76. 5 Crucial Things Your Doula Website is Missing_ Transcript

Hey everybody. And welcome back. So this week, I want to talk a little bit about your website and more specifically, a couple of things that your website is probably missing.

At this point, I have looked at probably hundreds, maybe more maybe in the thousands of doula websites, some of my clients, some are people who have taken my courses.

Some are just people I am connecting with doing research on. So I have looked at oodles and oodles of birth, professional websites, and there are a handful of things that I find myself saying over and over again.

When I give feedback to people who are in my communities and who I work with as my clients to coach them.

Uh, so I just want to share a couple of those things with you. Now, side note, when I do this work with my clients, I usually go a lot deeper and we do kind of audits.

And that's part of the work that we do together is to really help them create this space on their website that allows them to connect with their ideal clients so that when people land on their website, they're having an experience, right?

And while this isn't necessarily my expertise, these are some minor little things that you can shift that you can make little tweaks and adjustments to right now, today, that will make a huge impact on how you connect with your clients online.

Before we get started in talking about the things, what I want to say is you need a website and most of you probably have one, if you don't, that's fine.

When you're just getting started, start with where you're at, start with what you've got. That's entirely, okay. Many of us start with a free Facebook business page or a free Instagram account, and it's a place to start.

But my suggestion is that at some point, hopefully sooner than later, you're able to get a website. I know there are very low price options that are a good starting point.

Do that start there. Um, because let me explain why this is important. Instagram, Facebook, Tech-Talk clubhouse. These are all great platforms.

I talked about them at great length in episode 75. So go back in episode. Um, but remember that we rent on all of the social media platforms and platforms that we don't own.

We rent on those platforms. If you want to own your space online, which is really what we're doing in 2021, this is what we're doing, right?

Many of you learned last year in 2020, the importance of going online, you had to shift and bring your business online.

If you've been in the game for some time, um, you may have felt kind of hustled and overwhelmed moving online.

If you're new, maybe, maybe not right. Either way. I think one of the big takeaways from last year in business is that we have to have an online space and I'm going to take it up a step further and say that it's very important that you own your online real estate.

So yes, I'm a fan of having your own website. And like I said, there are tons of different options that you can have even when you're just starting out.

They're very, very low price point, upwards of thousands and thousands of dollars, but you don't have to start there, start with where you're at and build.

This is how we get there. Masterpieces are created in the details and over time. Right? Okay. So here, let's start with the Fort or let's dive in, let's dive into the four things that your website is missing.

Five, five. I have a bonus for you. Okay. Number one, a photo of you, your face looking directly at the camera, preferably.

So why is this important? This is important because we trust people. We buy from people. We don't trust companies. I mean, we might make a transaction with a company and buy from a company, but we create a relationship with a person on the other side of a computer, right?

And especially in an industry and a business as intimate as birth and becoming a parent. Right? So when I, if I come to your website, which don't feel called out if this is you, because there are lots of you.

I have been to so many websites where I cannot find a single photo of the person's face, who is behind the company.

I don't feel connected to that company at all. If all I see is a logo and stock photos of other pregnant people, um, that maybe you borrowed from, you know, Unsplash or Adobe stock, or, you know, any of these amazing stock libraries, those are cool to use in some spaces, but please lead with yourself, lead with you because if I'm pregnant or a new parent, and I'm looking for support, I need to connect with a human.

And one of the ways I do that, especially looking at a computer is seeing your face. And ideally, you'd be looking at me, looking at the camera.

I know it's tricky to feel for a lot of people. It's really tough, right. But I urge you to work with somebody, maybe hire a photographer.

And if you don't have a huge budget, that's okay. Um, oftentimes you'll find newer photographers that are maybe willing to collaborate with you or offer some type of barter system or low price point.

If they're just getting started, if you don't have the budget at all, to work with a professional photographer, I have a couple tips on how you can have, how you can get started with a picture of looking at directly at the camera.

So take your iPhone, right? So whether you have an iPhone or whatever other style of iPhone you have, and then you're going to hold it up, take a selfie, right?

But find the natural light. I was holding my phone up, by the way, if you're listening to the audio version of this, I'm holding up my phone.

