If you have a spiritual business, the time to prepare for a sudden influx is beforehand and not when it’s actually happening.
You can’t always predict when there will be a huge spike in demand, and it can become overwhelming to the point where you can’t serve your clients as well as you’d like – or at all.
There are certain measures you can put in place to help you with this, and I’ve outlined them below…
Having a waitlist is a way to instantly relieve pressure without losing those extra people as clients.
This can be your saviour when you feel like it’s heating up and you’re not sure how many more orders you’ll be able to take. A waitlist system is something you should set up beforehand so that you’re ready to flick the switch whenever you need to.
To do this, create a sign up form with Mailchimp (or similar) that adds people to an email list called ‘Waitlist’ which is separate from your main email list. Switch the order buttons on your website so that anyone who tries to buy will be diverted to this sign up form for your waitlist, instead of allowing them to book or purchase.
When you have space again, you can send a group email to everyone on that list to tell them you’re taking on new clients.
Even if you don’t want to take on a VA right now, you should choose who you’re going to hire. Again, you don’t want to get to the point where you’ve left it so late that on top of having to deal with huge demand, you also need to find the right VA!
This is a job you can do in advance to save you time and stress. Have one or two VA’s you’ve already spoken to: you know their prices, you know what their work packages are (eg, a minimum of 10 hours a month), and have decided on who your VA/s will be as soon as you need them.
You can also think about and prepare for the jobs you’ll give them once you hire them. I shared on Instagram Stories this week how you can organise your DM’s into the ‘Primary’ or ‘General’ folder so you can give most of your messages to your VA to look after, while you only respond to the folder with your clients and close friends in.
Most importantly, sort out your Google Drive and email inbox to make sure they’re all organised and clear for someone else to step into. Bonus tip: This is great for manifesting so you can feel like you’re ready to hire people in your business.
If demand is getting out of control, it could be a sign that your prices are too low for the level you’re playing at in your business now.
If word has spread and people are enjoying your work, demand may have grown while your prices got left behind. Going back to my old Economics days, the basic supply and demand diagram – which is literally lesson one – says that market equilibrium falls at a higher price when there’s higher demand.
When your orders are consistently high, you can raise your prices to get the same amount of money while serving fewer people with less stress.
What new higher price could you offer that would still feel aligned?
There’s nothing like being busy to make you realise what’s important, and what isn’t.
Start to look at your workload to not only think “What can I give to a VA?” but “What can I get rid of completely…?”
There are VA’s who specialise in setting up automation systems for you, such as Asana and Dubsado, so you can prioritise the activities only YOU can do, like client readings and calls.
If things suddenly got super busy, which daily activities could you do every other day instead?
What activities aren’t giving you the best result for the amount of time you invest?
What’s an energy drain that would be a blessing for you not to do anymore, but you’re stuck in a pattern of doing it?
Deciding your priorities gives you leverage in your business because you can pull back on certain things, while putting more energy into the things that matter and light you up ✨
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Once you’re busy in your business, it’s a wonderful thing. By implementing these tools and strategies, you can make sure it feels wonderful, rather than seeming like a total drag!
Especially as a sensitive person, an empath, or if you’re doing intuitive work – your energy is so incredibly precious and valuable. If you get to a point of complete overwhelm, it’s going to be counterproductive.
Get these strategies at the ready so you can shift as necessary and keep your business feeling fun, free and high vibe, while serving as many people as possible.