Your Business Growth Podcast

Jeremy B. Shapiro | Entrepreneurship and Business Growth Coach
  • 5.0 (9)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

Welcome, fellow business owner, to Your Business Growth Podcast, the companion show to Jeremy Shapiro's book Your Business Growth Playbook, dedicated to helping you break through those frustrating plateaus and get back to scaling your business! If you’re an established entrepreneur who’s seen success but now feels like more hustle just isn’t working anymore, or if your expenses keep getting higher but revenue isn’t keeping up, then you’re in the right place. Our goal is to uncover the tactical and strategic methods that help businesses like yours increase not just revenue, but also profits.

  1. Sep 22 ·  Bonus

    Season 2 Wrap Up with Jeremy Shapiro, Host, Your Business Growth Podcast

    What if your biggest success is actually your greatest vulnerability? In this Season 2 wrap-up episode of the Your Business Growth Podcast, host Jeremy Shapiro breaks down the exact strategies used by Season 2's guests to break through revenue plateaus, escape the hustle trap, and build scalable, predictable businesses. 🔥 KEY HIGHLIGHTS & STRATEGIES IN THIS EPISODE: • Surviving Sudden Revenue Collapse: How Peter Boolkah rebuilt after losing 80% of his revenue in the GFC, Jon Morris turned a 40% client loss into a $40M agency by taking salary haircuts and hiring top sales talent, and Mike Wiston bounced back when Morning Brew paused spending overnight. • Radical Niche Specialization: How Maria Gallucci built a $30M real estate business serving the Deaf community and Isaac Justesen achieved 97%+ client retention in physical therapy marketing through radical transparency. • Decoupling Time from Income: How Joel Miller grew agency revenue for 18 years with zero employees and a strict 5pm shutdown, and David Feinman productized video post-production into modular customization buckets. • Unconventional Growth Hacks: ✔️ David Feinman's 2-month severance "opt-out" offer that reset company culture.✔️ Steve Barton's $5 Maine wholesale permit loophole and 3-tier pricing strategy.✔️ Rael Bricker's overnight 5,000-poster campaign and reverse-listing 9 acquisitions.✔️ Joe Rockey's Wall Street-backed $50M nonprofit funding model.✔️ Aaron Jensen's 8-figure agency exit using "popcorn pricing" and red-yellow-green KPI guardrails.✔️ Mike Wiston's free MowPod charts lead magnet and Crunchbase lead sourcing strategy. 📚 TOP BOOKS & LEAD SOURCES:Discover the most recommended books across the season—including The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, The E-Myth Revisited, and The Goal—and top lead sources like Crunchbase and strategic referral networks. 🔔 SUBSCRIBE FOR SEASON 3!Don't miss an episode—subscribe now and leave us a rating and review to support the show! 👉 ⁨@YourBusinessGrowthPlaybook⁩ #BusinessGrowth #ScalingUp #Entrepreneurship #YourBusinessGrowthPodcast #PodcastWrapUp Chapters:00:00 The Vulnerability of Success01:09 Surviving Revenue Collapse03:03 Radical Specialization for Growth04:28 Decoupling Time from Income06:17 Unconventional Solutions to Business Challenges08:24 Actionable Tactics for Immediate Implementation09:50 Books That Shape Business Minds10:48 Finding New Clients11:34 Critical Business Advice13:02 A Wild Business Exit Story Episodes covered in Season 2:https://youtu.be/yGaxrCKXj6khttps://youtu.be/YVt7G_IMRuUhttps://youtu.be/4b5Jp5LEGsEhttps://youtu.be/2J7F3dTQ-lQhttps://youtu.be/Mn_2NzAFfBYhttps://youtu.be/XOGdUEKx4Fghttps://youtu.be/tzz_lzuqNtohttps://youtu.be/sK7AX9eGQMMhttps://youtu.be/8ATIDW1Iko0https://youtu.be/z5U9V6HiQzwhttps://youtu.be/sVxmNezrZM8https://youtu.be/iQocFdwGSkY Want to be a guest on Your Business Growth Podcast? Send Jeremy Shapiro a message on PodMatch, here: https://podmatch.com/hostdetail/your_business_growth_podcast 🔔 Subscribe today to get notified of new episodes, interviews, and shorts when they drop! ⁨@YourBusinessGrowthPlaybook⁩

