ROI Podcast™ — the #1 Entrepreneurial Business meets Comedy podcast hosted by Law Smith + Eric Readinger

ROI Podcast™
  • 4.9 (82)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

Realistic advice for small-to-medium business and startups with interviews from people who have been there.

  1. 4d ago

    How To Lead People Who Make More Than You: Eric & Law Break Down ROI #516

    What happens when the people you manage make more money than you do? ROI Podcast® #516 puts Eric Readinger and Law Smith into one of the stranger management problems created by the new economics of college sports. John Calipari says some college basketball players now make more than assistant coaches. That sends Eric and Law into NCAA NIL compensation, college athlete pay, coaching economics, player leverage and the practical problem of leading talented people whose financial power may exceed that of the people technically managing them. It is a college sports problem that looks a lot like a business problem. Compensation does not automatically create authority. Job titles do not automatically create leverage. And managing high-value talent gets considerably more complicated when the traditional economic hierarchy gets flipped upside down. Then, because this is ROI Podcast®, they wander directly into everything else. Law explains how he is using Claude and other AI tools for research, administrative work and business grunt work. Eric tries to figure out what data centers actually do. They get into data overload, the physical infrastructure behind digital information, generic AI-generated advertising and why giving machines unlimited creative capacity has already produced an impressive amount of extremely mediocre creative. The back half gets stranger. Eric and Law react to David Grusch's appearance on Joe Rogan and discuss his UAP allegations, intelligence versus counterintelligence, government secrecy, remote viewing, consciousness, alleged non-human intelligence, underwater bases, reptilian claims, ancient civilizations and the possibility that AI could eventually help researchers process enormous amounts of information humans cannot realistically analyze themselves. Nobody proves aliens exist. Nobody fixes college sports. Nobody becomes an endocrinologist. Pretty productive 69 minutes. Also discussed: testosterone testing, Sober October, golf, John Calipari, NCAA video games, virtual currencies, money laundering, Jameis Winston, Joe Rogan, The Abyss and Southland Tales. ROI Podcast® #516 is a host-only episode with Eric Readinger and Law Smith. Business, management, technology, economics and comedy without pretending every conversation needs seven actionable takeaways and a downloadable PDF.

  2. Sep 14

    How To Sell Without Being Salesy: Cam Tolman Pitches ROI #515

    Most people do not hate sales. They hate being sold at by somebody who has been waiting for them to inhale so the 47-slide deck can resume. In ROI Podcast® #515, Law Smith and Eric Readinger talk with Cam Tolman, founder of PitchDown™ and the Non-Sales Sales Coach, about what happens when you stop treating sales like a performance and start treating it like guided discovery. Cam's argument is simple: stop talking about yourself. Ask better questions. Listen closely. Help the buyer recognize the real gap between where they think they are and where they actually are. If the problem is real, the buyer can own it, understand what doing nothing costs, and decide whether movement makes sense. If the problem is not real, do not force a close just because somebody wrote a quota on a whiteboard. The guys break down why prospects say yes and still do nothing, why agreement is not the same thing as commitment, and why traditional discovery calls too often become sellers collecting information for themselves rather than helping buyers discover something useful about their own situation. They also get into why every employee influences revenue. Sales may be somebody's title, but support, marketing, product, operations, accounting, leadership, and every other customer-impacting function can improve or wreck the buying experience. Then it is AI vs. human intelligence. Cam uses AI for efficiency, but argues that important sales conversations still rely on empathy, human connection, curiosity, judgment, tone, facial expressions, pauses, body language, and the willingness to tell somebody the truth instead of whatever gets the signature fastest. Along the way: entrepreneurship, bad sales calls, buyer psychology, body-language tells, why "always be curious" beats "always be closing," and enough lightning-round nonsense to make sure nobody accidentally mistakes this for corporate sales enablement. Listen if you are a founder, salesperson, account manager, customer success leader, marketer, operator, consultant, executive, agency owner, or anybody whose paycheck eventually requires another human to agree, decide, approve, renew, buy, or move. Topics include how to sell without being salesy, sales psychology, buyer psychology, discovery selling, ethical sales, better sales questions, buyer self-discovery, sales without pressure, B2B sales, founder-led sales, AI in sales, human intelligence, empathy, active listening, customer experience, sales leadership, revenue growth, PitchDown™, and Cam Tolman.

