No BS Mastery Podcast

This month, we are comparing and contrasting ideas from the No BS Agency Mastery model with the way people commonly do these stuff out in the world.

First up, what’s the difference between VIP Days and Intensives?

When I say that we build entire brands in one-to-three day intensives, people often think of VIP days. Which makes them question how we can possibly build an entire brand and a bespoke website–not a duplicated template–in one to three days.

How is that even possible?

It’s possible because we’re doing intensives, not VIP days. And today, I’m going to explain the difference.

Tune into this episode to hear:

• The benefits of VIP Days for your hourly rate and your projects
• The risks inherent in VIP Days
• When VIP Days are the best answer
• The benefits of Intensives for you and your client
• The drawbacks and biggest risks to Intensives
• Why Intensives is the better model long-term

Resources:

• No BS Agencies Mastery
• The Price to Freedom Calculator™
• No BS Launchpad
• No BS Agency Owners Free Facebook Group
• Start reading the first chapter of my book
• Piasilva.com

I'm so excited to introduce you to one of my favorite students, Emily Wilkins. 

What I love about her story and her evolution in the No BS Agency Mastery Program is that she didn't waste any time going all in on a niche once she realized it was the niche for her. 

When she first came into the program, she was working with everybody. But after going through the “niching” exercise, it became immediately obvious that job shops were the niche for her. By narrowing her audience so specifically, her business thrived quickly and she built herself up as an expert and authority in the space. Her story is a perfect example of what happens when you own the obvious niche.

Emily Wilkins, founder and CEO of Marketing Metal, spent most of the first decade of her career in marketing and sales support roles at job shops, both internally and from the agency side. Noticing the unique struggles they faced and the huge disconnect around the marketing function, Emily developed a radical new process that gets these vital small businesses exactly what they need and empowers them with the knowledge, tools, and resources they need to build a successful business that will thrive long into the future.

Marketing Metal is the “anti-agency” here to help small shops become magnetic to the humans they need to get there–to create real positive impact in their communities and the world. She speaks at industry conferences and on podcasts about the magic that happens when job shops have a rad brand they’re proud and excited to shout about.

Tune into this episode to hear:

• How Emily realized that retainer clients were far from the key to financial stability
• How she uncovered her niche and went all in
• How Emily has leveraged her connections to build her authority
• How the No BS method has impacted Emily’s business and life

Learn more about Emily Wilkins:

• Marketing Metal
• Instagram: @emilyjoannimal
• Connect with Emily on LinkedIn

Mentioned:

• Mavens of Manufacturing
• Manufacturing Masters
• The Fabricator Podcast

Resources:

• No BS Agencies Mastery
• The Price to Freedom Calculator™
• No BS Launchpad
• No BS Agency Owners Free Facebook Group
• Start reading the first chapter of my book
• Piasilva.com

I've been teaching how to successfully close and deliver a Lead Product for about eight years now. Over the years, I have read tons of Lead Product briefs. I have seen all kinds of ways that people and I have seen the same mistakes happen over and over again.

So today, I want to share the top five mistakes that I see people make when they execute a Lead Product.

Tune into this episode to hear:

• How giving the client too much information in the LP brief actually makes it harder to close the bigger project
• Why you don't want to include any execution as part of the brief
• How to make your ideas in the brief as specific as possible
• Why a brief is not a proposal and you shouldn’t be using it to pitch for additional services
• The importance of bringing in the client's 'why' into your brief

Resources:

• No BS Agencies Mastery
• The Price to Freedom Calculator™
• No BS Launchpad
• No BS Agency Owners Free Facebook Group
• Start reading the first chapter of my book
• Piasilva.com

The Lead Product is a fundamental part of the No BS Agency model. 

It's something that I have been teaching for over eight years, not just in the branding space but in other industries as well. I've had people implement this in finance, in law, in all kinds of coaching, and more.

The Lead Product continues to be one of the biggest game changers in business. And I want to share with you how it all came about and how it evolved over a few years until it became what it is now.

