that helped her to create that transformation. The steps that she took that made a big difference in the results that she was able to enjoy. These are practical strategies so you'll be hearing from a real life entrepreneur applying things that you will be able to apply directly into your business and get the same impact going. Now, Christine's journey with the markets Club began at a marketing super conference and our next super conference is just around the corner. On Friday the 18th of October we'll be hosting our next super conference here in Melbourne. And if you want to join us now is the time to act and grab a ticket and come along and spend the day where we will start to work with you on helping you to really package up your expert position to really make you the standout player in your field. So to do that you simply go to the marketersclubcademy.com/pressgo if you're ready to press go on becoming the expert in your field. If you want to take that next step to really take your business to another level the Marketing Super Conference is the place to go. So it is a great day deep dive education and I'll be working with you personally all through the day to help you become a much better marketer of what you do. You have the chance to get hot say coaching collaborate with other entrepreneurs throughout the day. Meet many of the members that have enjoyed significant growth in their business really learn how you can start to apply these proven strategies to growing your business so I'd love to see you there at the marketing super conference on Friday the 18th of October. 

00:03:04:12 - 00:03:15:01

Pau: But for now let's dive into our conversation with Christine about how she transformed the results of her business. So, hey Christine. Thanks for joining us on the call.

00:03:15:25 - 00:03:18:26

Chr: Oh, you're very welcome Paul. I'm looking forward to sharing this next few minutes with you.

00:03:19:21 - 00:03:36:08

Pau: No, It's great to have you on the show and to sort of dive into a little bit of your story. So why are we start there, explain to people how you ended up doing the work you do. The journey into being the property specialist that you are. 

00:03:37:10 - 00:05:47:10

Chr: Coming from is a very poor family having to leave school quite early to help financial support my family. We lived in caravans and then I got married, had a home, had three children, marriage broke down seventeen years later and I had two young girls. I end up writing in the area that we leave. So the girls could still attend the school and find the community that they knew. And of course I didn't have a home because I didn't come out with much money from the divorce settlement. Having a home to me was quite important because growing up I didn't really have a home and I just get on a path to eventually have property. That really came from investing rather than purchasing my own home because along the way I found out the property made money and you could actually purchase property not have to live in it get someone to help you pay for it, as in the tenant and the tax man and eventually accumulate wealth that way. And then along the way as I started to realise this was a strategy I started to duplicate that strategy. Of course along the way I saw was purchasing I made mistakes. From those mistakes, I learnt very, very good financial lessons and eventually the financial lessons turned into a lot of successes. Along the way I remarried and started teaching my children and my stepchildren how to invest in property and it really came from the strategies that I created. Through life lessons and then four years ago actually on the 18th of August 2019 my business will be 4 years. And in that I've created a tribe whereby on teaching clients strategies that I came up with along the way. And the biggest thing that I had to overcome was the fear of investing or the fear borrowing money and what would happen if something went wrong. So I started to create strategies whereby I could mitigate risk.

00:05:48:10 - 00:06:33:19

Chr: I learnt about how to read the property market and I spent a lot of money on education, learning what to do and understanding research and honing down on finding out what was the right property in the right place at the right time. Instead of just listening to location location location and or other people's opinions. So the success of the business is a strategy that works time and time again and then of course with you Paul you've helped me grow this business. To the success it is today and implementing the strategy in sharing the strategy and getting the strategy out there to more and more people.  So yeah, that's how that's happened I suppose.

00:06:33:19 - 00:08:13:19

Pau: Yeah, well it's been a great journey, I mean it's been a fantastic journey for me to be able to work alongside you and have you as part of our program and to watch you just be such a brilliant implementer of ideas and reap the rewards. But I think you know that that foundation of a proven idea, a concept that you'd already tested and had been delivering results and then it's organically the desire to help your own family and now you're helping so many people get into the property market and build wealth and create that sort of freedom which I think you know for a lot of us that go into business, that's part of the goal is we're trying to create a machine that will generate income. But I think that in terms of true wealth for most people their business is not the wealth builder it's the vehicle from which you can build wealth and people need to then connect with someone like you with real expertise about how they can put their money to work. So, let's talk a little bit about I guess the journey for you. I mean you are a winner of our you know Marketer of the Year Award, your business grew ten fold over that time. So let's talk about some of the steps the process that your business follows and some, will break down maybe some of them changing, the moments that change, the processes that have changed that have helped impact. So, maybe we can just give us a snapshot of the way the business works. So, how you know the customer journey as it were. So how somebody comes into your world and the process that they are followed to end up becoming a customer, so it's a step us through how the process works.

