Scaling

How To Vastly Improve Your Social Media Presence And Grow Your Following (Viralnomics Book Review)

February 28, 2020 by Dan Lok

Learning how to improve your social media presence is challenging, yet vital to your brand’s success. The online market is huge, the world’s social media user base is massive, and everyone wants a piece of the pie. According to a 2019 study by Pew Research Center, 72% of American adults actively use social media, and that number keeps exponentially growing.

Clearly, neglecting this online market of billions of social media users would be a huge oversight for any sensible business. Like many entrepreneurs, influencers and business owners, I’ve scoured the internet for tips and tricks for boosting my social media following and improving my online presence.

While I’ve learned a lot from mentors and speakers, I attribute much of my success to certain books I’ve read that have guided me along the way.

You'd be surprised how many business owners don't take the time to read books. This means that if you gain knowledge by reading books, you'll also gain a competitive advantage against your competitors who did not take the time to read such… Share on X

While it’s true that over 73% of marketers reported success by implementing social media marketing as a significant component of their marketing strategy, not all engagement is created equal. Similarly, not all of the knowledge out there is equally as valuable.

Let’s take books, for example, as opposed to Google searches and online question-and-answer forums such as Quora.

Books offer more systematic, detailed strategies and unique insights that aren’t always available on blogs, on Quora, or via a Google search. Not every business owner is willing to take the time to read books, however. What does this mean for you? If you take the time to read books, you’ll gain a competitive advantage, since most people don’t read books about business.

Viralnomics by Jonathan Goodman

One of the books I’ve received immense value from is the book, Viralnomics: How to Get People to Want to Talk About You by Jonathan Goodman. In this book, Goodman offers insightful commentary on social platforms themselves while giving you plenty of actionable tasks that produce real results.

Unlike other blogs or guides out there, Goodman doesn’t leave any room for excuses. Instead, he gives you the tools and the information you need to cultivate a highly engaged following on social media, and guides you on how to execute his advice accordingly. This is one of the reasons why his book is so impactful.

As you know, I don’t believe in making excuses – I believe in taking action – even if you think you have the best excuse in the world to delay or procrastinate.

In this article, I’ll recap some of what I feel are the most important points in the book. In Viralnomics, Goodman’s advice proves to go a long way, even in small doses. But first, let’s discuss why it’s so important to improve your social media presence and grow your social media following.

Why is it Crucial to Improve Your Social Media Presence and Grow Your Social Media Following?

Social media followers convert into real customers, and social media growth facilitates the growth of your business. It’s as simple as that. If your social media followers enjoy your content, check your social media pages regularly, and come to love your brand because of your social media, what happens? They become real customers. They buy whatever product or service you’re selling. And everyone knows this.

What you post on social media is incredibly important. The more people resonate with your social media posts and share your content because it reflects their own thoughts, feelings, and values, the more you will improve your social media presence. And, the more you improve your social media presence, the more likely you’ll improve your overall sales and business growth.

You might be wondering, If it’s so obvious that a huge social media presence is good for business, why don’t more companies, businesses, brands and entrepreneurs have a larger social media presence? Well, I can answer this question in one word: Effort.

It requires time, resources, effort and patience to grow your social media following and improve your social media presence. It doesn’t happen overnight. Many companies, businesses, brands and entrepreneurs don’t have the time, energy or patience to do this. Even though they know how important social media is for business, they just don’t put forth the effort. Growing their social media is on their to-do list, but they don’t get to it.

That’s why you’ll have such a major advantage against your competition if you do put in the effort to grow your social media following and strengthen your online presence.

So, let’s discuss some of my favorite tips from Jonathan Goodman’s book Viralnomics, along with my own tips for achieving powerful social media growth, and subsequently growing your business.

Improve Your Social Media Presence By Giving Your Audience a Reason to Stick Around

One of my favorite analogies in the book Viralnomics is that of the metal spoon. Goodman describes a time where he was given a free sample, but he was given his free sample with a metal spoon instead of a disposable, plastic utensil.

