The Ecommerce Influence Podcast

Warren Buffett once said that, in business, he looks for "economic castles protected by unbreachable moats."

If the Oracle of Omaha was considering buying your ecommerce store, would he see an "unbreachable moat" surrounding your business?

Here are the 8 essential elements for an "unbreachable moat" in ecommerce so that you can create one to help you sell your site at maximum price.

In the previous two episodes, Jock Purtle of Digital Exits taught us how to value your ecommerce business and then how to sell it for max value.

He mentioned various ways to sale-proof your business (the moat), how to raise its real and perceived value, and then how to sell it.

In this episode we pull everything all together and help you build your moat based on Jock's recommendations AND from what we see our top 7-8 figure clients doing to build their unbreachable moat.

This is episode is part three in a 3-part series about valuing and selling an ecommerce store. Part one is "How To Determine What Your Ecommerce Business Is Worth" and part two is "How To Sell Your Ecommerce Store For Maximum Price".

• 8 things you need to do to sell your site at maximum price
• The risks of playing in the same sandbox as Amazon and how to survive the sand fight
• The only 2 functions that any business has
• How your site's potential impacts it's value (you might be surprised)

• DigitalExits.com
• Free Ecommerce Email Income Projections Report
• Work the System
• Taylor Pearson

To get more awesome Ecommerce Influence content sent directly to your device and into your ears as they become available, you can easily subscribe.

Also, ratings and reviews on iTunes (hopefully 5-stars!) help us tremendously a we're very grateful for them. We do read all of the reviews and we'll answer your questions or comments on future episodes.

If you listened to last week's episode about how to value an ecommerce business then you're ready to find out what you need to do to sell your ecommerce store for maximum value.

Just like any other large sale there is a right and a wrong way to sell, and you definitely don't want to be leaving money on the table when it comes to selling your business.

We've had a few ecommerce companies come to us recently about selling their business. They've come to us with questions about determining value and how to sell it for maximum value, but we didn't' know how to answer their questions.

Because of our lack of expertise we brought Jock Purtle of Digital Exits onto to the show. He'll not only explain to us how to determine a store's value but then he'll explain to us how sell it for maximum value.

This is episode is part one in a 3-part series about valuing and selling an ecommerce store. Part one is "How To Determine What Your Ecommerce Business Is Worth", part two is "How To Sell Your Ecommerce Store For Maximum Value", and part three is "The 8 Essential Components Needed To Sell Your Site At Maximum Price"

• The sales criteria you need to know to know to sell your ecommerce store for maximum value
• Learn what a prospectus is and how to create an accurate for your business
• How to negotiate the best deal for your store
• How to problem-proof the sales process
• The best way to find buyers when selling your ecommerce business

• The Ultimate Guide to Selling Your Ecommerce Business for Maximum Value
• DigitalExits.com

To get more awesome Ecommerce Influence content sent directly to your device and into your ears as they become available, you can easily subscribe.

Also, ratings and reviews on iTunes (hopefully 5-stars!) help us tremendously a we're very grateful for them. We do read all of the reviews and we'll answer your questions or comments on future episodes.

Have you ever wondered what your ecommerce business is worth? Do you know the right valuation criteria and process to make sure you don't undervalue your store, or price too high?

No worries, everything you need to know is right here in this post and episode.

We've had a few ecommerce companies come to us recently about selling their business. They've come to us with questions about determining value and how to sell it for max price, but we didn't' know how to answer their questions.

Because of our lack of expertise we brought Jock Purtle of Digital Exits onto to the show.He'll not only explain to us how to determine a store's value but then he'll explain to us how sell it for maximum value.

This is episode is part one in a 3-part series about valuing and selling an ecommerce store. Part one is "How To Determine What Your Ecommerce Business Is Worth", part two is "How To Sell Your Ecommerce Store For Maximum Price", and part three is "How To Prepare Your Ecommerce Business To Sell At Maximum Value"

• The most popular valuation methods used for selling an ecommerce business and which one you should use.
• The criteria for determining what your ecommerce business is worth
• How to determine the valuation multiple to use when valuing your ecommerce business.
• The biggest mistakes ecommerce business owners make when determining their store's value.

• The Ultimate Guide to Selling Your Ecommerce Business for Maximum Value
• DigitalExits.com

To get more awesome Ecommerce Influence content sent directly to your device and into your ears as they become available, you can easily subscribe.

