BiggerPockets Business Podcast

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Latest Episodes:

45: From Scrubbing Toilets to a $4M Business on Autopilot with Michelle Reed-Spitzer Mar 03, 2020

Show notes

Do you dream of the day you can be your own boss? Wish you could generate full-time income from your side hustle passion project? Or do you have a small business that you want to expand to something BIG, while simultaneously allowing you the time and financial freedom you crave? Becoming a franchise owner can be an effective path to make that happen!

Michelle Reed-Spitzer, owner of SIX MaidPro franchises, including the No. 1 MaidPro franchise in existence—runs her team from one central location. Meanwhile she has the freedom to travel, spend time on her boat, and zip around the Gulf Coast of sunny Florida in her shiny red convertible.

In this episode, Michelle teaches us what a successful franchise model has done for her in terms of scaling a business to the next level.

She tells us the story of her early days working hard cleaning houses, building up a client base, and hiring a few people to help. After "secret shopping" some new competition in town, she ultimately became a franchisee of that company, paying an initial franchise fee of just ONE DOLLAR since she brought an already-successful business to the table. Implementing MaidPro’s training, systems, and processes, she has mastered the formula to grow and expand with the help of an exceptional team.

Whether you’ve already explored the concept of franchising or know nothing about it, Michelle shares her expertise with one actionable tip after another. She fills us in on how franchises work, recommends items to think about before making the leap, and discusses the advantages—as well as potential pitfalls to avoid. And perhaps most importantly, Michelle is living proof that with hard work, focus, and determination, ordinary people can do extraordinary things.

Check her out, and subscribe to the BiggerPockets Business Podcast so you won’t miss our next show!

In This Episode We Cover:

Why you should surround yourself with the right people
How to "secret shop" your competition
How franchises work
What Right of First Refusal means
Finding the right location for your franchise
Finding your passion and figuring out the lifestyle you want
The importance of focusing on recurring revenue streams
How to do due diligence on the other franchisees
And SO much more!

Links from the Show

Chuck E. Cheese

Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow45

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44: The Most Effective Marketing Technique You’re Probably Ignoring in Your Business with John Ruhlin Feb 25, 2020

Show notes

Have you considered that there may be a marketing channel for your business that you’ve never taken advantage of? One that could literally provide dozens—or hundreds—of times return on the cost of it? You may not have put much thought into it before, but after this episode, you will!

John Ruhlin—author of the bestselling book Giftology—knows firsthand the value of giving gifts as a way to build both your network and your bottom line. And on this episode, John gives us all the ins and outs of giving gifts in a way that will not only surprise and delight the recipients of those gifts but also catapult the success of your business in the process.

John tells us his story of how—by strategically spending $10,000—he was able to create and foster a relationship that has made him and his business well into the seven-figures. And how with much lower amounts than that, you can generate the same value for your business, as well.

John tells us why giving gifts in the business world is important; who we should be giving gifts to (hint: it’s not who you think!); which types of gifts we should—and SHOULDN’T—be giving to achieve maximum impact; and how often we should be giving gifts to achieve the best results.

Most importantly, John explains why most of the gifts we often give to our clients, vendors, colleagues, and potential partners are not just failing to help us foster those relationships but are actually HURTING our relationships!

And make sure you listen for John’s tip on how to give the most impactful gifts for the lowest cost: It’s all about picking the right categories.

Check him out, and subscribe to the BiggerPockets Business Podcast so you won’t miss our next show!

In This Episode We Cover:

Why it's all about building relationships
The impact of giving at unexpected times
Why you should start sending handwritten notes
How to choose a gift that your recipient would appreciate
His Cameron Herold story
How to ask for something by offering value first
Why a good gift doesn’t make up for a bad service offering
How often you should send gifts
How to handle gatekeepers
The risks of gift giving
And SO much more!

Links from the Show

Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow44

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43: Financial Freedom Through Multiple Streams of Income with Yaro Starak Feb 18, 2020

Show notes

Do you value freedom and time above all else? Are you craving a lifestyle doing what’s truly most important to you, while financially supporting yourself, your family, your hobbies, and your adventures?

