Podcasts about Discounting

Ever feel like your calendar is packed in the fall, then painfully quiet by January? That feast-or-famine cycle can leave even talented photographers questioning what comes next. In this episode, Sarah Petty unpacks why discounts, mini sessions, and desperate "now booking" posts often make slow seasons worse. Instead, she shares how profitable photographers create demand year-round by building strategic partnerships and meaningful campaigns that clients actually want to be part of. You'll hear: • Why discounting trains clients to wait and quietly devalues your work • How partnerships with local businesses and charities can create consistent bookings • The secret to building urgency without relying on sales or mini sessions If you're tired of wondering where your next client is coming from, this conversation offers a smarter, more sustainable path forward. Press play and start building a business that feels steady in every season. RESOURCES:  Photography Business Tools to Get Started 37 CLIENTS WHO CAN HIRE YOU TODAY https://info.photographybusinessinstitute.com/37-clients-optin   INSTAGRAM – DM me "Conversation Starters" for some genuine ways to strike up a conversation about your photography business wherever you are. https://www.instagram.com/sarah.petty   FREE COPY: NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLING BOOK FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS www.photographybusinessinstitute.com/freebook    BOUTIQUE BREAKTHROUGH – 8-WEEK WORKSHOP www.photographybusinessinstitute.com/boutiquebreakthrough   FREE FACEBOOK GROUP: Join and get my free mini-class: How I earned $1,500 per client working 16 hours a week by becoming a boutique photographer. https://www.facebook.com/groups/ditchthedigitals    YOUTUBE: Check out my latest how to videos:  https://www.youtube.com/photographybusinessinstitute   LOVE THE SHOW? Subscribe & Review on Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/worth-every-penny-joycast/id1513676756

Send us Fan MailPrime Day isn't just about massive discounts, it's about margin protection and long-term audience building. In this video, we break down why a "Low-Discount" strategy often yields higher net profit and how to use technical tools like Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC) and Brand Tailored Promotions to capture sales after the event ends.Get help from My Amazon Guy to grow your Amazon sales. https://bit.ly/4jMZtxu#AmazonPrimeDay #AmazonFBA #AmazonSellers #AmazonPPC #amazonmarketing Want free resources? Dowload our Free Amazon guides here:Amazon Receiving Delay Guide: https://hubs.ly/Q04cdD4c0Amazon Catalog Spring Cleaning: https://hubs.ly/Q046BVfp0Amazon Proft Margin Defense 2026: https://hubs.ly/Q042trRH0Amazon SEO Toolkit 2026: https://bit.ly/4oC2ClTAmazon Seller Strategy Report 2026: https://bit.ly/3YN1RME2026 Ecommerce Website & SEO Readiness Checklist: https://hubs.ly/Q04btghf0Amazon 2026 PPC guide: https://bit.ly/4lF0OYXTimestamps00:00 Should You Actually Discount on Prime Day? 01:21 The "Added to Cart" Secret Tactic 02:54 Why the Account-Wide View is Killing Your Profit 03:55 Testing Campaigns Before the Big Event 04:12 AMC Audience Insights: Building Your Post-Prime Funnel 05:00 Summary & Next Steps for Your Brand-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Follow us:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/28605816/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stevenpopemag/Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/myamazonguys/Twitter: https://twitter.com/myamazonguySubscribe to the My Amazon Guy podcast: https://podcast.myamazonguy.comApple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/my-amazon-guy/id1501974229Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4A5ASHGGfr6s4wWNQIqyVwSupport the show

Someone asks for a discount. Most sellers give it before they've even thought about why.

How Cheque Helps Service Businesses Get Paid Faster with Dynamic Discounting  Adrienne interviews Julia, founder of Cheque, who moved from Sweden to the US after leaving her role at a Stockholm accelerator to start an invoicing platform for service businesses. Drawing on interviews with about 100 service providers, Julia explains how Cheque uses dynamic discounting—letting businesses offer optional discounted net 5 or net 10 terms alongside standard net terms—so clients can pay early for a 1%–3% discount, helping vendors improve cash flow without relying on lines of credit or factoring. They discuss the realities of entrepreneurship, the pain points in existing bookkeeping and invoicing tools, and Cheque's longer-term vision for a “credit exchange without credit” that could route early-payment demand across the platform. Julia shares how to contact her and notes Cheque's free plan and QuickBooks integration. Contact Julia on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliadelin/Cheque Website: https://www.chequepay.co/Contact Adrienne on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriennewilkerson/Beacon Media & Marketing Website: https://www.beaconmm.com/ Follow Beacon Media & Marketing Social Mediahttps://www.linkedin.com/company/beacon-media-marketing/posts/?feedView=allhttps://www.facebook.com/beaconmm/https://www.instagram.com/beaconmm/ 00:00 Welcome and Introductions00:18 Julia's Founder Story01:29 How Cheque Works02:37 Taking the Leap04:02 Entrepreneur Rollercoaster08:14 Big Vision for SMBs09:45 Cash Flow Alternative12:06 Dynamic Discounting Demo16:35 Proactive vs Collections19:51 Credit Exchange Vision21:32 Roadmap and Risk22:39 Free Plan and Contact23:58 Healthcare Use Case27:03 Closing Thanks

NATired of clients ghosting you? Here's the truth: it might not be them—it's YOU. Let's talk about why this happens!Share this episode with someone who needs to hear this!In today's episode, we dive deep into the reasons your clients might be canceling at the last minute. Spoiler alert: it often comes down to your systems (or lack thereof).1️⃣ Complicated booking processes turn potential clients away. If it's hard to book, they'll swipe left!2️⃣ Lack of reminders? You're sending the message that you don't have it together. Automated emails and texts can make all the difference.3️⃣ Without clear policies, clients won't respect your time. Make sure your cancellation policies are visible and acknowledged.4️⃣ Most importantly, clients need to feel a connection with you. If they don't feel valued, they won't show up.Let's fix this together! Audit your processes and ensure your clients feel seen and appreciated. For more tips, check the links below!

This is a very simple strategy that is overlooked all the time! You will mprove your ELR at same time. If you're discounting before offering financing, you're doing it backwards. In this episode, Jen Suzuki tackles one of the biggest profit leaks happening in service departments every day. Advisors hear a repair total, feel a little customer hesitation, and immediately start shaving dollars off the repair order. The problem? Most customers aren't saying no because of the total cost. They're reacting to the immediate out-of-pocket impact. Jen breaks down why discounting weakens value, lowers ELR, reduces gross profit, and trains customers to negotiate every future visit. More importantly, she shares a simple mindset shift that helps advisors protect the repair, protect the technician and create more opportunities for customers to say yes. You'll learn how to present financing naturally, why payment options change the conversation, and how top advisors use flexibility instead of discounts to increase approvals, improve hours per RO, and build more trust. If you want stronger MPI approval rates, higher gross profit, and more confidence presenting recommendations, this episode is for you. Check out our sponsors! LotLinx.com is a VIN Management Platform that enables precision automotive retailing via /AI/ technologies that improves dealership profitability. Matador.ai, AI That Fully Automates Sales & Service Conversations For Dealerships. ZukiTalk.com helps service advisors by making clear, consistent MPI calls that educate customers and increase approvals. Dealer Talk with Jen Suzuki Podcast |

We're releasing Todd Caponi's 4 Levers Negotiating™ Course on June 22.  And to celebrate, we're sharing the latest updates on content drops, new resources, and tactical sessions to help you on your sales negotiation journey. Folks, we're pumped for this one. Here's what to expect: 4 Levers Negotiating Course: https://hubs.li/Q04jryL50  5 Negotiation Scripts To Handle Any Pricing Objection: https://hubs.li/Q04jrz6G0  Live Masterclass with Todd Caponi: https://hubs.li/Q04jrzrd0  - - You're one step closer to President's Club! ⏪ YouTube Classic with Todd: https://youtu.be/XvuWnvR0Mpc 

Discounting is a trap that eats away at your margins. Neil Twa has seen countless sellers fall into the cycle of cutting prices to move inventory, only to find themselves in a worse position the following month. Most sellers are sitting on a goldmine of customer behavior data, yet they instinctively reach for discounts when sales slow. Neil shares real-world examples, including a home goods seller doing $15,000 to $20,000 a month on Amazon, who faced a slow Q1. Instead of slashing prices, Neil offers three actionable moves to use customer data, starting with pulling repeat buyer data from Amazon's Brand Analytics. These strategies work for sellers at every level, whether you're just starting or managing a $1M+ brand. The High Voltage Business Builders Podcast is here to help you maintain your margins and grow intelligently. Ready to audit your AI readiness? Take the free 5-question assessment: voltagedm.com/aiquiz?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep284

Welcome aboard the Safe Space Ship!   Ariana Perry will be hosting this completely spoiled, totally unofficial, deep dive into Our Flag Means Death every Tuesday!   This week I'm talking to Temporal_Discounting about her amazing fics! Episode Mentions:  Never Left Patreon Temporal_discounting on Ao3   Don't forget to follow us on social media (@NeverLeftPodcast on BlueSky, @NeverLeftPod on Twitter, NeverLeftPodcast on Ig, Never Left on FB), and check out our Pateron.. The links are in our linktree!  Feel free to contact us at neverleftofmd@gmail.com with any thoughts or questions   Please remember to #DontStreamOnMax and #FireDavidZaslav If you want you can also let Netflix, Amazon Prime and Apple + know that you would still love to see Our Flag Means Death on their platforms. #SaveOFMD #AdoptOurCrew   Our artwork was created by Amy Gleason, you can see more of her art @AmysBirdHouse on instagram and in the comic series Mighty Mascots.   Our theme music is Gnossienne 5 by Erik Satie, preformed by La Pianista   Image Description: A lighthouse stands above the inn, wrapped in a purple Kraken tentacle. The text reads "Never Left: Our Flag Means Death"        

How many times have you been this close to hitting publish… This close to launching your offer… This close to finally putting yourself out there… and then stopped yourself? That something has a name. Fear. In this episode, we're talking about the fears that keep so many coaches stuck — the fear of starting, launching, being visible, being judged, not getting clients, and ultimately… the fear that maybe this won't work for you. Because here's the truth: Fear is not the enemy. Staying silent because of fear is. In this conversation, I'm breaking down the six biggest fears I see health and wellness coaches face and how to move through them without waiting to feel "ready." Because confidence isn't something you magically wake up with. Confidence is built through action. And if you've been waiting for fear to disappear before you start your business, post the video, launch the program, or raise your prices — this episode will shift everything for you.   In This Episode, We Cover: • Why fear is the #1 reason coaches stay stuck • The difference between fear and facts • Why "almost ready" keeps you from growing • How perfectionism hides behind launch fear • Why messy action creates momentum • The truth about showing up on video • How fear of judgment keeps coaches invisible • Why your mission has to become bigger than your fear • The real reason some coaches succeed and others quit • 5 practical ways to move through fear today   A Message I Want You to Hear You do not need to feel ready to begin. You do not need a perfect website. You do not need more certifications. You do not need to become someone else first. You need to start. Because the version of you that feels confident, visible, and successful is not created through waiting. She is built through action.   The Fear of Starting One of the biggest fears coaches experience is the fear of beginning. It sounds like: • "I need one more certification." • "I'll start when my website is done." • "I need more followers first." • "I'm not ready yet." But what's really happening is this: You're not waiting to be ready. You're waiting to feel safe. And readiness is not a feeling — it's a decision. The coaches who succeed are not the ones who waited until everything was perfect. They started messy. They started scared. And they built confidence through movement.   The Fear of Launching Launching feels vulnerable because you are putting your work, your knowledge, and your heart into the world and asking people to say yes. And that's brave. So many coaches delay launching because they fear: • Nobody will buy • People will judge the price • They'll hear crickets • They'll fail publicly But a messy launch that signs one client is infinitely more powerful than a perfect program that never gets released. One client creates momentum. One client creates proof. One client changes everything.   The Fear of Being Visible on Video Video forces visibility. And visibility can feel deeply uncomfortable. Many coaches believe they need to be: • Perfect • Polished • Confident • Professional-looking But people do not connect to perfection. They connect to realness. Your audience wants to hear your voice, feel your energy, and trust the human behind the brand. That trust is what builds a coaching business.   The Fear of Being Judged This fear stops so many incredible coaches from showing up online. What will people think? What if somebody laughs? What if someone from my past sees this? But most of the people we fear judgment from are not our ideal clients. They are people who would never hire us anyway. Meanwhile, the people who actually need your help cannot find you if you stay hidden. Visibility is not vanity. It is service.   The Fear of Not Getting Clients This fear often creates behaviors like: • Underpricing • Over-giving • Over-explaining • Discounting before anyone asks At the root of it is one belief: "People won't pay me." But people invest in transformation every single day. The real question is not whether people buy. The question is: Do you believe in the transformation you provide? Because if you don't believe in your value, your audience will feel that.   The Fear That You Won't Make It This is the deepest fear of all. The fear that maybe you'll try everything… and still fail. But building a coaching business is not linear. There will be: • Failed launches • Slow months • Moments of doubt • Periods where nothing seems to work The coaches who succeed are not the most talented. They are the ones who stay. They learn. They refine. They ask for help. And they keep going.   5 Ways to Move Through Fear 1. Name the Fear Write it down. Say it out loud. Fear loses power when it becomes specific. 2. Ask: Is This Fear or Fact? Most fear is a story — not evidence. Challenge the story. 3. Take the Smallest Possible Step Momentum matters more than perfection. Post one story. Send one email. Start one conversation. 4. Get Around People Who Are Doing It Fear grows in isolation. Community reminds you that success is possible. 5. Make Your Mission Bigger Than Your Fear Your future clients need you. And your message matters more than your discomfort.   Final Thoughts Fear does not mean you are in the wrong business. It means you care. Every successful coach has felt fear. Every successful coach has doubted themselves. Every successful coach has wanted to quit at some point. The difference is they kept moving. So start the thing. Post the video. Launch the offer. Have the conversation. Do it scared if you have to. Just do it.   Resources Are you a health coach in need of done-for-you content? Visit yourhealthcoachbiz.com and save 40% using code GO40. Launch your podcast or get full podcast management services here: https://rachelafeldman.com/the-healthy-hustle-podcast-agency/  

Would you rather have a fiver today or a tenner this time next year? That kind of calculation is called 'discounting', and the more you'd rather have the fiver today, the more you are discounting the future.  Humans are hardwired to lean towards getting things now, unless the deal is sufficiently sweet. That preference makes sense when you evolved to not know where your next antelope was coming from. But our bias towards discounting the future is one of the reasons we haven't done enough about climate change. So.... we'd better learn to hack it.  On this Micro episode, I revisit my chat from 2023 with cognitive scientist Adam Bulley. We chatted then all about foresight; the brain's amazing ability to jump forward (and backward in time) to make calculations about what to do today - and how it's a deeply imperfect but very human part of what made us the species we are today. OWL at 3:00: here's more about economic discounting. Please do consider chipping in a couple of quid over at http://www.patreon.com/yourbrainonclimate. And a written review would be ace. Please thank you please. The show is hosted and produced by me, Dave Powell. The show is over on Instagram at @yourbrainonclimate. YBOC theme music and iterations thereof, by me.  Show logo by Arthur Stovell at www.designbymondial.com.  

In today's FittBite, we explain why discounting can increase short-term sales while reducing perceived value over time.We break down how repeated promotions shift customer behavior, weaken pricing power, and turn purchase decisions into price comparisons instead of brand preference.Tune in to understand how to drive demand without relying on discounts.Book a 1 on 1 with our host, Shadi for personalized advice on how to create and grow your fashion business: https://www.fittdesign.com/services/consultationDesign your own collection with our instantly downloadable factory ready tech pack templates:  FittDesign Tech Pack TemplatesFollow our host on instagram:https://www.instagram.com/shadiadada/https://www.instagram.com/fittdesign/Got any other questions, email us for an instant response at:studio@fittdesign.comSubscribe to our weekly fashion design podcast (New episodes every Thursday at 4pm CST): https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-fittdesign-podcast/id1454410683Visit our website:https://www.fittdesign.com/Follow us on:https://www.linkedin.com/company/fittdesign/https://www.facebook.com/fittdesignhttps://www.pinterest.com/fittdesign/https://www.behance.net/fittdesign...

Have you ever lowered your prices just to get a client?Most interior designers assume that being “more affordable” makes it easier to sell. But what if that belief is actually costing you premium clients—and positioning your work as less valuable?In this episode, I sit down with luxury market messaging and pricing strategist Miriam Schulman to unpack a powerful mindset shift that can completely change how you sell your services. We dive into the belief triad—a simple but transformative framework that helps you move beyond pricing fears and start attracting clients who value taste, certainty, and execution… not discounts.Here's the truth: your clients aren't sitting there asking, “Is this designer worth it?” They're asking something much deeper. And once you understand that, your entire sales process—from your pricing strategy to your presentation—begins to feel easier, more aligned, and yes… more profitable.Featured Guest:Miriam Schulman is a luxury market messaging and pricing strategist for creative entrepreneurs. She is the author of Artpreneur, a step-by-step guide to building a sustainable creative business, and the host of The Inspiration Place podcast, ranked in the top 1% globally. Miriam helps artists, interior designers, and creative entrepreneurs position their work as premium and reassuringly expensive, attracting clients who value quality, taste, and execution over discounts.What You'll Learn in This Episode✳️ Why cheaper services are harder—not easier—to sell✳️ The belief triad and sales process explained simply✳️ Why clients question themselves, not your pricing✳️ How to position interior design as a transformation✳️ Emotional decision-making in luxury client purchasesRead the Blog >>> The Belief Triad That Sells Premium Interior Design Services Without DiscountingNEXT STEPS:

Save big on Vegas with Las Vegas Advisor — get 10% off a membership with code MTM (new members, affiliate): https://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/shop/products/lva-membership-platinum/?ref=MTM Another mid-tier bites the dust. MGM is closing the Grand Buffet, Plaza is building a high limit room, and Tillman Fertitta keeps circling Caesars with a $32/share offer. Meanwhile Caesars is pushing room discounts and food credits to fill their older properties. The K-shaped Vegas economy keeps pulling apart. In This Episode: $142 WrestleMania tomahawk steak  MGM Grand Buffet is closing later this month  Viewer Chris shows worn vs. fresh MGM Grand carpet  70 buffets down to a handful on the Strip  Excalibur suite gets MGM Grand hand-me-down furniture  Plaza adds a 2,000 sq ft high limit room  Foundation Room may return as Vinyl Room ($5K/year membership)  Tillman Fertitta offering $32/share for Caesars, wants to merge Landry's  Caesars summer kickoff sale — up to 50% off rooms through March 2027 Episode Guide: 0:00 $142 WrestleMania Tomahawk 0:29 Vegas Weekend Recap 1:12 MGM Grand Carpet Talk 2:07 MGM Grand Buffet Closing 4:15 Excalibur Suite Review 5:33 Plaza's New High Limit Room 7:07 Vinyl Room Replaces Foundation Room 9:27 Tillman Fertitta Wants Caesars 11:36 Caesars Summer Sale & Value Push 15:16 Final Thoughts & Wrap-Up Key Links Tomahawk - https://x.com/vegas/status/2045612276577874353?s=46&t=B9kWNUIY21TRZnc8tXrfRQ Grand buffet closing - https://neon.reviewjournal.com/dining-out/one-of-the-last-buffets-on-the-las-vegas-strip-is-closing-soon-3333426/ Excalibur suite - https://x.com/blairg_yvr/status/2044991624069996945?s=46 Plaza High Limit - https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/downtown-las-vegas-casino-to-open-new-high-limit-gaming-room-3762944/ Vinyl Room - https://www.casino.org/vitalvegas/confirmed-overhauled-foundation-room-to-reopen-as-vinyl-room-at-mandalay-bay/ Caesars Deals - https://investor.caesars.com/news-releases/news-release-details/summer-savings-starts-now-caesars-entertainments-las-vegas Fertitta - https://www.reuters.com/business/caesars-extends-discussion-period-potential-fertitta-takeover-bloomberg-news-2026-04-20/ Want more MTM Vegas? Get our exclusive weekly aftershow and join the community: https://www.patreon.com/cw/MtMVegas

Ashley exposes the habit of lowering your price before the client even asks, why it happens, what it costs you, and how to stop prejudging your clients' ability to pay. DM @missashleyhair on Instagram and visit richstylist.com. Message me on Instagram @missashleyhair Resources and Links: Become the Highest Paid Hair Extension Pro in Your City: https://richstylist.com Low-Investment, High Impact 90-Day Coaching Program: https://richstylist.com/level-up Bond Bootcamp 2026 (Live Training Event): https://richstylist.com/bond-bootcamp More Clients, Less Posting $27 Mini Course: https://richstylist.com/more-clients Launch Your Own Brand of Hair Extensions: https://richstylist.com/brand-launch The #1 Salon Software for Hair Pros: https://hairproappointments.com Daily Content Ideas and Trends for Hair Pros: https://contentcalendarforhairpros.com Boost Your SEO and Showcase Your Education: https://www.certifiedhairpro.com/ Shop Destination Hair Extensions (Luxury Hair): https://destinationhairextensions.com Offer Financing to Your Clients (Cherry): https://withcherry.com/partnerships/alex-king

“Profit doesn't disappear—it leaks.”“You don't need more cars. You need fewer leaks.”“Underpricing is working for free—you just don't see it.”“You can't sell what you don't inspect.”“Productivity solves more problems than hiring.”“Most sales problems are process problems.”“Discounting is emotional—profit is strategic.”“Busy doesn't mean profitable.”“Tight systems win in a tight market.”“Stop chasing more. Start protecting what you have.”​​In this episode, Coach Chris Cotton breaks down the most common profit leaks inside auto repair shops—and how to fix them quickly.From pricing and inspections to productivity and advisor performance, this episode delivers practical strategies to help shop owners stop losing money and start maximizing the work they're already doing.If your shop is busy but not profitable, you don't have a revenue problem—you have a profit leak.In this episode, Coach Chris Cotton exposes the most common areas where shops lose money and gives you actionable steps to fix them fast.Stop chasing more cars and start capturing the profit already inside your business.​​Where is your profit actually going?In this episode, Coach Chris Cotton reveals the hidden profit leaks inside auto repair shops—and how to fix them immediately.

Where now, after a dispiriting afternoon in Paisley? (Discounting the fact that every afternoon spent in Paisley is dispiriting.)

Discounting is not the only way to increase sales. In a recent conversation on the She Sells Differently podcast with Andee Hart, I sat down to talk about what actually drives profitable sales for independent retailers, makers, and eCommerce brands. If you are relying on discounts to generate revenue, this episode will challenge that thinking. We unpack why so many promotions fall flat, how to build urgency without cutting your prices, and what you really need to understand about inventory, cash flow, and customer behavior if you want consistent, sustainable growth.

If hearing "it's too expensive" makes you freeze… this episode will change everything. In this powerful solo training, Sheila Bella breaks down the real reason beauty professionals struggle with sales—and why it's not your pricing, your talent, or even your market. It's that no one ever taught you how to sell. In this episode, Sheila walks you through how to confidently handle every objection without sounding pushy, desperate, or salesy. You'll learn how to shift from reacting emotionally to objections to leading clients with certainty, clarity, and authority. Because objections aren't rejection. They're requests for certainty. If you've ever discounted, over-explained, chased clients, or let leads slip away… this episode will give you the exact mindset and language to start closing with confidence.    

Luxury branding strategy for premium positioning is not about surface-level aesthetics. It is about authority, perception, and strategic dominance within a clearly defined niche. For Kathryn Porritt, Founder and CEO of Iconic Empire, luxury branding strategy represents a decisive move away from commoditization and toward category leadership. Many businesses unintentionally anchor themselves in the middle of the market. They compete on incremental value, attempt to appeal to broad audiences, and rely on volume to sustain margins. Over time, this approach compresses pricing power and weakens differentiation. The brand becomes one of many options rather than the only logical choice. Luxury branding strategy challenges that model entirely. After building and selling her own multi-million-dollar company, Kathryn Porritt made a deliberate pivot. Instead of recreating a high-volume enterprise, she chose to work exclusively with accomplished experts and founders ready to reposition at the top of their markets. Her focus became helping extraordinary individuals claim iconic status by refining how they are perceived, priced, and positioned. Ford Saeks has long emphasized that positioning drives profitability. Growth without authority is fragile. When companies focus solely on marketing tactics without clarifying their premium positioning, they remain vulnerable to competition based on price. Luxury branding strategy addresses this vulnerability by elevating perception before pursuing scale. A core principle Kathryn applies is hyper-niching. While conventional wisdom encourages businesses to widen their audience, luxury branding strategy narrows it. The goal is to identify the deepest, most defensible niche where the brand can confidently claim leadership. When that clarity is established, the conversation shifts. Prospects no longer compare features. They evaluate authority. Authority transforms pricing dynamics. Premium positioning allows a business to move from justification to invitation. Rather than explaining why fees are higher, the brand communicates why it is the standard. Another defining characteristic of luxury branding strategy is the concept of descending scale. Traditional models often begin broad and attempt to climb upward into premium offerings. Kathryn advocates the opposite. Establish dominance at the highest tier first. Build brand equity through selective, high-value engagements. Once the brand is firmly anchored at the top, expansion becomes a strategic choice rather than a necessity. This approach mirrors the structure of global luxury houses that begin with exclusive offerings before extending into broader product lines. Prestige precedes scale. Luxury branding strategy also requires commercial clarity. Many experts possess deep mastery but struggle to translate that expertise into premium positioning. They undervalue their own authority because their messaging is diluted by mainstream marketing language. Kathryn's work centers on aligning how the brand communicates with the true level of capability it delivers. Ford Saeks often speaks about perception gaps. A business may generate exceptional outcomes, yet if the market perceives it as average, growth stalls. Luxury branding strategy closes that gap by ensuring that authority is visible, specific, and unmistakable. The economic environment further reinforces the importance of premium positioning. When markets tighten, companies in the middle feel the pressure first. Discounting becomes tempting. However, lowering price rarely strengthens brand equity. Instead, it signals vulnerability. Luxury branding strategy offers an alternative path. Rather than competing lower, compete higher. Premium positioning attracts a different caliber of client. Decision-making becomes more strategic. Engagements are deeper. Margins improve. Alignment increases. The experience shifts from transactional to transformational. Technology, including AI, supports execution but does not replace strategy. Automation can accelerate research, communication, and delivery. However, positioning requires discernment and vision. Tools assist. Leadership defines direction. Luxury branding strategy ultimately demands courage. It requires rejecting the comfort of broad appeal. It requires narrowing focus and standing firmly in a clearly articulated niche. It requires confidence in mastery. For leaders willing to move from commoditized to category leader, luxury branding strategy provides a disciplined framework. It is not about exclusivity for appearance. It is about clarity, authority, and sustainable premium positioning. Fordify LIVE streams every Wednesday at 11:00 a.m. Central across all social media platforms, featuring real-time conversations with business leaders and growth-minded experts. New episodes of The Business Growth Show podcast drop every Thursday. Watch the full episode on YouTube. About Kathryn Porritt Kathryn Porritt is the Founder and CEO of Iconic Empire, a global luxury branding agency dedicated to helping extraordinary individuals claim iconic status in their industries. After building and selling her own multi-million-dollar business, Kathryn made a decisive shift to work exclusively with high-level experts, founders, and thought leaders ready to reposition themselves at the top of their market. Known for her bold perspective on luxury branding strategy, hyper-niching, and premium commercialization, Kathryn helps clients refine their positioning, elevate their authority, and command premium pricing without competing on volume or discounts. Her work spans industries including professional services, consulting, design, real estate, finance, and beyond. Through Iconic Empire, Kathryn has built a reputation for transforming accomplished professionals into category leaders by aligning mastery with strategic market positioning. Learn more at IconicEmpire.com About Ford Saeks Ford Saeks is a Business Growth Accelerator who has generated more than a billion dollars in sales worldwide for companies ranging from startups to Fortune 500 organizations. As President and CEO of Prime Concepts Group, Inc., Ford helps businesses attract loyal customers, expand brand awareness, and ignite innovation through strategic marketing, operational excellence, and leadership development. A tenacious entrepreneur, Ford has founded more than ten companies, authored five books, earned three U.S. patents, and received numerous industry awards. He is widely recognized for his expertise in AI prompt engineering and for training organizations to leverage artificial intelligence to improve operations, marketing, sales, and customer experience. Ford recently showcased this expertise at the Unleash AI for Business Summit, where he demonstrated how ChatGPT is transforming business performance. Through Fordify LIVE and The Business Growth Show, Ford equips leaders with practical strategies that accelerate growth, strengthen positioning, and drive measurable results. Learn more at ProfitRichResults.com and watch his TV show at Fordify.tv.

Our actions around money, how we price, how we sell, how we spend—are never random. They're clues into the deeper beliefs we hold about worth, abundance, and success. And sometimes, those beliefs aren't serving us.In this episode, Lianne Kim shares how everyday money behaviors—from underpricing to discounting, ignoring finances, or waffling on offers—are outward manifestations of hidden thought patterns. By becoming aware of these behaviors, we can uncover the beliefs beneath them and start to shift into a healthier, more empowered money mindset.In‌ ‌this‌ ‌episode,‌ ‌you'll discover:‌ ‌Why beliefs themselves aren't “good” or “bad”—they're simply repetitive thought patternsHow common money behaviors (like underpricing or discounting) reveal hidden fearsThe link between imposter syndrome and pricing yourself too lowWhy ignoring your numbers is a form of avoidance rooted in fearPractical steps to catch yourself in the moment and choose more empowered actionsTimestamps:‌ ‌00:00 – Sneak peek inside the Mamas & Co. community02:00 – Beliefs are neither good nor bad—they just are05:00 – How behaviors reveal hidden money beliefs11:00 – Pricing yourself low: the imposter syndrome trap16:00 – Discounting after sharing your price20:00 – Waffling on offers and fear of failure24:00 – Avoiding finances and burying your head in the sand28:00 – Always asking for discounts: the scarcity pattern— ‌Connect with me: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/liannekimcoach Instagram: @liannekimcoach Join the Mamas & Co. community to get access to valuable resources and the support of likeminded mompreneurs and mentors: https://www.mamasandco.com Instagram: @mamasandco Podcasting support: https://theultimatecreative.com

Discounting feels like a smart way to grow. But there's a cost that many firm owners don't see until it's too late.

Why You Keep Self-Sabotaging (And How to Stop)Have you ever had a goal you wanted to pursue… but something in you kept pulling the brakes?That's self-sabotage—and in this episode of the Catholic Coaching Podcast, Matt and Erin explain what's happening beneath the surface: cognitive distortions (thinking errors… aka lies) that quietly keep your belief system stuck in place.They use a powerful analogy: your mind is like an operating system. If you avoid the “software updates,” the bugs don't disappear—they grow… until your system starts breaking down.In this episode, you'll learn:•Why self-sabotage often feels protective (but blocks growth)•What cognitive distortions are and how they reinforce beliefs•How distortions create shame, perfectionism, overwhelm, and paralysis•A Catholic lens on truth, the intellect, and freedom (Aquinas + CBT)•Real examples of common distortions, including:•All-or-nothing thinking (“If it's not perfect, I'm a failure.”)•Black-and-white moral labeling (“If I'm not a perfect Christian, I'm a hypocrite.”)•Overgeneralization (“This always happens… it'll never change.”)•Mental filtering (obsessing over the 2% you missed)•Discounting the positive (“That doesn't count… it was a fluke.”)And most importantly: you'll get practical coaching tools you can use on yourself (or with clients) to start dismantling these thought patterns and step into a healthier, truth-aligned mindset.This is the first of two episodes where we go deep on cognitive distortions—so make sure you're subscribed for the next one.Send a textSupport the show____________________ ► Make sure to SUBSCRIBE to the Metanoia Catholic YouTube Channel!► Find out your temperament: Take the Free Quiz► Get the Conversation Starter Guide (FREE) ► Take the Quiz: WHAT TYPE OF COACH ARE YOU?► GET THE DAILY SEVEN JOURNAL!This interactive journal will help you transform your life from the inside out by teaching you how to grow in gratitude, set healthy goals, and gain mastery over your thoughts.► JOIN THE ACADEMY!Your online resource of classes, tools, and community to ramp up your growth and really change your life. Learn from the Metanoia Catholic coaches in webinars, live coaching calls, Lectio Divina, and more with your monthly membership.____________________ ► SUBSCRIBE TO THE CATHOLIC COACHING PODCASTApple PodcastsSpotifyYouTube...

