Accelerate Your Business Growth

In 2006, Matt Franklin quit his day job doing marketing for a high-tech company and started his own video production company, that he still manages today, specializing in the creation of sales, marketing and training videos for tech companies. Matt is also an inventor. His most notable product, PostureNOW, was a collaborative effort between him and a friend, both of whom were suffering from poor posture that resulted from long days hunched over a computer. That product led them to a Shark Tank appearance and has brought in nearly $2 million in sales. Matt recently completed a successful Kickstarter campaign for another invention, the GripSnap, which is a phone stand with an ultra-powerful neodymium magnet base. Today, Matt divides his time working on his various business and has also developed an online course in posture improvement and workplace ergonomics, called Automatic Posture. We're going to talk with Matt about his experience, what he learned and what we can learn from him.  Today's show is sponsored by Audible.com and Expert Insights. Audible.com is a leading provider of spoken audio entertainment and information. Listen to audiobooks whenever and wherever you want. Get a free book when you sign up for a 30-day free trial at audibletrial.com/businessgrowth. Expert Insights is a new book detailing some of the most listened to episodes of this show. You'll find expertise from some of the world's business gurus in this information-packed book. You can find it on Amazon.com.

Burnout (lack of motivation/engagement) is a very real thing, but the reasons it happens often escape people, which is why we see the cycle repeat itself over and over again. An employee starts a job enthused, engaged and motivated, then somewhere along the line they become unproductive and show a lack of initiative.  One of the main reasons this happens (which few people admit) is due to the environment created by a leader.  The trick is for each leader to look in the mirror to determine the source of the breakdown. Matt Heller joins us to talk about this important topic. Matt is the founder of Performance Optimist Consulting. As a trainer and facilitator, Matt has a developed a proven track record for being able to relate to any audience and give them solid tools they can use immediately.  Matt is the author of The Myth of Employee Burnout. Today’s show is sponsored by Audible.com and Clarity of Course Sales Training Program. Audible.com is a leading provider of spoken audio entertainment and information. Listen to audiobooks whenever and wherever you want. Get a free book when you sign up for a 30-day free trial at audibletrial.com/businessgrowth. The Clarity of Course sales training program provides small business owners and sales professionals a step by step process for establishing a sales plan you’ll be sure to follow. Visit clarityofcourse.com to learn more and download.  

Dawn Fotopulos is passionate about equipping and empowering small business owners to take an honest, hard look at their company's financial health, and then equipping them to reach a state of financial stability. She joins us to discuss how small business owners can take back control over the financial health and future of their business. Dawn Fotopulos is the associate professor of business at The King’s College and the founder of BestSmallBizHelp.com, an award-winning blog dedicated to helping struggling solopreneurs. As an experienced entrepreneur and small-business turnaround expert she has rescued hundreds of small business from financial disaster. Dawn has led an accomplished 20-year career in business, working as a serial entrepreneur, vice-president at Citigroup and Wall Street trader. Fotopulos is a certified facilitator in the Kauffman FastTrac Program, and is a CEO leader for the Job Creators Network.   Today’s show is sponsored by Audible.com and Clarity of Course Sales Training Program. Audible.com is a leading provider of spoken audio entertainment and information. Listen to audiobooks whenever and wherever you want. Get a free book when you sign up for a 30-day free trial at audibletrial.com/businessgrowth. The Clarity of Course sales training program provides small business owners and sales professionals a step by step process for establishing a sales plan you’ll be sure to follow. Visit clarityofcourse.com to learn more and download.

How can you be sure of a secure future when the economy is struggling and life is changing faster than ever? A key to success is developing “soft skills”, or transferable skills which you can apply to many different situations. Barry Demp joins us to talk about this important topic. Barry has worked with over 1,000 individuals as a business and executive coach. Based in Troy, Michigan, he has earned the distinction of Master Certified Coach from the International Coach Federation. In 2012, he started The Quotable Coach email series, and now sends daily quotes, commentaries, and exercises to a readership of over 1,200 people. In June 2014, he published his first book, The Quotable Coach: Daily Nuggets of Practical Wisdom. Today’s show is sponsored by Audible.com and Clarity of Course Sales Training Program. Audible.com is a leading provider of spoken audio entertainment and information. Listen to audiobooks whenever and wherever you want. Get a free book when you sign up for a 30-day free trial at audibletrial.com/businessgrowth. The Clarity of Course sales training program provides small business owners and sales professionals a step by step process for establishing a sales plan you’ll be sure to follow. Visit clarityofcourse.com to learn more and download.  

Thinking about writing a book? Getting ready to publish your book? Suzanne Strisower provides the do’s, don’ts, pitfalls and strategies every author should know about the promotion and sales channels for your books. Learn a systematic way to use the “3 Pillars of a Successful Book Launch”.  Suzanne Strisower is a certified life and career coach, the author of three books including the award-winning life purpose workbook, 111 Inspirational Life Purpose Quotes and Exercises to Find Your Purpose in Life.  She is the executive producer and host for several radio shows on the Living Well Talk Radio Network. She is the Founder and CEO of The Best Virtual Book Tour a multimedia virtual book tour company that gets your book seen and heard by one million people.  Today’s show is sponsored by Audible.com and Clarity of Course Sales Training Program. Audible.com is a leading provider of spoken audio entertainment and information. Listen to audiobooks whenever and wherever you want. Get a free book when you sign up for a 30-day free trial at audibletrial.com/businessgrowth. The Clarity of Course sales training program provides small business owners and sales professionals a step by step process for establishing a sales plan you’ll be sure to follow. Visit clarityofcourse.com to learn more and download.

Kickstarter is a crowdfunding platform that has funneled over a billion dollars to people who want to make their dreams a reality. I'll tell your listeners how to maximize their chances to secure funding. My guest, Rob Gramer, joins us to talk about how you can harness the power of Kickstarter to fund YOUR ideas. For the last 25 years, Rob Gramer has worked on building and selling his ideas. As an engineer, he designed and built jet engines. While working at a patent law firm he learned the ins and outs of legally protecting ideas. And as a marketing consultant to inventors, he shows inventors the steps necessary to turn a profit on their ideas as quick as humanely possible.  Today’s show is sponsored by Audible.com and Clarity of Course Sales Training Program. Audible.com is a leading provider of spoken audio entertainment and information. Listen to audiobooks whenever and wherever you want. Get a free book when you sign up for a 30-day free trial at audibletrial.com/businessgrowth. The Clarity of Course sales training program provides small business owners and sales professionals a step by step process for establishing a sales plan they’ll be sure to follow. 

Competing for customers, market share, and talent against bigger, stronger, and more widely known companies can feel like an endless, grueling battle. With lean budgets and limited re­sources, how can a tiny startup or modest enterprise overtake the mighty giants in any industry? Becky Sheetz-Runkle joins us to discuss this very topic. BECKY SHEETZ-RUNKLE is a strategic marketing and communications consultant, a profes­sional speaker, and a Jujitsu instructor. She has written numerous articles on business topics and is the author of Sun Tzu for Women. She lives in Washington, DC. Today’s show is sponsored by Audible.com and Clarity of Course Sales Training Program. Audible.com is a leading provider of spoken audio entertainment and information. Listen to audiobooks whenever and wherever you want. Get a free book when you sign up for a 30-day free trial at audibletrial.com/businessgrowth. The Clarity of Course sales training program provides small business owners and sales professionals a step by step process for establishing a sales plan they’ll be sure to follow.   

One of the fastest ways for you to reach more people, so you can serve more people, is to get your message out far and wide.  We all know that using different media to teach and market is an awesome way for our ideal clients to find us. Yet, we put off actions that we know will produce results for our business.  Why is that??  Secret: Many of us have a sneaky gremlin or two that keeps us from really being all we can be.  Our guest today, Stephanie Calahan, calls them Visibility Blocks and they can literally sabotage your success. Stephanie Calahan, the Business Vision Catalyst is known for the fast transformations that she brings to her clients. Stephanie works with busy, purpose-driven entrepreneurs to leverage their business and get their message out with power, ease and joy; so they can make a powerfully positive difference in the world, exponentially up-level their profits, shift their mindset towards possibility and take a no-excuses approach to boldly creating a highly successful and meaningful business, while working less. Today’s show is sponsored by Audible.com and Clarity of Course Sales Training Program. Audible.com is a leading provider of spoken audio entertainment and information. Listen to audiobooks whenever and wherever you want. Get a free book when you sign up for a 30-day free trial at audibletrial.com/businessgrowth. The Clarity of Course sales training program provides small business owners and sales professionals a step by step process for establishing a sales plan they’ll be sure to follow. 

Overwhelmed by endless to-do lists? Drowning in floods of email? Stressed out by the pressure to do more with less, and do it faster? For more and more people in our constantly-connected, fiercely competitive world, the answers are: YES, YES, and HELP!                                                                            Certified Professional Organizer (CPO®) Tamara Myles has developed a system that makes increasing personal productivity at work—and beyond—within easy reach of everyone and adaptable to anyone’s specific circumstances and style. She'll join us to share her ideas. Myles is a productivity consultant for individual and corporate clients, including Anytime Fitness and Best Buy. Prior to launching her own business, she was an advertising executive, managing projects for Cover Girl, Adidas, Sony Electronics, and many more prestigious brands. Today’s show is sponsored by Audible.com and Clarity of Course Sales Training Program. Audible.com is a leading provider of spoken audio entertainment and information. Get a free book when you sign up for a 30-day free trial at audibletrial.com/businessgrowth. The Clarity of Course sales training program provides small business owners and sales professionals a step by step process for creating a sales plan they’ll follow. 

