AnnMarie is pulling back the curtain on the offer refinements she and her clients are implementing to make more money, get better client results, and have less weighing on them through the actual delivery of it all. 

In this episode, she breaks down 6 offer suite tweaks for service-based online business owners who want more leverage and more revenue.

She gets into what's actually working in the market right now based on real world data, not just theory.

Dished in this episode:

• Why a menu of add-on options extends client timelines instead of shortening them, and the two-tier core offer fix
• How to create the right-fit retainer that solves a real, ongoing problem for clients so it creates recurring revenue you can depend on
• Why AnnMarie sells strategy sessions instead of audits as her Welcome Mat offer, and what one client's pricing jump proved
• The frequency of calls AnnMarie thinks most coaches and consultants should include in their offers 
• Why evergreen enrollment simplifies your sales process, and why you might want to reconsider cohorts 
• How AnnMarie builds retention conversations directly into her client experience so renewals never feel like a surprise ask

Bottom line: Your offer suite is the first place to look when you want more revenue the life-proof way. Small tweaks to packaging, retainers, call cadence, and more can compound fast.

Join the conversation: Which of these tweaks are you going to test out in your own offer suite? Let AnnMarie know in the DMs.

Hit subscribe and share this episode with your own Friends With Businesses.

Haven't caught the Life-Proof Business Leader audio series yet? AnnMarie references it throughout this episode, and part 2 goes way deeper than tweaks to help you start totally life-proofing your offer suite.

Resources mentioned:

• Life-Proof Business Leader (Free Audio Series)
• Scalable Offer Accelerator (SOA)
• Sell & Scale With Workshops (SSWW)
• The Sold Out Workshop Toolkit

Stay connected:

• AnnMarie's website
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• Book a complimentary consult

Kelly Ruta is a private mindset advisor to high-achieving women leaders. She's the one people hire when strategy has solved everything it can, but they're still not where they want to be. 

She spent 20 years as a clinical psychotherapist. And on her current business journey she has had to redefine her identity multiple times over while battling multiple chronic illnesses. 

In this episode, AnnMarie sits down with her former coach, past client and friend of more than half a decade, for an honest conversation about what it actually took for Kelly to stay in the business game when it seemed like all the cards were stacked against her (hint: it started with admitting she was sick, vs fighting it).

Plus, they chat about the realities of discerning who gets your advice and when -- and why asking permission around this works on clients, friends, and adult sons alike.

They also get into the money stories they've both had to unlearn, what it really means to be a cycle-breaker and the emotional skillset Kelly believes defines the businesses that stand the test of time.

Dished in this episode:

• Kelly's perfect beach vacation day, delivered like a relaxing visualization so vivid you can smell the sunscreen and seasalt
• The three things that rocked Kelly's identity all at once in 2020, and the one that was hardest to accept
• What changed when Kelly stopped fighting being sick and let herself surrender to it instead
• The permission-based approach Kelly uses before giving feedback, whether it's to a client, a friend, or her own kids
• The money story Kelly had to unlearn to stay strong in the game as a business leader battling chronic illness
• Why Kelly thinks emotional agility matters more for businesses going forward than strategy ever will

Bottom line: You can survive almost any changing circumstances, your health, your income, your capacity, as long as you're willing to honor grief and lean into the core, rock-solid parts of who you are.

Join the conversation: What was your OMG me too moment in this episode? Drop into Kelly's DMs or AnnMarie's and let one of us know.

Hit subscribe and share this episode with your own Friends With Businesses.

Rewriting a safety blanket story of your own? AnnMarie's Life-Proof Business Leader audio series gets into the money story she had to unlearn too.

Resources mentioned:

• Life-Proof Business Leader (Free Audio Series)
• Kelly Ruta

About Today's Friend: Kelly Ruta is a private advisor to high-achieving women leaders and a former clinical psychotherapist of 20 years. She works with clients who are committed to making big moves and know that strategy alone can't get them there.

Kelly's Instagram | Website

Stay connected:

• AnnMarie's website
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• Book a complimentary consult

A year ago, AnnMarie was 37 weeks pregnant, 9+ years into business, and 18 months into an income dip that seemed like it would never turn around.

Today, AnnMarie just posted about her $70,000 sales month on Threads, with her highest ticket offer sold out through November and revenue locked in through the end of 2027. (Spoiler: the running total is now $83k for the month at the time this episode is being published.)

