Podcast Episodes

Ep. 43: How to Grow a Sustainable Business

Dec 12, 2023

Stay profitable while sustainable.

[00:00:00] Will: People shop online or go to the store, they are demanding that companies follow some sort of environmentally friendly or environmentally responsible path. There are companies out there who are taking pledges to be carbon neutral. All of these things, so you can see customers are shifting that direction when they want to purchase something. We're very happy that we live in that space where we can tell our customers with confidence that, yeah, you're purchasing a product that's going to help the environment.

[00:00:35] Andrea: So, when your small business is sustainable, more customers might end up buying your product. As a consumer myself, I would definitely support a business that prioritizes the environment. But what are some of the regulations that you should follow to make sure your business is more sustainable? And when you figure that out, how do you communicate it to your customers? Let's find out!

[00:00:55] Host: Hi, This is Small Business, a podcast by Amazon. I’m your host, Andrea Marquez. [00:01:00] This is one of our Minisodes, which are shorter episodes packed with helpful information for those of you who want a quicker binge. On this episode we'll be talking about sustainability and how your business can meet environmentally friendly regulations with the Co-Founders of Liberty Tabletop: Greg Owens, the CEO and William Owens, the Sales & Marketing Manager. Like most of the small businesses on the show, you can find Liberty Tabletop in the Amazon store. Also, remember that if you want to hear your story on This is Small Business, we have a voicemail line where you can ask questions or share your entrepreneurial story. We want to hear from you! Find the link to the voicemail line in the episode description.

[00:01:38] Greg: Liberty Tabletop was born in 2005 when Oneida Limited decided to shut down their production here in the United States and move their production overseas. And Matt Roberts and I decided we needed to do something about that. It was a factory town that we live in, Cheryl, New York. Used to have 2,600 employees working there. The building that we started out our office in [00:02:00] was built when Abraham Lincoln was president. To put it in perspective, that's how old the place was. And, so we, formed Cheryl Manufacturing, to be a captive manufacturer for Oneida. Went on for a couple years making flatware, doing some packaging, some other things for them. That relationship sort of fell apart. And we had to go in a different direction. So we created Liberty Tabletop, which is our own brand of flatware. And we've been going ever since and growing as a business.

[00:02:26] Andrea: So, I know you claim to be one of the most environmentally friendly flatware manufacturer on earth, could you tell me why you say this?

[00:02:34] Will: So our product is basically one element. It's, it's 1810 stainless steel. Stainless steel is reusable compared to for example, plastic forks, spoons and knives, which are one use and then you throw them away. Stainless steel also, when you manufacture it, there's no waste involved. All of the byproduct of what goes into making [00:03:00] a fork, spoon, or knife is able to be recycled. So those are just a few things from the product standpoint as to why we can claim to be, at least our industry can claim to be, very earth-friendly.

[00:03:13] Greg: Another aspect of our product is the quality. We use only the highest quality 1810 stainless as opposed to 18 oh stainless, which is much cheaper. So that means it lasts longer, retains its luster and it's something that you'll want to keep and pass down to the next generation. Our manufacturing process is also quite interesting. Our factory is run on hydropower from Niagara Falls. We buy most of our supplies locally. It's a big thing in business. Our buffs, our compounds, and our raw materials, our packaging materials, which are primarily made for recycled paper. We're fully compliant with EPA and New York State d e c standards, which are very stringent. We don't use any harsh chemicals. In particularly, we don't use Trichlorethylene to clean our product. It's a carcinogen, that's banned in the United States.

[00:04:00] The next thing that makes us earth-friendly is what we like to call it, is our marketing strategy through Amazon and through our website. We call it factory to table. So literally stainless steel shows up at our door. We manufacture our product, put it in our distribution facility, get an order, and it goes right from our factory to your table. Conversely, product coming in from overseas, travels half the way around the world on container ships that burn tar, and the environmental standards under which the stainless steel and the actual manufacturing take place are not anything close to what we have here in the United States.

[00:04:38] Will: Here in the United States, we get all of our stainless steel goes through a very stringent process at the mills. They go through testing to make sure that it is truly a hundred percent 1810 stainless steel. So from a health and safety standpoint, just as much from an earth friendly standpoint, it's a pretty big deal.

[00:05:00] Greg: To Will's point, when we first started our brand and first started marketing online, I took all the phone calls as I was the customer service guy, and I was very surprised that, a lot of people called me up and the most prominent question was, where is the metal from? Because they, they were cognizant of the fact that some of the mills, they don't test their metal. They test them for the things that are supposed to be in there, but they don't necessarily test them for the things that aren't supposed to be in there. So that was a big concern for our customers, and it became a big marketing point of our company.

Pollution was a real problem here when I grew up. And we've really cleaned up our act here in the United States. Unfortunately, part of that has been sending production overseas, outta sight, outta mind. When we have this conversation with folks and they really start thinking about what they're doing, and where their products are being made, it becomes very relevant and very important to them, particularly from an environmental standpoint.

[00:05:54] Will: Right. If the manufacturing plant was in your backyard, you wouldn't want them dumping anything into the stream, [00:06:00] but if it's halfway across the world, you don't really think about it.

[00:06:06] Greg: And our steel is manufactured in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for the most part. And when I was a kid, the river caught on fire. That's how bad it was. Today it's a beautiful city. It's been rejuvenated and, uh, people fish in that river.

[00:06:20] Andrea: This is fascinating and very eye-opening. I had never thought of these things. So you covered a lot of regulations, a lot of specific things that are part of your process to be able to think about the greater picture and how this affects the environment and people's health. And obviously all that is great for your customers and employees, but how does that impact the growth of your business?

[00:06:40] Greg: I think that the message really resonates with our customers. Made in USA is, is, is a brand and we sort of own that brand and the flatware world as well mentioned, we're the only ones still doing it in the United States, but the number two thing that I, I would say impacts the customer choice and you're gonna pay a little bit more for it because of the quality. [00:07:00] We pay our workers a livable wage and all these other things that drive our cost up. Primarily it's, we don't have subsidized stainless steel that we work with, but the sustainability and the, the quality and the buy it once concept, literally something that you could have for the rest of your life and hand down to your kids. And it would still look good and function correctly versus some of the less expensive, product that you can buy out there that you might have for a couple years. Then you throw it away, it ends up in a landfill and you buy more. They really love that message and that's sort of become what we're all about.

[00:07:35] Andrea: As a consumer myself, it is becoming increasingly important for me to see some sort of proof that you are taking as a brand into consideration the good of the community and the environment. So that being said, what are some of the ways that a brand can show their customer that they're implementing sustainability into their processes?

[00:07:55] Greg: I think the first thing that you have to be focused on is you have to be genuine. [00:08:00] We really make an effort to tell our story. We make it true. We make it real. And I think when people hear that story and they see the product, they get it.

[00:08:10] Will: One thing that's very frustrating is to get sort of that written proof. It becomes very expensive for small businesses. It should be easier for a small business to be able to get that certification so that they can turn around and tell their customers with proof. We've all seen pictures of factories overseas. When you say, I am making a product here in the United States, just in the fact that the product is made here is already making a difference just in the fact that you don't need to ship the product halfway across the world is already making a difference.

[00:08:48] Andrea: Could you give an example of a stamps or badges that you're trying to get?

[00:08:52] Will: So the first one is, uh, working with Amazon to be able to get that climate friendly badge. [00:09:00] I personally as an Amazon shopper, have seen companies while I'm searching for products to buy that have it, versus companies that don't. Caring about the environment like I do, I will actually go for the product that has that. So, it's important. I would say we're gonna start with that badge. Because we see the most potential for our company, and Amazon gives that credibility to a buyer.

[00:09:25] Host: That were the Co-Founders of Liberty Tabletop: Greg and William Owens. They talked about sustainability and how your business can meet environmentally friendly regulations. As always, here are some quick key takeaways from this episode:

One. It's probably more sustainable if you manufacture your products in the US. When you do that, you can look deeper into the manufacturing process and cut down on shipping overseas. Plus, being made in the US is appealing to a lot of customers so you might also win over more customers. Try looking into that option but know it will come with higher costs, so decide what is most important to you and possible.
[00:10:00] Two. Some other things you should consider when it comes to environmentally friendly regulations are: the quality of your product and the material it’s made from, how you package your product, the journey that it takes for it to get to customer’s doors, and then, how do you communicate this to your customers? One way Will and Greg mentioned is by getting the badges or stamps that show this when customers consider your product like the climate friendly badge in the Amazon store.

That's it for this episode of This is Small Business Minisodes, brought to you by Amazon. If you liked what you heard, make sure to subscribe and tell your friends about us by sending them a link to this episode. And we would love to know what you think, so please please please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts. It's easier to do it through your phone. Or send us an email at thisissmallbusiness@amazon.com with your thoughts.

Until next time – This is Small Business, I'm your host Andrea Marquez -- Hasta luego -- and thanks for listening! [00:11:01]

Ep. 42: How to Future-proof your Business

Dec 5, 2023

Leverage new technology.

[00:00:00] Michelle: We both need our human skills and our technical skills to bring to the table. You have to have enough human skills to differentiate your work, but you also have to be able to know enough technically to intervene at the right points in time and know when to interrogate the data or the model or the algorithm. If we look at where AI is today, even in its very elemental roots with these kinds of phenomenal innovations, we can see the ways in which some of our work can become potentially obsolete or made easier or automated. But we also can see very readily where our human skills come to the fore.

[00:00:40] Host: Hi, This is Small Business, a podcast brought to you by Amazon. I’m your host, Andrea Marquez. On This is Small Business we cover all things small business that will help you start, build, and scale your business. We will hear from guests with diverse backgrounds, point of views, and stories, with the hope of hearing from many types of small business entrepreneurs. By the end of each episode, I'll point out key takeaways that you can use [00:01:00] on your business journey.

The future of the workplace seems to be constantly evolving because of all the new technological advances that are happening. I mean we've all heard all about how AI is gonna change the workplace and how we work. So how can you leverage these tools to help improve your business operations? And is it even a good idea to do that? How much should you lean on technology to help automate certain parts of your business?

Coming up -- I'll talk to Michelle Weise, the CEO of Rise & Design, an advisory service for organizations looking to design strategies that'll prepare adults for the jobs of today and tomorrow. We'll be talking about how you can future-proof your business by using technology. But first - I want you to meet Kevin Meyer, Co-Founder & CEO of Crunch Tech Inc. You might also know him as the person who developed The CrunchCup alongside his partner. Like most of the small businesses we feature on the show, you can find the CrunchCup in the Amazon store. Kevin is an avid user of automation and technology to make sure that business operations are as efficient as possible. [00:02:00] So if you've been thinking of ways to leverage AI and technology to improve your business then this episode is for you.

Also, don't forget that if you want to hear your story on This is Small Business, we have a voicemail line where you can ask questions or share your entrepreneurial story. We want to hear from you! Find the link to the voicemail line in the episode description.

[00:02:20] Kevin: I was running an agency and we were helping small businesses basically get off the ground. Doing a lot of content and doing a lot of gurilla, kind of just scrappy stuff to make sure that, you know, these business owners who didn't have a huge budget, we could still give them high value production type of content. And so, my partner came to me and basically said Hey, so my daughter, she wants to get into, you know, at least spin up a small business. And she's thinking about things. And the unit economics on a cereal bar are pretty great. You're just selling people cereal. And I said, Yeah, that's, that's great. But you, you're gonna be stuck brick and mortar, you've got a spoon, you've got a bowl. [00:03:00] And somewhere in that conversation I said, you know, while I was a, an editor in the visual effects industry. Sometimes super late at night when the kitchen kind of like, no one's there, there was always cereal and milk. So I would have two cups, one cup with cereal, one cup with milk, and that way I could do my work and not have like a bowl of cereal just kind of turned to mush while I'm working.

And pretty much three days later, he shows up at my front door and he's got this hot glued contraption. At first, I said, you know what, this is gonna be super hard for people to adopt. Like people are so used to just eating their cereal with a spoon and a bowl, and then I used the prototype. And there's something just so uniquely special about being able to sit at your desk and with one hand eat cereal or granola or anything, and I knew it had legs. And so I said, you know what, Rob, my current co-founder, we'll launch it the same way I'm helping other clients but I'm gonna do it. Basically on the house [00:04:00] as a pet project, get all the team that in the agency at the time, just super excited about it. Like, this is a project for like us, like we can do whatever we want. There's no client. We are the client. And it was just a blast.

The cost per acquisition, for people that were super interested and the engagement on our, our initial ads were just like, light bulbs in my head saying, this is something super special. People love this. People are gravitating towards it and they want to be involved or they want to try it. And so fast forward to today. You know, we've sold over I think 500,000 units. We've got warehouses in four different countries, the US Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom. And really, it's just, it's a, a blast to work on it.

[00:04:45] Andrea: I really, really like that story because the success of the product surprised you and right now Crunch Cup is doing great. So, before this we spoke about how much you love using tech to make your operating as efficient as possible considering you’re a small team.

[00:05:00] Kevin: We lean hard into our PMs, our project management system. Every Monday I'm just saying, hey, what are we doing that if it takes you five clicks or it takes you a whole minute of doing something and you're doing this task repeatedly, Like, let's automate that.

[00:05:20] Andrea: Do you believe everything can be automated at this point? Especially since AI is currently gaining a lot of popularity?

[00:05:25] Kevin: It's the question of this century, I think, you know how far can that go? Right, so, a good example of this is that an AI or a LLM, large language model, they work better when they're trained on a certain thing. For example, mid journey, which is, you know, a generative, creative kind of photo content. I can't tell it to, hey, create a photo with my product inside that photo. At least you can't do it yet. And there's some people trying to do this. The AI doesn't know what your product is. You can feed it an image offline or off a website off. You could just send it to a, an Amazon URL. And for the most part, [00:06:00] it's not gonna understand what a product is or how a consumer might use it, just from looking at it and learning about it. I don't think we're there yet.

You know, we did the same thing, like I, I said, oh, I want to do a generative ai, photo kind of sequence in on our Instagram feed cuz it's popular right now. So it's like, gimme a photo of, you know, a 90 year old person skydiving, holding the Crunch Cup, and I sent it a seed image, so it could understand what it's working with and try to use this blend mode. And it was just totally failed. So instead we just said, hey, grandma skydiving holding a water bottle, and we'll just Photoshop it in. And that's what we did.

Other things that it's not gonna be able to do is, it's not very good right now at connecting certain tasks. There's two parts to this. So let's say that I want to create an analytics dashboard based off a table of data. I could ask it to write a formula that says, Hey, in column g I want it to take the weighted average of column B plus C, [00:07:00] and it could spit that out, but if the step before that is what do you need to see to make actionable insights and why do we need to even see the average on column G? We're not really there yet where you can say, Hey, give me analytics. Because your brain is saying, I know kind of what I want, but I don't know exactly what I need. And in some cases, you know exactly what you need and then AI's great for that. But like if I asked AI to design my product, the one that we took, 80 prototypes, it's gonna have a super hard time doing that. And it may halfway through, forget what the prompt is to where it'll start to iterate and you know, you get something that's not a cup or it's completely different and it's got little channels that can't even be manufactured, so it doesn't know what the manufacturing capabilities are unless it's specifically trained on that.

And then it also doesn't know how the human is going to be using it, and it doesn't know certain instances [00:08:00] unless you fed it that info. Technically you could say, hey, I need you to generate a cup. It's got two vessels and it's solving this, this, this, this, this, this, this. And like, you feed it a ton of data, you may get close. But really the way that we should be using AI is to get to a starting point on how we want to direct it.

[00:08:22] Andrea: Can you tell me the top two ways that AI has influenced or benefited your business?

[00:08:28] Kevin: We began leaning into it to do things as simple as like, you know, I'll be honest, I use it to respond to emails in some cases. It’s really good at summarizing text so I can send it a link or give it just a data set of customer sentiment. We're launching a product later this year and a lot of those key points, the attributes of this new product were derived based off of customers. And so there's no way I can read the 12,000, [00:09:00] reviews that have been posted, you know, feeding that data to an AI and saying, Hey, gimme the five key points that people are upset with and want to see made better or resolved.

