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Latest Episodes:

EP 390: Is This The Most Successful InfoProduct Ever? Aug 18, 2016

Show notes

EP 389: ConceptDrop Raises $1.1M, Helps You Get Creative Work Done Quick with Phil Alexander EP389 Aug 17, 2016

Show notes

Phil Alexander, founder and CEO of ConceptDrop. His company has a mission to get your projects done while you're sleeping. You can send your project to ConceptDrop and expect to see the end result within mere hours. Listen as Phil tells us about the incredible growth of his business and what he sees for ConceptDrop in the future.

Famous Five:

Favorite Book? – The Wall Street Journal What CEO do you follow? — Sundar Pichai Favorite online tool? — Hubspot Do you get 8 hours of sleep? — No. If you could let your 20 year old self know one thing, what would it be? — You're not going to learn everything in business school. Start selling as soon as you can.

Time Stamped Show Notes: 01:05 – Nathan introduces Phil 01:40 – ConceptDrop 02:05 – Servicing over 300 brands 02:25 – A global network of sellers 02:58 – About 30% taken from the sellers 03:25 – They set the prices 03:48 – Upselling to the buyers 04:10 – The average buyer 04:25 – Started in 2012 04:50 – First-year revenue was a couple thousand 05:10 – Funds raised 06:00 – Valuation was between $5 to $7 million 06:20 – Reasons for the valuation come down mostly to growth rate 07:15 – Investors 07:30 – 300 buyers, and under 100 sellers 08:00 – Average seller makes $500 per project, with 4 to 5 projects each month 08:55 – Seeing great growth 09:40 -- $10,000/month to much higher 10:35 – Repurchase rates 11:24 – Total revenue for 2015 was just under $300k 11:55 – Last month, 50 companies used the platform 12:45 – Small, high-quality pool of freelancers 13:10 – A lot of potential in the near future 14:20 – phil@conceptdrop.com, @philalexander1 on Twitter 16:30 -- The Famous Five

3 Key Points: There is no perfect formula for starting a business. High-quality service is a great way to make your business stand out. Assess your business for its potential.

Resources Mentioned: Host Gator – The site Nathan uses to buy his domain names and hosting for cheapest price possible. Freshbooks - The site Nathan uses to manage his invoices and accounts. Leadpages – The drag and drop tool Nathan uses to quickly create his webinar landing pages which convert at 35%+ Audible – Nathan uses Audible when he's driving from Austin to San Antonio (1.5 hour drive) to listen to audio books. Hubspot – Phil's favorite online tool for marketing and sales Show Notes provided by Mallard Creatives

EP 388: TrueBill Saves You $ On All Those Monthly Subscriptions You Pay Aug 16, 2016

Show notes

Yahya Mokhtarzada, co-founder of Truebill. Truebill is a free online tool designed to keep track of all of your monthly subscriptions and find ways to save you money. With so many products requiring a subscription fee, Truebill keeps your bills more organized and paid on time.

Famous Five:

Favorite Book? – Onward What CEO do you follow? — Jeff Bezos Favorite online tool? — Ahrefs Do you get 8 hours of sleep? — No chance. If you could let your 20 year old self know one thing, what would it be? — Take bigger risks.

Time Stamped Show Notes: 01:10 – Nathan introduces Yahya 1:30 – Truebill keeps track of recurring bills and subscriptions 2:00 – Free for users 2:20 – Looking at transactions and making recommendations 2:50 – Business development deals 3:20 – Launched in January 2016 03:40 – Healthy growth each month 04:00 – Up to $50k/month at the end of the year 04:20 – Saving other people money 04:45 –$1.75 million in capital 05:15 – Agreement for future equity 06:20 – User data 06:40 – Deals with businesses for advertising 07:50 – Introducing users to the products of those businesses 09:00 – Total users signed up are 50000 09:25 – Activation metrics 09:50 – Different options to explore for the future 10:30 – "the low-hanging fruit" 11:10 – blog.truebill.com 13:10 -- The Famous Five

3 Key Points: Consider taking bigger risks when you can afford to do so. Focus your business model on helping other people. Start with "the low-hanging fruit" to get your business going.

Resources Mentioned: Host Gator – The site Nathan uses to buy his domain names and hosting for cheapest price possible. Freshbooks - The site Nathan uses to manage his invoices and accounts. Leadpages – The drag and drop tool Nathan uses to quickly create his webinar landing pages which convert at 35%+ Audible – Nathan uses Audible when he's driving from Austin to San Antonio (1.5 hour drive) to listen to audio books. Ahrefs – Yahya's favorite online tool for assistance with SEO. Show Notes provided by Mallard Creatives

EP 387: Restaurant Founder Hits $2m+ Revenue, Doubling Locations Aug 15, 2016

Show notes

EP 386: Hurdlr Saves You Tax Money, 10,000+ Users Aug 14, 2016

Show notes

Raj Bhaskar, CEO and cofounder of Hurdlr. Hurdlr is an online tool that helps freelancers and entrepreneurs track their income and taxes. It helps people save money by calculating deductions within seconds. Nathan and Raj will discuss the beginning of Hurdlr and where they are headed in the future. Famous Five:

Favorite Book? – The One Thing What CEO do you follow? — Gary Keller Favorite online tool? — Google Drive, Freshbooks Do you get 8 hours of sleep? — No. If you could let your 20 year old self know one thing, what would it be? — Don't be so serious.

Time Stamped Show Notes: 01:03 – Nathan introduces Raj 02:15 – VisualHOMES acquisition price 02:35 – Revenue model 03:10 – Using proceeds from that as an investor and for Hurdlr 03:25 – Hurdlr launched a couple years ago 03:40 – It tracks finances and taxes for freelancers 04:25 – Competitors 04:40 – "Like Mint but for business." 05:15 – Quick process compared to competitors 05:55 – They integrate with Freshbooks 06:20 – The business model 06:30 – They are currently pre-revenue 06:45 – Monthly or annual fee 07:10 – Other mobile solutions are different 07:40 – They have no desktop product 08:00 – Mobile is fast 08:30 – Founded 2.5 years ago 08:50 – Costs started in 2014 09:10 – Capital has been over $1.5 million 09:50 – 16 fulltime employees 10:25 – Usage metrics 10:45 – Mileage tracking 11:15 – Syncing with credit card 11:30 – Tens of thousands users, with 70% active once a month 12:00 – Pricing plan 12:20 – Simple and "part of the customer experience" 12:40 – "Pricing should bring a smile to your face." 13:00 – Referrals 13:15 – Tracking savings through deductions 13:40 – The option to continue paying a monthly fee 14:10 – hurdlr.com with real-time chat 16:15 -- The Famous Five

3 Key Points: Come up with a pricing model that you would feel comfortable paying. Find a niche that sets you apart. Use new technology to come up with helpful solutions.

Resources Mentioned: Host Gator – The site Nathan uses to buy his domain names and hosting for cheapest price possible. Freshbooks - The site Nathan uses to manage his invoices and accounts. Leadpages – The drag and drop tool Nathan uses to quickly create his webinar landing pages which convert at 35%+ Audible – Nathan uses Audible when he's driving from Austin to San Antonio (1.5 hour drive) to listen to audio books. Google Drive and Freshbooks -- Raj's favorite tools, besides Hurdlr Show Notes provided by Mallard Creatives

EP 385: 1,000's Pay Him $9/mo for Fitness Membership Site with Cory Gregory of Corygfitness.com Aug 13, 2016

Show notes

Cory Gregory, a fourth-generation coalminer who has made it to the top in the fitness industry. Cory has now developed his personal brand on his website where people can pay $8.99 per month to get his top workout plans and his daily articles and videos on how to get into incredible shape.

Famous Five:

Favorite Book? – Rich Dad Poor Dad What CEO do you follow? — Bill Phillips Favorite online tool? — Quickbooks Do you get 8 hours of sleep? — No. If you could let your 20 year old self know one thing, what would it be? — Have a strong strategy early.

Time Stamped Show Notes: 01:03 – Nathan introduces Cory 01:30 – Most money is in selling memberships and books on his internet business 02:00 -- $8.99/month membership 02:15 – Products in 100 countries 02:30 – Cofounder of MusclePharm 02:55 – Now a public company 03:15 – "A lot of Wall Street and a lot of boardrooms just really wasn't for me." 03:40 – Now owns 3% 04:00 – Went public in 2010 04:30 -- $40 million raised in capital 05:35 – "I learned a ton…. It changed my life forever." 05:50 – He left the business about 9 months ago. 06:20 – "That thing's bleeding cash." 06:35 – Cory was in the programming and products side 06:50 – Proper management was a downfall 07:20 – "It was a rise to the top." 07:40 -- $160 million in revenue 08:00 – Marketing was huge 08:40 -- Creating a personal brand 09:00 – "I feel blessed." 09:20 – First gym started for $5000 09:30 -- The Old School Gym 09:40 -- $100k in memberships 10:00 – Biggest expenses 10:40 – six-figures in profit 11:20 – Revenue is more than $100k 11:40 – MusclePharm started at 30 years old 11:55 – corygfitness.com 12:05 – five 4-week plans every month 12:30 – Articles and videos every day 13:00 – Thousands of people use his monthly plan 13:20 – The reason for his vagueness 14:10 – Total revenue was $34k in his first month for his personal brand 15:20 – "There is nobody on the planet who can say they have done what I've done." 16:20 – corygfitness.com, Snapchat, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram 16:40 – Business and Biceps podcast 19:00 -- The Famous Five

3 Key Points: Don't be confined to the environment you were raised in. Develop your personal brand. Find ways to make your service stand out.

Resources Mentioned: Host Gator – The site Nathan uses to buy his domain names and hosting for cheapest price possible. Freshbooks - The site Nathan uses to manage his invoices and accounts. Leadpages – The drag and drop tool Nathan uses to quickly create his webinar landing pages which convert at 35%+ Audible – Nathan uses Audible when he's driving from Austin to San Antonio (1.5 hour drive) to listen to audio books. Quickbooks -- Cory's favorite invoicing tool Business and Biceps – Cory's podcast Show Notes provided by Mallard Creatives

EP 384: $105k on 1 Facebook Live, The New Webinar with Carissa Hill Ep 384 Aug 12, 2016

Show notes

EP 383: Prospect.io $0 to $17k in MRR in 6 Months, 400 Customers Aug 11, 2016

Show notes

Vincenzo Ruggiero, founder of Prospect.io. Vincenzo has a wife and two children, with one born just days ago. With the chaos of a new baby, Vincenzo has still found a way to support himself and his family and manage a new and growing business.

Famous Five:

Favorite Book? – Getting Real, Rework What CEO do you follow? — Joel Gascoigne Favorite online tool? — Freshbooks, Slack, Trello, Appear Do you get 8 hours of sleep?—No If you could let your 20 year old self know one thing, what would it be? — Be humble.

Time Stamped Show Notes: 01:15 – Nathan introduces Vincenzo 01:40 – Prospect.io is a sales software 02:00 – Recurring revenue from monthly plans 02:20 – Launched in January 2016 02:40 – June revenue was $17k 03:15 – Customer pays more the more they use it 04:10 – Average is $45/month 04:30 – How they have driven customers 04:50 – word of mouth 05:50 – Different types of customers 06:20 – Self-funded 06:45 – Team of 3 07:30 – The system in Belgium makes Vincenzo the sole founder 08:00 – Vincenzo started with other web businesses before he started Prospect.io 09:10 – His family (two kids) 09:35 – How he supports himself 09:45 – He lives off of savings and a very low salary 11:10 – The company breaks even 11:30 – Growth each month 11:50 – How they got such fast growth 13:15 – Customer churn is 6% monthly 14:25 – Customer acquisition cost is $50 15:00 – Lifetime value is $570 15:30 -- @VincenzoR on Twitter 17:35 -- The Famous Five 3 Key Points: Plan out financially how you be able to afford to start a new business. Don't let your arrogance get in the way of your success. A success work life does not have to take away from a success home life. Resources Mentioned: Host Gator – The site Nathan uses to buy his domain names and hosting for cheapest price possible. Freshbooks - The site Nathan uses to manage his invoices and accounts. Leadpages – The drag and drop tool Nathan uses to quickly create his webinar landing pages which convert at 35%+ Audible – Nathan uses Audible when he's driving from Austin to San Antonio (1.5 hour drive) to listen to audio books. Slack, Trello, and Appear – Online tools that Vincenzo uses for his business

Show Notes provided by Mallard Creatives

EP 382: Virtually Place Furniture In House, $900k Raised with Andrew of Pair3d.com Aug 10, 2016

Show notes

Andrew Kemendo, founder of Pair. Andrew was in Guam as an Airforce Intelligence Officer when he came up with an augmented reality idea to try out furniture and materials without having to buy or ship anything. The Airforce needed to build new facilities, and Andrew thought his idea would save a lot of money and headache. Now his company Pair is used by several large manufacturers to help people find the right furniture for their homes.

Famous Five:

Favorite Book? – Crossing the Chasm What CEO do you follow? — Justin Kan Favorite online tool? — Slack Do you get 8 hours of sleep?—Never. If you could let your 20 year old self know one thing, what would it be? — Keep learning about paradigm shifting technologies.

Time Stamped Show Notes: 01:13 – Nathan introduces Andrew 01:40 – Pair is a tool to try out home furnishings before you buy them 02:30 – Free for consumers 02:45 – Andrew's experience in Guam and how he came up with Pair 03:45 – They started working with architects 04:10 – Launched fulltime in 2015 05:00 – Funding over $900k 05:20 – First-year revenue was $10000/month 06:20 – Pilots in big cities 06:30 – Monthy and up-front fees 07:15 – Revenue in 2016 07:50 – 15 manufacturers and over 2000 products 08:30 – Transition for the company 09:10 – Architects to home furnishers 10:20 – Larger adjustable market 10:40 – Projection for $1.5M 11:20 -- 20000 products placed each month by app users 12:15 – CPC and CPM 12:55 – Ability to scale 13:25 – Pair on Twitter and Facebook 13:45 -- @andrewkemendo on Twitter and andrewkdot on Snapchat 15:45 -- The Famous Five 3 Key Points: Embrace new technology to create a solution to a problem. Don't be afraid to change your business model to help your business grow. Adjust your product to benefit a larger group of consumers.

Resources Mentioned: Host Gator – The site Nathan uses to buy his domain names and hosting for cheapest price possible. Freshbooks - The site Nathan uses to manage his invoices and accounts. Leadpages – The drag and drop tool Nathan uses to quickly create his webinar landing pages which convert at 35%+ Audible – Nathan uses Audible when he's driving from Austin to San Antonio (1.5 hour drive) to listen to audio books. Slack – The online tool Andrew uses to stay organized at Pair

Show Notes provided by Mallard Creatives

EP 381: Make Beautiful Snaps With BlurBiz, $60k MRR Aug 09, 2016

Show notes

Timur Daudpota, cofounder of Blurbiz. His business allows companies to create and edit videos and post them directly to Snapchat. Listen to Timur share his journey as an entrepreneur. He started out with skateboards, and now he's jumped to Snapchat.

Famous Five:

Favorite Book? – Zero to One What CEO do you follow? — Elon Musk Favorite online tool? — Sketch Do you get 8 hours of sleep?—No If you could let your 20 year old self know one thing, what would it be? — Read more books.

Time Stamped Show Notes: 01:10 – Nathan introduces Timur 02:00 – Blurbiz is a SaaS platform 03:00 – They found a gap in Snapchat 03:35 – Customers can link their Snapchat account and post videos through Blurbiz 04:20 – Working with publishers 04:40 – They charge $2k to $5k per month 05:00 -- $60k in revenue last month 05:15 – Too early for churn 05:45 – Customer acquisition 06:20 – They pay themselves a $60k salary 06:35 – Fundraising is $425k total 07:15 – Valuation 08:20 – Team size is 8 08:30 – Commission based 09:45 – Based out of Mountain View 10:00 – Started with a skateboarding company 10:40 – Bringing back a classic skateboard design 11:00 – LED skateboard wheels 11:30 – Received prize money for their company 12:00 – Finding a better way to sell 12:20 – They connected their product with social media and sales jumped 13:00 – Equity for Blurbiz 13:45 – Follow Blurbiz on Snapchat 14:00 – 20000 views for every post on Snapchat 16:40 -- The Famous Five 3 Key Points: Constantly find ways to improve your business. If you find a gap in a certain company or industry, fill it. Once an entrepreneur, always an entrepreneur.

Resources Mentioned: Host Gator – The site Nathan uses to buy his domain names and hosting for cheapest price possible. Freshbooks - The site Nathan uses to manage his invoices and accounts. Leadpages – The drag and drop tool Nathan uses to quickly create his webinar landing pages which convert at 35%+ Audible – Nathan uses Audible when he's driving from Austin to San Antonio (1.5 hour drive) to listen to audio books. Sketch – Timur's favorite online tool Show Notes provided by Mallard Creatives

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