Latest / Values-First Marketing / The One Product Launch KPI You Need With Sherry Ward

Transcript

The One Product Launch KPI You Need With Sherry Ward · Values-First Marketing

• 0:02
  Megan Loehr: From national TV appearances to creating movements. Sherry Ward's journey is a master class in turning ideas into platforms for influence. As the dynamic CEO of square tree publishing and productions and founder of Christian creators 360 she combines over a decade of experience helping authors turn what if into look what God did.
• 0:23
  Megan Loehr: She is known for her appearance on Good Morning America and her role as an executive producer for two sci fi thrillers. Sherry expertly blends industry savvy heart with the heart. And for her, books aren't just words on a page. They're tools for launching people into their destinies, even if they occasionally miss a deadline or two. Sherry, welcome to the show. I am so excited to chat with you.
• 0:47
  Unknown: I'm excited to be here.
• 0:47
  Unknown: Thank you so much, Megan, for having me on
• 0:51
  Megan Loehr: absolutely so I'm so impressed with even just browsing your website, your authors that you work with, they've been, already been featured on National Geographic.
• 1:00
  Megan Loehr: CNN, Good Morning America, Telemundo and the LA Times, just to name a few. So you know a thing or two about what it takes to launch, and I love that you look at it from more than just a system perspective. Yes, um, so can you, can you talk about that? What? What does it really take to launch? That's
• 1:21
  Unknown: a really good question.
• 1:21
  Unknown: I feel like so many times within a launch, and we think about just all the systems, we think about the mechanics of a launch.
• 1:28
  Unknown: And when we talk about launching you, which has been kind of the seasonal word for our company, has been launching you, we talk about it more in a holistic manner, and that, you know, our authors are all Christian. They might not be faith forward, but they they do believe in and have that Christian background, but they need help in other ways that sometimes you don't realize it. So either a mindset coach or we've got a prayer team that prays over them and supports them in that manner, and and we've also got the systems and the publishing. So it's, it's kind of like we're all inclusive, and part of that launch is going deep and really finding the healing to launch high. I feel like in order to launch high, you have to go really deep first, yeah, before you can launch. And I know that both, both of us live in Southern California, yes, and years ago, I don't know if you remember this, when they built the 105 freeway in Southern California, they tore down some homes, and it took years and years and years because they had to keep compacting that the ground, and they had to let it sit, compounded again, sit like there's something in that waiting time and in that going deep time to build something really high And to launch. And so it's not always easy. It's sometimes hard to to go through what you need to go through to launch high. But that's what we're all about in supporting the person as a whole, not just one area, but all of the areas to help them. Yes,
• 3:17
  Megan Loehr: yes. That is so important, I think, often overlooked, or we're just kind of like, because launching already takes so much. So I love that you just have it all in one because, like, yes, you truly need this to do it well and to really keep your CEO visionary hat on, so to speak. And I feel like that really parallels the copywriting work, is that, like people think it's just putting words on a page, but actually, like the copywriter, or a good one, at least, helps you really go deeply inward to pull out that message, to articulate what you're really trying to say. So it's not just surface level, and it brings out the relevant stories that that make people lean in. Do you want to speak to a little bit about that? You do have a little formula there?
• 4:07
  Megan Loehr: Yeah,
• 4:09
  Unknown: we love in our books.
• 4:09
  Unknown: We love to if it's a teaching book. So it depends on what kind of book it is, obviously a memoir. You know you're going to be writing about your story anyway. But if it's more of a teaching book, or you own a business, and this is an authority play, a lead generation, increasing influence, those are some of the reasons why you would want to write a book as a CEO or as an entrepreneur. And we love it when you tell the story, like at the beginning of the chapter, you tell the story first, and then you tie it into whatever you're teaching. Because whatever you tell story, especially in copywriting, people lean in, yes. They don't have their guard up. They don't feel like you're trying to sell them on something. Their guards are down. Because when you tell story, it's a different part of the brain and it goes to the back of your brain. Yeah. And you can circumvent some of those barriers that can happen. So like, as an example, I I just wrote my next book called launching you, and it's all about launching the person. And each I used to work for Rockwell International years ago, and so during this space shuttle days.
• 5:16
  Unknown: And so each chapter starts with a NASA story or an astronaut story, and then I teach. I have a reason why I tell that story, and then I teach to the story.
• 5:29
  Unknown: So I think that's very effective in copyright, even if it's Facebook ads or, you know, I think any kind of copywriting like that, if you tell a story, it draws people in.
• 5:40
  Megan Loehr: Yeah. Yeah, it absolutely does and helps. Yeah, like you said, it puts their guard down, makes you lean in, and it just makes you so much more relatable, like it's just having a conversation, rather than feeling salesy or like you're pushing an agenda. Or, you know how people can feel like they don't want to feel salesy. So I love that. That just makes it so natural and just so much more like a conversation.
