The Opportunity Podcast

Considering Google was created only 25 years ago, finding someone who has been working in the online marketing and affiliate industry for almost 18 years is rare. All the way back in 2005, Matt McWilliams created an affiliate program in a last-ditch effort to earn money for his business that was nearing bankruptcy. The affiliate program took off, growing from zero to more than $1,000,000 a month in only 18 months. Matt hasn’t looked back since.In this episode, Matt gives us a behind-the-scenes look at what it's like to run an affiliate program.  We dive into Matt’s war stories from years in the industry, the foundations of a good affiliate program, and why Matt has chosen to stay in the affiliate world for so many years. Matt explains,  “The thing I love about affiliate marketing is it's relatively risk-free because you don't pay affiliates until you make money. Whereas you have to pay Facebook before you make any money from your Facebook ads.” Matt also sets the story straight on the difficulties of creating an affiliate program, explaining that it takes time to build up a steady flow of revenue and that attracting the right breed of affiliate partners can be a trial-and-error process. If you’re thinking of joining the affiliate industry, then don’t miss out on this peek behind the curtain from an affiliate program veteran. Topics Discussed in This Episode: Matt’s background and how he got involved in the affiliate industry (02:52) The importance of having a good relationship with your affiliate partners (10:55) The type of affiliates Matt has served (23:03)  The 3-5 core elements a beginner should focus on when building their affiliate site  (28:08) AI in affiliate marketing (30:29) Should every business have an affiliate program? (37:33) How to set up an affiliate program for a small business (38:05) Matt’s funniest moment in internet marketing (53:15) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcasts Empire Flippers Marketplace Create an Empire Flippers account Subscribe to our weekly newsletter  MattMcwilliams.com/empire  Plot & Structure by James Scott Bell Sit back, grab a coffee, and get a behind-the-scenes peek into the inner workings of the affiliate program industry!

There’s a lot on the line when you buy a business, so you want to make sure you buy a business that is primed for success.  An important lesson you need to learn as a buyer is that you can’t take businesses at face value. There’s a lot going on below the surface that you need to uncover. That’s where due diligence comes in.  Few people know more about the due diligence process than Elliott Holland. Elliott is the Co-Founder and CEO of Guardian Due Diligence, a diligence solution for first-time buyers and self-funded searchers. In this episode, Elliott takes us on a deep dive into the due diligence process.  He highlights red flags buyers should look out for, the common mistakes buyers make, and he breaks down the due diligence process, step by step. According to Elliott, “There are four main buckets of due diligence in online business. Financial, Operational, Commercial, and Online metrics. In online business, 70 to 80% of due diligence is focused on financials. Financials are created through the operations of a business, and so they are a great way to really understand the story of the business.” Elliot also shared his top due diligence war stories and the lessons buyers can learn from them.If you’re in the market to buy an online business, this episode is jam-packed with useful information that could make or break your acquisition! Topics Discussed in This Episode: Elliott's background and how he became involved in business acquisitions (02:22) What is Quality of Earnings? (14:13) The best time to hire a due diligence service (21:50) The different areas of due diligence (23:09) What Elliott looks at when examining a business’s financials (25:37) How Elliott examines a business’s operations (32:19) The classic due diligence mistake experienced entrepreneurs make (41:54) Top due diligence questions buyers should ask (44:50) Elliott's favorite due diligence war stories (53:16) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcasts Empire Flippers Marketplace Create an Empire Flippers account Subscribe to our weekly newsletter  Guardian Due Diligence 10 best practices doc War Stories hub Elliott’s Twitter Elliott’s YouTube channel Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how the due diligence process really works!