Also, ratings and reviews on iTunes (hopefully 5-stars!) help us tremendously a we're very grateful for them. We do read all of the reviews and we'll answer your questions or comments on future episodes.

The most successful ecommerce business owners understand the characteristics of abundance & scarcity thinking, and they know how to only think in terms of abundance.

Our largest and best clients use abundance thinking to lead them to more success, joy and fulfillment, while the others with scarcity thinking tend to have more failure, fear and discontent.

We're talking about this today because it's something we've been purposefully focusing on to help us maintain excitement, energy and joy while we build our business.

Plus, research has recently shown us that a person's success is directly related to his or her mindset.

We now know that much of your success hinges on whether you believe that "there is always more where that came from" or "there will never be enough"...and the variations of them, i.e. abilities can be developed vs. fixed.

We're going to discuss the characteristics of each kind of thinking, what we see most often in our top ecommerce clients, and then how you can apply it to yourself as you build your ecommerce business.

• The difference between abundance thinking and scarcity thinking
• How our largest and best clients use abundance thinking to lead them to more success, joy and fulfillment
• The top 8 characteristics of abundance thinkers (and a bonus)

• Episode 55
• No One's Gonna Remember You When You're Gone - Scooter Braun Article

To get more awesome Ecommerce Influence content sent directly to your device and into your ears as they become available, you can easily subscribe.

Also, ratings and reviews on iTunes (hopefully 5-stars!) help us tremendously a we're very grateful for them. We do read all of the reviews and we'll answer your questions or comments on future episodes.

Overachievers typically work just as much and just as hard as super-achievers but, unfortunately, they usually achieve much less.

The question is, do you know the single element that separates you from the other?

Last week's guest, Taylor Pearson, is someone we consider a super-achiever and he knows what it takes become one.

After reading 188 books on entrepreneurship he was able to identify the one single element that separates the best from the rest, and he's explained what that single element is, why it's mandatory, and the simple two-step process to mastering it.

This episode is a reading of his blog post.

• The single element to becoming a super-achiever
• Understanding and implementing The Buffet Principle
• How to micro the macro (and what that means, exactly)
• The simple 2-step process the most effective individuals use to become super-achievers
• The difference between FOMO and JOMO and which one you should be

• Episode 55
• Taylor's Blog Post

To get more awesome Ecommerce Influence content sent directly to your device and into your ears as they become available, you can easily subscribe.

Also, ratings and reviews on iTunes (hopefully 5-stars!) help us tremendously a we're very grateful for them. We do read all of the reviews and we'll answer your questions or comments on future episodes.

It's another in-depth fireside chat where we discuss the mindset you need to adopt about productivity and the how this mindset will help you do more with less.

Taylor Pearson, as he says it, is a "systems-obsessed entrepreneur, marketer, and philosopher" who has spent a lot of time helping companies during the growth phase by showing them what they should be focusing and what they should stop doing

Taylor says that he was "built to trudge" and he'll share some of his best ideas on how anyone can overcome shiny object syndrome to make sure you're staying on task and most productive.

• Taylor's new book competition
• Learn how to stay focused and overcome shiny object syndrome.
• Why the 80/20 rule applies to this conversation on productivity.
• How Taylor thinks about SOPs and how it can help you.
• How "black swans" affect the future of business.

• Taylor's website
• Ecommerce Fuel live event
• Book - EMyth
• marksdailyapple.com
• Book - Art of Learning
• Book - Built to sell

• Hiring analysis we mentioned last week
• Book - EMyth

To get more awesome Ecommerce Influence content sent directly to your device and into your ears as they become available, you can easily subscribe.

Also, ratings and reviews on iTunes (hopefully 5-stars!) help us tremendously a we're very grateful for them. We do read all of the reviews and we'll answer your questions or comments on future episodes.

It's time to transition out of your small business mindset and begin to see your business as an organization, segmented by roles and filled by role-specific people.

Even though you're just one person, you're likely filling multiple roles in your business. Learn how to seperate them, how they all fit together and what to do once you figure it all out.

As we've been growing we've realized some conflict in tasks we were doing and how it impedes day to day workflow. By establishing roles and understanding who fills what role you can see what you need to be doing - and, more importantly, NOT doing.

By bringing definition to your business you'll find the inefficiencies and create a better work environment for yourself and your employees.

This episode is really inspired by the book E-myth by Michael Gerber and we share some of the strategies that have been working best for us.

