"I DIDN'T WANT A BUSINESS SELLING PRODUCTS TO FRIENDS"
Liz is a stay-at-home mom with a 10-month old boy and a 2-year-old girl. She lives in Arizona with her husband who works as a pastor.
She wanted to earn extra money so they could buy a home without going into debt.
“My initial goal was to make enough money to pay for groceries. The money we saved there would go to a downpayment for a house.”
She did tons of research on how to make money on the side. But she wasn’t happy with the options she came across. She didn’t want to wait tables or nanny. Her husband was against any sort of “multi-level marketing” program. And the one time she tried “penny stocks” she lost $800 fast.
It seemed her only option was to host parties selling products (like makeup). But she didn’t like the idea of “selling stuff to her friends”.
Especially if they were products people don’t want or need.
“I wanted predictable income doing something truly helpful.”;
Liz shares why she wanted to earn extra money
*Disclaimer: These results are not typical and you may or may not achieve the same results. Success in a bookkeeping business depends on your willingness to put in effort, your attention to detail, and various other factors.
"I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WHAT BOOKKEEPING WAS"
When Liz discovered Bookkeeper Business Launch (BBL), she was skeptical. She figured it was yet-another program where she would be forced to sell products to friends.
“In the beginning, I thought BBL was a “get rich quick” scheme. Or some multi-level marketing thing.”
After reading through the BBL site and checking out student reviews, Liz decided bookkeeping was a legitimate way to make money.
The turning point came when she learned about the “give-to-get” philosophy taught in one of the free BBL training videos.
The idea is that you get clients and income by first giving value. Liz realized she could give business owners useful information about bookkeeping. If they decided to hire someone, they would likely turn to her because she already helped them.
“I liked how bookkeeping was about giving real value to people.”
(In a moment, you’ll see exactly how she applied this lesson to land a big client.)
"I HAD NO BACKGROUND IN MATH"
Even though Liz saw bookkeeping as legitimate, there was still a huge problem.
She had no clue about bookkeeping or how to do it! And with no degree or background in accounting, she figured nobody would hire her.
“I never thought of doing bookkeeping or accounting. My degree is in psychology. I was never a math fan in high school or ever.”
But watching the free introductory videos, she realized she was already keeping the books for her family. She enjoyed tracking money and figured she could help businesses with it.
Liz shares how she never expected to be a bookkeeper
*Disclaimer: These results are not typical and you may or may not achieve the same results. Success in a bookkeeping business depends on your willingness to put in effort, your attention to detail, and various other factors.
"I WORK WHENEVER I CAN FIT IT IN"
As a busy mom, Liz still had to figure out how to make time for a side-business.
At this point in her life, she had a one-year-old daughter. She spent the day with her, evenings with her husband, and volunteered at the church on top of all that.
So Liz was already busy.
The only time she had free was when her daughter was asleep or napping. So that’s when Liz decided to she could work on this.
“I put in 30-minutes here and a couple of hours there. It’s nice to have something I enjoy that’s not just wiping noses and changing diapers.”
Liz was debating other options, but she felt that bookkeeping was the best way forward for her and her family, so she joined our program.
She spent the next few weeks going through the video training at her own pace. She learned the ins-and-outs of how to do bookkeeping and get clients.
She even followed our steps for setting up a website so people could find her.
Liz’s website firstdollarbookkeeping.com
Then, Liz discovered she was pregnant.
She no longer had the energy or motivation to build her business. So she took a break to focus on family.
“The beauty of bookkeeping is it doesn’t suck money out of you. You pay $50/month for web hosting, and that’s it. There’s no regular drain of money.”
"HEY! I'M MAKING REAL MONEY!"
After having her second child, Liz took time to adjust and feel normal again.
Her desire to buy a house without going into debt was still there. So after her “fourth trimester”, she got back into bookkeeping.
Her website and marketing materials were all set up and waiting for her. But with no experience, she (again) doubted she could get clients. So she offered to do her friends books for free.
“My first client was a friend. I started doing her books for free to get experience and because I wanted to help her succeed.”
After a few months of working “on the job”, her confidence grew and she was ready to start helping others…and get paid!
While searching for her first paid client, Liz implemented the “give to get” philosophy taught inside BBL.
Using what she learned in the course about bookkeeping and marketing, she created a brochure to help business owners track their finances.
She knew this would be both valuable to them, while also getting Liz on their radar. And if they wanted more help, she would be ready to jump in.
Liz gave the brochure to her physical therapist. At first, she was scared to “put herself out there,” but she knew the information was valuable.
“I gave it to her and she said: “Oh my gosh, I need this! My books are a mess, thank you!”
Part of the 4-page brochure Liz gave her physical therapist.
On her next visit, the physical therapist hired Liz to do her books for $300/month.
Liz’s implementation of the “give to get” philosophy was perfect, and she got herself a new client with a steady stream of income as a result.
"MY LITTLE BUSINESS IS TAKING OFF!"
Landing this client was a big turning point for Liz.
She realized she had a valuable skill that business owners needed.
“Once I got paid by the physical therapist, it was like “Oh my gosh, this is real! I’m making real money! This is exciting!
Soon, clients were coming out of the woodwork to hire her. The church and food pantry where she volunteers, both asked her to keep their books.
She agreed, taking on each client at $300 and $500/month, respectively.
Liz now has 5 clients and earns over $1,200/month working 20 hours/week.
Liz’s income from her bookkeeping business, March, 2018
"I BOUGHT MY HUSBAND A TRUCK!"
Liz’s husband always wanted a truck, but they never had the money to afford one.
One day while he was talking about it, Liz said, “Why don’t you go buy it?”
Normally, they didn’t have that kind of money laying around. But Liz hadn’t touched her bookkeeping income for months. So she went to the bank, withdrew some cash, and gave it to her husband.
“It got me a lot of points. He kinda owes me big now.”
Liz’s daughter playing in their new truck
*Disclaimer: These results are not typical and you may or may not achieve the same results. Success in a bookkeeping
business depends on your willingness to put in effort, your attention to detail, and various other factors.
Hear Liz talk about buying her husband this gift
*Disclaimer: These results are not typical and you may or may not achieve the same results. Success in a bookkeeping
business depends on your willingness to put in effort, your attention to detail, and various other factors.
"I STILL SPEND ALL DAY WITH MY KIDS"
The most important thing for Liz has always been family. And her new job hasn’t interfered with that. She works when she wants and hasn’t missed a second of family time.
“If one of my kids is sick, I can spend the whole day with them. I don’t have to clock in or out or put in a certain amount of time each day.”
She knows she could grow bigger. And she does plan to do that. Liz wants to hire other moms and be a source of income for them. But she’s happy taking things slow for now.
“I want to help everyone out because everyone needs bookkeeping. But as a stay-at-home mom my time is precious. Hours that aren’t with kids I want to do something that’s important and valuable.”
Liz shares how she hasn't missed any time with her kids
*Disclaimer: These results are not typical and you may or may not achieve the same results. Success in a bookkeeping
business depends on your willingness to put in effort, your attention to detail, and various other factors.
"PROBABLY THE BEST MONEY I EVER SPENT"
The course was just the beginning.
Anytime she has a question or needs help, she consults the BBL Rockin’ Students Facebook community. There, other bookkeepers happily give her advice and feedback.
On top of that, she’s continually getting new training to help her grow her business.
“Ben is always giving you more resources… It’s probably the best money I ever spent because there are always more resources coming at you.”
Liz’s bookkeeping journey
*Disclaimer: These results are not typical and you may or may not achieve the same results. Success in a bookkeeping
business depends on your willingness to put in effort, your attention to detail, and various other factors.