Sometimes, consumers need a little nudge to convince them to add your product to their checkout cart.  You could try using discounts and promotions to lure consumers in, but these techniques aren’t always sustainable and can eat into your bottom line. So what strategies can you use instead? Nancy Harhut believes the answer lies in neuromarketing. Nancy is the Co-Founder and CCO of HBT Marketing, an agency that blends creativity with behavioral science to drive consumer engagement. Through many years of research, Nancy has learned that consumer behavior often isn’t rational. Instead, people are driven by hard-wired, instinctive and emotional responses. By tapping into behavioral science techniques, entrepreneurs can trigger these instinctive responses to boost conversions.  In this episode, Nancy joins us to explain the science behind consumer decision-making and walks us through how to use concepts like the authority principle, social proof, and loss aversion to increase purchase intent. According to Nancy,  “Behavioral scientists have found that people are twice as motivated to avoid the pain of loss as they are to achieve the pleasure of gain. So as a marketer, you should inject a little well-placed loss aversion. Instead of saying “Take advantage of”, try saying “Don’t miss out on”. That’s what people really pay attention to because people hate to lose out.” Don’t risk missing out on any more sales! Use Nancy’s expert advice to gain an advantage over your competitors and stand out from the crowd. (See what we did there?) Topics Discussed in This Episode: Nancy’s entrepreneurial background and the origins of HBT Marketing (03:45) Neuromarketing and behavioral science and how it applies to marketing (08:43) The topics Nancy’s book covers and how it can help marketers (15:40) How Nancy created a 13% increase in purchase intent for one of her clients (17:41) Top techniques to trigger emotional responses in your customers (20:54) How different demographics respond to neuromarketing techniques (31:17) Common mistakes people make when attempting to use neuromarketing (35:01)  Cringy marketing techniques you should avoid (37:47) What inspired Nancy to write her book Using Behavioural Science in Marketing (44:38) Changes and trends that have influenced marketing over the last few years (48:35) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcast Empire Flippers Marketplace Schedule a call with our expert sales advisors  HBT Marketing Using Behavioural Science in Marketing by Nancy Harhut  The Believing Brain by Michael Shermer Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to increase purchase intent through behavioral marketing.

This week we are revisiting an extra special episode of The Opportunity podcast.  In this episode, Greg looks back on a few of our most memorable interviews to review the top 7 lessons learned from the last 100 shows.  You’ll hear many familiar voices as some of our favorite entrepreneurs and industry experts share their top tips for building, running, and scaling successful online businesses. Greg acts as our guide, walking us through each lesson and sharing his own unique insights and pearls of wisdom. One of Greg’s top takeaways includes, “If you want to build wealth, don’t focus on making money today. Focus on making an experience that will create fans of yours for years to come. Because if you make enough of those fans you’re going to create a snowball effect that’ll carry you far into the future.” Join in the celebration by letting us know which episode or guest has been your favorite so far! Be sure to share this episode with your friends and family so that they can join us for the next 100 episodes where we’ll continue to uncover all of the hidden growth opportunities in the online business industry. Topics Discussed in This Episode: Lesson 1: Creating a Machine of Leverage by Knowing the Value of Your Time (02:07) Lesson 2: Learning to Love Risk to Create Wealth (10:30) Lesson 3: Spending 9 Hours Sharpening the Axe, and One Hour Cutting Down the Tree (17:07) Lesson 4: Creating Value While Respecting Your Audience’s Time (26:33) Lesson 5: Communication and Thinking in Four Degrees of Impact (31:43) Lesson 6: Why the Best Marketing Isn’t a Tactic, It’s an Experience (39:45) Lesson 7: Persistence Through Adversarial Wins (44:23) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcast Empire Flippers Marketplace Schedule a call with our expert sales advisors  Jobs to be Done Framework Featured Guests: Kevin Espiritu (Ep #87) Matt Diggity (Ep #23) Sushee Nzeutem (Ep #59) John Hefter (Ep #19) Emma Shermer Tamir (Ep #49) Doron Wolffberg (Ep #41) Perrin Carrell (Ep #79) Alexis Grant (Ep #84) Chelsea Cohen (Ep #42) Fabricio Miranda (Ep #91) Chelsea Jones and Rachel Saul (Ep #74) Nicole Baqcai (Ep #55) Ben Donovan (Ep #71) Bill Szabrak (Ep #6) Sit back, grab a coffee, and take a trip down memory lane as we discuss the valuable lessons learned from the past 100 episodes.

Niels Zee, an expert in the Dutch affiliate industry, discusses the unexplored potential and unique characteristics of the Dutch market. He emphasizes the importance of high-quality backlinks and shares insights on growth opportunities and trends in the Dutch affiliate market. The episode also touches on topics such as the impact of AI, deal structures for buying websites, and the benefits of having a foreign affiliate website.

Many highly skilled SEOs and digital marketers use their expertise to build high-performing websites and other online assets.  Others recognize that their skill itself is an asset that they can leverage. So they create an agency, hiring out their SEO and PPC expertise to businesses in need. But building an agency is no walk in the park. How do you rise above the noise and claim your spot in this highly competitive arena? In this episode, we sit down with two entrepreneurs who’ve walked the talk—David Kauzlaric and Erich Schaefer, the minds behind Agency Elevation. This full-service, white-label agency offers a suite of digital solutions, including SEO, PPC, Facebook Ads, and TikTok Ads.  Join us as they pull back the curtain on their journey to agency success.Diving into their strategy, David and Erich unveil the blueprint of Agency Elevation's triumph. One standout element? Transparent pricing. While many agencies play the hidden-cost game, David and Erich defy the norm by showcasing their pricing upfront, fostering trust and transparency. With a 100% US-based team, Agency Elevation eliminates the hurdles of time zones and communication, ensuring swift turnarounds and effective collaboration.  They also walk us through the common characteristics that successful agencies share. The most important ingredient of success? Focusing on a specific niche. According to David and Erich, “Niche-focused agencies are the easiest to scale because you can get instant credibility with just good branding. All you need is a good offer, good branding, and experience or results in that industry. We see guys going from zero to multiple seven figures in three or four years because they're niche focused.“ So, whether you’re a budding entrepreneur with dreams of agency ownership or a seasoned player aiming to amplify your agency's performance, this episode holds the key. Enjoy! Topics Discussed in This Episode: David and Erich’s entrepreneurial journey and how they started their agency (02:09) Why Agency Elevation is 100% US based (05:02) How David and Erich manage to serve a high variety of niches and services (09:03) How the agency is structured in order to scale and stand out from the crowd (18:11) The service hierarchy that David and Erich recommend to their customers ( 22:22) Why David and Erich prioritize being transparent about their pricing (25:12) The common traits of successful agencies (33:24) The benefits of niching down vs building a general agency (37:18) David and Erich's approach to scaling sustainably (42:06) Top advice for agency owners who are looking to start and grow (46:55) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcasts Empire Flippers Marketplace Schedule a call with our expert sales advisors  Create an Empire Flippers account Subscribe to the This Week in M&A newsletter Agency Elevation GoHighLevel David’s Facebook page Sit back, grab a coffee, and peek behind the curtain of a successful white-label agency!

With the content marketing industry constantly evolving, it’s easy to get caught up chasing the latest trends and forget about the basic principles that form a strong marketing foundation. This week’s guest, Philipp Schoeffmann, joins us to explain how to build on those basics to turbocharge your marketing. Philipp is a 20-year marketing veteran. He has not only lit up the stage as the charismatic host of the Affiliate Worlds conferences, but he is also the pioneer behind Reals, a service that repurposes your existing video content into engaging clips that boost your brand’s authority. Philipp sits down with Greg to explain why marketers need to avoid shiny object syndrome and instead focus on the core ingredients of marketing mastery.   Before you can expect to successfully market to your audience, you need to understand what drives them. What makes them tick? What keeps them up at night? Armed with this knowledge, you can create attractive offers and impactful content that really resonates with consumers and keeps them coming back for more. The good news is that creating powerful content doesn’t have to be a grueling process. With the right structure in place and a little help from AI, creating high-quality content at scale is easy as pie.  Another way to save time and money on content creation is to lean into the power of user-generated content. According to Philipp, “User-generated content is definitely the way to go. In general, you can expect your traffic to be maybe a fourth in terms of cost. CPMs are a lot lower. Engagement rates are four or five times higher. And you just build up a lot of trust. So user-generated content gets you better buyers at a cheaper cost.” If your marketing feels tired and lackluster, listen in to Philipp’s top-notch advice on how to create content that really packs a punch!As an added bonus, Phillip is offering our podcast listeners a 20% discount on his Reals service. Head over to the Reals website (linked below) to learn more! Topics Discussed in This Episode: Phillip walks us through his 20-year journey in online business (04:22)  How the marketing industry has changed over the last 20 years (09:30) How to create value in your marketing (12:59) Why content is still king in 2023 (19:30) How to structure your content so that it is not a time killer (26:29) The anatomy of what makes a good short video (36:18) How brands can encourage the creation of user-generated content(49:27) How Phillipp uses AI to create content (53:33) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcasts Empire Flippers Marketplace Schedule a call with our expert sales advisors  Create an Empire Flippers account Subscribe to the This Week in M&A newsletter Reals $100M Offers: How To Make Offers So Good People Feel Stupid Saying No by Alex Hormozi ElevenLabs Descript Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn the secret to mastering content marketing in 2023 and beyond!

