There is no right or wrong path when raising money for your startup. You just have to understand the trade-offs for whichever choice you make.

 

Today, I welcome Esben Friis-Jensen, Co-Founder of Cobalt and Userflow, who has raised a bunch of money through bootstrapping to give us different perspectives on scaling.

 

Esben and I dive into the principles that he had as he was co-founding and growing his two multi-million dollar companies, which you all will surely learn from.

 

Hit the play button now if you want to scale your business in the most effective way!

We’ll talk about:

1. Introduction [00:00]
2. Esben’s first company, Cobalt, and his transition into Userflow [01:50]
3. What urged Esben to start his own company [04:05]
4. How Esben and his co-founders raised $40 million for Cobalt [6:40]
5. The rationale behind founding Userflow [09:51]
6. Growing Userflow with two full-time employees and one freelancer [11:53]
7. Differentiating yourself through your product [14:36]
8. Where Userflow’s first hire will come from as they expand [19:20]
9. The value of having team members with more generalist roles [22:14]

Resource Links:

• Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
• Download Startup to Scaleup: A 4-Part Framework to Grow Your B2B Business to $10 Million (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
• Cobalt website (https://cobalt.io/)
• Userflow website (https://userflow.com/)

 

About Our Guest:

Esben Friis-Jensen is the co-founder of Userflow, a high growth bootstrapped SAS business that scaled with only two full-time employees. 

Esben is also one of the co-founders of another high growth company called Cobalt which raised almost $40 million through bootstrapping.

Connect with Esben Friis-Jensen :

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/esbenfriisjensen/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/esbenfj

 

 

 

Connect with me and learn more about growing your business:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bretttrainor/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Brett_Trainor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bretttrainor/

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

 

You'll have to expand outside yourself at some point, no matter how skilled you are at growing your business on your own.

 

Today we’re going to talk about how exactly you can do that and I have just the perfect guest for you.

 

Laith Masarweh is the founder of Assistantly, a company that offers virtual team member staffing solutions with a focus on workplace culture.

 

Laith and I dive into the value of having virtual team members or what he refers to as “Unicorns” and how we see it as the best way to scale in 2022.

 

This episode offers a lot of insights on growing your business this 2022 so tune in now!

We’ll talk about:

1. Introduction [00:00]
2. How Laith founded a VA company without any idea what a VA is [02:47]
3. Industries that Assistantly caters to [08:30]
4. The value of having VAs in your team [10:18]
5. Part-time vs. full-time: How should you hire for your organization? [13:55]
6. Why Laith believes he can start a third company [18:33]
7. Should you hire a client success manager? [21:17]
8. The eliminate-automate-delegate framework of running a company [28:54]
9. The depth of skills that Assistantly VAs offer [32:49]

Resource Links:

• Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
• Download Startup to Scaleup: A 4-Part Framework to Grow Your B2B Business to $10 Million (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
• Looking to hire a VA? Visit (https://www.assistantly.com/)

 

About Our Guest:

Laith Masarweh, now 24, has been working for his father since he was eight years old. His second company, Assistantly, arose from the necessity to scale his first, Immursiv, a real estate marketing firm, swiftly. 

Assistantly is a virtual assistant (VA) firm that is swiftly gaining a reputation for spotting unicorns – people with an inexplicable desire to perform extremely well.

Connect with Laith Masarweh:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laith-masarweh-a2288310a/

Email: [email protected]

 

 

Connect with me and learn more about growing your business:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bretttrainor/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Brett_Trainor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bretttrainor/

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

 

When in doubt, start with the customer. If it doesn't make sense for them, you're probably doing it wrong, or you shouldn't be doing it.

 

Today, we touch on the last part of the A-C-E-S framework which is support. 

 

It's a three-part strategy for your customers with three different areas of focus: (1.) customer success, (2.) customer experience, and (3.) customer service.

 

This should really be a part of your playbooks so tune in now and learn how you can ensure your success in these aspects of support.

Resource Links:

• Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
• Download Startup to Scaleup: A 4-Part Framework to Grow Your B2B Business to $10 Million (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)

 

 

Connect with me and learn more about growing your business:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bretttrainor/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Brett_Trainor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bretttrainor/

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

 

There is no one-size-fits-all solution when your sales organization stalls. So when you face this problem, what should your focus be?

 

Today, I welcome Karl Becker, CEO and Founder of Improving Sales Performance and author of “Set Up To Win: Three Frameworks to a High-Performing Sales Organization.” 

 

In this episode, we dive into the revenue equation he came up with which helps businesses diagnose problems in their sales and marketing strategies to further optimize them. 

 

This conversation has been long overdue and I’ll definitely have Karl back to provide us more valuable wisdom about revenue growth so be sure to not miss this one!

