Dare to Launch

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Story: Jeff Walker's First PLF Launch - DTL #23 Aug 13, 2024

Show notes

It was a beautiful spring day in 2005… and when I hung up the phone, my business was GONE. This is the story of how I started over, in a brand-new market, with a brand-new product that would eventually become known as Product Launch Formula®.

In my first business, it took six long years to reach a million dollars in sales. With this new business, it took just six months.

In this episode, we dive into that crazy ride… along with some of the key things that made all the difference. We also discuss: The Early Days of Online Marketing: This industry was crazy tight-knit back in the early 2000s. It felt like a handful of us were working together to invent the future of online marketing.

Building Social Proof: How I was able to get 10,000 people on one phone call (in 2005, this meant patching together bridge lines!), and leverage my relationships with key players in the industry to position myself as an expert in my prelaunch content.

My First JV Partners: How I came into a brand-new market as a virtual nobody… and less than six months later had some of the biggest names in the industry promoting for me.

Market Longevity: Back in those early days, it was rare for anyone to sell the same product for more than a few months, let alone years. But that first launch gave me a different idea…

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Build an Epic Community w/ The Reconnected - DTL #22 Aug 06, 2024

Show notes

Get access to the Dare to Launch Bonus Vault: https://www.daretolaunchshow.com/taco

Join your hosts Jeff Walker and Chris Saunders in welcoming Emma Johnston and Eleanor Mann to the show this week! Emma and Eleanor are the founders of The Reconnected, a revolutionary resource for the modern parent. Their courses and online community provide parents with the emotional and practical tools necessary to connect with and responsibly raise their children. They've been incredibly successful not just in launching their business but in converting their existing audience away from Instagram and onto their own independent app. They've also cultivated an intensely supportive following by setting the tone early on, and have never once had to moderate their community. In today's episode, we dig into how they were able to establish that intimacy, and how their coaches have been successful in maintaining it. We also dive into the nitty-gritty of offering captivating free resources, transferring a devoted following across platforms through unique perks, the vital connective magic of the live event, and how introverted entrepreneurs can utilize technology to speak to thousands of people. Emma and Eleanor have cultivated one of the most genuine, supportive communities out there, and it's no happy accident.

We discuss:

Why Emma and Eleanor offer transformation to everyone, not just paid subscribers (and how it leads to conversions down the road)
Why they believe the best way to foster intimate, personal connections is through live events
Why they choose to host their community in a private app (and how they migrated their community from Instagram little by little)
How setting the tone with your followers right at the beginning is crucial (and why it makes all the difference down the road)

Key Takeaways:

Be Authentic: Emma and Eleanor don't try to be perfect on their live streams, and their following loves it. They're not pretending to be anybody they're not.
Set the Tone: If you create a positive, supporting environment at the outset, your community will follow the lead (and you'll never have to worry about removing bad apples from the bunch).
Look at the Camera Like It's Someone You Love: Teaching thousands of people can feel incredibly daunting. The key is to focus on one special person at a time.

Got a question for us?

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THANKS FOR TUNING IN!

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Story: Jeff's First Launch. From stay at home dad to 6-figure launch marketer - DTL #21 Jul 30, 2024

Show notes

Access the Dare to Launch bonus vault by going to https://www.daretolaunchshow.com/taco

It's hard to beat the rags-to-riches entrepreneur origin story. By nature they're uniquely entertaining, often harrowing, and always motivational. We decided it was time for Jeff to enter his own success journey into the Dare to Launch canon. In the mid-90's, Jeff had quit his job to be a stay-at-home dad. He and his wife were just scraping by, living paycheck-to-paycheck. With a lot of free time on his hands, Jeff had begun to study the stock market and get into some small-scale trading. He figured he'd start an investing newsletter to share his findings. Soon enough he had a loyal following of about 800 people who loved what he was doing. After some discussions with his mentor, he outlined a paid model and a way to launch it in a coordinated sequence… before he even knew what a sequence was. The rest was history. Jeff took that first big leap and never looked back. And if you haven't already followed his lead, we know this story will inspire you to take action!

