Please fill out your details below to apply for a free 30 minute telephone chat with me,
to discuss the opportunities available in your business for expanding your audience, and creating new income streams
from information products, online services, and premium consultancy. Before you apply,
please have a glance at the frequently asked questions.
Who is this Mentorship Programme for?
This programme is aimed at professional authors, speakers, coaches and
consultants. However, anyone who makes a living selling their expertise, wisdom,
knowledge, and insights should be able to achieve new levels of success by joining
this programme.
So, are you saying that you can help ALL authors, coaches, speakers
and consultants?
Not really. My speciality is working with people who have valuable insights
and expertise that they are inspired to share, and with people who believe that
there is a big audience somewhere “out there” who would be hungry
for their content.
My job is to help you build a “business vehicle” that will enable
you to share your message with larger and larger numbers of people, and to increase
your profitability, whilst decreasing your workload.
If you believe that you have information that people both want and need, and
if you believe that there is likely to be an audience for your message, then
that’s a good enough basis for an initial chat.
Also, if you are not quite ready to get the most out of this programme, I’ll
tell you so immediately, and I’ll recommend that you get some support
from my friend and buisness partner Nick Williams, who specialises in honing in on
people’s gifts and talents, and helping them to gain deep clarity into
the kinds of products and services that they might ultimately offer.
I own an e-commerce website / online community / membership service
/ online store (etc) that’s underperforming? Can you help?
Absolutely. But that’s a separate challenge. Contact my IT and marketing
consultancy business, Kiaya Limited. E-Mail: niki@kiaya.com.
Why did you create this mentorship programme?
Over the past three or four years we’ve had the experience of building
two successful information based businesses. Via these companies we have sold
many hundreds of premium priced online learning programmes, a suite of MP3 digital
audio recordings, we’ve run a successful online community catering to
hundreds of members all over the world, and have successfully distributed e-books
to many thousands of satisfied customers.
I believe that our ability to reach large audiences has helped us to impact
the lives of many thousands of people, but all around me,
I see passionate business owners, with great information to share, but who are
struggling to make a decent income serving only a relatively small audience.
My goal with this programme is to help these businesses to break-through
into higher levels of visibility.
But hang on, I’m already a best selling author. Do I really need
this?
If you already have a book with wide distribution, great, that will guarantee
you a head start. However, being a published author can be just one component of
a larger overall strategy, assuming you want to share your message at the highest
possible level. Why? Because, books are cheap, and profit margins tend to be
tight. Tight Profit Margins = Low Advertising Budget. Low Advertising Budget
= Low Reach. I can help you to create highly profitable products that will enable
you to expand your reach, and the size of your audience, far beyond the foot-fall
you are getting in Waterstones. If you already have a book in circulation, then
there’s a great deal that I can do to help you…
So are you saying that I NEED to have written a book in order to get
the most out of this service?
No. A book is not at all necessary. You could go through your entire journey
as an expert without ever having a book published. But equally, if you can see
the advantage of having a book on the shelf, I can put you directly in touch
with a world-class publishing consultant who can help make your dreams
of becoming a successful author a reality.
I understand what you are offering, but, why do I need one-to-one ongoing
mentorship?
Good question. This programme offers you ongoing guidance and support from
an expert who as already achieved a level of success in the information packaging
business. Creating a business that can reach large numbers of customers is only
going to happen if you are able to concentrate your actions on the small number
of “high-leverage” activities that will generate substantial progress.
Many people fail in the information packaging business because they invest their
time into wasteful and marginal activities.
Hold up, do you have any idea how busy I am? The last thing I need
is more stuff to do…
If you join this programme you won’t find that I hit you with a huge
“to-do” list, but what I will do is identify the most highly leveraged
activities that you should be investing your time into. This means that we are
always going be concentrating on the actions that will give you the biggest
pay off, for the smallest effort.
This is the way I work. My clients value their places on my programme because
I gently guide the ways that they invest their time, and because we’ll
have an ongoing relationship, I’ll be giving you constant course correction.
So, it doesn’t matter how busy and pressurised your life is, you’ll
value the guidance that I’ll bring to your business. Infact, the more
hectic your life is, the more you should beable to benefit from this programme.
What’s all this about “High Leverage” activities?
