Interview

327: Vending Machine Franchising: Find Entrepreneurial Success from Small Goals and Consistent Action with Matt Miller

June 7, 2017

Matt Miller is the creator of School Spirit Vending, a franchise opportunity that installs sticker vending machines in schools. Listen in as he details his journey from day job to freedom where he built a vending machine franchise business. Matt describes how he built his business as well as his thought process for staying productive with 90 day goals, a spreadsheet to track milestones, and 1-2 hours per day to check off steps.

Quotes:

“The speed of the group is determined by the speed of the leader.” – Matt Miller

“I'm not afraid to lose some money, lose some time, or mess up a little here and there in order to figure out the right path to take.” – Matt Miller

“There are very few things in business that are permanent or can cause permanent harm or damage if you're wise about the decisions you make.” – Matt Miller

Takeaways:

06:17 Small, consistent actions compound over time, leading to significant business growth.

08:53 Incremental progress is more sustainable than trying to achieve everything at once.

15:52 Having a mentor or coach can dramatically accelerate personal and professional development.

19:42 Franchising offers a proven business model for entrepreneurs seeking low-risk entry into a new industry.

24:31 Passion projects and side businesses can become successful ventures with persistent effort.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 33:12 — 30.4MB) | Embed

326: Thinkific: Create an Online Course to Build Your List and Generate Income with Sid Bharath

June 6, 2017

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 27:46 — 25.4MB) | Embed

Sid Bharath is the creator of Thinkific, a platform that allows you to host your own online courses. It's used by over 6,000 companies including people like Grant Cardone and John Lee Dumas. It hosts courses of all kinds, everything from hoola hopping to flying drones.

Thinkific is a great solution because you don't have to setup your own hosting and shopping cart. You can use this platform and be up and running in minutes. You can start on the free plan of Thinkific and work your way up. You can start with your own free courses to build your list, then work your way up to paid courses. Thinkific hosts your videos, and you can add drip content, quizzes and surveys, as well as grading and discussion.

Sid also talks about ways you can drive traffic to your course once you've created it on Thinkific, such as paid ads (Google and Facebook), organic traffic (guest posting, Quota, Facebook & LinkedIn groups), and live broadcasting (YouTube Live, Facebook Live, and Instagram Live).

Quotes:

“Perfection doesn't matter to your students and it shouldn't matter to you.” – Sid Bharath

“Put something out there. It doesn't have to be perfect, because you can always update it later.” – Sid Bharath

“Using data is a more scientific process than making assumptions up front and aiming for perfection.” – Sid Bharath

Takeaways:

01:51 Creating an online course doesn't require complex technical skills or massive upfront investment.

06:42 Online courses can start small with one hour of content and grow to extensive multi-week programs.

16:52 Don't aim for perfection when creating a course; start quickly and improve based on student feedback.

19:39 Use multiple free organic traffic channels to promote your online course consistently.

21:33 Commit at least two hours daily after work to build and market your online course.

Get An Account with Thinkific Now

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 27:46 — 25.4MB) | Embed

325: The Perfect Day Formula: Structure Equals Freedom! Have a Clear Vision and Laser-Focused Goals By Implementing The Five Pillars of Success with The World’s Most Disciplined Man Craig Ballantyne

June 5, 2017

Craig Ballantyne is the author of The Perfect Day Formula which shows you how to get the most out of every day and be as productive as possible, as opposed to putting out fires or just going through the motions. Craig has a number of proven strategies and easy hacks to win the day.

For example: know what you can control, limit your decision making (i.e. Mark Zuckerberg wears the same hoodie and grey shirt every day), have a vision (clear picture) of where you want to be in the next 3-5 years, have laser-focused process goals instead of huge unattainable ones. Know yourself and use "self rules" (but not laws) to stay on track, i.e. if you're looking to lose weight, keep junk food out of the house. These are just a few of the tried and true methods Craig recommends.