Another great thing it's able to do, and this has helped us optimize our process flow is really like content generation and the creative content that goes into like, let's say an email. So there's a prompt that I've made, it that has about 10 steps and every three steps I ask it to reply or to halt and ask if it needs any more information, if it understands. And in some cases it'll say, yeah, what about this, this, and this? how do you want to go about this? And we build out some of our email marketing just like that. We'll say, hey, generate five topics that are interesting to post in a email newsletter or an email blast to our customers. Here are four examples that we've done in the past, and it'll come back to us and say, Hey, here are five different email topics [00:10:00] that we can send out. And then that third step, I say, pick one of them and tell us why that's the best

one to actually push content out for. Once the content's built out, we can say, Hey, also generate a SMS message for this exact campaign. And it'll summarize that down into 144 characters so it can fit the sms character length. We've got now an email campaign. We've got SMS campaign, we've got our posts that supplement that campaign on our social media channels, and that would've taken, previously, maybe a few days and like bouncing, brainstorming between two or three people to like come up with that kind of content. As long as you're giving it the information it needs, it can take 30 seconds to do what it would take a few days and a few people. It’s super powerful.

[00:10:50] Host: You're listening to This is Small Business, brought to you by Amazon. I’m your host, Andrea Marquez. You just heard from Kevin Meyer, Co-Founder & CEO, Crunch Tech Inc. [00:11:00] You can find out more about the Crunch Cup in our show notes on our website: Thisissmallbusinesspodcast.com.

Kevin gave us a behind the scenes look into how he uses technology and AI to smoothly operate his business. Because they're a small team, time is money and so automating repetitive tasks is super important to ensure that the team has enough time for other priorities. So, if you've got a small team like Kevin and a lot of work to get through, then maybe automating some tasks can help you out.

Like Crunch Tech Inc., the small businesses we feature on This is Small Business are some of the many small businesses selling in the Amazon store who have tapped into some of the tools and resources offered to help them succeed and grow. One of those resources is the Amazon Small Business Academy where you can find the help you need to take your small business from concept to launch and beyond. You can strengthen your skills at no cost with live and on demand trainings, Q&As, events, and even find more This is Small Business content. If you don’t know where to start, you can take the free self-assessment on the Amazon Small Business Academy site at www.smallbusiness.amazon.

[00:12:00] So far, we've talked about how Kevin used technology and AI to automate his business operations. So let's dig deeper into other ways that businesses can leverage technology and make sure that they’re prepared for the future of the workplace with my next guest Michelle Weise, the CEO of Rise & Design.

[00:12:20] Michelle: I think it helped that there was enough I think hoopla around the fact that it was very confident sounding, but often wrong. And so you had to go in, right, with a little bit of skepticism and doubt. So it is really important to double back and, and make sure that some of this stuff is helpful.

As small business owners, there are certain kind of time saving things we just need to rely on, to be able to save our mental space for the activities that really matter. Those kinds of tools are just, you need them when you don't have massive teams to do the grunt work for you, right? So you need time saving gestures and, and, and exercises and mechanisms. [00:13:00] I definitely rely on it here and there just as a, as an idea generator at certain points in times. I'm not the best, for instance, at creating agendas for meetings, so it just helps me quickly remember what does an audience kind of just need to know at a high level from some of the, the work that I'm presenting to them. But I, I, I definitely love it as, as an efficiency mechanism, but I'm definitely seeing that my role is clear and more defined now that I see what the tools can offer.

[00:13:28] Andrea: I’m so impressed sometimes by what AI can do but also, I feel like when people talk about it being “efficient” I feel like I spend more time explaining all the parameters of what I want to it, then if I just did it myself. Like, AI is making some type of mark, but I don’t know if it’s where we need it to be yet, at least in my experience. And thinking of looking into the future, what are some other trends you're seeing in the workplace that you think small business owners should look out for?

[00:13:57] Michelle: I think the biggest piece is, [00:14:00] for me at least, when I've seen, when I've worked with different kinds of organizations, the piece that's never going to go away is how critical internal communications is. You can never really over communicate how and what you're doing. I think the sort of dissemination and the knowledge share, getting it across to a wide array of stakeholders is, is just always critical and I, and I just kind of marvel at how we forget about it in different kinds of trans, I, I lead different kinds of, Internal transformations for organizations and companies and you get so mired in the what and the things to do, it can get really easy to forget to point to the why and why we're doing this. And really when you're trying to galvanize a large group of people, that insistence on the over communication of the why. And the vision and why we're doing all this work has to happen all the time, almost to a point where it gets annoying for people because they're just like, oh, they're saying it again, [00:15:00] but it needs to be there for people to kind of hear it, and feel a part of it. So I feel like that piece is kind of far and away just the thing that just keeps emerging, even through any kind of technical or technological enablement that goes on within an organization. That piece is, is always clear.

I've also noticed with, you know, as we're switching to remote and hybrid workforces, there's sometimes, especially for cultures that are more familiar with FaceTime and in person time, it can feel difficult to let go, and it's hard to kind of, focus on the deliverable as opposed to seeing someone work and feeling like they're working hard. And so that's where I think I've tried out every kind of possible project management tool in every organization. And those, those really are helpful in terms of keeping people on task and oriented toward, what is it that we're trying to accomplish and who's working on what? [00:16:00] I feel like the most kind of friction that emerges that I've seen in, in workplace challenges is around lack of clarity of what your role is. But I think when you use these different kinds of project management tools well, it's very clear who does what and when you need to hand something off or, or get into a moment of collaboration.

[00:16:20] Andrea: Collaboration I think is such an important aspect as you look to growing your team and thinking about scaling your business too and how you leverage the best tools that allow you to do that. And then there’s this human skill aspect of it that sometimes doesn’t come through when using these tools that needs to be prioritized too, right?

[00:16:40] Michelle: As we think about those trends for the future of the workforce, I think one of the things we're going to really see real transformation around is how we reimagine on the job training. We've seriously disinvested in training our existing workforce, [00:17:00] and I think what we're seeing in some of the innovations out there is a real excitement around how do you take your workforce, understand, and make really transparent mobility pathways within a company, and how do you kind of assess using AI and different kinds of skills that you bring to the table, as well as the gaps that you may have to move towards those other goals within the company that you may have. And it's really exciting to see some of these platforms emerge that make that kind of re skilling, much more concrete as to, okay, here I am now. I think I want to go be a systems network analyst, or I think I want to go be a human resources manager. Here are the 10 competencies I'm lacking, and here's how I might fill them.

And, and those kinds of things are emerging, which is really exciting to see on the innovation front. And so I think as we think about transparency and retention within the workforce. We're going to see more emphasis on how do we reimagine building those skills while in the flow of work. [00:18:00] I'm really excited to see how more and more companies figure out how to pull out or carve out 30 minutes a week, 30 minutes a day, to help people gain the time to actually acquire those new skills for, this emerging world of work. And I think that's like a really huge myth in the business world is that if you invest in your people, they'll leave you for your competition. Instead, it can really deal with this high turnover rate that we see in a lot of different companies. How do we keep our people? How do we make them feel valued? We actually teach them new skills.

[00:18:35] Host: That was Michelle Weise, the CEO of Rise & Design talking to us about the future of work. As always, here are some key takeaways:

One. Automation is great, especially when you've got a small team like Kevin's. When you automate repetitive tasks using AI or technology, it'll help free yourself up for other important tasks that you might need to focus on. So do your research and leverage the tools available to you. Kevin thinks about this every Monday, [00:19:00] so maybe you want to start adding an hour of every week to auditing yourself on what can be automated to free some time.
Two. Both Michelle and Kevin mentioned various ways in which they leverage technology to improve their operations. Kevin talked about how AI helps him generate emails or look through his customer reviews, as well as project management tools that help him stay on track. Michelle mentioned that a problem she sees in a lot of businesses is that sometimes people aren't sure what their role is and technology can help with that. You can use project managements tools to make sure that everyone knows what they need to doing, especially as your business grows. Michelle did also say that face time is also very important and there isn’t a replacement for what human connection can do.

I'm curious – Have you been thinking about how you can automate to improve your business operations? Or maybe you've already done that in many ways. I'd love to hear about your journey! Reach out to us at thisissmallbusiness@amazon.com to tell us what you're up to. Or let me know what you think of the episode by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts – [00:20:00] it’s easier if you do it through your phone. And if you liked what you heard -- I hope you'll share us with anyone else who needs to hear this!

If you’re an aspiring entrepreneur, and I hope you are if you’re listening to This is Small Business. Or maybe you already have your small business up and running and you’re ready for the next step. A super valuable resource that can help you is the Amazon Small Business Academy where you can find the help you need to take your small business from concept to launch and beyond. Take the free self-assessment on the Amazon Small Business Academy site at www.smallbusiness.amazon.

That's it for today’s episode of This is Small Business, brought to you by Amazon. Until next week – This is Small Business, I'm your host Andrea Marquez -- Hasta luego -- and thanks for listening!

CREDITS: This is Small Business is brought to you by Amazon, with technical and story production by JAR Audio. [00:20:50]

Ep. 41: How to Expand to Other Markets

Nov 28, 2023

Expand your business to other markets.

[00:00:00] Max: The most important thing that me or anybody else who thinking about expanding need to do is figure out is there a market for your products. It could be as easy as go to Amazon and look at your category. Let's say you're, you're selling coffee makers. Type in coffee makers and take a look. See how much are they selling for? What are the brands that you're competing against? Can you compete on the quality? Can you compete on the price? Can you compete on the listings? Is the listings showing the coffeemakers, are they good? Are they bad? Do they have a lot of images? Do they have video? If you see that there is opportunity, whether on a low end, or high end, then just go for it.

[00:00:37] Andrea: So if you're considering expanding into a new market, the first thing you've gotta do is research. I feel like that's the first step to everything in business. But once you've decided that there’s a demand for your product, what comes next? Are there any differences between the way you present your product to different markets? And if yes, how do you figure that out? Let's talk about it.

[00:01:00] Host: Hi, This is Small Business, a podcast by Amazon. I’m your host, Andrea Marquez. This is one of our Minisodes, which are shorter episodes packed with helpful information for those of you who want a quicker binge. On this episode we'll be talking about how you can expand into different markets with Max Gurevich, President of Warm Home designs which is a business that sells curtains! Like most of the small businesses we feature on the show, you can find the Warm Home Design curtains in the Amazon store. Also, remember that if you want to hear your story on This is Small Business, we have a voicemail line where you can ask questions or share your entrepreneurial story. We want to hear from you! Find the link to the voicemail line in the episode description.

Today’s episode of This is Small Business is brought to you by Amazon Ads. Amazon Ads helps you reach customers wherever they spend their time, and is here for every type of small business. Amazon Ads has a range of products and information to help you achieve your advertising goals, for registered sellers, vendors, book vendors, Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) authors, app developers, and/or agencies.

[00:02:00] Max: So, originally, I'm a CPA by trade. So when I graduated at NYU, I was working for a big four accounting firm. I really liked the job, but I also liked playing poker. So, four years after working as a CPA I quit, I became a professional poker player. That was very fun. A lot of exciting things were happening, but poker playing usually happens during the night and during the weekend. And I thought I had some free time to try something new. So, I tried Amazon FBA. That was 2012. Amazon FBA was starting out, so I bought my first product send her in and it sold it like 24 hours. I made like $40. I was super excited, and I tried another product, another product, and mostly wholesale. So, it wasn't my product. Tried different categories and then I finally realized that there's an opportunity in home decor space, so I create my own brand, also made my own product, send it to Amazon and kind of build up from there. I was exclusively in US for, let's say two to three years. [00:03:00] And then, I saw another friend of mine was selling in Mexico and was very successful. So, I decided why not try that? So, I expanded into Mexico and then into Canada. So now we sell our products in three markets.

[00:03:15] Andrea: What are one of the top things that you have learned from expanding to [00:04:00] non-US markets that you think any business, regardless of what their product is, should know.

[00:03:22] Max: If you have a lot of reviews, take a look at the photos and see how people use, use your products. You have idea in your head how the product's gonna be used, but it could be completely different. This is actually a good tip, not just for international market, but also for American market. Sometimes people use your products in a very surprisingly unique ways that you, you would never think about it. So, for example, in our case, one of our products is a curtain. It's a short width curtain for like a small windows. It's just an okay product. It doesn't sell super well but in Mexico, it's sold relatively much better. And at first, I didn't really pay attention because I thought, you know, maybe there is more short, small windows in Mexico than the US who knows? [00:04:00] But then I looked at the reviews and look at the photos of how people using their curtains turnout. They're actually not using the curtains for windows at all. They're using them to cover the doors, the door frames. So instead of a door, they will use a curtain to cover another room or closet or something like that. So that gives you an idea of maybe you should present your listing a little different. Maybe you should create new images to show people, this is the way the product can be used. Or maybe you can create a completely brand-new product that's specifically designed for this purpose. So, if you understand how people use your products, you can expand or make the product better for specific markets.

[00:04:40] Andrea: Do you have different product listings for one product depending on what market it's selling in? Like for the example, in this case, those curtains that you just mentioned, does that listing look different in Mexico versus in the United States?

[00:04:55] Max: My descriptions and bullet points and a title looks different because you wanna present your product the way it's gonna be used, [00:05:00] it doesn't matter how you want it to be used, it matters how your customers use it. You wanna think of it not from your perspective, but from customer perspective. So, if the customer wants to use it that way, you should present it that way.

[00:05:13] Andrea: Did you run any other type of research to be able to figure that out, or was it just through customer reviews?

[00:05:18] Max: Don't be afraid to, to take a look at your competitors and see what works for them. Amazon presents a lot of information; they give you list of keywords that people use to when they do the search. You can look at other competitors listing and see how they use it. So, if, let's say you just starting out, you don't have any reviews yourself and don't see any pictures, but there's, there might be a competitor who has a thousand reviews. That means they have 20 or 30 photos available. So, take a look. Maybe you will see something that's unique and different maybe they're not presenting their listing the way the customer using it. So that would be a competitor advantage for you.

[00:05:55] Andrea: So, Max, can you tell me about ROAS, or Return on Ad Spend [00:06:00] which is a marketing metric that measures revenue earned for each dollar you spend on an ad? What were some of the major differences in return on your ad spend and performance across these markets?

[00:06:12] Max: So when we started out in Mexico, the return on ad spent was significantly better, in Mexico than in the US. I'm guessing it's because the competition was lower and there was just less competitors in general, or maybe they were not focused enough on the Mexican market and focusing in the US. So because of that, ROAS was much better in Mexico than in US. That was 2019. Things have changed. The ROAS is converging towards US, so there is more competition, and people may be focusing more in Mexico, but there is still at, to this day, the ROAS is better in Mexican market than in the US market.

I think one thing that, our competitors not doing is running a video ad. Mostly, I assume it's because they already have the ads with the text in English [00:07:00] and it costs money to translate it, and run a new ad. So, we had a really good returns on, uh, video ads. Some of them are in Spanish, at least text, and some of them you don't have to have a text at all. If your product is compelling enough and you can create a video that's beautiful enough, then just a video of your product with a background, it would be a great ad.

I think the smartest thing that Amazon did with the ads is to make it basically the same as in US market. So people always, you know, scared of learning new things so if you make the, user interfaces, all the names and everything exactly the same, it would be easier for the advertisers to start advertising. Obviously in order to achieve really good results, you have to be proficient. But to start it out and to test it, and then try it, it's as simple as it gets. And that's a, I think that's a very good thing that Amazon did.

My thing is, you can learn, for months and for years. But unless you try it, [00:08:00] unless you failed for the first time, you will never learn enough. So just try, just set up a budget. It doesn't have to be a big budget because, you know, the cost per click is cheaper than the US so your budget doesn't have to be as big. Set it up, $10 a day budget, $20 a day, $50 a day, whatever you're comfortable with. And just try it out. Something doesn't work, then you change it and try something else.

[00:08:25] Andrea: When thinking about expanding to non-US markets, what are some of the language-considerations you think should be made?