These are the concrete, specific, actions that are most likely to create maximum
results with minimum effort.
Okay, I know I need guidance, but it doesn’t sound very practical
to me, the last thing I need is another therapist or life coach.
My primary concern is your bottom line results. I only deal
with people who want, and demand, results from their business. I expect that
90% of our discussions are going to be about the critical “nuts and bolts”,
action orientated, activities that you are facing at any given moment.
This brings me to the other main benefit of joining this programme, which is
the ongoing support you’ll receive. You’ll discover that, as you
are taking these concrete actions, that you are naturally going to have pressing
questions. Being a member of my mentorship programme enables you to get access
to the support you’ll need, on an ongoing basis.
So if you want me to
comment on the marketing you have just produced, we can talk about it, if your
Google campaign has flat-lined, we can talk about it, if your webmaster is giving
you static, we can talk about it...
So I can call you any time, 24/7? On Christmas day? In the middle of
the night?
No. But, I will make myself available to help you whenever possible, and I will prioritise your
calls. Remember, also, the programme only entitles you to a certain amount of
time with me each month, so use it wisely.
How much time do I get with you?
The service includes a one hour session per month.
Is one hour really going to be enough?
It should be enough for most people. The idea is that you’ll receive
just the right amount of guidance to keep you moving in the right direction,
and that you’ll have access to ongoing support, as and when you need it.
One hour per month is actually quite a lot of talking! Besides, I always cut
to the chase, and I wanted to make this service affordable for every small business
owner. Also, you can always buy more time as and when you need it...
It all sounds a bit fluffy to me. Cut to the chase - what exactly are
you going to do for me? Give me some concrete examples…
Obviously it varies a great deal from client to client, but here’s an
indication of the areas I can help with –
- I’ll help you plan the overall structure of your information business.
Getting this wrong is probably the thing that causes the most heartache, the
most wasted money, the most squandered opportunity, and the most frustration.
I can help you build a successful information based business, more cheaply,
more quickly, and with much less risk than you could if you attempted to plot
your own course without expert guidance.
- In conjunction with my contacts. I can help you plan, structure and package
your products and services, and help ensure that they are both highly marketable,
and contain top quality education and information. We can help you to gain
a clear understanding of your unique expert niche, and then, help you to translate
your knowledge and expertise into killer information products that have a
strong likelihood of actually selling.
- I’ll help you decide the best way to structure your website for maximum
returns. For every client that has come to me so far, I have identified several
“quick-wins” or minor changes, which have resulted in an immediate
jump in results. Also, and more importantly, I can help you to guide the development
of your website toward maximum effectiveness, over the long term.
- I’ll help you decide the best way to structure your overall marketing
activities. Marketing is not just a bunch of different campaigns running in
isolation; it’s a coherent strategy, with ongoing measurement, and
the expectation of concrete results. I can help you to shape your overall
plan in a way that is uniquely tailored to your business.
- In a very practical way, I can help you to develop the various strands of
marketing your business needs. This can involve you and I working side-by-side
on your marketing copy. I’ll be guiding you through the process of putting
in place the systems you’ll need to accurately measure your results,
and of course, I’ll be helping you to test and improve your marketing
efforts over time.
- I’ll help you to automate (put on auto pilot) as many functions of
your business as is necessary to make your life easier, and free up your time.
To create an operation that can grow to serve a large worldwide audience,
you need either automation or employees. Automation is cheaper, and also a
whole lot less hassle. I can help you reduce your workload and increase your
customer base.
- I’ll help you interpret and act on your business measures / metrics.
Together we will build a dashboard of the most important measures that define
the success of your business. I can help you to understand this dashboard,
and help you to make good decisions based on this information. Some companies
hire me based solely on my ability to read and understand business measures.
I’ll help you to discover this skill for yourself, not by lecturing,
but by working side by side with you and guiding your interpretation of the
numbers.
- I’ll help you to get the best from any external suppliers you use.
Sometimes web designers and developers can be less than supportive, and, it’s
a touchy subject, but sometimes they’ll charge you more than the fair
price for the job. With me on your team, the likelihood of you getting mistreated
by a supplier is lowered, because I’ll know how long any given job should
take, and also, how much it should cost. IT suppliers tend to behave themselves
when I’m around.