Craig's Five Pillars of Success

Have the same bedtime and wake time every day
Have 15 minutes of uninterrupted productive time (Stephen King writes 2,000 words a day)
Perform an activity daily for your health (i.e. meditation)
Focus on your #1 wealth building activity every day (such as recording a podcast or writing a book)
Have a not-to-do rule to limit backsliding

Quotes:

“Creating rules for your life is like having a really effective operating system in your iPhone or MacBook. That operating system within our electronics allows them to do amazing things.” – Craig Ballantyne

“It's not about the hour you get up; it's about what you do with the hours you are up.” – Craig Ballantyne

“You can't change the past. You can only control what you can—your thoughts, words, and deeds.” – Craig Ballantyne

Takeaways:

02:59 Having a clear three-to-five-year vision allows you to make targeted, purposeful daily choices.

11:52 Creating personal rules helps reduce decision fatigue and builds a strong life operating system.

15:14 Accountability and public commitment increase the likelihood of sticking to personal rules.

20:02 Quick recovery from setbacks matters more than perfect performance.

25:44 Focus on process goals you can control, rather than outcome goals that might be unpredictable.

Resources

The Perfect Day Formula (Free Book)
Craig (Instagram)
Craig Ballantyne (Official Site)
Early to Rise (Website)
Turbulence Training (Weight Loss Product)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:35 — 28.0MB) | Embed

324: Evergreen Organic Rankings and Traffic: Build Backlinks Using HARO and Guest Blog Posts with Adam White

June 2, 2017

Adam White from SEOjet is an SEO professional who has optimized over 350 websites. He says that to get noticed, stay relevant, and bring massive traffic to your website, you should be using Help a Reporter Out and guest posting. Search engines (like Google) trust big brands (like Apple and Amazon) and to get them to trust your brand, you must create power pages (2000+ words) and stay on top of your backlinking and outreach.

Quotes:

“Your number one goal when doing SEO should be to build brand trust with Google. Once Google trusts you as a brand, it's very simple to get anything else to rank.” – Adam White

“When doing link building, the majority of your time should be spent building your brand, and only a small portion should go toward targeting key phrases.” – Adam White

“If it's easy, it's probably not something you should pursue, because not all links are created equal.” – Adam White

Takeaways:

05:29 Building brand trust with Google requires using your brand name or URL in 80-95% of backlink anchor texts.

14:01 Respond quickly to HARO requests with unique, credible insights to increase chances of getting published.

19:23 Guest posting on relevant blogs and using Help a Reporter Out (HARO) are powerful strategies for gaining high-quality backlinks.

22:07 Create long-form "power pages" with 2000+ words to attract and support strategic link-building efforts.

23:35 Start with higher domain authority sites for guest posting, then fill in with lower-authority sites to create a natural link profile.

Resources

SEOjet (Management Software)
Guest Post Tracker (Find Blogs In Need Of Your Content)
Help a Reporter Out / HARO (Connect With Journalists Who Need Content)
FastCompany (Website)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 31:00 — 28.4MB) | Embed

323: Website Planning for Small Businesses: Get a Clear Roadmap for What You Want, Manage Expectations and Avoid the SEO Geek-Speak with Veteran Web Professional Ben Seigel

June 1, 2017

Ben Seigel is the Principal of Versa Studio, which is a web design team that specializes in diving deep into your business where you can engage deeply in the process.

In our discussion today, Ben explains what people need to know going in when hiring a web design team, how to manage expectations, as well as his thought process when managing complex web projects. He and his team can provide you anything from a multi-page website to a custom solution such as a podcast site.

Quotes:

“Many design shops have great portfolios, and visuals are very important. But a portfolio doesn't really show what problems a project solved or how the process went.” – Ben Seigel

“Without a solid plan, without a solid process or steps you're going to follow, you're just kind of flying by the seat of your pants.” – Ben Seigel

“If you want to get a good result that aligns with your business needs, rather than just any result, you really need to dig in, find answers to the hard questions, and collaborate.” – Ben Seigel

Takeaways:

01:06 Website planning requires deep collaboration, not just a cookie-cutter approach that slaps features together.

13:06 A thorough needs assessment and competitive analysis can reveal unexpected insights about market positioning and client expectations.

14:10 Understanding your business goals is more important than blindly following trendy marketing tactics like social media campaigns.

20:20 Technical skills alone aren't enough; translating complex requirements into clear client communication is crucial for successful web projects.

26:52 Clients often underestimate the time and complexity involved in creating a custom website, similar to renovating a kitchen.