Shopify store owners have a whirlwind of responsibilities like managing supply chains, keeping tabs on inventory levels, and staying ahead in a competitive market.  It's no wonder that SEO often takes a backseat. In the race for quick results, many sellers lean towards paid advertising, but this week’s guest believes that SEO is the real game-changer that will set the stage for skyrocketing sales.Benjamin Golden is the founder of GoldenWeb, an SEO agency focused on scaling Shopify brands through SEO. In this episode, Benjamin explains that while paid ads might offer instant gratification, they are no match for the steady and sustainable stream of traffic that SEO can bring to your Shopify store. He walks us through the first steps to kickstart a thriving Shopify SEO strategy, the crucial role the backlinks play in eCommerce SEO, and how to strike the perfect balance between paid ads and organic traffic.Benjamin also shares his views on how AI will affect the eCommerce and SEO industries, explaining, “I think AI will affect every single business, but not in the way that people think. I like to compare it to the gold rush. It wasn’t everyone that was digging up and mining gold that got rich. It was the people selling the shovels.  The same thing will happen with AI. Everyone is rushing into building the next AI tool, and some of those businesses will succeed and do well, but that's going to get very saturated, very fast. The people that will really benefit from AI are the ones that learn how to properly integrate AI into their business.’ Finally, Benjamin explains the unique advantages of buying online businesses as an agency owner, using the resources, internal processes, and industry connections the agency has developed to fast-track growth. If you're an eCommerce store owner then listen up, because this episode is filled with actionable insights and expert tips that will supercharge your store's SEO and sales. Topics Discussed in This Episode: Benjamin’s background and how he became involved in SEO (03:08) Why Benjamin chose to focus on SEO specifically for Shopify stores (05:27) How eCommerce SEO differs from affiliate SEO (09:38) The first steps of a successful Shopify SEO strategy (14:47) The crucial role backlinks play in eCommerce SEO (20:17) How to allocate your marketing budget between paid ads and SEO (27:34) Common SEO mistakes that eCommerce store owners make (32:37)  Why Benjamin believes AI is like the gold rush (37:48) The reason Benjamin decided to diversify his income by buying a SaaS business (46:55) The benefits of buying online businesses as an agency owner (50:37) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcasts Empire Flippers Marketplace Schedule a call with our expert sales advisors  Create an Empire Flippers account Subscribe to the This Week in M&A newsletter GoldenWeb Ahrefs Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to propel your Shopify store to unparalleled heights using the power of SEO!

The entrepreneurial journey is an adventure filled with twists and turns. It's normal to try different paths before discovering what brings out the best in you – be it the right niche, a lucrative business model, or a monetization strategy. Yet, the allure of rapid growth can tempt entrepreneurs to abandon their hard-earned lessons and happiness for the sake of expansion.  Aware of this common pitfall, Jesse Hanley has prioritized calm over growth when building his new business, Bento. Bento was born out of Jesse’s desire to learn how to code and to solve common problems he saw firsthand through his marketing agency. What began as analytics and ad tracking software soon morphed into an email automation platform as Jesse pulled threads, experimented, and refined his vision.  As the business grew, Jesse sold his agency so that he could devote all of his time and energy to Bento.  In this episode, we explore the organic growth of Bento and dive deeper into Jesse’s desire to keep his business small. Jesse explains the dangers of a growth-at-all-costs mentality and walks us through how he has structured Bento to remain small but powerful in a competitive niche.  Lastly, Jesse explains that his “keep it simple” philosophy also extends to email marketing. According to Jesse, “If you want to grow your business, send more emails. The people who make the most money are those who are sending emails every single day with simple, well-communicated offers. Just send more emails, run your ads, and keep it simple.” This episode goes beyond the usual business and marketing techniques, taking a closer look at the entrepreneurial mindset and how goals and ideologies shift over the course of your business journey.  This no holds barred, honest discussion is one for the books. Enjoy! Topics Discussed in This Episode: Jesse’s background and entrepreneurial journey so far (02:40) How the sale of Jesse’s agency spurred on the growth of Bento (03:17) Building a “calm” business that doesn’t chase growth at all costs (10:20) The origins of Bento and how it stands out from the crowd (21:09) How Jesse structured Bento’s pricing as the company grew (33:55) The marketing techniques Jesse uses to brow Bento’s brand awareness (43:17) Why Jesse wants to keep Bento small (45:17) How to get better at email marketing (57:14) Jesse’s advice to aspiring digital entrepreneurs (59:44) Mentions: Empire Flippers Podcasts Empire Flippers Marketplace Schedule a call with our expert sales advisors  Create an Empire Flippers account Subscribe to the This Week in M&A newsletter Bento Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn the benefits of growing your business at a sustainable and steady pace.

SEO expert Azedine Djedid shares his blueprint for success in creating a foreign language content strategy. He discusses the advantages of entering non-English SEO markets and highlights emerging markets like Brazil, Mexico, and Saudi Arabia. Azedine also covers the strategy of building websites on aged domains, the risks of using images without commercial rights, and the impact of AI on the SEO industry. He shares insights on selling foreign properties and recommends using marketplaces for efficient transactions. The podcast concludes with discussions on effective tools for managing foreign language sites and a funny moment in internet marketing.