In this episode, AnnMarie shares the one habit that got her from one side to the other: celebration. She gets into the daily rituals that keep her going through the hard seasons, the specific system she uses to rewrite the stories that are not serving her anymore, and why she has started letting people see her own wins, not just her clients'.

Dished in this episode:

• The full story behind AnnMarie's $70K sales month, and where she was financially this time last year
• Her "good thing happens, I celebrate" system, which helps since celebrating doesn't always come naturally to her
• The daily ritual she uses to rewrite the "safety blanket stories" that aren't serving her anymore
• The celebration ritual she and Jeremy (husband) have when a new client signs
• Why she threw herself a dinner with "Friends With Businesses" to celebrate her rebrand
• Why she decided to start sharing her own wins publicly, not just her clients'

Bottom line: The habit of celebrating the small stuff is what builds the staying power to get through the hard seasons. It is all adding up, whether you are paying attention to it or not.

Join the conversation: What are you celebrating right now, big or small? Drop into the DMs and let AnnMarie know.

Hit subscribe and share this episode with your own Friends With Businesses.

Want more staying power through hard seasons? AnnMarie's Life-Proof Business Leader audio series goes deep on even more dips over the years and how she got through them.

Resources mentioned:

• Life-Proof Business Leader (Free Audio Series)
• Episode with Allie, AnnMarie's brand strategist (Episode 2)
• Episode with Jazmin Cornejo of Bizz Bitch (Episode 4)

Stay connected:

• AnnMarie's website
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• Book a complimentary consult

You know those friends who've been ride-or-die for such a long season, that you can meet up and just jump in with zero context or formalities?

That's AnnMarie and Jaymie. 

Hence this episode is sparse on small talk and typical podcast formalities (like intros). and heavy on you jumping right into the juice with them.

Jaymie Tarshis is the founder of Jaymie Tarshis Consulting, and has been known online as @theadexpert on social media for years. But eight months she co-founded a brand new business in a wildly different industry, with her partner who she'd been dating for less than a year. 

In this episode, AnnMarie sits down with Jaymie, her friend of nearly a decade, for an honest conversation about what actually right now with social media ads (hint: it's lower maintenance than you might think) and what happens in her new business venture when there's too much junk for the trunk. 

They also get into some piping hot tea about building a business with a romantic partner less than a year into the relationship.

Dished in this episode:

• Chit chat about what it looks like for Jaymie to indulge her travel bug while running two businesses
• The minimum ad budget Jaymie recommends for her clients, and why it's nowhere near what most business owners think they need
• The "ugly ads" trend, and why the most polished creative isn't converting right now
• How Jaymie is learning to make quick pivots and master a whole new level of customer service in her new business venture
• Building a business with a partner eight months into dating, and the conversation they had about what happens to it if things don't work out
• Why Jaymie stopped chasing outside validation once she hit her 30s

Bottom line: Good systems, strong customer experience, and knowing your competitive advantage aren't industry specific. These skills can be leveraged from season to season and business venture to business venture.

Join the conversation: If you could start any business tomorrow, no strings attached, no worrying about the how or if it would make money, what would it be? Drop into the DMs and let Jaymie or AnnMarie know.

Hit subscribe and share this episode with your own Friends With Businesses.

Considering a big business pivot or new venture? AnnMarie's Life-Proof Business Leader audio series is a must-listen.

Resources mentioned:

• Life-Proof Business Leader (Free Audio Series)
• Junk Zero
• Jaymie Tarshis Consulting

About Today's Friend: Jaymie Tarshis is the founder of Jaymie Tarshis Consulting (known online as @theadexpert) and co-founder of Junk Zero, a women-owned junk removal company standing out in an industry that mostly doesn't think about marketing or customer experience at all.

Jaymie's Instagram | Website

Stay connected:

• AnnMarie's website
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• Book a complimentary consult

Specific positioning is, hands down, the fastest path to increasing sales.

Nearly every single client AnnMarie is working with right now is proof of that.

So then, why isn't her own positioning still not that specific?

In this episode, AnnMarie takes a hard look in the mirror. 

But first, she's sharing two client examples: one with a six-figure TikTok following who was struggling to generate consistent revenue in her consulting business, and another who had a thriving coaching practice for years but all of a sudden leads and sales were drier than cuticles after a cross-country flight. Spoiler: things changed for both of them when specific positioning entered the chat. 