[00:08:32] Max: So I talked to some other people who also sellers not in the Mexican market. And basically what I'm hearing is says, well, I'm not a native Spanish speaker, so what if my grammar is not good? What if I translate and it would sound bad or embarrassing? And my reply is always, I'm not a native Spanish speaker either. I'm not even a native English speaker. So, my grammar is probably bad in the US market and in Mexican market, but you're not selling your grammar, [00:09:00] you're not selling your words, you're selling your product. If your product is good enough, if you price it competitively, if you create images and the video that present your product in the best light, your grammar doesn't matter, it's not what you write, it's what you sell that's important.

[00:09:15] Host: I love that we're ending with that. So if the language barrier is what's holding you back from expanding to other markets, remember Max's words. The customers are here for your product not your grammar. That was Max Gurevich, President of Warm Home designs. As always here are some takeaways on expanding to other markets:

One. Research. Before expanding into another market, you need to figure out if there's a demand on the product you're selling. Also, this research will help you figure out how to write your listing and the best way to advertise to your new market. Max suggested looking at what your competition is doing and even looking through those customer reviews.
Two. The customer is always right. At least in their feedback. When you read your feedback and find that people are using your product differently [00:10:00] consider switching up the marketing to match what your product is being used for. Like what Max did when he found out that people were using his curtains as door covers.
Three. When it comes to your ROAS, or return on ad spend, and expanding to another market such as Mexico, Max suggests trying something small to test it out and see what those returns are. If you sell in the Amazon store, Max suggests taking advantage of running video ads and Amazon Ads is easy enough to start out and use. For more information on Amazon Ads, visit out show notes.

Until next time – This is Small Business, I'm your host Andrea Marquez -- Hasta luego -- and thanks for listening! [00:11:03]

Bonus episode: How to Stay Profitable While Giving Back

Nov 21, 2023

Give back while staying profitable.

Trying to figure out how to make money while giving back through your business? Learn what it takes to grow your business when the foundation of your business model is social responsibility. Andrew Glantz, the Founder & CEO of GiftAMeal, explains how he managed to make a profit out of a business centered on giving back to the community. And Heather Cameron, a social entrepreneur and Michael B Kauffman Professor of Practice at the Washington University in St. Louis, tells us how to successfully build a business model that makes that possible. This episode is brought to you by Amazon Business. Amazon Business provides a wide product selection, business-only pricing, and account features that can make running your small business easier. Amazon Business supports small business through various programs such as the Small Business Grants where Amazon Business gives over $250,000 to 15 small businesses who are Amazon Business customers. Amazon Business is committed to the growth of small businesses and invests in grants to help small businesses overcome challenges they face, freeing up their resources to focus on their mission and customers. Small Businesses are the backbone of our economy and when they succeed we all succeed. Create your free account today at amazonbusiness.com.

(7:09) - To have a scalable business model with a social impact, Andrew advises any business to focus on authenticity, brand alignment, consistency, user-friendliness, and shareability.

(10:47) - Andrew talks about how he got the Amazon Business grant and the importance of putting yourself out there.

(13:38) - Quantifying the value and impact of your business quickly is essential for success because you'll have a compelling value proposition and make sales efforts more effective.

(17:61) - Heather underscores the importance of alignment in an entrepreneur's journey, emphasizing how it connects your brand with what matters to both customers and your team.

(20:56) - Heather emphasizes that small business owners should think about their social impact in tandem with their business strategy because it’s a core lament that will drive business success and support from the wider community.

[00:00:00] Heather: I think we want all of our businesses to do well by doing good. I think there's no longer any patience for businesses which aren't thinking about the wider consequences of how they're generating money. And so businesses do well by doing good by thinking intentionally about what is their social value proposition.

[00:00:20] Host: Hi, This is Small Business, a podcast brought to you by Amazon. I’m your host, Andrea Marquez. On This is Small Business we cover all things small business that will help you start, build, and scale your business. We will hear from guests with diverse backgrounds, point of views, and stories, with the hope of hearing from many types of small business entrepreneurs. By the end of each episode, I'll point out key takeaways that you can use on your business journey.

From a customer’s perspective, when I'm looking at different options and find two products that are similar in price point and quality, I usually then look at the impact they're having to decide which to buy. But even though helping the community is important and you'll probably get more customers by doing that, it is a business at the end of the day. [00:01:00] And sometimes I wonder how a business that revolves around giving back can stay profitable.

Coming up -- I'll talk to Heather Cameron, a social entrepreneur, and Michael B Kauffman Professor of Practice, at the Washington University in St. Louis. She'll be telling us how you can grow your business when the foundation of your business model is social responsibility. But first -- I want you to meet Andrew Glantz, the Founder & CEO of GiftAMeal, a marketing platform for restaurants that revolves around giving back. Each time a customer takes a picture of their meal from a partner restaurant, GiftAMeal feeds a family in need from a food bank. And even though GiftAMeal's business model relies on giving back, they've managed to secure more than 700 partner restaurants and stay profitable. So if you've been wanting to give back to your community through your business and continue to grow, this episode is for you!

Today’s episode of This is Small Business is brought to you by Amazon Business who provides a wide product selection, business-only pricing, and account features that can make running your small business easier. [00:02:00] Amazon Business supports small business through various programs such as the Small Business Grants where Amazon Business gives over $250,000 to 15 small businesses who are Amazon Business customers. Amazon Business is committed to the growth of small businesses and invests in grants to help small businesses overcome challenges they face, freeing up their resources to focus on their mission and customers. Small Businesses are the backbone of our economy and when they succeed, we all succeed. Create your free account today at amazonbusiness.com.

[00:02:45] Andrew: So I founded Gift A Meal when I was still a student at Wash U in St. Louis. I'd done a lot of volunteering growing up for my local community and when I went to college, I had an internship at a venture capital firm where I learned about the startup world. [00:03:00] The managing partner exposed me the idea of a profits with a purpose business model and I loved the scalability of making an impact that that could provide. And so when I was on a lunch break with the other intern. We were talking about how we could give back to our communities and support businesses that give back and came up with the idea of Gift A Meal pulling from Tom's shoes and Warby Parker buy one, give one models, as well as pulling from the idea of people posting photos of food on social media and came up with Gift A Meal by pulling it all together where each time a guest takes a photo of their food or drink from a partner restaurant, we make a donation to a local food bank to help provide a meal to someone in need.

[00:03:34] Andrea: This is amazing that you thought about this and continue to work on making it grow. And speaking of growing, I want to talk about your business model. The words you use to describe your business model are: doing well while doing good. Tell me more about that.

[00:03:50] Andrew: Yeah, I think that when you're a social venture, it's really important to have profit and purpose be consistent goals for the business. With Gift A Meal, it's totally free [00:04:00] for the customer at the restaurant taking their photo, and it's funded by the restaurant as a mix of marketing and giving back. So the restaurant pays a flat monthly program fee to be involved, and then out of that program fee, each time a guest takes their photo on Gift A Meal, we make a donation to a local food bank to cover their cost of getting one meal's worth of food from their facility to a neighborhood pantry where those in need could access it. The guest is then invited to share their photo on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, now X, and then we give an extra meal for each, platform they share on. And so it really allows the guests to multiply their impact. And from the restaurant perspective, the guest is promoting them to all their friends in a positive and uplifting way, while also having a feel-good experience for that guest where they feel that sense of emotional connection to the restaurant. So that way they're going to hopefully return more frequently so for that business model, it's really driven by that restaurant program fee. And as we are able to sign up more restaurants. Revenue grows, but then we're also going to make a larger impact as people take more photos [00:05:00] to create that sustainable business model.

[00:05:04] Andrea: I think one of the first questions as an aspiring entrepreneur that you're going to have when trying to connect social responsibility to a business is, how does this last? So, how do you measure that success? And I know it might be tied to the fact that you're doing good and you're helping people, but you’re still a business and I’m sure you’ve got employees that need to get paid.

[00:05:22] Andrew: Right. I mean, you know, even though we're making a tremendous social impact, we are a business at the end of the day. And like you said, we need to pay payroll, and we need to pay for marketing and all the other things that come with the business. And so, you know, those key performance indicators, KPIs, that I'm looking at are, are monthly recurring revenue that we're getting from the restaurants. Our retention percentage versus our churn of how many restaurants are staying on Gift A Meal each month versus dropping. Looking at the user engagement, the number of new active users on Gift A Meal. How many times each user is taking a photo on Gift A Meal and are they going to the same restaurant or are they trying new restaurants [00:06:00] and using Gift A Meal. Looking at the social share rate of what percent of customers are sharing their photos on social media from Gift A Meal and the impact that that's creating for the restaurants, in addition to the social impact metrics, like the number of meals we're providing each month, and all time. So there's a number of metrics that we're looking at. We're looking at, you know, our bottom line in addition to top line revenue, we're looking at our profitability as a company to get to sustainability and getting to break even. Uh, so that way we can continue to grow, um, our company based off of sales rather than having to fundraise millions and millions of dollars. We can grow organically by creating a sustainable model.

[00:06:40] Andrea: I'm so impressed and really inspired by you -- and I'm sure anyone who hears your story will feel the same way. So, tell me, if someone wanted to follow a business model similar to GiftAMeal’s, what would your advice be to them in terms of being scalable?

[00:06:55] Andrew: I think at the very beginning, if a business is looking at adding in a social impact element, [00:07:00] they need to think through whether it's going to be something as a one off or something that's going to be incorporated into the core business model. I would kind of refer them in terms of how to implement that social responsibility with kind of what I would call the ABCs of social responsibility. It needs to be authentic, it needs to have a right branding fit, and it needs to be consistent.

So going through those, authenticity is key because once you incorporate any type of social impact to your company, you're immediately held to a higher bar because you don't want to be seen as scammy or using a cause. You want to make sure that it's something that's genuine and authentic and especially for younger audiences like Gen Z and Millennials. They can sniff out inauthentic behavior for brands. You have to really make sure that it's authentic in all capacities. The second is branding fit. So making sure that it's something that resonates with your customers, your team and your company culture as a whole. The last is making sure that it's consistent behavior. So that's consistency in terms of the messaging, and in terms of how you're actually going to be making that impact [00:08:00] to make sure that you're really hitting home on that message so that people start to associate that social impact that you're doing with your brand identity. And if you're consistent, that'll also boost your authenticity. So I think those are kind of the key things at the very onset that you have to look at as a business and then to get customer buy in, it needs to be something that's easy for customers to understand and participate in. It has to be something that they feel like makes an impact and is meaningful and relevant to them.

And then ideally something that's shareable as well so that customers can be promoting the business to friends. There was a study done in the hotel industry where it was looking at tweets by, about social responsibility that were done by people that stayed at the hotel about the hotel social responsibility. Versus the hotel tweeting out about it themselves. And it was found to be a lot more authentic if it was the tweet from the person that stayed at the hotel versus the hotel themselves, kind of tooting their own horn. And so getting that shareability component of social responsibility is really important. [00:09:00] And then that last piece that you were talking about of the sustainability of the business model is just making sure that whatever you're doing from a social impact perspective is going to be fueling the profit incentive of the business. If it's something baked into the core business model and the profit driven incentive is going to be fueling the social impact.

So as you're able to grow your revenue and profits, you're able to make a larger social impact. And as you're making a larger social impact, you're able to make the business more profitable. So having those be, have synergies with each other and fueling each other rather than cannibalizing each other is important. Now, if you're just looking to do a one-off thing for social impact, then that's fine. You can pull from profits and donate to different causes and things like that. And that is totally okay to do. There's not just one right way to do this, but I think there's definitely a big opportunity. Where social impact isn't just a single donation, but it's something that can be a driver of the business and not a cost generator.

[00:09:57] Andrea: I think that’s such an important way of looking at this and I want to double tap on it, [00:10:00] which is to understand that there are different ways to make an impact and it doesn’t need to be built into the business model, but you can totally make it so if that’s what you want, while still making is a profitable business. I also want to touch briefly on your experience funding an idea like this. And your experience though Amazon.

[00:10:20] Andrew: I got an email from Amazon Business. And it was an email letting me know about an Amazon Business grant. thought it was throwing a dart at the dartboard, but why not? You know, we have a good story to tell. We're making an impact. And, um, so I filled out the application for the Amazon Business Grant for 25,000. And then we got a notification that we were one of 15 semifinalists. And then when I looked into it, I was like, wait, all 15 semifinalists are going to get some type of money regardless of if you ended up being the winner or not. So that's awesome. Didn't expect to be the winner. And then it was held up for a vote for all Amazon Business users to vote for their favorite company that was a semifinalist. [00:11:00] And then I got the email officially notifying, and 25,000 grant is huge for any business and, for us, that's something that's going to be majorly impactful as we're going to be able to use it to help continue our growth across the country and to be able to support more communities and more restaurants and more local food banks. And, so it's not something that I expected at all, but I guess that kind of always goes to show that to always put yourself out there and give things a shot.

[00:11:23] Andrea: That’s wild! What was the application process like?

[00:11:28] Andrew: I mean, I think for the application, whether it's Amazon Business Grant or for any other type of application, you need to very clearly explain what it is that you're doing, the traction that you have so far, and what the impact of the winnings would be for your business and where that would allow you to go. Sometimes an entrepreneur has a great story to tell. But, you know, there's so much fluff that's in the application that it's hard for a judge to be able to just nail down specifics or it gets overly confusing. So there's, you know, a lot of value in being concise [00:12:00] and precise with your wording in these applications and making it really easy on the judges in order to evaluate the application and understand the business model, how it works, how it's sustainable and what the impact is going to be for the business if you end up winning and really getting the judge to want you to win, um, is something that I think is really important.

[00:12:20] Andrea: This is something I try practicing every day when communicating with anyone, trying to be concise and clear is harder than it seems. Andrew, if you could give any advice to an early-stage business owner, what would that be?

[00:12:35] Andrew: The first would be just get out there and do it and get started. Usually that's the biggest mental hurdle. And so you don't have to have the final finished product to get started. You can just have a very small minimum viable product of just the core feature without any bells and whistles. And start running it by your market that you're going to be selling into to get their feedback off of it. Because if you don't have something, it's really hard to get past that. So getting from that idea stage to product as quickly as possible, [00:13:00] I think is great. And then being willing to have a low ego and fail and learn from failures and adapt.

I would also say quantify your value as quickly as possible that was when we really started to see things take off for Gift A Meal, is when we performed case studies with our partner restaurants, and we found that on average, guests using Gift A Meal were returning 39% more frequently, spending 20% more per order, and tipping 32% more. So it wasn't that it was just a feel-good experience, but we were actually driving revenue for our partner restaurants and sales became so much easier to sign up another restaurant and gift a meal once we quantified our value, especially if you can tie it to those key performance indicators that the restaurants care about like revenue and loyalty and tip size and check size outside of just a survey. I mean, if you have to start with a survey results, that's fine, but surveys people take with many grains of salt, but if you can tie it to those actual KPIs that the business cares about, then that's something that is super helpful for sales. [00:14:00] So to summarize, just do it, get yourself out there, be willing to fail, learn, pivot, ask for help, be able to quantify your value as quickly as possible. And also you can do it qualitatively by getting testimonials from early customers.

And then also, I'd say the last thing, which is probably the most important thing is understanding that yourself as a business owner and entrepreneur are the most important asset to the company. And so if you burn out, then the company dies. So making sure to take care of yourself and your own mental health in order to be there for the business. So you don't have to work 24 hours a day on the business. Take care of yourself so that you can be there for the business and present your best self for the business too.

[00:14:40] Host: You're listening to This is Small Business, brought to you by Amazon. I’m your host, Andrea Marquez. You just heard from Andrew Glantz, the Founder & CEO of GiftAMeal. You can find out more about GiftAMeal in our show notes on our website: Thisissmallbusinesspodcast.com.

[00:15:00] I loved how Andrew ended by reminding us about the importance of self-care as a business owner, which can seem obvious at times, but really should be at the top of our lists. Andrew showed us that you can definitely be profitable if your business model is centered around social responsibility. He said that when you're building a social venture, there are two consistent goals that you've got to focus on: purpose and profitability.

It was also exciting to hear about GiftAMeal’s experience with winning the Amazon Business grant. If you want to learn more about Amazon Business… Create your free account today at amazonbusiness.com.

