It's No Secret with Dr T.

Larry Roberts lives in Lewisville, Texas and he is a Business Intelligence Analyst, author of an Amazon #1 Bestseller, host of the Readily Random Podcast and owner of Readily Random Media. He is also a bit of a comedian and uses comedy to get his point across. 

As expected, my conversation with Larry Roberts was random, and we covered a lot of topics, but we did pull out some golden nuggets along the way.

High-Level Reporting

As a Business Intelligence Analyst and collecting data, it's about knowing what is important before you deep dive. Of course, there is a discovery process, which helps identify what is valuable and there’s always room for improvement.

When analysing data, it’s important to talk to the individuals that the process is going to impact the most.

His First Business Venture

His first business, which he ran alongside his day job, got too big too fast and he eventually had to decide to quit his day job or to sell the business. He still regrets the decision he made.

There were a lot of takeaways from this experience:

• You don’t need to know everything before you get started.
• You do have to love what you’re doing more than the money that you make.
• He learnt how to start a business and how to run a business, but he never had an exit strategy when it mattered most, which is why he had to make a forced decision to keep his day job (career) or keep the business.
• Giving up your career is a risky option.

Passion For What You Do

It’s easy to tell if you’re passionate about what you’re doing, you’re always looking for ways to improve and get better, and you do it automatically. 

Passionate people also engage a business coach or mentor to help guide them through the process of what it is they want to learn. A business coach and mentor speed up the learning process.

Podcasting For Your Business

We’re often asked if every business can benefit from a podcast and the answer is YES because a podcast can be whatever you want it to be. You need to share what you know.

Larry gives a great example of ‘Larry The Landscaper’ and how his knowledge of landscaping may not appeal to the masses, and it won’t become the world’s greatest podcast, but it will appeal to a small niche of people, and that’s what you want. It’s realism as its best.

Podcasting keeps you in the ear of your target audience and it’s one of the cheapest marketing tools you will ever use.

Avoid Bad Courses

You need to avoid paying for overpriced courses, run by people that do not have experience. Check their credentials and make sure they know what they’re talking about, and have they done what it is you want to learn. 

Using Comedy

Comedy is a tool, and it's an excellent way to break the ice with any crowd. There will always be that one person in the room that is a tough nut to crack, and if you can get them to laugh, you’ve got everyone.

Comedy is a great way to get an important point across because laughter helps with retention. An audience will always remember a speaker that makes them laugh, but be warned, do not use canned jokes that do not fit the situation, it will make you look bad.

Monday Morning Tip

You control your happiness, even if you’re in a bad environment. You can choose to let a situation piss you off, or decide to look at it differently and therefore affect you differently.

If you have any questions about this podcast episode, please send me an email at [email protected] or connect with Larry Roberts at Readily Random Media. 

If you like this episode you'll also enjoy: 

Not Liking Your Career Path with Eric Hunley

iTunes Reviews

If you're enjoying It’s No Secret with Dr T., please tell your friends and family, and if you enjoy it a lot, it will put a HUGE smile on my face if you wrote a review on iTunes.

Reviews do two things:

1. It gives social proof this show is worth checking out
2. It lets the host know that people are listening and care

Newsletter

If you want to be kept up to date with my EVENTS and other activities, please sign up to my NEWSLETTER. I promise not to spam you with daily emails. 

When it comes to purchasing equipment for your business, there are two types of equipment purchases you can make. One is income producing equipment and the other is non-income producing equipment.

For example, let’s say you need to purchase eight chairs for your reception and you’re deciding between a $150 chair and a $400 chair, which means you will spend $1200 or $3200 to purchase the eight chairs. In addition to this the comfort levels of the chairs are about the same, and at first glance, they look similar as well.

This is when you need to stop, think and ask two questions:

1. Will the $150 chairs be sufficient for your current needs?
2. Can you use the $2000 you save elsewhere in your business?

Brand

If a $150 chair will be sufficient and serve the intended purpose why spend the extra $250 per chair, especially if it’s not going to take anything away from your brand.

I know from experience that you are better off saving the $2000, or investing the $2000 towards income-producing equipment that will generate income for years to come.

Best ROI

As your business generates revenue, you can save it and earn interest, or you can reinvest your money into income-producing equipment. Ask yourself where are you going to get the best return on your investment? 

