The Opportunity Podcast

How do you turn a humble content site into a multi-platform, globally recognized brand? For Kevin Espiritu, the answer lay in producing human-focused, genuinely useful content instead of churning out articles for profit. Kevin is the founder of Epic Gardening, a gardening brand with a relatively simple mission: to teach 10,000,000 people around the world how to grow plants and food. What started as just a website, is now a multi-faceted content and eCommerce brand with millions of followers on social media.  In this episode, Kevin walks us through the things he wished he had known when he first started building his business, including outsourcing labor to free up valuable time. According to Kevin, “When it comes to growing your business, knowing where your time is most valuable as the founder is the most important thing. If you have the resources, what you should be doing is either automating, delegating, hiring, or deleting things that are not as valuable as your leveraged time.” We dive into the ins and outs of Kevin’s content creation strategy, discussing the techniques and approaches that helped him attract over 10 million readers to his website last year, and over 3 million followers on his various social media channels.  Kevin also shares some insights into the future of Epic Gardening, including how he plans to use the $17.5 million in growth capital he recently raised.  Kevin’s success story is a wonderful example of the merits of a human-focused, instead of profit-driven, business strategy. Listen in to learn how to grow your brand across multiple sales and social media platforms while maintaining a cohesive brand identity.  Topics Discussed in This Episode: Kevin shares how his entrepreneurial journey started and where he is today (02:22) The origins and inspiration behind Epic Gardening (06:25) The secret sauce behind Epic Gardening’s enduring success (08:45) How Kevin approaches creating content across various channels and platforms (16:25) The biggest setbacks and challenges Kevin faced while building Epic Gardening (22:46) How Kevin identified the right time to expand into eCommerce (27:41) Why and how Kevin raised $17.5 million in growth capital  (34:53) How Kevin plans to use this growth capital to scale Epic Gardening (38:07) Why websites make such a good investment vehicle (41:09) What Kevin would do differently if he had to start Epic Gardening all over again (43:06) Kevin’s dreams for the future of Epic Gardening (49:26) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcast Empire Flippers Marketplace Epic Gardening Epic Homesteading   Authority Hacker Backlinko Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to successfully scale your business while remaining true to your brand identity.

One of the first lessons website owners learn is that content is the key to success. But how do you identify which topics and keywords to target to help your website gain authority? Finding the answer to this question is what Chima Mmeje, an experienced SEO copywriter and content strategist, does best. Through her company, Zenith Copy, she helps SaaS businesses rank for their target keywords and dominate the search results.  In this episode, Chima gives us the low-down on her favorite SEO content strategy - topic clusters. Topic clusters help website owners comprehensively cover their targeted topic, helping them to become an authority in their niche. Chima walks us through how to conduct research for a topic cluster, how to integrate backlinks into topic clusters and how long it takes to see measurable results from this strategy. She also discusses the power of high-quality content and the rewards of investing in a good content strategy. According to Chima, “Content can do more than just get your website to rank for a few keywords. Content can help you to build authority in the mind of your audience so that even when they're offline and are thinking of a problem, your brand name is the first thing that comes to mind.” Chima also walks us through the struggles she faced trying to break into the big leagues as a BIPOC content writer from Nigeria. She describes how the obstacles she overcame inspired her to create The Freelance Coalition for Developing Countries, an organization that provides free mentorship and training for BIPOC freelancers living in developing countries. If you’re tired of lackluster SEO results, listen in to this episode to learn how to create a comprehensive content strategy that’ll help you climb the SERPS and capture customer attention. Topics Discussed in This Episode: Chima guides us through her back story and entrepreneurial journey so far (02:07) Chima explains why not all traffic is created equally (09:20) The biggest challenges new domains face when trying to become established (10:53) The benefits of using topic clusters (13:55) The foundations you should have in place before implementing topic clusters (17:39) How to conduct research for a topic cluster (18:40) How to integrate backlinks into a topic cluster strategy (22:55) The common mistakes that entrepreneurs make when building topic clusters (25:02) How long do topic clusters take to start producing measurable results? (29:22) The challenges Chima faced when striking out on her own as a business owner (32:14) Chima explains why she started the Freelance Coalition for developing countries (34:12)  Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcast Empire Flippers Marketplace Zenith Copy The Freelance Coalition for Developing Countries  Ahrefs Semrush Sapphire SEO Market Muse Phrase Screaming Frog Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to drive significantly more traffic to your site through the use of topic clusters!