00:08:16:11 - 00:09:41:13

Chr: Two ways, clients come into my world. Generally I present, so, one of the things that I had to really master is presentation skills. So that was a very important part of your teachings with me to get the right messages across in the right time without confusing people. So that's how people come into my world generally from a presentation.  I have what's called a dining table session which is I have no more than 20 people in the room and I share my my story and my ideas and my strategy. The other way that people come into my world which is happening more and more organically, is, the success of my clients, of course their telling, their family and friends and or their adult children and their being referred in. So, basically my business has two strains of clients coming in. Either I present, so they see me see me on stage, or they're being referred in. And, I suppose that's how the tribes just kept on growing.  Individually I work very closely with people but then once a year I have a client appreciation night and that's probably where I get the most amount of enjoyment coming at being many many many many clients don't know each other but actually come together and rejoice in the fact that they've taken on the strategy and it's become quite successful. So I hope that answers that question. 

00:09:41:29 - 00:11:14:09

Pau: Yes well, I mean, so there's a couple parts. So, we can break them down to help people understand for themselves and their businesses for them to start thinking about some of these processes. So obviously, let's talk about where you start, which is you know when we're dealing with a new prospect someone that perhaps has not met you or spent much time with you but they're meeting you for the first time often in a presentation, and so you're delivering education so you're delivering a lot of value up front but some of the things that we worked on to change and I guess the journey of that for you and how that they felt in that you started to see obviously the conversion rate of those presentations start to adjust as you started doing those, making those changes so regardless of where the people deliver you know a stand up presentation in front of somebody or not the principle remains the same. And, one of the things that was a bit of a game changer was you stepping into one, I mean obviously when we're dealing with property we can easily go into the mechanics and the numbers and obviously you're very good with numbers you know the numbers and that's what makes you really good at it. But from a presentation point of view we also need the emotional the human the, your story being built on it. So, maybe talk a little bit about just your journey into sharing a little bit more of yourself from the platform when you were doing that and the value that you've seen in doing that.

00:11:14:25 - 00:14:13:28

Chr: Oh five hundred percent Paul. I felt that there was shame in my story. And you helped me and kill the young so to speak as to not for me to feel shame in my story. As in, coming from a poor background. But you a confident in sharing that story and understanding that there would be people in the room that at some point my story would have touched people in the room. And so therefore it become very important for me to be confidently, confidently and share that story but understand that that was one of the key factors rather than just the numbers because yes you are right. I am a numbers girl and I just felt that everyone just needed to say the numbers to see how successful this could be. But, Paul, you showed me that the emotion was just as important as the numbers. So from the original presentation that I had the numbers. It's only 50 percent of the numbers now or actually it's not even 50 percent probably only that 35 percent of numbers now whereas the rest of the presentation is getting the potential audience to understand this is a journey. We are about to enter into our new strategy. But why are you doing it. And and the second most important thing apart from me being able to confidently share my story was to share my why. And of course my why in my case, is family and lifestyle and travel. But by breaking that down and allowing the audience to think about their why, they all, they were affected emotionally. And I could hone in on what that emotion was to extract their why to allow them to understand that property in this instance was just a vehicle to get them to a why. So it's not about bricks and mortar and accumulating all these bricks and mortar it was actually about tuning into their why, and helping them get through that by using property as a vehicle. And that was a huge lesson for you Paul, it, a huge lesson and I must admit it must, it took a little while for the penny to drop but when the penny dropped it was just the light bulb that went on and you are so right. My conversion rate, my conversion rate doubled overnight, it really did. So, your handholding, we've taken out a lot of the numbers in my presentation, but allowing me to feel confident in my story and, and actually showing me that I I really I was really helping people. And the level and the depth and level of how I was helping people. You held my hand there and it and it, it works. So yes, it was confidence building, handholding, and you still allowing me to be me. There was no, there was no changing of me. You just put the best me out in all your teaching. 

