Brett Trainor Unplugged

The goal of any B2B founder is to expand and strengthen the company’s network. 

With today’s technology, public relations and marketing strategies are no longer restricted to written and printed ads. The rise of new media has led to new ways of reaching a wider audience. This is where podcasting steps in as more founders realize the impact and reach of this new platform.

Today, we have top-rated podcaster Jeremy Ryan Slate who emphasizes the role of podcast guesting as not just a public relations but also business development tool. We cover the do’s and don’ts and how to get maximum value.

Tune in to this mini masterclass on how to get on a podcast and leverage that. 

Resource Links:

We’ll be talking about:

About Our Guest:

A former champion powerlifter, Jeremy Ryan Slate switched to new media and started the Create Your Own Life Podcast, which became, at one point, the #1 rated show on iTunes. With over 2.5 million downloads, the Create Your Own Life Podcast studies the highest performers in the world. It propelled Jeremy’s success in podcasting and led to him later founding the Command Your Brand Media to help leaders use the power of podcasts to change the world.

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast. 

Connect with B2B Founder: 

Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/

Businesses are no longer single units. Businesses are ecosystems. 

In today’s podcast episode, Kurt Johnson of 11.2 Ventures will discuss how the gears run within the company when it comes to building small businesses and products and how it fits into all the other enterprises that they manage. 

We will also talk about the shift in the marketing perspective and technologies from ten years ago, around the time that Kurt started dipping in the B2B business circle, up to the present. Also, he presents how the B2B market is not only a business nor a product, rather, it is an entire platform. 

If you want to hear more about the business ecosystem, listen to today’s episode now!

Resource Links:

We’ll be talking about:

Kurt’s involvement in B2B startups [02:07]

Transitions in B2B sales methods from 2012 [03:04]

Salespeople educate on what the customers know [05:38]

Gaining traction for the business’ growth [07:45]

Weighing the leverage of marketing opportunities [11:24]

Businesses are ecosystems [13:51]

Approach of selling into an ecosystem [17:51]

Why Kurt established 11.2 Ventures [22:08]

The B2B market is a platform [26:28]

The ideation process of Kurt’s business ideas [28:27]

Long term visions for 11.2’s product or businesses [31:15]

Eradicate the founder’s bias [34:24]

Working with a certain type of founder [39:55]

Customers, connections, and capital [41:16]

What’s next for Kurt and 11.2 Ventures [47:12]

The one thing Kurt recommends [48:26]

About Our Guest:

Kurt Johnson is the co-founder of 11.2 Ventures and one of its current managing partners. Johnson is an author and entrepreneur who primarily works with B2B startups. Together with the team behind 11.2 Ventures, they ensure a greater likelihood of success for businesses and investors. 

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast. 

Connect with B2B Founder: 

Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/

Cold calls and hard sells need to say goodbye. 

As sales reps, there is a very short timeframe to capture your prospects’ attention. Don’t bore and put them off by acting as if you are presenting the solutions to problems that you don’t even know about. 

In today’s episode, we learn a thing or two about how humor improves rapport-building for sales reps, executives, and founders from Jon Selig, who does comedy and sales for a living. We learn how to create effective jokes specifically for your clients. 

If you want to know more about this refreshing take at sales talking, this episode is for you!

Resource Links:

We’ll be talking about: 

Jon’s professional background [01:40]

Parallels between standup comedy and sales [05:19]

What exactly is a joke [08:10]

Great comedians and founders stick to what works [11:08]

Creating excellent content [13:22]

Workshop sessions with Jon [14:02]

How Jon incorporates humor in sales [16:32]

Jokes build connections [27:13]

What’s next for Jon [29:42]

One thing that Jon recommends [31:47]

About Our Guest:

After twelve years of selling technology, Jon Selig is now a part-time comic and part-time sales person. Selig performs stand-up skits for companies who need a boat and facilitates workshops for companies to learn how to “roast their prospects’ pain”. He uses jokes in the same way as cold calls, cold emails, and social selling among others. 

You can reach out to Jon through his LinkedIn.

