As an entrepreneur, how can you build a sizable, significant business? Is there a problem you can solve for customers? Save them time and money? If you can offer a good, quality product and there's good margin in it, then you may have a great idea for a new business!
Today, I am talking with Thad Tarkington of FilterEasy. He describes how his company started due to personal experience with filter issues. He had no background in air filters, but saw an opportunity and jumped at it. After all, entrepreneurship is like skydiving without a parachute, and sometimes you have to make the parachute on the way down.
[05:08] How Thad went from being a solo-preneur to having a team; started his company in 2012 with one partner and now has almost 120 employees.
[06:25] You don't know everything when you start a business, so find good mentors; the dollar amount you pay them is miniscule compared to your company’s ROI and growth.
[07:06] As an entrepreneur, you start by doing everything; you slowly hand off responsibilities/tasks to allow your company to grow and flourish.
[07:25] FilterEasy focuses on who it hires; must have an aptitude and skill for the role, fit in culturally, and be a self-starter.
[11:38] Trust the process and that things are going to work out in the long term; be resilient and adaptive to keep moving forward, even if there’s roadblocks.
[15:37] Trust other people when you hire them for a job; they may not do things the exact way you would, but they could come up with things that are better and unique.
[17:15] Interruptions are costly; eliminating interruptions is critical for you, your team, and your company to progress.
[19:38] Done is Better than Perfect: To accomplish something, you have to get it done; nothing's ever perfect in business, and businesses are not perfect.
[24:08] Culture: When employees are excited, energized, and passionate because the company is growing fast, it's hitting sales numbers, and new projects are successful.
[31:05] If you're complaining about your team not being motivated and you don't have the business that you want right now, you're not the person to lead it yet.
[37:30] Lead-gen and getting a business going can be challenging; there needs to be constant innovation and improvement.
No background in air filters, just saw an opportunity and jumped at it.
Entrepreneurship is like skydiving without a parachute.
Slowly hand off responsibilities to allow your company to grow and flourish.
Entrepreneurs see opportunities everywhere.
Thad Tarkington’s Email
Provide Value to Your Clients with FilterEasy
DoorGrowClub Facebook Group
Property management is like a Rubik’s Cube - you solve one side, which makes you feel great. Then, you go onto the next side. When you fix it, you mess up the first side. How do you get all sides to work together?
Today, I am talking with David Kerner of TouchPoint Property Management. David sold real estate for about 15 years before investing in his own doors and handling rentals. He shares some tips on how he developed systems and processes to grow his number of doors.
[03:48] Difference between doing real estate and property management; going from cold calls to find new business to rental properties that offered residual income.
[04:55] Vertical income streams: Managing properties could feed David’s sales business, and the sales business could feed his property management business.
[05:20] Property managers fear realtors getting into and doing damage to the property management industry; David was successful because he had a mindset from both sides.
[08:15] David successfully transitioned from being a realtor to a property manager by knowing that if he did them both, he would not be great at one of them.
[10:10] Once you make a decision, be 100% in to ensure success and execute it.
[11:21] David learned everything he could to know the right and wrong ways to do things, and made himself available to customers.
[12:40] He systemized and automated processes; many software programs are available to help make property managers more efficient and accountable.
[14:36] David used DoorGrow’s Seed Package to improve his Website and leads; landlords go on the Internet to find property managers.
[18:20] People perceive property management as a commodity/service; the challenge is to shift that perception to being about relationships and taking care of clients.
[19:49] David was able to break his first 100 doors in just a year; does it get easier after that milestone? Depends on you because there’s new challenges every day.
[22:45] David is now at the point where the number of doors is not the main factor - profit and smoothness of his business are key.
[23:25] David attributes much of his success to the Seed Package to help him develop a company name, brand, Website, and sales process; he started creating revenue quickly.
[27:20] Getting help vs. doing it on your own; if you’re not paying for something/someone or have a plan to follow, it takes much longer to get things done.
[32:40] David’s biggest challenge is the entrepreneurial side; he wants to improve collaboration and customer service for his business to be profitable and run well.
[33:45] David recommends making your business more efficient and systemized; focus on entrepreneurial and sales tasks, rather than day-to-day tasks.
[36:50] David started implementing automation, checklists, and other systems right away; be consistent and focus on getting things done.
Once you make a decision, be 100% in to ensure success and execute it.
Shift the perception to being about relationships and taking care of clients.
Does it get easier? Depends - there’s new challenges every day.
TouchPoint Property Management
National Association of Realtors
DoorGrowClub Facebook Group