00:14:14:28 - 00:16:08:17

Pau: And, that's I think the key here is I mean one of the things I say a lot of people stumbled into and as I say, this is not just about being a presenter, it's not about simply the ability to stand in front of somebody but as a general principle of your marketing is your willingness to put yourself out there to share your story, an the best marketing is a is a reflection of you, and that's what you've done so well you've had the courage to share a little bit more of yourself and as you've done that the audience and in this case a live audience has really gravitated towards that because that's what we want. We're trying to connect with people and so we need to expose and that's where our points of difference come as well because it's uniquely you. No one, no one can replicate you. So we want that coming through in all of our marketing collateral. So clearly in the presentation side it's had a big impact. And we saw that in terms of the results. Now the next part of your phase and again this will be common to a lot of people as they go into some sort of discovery phase with, with a prospect.  They sit down to explore and look at whether they can work together and how that's going to look. So, let's talk about I guess not so much that the mechanics or the detail of your discovery session but is the journey for you. Of starting to charge, and charge an appropriate amount of money to take people through that. So when we first met you were charging very little if any much at all to do that. So what has, what was that process like for you in terms of that stepping stone of starting to charge and getting that process going. Because in the end of the day that in itself represents a reasonably significant income stream to have arrived at. So let's talk a little bit about that process.

00:16:09:16 - 00:19:38:15

Chr: Wow Paul, that was huge. Okay, so in the first instance I must admit, in the first 18 months of my business, I didn't charge for my services. I did give my time freely. I did with that without the expectation of receiving any income or revenue from it, because I didn't have the belief or not not belief that wasn't it. I didn't have the understanding of the value of the content that I was sharing, and Paul that was another great lesson that you taught me. And I must admit, the first step into charging was ninety seven dollars. And of course my fee goes into the four figures now, and I'm quite comfortable in saying that right from the get go. But it did take a journey of nearly two years for me to be very comfortable in understanding the value of what I was sharing. And that comes from me thinking about you know I'm on a female I had to leave school when I was 15 and 4 months I certainly don't have tertiary qualifications. I did go back and get my accounting diploma but I don't have tertiary qualification so, I just felt for anything that I'm sharing can't possibly be worth anything because everyone should know me. And the take sheet teachings along the way we do poll you showed me the value of what I did know what I did learn and the life lessons that I'm actually bringing to all of my clients that I don't know this. And the value of it. So I started to understand that it wasn't rude of me to expect revenue in what I was sharing. And, once I got over that once again, it was a light bulb. And once I got over the debt it was a part of me that thought if I start charging I'm not going to continue my business that people won't want to pay it. And I've now come to realise that the people who are serious about wanting to move forward with the strategy, their expectation of being charged was a lot higher from what I realised I could charge. And, so there's been a  journey, that you know, stepping into 97 dollars for discovery session to understanding that that discovery session now is three hundred ninety seven dollars. And then the engagement fee, of originally a thousand dollars is now up to 2000 dollars per recommendation. So, the revenue from the business perspective. Incredible. You know there was a 30 percent revenue just in fees that I was never charging. And now. It's a given. I understand that people who are looking for the right type of advice. And that's where I'm qualified in advice in this field and that's where my accreditation comes from. They expect to pay. So, therefore there is no shining in charging. And yes that was definitely a lesson that has exponentially increased revenue in my business, and I don't feel guilty about any of it. So much so that the fees that I do charge, I love that I have legit clients that are quite surprised, and they say to me, we think we should be charging a lot more. And so that's probably the next lesson that I'll be learning as well Paul. So it, it was a journey it definitely was a journey because I was so uncomfortable in the very beginning but I'm not uncomfortable anymore. So thank you. 