Though Goodman originally approached the booth to take the sample and go, he was unwittingly obligated to stay with the marketer, and discuss the product. After speaking with the sample-giver and trying out the product, Goodman was sold— but only because he wasn’t given the freedom to walk away with his sample, without talking to the marketer about it. You see, he didn’t have a disposable spoon. No, he had a metal spoon that he couldn’t walk away with.

In order to improve your social media presence, you need to figure out what your metal spoon is. Having initially enticing pieces of information isn’t enough on its own. Goodman’s metaphor of the metal spoon empowered me to ask myself, “What is going to make my audience stay? What is my ‘metal spoon’?”

I’ve found that the best way to answer this question is to look at why I stay on my favorite brand’s social media pages. Perhaps they’re giving me a solid piece of advice or inspiration, and it’s so valuable that I don’t want to walk away or keep scrolling. I’m willing to listen because a brand is giving me personal value, not just content. Makes sense, right?

The Importance of Favors and Providing Value to the Community

Oftentimes as marketers, we focus far too heavily on what we can get from the consumer, rather than what we can give to our customers. Jonathan Goodman hits home on this point by asserting in his book, “Spend time every day looking for ways to do as many favors as possible.”

For most of us, this doesn’t feel natural. However, why would a consumer give something valuable to a business if they’re not getting something in return? Consumer trust is crucial, and Goodman is 100% right when he says that you have to earn it.

When Goodman talks about doing favors for your consumers, he’s talking about providing value to the consumer. This could be something simple like saying, “Thanks for following our Instagram page! As a thank you, here is a free eBook!”

Another ‘favor’, or as I call it, providing value, could simply be to thank a new follower by giving their Instagram page some love. Like their recent photo, comment on it with some words of encouragement. Sometimes you can do this before they’ve even followed your page, and because you showed their page some love, they will decide to follow you.

It often really is that simple. If you don’t have time to do this yourself, you can have a team devoted to this type of community engagement.

Manage your Online Community with Daily Interaction on Social Media

As I just explained, if you want to improve your social media presence and grow your following, you need to be devoted to community engagement. Engaging with the community should be done daily, and it involves commenting on other people’s social media posts, liking their posts, and even sending DMs. This type of role within a social media team is often referred to as a “Community Manager”.

Hiring a Community Manager who engages with your target audience by commenting on their social media posts is a great way to build a real, organic following.

Your Community Manager can provide value or ‘favors’ to the community by offering free eBooks, links to valuable blog posts, sharing their posts on your profile as a re-post crediting the original person who posted it, or simply commenting on their social media posts and showing their page some love.

By using this method, you’re likely to build much more meaningful interactions online, and build the type of loyal social media following that will actually buy your product or service. The old saying, “Sharing is caring” proves to be very accurate when it comes to social media.

If you want your business shared and cared for, you’re going to have to share and care for others. It’s as simple as that.

Learning What Type of Content People Share

In order to improve your social media presence, it’s essential that you understand why people share the social media content of others in the first place. In Viralnomics, Goodman breaks down the types of posts we tend to share into 5 main categories:

Intelligent
Intellectual
Interesting
Attractive
Funny

These may just seem like personal characteristics, which is exactly the point. Goodman argues that what we share is much more about self-representation than the content itself.

When a consumer chooses to share something, it’s partially because what they share is a representation of themselves.

My take on this is that it seems only natural that your target audience will want to share content where someone else has said exactly what they themselves are thinking or feeling.

Everyone wants to share content that represents themselves in the way they want to be perceived. It’s the same reason why you only see people posting the best pictures of themselves on their profile. With this in mind, you can begin to craft content to help your target market represent themselves in a favorable way. In other words, you need to understand how your target market wants to be perceived, and create content that helps them paint that perception of themselves. Do this, and they’ll want to share your content.

Another tip is to share content that evokes emotion. For example, many big brands use the emotion of nostalgia to sell products through social media. This is called nostalgia marketing, and it works because it helps you resonate with your following.

Think Before You Post Content: Will it Resonate?

So, the next time you share a post, ask yourself, “What does this content say about a person that would make them want to share it?” Implementing this simple thought exercise before you create your social media posts, will give you invaluable insight to vastly improve your social media presence.

