Out & Proud Business Titans

Do you spend hours each week nurturing your LinkedIn network? 

Or do you waste time sending out repetitive, poorly-worded invitations through automation that lead to few or no responses? 

Imagine if you could automate tasks and save time using an Entrepreneurial Operating System that would help grow your business into a self-sustaining money-making machine.

Having started his first online business at 17, Abul Hussain quickly learned the importance of offering value to customers. He honed his marketing expertise while working for a boutique digital marketing agency, growing startups into 7-figure businesses. Still, even after all his successes, genuine fulfillment eluded him. As Abul puts it: “I felt that something was missing. I was being paid very well but I felt a void...” In 2015, with a renewed sense of purpose, he decided to venture on his own to use his skills to help not just businesses–but also non-profit and humanitarian organizations. Abul also founded SMMA Mastermind, a Facebook community for digital agencies dedicated to fostering growth through dialogue, legit expert advice, and exclusive podcasts.

TOPICS

00:44 – Why He Started the SMMA Mastermind Community

03:36 – On the Perils of Uninformed Advice

06:10 – Building an Agency isn’t as Simple as Some People Think

07:39 – Cutting Through the BS: The Need for Expertise

09:18 – Structures and Processes

11:28 – Optimization and Scaling

13:09 – Enhancing your Prospecting and Delivery Systems

14:01 – It's all About Your Macro-Objective

19:00 – Supply the Framework, Everything Else will Follow

20:53 – Nurturing an Agile Culture

21:38 – Agile as a Way of Life

24:06 – Fixed Mindset vs Growth Mindset

25:24 – Not All Consultants are Created Equal

29:14 – On His Idea of Growth

RESOURCES:

The 11th episode of the Titan Business Builders podcast features Bryan Mills, founder of Marketing Mastery and Bryan James Coaching. Early on, he was determined to kick the ‘birth-school-work-death' cycle to the curb. He hated the notion of going about the daily grind for 30 years only to retire with small change to his name then buried with the word “sucker” inscribed on his headstone. Bryan decided to map his own destiny by living life on his own terms. Today, he helps businesses scale and grow through his very own ‘Step Back System.’ Hear the consummate non-conformist's views on life, work, and everything else in between in this revealing interview.

TOPICS

01:24 – Doing Business During a Pandemic

02:10 – Becoming a Soccer Coach at Thirteen

02:57 – Realizing He’s Not cut out for Corporate Life

03:44 – Starting an Event Management Company and the Origins of the Step Back System

04:26 – The Next Logical Step: A Marketing Agency

05:09 – Going Back to Coaching

08:13 – Building a Business Around a Lifestyle

08:58 – Priorities: Being a dad to his Kids

13:26 – Creating Systems

17:17 – Mapping out Multiple Processes

20:52 – His Views on Scaling

24:54 – The Importance of a Competent Team and Communication

26:38 – What He Looks for when Hiring Team Members

28:21 – Setting Boundaries for Teams

30:34 – On His Leadership Style

34:03 – On His Future Plans

HIGHLIGHTS

— After a decade of coaching soccer, Bryan realized he had to quit and find a better paying job to support his newborn child.

— Businesses should have more than just monetary goals.

— Entrepreneurs should step back more often to see the bigger picture.

— As a business owner, you have the luxury to plan your work schedule around your lifestyle. This arrangement ensures that you’ll never neglect your fitness and well-being, parental duties or other personal obligations.

— Always be aware of your strengths and weaknesses.

— Retain clients by constantly refining your fulfillment process.

— Encourage feedback from your team.

— With systems and processes in place, teams run on autopilot.

RESOURCES

Paul Cleghorn has spent nearly four decades at the forefront of cutting-edge tech. He’s been around the block a few times, shaking up the neighborhood at every turn. He’s a veteran of the Wild West internet boom in 1990s San Francisco, its epicenter. From coding and designing during the pre-Adobe days, to digital marketing, consultancy, blue sky products and e-services, he has done it all. His wealth of expertise has taken him all over the world.  And Paul is still at it, with as much enthusiasm and gusto as when he first started. His latest venture, Fit Expert, aims to reinvent personal health and fitness for a post-Covid world. In this candid, animated interview, Paul recounts his hardships and how he defied the odds, along with other stories we can all gain inspiration from.