Well-written content alone isn’t enough to draw customers to your website. Backlinks lend authority to your site, helping it rank higher on Google, boosting your organic traffic as a result.  The problem is that many business owners battle to source quality backlinks for their websites. Farzad Rashidi struggled with this process himself. Fortunately, in every challenge lies an opportunity, and his quest to optimize his own link-building efforts led Farzad to co-create Respona. Respona is an all-in-one platform that helps entrepreneurs automate the link-building process and generate personalized outreach campaigns, removing a bottleneck from their SEO strategy.   In this episode, Farzad discusses the importance of building a strong backlink profile and how to balance content creation with link-building to drive more traffic to your site. He guides us through his three-step link-building process and explains how to differentiate a good backlink from a bad one. According to Farzad, “When soucing backlinks, the relevancy of the webpage you're getting your link from is so important. It doesn't matter if you have a ton of links from a lot of websites if none of the backlinks make contextual sense. Second, consider the quality of the website you're getting your link from. The authority of that website along with the relevancy of the webpage play a vital role in building high-quality backlinks.” Farzad also dives into the different elements that make up an effective outreach campaign, and the clever strategies and channels that entrepreneurs can use to stand out from the crowd. If you're keen to get more eyes on your content and climb those search results then this is a conversation you don’t want to miss! Topics Discussed in This Episode: Farzad guides us through his backstory and the inspiration behind Respona (02:27) The challenges people face when building a content strategy (05:29) The common mistakes people make when trying to build quality backlinks (20:25) Farzad walks us through how he goes about acquiring backlinks (22:20) Farzad’s three-step process for link-building (29:23) How to adapt your backlink strategy to suit your business model (34:20) The backlink acquisition strategy that surprised Farzad the most (35:56) How Farzad differentiates a good backlink from a bad one (40:17) How Farzad plans to scale Respona going forward (43:05) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcast Empire Flippers Marketplace Respona Ahrefs Semrush Clearscope Visme Marketing Strategy eBook Backlinko Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to create a powerful backlink profile that will help you dominate the Google search results.

We’ve all read stories and news articles about multi-million dollar businesses that have been sold and the ripple effects these acquisitions have on their respective industries.  But an exit doesn’t have to involve enormous sums of money to be meaningful.  When Alexis Grant realized that there were important acquisition stories going untold, she created They Got Acquired, a media agency seeking to redefine startup success by sharing the acquisition stories of underrepresented founders.  In this episode, Alexis joins us to discuss the inspiration behind They Got Acquired, and the ways in which she hopes to educate entrepreneurs who are preparing to sell their businesses. She also reveals the obstacles she faced building a media company from the ground up and how she has structured her business to provide value to her audience. According to Alexis, “When building a media brand, the place that I always start from is creating really high-quality content. Think about how you can create something that's valuable, because if people don't want to read it, or listen to it, or consume it, then you're not really doing yourself or them a favor.” Alexis also shares insights into her own acquisition stories, discussing the differences between an acqui-hire and an asset sale, and the lesson she learned from both experiences.  Whether you are a first-time seller or an experienced entrepreneur, this is an episode you don’t want to miss! Topics Discussed in This Episode: Alexis walks us through her entrepreneurial journey so far (02:26) The lessons Alexis learned from her own businesses being acquired (07:57) What inspired Alexis to create They Got Acquired (12:47) The types of success stories Alexis wants to shine a light on with They Got Acquired (15:24) The obstacles Alexis faced building a media company from the ground up (19:01) Interesting tidbits Alexis has picked up from the businesses she’s covered so far (26:03) Alexis’s advice to entrepreneurs looking to start their own media brand (31:44) How Alexis maintains efficiency to maximize her ROI (34:42) How Alexis aims to help women founders find a place at the table (37:19) Alexis’s goals for the future of They Got Acquired (39:55) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcast Empire Flippers Marketplace They Got Acquired Typefully Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to successfully navigate the acquisition process.