    Season 2 Wrap Up with Jeremy Shapiro, Host, Your Business Growth Podcast

  2. Sep 15

    500,000 Students and Zero Control with Jerad Hill

    What if firing your highest-paying clients could actually make your business stronger? In this episode of Your Business Growth Podcast, Jeremy Shapiro interviews Jerad Hill about how he went from running a six-person agency with a large physical office and demanding anchor clients to building a leaner, more profitable business with recurring revenue and far more control over his time. Jerad got started in entrepreneurship with ~$4,000 and a small skateboard shop. When local sales weren’t enough, he taught himself web development, moved the store online, and eventually turned those skills into a full-time digital agency. Years later, what looked like success from the outside became increasingly difficult to manage. Jerad was still involved in quality control, client strategy, project management, and training his team. Some of his highest-paying clients demanded the most attention, creating major revenue concentration risk. So he changed direction. In this episode, we discuss:✔️ Going from retail entrepreneur to agency owner✔️ Scaling from solopreneur to a six-person team✔️ Why employees sometimes create more work instead of less✔️ Walking away from high-paying clients✔️ Reducing overhead and improving profitability✔️ Moving from 70% project work toward recurring revenue✔️ Creating monthly services clients continue to value✔️ Cutting services that no longer fit the business✔️ Building an audience through YouTube and online education✔️ The downside of building an audience on a platform you don’t control✔️ Turning course students into an owned email audience✔️ Why content would be Jerad’s top lead source if starting again✔️ What he would do differently when building his next team Jerad also explains why business growth doesn’t have to mean more employees, more overhead, and more complexity—and why the right size business is different for every founder. 👉 Connect with Jerad Hill: • https://jeradhill.com • https://youtube.com/@jeradhill • https://substack.jeradhill.com 📘 Hosted by: Jeremy B. Shapiro, Host and Author, Your Business Growth Playbook (https://yourbusinessgrowthplaybook.com/) Chapters:00:00 Anchor Client Risk01:23 From Skate Shop to Web05:32 Scaling the Agency Team07:25 Overhead and Quality Control13:51 Retainers for Stability17:34 Letting Go of Big Clients20:21 Downsizing and Refocusing23:45 Cutting Services to Specialize27:08 Courses and Udemy Breakthrough32:30 Owning Your Audience Platform36:52 Recurring Revenue Model Wins42:24 Advice for Agency Owners45:48 Mentors and Humility Lessons48:48 Rapid Fire Takeaways53:46 Wrap Up and Where to Connect Jerad Hill, Jeremy Shapiro, agency growth, recurring revenue, web design agency, digital marketing agency, entrepreneurship, business growth, agency profitability, founder bottleneck, content marketing, YouTube marketing, online courses, Udemy, solopreneur, business systems, client concentration, recurring income, business podcast #BusinessGrowth #Entrepreneurship #podcast Want to be a guest on Your Business Growth Podcast? Send Jeremy Shapiro a message on PodMatch, here: https://podmatch.com/hostdetail/your_business_growth_podcast 🔔 Subscribe for more conversations with founders, entrepreneurs, and business leaders sharing real lessons on growth, leadership, and building sustainable companies. @YourBusinessGrowthPlaybook

    500,000 Students and Zero Control with Jerad Hill

  3. Sep 8

    Business Differentiation: How Joe Rockey Built Premium Business Experiences and a New Nonprofit Funding Model