TOPICS

01:09 – It Started with a Commodore 64

02:48 – A (Really) Difficult Teen Life

03:27 – His First Real Gig: Designing an Educational Software for Tenon Joints

04:48 – Ambidexterity and the Devil

05:32 – Health Issues

06:31 – An Inquisitive Mind: A Love for Art and Science in Defiance of Dyslexia

10:40 – Luck vs Destiny

13:52 – A Scholarship Grant and A Career Doing 3D Design

16:09 – Growing Up Multiracial: His Experiences with Racism and Bullying

21:20 – Going to San Francisco

22:40 – Building a Reputation

33:45 – His Fit Expert Team

41:50 – On His Beliefs and Philosophy

51:21 – Learning from Failures

HIGHLIGHTS

— Paul had wayward parents, grew up poor and spent a lot of time in foster homes, which speaks exceedingly of his determination to rise above adversity.

— Another obstacle he had to overcome, is the ugliness of racism.

— He’s ambidextrous, meaning he has the ability to use his left and right hand with equal agility. His father believed that making someone left-handed is the work of the devil. He punished the young by poking his left hand with a fork whenever he’d do something with his left hand that most people would do with their right hand.

— Find your passion and pursue it.

— There are so-called “experts” who don’t know what they’re doing.

— Regard competition as a motivating factor in devising a better product or service.

— On failure: “Even if you fail, you've learned. So, you haven’t lost anything.”

RESOURCES

Self-development coach and business optimization consultant Andrew Tansil graces the 9th episode of the Business Growth Titans podcast. Andrew helps 7-figure agency owners solve seemingly unsolvable business problems through a three-step method he himself developed. His proprietary system addresses core issues and overhauls mindsets within minutes of its implementation. He lives by his method and offers his life experiences as a testament to its effectiveness. After hearing his inspiring story, you’ll have no reason to doubt him. To say that Andrew has had a long and arduous journey toward enlightenment is an understatement. Through darkness, desperation and near-death, he has battled his way to his own personal and professional growth.

TOPICS

01:20 – Losing a Business and a Failed Search for Spirituality

02:56 – Depression, Anxiety, Fear and on the Brink of Death

03:39 – A Futile Quest: Turning to Self-Help Books for Answers

04:23 – Self-Enhancement and Illumination by Developing his own Method

06:06 – Explaining ‘The Method’

07:29 – Helping Others with his Method

08:12 – His Method’s Efficiency can be Backed by Metrics and Data

11:22 – Not Just Owners: How his Method can help Teams

13:18 – On Core Values, Past Businesses and Utilizing all Areas of Expertise

16:28 – EOS: Entrepreneurial Operating System

17:12 – Following the Framework as the Key to Success

22:55 – Stacked-Up and Stockpiled: Targeting the Central Problem that Produced Other Issues

24:16 – Awareness of Actions and Desired Outcomes

26:42 – His Definition of Growth: The Unlimited Potential in All of Us

29:58 – Delving Deeper by Evaluating the Growth Data

31:36 – His Plans for the Next Six Months

HIGHLIGHTS

— The saying, “What doesn’t kill you will make you stronger” certainly holds true for Andrew.

— His past businesses failed because of bad business partners and his own shortcomings.

— An ill-advised fasting regimen nearly cost him his life.

— Advice from self-help books authored by so-called “experts” is typically generic in nature, and therefore, is of little help for specific struggles.

— Mindset is everything.

— Andrew devised his method with simplicity in mind so that it can be taught and absorbed easily.

— His business tagline, “I solve mindset problems in 12 minutes instead of 12 years” is derived from the words of his clients as they observed that his method never took longer than twelve minutes to remedy a particular problem.

— Most business problems arise from unresolved personal issues.

— Always make decisions based on data and formulate solutions with a specific framework.

— Identify your strengths and weaknesses and take stock of your skillsets.

