INspired INsider Podcast

Richard Blank is the CEO of Costa Rica's Call Center, a division of Cheyenne Consultants, a company incorporated in Costa Rica. When Richard was 27 years old, he relocated to Costa Rica, where he started training employees for one of the large call centers in San Jose. He's trained over 10,000 bilingual telemarketers, shaping them to be the finest in the country. Richard is often sought after for private training sessions and consultations. In this episode… When business owners think about telemarketing, they often envision those aggressive-type callers who inundate people with calls, so they pass on implementing it into their business. As a result, they miss out on the opportunity for inbound support, outbound lead generation, and appointment setting.  Additionally, many businesses that do set up call support often make the mistake of focusing on the number of calls made or received rather than the quality. They’re not adept at handling inbound calls, tackling upsell opportunities, and rendering poor customer service. So how do you improve your customer support?  Listen to this Inspired Insider Podcast episode with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring Richard Blank, the CEO of Costa Rica's Call Center. They discuss misconceptions about telemarketing and call centers, diplomatic phrases to improve your customer support, how to handle inbound calls, and more!

David (Dave) Klein is the Founder, CEO, and President of North American Media, a direct marketing company located in Danbury, Connecticut, specializing in list brokerage and management, data solutions, space advertising, and interactive online services. Dave is a direct mail and direct marketing strategist and media buyer for mail space advertising and direct mail email. He has over 30 years of experience working with every type of business imaginable in every industry, partnering with some of the top people in direct response. Dave has a passion for helping people accomplish their customer acquisition goals. In this episode… Most major corporations with substantial online presence — including Google and Facebook — are doing direct mail marketing. Why? Because it works. Unfortunately, many business owners haven’t seen great results from their direct mail campaigns, which leads them to believe that direct mail doesn’t work.  According to direct marketing expert Dave Klein, direct mail works if you do it right. You want to remove the variables that can negatively affect mailing while optimizing the most critical variables. These critical variables include the mail piece, copy, design, and list. How do all these variables work together to deliver outstanding results for both B2C and B2B companies?  Listen to this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring the Founder, CEO, and President of North American Media, Dave Klein. They discuss the pitfalls to avoid when taking on direct mail marketing, the variables that make all the difference, space advertising and how to use it for B2B marketing, and lots more.

Alex Strathdee is the Founder of Advanced Amazon Ads, an agency that partners with best-selling authors to sell more copies and promote ideas that will change the world. He helps nonfiction authors who use their books to build their brand and generate leads.  At 21, Alex convinced 11 colleges to send his book to 40,000 students across the US — so it’s no surprise that he helps many authors get more visibility. Alex works from various countries around the world. A minimalist at heart, everything he owns fits into a backpack and duffel bag. In this episode… Have you ever wondered why some nonfiction books start to explode in sales over time compared to many others? We’ll let you in on a secret: it's because they are recommendable books. The first step to creating a recommendable book is writing a good book.  Unfortunately, that's easier said than done. Writing a good book is a more calculated process than people think. Additionally, to see great results, you have to clean up your Amazon listing page, avoid Amazon description mistakes, and set up a strategy to promote your book. Want to get the details? Listen to this Inspired Insider Podcast episode with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring the Founder of Advanced Amazon Ads, Alex Strathdee. They discuss the tips and tricks for using your book as a marketing funnel, promoting it on Amazon, and common mistakes to avoid. Alex also shares his favorite books and digs into the details of successful book promotion.

Ben Glass is the Founder and CEO of BenGlassLaw, a personal injury, medical malpractice, and disability law firm. He has been a personal injury lawyer for over three decades. Ben is also the Founder of Great Legal Marketing, LLC, a marketing and consulting firm teaching "effective, ethical, and outside the box marketing" to attorneys.  He’s the author of several books including The Truth About Lawyer Advertising, Five Deadly Sins That Can Wreck Your Injury Claim, and more. When Ben isn’t working, he’s a full-time father of nine children, four adopted from China.  He's also a small business advocate, nonprofit charity supporter, and soccer referee. Before becoming a referee, he was so good at playing soccer that he won a scholarship for all his troubles on the soccer pitch. In this episode… If you’ve built a business for any number of years, you know exactly how hard it is to keep the wheels spinning. Imagine building a law firm for over three decades while spending half your time teaching other lawyers how to grow theirs.  If that is not complex enough, think about building those businesses, adopting four children from abroad to increase the family size to nine kids, and writing and publishing books. Such is the wealth of learning, insight, and experience Ben Glass brings to this podcast episode. If you want to hear all about what it takes to grow your business despite challenges… Listen to this Inspired Insider Podcast episode with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring Ben Glass, the Founder and CEO of BenGlassLaw and Great Legal Marketing. They discuss creating lasting partnerships in business, strategies for hiring and retaining staff, fostering a strong culture, and more.

