The $100 MBA Show

Netflix…am I right? I mean, they did it. They really did it. Netflix took a perfectly un-disrupted industry (movie rentals) and coolly demolished a corporate behemoth (remember Blockbuster?), seemingly without breaking a sweat. And before you knew it, they pivoted to pioneer an absolutely groundbreaking new way to deliver entertainment. Was it luck? Was it some endless stream of financing? Was it the will of the Business Gods? Of course not. It was strategy, courage, innovation, and no small amount of risk. Today, we explore the uniquely valuable, inventive business model that’s proved not just enduring, but culturally relevant and personally important to millions of consumers.  More importantly, we dissect just how they did it. We’ve distilled 3 distinct lessons the story of Netflix can teach any entrepreneur. By understanding the principles behind their success, you can emulate the Netflix approach and make your own disruptive mark on your corner of the market. Click Play! SUBSCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS Stitcher | SoundCloud | Podcast Feed | How To Subscribe Give us a Rating & Review Today’s Sponsors Fizzle Let’s be honest: entrepreneurship can be lonely. You’ve got a million questions about your business, and few people to ask. Get the knowledge and support you need with Fizzle. Fizzle can help you earn a living doing something you love, with training, tools, coaching, community, and their famous Roadmap. Join Omar and thousands of other entrepreneurs on Fizzle — Get a free 14-day trial at fizzle.co/omar now! Onnit Alpha Brain by Onnit is a clinically studied nootropic that helps healthy adults with memory, focus, and mental speed. Whether it’s a work project, a test, or an athletic event, taking Alpha Brain is like having another gear for your brain. It’s made of Earth-grown, stimulant-free ingredients that you can feel good about. Plus, it’s cheaper than a daily cup of coffee. Alpha Brain is free to try — just pay shipping. Get a two week supply free at onnit.com/100mba now! Show Links EasyCourse The post MBA1362 3 Things You Can Learn From Netflix as a Business + Free Ride Friday appeared first on The $100 MBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Billboards just won’t cut it anymore. Today, it seems like every kind of company is investing in media: everything from books to series to full-on films, all for marketing purposes. Is it a wise investment? Does someone who sells shoes or auto parts or coding courses need a movie to convert their audience?  Well, maybe. It’s all about the impact of “touchpoint” marketing, and the need to give way more than the marketers of the past ever had to. Today, customers need more than a pitch: they need a narrative. Every cent (and every minute) you spend on media can come back to you tenfold, provided you execute wisely. Today, we discuss how multimedia efforts add weight and momentum to all your other marketing efforts, and why even startups with beginner budgets can afford to make their mark with compelling media content. Click Play! SUBSCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS Stitcher | SoundCloud | Podcast Feed | How To Subscribe Give us a Rating & Review Today’s Sponsors M&M’S Hazelnut Spread Chocolate Candies Work got you bogged down? Treat yourself to new M&M’S Hazelnut Spread chocolate candies. They’re an instant classic, guaranteed to deliver a delicious combo of hazelnut spread and milk chocolate in every bite-sized piece. Add a little  luxury to your workday — go Hazel-nutty and try the new MM’S Hazelnut Spread chocolate candies today! Fizzle Let’s be honest: entrepreneurship can be lonely. You’ve got a million questions about your business, and few people to ask. Get the knowledge and support you need with Fizzle. Fizzle can help you earn a living doing something you love, with training, tools, coaching, community, and their famous Roadmap. Join Omar and thousands of other entrepreneurs on Fizzle — Get a free 14-day trial at fizzle.co/omar now! Show Links BrandWagon from Wistia Profitwell The post MBA1361 Why Every Company Is Becoming a Media Company appeared first on The $100 MBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Where’s the line between you and your business? Legally speaking, it’s a question worth asking. It’s Q&A Wednesday, and we’re helping one listener decide when it’s time to register a business as a separate entity from themselves. A solopreneur is still running a business, after all — even if it’s a one-person show. Of course, there are advantages and disadvantages to both sole proprietorship and registering a completely separate business. While the rules can vary from nation to nation, most of the Western world has a pretty clear set of standards that can help you make the best decision. We’ll share what we know from experience, as well as point you in the direction of who exactly you should ask.  Listen in, and hear why not registering as a business can make it difficult to measure your success. Learn about the effects of registering on everything from your taxes to your personal credit. Get the facts, and make an informed choice. Click Play! SUBSCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS Stitcher | SoundCloud | Podcast Feed | How To Subscribe Give us a Rating & Review Today’s Sponsors MailChimp Ready to grow your business? MailChimp is your all-in-one marketing platform. MailChimp lets you manage more of your marketing from one place, without all the extra tools. Market smarter and grow faster with one tool that helps you create, publish, manage, and measure multi-channel marketing campaigns. Let MailChimp help you market smarter — learn more at mailchimp.com Kronos Kronos is workforce innovation that works. Kronos puts HR, payroll, talent, and timekeeping on a single, cloud-based platform specially designed to give HR professionals supporting a blended workforce a whole new level of confidence. Learn more at kronos.com/hrswagger The post MBA1360 Q&A Wednesday: Do I need to have a registered business as a solopreneur? appeared first on The $100 MBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We all need a break. That includes your employees.As your team grows, it’s inevitable that your team members will ask for some downtime. For that reason, it’s important to have a set policy in place that defines when and how they can access a little R&R. Plan for it now, and you’ll avoid problems later.There’s a spectrum of leave policies, from “take off whenever you want” to “we work 24/7 365.” Generally speaking, both extreme ends of the spectrum have been proven ineffective. Where you land on the Time Off Question can make all the difference to your team’s happiness, productivity, and long-term loyalty.Today, we discuss the ins and outs of leave policy, from national holidays to sick time to those ill-defined “personal” days. We explore what to include in contracts and other employment agreements, especially with remote teams with a diverse array of holidays and cultural priorities. Tune in, and create a company culture that lets your people rest and recharge without sacrificing productivity. Click Play!SUBSCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTSSpotify| Podcast Feed| How To SubscribeGive us a Rating & ReviewShow LinksIt Doesn’t Have to Be Crazy at Workby the Basecamp GuysThe post MBA1359 How To Form A Leave Policy That Works For Your Business appeared first on The $100 MBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

How did they do it? It’s a question entrepreneurs ask about other successful startups all the time. Very rarely do we get a full, honest answer. Even more rarely do we get an answer that’s completely original. But every once in a while… Shape Up by Ryan Singer is the true story of how the wildly successful Basecamp blazed their own trail, with creative approaches to business management that no one else dared to try. Basecamp’s management model is unique and idiosyncratic, and it might not work for everyone — but it’s sure worth learning about. If you’re building a business — especially one with a digital product — the lessons outlined in Shape Up are incredibly valuable. Again, you might not agree with every move Basecamp made (some of their tactics are controversial, to say the least), but challenging “best practices” and questioning your assumptions is always healthy. Hear all about this book, and get inspired to seek new and inventive ways of doing business. Click Play! SUBSCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS Stitcher | SoundCloud | Podcast Feed | How To Subscribe Give us a Rating & Review Today’s Sponsors Fizzle Let’s be honest: entrepreneurship can be lonely. You’ve got a million questions about your business, and few people to ask. Get the knowledge and support you need with Fizzle. Fizzle can help you earn a living doing something you love, with training, tools, coaching, community, and their famous Roadmap. Join Omar and thousands of other entrepreneurs on Fizzle — Get a free 14-day trial at fizzle.co/omar now! American Express You said “yes” to starting a business. “Yes” to turning an idea into reality. “Yes” to earning your first dollar, and many more. Now, say yes to the American Express Business Card, with no annual fee, payment flexibility, and other solutions for a growing business. Get the powerful backing of American Express — and don’t do businesses without it. Learn more at americanexpress.com/no-annual-fee Show Links Shape Up by Ryan Singer (Free PDF) The post MBA1358 Must Read: Shape Up by Ryan Singer appeared first on The $100 MBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Market researchers obsess over figuring out what customers want. We have our own method. We just ask them. Customer interviews are an underutilized strategy that can cut right to the heart of product development. When you get on the phone and learn exactly what customers like — and don’t like — you can guide your company more wisely. From features to benefits to the specific language customers use, there’s a gold mine of information, just a chat away. Learn how to stop advertising and start listening. We’ve got 3 major, fundamental lessons picked up from dozens of customer conversations, each of which opened our minds to new approaches in our business. Hear how we conduct these calls and extract the information we need to make practical, needle-moving changes.  