    Why compete on price when you can create offers competitors can’t compare? Jeremy Shapiro interviews Joe Rockey, founder of Elite Business Cruises, on pivoting from crowded sales training into premium business experiences and building a new nonprofit funding model. Hear practical steps for designing high-value experiences, pricing for premium markets, and creating alternative revenue for social impact. What if the answer to a business plateau wasn’t selling harder—but creating something competitors couldn’t easily compare? In this episode of Your Business Growth Podcast, Jeremy Shapiro interviews Joe Rockey, founder of Elite Business Cruises, about how he moved from crowded sales training into premium business experiences and eventually built a new model for nonprofit funding. Joe’s sales training company was competing against thousands of coaches, consultants, online programs, and free content. Prospects kept comparing prices, even when his service was different. His answer was to change the buying experience entirely. Joe combined training with premium cruises, moving from a few hundred dollars per month to five-figure engagements while giving clients an experience that was far harder to compare with traditional training programs. That same thinking eventually led him to another problem: nonprofits constantly rebuilding their fundraising totals every year. In this episode, we discuss: ✔️ Escaping commodity pricing ✔️ Turning training into a premium experience ✔️ Why specialization creates pricing power ✔️ The financial cycle many nonprofits face ✔️ Building revenue beyond grants and donations ✔️ Strengthening nonprofit and donor relationships ✔️ Creating new revenue through premium events ✔️ Pairing event revenue with financial structures ✔️ How Joe identifies business opportunities others accept as normal ✔️ Why pricing should reflect client value, not production cost ✔️ Knowing when to keep pushing versus changing direction Joe also shares the two relationships he uses to judge businesses: the relationship with customers and the relationship with employees—and why weakness in either eventually limits growth. 👉 Connect with Joe Rockey and Elite Business Cruises: • Elite Business Cruises: https://elitebusinesscruises.com/ • Joe Rockey on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joerockey/ 📘 Hosted by Jeremy B. Shapiro, Author of Your Business Growth Playbook ( https://yourbusinessgrowthplaybook.com/ ) Chapters00:00 Nonprofit Funding Trap01:00 Meet Joe Rockey01:30 Two Relationship Rules02:46 Sales Training Red Ocean04:32 Cruise Offer Breakthrough06:54 Niches and Real Estate12:24 Industry of One Formula15:22 Nonprofit Hamster Wheel18:01 Auburn Aha Moment20:37 Events Plus Wall Street23:23 Why Focus on Nonprofits24:47 Regulations and Overhead29:28 Winning Skeptics32:10 Guarantees and Capital35:59 Scaling to Billions39:11 Plateau Pivot Advice41:39 KPIs and Pricing Logic42:43 Rapid Fire and Wrap45:30 Final Subscribe Outro Joe Rockey, Elite Business Cruises, Jeremy Shapiro, nonprofit fundraising, nonprofit funding strategy, business growth, premium pricing, sales training, business cruises, donor engagement, fundraising events, entrepreneurship, business strategy, value based pricing, nonprofit revenue, business model, niche marketing #BusinessGrowth #Entrepreneurship #Nonprofit #Fundraising #businessstrategy #Podcast Want to be a guest on Your Business Growth Podcast? Send Jeremy Shapiro a message on PodMatch, here: https://podmatch.com/hostdetail/your_business_growth_podcast 🔔 Subscribe for more conversations with founders, entrepreneurs, and business leaders sharing real lessons on growth, leadership, and building sustainable companies. ⁨@YourBusinessGrowthPlaybook⁩

    Business Differentiation: How Joe Rockey Built Premium Business Experiences and a New Nonprofit Funding Model

  4. Sep 1

    97% Client Retention: How Isaac Justesen Doubled Agency Revenue and Broke a $30,000/mo Plateau

    Jeremy Shapiro interviews Isaac Justesen, founder of PatientPartners, on breaking a $30,000/mo revenue plateau, doubling his agency’s revenue, and achieving 97% client retention. We examine the belief that 'clients needed YOU,' the shifts Isaac made, and practical takeaways founders can use to scale revenue and improve client retention. Ideal for agency owners focused on predictable growth and retention. Isaac had built a growing healthcare marketing agency, but there was a problem: he was doing everything. Sales. Client meetings. Account management. Fulfillment. Operations.Isaac believed clients were paying for access to him personally. That belief made stepping away from client relationships difficult—and eventually made him the bottleneck. The turning point came when he hired an account manager and spent roughly three months gradually transferring client relationships. Suddenly, Isaac had large blocks of time available to focus on sales, marketing, and growing the company. In this episode, we discuss: ✔️ How founders accidentally become growth bottlenecks ✔️ Why Isaac waited too long to make his first major hire ✔️ How he transferred client relationships without damaging trust ✔️ Why retention may matter more than new revenue ✔️ Growing retention from the 80% range to roughly 97–98% ✔️ How radical transparency creates longer client relationships ✔️ Why referral partnerships beat cold outreach for PatientPartners ✔️ How specialization builds trust during sales conversations ✔️ Using upsells to solve more client problems ✔️ The leading and lagging KPIs Isaac tracks ✔️ Why founders should never stop marketing during growth periods ✔️ What Isaac would do differently if he started again One of Isaac’s biggest lessons is simple: hiring someone to take over client management didn’t weaken the client experience. It gave him the time required to build the company while his team created stronger systems for communication, retention, and account growth. 👉 Learn more about Isaac Justesen and PatientPartners: • Free PatientPartners Audit: https://patientpartners.co/audit/ • Isaac Justesen on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/isaac-justesen/ • PatientPartners on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/patientpartners.co/ • Isaac Justesen on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@IsaacPhysioMarketing 📘 Hosted by: Jeremy B. Shapiro, Host and Author, Your Business Growth Playbook (https://yourbusinessgrowthplaybook.com/) Chapters00:00 Retention Over Revenue00:20 Meet Isaac Hustesen01:08 Origin Story in PT02:12 Patient Empathy Lens03:57 Early Agency Scrappiness08:04 Founder Bottleneck Realization09:13 First Key Hire Account Manager12:49 Time Audit and Ops Focus15:11 Cold Outreach to Community17:18 Upsells That Serve Clients19:35 Radical Transparency Retention22:19 Training Values and Trust23:37 Warm Leads Sales Process25:35 Sharing Results Publicly28:35 Vision Niche and Metrics34:48 Advice on Hiring Sooner39:49 KPIs Leading Indicators42:04 Rapid Fire and Wrap Up Isaac Justesen, PatientPartners, Jeremy Shapiro, marketing agency growth, healthcare marketing, physical therapy marketing, agency scaling, client retention, founder bottleneck, delegation, account manager, recurring revenue, referral marketing, lead generation, business growth, entrepreneurship, agency owner, business systems, customer retention, service business #Entrepreneurship #MarketingAgency #HealthcareMarketing #podcast 🔔 Subscribe for more conversations with founders, entrepreneurs, and business leaders sharing real lessons on growth, leadership, and building sustainable companies. ⁨@YourBusinessGrowthPlaybook⁩

    97% Client Retention: How Isaac Justesen Doubled Agency Revenue and Broke a $30,000/mo Plateau

  5. Aug 25

    Escape Founder Dependence: Build a Business That Runs Without You | Peter Boolkah

    Why does a seven-figure business still depend on its founder? Peter Boolkah (author, Your Business Sucks) joins Jeremy Shapiro to explain how to escape founder dependence and design companies that create freedom—not consume it. Learn practical ways to identify founder-dependent bottlenecks, shift leadership and operations, and transition revenue models so your business runs without you. Peter started his entrepreneurial journey working 80-hour weeks. He handled sales, marketing, delivery, accounts, HR, and practically everything else required to keep the company moving.Eventually, he reached seven figures. But there was a problem: Peter remained the major fee earner. His team handled everything around him so he could keep coaching, speaking, and generating revenue. Financially, the model worked. Personally, it began taking a serious toll. Then the global financial crisis hit and ~80% of Peter’s business disappeared. Peter had to rebuild—and rethink what he wanted his business to become. In this episode, we discuss:✔️ Why more revenue doesn't automatically create more freedom ✔️ How founders accidentally create their own high-paying jobs ✔️ The systems Peter learned during his early career at McDonald’s ✔️ Why employees need processes, roles, and clear expectations ✔️ The seven-figure plateau that pushed Peter toward burnout ✔️ Losing approximately 80% of the business during the financial crisis ✔️ Rebuilding through LinkedIn, email marketing, and a stronger pipeline ✔️ Moving from smaller businesses toward mid-market clients ✔️ Why Peter shifted toward value-based pricing ✔️ Charging according to business impact instead of hours worked ✔️ How Peter removed lower-value work from his own schedule ✔️ Training employees to think and make decisions without him ✔️ Why he invested £100,000 per year in personal development for 12 years ✔️ Turning coaching expertise into scalable training products ✔️ Building a publishing company and creating licensable IP ✔️ Why businesses that don't depend on their founders can be more saleable ✔️ Investing business profits into new companies and property ✔️ Why Peter is interested in emerging European markets ✔️ The KPIs he watches across his companies Peter also explains why founders should think seriously about what happens if they suddenly become unable to work. A company completely dependent on its owner can disappear quickly when that person is removed from day-to-day operations. Building the right team, systems, leadership structure, and revenue model can turn the company into an asset rather than another demanding job. 👉 Connect with Peter Boolkah: • Peter Boolkah's book: https://shop.boolkah.com/product/your-business-sucks/ • Peter Boolkah on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/boolkah/ • Peter Boolkah on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pboolkah • Peter Boolkah on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Boolkah 📘 Hosted by Jeremy B. Shapiro, Author of Your Business Growth Playbook ( https://yourbusinessgrowthplaybook.com/ ) Chapters:00:00 Founder Burnout Reality00:57 Systems From Franchises02:56 SOPs And Hiring Clarity05:46 Grinding To Seven Figures07:13 Seven Figure Burnout Trap09:29 Raising Fees And Diversifying11:13 GFC Revenue Collapse12:54 Marketing Funnel Rebuild14:44 Mid Market Shift Scaling Up17:36 Value Based Tiered Pricing20:11 Delegation Team Training22:44 Frameworks And Learning Culture24:16 Value Driven Economy25:28 Self Development Investment27:06 Building Founder Free Businesses30:40 Emerging Markets Portfolio32:40 High Ticket Profit Leverage35:07 Founder Risk Reality Check37:35 Escape the Hamster Wheel40:09 Mentors Metrics and Rapid Fire42:33 Books and Right Timing47:07 Wrap Up and Where to Find 🔔 Subscribe today to get notified of new episodes, interviews, and shorts when they drop! @YourBusinessGrowthPlaybook