• How to identify the many hats you wear in your business and fitting them to the right role.
• Specific tips you can take action on that we've been implementing.
• The difference between fitting the role to the talent and fitting the talent to the role and which one is right.
• How to create an organizational chart that supports your growth and achieves your vision.

• Hiring analysis we mentioned last week
• Book - EMyth

To get more awesome Ecommerce Influence content sent directly to your device and into your ears as they become available, you can easily subscribe.

Also, ratings and reviews on iTunes (hopefully 5-stars!) help us tremendously a we're very grateful for them. We do read all of the reviews and we'll answer your questions or comments on future episodes.

Improving your hiring mindset, knowing what to hire for, and knowing how to hire only 'A' players are the keys to growing your business while gaining freedom at the same time.

The first step is to figure out what you're currently doing day to day...and what you shouldn't be doing at all.

After that you need to have the right hiring process to help you hire the right people to take over those tasks. From there it's automating, eliminating, and delegating everything that's not critical to the growth of your business.

And remember, even some of the things that you think are critical probably aren't.

Going through this worksheet will be an eye opener for you, and can help you drastically improve your hiring mindset, hiring process, and especially your business.

• How to have the right hiring mindset.
• The amazing thing that happens when you become comfortable with others being better or smarter than you at completing your tasks.
• The exact process we've gone through to hire only 'A' players to grow our business.

• Let us know how we're doing! Podcast [at] ecommerceinfluence.com
• Episode with Tim Francis
• Hiring 'A' Players
• Book - Top Grading

To get more awesome Ecommerce Influence content sent directly to your device and into your ears as they become available, you can easily subscribe.

Also, ratings and reviews on iTunes (hopefully 5-stars!) help us tremendously a we're very grateful for them. We do read all of the reviews and we'll answer your questions or comments on future episodes.

We came to the somewhat-shocking conclusion that nearly 70% of our business comes from referrals...the easiest, cheapest, and most qualified acquisition channel in any business, including ecommerce.

When trying to grow your business you have to make some crucial decisions around client acquisition and where to focus. Referral marketing is often an area that is overlooked or taken for granted.

And if you're not getting at least 25% of your business from referral marketing then you're leaving a lot of money on the table.

It's amazing what you can miss when you don't analyze where your clients and your best ROI come from. When you do you can realize you're missing out on some major wins.

In today's show we're going to share what happened when we realized that 70% of our business comes referrals, and how you can apply what we learned to your ecommerce store to ensure referrals make up at least 25% of your revenue.

Austin runs through an effective and simple referral plan that you can implement and we'll provide access to one of his referral marketing presentations that breaks down the "art & science" of referral marketing even further.

• What we just learned about our client acquisition
• How you can implement a similar referral model into your ecommerce business.
• Why gift cards aren't devaluing your brand.
• How to start partnering with companies. (and why it makes sense)

• Episode with Amy Africa
• Episode with Avinash Kaushik
• Talkable
• Klaviyo

To get more awesome Ecommerce Influence content sent directly to your device and into your ears as they become available, you can easily subscribe.

Also, ratings and reviews on iTunes (hopefully 5-stars!) help us tremendously a we're very grateful for them. We do read all of the reviews and we'll answer your questions or comments on future episodes.

Having a business partner can be the best decision you ever make for your business, or it could be the worst if you don't know how to choose wisely.

We have now been formal business partners for over a year and recently we hit a rough patch in our relationship professionally and personally.

But just like any great "real life" marriage that builds it's foundation on the principle of clear, constant, and honest communication we've been able to navigate rough waters and push forward to help our company grow.

With the experiences we've had in our partnership in recent weeks we decided it'd be a great time to open up our relationship, tell you why and how we chose to partner with each other, and how we've been able to make our "marriage" last this long and for, what we hope will be, many more years to come.

Use our experiences to find the right partner for you or improve the current one you have.

• What business was like before and after partnering and why we believe finding a business partner is best for your business growth.
• The 7 criteria you can use to help you choose the right business partner.
• 4 must-know tips to maintaining your partnership for the long haul.
• An on-air, non-scripted, authentic & honest assessment of each other in our partnership.

To get more awesome Ecommerce Influence content sent directly to your device and into your ears as they become available, you can easily subscribe.

Also, ratings and reviews on iTunes (hopefully 5-stars!) help us tremendously a we're very grateful for them. We do read all of the reviews and we'll answer your questions or comments on future episodes.