Resources

Versa Studio (Website)
Website Planning for Small Businesses (Discount Code "robertplank")

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 36:16 — 33.2MB) | Embed

322: Ardor SEO: Build Links, Boost Your Search Ranking and Think Outside the Box with Reputation Engineer and Authority Marketer Kris Reid

May 31, 2017

Kris Reid is the founder of Ardor SEO. He's developed several tools to build backlinks and increase website ranking. Listen in to discover his advice about search engine optimization, including quick wins and low hanging fruit (for example, buy an aged domain, or increase your ranking on links on place #11 or #12 to bump yourself up to the first page).

Quotes:

“We win when you win. It's in our best interest to get you a positive ROI as quickly as possible.” – Kris Reid

“Digital marketing is like any other form of marketing. You can spend a million dollars a month on it, or you can spend $10—it depends on what your goals are.” – Kris Reid

“You really want to try to understand the customer's goals, work out a plan, and show them how to achieve it.” – Kris Reid

Takeaways:

05:12 Google constantly updates its algorithm to push websites toward creating better, more user-focused content.

14:23 Search results are personalized based on location, search history, and user context, making global ranking comparisons tricky.

20:35 Creating authentic testimonials and content about products or services you genuinely use can be an effective link-building strategy.

25:28 Focusing on improving rankings from page two to page one can dramatically increase website traffic with minimal effort.

28:17 Booking a free strategy call with an SEO expert can help businesses understand their digital marketing potential.

Resources

Ardor SEO (Kris' SEO Agency)
Kris Reid (Personal Site)
Mob Warrior (Online Game)
Ahrefs (All-in-one SEO toolset)
Moz (SEO software)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 29:07 — 26.7MB) | Embed

321: Coaching Certification: Create a Coaching Program, Bootcamp, or Course and Make Small Adjustments for Massive Business Success with Jessica Nazarali

May 30, 2017

Jessica Nazarali teaches people how to coach through her coaching certification training. If you like the idea of charging money to help others reach their goals in health, relationships, mindset or business, then you'll want to listen in to discover how you too can create a coaching program of your very own.

Quotes:

“If you don't have the skills to work with a client, it doesn't matter how great your funnels are; it doesn't matter how great your marketing is.” – Jessica Nazarali

“You need to be able to say the price of your program out loud, without hyperventilating, without going into a story of ‘nobody's going to pay this.’” – Jessica Nazarali

“When people are confident in their product, what they're offering, and their ability to work with clients successfully, that's when they get more glowing client testimonials.” – Jessica Nazarali

Takeaways:

00:21 Building a successful coaching business starts with having deep expertise in a specific field before becoming a coach.

07:17 Price your coaching services at a rate you can confidently state, starting around $500-$1000 per month, and gradually increase as you gain experience.

11:37 Begin coaching with one-on-one sessions to understand your audience and perfect your program before scaling to group formats.

22:29 Plan to cap your one-on-one client load at 8-15 clients, then transition to a group program for business growth and time management.

29:31 Your previous professional experience is a powerful differentiator and should be strategically integrated into your coaching narrative.

Resources

Jessica Nazarali (Official Site)
Coaching Mastery certification (Coaching Site)
Business Mastery certification (Get New Clients)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 33:17 — 30.5MB) | Embed

320: Credo: How to Hire an SEO Consultant or Agency with John Doherty

May 29, 2017

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:24 — 32.4MB) | Embed

John Doherty is a Denver Colorado based entrepreneur and marketing consultant. He's the founder of Credo, which helps you find the best SEO or digital marketing agency for Facebook ads, SEO audits, content marketing, and more. Listen in as he explains what information you need in order to hire an agency, why Credo exists and what he's learned about search engine optimization and hiring a team for your website.

Quotes:

“You'll think an expert is expensive until you hire an amateur.” – John Doherty

“Hiring the wrong agency or consultant can be a really expensive mistake. If you hire the wrong one, it's not only about money, but also time.” – John Doherty

“SEO is a long-term play. It's a marketing channel that works for everyone. It can take a solid three to six months to really start seeing any tangible gains.” – John Doherty

Takeaways:

02:00 Hiring cheap SEO services often leads to poor results, so invest in quality experts who understand your business needs.