Today’s guest has done just that, paving his own way and achieving freedom on many levels: financial, time, and mental. He’s taught thousands of people how to do the same. Today, he shares how you can do it, too!

Yaro Starak—an online entrepreneur earning a full-time income from the internet since 2004—walks us through his evolution of multiple businesses, identifying potential opportunities, and taking steps with minimal risk to start additional ventures. He debunks myths about passive income and digs deeply into the “how” of making a “laptop lifestyle” work.

Yaro gives actionable tips to identify areas in which you’re an expert, then use that expertise to earn income by sharing that information with others. He tells us the lessons he’s learned along the way: from early goals of simply making money to intentional, conscious decisions to do something you love to working with people you really enjoy.

And make sure you listen for Yaro’s recommendation on how to fast-track learning the ins and outs of a business you’re passionate about, closing your gaps in knowledge, and increasing awareness of how everything works before wasting time and energy charging full-speed ahead.

Check him out, and subscribe to the BiggerPockets Business Podcast so you won’t miss our next show!

In This Episode We Cover:

How he built his "lifestyle business"
Focusing on starting a 4-hour work week business
Why entrepreneurs are always looking for opportunities
The 3 different types of freedom
Figuring out how business works
Why freelancing is a good starting point
How he's able to manage his business
His whole process in selling his courses and how you can do the same
How to be good at the 80/20 rule
The theory of constraints and sprints
And SO much more!

Links from the Show

Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow43

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42: Building a Business You Can Sell for Top Dollar with David Barnett Feb 11, 2020

Show notes

Have you ever wondered how businesses are bought and sold? Or have you considered buying a business but don’t know where to start? Or maybe you've considered selling a business—or are starting a business that you’re hoping to sell at some point in the future.

Buying and selling a business seems complicated... but it doesn’t have to be that way!

David Barnett, business broker and author of six books including How to Sell My Own Business, knows firsthand how important it is that you build, structure, and manage a business in a way that will allow you to eventually sell it—even if that’s not your plan A. In this episode, he tells us why sometimes we have to sell even if we don’t expect to and how we can be certain to get top dollar if and when that time comes.

In addition, David helps us understand how businesses are valued, the most common reasons why business owners sell, the types of terms that can be negotiated when buying or selling a business, and why most businesses sell for less than you’d think.

And make sure you listen for David’s advice on how to handle situations where a seller is telling you one thing, but his financial statements are telling you another.

Check him out, and subscribe to the BiggerPockets Business Podcast so you won’t miss our next show!

In This Episode We Cover:

The difference between business broker and real estate broker
Why the business marketplace is a secret
How business brokers work with buyers to get financing
How brokers are often dual agents
Some of the online marketplaces for business sales
Why businesses sell for a lot less than you think
The reasons people sell their businesses
How the value of a business depends on cash flow
And SO much more!

Links from the Show

Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow42

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

41: Outsourcing Your Way to Millions with Nathan Hirsch of Outsource School Feb 04, 2020

Show notes

Intrigued by the concept of virtual assistants? Understandably so—the time commitment and expense of office space and in-house employees can be intimidating. Luckily, there are alternatives…

Nathan Hirsch—serial entrepreneur and outsourcing expert—knows firsthand how difficult it can be to manage an office with lots of employees. And not only did he figure out a way to avoid it, he’s built several companies to help others do it, as well.

As founder of his previous company FreeeUp.com, Nathan created a marketplace of remote workers and virtual assistants to help entrepreneurs grow their businesses without the need for local employees. And as a follow-up, Nathan has created OutsourceSchool.com, an educational platform where business owners can learn how to manage their businesses efficiently and effectively by using remote employees.

In this episode, Nathan brings his expertise in outsourcing to our listeners, providing tons of actionable tips and ideas for how we can build our businesses without the overhead of office space and local employees. Nathan tells us how he built his Amazon store to over $25M in gross revenue and how he built and sold FreeeUp without a staff of local employees—only hiring remote help. He shares how we can do the same.