Key topics discussed:

Making the Leap: How's Jeff's utter desperation to make money from home gave him the courage to start providing a valuable resource to his followers
Now vs. Then: Jeff and Chris discuss the differences between 90's internet marketing and now, and how many online coaches/creators are still taking the wrong approach.
The Art of the Sequence: Jeff didn't realize it at the time, but his first launch included the kind of email sequence that would be essential to Product Launch Formula

Key takeaways:

Mentorship is Key: Jeff had an incredible mentor in those early days, and Jeff wouldn't have had the confidence to launch without someone in his corner.
Find Community: At every pivotal moment in Jeff's career, he needed a community of like-minded folks to bounce his ideas off of.
It's Always a Stretch: Jeff didn't believe that people would pay him for his insight. It's always a gamble, but taking that chance is the only way to step into greatness.
It's a Value Exchange: It may seem bold to ask strangers for money, but you're providing them value, and that's worth something. It's worth a lot, actually!

Got a question for us?

Go to https://www.daretolaunchshow.com/ to submit a voicemail with your question, and you might hear the answer on one of our next episodes!

THANKS FOR TUNING IN!

If you enjoyed this week's show, don't forget to hit the "follow" button. Not only is it totally free, it guarantees you never miss out on future episodes.

Think you know someone who would enjoy this episode? Do them a favor and share it with them.

The 6-Figure Knitter w/ Amy Small - DTL #20 Jul 23, 2024

Show notes

Get access to the Dare to Launch Bonus Vault and the Transformational Value Manifesto free: https://www.daretolaunchshow.com/taco

Join yours hosts Jeff Walker and Chris Saunders in welcoming Amy Small to the show this week! Amy is the genius behind Knit Collage, an inclusive community for wildly creative knitters and crocheters. After years of exhausting design jobs and a few wrong entrepreneurial turns, Amy crystallized her golden idea: the-knit along. She realized she had the resources and the design expertise to provide the yarn, the designs, the online courses, and the community support directly to consumers. And when she made each course into an 8-week sprint, she was amazed at how her customers helped each other out, and how learning how to knit became a catalyst for transformative self-actualization for her customers. Through this model, Amy created a lucrative business based on her ability to craft unique yarn and creative designs, and release them as limited-edition drops alongside time-sensitive online courses. There are so many incredible business lessons to absorb in this episode around building a following, weaving scarcity and transformation into your business model, and staying true to yourself. Amy did it her way and hit the jackpot at the same time – she's a perfect case study of the modern entrepreneur.

Key topics discussed:

Follow Your Passion: The importance of your own passion and innate creativity in starting a business
Selling Transformation: The necessity of baking a transformative experience into your business model (Amy sells the ability to access your inner child)
Find Scarcity: How Amy also weaves the element of scarcity into her operation by dropping limited-run physical products
Inclusivity: Amy's strategic efforts to foster an inclusive community around knitting

Key takeaways:

Be Yourself: Amy had to learn the hard way not to tailor her creativity to market demands
Keep it Simple: Don't overwhelm your following with constant changes to your offer. It's confusing for your customers and overwhelming for you and your team!
Foster Community: Building up an enthusiastic community will help your product expand in all kinds of exciting ways

Got a question for us?

Go to https://www.daretolaunchshow.com/ to submit a voicemail with your question, and you might hear the answer on one of our next episodes!

THANKS FOR TUNING IN!

If you enjoyed this week's show, don't forget to hit the "follow" button. Not only is it totally free, it guarantees you never miss out on future episodes.

Think you know someone who would enjoy this episode? Do them a favor and share it with them.