If you had $30,000 sitting in the bank account, earning 10% interest, you’re only getting $3000 income per year, but if you invested the same amount of money into purchasing income producing equipment, how many times would you need to use the equipment to get the same return?

When I purchased a milling machine to make orthotics for my podiatry business in 2008 it cost approximately $75,000 to set it all up. In the first year of operation, it saved my company about $120,000 in lab fees.

After taking away the costs of materials and running costs of the equipment, I got my money back in the first year, and over the next eight years, up until selling my business, I was getting up to a 150% return on my initial investment.

Borrowing

Of course, not everyone has $75,000 sitting in a bank account, so if you borrowed $75,000 at 10%, and you were getting a 100% return on your investment, it’s still a worthwhile income-producing purchase.

Equipment Goals

Before you purchase new equipment, you must set equipment goals.

Purchasing equipment without setting equipment goals makes no sense, and I’ve seen a lot of expensive dust collectors sitting in the corners of many businesses because no goals or outcomes were set before the equipment purchase.

So, before making any equipment purchases, you must ask yourself the following question:

 How long will it take before I get my full investment back?

To work this out, you need to know:

1. How much you’re going to charge?
2. How many times does this service/equipment need to be utilised?

When you know this information, you can set realistic goals and calculate your return on investment.

What Does The Math Tell You?  

A $10,000 piece of equipment being charged out at $250 per user needs to be used 40 times to get your money back, which is less than once per week. Is this realistic? What if it’s used twice per week, that would be 104 uses for the year and would generate $26,000 in gross revenue. That’s a high ROI.

In my example with the milling machine, it was about saving money per use, more so than charging out a fee per use, but in the end, it works the same way.

What Is Your Marketing Strategy?

As part of your goal setting process, you should also develop a marketing strategy. You may only need to use your new equipment 40 times to get your $10,000 investment back, but how are planning to achieve this goal? What marketing tactics are you going to employ?

Opportunities

Income-producing equipment should be a business priority over non-income producing equipment, and it can and should be used to set your business apart from your competition. Think about the services you currently offer and can you offer more?

In my industry, there is one piece of equipment that only costs about $300 to set up, yet not every podiatrist uses it, and it can add an extra $10,000+ to the bottom line with little to no effort.

So, keep your eyes open for opportunities, and remember a clients bum will rarely tell the difference between a $150 and $400 chair, but they will notice a business that reinvests their profits into new equipment and technology that will provide a better, faster, more efficient outcome for them.

Competitors 

If you can purchase something that none of your competitors is using it will set you apart from the crowd, but first, do the math, work out if it is a viable purchase, set your goal for your ROI and have a marketing strategy in place before you make the purchase.

Get this right, and you’ll set yourself up for income producing equipment success.

Mentoring

Purchasing income producing equipment and developing a marketing strategy and tactics is something I have done a lot of coaching and mentoring around, so if you need help in this area, please reach out and contact me at [email protected]

If you like this episode, you'll also enjoy:

Create A Buzz by Marketing Early

iTunes Reviews

If you enjoy It’s No Secret with Dr T., please tell your friends, and if you enjoy it a lot, it will put a HUGE smile on my face if you left a review on iTunes.

Reviews do two things:

1. It gives social proof this show is worth checking out
2. It lets the host know that people are listening and care

Newsletter

If you want to be kept up to date with my EVENTS and other activities, please sign up to my NEWSLETTER.

I promise not to spam you with daily emails or tell you about all the fake clients I've helped achieve a 214% increase in business in 3-months. 

They say if you love what you do you’ll never work a day in your life, and my guest Lonnie Beck is doing exactly that. He is a 5th Dan Black Belt, and he has been able to turn his passion for martial arts into a thriving, successful business. 

Lonnie and business partner and friend Somnath Sikdar purchased Dragon Gym in Southeast Pennsylvania in 2008, and they have been able to achieve fantastic business growth over the past 10-years. What makes this business story even more extraordinary is it's the same martial arts school where they both started as kids. 

Developing Your Skills

As a business owner it’s crucial to be improving your skills continually and at the same time be prepared to make changes in your business if you want it to grow consistently and to stay competitive.

