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When is the right time to get a small business loan in your entrepreneurship journey? Founder and CEO of Member Business Financial Services & Nu Direction Lending, Mark Ritter, joins Traci to discuss small business loans and what type of bank to look for when applying for a small business loan. Mark explains how underfunding can jeopardize a business as well as the emotional decisions that need to be made throughout an entrepreneur’s journey. Mark encourages people to start their business as a side hustle, make some mistakes, and get clear about the direction their company is going before going all in. Tune in to hear the incredible tips Mark has for small business owners!
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Mark was the founder of Members 1st FCU’s credit union business lending program that grew to be one of the top ten in the nation in number of loans and balances outstanding for federal credit unions. In addition, Mark developed a participation program that grew to one of the top buyers and sellers of credit union business loans in the eastern United States. He has done extensive work with branch retail staff, business lending operational and sales staff, and credit unions throughout the Mid-Atlantic States to educate and train them on the merits of member business lending. His primary role at MBFS is leading the day-to-day operations of the organization and consulting with credit unions on planning the delivery of business services to their membership. Mark is a native of Berwick, PA and a graduate of Penn State University.
LINKS MENTIONED:
MBFS Website
Mark Ritter’s Website
Mark Ritter LinkedIn
Credit Union Conversation Podcast on Apple
David Ragsdale of RePlatform joins host Peter Bronstein to discuss parallel economies. David discusses what a parallel economy is and how RePlatform is building a community of people to change how the economy operates. David breaks down what a parallel economy is and explains why it is different from an underground economy. David also explains how RePlatform works and what their goals are, as well as how they advertise and bring in money while operating as a B2B style business. Tune in to learn all about the parallel economy and decide if RePlatform Vegas is a conference for you to attend.
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David Ragsdale, is the brains behind the The RePlatform parallel economy initiative. David is a former Creative Strategist at Live Nation Entertainment’s North America Festival Division, Housing Policy Coordinator at the Extension in Marietta, Georgia, and a Lee Kuan Yew Scholar at the National University of Singapore.
LINKS MENTIONED:
RePlatform | The Freedom Economy Convention
David Ragsdale’s LinkedIn
Ask Brien Podcast on Apple
From General Electric to the music industry, to plastics, and now fixing issues with the long haul truck parking, it seems that Frank Sonzala has done it all. He has had his hands in many start up businesses helping bring their companies to success. Frank has a passion for turning a business into a hobby so that it is truly an enjoyment and something to look forward to every day. Currently, Frank and ConTrade Holdings are working to fix the long haul trucking parking issues that truckers face on a daily basis by creating a space where drivers can feel safe and secure while parked. Tune in to learn more about Frank’s background, how he’s found success, and what the future holds for ConTrade Holdings.
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LINKS MENTIONED:
ConTrade Holdings, LLC
Ask Brien Podcast on Apple
From working at Circuit City to running 7 figure businesses, David Williams is quite the inspiration. His newest business, 5th Degree Academy is helping children learn the skills they need to surround themselves with positive people and be successful in all areas of life including faith, family, freedom, finances, and fitness. David shares his many years of entrepreneurship experience and how he has put in the work to create various successful businesses. He talks about the path that he and his team have for his new business 5th Degree Academy and what their goals are. With this being a new business, David gives some great insight into how to gain traction and get through the crawl, walk, and run aspects of a company. Tune in to hear all about 5th Degree Academy, how it can benefit children, and insightful tips on entrepreneurship.
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David Williams is the second co-founder of 5th Degree Academy, a serial-entrepreneur, investor, and public speaker.
LINKS MENTIONED:
5th Degree Academy
Email: [email protected]
Danielle Mulvey from Profit First Nation went from working as a flight attendant to running multiple businesses doing over $50 million in revenue. Today we will learn just how she scaled her businesses.
Danielle discusses the importance of managing your finances and how to set up a cash management system when scaling your business. Danielle talks about how paying yourself can increase the valuation of your business, and how to utilize full-service businesses to scale your business.
