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Category: Capital

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Entrepreneurship Growth Wealth

Why Incorporate Or Form An LLC?

Over the last 25 years people have asked me what the benefits are of setting up a Corporation or an LLC. I always say, there are a lot of reasons to form one but let me go over the five primary reasons.

  1. Liability Protection: This means that you and your personal assets are separated from any liability that can affect your Company. Yes, insurance is always a first line of defense, however if someone claims negligence or punitive damages, insurance will always find a way to not get involved or remove themselves from the equation, so they do not have to pay. This means that the liability falls through to the business. If you do not have a properly structured Corporation or LLC, this means that you the Proprietor would assume the liability. Should this be a lawsuit situation, that means your personal assets and business assets would all be considered one and could be seized in the event a Judgment is achieved by said Creditor.
  2. Tax Savings: I hear this all the time, “My CPA said not to incorporate or form an LLC until I am making over $50k.” If you are looking to build a successful business, you need to incorporate or form an LLC now. Operating your business or investments as a Sole Proprietor gives you very limited deductions, roughly about 15-30 different deductions on your Schedule C. Whereas, if you use a Corporation or LLC, the IRS Corporate Tax Code is comprised of 81,000 pages, which equates to 233-305 different deductions you can take advantage of that will not only allow you more use of your money upfront, but also reduce your tax payment to whom I like to call our silent partner, “Uncle Sam.” As a Sole Proprietor you are also subject to Self-Employment Taxes if you are in an active business which is equivalent to 15.3% of your hard-earned money. So just know that you will not only pay Federal Income Tax, but State Income Tax and the Self-Employment Tax. This all could add up to 40%-45% of your revenue. When the government talks about taxing the rich, they are talking about W2 wage earners and Sole Proprietors. As the old saying goes, “The more money you make personally, the more money they, (the IRS & State) take.” As a Corporation or LLC, you can play the “game” by the rules that the IRS wants no one to know about.
  3. Protection against Creditors: What does this mean? Let us say you were operating as a Sole Proprietor and had a liability issue that resulted in a judgment or you went through a marital dissolution and your “Creditors” kept coming after every asset you acquire. If you establish a Corporation or LLC, you can limit the amount of how much the Creditors could take. They can only garnish what you draw personally but cannot attack the Corporation or LLC since it was not involved in the previous liability issue. This would be like someone going after your employer if you personally had a liability issue.
  4. Can build its own Credit Score: Corporations and LLCs have the ability to build their own separate credit from you. This will allow you to double if not triple your borrowing ability depending on whether you have one Company or three. This allows you to keep your personal FICO score up & Debt To Income Ratio down since you are not the only credit profile being used. Building credit immediately in your business is essential to not only maintain cashflow but to also build up the credit history of the Company to show that it can manage and sustain debt without you the Principle personally guaranteeing everything.
  5. Estate Planning: If you are looking to build your business to either sell or pass it on to the next generation, you need to form a Corporation or LLC. Corporations and LLCs have perpetual existence which means they do not die; they simply get a new President or Member. When you have a properly structured Corporation or LLC, you will receive a Record Book which contains Ownership Certificates. Once these are issued to your Family Trust, the Company becomes part of your estate plan which allows your estate including the Company to by-pass probate, should something happen to the owners. This is how you create true Generational Wealth.

 

If these five primary reasons do not explain to you why you should setup a Corporation or LLC right now, I encourage you to contact my office at 775-384-8124 or send an email to contact@controllersltd.com to schedule a time to speak with my Senior Strategists. We look forward to speaking with you and assisting you in building a more profitable & protected future!

Much Success,

Scott L. Arden, CEO
Controllers, Ltd.

Categories
Capital Case Studies Economics Investing

WATCH: Blackrock CEO’s Huge Crypto News for 2023!

BlackRock is the largest asset management company in the world with $10 Trillion in assets under management.

Recently BlackRock’s CEO, Larry Fink, explains (in detail) how there’s a complete reset in the global economy.

He discusses the effects of high inflation due to the European war, along with the inflation of the US dollar, but also predicts inflation (particularly US inflation) will decline rapidly.

In a recent interview, Fink rolls out Blackrock’s long term investment strategy that includes a surprisingly heavy bull position on crypto despite the current collapse of the decentralized token market due to the downfall of FTX.

Check out the full interview below…

WATCH:

Categories
Advice Real Estate

The Job You Have (or Had) Is NOT the Only One You Can Do: Use Kaleidoscope Thinking to Create Your New Future

This is the time of year when we slow down enough to contemplate how our year went and what’s ahead for us. It’s also a time of year for layoffs, as companies do the same. That means that a lot of people will be looking for new job opportunities in 2023, either by their own choosing or because their role has ended.

If you are in the latter category, do allow yourself some time to grieve. Whether you loved that lost job or merely tolerated it, being without it is a major change in status, routine, income predictability, and access to colleagues.

When you’re ready to launch your search, here are some things to keep in mind:

  • You still have your skills and your experiences
  • Your skills and experiences will allow you to do jobs similar to the one you had (or are contemplating leaving)
  • Your skills and experiences can be applied in new ways to a totally different role
  • You are worthy

When I work with someone who is seeking a new position, I share my analogy of the kaleidoscope. Kaleidoscopes create their captivating images using the same pieces (think skills and experiences), combined in different ways each time you change the position of the wheel. This is an especially helpful analogy for people who have determined that they don’t want to keep doing the same kind of work until their retirement and for people whose industry is retrenching.

 

My own kaleidoscope story

For 20 years I worked with a Fortune 500 company as a marketing communications consultant across two of their divisions, writing the kinds of written collateral  that would launch new medical devices around the world. Through my own choosing and to avoid any conflict of interest, they were my sole client. My primary skills were active listening to my clients explain about the new device, discerning what each of their audiences (physicians, patients and third-party payers) would want to know, and writing messaging that would resonate with each. Of course, I had deep content knowledge and a strong understanding of branding as well.

Then, in 2011, my phone no longer rang. My in-basket was empty. I learned that in response to an economic downturn the company had outsourced whole functions under retainer arrangements, including marketing communications.

I was out of business.

Because I knew practically no one outside the company and no one knew of my skills, I turned to LinkedIn to grow a network and to attract new clients or a new position. I knew that my writing skills would allow me to write about my skills effectively but I felt I needed to know more about how the platform worked. So I began to study LinkedIn intensely, attending webinars, reading articles, and following thought leaders. Along the way I reached out to my former clients who had also lost their jobs and helped them with their profiles. They were so impressed with my new content knowledge that they sent me their friends who needed help with their online branding, too.

 

Now I am honored to shine branding brilliance on people instead of products. I listen actively to my clients – where they’ve been and where they’re going. I discern how to most effectively communicate to their intended audience. And then I write authentic and powerful marketing story for them, using my new deep content knowledge of how the LinkedIn platform works.

Look again at the paragraphs above and note that the words in boldface are common between the two paragraphs.  You see, the key skills from my prior job are now being used in my new career. The new image created by shifting the shapes in my own kaleidoscope turned out to be even more satisfying to me than the last.

My own journey is one of the reasons I am very effective and successful at working with others whose job has ended or who no longer find their job to be satisfying. In fact, this year The American Reporter named me one of the six “top personal branding experts to watch.”

 

 

Use Kaleidoscope Thinking for Yourself

To use kaleidoscope thinking, concentrate on identifying your skills. Start by examining and modifying your Skills inventory on your LinkedIn profile. We all have skills that we don’t enjoy using as well as skills we are passionate about using. When you identify a skill that you don’t enjoy using, just delete it from your list. Then look over your list again. The chances are that although what is left on your list are skills you enjoy using, they don’t fully capture all the value you can bring to a workplace. It’s time to add additional skills you enjoy using that are not currently represented on your Skills inventory. LinkedIn allows you to list 50 skills, and using all 50 slots is the best practice. You might find it helpful to do this exercise with a trusted advisor familiar with LinkedIn’s skills inventory.

When you’ve completed subtracting and adding items on your Skills inventory, identify your three most important skills and pin them in the top three positions of your inventory.