    Escape Founder Dependence: Build a Business That Runs Without You | Peter Boolkah

  6. Aug 18

    Agency Turnaround and Team Reset: How a 40‑Person, Money‑Losing Agency Became Stronger Serving Global Brands — David Feinman David Feinman

    Jeremy Shapiro interviews David Feinman (co‑founder, Viral Idea Marketing) about a radical company reset for a 40‑person, plateaued agency. Learn how team issues and organizational structure were addressed to move a money‑losing firm into a far stronger business serving major global brands. Key topics: agency turnaround, team reset, scaling after plateau, and operational shifts leaders can apply. David started the company with a $100 investment and a single customer willing to pay three months upfront. From there, Viral Idea Marketing grew from traditional video production into a productized post-production company working with major organizations including eBay and Johnson & Johnson. But eventually, growth stalled. The company had around 40 employees, shared accountability had created confusion, generalists were reaching their limits, and more sales activity wasn't solving the underlying problem. David and his leadership team introduced “Viral Ideas 2.0.” Every employee would have one defined role. The company would operate around KPIs, quality checks, documented expectations, and a much stronger culture. Then David gave the entire company a choice: Stay and commit to the new model—or take two months of pay and walk away. In this episode, we discuss: ✔️ Why a revenue plateau can actually be a people and structure problem ✔️ The shift from generalists to specialists as a company grows ✔️ Why David offered his entire team two months of pay to quit ✔️ How defined roles, KPIs, and quality checks changed the company ✔️ Building company values that actually influence hiring and management ✔️ How leaders handle great early employees who no longer fit ✔️ Moving from small-business customers toward enterprise clients ✔️ Creating custom client experiences with standardized systems behind them ✔️ Why over-customization can destroy margins and operations ✔️ Using AI to increase management and production capacity ✔️ How Viral Ideas created an AI-powered company knowledge system ✔️ Why David tried another acquisition after losing $250K on his first attempt ✔️ How the next acquisition helped increase sales by roughly 125% ✔️ Integrating two teams and cultures after an acquisition ✔️ Building profitable upsells around existing infrastructure ✔️ The daily, weekly, monthly, and quarterly KPIs David watches David also shares lessons on: ✔️ Productizing creative services ✔️ Building culture around employee goals and dreams ✔️ Making difficult personnel decisions with empathy ✔️ Enterprise pricing and positioning ✔️ Customer satisfaction and early warning signals ✔️ Cash collection and accounts receivable ✔️ Using failure as information for the next attempt ✔️ Why specialization becomes increasingly valuable as a business grows 👉 Learn more about David Feinman and Viral Idea Marketing: • Viral Ideas: https://viralideamarketing.com/ • David Feinman on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/davidfeinman • David Feinman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-feinman-7a069255/ • David Feinman on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BWs2md8AS/?mibextid=wwXIfr" 🎙️ Hosted by: Jeremy B. Shapiro, Host and Author, Your Business Growth Playbook ( https://yourbusinessgrowthplaybook.com/ ) David Feinman, Jeremy Shapiro, Viral Ideas, agency growth, business growth, scaling an agency, company culture, growth plateau, video production, video editing, productized services, business acquisitions, enterprise clients, KPIs, business systems, AI in business, entrepreneurship, leadership, customer satisfaction, business strategy #BusinessGrowth #Entrepreneurship #AgencyGrowth #Leadership #BusinessStrategy #Podcast 🔔 Subscribe today to get notified of new episodes, interviews, and shorts when they drop! @YourBusinessGrowthPlaybook