Make sure you listen for Nathan’s four-step process for harnessing the power of remote employees.

Check him out, and subscribe to the BiggerPockets Business Podcast so you won’t miss our next show!

In This Episode We Cover:

Why he treats his remote team like they're in a real office
How he built another freelancer marketplace to cater to his needs
How he makes customer service his competitive advantage
Why he may never hire someone in person again
The 4-step process to dealing with remote employees
How to get on the same page with expectations
The traits of virtual assistants that you want to look for
Why Nathan prefers to outsource in the Philippines
3 different levels of people you hire: followers, doers, and experts
The 90-day rule
And SO much more!

Links from the Show

Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow41

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40: Buying and Growing a Small Business With Little to No Risk With Brit Foshee Jan 28, 2020

Show notes

Have you ever considered buying a business but were terrified of paying more than the business is worth? Have you ever wondered what you can do to help ensure that a business you buy today will generate the numbers promised by the previous owner?

Well, today’s guest answers both those questions, helping us to minimize our financial risk when buying a small business!

Brit Foshee—real estate investor and small business owner—walks us through the process he used to buy his first five landscaping companies, how he consolidated them into one big company to increase their value, and how he did it all with minimal financial risk. And he tells us how we can do the same thing if we decide we want to go the route of buying a small business.

Brit tells us how he finds the businesses he buys, how he evaluates them, how he recruits partners to run them, and most importantly, how he gets the owners to all but guarantee their financial success. And for you real estate investors out there, you’ll be amazed at how similar buying a business is to buying real estate!

And make sure you listen for Brit’s recommendations on using “claw backs”—a way to literally guarantee that a business owner doesn’t misrepresent the numbers when selling you a business.

Check him out, and subscribe to the BiggerPockets Business Podcast so you won’t miss our next show!

In This Episode We Cover:

Brit's story from buying a property to buying businesses
How people underestimate what it takes to get a business off the ground
How he finds available businesses on the market
Similarities between his business model and buying real estate
How a business with $1M in revenue is likely sustainable without the owner
Why he made a partner a part-owner
Come work "with me" vs. come work "for me"
Why he recommends the owner financing route when buying a business
How he reduces expenses and increases income right after buying
Why he thinks employees are #1
The top mistake owners make
And SO much more!

Links from the Show

Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow40

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39: Creating Your Vision and Achieving Massive Success with Cameron Herold Jan 21, 2020

Show notes

Does the book, “Vivid Vision” sound familiar? Brandon Turner (host of the BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast) raved about it when he we interviewed him on the show last year. Brandon credited the book with helping him overcome his vague thinking, providing him the insight to hone his goals and putting him on the path to massive success with real estate syndications.

In fact, Brandon raved so much about the book that we knew we had to have the book’s author on the show to provide our listeners a first-hand education on why creating a vision is important and how we should be doing it. And that’s what we’re doing today...

Cameron Herold -- best-selling author, founder of The COO Alliance and the operational brain behind several behemoth companies, including 1-800-GOT-JUNK -- is here to help you learn how to clearly define your business and life vision in a way that will put both you and your team on the path to success. Cameron breaks down the steps for defining your vision, documenting your vision (hint: it’s a lot more fun than you think), and then sharing that vision with your partners, employees and prospective employees to ensure that the entire team is aligned with YOUR vision for success.

And, for those of you who like to think about things from an analytical perspective, make sure to listen for Cameron’s mathematical formula for success…

Check him out, and subscribe to the BiggerPockets Business Podcast so you won’t miss our next show!

In This Episode We Cover:

Cameron's incredible backstory
Difference between CEO and COO
How vision impacts your business
Creative ways to relay your vision
The craziest vivid vision story
How vision helps you attract or repel the right people
The miracle morning for entrepreneurs
Cameron's secret formula to success
And SO much more!