00:19:40:01 - 00:21:11:27

Pau: No, well you're welcome and congratulations and you know again having the courage to trust in that and go with that and I've watched a lot of clients over the years go through that exact process. I've been through that process myself where we step into something and we we grow with it and we grow the inner confidence and as we talk about a lot in the Marketer's Club, the first sale is made to you. It's an inner belief game first. And and really buying your own value and recognising that and I think you know that that trap of dismissing or downplaying your knowledge base is something that's really common in a lot of people do it. And know I've worked with lots of clients people that work in mortgage brokers that have been in an industry that's been traditionally everybody does it for free. And I started charging and they opened up a revenue stream and that also attracted a better quality of client when I went into that sphere which you're seeing and experiencing as well. But I mean, I remember us having a conversation and it was one of those real reinforcement moments and I'm paraphrasing you here and you can maybe tidy up the story a little bit but if my memory serves me a gentleman talking to you at the end of discovery session and sort of saying to you, you know,  I spent tens of thousands of dollars on advice and I got more value from a couple of hours with you than I did all of that money spent I got that right. Is that something along that line.

00:21:12:01 - 00:24:06:10

Chr: Is very much is that. Was it one of my client appreciation night. We had about 70 people in agreement and I had three clients that I had asked to take and share their experiences and that was fabulous. They really were. And and they three had seen that not everyone was seeking rewards that night and that those three things. I had one of the clients stand up and put their hand up and I won't mention any names, but for the people that were there that night, knew that this gentleman stood up and you said do you mind if I say something Christine and I have to tell you when these 75 people in the room can say no, well of course you can but I had no idea what he was going to say. And I I must admit, I was taking a deep breath and he pulled out his phone, which really surprised me. And he said I have to tell you that Christine came into my world 18 months ago and we've signed our second contract and we're about to sign our, going into our third contract and we've actually introduced her to our adult children and she's helping our adult children. But I attended another organisation that is a property advisory and they pay twenty thousand dollars for the annual fee. And he brought up his phone to prove the invoice. And he said we got nothing out of that 20,000 except a property that was full of termites and it cost us seventy five thousand dollars. And yet Christine met with us in an hour and a half. And to this day she has been true to our word and followed up everything that she said she would do and everything that she had advised us on it's come to fruition. Well I took a big breath and I thought oh, thank you. And to this day, every time he sees me he says we just can't thank you enough and, so as much as I hadn't even thought to ask him to say something. It turned out to be quite something. I was quite humble quite proud of at the same time and and I had no idea that he'd actually done that. Cause they'd never told me. Better there you go, so yes there are people in the industry who have phenomenal fees. And I I think on that point quite frankly Paul I could catch that amount of money because I know now that I definitely are in, I definitely have the caliber of information and I can certainly think within that field that it is my choice to charge  the fees that I charge because I feel comfortable about it. So as much as I wasn't charging anything. I'm very comfortable with my fees and I must admit on the first of July of 2019, fees went up. So it's been a definite increase of fees over the last, nearly two years. And they went up again on the first of July. And there was no pretense there was no worry about it. I didn't had I didn't lose sleep over it I guess that's what it's going to be now.