If your target audience tends to share humorous content, get your social media manager to create a variety of funny, witty or smart memes that you can post regularly.

If your target audience tends to share motivational content about self-worth, believing in oneself, or self-improvement, create content that caters to that emotion of building oneself up.

Don’t forget that the more people resonate with your social media posts and share your content, the more you will improve your social media presence. And, the more you improve your social media presence, the more likely you’ll improve your overall sales and business growth.

Information is No Longer Valuable in Itself

Goodman drops a hard truth when he explains that simply sharing knowledge and information is not enough on its own. He shares an anecdote where he used to love reading the encyclopedia as a kid, simply to learn.

Nowadays, we are constantly bombarded with information online, so much so that the value of information has gone down drastically. It’s no coincidence that encyclopedia Britannica stopped printing in 2010. Perhaps they knew they couldn’t compete with the modern-day encyclopedia of Google? Understanding this is crucial in order to improve your social media presence.

The playing field is now much more level. For you to succeed, you’ll need to offer value to your consumers. Since anyone has the opportunity Google information, focusing on providing value will help you stand out.

Use unique analogies and examples when you provide information or share knowledge, so that people want to follow you simply because of the clear and captivating way that you share information. If you share valuable information in a way people can understand and appreciate, you’ll stand out.

This is why in Viralnomics, Goodman highly recommends fostering a community that enjoys the way you communicate to them, not just a marketplace. That way, people will return to your site for its ecosystem and in turn, feel more inclined to use your product or service.

Building Your Web

To improve your social media presence, you’re going to need a network. I’ve learned from Viralnomics that I shouldn’t be picky with who’s a part of that web. A web is a circle of friends or a community of supporters.

In the book, Goodman described it best when he described a connection with a Facebook friend he hadn’t spoken to in years. Even though Goodman and this person weren’t necessarily “friends” in real life, that person saw Goodman’s content and shared it on their own social media page.

Think about it this way: If you have five friends, you have five more chances to get shared than if you had just one friend. To improve your social media presence online, you’ll have to play a number’s game.

What if you want something more intimate for closer relationships? Goodman has a solution for that, too. In Viralnomics, he recommends having separate business and personal accounts. That way, when you’re on your business feed, you’re focused on engagement and not emotionally distracted.

Build your web with anyone and everyone. You never know who will be receptive to your content.

Learning From Media Giants

Jonathan Goodman talks about Sea Lions in his book. You may be wondering how these mammals can help you improve your social media presence. As it turns out, they serve as the perfect model for fostering a highly engaged audience.

In Viralnomics, Goodman notes how sea lions will feast on fish that a whale leaves behind, rather than try to compete directly with the whale. As I’ve learned from Goodman, this is precisely how we should learn from media or tech giants.

We need to learn how to cultivate similar followings in the way that huge social media influencers and media giants have. In this way, Goodman suggests reaching out to the engaged followers of social media influencers you admire, rather than the to influencers themselves.

You can combine this tip with the tip I mentioned earlier of adding value first, by showing these people some love and liking and commenting on their photos. While this may not be the most time-efficient way of doing things, it’s a surefire way to build a community. And, like I said, you can hire a Community Manager to do this for you.

Understanding Social Media First and Foremost

Understanding social media means that you understand how each different type of social media platform works, what its best used for, and understanding the different audiences for each. The video-sharing app TikTok, for example, is known for having a younger audience of mostly Gen Zers, as well as some millennials.

Innovative new social media platforms like TikTok will always pop up, and like TikTok, some of the new social media platforms will quickly grow to a user base of around 1 billion monthly active users, which is huge. However, as Jonathan Goodman points out in Viralnomics,

The biggest mistake that you can make is to attempt to keep up with new innovations before taking the time to understand why people use those innovations.”

So, going back to the example of TikTok, you must understand how TikTok works, who uses this social media platform, and why people use it. This understanding must be cultivated before you attempt to grow your presence on TikTok. The same goes for any social media platform you’re attempting to improve your social media presence on.