When used correctly, PPC is a powerful tool in an Amazon seller’s arsenal. But, as a newcomer to the FBA game, it’s often hard to find the time to research and implement optimized PPC campaigns while simultaneously ensuring your business runs smoothly.  When Mina Elias first entered the Amazon marketplace, he struggled with this challenge himself. Determined to master PPC, Mina put in the hard yards and absorbed all the information he could find about advertising on Amazon.  His thirst for knowledge paid off, with Mina scaling his supplement brand, MMA Nutrition, to over seven figures. Now, Mina puts his PPC expertise to work as the founder of Trivium Group, an Amazon advertising agency that manages PPC campaigns on behalf of FBA sellers, giving business owners one less thing to worry about. In this episode, Mina discusses how his passion for PPC led him to create both Trivium Group and The PPC University, an educational platform that teaches FBA sellers how to create cost-effective and automated PPC campaigns. He reveals the core principles that make up a good Amazon PPC strategy and explains why PPC is a solid investment for businesses of all sizes.  Mina walks us through the challenges and doubts he overcame after quitting his corporate job to become an FBA seller and explains why so many entrepreneurs are attracted to the supplement niche. He also reveals the qualities that help his brand stay relevant in such a highly-competitive niche and shares the advice and tips he wishes he was given when starting out as an FBA seller. According to Mina, “Building accurate profit & loss statements is incredibly important. I wish I had done it earlier. If you're not building accurate P&Ls, it's putting you at a severe disadvantage, especially when you try to sell your business. So, find someone who is familiar with A2X and QuickBooks, hire them to teach you how everything works, and then just hire a bookkeeper to manage the whole process.” If you want to avoid common FBA stumbling blocks and learn the shortcuts to Amazon success, then this is a conversation you don’t want to miss out on! Topics Discussed in This Episode: Mina walks us through his entrepreneurial journey so far (01:15) How Mina broke into the supplements niche and remained competitive (10:31) What makes the supplements niche so attractive to Amazon sellers (15:21) How Mina juggles selling on Shopify and Amazon (17:17) The problems Mina encountered getting to grips with PPC as a new seller (22:18) The core principles that make up a good Amazon PPC strategy (26:18) Mina’s motivations behind starting PPC University (31:23) The advice Mina wishes he was given when starting out as an Amazon seller (39:52) Mina shares insights into his future plans (42:37) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcast Empire Flippers Marketplace Trivium Group  The PPC University  RankBell Helium10 DataDrive A2X  Quickbooks Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to create PPC campaigns that will move the needle for your FBA business!

How would you like to make money from buying and selling online businesses without having to purchase or operate an online business of your own? This exciting prospect is now within your reach thanks to the launch of the Empire Flippers referral program. By becoming a referral partner, you can earn 20% of our commission by referring businesses that are then successfully bought or sold on the Empire Flippers marketplace. Having spearheaded the creation of the referral program, Jim Barton, the Partnerships Manager at Empire Flippers, joins us to explain the many opportunities that the referral program offers to interested entrepreneurs.  Jim provides a step-by-step guide on the different types of referrals, how referrals partners are paid, what the process of making a referral actually looks like, and the qualities we look for in a good referral. Jim explains, “The Empire Flippers referral program works in two ways. We have seller referrals where you refer somebody who wants to sell their business and buy-side referrals where you refer somebody who wants to purchase a business.  As a referral partner, you will get paid for everything your referral does with us from our two-year cookie, meaning if they buy or sell multiple businesses, you would collect referral commission on all of those.” Jim also gives us a peek behind the curtain of what it takes to create a referral program from scratch, and shares stories of the enormous success the entrepreneurs who joined our pilot program have already experienced. Whether you’re looking for a way to diversify your income, cash in on your large professional network, or leverage the traffic coming to your site, listen closely because this episode will tell you everything you need to know about the Empire Flippers referral program. Topics Discussed in This Episode: Jim walks us through how he ended up running the referral program (03:52) The motivation behind starting the Empire Flippers referral program (06:15) How our referral program differs from affiliate contracts and other payout projects (07:51) The nuts and bolts of how the Empire Flippers referral program works (11:15) The process of making a successful referral (13:08) What does, and does not, qualify as a valid referral (16:32) The different kinds of people who could benefit from the referral program (18:40) The various tools available to referral partners to track their referrals (24:16) The benefits of using the Empire Flippers referral program (27:04) The success stories Jim has already witnessed from the referral program (28:56) Jim describes his experience starting a referral program from scratch (33:23) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcast Empire Flippers Marketplace Sign up for the Empire Flippers referral program Sit back, grab a coffee, and discover the many advantages of Empire Flippers’ groundbreaking new referral program!

