BiggerPockets Business Podcast

Successful business owners are addicted to building businesses, sometimes to their folly. For someone like Codie Sanchez, this isn’t a problem, but a superpower. Codie is a journalist, a venture capital partner, an angel investor, and an entrepreneur. She loves, as she puts it, “building herself out of a job”, which means creating businesses with huge potential, getting a team in place, and heading on to better things. Now, managing many millions of dollars, she has to look into which businesses are worth capital investments. Codie often advises business owners to act out of confidence, not fear, and consistently hire people that are better at their jobs than them. She places a very high value on having employees and workers who are competent and can help the team grow (as any smart business owner should). Codie mentions the most profitable skill of today and how she’s using that specific skill to grow her newsletter, Contrarian Thinking. She argues that in today’s society, the top level of hierarchies for time freedom and ideological freedom is financial freedom. If you can decide what you do, where you do it from, what you can and can’t say, and how to live your life, you have the ultimate freedom available. This episode delves not only into the life of a VC, but how small businesses can keep their loyal customers, grow their audiences, and repel those who aren’t a good fit for them. Regardless of the size of business you have, Codie presents great arguments for everyone about developing yourself, your business, and your mindset. In This Episode We Cover Laying the foundation of businesses and “building yourself out of a job” How to extract yourself from your business and empower long-term success Contrarian thinking and why it’s a crucial skill in today’s society How to start a “high margin, low people” business The one skill you should start building upon today How to make your audience loyal and push away those who won’t like your offering And So Much More! Links from the Show BiggerPockets Forums Entourage Effect Capital Contrarian Thinking Playbook Check the full show notes here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/bizshow105 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What does it mean to be credible? Are you showing up and providing for your customers, your partners, and the world as a whole? These are questions that today’s guest, Mitchell Levy has been asking. Mitchell is an expert on credibility and is trying to make not only business, but the world a more credible place to live and work. Mitchell has been working in Silicon Valley for over 30 years. When he left his last job at Sun Microsystems, he did right at the cusp of the dot com and ecommerce era. He became an e-commerce consultant and started selling SEO packages. Then he created executive business programs for top colleges, ran multiple CEO groups, started a publishing company, and wrote over 60 books! To find clarity and credibility, Mitchell says that you need to find a customer's CPoP, the customer’s point of pain. When you can accurately find your customer’s CPoP, you can change the way you speak to them, you can see what they want, and most importantly, you can tailor your business to fit their needs. This type of credibility goes beyond just your business. You should also be known as credible within your circle of influence and online, Mitch shows you how to get there! In This Episode We Cover Why credibility is so important in today’s day and age Knowing who your audience is so you can solve their problems Finding your customer’s point of pain Making the world a better place through credible business How to make your online presence and LinkedIn stand out And So Much More! Links from the Show BiggerPockets Forums Clubhouse BEing Seen & BEing Heard as a Thought Leader! Ted TalkX EZNow Thinkific Linkedin J's Linkedin Profile Check the full show notes here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/bizshow103 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We buy and sell a lot of different assets like houses, stocks, and even bitcoin (sometimes). But what about buying and selling businesses? Business acquisitions can seem like an entirely different world, but they aren’t too different from the regular buying and selling of assets we do every day. Today’s show features Nigel Guisinger, who you may remember from the wildly popular episode that aired almost exactly a year ago. Last time Nigel talked about buying businesses using seller financing, and now he’s brought a real-world example! With Nigel is his partner and mentee, Sean Ade. Earlier in 2020, Sean was looking for a business he could buy and take over. Sean had been getting into house plants during the early COVID-19 lockdowns and looked to see if nurseries were worth buying. After sending some lackluster deals to his partner, Nigel, he was notified that a terrarium shop was closing. Sean consulted with the owner and sent the profit and loss statement to Nigel who confirmed that it was a winner Sean and Nigel used some very creative financing to get a $1,500,000 business under contract for just $10,000 out of pocket. This episode isn’t just an eye-opener for those who overlook buying businesses as assets, but also for those who don’t know what's possible in