We’ll talk about:

1. Introduction [00:00]
2. Recent changes in the B2B world that Karl has observed [5:03]
3. A powerful story about delegation from Karl [9:18]
4. Karl’s concept to the revenue equation [12:29]
5. Why your value needs to be clear to scale [17:39]
6. What’s next after you got your messaging aligned? [23:43]
7. Understanding the buyer’s journey [29:59]
8. Empowering your team and interacting better with your leads [31:52]
9. Salespeople don’t like uncertainty and buyers don’t like risks [38:30]

Resource Links:

• Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
• Download Startup to Scaleup: A 4-Part Framework to Grow Your B2B Business to $10 Million (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
• The Revenue Equation (https://www.revenueequation.com)
• Link to Free Book – Set Up To Win (https://dl.bookfunnel.com/vuqhd6p1y2)

About Our Guest:

With over 20 years of experience in sales and marketing working with SMBs, Karl Becker founded Improving Sales Performance to help businesses find opportunities for quick wins that can increase revenue immediately.

 

Karl authored “Set Up To Win: Three Frameworks to a High-Performing Sales Organization,” a book that teaches you how to use the power of an organization’s greatest asset— their team —to stabilize and expand revenue over time.

 

Connect with Karl Becker:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karlbeckeriii/

               https://www.linkedin.com/company/improving-sales-performance-usa

Connect with me and learn more about growing your business:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bretttrainor/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Brett_Trainor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bretttrainor/

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

From a customer acquisition standpoint, it’s such a huge waste not to have a procedure in place for when your prospects finally engage with you.

 

After all you’ve gone through to have them engage with you, it should be your priority to follow through with processes that will enable your target customers in easily availing your services and products.

 

So what comprises this customer enablement process? And how should you approach it?

 

Tune in as I introduce you to the 3rd framework in our A-C-E-S Zero to Ten Growth System.

Resource Links:

• Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
• Download Startup to Scaleup: A 4-Part Framework to Grow Your B2B Business to $10 Million (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)

Connect with me and learn more about growing your business:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bretttrainor/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Brett_Trainor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bretttrainor/

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

 

A new year knocks on our doors but our business goal remains the same. Now, what about our game plan?

 

Today, I welcome Sean Rosensteel back to the podcast to chat about how to kick some ass in 2022 and really drive growth in your business. 

 

Sean and I each share three ideas or areas that we're focused on as keys for success in 2022 each of which we discuss in detail. 

 

We share some strong opinions and differing ideas at times but are mostly aligned on what will and will not work this year. 

 

This conversation went so great that we felt we had to do a Part 2 and I am sure you will feel the same way so tune in now!

We’ll talk about:

1. Introduction [00:00]

2. The one thing our owners should be focused on for a great 2022 [2:21]

3. Crushing the new year by throwing out conventional wisdom [9:40]

a. The amazing benefit of hiring contractors [12:21]

4. The #2 in Brett and Sean’s 2022 Priority List [20:02]

5. Knowing what works best for your unique situation [26:18]

6. How stepping back to look into what you’ve already got can benefit you [31:10]

Part 2

7. The “Who Not How” Concept [36:26]

8. Fine-tuning the messaging of your company [41:23]

a. Sticking with the controlling idea of your company [48:34]

9. Getting a website that does its job with cost-effectivity [52:33]

a. WordPress vs. Squarespace [54:04]

b. It’s all about lead generation and conversion [1:00:14]

10. Providing great customer experience in 2022 [1:07:23]

a. Your process vs. what’s right for your customers [1:14:00]

11. A couple of parting wisdom to live by for 2022 [1:15:27]

Resource Links:

• Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
• Download Startup to Scaleup: A 4-Part Framework to Grow Your B2B Business to $10 Million (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
• Get a copy of Sean Rosensteel’s book, “The School of Intentional Living” (https://www.seanrosensteel.com/)
• Tune in to B2B Zero to Ten Episode 129 with Sean Rosensteel: (https://bretttrainor.com/2021/11/17/podcast-ep-129-5-ways-digital-marketers-rip-off-business-owners-and-what-to-do-about-it-with-sean-rosensteel/)

 

• Tune in to B2B Zero to Ten Episode 122 with Sean Rosensteel: (https://bretttrainor.com/2021/09/29/podcast-ep-122-the-roi-of-building-hassle-free-websites-for-your-zero-to-ten-journey-with-sean-rosensteel/)
• Tune in to B2B Zero to Ten Episode 65 with Sean Rosensteel: (https://bretttrainor.com/2020/08/25/schools-in-session-intentional-living-is-the-key-to-real-success-with-author-sean-rosensteel/)
• Have a copy of Gino Wickman’s Traction: Get a Grip On Your Business (https://www.amazon.com/Traction-Get-Grip-Your-Business/dp/1936661837)
• Have a copy of Bo Burlingham’s Small Giants: Companies That Choose to Be Great Instead of Big (https://www.amazon.com/Small-Giants-Companies-Instead-10th-Anniversary/dp/014310960X)
• Have a copy of Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy’s Who Not How: The Formula to Achieve Bigger Goals Through Accelerating Teamwork (https://www.amazon.com/Who-Not-How-Accelerating-Teamwork/dp/B08KYKR23H)
• Have a copy of Donald Miller’s Building a Story Brand (https://www.amazon.com/Building-StoryBrand-Clarify-Message-Customers/dp/0718033329)

About Our Guest:

Sean Rosensteel is the owner of Savvy Pro Web, a company helping business owners build hassle-free websites that generate a steady flow of qualified leads.

Sean is also the founder of The Intentional Living Academy and the author of “The School of Intentional Living”, a book that provides insightful tips on achieving goals in the most efficient way. 

Connect with Sean Rosensteel:

Website: https://www.seanrosensteel.com/

    https://www.savvyproweb.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanrosensteel/

Connect with me and learn more about growing your business:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bretttrainor/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Brett_Trainor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bretttrainor/

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

Only 3% of your ideal prospects are in "Buy Now" mode, therefore it's critical for you to be there when they're ready to buy.

 

After covering the concept and strategy of creating alignment, we now proceed with the 2nd framework, Connect which is critical to going from one-to-one to one-to-many sales.

 

You can complete the other frameworks but you will not be as effective so if you have not done the alignment exercise yet, I highly advise you to do so before moving on.

 

Tune in now to get better at creating awareness and providing value for your customers through this framework!

Resource Links:

• Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
• Download Startup to Scaleup: A 4-Part Framework to Grow Your B2B Business to $10 Million (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)

Connect with me and learn more about growing your business:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bretttrainor/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Brett_Trainor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bretttrainor/

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

Starting and scaling a company is hard enough. Imagine having to do it with more than one.

 

It does seem to require a lot of effort but Ryan Kugler made this seemingly insurmountable feat achievable after growing his three companies to 7 figures.

 

What makes this stint more interesting is he only has five full-time employees to run the three businesses which are all in different industries

 

Learn how Ryan did it and what his biggest takeaways were by tuning in now!

 

We’ll talk about:

1. Introduction [0:00]
2. Ryan’s first company and his decision to start another one [02:32]
3. The rationale behind Ryan’s small team for his “layered” company [04:43]
4. How Ryan got started in the marketing industry [9:19]
5. Opportunities that Ryan is looking into for his fourth business [11:39]
6. Lessons that Ryan earned as he was growing his three companies [12:34]
7. How Ryan allots time among his businesses in the new corporate setup [15:38]
8. Expanding your company through delegation [18:22]
9. Ryan’s tactic of hiring two people to do one job [23:07]
10. Tips for starting entrepreneurs from Ryan [25:35]
11. Are you the idea guy or the execution guy? [30:34]
12. Ryan’s advice for businesses being held back by their owners’ capacity [32:11]

Resource Links:

• Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
• Download Startup to Scaleup: A 4-Part Framework to Grow Your B2B Business to $10 Million (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
• Ideal Content Website (https://idealcontent.com/)
• Plan B Distribution Website (https://aplanb.com/)
• A5 Events Website (https://a5events.com/)
• Grab a copy of “How to Plan, Produce & Distribute Your Independent Film” (http://ryankuglercom.wpengine.com/book/)
• “Who Not How: The Formula to Achieve Bigger Goals Through Accelerating Teamwork” by Dan Sullivan and Benjamin Hardy (https://www.amazon.com/Who-Not-How-Accelerating-Teamwork-ebook/dp/B0867ZJ151)

About Our Guest:

Ryan Kugler is a multi-business owner with over 25+ years of knowledge & experience in Film Distribution and in the Wholesale/Retail Trade.

Ryan is the President of A5 Events, president of Ideal Content, Executive Director of Say No To Drugs Race (Charity Run/Walk), and a past co-owner of DVA, Inc.

Ryan also co-authored “How to Plan, Produce & Distribute Your Independent Film.”

 

Connect with Ryan Kugler:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-kugler-8653265/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ryanjkugler

Website: http://ryankuglercom.wpengine.com/

A5 Events: [email protected]

Ideal Content: [email protected]

Plan B Distribution: [email protected]

Connect with me and learn more about growing your business:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bretttrainor/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Brett_Trainor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bretttrainor/

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

In our second re-broadcasting for the holiday break, we have the episode with top-rated podcaster and author, Steve Glaveski, who shared where he came up with the idea for his book, “Time Rich: Do Your Best Work, Live Your Best Life.”