The Master of Music Marketing Michael Walker - DTL #19 Jul 16, 2024

Show notes

Get Jeff's AI Playbook FREE at https://Daretolaunchshow.com/ai

Join your hosts Chris Saunders and Jeff Walker in welcoming Michael Walker to the show this week! Michael is the founder of the Modern Musician, a company dedicated to helping musicians grow their fan bases and build sustainable careers in the industry. His story starts in high school, where he formed a band called Paradise Fears with his close friends. Desperate for some exposure, he and his bandmates used an ingenious strategy called "tour hacking" to grow their fanbase. Before long, they were touring the world, climbing the iTunes alt-rock chart, and multiplying their revenue by a significant factor. And the key principle behind this success, as Michael emphasizes, was connecting with fans on a personal level. After a few key conversations at my PLF Live event pushed him in the right direction, Michael figured out how to teach aspiring musicians his approach to personal connection first through 1-on-1 coaching, and then through his patented masterclass. He's now helped thousands of musicians build sustainable careers and cut through the competition, and established a million-dollar business along the way. Being a modern musician also means utilizing technology, and Michael offers some insight into how the internet and AI have created huge opportunities – and a few big challenges – in the current landscape. Whether you have a creative background or not, Michael's story is a perfect case study in how to use the entrepreneurial spirit to turn your passion into a lucrative career.

Key topics discussed:

Michael's "Tour Hacking" Technique; His band would follow successful alt-rock bands on tour so they could sell CD's and chat with their fans while they waited in line.
Failure to Launch: Michael's first launch was a dud from a sales perspective… but as is often the case, it taught him everything he needed to make his second launch a winner.
The Modern Musician: Michael walks us through the pros (freedom, resources) and cons (clutter, competition) of today's music industry.
Standing Out: How Michael focuses on competing with value instead of competing with price, and how personalization is the way of the future.

Key takeaways:

The quality of the product or service isn't the most important thing. Finding the right audience and communicating with them in a genuine way is what really matters.
We all have untapped resources within us and we have to discover how to use them in creative and genuine ways.
Once you know your audience well enough, you can cut through the noise by authentically focusing on how to serve their needs.
If you've cultivated the right audience, selling a high-ticket offer to a small group of customers is no longer a challenge.

Got a question for us?

Go to https://www.daretolaunchshow.com/ to submit a voicemail with your question, and you might hear the answer on one of our next episodes!

THANKS FOR TUNING IN!

If you enjoyed this week's show, don't forget to hit the "follow" button. Not only is it totally free, it guarantees you never miss out on future episodes.

Think you know someone who would enjoy this episode? Do them a favor and share it with them.

Creating Impactful Affiliate Marketing Campaigns w/ Mark Duffield-Thomas - DTL#18 Jul 09, 2024

Show notes

Become a PLF affiliate and make 40% commission on any PLF sale from your traffic to the Launch Masterclass Aug 15 - 29.

Join your hosts Jeff Walker and Chris Saunders in welcoming Mark Duffield-Thomas to the show this week! Mark and his wife Denise run a highly-successful coaching and mentoring business focused on helping entrepreneurs scale up their operations and establish themselves as experts in their communities. Mark and Denise also happen to be the most-successful affiliate marketing partner in the history of Product Launch Formula. This powerful duo has won the annual PFL affiliate marketing competition 6 out of 7 years! Today on the show, Mark breaks down his experiences in affiliate marketing, emphasizing the mutually-beneficial nature of these kinds of partnerships. As Mark explains, affiliate programs are a fantastic way to learn more about the launching process, get more exposure to like-minded entrepreneurs whom you admire, and learn valuable lessons which can be funneled directly back into your own business. The right amount of time and resources must be allocated to run these campaigns properly, however, and Mark speaks on how he and his wife have developed their winning approach over the years. If you're considering dipping your toes into the world of affiliate marketing, we can't think of a better primer than this chat with Mark! It's a pretty strong dose of inspiration and camaraderie for the more seasoned partners out there too!

Key topics discussed:

Personalization: How reaching out to your audience in custom-tailored communications is becoming the real difference-maker in affiliate marketing.
Choosing Carefully: Mark recommends only partnering with businesses which he actually supports and fit his specific criteria for success.
The Process: Like any successful operation, Mark and his wife have a detailed multi-phase process. Mark breaks down what goes into each stage.
Making Adjustments: Knowing which levers you can strategically pull throughout the process is key to keeping your program going strong.