She has so many incredible insights from setting up business accounts, keeping your finances safe, and how to recruit the best employees. Tune in to learn some amazing tips you can implement into your business today!
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Former flight attendant turned entrepreneur, Danielle Mulvey currently runs multiple businesses with over $50-million in annual revenues and is such a geek about Profit First: The DIY Cash Management System for Businesses – that she is Mike Michalowicz’ #1 recommended go-to Workshop Facilitator and Keynote Presenter when his schedule is booked.
Maybe even more exciting….Mike and Danielle are currently collaborating on his next book, ALL IN: How to Get Your Employees to Act Like Owners. This collaboration tackles the biggest challenge to the profitability of businesses with employees – their payroll expenses being weighed down by average, ho-hum or worse employees who “collect a paycheck” and provide no measurable results or return on their salaries.
Based on her 25 years-plus of being an entrepreneur, Danielle has cracked the code on how to recruit, hire and retain 5-Star Employees and is the originator of The 5-Star Star Employee Rating System™ – a personalized and customizable DIY process to objectively hire the top 15% of available talent for the given role while filtering out the average, ho-hum or worse candidates.
LINKS MENTIONED:
Danielle Mulvey’s Website
Profit First Nation Podcast
Profit First Nation Website
Text PROFITFIRST to 909-741-1321 – Summary Format of Today’s Episode
Ask Brien Podcast
Today Traci is joined by two guests, May Harris, CEO of For Purpose Law Group and Errin Mendibles, Founder of Bella Vita Tucson. Throughout this episode you will hear Errin discuss how she created her nonprofit and the questions that she has for May regarding the best ways to operate Bella Vita Tucson. May brings to light the things that those opening or running a nonprofit may not be aware of. She tells the right way to set up the nonprofit so that it is tax exempt and the best ways to raise funding through gifts and grants. Tune in if you are interested in starting a nonprofit yourself, the information in this episode is priceless!
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Mary L. Harris founded For Purpose Law Group in 2021, and currently serves as the firm’s CEO and Managing Attorney.
Ms. Harris chairs the firm’s transactional practice group, working with an outstanding team of FPLG attorneys and professionals in service to clients of all sizes, including museums, schools, churches, medical organizations and other charitable tax-exempt entities.
Serving in the role of non-profit founder, board member, corporate counsel and executive director over the course of her career, Ms. Harris has been instrumental in the development of each of the organizations she has led, and she understands the challenges facing nonprofit executivites each day.
Over more than two decades of legal practice, Ms. Harris has developed widespread recognition of her expertise & knowledge specific to the challenges facing tax exempt organizations and social enterprises. She excels at the advising growth-focused purpose-driven organizations, ensuring they receive practice, real-world advice they can apply immediately with staff, board members, stakeholders and donors to establish, protect and fulfill their mission, vision and values.
Bella Vita is dedicated to assisting Tucson’s adolescents and their families. We’re committed to providing a secure, nurturing environment for processing the complex emotions that accompany eating disorder recovery. Our unwavering efforts are aimed at making this vision a reality for every family.
LINKS MENTIONED:
For Purpose Law Group Website
Bella Vita Website
Bella Vita Instagram
Ask Brien Podcast
In this episode we are interviewing Tina Dietz from Twin Flame Studios. Her business is a full-service, award-winning audiobook and podcast production company that creates nonfiction audiobooks and podcasts, as well as high-quality content marketing assets for established experts and successful service companies. Tina shares how audiobooks and podcasts can propel a business forward by creating deep relationships with listeners. She talks about overcoming the fear of hearing your own voice and gives some great tips on integrating a good content marketing strategy. Tune in for some excellent tips.
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Tina’s work has been featured on media outlets including ABC, CBS, NBC, INC, HuffPost and Forbes. Her insatiable curiosity and quest to create more belonging in the world has taken her on a journey as an international speaker and executive business consultant, therapist, voice actor, university instructor, and lifelong entrepreneur. Tina’s first podcast, The StartSomething Show, was named by INC magazine as one of the top 35 podcasts for entrepreneurs and she is recipient of the Evolutionary Business Council MORE award and the award for Outstanding Audio Company from The Winner’s Circle. Tina was also the lead interviewer in the podcasting documentary “The Messengers” and featured in the film.