Links from the Show

Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow39

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38: Converting Customers Into Fans Who Grow Your Business for You with David Meerman Scott Jan 14, 2020

Show notes

Do you hate marketing? Do you hate sales? Do you wish there was an easy way to grow your customer base and your profits without relying on all the old bread-and-butter sales and marketing techniques that everyone else is using?

Today’s guest provides us a path to business growth that doesn’t hinge on being a professional marketer or salesperson.

David Meerman Scott—bestselling author of 11 books, including the just released Fanocracy—explains to us why the most powerful marketing force on the planet isn’t social media, television commercials, or any other traditional marketing technique. Instead, it is the ability to convert our customers into loyal fans. And he tells us how we can convert customers in our businesses into super-fans, helping us to scale and grow our business in ways that we’ve never considered.

David uses everything from neuroscience research to the band Grateful Dead to show us how we can convert our customers into brand ambassadors for our businesses. Whether your business is a product or a service, whether you have a recurring relationship with your customers or you only engage with them once in a lifetime, David’s techniques will provide you the tools you need to get your customers to grow your business for you.

And make sure to listen for David’s suggestion on using selfies to grow your business! It's brilliant.

Check him out, and subscribe to the BiggerPockets Business Podcast so you won’t miss our next show!

In This Episode We Cover:

How to create fandoms to grow your business
Discover how the 4 levels of proximity could help you get noticed
Why you should take more selfies
Characteristics that make a true fan
How to convert your customers into loyal fans
A story that turned David into a fan of a company
Giving freely vs. giving with the expectation of receiving something
Why you shouldn't pay for attention
And SO much more!

Links from the Show

Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow38

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37: Choosing the Right Niche—Follow a Business Startup Journey From Day 1 with J Scott Jan 07, 2020

Show notes

J Scott isn’t just the host of this podcast—he’s also a serial entrepreneur, who has a passion for starting businesses. And with 2020 now underway, J is finally ready to announce the launch of his latest endeavor, which he does right here on this episode of the BiggerPockets Business Podcast.

In this episode, J talks about his criteria for choosing an industry and a specific business, he details the new business that he’s launching this week, and he dives into the nitty-gritty details of his financial projections and growth strategy.

J tells us why “sexy” isn’t always the best choice for picking a business niche and how focusing on your existing strengths and expertise can help you create a “barrier to entry”—something that gives you a tremendous advantage over your competition and over others who might try to compete with you in the future.

Best yet, J has promised to come back every few months and update us on this new business journey, so that our listeners can learn from both his successes and his mistakes!

In This Episode We Cover:

J's backstory
Why sexy businesses have a ton of competition
The 4 things J looks for in a business
Plans to start a service business in the real estate industry
The kind of staff required to launch this business
Why redoing the existing website has been low priority compared to other marketing
The 2 sides of this business: emergency and rebuild
J's long-term plan
And SO much more!

Links from the Show

Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow37

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36: ALL NEW Tips, Inspiration, and Words of Advice From Some of Our Favorite 2019 Guests Dec 31, 2019

Show notes

In 2019, the BiggerPockets Business Podcast was launched. In the past eight months, we’ve gotten nearly ONE MILLION downloads, as well as some tremendously positive feedback.

Our guests have included entrepreneurs who are just starting out, entrepreneurs who have built eight-figure businesses, and everything in-between. We’ve talked to business owners who have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars on Shark Tank and have even talked the the Sharks themselves.

We’ve also talked to bestselling authors of some of our favorite business books and to coaches who help entrepreneurs reach their full potential.

Now that we’re entering 2020, we wanted to revisit with some of our favorite and most popular guests from last year, and get their words of wisdom, encouragement, and advice for the new year.

In this episode, we’re bringing back a number of our 2019 guests to give us their best actionable tips and suggestions for entrepreneurs and business owners. Whether you’re planning to launch a business in 2020, are looking to scale your business, or are trying to overcome some business obstacles, today’s show is for you.

In This Episode We Speak To: