Explore every episode of the podcast No BS Agency Podcast
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ep 230: How to Take Smart Calculated Risks to Grow Your Business | 23 Jan 2025 | 00:25:57 | |
Have you ever missed out on an opportunity because you were scared to take the risk? We’ve all let chances slip by because of fear at one time or another. Maybe you’ve avoided trying something new or making an investment in your business because you just couldn’t be sure it would work out so why take the risk? In the last two episodes, I talked about how investing in your business has the best possible ROI you will ever get, and how to break free of your fears around money. In this episode, let’s talk about how to stop letting fear control your decisions, so that you can take smart, calculated risks that will actually move the needle forward in your business. Tune into this episode to hear:
Mentioned: Resources: | |||
| Ep 229: The Greatest ROI: Why Your Business Beats the Stock Market | 16 Jan 2025 | 00:15:25 | |
If you had $20,000 to invest today, would you put it in the stock market or into your own business? One of these options could give you a 47% ROI in 5 years, but the other could give you over 1000% ROI. So which option would you choose? For years, I thought the stock market was the gold standard for building wealth. Until I realized I was sitting on a gold mine of ROI potential: my business. In the previous episode, I talked about the insecurity, scarcity, and fear that a lot of us feel around money and how simply making more money isn’t what’s going to eliminate that fear. What changes the game is building competence and confidence in your ability to consistently generate money, regardless of the current situation. To gain that confidence, you have to make investments in yourself and your business. In this episode, let’s talk about what it really means to invest in yourself and your business.. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 221: The Power of Having Clear Boundaries With Clients | 14 Nov 2024 | 00:25:06 | |
Many branding agency owners and creative people find dealing with clients very difficult. In my experience, and after having coached many people through difficult client experiences, I have found that the culprit is almost always lack of clarity around boundaries and expectation management. Things often go off the rails when you can’t communicate and maintain clear boundaries with clients. That’s when you get urgent after-hours emails. That’s when you get scope creep. That’s how everyone ends up unhappy, you and your clients. So let's talk about how to have clearer boundaries for yourself and your business and how to communicate those to your clients. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 131: [Client Love] A Communication Framework That Fosters Trust and Eliminates BS | 16 Feb 2023 | 00:10:54 | |
Last week I talked about the importance of building trust with your clients in order to have a great client relationship. If you're in a relationship or you've ever been in a long-term relationship, you know that communication is key to having great relationships with people. Now, that might be true with a spouse, but it's true with anybody in your life, and it's definitely true with clients. So today I want to share a really simple framework that you can use with all of your communication with clients to ensure a great outcome at every step, and so that you don't waste time with all the things that can happen when communication goes astray. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| EP 130: [Client Love] Building Trusting Relationships With Your Clients | 09 Feb 2023 | 00:18:30 | |
Think back to the last client you truly loved working with. What did you love about it? For me, I love to work with clients who trust me implicitly. They get a ton of value out of working with me. We vibe, we jive, and we make something truly amazing together. They are the people that I’m excited to get emails from, and who I enjoy communicating with in our meetings or phone calls. Imagine if you loved all of your clients like that. What would that do for your business? In honor of February, the month of love, I want to talk about client love. Specifically, I want to talk about three different aspects of a client relationship that can take us from a business transaction to something truly magical, something that lights you up, that energizes your clients, and results in much greater outcomes for your delivery. Today I want to talk about the first ingredient in an amazing love affair with a client: trust. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| EP 129: The What, Why and Where of BS in our Businesses (And How to Get Rid of Them) | 26 Jan 2023 | 00:16:30 | |
This podcast is called No BS Agencies, but what exactly do I mean by BS? Where does it come from? Why does it happen? How much of it is acceptable in our businesses? And most importantly, how do we get rid of it? I think a lot of people use the term BS in their marketing because it makes them sound like they’re no-nonsense. They cut to the point. They’re not going to BS you or waste your time. But frankly, a lot of people who say they have no BS have a LOT of BS in their processes and their businesses. So let’s get into what I mean by No BS, what a No BS agency is, and what kind of BS we’re all dealing with. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 128: This Will Make You Think Differently About Business Stress and Overwhelm | 19 Jan 2023 | 00:15:40 | |