So turn on your camera and then turn it around to do a selfie. And when you do keep moving around the room that you're in, if you're not near a window or door that allows natural light and move yourself to a place where there's natural light falling on your face, and you can see the difference, test this out.

You don't have to necessarily take pictures, just look at your face, moving around in different light, even go outside. Some of the coolest selfies.

I think that I'm getting lately is when I'm out walking in the morning and, um, ideally not direct sun. And I learned that from a couple of photographer, friends of mine, direct sun can be a little tricky with shadows on the face, but maybe you walk past a tree that has a little bit of, um, of shade.

And that's kind of an ideal situation as natural light in the shade. You'd be surprised. And then know that there's nothing weird about taking 50 selfies to get one that you feel really good about.

I do it too. It's okay. I started out at like 50. Now I'm at the point where usually about 10 selfies.

I can get one that I feel really cool about. I make awkward faces. Sometimes when I smell it, it's awkward.

I much prefer to be on video. I don't know the camera and like taking photos. It's still awkward. So I get it.

Um, but it's important. So I'd urge you to take a photo of yourself. If you need to take an iPhone selfie, take an iPhone selfie.

If you want to brighten it up and you have maybe 20 ish dollars that you can invest, presets are a really great way to Brighton, iPhone or other, um, maybe non iPhone, Android, or any other phone phone taken photos.

Right? And you can apply a preset. I'm not a professional photographer, but they have taught me how to do this.

There's a little app on my phone that I upload a picture that I took on my phone and I click a button and it brightens it.

It adds light. So that might be a good option too. So that's number one is add a photo of you to your website.

Ideally, as soon as someone lands on the website, one of the first things they see is your face so they can connect and then definitely on your, about me page.

Okay. Number two, your name. So if you have this beautiful doula business name and you know, beautiful birth business name that you, you know, has real meaning for you and it feels really good.

That's cool. That's totally cool. Um, but at some place on your website, please, I need to know your name, right?

Again, going back to the whole connecting thing. I need to connect with the human. What's your name? Um, I've had people that reach out to me, apply to work together.

They want to get coaching services. I go on their website. I have no clue what their name is. Sometimes I can find A photo if I scroll away way back on Their social media, but there's still no name.

I need to know your name, right? This is how we connect with people. So make sure to include your name on your website.

I know it's a very minor thing, but that's just a little shift. Number three. How can you help me tell people how you can help them on your website?

I know that most doulas starting out, and this is something I've seen everywhere. And you guys who have been around for a while, listening have heard me say this.

I did it too. So like no judging. Um, the first thing I put on my website was birth doula or was it birth doula and training, something like that.

But birth doula provides educational, informational. And uh, what's the other, you know, all the, the canned language that you hear when you describe what a birth doula does, the definition, the textbook definition, the thing is that that often falls on deaf ears.

That doesn't really tell me anything. Anything, if I don't know what doulas do, right? That doesn't help me at all.

If I'm you're, maybe first-time parent, I don't really know the world of doulas that much, but a friend of a friend told me that maybe I should look into a Duala somehow I landed on your website.

And if I don't see your face, I don't see your name. I don't know what doulas do. I don't really have context for it.

That's not going to speak to me. So my suggestion is to tell people exactly how you help them. I want to know how you can help me even on your about me page.

I usually have a version of that on my homepage, which is a little bit stale, but needs some refresh. It's been awhile.

This thing by the way, is evolving over time. And then I have another version on my, about me page. And then I have a small version on my Instagram bio, which we talked about in episode 75.

How Instagram only gives you that little, little, little space to write your bio, but usually there's an iteration of this on all the different places, right?

So your about me page. Yeah. It's about you, but more so it's about how you can help people. So include both.

That's going to be really important. What can you help me do? Who do you help? How do you help me?

Number four, have an opportunity for your website visitors because they are potential clients to opt in. So what that means is they would join your email list and then you can stay connected when they're not on your website.

Or maybe if they're not on your social media or if somehow they didn't know if you don't have social media, either way have an opportunity for people that are potential clients to stay in touch with you.

Now, if you don't yet have email marketing set up and you don't have new newsletter set up, that's okay, that's we all start there.

We all start with nothing set up. So start here and add an opportunity depending on what platform you use and what your email system is.

