How Mike Dillard Recruited a $100 Million Panel for his Disrupter Business

At Freedom Fast Lane 2016 one of the main sessions featured a case study of Mike Dillard’s new product and the company he’s building to create and distribute it - an in-home organic growing system that anyone can use. Mike brought together what Ryan refers to as a “$100 Million Panel” - a group of men who are serving as his board of directors and are pros in a variety of areas when it comes to business-building, scaling, and profitability. Each of them has his own reason for being part of the team and in this conversation, Ryan asks them why they are involved, what they foresee the path forward being, and what they will each contribute to make the company a success.

Why every entrepreneur needs to give before they seek to get.

As you build a business you’re naturally looking for connections with people that will enable you to gain influence, traction, and notoriety for what you’re trying to do. Honestly, you’re looking for what you can get out of relationships. While that’s necessary, it’s also shortsighted if it’s the only way you view the relationships you build. Mike Dillard's new board of advisors has come together largely because of what has been given to them over the years by Mike, the founder of the company. The lesson you need to learn is that it pays to give from the beginning. Add true value to people every chance you get. When the time to receive comes, you’ll have people eager to help you.

Why you need to avoid the “ready, fire, aim” philosophy many entrepreneurs follow.

There is a benefit to getting started with your business and figuring out things as you go along. Many times you don’t know the right problems to solve or directions to go until you are facing them head-on. Getting started makes that discovery possible. But building a company that way can be a very expensive process. You spend lots of resources trying things that don’t work, pivoting, and trying again - and the second solution may not work either. Doing your homework ahead of time may be the path that brings the best results the quickest. You’ll hear what the all-star panel from Freedom Fast Lane Live 2016 has to say about avoiding the “ready, fire, aim” mentality, on this episode.

One product is not a business, it’s an offer. Here’s why you need to build a product line.

When you only have one product to sell you are not only limiting your options and potential profitability, you’re also not stewarding the relationship you are building with your customers wisely. A business is built on the relationships you have with customers. Those relationships are what give you the ability to discover, understand, and meet their needs. You do that over the long haul with more than one product. It not only enables you to meet the ongoing needs of your customers, it creates a diversified stream of revenue for the company and enables you to invest in even more growth. You can hear how the $100 million panel advises the addition of products to your existing product line in this Q & A session from Freedom Fast Lane 2016.

Any successful sales conversation - in print or media - flows from 3 vital questions.

When you are devising your marketing and sales messages you have to understand that the approach you take has to focus on your prospect, not on you. So instead of talking about the features and benefits of your product, you have to get inside the mind and heart of your prospect and talk about what they care about. You have to ask 3 vital questions that open their ears to the issue, open their hearts and minds to the need in a humble way, and tease your product as a solution to that problem. Every successful sales conversation hits those three main points and you can learn how to apply them to your product or service, on this episode of Freedom Fast Lane.

Outline Of This Great Episode

• [1:49] Ryan’s introduction of the superstars on his $100 million panel and what each of them brings to the team.
• [8:44] How Mike Dillard chose these individuals to be part of his board of advisors and how he pitched them to be part of the team.
• [11:50] The advice the board provides regarding how to hire the right all-star team.
• [22:16] Why Mike is self-funding the project - and what his board thinks of the idea.
• [23:45] Advice for launching a product or service - from a variety of perspectives.
• [31:07] Risk in investing in media advertising for a product launch.
• [49:59] The vital 3 questions that close sales for any product.
• [54:45] Why one product has to pivot into a product line to become a business.
• [59:44] Questions from the live audience.

Action Steps From This Episode

FOR GETTING STARTED: Many people out there are looking for what they can get out of relationships. It’s understandable, but shortsighted. But this board has come together largely out of what has been given to them over the years by Mike, the founder of the company. Learn to give from the start. Add true value to people every chance you get. When the time to receive comes, you’ll have people eager to help you.

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