Do you ever feel, as you grow your business, that you are white-knuckling it? You feel like you’re driving a jalopy, the door's falling off, you're putting duct tape on it, and you're just hoping it gets you to your destination. In many senses, I’ve been white-knuckling it right along with you over the last two years as I built the No BS Agency Mastery program. Yes, I started with more authority, a bigger audience, and more confidence than someone at the true beginning of building a business, but I still started a new business with a totally new set of skills to learn and a brand new business model to learn and grow. Through that process, I’ve had the opportunity to go back to how it felt in the beginning, and how it felt to drive that jalopy with the door hanging off. Today I want to talk to you a little bit about why that feeling is not only okay, It's actually a sign of positive growth. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 127: 5 Lessons from 12 Years in Business | 12 Jan 2023 | 00:15:52 | |
As Steve and I head into our 12th year in business, I’ve been thinking about all the incredible highs I’ve experienced in this business. AND the terrifying lows that have come along with it too. Today, I want to share five of the biggest lessons I’ve learned over the last 12 years that I know will help me make the next 12 years not only more successful but also full of more ease. Hopefully, you’ll take some of these lessons to heart faster than I did, so they can help you achieve success and add more ease to your business faster. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| EP 126: Three Things To Do In January To Set Up Your Entire Year For Success | 05 Jan 2023 | 00:17:04 | |
Happy 2023 and welcome back. Do you wanna be successful in 2023? I bet you do. January is the time when many of us set our goals for the year. People set big ambitious goals and then a lot of times those things fall by the wayside come February. And we do that in all aspects of our lives. Case in point: If you’re a regular gym-goer, you’ll notice the place is full in January, but by February, most of those new faces have tapered off. So how do we avoid that big January push that doesn’t go anywhere? Today, let’s talk about three things that you should do in January to set up your entire year for success. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 125: Strategies for Not Working and Taking Time Off (and Not Feeling Guilty or Overwhelmed) | 15 Dec 2022 | 00:15:30 | |
When you work for yourself, it’s hard to turn it off, right? It’s hard not to think about the client who just emailed you, or the project that’s on hold, or the check you’re waiting to clear. But working and thinking about work 24/7 is not the key to financial and business success. As we head into the holidays, and for our last episode of 2022, I want to talk about the idea of turning off, especially when you’re stressed and maybe things aren’t going as well as you want them to be and strategies to help you really get some rest and recharge for 2023. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 124: The Argument for Why Packaged Services and Standardized Pricing Make Total Sense | 08 Dec 2022 | 00:13:46 | |
How should you price and package your services when your services are often custom and bespoke and specific to the client you're working with? Should you even package them when every project is different? We just had a very lively conversation about packaging and pricing inside the No BS Agencies Mastery program, and most of my students left saying that they were so excited to package their services and to raise their prices. Today I’m sharing the same ideas with you in hopes that it will inspire you to package your services and raise your prices. Tune into this episode to hear:
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Resources: | |||
| Ep 123: Does thinking about taxes get you down? Here are 3 things to do to change that! | 01 Dec 2022 | 00:10:14 | |
As the year comes to an end, one of the things I'm thinking about is taxes. It’s not a sexy topic I know. But I do love thinking about it because my taxes are a representation of how much money I made. There's nothing wrong with looking to minimize your tax due. But I actually feel good about paying high taxes because it means that I was profitable. So today, I want to share how I think about taxes, and specifically how I think about taxes in December, and what I'm doing to prepare for taxes while also minimizing them. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 122: Didn't Meet Your 2022 Revenue Goals? 3 Things You Can Do To Set Yourself Up For 2023. | 24 Nov 2022 | 00:20:03 | |
There is one month left in 2022. The holidays are upon us and many of us are starting to take inventory of what’s happened over the course of the year. And sometimes we don’t like what we see. Maybe you started out strong in January as you set out ambitious goals. It’s easy to get excited in January about what you can do in the months to come. But the end of the year can be more of a let down. If you’re looking at your bank account right now and realizing you didn’t meet your revenue goals for 2022, what should you do to make a final push in December (and actually enjoy the holidays)? And how can you set yourself up for success in 2023? Tune into this episode to hear:
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Resources: Josh Thomas: The Do Zone | |||
| Ep 220: The Great Thing About Boundaries | 07 Nov 2024 | 00:27:26 | |
I’ve come to realize that so many people struggle to set and hold boundaries because they are afraid of being perceived negatively. Whether it’s saying no to a casual invite to a bar when you’d rather not or holding firm to your boundaries in a professional setting, having and communicating clear boundaries can be stressful. But it is absolutely vital to your business for you to develop this skill. So that’s what I’m talking about boundaries this month. In this episode, we talk about what boundaries are, why they're so hard to set, and how you can start to practice the art of having them, acknowledging them, and setting them. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 121: Word of Mouth and Referrals are Great. Here's Why They're Also Dangerous. | 17 Nov 2022 | 00:16:52 | |