The small businesses we feature on This is Small Business are some of the many small businesses selling in the Amazon store who have tapped into some of the tools and resources offered to help them succeed and grow. One of those resources is the Amazon Small Business Academy where you can find the help you need to take your small business from concept to launch and beyond. You can strengthen your skills at no cost with live and on demand trainings, Q&As, events, and even find more This is Small Business content. If you don’t know where to start, you can take the free self-assessment on the Amazon Small Business Academy site at www.smallbusiness.amazon.

[00:16:00] So far, we've talked about how Andrew managed to keep his business that's centered around giving back profitable. So let's dig deeper into how you can continue to scale a business that's focused on social responsibility with my next guest: Heather Cameron, a social entrepreneur, and Michael B Kauffman Professor of Practice, at the Washington University in St. Louis.

[00:16:25] Heather: We hear a lot about the importance of knowing how you're creating value for your customers. And what we want to think about is how you're creating value for your customers, how you've got exciting products and programs, but how are you also creating value for your employees and for the wider community. And it's not actually that hard, right? Most businesses have something that they're contributing, but rather than just see it as kind of a nice to have, how do you measure it? How do you, how are you transparent about how you're communicating it? Because you will attract more customers, you'll be able to recruit better people, and you'll have the opportunity to raise capital in different ways than just sort of an old style, don't care about a business.

[00:17:00] Andrea: Why should this be one of the top things entrepreneurs work on when starting out their business and conceptualizing their business plan?

[00:17:10] Heather: I would say it's a lot about alignment, right? How are you aligning your brand with things that, you know, matter to your customers, but even more important, how are you aligning your brand with stuff that matters to your team and how are you able to get a higher quality staff members and commitment from people who are also feeling good about the work that they're doing and that it's clearly communicated and it's measured. So it’s people who are in it with you as the business owner to really commit to, to making your business grow. And then how is it also giving you as the business owner, extra energy and extra alignment so that you're feeling really good about the work that you're doing and that you have that energy and the commitment that we need that we know is necessary to be successful as an entrepreneur. After a while, people's businesses start to pull them in different directions and they can kind of fall apart if you don't have that alignment. And so I think for small business owners, it's not just about aligning with a customer. [00:18:00] It's also about making sure that your business processes, including your HR and including the way that you think about how you're communicating is all in alignment. And that gives you extra energy, gives you extra advantage in a competitive space.

[00:18:12] Andrea: So Heather, you know about GiftAMeal and its business model. And one of the things that I immediately thought when we were first talking about the business model was how do you make this scalable? Especially if it's not a tangible product like with GiftAMeal?

[00:18:30] Heather: The beauty of the Gift A Meal model is that it is allowing people, when they're enjoying their own meal, to feel even better about it because they're making a meal available to somebody in need. And unfortunately, all across the United States, there are food banks and there's food banks that need to get that food to people. So by concentrating on college towns, by concentrating on places where there's lots of young people who've got money to spend and want to enjoy time socializing and enjoying a meal, Gift A Meal has a way to scale by basically finding communities [00:19:00] which have that combination, which is not so rare: College Town, plus access to food banks who need support in order to get meals to people.

So I think the challenge for anybody who's kind of a hometown hero, like the founder of Gift A Meal, is how do they create and develop a potentially remote sales force who are able to go out and make that argument in other cities about how restaurants can attract a certain type of customer who they've been able to show, are actually making bigger tickets for the restaurant. The people who are participating in Gift A Meal are giving bigger tips and are having, you know, bigger receipts. They can make that case and then that's a case that can be made in any city in America. It's just a question of when you're an entrepreneur, how are you managing perhaps remote sales teams. Because GiftAMeal was born and built up in St. Louis. That means when they move to other spaces, they're going to need to have people from those spaces that can do it. But obviously there's top salespeople all over and then that then becomes almost like an HR recruitment challenge, less so a scaling challenge.

[00:20:00] Andrea: Scaling is a top-of-mind challenge for business owners, so it’s interesting to think about it from a perspective of HR and finding the right talent too, as one of the aspects of scaling that you need to be mindful of. What are other considerations you think small business owners should make when thinking about making impact sustainable in their business model?

[00:20:20] Heather: Just as small businesses need to think hard about customer discovery and how they find their customers and make great products for customers, as you grow, you're going to need access to more forms of capital, or even at the very beginning, angel capital or friends and family. And the clearer that you can state your social value proposition and the more transparent that you can be about how you're measuring it, uh, you will get access to different money than you, you would be able to if you didn't have that clear in your mind.

Also around recruiting. So the clearer you can be about what are your goals, what are your, the goals you want to reach through this business, then you're able to communicate them in a short and compelling way. You will notice you're going to get better staff and you're going to get better offers for funding. [00:21:00] So don't think of it as a nice to have. Think of something that its core to your business and how you're communicating it to the wider community, including people who want to fund your business and people who want to shop with you or people who want to work for you.

As an entrepreneur, it's been exciting to see my own kind of individual growth, but as I've had a chance to work with many others, I realized that we need to think in a more collective way about entrepreneurship, about building ecosystems, about lifting up others, about thinking about how it's not just one person. So I think it's, it, Interesting to think about how can you involve your workers and profit sharing? How can you involve other community priorities and what you're trying to achieve as a business? So that as we grow as entrepreneurs, we're also bringing a lot of people with us.

[00:21:43] Host: That was Heather Cameron, a social entrepreneur, and Michael B Kauffman Professor of Practice, at the Washington University in St. Louis. As always, here are some of the key takeaways on building a sustainable business model that centers around social responsibility:

Andrew started with what he calls the ABCs [00:22:00] of implementing social responsibility into your business plan: Authenticity. Brand fit. And Consistency. Having those three things will help you build a successful plan that then has a positive impact on not only customers and your community at large, but also on the people who work in your business.
Quantify your value. I think this one is a very important one as people tend to remember numbers and find a greater impact when it can be traced back to something measurable. No matter what your business is, when you’re reaching out to others, especially when thinking about funding opportunities just like the one mentioned from Amazon Business, make sure you know how to quantify the impact of your business as well as the profitability and opportunity for scale.
The second point about quantifying your value is also tied to the third which is knowing how to communicate your goals to others and those within your business in a clear and concise way. Start with a good story of course, but cut the fluff and make sure people understand exactly what you’re trying to do [00:23:00] and how you plan on doing it.

I'm curious – Have you been thinking about how you can grow your business and give back to your community at the same time? Or maybe you've already successfully done that. I'd love to hear about your journey! Reach out to us at thisissmallbusiness@amazon.com to tell us what you're up to. Or let me know what you think of the episode by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts – it’s easier if you do it through your phone. And if you liked what you heard -- I hope you'll share us with anyone else who needs to hear this!

CREDITS: This is Small Business is brought to you by Amazon, with technical and story production by JAR Audio. [00:24:06]

Ep. 40: How to Find the Right Customer for Your Product

Nov 14, 2023

Find your ideal customer.

[00:00:00] Roshni: For me, finding the right customer at the right time means really starting with understanding your business stage. So, for example, if you're just starting out, you'll want people who are willing to take risks. And try new products and try new things. So you have to first start with understanding your business stage, and then you have to look at your value proposition and who really can benefit from that value. And then you'll also have to figure out where they are in their buying cycle as well. Because as customers, we go through awareness, interest, desire, and we finally end up in action. So by the time we figure out what stage we're in, we've got to match that up with our business value proposition and find the right customer ultimately that wants your product at the time and fits your business needs as well.

[00:00:43] Andrea: Okay, so first you have to figure out what stage your business is in, then figure out what your value proposition is, and lastly figure out who can best benefit from that value proposition. But once I've got all that figured out, how do I find my customer? Let’s get into it.

[00:01:00] Host: Hi, This is Small Business, a podcast by Amazon. I’m your host, Andrea Marquez. This is one of our Minisodes, which are shorter episodes packed with helpful information for those of you who want a quicker binge. On this episode we'll be talking about customer research as an effective marketing strategy for small businesses with Roshni Wijayasinha, Founder & CEO of Prosh Marketing. To learn more about her visit our website at thisissmallbusinesspodcast.com. Also, remember that if you want to hear your story on This is Small Business, we have a voicemail line where you can ask questions or share your entrepreneurial story. We want to hear from you! Find the link to the voicemail line in the episode description.

[00:01:42] Roshni: My background has always been in marketing. I fell in love with marketing at an early age, and I worked at agencies, some large technology businesses, and found my way into the startup world, where I fell in love with the ability to really build and create things from scratch. And since, I've been head of marketing at a couple of different startups, I helped them exit, [00:02:00] and then I built my own marketing consulting practice, where we offer fractional CMO work for tech startups. Which is basically part time head of marketing for companies that can't afford or don't need a full-time head of marketing.

[00:02:10] Andrea: So Roshni, jumping in to the topic here, once I figure out who my customer is, how do I make sure that they know I exist?

[00:02:18] Roshni: Yeah, so the first stage is really brand awareness. That's when customers learn about your product, and that's, for a small business, usually the best place to start. Because if no one's heard of you, how could they want you and eventually want to buy you? So from a customer journey perspective, you really have to spend extra time on building that awareness. Now, how do you figure out where the customer might be? Some of the places that you might think about thinking and researching are: where are they on social media? Where are they in their physical world? What are they doing in the digital space? And the way that I work with our customers to kind of figure out where these things are is I do customer research. So I love to talk to actual customers, interview them, learn a bit more about what their processes are.

[00:03:00] Sometimes I might even follow them along for a day, or follow them along in a B2B setting, and see what they're up to, and that gives me a lot of clues in terms of what they're actually doing. When we ask customers to report it themselves, they often don't necessarily see all of the small things that they do, so just by observing you can learn a lot. There are a lot of really great digital tools that have allowed small businesses to now access customer research. You could go in and put in your qualification criteria, and they will actually match you up with people who are in that target audience. And you can access these customers, learn a ton about them, and spend that one-on-one time with them to research and learn more.

[00:03:38] Andrea: What do you think timing has to do with finding the right customer?

[00:03:40] Roshni: Timing has almost everything to do with your ability to convert the right customer. So you might find the right customer early in their journey, but if they're not ready for you, or if you're not ready for them, it might not be the best fit. So, you really have to think about, are you ready for them? For example, again, in the startup environment, if you're super early, [00:04:00] you don't want to begin a big, big customer as your first person to test out the product because if it goes badly, you've soured a huge relationship and they're probably less risk averse. Whereas if you can bring in, if it's a B2B product, for example, some, a smaller client who's willing to test and learn with you, that can be a great growing together and you can offer them a deal. So, finding out, you know, if they're good with your business stage is good. And then again, you have to look at what stage they're in as well. So, if they're in the shopping around phase, then they're ready to buy. Then if you were able to find them at that time, then it's a lot easier from a marketing perspective to help close and convert them.

[00:04:38] Andrea: And doing all that user research that we talked about earlier helps me find out at what stage they're in, right?

[00:04:44] Roshni: So that's the first component. You can get some research and understand what is their journey, and you can put that together in a customer journey map. And a customer journey map is just a simple way of breaking down all of the different stages that the customer goes to. So for example, if I'm taking a store example, [00:05:00] the customer is at home discovering they have a problem. The customer has to travel to the store. The customer is probably looking at a couple of different stores and shopping around, then goes back and makes their purchase and then brings it home. So in each of these opportunities and stages, there's a different type of messaging that you can provide to help your customer. But ultimately, if you get them on their way into the store, That's the best time to try to convert them. So you need to figure out where in that customer journey they're right about to buy. And that way, if you're able to intercept them at that point, you have the highest chances of conversion.

[00:05:30] Andrea: So knowing your customer journey is super important and we actually covered that in the first episode of this season. So, Roshni, do you have any other tips that small business owners can use to find the right customer at the right time for their product?

[00:05:43] Roshni: I think the idea that a marketer can't live in a glass tower, you have to actually talk to customers is the king pin for all of this. And so trying to find the information online or trying to substitute it with digital data can be great to a certain limit, [00:06:00] but without actually talking to customers, it can be challenging. And then the other bit is this type of information changes all the time, so you can't just do this and then set it and forget it, because customers are changing. Imagine our behavior before the pandemic and after the pandemic. Now digital buying is so much more common, right? People get their groceries delivered to them, and this behavior now is everyday behavior. So if you sit on your data and your customer research, and you just build, and now you think that this is the way customers are, you're forgetting that customers and markets evolve over time. So, it's something that's always changing, and something that you should, even as a business owner, as a marketer, as anyone in an organization, just have your pulse on the customer.

[00:06:40] Andrea: So we have to see this as something continuous. And also making sure that we’re visible to our customer enough.

[00:06:48] Roshni: So repetition is hugely important. But again, if you're repeating yourself at the bottom end of your marketing funnel on things which are super expensive, it can be really, really budget draining for a small business, [00:07:00] whereas if you're doing that repetition at the top end of the marketing funnel on tactics like public relations, where it's more cost effective per impression, you can get a lot more reach, and therefore you can be a lot more effective.

My biggest advice to small business owners is I know you have to manage your cash flow from a marketing perspective, and I know that it can seem very attractive to really focus on the bottom end of your marketing funnel where you can get sales and conversions immediately, and you can track it, but I cannot overstate the value of brand awareness and building that as a growing business because that brings loyalty, that brings long term customer value and life cycles, that brings referral business, that brings word of mouth, that brings so much more and so investing in brand awareness, though it might feel like a long term investment and it might feel like something you want to push off once you've built a good sales base, is something that you should start from day one.

[00:07:50] Host: That was Roshni Wijayasinha, Founder & CEO of Prosh Marketing. She talked about doing diligent customer research for small businesses. [00:08:00] As always, here are some quick key takeaways from this episode:

One. Finding the right customer at the right time starts by understanding what business stage you’re in. So before you even reach out to any customers, know if you’re too early to reach out to your biggest customer, or maybe you’re right on time. But timing is a key component of locking loyal customers and getting them to first decide to buy, but also to keep them coming back.
Two. A way to figure all of this out and understand at what stage your customer is in, is customer research. Roshni talked about the importance of continuously speaking with your customers and learning about their lives and what value you can offer them. There are a lot of tools that allow you to do this and where you can target your ideal audience. Make sure that you're constantly updating the customer research that you've done. Humans are dynamic and their needs are constantly changing, so to succeed you need to try and stay ahead of the curve. Roshni gave us an example of pre-pandemic versus post-pandemic customer behavior differences.
[00:09:00] Three. Repetition is also key. When it comes to brand awareness, it takes frequent touch points for a potential customer to even decide to consider you at all. Roshni suggests managing cash flow from a marketing perspective. Brand awareness is what leads to much more than just one and done purchases, it can lead to repeat customers too.

Until next time – This is Small Business, I'm your host Andrea Marquez -- Hasta luego -- and thanks for listening! [00:09:58]

Bonus episode: How to get Funded Through Crowdfunding

Nov 7, 2023

Fund your business through crowdfunding.

Are you interested in starting a crowdfunding campaign? Or maybe you’re wondering if you should pull money out of your savings to start your business? Learn the pros and cons of bootstrapping & crowdfunding and what it takes to launch a successful crowdfunding campaign with Josh Lipinski, the founder of Breakwater Supply, and Tess Estandarte, Director of Product Marketing at Rainfactory. This episode is brought to you by Amazon Business. Amazon Business provides a wide product selection, business-only pricing, and account features that can make running your small business easier. Amazon Business supports small business through various programs such as the Small Business Grants where Amazon Business gives over $250,000 to 15 small businesses who are Amazon Business customers. Amazon Business is committed to the growth of small businesses and invests in grants to help small businesses overcome challenges they face, freeing up their resources to focus on their mission and customers. Small Businesses are the backbone of our economy and when they succeed we all succeed. Create your free account today at amazonbusiness.com.

(04:14) - Josh points out the benefits of bootstrapping like having the freedom to call the shots and not having to meet investor demands which allows you to concentrate on improving your product and service.

(05:40) - Josh talks about why he decided to use bootstrapping to launch some of their products and emphasizes the importance of building trust by delivering on promises because it's a serious business that requires a solid plan.

(12:23) - Tess highlights the often overlooked legal aspects of crowdfunding, such as the importance of patents, trademarks, copyrights, intellectual property, reading the terms and conditions, and taxation.

(14:06) - Tess talks about the benefits of crowdfunding for entrepreneurs, highlighting the engagement with a supportive user community, brand and product awareness, and the ability to assess market readiness before seeking additional funding or investors.

(19:33) - To make your crowdfunding campaign stand out, Tess advises against cutting corners on the quality of assets, particularly images and videos, which can either make or break your campaign.

[00:00:00] Tess: The biggest myth I think, about crowdfunding campaigns is that they think it's easy. They think it's a fast way to become a millionaire. They think it's just as easy as putting together a couple of drawings and renders and, you know, have images and slap it up on a page and the money will come. That is not the reality. It's hard work. You have to put in the time.

[00:00:28] Host: Hi, This is Small Business, a podcast brought to you by Amazon. I’m your host, Andrea Marquez. On This is Small Business we cover all things small business that will help you start, build, and scale your business. We will hear from guests with diverse backgrounds, point of views, and stories, with the hope of hearing from many types of small business entrepreneurs. By the end of each episode, I'll point out key takeaways that you can use on your business journey.

Funding is a topic that's constantly on the minds of entrepreneurs. No matter where you are on your small business journey, you'll always need money to keep your business running. [00:01:00] We've talked about some forms of funding like getting grants and asking for loans but we haven't tapped into crowdfunding as much; that's when you fund a business by raising many small amounts of money from a large number of people. I’m excited for this episode.

Coming up -- I'll talk to Tess Estandarte, Director of Product Marketing at Rainfactory, a digital marketing agency that helps brands with crowdfunding. But first -- I want you to meet Josh Lipinski, the founder of Breakwater Supply. You can find them in the Amazon store along with most of the small businesses we feature on This is Small Business. Josh has launched lots of successful campaigns using crowdfunding. He managed to get people to buy his product and trust that he would be able to produce it and ship it. So, if you wanna know how to sell an idea and collect funding without giving up a portion of your business, then this episode is for you.

Today’s episode of This is Small Business is brought to you by Amazon Business who provides a wide product selection, business-only pricing, and account features that can make running your small business easier. [00:02:00] Amazon Business supports small business through various programs such as the Small Business Grants where Amazon Business gives over $250,000 to 15 small businesses who are Amazon Business customers. Amazon Business is committed to the growth of small businesses and invests in grants to help small businesses overcome challenges they face, freeing up their resources to focus on their mission and customers. Small Businesses are the backbone of our economy and when they succeed we all succeed. Create your free account today at amazonbusiness.com.

[00:02:50] Josh: I'm someone who spends a lot of time outdoors, who's always loved physical activity, sports in general. I think that, you know, the formal term is soft goods, [00:03:00] but footwear, apparel, gear, outdoor gear, it's always been something I've been passionate about and throughout my professional career. I've never really given up my stance or my interest in paying attention to these types of products. I ended up essentially launching this small business, finding out different types of gear that I've always felt like there was a little bit of a gap in the market for waterproof, real waterproof products you get out there and enjoy when you're out there on the trail or out there on the water. So, I ended up launching it. I ended up coming up with different designs. I ended up consulting a lot of people that I knew and really people that I trusted and then finding, you know, a way to launch a couple of products on my own website and then also through Amazon.

[00:03:48] Andrea: Before we dive into crowdfunding, I want to just make sure we talk about the journey you took, and you started by bootstrapping. Can you tell me about the pros and cons of that journey for you?

[00:04:00] Josh: If you can bootstrap, it's absolutely amazing because your accountability is to yourself. So, that takes away so much pressure. A lot of people I know, even people in my own family, like, um, my brother had launched a startup. And we just had talked a lot about, you know, bringing investors on board and I have nothing against doing that, but you know, talking to people that I know that have launched companies and have always had that pressure of having to produce in those numbers terms, so you can't necessarily look at it as like, I really want to focus on this product. This product has to be perfect. You know, my service needs to get better. It's more focused on, you know, I've got people that are telling me that I've got to start producing some numbers or. You know, they're going to start pulling their investments out, or they need their investments, for their own families. Right. So it's, if you can bootstrap and take that pressure away from yourself, or at least away from the outside forces [00:05:00] of investors, that's amazing, but I know that that's not realistic for everybody, but I just know that the people that I've talked to, that's been a huge burden on them. It's tough to mentally get past that, at least when things aren't going as planned.

[00:05:15] Andrea: So, as a starting point, bootstrapping could be a good thing, and probably the easiest and most popular way to start. So after you went this route, you turned to crowdfunding. Why did you decide to go that route?

[00:05:30] Josh: So we launched a couple of campaigns on there and, and that's what we used, initially, and it helped us a lot. We did not use it for all of our products. We used it for our submersible line of backpacks, and, the more innovative and more unique the product, the more traction you're gonna get, like that's, that's kind of a rule of thumb is people are looking to find things that are unique. That's not a hard and fast rule. But, it does apply to a vast majority of products. What you're doing is you're delivering something that is real. [00:06:00] So you're doing this in good faith, right? And you want to create a track record of delivering. So, you know, you still have to think of it as, you know, this is a business and I am ready to essentially create pre orders for this product that I promised to deliver. So, it's a good springboard for your business, but this is still a serious thing and something that you have to approach, with a plan.

[00:06:25] Andrea: Do you need to be transparent with your customers about what you're planning to do with the money?

[00:06:30] Josh: There's kind of two approaches to that. One of it is Kickstarter does have a tool that breaks down the budgeting cost, you can lay that out, but I think at the end of the day, people are looking to get in on the ground floor of a project and their reward for essentially trusting you to create this product without having a physical item is, you know, a lot of times they will get this product, you can set different, categories of reward. [00:07:00] And then generally, for their leap of faith, for lack of a better term, you'll give them a discount.

[00:07:05] Andrea: That’s so interesting. It feels essentially like you have investors but you don’t have to give them the same level of detail. And, I want to briefly switch gears a bit. Because I know that you also got a grant through Amazon Business right?

[00:07:18] Josh: I just mentioned a couple of different ways to essentially launch a brand as a digital brand and one of the things that was very important from the start is to choose launching in the Amazon store as a foundational part of Breakwater Supply. So essentially how me or you as retail consumers can tap two or three times to purchase a product, you know, in the Amazon store. On the seller side, we can also, you know, two or three taps. We're able to send inventory into the Amazon store. We're able to, create different listings. We're able to update marketing messages. [00:08:00] We're able to, you know, adjust advertising. So, the Amazon store has been just really important for the exposure it gives us, but also for the tools that are behind the scenes.

And then as well, the grant has just been extremely important to start considering, additional products for the catalog that we're launching. Um, we've got a couple that are really, really exciting. Probably do the same thing where we, um, used Kickstarter as a proving ground and then ultimately moved to the Amazon store.

[00:08:28] Andrea: Getting the granst must have been an exciting form of validation too.

[00:08:32] Josh: A process like this that gets you recognition and exposure. And then it also allows you to even reflect on what your values and goals and principles are as a small business. Because every time that you submit to a grant program, they're going to ask you questions, you know, it's an interview. So that also allows you to reassess what you're doing and why you're doing it. [00:09:00] So I think that if it weren't for these types of questions, unless you're very disciplined on coming up with the mission that you have as a small business, these opportunities give you a chance to refine and then reevaluate what you're doing.

[00:09:15] Host: You're listening to This is Small Business, brought to you by Amazon. I’m your host, Andrea Marquez. You just heard from Josh Lipinski, the founder of Breakwater Supply. You can find out more about Breakwater Supply in our show notes on our website: Thisissmallbusinesspodcast.com.

Josh gave us a little glimpse into the effort required to start crowdfunding. It's not as easy as putting your product up online and expecting thousands or millions of people to fund your product. You need to make sure that your marketing is on point and that you establish trust by delivering on your promises.

It was also exciting to hear about BreakWater Supply’s experience with winning the Amazon Business grant. If you want to learn more about Amazon Business… Create your free account today at amazonbusiness.com.

Like Breakwater Supply, the small businesses we feature on This is Small Business are some of the [00:10:00] many small businesses selling in the Amazon store who have tapped into some of the tools and resources offered to help them succeed and grow. One of those resources is the Amazon Small Business Academy where you can find the help you need to take your small business from concept to launch and beyond. You can strengthen your skills at no cost with live and on demand trainings, Q&As, events, and even find more This is Small Business content. If you don’t know where to start, you can take the free self-assessment on the Amazon Small Business Academy site at www.smallbusiness.amazon.

So far, we've talked about how Josh funded his business using crowdfunding and bootstrapping as well as his experience of getting a grant through Amazon Business. Now we'll dig deeper into the process behind crowdfunding with my next guest: Tess Estandarte, Director of Product Marketing at Rainfactory, a digital marketing agency that helps brands with crowdfunding.

[00:10:52] Tess: Currently I'm the director of product marketing here at Rainfactory and, Rainfactory is a full service, marketing and advertising agency [00:11:00] whose specialty is on product launches and crowdfunding campaigns. I've been at Rainfactory for five years.

[00:11:10] Andrea: Can you tell me what's one thing people don't usually think about when it comes to crowdfunding?

[00:11:15] Tess: I think the most important thing to always keep in mind are the legalities involved in a crowdfunding campaign. It ranges from making sure you have the patents, the trademarks. The copyrights, intellectual property, also remember that a crowdfunding campaign, whether that be a self-starter, as we would call it, or crowdfunding. You have to sign up under terms and conditions, which I recommend you read before you sign or before you go ahead and launch because you as the campaigner or the creator have the responsibility not only to keep in touch with your backers, but also to make sure that product is shipped. And also part of that umbrella of legalities is taxation. [00:12:00] Check first with your accountant or your CFO in terms of how that Income, so to speak, income or the funds collected from your campaign could be classified accounting wise.

It could be also charity. You know, we've seen that the funds there, that are raised from crowdfunding are also considered charity because it is not, you're actually pledging your support for the product to be made, and delivered. It's a responsibility, so make sure you're prepared. You know, to face the music in case anything happens, or the other token is bask in the glory, you know, that, that your product is shipped and, and is welcomed, you know, by your community.

[00:12:40] Andrea: And when do you think entrepreneurs should start to consider crowdfunding instead of other funding opportunities?

[00:12:45] Tess: I think the most important benefit from crowdfunding is, of course, you receive funds. There's no equity dilution. It's almost like here, you know, you were given a basket of money, right? Go, go and make your product. Right? [00:13:00] You don't get that when you have to borrow money from the bank, right? I mean, there's interest, investors might require an equity stake. None of that happens with crowdfunding. The other important piece to also keep in mind is market and product validation. Right? So you basically are reaching out to, or have support, obtained from a community of users whose profile and demographics actually match the persona you had in mind for your product.

So. They will receive your product. Discussion tab on your page. It becomes an engaging discussion of like, really positive feedback, and suggestions for improvement or recommendations. That, that community is actually much more forgiving, and actually also very much more generous, of course, with their feedback. I personally would recommend doing the crowdfunding route first, just to get your product name out there, uh, brand awareness, product awareness, [00:14:00] and of course, the all important piece that really, you know, closes the loop as to why you do crowdfunding is, um, finding out ahead of time, is the market ready for your product? Or do you still have to make changes, or go back to the drawing board.

That's, that's really, really good to know early on before you get additional funding or investors, and to make sure that you have a finely, finely tuned product and it's truly ready for the market.

I think a lot of investors in the last few months of the last maybe years, we saw basically like investors becoming more prudent about, their decisions. They want to see additional information, you know, it's not just a business plan or a deck or financials that they look at, but they do truly want to know is that it does your product truly have legs for a good 5 to 10 years, right? And I think crowdfunding just offers that because the community again, it's, it's a wide spectrum, all across the world. That is if you can afford shipping to any, any part in the world. That information that you get from that campaign [00:15:00] is so valuable. You can go directly to, you know, a venture capital group or a bank, um, et cetera. Will you succeed? Who knows, right? But the chances are greater that you may get the funding and the funding terms that are more desirable if you come in, um, with data.

And I think the most important thing also to, to keep in mind is would they reorder your product? Would they, would they, um, basically recommend it to their, friends, family, peers? And that you will not get if you go directly, to a bank or investment house.

[00:15:33] Andrea: So, launching a crowdfunding campaign can actually help you secure funding in other ways because you have that information to back you up. But I'm sure this is a lot harder than some people initially assume, could you tell me what you think are some myths that people have about crowdfunding?

[00:15:50] Tess: The biggest myth I think, about crowdfunding campaigns is that they think it's easy. They think it's a fast way to become a millionaire. [00:16:00] They think it's just as easy as putting together a couple of drawings and renders and, you know, have images and slap it up on a page and the money will come. That is not the reality. And success is reaching your funding goal, your publicly declared goal. You can go to their dashboard, that is online to find out how many projects have launched. And how many, how many projects have actually succeeded? And it's not, it's not as generous as what I think what common knowledge will probably say.

It's hard work. You have to put in the time. Remember, it's also your reputation at stake as well, if you put a name up on the page. I think, just be thoughtful more than anything. It's a very long and arduous journey and you have to put in both money and sweat equity, into launching a campaign. And I would always say, just make sure that you define to yourself: why are you doing this? If it's for the money, I'd gladly show you the door because that's not the way it's supposed to be. [00:17:00] If you are doing this for a product that you've dreamed of and that, you know, that would solve a big problem for the world, right? Or make life easier for a certain, for a certain demographic of people, then your heart is in the right place and the rest will follow.

[00:17:17] Andrea: Is there any way that I could make my Crowdfunding campaign stand out?

[00:17:22] Tess: Don't scrimp on assets, either images or video. Get the highest quality that you can afford. Get the best team that you can secure because that ultimately will make or break your campaign, the quality of your images and your video. If it shows to be sloppy and poorly produced, you can just shut down your campaign right there and then, because it shows how much integrity you have that you've, you've put in the effort and the time and the money to produce these wonderful assets because of your belief in the product. Please take the time, to find a really good, video and photography team. [00:18:00] You might decide to make them a partner if, in case you cannot afford their fees. You know, give them an equity stake in the crowdfunding campaign. If you can come up with a good solid 25 photos of both product and lifestyle, then you're good. If you come up with a minute 30 second video about your product and your mission, and you enthrall your audiences from the very first second up to the one minute 30- second of that video, you're gonna do really well.

[00:18:32] Host: That was Tess Estandarte, Director of Product Marketing at Rainfactory. She talked about funding for your small business using crowdfunding. As always, here are some key takeaways from this episode:

One. Bootstrapping is amazing because your accountability is to yourself. Your business and ideas don't necessarily need to get clouded by needing to hit a certain number each year. But the big con to bootstrapping is you might not have enough money lying around to launch your business, so another option is...
[00:19:00] Two. Crowdfunding! Josh crowdfunded the launch some products of Breakwater supply and we learned a couple of things from his story like: you need to go in with a plan. You’re promising people a product and if you don't deliver on that promise then your reputation as an entrepreneur will be at stake. You also need to make sure you've got all your legalities in place. From your Intellectual property to reading the terms of service of the website you’re crowdfunding on thoroughly. And. To stand out, you'll want to invest in good pictures or videos. The more effort you put into making sure your campaign looks polished, the more people will want to support you.
Three. Leverage the crowdfunding community. People who invest through crowdfunding are really passionate about your product. So they will be the first to give you honest reviews that can help you make your product better or improve your business and offerings overall. So make sure to tap into the community because many times, they are your target customer and you have a unique opportunity to hear directly from them.

[00:20:00] I'm curious – Have you been thinking about launching a crowdfunding campaign? How are you preparing yourself for that? Or maybe you've already launched one. I'd love to hear about your journey! Reach out to us at thisissmallbusiness@amazon.com to tell us what you're up to. Or let me know what you think of the episode by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts – it’s easier if you do it through your phone. And if you liked what you heard -- I hope you'll share us with anyone else who needs to hear this!

CREDITS: This is Small Business is brought to you by Amazon, with technical and story production by JAR Audio. [00:21:07]

Ep. 39: How to Handle Your Cash Flow

Oct 31, 2023

Manage your cash flow.