You know, they're all gonna function just a little bit differently, but generally the concept is there's some type of form embedded into pages on your website.

It might be in the header, it might be in the footer. It might be something that pops up when people are scrolling.

You know, there's a pop-up that says here, click here for your, enter your name for your 15% off your first gap purchase or something like that.

Um, you could have something like that. I have that on my website. There's a pop-up that invites you to join the freebie library.

It's more catered to pregnant people. Um, there are freebie opt-ins for the doula stuff that are on various doula pages.

But originally when I designed my website, it was for pregnant people only. So the pop-up that you see is inviting them to my pregnant resource library.

So at first you might not have that. That's okay. You might've just invite them to stay connected. Uh, eventually you can start getting into creating something for them to opt into, right?

And that's usually where you start to expand your audience and have a deeper relationship and go on the next step of your journey together as you invite them to opt in to sign up for this thing.

Right? So a lot of you listening have signed up for my seven step roadmap, right? I have a seven step roadmap to bringing your business online, your birth business online, and something like, I don't know, uh, 800 ish people have opted into that.

So you empty your name, your email, and I automatically send you what you downloaded now. Again, if you don't have anything yet, it's okay.

Start with the newsletter. Start with staying in touch. Eventually the next step you'll create something, create, create next step you will create, but we have to put one foot in front of the other.

You'll get there. Okay. And number five, many doula websites have a services page, almost all of them do. And that's not a bad thing.

It's just that if you really want to take it up a notch, my suggestion is to create separate sales pages for your separate offers.

For example, if you have a postpartum course or a birth class or a class on what is placenta encapsulation, why is it important or what is Webster certified chiropractic work?

Why is it important? Right. So having an introductory workshop or class or masterclass, something like that, a separate offer from maybe your birth doula services or your postpartum packages.

I think it's a good idea to have a separate sales page for that offer because that sales page is an entire journey.

If you want to see an example, head to my website, go to the course creation for doulas page, because that's what I've been talking about right now.

Anyway, it's a great example of a course that I offer. That's a separate offer from some of my other things that you can go on a journey on the page.

It's totally different as a consumer to go on a journey on this, on this sales page to really connect and to go through this journey of getting to know this person, why they're doing this?

Why is this important? What are the benefits of this thing? What are the features? Um, what are examples and what can I expect from the class?

What's the content we cover? Why is this important? What's the cost? You know, and how will this transform my life?

How would this change things? And FYI course creation for doulas is a great example because it does change your life.

It is a great, um, example of something that can transform your business, having a digital asset, having a digital course, a thing that you can sell over and over and over again.

And you get to keep a hundred percent of your profits, unless you have like an affiliate system set up that you're paying affiliates to sell for you is a beautiful way to start to build infrastructure in your business.

Right. But if you're not there yet, and you don't have a course yet, that's okay. Maybe you offer a placenta encapsulation services and postpartum support, two separate pages, you know, and that way it's two separate offers.

Okay? So those are the five things that I added a little bonus in there. So those are the five things that your doula website might be missing.

I think that most of those things you can get started and go in and make a little tweak to like right now today's Tuesday when this episode comes out because all the episodes come out on a Tuesday.

So let's say by Friday, is it doable for you to go in and make these little shifts? So recapping, add a photo of you, take a photo, do it today.

If you feel more confident putting makeup on or brushing your hair and then do that, take a pee, take a picture.

Number two, put your name. That's an easy type, right? You can type that in pretty easily. Hey, I'm Maggie or Hey, I'm Nicole.

Hey, I'm Jasmine. Right? Number three. How can you help tell people how you can help them? Number four, set up the opt-in that might take, you know, it might take an hour or so YouTube, Google searching for how to do it on your platform is your friend the help center.

If you're in Squarespace, they usually have a help center, Wix, whatever website platform you're on. There's probably like a quick tutorial that you can watch.

It shows you how to connect the pieces and just get it set up. Right. And then the last one, number five was to create separate pages that might take a little bit more time, but it's okay to start, start with where you're at.

And I'm excited to hear how you make these little shifts, um, feel free to share about your progress and the doulas going digital Facebook group.

I'm excited to see you there have a beautiful day.