  3. Aug 19

    How To Use Buy, Borrow, Die | Mark Quann Taxes ROI #514

    You were probably told to save money, build good credit, contribute to retirement accounts, work for several decades and eventually retire somewhere with a Costco membership and surprisingly strong opinions about thermostat settings. Mark Quann thinks that entire playbook deserves cross-examination. In ROI Podcast® #513, Law Smith and Eric Readinger talk with Mark Quann, founder of The Perfect Portfolio and author of Be Smart Pay Zero Taxes, about the wealth strategy known as Buy, Borrow, Die. Mark explains the basic idea: buy appreciating assets, avoid unnecessarily selling those assets, and potentially use loans secured by those investments to access liquidity instead. The conversation gets into margin loans, stocks and ETFs, real estate, life insurance, precious metals, Bitcoin, inflation, capital gains, financial education and why Mark believes wealthy investors think about debt differently. Law naturally stress-tests the strategy by asking how somebody should finance a cocaine habit. Somebody had to. Mark also explains why he's bullish on Bitcoin but considerably less affectionate toward the rest of crypto, why he questions conventional retirement and banking advice, and why he's teaching investment concepts to homeschool students young enough to still require permission to operate the toaster. His road into finance wasn't exactly Wharton-to-Goldman. Mark talks about dropping out of school, growing up poor, becoming a private investigator in Los Angeles, conducting workers' compensation surveillance, meeting Patrick Bet-David early in his career, becoming a financial advisor, writing books and eventually building The Perfect Portfolio. It's personal finance, investing, entrepreneurship, tax strategy, childhood LSD, private-investigator urine bottles and Eric somehow getting accused of racism. So, basically, Bloomberg with worse adult supervision. Guest: Mark Quann, The Perfect Portfolio Hosts: Law Smith, @LawSmithWorks, LawSmithWorks.com | Eric Readinger, @EricReadinger ROI Podcast®: @ROIshow, ROIshow.com Tocobaga: SolvingHow.com The description reflects subjects and claims actually discussed in the provided transcript and audio and not financial advice. Law Smith Instagram: @lawsmithworks. ROI's own posts consistently tag that account. X: @LawSmithWorks. YouTube: @LawSmithWorks. Facebook: Law Smith Works / @LawSmithWorks. LinkedIn: Law Smith / lawsmithworks. Eric Readinger Instagram: @ericreadinger. Facebook: Eric Readinger / ericreadinger. LinkedIn: Eric Readinger / eric-readinger. I found third-party indexing suggesting @ericreadinger on TikTok, but I could not first-party verify that account, so I would not put it in the episode metadata yet. ROI Podcast® Instagram: @roishow. YouTube: @roishow. Facebook: ROI Podcast / girthyroi. The URL still carries the old brand handle. LinkedIn: ROI Podcast®. The public company page still uses the legacy /company/sweatequity slug. Tocobaga Instagram: @solvinghow. Facebook: Tocobaga / TocobagaWorks. LinkedIn: Tocobaga, company page currently indexed at /company/toco-works. Mark Quann His own website explicitly identifies these as official accounts: Instagram: @markjquann. X: @markjquann. LinkedIn: Mark Quann / mark-quann-author. The Perfect Portfolio Instagram: @theperfectportfolio. YouTube: @P2Wealth. X: @P2Wealth. LinkedIn: The Perfect Portfolio. Facebook: Mark Quann, The Perfect Portfolio.

  4. Aug 17

    How To Heal and Re-Program Yourself w/ Ruperi Shah - The Incremental

    Ruperi Shah of Sacred Becoming is a Certified Hypnotherapist and can be found on Instagram @ruperoo In this episode of The Incremental Podcast, Eric sits down with Ruperi Shah for a wide-ranging conversation about the mind, the body, and the beliefs that shape how we live. They explore Ruperi's experiences with hypnotherapy, what it can reveal about our subconscious patterns, and the role spirituality can play in personal growth and self-understanding. The conversation also dives into vegetarianism, the choices and values behind it, and how our relationship with food can connect to a broader philosophy of life. It's a thoughtful discussion about questioning assumptions, becoming more conscious, and finding your own path.

  5. Jul 21

    How To Rank in AI Search: Eric Readinger & Law Smith Get Zesty on ROI #512

    Your website can rank on Google and still be completely invisible to the increasingly judgmental robot deciding which companies deserve to exist in an AI-generated answer. In ROI Podcast® episode 512, Law Smith and Eric Readinger explain how businesses can improve their visibility in AI search, Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT, and other LLM-driven research tools. The practical answer is not "add AI to the strategy deck" and charge the client another $4,000. Law breaks down why businesses need answer-first content built around actual buyer questions. He explains how schema markup, structured FAQs, search intent, and clear service explanations help machines understand what a company does and when it should appear in an AI-generated response. Eric and Law also discuss why changing an established business name or domain can become a technical migraine, why unaccepted calendar invitations should be treated as a warning from the universe, and how companies can stop writing website copy that sounds impressive while communicating absolutely nothing. Because this is a host-only episode, the business discussion is surrounded by the usual ROI Podcast® educational curriculum: awkward comedian encounters, bad AirPod audio, compulsory TikTok dancing, China's population math, Patreon procrastination, run-club purgatory, captain hats, artificial intelligence, and ley lines beneath ancient structures. Basically, Harvard Business Review after somebody slips something into the Keurig. Listen if you are a founder, marketer, consultant, SEO professional, agency owner, content strategist, or small business operator trying to make your website understandable to both prospective customers and the machines now helping them make buying decisions. Topics include AI search optimization, generative engine optimization, LLM SEO, Google AI Overviews, schema markup, FAQ schema, structured data, search intent, content marketing, website rebranding, domain authority, small business marketing, podcast monetization, entrepreneurship, and business comedy. ROI Podcast® is hosted by: Law Smith @LawSmithWorks LawSmithWorks.com Eric Readinger @EricReadinger Powered by Tocobaga SolvingHow.com Tocoba.ga

  6. Jun 24

    How To Scale a Business With EOS: Chris Hallberg Drills ROI #511

    Chris Hallberg, CEO and Founder of Business Sergeant and President and Founder of GoExpand, joins ROI Podcast® #511 to talk EOS, business operating systems, military leadership, veteran-powered recruiting, accountability, execution, and the small-business disease known as "we're agile," which is sometimes just Latin for "we made a new excuse every two weeks." Chris is an Expert EOS Implementer who helps leadership teams stop winging the business like a drunk magician at a sales conference. He explains EOS in plain English: vision, people, data, issues, process, and traction. Or, as we prefer to call it, "the six things that keep your company from turning into a group project where Todd from sales has opinions and no follow-through." Law and Chris get into why most meetings are lawless little hostage situations, how scorecards make accountability less emotional, why "right people, right seats" is not a motivational poster, and why energy vampires and brilliant jerks need to be traded to another team like a locker-room problem with a LinkedIn Premium account. They also hit veteran leadership, Business Sergeant's mission, GoExpand's agentic AI platform, project management, critical thinking, UFOs, control being an illusion, and why you should not be the smartest person in the room unless you are teaching kindergarten or holding court at a Chili's bar after one weird Tuesday. Hosted by Law Smith and Eric Readinger, ROI Podcast® is the #1 entrepreneurial-business-meets-comedy podcast for founders, operators, marketers, and executives who want useful business thinking without the corporate anesthesia. Guest: Chris Hallberg CEO & Founder, Business Sergeant President & Founder, GoExpand Expert EOS Implementer Hosts: Law Smith - @LawSmithWorks - www.LawSmithWorks.com  Eric Readinger - @EricReadinger Tocobaga Consulting - www.SolvingHow.com

  7. May 20

    How To Build Gear That Solves Pain | Josh Sprague Slings Orange Mud at ROI #509

    Running is already punishment with better shoes. In ROI Podcast® #509, Law Smith and Eric Readinger talk with Josh Sprague, owner/operator and founder of Orange Mud, the endurance gear company making hydration packs, running vests, biking packs, transition wraps, and outdoor gear for runners, cyclists, triathletes, mountain bikers, gravel riders, ultra runners, and other people who hear "24-hour race" and somehow do not immediately fake a hamstring injury. Josh built Orange Mud because the hydration packs he used were too tight, bounced around, caused chafing, and made running feel like a backpack had filed a workplace grievance against his torso. So he made his own. Fourteen years later, Orange Mud is still solving that same core problem: helping athletes carry fluid, gear, phones, calories, and post-race beer-garden money without turning their upper body into a friction crime scene. This one starts with practical product design, then takes the scenic route through SEC football smuggling economics, premium floppy flasks, Raiders fan brawls, secret backpack wine compartments, fake casts full of booze, organic street nuts, nicotine pouches, and the kind of R&D conversation that should probably be notarized. Then Josh drops the business stuff that actually matters. Founders confuse activity with ROI. Busy is not a metric. Busy is a haunted LinkedIn carousel with a calendar invite. Josh's cleanest example: the best account he ever landed took five years of follow-up, then turned into $5 million in the first year. Most people quit after two polite emails and a sad CRM note. Josh kept showing up. The bigger lesson is marketing infrastructure. Josh explains why companies chase platforms like Facebook ads before they understand the full pipeline. If your website is bad, your tracking is broken, your CRM is decorative, your follow-up is asleep, and your customer problem is defined with the clarity of a gas station bathroom mirror, the ad platform is not the problem. You are just paying Meta to make the fire look warm. Listen if you are a founder, ecommerce operator, product builder, endurance athlete, marketer, salesperson, agency owner, or anyone who has ever said "we need Facebook ads" before knowing who the customer is, what problem they have, and what happens after the lead comes in. Hosted by Law Smith, @LawSmithWorks, LawSmithWorks.com, and Eric Readinger, @EricReadinger. Powered by Tocobaga Consulting, Tocoba.ga. ROI Podcast® is the business show for people who want the math, the mess, and the occasional product idea that belongs in a stadium parking lot. Topics: Josh Sprague, Orange Mud, hydration packs, running gear, cycling gear, endurance racing, 24-hour races, trail running, gravel cycling, product design, customer pain, marketing ROI, sales follow-up, CRM, Facebook ads, Meta attribution, ecommerce marketing, founder story

  8. May 9

    How To Grow Profit By A Better Business OS | Andy Clark Feeds ROI The Whole Pie | ROI Podcast® #508

    Small business ownership is sold like freedom, then quietly turns into  a group project where you're somehow every group member AND the  substitute teacher. In ROI Podcast® episode 508, Law Smith and Eric Readinger sit down with  Andy Clark — creator of The Whole PIE System™ and author of Getting  The Whole PIE — to talk about how to build a business that's actually  profitable, actually impactful, and (radically) actually enjoyable.  Wild concept. Apparently the goal is not to create a company that  prints money while slowly turning your soul into printer toner. Andy works with small business owners stuck in the messy gap between  "owner-operator" and "actual owner." They have customers, employees,  revenue, meetings, and that special founder disease where every problem  mysteriously circles back to their inbox. Andy walks through how to  get out of the weeds, build real systems, install accountability, and  focus on the metrics that actually drive results. The guys dig into why owners say they want better results but resist  the behavior changes needed to get there, why law firms and  professional services partnerships are uniquely chaotic to run, and  why running a business should at least occasionally feel enjoyable  instead of like a hostage situation with recurring invoices. Andy also shares a real case study from an automatic car wash chain  that grew from 10 to 22 locations and tripled revenue by leaning hard  into customer service — in an industry literally designed to avoid  human contact. Yes. Customer service. In car washes. The bar is on  the floor and somehow still full of opportunity. They also cover Moneyball-style metrics, the Golden State Warriors, AI  readiness for small business, owner bottlenecks, Costa Rica, Canadian  geography, hockey trauma, guitar guys at parties, and whether cake or  pie is the superior food and/or business framework. Listen if you're a small business owner, consultant, professional  services leader, agency founder, lawyer, operator, or anyone who has  ever whispered "I need better systems" while opening another tab and  making the problem worse. ROI Podcast® is hosted by Law Smith and Eric Readinger. Business,  comedy, and enough operational truth to make your Google Calendar  blink twice. Topics: small business growth, business coaching, business strategy,  The Whole PIE System, Andy Clark, Getting The Whole PIE, profit impact  enjoyment, business operations, scaling a small business, owner- operator bottleneck, business systems, customer service strategy, AI  for small business, entrepreneur podcast, business podcast.

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Realistic advice for small-to-medium business and startups with interviews from people who have been there.

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