Work/Life Balance Takes Planning

When Lonnie purchased Dragon Gym, he was in his mid-twenties, full of energy and single. Moving ahead ten years, he is married with a daughter, meaning the schedule needed to be adjusted, but this was not a problem, as it was planned for and well thought out way ahead of time.

Setting Up Systems

Right from the outset, Lonnie knew you couldn’t take four martial arts classes a day, every day, for the rest of your life, as instructing does take a toll on your body.

Instructing at a high level is a young person game, so very early on they planned for the business to be able to run without them and the only way to do this was to develop sound business systems.

A successful business also needs to have the right people in the right positions.

Educating Yourself & Self Improvement

Lonnie has developed himself personally by having various business coaches and mentors, doing a lot of reading and being part of business mastermind groups.

It’s crucial to pull information from different people and different industries because the martial arts industry is quite small and stagnate.

Nutrition & Exercise Is The Root Of All Happiness

A lot of people feel guilt and regret by the way they look because they know they are eating all the wrong foods and not exercising, but to turn this around it all begins by changing the way you talk to yourself.

You need to find that inner light of happiness.

When you exercise and eat healthier the conversations you have with yourself are far more positive, and this positivity is transferred to the people around you, making your life better.

Help Yourself First

It’s no different to the instructions we receive on every flight, in case of an emergency and oxygen mask will fall from the compartment above, put on your mask first before trying to help others.

If you don’t work on yourself first, you cannot help others, and yes, you may be able to fake it for a while, but eventually, you will break.

Start With Small Wins

It’s about developing small wins you can hang onto. With your health, going to the gym or making a healthy smoothie is a small win. In business, it could be developing a simple phone system that you’ve been putting off.

It’s important not to try to change everything at once. If there are bad habits in play, eliminate one at a time, don’t try to give up everything at once because it's unlikely you will succeed. 

Improved Performance with Mental Preparation 

When you decide you’re going to show up and make an effort to perform better, and you feel good about yourself, and you’re confident about the decisions you’re making, no challenges that come your way will be a problem because you’re mentally prepared

Monday Morning Tip

It all starts with positive self-talk; Pay attention to that voice in your head and consciously change it to be more uplifting.

You can’t change anything in life unless you start to change your behaviours, including your diet, exercise and how you speak to yourself.

If you have any questions about this podcast or blog, please send me an email at [email protected].  

You can also connect directly with Lonnie Beck via Facebook or at Dragon Gym, especially if you're keen to know more about his Discovery Group business mentoring program. If I owned a martial arts school, I would be contacting them immediately.  

If you like this episode, you'll also enjoy:

Episode 018: Mastermind With The Dragon Master with Somnath Sikdar

Episode 002: Communication, Persuasion & Influence with Dave Frees

iTunes Reviews

If you enjoy It’s No Secret with Dr T., please tell your friends, and if you enjoy it a lot, it will put a HUGE smile on my face if you left a review on iTunes.

Reviews do two things:

1. It gives social proof this show is worth checking out
2. It lets the host know that people are listening and care

Newsletter

If you want to be kept up to date with my EVENTS and other activities, please sign up to my NEWSLETTER.

I promise not to spam you with daily emails or tell you about all the fake clients I've helped achieve a 214% increase in business in 3-months. 

This episode is all about customer service, acknowledging mistakes when they occur, and using the recovery paradox to build your brand and customer loyalty. One of my previous podcast guests said that consumers today are far wiser and savvier than they use to be because they have technology at their fingertips and they are not afraid to use it.

Seeing a friend reading online reviews about a restaurant before deciding where to eat is no longer unusual, in fact, I’d say it’s quite normal, and therefore not only are consumers wiser and savvier, they also know what good and bad service look like.

August 2018

In August of this year, I had problems arise with two companies, Qantas and a hotel in Cairns where I ran a one-day workshop, and I’ve been waiting until now to talk about them both because I wanted to see how they handled my concerns.

Qantas Story

I was flying back from Canberra to Cairns, via Sydney in the late afternoon and to cut a long story short Sydney was hit by major electrical storms and the airport was temporarily shut down. Well, so we thought.

My flight was due to depart at 5 pm, but it was one delay after another until eventually it was midnight and all flights out of Sydney were cancelled.

Airport Mayhem

Of course, you could imagine the mayhem and noise in the airport with thousands upon thousands of people stranded and everyone headed, as instructed, to the baggage carousel trying to locate their bags.