[00:00:04] Ambro: Cashflow is paramount. It's a big part of what I focus on and do is help people with their cashflow because without cashflow, it's going to be hard to get financing to get funding.

[00:00:16] Andrea: So before you even start thinking about finding external funding, you need to have your cash flow in order. This comes up a lot in conversations we’ve had with small business owners. Let’s talk about it.

[00:00:28] Host: Hi, This is Small Business, a podcast by Amazon. I’m your host, Andrea Marquez. This is one of our Minisodes, which are shorter episodes packed with helpful information for those of you who want a quicker binge. On this episode we'll be talking cash flow and how to secure funding for your business with Ambro Blackwell, a best-selling author and VP and senior business banking relationship manager at JP Morgan Chase. To learn more about him visit our website at thisissmallbusinesspodcast.com. Also, remember [00:01:00] that if you want to hear your story on This is Small Business, we have a voicemail line where you can ask questions or share your entrepreneurial story. We want to hear from you! Find the link to the voicemail line in the episode description.

[00:01:14] Andrea: Ambro, what are your thoughts on strategic planning for sustaining a healthy flow of cash for a small business?

[00:01:20] Ambro: It's imperative. It literally is. And it's hard to imagine. Not being able to be successful and stay in business if you're not strategically planning. Because you have to continue to have cash flow to keep things going, you know, again, that sometimes is part of the business planning. But you should be forecasting your business. You should know where your business is heading. Whether you're on an accrual basis, which is a way of recognizing income. If you have receivables out. You know, you might want to know what's the likelihood that you're going to be able to collect on those receivables. So that way you can now forecast and know that, you know, payroll's coming up, [00:02:00] maybe tax payments are coming up, you know, things of that nature. So you want to be able to anticipate, understand how your cash flow is looking. And yes, there's always going to be some days, some months where businesses, you know, may not be as steady as the month before. But you want to be able to, as much as possible, make sure that you're planning for that. And the only way you can do that to make sure that you're optimizing your cash is to do it strategically.

[00:02:25] Andrea: If I'm starting and I'm doing this strategic planning, is there some type of formula that I should follow?

[00:02:30] Ambro: It's interesting because there's a lot of benchmarks, you know, out there and this is something whether you're starting a business or you've been in business. This is where I highly, highly recommend having a good team, having a good banker, having a good accountant, CPA, because there's resources around that will be able to kind of help explain and share some of those things. And so by benchmarking, what that basically does is it allows you to take a look at let's say you're a dentist. Well, you can look at the dentist and survey and see [00:03:00] from top to bottom, from the top sales, which is your sales revenue, which is what people have paid you, or people have paid others, how much of that trickled down, all the way down to net income, so you can see how much was going out to what, how much was going to where, and there's a lot of research that's out there that will help guide you with those things. That's where proper planning, strategic planning, could be very vital and very helpful at the same time.

Typically, what I like to think of is a good, healthy, growth is about 10%, maybe as high as 15%. But once you start kind of going past that, then you start noticing, at least from my perspective, I start noticing that there's probably a change of focus in what the business is focused on. You start getting over 20%, now you're starting to experience rapid growth. If you're over 40, 45% or so, you're probably in hyper growth. And when you start looking at from my experience and from my perspective, the business owner is probably less focused on profitable and it's very hard to be profitable [00:04:00] because you have so much that's growing. And again, you have expenses that are going to be incurred.

So a portion of every earned dollar has an expense attached to it. And it's very hard to be able to systematically and predictably plan for that when it's happening so fast.

[00:04:15] Andrea: How does a small business know they might be running into any problems soon based on their cashflow and what do you think they can do to mitigate it?

[00:04:25] Ambro: Well, the first thing is, you can and should plan for Murphy's Law. What can go wrong will go wrong. Things will happen, you know, especially if you have employees. You know, one of the things I always try to, you know, tell people over the last, you know, near 20 years is think about working capital before you need to go get working capital. And one of the best products out there are working capital lines of credit, uh, business lines of credit, not, not so much home equity lines because that's for personal and Elox are for personal and for business. It's business lines of credits. [00:05:00] Now that will help you to, you know, even out, you know, some of the dips and the spikes when it comes to cash flow. Because there are going to be things that come up. But you still have, you know, employees, of course, you still are responsible for making sure they get paid.

So those are different things that you need to be taking into consideration. Again, this is where I talked about, as we said earlier about strategically planning, knowing that these things are coming up. Tax payments aren't, always, you know, every week. So you know that these things are coming up. You should be forecasting. This is where talking to your team. Your accountant, you know, your attorney, your banker, they can help you with some of those things, making sure that you, you know, you streamline your cash flow. It's your relationships more than anything else. You know, you have to make sure that I would say you have to focus on building the right team. You know, making sure that you do your best to afford the best team, best talent. That's everything from your internal to your external because it's going to pay off dividends for these things that we've just been talking about that come up [00:06:00] or may have not been able to be foreseen. You wear so many hats as an entrepreneur and a small business owner. You need the best that you can afford to buy or afford that you can pay.

[00:06:10] Andrea: Could you explain what a cash flow statement is?

[00:06:13] Ambro: That's another tool that a lot of people overlook. The difference between what it does is it helps you, helps me, helps us understand exactly how much of your cash is being invested, how much of it is being financed to help run the business. And it helps you separate and understand how much of your cash is actually working for your business in terms of being operational.

[00:06:33] Andrea: What's the difference between financing versus investing cash flow?

[00:06:38] Ambro: If you took out a loan, for example, you've got other things that, you know, it's a capital injection. A lot of people think of cash flow, and they're like, I need cash, I need cash, I need to get a loan. Well, what you might need is other things in component. You may need to trim the fat. You may need to get better terms on, you may need to reduce your cost of goods sold. [00:07:00] You may need to be able to get better pricing. So, again, funding, lending helps you to go ahead and actually get more out of your operations. But it's going to help you to actually see and break down between the three different ones. Another one is obviously the investments as well.

[00:07:15] Andrea: Is cashflow the same as profit?

[00:07:18] Ambro: No. That's one of the issues or potential challenges when you're growing a business because at a certain point when you start looking at the numbers in terms of how much is each dollar assigned to an expense, in most cases, well, as you start growing, you may bring in more revenue, but if your costs now get out of line, It may start going in the opposite direction, or if it's taking you too long, you may get more customers, but what if you get three to four customers? And I'm just using three to four, obviously, it's just a numeric amount, but those three or four might be big customers. Those might be customers that may not be able to help you. Those may be customers that have went out of business. [00:08:00] So now you've still had those costs that you incurred, but you weren't able to see the profit off of it.

[00:08:06] Andrea: That was Ambro Blackwell, a best-selling author and VP and senior business banking relationship manager at JP Morgan Chase. As always, here are some key takeaways on managing cash flow for your business.

One. A cash flow statement provides you with a detailed picture of what happens to your businesses’ cash during a certain period of time. It demonstrates how your business is able to operate in the short and long term. It is typically broken down into three sections: operating activities which is cash flow generated once the company delivers on good or services, investing activities which is cash flow from purchasing or selling assets using free cash, and financing activities which is cash flow from debt and equity financing.
Two. Cash flow is not the same as profit. Cash flow shows you how much money moves in and out of your business while profit show you how much money is left over after you’ve paid all your expenses.
[00:09:00] Three. Cash flow is super important. Without it, you're going to find it a lot more difficult to secure funding. So make sure you’re strategically planning ahead of time and two things to keep in mind when doing this is to be articulate and build the right team. When you're trying to secure funding, you need to be able to communicate clearly what you need and your plans for when that need is met, and having the right team will help you understand what to expect and cover your bases to be able to keep the business going.

Until next time – This is Small Business, I'm your host Andrea Marquez -- Hasta luego -- and thanks for listening! [00:10:10]

Ep 38: How to Exit Your Company - LIVE at Amazon Accelerate 2023

Oct 24, 2023

Learn about exiting your company.

[00:00:00] Jewel: It's so important to, when you're in rooms like this, to network with each other. Building those really tight connections, particularly with people who have skills that you don't have and you all can be on the journey together. That's so critical. So if you don't have people who you trust, who you can build with, that's what these rooms are for. So make sure you build those connections.

[00:00:25] Host: Hi, This is Small Business, a podcast brought to you by Amazon. I’m your host, Andrea Marquez. On This is Small Business we cover all things small business that will help you start, build, and scale your business. We will hear from guests with diverse backgrounds, point of views, and stories, with the hope of hearing from many types of small business entrepreneurs. And by the end of each episode, I'll point out key takeaways that you can use on your business journey.

I recently got to go to the Amazon Accelerate conference -- which is the premier annual seller conference hosted by Amazon where current Amazon selling partners or aspiring selling partners [00:01:00] get to connect and hear from experts, and other sellers. And while I was there, I recorded a live episode of This is Small Business with Jewel Burks Solomon, a tech entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and managing partner at Collab Capital. Before that, Jewel was the head of Google for Startups in the U. S. and the founder of PartPic a startup that was acquired by Amazon in 2016. She was also a product leader at Amazon's visual search and AR team. Jewel has an impressive list of accomplishments, and I was curious to know why she chose the entrepreneurial life and how the acquisition process went -- especially since it happened when the company was only a few years old.

I also got to speak with a familiar voice that you will probably recognize: Danyel Surrency Jones. We've had her two times on This is Small Business, but Danyel has such a wealth of information that we needed to bring her back. Danyel is a fellow Amazonian -- she's the head of Amazon's Black Business Accelerator program, [00:02:00] which aims to empower and offer support to Black entrepreneurs. And she’s also the co-founder and former CEO of POWERHANDZ. If you want to know more about her journey, you might want to listen to episode 12 of season one or episode 15 of season 2.

[00:02:30] Danyel: So we started PowerHandz in 2013 because we knew that our patented innovation could improve human performance across the life cycle of athletes. The proven science, not only gave birth to a global athletic training and fitness product tech company, but it also fueled our impact through our Power to Give Foundation. I will never forget, Andrea, when I had to tell our investors that a percentage of sales were going to be donated [00:03:00] to the Power to Give Foundation on day one.

There was absolute silence in the room. Then one of our investors said, how are we going to give money away when we aren't profitable yet? Well, I responded. Serving the mission with a deeper meaning of purpose always drive profitability. So four patents later, one acquisition and selling in over 87 countries. Nine years later, we closed a tender offer, a strategic merger that provided a positive above market return on our investors investment while impacting global communities through the Power to Give Foundation.

[00:03:48] Andrea (live): That's awesome. So, so cool. And so after that, you then started selling in the Amazon store.

[00:03:55] Danyel: I did. And I am so grateful... Part of the success that I attribute [00:04:00] to Powerhandz is selling in the Amazon store. When we were building our distribution channels, we immediately understood that Amazon could drive awareness to a wider audience. And bring credibility to our brand through positive reviews and a supply chain model that would drive down our cost to serve. Then through our minority and women owned certifications, we participated in the pilot as well as the launch of the Black Business Accelerator in 2021, which then unlocked more education, account management, and other resources that assisted us with our journey. What I think we developed, I know we developed, was a mission that worked backwards from customer obsession.

[00:04:48] Andrea (live): That's really exciting. So you leveraged the tools that Amazon had to then understand who your audience is, how they're responding to the product. It was like a cycle. So you sell, receive information, make the product better.

And then it happens again. [00:05:00] Danyel, you've had such a great journey as an entrepreneur. Why did you decide to join Amazon?

[00:05:06] Danyel: After the Tinder offer and merger, I knew it was time for my purpose to connect to my next journey. And my values have always been grounded in being a cheerleader for the underserved, for small businesses that don't come from privilege or pedigree as well as for women, because we play such a vital role in this community. So the number one reason why I said yes to becoming an Amazonian is because I feel a deep responsibility to lift, push, and pull others by sharing my bumps and bruises, milestones, success stories, in order to make sure that others succeed through my journey as a black woman owned business. I have an opportunity to lead a team of brilliant minds who work so hard every single day for the success [00:06:00] of our selling partners who are entrepreneurs just like myself with dreams who simply want to make a difference in customers lives. And I cannot forget this. I also love our Think Big principle. I believe that we can give birth to new ideas that will stimulate economic growth.

[00:06:20] Host: We'll get to hear more tips and advice from Danyel throughout the episode. But now, I want us to five into Jewel’s story and get to know why Jewel decided to go down the entrepreneurial route.

[00:06:30] Jewel: I, I like to share with people that I got entrepreneurship honest. I grew up in a family of entrepreneurs. From the time that I could probably walk and talk, I was working in my parents’ businesses. My grandfather actually... started businesses in Mobile, Alabama, in the 50s and 60s. Everything from laundromats to a cab service, to convenience stores, which is what my dad inherited. And so, I really didn't have a choice because that's what I saw growing up, [00:07:00] and I was just intrigued by the fact that my parents were working really hard, but they were also able to show up for me in different ways. They had flexibility in their schedules, and so I always knew that I wanted to be an entrepreneur just based on watching them when I was growing up.

[00:07:15] Host: So a big motivator was growing up with what she knew. With something that was already familiar to her. Let’s fast forwarding a bit. Jewel founded Partpic, which was acquired by Amazon in 2016. And it technically wasn't her first business...

[00:07:30] Jewel: I was a painter in high school and so sold paintings, um, in Nashville where I grew up, but that, I didn't really have a LLC around that.

[00:07:40] Host: Jewel always knew that she wanted to be an entrepreneur. That’s what growing up in a family of small business owners does to you - yes I am speaking from experience. She just had to come up with an idea.

[00:07:50] Jewel: I was working at a company called McMaster Car, which was in the parts distribution space. And previously I'd been at Google, [00:08:00] so I knew that you could use technology to solve big problems. And I saw a huge problem, which was that customers were flipping through a catalog to find the parts that they wanted to purchase. And this was in 2012, so the fact that they were still using a catalog as their primary marketing tool to me was a little bit, um, outdated. And so I saw that there could be a better way. And I saw that technology could be used in that industry to help customers more easily locate their products. So that was kind of the thing that pushed me as far as having an idea that I wanted to pursue or seeing a problem that I really wanted to solve. And to take it a step further, I was managing the call center. So I was the person who got all the angry phone calls when people were sending the wrong products. And so literally every day I was hearing just very angry customers. And I felt like, okay, there has to be a better way. Um, and then on top of that, I got a phone call from my grandfather. [00:09:00] And he told me that he was looking for a part for his tractor. So we're, we're country. We got a farm in Alabama and my grandfather was in the middle of a harvest. His tractor broke down and he called me to help him find a part for it. I was working at a parts company, so should be able to search for this thing. Um, but I couldn't find it. And so that was the kind of real-life story that pushed me to go ahead and figure out a solution to this problem of part search. Um, and that was also the motivation that kept me going when things got difficult, when it wasn't as easy to build as I anticipated. Um, you know, when I wasn't able to raise money in the ways that I wanted to. The fact that I knew the customer that could benefit from what I was wanting to build, that was, you know, the engine that I needed to keep going.

[00:09:52] Host: Partpic was very personal for Jewel. And from what we've seen from other entrepreneurs on This is Small Business, passion and knowing your why [00:10:00] -- that's what keeps you going. Because -- as Danyel will let you know -- the entrepreneurial life isn't easy. Let’s briefly throw it back to Danyel…

[00:10:08] Danyel: It is hard. And that's what we don't want to talk about. It's not for the faint at heart. One of the common misconceptions is believing in the overnight entrepreneurial success. The reality is endurance fuels entrepreneurship. My journey is a perfect use case to show that success comes from strategic marathon planning, not impulsive sprints. As we navigate the winding road of challenges as well as sacrifices and trying to make the right decisions to prioritize things at the right time, I have always anchored on endurance. There are so many times, Andrea, when I wanted to just give up, especially when I looked at the balance sheet and it fell short of the projections. [00:11:00] But what I had to remember is this is a temporary roadblock, not an insurmountable barrier. Seriously, we must trust the process.

One of the tradeoffs of being an entrepreneur is the uncertainty and the financial risk that is associated with starting and scaling a business. Like many of you in this room, I had to invest my own 401k to start my business. I also paid employees on the days when I didn't pay myself. And I then had to decide about the right time, the right financial instruments, and the right people that I wanted to get involved in my company in order to move the mission forward. But we all know that greatness comes with sacrifice and tradeoffs.

