Working Without Pants - Creative Entrepreneurship
What is the future of LinkedIn? This question comes up a lot in conversations with friends, podcast hosts, prospects, and peers.
 
LinkedIn, as a platform, is becoming the epicenter of business communication. B2B marketers and sales teams are flocking to the platform, and in a post-GDPR world, it has become one of the most reliable and powerful sales channels.
 
But what is to come? As the founder of one of the top LinkedIn lead generation companies, I am very close to the platform. Our team has seen the platform evolve and grow. I have spoken to individuals on LinkedIn's advisory board and I have heard many rumors of discussions from others in the industry.
 
What I am predicting here is not fact or am I 100% certain of this. But I have a decent level of confidence in these predictions and so I am sharing them in hopes they bring you value. Join me in today's solo episode as I dive into my 8 predictions for the future of LinkedIn!
Direct download: WWP_Predictions_on_Linkedin.mp3
Category:For Agency Owners and Consultants -- posted at: 5:56pm EDT

Catch this week’s episode with John Jantsch, President at Duct Tape Marketing and author of his newest book I’m already loving called “The Self-Reliant Entrepreneur.”

John has appeared on here before, and with his years and expertise in small business marketing, it’s a no-brainer to bring him back on the podcast now that he has published his sixth book. This book is a bit different than his first five that are all about how-to-do marketing. But “The Self-Reliant Entrepreneur” is structured more as a daily-read with a new meditational message for each day you turn a new page. Each entry shares a message or excerpt that comes from entrepreneurial writings from the 19th Century time period when “thinking for yourself” became more prominent during a time of political and cultural differences in the U.S. John gets his reader to take a bit of a more philosophical look at themselves, adds his own thoughts, and then follows that up with a question to challenge someone for that day.

The “Self-Reliant Entrepreneur” was just released this week, and I highly recommend everyone take a read. I am already applying this to my life and my business and can see I’ll be getting value from this for years to come as well. I know you will too. You can find your copy online or in any of your local bookstores. But first, listen here for some insight from John himself and get a sneak peek into the Jan 1st entry as John narrates straight out of the book. You’re going to like this one!

Direct download: WWP_John_Jantsch.mp3
Category:For Agency Owners and Consultants -- posted at: 10:51pm EDT

If you’re thinking about hiring a salesperson for your business, you NEED to give this episode a listen. Damian Thompson and I discuss the reasons behind why we cringe when someone says, “I’ve got a sales problem- so I’m going to hire a salesperson.” This is the wrong mindset! 
 
Damian is the Founder & Chief Training Officer of Salesability. He’s been involved in software services and consultative selling since the mid-to-late 90s, so he knows a thing or two when it comes to when, or why, you should be hiring a salesperson. He’s always been “that” guy who was sent off to start selling and building a team in different locations around the world. He’s helped countless amounts of people who were small business owners who didn’t see themselves as a salesperson but needed to utilize sales to grow their business.
 
Trust me when I say this episode is extremely important to listen to and will change your perspective when thinking about sales for your business. There’s a robust amount of information here- everything from “why” you want to hire a salesperson, the misunderstandings people have about a salesperson’s role in your business, to the processes you should have in place when hiring one.  This is a subject I feel passionate about and hope you will find this truly useful for your business.
Direct download: WWP_Damian_T.mp3
Category:For Agency Owners and Consultants -- posted at: 11:28pm EDT

In this episode, I listen to the Founder and CEO of Campfire Labs, Michael Thomas, describe his entrepreneurial journey and I am blown away at his generosity and his frame of mind when it comes to giving back. 
 
Michael had a successful company that he decided to sell back in 2017, and because it was during a political turning point, he felt the need to help others so he pledged 25% of the proceeds to charitable causes. He then spent half a year volunteering with refugees in Greece, where he came to learn the lifestyle of people with difficult circumstances.
 
About a year after returning from his volunteer work, Michael started his new company, Campfire Labs, a journalistic-style content agency. But he wanted to continue helping others, so Michael and his partner give 50% of Campfire’s equity and profits to charitable causes. 
 
Tune into this episode to get some inspiring details about Michael’s passion for giving to charity and how he did so. This interview won’t let you down...
Direct download: WWP_Michael_Thomas.mp3
Category:For Agency Owners and Consultants -- posted at: 11:18pm EDT

In this week’s eye-opening episode, I dive into a great interview with Michael Zipursky, coach and CEO of Consulting Success.  With a background in building and consulting businesses in North America and with multibillion-dollar businesses in Japan, he’s developed a coaching program that began as a blog and then morphed into what is now helping hundreds of consultants build successful businesses by adding six to seven figures to their annual revenues. 
 
You may notice a familiar face here because I’ve interviewed Michael before. I’ve brought him back because recently his company conducted a Marketing for Consultants Study that I find fascinating and is full of valuable information and which marketing techniques can help build a successful business.
 
In this detailed study, 34,000 consultants were surveyed to find out what is actually working in their marketing techniques- what tactics they’re using and getting results from. The survey identifies and compares what high-performing consultants are doing vs low-performing consultants. Learn what the best practices are that we can all benefit from. For instance, what type of marketing works best and how much should you invest in marketing? Michael and I discuss in detail how you can shift your mindset for marketing costs from an expense to an investment. We’ll dive into some data from the survey to help give you a better understanding of what others are “investing.” 
 
We also explore network effects, the simplicity of a phone call, and other marketing tactics that you may or may not already be using. Where should you be putting your money in when it comes to marketing? Listen here to find out and explore more on the survey at https://www.consultingsuccess.com/marketing-for-consultants-study.
Direct download: WWP_Zipursky.mp3
Category:For Agency Owners and Consultants -- posted at: 7:07pm EDT

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