Tune into this episode to hear:

• How I learned to provide context when presenting creative work
• Why it’s key to get clients to buy in and sign off on direction and scope before you do any creative work
• How I realized that putting in the work on a brief was worth charging for in itself
• How the Brand Shrink briefs saved time and hassle and converted clients 

Resources:

• Ep 142: Lead Product: The Basics
• Worst of All Design
• No BS Agencies Mastery
• The Price to Freedom Calculator™
• No BS Launchpad
• No BS Agency Owners Free Facebook Group
• Start reading the first chapter of my book
• Piasilva.com

One of the biggest challenges that small agencies have is closing clients on big projects.

It’s hard to get clients to pay the premium rates you want them to pay in order to deliver your highest value. And on top of that, a lot of small agency owners hate sales!

Well, have I got an idea for you.

I want to tell you about the Lead Product method.

This is a process that I implemented in my business over 10 years ago and that I have since taught thousands of people with incredible results.

All month on the podcast, we’re going to talk about Lead Products, and today I’m going to share the basics of how it works.

Tune into this episode to hear:

• The biggest reasons why free proposals end up sucking your time, energy, and resources for not enough return
• The main sections of a Lead Product
• How the LP saves time, builds trust in your expertise, and takes away the pressure of selling high-price projects
• How the LP process delivers value your clients might not have even known they needed
• Why you should never include execution in your LP

Resources:

• No BS Agencies Mastery
• The Price to Freedom Calculator™
• No BS Launchpad
• No BS Agency Owners Free Facebook Group
• Start reading the first chapter of my book
• Piasilva.com

Today, I’m delighted to share an interview with one of my favorite students, Lisa Greensill.

I loved working with Lisa because she showed up and took action, and her results reflect that. And what I love about her story isn’t just that she was able to make more money in less time, but it also impacted how she enjoys her life with her family.

Lisa Greensill is a brand and copy strategist and co-creator of Brandover® - a creative collaboration focused on taking the bland out of financial brands. She translates adviser and broker speak into client speak with an approach that focuses on purpose and personality to make businesses relatable, memorable and referable. In 2022, Lisa was named Independent Financial Advisers Marketing Consultant of the Year and Women in Finance Marketing Professional of the Year.

Tune into this episode to hear:

• How Lisa struggled to transition from freelancing at hourly rates to pricing bigger projects
• How Lisa has radically shifted how she approaches projects and customized No BS principles to work for her business
• How Lisa has built her referral network through strategic partnerships and authority building
• How the No BS framework has given Lisa the confidence to hold her boundaries with clients

Learn more about Lisa Greensill:

• Website
• Connect with Lisa on LinkedIn

Resources:

• No BS Agencies Mastery
• The Price to Freedom Calculator™
• No BS Launchpad
• No BS Agency Owners Free Facebook Group
• Start reading the first chapter of my book
• Piasilva.com
• Steve Wasterval on Instagram

The day I realized that we were $40K in debt was a major turning point in our business. We had maxed out credit cards, had to fire our two employees, and had to figure out a completely new plan for the business.

Changing our business model to selling intensives worked, but we were still hustling all the time,  even though we were now making more than enough money to support ourselves, the business, and the life we wanted.

So why keep hustling? I was shell-shocked and scared after going so deeply into debt.

But on our first real vacation later that year, I had two very big realizations: One, I needed a plan that didn’t involve saying yes to every project and hoarding money. Because two, having plenty of cash in the bank wasn’t making me feel more financially secure than I did when we were in debt.

Which led me to two even bigger conclusions: the key to feeling financially secure wasn’t going to be cash in the bank, it was knowing that I could absolutely generate money when I want to. And, I needed to really figure out how much money we needed to live and support our business, while having the life that we wanted.

And that’s how I developed the 50-25-25 Formula for Profit and Freedom. It changed my life and I’m sharing it with you today.