[00:11:45] Host: And that's why, we'll say it again....

[00:11:48] Danyel: Make sure you understand your why and let that be the compass that absolutely guides you. I believe that if you can articulate your why [00:12:00] and let it drive your strategy and your execution, revenues will come.

[00:12:05] Host: Let's get back to Jewel. So, Jewel founded PartPic, and then earlier than she expected, her business was acquired by Amazon.

[00:12:12] Jewel: So, I was planning for my business to be acquired eventually, but I did not anticipate that it would happen in the time that it did. So, I will say, when I say I was planning for it, when I started PartPic, I knew based on the segment that we were targeting. And the fact that we're a pretty niche company that eventually it would probably find a home in a larger corporation. I didn't anticipate that we would grow the business to a point to go public IPO. I thought that we would sell to a larger company. And so I kind of always knew that part and I am big on write the vision, make it plain.

And so I wrote out: we will be acquired, and here are the top three companies that I would like to be acquired by. Amazon was at the top of the list because I knew from a technology perspective, and also with our focus on parts, [00:13:00] I knew Amazon sells parts, and they have a AR and visual search team, and so there's a perfect marriage there. So I always knew that, but I didn't know that it would come four years into building the business. And it wasn't my intention at that time to sell. What I was actually trying to do was to elevate our technology. Um, we had an incredible black woman, PhD, leading our tech team, Dr. Nashlie Sephus, who's actually still at Amazon to this day. And I wanted people to know her. I had been out front pitching, doing all these things, and what that caused was for people to think we were further along than we actually were. Um, and so I really wanted people to understand that we were a deep technology company and that we should be evaluated as a deep technology company.

And so in doing that, I was reaching out to different conferences. I was really persuading them to invite Nashlie to come and speak. [00:14:00] What I identified was that most of the deep technology conferences did not have any women as speakers, certainly didn't have any Black women, and so I was reaching out to them and just making them aware of that fact. And so one conference, they responded and said, you're totally right. Um, we'd love to have Nashlie come and speak. And so, she went and spoke at that conference. She was doing a riveting session on how we find threads per inch in a screw. You know, she did an amazing job with her presentation, and after she did her presentation, a few companies came up to her, and Amazon Corporate Development was one of those that came up to her, gave her a card and said, we really love what you're building, would love to learn more.

She comes back to the office on Monday morning, hands me a stack of cards, I'm flipping through, I see Amazon Corporate Development. And I'm like, oh, what, what did they say? And so that was really what started the ball [00:15:00] as far as us getting acquired. And as I mentioned, wasn't in the market for acquisition. I was fundraising at that time. So initially I thought the conversation would be about them, about Amazon investing in the business. But that is not what they wanted to do. They wanted to purchase it, and so things went very fast. And what does it mean to sell a business in a short amount of time? Um, but I will say the learnings and everything that I picked up over the course of really seven years between four years of building the business. Um, and then three years at Amazon afterwards, integrating the technology into the Amazon mobile shopping app and launching other visual search products. That is the foundation that I needed to be able to do the work that I do today of helping other businesses grow and scale and hopefully eventually exit as well.

[00:15:50] Host: I want to dig deeper into how that acquisition went down. First let's hear what were some of Jewel's non-negotiables in the deal.

[00:15:56] Jewel: Number one is that I wanted to ensure that my investors got a return. [00:16:00] That's really important. I feel like if you're taking capital from other people, they have expectations. And for me, I didn't want to do anything that would cause me to be on bad terms with money people. Um, so I wanted to make sure that they got their money back plus a return.

Number two, I really wanted to ensure that our technology could scale. So when I came up with the idea for PartPic. Remember, I had the persona of my grandfather in mind, and I wanted something that could be easy enough for him to use, and all the grandfathers out there in the world, like him, who were building something and needed to find a part, I wanted them to have access to this technology. And so, the ability to scale was something that, of course, Amazon has in spades.

And then, the third thing was, I really wanted to be able to take care of my team. The fact that I had five PhDs who trusted me, I was 23 years old when I started the business.

[00:16:57] Andrea (live): Oh, wow.

[00:16:58] Jewel: I still can't believe that these really brilliant [00:17:00] people believed me enough to, um, you know, let go of great opportunities that they had and joined me on the journey. And so it was really important to me that they were all taken care of. And I mean, they had cash and they had a stock and they had a job. Those were the criteria in order for me to say yes to the deal. So, I had a few others I didn't want to move. That was another thing. We were based in Atlanta. I wanted to stay in Atlanta. And I also wanted to be able to tell our story. And so it was really important to me that people understood. That the makeup of our team, what we look like in a very diverse team, by the way. Um, so all of those things were considerations as far as making the decision. If I could get all of those things met, then I would be in a good spot to sell.

[00:17:50] Host: If you want to exit your company in the future, it's important to know how a company approaches acquisition. So, let's hear Jewel’s thoughts on why Amazon chose to acquire Partpic.

[00:18:00] Jewel: For any company that's making a purchase decision, it comes down to should they build this or should they buy it? And in our case, we had novel technology and because we're so focused, I've mentioned Nashley did a presentation on Threads per inch and a screw. Most other companies were not thinking about that level of detail when it comes to computer vision. So the fact that we were so niche and focused on this very specific area was hard to replicate. The specificity of what we were building and the algorithms that we built was not easily replicated. And we had patents that we filed around these things.

[00:18:40] Host: Protecting your business is extremely important and you need to make sure that you have yourself covered as early as possible. Here's Danyel with a quick tip again:

[00:18:50] Danyel: Get the legal advice that you need right in the beginning as you're starting your mission and developing your exit strategy on day one. [00:19:00] Your IP and your business structure will absolutely support your long-term goals.

[00:19:05] Host: If you're worried about expenses when it comes to hiring a lawyer, there's so many universities that offer pro bono legal clinics to help entrepreneurs. And if you want to more about protecting your intellectual property, we've covered that in episode 3 of season 3. Okay, back to Jewel.

[00:19:20] Jewel: We went deep on the technology. That was what worked in our case. In some cases, you may not be building something from a technology perspective that is novel, but you may have a unique way to get to your market of customers, or you may have built a large community. You have to kind of figure out what is it that's going to make you stand out. So for us, it was technology. So that was a big thing. And then it was also the fact that we had, as I mentioned, a great team, five computer vision engineers working on one problem that was very attractive. So it wasn't just we're going to buy this technology and then do away with the team. [00:20:00] It was also how do we bring this team in to continue to work on this particular problem and look at these other problems that we're also facing. Um, so that for us, I think those were the key areas, the reasons why they decided to buy our company versus building it internally. Um, but for other companies, it may be, you know, looking at, do you again have access to a unique set of customers that they may not be able to access? Um, are you, as the founder, bringing something to the table? That they wouldn't be able to go out and hire. Um, and so those are all kinds of considerations that go from a company side when they're thinking about, should they go in and buy this business?

[00:20:40] Host: So the technology and the great team -- those were the reasons that Jewel believes why Amazon acquired Partpic. And Jewel previously mentioned that the process was emotionally taxing. And it makes sense, I mean her business -- at the time -- was her baby.

[00:20:54] Jewel: I have a real baby now. So I hesitate to call Partpic my baby, but at the time it was certainly my baby, [00:21:00] and it is very challenging to make a decision to let someone else have your baby, even if you're brought in to nurture it. It doesn't belong to you anymore. And so that was really hard for me from an emotional standpoint. Um, I share this, I, I definitely fell into a bit of a depression, um, after signing the deal to sell. And it's a weird thing when, you know, you get a large deposit in your bank account and you can't get out of bed at the same time. That is, that's strange. Um, but for me it was, I had a huge aspiration. I really wanted to have a billion-dollar exit, that was my goal. And we didn't quite get there, so I was sad about that. And then I also felt like, the reason that I had to sell at the time that I did was because I wasn't able to access the level of capital that I needed to really scale the business.

[00:22:00] And the other thing was identity. I was so accustomed to introducing myself. Hi, my name is Jewel and I'm CEO of PartPic. My identity was closely linked to my business. And so letting that go and even just figuring out how am I going to introduce myself to people, that was a big thing for me. So the learning in that is figure out who you are outside of your business. Because at some point, you're going to hopefully exit and you don't want to be where I was where I couldn't get out of bed because I was too, I just didn't even know who I was without the business. So yeah, all of that, that's a lot, but all of that goes in, that's the emotional part of when you're building something that you really care about and you make a decision to let it go. You have to be someone beyond that because Your business is not you. It's close. You're, you're putting yourself into it and people are attracted to it, [00:23:00] likely because they're attracted to you. But you are still somebody without the business. Your value, your worth, who you are still matters without the business. And it's important to keep that top of mind as you're building.

[00:23:12] Andrea (live) : Super important to keep an eye on because I think we live in a world where the first question you often ask is, what do you do?

[00:23:19] Jewel: Yep.

[00:23:20] Andrea (live): Your identity becomes so tied to that, that you almost forget that, Hey, I have hobbies and I'm also this type of person and really important message. So I want to switch gears a little bit. Thank you for sharing what you've shared so far. I'm wondering, thinking just a little bit back to the building phase of your business, if there were any tools or resources that you leverage to be able to build your business that you think the audience would benefit from hearing?

[00:23:50] Jewel: So, for anyone who's building something that does have technology at the core, I would say, as quickly as you can, if you're not already associated or close to a research institution [00:24:00] that may be in your city, definitely utilize the resources that they have.

So, the big win for me was that I came up with this idea that was highly technical, not being a technical founder myself. So what did I do? I recognized Georgia Tech was in my backyard and I could just go on campus. I was, like I mentioned, I was 23 at the time, so still looked pretty young. Could kind of, you know, maneuver with the students. But the biggest thing was getting access to the resources that were available on campus. From a talent perspective, I found all those incredible PhDs because I went Talk to professors and told them. This is what I'm building. Do you know anyone who has this skill set? And then one introduction leads to another leads to another. And I'm able to build this amazing team. Um, and so I think people don't utilize the university resources enough.

And then if you're not in a city where there is a great [00:25:00] institution like a Georgia Tech. There's this amazing thing called the internet where you can access resources from all over. I remember when I was first starting, I was trying to understand more about computer vision technology, machine learning. I'm, I'm early on the AI game. I was, you know, 10 years early. Uh, so I started to do, Stanford had some free kind of like 101 courses that you could log in and just get up to speed on what is this technology so that you could have good conversations, productive conversations with technical talent. So that I could have these conversations with technical talent that I was trying to bring on. So those are a few resources for me that were really helpful. Not having that engineering background, but just having the knowledge to understand, okay, I don't have it myself. I'm not going to become an engineer in, you know, 12 weeks. Although if you search hard enough on the internet, there is a video of me. [00:26:00] My, my plan was that I was going to go to a bootcamp. Become a software engineer and build this idea myself, and I quickly realized there is no way that I'm going to get up to speed in the ways that I need to. And so that's why building with people is so important and connecting with folks who have complementary skills can help you grow whatever it is that you're trying to build is really critical.

[00:26:28] Host: And there are accelerators like the BBA that could be super helpful for you. Danyel did mention that tapping into the tools Amazon offered helped her out a lot in her journey as well.

[00:26:38] Danyel: I employ you to leverage Amazon's tools and resources. This will allow you to dream beyond your boundaries. Because I believe, and I know, there is nothing that can stop you from building a global brand. Remember, this is a strategic marathon [00:27:00] that is anchored on endurance, not a sprint.

[00:27:05] Host: What a great way to end this episode. That was Danyel Surrency Jones, the head of Amazon's Black Business Accelerator program, and Jewel Burks Solomon, a tech entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and managing partner at Colab Capital. And as always, here are some of the key takeaways.

We’ve said this many times before. But knowing your “why” is super important. Danyel says to let it be the compass that guides you in whatever you do. And endurance is what will keep you going because, we don’t need to tell you how hard this journey can be. Both Danyel and Jewel spoke about this, and most of the entrepreneurs on This is Small Business have as well.
Network network network. Also can’t say this enough. Accelerate is a perfect example of a conference where people with similar interests and goals meets. Jewel also spoke about her experience doing this and a reason for why Amazon acquired her business. If this is a goal for your business, make sure to get out there because you never know who you might meet.
[00:28:00] When it comes to being acquired, Jewel mentioned the following as super important considerations: one is getting investors a return on their investment, two is ensuring that the business would be able to scale, and three was ensuring that her team would be taken care of. In terms of her business being appealing to be acquired, Jewel mentioned what worked in her case, which was being super detailed and specific in what her technology was offering and knowing that it would be difficult to replicate. She was also protected and had filed patents around her technology. Side note to always get the legal protection you need early on. If your company isn’t as specific as Jewel’s, she also talked about considering if you are able to access a unique set of customers, or anything unique that you might bring to the table as a founder.
Lastly, something to consider if you can, and if your business is product-based, is selling in the Amazon store. Danyel talked about her own experience and how it helped her reach a wider audience, leverage the supply chain model, [00:29:00] and evaluate needs based on customer reviews.

I'm curious – How has your entrepreneurial journey been like? Did you get acquired or are you planning on it? I'd love to hear about your journey! Reach out to us at thisissmallbusiness@amazon.com to tell us what you're up to. Or let me know what you think of the episode by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts – it’s easier if you do it through your phone. And if you liked what you heard -- I hope you'll share us with anyone else who needs to hear this!

CREDITS: This is Small Business is brought to you by Amazon, with technical and story production by JAR Audio. [00:29:45]

Ep 37: How to Provide Great Customer Service

Oct 17, 2023

Provide exceptional customer service.

[00:00:03] John: If you came into my salon today and got a haircut or pedicure, you then don't go across the street, down the street to our nearest competitor and compare. So how good we are to our competitor is almost irrelevant. We want every experience after that to pale in comparison. Now we have deeper pockets. We can spend, we still don't spend anything in advertising. I mean, we found that the best return on investment is customer experience.

[00:00:33] Host: Hi, This is Small Business, a podcast brought to you by Amazon. I’m your host, Andrea Marquez. On This is Small Business we cover all things small business that will help you start, build, and scale your business. We will hear from guests with diverse backgrounds, point of views, and stories, with the hope of hearing from many types of small business entrepreneurs. By the end of each episode, I'll point out key takeaways that you can use on your business journey.

Customer service is something that can often be overlooked [00:01:00] by early-stage entrepreneurs because it seems like there are other priorities when everything is on your plate. But as you’ll find out on this episode, it might be something to put at the top of the list. The better your customer service is, the more likely a customer will choose to come back to your business or choose you over other options. So how do you improve your customer service? What else should you be doing to give your customer the best experience possible?

Coming up -- I'll talk to John DiJulius, the founder, Chief Revolution Officer, and President of the DiJulius group, a customer experience consultant firm. We'll be digging deep into how you can provide great customer service to ensure that they come back for more. But first - I want you to meet Mitzi Rivas, CEO and Founder of Livie & Luca, a brand that makes handmade shoes for kids. Like most of the small businesses we feature on the show, you can find her shoes in the Amazon store. Livie & Luca is all about customer service. [00:02:00] Mitzi has been able to keep an excellent customer retention rate through involving children and caregivers in the shoe-making process. So if you’ve been wanting to improve your customer service or get more return customers then this episode is for you.

Today’s episode of This is Small Business is brought to you by Buy with Prime. Buy with Prime is an Amazon direct-to-consumer offering that helps online brands grow their e-commerce businesses on their own websites. By using Amazon’s fulfillment network, wallet, and the trusted experience of Prime, Buy with Prime has been shown to increase shopper conversion through the promise of fast, free delivery, easy returns, and a checkout experience that millions of shoppers love.

[00:03:00] MITZI: 18 years ago, out of the trunk of my car, I started Livie and Luca. But before that when I was pregnant with my son, I knew that. Gosh, with all of my heart, I wanted him to be able to follow his own lights, to be able to think for himself, to be able to show up in the world just as he was. And I wished that also for myself. And in order to make that desire of mine happen, I realized I had work to do and so, that is why I started Livie and Luca. And, Livie and Luca is a mission driven children's shoe company. We design our products with children, and we've been doing that since the very beginning. And we also design them with their caregivers. We are completely customer centric. Every aspect of our product development to the commercialization [00:04:00] and marketing of our products include our customers.

[00:04:04] ANDREA: I love that you bring in the customer to the process of making the product. They feel like they are part of the brand, and the brand is part of them. So tell me more about how you include your customers into the design of the product.

[00:04:19] MITZI: We bring children together, you know, and at that time they're our teachers. We receive wisdom from them. We pose a question like our last co-creation workshop that we had, we asked the children like, if you could create your own world, what would be in your world? And from that question, we allow each child to answer that question. And we have someone in the background really capturing all of the notes and the drawings. So this, this question that is posed is answered by each child, [00:05:00] and we also will do artwork and storytelling. So there's a variety of different mediums that we use in order to tap into the imagination and into the wisdom that each child holds. And each child has a turn, but each child is also has the opportunity to be witnessed and also to be the listener and to hold space for the other children to respond.

And what we have found over the years is that, yes, it begins with being able to share what is true it, you know, for each child, but also to allow those children to create something that is bigger than themselves. And that is why I love design, and that is why we believe in this being a source of empowerment for each child, [00:06:00] but also the customer insights and the product, making a relevant product that includes their voices is just as much for us as well as a business. The customer feels like they own Livie and Luca and, they're a part of our community, so they could just give us input. It's a two-way street in terms of communication. And not only that, when we need to spread the word, these parents are the first to support us in helping us spread the message and so what constitutes success is when I know it's a conversation versus being talked at.

What's coming to mind for me right now is a workshop that we had with caregivers. We wanted to understand how we might serve adaptive footwear, how we might expand who we serve so that there's more inclusion. [00:07:00] And they came with ideas. And so that to me, when I'm feeling like. Yeah, there definitely was a conversation, but they were so excited to show me their innovations, so all of this has just taken customer service far beyond. How can we do better? It's a platform for listening and for having a conversation and doing it together.

[00:07:24] ANDREA: I think that's a great example of how far you can go in getting as personalized as possible. So, how do you scale a feeling like that, a feeling of personalization?

[00:07:38] MITZI: For us we have to scale our purpose with our business. For us, that is success. If we just scaled one or the other, we would not be successful in this venture. So, in order to serve more children, in order to have more workshops that allow [00:08:00] for co-creation to happen, we had to look at our operations. How could we leverage our inventory, for example, to capture the ideas or the experiences of more groups of children. How do we capture the needs of parents? And it really came down to being able to leverage our inventory and being able to leverage technology in order for us to scale these experiences and to be able to offer more, more of these opportunities through being able to have shorter design time cycles so that we could generate more customization of our products. So, we're leveraging UV technology. We're leveraging shorter design [00:09:00] and production cycles in order for this to happen. That was just like one aspect. It's our products, but also ensuring that our website, for example, has the opportunities to have places where we can express that co-creation. Or what we're also looking at is how do we co-create, how do we use what it is that we do within our design process, which is a very well-established process to the tiniest of details when we're touching our customers.

[00:09:35] ANDREA:  So, leveraging technology and working with shorter production cycles to allow for more co-creation. You also previously mentioned, in one of our conversations, that part of your customer experience is also about meeting delivery. Can you tell me about that? 

[00:09:52] MITZI: So, we were having issues with our warehouse and just having the ability to not only be transparent [00:10:00] with our customers about this warehouse because transparency is also really key when building this ecosystem because it really is built on trust and having Buy with Prime allowed us to provide options that were trustworthy, that, were just another option of, of receiving our product so rapidly and having that be on our site. Just having that seamless, experience of fast service, easy click of a button, it just elevates that experience. And it also, it's one way of honoring our customers and their needs.

[00:10:43] ANDREA: You've already done so much to make your customers feel like they're part of the brand. But I'm wondering, aside from workshops, are there any other ways that you do that?

[00:10:54] MITZI: One thing that we have seriously been considering and planning for and scaling for [00:11:00] is to make Livie and Luca a customer owned brand. So we are capital raising and what feels right and best for us as a company, just knowing that we co-create like, this is who we are. Having the customer actually have shares, have equity in Livie and Luca is the most aligned choice for our capital raise than any other option out there. So having it be a community owned business where we have a scaling plan. We plan to scale with our community. Why not share that success and that ownership with our customers?

[00:11:50] ANDREA: You're listening to This is Small Business, brought to you by Amazon. I’m your host, Andrea Marquez. You just heard from Mitzi Rivas, CEO and Founder of Livie & Luca. [00:12:00] You can find out more about Livie & Luca in our show notes on our website: Thisissmallbusinesspodcast.com.

Mitzi takes customer service a step further by including her customers in the making of the product so they feel like they are part of the brand. She also stresses the importance of having a conversation with your customers. So the next time you’re looking to get feedback or improve your product or service, try talking to your customers, just like Mitzi did when she held a workshop with caregivers to better understand how she can be more inclusive with her product.

Mitzi mentioned Buy with Prime which is an Amazon resource that helps her reach her customers and continue to grow. By using Amazon’s fulfillment network, wallet, and the trusted experience of Prime, Buy with Prime has been shown to increase shopper conversion through the promise of fast, free delivery, easy returns, and a checkout experience that millions of shoppers love. Learn more by visiting our show notes.

Like Livie & Luca, the small businesses we feature on This is Small Business are some of the many small businesses selling in the Amazon store [00:13:00] who have tapped into some of the tools and resources offered to help them succeed and grow. One of those resources is the Amazon Small Business Academy where you can find the help you need to take your small business from concept to launch and beyond. You can strengthen your skills at no cost with live and on demand trainings, Q&As, events, and even find more This is Small Business content. If you don’t know where to start, you can take the free self-assessment on the Amazon Small Business Academy site at www.smallbusiness.amazon.

So far, we've talked about how Mitzi used her specific customer service to bring back more customers and improve her brand. So let’s dig deeper into other ways in which you can make customer service an essential part of your brand with my next guest: John DiJulius, the founder, Chief Revolution Officer, and President of the DiJulius group.

[00:13:53] John: A little bit over 30 years ago, me and my wife opened a salon, in Northeast Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland [00:14:00] it took off and we expanded and started opening up multiple locations and this is the early mid 90s and we had a really good reputation for the customer experience and, are priced really high for Cleveland. So, people started asking, because of our reputation, me to speak and it just morphed and, by 2002, my first book, came out, Secret Service, and that basically took me out of the beauty industry, the salons, and full time speaking, which then morphed into a consulting company. Still own the salons, but not active in the day to day.

[00:14:40] ANDREA: What I really admire about that story is that you have lived what it means to offer good customer service. So, John, what do you think entrepreneurs get wrong about customer service?

[00:14:52] John: They think it's common sense, they think it's innate. Most of us didn't grow up... Flying first class, right? As a kid, [00:15:00] staying at five-star resorts, getting a Mercedes Benz when we turned 16 or spending 200 bucks in a salon for a haircut. Yet our first 10 jobs we got we were expected to give those types of experience to clients, patients, tenants, guests, whatever we may call our customer. And it's not realistic. And so how good someone's service aptitude comes from three places.

First place is your previous life experiences. You know, the worst compass for a customer service is the golden rule. I don't want my 22, 23, 24-year old’s treating our VIP clients or guests like they want to be treated. There's a big disconnect there. So, the second place that our service aptitude gets shaped is previous work experiences. So we can't change those two things. We can only do the third thing and it's what we do with them after we hire them. [00:16:00] And in most cases, the training that companies give employees is 99% operational, technical processes, how to ring up an order, how to, you know, book an appointment, and very little of it is soft skill. And the soft skill a lot of times is: we are customer centric. Okay. Go do that. If you tell a hundred people to be customer centric, you'll get a 100 personal interpretations. So, the best companies, small or big, remove personal interpretations and teach them what that looks like. Here's our non-negotiables. Here's how we create compassion, empathy. Here's how we build a rapport. And then they test you before you're allowed to interact with their customer to make sure you represent the experience that has gotten them to here.

But here's something else that I bet you a lot of your listeners can relate to when we started our first business back in 1993, 30 years ago, we were pretty good at customer experience [00:17:00] because 50% of the staff was me and my wife. As we started growing, our customer experience started going backwards because we weren't everywhere. We weren't 50% of the staff, you know, we had multiple locations and we just, we did the same thing everyone else did is we just thought, oh, this was just natural. And all of a sudden, we started suffering from employee roulette. Right? An employee roulette is when the level of your experience is dependent on who you get. And we all, to a certain degree, suffer from employee roulette, but the best companies, it's not dependent on that. And so that's what we really had to learn was how to systematize it higher and make sure everyone understood and got tested on this.

[00:17:45] ANDREA: How do you keep this expected level of customer service while you're scaling?

[00:17:50] John: So if you look at any world class customer experience company, their leaders, founders, person running it, were or are obsessed and they'll never have a conversation, [00:18:00] it could be about product, it could be about sales, that they don't bring back and how it affects the customer experience. And as they grew, they didn't compromise. Every company that we work with has nevers and always. It's a short list of things you can never do or always do. And we test you on it. Little things, silly things but they happen all the time. Never point, show them. So when you think of never point and show, you think about of a restaurant or a hotel, you say, where's the restroom? And they point down the hall, turn left and turn right, versus show, take you there. But this also applies to virtually over the phone in an email, whatever you're asking for, we can say, you can get that off our website. That would be the pointing versus the showing would be, we send you the link, right? We send you the files and people do that all the time. Never say no, always focus on what you can do.

[00:18:57] ANDREA: So an employee is going to be paid regardless [00:19:00] of if they show or point, right? So, how do you convince your employees that they do this for themselves as well?

[00:19:10] John: All the clients that the DeJulius group works with, the first thing we do is we help them create a day in the life of a customer. Every company has one, and it's a two-to-three-minute video if you watch, you'll cry, and it's a little thing watching someone, you know, pull up to the drive thru or taking their kids to school and there's a little like blurb above their head just found out that her brother has cancer, or it could be good news. It could be that just got promoted at her job, getting engaged tonight to has to put a mom in a nursing home because of you know, dementia, right? And that's all the things our customers are dealing with before they come in. And then you also make them specific to what you do for a living, you know, so has her first date since her husband died three years ago. So that would be specific to the hair salon [00:20:00] because we got to make her look at 10. We got to help her look and feel a 10 where she has a bounce in her step because of the anxiety she must be receiving.

And so, these day in the life of a customer helps our team members realize why they need to be the best part in the guest day because they're struggling. Most of our days are chaotic and so we want to be that escape and help refill them, regenerate them and be the best part of their day or whatever the company is be, you know, make every moment matter. That's Starbucks. And that was on the inside of their green apron for over 10 years. Your customer vision statement is not to be advertised to the consumer, it's to be advertised to your employees, so it was on the inside of the green apron, so they saw it 10, 15 times a day when they took it off and put it on, so that is one of the ways. You rally people around what you're doing. Listen, no one wants to trade hours for dollars, [00:21:00] but when you're part of something bigger, they'll make sacrifices, that's why those great companies have, you know, become who they are, they've done that every step of the way.

[00:21:10] ANDREA: I love that depth. Everything is connected and that's why you have to be part of a shared mission. So tell me, how do you think that smaller brands can compete with large companies?

[00:21:22] John: You got to take advantage of your strengths and smaller companies’ strength is personalization. And I better know who you are and better teach my team, you know, once we get to 50, 500, You know, you're not going to be able to do that. But at five, 10, we can do that, and we can cheat. I take great ideas from big brands and bring them into my, my own little business you know. When I call American Express. They say two things before I hang up. Is there anything else I can do for you today, Mr. Julius? I say no, thanks for asking. They say we just want to thank you for being a Platinum member since 1998. I'm like, oh my god, [00:22:00] they must talk about me every day, right? I mean, that woman might have just started yesterday, but it's on her software, right? We brought that back to our salon. We have like 400,000 people in our database. But our top 2000 who spend 10, 15, 20, 000, they're silver, gold, and platinum. And it says that, so they call up to make an appointment. They check in, they check out. You better say, Andrea, we want to thank you for being a silver. Uh, VIP, I want to let you know, I did take 10% off your product.

You could also make the person that comes in once a quarter or twice a year feel like a VIP. And so there's little ways, right? So, our software pops up and says, this is Andrea's first time. Or one of the cool techniques all our clients duplicate is if you come into our salon, you're gonna see a bunch of people getting their hair cut. 8, 10 people getting their hair cut, let's say. You're gonna see, 7 of the 10, [00:23:00] 8 of the 10 in a black John Roberts haircut and cape. You're gonna see 2 of the 10 in a white John Roberts haircut and cape. What's that mean to you? We have black and white capes. What's it mean to our team members? Anyone in white has never been here before. So now if I'm just walking by you, I could say hi, I'm John I hope your first experience here is you know, or if you're in a black cape, I'm walking by say hey great to see you again and you don't have to have worked here three years three months or three hours to know how to personalize the white cape from the black cape.

[00:23:35] ANDREA: Do you think that price could be irrelevant?

[00:23:38] John: A hundred percent. That's what we do. We help companies make price irrelevant. Now making price irrelevant doesn't mean you can double your prices or even raise them 50% and not lose existing or potential customers. What making price irrelevant does mean is based on the experience, a brand consistently delivers you. You have no idea what their competition charges. [00:24:00] So there's a lot to unpack there. A brand consistently delivers that is removing employee roulette, right? At every touch point, you go into our website, you call, you see someone in person consistently delivers. So when you give an unbelievable experience, a consistent experience, a personalized experience, and listen, everything else needs to be, your product better be good. Your expertise better be good. We're assuming you got that nailed, but there's a lot of smart consultants out there. There's a lot of smart lawyers out there. There's a lot of smart doctors out there. And if that's all you're competing on, you're a commodity. You gotta bring the whole thing, the personalization, the compassion and empathy, making a brilliant comeback when you drop the ball. That's huge.

[00:24:50] Host: That was John DiJulius, the founder, Chief Revolution Officer, and President of the DiJulius group. As always, here are some key takeaways [00:25:00] on standing out and building brand equity with great customer service.

One. Once you start scaling, and by that I mean, once it is not just you, make sure you have guidelines and train your new hires so you can avoid the dreaded employee roulette. You want to ensure that your customer’s experience will be consistent no matter who they end up talking to. If you need help with motivating your employees to provide great customer service, try creating a day in the life of a customer for your business. It’ll help your employees feel like they’re part of something bigger and be empathetic to experiences customer may be going through every day.
Two. Find ways in which you can personalize a customer’s experience. This can be done is many different ways like writing a note to a repeat customer when you’re packing their product, or having a database of high spenders and repeat customers so you can welcome them back each time. Livie and Luca has workshops where they invite their customers to take part in the creation of the product. [00:26:00] Find something that feels true to your brand and that of course, you can deliver consistently on. This is where you, as a small business owner can outshine bigger companies because the smaller you are, the easier it is to personalize a customer experience.

Remember, customer service, as we learned, is not as common sense as we think. So do the work, especially toward the beginning of your journey, of formalizing how and when you will touch points with customers and provide them with the quality customer service that you want to be tied to your brand.

I'm curious – Have you been thinking about how you can improve your customer service? Or maybe you've implemented some strategies and like Livie and Luca have managed to get an amazing retention rate. I'd love to hear about your journey! Reach out to us at thisissmallbusiness@amazon.com to tell us what you're up to. Or let me know what you think of the episode by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts – it’s easier if you do it through your phone. And if you liked what you heard -- I hope you'll share us with anyone else who needs to hear this!

[00:27:00] If you’re an aspiring entrepreneur, and I hope you are if you’re listening to This is Small Business. Or maybe you already have your small business up and running and you’re ready for the next step. A super valuable resource that can help you is the Amazon Small Business Academy where you can find the help you need to take your small business from concept to launch and beyond. Take the free self-assessment on the Amazon Small Business Academy site at www.smallbusiness.amazon.

CREDITS: This is Small Business is brought to you by Amazon, with technical and story production by JAR Audio. [00:27:48]

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