From Startup To 8 Figure Business
From Startup To 8 Figure Business
How can business owners fix bottlenecks to boost sales?
Leverage is about taking 10 steps to get much more output from the same input. The key is identifying what creates that leverage. I do this by closely examining a business and finding the specific levers that drive sales in their industry. This could involve reviewing their processes and materials, how they generate leads, or how they qualify those leads.
What I usually find is one major area of weakness or a bottleneck. If everything else is working and you identify and fix that bottleneck, you can create significant leverage because the entire sales output is being held back by that one issue. In reality, there are often multiple bottlenecks, but usually, one stands out as the primary cause of problems.
How can business owners streamline sales and automate for better lead conversion?
The most common bottleneck I see is that businesses don’t think about sales like an assembly line. A sale should be viewed like bottles moving down a line—thousands of them. The key is understanding what happens to each bottle and how to move it down the line as efficiently as possible. Are the bottles uniform, or do some come out looking funny? The same goes for leads: How do they come in, and how fast do you respond?
For online leads, if you don’t respond within five minutes, your chances of closing that lead drop significantly. The buyer’s experience on your website is also crucial. What questions do they typically have? What’s their buyer journey? Do they need to see testimonials or talk to their boss before making a decision?
Your process—whether on the phone or online—should guide them through the journey. Do you understand different buyer personas? Can you quickly identify leads that won’t convert and eliminate them, so you can focus on those that will? You want to separate the wheat from the chaff as quickly as possible and focus on the qualified leads.
You also need to know your sales cycle—whether it's 30 days, 90 days, or more. Are you speaking to all the key decision-makers in the buying process? In many industries, multiple people are involved in the decision. Are you addressing each of their concerns?
Finally, think about your competition and automate tasks wherever possible. The moment you can automate something, do it. That’s leverage.
What can business owners do to overcome fear and take bold steps?
The antidote to stepping out and doing something that requires courage is simply to do it. People often think they need to take action with complete confidence and no fear, but that’s far from reality. I was scared when I left my full-time job at a Fortune 500 company to start my first business. Suddenly, I had zero income, no healthcare—it was terrifying. But taking that leap was the antidote to the fear.
Even now, I don’t think I’ve ever not been scared. I’ve been terrified the whole time, but I keep going. That fear has been a source of motivation. People often assume I’m an extrovert because I’m in sales, but I’m more introverted than they think. Even being on this podcast is scary for me, but I do it and hope for the best.
Why is networking and mentoring key to business growth?
For me, the tricky part of growing my business wasn't doing the actual work—I could do that easily. The challenge was in building a business where traditional techniques don't apply. It’s a high-trust sale, so you can't rely on the usual methods.
One of the best decisions I made was getting to know incubators and other fractionals, as they became my lead source and source of growth. Interestingly, this didn’t come from wanting to grow my business but from a desire to help entrepreneurs.
Mentoring and supporting new entrepreneurs has become one of the things that drives me. I’ve met so many smart entrepreneurs who struggle with self-belief. When they talk to me, they often realize, "If this guy can do it, so can I." Sometimes all it takes is me sharing some simple advice they already know, but it boosts their confidence to take the next step.
*This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.*