financing a business purchase! In This Episode We Cover The opportunity of the “business crash” happening right now Looking for businesses that fit with your interests The importance of having cash flow from day one of ownership Profit and loss statements, equity, and valuations of businesses Small Business Administration (SBA) loans When and how to hire your first employee after you buy an existing business And So Much More! Links from the Show BiggerPockets Business Podcast 51: Business Opportunity Is Knocking… Answer the Door! With Nigel Guisinger GoBundance BizBuySell Venmo Paypal Square Instagram Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow101 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Data can be a confusing topic for most people, but what about when it has to do with your business? How is your business using data? Are you even using data at all? Dr. John Johnson, expert witness, professor, and founder of Edgeworth Economics and Edgeworth Analytics argues for businesses using data to grow. Dr. Johnson understands why so many people fall victim to studies and findings that may not be entirely accurate. He talks through confirmation bias and how we, as consumers, can find the red flags when listening to interpretations of data. We are urged to take time to think before we accept statistics and data as fact. He also dives into how he started his own firms, Edgeworth Economics and Edgeworth Analytics, and how he himself uses data to track his firm’s growth, recruiting, and revenue. Often, his firm is hired to find why a product or group of products is or isn’t selling, which strategies make the most profitable sense, and how a business can change to ensure more sales. Aside from that, Dr. Johnson also acts as an expert witness in corporate lawsuits, sifting through the data to find out what is really true, and what has been inflated. There’s no mistaking that data is important for modern businesses, but what’s more important is how you use and interpret this data to come up with accurate conclusions. His book, Everydata: The Misinformation Hidden in the Little Data You Consume Every Day goes into the data all around us, and how we can sift through it to find truth. In This Episode We Cover The expert witness and testimony field Checking your own bias and making sure your decisions are based on accurate data Understanding the context around the data that is being recorded Tracking growth and recruiting so you know where you’re succeeding Using common sense when looking at different data points And So Much More! Links from the Show Edgeworth Economics Edgeworth Analytics The Data Blueprint For the Business Podcast Listeners Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow99 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rocky Lalvani came to the United States as a small child. Like many immigrants, Rocky’s parents arrived with a small amount of money, around $25. As hard workers, they were consistently talking to their friends and relatives about how to make more money so they could have the coveted “American Dream”. This is how Rocky started his education in money and finances, and what pushed him to become wealthy. Now, Rocky teaches businesses and entrepreneurs the Profit First system, which is exactly what it sounds like. A business usually calculates profits as sales - expenses = profits. Rocky argues that this is an inefficient way to see your true profit, and what the actual calculation should be is sales - profit = expenses. You may be asking how to minimize expenses so the above formula can work. The solution to this isn’t that you need to manipulate the numbers so your expenses equal the difference between your sales and your profit, but that you need to minimize your expenses when possible. But what about fixed costs? What about startup costs? As Rocky puts it, you need to have a customer before you start having expenses, something businesses rarely realize is not only possible, but profitable. Rocky also goes into his #1 tip for accumulating wealth and dives deep into why the phrase “the rich get richer” tends to be true. He also goes into how businesses can allocate their profits correctly, have the accurate amount for taxes, and pay themselves first so they’re making money while their money makes money! In This Episode We Cover: How Rocky became a millionaire through compound interest What the Profit First system does for businesses and entrepreneurs Harnessing the 40% of your work that creates most of your profit Dismissing the notion that you need to spend more to grow How real estate investors can use Profit First in their businesses Setting up separate bank accounts and allocating your money And So Much More! Links from the Show Dave Ramsey Home Depot BiggerPockets Business Podcast 06: How to Manage Your Time Like a Millionaire With Jay Papasan BiggerPockets Business Podcast 30: How to Guarantee Profit From Day 1 with Mike Michalowicz Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow97 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Building businesses from the ground up isn’t easy. It requires patience, hard work, and most importantly, a solid team. Without trust in that team, the product, the company, and the vision can completely disintegrate. When a team flourishes, you can create a massive success, where