As online entrepreneurs, we often fall into the trap of setting goals that are often things we can’t control. For example, a lot of times our goal is to make a certain amount of money per month (or year).
While there are many things we can do to affect this goal, the end goal, of making more money, is not the thing we should target, because there are so many variables that impact this goal (traffic, conversion rates, email subscribers, competition on the platform, an algorithm change, etc).
Instead, we need to look farther upstream.
What things can we do that will generate more income?
To help us set better goals, let’s consider the things that we have control over that produce more income (this will help us in our goal of making more money).
To generate more income we could make more products. We could improve our conversion rates by updating our product descriptions, cover images, and previews. We could get more traffic to our store. All of these things will help us with our goal of making more money. Furthermore, all of these are more within our control then the previous goal of making more money. However, I would argue, that “more traffic,” “more products,” or “better conversions” still aren’t good enough for our goal setting. We still need to go farther upstream.
Let’s Go Farther Upstream
From the three things I listed above that will help us make more money (more products, higher conversions, or more traffic) let’s choose one. I am going to pick, ‘Get more traffic to my TpT store.’ (You are welcome to select something else, but I will use ‘more traffic’ as the example for this post).
It’s not enough to say that your goal is to get more traffic, you need to think through what will cause you to get more traffic.
You could get more followers on TpT, have better SEO on your products, get more traffic to your blog, grow your social media following, or get more email subscribers.
Picking one of the things listed above will result in more traffic which will in turn result in more sales. Again, we must pick one. I will select ‘get more email subscribers.’
Let’s Go Even Further Upstream
Getting more email subscribers is one of the best ways to get more traffic to your TpT store and products. And, if you do it correctly, it will produce a warm audience that’s the perfect niche for your TpT store – which means they will have a high conversion rate.
But setting the goal of getting more email subscribers still isn’t far enough, we need to keep working our way back to the root cause. The first domino in a long series that will result in getting more email subscribers, which will get more traffic, which will earn us more money.
So. How will you get more email subscribers? You can get more traffic to your blog (where your email opt-ins are housed), you could make additional email opt-ins, you could grow your social media following and post your opt-ins there. You could improve your current email opt-in. You could share your email optin more regularly. You could write more blogs that include your email opt-in.
What’s the First Domino?
Hopefully, the above illustration has helped you wrap your head around targeting the first cause in reaching your goal.
For my example, I wanted to make more money on TpT (which, let’s face it, that’s probably every seller’s goal). So I decided that I would do this by getting more traffic to my store, by growing my email list. To do this I am going to create three new lead magnets which I would promote weekly on my various social media pages.
This is a goal that I have control over: make three new email opt-ins, and share one of them weekly.
Let’s Look at the Data
Besides that I can control this measurable goal of making three new email opt-ins and sharing them weekly, I can also analyze this data. I can see how much my email list has grown. I can see how many more clicks to my TpT products I’m getting inside my emails. I should also be able to see my conversion rates going up, and hopefully my sales too. (Remember, though I’m growing the income from my email, other things could be happening at the same time that also impact my sales. My products could be ranking higher or lower on search engines resulting in less organic traffic. The Facebook algorithm could change, resulting in a change in clicks on my posts. Other TpT Sellers could post competing products on the platform, taking away my potential customers.)
Besides measuring the outcomes of these actions through the means mentioned above, I can also measure the effectiveness of this step. For example, I could see how many more email subscribers each email opt-in netted me. Or which one earned the most, or had the higher conversion rate. I could measure how effective sharing the different ones on social media was. This will help me make better future decisions, and make reaching my goal more obtainable. Which will, in turn, allow me to be more ambitious with my goals.
There are lots of different paths we can choose for our goal
I could have said my goal is to make more money by increasing my conversion rates. So my goal would be to update one product every week, by redoing the cover image, preview files, and product descriptions.
Or I could have said my goal is to make one new product a week.
All of these are specific goals that I have control over, and that will move the needle in the direction I desire.
What will your Goal Be?
If you want to make more money on Teachers Pay Teachers, you need to focus on one of these three things:
- Making more products
- Increasing your conversion rates
- Getting more customers
Making More Products
If you choose to make more products, this should help you generate more income. Select a realistic number, like one new product a week. Or an amount of time you want to dedicate each day or week towards making new products.
Think of things you can do to lighten the workload in other areas, like hiring a VA to take over your social media posting or email marketing. Freeing time up in one department can help you focus on your goal.
For me, I freed up some time every week by hiring someone to mow my lawn. This was becoming a huge time drain for me. The money I spend on alleviating this task allows me to dedicate time to the business. Are there household chores or activities that you can pay to have someone do to get you some more of that needed time for your TpT hustle?
Or maybe it’s spending less time elsewhere, like watching Netflix or scrolling on Instagram.
Increase your Conversion Rates
You could double your income by doubling your conversion rates. And if your conversion rates are below 5%, it might be easier than you think.
The four main things you can do to increase your conversion rates are to improve
- Your cover images
- Your preview images
- Your preview download
- Your product description
However, in truth, cover images will probably do a better job of getting you more clicks than it will of increasing your conversion rate. Regardless, overhauling these four categories is how you increase your conversion rates.
If you want some help, I have the following resources:
Another thing that will help your conversion rate is getting the right type of customers to your list. A warmed up customer is much more likely to purchase your product as opposed to a cold customer (someone who’s never been exposed to you or your brand). This is why your email list is so important.
For help on your email list, click the button below.
Get More Customers
You don’t have to post more products or overhaul your current ones if you can get more traffic.
Getting more traffic is one of my favorite ways to grow my TpT revenue.
Here are some ways you can get more traffic:
- Grow your email list
- Grow the number of people reading your blog every day
- Grow your social media following
- Be more active on Pinterest
- Get a Facebook group
- Post on Reddit
There are many more ways to get more traffic, these are just some of my favorites. When you have selected an area to focus on, like blogging or social media, then you need to decide your strategy. Is it to post daily? Respond to comments? Become an expert in another Facebook group?
Decide what strategy you are going to implement, and then try to do it with excellence. For example, make high quality posts on social media. Or make educational Reels. Or post conversation starters more regularly. Whatever it is that you think is going to grow your audience, make that your goal.
Conclusion
Goals are a good thing to have. And it’s okay to want to increase your TpT sales by a certain number. But you must set measurable goals that look at the data.
Pick one of the following categories to focus on
- Make more products
- Get more customers
- Increase conversions
Then choose to focus on something that will help you in that category. Something that you can control. Then keep track of how you’re doing.
I have tons of resources to help you with your email marketing, Facebook business account, blogging, and TpT conversions.