How do you get your business? Do you get most of your business (or all of it) from word of mouth and referrals? 95% of small branding agencies I talk to say word of mouth and referrals. They tell me that they have a steady flow of referrals and they have a great close rate on those referrals. “I've really never had to market. I've been very lucky," they say. And it feels good that people are sending you business and that you’re closing most of them. But. Can you really rely on word of mouth to keep your business going? Today I want to talk about why referrals are one of the best places to get new business. And also why it can put your business in serious danger. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 120: Worried About The Recession? Here's What I Want You To Do. | 10 Nov 2022 | 00:10:25 | |
If you’re hearing rumors that there is a recession coming, or that we might even be in a recession right now, and you’re thinking this maybe isn’t the right time to invest in your business, this one’s for you. I want to tell you a story of what happened in our businesses the last time the proverbial sh*t hit the fan: March 2020. Today I’m sharing how members of my 2020 group coaching program responded when COVID hit, and what the most successful strategies were. Hint: It wasn’t playing it safe. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 119: How Can You Guarantee and Promise Benefits That Are Not 100% Contingent on Your Work | 03 Nov 2022 | 00:13:19 | |
Anytime you’re selling services, especially to small businesses, it’s important that you connect the work that you do to the outcomes and the benefits that the client is going to get. When we’re selling branding, marketing, or design services, we usually want to connect our work to some sort of return on investment. What can they expect to get in return? Usually they’re investing in branding and marketing because they want to make more money. They want to sell more services or products at higher prices. Sounds simple, right? But do you ever worry about promising results you don’t feel like you can guarantee? If you’re uncomfortable about promising an ROI as a result of your work, listen up, because that’s what we’re talking about today. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 118: Building Your Authority Machine: What and When to Outsource | 27 Oct 2022 | 00:15:10 | |
Building an authority machine that is going to send you high quality leads every single day takes a big upfront investment. And one of the most time-consuming things is creating the foundational content that communicates all of your biggest ideas and your most important insights into your industry. That’s what’s going to make you an authority. But creating enough content so that it will build your authority online and off can be challenging purely because there’s so much to do. In the No BS Agency Mastery community, we’re always talking about when and how to outsource content creation. When should you hire copywriters or ghost writers? When does outsourcing help, and when does it actually do more harm than good? So today, I’m sharing what I think works and doesn’t work when it comes to outsourcing content creation, how you can leverage other people’s time to help you build your business, and when it really has to be you, in your own words. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 117: Where and How to Start Your Authority Machine When You're Starting From Scratch | 20 Oct 2022 | 00:23:50 | |
If you want to build your authority, but you have zero posts and no online presence, where do you even start? Last week, I talked about the difference between networking and outreach and building your authority as two different marketing mechanisms for getting clients and building your business. I talked about when you should be doing outreach and when you should build authority, and how there’s a time in between when there’s a lot of overlap between the two. So if you’re at that point where they start to overlap, and you’re ready to start building your authority machine, what’s the first thing you should do? This is always a hot topic in the No BS Agencies Mastery program, and in this episode, I’ll walk you through exactly how and where to start. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 116: Networking or Authority Building: Where Should You Focus | 13 Oct 2022 | 00:18:37 | |
Being seen as an authority can make sales so much easier. So of course it seems like something you should invest your time in as soon as possible. It can be really hard to attract and close clients when you have no authority in the world, when people don’t know who you are, and they don’t know, like, and trust you. But building authority takes time. So when is the right time to spend your time and energy building your authority? And when should you focus on short-term marketing efforts like networking that are going to bring sales in the door quickly? This has been a hot topic inside our community in No BS Agencies Mastery, and it’s what we’re digging into today. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 115: How to Start an Authority Machine: My Story | 06 Oct 2022 | 00:16:36 | |
