I Helped 6 Business Owners Make More Money Ep 620

Alex Hermosi, the host of the podcast, discusses strategies for building successful businesses, emphasizing the importance of skills, character, and time investment. He shares his journey of documenting his efforts to build a billion-dollar enterprise through acquisition.com, wishing that icons like Musk and Buffett had done the same. The conversation includes a Q&A with several guests, covering topics like lead generation for B2B and B2C SaaS companies, offering value to customers, and personal growth strategies. Hermosi advises on identifying effective lead sources, providing significant free value as a differentiation strategy, and the importance of environment in personal development. He also touches on the dynamics of successful relationships, particularly in business partnerships, and stresses the significance of talent recruitment for scaling a business. Hermosi's approach to content marketing and sales, his insights on enterprise B2B lead generation, and his views on the role of character in reaching higher business milestones are also highlighted.

• The distinction between having a million and a billion dollars is perceived as a function of time by Alex.
• The implication is that with the base skills, success over time differentiates a million from a billion.

"The difference between a million and 100." "And a billion, in my opinion. We'll see if it works is time."

• Alex suggests that achieving a billion compared to a million is a matter of how time is utilized once the foundational skills are established.

• Alex is documenting his journey of building a billion-dollar business with acquisition.com.
• He expresses a wish that notable figures like Musk and Buffett had documented their journeys for others to learn from.

"I'm trying to build a billion dollar thing with acquisition.com. I always wish base, Musk and Buffett had documented their journey, so I'm doing it for the rest of us."

• Alex is motivated to share his experiences in the hopes of providing a roadmap that others can follow, similar to what he wished Musk and Buffett had done.

• Alex outlines three methods for acquiring leads: manual assembly, purchasing from brokers, and scraping with software.
• He prefers starting with scraping due to its cost-effectiveness, suggesting the use of Google tools to find lead sources.
• Alex advises testing different lead sources to find the highest response rate and then doubling down on the most effective platform.

"So there's three ways you can get leads, right? One is you can manually assemble the leads lists. The second way is that you can buy leads from brokers. The third way is that you can scrape leads using software."

• Alex provides a strategic approach to lead generation, emphasizing the importance of testing and optimizing based on response rates.

• Alex recommends offering something of real value for free that would normally be charged for to elicit responses from leads.
• He suggests that by offering something uniquely valuable, you stand out and create a better starting point for conversations.

"But the best framework that I can use for coming up with things that people will reply to is give them something free that they would normally pay for."

• The strategy is to provide exceptional value upfront to improve engagement and establish a more favorable dynamic for subsequent interactions.

• Alex believes that changing your environment is the most effective way to change behavior.
• He shares his personal experience with moving to a new city, which allowed him to act differently and avoid falling into old patterns.

"Big picture, it's a really good question because the number one way to change your behavior is to change your environment."

• Alex underscores the significance of environment on behavior, suggesting that altering one's surroundings can facilitate personal growth and behavioral change.

• Alex discusses the importance of cutting out people who do not contribute positively to one's life.
• He mentions that as he progressed, his tolerance for non-beneficial relationships decreased, leading to quicker decisions to remove people from his life.

"And I will say that as I've gotten further along in that path, my time to cutting people has just shrank."

• Alex emphasizes the need to be discerning about who we allow in our lives, advocating for the removal of those who do not support our growth and well-being.

• Alex shares his personal sacrifices, such as giving up watching football and Netflix, to focus on business growth.
• He points out the necessity of giving up certain activities to make room for behaviors that align with one's goals.

"So I made this live. It was like, these are all the things I'm giving up now. So these are things that I used to do that I'm not going to be doing anymore."

• Alex illustrates the concept of opportunity cost in personal development, where one must forgo certain leisure activities to dedicate time to more productive endeavors.

• Alex discusses the handling of family relationships, advocating for equal treatment of all individuals, whether family or strangers.
• He suggests setting and enforcing clear boundaries with family members and treating them with the same expectations as one would have for anyone else.

"One of the unfortunate things about family is that we treat family worse than anyone else because we think that we can't lose them."

• Alex touches on the common issue of family dynamics, where family members may take each other for granted, and the need to establish healthy boundaries to maintain mutually beneficial relationships.

• The conversation ends with expressions of gratitude and well-wishing for future endeavors.
• Alex and the other speakers acknowledge the value of the discussion and the insights shared.

"Appreciate it. You bet, Dev. Appreciate you. Good luck, man."

• The closing remarks reinforce the supportive and collaborative nature of the conversation, with a focus on mutual growth and success.

• Provide continuous value to people until they express interest in what more you can offer.
• Identify the common needs among the audience and then seek permission to create a solution.
• Use audience feedback to validate the demand for a product or service before creating it.
• Free offerings are a strategy to build trust and eventually convert people into paying customers.

"You give and you keep giving, and you keep giving and you keep giving until eventually people are like, dude, what else do you have? Can I get this from you, dude, you've helped me so much."

This quote emphasizes the strategy of giving continuously to build rapport and create demand for further services or products.

"We give free stuff in order to get more people interested and earn more trust so that a longer time horizon we can convert more people into customers."

Here, the speaker explains that providing free value is a long-term strategy to gain trust and eventually convert people into customers.

• Trust is built by solving problems for free, which can lead to more sales when a paid solution is offered.
• The conversion rate can be increased significantly by establishing trust before making a sales offer.
• A purchase decision is based on the belief that the value received will exceed the cost.

"A purchase decision is a prediction of future value, right?"

This quote highlights that customers make purchase decisions based on their prediction of the future value they will receive from the product or service.

"Provided value to them in the present."

The speaker suggests that providing value in the present is the most effective way to ensure future value and build trust with potential customers.

• Exceptional output requires a significant amount of work and dedication.
• Documenting and showcasing the effort put into a product or service can increase its perceived value.
• Focusing on a single project and cutting out distractions are necessary to create something exceptional.
• The process of becoming excellent at something is iterative and requires continuous work.

"My level of output and my understanding of how much work capacity I have has continued to increase over time."

The speaker reflects on the growth of their work capacity and the effort required to produce high-quality work.

"I spent 6 hours a day for two years on this next book."

This quote provides insight into the dedication and time commitment the speaker has towards their work, setting an example of the effort required to create something of value.

• Focus on the work that allows you to lose track of time to become excellent at it.
• Choosing one area to specialize in can lead to mastery and eventually expansion into larger markets.
• The key is to invest a significant amount of time and effort into perfecting a single service or product.

"You make it. The more you do, the better you get."

This quote suggests that excellence is not found but created through persistent work and improvement.

"Just be queen of a puddle, and then you can be queen of a pond and then queen of a lake."

Here, the speaker advises starting small and dominating a niche before expanding to larger markets.

• Prefers semi-private training models due to their profitability and simplicity.
• Recommends a prelaunch phase with significant investment in marketing to open at full capacity.
• Emphasizes the importance of preselling to ensure profitability from the first month.
• Discusses operational efficiency and the concept of Dunbar’s number in relation to the optimal size of a gym.

"I would do a three month prelaunch."

The speaker advises on the importance of a prelaunch phase to build anticipation and ensure a successful launch.

"I would put, like, 30 grand into the presales, and I would open at full capacity."

This quote suggests a strategy of heavy investment in presales marketing to ensure that the gym opens with a full roster of clients, ensuring immediate profitability.

• Importance of pre-sales in business to avoid initial expenses.
• The strategy of extending pre-sales to maximize revenue before incurring costs.

Money and not have to pay any expenses.

This quote highlights the financial advantage of pre-sales in business, where money can be made without the burden of expenses.

• The podcast's reliance on word of mouth for growth.
• The host's request for listeners to share the podcast as he does not use ads or sponsorships.

The only way this grows is through word of mouth.

This quote emphasizes the importance of word-of-mouth promotion for the growth of the podcast, as it does not utilize traditional advertising methods.

• Discussion on customer churn rate and strategies for maintaining customer base.
• The concept of spending on lead acquisition and its justification based on customer lifetime value (LTV).

I mean, I would shoot for three. You know what I mean? But five is okay, let's just say five, right?

This quote refers to aiming for a lower churn rate, suggesting that while 5% is acceptable, 3% would be preferable.

• The effectiveness of different marketing wrappers for fitness challenges.
• The importance of rotating promotional strategies to prevent ad fatigue.
• Consistency in the sales process despite changing marketing tactics.

It's just wrapping paper on the present.

This quote metaphorically describes the various fitness challenge promotions as different types of wrapping paper, emphasizing that the core product remains consistent.

• The balance between risk-taking and cautious partners in a business.
• Strategies for managing different personalities within a business partnership.
• The importance of alignment and agreement on a shared vision and goals.

A good partnership has a yes man and a no man, right?

This quote highlights the complementary roles within a business partnership, where one partner may be more inclined to take risks while the other may be more conservative.

• The distinction between growing an audience and monetizing a newsletter.
• The value of niche audiences for higher lifetime value (LTV) in newsletters.
• The potential for media businesses to thrive by providing value to specific audiences.

It's kind of like Elon Musk's thing of like, you can either provide a little bit of value to a lot of people or a lot of value to a few people.

This quote illustrates the trade-off in business models between reaching a broad audience with less value or a niche audience with high value.

• The unique approach to relationships in a business context.
• The prioritization of respect and shared goals over romance in a partnership.
• The idea that successful relationships in business can be based on mutual respect and aligned objectives.

And so I think that the premise that most people come into the relationship with is different.

This quote suggests that the foundation of a successful business relationship is often based on different principles than traditional romantic relationships.

It's very hard to learn respect, being hot or being physically attracted to somebody.

This quote implies that while physical attraction may initiate a relationship, respect is a more substantial and challenging aspect to develop for long-term success.

• Non-negotiables are key aspects or principles that an individual is not willing to compromise on in a relationship or partnership.
• Alex emphasizes the importance of aligning goals, values, and lifestyle preferences with a partner.
• Shared interests, such as fitness, can contribute to a harmonious day-to-day life.
• The ability of a partner to support and not change one's ambitions is crucial for those who aim to achieve big things.
• The concept of a partner being 'equally big' as a person to support significant aspirations is highlighted.

"Non negotiables, but then we negotiate. And so it's like, either it's a non negotiable or it is negotiable. And for me, it's like, where I want to go is non negotiable. So it's like, I have these goals, which is where I want to go, my values, which is how I want to get there, and then lifestyle, which are, what are my interests, right?"

This quote outlines the concept of non-negotiables and their importance in determining the direction and manner in which one achieves their goals, as well as the significance of shared lifestyle interests.

"If you want to do big things, then whoever is going to come along with you has to be equally big as a person."

This quote stresses the idea that to accomplish significant goals, one's partner needs to possess a certain level of ambition and capacity to contribute positively to the journey.

• Alex suggests a methodical approach to skill acquisition, beginning with a base skill or product to sell.
• The progression of skills includes promotion through advertising, conversion through persuasion, and eventually leadership and operations.
• The order of skills is strategically chosen based on how they contribute to making money and growing a business.
• Alex shares his personal experience of learning a skill (Facebook ads) through a workshop, which proved to be a profitable investment.

"I would think about it from the order of how you would actually make money. So it's like, well, I have to have something to sell, right? So you have to have some sort of base skill that you could sell if you're going to get into services or have some sort of base product."

This quote explains the foundational step in skill acquisition, which is identifying a core skill or product that can be sold, setting the stage for a service or e-commerce business.

"Once you have the thing, then you got to go sell the thing and let people know about it. And you have to advertise."

Here, Alex highlights the importance of promotion and advertising as the next step after developing the core product or skill, emphasizing the need to make potential customers aware of the offering.

• As businesses grow, the focus shifts from skills to character and the ability to attract and retain talent.
• The speed of scaling is often tied to the speed of talent recruitment.
• A company's brand and its ability to train and provide future opportunities can attract top talent.
• Attracting customers is just as important as attracting talent to prevent operational breakdowns and achieve scalability.

"The speed of scaling often correlates with the speed of talent recruitment."

This quote ties the growth of a business directly to the ability to recruit talented individuals, suggesting that talent acquisition is a critical component of scaling.

"On one side you have to learn how to attract customers, but on the other side you have to learn how to attract talent."

This quote points out the dual necessity of attracting both customers and talent for a business to grow successfully, emphasizing that neglecting either aspect can impede scalability.

• Strategies for generating leads and cultivating customer relationships in enterprise B2B can include hiring individuals with influence and knowledge from target companies.
• The approach to lead generation doesn't change significantly; it's about involving stakeholders and ensuring pitches are risk-free and beneficial for them.
• Tactics like "bam fam" (book a meeting from a meeting) ensure continuous progress and prevent leads from falling through the cracks.
• Setting expectations and accelerating the sales process can be advantageous in enterprise sales.

"I'll tell you two very different things. On one hand, I've got a buddy who sells only to Fortune 100, and he was telling me that one of their most profitable strategies was hiring people from the Fortune 100 in the departments that they're trying to get on board."

Alex shares a strategy used by a colleague to generate leads and secure business by hiring individuals from target companies, leveraging their influence and connections.

"If you explain to the prospect, you're like, listen, it actually doesn't take twelve months. It takes 48 hours of work, not time. So if we have 48 1 hour meetings to get this done, we can just take that and we can stretch it over two years, or we can do it in three months."

This quote suggests a strategy to expedite the enterprise sales process by reframing the time it takes to complete a sale, focusing on active work hours rather than calendar time.

• Providing value upfront through content, such as white papers and industry analysis, is an effective lead generation strategy in enterprise B2B.
• The practice of offering valuable content to attract leads is expected to remain important.
• Following up with leads who have shown interest in the content allows for tailored conversations that can lead to sales opportunities.

"I think that's 100%. Yeah, I mean, I think it's the same reason McKinsey, for example, puts out all those white papers and Goldman Sachs put all their industry analysis out, right. And you opt in and you get it, and then they'll follow up with you."

Alex confirms the effectiveness of providing valuable content to attract leads, similar to the strategies used by well-known consulting firms, which then leads to follow-up and potential sales discussions.