In the world of business, it’s all about who you know. But how do you connect with influential entrepreneurs and mentors when you’re just starting out? Matt Holmes made it his mission to find the answer to this question, shaking hands with venture capitalists, members of congress, and billionaires, in an effort to learn how to create powerful business relationships.  Using the knowledge he gained from this experience, Matt went on to create handshaking.com, a service that helped entrepreneurs connect with movers and shakers within their industry. Matt then pivoted the business into building and selling lead generation websites in an effort to help business owners make connections on a grander scale. In this episode, Matt joins us to share the secret sauce to forming long-lasting professional relationships, and how entrepreneurs should approach networking and building their personal brands. Matt also reveals valuable insights into the lead generation websites that he has created and gives us a behind-the-scenes look at the site he recently sold on the Empire Flippers marketplace. According to Matt, “Each lead generation website needs to have a true brand. It needs a logo, it needs the same business name, and it needs proper social media everywhere, just like a real business would. It needs to be a complete brand.” As the world record holder for the longest handshake, Matt is bursting with knowledge on how to network like a pro, so listen in to learn how to form long-lasting professional relationships that will elevate your business! Topics Discussed in this episode: Matt’s entrepreneurial journey so far and the evolution of handshaking.com (03:00) The different chapters of networking that entrepreneurs need to work through (09:03) The secret to forming long-lasting professional relationships (11:05)  How Matt developed his own personal brand (12:37) How to make contact with the people you want to network with(15:32) Why Matt transitioned away from consulting into building lead generation sites (20:07) The framework Matt used to build his first lead generation website  (22:09) Matt’s experience selling his website through Empire Flippers (24:27) A behind-the-scenes look at how Matt's website has performed since the sale (26:40) Why investing in websites beats investing in real estate (31:28) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcast Empire Flippers Marketplace Handshaking.com Boomerang Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to make professional connections that will take your business to the next level!

What is the secret to creating the fastest-growing startup in Canada before the age of 24? For Blair Forrest, the answer lay in identifying the nexus between a common pain point for FBA business owners, and an untapped gap in the logistics market.  While Amazon helps out by delivering products to consumers, the onus is on the seller to receive, store, label, and transport the inventory to Amazon fulfillment centers. It was here that Blair identified an opportunity. Blair is the founder of AMZ Prep, an end-to-end fulfillment solution for Amazon FBA sellers. AMZ Prep stores, preps, packs, and ships inventory to Amazon on behalf of sellers, saving them precious time and resources.   In this episode, Blair joins us to discuss the common logistical pitfalls that FBA sellers experience and outlines the various ways FBA sellers can optimize their logistics. According to Blair, “A lot of businesses have a fragmented approach to logistics, which is often why they don’t get the valuation that they want, or why they're not able to scale. What turns a good seller into a great seller is optimizing their fulfillment with a solid partner that has multiple warehouses, and can expand you to other marketplaces like Shopify and Walmart.”  Blair also shares insights into how he juggled starting and scaling a business while being a full-time student, and the various lessons he has learned along the way.  If you want to learn how to structure your logistics and inventory management like an FBA all-star, then this is the episode for you! Topics Discussed in This Episode: Blair walks us through his entrepreneurial journey so far (03:55) How Blair juggled running a business and being a full-time student (14:30) The gap in the market that inspired Blair to create AMZ Prep (18:28) Some common pain-points Amazon Sellers are experiencing today (22:17) How to streamline your Amazon logistics (29:16)  The common mistakes FBA sellers make when it comes to logistics(36:50) The secret to Blair's success(46:20) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcast Empire Flippers Marketplace AMZ Prep Notion Minimalist journaling article Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to create a logistics strategy that will set you up for future success. 