How do you build a business that is not constantly struggling to find clients? That’s the million dollar question. And I believe I have the answer. All month long, I’m going to share different ways that you can build your authority machine, so that you never have to look for clients again. I talk about building an authority machine a lot because it is the third phase of the three-pronged approach of building a No BS Agency. Building an authority machine is key because it’s the phase where we create systems and a strategy so that we are constantly being seen by more people, and they are able to see who we are, get to know us, get to love us, and most importantly, want to hire us and pay us. And all of that can happen without you actually being in the room. When you build an authority machine, you create an ecosystem and an environment where new people can come in every single day and get to know you really well, to even feel like you’re a friend. And it won’t take up any more of your time. It’s the only way I’ve found to build a business that is sustainable and will bring in clients for the long term. Today, I’m going to share a little bit about my own story and experience with building my authority machine. Tune into this episode to hear:
Learn more about Pia:
Resources: | |||
| Ep 114: How to be a Great Client | 29 Sep 2022 | 00:05:18 | |
I'm usually on this podcast talking about how to find great clients, turn people into great clients,and manage people to become great clients. But today, I want to talk about how to be a great client. I’ve hired lots of companies over the years for a variety of tasks. And I have been an amazing client and I have been a terrible client. Usually how good of a client I am has a lot to do with how good the process is of the person I’ve hired. That’s why I’m always harping on the idea that if you have a great process, you can turn almost anyone into an amazing client. That’s the dream, right? But when it comes to being a great client, being people’s favorite client over and over and over again? I’ve got a secret and I’m sharing it with you. Tune into this episode to hear:
Learn more about Pia: | |||
| Ep 113: How to Raise Your Prices Sustainably and What Premium Pricing is Really All About | 22 Sep 2022 | 00:14:44 | |
I know you’ve heard this advice before: “You should raise your prices because charging premium prices is the best way to run a business.” And premium pricing does give you more profitability, flexibility, and freedom in your business and in your life. But where are you supposed to start? What happens when you do raise your rates? How are you supposed to muster up the confidence to charge five or ten times you current rates when you’ve never been paid that? I think that this advice — "Just raise your prices because you're worth more than you're charging" — is the worst advice you can get. Today, I break down my experience raising my own prices so you can review your rates confidently and raise your pricing sustainably. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 112: Dan Gingiss on What Makes a Memorable Customer Experience (Which Does Not Mean Expensive) | 15 Sep 2022 | 00:45:26 | |
You might not think of customer experience as marketing, but it is. If you’re a small agency, you might not be thinking about building long-term customer loyalty. Clients come and they go. But if they had a killer experience with you? They’re probably telling their friends. And if they had a terrible experience with you, they’re definitely telling their friends. Today I’m sitting down with Dan Gingiss to find out why creating a memorable customer experience is part of marketing your business, and what makes an experience stand out. Dan Gingiss is an international keynote speaker and coach who believes that a remarkable customer experience is your best sales and marketing strategy. His 20-year professional career included leadership positions at McDonald’s, Discover and Humana. Dan is the author of two books, The Experience Maker and Winning at Social Customer Care, and also co-hosts the Experience This! podcast. Tune into this episode to hear:
Learn more about Dan Gingiss: Learn more about Pia:
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| Ep 219: Eleanor Hancock on Making the Big Leap, Changing Everything in Their Business, and Finding the Most Valuable Piece of Any Client Project | 31 Oct 2024 | 00:44:41 | |
Eleanor Hancock is a star student inside No BS Agencies Mastery and her transformation over the last couple of years has been absolutely phenomenal to watch. She’s an inspiration to me and in the community, and I know you’ll get so much out of hearing her story. Eleanor Hancock is the co-founder of Number 75 Design, a creative agency that specializes in creating ‘damn fine brands’ and websites for dreamers, rebels, corporate escapees and change-makers. Eleanor’s “75% Rule” encourages action over perfection, helping entrepreneurs discover their hidden potential and take meaningful strides towards their goals. As a self-proclaimed timid trailblazer and respectful rule-breaker, Eleanor has mastered the art of turning imposter syndrome into a source of strength and she’s all about empowering small businesses to make big waves in their industries. Tune into this episode to hear:
Learn more about Eleanor Hancock: Resources: | |||
| EP 111: Five Sins You Must Avoid If You're Looking For More Money From Your Clients (and What To Do Instead) | 08 Sep 2022 | 00:28:00 | |
How do you get a client to spend more money with you, give you more work, and basically give you a raise? When I googled this question, everything that came up was advice for how to negotiate a raise from your boss in the corporate world. And while there were some decent pieces of advice in the articles I found, it doesn’t translate that well to people like us, who run our own businesses and are looking to get a raise from our clients. As somebody who has lots of clients, and who also pays lots of contractors, freelancers, and employees, I’m sharing my perspective on the best way to get your clients to give you more work, and/or pay you more money. Tune into this episode to hear:
Learn more about Pia: | |||
| Ep 110: Where Financial Security Really Comes From and How You Can Build It | 01 Sep 2022 | 00:18:36 | |
I see loads of ads online for growing a million dollar business or building passive income products and all sorts of investments opportunities that will make you rich! And yet, when I talk to most of my people–small agency owners–you know what most of them say they want? Financial security. Sure, making $30,000 a month or more sounds great, but that kind of money is really icing on the cake. What they really want to be able to do is to make enough money to live their lives comfortably, take care of their families, and just be able to stop worrying about money. Not only do I think this is absolutely doable, but I believe you can get there a hell of a lot sooner than you think. And today, I’m telling you how. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Summer Break Bonus: Dorie Clark on Playing the Long Game | 25 Aug 2022 | 00:25:04 | |
I’m taking the month of August off to be with my family, and I hope you’re taking some time to do something amazing and relaxing too. For the whole month, I’ll be sharing clips from some of my favorite episodes that you’ll enjoy revisiting as well. Today, I’m replaying a section from my interview with Dorie Clark where we talked about playing the long game and being really intentional about how you build your platform. What’s exciting about hearing from someone with so much credibility and authority is to understand how much thought and intention went into building that. Which means you can absolutely do it too. It takes time, but if you stick with it and play the long game, I promise you will see results. Dorie Clark is an adjunct professor at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and the author of Entrepreneurial You, Reinventing You and Stand Out, which was named the #1 Leadership Book of 2015 by Inc. magazine. A former presidential campaign spokeswoman, the New York Times described her as an “expert at self-reinvention and helping others make changes in their lives.” A frequent contributor to the Harvard Business Review, she consults and speaks for clients including Google, Microsoft, and the World Bank. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Summer Break Bonus: Kia Abrera on Recognizing Burnout and Creating Her Own Work-Life Balance | 18 Aug 2022 | 00:27:03 | |
I’m taking the month of August off to be with my family, and I hope you’re taking some time to do something amazing and relaxing too. For the whole month, I’ll be sharing clips from some of my favorite episodes that you’ll enjoy revisiting as well. Today, I’m revisiting my conversation with Kia Aberra where she talks about recognizing burnout and finding her own work life balance. Kia Abrera is a video marketing strategist and producer, and the co-founder and CEO of Braveworks Inc., a 6-figure video strategy and production company that specializes in videos with attitude and scroll-stopping content that takes brave expertpreneurs from ME TOO to GO TO. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Summer Break Bonus: Ediuska Laurens on Leaning Into Your Big Vision | 11 Aug 2022 | 00:40:06 | |
I’m taking the month of August off to be with my family. I hope you’re taking some time to do something amazing and relaxing too. For the whole month, I’ll be sharing clips from some of my favorite episodes that you’ll enjoy revisiting as well. Today, I’m revisiting my conversation with one of my dear clients, badass business owner, Ediuska Laurens. This clip is about standing out by not following the crowd and leaning into your own big vision. Dr. Ediuska Laurens wants to use the magical powers of science and know-how of industry to help the most vulnerable populations. She is an entrepreneur, innovator, and two-time patent holder with expertise in medical device product development, regulation, and quality. She is the founder of Genius Shield, a compliance management and regulatory readiness company that shields and de-risk medical innovators and investors so they can launch compliant medical solutions seamlessly and safely to the global market. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Summer Break Bonus: Michael Roderick on Building a Referable Brand | 04 Aug 2022 | 00:50:00 | |
I’m taking the month of August off to be with my family, and I hope you’re taking some time to do something amazing and relaxing too. For the whole month, I’ll be sharing clips from some of my favorite episodes that you’ll enjoy revisiting as well. First up, my interview with Michael Roderick, the king of connecting. We talked about what true influence is and how to build a truly referable brand. Michael Roderick is not only the KING of networking and connecting but he’s also the CEO of Small Pond Enterprises which helps thoughtful givers become thought leaders by making their brands referable, their messaging memorable, and their ideas unforgettable. He is also the host of the podcast Access to Anyone which shows how you can get to know anyone you want in business and in life using time-tested relationship-building principles. And his background is pretty unique—he went from a high school English teacher to a Broadway Producer in under two years until shifting into the entrepreneur he is today. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 109: #SpainBrain and the Importance of Taking Time to Rest and Recharge | 28 Jul 2022 | 00:22:59 | |
Whenever we talk about success in business, it’s usually about how to make more money, how to make more profit, how to get more clients, better clients, improve your process, improve your systems. What we don’t often talk about is the personal side of business success. Can you call it a successful business if it’s draining you personally and physically? We build businesses because we want to have lives we’re proud of and that we enjoy living. And your personal and physical health is absolutely a part of that. But how do you maintain both? How do you find balance without sacrificing? Tune into this episode to hear:
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Resources:
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| EP 108: How to Get Disciplined, Stop Endlessly Exploring, and Call Your Creative Work "Done" | 21 Jul 2022 | 00:16:14 | |
I got this question in the Facebook group the other day: How can I get more disciplined to get to a point where I can call it done and stop exploring ideas? I get why it’s hard to stop exploring. You want to give your clients the best work possible. Sometimes you don’t believe that what you’ve come up with is good enough, so you keep working and working and never feel like it’s good enough. When you hear that we build entire brands in just a few days, do you think to yourself, yeah, I could never do that. I could never box in how much time it takes for me to create a brand. Today I’d like to give you a different perspective that won’t leave you feeling restricted, but will actually give you more focus and insight into how you can shrink your process, without losing the creative genius you have to offer. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 107: Did You Know You Can Make Great Clients? Here's How. | 14 Jul 2022 | 00:18:57 | |
Have you ever wondered why everyone you talk to is a challenging client, and everyone you talk to doesn’t have a budget, yet so many people online seem to be working with these mystical ideal clients? Here’s the secret: The people who are always working with those ideal clients? They’re not finding them from some hidden paradise. They know how to make great clients. And so can you. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 106: How Vincent Kitirattragarn Built Dang Foods, an Award-Winning Asian Snacks Company, From Scratch | 07 Jul 2022 | 00:52:21 | |
A couple of weeks ago, I hosted my 20th high school reunion. And while I was there, I had the chance to catch up with lots of old friends, but I was especially excited to chat with Vincent Kitirattragarn. I’ve been watching his journey building Dang Foods from afar for the last ten years. Those delicious coconut chips at the end of the aisle at Whole Foods? That’s Dang Foods. So today, we’re sitting down to dig in further to his journey from popup restaurants to having shelf space in over 10,000 grocery stores. Vincent Kitirattragarn is the founder and CEO of Dang Foods, the largest healthy Asian snack company. Dang’s coconut chips, rice chips, and nutrition bars are found in over 10,000 grocery stores and have earned many industry awards including the coveted SOFI “best snack” award multiple times. A Cornell Graduate, Vincent is a Forbes 30 Under 30 awardee, and Gold List A100 awardee. His journey was featured on NPR’s “How I Built This” podcast in 2022. Vincent has been an active member of the Asian-American community for decades, organizing an annual Thai-American youth camp, supporting local organizations advancing justice for underrepresented ethnic communities, and supporting Bay Area food banks. In the natural food industry, Vincent advocates for Asian issues like the recognition of lunar new year and AAPI heritage month. He is also a board member to JEDI Collective, an industry group promoting justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. Tune into this episode to hear:
Learn more about Vincent: Learn more about Pia: | |||
| Ep 218: Telling It Like It Is: Hard Truths About Success | 24 Oct 2024 | 00:20:03 | |
If you could just make the right social media posts, if you could just make your offer better, if you could just find the people who would pay the high prices, would that make you successful? What does it really take to be successful as a one to two person branding agency? Success is about the whole picture: the business you want, the money you want to make and the lifestyle that you want. It’s about experiencing life the way you want to experience it. This month we're talking all about hard truths that most business coaches are not going to tell you. In this episode, I give you the hard truths about what it takes to be successful. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| EP 105: Getting Paid to Pitch: The Lead Product Method | 30 Jun 2022 | 00:26:27 | |
Pitching your work, writing proposals, sending out proposals and never hearing back from clients, or hearing from clients that “this is more money than we have budgeted for.” To me, these are some of the worst parts of running your own business. What if you could eliminate all of that? What if you could get rid of the free proposals and all of the pitching and get it down to a 15-minute phone call where you could make the sale on the call? Sounds magical, right? Well, I have a strategy for that, and it’s a cornerstone of the No BS Agency method. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 104: Building the Authority Machine in Your Business | 23 Jun 2022 | 00:23:01 | |
How would you like it if you could sit back and clients — hungry, excited, motivated clients, the kind of clients you want to work with — simply came knocking on your door, blowing up your inbox, asking to work with you? That’s the dream right? You didn’t get into this business because you wanted to be a salesperson. You started doing this because you’re a creative person and at some point you said, “I can do this for clients directly and make a lot more money and have a lot more freedom.” At no point did you probably think, “And I really want to go find my own clients.” So let’s talk about what it looks like to sit back and have clients come to you, because living the dream is possible, if you do it right. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 103: Are You Interested in The Idea or Are You Committed to Making It Happen? | 16 Jun 2022 | 00:13:44 | |
Are you interested or are you committed? This was the question posted by my friend, Melanie Spring the other day. And it really got me thinking about two those simple words that have profound consequences. Running your own business is so sexy from the outside. But if you've ever run your own business, you know that it is messy, full of ups and downs and everything in between. If you haven't run your own business, you probably only see the good parts. You see your friends who are living a life where they have complete control over their schedule. You see them post their wins on social media. You think, "I'm interested! I'm interested in having my own business, working for myself." I'd venture to guess that the majority of people who are looking to grow a business are really interested in building a business. The question is how many of them are actually committed? Are you? Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 102: Josh Thomas on the Difference Between Being in Motion and Being in Action, and Why One of Them Gets You Results | 09 Jun 2022 | 00:46:15 | |
Today, you get to meet one of my secret weapons, one of the magic bullets behind my business. Josh Thomas is my business coach. I wanted to have him on the show because we are aligned in so many no-BS ways. Josh has a way of cutting through the crap that even I can’t do. And you know me, I cut through BS better than most. Josh Thomas is an entrepreneur, business consultant and real estate investor who is passionate about helping business owners create time freedom and financial freedom through business fundamentals, systems, and leverage. He’s the host of the popular podcast, “The Do Zone” and has worked directly with more than 2,500 entrepreneurs in 30+ industries across the globe. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 101: My 50-25-25 Pricing Formula to Profit And Freedom | 26 May 2022 | 00:21:03 | |
How do you determine the prices you charge for your services? Do you give yourself an hourly rate and estimate how many hours a project will take to build a quote? Or do you just charge hourly and make less money if the project takes you less time? Or do you try to figure out what the client is willing to pay, or what your competitors are doing, and price the project from there? Whatever the formula you use, if your goal is just to charge as much as possible to as many clients as possible, you might actually be putting yourself at a disadvantage and setting up your business for failure. Having a strategy for pricing your services so that it sets you up for success is the only way to get off the hamster wheel of feast and famine. And I’m going to tell you how I do it. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 100: The Evolution of a Business | 19 May 2022 | 00:27:56 | |
Have you ever struggled to make decisions about your business? Whether it’s investing in your business, crafting your messaging, focusing your niche, or packaging your services, business owners are faced with a ton of decisions. And it can be easy to get stuck thinking, “if I knew it would work, I would…” You worry about it not working, or changing your mind, or getting pigeonholed. For our hundredth episode, I want to talk about why those worries shouldn’t keep you from making decisions, because guess what? Your business can and will change. My business–and this podcast–have changed dramatically over the last two years. And in the two years before that. And the two years before that. So if business is continuously changing, how do you plan things? How do you decide what to focus on? That's what I want to talk about today. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 99: What is Strategy? And Why Does It Feel So Hard and Elusive? | 12 May 2022 | 00:13:09 | |
Do you do graphic design or do you do branding? Do you do visual branding or do you do strategic branding? Do you do brand strategy? Do you even know what strategy is? Strategy is such an elusive concept. Everybody means something different when they say it. And if you're somebody coming in to deliver strategy to your clients, how do you know if you're delivering it at the right level for them? Well, that's what I want to talk about today. Because it doesn’t have to be as complicated as we make it out to be. So, what is strategy and how do you get good at it? Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 98: Justina Cerra Lucas Breaks Down What Marketing Really Is and What It Isn't | 05 May 2022 | 00:40:17 | |
Doing marketing can really suck. It can suck your time. It can suck your energy. And a lot of marketing out there well, kind of sucks. Which is where today’s badass business owner comes in. Justina Cerra Lucas is the founder of 218 Creative, where she helps creatives and entrepreneurs book more clients with marketing that doesn’t suck. Justina doesn’t believe that there’s a one-size-fits-all solution to your marketing, but she also believes that it doesn’t have to be complicated or overwhelming. In fact, she says over-complicating it is one way that leads to sucky marketing. We’re going to chat about what it looks like to create a marketing plan that doesn’t suck, especially for creatives, agencies, and people who are out there selling branding and marketing, but just can’t do it for themselves. Justina Cerra Lucas is a marketing professional by day and cat mom by night. With over a decade of experience in marketing across industries ranging from nonprofit to Hollywood entertainment and everywhere in between, she found that her favorite people to work with are other creative small business owners. She's been around long enough to bring thoughtful strategy to the table and knows that marketing doesn't necessarily have to be complicated in order for it to be successful. Empowering others to be able to carry out their marketing confidently is her jam. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 97: The One Killer Outreach Strategy: What Is It and How to Implement It | 28 Apr 2022 | 00:15:17 | |
