Joel Buzzard grew up around the bar and real estate business. As a young man in his mid 20's, he pursued real estate as a career. Today his three small companies sell, teach, and appraise real estate. Joel and I discuss lessons learned from working in the bar business, the smart use of debt, the ACR's of wealth building, and how managing one’s anger is a key component in business development. And of course, we talk about the reality of problems and change that constantly arise.

People pay a premium for convenience. We know this by simply looking at the convenience store where every item besides lottery tickets is priced at a premium to your average grocery store. Yet, why do customers shop there? Because it’s convenient.  Staples advertised the “easy button” because ease and simplification (versus touting the quality of their paper clips) appealed to their small biz person core customer. We’ve been told to "sell the sizzle not the steak." But oftentimes when you get to the real meat of the matter, it's simplicity that our customers want.

A year ago (in episode 25) I visited with Clare Hunkler who co-founded Magneshade in 2008 with her husband Roger. In this episode I sit down with Roger to discuss growth (the RV shade maker is up 45% in sales this year!), adaptation, defending your patents, managing family employees, and the need to stay focused with your horns down in your formative years. Roger’s company has grown every of its 12 years in business with almost no debt. There are a lot of lessons in this episode. Enjoy!

Everyone who plans to start a business believes they’re prepared to do so. Here’s the reality: Even if they are prepared, there are dozens if not hundreds of lessons about to be learned. Joe Santa rejoins me for the Do Business Better podcast (he was on episode 35) to discuss lessons learned after ten years of piloting his own enterprise. We discuss business plans, the need to pay yourself first, when and why to hire people, and the need to protect what you have built. We also talk money and evolution. Pop a drink and join Joe and I — this was recorded after hours in his shop.

A mistake almost all of us make when it comes to selling our product or service: confusing our customers. We do this by providing lengthy explanations, too much industry vernacular, peripheral details that drone on, or simply talking too much about our offering when we should be listening to the client. But the customer asked for choices,” you say. “My clients demand to know the details of what they’re getting,” you lament. Yes, you’re right about all that — customers want details and choices. However, they generally don’t care about the same things we care about and they’re only capable of retaining a few details, not the laundry list you’re likely overwhelming them with. Stop confusing your customers and start selling better — this episode will show you how!

Most people who work in professional sales positions, as well as most small business people, have never been trained in how to sell. If you’re one of those people who hasn’t taken a sales class, I encourage you to read a sales book. In the meantime, listen to this episode of the Do Business Better Podcast where we discuss what sales is and why it matters. Sales in a nutshell is this: Revenue, The Basis of All Business, and the Simple Act of Understanding a Person’s Pain Then Being the Solution. We all sell, but many of us don’t do it well. Listen and watch this episode to improve your view and execution of selling!

As I point out in my book, Do Business Better, unsuccessful people view jobs as a means to make a buck. But successful entrepreneurs look at every job as an income AND learning experience. With that in mind, we’re going back to my days of Cutco sales to share a lesson about appealing to customer feeling the right way as well as understanding customer motivation. Hint: the client likely doesn’t care all that much about your dreams and aspirations — they care about themselves.

Lance Graulich left Wall Street to become a host at TGI Fridays. From there he went on to become a multi-state franchise owner of Wingstop and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. Lance joins me to discuss the business option of franchising. He explains how to look at buying into franchising, the advantages, of doing so, and the reasons franchise owners fail. He also discusses the option of turning your business into a franchise and how to make that happen.

Jay Hill’s first entrepreneurial venture was growing onions on a small patch of ground behind his parent’s house. He was 16 years old. Since then he’s grown his enterprise significantly. Today, Jay operates three different farming operations, a packaged hay feed company, and a vineyard. Between his own ventures and joint ventures, these companies employ 130 people. Jay shares his approach to planning and growing his business. He also explains his management philosophy — never have more than six people reporting to ownership or management. Jay expands on the lessons learned and things done right and wrong in nearly 20 years of growth.

Too many of us quit learning new moves out of comfort or laziness. But the marketplace continues to evolve whether we stay current or not. Worse yet, competitors adapt to our moves and methods and pass us by. Point: keep learning new moves and adding new weapons to your arsenal.