The Opportunity Podcast

How do you get consumers to sit up and pay attention to your brand on social media?  You could hire an influencer to promote your product to their followers, but how do you track down the right influencer for your specific brand? As an Amazon seller himself, this frustrating problem inspired William Gasner to co-create Stack Influence. Stack Influence is an online platform that connects Amazon FBA brands with micro-influencers. Receiving the brand's product as payment, the micro-influencers spread the word about FBA brands through social media posts, product feedback, and video testimonials.  William joins us to discuss the challenges Amazon sellers face when building a recognizable brand identity and the many benefits of marketing through micro-influencers. He dives into the core elements that make up a strong brand identity, and some of the common mistakes FBA sellers make when promoting their products on social media. We also discuss the difficulties of marketing visually unappealing products, and Wiliam shares some clever tips and tricks for how to work around this problem. According to William, “When it comes to social media marketing, I usually recommend to brands whose products aren't the most exciting or visually appealing to get creative with adding extra value to your product. Basically, add something to your product that is universally valued and exciting to promote.” William also sheds some light on his journey as a founder, including some of the obstacles he faced when co-creating Stack Influence and the rather unconventional method he used to raise growth capital. If you want to learn how to light a fire under your brand’s social media presence, then you’re in the right place! Topics Discussed in this episode: William sheds light on Stack Influence, and the problems it solves for FBA sellers (05:00) What is a micro-influencer? (09:08) The core elements of a strong brand identity(12:18) Why a micro-influencer strategy can be effective for businesses of all sizes (15:27) How to create a winning social media strategy for a visually unappealing product (18:40) The common mistakes sellers make when marketing on social media (21:59) Why a micro-influencer strategy is a great solution on all ecommerce platforms (24:55) How the growing social commerce trend has affected social media marketing (27:09) The obstacles William faced in getting Stack Influence off the ground (29:43) How William raised growth capital through Clubhouse (30:58) Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to spread the word about your FBA brand through the power of micro-influencers!

Wouldn’t it be great to get a sneak peek into the future to gain insights into who your most loyal customers will be, which products they’ll buy, and how much profit you’ll make as a result? Metrics like customer lifetime value (LTV) and customer acquisition costs (CAC) can help you to predict these outcomes, if you can find a way to access this precious data, that is.  Amazon is notorious for safeguarding customer data, but Rael Cline has found a way to access and interpret this information on behalf of Amazon sellers. Rael is the co-founder and CEO of Nozzle, a tech platform that helps FBA sellers unlock deep insights about their brand performance. In this episode, Rael discusses the difficulties that Amazon sellers face in trying to build a brand identity without fully understanding their audience. We walk through why an AI-based platform is the ideal solution to gathering and interpreting Amazon data, and how FBA sellers can use this information to get ahead of their competition. He also reveals how to use these metrics to grow your business. According to Rael,  “There are three levers you can use to help increase your customer lifetime value. Getting customers to buy again is the biggest thing. Increasing the average order value is another way of increasing your LTV, and another way of doing it is getting them to buy more frequently.” Rael also shares insights into the data that Amazon aggregators find most valuable, and how they use that information to inform their buying decisions. Whether you’re looking to enhance your customer experience, optimize your product offering, or simply learn more about the nuances of AI, this episode has it all! Topics Discussed in this episode: How Rael made his way into the world of online business (02:23) The challenges Amazon sellers face when trying to access their customer data (09:24) How Rael created Nozzle to help FBA sellers overcome these challenges (12:05) The various ways Amazon sellers can optimize their LTV and CAC (16:00) The Amazon data sets that FBA sellers are most surprised by (21:54) How Rael harnessed AI to create a unique solution for gathering and interpreting Amazon data (25:14) The Amazon data sets that aggregators hone in on when eyeing a new acquisition (34:04) Rael’s predictions on the upcoming Amazon trends in 2022 (38:31) Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to leverage your customer data to maximize your business.

Successfully scaling one online business is hard enough, but building out an entire portfolio of businesses is a challenge few entrepreneurs are able to overcome.  Not only did Simon Treulle knock this challenge out of the park, but he achieved this entrepreneurial milestone before the age of 24!  Simon is the founder of Pangolia, a business with multiple high-value brands and content sites under its umbrella. In this episode, Simon explains how building a strong network of mentors and fellow entrepreneurs helped him accelerate his success, and why maintaining good relationships with suppliers is key. According to Simon, “If you want to grow your content site, build good relationships with your affiliate managers. They are humans and they are in the business of relationships. Talk, help each other, and you’ll see your business grow.” Simon gives us insights into his entrepreneurial journey, including what inspired him to move from Denmark to Chaing Mai, the epicenter of SEO, when he was just 19. He walk us through the hard work and sacrifice that helped him achieve success, and why he chose to hone in on the pet niche when building out his portfolio. Speaking of his portfolio, Simon also discusses how he transitioned from building sites into buying them, what he looks for in new business acquisitions, and the benefits of consolidating multiple small websites into one big site. He also explains why he made the jump into eCommerce through his latest acquisition, Hepper, and reveals how he grew Hepper from 100 visitors per day to 40.000 readers per day.  If you want to know how to make the leap from owning one business to owning several, this episode is the perfect place to start! Topics Discussed in this episode: Simon walks us through his experience entering the world of online business (02:14) Why Simon decided to build a portfolio of businesses in the pet niche (12:14) How Simon transitioned from owning one business to running several (14:17) The benefits of running eCommerce and content site businesses in synergy (16:36) What qualities Simon looks for in a new business acquisition (18:46) How Simon adapted to running an eCommerce business alongside his content sites (23:53) How Simon grew the traffic on his eCommerce site from 100 daily visitors to 40,0000 (27:11) The key to successfully running multiple businesses simultaneously (31:22) Simon’s advice to entrepreneurs looking to replicate his success (32:04) Simon reveals what’s next, and his plans for growing his businesses further (37:23) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcast Empire Flippers Marketplace Pangolia Hepper Ahrefs Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to grow one content site into a powerful portfolio of online businesses. 

Creating a quality product is the first step to achieving Shopify success. But generating a base of loyal, engaged customers through an effective marketing strategy, is what will take your Shopify store from good to great. As the founders of Chelsea & Rachel Co, one of only five woman-owned Shopify-Plus Preferred Partners in the world, Chelsea Jones and Rachel Saul are experts in this arena. With a combined 30+ years of experience between them, they create powerful development and marketing strategies that accelerate the growth of Shopify stores. Chelsea and Rachel discuss how Shopify differs from other eCommerce platforms, and how to leverage these nuances to create a marketing strategy that will set you apart from your competitors. They reveal the common mistakes sellers make when marketing on Shopify and explain how to deepen customer engagement when growing a Shopify brand. According to Rachel, “The most important piece of an eCommerce marketing strategy is to make sure that your customer experience is seamless. A lot of times brands are looking at KPIs, growth numbers, and revenue. All of those things are critically important, but you cannot neglect the number one most important metric  - customer experience.”  Chelsea and Rachel also share insights into how they’ve carved out a space for themselves in the eCommerce industry as women-led founders, and walk us through how they’ve helped well-known food and wellness brands scale their customer base and solidify their brand identity. Topics Discussed in this episode: What inspired Chelsea and Rachel to start a digital marketing agency together (02:19) How Ecommerce marketing has changed and evolved over time (04:42) The nuances of Shopify versus other eCommerce platforms (10:31) Chelsea explains which Shopify marketing channels have the best ROI (14:52) How to implement an effective Shopify marketing strategy(20:05) How to deepen customer engagement when growing a Shopify brand (27:55) Common pitfalls Shopify sellers should avoid (31:29) The real-world results Chelsea and Rachel’s marketing strategies have achieved (34:47) Why Chelsea and Rachel decided to focus on food and wellness brands (38:58) How Chelsea and Rachel have carved a space for themselves in Ecommerce as women-led founders (42:17) Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to accelerate your Shopify sales using a well-crafted marketing strategy.

What if I told you that there’s a secret ingredient that can help you sell almost any business (yes, even the declining ones) in a fraction of the time?  I’m not referring to huge discounts or expert-level negotiation tactics. I’m talking about the often underestimated element of trust.  Doron Wolffberg, SEO expert and co-founder of Cliverse, has built and sold many content sites and has made buyer-seller trust the central focus of these deals.  In this week’s episode, Doron shares how transparency and trust helped him sell a content site at full listing price to a first-time buyer in just one day! He explains how this tactic not only preserves your reputation as a seller but also equips the buyer with the necessary information to take your business to the next level. Doron also dives into the key focus areas for building a successful content site and reveals how to prepare your site for a speedy and profitable sale. According to Doron, “Before you sell your site, make sure that you fix any faults from a technical standpoint. When buyers look at your site, they look at things like page speed. So even though it's not a huge ranking factor, if buyers see your site has a low score, it might turn them down a bit.” If you’re looking for ways to scale your content site or tips on how to market your site to sellers, this is the episode for you! Topics Discussed in this episode: How Doron got his start in the online business world (01:58) Doron breaks down the sites in his portfolio and his current projects (03:11) The benefits of being in the content site industry (04:12) Details about the business Doron recently sold on Empire Flippers (06:08)  The importance of seller transparency during an acquisition (11:54) How to market a flawed business fairly (16:09) A common factor that buyers neglect to think of during the sales process (19:22) Why quality should be the core focus for content site owners in 2022 (22:03) Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to set your content site up for a profitable, and fair, sale.  

How do you make the leap from identifying a great business opportunity, to forging a path for yourself in that particular industry? As a young entrepreneur, Sujan Patel quickly identified that SaaS businesses were growing at an astonishing rate, and made it his mission to break into the space. Fast forward to today, Sujan is the founder and owner of multiple SaaS businesses, including Mailshake, an email outreach tool that helps turn cold prospects into warm leads. In this episode, Sujan guides us through the ups and downs of his entrepreneurial journey and shares the inspiration behind Mailshake, the catalyst for his SaaS success. He shares his expert insights and growth tactics for how to stay competitive in an ever-evolving industry. According to Sujan, “Everyone talks about this silver bullet of growth, but there's no one silver bullet. It's all compounding effort. You find one lever and you pull it and it works. Then you find ways to scale it and keep trying to find more. It's just consistency, time, and testing.” As a veteran marketer, Sujan dives into how to build a moat around your business to protect it from competitors, and how to build a word-of-mouth engine that will boost your sales and brand identity. He also explains why he moved away from building businesses into buying established businesses instead. If you’re an aspiring SaaS entrepreneur, you don’t want to miss out on this roadmap to creating a sustainable and scalable SaaS business! Topics Discussed in this episode: Sujan walks us through how he ended up becoming a SaaS founder (02:16) The evolution of the Saas industry and where it’s headed (07:25) The inspiration behind Mailshake (12:09) The obstacles Sujan faced when trying to get Mailshake off the ground (16:31) The framework Sujan developed to successfully launch new SaaS ventures (19:57) Why Sujan transitioned into buying SaaS businesses instead of building them (23:13)  Why a word-of-mouth engine is such a powerful marketing tool (28:14) The biggest myths and misconceptions within the SaaS industry (35:55)  How to navigate the future of the SaaS industry safely (39:47) The lessons Sujan learned while writing his book, 100 days of Growth (43:59) Sit back, grab a coffee, and discover the framework for building a powerful SaaS portfolio.

How do you transform your FBA brand from a side hustle that simply helps you get by, into a powerhouse business designed to last?  Ben Donovan has discovered the secrets to answering this important question. Ben is a 7-figure Amazon FBA seller and the founder of Brand Builder University, an educational resource that teaches entrepreneurs how to launch profitable Amazon FBA brands. Ben gives us the lowdown on why an increasing number of FBA entrepreneurs are looking to sell their businesses. He also explains why building your business with a mindset to sell will set you up for greater success down the line.  Ben sells on 9 different Amazon marketplaces across North America and Europe. He explains how external influences like the pandemic and Brexit have affected European FBA businesses, as well as the benefits of selling in multiple marketplaces. According to Ben, “If you're selling in the US, you could launch in Canada, or in the UK on your very next inventory order. It’s super easy and it could add 20 or 30% to your sales, if not more, and you don't have to find a new product, supply chain, or supplier.” Ben also walks us through how to set up an effective exit planning strategy and explains why he’s planning on shifting away from building online businesses, into buying them.  If you’d like to take a deeper dive into Ben’s extensive FBA knowledge, check out his new course, The FBA Freedom Challenge, in the links below. Topics Discussed in this episode: How Ben has built his business portfolio to its current level (05:11) How the pandemic and ecommerce boom have affected the European marketplace (08:45) The pros and cons of selling in the European marketplace (10:59) The power of community when building out an Amazon FBA business (14:05) Why more and more FBA sellers are thinking about exiting their business (17:28) The differences between building a business to keep and building one to sell (20:53) The lifestyle that a passive FBA business can give you (27:13) How to structure an effective exit planning strategy (30:21) The inspiration behind Brand Builder University (35:19) Why Ben plans to start buying businesses instead of building them from scratch (41:32) Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to create an FBA business that will grow into a profitable asset!