RESOURCES

Ashvin Melwani is the co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Obvi, one of the fastest-growing Health and Beauty brands in the world. Since its inception just over two years ago, the company has sold 10 million servings of its collagen supplements. The brand has more than 100,000 customers from over 75 countries and the 2nd largest collagen-dedicated Facebook Group membership. By tapping into the 25 to 35-year-old demographic, a market once thought non-profitable for collagen products, Obvi is on course to generate 8 figures in sales this year. Hear Ashvin discuss his views and insights, career voyage and Obvi’s meteoric rise — an ascent that he and his partners have no plans to slow down.

TOPICS

00:40 – Targeting a Niche: Collagen for the 25 to 35 Age-Group

03:08 – A Year of Research and Development

07:40 – Creating a Facebook Group

08:56 – Feedback: Consensus from a Growing Community

09:50 – Building a Customer Base

12:45 – Getting a Practical Education in Entrepreneurship and Co-Founding a Marketing Agency

13:39 – A Eureka Moment: Co-Founding Obvi After Scaling Client Brands

15:23 – Roadblock to Growth: Cashflow and the Need for Constant Reinvestment

17:05 – Keeping it Lean and Focusing on ROI

19:48 – Customer Retention After 6 Months of Customer Acquisition

21:26 – Connecting with Customers Through Honest Communication

24:38 – Purchase Orders and Relationships with Suppliers

28:03 – Customer Experience: Keeping an eye on the Inventory

29:58 – Creating a System of Checks and Balances

32:55 – Influencer Marketing Tips

34:33 – Transparency and Company Culture

37:05 – Treating Staff like Family

39:11 – Going Bigger: Obvi’s Future Plans

HIGHLIGHTS

— With an outstanding product, laser-focused marketing and supremely designed packaging, you’ll find your niche however crowded the field may seem.

— Put out engaging content that keeps customers on your site or page.

— You can never have too much attention to detail.

— Learn everything you can from every stage of your journey.

— You have to spend money to earn money. There are no two ways about it.

— While it’s vital to continually invest in your business’ growth, it can be precarious if you don’t keep tabs on your finances.

— Be upfront and sincere with your customers, your staff, your suppliers and everybody else whom you do business with.

— Offer reward programs for loyal customers as a gesture of appreciation.

— Systems and processes should be firmly in place to make sure setbacks or losses are minimal.

— “Influencer marketing is very much alive.”

RESOURCES

Alex Edwards is a copywriting and email marketing wunderkind. The 21-year-old founder of Amplify Copywriting has a sense of purpose and a commitment to quality that’s well beyond his years. He combines his ambition and drive with the intellect and maturity of a seasoned entrepreneur. A young man on the move, for sure, but never reckless. Alex has places to go and a lot to say. As you’ll glean from this interview, we'll hear more from him for many years to come. With his well-laid plans at full throttle, we may see his name on the Forbes Billionaires List sooner than even he expects.

TOPICS

02:04 – Work Ethic

02:50 – Independence and the Entrepreneurial Spirit: Taking Risks and Being Persistent

03:52 – His Youth as a Challenge and an Opportunity

05:00 – Ethics as a Guiding Principle

06:12 – Taking the High Road

08:39 – Efficient Marketing: Having the Basic Systems and Structures in Place

09:20 – Hypergrowth Without Spending Heaps on Advertising

10:05 – His Agency’s Systems and Processes

11:32 – The Nuances of Copywriting

12:16 – Laser-Targeting Customers and Tugging at Heartstrings

13:33 – Segmenting your Mailing List

14:52 – When you Place Integrity First, Conversions will Follow

15:39 – More than Tech, it’s Great Copywriting that gets the job Done

16:02 – Origins: From Freelance Copywriting to Founding Amplify

16:55 – Leadership and the Value of Knowing your Strengths and Weaknesses

18:03 – Shout-Out: Paying Tribute to his Coach

19:40 – His Current Team and his Objectives for Further Growth

20:38 – Priceless: The Indispensable Benefits of Having a Coach

22:59 – Sticking to one Strategy in Order to Accurately Measure Success

25:01 – Beyond Copywriting: A Genuine Desire to Help People

27:55 – Moving Ahead: What’s in Store for Amplify in the Coming Months

30:33 – Moving Further: Long-Term Goals

HIGHLIGHTS

- The failure of Alex’s first couple of businesses didn’t discourage him. Instead, it made him want to succeed more than ever.

- You can’t win without taking risks.

- Because of his youth, most people were initially doubtful of Alex’s capabilities.

- There will always be individuals or organizations who will resort to manipulation and shady tactics to get conversions.

- Never compromise your brand’s values and integrity.

- Implement systems before focusing on growth.

- Copywriting and email marketing is all about identifying your ideal customers and their triggers.

- Don't send generic emails to everybody in your mailing list. Divide them into predetermined groups and send customized emails for each group.

- Offering real solutions to real problems in a direct, upfront manner increases conversion rates.

- Serve more clients by building a gifted team, then trusting their skillsets.

RESOURCES

Peak Performance and Transformation coach Chris McLean graces the 6th episode of the Business Growth Titans podcast. Through the years, Chris has relieved countless agency owners of the stress, chaos, and all the other encumbrances that come with managing a business. He transforms myopic, parochial perspectives into far-reaching, visionary mindsets that propel businesses and enrich lives. This lively discussion finds Chris recounting his career voyage, memorable experiences, and trying times. The Australian mentor also shares his guiding principles for success that we all can learn a thing or two from.

TOPICS

00:58 – 2002: First Foray into Online Entrepreneurship

01:50 – A Love for Advertising, Marketing and the Creative Process

03:15 – Setting Up a Multimedia Business

04:08 – Promoting the Melbourne Electronic Music Scene

04:58 – A Growing Reputation and a Wider Clientele

07:33 – His Own Digital Agency

08:29 – Bringing in the Right People

09:19 – Adopting the Emerging Tech

10:59 – Campaigns for Blackberry and a Major Middle Eastern Airline

12:46 – Difficult Times

13:42 – Moving to Abu Dhabi

16:14 – Back to Melbourne: The Emergence of Covid-19 and a Period of Reflection

17:28 – Coaching

20:08 – Legacy: Taking After his Dad’s Rigorous Optimism

23:05 – A Belief System for Business

24:46 – The Rewards of Personal Development

31:18 – The Science of Stress Tolerance and Capacity

34:04 – Using the Body’s Natural Physiology to Full Advantage

44:08 – Optimizing Brain Power

50:28 – Advice for Agency Owners: It’s all About Mindset

HIGHLIGHTS

- Keep up with the latest technology related to your business. Cutting-edge technology plus creativity equals innovative marketing ideas.

- The journey is riddled with sharp turns and hard bumps. Just keep at it because persistence pays off.

- Chris had to go through many ordeals, including his father’s death from cancer.

- “Rigorous optimism” is a trait that everybody should possess. Chris credits his father for instilling him with this superpower. It’s what enabled him to pull himself together and get back on his feet.

- Rigorous optimism is a trainable skill. With Covid-19 and the atmosphere of volatility, uncertainty and anxiety it created, rigorous optimism has become an even more essential mentality to possess.

- A mindset that desires to do better and to go bigger not just for personal gain but also for

- Adopt a mindset that desires to do bigger, better things not just for personal gain, but also for more noble, selfless objectives.

- Embrace an international mentality and see your life and work from a global perspective.

- Dream hard and dream big. Never let anything hold you back or get in your way.

RESOURCES

The latest installment of the Business Growth Titans podcast features digital marketing veteran Megan Anderson. She is the founder of Dulci Digital, a leading digital marketing and web development agency based in Birmingham, Alabama, USA. Dulci Digital provides extensive on-demand business solutions and services. Founded in 2019, the agency has worked with Bayer, Hearst Media Services, Mayo Clinic, and Duke University, to name a few. In this episode, Megan offers illuminating insights on her journey to success and the dedication that goes into sustaining it.

TOPICS:

01:26 – Starting Out: MySpace and Twilight T-Shirts

02:09 – The Timelessness of Delivering Value with a Personal Touch

04:49 – Digital Marketing: Then and Now

07:56 – The Role of Data and Market Research

08:50 – Advice for Startups

11:04 – Continual Improvement: Don’t Let Small Problems Snowball

14:12 – Testing the Viability of Systems and Processes

15:35 – A Multidimensional Approach to Business Optimization

19:49 – Hiring Digital Marketing Experts is Cost-Efficient

20:56 – Working with Bayer and Mayo Clinic (And Saving them Millions)

22:02 – Scaling Rapidly: How Precision, Performance, and Results set Dulci Digital Apart

24:36 – Unique Solutions for Different Businesses: Why Cookie-Cutter Strategies Fail

25:53 – A Clear Vision Forms a Rock-Solid Foundation

26:40 – It's All About Your Customers

28:41 – Communication and Transparency are Key

38:52 – Developing a Lean and Agile Mindset

41:50 – Moving Forward, Going Further: The Future of Dulci Digital

42:44 – Megan's Definition of “Growth”

HIGHLIGHTS:

- The principles she employed on her initial business venture — personal connections and a human touch — are the same ideals she advocates today. Methods, channels, and strategies change, but delivering value and sincere humanness will always remain as core foundations for successful marketing.

- In an ever-increasing age of automation, personal touch to digital marketing is as important as ever.

- Boost organic customer engagement.

- Never overlook the smallest detail. Tackle problems through a far-seeing lens.

- The Covid-19 pandemic has significantly expanded the online marketplace, making it more cutthroat. Consumers have become more internet-savvy and sophisticated, with shorter attention spans. Businesses that do not keep up with consumer behavior will be left biting the dust.

- There is always a way to scale without sacrificing your personal approach to business and customers.

- A shared vision with your team facilitates innovation and continuous improvement.

- Incremental improvements add up. Improving by as little as 1% daily will help any organization stay competitive and relevant.

- Automate your lead-sorting processes.

- A customized solution for every business involves following well-defined standards for processes and systems. You need not reinvent the wheel nor start from scratch.

- Established companies, in particular, need outside consultation that can scrutinize their businesses from the outside-in to devise more innovative solutions.

RESOURCES:

Software and media business consultant Chuck Kirkpatrick has traveled the globe, leading business acceleration projects in over 25 countries. He is a patented AI technologist who champions the importance of service, experience, customer insight, and data analytics in business optimization. Having worked with world leaders and captains of industry the world over, Chuck is the epitome of today’s global citizen. His book, “Global Nomad” will be available soon. On this fourth episode of the Business Growth Titans podcast, Chuck captivates with his experiences and enlightens with his guidance.

TOPICS:

01:05 – The Business Troubles of “A Guy Named Bob”

09:19 – Chuck’s Solutions for Bob

11:05 – R & D and Innovation: The Value of People and Ideas

12:30 – His First Ever Job and Entrepreneurial Mindset

14:18 – Early Work Experiences and the Importance of Doing Quality Work

16:17 – Finding Success

19:25 – Realizing his Talents as a Consultant

21:06 – A Dedication to Serve

22:36 – An Odyssean Journey: Business Turnaround Doesn’t Happen Overnight

28:43 – Maintaining Human Virtue in a High-Tech Business

30:50 – Overcoming Challenges

33:07 – On his Upcoming Book, “Global Nomad”

42:19 – Impacting People: His Ultimate Passion and Purpose

HIGHLIGHTS:

- “Being a company that can adapt to change is so important. Why is it still such a big mindset shift for most of them that they don't even think about that?”

- Chuck was once fired from a major network for insisting on going home for Valentine’s Day dinner with his wife.

- Never rest on your laurels. Keep improving and innovating. Reinvesting a substantial portion of profits to Research and Development will pay long-term dividends.

- Try new ideas and explore all available avenues of growth.

- “I think it's that I'm inflexible about doing really good quality work.”

- He attributes his success to a greater sense of purpose as well as his firm adherence to upright moral virtues.

- Being born to a family of missionaries allowed him to appreciate the fulfillment that comes from serving others.

- Leverage your network of contacts and connections for your products or services.

RESOURCES:

Digital marketing specialist Nick Yeomans guests on the latest episode of our Business Growth Titans series. Nick is the founder and CEO of Yeomans Digital Marketing, a web design and digital marketing agency based in Canberra, Australia. Having scaled his agency tenfold in just six months (and still scaling!), we all might learn a thing or two from his in-depth knowledge and broad expertise.

TOPICS:

01:39 – Early Experience as a Coach

02:38 – Discovering his Talent and Passion for Web Design

05:28 – Transitioning to Web Design

09:59 – Yeomans Digital Marketing’s Commitment to Quality

10:48 – Building Connections with Clients to Channel Their Vision

13:30 – Attention to Detail: How Small Errors Add Up

17:10 – Scaling from 0 to 10K in Six Months

23:14 – A Correct Growth Mindset

27:02 – The Importance of Coaches and Mentors

30:11 – Keeping your Expectations Realistic

45:18 – Yeomans Digital Marketing’s Goals for 2021

HIGHLIGHTS:

> Nick’s first web building gig
> It pays to follow your passion
> A great working relationship and a personal connection with the owner, even if fleeting, is essential to create impressive, effective Digital HQs
> Finding fulfillment in a job well done, no matter how small, is the greatest work attitude you can ever possess
> Customers will instinctively feel your passion and commitment. It cannot be faked.
> Your attention to detail reflects your work ethic. The slightest deviation from attentiveness to detail can ruin your reputation.

RESOURCES:

For your business website needs, contact Nick for stellar quality service!

This episode features top lead generation expert Tom Wedding from Melbourne, Australia. Hear Tom recount his start in e-marketing and lead generation. Learn what lead generation is really all about. He also shares his insights and expertise on how to generate profits more quickly, roadblocks to efficient lead generation, and much, much more. Tom doesn’t hold back on anything. Candid and forthcoming, he generously discusses the secrets of his trade and reveals the roadmaps to success.

Topics

00:50 – Beginnings: Tom Follows his Entrepreneurial Instincts (Social Media Marketing)

01:30 – Gaining Stride: Tom Finds his Passion (Lead Generation Coaching)

02:29 – What is Lead Generation?

03:53 – Going Big: Obstacles and How to Hurdle Them

05:08 – Building an A-Team and Why it Matters

08:07 – Discipline and Having the Right Mindset

11:37 – Set Goals but Don’t Get Caught Up in them, Experience the Journey

13:47 – Align Goals and Operate from your ‘WHY’

16:13 – Why Wanting a Lambo or a Rolex isn’t the Motivation you Need

18:15 – Setting Visions with the Right Intentions

20:36 – Team Building and Sustainability

24:45 – Hiring the Right People, Setting Up Systems and Processes

Highlights

— Generate quicker cashflow by pre-selling websites before they rank or generate leads, allowing your company to have liquid assets for resource and team infrastructure spending

— Pre-selling upfront, though uncommon, is actually a very scalable and viable business model

— With a great team, you can concentrate on strategic goals to grow your business further

— Outsourcing, as opposed to organic teams, isn’t cost-effective

— The spiritual fulfillment aspect of helping businesses prosper

— How easy it is to lose track of direction and focus

Resources

There are agency growth plans that are not as ideal as it seems on paper. A conversation I’ve had with an agency owner highlights this fact. Despite steady growth for his agency over the past couple of months, he felt exhausted and burned out. He was shackled to a 12-hour workday, thinking that getting even more clients would give him the revenue he was aiming for.

In this episode, we discuss the complexities of scaling as we separate the myths and fallacies from the hard truths of business scaling.

Topics:

0:01:58 – The Standard Growth Model: Adding More Customers

0:04:35 – Actual Common Agency Growth Model

0:07:30 – The Growth Sprint Formula and The Perfect Growth Model: Sustainable Growth & Regaining Your Time (And Sanity)

0:08:00 – How the Growth Sprint Agency Model Creates High-Impact Teams on Autopilot

0:09:00 – Working ON the Business, Not IN the Business

0:11:00 – Dreadful Scenario: What If Your Best Employee Suddenly Leaves?

Highlights:

- A basic overview of the Growth Sprint Formula

- The standard growth model versus the perfect growth model

- Why the concept of merely accumulating more customers to achieve growth is too simplistic and therefore, often misunderstood and wrongly implemented

- Debunking more common beliefs about scaling and growth

- Making sure your agency is ready to take on more customers

- Maintaining a loyal customer base is more important than piling up clients

- How to achieve the growth you want without burning out

- Building better teams and systems

- Why your team is your best resource

Resources: