Archive 4: 2020-2023
996: Leduc Entertainment: Transform Your Business’ Online Presence Through Social Marketing with Armando Leduc
Harnessing the power of social media for marketing can significantly boost your business by expanding brand visibility and reaching a broader audience. Engaging content on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter not only enhances customer interaction but also cultivates a loyal online community. Utilizing targeted ads and strategic campaigns on social platforms allows businesses to connect with potential customers, build brand authority, and ultimately drive sales growth.
Armando Leduc is the Social Marketing King and host of Spaghetti on the Wall Podcast. Specializing in lead generation, client acquisition, and revenue growth, Armando transforms your online presence. With a focus on social media content, he crafts strategies to make you shine, positioning you as an expert in your field. Today, Armando will discuss how you can elevate your brand across platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and YouTube. Stay tuned!
Quotes
“Why not treat your life like a symphony, with the different aspects working together in harmony?” - Armando Leduc
"Your personal journey and who you are as a person define who you are as a business. Why you started your business reflects who you are, and your business is an extension of you." - Armando Leduc
“All you have is right now. Start enjoying your life—live in the game, not in the gap.” - Armando Leduc
Takeaways
02:48 Aligning your personal and business brand on social media can help you attract the right clients and build a successful business.
07:33 Focusing on helping and inspiring others, rather than just personal branding, can lead to more authentic and effective content creation.
10:25 Understanding your personality type and working style can help you identify the right team members to support your content creation efforts.
17:53 Consistency and a long-term mindset are key to building a successful podcast that can generate significant business opportunities.
23:28 Being kinder to yourself and living in the present moment can lead to a more fulfilling and harmonious life.
Resources
- Leduc Entertainment: Create and Profit from Your Personal Brand
- Armando Leduc on Facebook
- Armando Leduc on Linkedin
- Spaghetti on the Wall Podcast with Armando Leduc on Apple Podcasts
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995: Kuware: Thrive as a Local Service Business with Avi Kumar
Do you have a local business? Do you want it to grow? Perhaps you are struggling to keep your business floating since customers don’t always come. If you don’t take action, nothing will happen to develop your business. As such, begin to level up your local service business through ads. Put your business out there, let the people find you, and provide service to your customers. Additionally, with the help of Kuware, setting up your digital marketing strategy will now be more suitable for your optimal growth.
Avi Kumar is the CEO of Kuware, a company helping local service businesses and the agencies that serve them create and implement science-based marketing strategies. They specialize in digital marketing unique to your market and budget. In today’s episode, Avi shares his knowledge about utilizing digital marketing to enhance the growth of local service businesses, SEO strategies, business growth through acquisition and synergy, and finding the right mentor.
Quotes
“As you grow, your margins need to grow too. If your margins don’t increase as you scale, you won’t have the funds to support that growth. Competition intensifies, and the pool of opportunities becomes harder to capture since there are only so many searches happening at any given time.” - Avi Kumar
"Websites aren’t ideal for paid ads—you need a dedicated landing page where visitors have a focused experience and can’t easily navigate away." - Avi Kumar
“Instead of seeking an aspirational mentor, try finding more pragmatic mentors who are only a few steps ahead of you, rather than someone who’s 100 steps ahead. You can get so much farther that way.” - Avi Kumar
Takeaways
00:37 Efficient ad spending is crucial for local service businesses, as they require a high margin to spend money on ads.
03:25 Optimizing Google ads for local businesses can deliver leads within a set budget, but the cost per lead will increase as the business grows.
10:06 Focusing on landing pages over websites can significantly improve conversion rates for local service businesses.
15:34 Understanding the margins and ad performance of a local service business is key to making informed marketing decisions.
18:09 Acquiring and integrating synergistic businesses can lead to additional value and growth.
Resources
- Kuware: Austin TX, Digital Marketing & Advertising Agency
- Avi Kumar on Facebook
- Avi Kumar on LinkedIn
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 26:54 — 37.1MB) | Embed
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994: SellCord and Engaging: Sell E-Commerce on Amazon and Walmart with Michael Lebhar
E-commerce and optimization strategies go hand in hand in the digital marketplace. To succeed in the highly competitive world of online retail, businesses must continuously refine their approach. A well-executed optimization strategy is crucial for attracting customers, boosting sales, and staying ahead in the ever-evolving world of e-commerce.
Michael Lebhar is the CMO, co-founder of Engaging.ai, and the CEO of SellCord. Michael launched his Amazon business at 16 with a $500 investment, eventually achieving seven-figure annual sales. He realized that while Amazon is a game-changing platform for brand discovery, many sellers lack the necessary infrastructure for long-term success. Today, Michael will delve into his insights on optimizing e-commerce strategies for sustainable growth and success in the digital marketplace. Stay tuned!
Quotes
“The only company that could potentially be a real contender to Amazon is Walmart. They have the money to do it, and they're investing in making it happen.” - Michael Lebhar
"Walmart Marketplace could be a good channel for brands. Based on that, there are different ways brands may want to approach selling on the marketplace and deciding how to go about it." - Michael Lebhar
“There's so much to do, and if you really put in the focus, put your head down, and outwork everybody, it's going to pay off. It starts piling up and multiplying.” - Michael Lebhar
Takeaways
01:52 Walmart's marketplace offers significant opportunities for brands, but requires a tailored approach compared to other platforms like Amazon.
02:58 Walmart is investing heavily in its ecommerce platform and has the potential to be a major competitor to Amazon.
11:26 Optimizing listings and leveraging Walmart's provided tools and resources is crucial for success on their platform.
15:40 Building strong relationships and partnerships can be a key driver of growth and scaling for ecommerce businesses.
19:30 Thinking creatively and being willing to put in extensive effort are important entrepreneurial traits for success.
Resources
- Sellcord: The Walmart Marketplace Experts
- Engaging AI: Effortlessly Develop and Launch Scalable Enterprise Chatbots, and more!
- Michael Lebhar on Facebook
- Michael Lebhar on Linkedin
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 20:43 — 28.6MB) | Embed
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993: Awarity: Transform the Advertising Game through Awarity with Aditya Varanasi
Move beyond the misconception that successful marketing equals immediate results. Effective advertising is a journey, planting seeds of influence and guiding customers from awareness to purchase. The key lies in simplicity, meeting customers where they are, being patient in nurturing relationships, and ensuring that the creative message resonates and leads to long-term growth.
Aditya Varanasi is the CEO and Founder of Awarity, a platform that disrupts the advertising industry by making world-class marketing more affordable and sustainable for up-and-coming companies. Listen as Aditya discusses the innovative strategies and transformative potential of Awarity, as well as the ever-evolving landscape of advertising and the power of cost-effective marketing solutions for emerging businesses. Don't miss this knowledgeable episode!
Quotes
“Advertising is all about human influence. But it's not just about pushing someone to do something; it's about presenting the right people with a proposition that brings them value in some shape or form.” - Aditya Varanasi
"If it was as easy as turning on a switch and then growing your business, everyone would be able to use it to grow. There are a whole host of factors that ultimately lead to a purchase." - Aditya Varanasi
“The greatest thing about capitalism is that you can make one plus one equal three, or one plus one equal eleven. The way we try to embody that is by setting up win-wins.” - Aditya Varanasi
Takeaways
14:38 Patience and persistence are key in marketing and advertising - success is not achieved overnight. Simplifying marketing strategies and focusing on building awareness and relationships with customers is more effective than trying to convey too much information upfront.
16:43 Embracing the challenges of entrepreneurship and seeking support networks can help overcome mental health hurdles.
21:13 Businesses with a proven sales process can benefit from Awarity's marketing services to expand their customer base affordably.
23:51 Adopting a growth abundance mindset and creating win-win situations is crucial for long-term business success.
Resources
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 25:30 — 35.2MB) | Embed
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992: Sphere Rocket Virtual Assistants: Boost Efficiency and Productivity Using Real Estate VA’s with Justin Nelson
As the industry evolves, embracing virtual assistants has proven to be a strategic move that improves productivity and enhances the overall customer experience in the highly competitive world of real estate.
Justin Nelson is the Entrepreneur, Leader, and CEO of Sphere Rocket VA, a platform dedicated to helping all industries learn and harness the power of a virtual assistant from start to finish. Tune in as Justin shares his insights on effectively integrating virtual assistants into your business, maximizing their potential, and achieving newfound levels of productivity and efficiency.
Quotes
“Whatever is going to happen is going to happen. When you increase the amount of communication, it just reveals these problems ahead of time.” - Justin Nelson
"The world has really shortened its gap, where I can invite my virtual assistant to jump on here, and there's no more gap." - Justin Nelson
“There’s no such thing as business problems, only personal problems that affect your business.” - Justin Nelson
Takeaways
03:49 Capitalizing on virtual assistants can help real estate agents overcome the challenges of success and regain their time and organization.
09:07 Consistent communication and customer service, even through simple monthly check-in calls, can significantly improve tenant/client satisfaction and uncover issues early.
14:35 Mapping out the client journey and delegating repetitive tasks to virtual assistants can increase overall productivity and lead generation.
22:04 Hiring virtual assistants can be a low-risk way to experiment with gaining leverage and addressing personal issues that affect the business.
25:16 There are no "business problems," only personal problems that impact the business, which is why addressing one's own mindset and confidence is crucial for success.
Resources
- Sphere Rocket Virtual Assistant: Where Your Dream Job Awaits!
- Justin Nelson on Facebook
- Justin Nelson on LinkedIn
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 26:59 — 37.2MB) | Embed
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991: Guest Experts on Air: Elevate Your Online Presence Through Interview-Based Podcast Guesting with Josef Schinwald
In today's dynamic landscape, expanding your practice and reaching a broader audience is very important. Among the vast number of podcasts, a substantial portion is interview-based, yet only a few consistently deliver high-quality content. If you're considering podcast guesting to elevate your marketing strategy, securing appearances on top-tier podcasts is crucial; however, managing this process can be very time-consuming.
Josef Schinwald is the founder of Guest Experts on Air, a service that helps experts, thought leaders, and solopreneurs get booked on podcasts to share their message with a wider audience. As a podcast booking specialist, Josef uses his expertise to connect his clients with the right podcast hosts and ensure a successful guest appearance. Today, Josef discusses the power of podcasting as a marketing strategy, particularly for solopreneurs and those looking to establish themselves as authorities in their field.
Quotes
“Your brain has to become more powerful, and so does your heart. The brain is connected with the heart, and if you see them as separate, that’s not what people truly want.” - Josef Schinwald
"Marketing is an investment, and everything else in your business is an expense." - Josef Schinwald
“The first most important thing in a business is to create a customer.” - Josef Schinwald
Takeaways
01:19 Podcasting is a powerful marketing strategy for solopreneurs and thought leaders to share their expertise and reach a wider audience.
03:11 Adapting to new technologies like AI can enhance one's approach to marketing and guest appearances, but the human element is still crucial.
14:57 Persistence and a willingness to take imperfect action are important when starting a podcast guest appearance strategy.
27:36 Measuring and tracking marketing efforts is key to managing a successful business.
28:39 Building genuine connections with podcast hosts can lead to valuable opportunities and collaborations.
Resources
- Guest Experts On Air: Jazz Up Your Marketing with Podcast Appearances
- Josef Schinwald on Facebook
- Josef Schinwald on LinkedIn
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:38 — 42.3MB) | Embed
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990: The Power of Playing Offense and Making Better Decisions Faster: Unlock Leadership Excellence with Paul Epstein
Making confident decisions is important in mastering various aspects of life. When confronted with a difficult choice, overcoming self-doubt becomes essential to avoid being paralyzed by uncertainty. Stress and anxiety often accompany these pivotal moments, but acknowledging them and developing resilience can lead to better decision-making. Ultimately, navigating through uncertainties with a confident mindset allows one to shape their path and achieve personal growth.
Paul Epstein is a former professional sports executive who has spent nearly 15 years working for multiple NFL teams. He is also known as the "Why Coach" and has written a books like “Better Decisions Faster: Unshakable Confidence When You Need It Most” and "The Power of Playing Offense: A Leader's Playbook for Personal and Team Transformation." Today, Paul talks about his "Win Monday" concept, which aims to help people overcome self-doubt, stress, and anxiety to start the week with intention and purpose. He believes that winning Mondays and separating from the rest of the week can lead to success and momentum.
Quotes
"It's about the decisions we make and the actions we take. Show me the quality of your decisions, and I’ll show you the quality of your life." - Paul Epstein
“Don’t think of confidence as a light switch that’s either on or off. That’s the wrong mindset. The right mindset is to see confidence as a dimmer switch: plus one, plus two, minus one, plus three. Dimmer switches aren’t just on or off, and your confidence works the same way.” - Paul Epstein
“The two most important days of your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.” - Paul Epstein
Takeaways
02:23 Winning Mondays and separating from the rest of the week can lead to success and momentum.
07:14 Making better decisions involves aligning one's head (logic) and heart (emotion) before taking action.
22:28 Consistent action on one's core values is the key to building unshakable confidence.
23:08 Journaling exercises can help form habits and boost confidence by aligning actions with personal values.
29:43 Finding one's "why" can be a powerful tool for increasing confidence and personal growth.
Resources
- Paul Epstien Speaks: Mission-Driven, Momentum-Builder, Monday-Obsessed
- Paul Epstein On Facebook
- Paul Epstein on LinkedIn
- The Power of Playing Offense: A Leader's Playbook for Personal and Team Transformation on Amazon
- Better Decisions Faster: Unshakable Confidence When You Need It Most by Paul Epstein on Amazon
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:18 — 41.8MB) | Embed
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989: FigPii: A/B Testing Can Skyrocket Your Online Sales with Khalid Saleh
Increasing online sales with A/B testing offers several distinct advantages for businesses. It provides a data-driven approach, allowing companies to make informed decisions based on real user interactions rather than assumptions. This method helps in identifying and refining the elements that contribute most to conversions, optimizing the overall user experience. A/B testing also enables businesses to adapt quickly to changing market dynamics, ensuring that their online sales strategies remain effective and competitive over time.
Khalid Saleh is the founder of FigPii, a user insights platform that helps improve website conversion rates through A/B testing and experimentation and the author of “Conversion Optimization: The Art and Science of Converting Prospects.” Today, Khalid explains the importance of split testing and A/B testing for website optimization. He shares his personal experiences in the industry, including the challenges he faced when Google discontinued their Website Optimizer tool, leading to the creation of FigPii. Khalid also talks about the benefits of A/B testing, the humbling nature of the process, and the importance of testing and learning from user behavior rather than relying on assumptions.
Quotes
"Learn to crawl before you walk, learn to walk before you run." - Khalid Saleh
“Don't start with big tests. Because some of those big tests are complicated.” - Khalid Saleh
“My business would have been a lot more successful if I didn’t need to make the perfect decisions. I just needed to make fewer stupid ones.” - Khalid Saleh
Takeaways
14:39 Starting small with A/B testing and gradually expanding is more effective than attempting to overhaul a website's design all at once.
16:40 Regularly discussing and prioritizing testing ideas, as done by GoDaddy's CEO, can foster a culture of experimentation and continuous improvement.
18:55 Embracing the humbling nature of A/B testing and being open to surprising results can lead to significant improvements in website conversion rates.
21:37 Hiring the right people and understanding cultural differences is a significant challenge for entrepreneurs, but learning from mistakes is crucial for growth.
25:38 The book "The Road Less Stupid" by Keith Cunningham is highly recommended for entrepreneurs, as it provides valuable lessons on avoiding "stupid" decisions and fostering introspection.
Resources
- FigPii: The All-In-One Conversion Rate Optimization Platform
- Khalid Saleh on Linkedin
- Conversion Optimization: The Art and Science of Converting Prospects to Customers by Khalid Saleh & Ayat Shukairy on Amazon
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 27:24 — 37.8MB) | Embed
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988: The New Manager Mindset and Food Leadership Group: Keep Customers Happy By Balancing Cost, Quality, and Feedback with Bryan Armentrout
Food is one of the essential things humans need to live. With high-quality and safe food, you can never go wrong in doing a food business. However, with challenges such as inflation, companies cut the cost of their expenses, impacting the quality of their food. And if the product does not make consumers happy, they won’t buy it, and the sales will decrease. Therefore, finding the right balance of the cost without impacting the quality is the key. No matter what happens, prioritize the joy of the people consuming your products.
Bryan Armentrout is a 20-year veteran of the food manufacturing industry. He is the founder of The Food Leadership Group, a consulting firm that specializes in helping FDA-regulated food companies produce safe and high-quality food products and the author of “The New Manager Mindset.” Today, Bryan shares his thoughts on the food industry, discussing the importance of quality assurance and food safety. He explains how his work in these areas is like ensuring that a cup of coffee is safe to drink, with quality assurance ensuring the consumer's expectations are met and food safety preventing any potential harm.
Quotes
"If we do our job well, nobody notices because you don't have recalls, you don't have illness events and things like this." - Bryan Armentrout
“The more successful you become, the more removed you become from those actual technical skills that you used to get there.” - Bryan Armentrout
“Do you like where you're going? Because it's your life, you need to figure out where you want to take it.” - Bryan Armentrout
Takeaways
01:13 Maintaining high quality and safety standards in the food industry is crucial, even when it goes unnoticed by consumers.
21:30 Staying connected to consumer needs and expectations is essential for companies to avoid gradual decline in product quality.
16:47 Making use of AI and continuous monitoring can significantly improve food safety and quality assurance practices in the industry.
21:30 Developing strong communication and leadership skills is just as important as technical expertise for career advancement in specialized fields.
25:43 Regularly reflecting on personal accomplishments and goals can help guide one's professional and life path.
Resources
- The Food Leadership Group: Food Safety and Quality Assurance Consulting
- Bryan Armentrout on Linkedin
- The New Manager Mindset: How to Master the Four Secrets of Leadership that College Doesn't Teach You by Bryan Armentrout on Audible
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987: Qry E-Commerce Marketing Agency: Level Up Your Ecommerce Business with Samir Balwani
During the pandemic, online products and services skyrocketed, rewarding e-commerce business greatly. But as we transition back to normal, consumer spending habits have changed, and if businesses don’t take action accordingly, they will lose. So to address the problem, businesses need to avoid focusing too much on trends, but rather see the picture as a whole and how people will need their product. Properly using the power of social media is also a way to continue the growth of businesses.
Samir Balwani is the CEO and founder of QRY, an e-commerce marketing agency that specializes in scaling brands, and the podcast host of “Ecom Experiences.” In this episode, Samir discusses the current state of the e-commerce industry, focusing on the challenges and opportunities it presents. He stresses the importance of measuring campaign results and taking a holistic, brand-focused approach to marketing. He also shares his thoughts on balancing action and deliberation, the relationship between money and time in business, and the value of building a passionate community around a brand.
Quotes
"It's not enough to just think—you have to take action on it. But you also have to remember that action costs money, and actually doing things means you're taking a risk." - Samir Balwani
“Transitioning your brand and product from a ‘nice to have’ to a ‘need to have’ for some segment is absolutely the most important thing if you want to continue to grow.” - Samir Balwani
“The best brands are the ones that are always excited. The best business owners and entrepreneurs are those who are always eager to learn something new and challenge the status quo.” - Samir Balwani
Takeaways
04:03 Balancing action and deliberation is crucial in e-commerce, as making too many quick decisions can be costly.
07:02 Investing money can accelerate growth, but understanding the right time and direction to scale is essential.
10:41 Building a passionate community around a brand is key to driving long-term growth and resilience.
14:29 Clearly understanding the problem a business solves for its customers is the foundation for effective marketing.
21:05 Embracing curiosity, experimentation, and challenging the status quo are hallmarks of successful e-commerce brands.
Resources
- QRY: Strategic Media Agency for Consumer Brands
- Samir Balwani on LinkedIn
- Ecom Experiences Podcast with Samir Balwani on Spotify Podcasts
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 22:17 — 30.8MB) | Embed
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