With Google algorithm updates regularly changing the game, what is the secret to a consistent, long-lasting SEO strategy? Perrin Carrel believes the answer lies in providing true value to your readers. Perrin is an SEO expert and co-founder of RANQ.io, a boutique SEO agency that offers a holistic approach to boosting organic traffic.  In this episode, prepare to get swept up in the highs and lows of Perrins epic SEO comeback story. He shares details of his run-ins with PBNs and the resulting fallout that crippled his first big site. He then describes the SEO techniques that allowed him to rise from the ashes and reclaim success by building his first supersite in the pet niche. According to Perrin, “The core building blocks of white hat SEO are keeping the user in mind and making link building mutually beneficial. All of the content on your site should truly serve the user and make their life a millimeter better rather than a millimeter worse.”  Perrin also talks about his personal exit strategies and sets the record straight on the various myths and misconceptions that plague the SEO industry.  Settle in for a masterclass on how to create a holistic SEO strategy that’ll keep readers coming back for more! Topics Discussed in This Episode: How Perrin got involved in the crazy world of SEO (03:20) The lessons Perrin learned from the downfall of his first content site (08:50) Perrin’s experience with black & gray hat link building tactics in today’s industry (15:10) The core building blocks of a white hat SEO strategy (18:57) The link building approach that led to the most growth on Perrin’s sites (22:32) How Perrin identified the right time to sell his previous sites (25:56) Building a content site with a future exit in mind (30:04) Why Perrin transitioned away from building sites into running his own agency (33:17) Common myths and misconceptions in the SEO industry (42:12) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcast Empire Flippers Marketplace Ranq.io Niche Pursuits Authority Hacker Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to build an SEO strategy that will benefit you and your readers! 

Losing money due to lost or damaged Amazon inventory is never a good feeling. The good news is, there are reimbursement systems in place to turn this negative experience into a positive for your business.  Few people know the ins and out of the reimbursement and claims process better than Yoni Mazor. Yoni is the CGO & Co-Founder of GETIDA, an auditing platform that helps Amazon FBA sellers identify and manage financial and inventory-related discrepancies. Yoni joins us to explain the reimbursement process from start to finish. He gives us a rundown of the different types of reimbursements, how to claim for a discrepancy, and the timelines associated with each type of claim.  Yoni reveals that around 50% of Amazon sellers are not even aware that the reimbursement system exists, and are missing out on important benefits as a result. According to Yoni, “For every 100 units that you ship to Amazon's fulfillment centers, 1 to 3 units will experience a discrepancy. Claiming for a reimbursement on lost or damaged inventory gives you cash flow that you can invest back into advertising, sourcing, launching new products, etc. It's an opportunity for you to take action and help your business to get what it's owed.” Yoni also gives us insights into the current Amazon FBA landscape and the changes and trends that he predicts for the coming year. As an added bonus, Yoni has generously offered our listeners $400 in free reimbursements! All you have to do is register on the GETIDA website using the link below. Topics Discussed in This Episode: Yoni’s entrepreneurial journey and how it led him to co-found GETIDA (03:00) How Yoni scaled his previous FBA business to $100 million in annual revenue (07:52) How GETIDA built a good relationship with Amazon seller support (12:26) The benefits of seeking out reimbursements from Amazon (17:12) The different types of reimbursements that FBA sellers can claim for (25:23) The steps that Amazon sellers need to follow in order to apply for reimbursement (29:26) How claiming for reimbursements can benefit your business in the long run (33:20) The biggest pain points that FBA sellers should be aware of today (37:49) Yoni discusses his future plans for GETIDA (40:56) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcast Empire Flippers Marketplace GETIDA Get $400 in reimbursements from GETIDA Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to recoup lost revenue on missing or damaged inventory.