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast.

Connect with B2B Founder: 

Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/

What works before may not work now. Upfront and distant hard selling hardly ever brings in clients anymore. 

The approach in dealing with clients has long evolved and salespeople need to let go of textbook strategies.

Today’s podcast episode will feature an in-depth conversation with Diane Helbig, a growth accelerator and the host of the Accelerate Your Business Growth podcast. We talk about her newest book, Succeed Without Selling, and how this global pandemic actually accelerated the shift in the role of salespeople, and how fast the sales perspective is changing.  

If you want to close sales and gain profit by doing things effectively, this episode is for you!

Resource Links:

We’ll be talking about:

Diane’s professional expertise and background [01:48]

Incorporating influence from other experts’ points of view [04:52]

The reason behind writing Succeed Without Selling [07:01]

Selling is discovery, connection, and problem solving [09:33]

Engage a dialogue with your client rather than do a monologue [11:45]

Each client is a prospect [13:57]

Build a community for your business [16:16]

The transition of a salesperson’s role [22:32]

Marketing and selling go hand-in-hand [24:27]

Tips for B2B founders [27:27]

What’s next for Diane [29:13]

One thing Diane recommends [32:01]

About Our Guest:

Diane Helbig is the author of the bestselling book, Lemonade Stand Selling, and host of the long-running business podcast, Accelerate Your Business Growth. She is a growth accelerator focusing on creating strategies for small business owners across all industries. Helbig also provides workshops and presentations regarding business topics, such as sales, social media, leadership, and business planning. 

You can reach out to Diane through her website.

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast. 

Connect with B2B Founder: 

Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/

As the year is coming to a close, how do you plan on re kick-starting your business?

Founders experience 2020 in different ways. But the one thing they need to focus on is how to quickly adapt to the changing times as buyers’ preferences have changed with it.

Listening to your buyers’ needs can be a game changer for your business as we focus on being buyer-centric with SMB / SME adviser and my repeat guest, Michael Haynes. We talk about touching base with your customers as well as with your team to make sure your business rises back up as we kick-start the second half of 2020!

Refocus, reignite, and rise in these challenging times by tuning in to this episode now!

Resource Links:

We’ll be talking about:

Michael Haynes zeroing in on the buyer-centric approach [02:20]

How B2B companies are faring in 2020 [04:58]

What you need to do to refocus, reignite, and rise in Q3 and Q4 [07:22]

Why you need to talk to your current and former buyers [09:27]

Reinforcing decision-maker confidence on risk-averse buyers [11:23]

Three key things you need to deliver to your buyers [17:08]

In these times, focus on the need-to-have instead of the nice-to-have [20:39]

The “Listen, Innovate, Grow” framework [25:01]

There’s no better time to be in tune with your customers than now [28:45]

Touch base with your team more frequently than before [30:25]

What’s next for Michael [32:12]

The one thing that Michael recommends [34:22]

About Our Guest:

Having launched his book, “Listen, Innovate, Grow”, Michael Haynes firmly believes in a buyer-centric approach as a business. He is the Founder and Principal Consultant at Listen Innovate Grow, which has been helping SMEs create buyer-driven strategies to acquire and retain customers. Michael works as an SME B2B Customer and Marketing Strategy Adviser helping CEOs and their teams by empowering them to understand and deliver to their business’ buyer needs. Based in Australia, he’s been in the business for more than 9 years and is continuing to help drive business growth and performance.

You can get in touch with Michael through his LinkedIn.

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast. 

Connect with B2B Founder: 

Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/

With over 6,500 branding books on the market, how do you identify what truly works and which tactics are merely a waste of time?

Branding is the key to scaling a business regardless of whether you’re B2B or B2C because at the end of the day, it’s about talking to another human.

A 40-year veteran of branding, David Brier, walks us through his process for achieving differentiation, the brands that have successfully stood out and those who have failed, his perspective on growing beyond your network, and so much more.

Transform your startup from the mundane into awesome by tuning in to this episode.