It was a free for all and respect for your fellow man had gone straight out the window. People were yelling at each and also screaming at the Qantas staff for answers, and to be honest they knew as much as we did.

It looked like it was the end of the world I do hope we never have a zombie apocalypse because watching the behaviour of some people was embarrassing.

The Announcement

Eventually, an announcement came over the loudspeaker telling everyone to find accommodation up to $200, keep the receipt and to contact Qantas afterwards to claim it back.

I tried desperately to find a room but by the time I got my bag it was impossible and I gave up about 2 am.

Qantas App

I checked my Qantas App and there was no update on my cancelled flight so I thought to bugger this, it's time to take action.

Jetstar has a flight leaving at 6 am and that’s only 4 hours away, I’ll book the ticket through the Qantas App, which was the same dollar value as the accommodation and sleep at the airport. I’ll then contact Qantas and see if I can claim the money back for the flight.

As I made this decision and booked the flight, unbeknown to me, Qantas had already booked me on a Qantas flight around the same time.

Two Flights

I now had two flights booked.

I tried cancelling my Jetstar flight via the Qantas App, but it said I had to contact Jetstar Customer Service. Well, of course, I couldn’t because their phones were still congested at 2 am.

So I had a bright idea, at 5.30am I’ll go to the Qantas counter when it opens, explain the situation, and they’ll be able to contact Jetstar and cancel the flight.

The Qantas check-in counter told me they couldn’t do this and suggested I checked my bags in now to secure my Qantas flight and walk over to the Jetstar terminal, which was only about five minutes away.

Unfortunately, Jetstar said NO because I missed the cutoff to cancel a flight.

Contacted Qantas

By now I was so tired I didn’t really care and thought I’ll sort it all out later when I eventually get home, which I did.

I wrote to Qantas, explained the whole situation and they gave me a refund on my flight, which to be honest I was not expecting. And to be truthful I wasn’t even going to write to them and try, but my wife insisted that I did and I’m glad I listened. 

So it’s a big THANK YOU TO QANTAS, not only for having a great team at the Sydney airport but also for their customer service department on how prompt they handled my concern. They immediately acknowledge my problem via email and kept me updated throughout the whole decision process. Very professional.

Cairns Hotel

Unfortunately, I didn't have the same experience with the hotel in Cairns. 

Now don’t get me wrong, it was a nice venue and very affordable for running an event, but the old saying ‘you get what you pay for’ is probably true here.

I booked a full day event for 46 people, which included morning and afternoon tea and lunch, but was told I had to pay for 50 people as this is what I originally booked for and didn’t give them 30-days notice of the change, which I did but I couldn’t be bothered arguing over 4 places.

When I turned up on the day they had only set the room up for 32 people. What the?

Listen To My Gut

Fortunately, my gut told me to arrive extra early because I had an uneasy feeling because the manager was the third person I had dealt with over a 6-month period.

When I pointed out the error to the manager there was no apology and she basically didn’t care. She grabbed one of her team members, who I must say was great and told him to quickly bring in some more tables and chairs.

Problem #2

They used the wrong sized tables and you could not seat 46 people. No one attending my event probably noticed I never sat down and a few other people were sitting on stools. It actually made them look like planned helpers, so we got away with it in the end.

Problem #3

The next issue was the food, there was not enough. Because they set the room up for 32 people, I think they only catered for 32 people. I even told the manager my concerns and she disagreed and said there should have been plenty.

She had the same attitude when I first mentioned there as only 32 seats. When I first told her she said I was wrong, there are 46. I had to make her come into the room and count them.

Feedback

I won’t keep going on with everything else that went wrong that day, but what I would like to point out is they sent me an email after my event asking for feedback and I sent them a very long response and all I got back was crickets.

A simple apology or an acknowledgement of ‘we dropped the ball’ would have been nice, but instead just crickets.

The Recovery Paradox

So is there a reason for sharing these two stories? Yes, there is. It brings to light the Recovery Paradox.

The recovery paradox is a situation in which a customer/client or patient thinks more highly of a business (or person) after the business has corrected a problem with their service or product, compared to how they would regard the business if non-faulty service or product had been provided.