• 6:07
  Unknown: And I think also now with AI, like you're going, Is this a real person or not? And if I tell you a story, you're more likely to think it's a real person.
• 6:16
  Megan Loehr: Mm, hmm, yes, yes.
• 6:16
  Megan Loehr: In the age of AI, for sure, it becomes that much more important to differentiate ourselves, to not sound like the robot, and to really bring humanity, you know, back into our like, if we're the point of the writing is to connect with other humans. Like, why are we having a robot try and connect with humans when, like, we really what we ultimately want is that human to human connection, right? Like that is the deep, the deep longing, absolutely so tell us more about you. Said, and I think this goes with your book too. Is God cares more about launching you than your services, your book, your product, whatever it is, speak a little bit more about that. I
• 7:02
  Unknown: think he really cares about the person, like, sometimes, especially the high, high achieving entrepreneur or executive or CEO. The tendency is perfectionism. I have to get it right. All of these things that we just feel like it's based on performance, and we need to let that go in this season, because it's not serving us well. We think it is because we've gotten to a certain level of a launch. So we think it's serving that's kind of the deceptiveness of it. We think that it's it's the end all, but it's really not and it's when we let go of control, we let go of some of that perfectionism, and we're willing to go deep to find the healing, because a lot of us have built communities, because if we've done it well, it's not just building a product. We've actually built communities, and we cannot lead our communities any higher than we've allowed ourselves to go, I believe so the deeper we go, and we can lead our communities to a higher level, because we are continually willing to do the work that it takes to go deep, to go high. Yes,
• 8:17
  Megan Loehr: yes. Oh, I love that. I totally agree, yeah.
• 8:21
  Megan Loehr: Like, finally, yes, someone's saying it that is so good. I think the depth is so important.
• 8:26
  Megan Loehr: And it can be scary to go there, but it's like, that is the work that has to happen to achieve these ambitious goals that we want to achieve, whether that is, you know, a certain number for our launch, but then also just the relatability of people wanting to be in community with you, building a community around your brand. And like you said, we cannot lead our communities any higher than we are willing to go and do the work ourselves.
• 8:50
  Megan Loehr: Agree. Yeah. What do you see?
• 8:58
  Megan Loehr: And maybe we talked about this, what is the biggest obstacle people face when doing this? And maybe a better question is, how do you know when you've reached success, when you're like doing this thing? What does that look like? What does that success?
• 9:10
  Unknown: Oh, that's a really good question. I have a teaching background, so I taught for years, and then I went into counseling, and there's something called an ever ready learner. So I never want to think I've arrived. And it seems like the deeper I go, the less I know, yes, especially about God and everything else. Like I feel like the deeper I'm going, the more I'm like, Whoa. Like, I thought I had it all figured out, and I really don't have it figured out. Yeah, so I don't want to ever say that I've arrived. I think it's just willing to always go to the hard places and do the hard stuff.
• 9:50
  Unknown: Yeah, and willing, willing being open, being an open vessel to go there. You know, if we're called to to go somewhere, you. We have to go deep to do it. Are we willing to pay the price to do that?
• 10:03
  Megan Loehr: Right? Right? Yes, this is good. Yeah, I never want to arrive, but it's true. The more, the more you know, the less, the more you realize you don't know.
• 10:16
  Unknown: It's kind of counterintuitive, but yes, right,
• 10:20
  Megan Loehr: right, right, good.
• 10:20
  Megan Loehr: So, yeah, that's a great picture of success. It's just like you're always learning, and you never get there, you never arrive. And people think like, Oh, when I arrive, then I'll feel this way. I'll feel that way, you know, I'll be there.
• 10:34
  Megan Loehr: And it's actually like, oh, we never, we never really arrive, and we kind of don't want to the beautiful night.
• 10:45
  Unknown: I don't know that everybody would agree with that.
• 10:46
  Unknown: I don't think my old self would have agreed with that. My old self would have been like, Nope, we're on time. We're on this freeway. We're getting there.
• 10:52
  Unknown: Here's the angle, boom, boom, boom, boom, all my ducks in a row. And so we're so performance driven that we have to get the prize at the end, and that, you know, with that mentality, the prize moves. So what you think would make you happy, and the prize that you're getting, or your arrival now, all of a sudden it shifts, and it moves.
• 11:15
  Unknown: And it's like, what, you know, that old book Who Moved My Cheese, and it's like, it moved.
• 11:17
  Unknown: It's like, what happened? It wasn't supposed to move. So I think when you surrender, I think surrender is a good word, when you surrender to the process of it and know that it is the process, which I hated when people used to say that, like, it's just the process. And I'm like, No, I'm going to get there, but just want to be there already. I just want to be there, but, you know, just enjoying the journey along the way, because it's, it's fraught with some part times, but it also gives you some joys along the way and some real ups. And just enjoy it and and hang on for the downhill slide, you know,
• 11:57
  Megan Loehr: yeah, I remember feeling that way too, of like, just give me the roadmap and I'll do it so that I can get there. But it's like, then what is there? What does that there mean? And then, like you said, the prides move, the rival ships Who Moved My Cheese, and surrendering to the process is what I'm learning, is actually the way, actually the journey that is going to take you, you know, where you're meant to go, actually, faster than probably any other way, rather than you trying to control it, or white knuckle it, or, you know, make everything happen all
• 12:33
  Unknown: your time. Yeah, make it happen. Yeah? Because whatever you've made to happen, you have to sustain it, yes, and I, I personally believe in God, and so if, if I, if he's helping to build it, then he's going to help to sustain it, right? But if I have to be the one that builds it, then I have to all that pressure and all that weightiness is on me to sustain it. And that's, that's heavy.
• 12:58
  Unknown: That's a heavy burden, yeah, and a heavy thing on your shoulders to have to bear.
• 13:09
  Megan Loehr: And likely, why we see so much burnout in the industry and people wanting to just burn their businesses down,
• 13:17
  Unknown: absolutely, yeah,
• 13:20
  Megan Loehr: yeah. Okay, so if there is just one, if you could give the audience of my high achievers, high achieving, high performing, ambitious, success driven people one tip that they can implement today. What is that small step you would encourage them today, that they can do right now, even,
• 13:41
  Unknown: okay, I had a funny thought, so bear with me. Okay, so this, this is goofy, but why don't if you practice, because a lot of that is control versus trust. You cannot have contrast if you're in control all the time or wanting control. So do a practice of letting go of control. So if there's something every day that you usually control, or you have to have it a certain way, why don't you pick something and say, Okay, I'm not going to control this one thing today, and let's just see what happens. Does the whole world fall apart because I didn't control it? Did I get a fun surprise, because it went in a different direction, but it ended up being really fun. So I think that could be a that could be an activity they could do is just practice one thing that they're going to let go of control
• 14:34
  Megan Loehr: of that's so good.
• 14:34
  Megan Loehr: I imagine for a lot of people, it could be like the way you load your dishwasher, compared to your spouse or roommate or whoever it is, yeah, yeah, yeah.
• 14:46
  Megan Loehr: We, we had a great experience of that this morning with our little little ones playing a board game. And instead of playing it, you know, the right way that the rules tell you to play, they wanted to play it.
• 14:57
  Megan Loehr: You know, their own made up way.
• 15:00
  Megan Loehr: And it was so much more fun how a four year old would tell you to play versus, you know, play the game. And it was such a beautiful experience because we surrendered and let go of control.
• 15:14
  Unknown: I love that. That's a perfect example. That was really good, yeah.
• 15:20
  Megan Loehr: So, okay, good. So you've got a few things that you want to share with us that can help us go a little bit deeper.
• 15:28
  Megan Loehr: How can we connect with you?
• 15:28
  Megan Loehr: With you more?
• 15:32
  Unknown: Well, one of the ways is Heather Rossen and I, it are putting on a Christian creators 360 event at pod Fest this year.
• 15:41
  Unknown: So if you get one of our ticket, it automatically gets you into pod fest. And it's January 16.
• 15:45
  Unknown: Is our event. It's the first day of pod fest. We're kicking off pod fest, and then the rest of the week, you can get into pod fest. It's in Orlando, and I'm excited it's for content creators, entrepreneurs, authors and podcasters. So if you're in any I call it the business creative side. So if you're in the business creative side, it's perfect for anybody in that camp, and the word for the conference is elevated, elevating every voice, because there's too many times where you'd go to a conference and it's all about the big name speaker and fanboying them and getting the autographed copy of the book and all that. This is not about this. This is about raising you up for what you called and your mission in life, and what you feel like you're supposed to do, and to support you in that. So that's that's the mission of that and and the word for the conference this year, and the the website is Christian creators, 360 com. And at the same time, I'm launching my new book called launching you. And so that one, if you want to get some of the bonuses for the book, you can get that now, and that is launching authors.com
• 17:11
  Megan Loehr: perfect, and I will have all those linked in the show notes. So it's easy for you to find, I know a bunch of wonderful people going to podcast this year. I'm considering it myself still, and I can't wait to see what happens there. I love what you said, that it is, you know, not about that one speaker, but really you get to meet with all the speakers. They make themselves available. It's really about, you know, all of the attendees and and, like you said, elevating every voice. I love that motto or tagline or, you know, word phrase for the event, if it really feels great. So great. Well, thank you so much for sharing your expertise with us today, encouraging us to do the deep work. I feel like that has just been a theme on the podcast of like, if you want to have great copywriting, you gotta do the deep work. If you want to have a great book, you gotta do the deep work. If you want to have a great business, you gotta do the deep work. All keeps coming back to that and I mean, has been so true in my experience as well. So thank you so much for sharing with us today.
• 18:18
  Unknown: Thank you for having me on. Have a great day. Bye. You.