Guillaume Le Tual Is a multimedia technologist with a career spanning 15 years. Earlier in his career, he worked as a professional visual artist for clients such as Volkswagen, Discovery Channel, The National Bank of Canada, and Warner Bros.  He gained experience working in web design and digital marketing, and his expertise in the Magento e-commerce platform led him to start his own company, MageMontreal, an agency that works exclusively on the Magento platform to build e-commerce websites. Guillaume is also the Host of the Ecommerce Wizards Podcast.  In this episode… If you’re an e-commerce entrepreneur, you know how important it is to have your website, irrespective of the number of marketplaces you’re on. But the problem is that many e-commerce business owners struggle to sell websites.  Do you have enough traffic? Does that traffic convert? Does your product have proper product-market fit, and how efficient is your operation? When you answer these questions, you realize that you can turn your website into a sales machine. Here’s how it starts…  Listen to this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring Guillaume Le Tual, the CEO and Founder of MageMontreal. They discuss the low-hanging fruits of e-commerce websites, the use of AI in e-commerce, making your website sell, and more.

Lyn Wineman is a marketing veteran with over 30 years of experience, and her award-winning work has helped many national, regional, and local organizations achieve their goals.  Lyn is the President and Chief Strategist at KidGlov, a boutique advertising agency. She leads a diverse team of passionate and talented professionals to drive growth through strategic branding and marketing communications. KidGlov has been recognized multiple times as one of Lincoln, Nebraska's best places to work. It recently completed its B Corp certification. Before KidGlov, Lyn held many key leadership roles, including the President of Pickering Creative Group, Senior Vice President of Swanson Russell Associates, and Marketing Director of Tabitha.  In this episode… Since the reopening of businesses after the pandemic’s lockdown, brands are seeing that consumers and employees are more interested in aligning with companies that are making a positive impact in the world. But a positive impact doesn’t mean your business has to give away products. Your business can be impactful even through marketing — and that’s where purpose-driven marketing comes in: you can communicate why your brand exists and its impact on the world. But the first step is to let go of your implicit bias and open the doors for your brand to make a positive change. Want to find out more?  Listen to this Inspired Insider Podcast episode with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring Lyn Wineman, the President and Chief Strategist at KidGlov. They discuss the purpose-driven marketing process, dealing with implicit bias, handling controversial campaigns, and more. Stay tuned.

Shannon Hansen is the Owner of Lightfoot Media, a business he founded in 1995. Lightfoot Media is a full-service internet marketing agency focused on providing innovative ways to keep clients ahead of the competition. Shannon started his entrepreneurial journey at 21 while in college, where he created his first business that helped see him through college. Although Lightfoot Media is successful now, it has been a topsy turvy journey and was bankrupt for six years. After multiple iterations, Shannon’s figured it out, and his business has expanded rapidly, taking advantage of bigger and better opportunities. In this episode… The death or growth of any business depends on partnerships, employee recruitment, and retention. Without a system to continuously hire and retain A+ people in your company, you lose business and partnerships that could take you to the next level. The good news is that there’s a system that works to help you develop powerful partnerships and hire great people. It’s the CRMPPS (coachable, reliable, motive, problem-solving, personability, and superpower) method for hiring A+ people. Using this system, Shannon Hansen of Lightfoot Media was able to increase their employee retention from 30% to 80% and is better able to crush their organizational goals and build better partnerships. Want to know what CRMPPS is and how to use it?  Listen to this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring Shannon Hansen, Owner of Lightfoot Media. They discuss Shannon’s 26-year-plus entrepreneurial journey and how he uses the CRMPPs method to develop excellent partnerships and hire and retain A+ team members.