When you’re networking and connecting with people in the early stages of your business, it’s easy to slip out of people's minds unless they have someone they can refer to you right now. It happens to all of us, even if we mean really well. When I was networking, I had so many lunches and coffees with people where I genuinely thought I was going to find someone for the insurance agent or real estate broker I’d just sat down with. Then two days later, back in my own world, I’d forget. So what do you do to stay on someone’s mind? How do you continue to connect with people, learn more about them and what makes their business tick, and share more about yourself? Enter the killer outreach strategy. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 96: How Do You Get Clients? Here's How: Short and Long-Term Marketing Strategies | 21 Apr 2022 | 00:18:08 | |
Being able to attract and close clients is a fundamental part of any service business. If you can't do this, you won't have a business. So obviously it's one of the most important things that you should know how to do. But when I ask people, “How do you get clients right now?”, so many people don’t know what to do. In fact, the number one question I get asked is “How do I find clients?” I get asked by people who don’t know how to get clients at all and they’re struggling to close any clients. And I get asked by people who have plenty of clients but really want to know how to get better clients. Either way, you have to be able to go and find clients consistently if you want to have a business. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 217: Telling It Like It Is: Hard Truths About Money | 17 Oct 2024 | 00:24:53 | |
Money. A topic that makes so many people so uncomfortable. We all have money stories that can negatively impact us. God knows I have spent a lot of time working through those to have a healthier money story and a healthier relationship with money. So many creatives don’t like talking or even thinking about money. But it is such an important and powerful aspect of your business. If you don’t have a handle on the truth about money and numbers and how it impacts your business and everything else in your life, it can keep you playing really small. In this episode, I share five hard truths about money that most business coaches won’t tell you. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 95: No BS Truth: What You're Focused on Right Now May Not Be The Right Thing to Do Based on Where You Are in Your Business | 14 Apr 2022 | 00:13:52 | |
When you think about your week, what are the most important things you focus on to move your business forward? Maybe you want to get posts up on social media so you can grow your audience. Maybe you want to tweak your lead magnet. Maybe you’re so busy with client work and you want to hire a freelancer so you can outsource some of the work. Those aren’t bad things to do. Posting on social media is a great marketing strategy. Working on your lead magnet so people happily hand over their emails builds your list. Using freelancers that you up-charge the client for so you can free up your time is a great idea. But the question is, are those the right things for you to do at this moment in your business? Maybe not. If you’re working too many hours for too little money, I can pretty much guarantee you that at least 50% of the things that you do each week are probably not going to help you make any more money or work any less. Imagine if you could identify 50% of the things you were doing that aren’t helping you grow your business and you could just stop doing them. You can. And that’s what we’re talking about today. Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 94: Shannon Mattern Differentiates Spending vs Investing and Explains Her Criteria for Making Investment Decisions has been deleted. | 07 Apr 2022 | 00:54:48 | |
No entrepreneur goes straight up the ladder to success. And no entrepreneur achieves success without investing in themselves. But how do you know what’s an investment in yourself and your business and what’s just spending money? On today's episode. I'm so excited to host my new friend and bad-ass business owner, Shannon Mattern. Shannon teaches solopreneurs how to DIY their website and mentors web designers on how to package, price, sell and run premium web design projects with boundaries (not burnout). Shannon’s also the host of Pep Talks for Side Hustlers, a podcast for side-hustlers who want to become self-employed (without taking a pay cut)! Tune into this episode to hear:
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| Ep 93: Truth Bomb: Delivering The Work in Less Time Delivers More Value for the Client | 31 Mar 2022 | 00:11:16 | |
The No BS Agency model is about doing projects in intensives. This means short timelines. A lot of people wonder, "Won’t shorter project timelines result in less valuable work for the client?" When I tell people that we deliver entire brands and websites in a two-day intensive Brand Up, many people assume we’re delivering templated work, that the work must be shoddy, that it’s rushed, that there’s just no way you can deliver high quality work in a short amount of time. Not only is that not true, but it’s actually the exact opposite. We have found that you can deliver more value in less time. If you play your cards right. Today I’m going to tell you why. Tune into this episode to hear:
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