Resource Links:

We’ll be talking about:

40 years of helping businesses be bold and stand out [02:18]

Branding as the art of differentiation [06:47]

Why you need to get your branding right [13:06]

The process for getting companies to identify what makes them different [17:21]

The greatest brands are built on a set of values [22:54]

Don’t think of it as B2B, think of it as human to human [27:11]

The difference between Microsoft and Apple [30:17]

Complacency and stagnancy will kill your business [35:42] 

It’s not a matter of everyone knowing you, but the right people knowing you [37:01]

A book as a powerful tool for scaling [45:35]

David’s book and masterclass [47:19]

The one thing that David recommends [49:31]

About Our Guest:

A branding veteran with 40 years of experience in strategy, brand identity, and package design, best-selling author David Brier is the epitome of the no bullshit marketer. His book, Brand Intervention: 33 Steps to Transform the Brand You Have into the Brand You Need, has been labelled “the branding bible”. Passionately advocating differentiation over the mundane, David has been responsible for building the brands of well-known companies such as the New York City Ballet, Revlon, Legacy Chocolates, The New York Times magazine and many others.

You can connect with David on LinkedIn or Instagram. Get inside tips on branding and business growth with David’s One-Minute Wednesdays on YouTube.

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast. 

Connect with B2B Founder: 

Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/

Can your business stand out in an ultra competitive and rapidly evolving business space?

In a market filled with businesses that offer the same things, the same service, and the same value, making sure your customers notice you is a tremendous task to achieve.

Market dominance is our goal today as the author of a #1 Amazon bestseller, Theresa Lina, goes over the four pillars for owning the market. We discuss the need for differentiation and the constantly changing environment that means this process has to be continuous.

Find out how your startup can become the go-to and even charge more. So tune in now!

Resource Links:

We’ll be talking about:

Theresa’s backstory that led to her writing her book [01:28]

Focusing on complex business solutions [04:32]

The need to transition to a modern business model in the B2B space [06:51]

The inspiration for the Apollo method of achieving market dominance [11:56]

Do you have to be the category king? [18:45]

Companies need to shift their mentality to a value-driven model [23:01]

Steps to differentiating yourself in the market - Launch and Ignite [26:33]

Conversations are key to identifying customer frustrations [32:51]

Have an overarching brand vision then put in different dimensions to the story [37:32]

The lead up to becoming the go-to - Navigate and Accelerate [43:11]

Don’t make the mistake of failing to evolve [46:53]

What’s next for Theresa and the book [50:03]

The one thing that Theresa recommends [51:12]

About Our Guest:

As the author of the #1 bestselling Amazon book, "Be the Go-To: How to Own Your Competitive Market, Charge More and Have Customers Love You For It", Theresa Lina is a well-known strategy and marketing thought leader who has helped companies achieve sustainable differentiation and evolve in a rapidly changing environment.

On the education side, Theresa also works as part of the teaching team at Stanford University.

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast. 

Connect with B2B Founder: 

Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/

If worse comes to worst, how much would you be able to get for your business?

Most founders fail to appreciate the importance of planning ahead. When the time comes for them to exit their company, they get disappointed by how much their startup is valued.

In today’s episode, I talk with Domenic Rinaldi, President & Managing Partner at Sun Acquisitions, about why founders always need to think of maximizing their business’ value and how it ties in with their end game.

Don’t let those years of business-building go to waste. Increase your market value by tuning in to this episode!

Resource Links:

We’ll be talking about:

Domenic’s journey into the M&A space [01:38]

Launching the M&A Unplugged podcast [03:48]

Always think of your business’ endgame [05:55]

Understand and optimize the value drivers of your business [09:46]

Never let one client’s share of your sales exceed 10% [10:55]

Should non-subscription type businesses start charging for subscriptions? [14:32]

Have a backup solution for when the vendor’s market strategy changes [16:16]

Founders need to practice removing themselves from the business [17:58]

Get a good accountant who understands exits and taxation [21:16]

Buying a business vs starting a business from scratch [24:14]

Be fully prepared if you want to buy a business [27:05]

Get your business to adapt to the digital transformation [30:33]

What’s next for Sun Acquisitions [33:03]

The one thing that Domenic recommends [34:39]

About Our Guest:

In 2005, Domenic Rinaldi had acquired Sun Acquisitions and became its President and Managing Partner. He helps several privately-held companies prepare for the sale or acquisition of businesses. He specializes in Certified Business Intermediary. He also hosts a podcast called “M&A Unplugged,” helping founders gain a full understanding of the buying and selling process, as well as learn how they can add more value to their business.