With the ecommerce industry now booming in Europe, new aggregators are rising up to forge a place for themselves in this highly competitive arena. But what are these aggregators doing to set themselves apart from the crowd? In this episode, we’ll be talking to Hanna Nowotzin, Head of Sourcing at Factory 14, a growing European FBA and ecommerce aggregator with a focus on sustainability and brand excellence. Hanna gives us a rare behind-the-scenes look at the EU ecommerce landscape and the changes she has seen shape the industry in the last few years. She explains what qualities she looks for in a new acquisition, what expansion opportunities make sense within the European market, and why Factory 14 places so much importance on multi-channel expansion. According to Hanna, “Sales channel expansion through bolt-on acquisitions is an excellent way to significantly accelerate revenue growth as well as lower your specific marketplace risk.” Hanna also gives us some valuable insights into the emerging trends that may impact the FBA and ecommerce industry in the coming year.  So, if you want to learn what it takes to build a successful FBA business in Europe, grab a notebook and listen in on Hanna’s excellent advice! Topics Discussed in this episode: How Hanna became involved in the world of online business acquisitions (02:22) The current state of the FBA and ecommerce marketplace in Europe (04:00) How Factory 14 differentiates itself from other aggregators (06:35) The qualities Hanna looks for in an online business acquisition (08:02) Why the business Factory 14 recently bought from our marketplace caught Hanna’s eye (12:40) How to ensure your offer stands out from the crowd during the negotiation process (14:57) Why Hanna is passionate about bolt-on acquisitions and sales channel expansion (16:57) Factory 14’s specialized program to boost the growth of new acquisitions (19:14) How businesses can make themselves more attractive to aggregators (22:05) The emerging trends that may shape the FBA industry in 2022 (24:33) Sit back, grab a coffee, and peek behind the curtain of the European FBA and ecommerce industries!

You never get a second chance to make a first impression. While an attractive website may draw consumers in, user testing is often the key to creating a memorable, user-friendly buying journey that’ll keep consumers coming back for more.  In this episode, we’re joined by user testing expert Quinn Zeda. Quinn is the founder of Conversion Crimes, an accessible and affordable user testing platform. She reveals how user testing can reduce your bounce rate and increase conversions by helping you get inside your customers’ heads. According to Quinn, “User testing reveals the why behind your website data and analytics. It helps you understand what's motivating people or what's causing friction for them. Then it's really easy to understand how to make a change or improvement on your website to solve that problem.” Quinn explains which areas of your website to focus on when performing user testing, and discusses some of the common mistakes that people make when trying to optimize their site’s usability. Quinn also gives us some insights into her journey as a SaaS founder, the lessons she learned along the way, and the various obstacles she had to overcome getting Conversion Crimes off the ground.  If you're searching for the secrets to an improved user experience and reduced churn, then look no further! Topics Discussed in this episode: How Quinn became involved in the world of online business (03:40) What inspired Quinn to start her SaaS business, Conversion Crimes (06:59) The obstacles Quinn had to overcome when launching her new business (14:38) The key lessons Quinn learned as a blossoming SaaS founder (18:59) The nuts and bolts of what user testing entails (23:41) The secrets that user testing might reveal that data just can't explain (25:52) The key areas Quinn focusses on when user testing websites (29:45) The common mistakes people make when trying to make a user-friendly site (33:44) The real-life ROI effects of user testing (34:37) Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to optimize your website and improve your ROI!

On their journey towards financial freedom, many investors hone in on assets like real estate and stocks, often overlooking the power of purchasing online businesses. Buying unconventional businesses is contrarian investor Codie Sanchez’s bread and butter. Codie has acquired a personal empire of cash-flowing assets across multiple business models. She teaches investors how to do the same as the founder of Contrarian Thinking, an educational resource where investors and entrepreneurs can learn about how to create an ocean of wealth through different income streams. In this episode, Codie explains why buying businesses is a great way to fast track your way to financial freedom. She walks us through the first steps to diversifying your income through online business acquisitions and the common mistakes many entrepreneurs make when trying to achieve financial independence. According to Codie, “The number one reason people don't achieve financial freedom is they do not spend the time thinking about it, they do not spend the time learning about it, and then they do not spend the time taking action on it.” Codie also discusses the philosophy behind being a contrarian investor, and how to effectively manage a portfolio of businesses.  If you’re looking for ways to kickstart your journey to financial independence, you don’t want to miss a minute of this episode! Topics Discussed in this episode: What it means to be a contrarian investor (02:07) Why business ownership is a great way to achieve financial freedom (05:20) The first steps to achieving financial freedom through business ownership (09:53) The benefits of diversifying asset classes (14:48) Managing time and leadership across multiple income streams (19:53) Common mistakes investors make on their journey to financial freedom (22:08) Out of date investment advice that investors should be wary of (26:09) Current trends that are driving the investment industry (29:34) The lessons Codie has learned throughout her career (35:36) Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to diversify your income streams through purchasing unconventional businesses!