Tony Stastny joins us today to talk about networking. This is one of the most valuable activities in business and there really is a right way to do it. Tony is Founder and President of The Next Level Workshop and Area Director of BNI, the world’s largest business networking organization.  Tony is recognized for his ability of bringing people together to create a sense of community. His highly energetic and enthusiastic motivational style assures he effectively teaches business owners how to grow their network, reach beyond their comfort, stay focused on goals, & achieve greatness!  Tony Stastny, also known as the “Man connected to everyone,” has been instrumental in establishing more than two dozen chapters of BNI in the northeastern & eastern OH region which has generated hundreds of millions of dollars in referrals for his nearly 400 local members. In 2013, Tony earned the BNI Director Of The Year award for the State of Ohio. Today’s show is sponsored by Audible.com and Clarity of Course Sales Training Program. Audible.com is a leading provider of spoken audio entertainment and information. Listen to audiobooks whenever and wherever you want. Get a free book when you sign up for a 30-day free trial at audibletrial.com/businessgrowth. The Clarity of Course sales training program provides small business owners and sales professionals a step by step process for establishing a sales plan you’ll be sure to follow. Visit clarityofcourse.com to learn more and download.

It’s an absolute epidemic. Ask anyone how they are these days and the response inevitably comes back as “Busy, just really, busy.” If you know anyone who is chronically busy, day in and day out, no matter the season and always behind and overwhelmed, it’s a sure sign that they’re clueless in the productivity department. My guest Marley Majcher will share her ideas on how we can make sure we are being productive AND making money!  Marley Majcher was living her dream, running her own business and planning fabulous parties and events for A-list celebrities, when she had her "McDonald's Moment." She was working 24/7, but making almost no money. She would have been better off (and make more money) working for the Golden Arches. Now, with more than 20 years of entrepreneurial experience, Marley has grown to become a sought-after expert on issues facing entrepreneurs and small business owners, challenging them to stop being busy, and start focusing on profits.  Today's show is sponsored by Clarity of Course Sales Training. This supportive digital sales training program (MP3 audio + digital workbook) will take you step-by-step through the sales process and help you create your own powerful sales plan.    

Join me and my guest, Tom Gray, for an engaging conversation about tips and techniques that will help you grow your business. Tom will share information from his book Business Techniques for Growth. Tom Gray helps small business owners save and grow their companies, from planning and financing to marketing, managing people, and operations improvement. He is a management consultant, MBA Professor, and author with several credentials: Certified Turnaround Professional (CTP), Certified Business Development Advisor, and Certified SCORE Mentor. In addition to consulting, Tom teaches MBA courses at Aurora University, Benedictine University, and Concordia University Chicago. He also writes a weekly blog about small business profit improvement techniques, called Business Techniques in Troubled Times. Today's show is sponsored by Clarity of Course Sales Training. This supportive digital sales training program (MP3 audio + digital workbook) will take you step-by-step through the sales process and help you create your own powerful sales plan.

Whether you’re creating a to-do list for grocery shopping or a doctor checking off procedural items before a surgery, we all make lists. In THE EXECUTIVE CHECKLIST: A Guide for Setting Direction and Managing Change, James M. Kerr gives examples of new organizational concepts being implemented in businesses today and how it’s helping them to be better and stay better. Jim will be joining us to talk about some of the best techniques and tips for accomplishing our to-dos.  James Kerr is a management consultant and organizational behaviorist. As a partner at BlumShapiro Consulting, he specializes in corporate transformation, strategy formulation, business process redesign and Internet and technology management and planning. He is the author of The Executive Checklist as well as three other business texts. Today’s sponsor is Audible.com, a leading provider of spoken audio entertainment and information. Listen to audiobooks whenever and wherever you want. Get a free book when you sign up for a 30-day free trial at audibletrial.com/businessgrowth Today's show is sponsored by Clarity of Course Sales Training. This supportive digital sales training program (MP3 audio + digital workbook) will take you step-by-step through the sales process and help you create your own powerful sales plan. 

Is sales something you struggle with? Challenged with creating a system that works for your business? Join me for a discussion about sales strategies that work. Former Advertising sales director and sales strategist and professional voice talent, Shann Vander Leek will be interviewing me about sales and my new digital sales training program. Bring your questions to this discussion about a critical small business topic.  Today’s sponsor is Audible.com, a leading provider of spoken audio entertainment and information. Listen to audiobooks whenever and wherever you want. Get a free book when you sign up for a 30-day free trial at audibletrial.com/businessgrowth. 

Whether you're approaching graduation, blossoming at the peak of your career, or even thinking about retirement, legacy is something that can be established at any age. In Leading with Your Legacy in Mind: Building Lasting Value in Business and in Life (McGraw-Hill, March, 2014), business coach and psychologist Andrew Thorn shows us how to use and manage our time to our advantage. He will join us to discuss this important topic. Dr. Andrew Thorn provides behavioral based leadership strategies to individuals who are seeking to bring their personal and professional responsibilities into full harmony. His clients achieve more, become more and experience balanced growth for their own benefit, and for the benefit of the people they lead. His confidential work over the past 20 years with senior leaders and c-level executives helps him establish trust quickly and deeply. He is known for his ability to address difficult conversations without creating conflict. He fosters a strength-based approach and is constantly looking for ways to help people become the best they can be.