Do you remember the last time you invited a new friend over to your house? Maybe you hosted a dinner party, a wine night, a rainy afternoon movie session, or even a backyard barbecue. Think about everything you did to prep your home (and yourself!) for that guest. You probably:

• made sure you showered (or at least wore clean clothes)
• picked up all of the leftover coffee mugs lying around from breakfast
• took the trash out
• stocked the fridge with the best snacks and drinks
• wrapped up your work day a bit early so you could focus
• put on some of your favorite music to jam out to
• swept the floor and wiped down surfaces
• generally made it look like you didn’t put in a ton of effort because that’s how you always keep the house even though we all know you spent a decent amount of time cleaning up because who actually lives in a museum-like home unless you’re my grandma who has nothing to do but bake cakes and call her grandkids and keep an immaculate home

….or at least a few of the above, right? Of course you did.

And then your guest arrives. You grab them a drink, show them where they can take a load off, point out the bathroom or where the snacks are, and get to know them a little better.

Even if you aren’t the hostess with the mostess, it’s likely that none of this sounds strange to you. It is, after all, polite. I mean, they came into your house, right?

Without a strategy, you’re serving cold pizza and your guests are checking their watches wondering when they can leave. And just like that well planned evening, running a business and building a community of raving happy customers is all about your Dinner Party Strategy™.

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In Your Signature Experience, we spend two entire modules diving into Dinner Party Strategy™ for your business. You’ll learn exactly how to make the plans that work for your brand and your perfect-for-you clients. Here’s how we do it:

Set The Table

Before you launch anything (a course, an ebook, a blog post, a new product or service, or an entirely new website), be sure that you are checking in on all of the places your perfect clients are interacting with your brand. Better yet, get another set of eyes on it: a team member, your partner, a friend, or mastermind buddy. Some places to pay attention to:

→ click thru all links and be sure they head to a real live page
→ complete the opt in form(s) and be sure to check that you end up on the right list
→ create a custom list for that launch in your newsletter providers
→ build an alias email address for your newsletter, press page, or contact page
→ check that the contact form works properly and routes the responses to the correct email
→ setup your Website Custom Audiences in the Facebook Ads Manager so you can begin collecting data right away
→ map out how, when, and where you’ll welcome your clients and be sure the pieces are in place to support that

Send The Invite

Throwing a few posts up on your social media channels or blasting everyone an event invite isn’t exactly Dinner Party Strategy. Instead:

→ write a personalized email from your inbox to individuals you know who would be a great fit for your next big thing
→ create custom social media graphics that make it fun
→ open up your calendar for quickie Skype or phone sessions to answer any Qs and to get to know your community
→ craft a blog post giving a peek inside of the course and share some of the very best content for free (ahem, feel familiar right about now?)
→ make a from-the-heart video to send out via email or share on social media
→ tell your very best business buds what you’re up to and ask them if they will personally reach out to just a few people in their circle

And Then What?

One of my very favorite exercises to do inside Your Signature Experience is the And Then What? Worksheet. Walk thru an individual customer journey and ask yourself “And then what happens?” at each stop. Like this:

I click on a link a friend shared on Facebook and read your blog post.

And then what happens?

Do I see an invitation to join your email list below that post?
Am I prompted to read other articles you’ve written recently?
Do I know how I can work with you further?

Maybe that invite to join your email list is there. I sign up in the box provided.

And then what happens?

Do I land on a custom thank you page?
Is there a download of a checklist or workbook?
Are my next steps clearly laid out for me?
Is there a video explaining what to expect?

You can do this right now with any of your customer journeys. Look at email signup, your contact form, signing up for your program, scheduling a free call with you, or applying to work 1×1 with you. Ask “And then what happens?” at every stop to see where things can improve.

In the next few weeks, I’ll be hosting a webinar with my friend (and co-creator of Your Signature Experience) Suzi Istvan on the Dinner Party Strategy and all that this 4 week course has to offer. We’re packing our biggest brand building and client loving tips and expertise into this one hour webinar and we’ll even be sure to save time for your questions at the end.

We’d love to see you there and you can get all of the details by adding your name to the waiting list for Your Signature Experience. There’s no commitment at all and nothing to buy now. All we ask is that you begin building your own Signature Experience and create the Dinner Party Strategy that keeps happy clients rolling in to your incredible business.