I discussed this subject in Episode 12: The Recovery Paradox with Dr Jesse Green and how problems and complaints can build brand loyalty if handled the right way.

Qantas Was The Winner

In my two stories, you can see that Qantas has come out smelling of roses, while the Cairns hotel smells a little like swamp water.

So the next time you get a complaint about your business or service do not immediately react and get all defensive, and start calling them idiots, look at it as an opportunity to learn.

And it may be an opportunity to build an even better relationship with the customer/client or patient.

This is exactly what happened with Dr Jesse Green and I. We have a very interesting story on how we connected and now, because of the recovery paradox we not only work together, we are best of friends.

If you have any questions about this podcast or blog please send me an email at [email protected] and also check out my updated website.  

Also, if you enjoy It’s No Secret with Dr T., please tell your friends and if you enjoy it a lot, it would put a huge smile on my face if you left a review on iTunes.

Reviews do two things:

1. It gives social proof and it tells people this show is worth checking out
2. It lets the host know that people are listening and care.

Newsletter

If you want to be kept up to date with my EVENTS and other activities, please sign up to my NEWSLETTER.

I promise not to spam you to death with daily emails telling you how good I am or phantom clients I have helped. 

Regardless of what you do there needs to be passion, and there was no shortage of this with my guest David Rollins who is the best selling author of eleven books, documentary filmmaker and soon to be credited scriptwriter for an upcoming feature film.    He describes himself as a cynical bastard, but I think this makes him a better writer.    Today we discuss:

• His journey from journalist to becoming a professional marketer
• His prolific book writing skills and his most recent book Kingdom Come, which is the seventh book with action hero and Special Investigations Officer Vin Cooper. 
• Why your job, no matter what you do ends up like Groundhog Day
• His first booked was a side hustle
• How writing changed his life, not financially, but it made him aware of what he wanted to do with his life
• How the publishing industry has changed
  • It's much easier to now to write a book
  • Much harder to find an audience
  • Writing is easy and fun, but it's about commercial success
•  Therefore using a traditional publisher gives you access to marketing
•  When you're writing your book, you've got to tap into the correct audience
• The USA is the market you want to crack
• February 2018 Documentary Trial of Midnight Rider - Railroaded In The Deep South, which delves into the conspiracy behind the death of a camera assistant on a 2014 film Midnight Rider about the Allman Brothers. 
• How his life was in danger when he dug too deep

Writing Tip: If you're going to write a movie script for a feature film, start with the money first. Get funding, then write the script. At present, he is writing a comedy about the whole coffee subculture. 

"Coffee snobs are like wine snobs on crack". 

  If you think Trump is an idiot, you'll love his latest book Kingdom Come, but if you think Trump is fantastic, this book will give you the shits.    Monday Morning Tip If you want to be a good writer you have to employ all five senses. What is the character feeling, seeing, smelling, hearing and tasting? It makes the characters more real, and there's got to be some conflict.   Connect with David Rollins   Website: http://davidrollins.net/   His character Vin Cooper has his own Instagram account if you want to check it out: Vincooper04   You can also order a signed of Kingdom Come  

If you have any questions about this podcast or blog, please send me a direct email at [email protected].

And if you're a Podiatrist or an allied health professional, do not underestimate the benefits of having a business coach or mentor because you will get the results you're after much faster. 

If you like this episode you'll also enjoy: 

Not Liking Your Career Path with Eric Hunley

Free Download

Yes, you'll have to give me your email address but don't panic you can get the free info and unsubscribe afterwards, and if you don't want the download, which is pretty awesome, you can stay up to date with what I'm doing be registering for my weekly NEWSLETTER

12 Secrets to Get More People Through Your Front Door

Recent Facebook Review

Dr Tyson Franklin ALWAYS seems to have a knack of stripping away the BS to give really good advice on so many topics. His knowledge of the good bad and indifferent in so many professions give him a broad and open-minded view on how to approach many challenges in business and personal life. Tyson ROCKS - Leisel Pisani. 

If you'd like to leave a review on Facebook or iTunes, it would put a big smile on my face. 

Many small businesses are not profitable, and the owners do not enjoy what they do each day because they do not take time off to work on the business. They need to learn how to earn more with less struggle. 

My guest today is Prosper Taruvinga, and he is a digital marketing strategist and owns a company called Livelong Digital. 

