Subscription Entrepreneur

“I think we glamorize being busy. I mean, I do anyway. I used to brag about how stressed out I was. Something happened where I hit a wall. So, it's only recently that this has changed for me." - Krista Ripma

Have you ever felt the toll of entrepreneurship on your mental, physical, or emotional health?

Or — to be honest — on all three?

Starting your own business is no joke.

It is not for the faint of heart.

Once you’re up and running, it’s like your business takes on a life of its own. It demands more and more from you, asking you to learn new skills, step into uncomfortable roles, and evolve beyond your current identity.

Because of this, it can be easy to put your nose to the grindstone and just work, work, work.

To make matters worse, we live in a world that seems to glamorize 80-hour weeks, pushing yourself beyond exhaustion, and working till your eyeballs bleed (as Gary Vee would say ).

It can even get to the point where you feel guilty if you’re not working.

Raise your hand if you can relate to that!

Now…

We’re not saying that there isn’t a time for hard work and hustle.

What we are saying is that it’s now more important than ever to know when you’re pushing yourself too far. Otherwise, you risk burning yourself out. This can put your health and the future of your business into jeopardy.

In fact, this is exactly what happened to Krista Ripma — our special guest on today’s episode of the podcast.

About three and a half years ago, she started her business — Authentic Audience. They’re a marketing agency that helps creative entrepreneurs tell their stories, attract their ideal customers, and create more success and abundance in their businesses.

Her business grew quickly and she was soon working all of the time. And, as you’ll hear in the intro to this episode, she used to even brag about how stressed out she was.

Earlier this year, Krista hit a wall like never before. She tumbled into a deep state of burnout that she now calls a “mini death.” This forced her to step away from her business and devote herself to regaining balance in life.

Today, she comes on the podcast to talk about her journey as an entrepreneur and shares the specific ways she recovered from burnout, including some powerful self-care routines that are now a part of her daily life.

If you’ve ever struggled with stress, anxiety, or burnout as an entrepreneur, we have a feeling you’ll connect and benefit from our conversation.

Griff Williams is my special guest on today's episode of the Subscription Entrepreneur Podcast.

Griff is an online entrepreneur and the founder of MindEasy.com.

They're a membership site that helps people discover the life-changing power of meditation.

Griff joins me on the show today to share the story of how he transitioned from his career as a full-time firefighter to an online business owner.

We explore the myriad of challenges he faced at the beginning of his journey, how he first gained traction and grew MindEasy, and his plans to continue the evolution of his business.

Griff & I have an open and honest conversation about the reality of building an online business and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

As always, I'm your host Eric Turnnessen and this is episode 172 of the Subscription Entrepreneur Podcast.

We have a very special guest to welcome onto today's episode of the podcast.Her name is Rui Liu and she's the founder of an amazing company called Grass People Tree.Her business is a unique combination of eCommerce and online education where she provides people with access to rare, artisan teas and in-depth information and teaching about tea culture.In our conversation, Rui shares the story of growing up in a remote and rural region of China, moving to London as a teen, and rediscovering the significance of tea as an adult.Plus, you'll hear how returning to her roots awakened her desire to share the wonders of tea with the world.We have a free-flowing and down-to-earth discussion and sincerely hope you enjoy it.

“Eternal marketing truths… really? Isn’t that a bit of a hyped up exaggeration?”Not when they’re coming from Brian Kurtz — our special guest on today’s episode of the podcast.You see, Brian is not your garden-variety marketer.He’s more of a living legend. Dare we say the Michael Jordan or Tom Brady of the marketing world?Whichever analogy you want to go with, here’s what you need to know:Brian has a storied career that spans 40+ years across 5 decades. His marketing strategies have helped sell over a billion dollars worth of books, information products, and recurring subscriptions.Now it’s his mission to teach and transmit the timeless truths of marketing he’s discovered to the next generation of entrepreneurs and business owners.And that’s one of the reasons we’re so excited to share this episode with you.The second is because Brian is an extraordinary person who embodies his core values and practices what he preaches:-Generosity-Relationships-& OverdeliveryIn our conversation, Brian cracks open his vault of marketing wisdom and shares at least 11 timeless marketing truths with you. Truths you can use to build lasting relationships with your customers, sell more products and services, and grow a powerful and ethical business.Plus, we explore the importance of recurring revenue and detail ways you can optimize the systems in your business to increase member retention and boost lifetime customer value.If this is your first time meeting Brian, then we’re grateful for the opportunity to introduce you. If you’re already familiar with him, then you already know why this is an episode you won’t want to miss.

Have you ever thought about starting your own podcast?There are so many reasons to do so:-They are a great way to create content for multiple marketing channels (your blog, social media, etc.)-They can help position you as a leader and trusted expert in your field-You can have in-depth conversations with experts in your industry (who you might have a hard time connective with otherwise)We could go on and on about the benefits of podcasting. Yet, even with all of the positive things a podcast can do you for your life and business, you can probably think of a few reasons to not start one:-I don't have much experience at interviewing and am terrified of public speaking...-Who will want to come on my show and talk to me? I'm nobody!-I'll probably need to get a bunch of expensive recording equipment and soundproof my office, right?We get it.In fact, many of these same fears floated through our minds when we decided to start our podcast a few years back.That's one of the reasons we invited Jeremy Weisz onto our show today. To talk with you about all the amazing things a podcast can do for your life and business. The other reason we invited him on the show is because he's an all-around amazing human being who's can eat a near unlimited amount of soup (seriously, ask him about it sometime).Jeremy started his show — the Inspired Insider Podcast — back in 2008  when podcasting was still in its infancy. Since then, he's interviewed thousands of the world's top entrepreneurs, experts, and business owners. On top of that, he attributes much of the success he's achieved in life and business to starting and sticking with his podcast.Jeremy is a wealth of information and we explore many helpful topics like...-The easiest ways for you to start a podcast-How to get the best guests to come on your show (no matter how "famous" they are)-What Jeremy does to prepare for fantastic interviews-And much more!If you've ever wanted a behind-the-scenes look at what goes into running a successful podcast, this episode is for you.

What if right now is the perfect time for you to launch your membership or subscription?…and we don’t mean now in a “rah rah, NOW is the time to take massive action” sort of way (said in our best Tony Robbins voice).…or in an Eckhart Tolle “the present moment is all that exists” kind of way.Nope.The “now” we’re talking about refers to something we learned from Natalie Walstein — our special guest on today’s episode of the podcast.Natalie is an awesome online entrepreneur, career astrologer, and the founder of Soulshine Astrology.In this episode, you’ll hear why memberships are a perfect match for the energy of 2021 and beyond. We also dive deep into the nuts and bolts of entrepreneurship and hear what it took for her to build a successful online business.In our conversation with Natalie, you’ll hear all about:— How & why Natalie started her business in the first place— Why it’s so important to take breaks from your business (and how to do it)— And what inspired her to switch from her old business model to the membership modelNo matter where you are in the process of planning, starting, or growing a membership, we have a feeling you’ll love this magical episode.

"Long story short, I got laid off from my job on Monday at 3:00 PM. I woke up the next morning, listened to Eminem's 'Lose Yourself' and decided I was going to work for myself.”Do you see that quote? ☝️It’s the very abbreviated version of how John Doherty — our special guest on today’s episode of the podcast — started his company Credo. They’re a marketplace that connects businesses with qualified digital marketing providers and agencies.Today, Credo is growing and thriving as a business. But as you’ll hear in this episode, a lot happened in between John blasting Eminem in his headphones and becoming the CEO of company he actually wanted to run.To put that into perspective, John tried 5 different business models over the course of 8 years before landing on the recurring revenue model Credo uses today. Talk about persistence!We have a fun and down-to-earth conversation with John where you’ll hear more about his journey building Credo, learn how he manages his time and energy, and discover some of the biggest lessons he’s learned as an entrepreneur.After you listen to it, you may even feel inspired to play your own favorite hype song and tackle that project you’ve been dreaming about for ages.

John Warrillow is our special guest on today's episode of The Subscription Entrepreneur Podcast.If you're not familiar with John, he's the best-selling author of three books that are "must reads" for anyone in the membership or subscription world.More than that, he's an expert in helping entrepreneurs design, build, and scale truly valuable businesses.You know... the kind that can be sold for life-changing amounts of money.And that's what today's episode is all about.In our conversation, John reveals why recurring revenue businesses are so attractive to potential buyers. And we explore what the process of selling a business actually looks like.John’s a wealth of information and shares many real-life stories of people who have built and sold their own membership and subscription businesses.Plus, you'll discover some practical steps you can take to get your business ready to sell and the biggest mistakes you should avoid in the process.Even if you never plan on selling your business, this episode is full of insights and advice that can help you make it as valuable as possible.

Kim Werker is our special guest on today's episode of The Subscription Entrepreneur Podcast.Kim is the co-founder of Digits & Threads. They're a member-supported online magazine that’s solely focused on publishing stories and articles about the Canadian fiber and textile arts industry.Yep...She took that whole "pick a niche" thing pretty seriously!Kim joins us on the show today to share the exciting story of how she and her business partner started Digits & Threads back in May of 2020.We discuss how the limitations and constraints posed by the pandemic were actually a good thing that helped her make strategic choices that led to meaningful progress.Plus, Kim shares the exact strategies she used to enroll her first 148 founding members and prove that her idea for a member-supported magazine was also a viable business.Kim is full of insights, energy, and enthusiasm and we can't wait for you to hear her fresh perspective on memberships and entrepreneurship.

How well do you know your customers?Are you acutely aware of their needs, wants, fears, frustrations, and desires?Can you define their challenges with astounding detail and describe their dreams with perfect clarity?More importantly, can you succinctly show them how your product or service is the thing that will help them resolve their problems and achieve their goals?Unless you’re already a superstar marketer, we’re guessing you didn’t answer either of those questions with an emphatic YES.When it comes time to communicate the value you have to offer your market, it probably feels a bit more like guesswork.Like you’re aiming for a bullseye while blindfolded.Here’s the thing:The difference between knowing what goes on in the hearts and minds of your prospects and taking a random shot in the dark can be the deciding factor in whether you attract, convert, and retain your best customers… or not.So, how do you actually do this?How do you discover what the people in your market actually want and communicate with them in a way that leads them to think:“Yes! This is exactly what I’m looking for.”The answer lies in two simple words:Customer Research.(Don’t roll your eyes!)While these may not be the sexiest words in the English language, they do hold the key to creating marketing, messaging, and even products that are irresistible to your current and future customers.Today, we’re thrilled to share this episode of our podcast with you because our guest is an absolute expert in all things related to customer research.Her name is Jen Havice.She’s the author of Finding The Right Message and a messaging strategist who works specifically with mission-driven membership and subscription business owners.Jen knows a thing or two (or three) about conducting the kind of customer research that uncovers the insights you need to speak directly to the pains, needs, and desired outcomes of your market.In our conversation today, we dive head first into the world of customer research and explore what it is, why it’s so important, and how you can implement it in your business.Jen is full of practical insights and openly shares her strategies, methods, and even the specific questions you can ask to get in perfect sync with your prospects.If you’ve ever wondered how to craft the sort of messaging that attracts, converts, and retains your best customers, this episode is for you.