Key takeaways:

Diversity of Approach: Successful affiliate campaigns need to use the full suite of marketing tools: blogs, emails, podcasts, live calls, social media, and more.
Communicate With Your Audience: It's crucial to have a pulse on the struggles your audience is facing in order to provide relevant resources.
Seek Mentorship: Think of these programs as a way to build relationships with other entrepreneurs whom you admire.
Maximizing Leads: Perhaps the most important part of the process is ensuring the highest volume of quality leads in the initial stages of the process.

Got a question for us?

Go to https://www.daretolaunchshow.com/ to submit a voicemail with your question, and you might hear the answer on one of our next episodes!

THANKS FOR TUNING IN!

If you enjoyed this week's show, don't forget to hit the "follow" button. Not only is it totally free, it guarantees you never miss out on future episodes.

Think you know someone who would enjoy this episode? Do them a favor and share it with them.

How Summits, Tapping, and Doing Good Makes Great Business w/ Nick Ortner - DTL #17 Jul 02, 2024

Show notes

Get Jeff's AI Playbook FREE at DaretoLaunchShow.com/AI

Join your hosts Chris Saunders and Jeff Walker in welcoming Nick Ortner to the podcast this week! Nick is the creator of The Tapping Solution; a hugely-popular app, book, and online resource which provides revolutionary meditations to help ease everything from anxiety to chronic pain. Like many of the entrepreneurs we bring on the show, Nick's journey is anything but linear. He takes us through the various stages of his career, from innovating in the tele-health space in the early aughts, to making an indie documentary, to essentially inventing the modern conception of the marketing summit, to developing an app from scratch. Since discovering the health benefits of Tapping at a Tony Robbins event in 2000, Nick has been dedicated to spreading this holistic practice to the world through every medium within his grasp. The lessons learned along the way have been innumerable, but we dig into some of the big ones: the value of providing substantial free content, the right and wrong way to organize a summit, and how focusing on doing genuinely good work over a long period of time will only bring you wealth in business and in life. Nick's strategies for building trust and curating excellent summits are just too good not to share. I know you'll walk away with tons of new ideas and a reinvigorated commitment to your business.

Key topics discussed:

Creating a Summit: How Nick developed his approach to organizing summits through trial and error, and how he continues to perfect his methodology.
Offering Free Content: In building his business, Nick has found time and time again that giving out substantial free content is the only way to build a loyal following.
The Tony Robbins Effect: Many of the folks we work with have been affected by Tony's work and Nick is no different. Nick tells us about his full circle journey with Tony.
The Sandy Hook tragedy: How the horrendous school shooting, which happened minutes away from Nick's home, led to some of his most impactful work.

Key takeaways:

Taking advantage of multiple outlets is key! Nick owes a lot of his success to embracing a multi-faceted approach to promote his life's work.
We have to focus on content first. Especially when planning a summit, it's essential to make every part of the event unique, educational, and engaging.
Product management is essential in building a good app. Nick emphasizes the importance of having a person solely dedicated to testing and shaping your app.
The best way to attract experts to your summit is by showing them you genuinely love their content and know what they're all about.
Building a good business foundation is more important than some of the more public-facing stuff. And that includes taking care of your team!

Got a question for us?

Go to https://www.daretolaunchshow.com/ to submit a voicemail with your question, and you might hear the answer on one of our next episodes!

THANKS FOR TUNING IN!

If you enjoyed this week's show, don't forget to hit the "follow" button. Not only is it totally free, it guarantees you never miss out on future episodes.

Think you know someone who would enjoy this episode? Do them a favor and share it with them.

Stages of Entrepreneurship w/ Coaches Barry, Jolene and Julie - DTL #16 Jun 25, 2024

Show notes

Join your host Chris Saunders for an extra special episode of Dare to Launch featuring three of our Product Launch Formula Coaches: Jolene, Barry, and Julie! On DTL we like to think of entrepreneurship in three stages, and each of these three coaches focuses on a different one: creating your offer and embarking on your first 50K launch, turning that 50K launch into a six-figure launch, and scaling your business up to the seven-figure level. Each stage of this continuum presents its own unique challenges and considerations, and our coaches have collected some keys to success, as well as some common pitfalls to avoid, over the years. As we talked through these trends, we kept coming back to one crucial element over and over: the necessity of a strong community at every stage of this sequence. Whether you're trying to articulate your offer for the first time or you're 3 days into a seven-figure launch and floundering, the ability to access a supportive, experienced community has consistently proven to be a key necessity for successful entrepreneurs. We go deep into cultivating the mindset necessary to put yourself out there, knowing when it's time to scale up and start building out your team, and the fundamental question you need to ask yourself before you decide to take your business to the moon.

TALK TO A LAUNCH CLUB EXPERT

Key topics discussed:

Articulating Your Offer: Spelling out what it is you want to sell can be tricky. The key is knowing the right questions to ask and where to look for more information.
The Value Ladder: Starting out, entrepreneurs want everything and they want it fast. It's important to understand the steps to success and how to take them one at a time.
Task Delegation: As we scale up our businesses, we must also start to offload responsibility in order to free up our time. Barry offers up a handy strategy for doing just that.
Community is Essential: Jolene emphasizes the myriad benefits of having a community of like-minded individuals to turn to in tough times.
Serving Others: Julie emphasizes the impact that high-level entrepreneurs can have on the world, and understanding the implications of shooting for the moon.

Key takeaways:

Community is a cheat code. Having a support system means that you can move through the stages of success at a much quicker clip.
We have to do the market research to make sure that people are actively asking for what we have to offer. Then we can focus on speaking the right language.
We can't fear our competition. Instead, we need to observe what they're doing and see how we can do it better and with an injection of our own unique qualities.
Fully utilize your mentor or coach. You need to work with someone who's been there before to navigate the noise when your business starts to become bigger than you.
Understand what you really want! If you truly want a million dollar business, then you can put the pieces in place to make that happen. But if you don't actually want to go that big, don't create a business you don't actually want to run.

Got a question for us?

Go to https://www.daretolaunchshow.com/ to submit a voicemail with your question, and you might hear the answer on one of our next episodes!

THANKS FOR TUNING IN!

If you enjoyed this week's show, don't forget to hit the "follow" button. Not only is it totally free, it guarantees you never miss out on future episodes.

Think you know someone who would enjoy this episode? Do them a favor and share it with them.

Building Your Money Machine w/ Mel Abraham - DTL #15 Jun 18, 2024

Show notes

Get access to this week's Dare To Launch Bonus by Texting: Bonus4 to 1-888-530-0282

Join your hosts Chris Saunders and Jeff Walker in welcoming Mel Abraham to the show this week! Mel is a renowned entrepreneur, speaker, author, and expert in the field of financial freedom. A recurring theme this season has been the reality that entrepreneurship, and really success in general, is hardly ever a straight line. And Mel's story is yet another fascinating testament to that truth. In recounting his difficult journey from a working-class childhood to multi-millionaire entrepreneur, it seems like almost every major success was prelude to a period of difficulty. And instead of getting beaten down by these hard moments, he chose to pick himself up, learn from his mistakes, and push forward. Realizing he'd worked so hard he missed out on years of his son's childhood was the first blow. Losing millions to a Ponzi scheme was the second. Discovering he had bladder cancer in 2019 was the third. But he was able to navigate all of the above and more because of his lifelong commitment to building what he calls the Money Machine. In today's chat, Mel acts as financial guru and walks Jeff and Chris through how he built the money machine that has saved his life multiple times over. Even if you're already a pro at money management, Mel's story is a fascinating case study in self-awareness, proactive thinking, and the triumph of the human spirit. We highly recommend picking up a copy of Mel's new book "Building Your Money Machine."