00:24:06:24 - 00:27:13:05

Pau: And I think it's just that learning that you get from clients and I mean and I think that the organic way that that applies for client feels so moved by the impact that you've had on them that they want to spruik. They want to be a fan. They want to rave when they're in that space and celebrate that they've found you. And the impact you've had and because in comparison. And I guess this is one of the things from a marketers point of view just to take that point for a moment is one of the things obviously you need to be aware of in your field is that there are prospective customers who have had a bad experience. They have forked out money to other people. They have potentially bought a property that wasn't a good property to have purchased. No some people  that will scare them off and they will run for the hills and they will never do it again and they will be ultimately the loser because of that but it will because it will be caused by somebody doing the wrong thing. But as marketers what we need to be mindful of is always what has our prospective customer being exposed to, so that we are aware of that on the way through because, we we're going to need to deal with that we're going to, we've got to know that that kind of. Yes. That question is in the back of their mind that that trepidation that fear that concern. So we need to be mindful of that in our marketing and you've done that really well to help people overcome those. And you're doing that through all of the facets of your marketing and building that relationship and trust you produce lots of great content, it's all of these things but we have to be tackling some of these concerns because some clients just won't come over the line because of our past experience has had nothing to do with you. But just that I've been frightened off because of it. But I think one of things we didn't touch on the way through that I know also has had a big impact and we talked about the fact that you know one of the changes to your presentation while we made a lot of adjustments it still was viewed being you. And so I think that's really important. The other part that was you being you. But it just wasn't exposed and I guess I wanted to highlight this for people is sometimes we have an idea or a concept or a philosophy and we're not promoting it actively to our base and what I'm referring with you Christine was that you had a real belief in the idea of you know three properties as a minimum structure so that you would be free with three. That there was a number of properties that needed to get to and that's become much more part of your lexicon that you talk like that now. So, what has the conversation changed in terms of starting to talk to clients like that result in what's been the outcome of starting to talk even when you're signing a person up for their first property when you start talking in threes.

00:27:13:05 - 00:30:01:24

Chr: Originally, when I started my presentation we would talk about the first property. The presentation in its self, in its entirety shows originally, what a journey would look like a five properties and I didn't realise that that was freaking people out, and through conversations that you Paul we uncovered this. But in the the presentation having a five property it it's because I'm fortunate enough that I'm one of 14 and a half thousand people in Australia that have five or more properties. So we talk about investing in property and we talk about you know let's get one property in and that's going to help us in retirement. And there are one point one million people in Australia that have one investment property but there's only about 14,000 of us that have got five or more. And I would really talk about, thinking that that was to show people that you can do it but we're such a minority, It can happen. But what I didn't understand was that I was freaking people out and it was worrying them. But the reason behind all these, and this where Paul, you really helped me uncover how to deliver this. It was a conversation we're having one day. And you said to me, why do you talk about multiple properties Christine. And I I explained to you that one investment property over your own home, does the government of favour. It negates us from all Centrelink being a recipient of anything healthcare cards, pension and so therefore that tells me that one property is a problem you're only doing the government a favour. They don't have to give you anything. Two properties, very similar situation because the two properties might not give you enough in rental to actually leave for once again you're not going to get any Centrelink benefits. Therefore to me you're really putting yourself back on the poverty line even though you've got two investment properties and it's not until you actually get the third that we're looking at a potential returns of seventy five thousand dollars a year. That would give us a comfortable income in retirement. Now we're not going to get any Centrelink benefits, but seventy five thousand dollars is a relatively a good amount to enjoy a comfortable lifestyle. So when you asked me why I talked about multiple properties even though it was freaking people out, you started to understand I actually had a strategy there, but I didn't know what it was and I didn't know how to package it and and that's where we came up with the be free with three or thrive with five and it was your uncovering for me to deliver that that message that took me away from really only talking about getting one investment property because one investment property is a waste of time. You just shouldn't do it.

00:30:02:14 - 00:31:33:09

Chr: So in understanding that and developing had to deliver that from a very positive perspective and how we can do that within a 10 to 20 year period allowed me to uncover the fears from the potential client but show them that over 20 years this was very possible it could be done we living the lifestyle. In today's world that they wanted to do having family moving forward in their career going through the process of perhaps helping elderly parents your children growing up to be young adults and it could actually work. So that's where the message becomes very strong. And once I got that message in my own head and that's what I was delivering on I was definitely delivering a strategy to help them create the lifestyle that they wanted. It was really easy to deliver. And that was probably where the business really stood on its own because I'm very comfortable delivering that strategy right from the get go. And I'm very comfortable that if this is it that's right property and if he can't understand that this is that 10 to 20 year plan and it is about three properties. Unfortunately we won't work together and over the last 12 months I've had so many people come back to me because I actually go away and think about it and they understand it and come back to me and then they want to start it. Even though, they've said no. They'd actually come back into my room and say yes we're ready now we actually understand what you're talking about. 