 

Steve and I also discussed the necessity of establishing an entrepreneurial mindset in children, as well as how it extends to situations beyond business.

 

Finally, we look back to pre-COVID working circumstances and analyze how businesses are dealing with the current difficulty of working from home.

 

Let’s look back at this episode that teaches us to be more productive. Tune in now! 

 

We talked about:

1. Steve’s professional experience [02:07]
2. Teaching an entrepreneurial mindset to kids [05:49]
3. The idea behind Time Rich [9:36]
4. Flow state: Avoiding time and productivity waste [14:40]
5. Tim O’Reilly’s business model for the new economy” [22:23]
6. The power of the rule of two [29:36]
7. Presence and significance of the Pareto’s principle [32:30]
8. PCOATS roadmap [36:47]
9. Steve’s take on nootropics use [42:26]
10. Tips on increasing memory retention [44:26]
11. Time to embrace asynchronous communication [46:37]
12. What’s next for Steve [52:40]
13. The one thing Steve recommends [55:33]

 

 

Resource Links:

• Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
• Download The Growth Readiness Checklist (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/
• Steve Glaveski Website (https://www.steveglaveski.com/)
• Download the Time Rich’s first chapter and automaton guide (https://www.timerichbook.com/)
• Know more about nootropics and ergogenic health (https://www.instagram.com/ergogenic_health/)
• Time Rich: Do Your Best Work, Live Your Best Life (https://amzn.to/38NpJa4)
• The Top Five Regrets of the Dying (https://amzn.to/3lwnR97)
• Collective Campus Website (https://www.collectivecampus.io/)
• NoFilter Media Website (https://www.nofilter.media/)

About Our Guest:

An entrepreneur, author, and podcaster, Steve Glaveski is on a mission to untap the potential of people to lead more meaningful lives. 

He forwards this mission through his different ventures, such as the Collective Campus, an innovation accelerator; the Lemonade Stand, a children’s entrepreneurial program; and his podcast, Future Squared. 

In his latest book, he shares how being time rich is more valuable than living “comfortably miserable” lives. 

 

Connect with Steve Glaveski :

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steveglaveski/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/steveglaveski

Connect with me and learn more about growing your business:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bretttrainor/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Brett_Trainor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bretttrainor/

 

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

We're taking a short break over the holidays so I've chosen to re-air a couple of the most impactful episodes - impactful both from a business and a personal perspective. 

 

So today, we have the episode with Chris Walker of Refine Labs where we went over his company’s ways of helping B2B companies grow through marketing. 

 

Chris comes from a very unique background (engineering) which allows him to look at the full revenue ecosystem rather than breaking it down into silos.

 

If you want your revenue acquisition process to rely on digital to create demand, Chris is the man to call.

 

Join me as we look back to this very insightful episode!

 

We talked about:

1. How an engineering background gave Chris the advantage in marketing [01:36]

 

• Losing his own money as a vital point in his experience [04:20]

2. The gap in the marketplace that Chris saw [06:00]

 

 

• Removing assumptions that are no longer true [07:53]

3. The benefit of working with a blank slate [08:54]

 

4. Barriers preventing companies from driving demand from digital [10:13]

5. Attribution is not marketing against sales [12:25]

6. Why you shouldn’t measure social channels the same way with Google [13:14]

7. The first step for founders is to know what they’re good at [20:12]

8. Adspend is a cost of doing business [22:28]

9. Why buyer intent is a critical factor to sales [24:32]

10. The major shifts in the buying process [25:22]

11. Customer success should be part of your product [29:35]

12. Through education, you create awareness [31:38]

13. You don’t really need salespeople [33:33]

14. Companies need a recurring revenue model driven by customer acquisition [35:37]

15. How COVID impacted sales and marketing [38:46]

16. The one thing Chris recommends [41:23]

 

 

Resource Links:

• Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
• Download The Growth Readiness Checklist (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
• Refine Labs Website (https://www.refinelabs.com/)
• State of Demand Gen Podcast (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/state-of-demand-gen/id1511588213)

 

 

About Our Guest:

Chris Walker is the CEO at Refine Labs, a marketing consulting firm focused on growing B2B SaaS companies. Their Revenue Engine Optimization Formula combines revenue operations, growth marketing, and buyer enablement.

 

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

Connect with Chris Walker:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-walker-41597028/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ChrisWalker171

Connect with me and learn more about growing your business:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bretttrainor/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Brett_Trainor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bretttrainor/

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