No Strategy

A lot of business owners are busy doing it all, but they have no idea if anything they do is really sticking long-term. 

They have no strategy or systems in place for lead generation and no marketing plan to nurture and convert leads. 

Bottom line, they have no idea what is working and where the money is coming from. Is it their most recent ad, speaking gig, recall system or website update? 

3 M's of Marketing

1. Message - What are your products and what are they getting out of you? What is your POD: Point of Difference? 
2. Market - Who is that person? What is their pain point? What do they want from you and what are they going to benefit from using you?
3. Media (to reach the market) - There is a lot of choices, so you must first know your message and market before you choose your channel. 

What Is Your Song?

You need to start singing your song, not the song of others. Ask yourself:

• What is your claim to fame?
• What are you known for?
• Why should the market single you out?

Too often small business owners make the mistake of beginning with media before knowing their song.

Build Your Brand

When you know your message and market, you can select your media. You may transmit your message via social media, website, or podcast to find the person with the right type of pain.

Do this right, and over time you will build your BRAND. 

Social Media

Do not treat all social media platforms equal because they are not equal

LINKEDIN: This is the only place you can go online with your pants on. It's a professional platform and not used as often on weekends. 

FACEBOOK: People use Facebook to be entertained and sometimes learning, but more often than not it's to laugh at others misery. Therefore you need to be part of the conversation, so speak with them, not at them. 

INSTAGRAM: Is a mixed bag. If you want to test how many people are connected with you and care about what you post, try posting a good photo without any hashtags (#) and see the response. These will be your real followers. 

Use social media, so people get to know, like and trust you and your brand. 

Monday Morning Tip

Gratitude. Be grateful for the chair you sit on, the computer you work on, the roof over your head, the business that nourishes your bank account and the opportunity to do meaningful work. 

Connect with Prosper

If you do a Google search for Prosper Taruvinga you will quickly find him, otherwise, go to his website Livelong Digital, or you can send him an email at [email protected]

If you have any questions about this podcast or blog, please send me a direct email at [email protected].

And if you're a Podiatrist or an allied health professional, do not underestimate the benefits of having a business coach or mentor because you will get the results you're after much faster. 

If you liked this episode

You'll also like:

Social Media Goals with Josh Rimmington

Free Download

Yes, you'll have to give me your email address but don't panic you can get the free info and unsubscribe afterwards, and if you don't want the download, which is pretty awesome, you can stay up to date with what I'm doing be registering for my weekly NEWSLETTER

12 Secrets to Get More People Through Your Front Door

Recent Facebook Review

Dr Tyson Franklin ALWAYS seems to have a knack of stripping away the BS to give really good advice on so many topics. His knowledge of the good bad and indifferent in so many professions give him a broad and open-minded view on how to approach many challenges in business and personal life. Tyson ROCKS - Leisel Pisani. 

If you'd like to leave a review on Facebook or iTunes it would put a huge smile on my face. 

If you want to grow your business you've got to take the blinkers off and start learning from other professions. James Crook is a business coach to the Massage Profession, and he is kicking more goals than most, so it's time to start listening. 

In this podcast we discuss:

• Why there are riches in niches.
• Where to find your ideal client
• What are your goals for starting a business
• Why you need to set up systems in your business
• The three amazing M's
  • Mindset - Framing your thinking
  • Marketing - The engine room for growth
  • Mechanics - Systems behind the business
• Learning from other professions
• Why becoming a podcast guest is great for business
• Allow 1-hour per day for things to go wrong

Monday Morning Tip

When you walk into work, start your day by setting your intentions for the rest of the week. Look at your to-do-list and block out time for the essential tasks. 

Connect with James Crook

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JmsCrk

Website: https://massagechampions.com 

Book: https://massagechampions.com/product/book/

Podcast: Fully Booked Without Burnout - Check out Episode #29 to listen to my interview with James. 

If you have any questions about this podcast or blog, please send me a direct email at [email protected].

And if you're a Podiatrist or in the health industry and in private practice, or considering going into private practice quite soon, do not undervalue the benefits of having a business coach or mentor because you will get the results you're after much faster. 