 

Expand Your Horizon

Now that you’re warmed up, think of places that need those skills. If doing a similar position for a competitor is not going to meet your needs, it is time to think expansively. Make yourself a list. Do any of these possibilities make you smile? If so, you’re ready to re-engineer your LinkedIn profile and other job search collateral to target those right-for-you opportunities.

Job transitions are difficult. Please remember that the world of work still needs your skills and you are worthy. And, if you could use some help along the way, I’m here.

 

About Carol Kaemmerer

Named one of six top branding experts in 2022 by The American Reporter, I’ve helped countless C-level clients over the past ten years to use LinkedIn to frame conversations, impress customers, and introduce themselves before their first conversation takes place.

Contact me through my website https://carolkaemmerer.com for:

  • Executive one-on-one assistance with your online brand
  • Professional speaking engagements on personal brand and LinkedIn
  • An autographed copy of my book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2ndEdition
  • My self-paced, online course
  • To receive my articles in your email mailbox monthly

 

My award-winning book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2nd Edition received BookAuthority’s “Best LinkedIn Books of All Time” award. It was named one of the “Top 100+ Best Business Books” by The C-Suite Network, and it is an International Book Awards winner. For your author-inscribed and signed book or for quantity discounts, order at: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

 

 

Categories
Leadership Real Estate

Does Your LinkedIn Profile Inspire People to Do Business with You?

“All things being equal,

people will do business with,

and refer business to,

those people they know, like and trust.”

Bob Burg, author, Endless Referrals

 

You’ve heard this quotation many times, right? But do you take it seriously?

If a stranger reads your LinkedIn profile, will they begin to know, like, and trust you based on what is there? If not, why aren’t you taking advantage of this marvelous personal marketing tool for yourself? If your response is “because I’m not in sales,” think again. Even someone with no external customer interaction has customers within the company. Probably you, like most people, are seeking some sort of opportunity (e.g., an opportunity for advancement inside your company, opportunities for positions outside the company, a board appointment).

This month’s article shares ways you can sow the seeds of know, like, and trust in your LinkedIn profile so that people will be more likely to do business with, and refer business to YOU.

Your About Section

The 2,600-character (~5 paragraphs) About section showcases YOU. It is the perfect place for you to provide information that can build KNOW, LIKE, and TRUST. Approach this section with authenticity and a willingness to be transparent in telling your story. Give people a chance to know the real you – because everyone is more interesting (and likable) when they’re not hiding behind their job or their company’s services.

For this section to work well for you, plan what you want to say. For example, select three things you want to be known for and build your narrative around those. Or tell us about your purpose, passion, business principles, and how you lead.

Are there some questions that always come up from people after they’ve looked at your profile or resume? For example, if you have several years unaccounted for in your work history, rather than have people come to their own conclusions about the time period (e.g., you had a nervous breakdown, or you had an addiction problem, or whatever they can confabulate to account for that period), take control of your own narrative. Briefly explain the reason for the gap in your own way.

Before you write, work out your outline and what you intend each paragraph to accomplish for you. Use your outline to write your first draft. Read your narrative aloud and correct the verbiage where you stumble. Delete words and sentences that are expendable. Read aloud again; edit again. Getting this section to shine is important; it is worth the time it takes to accomplish that.

Profile sections that advance KNOW

In addition to the About section, you can help people feel that they KNOW you by making sure your profile is complete. By complete, I mean:

  • List your present and previous positions in your Experience section and describe your accomplishments in each position.
  • List your post-secondary education and degrees earned. (It is not necessary to include years of attendance or date of degree.) It is a nice touch to share some activities you participated in.
  • Add any optional sections that can help give people a rounded picture of who you are, including: Volunteer positions, Patents, Publications, Certifications, Awards and Honors, etc.

Profile sections that advance LIKE

Your About section will do the heavy lifting here, but visuals can also contribute to LIKE. Examples include:

  • A photo or graphic image behind your headshot – this is called the LinkedIn banner image.
  • A headshot that is a professional-quality image in which your eyes and mouth are smiling.
  • The optional Featured section that appears before your Activity section is a place where you can share photos, posts, and videos that tell your story visually.
  • You can also add photos and videos to your various positions.
  • Your Activity section that appears before your About section is populated by LinkedIn with your recent posts. This shows everyone how active you are on the LinkedIn platform and the kinds of things you add to the homepage feed. This section can either be an asset or a negative, depending on your level of engagement.

Profile sections that advance TRUST

Again, if you’ve written your About section well, it will go a long way toward establishing TRUST, but here are other sections that also provide “social proof:”

  • Recommendations have a huge positive impact – and a lack of recommendations can have the opposite impact.
  • Endorsements in your Skills section.
  • Education, Certifications, Patents, Publications, Honors and Awards.

A well-branded LinkedIn profile can frame your business conversations with KNOW, LIKE, and TRUST, helping your business transactions go more smoothly.

 

About Carol Kaemmerer: Named one of six top branding experts in 2022 by The American Reporter, I’ve helped countless C-level clients over the past ten years to use LinkedIn to frame conversations, impress customers, and introduce themselves before their first conversation takes place.

 

Contact me through my website https://carolkaemmerer.com for:

            • Executive one-on-one assistance with your online brand
            • Professional speaking engagements on personal brand and LinkedIn
            • An autographed copy of my book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2ndEdition
            • My self-paced, online course
            • To receive my articles in your email mailbox monthly

 

My award-winning book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2nd Edition received BookAuthority’s “Best LinkedIn Books of All Time” award, was named one of the “Top 100+ Best Business Books” by The C-Suite Network, and is an International Book Awards winner. For your author-inscribed and signed book or for quantity discounts, order at: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

Categories
Mergers & Acquisition Personal Development

How Doritos Were Invented From a Disneyland Trash Can

Would you be surprised to know that the invention of Doritos was influenced by a trashcan at Disneyland?
In the early days of Disneyland, a restaurant named Casa de Fritos invented Doritos by repurposing stale tortillas they bought from a local vendor. The chips proved to be so popular they were eventually rolled out nationally by Frito-Lay in 1966.
Today the brands sells $1.48 billion of the chips every year.
Here’s how it all started…

How Doritos We’re Invented in a Trash Can

Casa de Fritos” was, unsurprisingly, all about the Fritos (corn chips). Customers got free chips, and they were incorporated into all of the dishes at the Disneyland restaurant.
All ingredients served at Casa de Fritos, such as the tortillas, chips, meat, beans, and fresh produce, were supplied by a company called Alex Foods, located just a few blocks from Disneyland.
One day, one of the salesmen from Alex Foods, making a delivery to Casa de Fritos, noticed stale tortillas in the garbage and gave the cook a little tip:
“fry them and sell them as chips instead of just throwing them away.”
So the cooks gave it a try and while they were at it, through in some seasoning. The result was an enormous success. Their customers couldn’t get enough of them.
Here’s how the company found an innovative way to sell them…

Who the Hell Was the Frito Kid?

Being a theme park restaurant, Casa de Frito, had a theme of their own. The company started selling chips from a “Frito Kid” vending machine. During the 1950s and 1960s, Disneyland guests could insert a nickel into the coin box and the Fritos official mascot, The Frito Kid, would come to life, lick his lips, and call for Klondike the Miner to send a bag of Fritos down the chute.
The stereophonic audio track changed with each purchase, so each customer would hear a different interaction between the Kid and Klondike.


Photo: Spacemountainmike, used under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Casa de Fritos was located next to the Mine Train Through Nature’s Wonderland attraction (which was replaced in 1979 by the runaway mine train rollercoaster Big Thunder Mountain Railroad).
They were a massively successful…
A year later, the new VP of Frito-Lay, Archibald Clark West, dropped by the restaurant without warning and saw hundreds of customers stuffing their faces with the seasoned chips.
So he had an idea to turn the chips into a brand.
West quickly made a deal with Alex Foods to produce them as a separately branded snack. He later branded them as Doritos” (the name is Spanish for “little pieces of gold”).
When Doritos started to get big, production of the chips was moved to a bigger factory in Tulsa. West test-marketed the chips in southern California. They sold out faster than Alex Foods could produce them.
The whole world fell in love with Doritos. West even loved Doritos to his grave (literally). At his funeral, his daughter threw Doritos into the grave after him (as per his request).
Today Doritos is the top ranked tortilla/tostada chip brand in the world.100 million bags of various types of Doritos are consumed daily.

WATCH:

PS>>>Here’s a throwback to the bizarre time when Doritos launch a foot long chip…

For more information visit tylerhayzlett.com

Categories
Branding Capital Entrepreneurship Growth Marketing Personal Development Strategy

Investigating the Highly Profitable Business of Public Speaking

According to Ziprecruiter, as of Aug 5, 2022, the average annual pay for a “Motivational Speaker” in the United States is $68,271 a year. That works out to be approximately $32.82 an hour. Or the equivalent of $1,313/week or $5,689/month.

Want to be a public speaker? Here’s what to expect…

 

How Much Money Can You Really Make Speaking?

While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $148,000 and as low as $21,500, the majority of Motivational Speaker salaries currently range between $33,500 (25th percentile) to $118,000 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $145,500 annually across the United States.

The average pay range for a Motivational Speaker varies greatly (by as much as $84,500), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience.

Newbie speakers will talk for free or for travel cost reimbursements. Meanwhile, celebrities and well known industry experts charge up to an profitable six figures per engagement.

But some speakers are making far from the average. Here’s why…

 

The Net Worth of These Motivational Speakers is Insane!

Here’s a look at how much the top motivational speakers are worth…

1. Brian Tracy – $15 million

 

2. Suze Orman – $75 million

 

3. Robert Kiyosaki – $100 million

4. Dave Ramsey – $200 million

 

5. Daymond John – $350 million

 

6. Tony Robbins – $600 million

 

7. Magic Johnson – $620 million

 

Some of the dollar amounts they charge per speech will surprise you. For example

Simon Sinek now charges $100k per speech. Gary Vee does too…

Sam Par breaks down the world of public speaking and the surprisingly lucrative amount of loot that can be made via the business model in HubSpot’s episode of The Hustle. Check it out.

 

WATCH:

 

 

For more information visit tylerhayzlett.com

Categories
Economics Entrepreneurship Growth Investing Negotiating Skills Wealth

The Top 10 Times Mark Cuban Called Out the Sleaziest Frauds on Shark Tank

Hearing the phrase “you’re such a con-artist!” coming from the lips of a potential investor during a live pitch is defiantly not a good look (especially when it happens on live TV broadcasting to millions of viewers).

It happened 10 times when Mark Cuban publicly called out scams when he smelled fish oil on ABC’s Shark Tank.

 

 

Sharktank is the place where people’s dreams can become a reality or a total nightmare…

The television program features some of the world’s most successful investors which include: Mark Cuban, Keavin O’leary, Daymond John, Barbara Corcoran, and Lori Greiner.

Since the show debuted in 2009, there have been some pretty memorable pitches. Here’s a video that shows some of the most savage shark tank moments on that were called out at total scams.

Mark Cuban goes head to head with these entrepreneurs, even questioning their ethics. Here’s the 10 times Shark Tank’s Mark Cuban calls out the sleaziest frauds on Shark Tank.

 

So awkward…

 

WATCH:

 

 

 

 

For more information visit tylerhayzlett.com

Categories
Mergers & Acquisition Personal Development

How a Boy Who “Never Made a Sub” Invented Subway.

Subway currently holds the status of being the biggest fast-food chain on the planet. They surpassed McDonald’s and KFC’s store count decades ago with over 44,000 stores in 110 countries. Last year they generated $1.3 billion in revenue (triple since 2019).

Their recent spike in gross sales though has exposed a tragic dilemma facing the franchise. More on that in a second but first, here’s how it all started.

Subway was launched by a 17-year-old from the Bronx who had never made a sub in his life until opening day. Despite his lack of subs, the sandwiches he sold eventually earned him a net worth of approximately $3 billion and became the most successful franchise business on the planet.

 

The Founder of Subway Never Wanted to be in Business…

Subway launched in 1965 when 17-year-old Fred DeLuca asked his family friend, Dr. Peter Buck, a nuclear physicist, for advice on how to pay his college tuition. With an idea to open a submarine sandwich shop and an initial $1,000 investment from Dr. Buck, the two formed a business partnership.

In fact, Fred had zero intentions of ever becoming a businessman. This was his plan to put himself through school in order to become a doctor.

The partners opened their first restaurant in Bridgeport, Connecticut, in August of 1965, where they served freshly-made, customizable and affordable sandwiches to local guests. Subway was originally called ‘Pete’s Super Submarines’.

And people ate up the concept of a giant foot-long sandwich “made right before your eyes, the way you want ’em.” As it turns out, customizing your sandwich was a novelty in the fast food industry.  This is probably also where Burger King adopted their slogan; “have it your way”.

 

 

Subway’s Insanely Effective Franchise Model…

What put Subway on the entrepreneurial map was their decision to begin franchising with a goal of operating a chain of 35 stores. The franchise model launched the Subway brand into a period of incredible growth and popularity.

Not only were Subway franchises successful, they were, and still are, one of the cheapest chains to open in the franchise world. It costs between $116,000 and $263,000 to open a Subway franchise. Compare that to opening a McDonald’s, which costs up to $2.2 million.

But here’s the catch…

Because Subways are easy to open, the number of stores skyrocketed. Between 1990 and 1998, store locations rose steeply from 5,000 to 13,200. And in that same period of time, gross sales rose by about $2.1 billion. Subway’s success continued into the early 2000s. At a time when obesity was rising rapidly in America, Subway continued to market itself as a healthy alternative to fast food.

Things were going great, until this happened…

 

Is This the Beginning of the End for Subway?

Starting in 2014, Subway’s sales began steadily dropping. Behind the scenes, many of the reasons for Subway’s success had turned on them. Quiznos was once Subway’s main competition, but tons of sub chains, like Jimmy John’s, Firehouse, Potbelly, and Jersey Mike’s, and fast-casual chains like Panera, were offering similar fresh and healthier options for sandwiches and wraps. Stealing away Subway’s dominant market share.

Other fast-food chains weren’t the only competition for Subway franchises. With Subway’s franchising model making it so easy to open locations, stores inevitably started opening up around the corner from each other in lucrative markets. And these locations in close proximity began cannibalizing each other’s sales.

It’s a real problem…

 

Subway’s Franchise Model Has Been Under Attack Since the 90s

In recent years, Subway has closed thousands of locations. Here’s why…

The Subway franchise agreement states the company can open locations anywhere they want. There’s no protected territories for the owners. So franchisees really have no say-so in where the other franchisees are going to open.

In 2016, Subway’s US location count dropped by 359. It lost another 909 locations in 2017. It dropped another 1,108 locations in 2018. In part due to market saturation and a drop in sales, but also Subway has been attempting to clean up the cannibalization problem that plagues their franchisees.

Another contributing factor to Subway’s dip in growth for their store locations are the size of the companies royalties at nearly 10% of sales!

The company’s 8% royalties (which are still in effect today)  are the highest in the industry (compared to 3-5% at other fast food stores like McDonald’s)

 

But all criticism aside, the brand still maintains 60% of the quick-service sandwich market in the U.S. A pretty impressive accomplishment for a kid from the Bronx with zero experience.

 

 

WATCH:

 

 

 

For more information visit tylerhayzlett.com

Categories
Branding Capital Case Studies Entrepreneurship Growth Investing Taxes Uncategorized Wealth

This is How Shaq Made $400 Million from Carwashes…

Did you know 60% of professional athletes end up broke within 5 years of retiring? Not Shaq though. Far from it, his personal business investments are growing to Warren Buffet status.

You won’t believe how many businesses he currently owns…

Shaquille O’Neal is one of the savviest businessmen in the North American sporting world who has managed to amassed an incredible $400 million net worth following the end of a successful 19-year NBA career.

Including over 150 car washes across the US…

 

Here’s a Breakdown of Shaq’s Investment Portfolio:

  • Shaq owns 10% of all Five Guys (that’s 155 locations)
  • 40 – 24Hour Fitness centers
  • 9 Papa John’s
  • Krispy Kreme
  • Shaq Shoes (sold over 120 million pairs)

Side note, Shaq is also the owner of one of the most pointless website on the internet…

Pettiness aside, here’s a video where Shaq breaks down his investment strategy:

 

WATCH:

 

 

How Much Does Shaq Make on Endorsements?

In addition his business portfolio, Shaq makes a killing monetizing his personal brand too.

Shaq has endorsements with VitaminWater, Pepsi, IcyHot, and Taco Bell. All combined nets him a cool $20 million a year.

But that isn’t where he makes his fortune…His real money he prints while he sleeps in the fleet of carwashes he owns. All 150 of them, where he makes a majority of his earnings.

Watch for the full story…

 

WATCH:

 

 

 

For more information visit tylerhayzlett.com

Categories
Branding Case Studies Entrepreneurship Growth Investing Marketing News and Politics Wealth

How a Broke YouTuber Invented $4 Billion Business After Being Rejected 40 Times…

In 2012, Jack Conte and his wife, Nataly Dawn, were known as the indie band called Pomplamoose. They were bringing in roughly $400,000 per year in revenue from tour dates, merch, and on ads viewed by their 1.5M followers on their YouTube channel.

 

But then a mental breakdown a few years ago changed all of that…

After spending three months producing an elaborate music video for their song “Pedals, (it’s pretty impressive for a self-production). But the production came at the heavy cost of maxing out all of Jack and Nataly’s credit cards.

The Conte’s sunk their life savings into making the video popular on YouTube. So far the video has 2.3M views, but the confused couple received almost nothing for their efforts from YouTube…

They spent $10,000 and three months to make just the 1 video go viral on YouTube. He soon realized that, even though he receives an average of one million viewers on his YouTube videos, he’d only make $160 in ad revenue. Kind of a shitty reward for the time and effort they were putting in.

Jack knew there had to be a better way…

So he came up with an idea for creators to get compensated directly from their fans and cut out the middle man.

That’s how he came up with the idea of launching Patreon. He sent a sketch of his idea to his former college roommate, an engineer, who started coding for it that night. They launched soon after, with Jack being Patreon’s first official creator. Within two weeks, he was making six figures…

 

Wait, What is Patreon?

Basically it’s a membership platform that helps creators to get paid. Creators perform an artistic service and return, their fans and supporters (aka patrons) use Patreon to support them by means of payments. This way, creators can spend more time creating content instead of looking for funding.

There’s a few business models that content creators can use on this crowdfunding/membership platform.

 

Patreon’s Business Model Enables Creators to Charge For:

  • Community (monthly memberships)
  • Educational subscriptions
  • Gated premium content
  • Pay-what-you-can donations

 

Jack founded Patreon in 2013, today they have 3 million monthly active patrons generating $100M+ per month on the platform.

At one point for example, author and psychologist Jordan Peterson, was said to be making over $70k per month on the platform just in donations alone.

Patreon currently takes between 5% and 12% of creator earnings (plus a payment processing fee). The pandemic helped increase revenue with over 30,000 creators flocking to the site within the first few weeks of the pandemic. Videos and podcasts are the biggest categories on the site.

Along with all their success, the company is facing an intense amount of competition coming from Youtube, Twitter, Instagram, Only Fans, Substack, and Clubhouse (is that thing still alive?).  It seems every platform these days is doing their best to lure creators by allowing everyone to make money versus just the big creatives.

But for now, Patreon has proven their business model helping participants in the creator economy to get paid more. The result of the couple’s efforts so far has resulted in an estimated $8 million in cash.

The companies’ market valuation is currently hovering at $4billion. Which is a pretty awesome accomplishment that a broken husband fed up YouTube created a rival platform that turned him into a millionaire.

#boss…

 

 

For more information visit tylerhayzlett.com