Key topics discussed:

Money and Freedom: Mel discusses the popular misconception that money will bring you freedom and happiness in life, and how that's not always the case.
The Value of Hardship: As has become a theme this season, Mel shares some important hardships and how they helped him become a better person.
Financial Harmony: Another popular misconception is the idea of work-life balance. Mel reframes this concept as "financial harmony," why it's different, and how it works.
Talking About Money: Many people are afraid to even discuss money and as Mel sees it, breaking down that barrier is the first step to financial liberation.
Resisting Temptation: When revenue starts to come in, people tend to want to dramatically level up their lifestyles. Mel lays out the smart way to level up.

Key takeaways:

Money is not the key to freedom. You can be rich and have no absolutely no control of your time or lifestyle.
Your relationship with money is literally a relationship. If you become passive in that dynamic, the relationship will wither.
You have to enjoy the journey to financial freedom or you won't enjoy the end result. Rewarding yourself responsibly must be part of the process.
We need to assign a job description to every dollar we make before we earn it. That means understanding exactly where your money is going to go at all times.
We need to say "I will" instead of "I want." Those declarations help you understand how all of your actions pull you closer towards achieving your goals.

Resources Referenced in the episode:

Mel's book "Building Your Money Machine."

Got a question for us?

Go to https://www.daretolaunchshow.com/ to submit a voicemail with your question, and you might hear the answer on one of our next episodes!

THANKS FOR TUNING IN!

If you enjoyed this week's show, don't forget to hit the "follow" button. Not only is it totally free, it guarantees you never miss out on future episodes.

Think you know someone who would enjoy this episode? Do them a favor and share it with them.

Stand-Up Comedy and Copywriting w/ Will Hamilton - DTL #14 Jun 11, 2024

Show notes

In today's episode of Dare to Launch, Jeff Walker and Chris Saunders welcome the hilarious Will Hamilton to the show! Will is the founder of Fuzzy Yellow Balls, a hugely successful platform for online tennis classes taught by legends like The Bryan Brothers and Martina Navratilova. He's also a bonafide stand-up comedian in Washington D.C., which is why today's discussion centers around the connection between comedy writing and copywriting. In his experience, Will has found that humor can be a fantastic tool in copywriting when used correctly. He's also found that joke structures mirror copywriting in a fascinating way, especially in terms of building and releasing tension. We also dive into the ways in which high-performance tennis mirrors high performance in the business world. And finally, Will shares a few golden nuggets he's learned from churning out content over the years which we know you folks will really enjoy. As a skilled tennis player and entrepreneur, Will has tons of valuable insight into the mindset and discipline you need to put yourself out there and keep at it no matter what.

Get the Free Surprise bonus by texting BONUS3 to 1(888)-530-0282

Key topics discussed:

Lessons from Tennis Pros: Working with tennis legends over the years has taught Will countless lessons about focus, discipline, and preparation.
Setting Goals: As Will started to find success as an entrepreneur, he found himself adjusting his goals and expectations to build the life he wanted to live.
Comedy and Copywriting: The craft of writing jokes is actually incredibly similar to the craft of writing copy. Will breaks down the similarities and differences.
The Content Grind: Will emphasizes that the only way to get better at making content is to keep at it, ignore the haters, and use the helpful comments to get better.

Key takeaways:

Certainty is a Necessity: Starting out as an entrepreneur is tricky, but you have to believe in yourself extra hard to overcome those initial struggles.
Play the game you want to win. Running a billion-dollar business involves massive sacrifice, so make sure you set the bar at the right level for you and your goals.
Humor is Valuable: If you're able to be appropriately funny in a presentation or in your marketing you'll stand out from the crowd.
Nobody Cares About You: Be willing to not be the best in the world right away. If your content flops, nobody saw it. Keep trying, tweaking, and reframing your ideas.

Got a question for us?

Go to https://www.daretolaunchshow.com/ to submit a voicemail with your question, and you might hear the answer on one of our next episodes!

THANKS FOR TUNING IN!

If you enjoyed this week's show, don't forget to hit the "follow" button. Not only is it totally free, it guarantees you never miss out on future episodes.

Think you know someone who would enjoy this episode? Do them a favor and share it with them.

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