EMMA: [00:00:00] Today, today is a teaching episode. Grab a cuppa, grab a notebook, and settle in. Ooh, ooh, ooh. I'm going to share a framework that has changed the way my clients are showing up in their businesses. It's called the 3-2-1 sales rhythm. Wow. Now, before you switch off because I said the word sales, stay with me.
This is not about being pushy, it's not about launches, and it's not about the hustle. It's about rhythm, and by the end of this episode, you'll have something you can write on a Post-It note and start using today. If sales has ever felt inconsistent, heavy, or a bit unclear in your business, you are absolutely not alone. I see this all the time, brilliant women doing brilliant work who go quiet on sales for weeks at a time. Then panic hits, cash flow tightens, your bum tightens, and suddenly there's a flurry of activity, a launch, a big push, a discount, and then back to silence.
Oh, my Lord, it's exhausting. And it's not because [00:01:00] these women aren't capable. It's not because they don't know their stuff. It's because they don't have a simple structure that helps them show up consistently. I want to share a bit of my own story here, because I had to learn this, well, the hard way. You would have heard this story.
When I first went into business, sales actually came really fast because I had no idea. I had a coaching background, and I was nervous about selling, but I spent my first few weeks meeting people in person, belly to belly. I had to reposition myself as a business owner. I offered a three-month coaching package at five grand, and in my first quarter, I generated $240,000 in sales.
By the end of year one, the business had done about four hundred thousand in revenue. Do not recommend. Suffice to say that I was a little bit stunned. But here's what happened next. All of that one-to-one delivery took over my life. I stopped doing business development. I stopped having conversations. I stopped showing up the way I had at the start.
And what followed was a [00:02:00] cycle I see so many women in, a feast and then famine. Feast, famine. Cash flow peaks, then troughs. It was my husband who said to me, " Em, I'm not sure this is sustainable." And of course, he was right. You don't tell him that. That's when I had to learn a different way of working, a way that meant marketing didn't stop just because I got busy, and a way that meant relationships kept getting nurtured even when my calendar was full in delivery, a way that didn't rely on me having a six-hour stretch of free time to do sales.
That way is this rhythm. And here's the shift I'd love you to make. You don't need more hustle. You need a rhythm. You need something that supports you, that guides you, that takes the pressure off needing to get it all right every single time. Something so small and so doable that you can do it even on the days you don't feel motivated.
And that rhythm is three, two, one. Simple. Three reach outs, two follow-ups, one social post. That's it. [00:03:00] You can literally write it on a Post-it note and stick it to your laptop. Three, two, one. I could leave it there, but I won't. I'm going to break down each part for you. I wanna tell you a little story. You would know I run a program called the Business Development Sprint, and the last time we ran it live, there was about 110 people in that thing.
Oh my goodness. And they committed an hour a day of actual business development. Not pretty Canva graphics, not scrolling LinkedIn pretending to network, actual business development. Picking up the phone, sending the message, following up, doing the work. And over 10 days, half of them, 'cause that's all I've got the stats on, half of them, these stats are amazing, 426 calls made.
426, and look, I've got it on my own Post-it Note. 426 calls made, 152 meetings, 105 proposals, and sales, hmm, [00:04:00] $575,000 worth. I wish it was magic, but it's not. It's the fact that everyone had skin in the game. They showed up every day, did the small consistent actions, and the results just compounded, and that's what the 3-2-1 rhythm is built on.
Small actions done consistently that create real momentum. Now, why does this work? Well, it works because it removes the reliance on big bursts of effort. You don't need to wait for motivation. You don't need to wait for a perfect launch. You don't need a fancy funnel. You're simply creating movement in your business every single day, and that movement compounds over time.
Conversations turn into meetings. Meetings turn into proposals. Proposals turn into clients. But none of that happens if you're not in motion Let me walk you through each part. First of all, three reach outs. This is about starting new conversations. You're not pitching, you're not selling, you're literally just connecting.
Think of it as [00:05:00] opening doors, not like walking through them yet. A reach out message could be messaging someone in your network you haven't spoken to in a while. We forget about those ones. It might be checking in with a past client to see how they're going. It might be asking for an introduction or a referral.
It could be sending a thinking of you note to someone whose work you admire. It could be reaching out to someone you met at an event last month. Three people, that's all, and you can do that in 15 minutes. Prove me wrong, please. Now, I wanna be really clear here. A reach out is not a sales pitch. It is not a, "Hi, I'd love to jump on a call to tell you all about myself."
It's not that kind of message. They go straight in the bin or the delete button, right? When you've received them. A reach out is human, it's curious, it's warm. It's, "Hey, I was thinking about you and that project you mentioned last time. How did it land?" Or, "I saw your post about hiring. Congrats. How's it going?"
Or, "I'd love to introduce you to someone in my [00:06:00] network who I think would really... you'd really gel with." That's not that hard, is it? You're making a deposit in a relationship, not a withdrawal
Number two, two follow-ups. this does feel a little bit uncomfortable for some people, right? But it's also where a lot of the opportunities already exist. Think about it. Someone who said, " Maybe next month," or someone you had a great conversation with at an event, or someone who downloaded your freebie six months ago and they've been watching your emails, a prospect who went quiet after a proposal. A simple, kind check-in goes a really long way. " Hey, just checking in. You mentioned next month was a better time to chat. Is now still working for you?" That's it. You're not being pushy. You're being helpful, and you're being present. I had a client recently ask me, "Emma, when do I stop following up?"
I think you all know the answer to this. My answer is never. If they haven't said no, there's still a maybe. Keep showing And here's a [00:07:00] little framework if follow-up feels a little bit too hard, right? We talked about SBI in our last episode, and I want you to think about that in that context, right?
So The situation is last time we spoke, you mentioned wanting to start in quarter two." behavior, "Now I'm reaching out because the ti- that timing's coming up." Impact, "I've got three spots opening in my calendar and wanted to make sure you had first option."
It's clear, it's kind, and it's not pushy, and it gives them something concrete to respond to.
One social post. This is about staying visible. You don't need to be everywhere. You don't need perfect content. You don't need to be on every single platform. The goal is simply to remind people that you're here and how you can help. A small win, a lesson, a helpful tip, something of value, something you noticed this week, a behind-the-scenes moment.
One post, done. And listen, I want to call something out here [00:08:00] because I send a lot of emails about this. Making pretty Canva graphics is not business development. I'm sorry, it just isn't, and I see this a lot. Designing a beautiful Instagram tile and then sitting back waiting for clients to roll in is also not business development.
de- business development is conversations. Business development is humans talking to humans. The social post is the visibility piece. It supports the conversation, but the conversations, that's the work. So if you find yourself spending two hours on a graphic and then zero minutes reaching out, you've got the ratio backwards.
Let's flip that Now, you might need a permission slip, and I want to give that to you. This does not need to be perfect. It does not need to take hours. It does not need to feel polished. It just needs to be done. We're aiming for consistency, not perfection, because the women who win in business are not the ones with the slickest content or the cleverest funnels.
They're the [00:09:00] ones who just keep showing up. And I think about marketing this way. I committed to writing one email a week to start my list when I first started. That lasted five years. Five years at one email a week. It wasn't always brilliant. It wasn't always inspired, but it was consistent, and that consistency built an audience.
It built trust. It built a business. You don't need to be brilliant every day. Lord knows I'm not. You just need to be consistent. So let's make this real for you for right now. Pause this episode if you need to. Grab a piece of paper or open your notes app on your phone. I want you to write down a couple of things.
First, three people you could reach out to this week, two people you could follow up with, and one thing you could post about. Don't overthink. Go with what comes to mind first. The first names that pop into your head are usually, usually the right ones. Now, while you're thinking, let me tell you about Daphne.
Daphne, [00:10:00] that's not her real name. Too much Bridgerton, I'm afraid. Anywho, Daphne bought a ticket to Go-Getter Day for $347. It's not a small amount when you're watching every single dollar, but she showed up ready to connect, ready to be in the room, ready to have conversations, and by the end of the day, she'd signed up a new client.
That client committed to paying her 1,200 bucks a month for the next 12 months. Do the maths with me. $347 investment turned into $14,000 in revenue. That's a return of over 4,000%. Now, why am I telling you about this on this episode of 3 2 1? Because Daphne did find-- didn't find her client by accident.
She found them because she put herself in the room, and she had the conversations. That's BD. That's the three in the 3 2 1. It's just being in the room, having the conversations, being open to what might come from it, and the [00:11:00] rhythm works whether you're at an event, in a Zoom room, on LinkedIn, or sending a text message.
The medium changes, but the principle doesn't The thing about the rhythm is the power of the 3-2-1 comes from repetition, not doing it once, doing it regularly. That might look like three days a week for you. It might look like five days a week. The goal is to create a rhythm that feels doable for you.
Imagine if you did this consistently for two weeks. You'd have started 30 new conversations. You'd have 20 follow-ups. You would've shared 10 posts. That's a completely different pipeline to where you are right now. This is not about doing more. It's about doing what matters a little bit more consistently There are a few things I want you to watch out for.
The first one is don't confuse activity with progress. Spending an hour on LinkedIn scrolling and liking posts, not BD. Three real reach outs in 15 minutes, BD. The second [00:12:00] one, don't wait until you feel like it. I promise you, the day you feel like doing BD is usually the day after you got a client, when the pressure's off. Building the rhythm regardless of how you feel. The third one, don't skip follow-ups because you're scared of being annoying. The fortune is in the follow-up.
Most people give up after one or two attempts. Don't do that. The ones who keep going with warmth and curiosity are the ones who win the work. And the fourth one, don't try and do this perfectly for one week and then burn out. Three, two, one. Small, doable, and sustainable. And of course, I wanna hear how you go.
Of course I do. And before I wrap up, a quick word about the next step. What we've talked about today is simple, but simple doesn't always mean easy to do on your own. Life gets busy, client work takes over, and this kind of business development activity is often the first thing to fall away or drop to the bottom of the list.
Are you with me? That's [00:13:00] exactly why I created the Business Development Sprint in the first place. It's a short, focused sprint where we take this exact concept and we actually do it together. Yay! It's not about learning more content. It's about showing up, having a bit of a structure, and being surrounded by other people who are doing the same thing. You'd be surprised. I show up every single day with a morning sales tip on the end, and the end of a day wrap and accountability. There are gold stars involved, they're made up, because, well, the people in my community are wildly competitive, and also it's hilarious for me. And the results speak for themselves.
$575,000 in 10 days. People are still buying, just in case you're wondering. There is no pressure at all, but if you need this, we've got the BD Sprint Live and the BD Sprint on Demand, and a whole community of women cheering you along with gold stars. Whoop, whoop! What could be better? The link is in the show notes if you'd like to join us.
Either [00:14:00] way, take the three, two, one and run with it. Because you don't need to change everything. You just need to keep showing up. Three reach outs, two follow-ups, one social post. that's your rhythm, that's your momentum. That's how conversations turn into clients. One last thing before I go.
If you take nothing else from this episode, take this. You are never too busy for sales. The day you stop doing business development is the day your future pipeline starts drying up, even when you're full, even when you're delivering, even when client work is taking everything you've got. Keep the rhythm, three, two, one.
Thanks so much for joining me today. I hope you found this episode useful, and I reckon you should share it with someone who needs a little kick up the . Thanks so much [00:15:00]