You’ll never know what people want until you ask. Click Play! SUBSCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS Stitcher | SoundCloud | Podcast Feed | How To Subscribe Give us a Rating & Review Today’s Sponsors Fizzle Let’s be honest: entrepreneurship can be lonely. You’ve got a million questions about your business, and few people to ask. Get the knowledge and support you need with Fizzle. Fizzle can help you earn a living doing something you love, with training, tools, coaching, community, and their famous Roadmap. Join Omar and thousands of other entrepreneurs on Fizzle — Get a free 14-day trial at fizzle.co/omar now! Campaign Monitor Campaign Monitor made email marketing radically easy, so you can focus on bigger things. It’s an email marketing provider with an easy to use email builder, flexible pricing plans, and a great free trial. It’s straightforward, simple, and loaded with professionally designed templates and designs so your emails can get results. Best of all, their drag and drop email editor gets it all done in record time! Join over 250k organizations using Campaign Monitor at campaignmonitor.com now! Show Links EasyCourse WebinarNinja Rev The post MBA1357 3 Big Things I Learned From Customer Interviews + Free Ride Friday appeared first on The $100 MBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We all love our customers — especially the ones who first bought our products and helped us build the foundation of our business. But “grandfathering,” the policy of keeping prices eternally low for those early adopters, may not be a sustainable long-term strategy. Your business has to grow, change, and evolve. Usually, that means prices have to rise too. We’re not saying you should never grandfather. Depending on where you are and the size of your market share, a little love for those first-generation customers can be a wise move. But when the math stops working, you can’t let sentimental feelings get in the way of taking your business to the next level. Here how we’re exploring our own pricing changes, and how we plan to navigate the effect on our current customers. Learn how to transition to a level of pricing that matches increased overhead on your part. See how delighting your customers is less about keeping prices down, and more about making sure your product is worth every cent. Click Play! SUBSCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS Stitcher | SoundCloud | Podcast Feed | How To Subscribe Give us a Rating & Review Today’s Sponsors Fizzle Let’s be honest: entrepreneurship can be lonely. You’ve got a million questions about your business, and few people to ask. Get the knowledge and support you need with Fizzle. Fizzle can help you earn a living doing something you love, with training, tools, coaching, community, and their famous Roadmap. Join Omar and thousands of other entrepreneurs on Fizzle — Get a free 14-day trial at fizzle.co/omar now! American Express You said “yes” to starting a business. “Yes” to turning an idea into reality. “Yes” to earning your first dollar, and many more. Now, say yes to the American Express Business Card, with no annual fee, payment flexibility, and other solutions for a growing business. Get the powerful backing of American Express — and don’t do businesses without it. Learn more at americanexpress.com/no-annual-fee Show Links Profitwell WebinarNinja CartHook Blog Profitwell on YouTube The post MBA1356 Grandfathering Your Customers, Revisited appeared first on The $100 MBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Enough already! When you’re new to business, it can feel impossible to turn anything, or anyone, down. But if you’re not careful, you can “yes” yourself into a total productivity breakdown — leaving your business worse off than if you’d simply had the courage to say “no.” It’s Q&A Wednesday, and we’re helping a classic “yes” addict. What many of us don’t realize is that every time we say “yes” to one thing, we are — by definition — saying “no” to something else. That can only lead to one conclusion: a great entrepreneur has priorities, not an endless To-Do list. Learn how to support and impress the people who rely on you, without burning yourself out. Understand how doing less can create more opportunities. Tune in, and see how tackling fewer things empowers you to tackle them like a champ. Plus, hear our simple strategy for finally seeing the true value of your precious, limited time. Click Play! SUBSCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS Stitcher | SoundCloud | Podcast Feed | How To Subscribe Give us a Rating & Review Today’s Sponsors Fizzle Let’s be honest: entrepreneurship can be lonely. You’ve got a million questions about your business, and few people to ask. Get the knowledge and support you need with Fizzle. Fizzle can help you earn a living doing something you love, with training, tools, coaching, community, and their famous Roadmap. Join Omar and thousands of other entrepreneurs on Fizzle — Get a free 14-day trial at fizzle.co/omar now! smartwater smartwater alkaline has 9+ ph to help keep you hydrated while you’re on the move — whether you’re climbing a mountain, or doing mountain climbers on your mat. If you’re looking for a moment of zen, smartwater antioxidant with added selenium helps you find balance for body and mind. Plus, there’s a new way to order smartwater; just ask “Alexa, order smartwater,” and the rest is taken care of. smartwater – that’s pretty smart! Show Links Must-Read: Essentialism by Greg McKeown Mastery by Robert Greene The post MBA1355 Q&A Wednesday: How do I learn to say no? appeared first on The $100 MBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Marketing: should you hire out, or hire in? It’s kind of like deciding whether to cook or call for takeout. On the one hand, you have ease, convenience, and the experience of specialists. On the other, you have a chance to create something that’s yours — something truly grounded in your own business and message.  We’ve done both, so we know the advantages of each option. Today, we discuss the true value of outside marketing agencies versus your own marketing staff. Which is the smarter play for you? With so many facets of marketing to consider (content, strategy, copy, etc.), building your own marketing team is no small project. But the long-term rewards can mean everything to your business. We break down the skill sets required to truly “market” — and what we mean by “market” — as well as the specific challenges of assembling your own team. Whatever you choose, make sure it’s right for you. Click Play! SUBSCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS Stitcher | SoundCloud | Podcast Feed | How To Subscribe Give us a Rating & Review Today’s Sponsors Fizzle Let’s be honest: entrepreneurship can be lonely. You’ve got a million questions about your business, and few people to ask. Get the knowledge and support you need with Fizzle. Fizzle can help you earn a living doing something you love, with training, tools, coaching, community, and their famous Roadmap. Join Omar and thousands of other entrepreneurs on Fizzle — Get a free 14-day trial at fizzle.co/omar now! JustWorks Scaling a biz is easier with the right tools! JustWorks is a simple, intuitive HR platform that makes work easier and more fun. With JustWorks, entrepreneurs and their teams get access to high-quality affordable benefits, automated payroll, compliance support, and HR tools — all in one place. Offer competitive benefits on par with larger companies. Get 2 free months at justworks.com/mba The post MBA1354 Should You Hire a Marketing Agency or Hire In-House? appeared first on The $100 MBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

What are you worth? That’s the essential question of this week’s Must-Read book for entrepreneurs, Bob Burg’s The Go-Giver. It’s a book that’s simple, highly readable, digestible, and fun. But the lessons it imparts are as profound as they are practical. Honestly, it’s a book we couldn’t wait to read and review. Burg is a respected speaker, writer, and friend of the $100 MBA Show. The Go-Giver, in our humble opinion, should be on every entrepreneur’s shelf. It’s an easy read that packs an incredibly powerful punch, exploring 5 “laws” of business through fun, engaging narratives.  Put simply, it’ll make you a better business person. Learn how to gauge your true value on the market. Define yourself and your business in terms of what you can do for others, and live by that clearly defined worth. Click Play! SUBSCRIBE ON APPLE PODCASTS Stitcher | SoundCloud | Podcast Feed | How To Subscribe Give us a Rating & Review Today’s Sponsors MailChimp Ready to grow your business? MailChimp is your all-in-one marketing platform. MailChimp lets you manage more of your marketing from one place, without all the extra tools. Market smarter and grow faster with one tool that helps you create, publish, manage, and measure multi-channel marketing campaigns. Let MailChimp help you market smarter — learn more at mailchimp.com Capital One With the Spark Cash card from Capital One, you earn unlimited 2% cash back on all  your business purchases. Think about it – unlimited 2% cash back on everything you buy for your business. That cash back can add up to thousands of dollars, which you can reinvest back into your business so you can keep growing. Imagine what unlimited 2% cash back could do for your business. Capital One: what’s in your wallet? Show Links The Go-Giver by Bob Burg Basecamp The post MBA1353 Must Read: The Go-Giver by Bob Burg appeared first on The $100 MBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.