12:24 Marketing strategies like SEO and Facebook ads require patience - give them 3-6 months to show meaningful results.

16:27 Vetting marketing professionals is crucial - look beyond surface-level claims and verify their actual work and client results.

20:49 Entrepreneurs should focus on their core strengths and hire specialists for tasks outside their expertise.

29:17 When seeking marketing help, be prepared to discuss your budget openly and understand that professional services require significant investment.

Resources

How to Hire an SEO (Website)
John F. Doherty's Blog (Blog)
Credo (Site)
Calendly (Site)
John (Twitter)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:24 — 32.4MB) | Embed

319: Live Events, Non-Profit Fundraisers, Sponsorships, Partnerships, Referrals and More with Small Business Consultant and Event Manager Melissa Forziat

May 26, 2017

Melissa Forziat is the founder and principal of Melissa Forziat Events. She's run live events of all shapes and sizes, from Rugby World Cups to fundraisers for non-profits. She works with clients to develop possible opportunities for growth, for example, partnership marketing (a photographer could send business to a videographer and vice versa.)

She also discusses how to make those calculated risks (look at the upside, pain of not doing it, and reward for doing it), developing confidence, and knowing your value.

Quotes:

“You can learn the skills you need to. Sometimes, you just need to be motivated by what you're doing.” – Melissa Forziat

“When you get creative, you can probably find another business or influencer to collaborate with, so you can mutually help each other gain more exposure, more clients, and more income.” – Melissa Forziat

“You have to know your value, because if you're getting less than your value for the thing you're providing, you're going to feel it.” – Melissa Forziat

Takeaways:

02:53 Skills from one career can transfer successfully to another with creativity and motivation.

12:56 Live events are just one of many marketing options for small businesses.

21:47 Partnership marketing offers powerful ways to expand business reach by collaborating with complementary businesses.

27:21 Taking calculated risks and believing in your business value is crucial for entrepreneurial success.

29:39 Undercharging early in your business can lead to long-term resentment and burnout.

Resources

Melissa Forziat Events (Website)
Melissa (Facebook)
Small Business Marketing on a Budget (Free E-Book)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 32:39 — 29.9MB) | Embed

318: Add Storytelling to Your Marketing for Amazing Results in Any Startup Pitch Meeting, Stage Presentation, or Job Interview with The Pitch Whisperer John Livesay

May 25, 2017

John Livesay is The Pitch Whisperer which means you should use micro-stories in your presentations, at job interviews, or perhaps at a pitch meeting where you're seeking funding. Every good story contains exposition (who, what, where, why), a problem, solution, and resolution.

You can discover your own stories by thinking about your family or vacations you've traveled to. Then fit that interesting material into a narrative. For example, Johnny Walker uses a rags to riches story in its marketing and Prudential uses a rebirth story. Think about your origin story of tenacity and perseverance, what inspired you, and then test that material on others to get feedback.

When you're speaking and pitching, people are asking themselves: do I trust you and do you make eye contact? (gut), do I like you and do you display empathy towards me? (heart), and will this work for me? (head) You can also build your confidence by being prepared: know your opening, closing, and takeaways to bring to that presentation.

Quotes:

“Storytellers rule the world. Forget selling—tell stories instead. Then you'll pull people in, get hired, gain new clients, or secure funding.” – John Livesay

“A good story has four elements: exposition (who, what, where, when), a problem, a solution, and a resolution.” – John Livesay

“People buy emotionally and then back it up with logic. If all you're doing is talking numbers, you're going to bore people.” – John Livesay

Takeaways:

05:28 A good story has four key elements: exposition, problem, solution, and resolution.

11:02 Everyone has interesting stories to share, often found in family histories or personal experiences.

15:01 Practice and preparation are critical for building confidence in high-stakes presentations.

19:47 When pitching, focus on building trust through eye contact, showing empathy, and demonstrating how your solution works.

21:24 People make emotional decisions first and then justify them with logic.

Resources

The Pitch Whisperer (Official Site)
The Successful Pitch (Podcast)
John Livesay (Twitter)
John Liveway (LinkedIn)
Text "PITCH" to 66566 to overcome the three mistakes with preparation, confidence, and correction

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 27:22 — 25.1MB) | Embed

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