How to Master Your Email as a Birth Worker and Solopreneur

As a birth worker and solopreneur, you know how important email is for connecting with your clients, colleagues, mentors, and referrals. Email is also a powerful tool that can help you showcase your expertise, build your reputation, and grow your business.

But email can also be overwhelming, time-consuming, and stressful. You may have hundreds or thousands of emails in your inbox, and not enough time to read, reply, or organize them. You may also struggle with creating effective email campaigns that stand out in your subscribers' inboxes and inspire them to trust you and hire you.

If you feel like email is taking over your life and your business, don't worry. You're not alone, and there are solutions. In this blog post, I'm going to share with you some tips and best practices on how to master your email as a birth worker and solopreneur.

By following these steps, you'll be able to:

• Save time and energy by managing your inbox more efficiently

• Create a professional and memorable impression with your business email address

• Build trust and loyalty with your clients by providing value and personalization

Ready to take control of your email and grow your business? Let's get started!

Step 1: Manage Your Inbox More Efficiently

One of the biggest challenges of email is keeping your inbox under control. If you have too many unread or unsorted emails, you may miss important messages, deadlines, or opportunities. You may also feel stressed and overwhelmed by the sheer volume of emails you have to deal with.

To avoid these problems, you need to adopt some habits and techniques that will help you manage your inbox more efficiently.

Here are some tips:

• Set aside specific times for checking and processing your emails. Don't let email distract you from your other tasks and priorities. Instead, schedule blocks of time throughout the day when you'll focus on your email, and stick to them. For example, you can check your email first thing in the morning, after lunch, and before you finish work.

• Use folders and labels to organize your emails. Don't leave all your emails in one big pile in your inbox. Instead, create folders or labels for different categories of emails, such as clients, colleagues, mentors, projects, newsletters, etc. Then, move or tag each email to the appropriate folder or label as soon as you read it. This will help you find what you need faster and keep track of what you need to do next.

• Delete or archive emails that you don't need anymore. Don't let old or irrelevant emails clutter your inbox. Instead, delete or archive them as soon as you're done with them. This will free up space in your inbox and make it easier to focus on the emails that matter.

• Use filters and rules to automate some of your email tasks. Don't waste time on repetitive or low-priority emails. Instead, use filters or rules to automatically sort, move, delete, or reply to certain types of emails. For example, you can set up a filter or rule to send all newsletters or promotional emails to a separate folder or label, so they don't clog up your inbox.

• Unsubscribe from newsletters or mailing lists that you don't read or need anymore. Don't let unwanted or irrelevant emails fill up your inbox. Instead, use the unsubscribe link at the bottom of each email to opt out of receiving future messages from that sender. This will reduce the number of emails you receive and save you time and attention.

• Use templates or canned responses for common or frequently asked questions. Don't write the same email over and over again. Instead, use templates or canned responses for common or frequently asked questions that you receive from your clients or prospects. For example, you can create a template or canned response for confirming a booking, sending a contract, answering a query, etc. This will save you time and ensure consistency in your communication.

Step 2: Create a Professional and Memorable Impression with Your Business Email Address

Another challenge of email is creating a professional and memorable impression with your business email address. Your email address is one of the first things that people see when they receive an email from you, and it can affect how they perceive you and your business.

If you use a personal email address, such as [email protected], you may look unprofessional, untrustworthy, or amateurish. You may also confuse or lose potential clients who may not associate your email address with your business name or website.

To avoid these problems, you need to create a business email address that includes your business's custom domain name, such as [email protected]. This will help you:

• Establish credibility: When you send an email to potential clients from a professional email address, it shows that you are serious and legitimate about your business. It also helps you build brand consistency and recognition, as your email address matches your business name and website.

• Be more memorable: A business email address is more memorable than a personal email address, as it directly relates to your business and website. This makes it easier for people to remember or recall your email address when they want to contact you or refer you to others.

• Increase control: With a business email address, you can set up an admin and manage all your email accounts. For example, you can create different email addresses for different purposes, such as [email protected], [email protected], etc. You can also use different email addresses for different roles, such as [email protected], [email protected], etc.

• Enhance security: The best business email service providers offer enhanced security features to help you protect your accounts from spam, phishing, hacking, etc. You can also use encryption, authentication, backup, etc. to safeguard your data and communication.

To create a business email address, you need to have a domain name and an email hosting service. A domain name is the web address of your website, such as www.yourbirthbusiness.com. An email hosting service is the service that provides the servers and software that enable you to send and receive emails using your domain name.

There are different ways to get a domain name and an email hosting service. You can:

• Buy a domain name and an email hosting service separately from different providers. This gives you more flexibility and control over your choices, but it may also require more technical skills and configuration.

• Buy a domain name and an email hosting service together from the same provider. This simplifies the process and ensures compatibility, but it may also limit your options and features.

• Use an email service provider such as Google Workspace or Microsoft Outlook that includes a domain name and an email hosting service in one package. This offers convenience and integration with other tools and services, but it may also cost more and depend on the availability of your desired domain name.

Whichever option you choose, make sure that your business email address is professional, simple, and consistent. Use your full name or initials as the first part of your email address, followed by @ and your domain name. Avoid using numbers, symbols, or nicknames that may look spammy or confusing.

For example:

• Good: [email protected]

• Bad: [email protected]

Step 3: Build Trust and Loyalty with Your Clients by Providing Value and Personalization

The final challenge of email is building trust and loyalty with your clients by providing value and personalization. Your clients are the people who have hired you or are interested in hiring you for your services as a birth worker.

Your clients are valuable for your birth business because they are the source of your income and referrals. They are also the people who trust you to support them during one of the most important and intimate moments of their lives.

But how do you keep them engaged and loyal? How do you turn them from prospects into clients? How do you make them feel special and appreciated?

The answer is simple: provide value and personalization.

Value means providing useful information, tips, resources, stories, etc. that help your clients prepare for their birth experience or cope with their postpartum challenges.

Personalization means addressing your clients by their names, acknowledging their preferences or needs, sending them relevant content or offers based on their stage of pregnancy or postpartum, etc.

By providing value and personalization, you can:

• Increase satisfaction: Satisfaction is the degree to which your clients are happy with your services and communication. By providing value and personalization, you can make your clients feel more informed, supported, and cared for.

• Increase loyalty: Loyalty is the degree to which your clients are willing to stay with you or recommend you to others. By providing value and personalization, you can make your clients feel more connected, appreciated, and loyal to you.

As you can see, email is a powerful tool for your birth business, but it can also be a challenge. By following these tips and best practices, you can master your email as a birth worker and solopreneur. You can save time and energy, create a professional and memorable impression, and build trust and loyalty with your clients.

Remember, email is not just a way to communicate. It's a way to connect. It's a way to show your clients that you care about them and their birth journey. It's a way to make a difference in their lives.

So don't let email overwhelm you or stress you out. Instead, use it as an opportunity to grow your business and serve your clients better. You have the skills, the passion, and the power to do it.

You are a birth worker and solopreneur. You are amazing! And so is your email.