everybody wins. Tucker Merrihew and Elliot Smith have been working throughout the past year on Call Magic, a service that helps uncover leads for real estate agents, wholesalers, flippers, and other real estate professionals. Elliot originally teamed up with Cole Ruud-Johnson (who you’ll hear on our Real Estate Podcast, very soon), and everything was running well, but they realized they needed a leader. After Elliot talked to Tucker about the project, Tucker was in. There was just one contingency: the product and the company had to be the best of the best. The three partners agreed to put their all into it, and respect each other’s work. Cole already had experience running an outsourced cold calling team, Elliot had years and years worth of real estate experience under his belt, and Tucker had the Real Dealz Podcast audience at his disposal. Elliot and Tucker walk through setting up your business and your team for success, what to worry about and what to hold off on, hiring team members from overseas, and growing a business to scale, not fail. In This Episode We Cover: What to look for in a business partner/what to look for in an existing partnership How to “dummy proof” your business Managing, paying, and hiring workers that are overseas How to have better cold call conversations that secure leads Setting out to become the best of the best in your industry Trusting your partners and letting them show their strengths when working together And So Much More! Links from the Show BiggerPockets Real Estate Show BiggerPockets Podcast 381: 5 Rules for Investing in a Down Market with Tucker Merrihew Marketing Machines, Spec Houses, Flipping & Wholesaling | Podcast BiggerPockets Podcast 255: Six-Figure Real Estate Investing in Just 20 Hours a Week with Elliot Smith BiggerPockets Podcast 394: Making a 25 Deal/Year Business (and Marriage) Work… Together! with Elliot and Chrissy Smith Apple Tesla Check the full show notes here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/bizshow95 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An author, a CTO, and a champion ballroom dancer walk into a podcast...it’s Mark Herschberg! Mark is a man of many talents, graduating from MIT, becoming a champion in ballroom dancing, and later becoming a COO and CTO for multiple startups. How does someone do it all, and do it all so well? After college, Mark was working in computer science and began having to hire new team members on board for the companies he worked at. He realized that many new hires had technical skills, but didn’t have skills that correlated to becoming better leaders or teammates. Mark saw that there was a whole realm of soft skills that weren’t being taught to graduates coming into the workforce. So he partnered up with MIT to develop a course on acquiring these skills and became a lecturer. He’s been teaching this material for the past two decades! As the classes went on, Mark decided to write some notes that every student would be able to use throughout the class. After writing close to 100 pages, Mark realized that this wasn’t just a set of notes, this was a full-on book. This became The Career Toolkit and taught Mark not only how to write, but the challenges of publishing and marketing a book. If you’re a solo entrepreneur, a CEO of a startup, regular employee, or still looking for career opportunities, Mark advises that you create a career plan, outlining what your life, career, and future will look like. How can you accomplish the goals you’ve set and what do you have to do to put yourself in a beneficial position? Maybe you’re shy or introverted and find it hard to talk to partners, maybe you want to know how to network in a post-COVID world, or maybe you want to know how to manage teams and lead a company to optimum efficiency and employee satisfaction. Mark does a fantastic job of answering these questions and more in a succinct and relatable way. In This Episode We Cover: Developing your soft skills like leadership and teamwork The skills all entrepreneurial endeavors require Why you need to stop treating your 1000th customer like your 1st customer Creating a career plan (regardless of if you work in corporate or work for yourself) Building your network and creating reciprocal benefits Networking in a digital age and why you should always have business cards on you And So Much More! Links from the Show Cognosco Media Resources LinkedIn Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow93 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you’re a new entrepreneur, it may seem like a dream to sell a business for millions of dollars. People like Chris Younger, make that dream a reality. Chris founded Class VI Partners, an investment bank that helps entrepreneurs plan and prepare businesses for sale. Chris will be the first to admit that selling isn’t an easy process, it takes time, patience, and a lot of documentation. Chris compares selling your business to running a marathon: you need to be in it for the long haul to finish strong. He helps owners reach a price point that works for their future, and helps create the processes around selling that enable a new owner to carry the business to new heights. For many owners, success in selling comes from doing the hard work upfront, not putting it off for your future self (and employees) to deal with. So why would an entrepreneur want to sell? Maybe it's personal timing and they feel like they’ve given the business as much as they possibly can. It also could be business timing, the business may be seeking a new change in direction. Or it could be buying timing, a buyer comes in with the right offer, the right ability, and makes the sale. Whatever a reason for selling a business, a business owner needs to be prepared for their business to sell at some point. So even if you’re just starting out, hearing words of wisdom from Chris may net you a few more million dollars! Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow91 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For the first episode of 2021 we have David Greene from the BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast! We’ve heard from David before on a couple of past episodes, but today he goes over something a bit different: how he successfully scaled his real estate business from being a sole agent to a team doing $90,000,000+ in transactions a year! This didn’t happen overnight. It took David years of trial and error to find out what really works in real estate, why most agents fizzle out in the first 5 years, and how to bounce his team members off of each other to generate more sales and higher commissions. David has strategies and advice not only for real estate agents, but also for business owners that want to build a business that has the ability to scale. In 2019 David’s team did $26,000,000 in transactions, in 2020 they did $90,000,000 and in 2021 they’re planning to hit $150,000,000. We’re sure David will fly past that milestone as well! You’ll hear why David became an agent in the first place, why marketing is key to real estate (and almost every other business), how to gauge motivation from clients and prioritize accordingly, and some lead generation strategies David’s team uses. Real estate agent or not, this is some great information that big and small businesses can take to heart and put into practice right away! In This Episode We Cover: Why you should read David’s new book, Sold! The difference between an average agent and a great agent Why 87% of agents are out of the business within 5 years How to market your products and services Top lead generation strategies for real estate agents Understanding your skills/weaknesses so you can build a team to compensate for them The importance of “baseline adjustments” when talking to clients Why a W2 mindset doesn’t work in a 1099 career And So Much More! Links from the Show BiggerPockets Business Podcast 20: The Questions You MUST Ask Every Potential Hire with David Greene BiggerPockets Business Podcast 88: What’s Your Special “Cut”? Why Brandon Turner and David Greene Doubled Down on Theirs in 2020 BiggerPockets Podcast BiggerPockets New Books GoBundance Keller Williams Coldwell Banker BiggerPockets Forums Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow89 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You hear the word “franchising”, what’s the first thing you think of? For many people, they think of selling hamburgers, sandwiches, or opening up convenient stores. To franchise matchmaker and consultant Jon Ostenson, that’s just the surface level. There is a whole world of franchising that many entrepreneurs and business professionals don’t know about. Jon started out working in consulting for Fortune 1000 companies and was slowly introduced to the concept of franchising. Jon found franchising incredibly interesting, as a cross between new business ownership and existing systems/infrastructure. The business model purely made sense. Now as the CEO of Franbridge Capital, he works with entrepreneurs and franchise owners as a matchmaker, seeing who would work best with which franchise, and vice versa. Jon walks through some of the key benefits of franchising that other business models don’t have, and some of the dangers for interested entrepreneurs. He also goes through the different franchise business models and some franchise examples that you may have never thought of. How much risk is in franchising? Does franchising produce better ROI than other businesses (even real estate)? What are the opportunities in 2021 for franchising? Hearing Jon’s answers may present a whole new world you never knew about, and might even get the ball rolling for you to become a partner in a franchise yourself! In This Episode We Cover: The different types of franchising businesses The key benefits of running a franchise The dangers of franchising that entrepreneurs should know What type of profit margins you can make with franchising How territories work when buying into a franchise Taking over an existing franchise or starting a new one yourself How to fund franchises (even with retirement accounts!) The industries where franchises could be taking off in 2021 And So Much More! Links from the Show BiggerPockets Subway Entrepreneur's Organization Check the full show notes here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/bizshow87 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