00:31:34:14 - 00:33:56:28

Pau: And I think you know these principles that we teach all clients is about understanding you know the ascension of a client. I was a full lifetime value of a client and understanding the business that we're really in and what we're structuring and in your businesses you that you're the whole reason you started and the whole journey of this. You just genuinely want to help people to create the freedoms the financial security that was lacking in your life. You wanted to first make sure your family had it and then you you've taken it out and you're sharing that with people but you you are being true to your system you know you. It's not. I'm trying to flog you another property I'm telling you. These are the realities of what you need to do. And so people get that. I get that the integrity and the honesty that comes from you in doing that. But it's understanding from a business point of view that that's that's where I'm fully servicing my client. And when I when I when they on that full journey and they're doing that and I understand they're on a road to get that then we've got we win a client. And the journey is now you know not to simply do you know get a few dollars to come to a talk or a few more to have a discovery session or to sign up for a property but it's about this journey. And as you say I mean in you again you do it really well as you know having an appreciation night celebrating with your clients acknowledging and allowing them the chance to celebrate together what they've managed to achieve. And it does it feels like I've been fortunate enough to be at one of those events and it's a great feeling in the room and people really feeling proud of what they've achieved. And you know about that sense of security that they've created for their family. So you know all I can say is congratulations Christine, this sessions not supposed to be about me and what I do but very much about you and what you've achieved and that's all credit to you. So I'm sure that you know there's gonna be some people interested in reaching out connecting with you learning more about what you do and at the very least and touching base and watching the systems and processes that you've now put in place to do that. What's the best way or best place for people to go to learn more about the work you do.

00:33:57:28 - 00:35:14:04

Chr: Thank you Paul. Before I ask that person I'm I'm very pleased that I'll become a part of the Marketers Club family and at through that I've make lots of friends, business associates and it's really good to share each other's trials and tribulations in business so I'm proud to be apart of the Marketer's Club.  To contact me, go to the website. It's on the website guys. There was a lot of information out there that will help you learn, hear some tips about  investing in property but yes the website is www.smarterpropertyinvesting.com.au  Or you could call my thirteen hundred number, 1300 736 754. And I'm happy to chat with you. I offer a 20 to 30 minute complimentary call to say whether or not investing in property is a strategy that perhaps we should investigate because it doesn't suit everybody. It's not one size fits all the strategy of three property is a strategy but one size fits all. It's more that the why and how we can actually get into that. I would I would welcome everybody. I mean I welcome them calling me and answering the questions every 20 to 30 minutes or so.

00:35:14:04 - 00:35:58:20

Pau: Christine thank you so much for making the time. Congratulations on all you've achieved and I look forward to continuing to watch you grow and blossom and to continue to helping people on this path. That's great work that you're doing. And now we know that unfortunately a lot of people are going to get to the end of their working life and be left short. And you're really playing your role in making a real difference in the world and changing the people's family trees and creating opportunities for them to build significant wealth and make their life at the end of their working life really comfortable and set their families up for success. So, keep up the good work. Thanks for making the time and love having a chat with you today.

00:35:58:20 - 00:36:00:09

Chr: You're very welcome Paul.

00:36:00:14 - 00:37:08:06

Pau: So I hope you enjoyed my conversation with Christine and that you were able to draw some really practical ideas out that you could start applying to your business. They certainly played a huge role in the transformation of Christine's business and as I said at the outset if you'd like to follow in her footsteps and start the journey then the Marketing Super Conference is the place to begin. It's just around the corner on Friday the 18th of October here in Melbourne. And if you want full details about it please go to the marketersclubacademy.com/pressgo and you'll get all the information and be able to get the tickets at their super early bird special just before that finishes. So that's it for this week and I look forward to again joining you next week with another information packed session with practical strategies to help you take your business to a whole other level of performance. So until next week I wish you the very best of luck with your businesses. But much more importantly with your lives. Take care. Bye for now