    Agency Turnaround and Team Reset: How a 40‑Person, Money‑Losing Agency Became Stronger Serving Global Brands — David Feinman David Feinman

  7. Aug 11

    Recover from Losing Your Biggest Client (80% Revenue): Podcast Marketing and Sales Lessons — Mike Wiston, MowMedia

    When a client that provided >80% of revenue disappears overnight, how do you rebuild? Jeremy Shapiro interviews Mike Wiston, co‑founder of MowMedia, about the revenue collapse that reshaped their sales and product philosophy, the 'sell before you build' approach, and podcast marketing tactics that supported MowMedia's growth as a dedicated podcast marketing company. Actionable takeaways: validating offers early, pricing to win, and aligning product with real buyer needs. MowMedia initially built its business around newsletter growth. Then Morning Brew came along. A roughly $20,000 test quickly turned into six-figure spending and gave Mike and his team the validation they needed to know they had a real business. There was just one problem: Morning Brew represented more than 80% of their revenue. When the company was acquired and its spending stopped, that revenue disappeared almost overnight. Mike and his team had employees to pay, a significant burn rate, and no easy replacement for their biggest customer. Instead of allowing the setback to end the company, they rebuilt how they approached growth. Mike shares how:✔️ Morning Brew became the client that validated MowMedia✔️ More than 80% of company revenue disappeared after the acquisition✔️ Landing The Hustle helped replace the lost business✔️ MowMedia became a sales-first organization✔️ Constant pipeline development reduced dependence on individual clients✔️ Apple's iOS changes disrupted the newsletter growth business✔️ Podcasting became the company's next major opportunity✔️ MowMedia eventually generated more than 90% of its revenue from podcasting✔️ The company became the largest dedicated podcast marketing firm in the US, Canada, and UKIn this episode, we discuss:✔️ Why every company needs an unfair advantage✔️ Selling results instead of clicks and impressions✔️ The danger of customer concentration✔️ Why sales activity shouldn't stop when business is booming✔️ What happens when a market's primary KPI suddenly stops working✔️ How MowMedia moved from newsletters into podcast marketing✔️ The sell-first, build-second philosophy✔️ Testing demand before investing in a product✔️ Using existing customers to validate new ideas✔️ Testing pricing during product development✔️ Why founders sometimes need to abandon good ideas✔️ Taking emotion out of product decisions✔️ Understanding customers by experiencing their problems yourself✔️ Building communities without treating every member as a sales opportunity Mike also shares lessons on:✔️ Launching Friday Night Karaoke to experience podcasting firsthand✔️ Growing its Facebook community to more than 50,000 members✔️ Why MowPod's first major podcast product failed✔️ Killing a product instead of continuing to pour money into it✔️ The gaming company that became an expensive lesson in emotional decision-making✔️ Turning MowPod Charts into a completely free podcast resource✔️ Using free products for long-term brand awareness✔️ Finding the hidden KPIs clients don't always verbalize✔️ Why growth without a meaningful business outcome doesn't matter✔️ Creating relationships where the customer and service provider both win 👉 Connect with Mike Wiston: · MowPod: https://mowpod.com/ · MowPod Charts: https://charts.mowpod.com/ · Mike Wiston on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikewiston/ · Mike Wiston on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sobimike/ 📘 Hosted by Jeremy B. Shapiro, Author, Your Business Growth Playbook ( https://yourbusinessgrowthplaybook.com/ ) Mike Wiston, MowPod, MowMedia, Jeremy Shapiro, podcast marketing, podcast growth, Morning Brew, The Hustle, newsletter growth, business growth, entrepreneurship, sell first build second, product validation, customer acquisition, sales strategy, business pivot, podcast advertising, podcast promotion, MowPod Charts, founder lessons, business strategy #PodcastMarketing #BusinessGrowth #Entrepreneurship #Sales #PodcastGrowth #Podcast

    Recover from Losing Your Biggest Client (80% Revenue): Podcast Marketing and Sales Lessons — Mike Wiston, MowMedia

  8. Aug 4

    Consulting Business Recovery: How Rael Bricker Rebuilt Revenue After Losing a Major Contract