Then she gets honest about her own positioning journey, and why it's nowhere near as specific as it could be right now. And not for lack of trying -- she has gotten hyper-specific with her positioning a couple different times in the past 6 years. But nothing stuck long term. She breaks down why, and why she hasn't forced herself back into hyper-specificity.

Dished on this episode:

• Why getting hyper specific about who you serve and/or how you help is the fastest way to cut through noise and make more sales right now 
• The client whose imposter syndrome kept her from consistent revenue and what happened when she stood on business about her true exprtise
• The client who's coaching practice was cricket-y until she nailed her specific positioning (and then sold out offers on vacay in Italy)
• The two levers you can pull right now to get more specific with your own positioning: the what and the who
• The topics AnnMarie has tried to get known for over the years, and why neither one fully stuck long term
• Why she hasn't landed on her own hyper-specific positioning, and why she's not forcing it 

Bottom line: Specificity is the fastest way to cut through the noise and sell more. And even someone who does this on the daily for clients it hasn't landed it for herself. So yeah, it's ok to be an expert who's still figuring it out for yourself.

Did this one hit? Subscribe and share it with your own Friends With Businesses.

Want help nailing specific positioning in your own business? The Life-Proof Business Leader audio series has you covered in Part #2. 

Resources mentioned:

• Life-Proof Business Leader (Free Audio Series)

Stay connected:

• AnnMarie's website
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• Book a complimentary consult

Jazmin Cornejo is the founder of Bizz Bitch, a business community that prioritizes real connection and support over "wheeling and dealing." Jazmin is a self-proclaimed collector of people who has personally introduced AnnMarie to more close friends and clients than either of them can count. And recently, Jazmin did something most business owners wouldn't dare: shut down the most profitable part of her business pretty much overnight.

In this episode, AnnMarie sits down with her friend of 2 years, Jazmin, for an honest conversation about what really creates success in community/membership offers (hint: it's is not perfectly IG-worthy events), why being unapologetically yourself is the best positioning strategy there is, and specific boundaries Jazmin holds to keep her highly connection-based work from draining the life out of her.

They also get into the identity shift Jazmin has been working through since closing the agency side of her business a few months ago, the story she's still telling herself around the kind of work that makes her money, and why the "practical pieces" are the easy part of making a major business shift.

Dished in this episode:

• A rapid-fire round of "what I drink in a day" to kick things off
• Why it was such a clear choice for Jazmin to. be child-free despite society's emphasis on motherhood being the obvious path for women
• Why some people are wired to be the planner of the friend group, and what happens when that person gets stretched thin
• The real difference between hosting good events and building true community, and why they're different skill sets 
• What it looked like for Jazmin to shut down a massive leg of her business, and the inner work she's still navigating in the aftermath 
• The boundaries she holds with clients and community members to keep her sanity and space for her personal life

Bottom line: The people who build lasting, supportive, profitable communities are those who prioritize connection and courage, even when it costs them from time to time. Nobody is meant to do business alone.

Join the conversation: If anything Jazmin or AnnMarie said sparked something for you, drop into the DMs and make an ask!

Hit subscribe and share this episode with your own Friends With Businesses.

Going through a major business shift of your own? AnnMarie's Life-Proof Business Leader audio series is a must-listen.

Resources mentioned:

• Life-Proof Business Leader (Free Audio Series)
• Bizz Bitch (membership guest pass)
• Bizz Bitch Podcast with Jazmin 

About Today's Friend: Jazmin Cornejo is the CEO + founder of the Bizz Bitch an unapologetic online and IRL community, movement, and podcast.

Jazmin's Instagram | Website

Stay connected:

• AnnMarie's website
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• Book a complimentary consult

AnnMarie doesn't believe in balance. She believes in harmony. There's a difference.

After recording another "With Friend" episode, AnnMarie's friend Jaymie asker her to dish about she's actually life-proofed her business enough to be a present parent to 2 boys, while growing businesses and having a full life beyond business and motherhood. 

So that's exactly what this episode is: the real, specific choices and systems supporting AnnMarie in this season.

 If you've ever tried to figure out how your dream business and your dream life can actually fit together, whether kids are part of that picture or not, this one's for you.

Dished on this episode:

• Why AnnMarie prioritizes harmony over balance, and what that means when  things get off track
• The real reason she doesn't work on Fridays, and when it's nice to have it as a  flex day
• How she keeps her head on straight serving so many clients so deeply each day 
• Why she only does async client support via specific communication channels 
• How mornings, naps, and a full time childcare look with two kids under four
• The CEO Schedule process that keeps her workweek life-proof and productive even when life is life-ing

Bottom line: Life-Proof isn't a formula. It's knowing exactly what needs need to be met in any given moment, and having the systems and structure to meet them without stretching yourself too thin.

Did this one hit? Subscribe and share it with your own Friends With Businesses.

Want to actually Life-Proof every aspect of your business from offers, to positioning, marketing, sales, and beyond? The Life-Proof Business Leader audio series walks you through it, completely free.

Resources mentioned:

• Life-Proof Business Leader (Free Audio Series)
• CEO Schedule Tookit

Stay connected:

• AnnMarie's website
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• Book a complimentary consult

Allie Gibson, founder of Growth Story is the brand strategy genius behind AnnMarie's recent rebrand and website rebuild. She's also a bold, decisive leader who's not exactly one to ease into things (we're talking she decided to elope over text message). This year, she's scaling at lightning speed and "just dipping her toes" in hasn't even been an option.

In this episode, AnnMarie sits down with her actual real-life best friend, "work wife", brand strategist and client, Allie Gibson. They get into how Allie started her business with minimal drama, the process behind her signature brand clarity sessions, and the real answer to when it's actually time to invest in a rebrand. 

They also get honest about what it looks like day-to-day as Allie is rapidly expanding her team and scaling her business amidst a cancer diagnosis and other life curveballs.

Dished in this episode:

• A rapid-fire round of controversial preferences: olives, pet parenting, TikTok, and morning-person energy (whose side are you on?)
• How Allie started her company with minimal drama, aside from the occasional internal spiral
• Allie's actual creative process, and why it has to look a lot different from many of her creative peers 
• The real answer to when it's time to invest in a professional rebrand and website (or website overhaul)
• What it actually looked like to keep expanding her team and her business through crazy life curveballs like a cancer diagnosis
• Why Allie isn't a dip-your-toe-in kind of person, and the outcomes she has gotten by leaping with her full chest even when her palms are sweaty

Bottom line: Standing the test of time in business isn't about certainty. It's about trusting yourself enough to do what's required so your business can hold up and hold you when life gets life-y.

Join the conversation: What's one thing you have been waiting to feel 100% ready for before you go for it? We want to keep this conversation going, so tell us!

Hit subscribe and be sure to share this epsiode with your own Friends With Businesses.

Still working on trusting the leap before it makes sense on paper? The free Life-Proof Business Leader audio series goes deeper on exactly this.

Resources mentioned:

• Life-Proof Business Leader (Free Audio Series)
• Life-Proof Business Accelerator
• Growth Story: Brand Clarity Session

About Today's Friend:
Allie Gibson is the founder of Growth Story, a website and branding studio for service providers who want their brand and website to work as hard as they do. Instagram | LinkedIn | Website

Stay connected:

• AnnMarie's website
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• Book a complimentary consult

Does every business decision need to make strategic sense on paper? Not exactly...

AnnMarie has been in business over a decade, and she has always known she'd eventually start a podcast. This episode gets into what actually made her move now, including the creative itch she couldn't keep expressing through voice memos in the pickup line, and the way her intuition tends to speak to her when she's about to make a big call.

Plus, she gets into the idea behind Friends With Businesses -- and why this show concept matters so much to her.

If you've got something you've been sitting on, waiting for the timing to be perfect or the plate to be clear, you're going to want to hear this one. This is for anyone who has ever needed permission to move before everything made sense on paper.

Dished on this episode:

• The podcast idea AnnMarie shelved 10 years ago, and why
• Why creative self-expression is a strategic move
• How AnnMarie's intuition actually talks to her
• What it felt like to finally press record after years of "someday"
• The real premise of this show: real friends, real businesses, real conversations

The bottom line of this conversation? Not everything has to make 100% strategic sense on paper. Sometimes you just know it's time, and that's enough to move.

Did this episode hit? Subscribe and share with a friend!

Want more on trusting your own intuition in business? The Life-Proof Business Leader audio series goes deep on this.

Resources mentioned:

• Life-Proof Business Leader (Free Audio Series)

Stay connected:

• AnnMarie's website
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• Email AnnMarie: [email protected]
• Book a complimentary business strategy consult