That’s great, but why do I need YOU in particular?
Two reasons –
- Firstly, I have a track record in this business. If you want to get from
“A” to “B”, it’s a good idea to work with someone
who knows where “B” is, and how to get there.
- Secondly, I have a very rare combination of three skills, all of which are
critical components of a successful information based business. I’m
not saying you need to be an expert in all of these, but you will need access
to people who have all three types of ability. These skills are IT, marketing,
and business processes. Being an expert in all three of these areas, I can
advise on both the big picture and the fine detail of your business. See my
profile for more details…
Okay, assuming we end up working together, how long will it be before I’m
making money while I sleep?
I rebel against this idea. Of course, I do have the regular experience of getting
up in the morning and realising that I have “earned money while I’ve
slept”. But I don’t fool myself that this money came without effort.
As the cash rolls in, I always tally it up to the factors that really created
it; the website, lead generation, sales content, etc.
I’d advise thinking in terms of “return on investment”, rather
than making money while you sleep. In general, being asleep has never been a
major contributing factor to my success.
But, in terms of when you might make your first sales of a digital product
- it depends very much on where you are right now, how quickly you work, if
you have spare cash flow, and the marketability of your product. We can discuss
all of these things…
I don’t have a clue about HTML, web design, and all of these
online marketing gizmos...
No problem. I’ll help you deal with your suppliers...
I’m not a marketing genius. Will I still be able to get the most
out of this programme?
Put it this way. You’ll learn more practical, results orientated, marketing
skills by working with me for a year, than you would if you packed yourself
off to university and studied a marketing degree. It’s not rocket science,
and the essential stuff can be taught to anyone relatively quickly. Most importantly
of all, I’ll teach you in the context of your own business, and also help
to guide your own independent learning outside of our sessions…
How much does it cost?
The service starts at £129 per month, which includes a one hour session per month. Subsequent hours can be booked for £99, as and when needed.
Do you offer discounts or concessionary rates?
If you need to ask for a discount, then you are not quite ready to make the
most of my services, because it means you that probably don’t have the
excess cash flow to invest in your business. In this case, you are probably
falling into one of a number of traps. The early sections of my free e-course
may help you to identify these pitfalls…
Do you offer your services on a contingency basis? E.g. taking a percentage
of the improvements you create in my business?
If your business is consistently turning-over £250,000+ per year, e-mail
me here: niki@niki-hignett.com.
In your e-course you talk about doubling the profitability of my business
in 18 months, does it have to take that long?
18 months should be plenty of time to double the profitability of a small business,
assuming that the overall offering is marketable. As I mentioned in the e-course,
most consultancy businesses are barely able to break even, so I most cases,
this is a much smaller challenge than it might initially sound. In practice
I’d expect to see a doubling of profitability sooner than this. Of course,
in the early days, increasing profitability is just a means to an end, because
it generates spare cashflow (over and above your core expenses) that will enable
you to pay experts to support you in developing the marketing and IT infrastructure,
that will extend your message to a much wider audience. I see my role as helping
you to plan, develop, and optimise these systems.
Are you guaranteeing that you’ll double the profitability of
my business within 18 months?
No, you are responsible for your own results. Because I can’t predict
how well any given client will follow through on my advice, what other actions
they may or may not take, and how much effort they will put in, there’s
no way I can guarantee any client’s specific results. But, the quality
of my advice (from the point of view of my client) is backed by a comprehensive
two part guarantee.
If you are so good at this stuff, why aren’t you making a fortune
doing it yourself?
Rest assured; I make much more money applying these skills in my own businesses,
than I do teaching them to others. But, having said that, I do love teaching
this material!
But, I could just learn all of these skills myself, right?
Absolutely. And I recommend that you focus on doing so, whether or not you
decide to use any of my services. However, I would suggest that joining my mentorship
programme will shave months, if not years, off your learning curve.
When the programme is full, do you operate a waiting list?
Yes, but based on individual suitability to the programme, not on a “first
come first served” basis.
I’m interested. What do I do next?
Fill out this form, giving as much detail as possible, and we’ll have
30 minute telephone chat. If you are ready, and you decide to join the programme,
you’ll be asked to sign this agreement, and then we’ll set a date
and time for our first session.
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