No business has had a tougher time this year than physical-based businesses, and that is certainly the case for our guest, Ralphie Martinez. Ralphie owns Martinez Elite Fitness in Northern California, and was just reaching his business’s peak when COVID-19 started to spread, rendering his business closed until further notice. Ralphie is the definition of someone with an entrepreneur’s mentality. He was working a 9-5 job when he opened up his garage gym for friends to work out in. Friends would invite other friends, and before he knew it, he was teaching a class before going to his full time job, then coming home and teaching two more classes. Like so many entrepreneurs, Ralphie turned his passion into something that not only helped other people, but made money. For the past 6 years, Martinez Elite Fitness has been a local success, gaining more and more members every year. Even in an unprecedented time like 2020, Ralphie has found ways to keep his business going, regardless of shutdowns, curfews, and other roadblocks. Having a positive attitude, the support of his partner and family, and a strong community has helped him and his business stay fighting. In This Episode We Cover: How to harness your passion and turn it into a business The importance of having a partner who will push you to follow your dreams Why referral and word-of-mouth marketing is a very powerful tool Knowing the “why” behind running your business (outside of making money) Why you’ll need to think creatively when reality is working against you Finding other streams of income even when your business may be slow The importance of quality time with family, especially during high-stress and uncertainty And So Much More! Links from the Show BiggerPockets Taco Daddy's Concept 2 Deuce Gym Eric Thomas Gary Vaynerchuk Not Not Tacos Sam the Cooking Guy Check the full show notes here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/bizshow85 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Did you know that over 200,000 entrepreneurs currently sell over $100K per year on Amazon? Sales continue to skyrocket with no indication of slowing down anytime soon… and this week, our guest is here to help you get in on the action! Mike Begg -- co-founder of AMZ Advisers -- started a side-hustle business selling on Amazon with three buddies while they all worked corporate jobs. Making mistakes and learning lessons the hard way in the early days, the team never gave up, continuing to learn and tweak their business model until they achieved massive success on the platform. Fast forward five years and tens of millions of dollars in sales, Mike and the team now run their business from the sandy white beaches of sunny Mexico, also helping other business owners generate over $1M in sales each while carving out their piece of the Amazon pie. Mike lays out a step-by-step roadmap for identifying product needs on the platform, sourcing inventory, and building a stellar brand that speaks to buyers and generates sales. He talks about the right way to work with vendors overseas, achieving the right mix of pricing and volume, and determining when it makes sense to create additional sales funnels across multiple channels. And most importantly, he reminds us that anyone-- with focus, dedication and a bit of expert assistance-- has the opportunity to generate significant additional streams of income online. Make sure you listen all the way to the end, when Mike gives us some excellent resources to learn more, right NOW. Check him out, and subscribe to the BiggerPockets Business Podcast so you won’t miss our next show! Links from the Show BiggerPockets Deloitte Sears Real Estate Helium 10 Fiverr 99designs Alibaba Amazon's Early Reviewer Program Upwork Shopify Scott Voelker's Podcast AMZ Advisers Blog Jungle Scout Check the full show notes here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/bizshow83 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do you have strengths that can help other business owners? Do you have skills that can be used to help elevate someone else’s business to new heights? Do you have expertise that makes you the perfect partner for someone else’s business? If so, starting a business isn’t the only way to become a successful business owner! Dustin Reichmann -- partner and co-owner of FireCreek Snacks -- was able to take his marketing expertise and turn it into an opportunity that has propelled his and his partner’s business to new heights. In this episode, Dustin provides us a blueprint for using your strengths and expertise to find opportunities to help other business owners, and ultimately create new opportunities for yourself as well. Dustin talks about how to analyze your abilities and use them to start generating income for you TODAY. And also use them to generate opportunity for tomorrow. Specifically, Dustin provides us two great ways to turn anything that you’re good at into a potential new income stream! We also dig into the nitty-gritty of product marketing, including how Dustin was able to get his product into some of the largest retailers in the world, including Walmart. Make sure you listen til the end to hear Dustin’s amazing piece of wisdom for those scared to take massive action. Check him out, and subscribe to the BiggerPockets Business Podcast so you won’t miss our next show! Links from the Show BiggerPockets Ace Hardware Do It Best True Value Walmart Costco Groupon BiggerPockets Money Podcast Check the full show notes here: http://biggerpockets.com/bizshow81 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices