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Track 2: Build the Brand
Track 3: Get Found and Get Leads
Track 4: Sell, Deliver and Keep Customers
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Lessons
Before You Start: What a Business Actually Is
The Business Plan on a Napkin
Product or Service: What Are You Really Selling?
The Business Model on One Page
Validating an Idea Before Spending Money
Market Size for a Normal Small Business
Revenue Models
Knowing Your Competitors
Competitive Positioning: Why Someone Should Choose You
Startup Costs: One-Time Versus Recurring
Fixed, Variable and Semi-Variable Expenses
Revenue Is Not Profit, and Profit Is Not Cash
Gross Margin Versus Net Margin
Pricing From the Numbers Backward
Break-Even: How Many Sales You Need
Unit Economics
Your Business Can Be Profitable and Still Run Out of Money
Building a 12-Month Cash-Flow Forecast
Working Capital and the Cash-Conversion Cycle
Deposits, Payment Terms and Collecting Money Faster
Seasonality and Surviving the Slow Months
Owner Pay Versus Business Money
Building a Cash Reserve
When Borrowing Helps, and When It Hides a Broken Model
Reading a Profit-and-Loss Statement
Understanding a Balance Sheet Without Becoming an Accountant
The Numbers Every Owner Should Watch
The Monthly Financial Review
Choosing a Name (and Making Sure You Can Keep It)
Picking Professionals to Work With
Building Your Outside Team: Attorney, Banker, Insurance Adviser and Tax Professional
Partners, Recruits and Early Hires
Co-Branding and Strategic Alliances
Building Relationships: Vendors, Customers, Other Owners
Your Marketing Budget: The Number Everyone Underestimates
The Owner’s Mindset
The Real Business Plan
The Go/No-Go Decision
Your First 90 Days of Marketing: The Checklist
What Is Branding, Really?
Your Vision
Your Mission
Your Values
Your Beliefs
The Outcome: What All of This Adds Up To
Build Your Marketing Avatar
The Advanced Avatar: Pain Points in Their Words, Not Yours
Does Your Avatar Match Your Brand?
Does Your Name Matter?
Does Your Look Matter?
Learn From Car Brands
The Brand Is an Experience
The Brand and Consumer Triangle
Logo, Colors and First Impressions
Company Philosophy and Customer Perception
Communication: Business Language vs Human Language
Translating Your Positioning Into an Actual Offer
Good, Better, Best: Building Packages
Setting Expectations Before the Sale
Brand Promises Your Operation Can Actually Deliver
Testing Your Message Before You Build a Full Identity
Brand Track Wrap-Up and Checklist
Common Marketing Terms You Should Know
Sales Is Not Marketing
Tools of the Trade: Everybody Has the Same Tools
The Marketing Wheel
What Tools to Use When
Driving Leads vs Driving Recognition
Putting Together a Campaign
How to Track Results
CRM, Email Software and Marketing Automation Explained
Google Business Profile: The Most Important Free Listing You Have
Reviews and Reputation: How to Get Them and What to Do With Bad Ones
A Website That Converts
Local SEO Fundamentals
Google Ads for Local and Service Businesses
Local Services Ads
Social Media Without Wasting Your Life
Email Marketing and Your List
Networking and Referrals
Traditional Channels: When Print, Radio, TV and Direct Mail Still Make Sense
Outside-the-Box Marketing
What AI Is Actually Good For in Small Business Marketing
Using AI to Build Your Avatar and Your Content Plan
Writing With AI Without Sounding Like Everyone Else
AI for the Boring Parts: Email, Scheduling, Reporting
Why You Need a CRM Before You Spend on Ads
How Many Leads Do You Actually Need?
Lead-to-Sale Forecasting
Budgeting From Gross Profit, Not Revenue
Choosing Channels by What a Customer Costs
What Approach Is Right for You?
Marketing When You Are Already Full
Pausing or Scaling a Campaign Responsibly
What Tracking Can and Cannot Tell You
Your Quarterly Marketing Plan
Your Monthly Marketing Routine
Why People Buy
Be a Salesperson, Not an Expert
Filters: Deletion, Distortion, Generalization
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Track 1: Plan and Build the Business
Track 2: Build the Brand
Track 3: Get Found and Get Leads
Track 4: Sell, Deliver and Keep Customers
Resources
Glossary
Tools We Use
Newsletter
About
Contact