If your sales have slowed down, your first thought might be:“It's the market.”“People aren't spending.”“My offer isn't working anymore.” But what I've seen again and again is that what looks like a sales slump is rarely about demand. It's usually about focus. In this episode, I'm unpacking what's actually happening when revenue dips — and why most business owners respond in ways that make it worse. Panic pivoting. Changing offers. Tweaking prices. Posting more. Discounting. When in reality, the issue is often far simpler — and far more within your control. Download: Consistent $10K Month Method WORK WITH CHRISTINE: Buy my new book: Turn Impostor Syndrome Into Your Superpower Download: Consistent $10K Month Method Connect with Christine on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/christinecorcoran_coach/ Book a Discovery Call with Christine here Join the waitlist for the next round of Unstoppable Sales HERE Join the waitlist for the next round of NEXT LEVEL Mastermind HERE Christine's website https://christinecorcoran.com.au/

Slipping deals often trigger reactive discounting, but lowering price usually solves the wrong problem. In this episode, Brandon breaks down the three most common reasons deals stall — uncertainty, lost urgency, and internal misalignment — and how to address each one directly.You'll learn how to reopen stalled conversations without sounding desperate, re-anchor buyers to the original problem, and reset the next decision path. Brandon also explains when price actually is the blocker and how to trade concessions instead of giving them away.If your pipeline keeps slowing late-stage, this episode gives you a clean rescue playbook that protects both momentum and margin.

This week on aBlogtoWatch Weekly, Ariel is once again holding down the host chair while Rick continues his mysterious multi week sabbatical (last we heard he was crossing mountains by donkey, so fingers crossed). Joined by Ripley and David, the team digs into Ariel's latest essay on why luxury watch brands should embrace controlled discounting, unpacking how pricing psychology, gray market realities, and unrealistic investment narratives have distorted modern collecting. The conversation then shifts to Ariel's recent trip to Tokyo, now arguably the world's most exciting city for watch enthusiasts, with deep dives into Japan's booming pre owned scene, Grand Seiko sightings, tax free deals, and how local retailers are reshaping displays to match global demand. From there, things jump wildly upmarket with a breakdown of the Louis Vuitton and De Bethune collaboration and its four million euro Sympathique clock fantasy, before crashing back to earth with tiny G-Shock ring watches, blind box buying culture, and whether gamified collecting is the future or just Pokémon with timekeeping. The episode wraps with thoughts on Breguet's latest Type 20 chronograph, vintage inspired design choices, and why watches should probably go back to being worn instead of treated like speculative assets, all delivered with the usual mix of industry insight and playful cynicism, plus one conspicuously empty chair while Rick continues his mysterious travels.To check out the ABTW Shop where you can see our products inspired by our love of Horology:- Shop ABTW - https://store.ablogtowatch.com/To keep updated with everything Superlative, aBlogtoWatch Weekly, and aBlogtoWatch, check us out on:- Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/ablogtowatch/- Website - https://www.ablogtowatch.com/- Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/aBlogtoWatch If you enjoy the show please Subscribe, Rate, and Review!

When I first started building my retreat business, I made mistakes. Not small ones - real ones that cost time, money, energy, and unnecessary stress. In this episode, I'm pulling back the curtain and sharing: What I personally wish I had done differently in the early days The most common mistakes I see retreat hosts still making today And how to avoid burning out, underpricing, or building a retreat that looks good on paper but feels exhausting in real life If you're hosting retreats (or thinking about it), this episode will help you build something that's clear, sustainable, and aligned - not just pretty and stressful. What You'll Learn in This Episode Why unclear audience messaging makes retreats harder to sell How overbuilding your retreat actually weakens the experience Why marketing needs to start earlier than you think The real cost of underpricing and discounting Why doing everything alone hurts both you and your guests The mistakes I see retreat hosts repeat - and how to course-correct The Retreat Leaders Podcast Resources and Links: Learn to Host Retreats Join our private Facebook Group Top 5 Marketing Tools Free Guide Get your legal docs for retreats Join Shannon in Denver at the Retreat Industry Forum  Join our LinkedIn Group Apply to be a guest on our show   Thanks for tuning into the Retreat Leaders Podcast. Remember to subscribe for more insightful episodes, and visit our website for additional resources. Let's create a vibrant retreat community together!   Subscribe:  Apple Podcast | Google Podcast | Spotify ------- TIMESTAMPS Request for Reviews & Episode Overview (00:00:59) Shannon asks listeners to leave reviews and previews the episode's focus on mistakes and lessons learned. Learning from Mistakes in Business (00:02:24) Emphasizes the value of learning from mistakes and introduces the main theme: what she wishes she'd done differently. Mistake #1: Lack of Clarity on Ideal Guest (00:03:27) Discusses the importance of defining your ideal retreat guest and the exhaustion from being too broad. Mistake #2: Overbuilding the Retreat Experience (00:06:32) Warns against overpacking retreat agendas, stressing the need for downtime and integration. Mistake #3: Marketing Too Late (00:10:43) Explains why marketing should start before all details are finalized, using her France retreat as an example. Mistake #4: Ineffective Use of Ads (00:13:58) Advises testing content organically before spending on ads to avoid wasting money. Mistake #5: Pricing for Comfort, Not Sustainability (00:14:54) Urges pricing retreats for sustainability, not just to fill spots, and explains the pitfalls of discounting. Mistake #6: Not Asking for Support Early Enough (00:18:50) Shares the importance of hiring help for logistics, food, and guest relations to avoid burnout. Common Mistake #1: Treating Retreats as One-Off Events (00:22:41) Highlights the value of making retreats part of a larger business ecosystem, not just single events. Common Mistake #2: Discounting to Fill Spots (00:23:41) Reiterates the damage discounting does to brand and guest alignment. Common Mistake #3: Weak Boundaries and Vague Policies (00:24:37) Stresses the need for clear boundaries, cancellation policies, and personal space for leaders. Common Mistake #4: Copying Other Retreats (00:27:28) Encourages originality and authenticity instead of copying others' retreat formats. Common Mistake #5: Waiting for Confidence Before Acting (00:28:36) Explains that confidence is built through action, not as a result of success. Final Reflections and Takeaways (00:30:43) Summarizes key lessons: aim for clarity, sustainability, and alignment, and learn from mistakes. Closing and Call to Action (00:31:47) Thanks listeners, encourages sharing, and provides resources for further support.  

What if there were a news outlet that actually covered the most important environmental stories of our time? Dr. Emily Schoerning and her nonprofit, American Resiliency, translate the latest and most urgent climate science into useful information for communities across the United States. Jason and Emily discuss the potential collapse of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), the merits of mitigation versus adaptation, and how to take meaningful action in your own community. Originally recorded on 12/22/25.Sources/Links/Notes:American ResiliencyMark Rober YouTube ChannelSixth National Climate Assessment, International Panel on Climate ChangeRelated episode(s) of Crazy Town:Episode 8, “Mosquito-Flavored Popcorn, or What Climate Scientists Are Getting Wrong”Episode 34, “Fear of Death and Climate Denial, or… the Story of Wolverine and the Screaming Mole of Doom”Episode 37, “Discounting the Future and Climate Chaos, or… the Story of the Dueling Economists”Episode 45, “Feedback Loops and Climate Catastrophe, or… the Story of the Baseball Bloodbath”Episode 77, “The Elon Musk Episode about Elon Musk Brought to You by Elon Musk”Episode 97, “The House Is Quite Literally on Fire: Peter Kalmus on the Climate Emergency Hitting Home”

Today we're talking about the bravest move a business owner can make: Raising your rates. Discounting is a race to the bottom, and the prize for winning is going out of business.

Two weeks ago on the podcast, we went deep on the damage that constant discounting does to your brand. The profit erosion. The customer conditioning. The way it trains your audience to never pay full price. We talked about the four buyer types and how constant discounting only speaks to one of them — while actively repelling the other three. And I got a lot of messages afterwards, which was brilliant. But here's the thing. Almost every single message asked the same question. "Okay Cath, I get it. Constant discounting is bad. But what if I'm already stuck? What if my customers already expect sales? What if I've been doing this for years and my whole email list has been trained to wait for deals? How do I actually get out of this?" And look, that's a fair question. It's easy to say "stop discounting" when you're starting fresh with a brand new audience. It's a lot harder when you've accidentally created this problem yourself. So today, I want to show you how to detox your brand from discounting. In this episode, I walk you through a real case study from a real brand we work with, with real data and real results. I'll share exactly what we inherited when we started working together, what we changed, and what happened. And I'll give you a framework you can apply to your own brand, whether you're deep in the discount trap or just starting to slide into it.     Links mentioned in this episode: If you'd like help to achieve your goals, I invite you to have a chat to find out how we can make that happen together HERE By booking a Free Growth Strategy https://productpreneurmarketing.com/lets-talk   Other Ways To Enjoy This Episode: Listen on Apple Podcasts Listen on Spotify Youtube  

Why Profit Matters More Than Sales in Indie RetailSales growth is often treated as the goal in retail.But without profit, growth just creates more pressure.In this episode of Resilient Retail Game Plan, we look at why profit isn't optional for independent retailers, and how better stock decisions change far more than just the numbers.I'm Catherine Erdly, and this is Resilient Retail Game Plan — practical product business advice with a healthy dose of reality.This isn't about chasing turnover.And it's not about discounting everything to keep cash moving.It's about making deliberate, data led decisions that protect margin, reduce stock pressure, and give you room to breathe.I'm joined by Paola Majuli, Stock Doctor and former senior merchandiser at global retail brands, to unpack what actually happens when retailers stop reacting and start managing stock with intention.Together, we talk through real client results, what the numbers are showing after six months and a year, and why confidence often returns once the chaos settles.In this episode, we cover:Why profit, not cash flow alone, keeps retail businesses sustainableWhat blanket discounting really costs you over timeHow retailers increased sales while holding less stockWhy margin awareness changes decision makingWhat better stock management does for confidence and clarityHow strategic discounting differs from panic discountingWe also talk about Black Friday, overstock, pricing confidence, and why being selective about what you discount can actually drive stronger results than putting everything on sale.If you're running an independent shop and feel stuck in a cycle of buying, discounting, and hoping for the best, this episode will help you think more clearly about how profit, stock, and confidence fit together.Chapters00:00 Why profit isn't optional01:13 The real problem with blanket discounting04:08 What the numbers show after six months and a year06:27 Pricing, margin, and confidence10:09 Why stock decisions matter more than people realise12:36 How better data changes behaviour17:47 Smarter Black Friday strategies23:44 What confidence looks like in profitable businessesLinksStock Doctor: https://stockdoctor.netResilient Retail Club: https://www.resilientretailclub.comListen on your favourite podcast app: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/podcastEnjoying the show?DM your takeaways or questions to @resilientretailclub on Instagram.And if the podcast's useful, please follow, rate, and review — it helps more product businesses find us.Mentioned in this episode:Check out the Stock DoctorFind out more at stockdoctor.net

This conversation delves into the intricacies of Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) and its significant tax benefits for founders. MICHAEL ARLEIN, Partner at Patterson Belknap, explains the eligibility criteria, the importance of strategic planning, and the potential pitfalls that can arise. The discussion also covers the implications of state taxes and the advantages of gifting strategies. We cover innovative approaches like the “GOAT” trust to maximize tax-free gains. Founders are encouraged to engage with legal experts early in their business journey to fully leverage QSBS opportunities. https://youtu.be/lfBt0j7BlW0?si=LufZ8j2YtgdspLMJ Takeaways from “QSBS For Founders” QSBS is a powerful tax benefit for founders.The maximum exclusion amount has increased to $15 million.Careful planning is essential to avoid QSBS pitfalls.Gifting QSBS stock can multiply tax exemptions.State tax implications vary; California does not recognize QSBS.Discounting shares can aid in estate planning.Converting from an S-Corp to a C-Corp can preserve QSBS benefits.Early engagement with legal counsel is crucial for founders.Innovative strategies like the GOAT trust can maximize benefits.Almost all businesses should consider QSBS eligibility. Chapters 00:00 Understanding QSBS: A Founder’s Guide.02:56 Navigating the QSBS Landscape: Common Pitfalls.06:07 Maximizing QSBS Benefits: Stacking Strategies.08:42 The Importance of Timing: Gifting and Valuation.12:03 State Tax Implications: The QSBS Challenge.14:52 Entity Structures and QSBS: What Founders Need to Know.17:37 Transitioning to C-Corp: Strategies for S-Corps and LLCs.20:29 Who Should Pay Attention to QSBS?23:44 Innovative Business Structures: Technology and QSBS-26:36 Early Stage Strategies: Cloning Yourself on the Cap Table- Transcript of “QSBS for Founders” Frazer Rice (00:01.109)Welcome aboard, Michael. Michael Arlein (00:03.096)Thank you. Good to be here. Frazer Rice (00:04.617)So let’s get started here. QSBS, Qualified Small Business Stock, is something that certainly all founders should be aware of. It’s a tax feature. It’s probably one of the nicest goodies that the federal government gives to people who are starting businesses. Take us through a little bit about what happens there. For founders, you’re going to hear the numbers 1202, which is the section that is quoted here. Take us through a little bit about what happens at QSBS and why it’s a powerful feature. Michael Arlein (00:37.496)Sure, that sounds good. To your point, the New York Times called QSBS a lavish tax dodge that is easily multiplied. And I happen to. I’m not aware of any other provision of the tax code that can save anyone as much money as QSBS. It’s really incredible. I think the policy reasons behind the provisions are that they’re designed to encourage entrepreneurship. Everyone on both sides of the political aisle is in favor of. The basic premise of it is that if you create a company.You own the stock for five years. The company’s in the form of a C corporation, It’s not in one of a series of restricted industries. Mainly service industries, that when you sell the stock, you can exclude from paying tax $10 million, the first $10 million of your gain. That’s the old rule, which I’m still dealing with, that that’s for stock that was issued before July 4th, 2025. And now QSBS has gotten even better. So if you get stock after that date. You hold it for actually now three years, you can exclude ultimately up to $15 million from tax. So we’re now dealing with two different regimes. I’m still stuck in the old regime. Most of the people I’m dealing with got their stock before last July. But I’ll try and point out the differences as we go along. Frazer Rice (02:29.066)Sure, as you said, there are a bunch of things you have to jump through. To make sure that you can sort of apply and then to further comply with the rules associated with it. Things like services. Making sure that maybe you don’t have too much cash and that it’s deployed correctly. Making sure that the original stock issuance persists throughout. What are some of the things that you tell your clients? How do you walk them through the process so that they don’t trip on themselves and lose this nice tax advantage? Michael Arlein (03:09.676)Yeah, there are some landmines, things that you can step on and blow it. There’s some weird rules around redemptions. Like if you have redemptions. Let’s say you create a company and then there’s three co-founders. Then very early on, one of the co-founders wants out or you want to kick them out. And then the mechanism for that is the company kind of buys back their stock. You know, there’s complicated rules that can, you know, blow up QSBS for the entire company. I think some people start their businesses as LLCs or S-Corps or things like that, and then later convert them. And that has to be done very, very carefully with good tax advice. Otherwise that can also blow things up. When I talk to founders, it’s pretty clear their business qualifies. They didn’t screw anything up. Frazer Rice (04:19.626)So the OBBBA in a sense turbocharged a little bit the tax savings. That five year requirement that you talked about. You can now get some of the benefits even as early as three years. And then the dollar amounts got expanded. In addition, and this was not necessarily OBBBA related. The ability to take one exemption and maybe multiply it via stacking continues to be a powerful tool. For those people who are walking into your office now. How do you get them when they sit down situated so that they do that planning upfront? Michael Arlein (05:08.598)Yeah, that’s, you we kind of buried the lead. The benefit of QSBS: it would be incredible if you could just pay no tax on 10 or $15 million. But what’s even more incredible is that you can stack or multiply the number of exemptions. You have using a provision of the code. It says that if you gift QSBS stock to some other person or entity. That that person or entity can take their own up to 10 or 15, their own QSBS exemption. I’m just gonna say it’s 15. We understand that’s for newly stocked. So, classic move for a founder would be to set up trusts for children. There’s a special kind of a trust for a spouse. You can do this with sometimes people make trust for their parents, their siblings. There are certain states where you can actually make a trust for yourself. Usually when people come to my office, the conversation is around creating entities. Typically trusts, and then gifting shares to those trusts. that As a family, you could go from 15 million tax free to 30 or 45 or 60 million tax free. The record I had one guy who had a very large family. He married, he had kids and was very close not only with his parents. With his siblings, his nieces, his nephews, even his aunts, uncles, and cousins. He created 23 trusts, which on paper at least would save up to $230 million. Wow. Yeah. Frazer Rice (07:08.896)There’s a danger with that though, with those 23 trusts had to be different. I imagine the IRS would say, wait a minute, we see what you’re doing. Stacking all of these different things is theoretically nice and all, but is there a way to create differences within those trusts so that the IRS doesn’t view them as one big pot? Michael Arlein (07:39.692)Yeah, great question. So you can’t create multiple identical trusts. Meaning I can’t create five trusts for my child. The IRS has rules that consider those trusts as one trust and would have only one exemptions. So, one of the limiting factors on creating trust is often, who are the people you’re willing to gift to? You know, so this guy with the 23, he actually was willing to create trust for his cousins, his aunts, uncles. Now, those individuals were the beneficiaries of the trusts, which means that they were eligible to receive money from the trust. But those trusts were designed so that when those people passed away, the money would circulate back to his children. So, you we never talked about it, but it’s possible that in his head, his plan was that he would maybe provide some benefit to his cousin. Maybe he’d say to his cousin, hey, if there’s $5 million in this trust and you need a little money, I’ll make some distributions to you, but I’m going to request that the trustee kind of withhold most of the money. And then when you die, it’ll come back and benefit my kids. So there are nuances there. But generally speaking, most people aren’t willing to do that. They’re not close enough with their cousins and their aunts and their uncles. So they end up maybe creating trusts, you know, for their kids, for their parents, sometimes, you know, for their spouse and maybe sometimes they go a little beyond that, but not that far. One thing that’s important is that the U.S. Frazer Rice (09:33.472)One thing that’s important is that the the QSBS is a capital gains tax Concept meaning you’re you’re saving on the tax. From a QSBS for Founders standpoint when the the founder sells the business, and you have to pay capital gains tax on that front. Part of the reason I’m skewing this toward founders is that there’s an gift in a state exemption of 15 million dollars. So it’s important to get these assets into these trusts as early as possible and with as low evaluation as possible. That in many ways is where the real leverage is. Does that square with your thinking? Michael Arlein (10:11.019)Yeah, absolutely. We have a permanent $15 million lifetime gifting limit. $30 million for spouses. And when you gift stock into these trusts, you’re typically gifting at a common stock valuation. People are familiar, founders are familiar with common stock valuations because they do that for purposes of issuing stock options, you know, the so-called 409A valuation. Now, a gift tax appraisal is different than a 409A valuation, but in many ways, they’re very similar. S0 founders know that, you know, they could be raising a preferred round at $10 a share, but their 409A common stock valuation is still $2 a share. So you can get a lot of gifting done. You can give a lot of shares away. You know, using your $15 million exemption, even if the company is very valuable. So we see founders doing this sort of gifting, you know, late in the game, even right before a transaction or an IPO. But if you had a crystal ball, or at least, you know, you were willing to take some risk, obviously, the earlier you do it, the better, because you could gift… I mean, theoretically, if you set up trusts and you gifted shares the day after you created your company, they would be worth essentially nothing. And so you wouldn’t have to use hardly any of your gifting exemption. The problem is most people, A, aren’t thinking about that on the day they create their company. They don’t have anyone whispering in their ear and telling them to do that. And number two, they wouldn’t want to spend the money on legal fees to set up structures because at that point they’re like, don’t know what this is going to be worth. This could be zero. This could go out of business in a year. So there’s a trade off that I see between doing this later in the process where you’re gaining visibility into outcomes, maybe for younger people sometimes, you know, there’s visibility into their family lives. Maybe when they founded the company they were single. Then if they wait five years they marry, they’ll have children, i.e. people who they could create trust for. But the cost of doing that is that you’re gifting at a higher value. Frazer Rice (12:46.591)One of the considerations that people don’t understand is the state tax implication. QSBS is a federal concept that a lot of states join onto and link to. But a state like California isn’t. And so sometimes that can be an untoward surprise to people that there’s a state tax that happens that they may not have expected. Michael Arlein (13:16.299)Yeah, it’s kind of bizarre that California, the home of Silicon Valley, doesn’t recognize QSBS. But most states do. My home state of New Jersey, in fact, very recently joined the QSBS club and now recognizes it at the state level. There are a few other states, I think. Pennsylvania, I don’t think recognizes it, but the vast majority of states do. But unfortunately, if you live in California, you’re probably only in quotes saving the federal tax. But the federal tax on $15 million, 23.8 % of 15 is a pretty big number. Frazer Rice (14:01.086)No question and absolutely worth doing. one of the things that I find happens is that from an income capital gains tax perspective, we’re on top of it with the QSBS. When we get into the estate planning world, we use the concept of discounting, meaning putting QSBS shares or any shares for that matter into other entities so that you get discounting for lack of marketability and the ability to make decisions around it. Are there any tripwires on that front as far as putting things into other LLCs so that you don’t, maybe in a sense that in trying to really maximize the estate planning and the estate tax avoidance that you create issues that might cause problems with your QSBS tax avoidance usefulness there. Michael Arlein (15:02.413)Yes. Again, the rules under Section 1202 of the code for QSBS have some strange traps for the unwary and some gray areas. And one of those gray areas is around transferring interests in partnership type entities, which would mean like an LLC or a partnership. that owns QSBS. So essentially, it’s very clear that if you have QSBS stock and you gift it into one of these entities we’ve been talking about, that that entity would take the QSBS attribute and be able to enjoy the benefits of QSBS. If the QSBS is held in an entity like an LLC, let’s say you set up a, well. Let’s say a realistic example is that you made an investment in a venture capital fund that invested in an early stage company that’s QSBS. And now you’re a limited partner in that fund and you know that that fund is going to have a large exit in this QSBS position and that you’re going to get the benefits of that, but it’s going to exceed $15 million. So you say, what I should do is I should take my interest in this venture capital fund. I should give them to trust for my kids so that when the fund distributes those shares or distributes the proceeds from selling that company, it’ll be split among various entities and I’ll be able to stack QSPS. The transfer of an interest in a fund that owns QSPS, there’s a gray area about whether the recipient of that fund interest would actually have QSPS and it’s generally viewed as something to be avoided. Frazer Rice (17:08.944)In a sense putting it at risk. A question that I think pops up is that there are people who started businesses maybe pre that July 4th date that you were talking about and maybe they chose an entity like an S Corp or an LLC that isn’t sort of a good qualifying C Corp and they’re looking and saying you know what I may be able to sell this business three to five years or beyond and take advantage of this QSBS. Are there avenues to be able to change that tax elections so that you can begin that QSBS and what’s the analysis around? Michael Arlein (17:44.972)Yeah, in fact, a fairly common structure is, and we haven’t really gotten into these details, but it’s a great question. So QSBS is actually the greater of $15 million or 10 times your basis. Now we ignore the basis rule for the most part because the vast majority of founders do not have basis. They create their company and they put nothing into it. With a bank account with $10,000 in it, and they’re not contributing actual dollars into their business. And so the 10 times basis rule doesn’t actually apply. But there’s a way for a founder to take advantage of that, and this strategy is actually called PACKING. And the packing strategy involves starting your business as an LLC and with an LLC and then converting it to a C corporation. with an LLC, when you convert, there’s an attribution of basis to the founder based on the value of the LLC’s assets. Theoretically, if you started off as an LLC, and before the LLC hit $75 million value of its assets, $75 million being sort of the cutoff for qualifying for small business, you have to acquire your stock before your company assets are worth $75 million. Theoretically, let’s say you did that when it was $74 million, then if your basis was $74 million, 10 times your basis would be $740 million, you would have up to $740 million tax free. So people kind of play this game. I think for a lot of companies, it’s not realistic to be an LLC because venture cap, if you’re going to raise venture funds, they want you to be a C Corp. This works for bootstrapped companies, but most companies are forming a C corporations. You know, there is a path to convert from an S-Corp to a C-Corp and preserve QSPS for Founders. I’m no expert in that. All I can tell you is that it has to be done very carefully and very specifically. And I’ve seen a lot of people who didn’t know they needed to do anything specific and they do not qualify for QSPS. Frazer Rice (20:45.085)As we sort of, I’m not going to say wind down here because we may have some other topics that pop up. But when someone walks through their door, I guess maybe the way to think about it is, who does this apply to? You said the services industry. So accounting, finance, that type of thing- NO. For those things that venture tries to invest in, whether it’s software or other processes, who is really should be paying attention to this? Michael Arlein (21:16.491)I mean, I think almost anyone should be paying attention to this because it may be that you don’t qualify, but often people do. And more often than not, you do. This has broad application for most businesses. There are excluded industries, architects and lawyers and accountants. But if you’re doing something in the tech world, you’re probably going to qualify. It’s good to get some advice from the corporate lawyer who’s helping you create your business. I think one of the considerations of whether you form as a C Corp or an LLC is probably the availability of QSBS status. You know, I think stacking strategies, it’s worth having a conversation probably sooner than later with a lawyer to find out what the menu of stacking options is. I talk to people all the time and we decide it’s premature for them to do something. And then they call me back a year or two later and all the time I’m calls from people who say, hey, we spoke a few years ago and now Frazer Rice (22:34.013)Alright. Michael Arlein (22:39.913)the time is right. So it’s good to get educated, learn what the options are. QSBS stacking is not just about giving shares to your kids. There are strategies that are specifically designed for single people where you can create these benefits for yourself and You know, it’s too good to be missed. if you, I do talk to people who say to me, they’re usually on their second venture or third venture and they say to me, I really screwed this up the first time around. I paid no attention to it and I was focused on my business and I just screwed it up. I literally cost myself millions or tens of millions of dollars had I done it correctly. And now that’s why I’m calling you, because I want to do it correctly the second time around. Frazer Rice (23:33.278)Part and parcel with that, I ran into somebody really more of what’s called a media personality. And usually the way I think of it is that the QSBS isn’t necessarily available for people whose value is centered around them as a personality or them as a brand. But I said, you know what, the QSBS component, while it might not apply here, if your business morphs into something where you’re developing other things, slash maybe you turn into a media production company or, youbecome involved in a technology that drives other things, that you shouldn’t dismiss that. The pivot in the business from sort of a personality generated to something a little bit more business process generated might be something to think about, not only from a strategy standpoint, not that you necessarily wanna do things purely for tax reasons, but if that’s a natural consequence, that’s something to think about. Has that ever popped up in your world? Michael Arlein (24:31.915)Yeah, for sure. Every business these days is technology enabled. And I think sometimes businesses that you wouldn’t think of as being technology businesses are doing enough technology things that they can claim that they’re a technology business and not a business providing a particular kind of service. So, you know, with the help of a clever accountant or a tax lawyer, this is not an area that I operate in. I’m more about multiplying QSBS once you have it. But there are tax lawyers and corporate lawyers and accountants who can advise you how to make your business eligible for QSBS by leaning into, as you said, things that you’re doing that may be…you know, eligible versus other parts of your business that would not be. Also, you know, you can, sometimes you see companies that are divided, right? Like, so there’s a company who provides counseling services, like, you know, they’re actually hire psychotherapists that will counsel you, you know, online, like on a Zoom. and their business is split. There’s a medical services company that employs all the counselors and medical services is one of the excluded industries. But then they also have a completely separate business that is their technology platform. And the way they structured it, the value is really in the technology platform. That business is QSBS eligible because it’s a completely separate company. Frazer Rice (26:28.771)That’s a great example. part of the purpose of the question was to elicit that, is that people may say, well, we fall squarely into one classification when maybe some underlying thought might lend itself to structuring from a tax perspective that might be useful later on. OK, now as we wind down, for someone who is, at this point, starting a company when they’re forming these things, not that you, QSBS for Founders should drive the world, but how do they get involved with the discussions so that they do the right things early? Michael Arlein (27:06.401)Yeah, I mean, I do have a very specific strategy that I love for people who are about to form a company. And it really works best in that scenario of an early stage company that’s just about to launch. The way I describe this to founders is that you can and should clone yourself on the cap table. So if you start off a company and you own all of the shares, you’re basically eligible for 15 million tax free. That’s great. But what if you could clone yourself and there were three Frazers on the cap table, then Frazer would have $45 million tax free. So how do you do this? You can do it with trusts. And the beautiful thing is if you have other people create trust for you, then you can be the beneficiary of the trust and control it as well. And I have sort of branded and named this strategy a GOAT trust, which of course has the double meaning, know, greatest of all time. Frazer Rice (28:21.02) QSBS for FoundersRight. Michael Arlein (28:21.165) QSBS for FoundersBut actually stands for gift optimized to alleviate taxes. The essentials of it are is that we would work with your parents, the founders parents, we would work with your grandma, your uncle, and we would spin up some trusts that they create for the benefit of you as the founder. You would have all sorts of control and access to those trusts and they make a gift into those trusts, probably something fairly modest. Then those trusts on the day of formation buy up some of the common stock. And so those are your clones. You know, you’re having your cake and eating it too. You’re getting, you know, QSBS stacking for Founders. You’re getting some other benefits we haven’t even talked about. Those trusts can be exempt from a state tax and state level income tax. And you control those trusts and benefit from them. So we’ve essentially cloned you on the cap table. And that is a beautiful strategy that most people miss out on because they don’t do it. And then they come to me a few years later and they own the stock and it’s valuable and then we have to do the more traditional stacking strategies. Frazer Rice (29:40.432)Really cool stuff. Michael, how do people get in touch with you if they have these problems slash opportunities? Michael Arlein (29:48.525)Sure, well they can Google me. I have a nice web presence. We have our…Founder Focus Practice Group that I lead at the firm, which is very specifically tailored to provide legal services to founders, personal legal services. And I focus on the tax side of that and QSBS stacking for Founders. My email, msarlein at pbwt.com. Phone number 212-336-2588. Frazer Rice (30:23.324) QSBS For FoundersThat will all be in the show notes. Michael, thanks for being on. Michael Arlein (30:26.753) QSBS For FoundersThank you. FAMILY OFFICE MYTHS https://www.amazon.com/Wealth-Actually-Intelligent-Decision-Making-1-ebook/dp/B07FPQJJQT/ QSBS for Founders QSBS for Founders

Have you ever worried that if you step away from your business, everything will fall apart? In this solo episode, I share what I've learned after decades in business: most people don't really notice when you step away, but they always notice when you come back. I'm going to break down: Why intentional rest doesn't erase your relevance How fear-based pricing and constant discounting quietly undermine your value The difference between discounting and offering less value for a lower price Why undercharging makes rest feel risky and "no's" feel personal This episode is a no-fluff conversation about rest, pricing, sustainability, and building a business that supports your life instead of consuming it.  

Sales objection handling expert Phil Whitebloom shares proven techniques that generated over $1.5 billion in revenue during his 45-year career. Struggling with price pushback or stalled deals? Discover the high-impact questioning framework that transforms objections into closed sales without discounting. You'll learn: how to turn "it's too expensive" into buying signals using trial closes, the critical difference between sales coaching and sales training for immediate results, why taking detailed notes during prospect conversations separates top performers from average salespeople, and the exact questioning sequence that makes prospects convince themselves to buy. This episode is ideal for entrepreneurs building sales teams, solopreneurs handling their own selling, and business owners seeking sustainable sales growth. Phil reveals why asking questions beats talking features, how to identify when prospects lack budget versus commitment, and the relationship-building strategies that win multi-million dollar contracts. Author of "Handling Objections: Clues for Closing the Sale," Phil demonstrates his objection-handling framework live, showing how confidence comes from sales success rather than presentation skills. Perfect for building a business coaching business, developing a sales funnel for your real estate business, or learning how to build a 6-figure online business through effective selling strategies.

John Baumgartner spotlights food and beverage spending, sharing his firm's recent consumer survey. After a difficult last few years, with consumers cutting back, trading down, and bargain hunting, he sees more families saying the picture has improved. Employment uncertainty, however, is a huge worry among Americans, and they are likelier to save their tax refunds, he says. Cuts to food stamps could also impact food and beverage spending. ======== Schwab Network ========Empowering every investor and trader, every market day.Subscribe to the Market Minute newsletter - https://schwabnetwork.com/subscribeDownload the iOS app - https://apps.apple.com/us/app/schwab-network/id1460719185Download the Amazon Fire Tv App - https://www.amazon.com/TD-Ameritrade-Network/dp/B07KRD76C7Watch on Sling - https://watch.sling.com/1/asset/191928615bd8d47686f94682aefaa007/watchWatch on Vizio - https://www.vizio.com/en/watchfreeplus-exploreWatch on DistroTV - https://www.distro.tv/live/schwab-network/Follow us on X – / schwabnetwork Follow us on Facebook – / schwabnetwork Follow us on LinkedIn - / schwab-network About Schwab Network - https://schwabnetwork.com/about

A member wants to cancel. Your instinct? Offer a discount.Stop. That's the most expensive mistake in membership retention.In this episode, I break down why discounting to save members is a losing strategy—and what to do instead. You'll learn:• Why discounts to acquire are smart, but discounts to save are desperate• The three problems you create every time you discount to prevent a cancellation• The Downgrade Save: three paths that keep customers in your ecosystem• Path 1: Downgrading to a lower wash package• Path 2: Wash books for customers who don't want monthly charges• Path 3: Loyalty programs for infrequent washers• The mindset shift from "protecting the price" to "protecting the relationship"• The pause option that cut one car wash's cancellation rate by 20% overnight• Exact scripts your team can use starting MondayA cancellation isn't a goodbye. It's a conversation about fit.Discount to start the habit. Downgrade to save the relationship.---CONNECT:Website: https://optspot.com#CarWashMarketing #MembershipRetention #CarWashBusiness #TextMarketing #OptSpot

Sometimes nothing about you changes. The only thing that changes is where you are. Show Notes In this episode of Shark Theory, Baylor uses a simple travel habit to unpack a powerful lesson about self-worth. Every time he travels internationally, he checks exchange rates. The same dollar that leaves the United States suddenly becomes more valuable the moment he lands somewhere else. Nothing about the dollar changes. The location does. That idea becomes the framework for a deeper conversation about feeling undervalued in life, work, and relationships. If you feel unseen or underappreciated, it may not be because your value is low. It may be because you're in the wrong environment. Baylor challenges listeners to think of themselves as a currency. Not just financially, but emotionally, mentally, and relationally. Before asking whether others value you, you have to know your own standard value. Without that, the world will always try to get you at a discount. He explains why allowing discounted versions of yourself is dangerous. Once people get used to paying less for you, they resist ever paying full price. Boundaries become the guardrails that protect your worth. This episode also dives into the difference between increasing your value versus changing your environment. Sometimes growth is about new skills. Other times it's about realizing you've outgrown the room you're in. Baylor closes with a powerful metaphor of the Dead Sea, a body of water that dies because it has no outlet. When value, energy, and purpose stop flowing, stagnation sets in. The same happens to people who stay trapped in places that don't recognize their worth. You don't need to become more. You need to go where what you already are is valued. What You'll Learn in This Episode • Why your value can change without you changing at all • The danger of letting people get used to a discounted version of you • How boundaries help protect self-worth • The difference between increasing value and changing environments • Why outgrowing people and places is sometimes necessary • How stagnation kills potential Featured Quote "The same dollar didn't change. The location did. Sometimes that's true about you too."

When deals stall, discounting often feels like the fastest solution. In this episode, Brandon reframes discounting as a value-destruction habit rather than a negotiation tactic. He breaks down the psychological damage discounting causes, how it trains buyers to expect concessions, and why it weakens long-term account economics.You'll learn how elite sellers replace discounts with value stacking, why calm price confidence builds trust, and how to diagnose hesitation correctly before touching price. This episode offers a clear framework for protecting margins while improving deal quality.

Send us a textWhat I've learned is that trauma doesn't just break us—it initiates us.All experiences bear lessons, with a mix of varying complexities. My most harrowing experience was one of breaking open ancestral shell allowing my heart to breathe into intimacy. Wisdom often topples us to gain deeper truths.  My flaw was steeped in naviety. I romanticized the idea of an ideal love, clothed in an ideal specimen of a man. When that illusion broke, I found myself in a decade long pitch black abyss of hopelessness from which I have had to crawl and claw my way back to the light. The dangerous premise of twin flame ideology was the dugout I fell into, it is a passionately alluring trap that almost always lands the foolish into the abyss. The force that took me under was none other than my own feminine ancestral wounds. The dangerous premise of twin flame and one and only soul mate designed just for me held me hostage in a deeply twisted tale. I  opened the most sacred gateway of heart and found myself scouring the depths of the dark as prey to a cunning predator whose physical presence was entirely absent from my life. It took me a while to realize my lost time in the torturous clime that I had single handedly crawled out had changed me. In truth, he had ignited a definite glimmer of recognition, someone I knew in the distant past, beyond the realm of my feline forebears, there was a yearning inside my being that needed closure. Discounting the twin flame odyssey in no way erases the precious advent of synchronicity, the innocence of paths crossing, heartstrings flipping by divine ordinance.  When I finally opened my eyes to blinding light and refreshing zephyr, I found that my innards were recalibrated, ancestral wounds unsealed and healed, humiliation of the heart had split it wide open to be reeved and whittled into grace- forgiving the endless legacy of my feminine ancestral wounds. In truth, I now hold no fear of intimacy, nor do I have a projected need of it. When we're willing to face the most egregious parts of our history it becomes the doorway into the gifts we carry, and those gifts become the balm of healing energy we offer others. Support the showMay Peace Be Your Journey~www.mayatiwari.comwww.facebook.com/mayatiwariahimsa.Buzzsprout.com Mothermaya@gmail.com Get Maya's New Book: I Am Shakti: https://www.collectiveinkbooks.com/o-books/our-books/I-am-shakti Amazon.com Bookshop.org

Keywords   branding, entrepreneurship, public relations, personal branding, networking, female entrepreneurs, business growth, content creation, pricing strategy, marketing Takeaways   Personal branding is crucial for entrepreneurs. Networking is essential for business growth. Understanding your audience helps tailor your messaging. Content creation should be consistent and engaging. PR should not be gatekept; it should be accessible. Charging what you're worth is important for sustainability. Utilizing platforms like Substack can enhance visibility. Podcasts are a powerful medium for reaching audiences. Discounting services can harm the industry as a whole. Building a strong personal brand can lead to more business opportunities. Summary   In this engaging conversation, Melinda Jackson shares her journey from a small town in North Carolina to becoming a successful entrepreneur in the PR industry. She discusses the importance of personal branding, networking, and understanding one's audience in building a business. Melinda emphasizes the need for consistent content creation and the value of charging what you're worth. She also highlights the role of podcasts and platforms like Substack in enhancing visibility for entrepreneurs. As she navigates the challenges of running her own business, Melinda shares her future plans and her mission to empower female entrepreneurs. Titles   From Small Town to Big Dreams: Melinda's Journey The Power of Personal Branding in Business Sound bites   "Networking is essential for business growth." "Personal branding is crucial for entrepreneurs." "Empowering female entrepreneurs is my mission." Chapters   00:00 Introduction and Background 05:16 Journey to Los Angeles and Early Career 10:28 Transitioning to Entrepreneurship 17:16 Building a PR Business 23:07 Focus on Female Entrepreneurs and Personal Branding 26:32 Navigating Client Relationships and Online Presence 32:54 Building a Personal Brand for Small Business Owners 38:56 The Value of Sharing Knowledge and Expertise 44:39 Pricing Strategies and Industry Standards 46:20 Future Goals and Business Development

In this episode of The Fractional CMO Show, Casey opens up a raw coaching call with people who aren't fractional CMOs yet—but want to be. These are agency owners tired of the hamster wheel, strategists stuck doing execution, and full-time employees wondering if this fractional thing is actually real.    Casey coaches through real deals happening this week: Eric transitioning from agency to targeting private equity exits, Roxy discovering clients keep telling her she's a "really strong strategist" but she's drowning in execution, Paul pitching a $30M company, and Ernesto trying to find IVF clinic owners who want marketing leadership instead of just need it. The conversation cuts through the noise—stop pitching, stop discounting, start having curious conversations that make fractional CMO services the obvious solution. Key Topics Covered: -The 3-5 client rule: Three is ideal—more clients means mixing up names like dating multiple people at once  -Financial structure: Client pays your fee directly (~$9,700 of $10K), then separately pays for the team you build  -Luxury pricing: They should say "that makes sense" not "can you discount?"  -Warm outreach: Share your shift, ask "who should I meet?" not "will you hire me?"  -The exit conversation: Surface if they're selling in 2 years—they won't tell their team but they'll tell you  -Never pitch, discover: Ask questions until fractional CMO is obvious, then "what questions do you have?"  -Agency owners can transition without shutting down—fractional work is separate  -Discounting kills relationships: Clients who negotiate once nickel-and-dime forever  -Find people who want to grow: Show them you're the bridge—they don't need to know fractional CMO exists yet

In this episode of Business Coaching Secrets, Karl Bryan and Rode Dog dive into the psychology behind discounting, why most coaches and business owners sabotage their own margins, and the mindset shifts for building a sustainable, high-performing coaching practice. With the holiday season upon us, Karl explores the deeper layers of wealth—time, relationships, health, and purpose—while sharing actionable strategies for tackling the new year, leveraging focus, and reframing "the grind." From implementation hacks to heartfelt moments, this episode strikes the perfect balance of tactical and Zen. Key Topics Covered The Psychology and Strategy of Discounting Karl explains why most business owners resort to discounting, the hidden costs, and the impact on profitability. He unpacks the numbers—offering a 10% discount means you must sell 33% more just to break even. Discussion of segmenting discount offers, using time-limited deals, and alternative approaches like adding value or crafting market-dominating positions (MDP) to escape commoditization. Building a Market-Dominating Position Real-world examples like web-watch in daycares and "no results, no fee" for marketing firms show how to solve the biggest problem for clients without competing on price. Mindset: The 'Bike Trail' Metaphor The struggle and progression of business is compared to riding an uphill bike trail: it feels brutal until "you" change. The fundamentals remain, but your experience and efficiency grow. Fundamentals, incremental improvement, and compounding gains over time are highlighted as keys to ease rather than endless grind. Levels of Wealth and the Holiday Season Karl reframes wealth as not just money but also time, relationships, health, and purpose. Discussion on balancing ambition with presence, focusing on what matters, and prioritizing personal fulfillment during hectic seasons. Zen and The Moment of Presence Drawing inspiration from the philosopher Seneca and sharing personal stories and losses, Karl emphasizes living in the present moment, fueling gratitude, and managing stress. Sales vs. Coaching Skills Most coaches excel at one and struggle at the other. Karl breaks down why consistent small improvements—especially in your weak area—compound massively across the year. Business Models and Scalability Comparison of Siegfried & Roy vs. Blue Man Group in Vegas: choosing a scalable model over one dependent on a key individual. Notable Quotes "The bike trail doesn't change—you do." "If you're discounting by 10%, you better be ready to sell 33% more just to break even." "People get addicted to discounts. They don't get addicted to free." "Depression lives in the past, anxiety is the future—the solution is to stay in the present." "It's not the strategy, tool, or tactic; it's the level of thinking that separates great coaches." Actionable Takeaways Be Relentlessly Focused Laser-like focus is consistently the defining trait of high-level business founders. In 2026, resolve to hone your focus and stay on your chosen path. Add Value First, Discount Last Before offering discounts, create value in the form of market-dominating positions. Stand out by solving bigger problems for your ideal client. Use 'Buy One Get One Free' to Outperform Standard Discounts Test three discount strategies—% off, two-for-one, BOGO—but expect "buy one, get one free" to psychologically and financially outperform. Incremental Improvement Compounds Exponentially Aim for 1% daily improvement in sales or coaching for 365 days—by year's end, you could be 37x better. Live in the Present Practice gratitude, presence, and purposeful moments. Especially during the holiday season, invest your time where love and meaning are highest. Design Scalability into Your Business Model Think beyond yourself: can your offering operate without you present? Avoid "wrestling the tigers"—create systems others can run. Strategic Discounting Only Segment your offers, use time limitations, and always know your profit margins before reducing prices. Resources Mentioned Profit Acceleration Software™ by Karl Bryan The industry-leading platform for demonstrating ROI and boosting conversions with prospects. Focused.com Karl and Rode Dog's home base for emails, events, and business coaching frameworks. AI Coaching Dojo A toolbox for compounding improvements and operational efficiency in coaching practices. The Six-Figure Coach Magazine Free subscription at https://thesixfigurecoach.com/get-it If you enjoyed the episode, please subscribe, share with a fellow coach, and leave a review. See you next week on Business Coaching Secrets! Ready to elevate your coaching business? Don't wait! Listen to this episode now and make strides towards your goals. Visit Focused.com for more information on our Profit Acceleration Software™ and join our community of thriving coaches. Get a demo at https://go.focused.com/profit-acceleration

In this episode, Shannon gets fired up about one of the biggest mistakes retreat leaders make: discounting their retreats. While a discount might feel like an easy way to fill a few spots, the long-term damage is real - it devalues your experience, trains your audience to wait for price drops, signals desperation, and hurts the entire retreat industry. Shannon breaks down exactly why discounting is harmful, what it communicates to potential guests, and better alternatives like early-bird bonuses, pay-in-full perks, and smart payment options. She also unpacks the real reason retreat leaders discount - fear - and how to address it in a healthier, business-savvy way. If you're ready to protect your profit, elevate your positioning, and stop shrinking your worth, this episode is a must-listen. Key Takeaways Retreats are transformational live experiences - not products to be marked down like retail. Discounting immediately lowers perceived value and conditions your audience to never pay full price again. It signals desperation and damages not just your brand, but the entire retreat industry. Live experiences require emotional labor, planning, expertise, and responsibility - none of which should be discounted. Instead of discounting, offer early-bird bonuses, pay-in-full perks, and extended payment plans. The real reason people discount is fear - not strategy. If enrollment is low, you need better messaging, positioning, urgency, and audience warming… not cheaper prices.   The Retreat Leaders Podcast Resources and Links: Learn to Host Retreats Join our private Facebook Group Top 5 Marketing Tools Free Guide Get your legal docs for retreats Join Shannon in Denver at the Retreat Industry Forum  Join our LinkedIn Group Apply to be a guest on our show   Thanks for tuning into the Retreat Leaders Podcast. Remember to subscribe for more insightful episodes, and visit our website for additional resources. Let's create a vibrant retreat community together!   Subscribe:  Apple Podcast | Google Podcast | Spotify --------- TIMESTAMPS The Problem with Discounting Retreats (00:00:50) Shannon expresses frustration about retreat leaders discounting their retreats and outlines why this is harmful. Why Discounting Retreats is Harmful (00:01:12) Explains how discounting devalues retreats, signals desperation, and attracts difficult guests. Negative Impact on Guest Experience and Industry (00:03:42) Discusses how discounting attracts ungrateful guests and lowers perceived value across the retreat industry. Discounting Hurts Your Margins and Business (00:06:02) Details how discounts cut into profits, making it harder to sustain a retreat business. Retreats as Premium, Transformational Experiences (00:07:16) Emphasizes that retreats are not products but containers for transformation, requiring significant energy and expertise. Alternatives to Discounting: Bonuses and Perks (00:08:14) Suggests offering early bird bonuses, pay-in-full perks, and extended payment plans instead of discounts. Why Retreat Leaders Discount: The Role of Fear (00:10:22) Explores the real reasons behind discounting, such as fear of failure and low signups. Building Confidence and Enrollment Without Discounts (00:11:30) Encourages improving messaging, marketing, and mindset instead of lowering prices. Final Advice and Invitation to Community (00:12:39) Urges listeners to stop discounting, value their work, and join the Retreat Industry Forum for support. Podcast Closing and Resources (00:13:39) Shannon thanks listeners, encourages sharing, and offers free resources for retreat leaders.

In 2015, Corey Lewis expanded to a second gym before he was ready. He ended up with two failing locations instead of one thriving facility.This mistake nearly sunk his business. Now, as a Two-Brain mentor, Corey helps gym owners avoid feels-good-in-the-moment traps that come with severe long-term consequences.In this episode, Corey joins Mike Warkentin to break down some of the most costly mistakes gym owners make:✅ Expanding before systems are in place.✅ Promoting staff too quickly.✅ Abdicating instead of delegating.✅ Discounting rates.✅ Chasing shiny objects instead of caring for "the golden goose."Corey explains how mentorship helps gym owners see past emotion to make decisions based on data. For example, if a gym owner is avoiding a much-needed rate increase, Corey will run the numbers, lay out the plan and provide accountability. He's successfully guided dozens of Two-Brain clients through this process: None lost all their members, and all made more money.Don't make mistakes that will take years to fix. And don't avoid correcting your errors because you don't have a plan. Get help, make smart decisions and reach your Perfect Day sooner.Use the link below to get free tools to help you run a profitable gym!Don't have a gym yet? Start one with help from Two-Brain—just click the link below.LinksFree ToolsStart a GymGym Owners UnitedBook a Call2:33 - Expanding too soon5:44 - No systems and poor retention10:17 - Promoting staff who aren't ready13:09 - How to avoid costly mistakes20:59 - Resources to start a gym

#707 Want a business that turns fresh asphalt into a “blank canvas” — and pays well for satisfying, repeatable work? In this episode, host Kirsten Tyrrel talks with Cinco Winston, founder of Trueline Striping in Central Texas, about how he left a stable construction career, skipped the franchise route, and bootstrapped his own parking lot striping company to cash flow within two months. He shares how he trained with an out-of-state pro, bought only the essentials to get started, and strategically targeted customers who actually value curb appeal and recurring maintenance. Cinco breaks down startup costs, pricing, profit margins, seasonality, and why he's still running lean while planning for future growth. If you've ever wondered how “unsexy” service businesses quietly generate great income and freedom, this conversation will open your eyes! What we discuss with Cinco: + Leaving construction to start striping + Choosing independent over franchise + Training with an out-of-state striping company + Bootstrapping equipment and startup costs + Hitting cash flow within two months + Discounting early jobs to gain clients + Targeting customers who value curb appeal + Door knocking and in-person sales + Managing seasonality and recurring clients + Profit margins, salary, and plans to scale Thank you, Cinco! Check out Trueline Striping at TruelineStripingTX.com. Follow Cinco on Instagram and LinkedIn. To get access to our FREE Business Training course go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠MillionaireUniversity.com/training⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. And follow us on: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Tik Tok⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To get exclusive offers mentioned in this episode and to support the show, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠millionaireuniversity.com/sponsors⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Everyone's inbox is full of "50% off" chaos. But if you run a service business, you can't exactly discount your brain. So what do you do when every brand is shouting "buy now"? I'm Veronica Di Polo, marketing strategist and host of the Branding Momentum Podcast, based in Moraira, Alicante, Spain, helping service-based business owners get leads with words that sell. In this episode, I'll show you how to stay visible when everyone else is running discounts you can't (and shouldn't) match. You'll learn why promotions often backfire for service pros, what to do instead, and how to use this season to build real trust before 2026.

In this episode, I sit down with Brooks Loughry, who brings over 20 years of experience in the aesthetic medical industry. We talk about how medical spas have evolved, what it takes to stand out in such a competitive market, and why discounting your services can actually hurt your business.   Brooks shares his approach to building sustainable, value-based business models through strong team training, smart marketing, and unforgettable patient experiences. We also dive into the power of referrals, how to boost sales without slashing prices, and what really drives long-term success in this industry.   Tune in for practical, no-fluff advice to elevate your practice and increase profitability without compromising your worth.   What you'll hear in this episode: [02:40] Challenges and Opportunities in Med Spas [05:35] The Business Side of Med Spas [11:40] Discounting and Membership Models [16:25] Long-Term Patient Value and Retention [26:15] The Power of Referrals in Business [27:10] Nuances of Discounting and Value Exchange [28:00] Building Loyalty Through Personalized Experiences [36:15] Reducing No-Shows and Cancellations [39:55] Effective Rebooking Strategies [41:10] Avoiding Common Business Pitfalls   If you like this episode, check out: Keep Your Business Profitable with Strategic Cost Management A Deep Dive into Your Profitability Strategy The $5M Bottleneck   Connect with Brooks Loughry: LinkedIn: Brooks Loughry Instagram: @brooksadvises Email: Brooks@bioenergylabs.com   Learn more about our CFO firm and services: https://www.keepwhatyouearn.com/   Connect with Shannon: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannonweinstein Watch full episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMlIuZsrllp1Uc_MlhriLvQ Follow along on IG: https://www.instagram.com/shannonkweinstein/   The information contained in this podcast is intended for educational purposes only and is not individual tax advice. We love enthusiastic action, but please consult a qualified professional before implementing anything you learn.

After a frantic morning of plucking and preening, Elis and John are confronted with the beautiful sight of Greg James. Eyelashes are fluttered, beauty tips are garnered, and in a wonderful showing of modern masculinity, four men chat about their hair care routines. And before he can go, Greg's radio credentials are put to the test in a classic Made Up Game from the vault.Swooning fanfares aside, John introduces Elis to the world of slam poetry and a potential new hobby, and the Cymru Connector-in-Chief tries to connect with a caller from Carmarthen.If you have something of value to contribute send it to elisandjohn@bbc.co.uk, or WhatsApp 07974 293 022.

I'm Josh Kopel, a Michelin-awarded restaurateur and the creator of the Restaurant Scaling System. I've spent decades in the industry, building, scaling, and coaching restaurants to become more profitable and sustainable. On this show, I cut through the noise to give you real, actionable strategies that help independent restaurant owners run smarter, more successful businesses.In this episode, I break down why discounting is one of the biggest traps in the restaurant industry and how it can actually hurt your brand long term. I explain how to build real value through storytelling and emotional connection instead of cutting prices. You'll learn how to create scarcity, meaning, and loyalty that drive both profit and trust—without relying on discounts to fill your seats.  TakeawaysDiscounting attracts deal seekers, not true believers.Sell meaning, not math; value is a feeling.Scarcity builds desire, while discounting builds doubt.A full room doesn't equate to a full bank account.Profit is the cure; busy is just a drug.Kill blanket discounts for a week to assess impact.Highlight the story behind high-margin items.Replace discounts with scarcity plays.Track margin instead of traffic for better insights.Rewrite marketing messages to focus on meaning.Chapters00:00 Introduction to Restaurant Marketing Strategies01:50 The Dangers of Discounting05:39 Building Value Through Meaning and ScarcityIf you've got a marketing or profitability related question for me, email me directly at josh@joshkopel.com and include Office Hours in the subject line. If you'd like to scale the profitability of your restaurant in only 5 days, sign up for our FREE 5 Day Restaurant Profitability Challenge by visiting https://joshkopel.com.