    Jeremy Shapiro interviews entrepreneur Rael Bricker on consulting business recovery after losing a major contract. Hear the exact decisions and pivots that rebuilt revenue and led to launching an education company. Learn 3 tactical takeaways: prioritize high-value clients, restructure offers to recurring education revenue, and use decisive product-market pivots to recover cash flow. Practical steps for consultants facing sudden revenue loss. Rael's entrepreneurial career began with confidence, ambition, and two young MBA graduates convinced they could build a consulting firm. They landed a major contract and delivered results. Then an international consulting firm entered the picture, advised their client to eliminate other consultants, and Rael's business suddenly lost its primary source of revenue. That setback forced a completely different direction. Rael and his partner entered education with just 20 students. Through aggressive guerrilla marketing, strong timing, and a growing demand for education in South Africa, that small operation eventually grew to approximately 4,000 students. Then another event changed everything. After an armed man entered the business carrying an AK-47 and threatened Rael and his students, Rael decided it was time to find an exit. What followed was an extraordinary period of expansion. Rael shares how:✔️ A major consulting loss created an entirely new business opportunity✔️ 20 students eventually became approximately 4,000✔️ A massive physical guerrilla marketing campaign drove student acquisition✔️ One frightening incident forced him to rethink his future✔️ A reverse listing provided an alternative path to the public market✔️ Nine companies were acquired in approximately 18 months✔️ Acquisitions expanded the company from diploma education into degrees and private schooling✔️ The company's share price moved from approximately 90 cents to 14 rand during the expansion In this episode, we discuss:✔️ What to do when a major client disappears✔️ Why self-belief has to be backed by customer value✔️ Finding opportunity when outside events disrupt your plans✔️ How guerrilla marketing helped build an education company✔️ Growing from one location into multiple campuses✔️ How a reverse listing works✔️ Building an acquisition strategy around products and customer groups✔️ The dangers of acquiring companies without enough attention to culture✔️ Why 27 spreadsheets may be 26 too many✔️ Acting before every detail is perfect✔️ Changing direction without abandoning your larger mission✔️ The KPIs Rael uses to manage his financial services business Rael also shares lessons on:✔️ The 2013 health scare that changed his priorities✔️ Selling approximately $1 billion in mortgages from the stage✔️ Turning decades of business experience into professional speaking✔️ Writing and publishing Dive In✔️ Using a book as a business calling card✔️ Why Radical Candor shaped his approach to leadership✔️ Finding mentors who challenge how you think 👉 Connect with Rael Bricker: • Rael Bricker's website: https://raelbricker.com/ • Rael Bricker on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rael-bricker • Rael Bricker on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rael.bricker • Rael Bricker on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/raelbricker 📘 Hosted by Jeremy B. Shapiro, Host and Author, Your Business Growth Playbook ( https://yourbusinessgrowthplaybook.com/ ) Chapters:00:00 Office Gun Threat01:02 Podcast Setup01:19 MBA Confidence Origins03:00 Landing Eskom Contract06:54 Client Loss Pivot09:58 Campus Startup Hustle11:56 Guerrilla Marketing Boom16:25 Activism And AK4720:28 Reverse Listing Exit22:25 Acquisition Rollup Strategy27:04 Share Price Surge28:44 Beating Analysis Paralysis31:30 2013 Health Wakeup35:01 Writing Dive In37:40 KPIs And Rapid Fire41:37 Final Recap And Links 🔔 Subscribe today to get notified of new episodes, interviews, and shorts when they drop!

    Consulting Business Recovery: How Rael Bricker Rebuilt Revenue After Losing a Major Contract
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About

Welcome, fellow business owner, to Your Business Growth Podcast, the companion show to Jeremy Shapiro's book Your Business Growth Playbook, dedicated to helping you break through those frustrating plateaus and get back to scaling your business! If you’re an established entrepreneur who’s seen success but now feels like more hustle just isn’t working anymore, or if your expenses keep getting higher but revenue isn’t keeping up, then you’re in the right place. Our goal is to uncover the tactical and strategic methods that help businesses like yours increase not just revenue, but also profits.

Information

  • Creator
    Jeremy B. Shapiro | Entrepreneurship and Business Growth Coach
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    43
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Jeremy B. Shapiro | Entrepreneurship and Business Growth Coach
  • Show Website
    Your Business Growth Podcast