EP 567: EnvoyAmerica Does $160k in 2016 Helping Senior Citizens Get Around with CEO KC Kanaan

K.C. Kanaan. He's the CEO and co-founder of Envoy America – a Scottsdale, Arizona based national company that operates a wide-sharing platform and mobile application that matches seniors and patients that can't drive or don't want to drive themselves with driver companions. K.C. is a senior executive with more than 30 years of general management, operational sales and marketing experience. He's known both for his command of the big picture and ability to execute on short-term strategies. He has inspired teams to strive for and achieve the impossible.

Famous Five:

• Favorite Book? – The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
• What CEO do you follow? – Rafe Furst
• Favorite online tool? — Trello and Slack
• Do you get 8 hours of sleep?— No
• If you could let your 20-year old self, know one thing, what would it be? – K.C wished that he had known how to work more effectively with people

Time Stamped Show Notes:

• 01:40 – Nathan introduces K.C to the show
• 02:33 – Envoy America provides service to seniors and patients that cannot, should not, and would choose not to drive
• 02:45 – Envoy America makes money on the time spent delivering the service based on hourly rate
• 03:05 – Envoy America is currently in Phoenix and will expand in Tucson, Arizona
• • 03:19 – The plan is to expand to 3-5 other states
• 03:30 – Envoy America currently has 30 drivers in Phoenix
• 03:35 – On an average week, Envoy America delivers 75-85 trips, usually 2 hours per trip
• 04:01 – Envoy America's based rate is $39 per hour
• 04:20 – Average weekly revenue
• 04:25 – In 2016, Envoy America made $180K in revenue
• 04:55 – Envoy America was launched in 2015
• 05:15 – K.C. tried to help his parents find a reliable driving service—it was a challenge
• 06:00 – There are approximately 10M seniors in the US who need a reliable driving service
• 06:18 – K.C. and his partner invested about $100K in Envoy America and have raised $110K which is convertible note
• 06:36 – K.C has started a crowd funding campaign with crowdfunder.com and they're trying to raise an additional $500K
• 06:53 – What K.C will spend the funding on
• 07:35 – The drivers are all independent contractors
• 08:10 – Clients can reserve
• 08:26 – Most seniors rely on phone to make reservations
• 08:55 – The drivers can stay with the seniors wherever they want to go
• 09:35 – The drivers are paid $18/hour
• • 09:48 – The drivers are responsible for their cars
• 10:00 – Envoy America has B2B sales and B2C sales
• • 10:16 – In B2B, they have clinics as key clients
  • 10:44 – Envoy America now leverages social media
• 11:03 – The keywords people use to find Envoy America
• 11:21 – Most of Envoy America's clients come from the businesses that they serve
• 13:20 – The Famous Five

3 Key Points:

• Transportation services for seniors are not very good, causing them to be isolated at home.
• The most taken for granted problem could be the problem that only YOU can solve.
• Take the time to grow in working with people more effectively.

Resources Mentioned:

• Acuity Scheduling – Nathan uses Acuity to schedule his podcast interviews and appointments
• Drip – Nathan uses Drip's email automation platform and visual campaign builder to build his sales funnel
• Toptal – Nathan found his development team using Toptal for his new business Send Later. He was able to keep 100% equity and didn't have to hire a co-founder due to the quality of Toptal
• Host Gator – The site Nathan uses to buy his domain names and hosting for the cheapest price possible.
• Audible – Nathan uses Audible when he's driving from Austin to San Antonio (1.5-hour drive) to listen to audio books.
• The Top Inbox – The site Nathan uses to schedule emails to be sent later, set reminders in inbox, track opens, and follow-up with email sequences
• Jamf – Jamf helped Nathan keep his Macbook Air 11" secure even when he left it in the airplane's back seat pocket
• Freshbooks – Nathan doesn't waste time so he uses Freshbooks to send out invoices and collect his money. Get your free month NOW
• Show Notes provided by Mallard Creatives