LINKS MENTIONED:
Twin Flames Studio Website
Ask Brien Podcast
In this episode we are interviewing our very own Peter Bronstein to talk about contracts, lawsuits and how to protect yourself and business from lawsuits. Peter walks us through a variety of different contracts and how to choose the correct one for your needs. He discusses the most important things that a business needs to be aware of when starting out, and the different types of attorney’s there are. Tune in for some great legal tips! These tips are for information only, please hire an attorney to help ensure your business is set up for success.
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Attorney Peter Bronstein’s Website
Ask Brien Podcast
In this episode we are joined by multi passionate entrepreneur, Viviana Escobar. Viviana shares the three different businesses she is currently working with and describes her various roles. She walks us through human design and explains how it can help you to determine your employees strengths and weaknesses. Viviana takes us through a breathwork practice and explains how to utilize it to create calmness or conscious living. We end the episode with Viviana discussing the projection for her businesses in the next 3-5 years. Tune in to learn some great business tips.
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At Viviana Escobar Conscious Lifestyle (VECL), we are dedicated to providing discerning individuals with exclusive, discreet, and unprecedented access to leading-edge medical professionals and treatments, both conventional and alternative. Our carefully cultivated relationships with the world’s foremost health professionals enable us to identify the best options for each of our clients.
VECL helps clients optimize their health through an integrated mind/body/spirit approach. With a single call, our team will set in motion a strategic plan that includes scheduling priority appointments and assistance with treatments, procedures, and all phases of perioperative care. In addition to medical care, VECL also arranges lifestyle aspects of medical tourism so as to provide clients with nurturing, comfortable environments to support their health goals.
LINKS MENTIONED:
Bending Our Reality By Viviana Escobar
Viviana Escobar Conscious Lifestyle Website
Mana Breathwork
Ask Brien Radio
On this episode we were joined by David Lowbridge, a content and SEO expert. David runs his own company that helps businesses succeed with their SEO, blog writing, and ranking. He explains many of the terms that go along with websites and ranking, and then explains how conversion happens. David discusses what is needed in a blog to help it rank on Google, as well as the number of blogs to post per month and the length of those blogs. He provides insight into utilizing AI and whether that is a good avenue to explore. Tune in to hear some excellent tips on SEO and creating a successful website.
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I’ve never believed that quality should be expensive; which is why I started TwoFeetMarketing. My adventure started at University. After studying BA Management and Mathematics, I took an MSc in Management where I specialized in Marketing and Human Resources.
During my early career, I worked in recruitment and human resources and ran a CV writing company, Avid CVs. I’ve also spent time learning to be a professional digital marketer. Early in my marketing career, I advised people how to market themselves online after setting up my own author blog.
In July 2013, I took the skills I had learned and began offering online marketing services to businesses. I kept to my original beliefs – quality does not have to be expensive, and continually offered great services at affordable prices.
I have a mixture of clients from solopreneurs to large organizations. I expand brand awareness while increasing website visits, generating leads and sales. My SEO skills are good. Companies that have used my SEO skills have seen their rank skyrocket, and even small businesses have found themselves competing with, and in many cases ranking higher than big industry leaders.
In 2017, I was a finalist for the best business blog award in the Essex Digital Awards.
I’m a dedicated father to three great children and husband. In my spare time, I look after my collection of animals including Geckos, Bearded Dragon, Kenyan Sand Boa, rabbits, guinea pigs and chickens. I can also be found walking around the fields several times a day with my dalmatian dog, April.
Feel free to reach out to me and connect. I would love to hear from you.
David Lowbridge. Copywriter, SEO Consultant, Digital Marketer.
LINKS MENTIONED:
Two Feet Marketing Website
David Lowbridge LinkedIn
Ask Brien Podcast
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