If you liked this episode

You'll also like:

But My Business Is Different 

Free Download

Yes, you'll have to give me your email address but don't panic you can get the free info and unsubscribe afterwards, and if you don't want the download, which is pretty awesome, you can stay up to date with what I'm doing be registering for my weekly NEWSLETTER

12 Secrets to Get More People Through Your Front Door

Today I want to talk about cash, or more specifically cash flow and why cash is king. It doesn’t matter how much money you make, what’s important is how much of it you have available after collecting all payments and paying out all your monthly expenses.

Many businesses struggle in their first few years because they’ve gone into their business venture full of enthusiasm and wearing rose coloured glasses, and then quickly run out of money because the money going out exceeds the money coming in.

Were They Dumb?

I knew a couple who spent over $200,000 to open a podiatry business on the Sunshine Coast, and they went broke within 12-months. Was it because they were dumb?

Well, the jury is still out on that, but from what I observed it was a cash flow problem from day one.

From the outset they:

• Began their business venture with limited capital and therefore borrowed too much money, resulting in larger than normal monthly repayments, which immediately ate into their cash flow.
• Purchased equipment they did not need
• Made purchases for home and added it to the business repayments. (That’s pretty dumb)
• Gave out accounts without any questions
• Gave discounts too often
• Got financial advice from unqualified family and friends
• Began with limited CASH

Right from day one, they were trading with insufficient cash flow, and this caused them a lot of stress. Starting a business this way is crazy.

Established Businesses 

But, I’d like to point out running out of money before running out of the month is not just a problem for new businesses either, it can also happen to establish businesses if they do not pay attention into watching their cash flow and monthly expenditure.

Even a successful business can go broke if they are not getting paid fast enough. If you must pay $10,000 rent this month, a $20,000 payment owed to you in 90-days is not very helpful, so the speed at which your accounts are paid is important.

Accounts 

If your business gives out accounts you need to have a strict account policy and everyone needs to adhere to it and if someone is late with a payment, there should be a process to follow and do not give them additional credit hoping they will pay.

When I had my podiatry business I had a zero account policy, and yes, a few patients did complain, but they also made an appointment and paid their account in full. And they returned and never asked for an account a second time.

After 30 years I had no bad debts.

It Is Possible

You may be thinking this is impossible in your industry and maybe that’s true, but still, give it some thought, or at least review your current payment terms. If your invoice says 30, 60 and 90-days then you’re telling everyone they’ve got 90-days.

Why not change it to 7, 14, 21-day and overdue.

I feel that every business should work towards having enough cash in their bank account to cover all their business expenses, including wages for a minimum of three months.

Less Stress

You may or may not agree, but that’s my thinking because lack of money is stressful, and stress affects your judgment and decision-making capabilities.

You want to build your business with a clear head, not a cloudy head concerned with paying next month’s rent.

Good cash flow allows you to:

• Pay all your accounts on time, which suppliers love, and it builds trust. And if for any reason you did get in a financial pickle down the track, your suppliers will help you where they can.
• Gives you the ability to purchase in bulk and make significant savings.
• Saves money on freight because you’re ordering fewer times throughout the year.
• Build trust with your team. Your team sees everything, and nothing destroys confidence in business more than ongoing phone calls and emails from creditors

Wait

So here’s my warning: DO NOT OPEN your business if you don’t have enough capital and the cash to sustain the business.

You are better to wait for another 12 to 18 months and do it properly because you also need to allow money for marketing.

Marketing is going to be a key component to your business success, and many new businesses do not allow for marketing in their budget, and when business gets tough, marketing tends to be the first thing cut.

That’s a big mistake, so make sure you budget for it in your financial forecast.

Today's Summary

1. Cash is King
2. Cash flow is the amount of money available to you each month after collecting all revenue and paying all your monthly bills. Ideally, you want to see your cash flow going upwards.
3. If your business gives accounts limit the payment terms, or don’t give out accounts at all.
4. Aim to have enough cash in your bank account to cover three months of expenses so you can think clearly.
5. A good payment history builds trust.
6. If you don’t have the capital and cash to start your business right now, don’t rush into it.

If you have any questions about this podcast or blog, please send me a direct email at [email protected].

And if you're a Podiatrist or in the health industry and in private practice, or considering going into private practice quite soon, do not undervalue the benefits of having a business coach or mentor because you will get the results you're after much faster. 