Matt Fraser is America's top psychic medium. He's also the star of the reality TV series Meet the Frasers on E! Entertainment. His sold-out live events, television appearances, and spiritual teachings have allowed him to bring healing, hope, and laughter to people all around the world. He's the Author of When Heaven Calls and We Never Die: Secrets of the Afterlife. Currently, he's on a nationwide live event tour throughout major cities. In this episode… The most challenging part of being a business owner is having so much self-doubt. We have so many limiting thoughts and limiting self-beliefs, and we're afraid to take that next risk or that next chance. When we’re scared of listening to ourselves, we miss out on trusting our intuition and psychic voice. When everybody around might be saying that your dream is not a good idea, that's when your intuition kicks in. It is that one voice inside that tells you it will. And when you listen to it, you can suddenly have these breakthroughs that nobody else has. Sadly, not too many entrepreneurs know how to listen to their intuition. But one expert is here to show us how it’s done… Listen to the Inspired Insider Podcast episode with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring Matt Fraser, America's top psychic medium. They discuss Matt's journey to becoming a psychic, how he helps business owners unlock their psychic abilities, what to do to heighten your intuition, and more. 

Winnie Hart is the Founder and Chief Right Engine of TwinEngine, a brand growth agency fueled by purpose. Winnie is an industry-recognized interpreter of a business' brand and personality. She brings more than 30 years of experience in impacting firms and leaders to know what they stand for so that they can make a difference in the world.  She is the Author of Stand Out: Tools to Manage the 8 Fundamentals of Standing Out in Business. Winnie is also the creator of the One Page Marketing Plan and Brand in the Box, which are strategic tools to help brands build a clear, structured plan to stand out. For the past 15-plus years, Winnie has been a member and is currently a Global Board Director of Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO).  In this episode… Is your business missing out on opportunities, and you don't know why? Or has your business grown to a level where you've lost touch with why you started in the first place? If you said yes to any of those questions, your business is out of alignment. And that impacts everything, including employee and customer retention and finding partnerships. The secret to changing that and unlocking your brand's sustainable growth is aligning your brand strategy with your business strategy (and no, they're not the same). Knowing what your business stands for is one thing, but knowing the difference you make in the world is another, and marrying those two is where many businesses struggle. Want to learn more? Listen to this Inspired Insider Podcast episode with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring the Founder and Chief Right Engine of TwinEngine, Winnie Hart. They discuss what goes into creating a brand strategy, identifying and sticking to your target audience, why it matters, and more.

Skyler (Sky) Fernandes is the Co-founder and General Partner at VU Venture Partners, a venture capital fund. He is also the Founder of Venture University, a multi-stage investment fund and a trade school for venture capital, private equity, and angel investing.  Sky has over 15 years of venture capital and private equity investing experience with over 150 portfolio companies. Prior portfolio companies include Beyond Meat (IPO'd, $14B), Sensity (acquired by Verizon, $300M+), ShopKick (acquired by SK Telecom, $200M), Made In Space (acquired by AE Industrial Partners), and more.  Sky is also the Co-founder of the #1 startup board game, The Next Big Thing: The Game of Entrepreneurship, backed by over 25 top accelerators and VC investors. In this episode… Investing in a startup is a significant risk, but the massive opportunity it holds is too good to pass on, especially for venture capitalists. What do these venture capitalists know that makes them invest millions into certain startups that almost no one has ever heard of? For companies yet to make a dollar in revenue, how do they determine their valuation? And which types of companies do VCs invest in? Sky Fernandes walks us through these critical questions. According to Sky, a significant deciding factor for VCs to invest in a startup is the market size and how extraordinary the opportunity is in terms of the magnitude of improvements. But getting the hang of these things is not a walk in the park. After 160 investments, Sky would still tell his younger self to have a higher bar of what ‘extraordinary’ is when he makes investments. Ready for a VC masterclass?  Listen to the Inspired Insider Podcast episode with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring the Co-founder and General Partner at VU Venture Partners, Sky Fernandes. They discuss what goes into a startup's valuation pre-revenue, how Sky chooses companies to invest in, raising capital, and more.