You can reach out to Domenic through his email.

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast. 

Connect with B2B Founder: 

Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/

When it comes to startups looking to grow, funding is a crucial part of their journey.

But deciding which startup or founder to invest in is a question not easily answered. Venture capital firms are faced with throngs of companies vying for their attention. What are the parameters they look into? What sort of metrics do they want?

In my first interview with a venture capital firm, Tim McLoughlin from Cofounders Capital shares with us what they look for in the early-stage B2B startups they invest in. We also discuss insights on why he thinks startups fail.

Tune in to this episode to find out the perspective of a VC fund on who to give their money to!

Resource Links:

We’ll be talking about:

Tim’s roots in North Carolina and getting involved in startups there [01:13]

‘The Triangle’ as fertile ground for startups [03:33]

The attraction of B2B software companies [04:15]

The decision criteria for which early-stage B2B startup to choose [05:49]

Founders shouldn’t getting stuck on a idea they had going in [09:15]

Being an entrepreneur involves a flurry of activity [10:42]

Their preference for first-time founders [11:40]

Two actionable traits that separate good from bad companies [14:10]

Knowing when to segment your model and KPIs is important [17:18]

Going broad vs. taking one niche at a time [19:35]

Always prepare for the hand off to the next person [21:15]

Focus and know your onboarding process [23:41]

What happens following the success of a startup [25:13]

The changes in the startup world influenced by COVID-19 [26:55]

What’s next for Tim and Cofounders Capital [29:25]

The one thing that Tim recommends [30:44]

About Our Guest:

As a Partner at Cofounders Capital, Tim McLoughlin is very involved in the North Carolina startup ecosystem. He has served as adviser and board member to several early-stage software companies. Prior to joining CoFounders Capital, Tim was an Entrepreneur in Residence for the Idea Fund Partners.

You can reach out to Tim through Cofounders Capital or his LinkedIn.

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast. 

Connect with B2B Founder: 

Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/

Is having better technology the first answer to scaling your business?

At the start of the 21st century, people got so caught up in relying on technology to make their lives easier and their business processes better that they forgot the basic and most important building block of all: people. 

This week, we’ll be putting more emphasis on the people side of the business with Lisa L. Levy, author of Future Proofing Cubed, and why founders need to prioritize it above all else.

Learn how you can build a stronger, more customer-centric business by tuning in to this episode today.

Resource Links:

We’ll be talking about:

Lisa and the LCubed Consulting [01:33]

The people component is still essential despite technological advancements [05:25]

Keep your team in the loop regarding company changes [07:38]

Memorialize your superhero employees through putting in processes [11:47]

How to incorporate the company DNA into your team [15:11]

The key to improving your team’s process is by being customer-centric [19:40]

How founders can slowly automate their processes [27:33]

The sacred sequence that startups need to know [31:48]

Focusing on technology on the first phase is a recipe for disaster [33:49]

Make sure you interact with your employees regularly [36:02]

Remind your employees not to mix life and work in this day and age [40:07]

What’s next for Lisa [42:04]

The one thing that Lisa recommends [43:25]

About Our Guest:

Well-known for her project management and process performance management skills, Lisa L. Levy has helped several organizations achieve their goals by adapting better business processes. She is the Founder and CEO of LCubed Consulting and is the #1 bestselling author of the book “Future Proofing Cubed.”  She has also guested on several media outlets including NBC, ABC, CBS, to name a few.

If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast. There’s a lot more to learn when it comes to podcasting, and we’re here to help!

Connect with B2B Founder: 

Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/