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12 Secrets to Get More People Through Your Front Door

To be successful online, you must first work out your business goals, then look at which platforms are going to best help you in achieving those goals. Where do you want to be found will help decide where you put your time, effort and money.

Will you spend more time focusing on SEO and building your organic traffic on your website, or paid advertising on Facebook and Google?

JR Marketing 

Josh Rimmington is from JR Marketing, and when he first consults with a client, he first needs to know what they want to achieve. Where is their business now and where do they want to take it?

What Do You Want?

Do they want to attract more new clients/customers/patients by increasing traffic to their website, or are branding and retention more critical? Once this is worked out, only then can an action plan be put in place. 

Budget & Speed

If you build it, they will come is a lie and does not apply to websites, especially if no one knows it exists or they cannot find it in any searches.

Therefore you have two options:

1. The first is increasing your organic traffic with better SEO, and local maps.
2. Paid solutions, such as Adwords to increase web traffic.

It all comes down to your budget and how much you're prepared to spend, and how fast you want to grow. Statistics have shown that 30% of Adwords ads get clicked on, compared to only 10% a few years ago, so people are getting more comfortable with paid advertising online.

Adwords Versus Facebook Ads

Important Tip: People DO NOT go to Facebook to find a service based business, they go to Facebook to connect with friends and family; therefore if you do an advertisement it must be educational and provide useful information.

Whereas Adwords works differently, people are searching for answers, and if your ad can answer this questions and offer a solution, it will do well.

People don't like being sold to, but they do like to buy.

Instagram follows the same rules as Facebook, and if you want to advertise on IG, you need to grab their attention quickly with a great picture.

Best Marketing

The best marketing doesn't feel like marketing; it comes across as being very natural. Ask yourself, what are people doing when they're on each platform and how can you grab their attention without interrupting or annoying them.

Movement

Short videos and GIF's work well in advertising on Facebook and Instagram because movement automatically grabs the viewers attention.

Future Trends

Facebook LIVE has been around for some time, but Facebook has invested heavily into Facebook WATCH and IGTV, so this is a good indicator that quick little stories are going to become even more popular.

Audio and Voice Search: As Siri, Echo and Alexa become more mainstream, what people say, not what people type will be more important in SEO.

For example, if you're searching for a Dentist, you may type Dentist in Cairns, but if you were talking to Siri, you might say, Hey Siri where's the closest Dentist to Earlville Shopping Centre.

Therefore, think about how people ask questions and make sure your website SEO sounds natural.

Pay Attention

If you pay attention to what your clients/customers/ patients are doing, and also what you are doing as well in your own life, it will be a possible guide to future trends.

Monday Morning Tip

Choose one platform or marketing method and get good at it. It may be audio, video, or a single online platform. Just do one thing exceptionally well, test it and learn from it, and then apply it to other platforms at a later date.

Don't chase all the shiny bright lights.

If you have any questions about this podcast, please email me at [email protected], and if you enjoy this podcast show, it will put a huge SMILE on my face if you gave it a REVIEW on iTunes. 

Also if you're in the health industry never undervalue the benefits of having a business coach or mentor because you will reach your goals faster.  

Connect With Josh

Website: https://www.jrmg.com.au

Facebook & Linkedin: Josh Rimmington 

Instagram: Dadpreneur

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12 Secrets to Get More People Through Your Front Door

Most Recent iTunes Review 

Smart, practical advice

☆☆☆☆☆ Tyson’s podcast is packed with smart, practical advice to be seized by any entrepreneur. I highly recommend listening to his show. supmuhhumbruh via Apple Podcasts · United States of America · 11/03/18 

We’ve all seen sporting stars and celebs get dropped by sponsors and advertisers when they do something stupid in public, or they say something that’s in contrast to public opinion or the beliefs and values of their sponsor.

Well, this is not what I’m talking about here. What I want to discuss this episode is how advertisers go running in the opposite direction when they think you’re no longer a source of income for them.

They drop you like a bad habit. 

For more detailed show notes please visit my website https://www.tysonfranklin.com/podcast 

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Most Recent iTunes Review 

☆☆☆☆☆ Tyson’s podcast is packed with smart, practical advice to be seized by any entrepreneur. I highly recommend listening to his show.

supmuhhumbruh via Apple Podcasts · United States of America · 11/03/18