Tune into this episode to hear:

• Why growing your audience and authority is key to knowing you can generate cash when you want and need to
• How I came up with the math that gave us the time and financial freedom our business was supposed to support in the first place
• How the formula breaks down time and money to do you work, invest in your business, and live the life you want
• Why you need to know your number and what it means to you

Resources:

• No BS Agencies Mastery
• The Price to Freedom Calculator™
• No BS Launchpad
• No BS Agency Owners Free Facebook Group
• Start reading the first chapter of my book
• Piasilva.com
• Steve Wasterval on Instagram

Back in 2013, I joined the Accelerator Program of EO (Entrepreneur’s Organization) as an investment to grow my business.

I learned a ton from the program, made great connections and some great friends. But one major thing I learned through that experience wasn’t something they taught.

Through the program, rubbing elbows and networking with other members, I learned that people whose businesses were making way more money than mine, were actually taking home less money than I was.

That lesson shaped my whole perspective on how to build a business that gives you what you want in life. The top-line revenue isn’t going to determine what kind of business and life you have.

So let’s dig into the differences between revenue, profit, and income and why you have to distinguish them in your mind.

Tune into this episode to hear:

• Doing the math on revenue, profit, and income to get to the life you want to live
• The two types of profit that I include in the Freedom Calculator
• Why a sole focus on increasing your revenue will actually diminish your profit

Resources:

• No BS Agencies Mastery
• The Price to Freedom Calculator™
• No BS Launchpad
• No BS Agency Owners Free Facebook Group
• Start reading the first chapter of my book
• Piasilva.com

Have you ever heard the phrase, “Born on third, thought they hit a triple?”

It refers to somebody who was born into wealth or privilege, or has some sort of advantage over other people, but they don’t recognize it. They think they got where they are on their own.

Or have you ever admired somebody’s success in business only to find out they had a partner who had a successful corporate executive job, or because they came from wealth and they had a trust fund to support them while they grew their business?

You might feel a little cheated and think that it had to have been so much easier for them to do all of the things that you’re trying to do with so much less.

Yes, some people do have a competitive advantage.

But there is one competitive advantage that you can absolutely do something about.

Your money mindset.

Everyone's got money mindset issues, whether they own a small business or not. But there are specific money mindset issues that plague small agency owners and these can be the difference between growing with ease and profit and staying stuck exactly where you are. 

Tune into this episode to hear:

• How a scarcity mindset impacts the choices you make for your business
• Why you have to stop thinking about your income like it’s a salary
• Why you can’t wait to invest in your business, and it might mean borrowing money to do it
• How short-term thinking about money leads to devaluing your time and stalling your growth
• Why you have to get over your fear of digging into your numbers

Resources:

• No BS Agencies Mastery
• The Price to Freedom Calculator™
• No BS Launchpad
• No BS Agency Owners Free Facebook Group
• Start reading the first chapter of my book
• Piasilva.com

Amanda Dahler has been a student of mine who has had so much success implementing the program that she’s now helping me scale No BS Mastery!

She’s especially good at lead generation and finding new business. That’s why I have her on the show to wrap up our month-long conversation around lead generation.

Amanda Dahler is the founder of Outspoke Design. She is an audience experience architect and communication expert who specializes in engaging events and experiences. She uses brand, experience, and visual design to create awesome audience content for transformative coaches, consultants, and leaders. Her services amplify the power of your work, increase your credibility, give your audience an unforgettable experience, and grow your business.

Tune into this episode to hear:

• Why Amanda believes that direct communication is the most effective way to bring in clients
• How Amanda reframes sales calls to make them way more comfortable and a lot less salesy
• The keys to approaching conversations with potential clients
• The whiteboard system Amanda used to keep her revenue on track when she was starting her business

Learn more about Amanda Dahler:

• Outspoke Design

Resources:

• No BS Agencies Mastery
• The Price to Freedom Calculator™
• No BS Launchpad
• No BS Agency Owners Free Facebook Group
• Start reading the first chapter of my book
• Piasilva.com