Don’t forget how crucial it is to learn how to improve your social media presence in order to grow your social media following and grow your business. As Goodman says in Viralnomics,

We work hard every day to ignore marketing so we can go home and put our feet up to relax. And when we do this, we go on social media. It’s a place where our subconscious takes over, it’s a place where we let our emotions dictate our actions, and it’s a place where we’re more open to persuasion than anywhere else.”

Investing in Yourself

I’ve learned from experience that one of the biggest mistakes that entrepreneurs, business owners and influencers make is not investing in themselves, and not reading enough books. In order to improve your social media presence and grow your business, you need to do so from both a top-down and bottom-up perspective.

What that means is you shouldn’t focus all of your energy on simply curating content. You’ll need fuel for that fire, which comes from acquiring more knowledge and more digital marketing skills. Acquiring more knowledge and more up-to-date skills is not only good for you, but it’s good for your business, too.

Just as an artist shouldn’t perform a song on stage without knowing the lyrics and emotions they’re meant to evoke, you should not put out content if you don’t have a firm understanding of your market.

Try your best to seek out more valuable information through books, blogs, videos and online courses. I typically don’t suggest buying books that were published a decade ago, because you want the knowledge to be relevant to the modern economy and the modern consumer.

The value of information online may have gone down in quality as a whole, but the silver lining is that much of it is free to consumers. And if cost is an issue for you, books are cheap. Most books are between $5 and $25, and many of them have insanely valuable information inside.

Why You Need Books to Be Successful

Investing in yourself in the form of self-education is important, but how should you go about that process, specifically? Aside from online courses, a very effective way to do so is by reading books.

Nowadays, not as many people are willing to sit down and take the time to read a book, which automatically gives you a competitive advantage if you get into the habit of reading every night. The fewer people who are reading books, the more unique insight you gain access to that your competition isn’t accessing.

A bonus tip I could give you is to order a paperback version of the book you’re buying instead of the eBook version. Sure, it might cost $5 – $10 more than the eBook version, but it’s nice to give your eyes a break from screen time. Reading in bed helps you fall asleep and get a better night’s sleep, because taking a break from screens before bed encourages a proper sleep cycle.

It goes without saying that reading books by business experts will help you grow your business. However, the caveat is that you need to read books by authors who practice what they preach.

When it comes to authors whose books you should buy, you can trust those who have built a successful business themselves, have grown a huge social media following themselves, and have become a self-made multi-millionaire themselves.

That’s why people buy my books. I have millions of followers on social media, and I am a self-made multi-millionaire entrepreneur who understands business and became successful. I enjoy sharing my secrets with others who strive for greatness, and that’s why I’ve taken the time to write over a dozen books.

Ready to Unlock The Secrets and Strategies for Growing Your Business and Growing Your Social Media?

Are you ready to unlock financial confidence, unlock the secrets to growing your business and social media presence, and become unstoppable? Are you willing to read a book that could lead to life-altering success?

Success comes to those who take action. Reading a book by someone who has shared the closely-guarded secrets to their success, is an example of the right action to take if you want to be successful. Share on X

Success comes to those who take action. Reading a book by someone who has shared the closely-guarded secrets to their success, is a fantastic action to take if you want to be successful.

My new book, Unlock It, will provide you with more social media secrets and digital marketing secrets to grow your social media following and dramatically improve your online presence. Unlock It offers more than just social media secrets, though. This book will make it easier for you to understand how to grow your business in general, and how to start a business.

In Unlock It, you will learn specific systems and formulas that will allow you to unlock the key to success for yourself and your business. Unlock It will guide you to achieving wealth, success, and an impressive social media presence.

Do You Want the Key to My Secret Formula for Success?

It is my book Unlock It that I share the secrets, strategies, methods, formulas and systems that I personally used when I went from being a broke immigrant with no money, to becoming a self-made multi-millionaire and global social phenomenon with a social media presence that lead to millions of highly-engaged followers. In this book, I even share tips on how to put out content that your audience will resonate with.

My book doesn’t solely focus on how to build a social media following or improve your social media presence. It of course touches on that, but there’s so much more to it than that. These skills I teach in my book are skills that are not taught in school or college. But these are skills that once you read about them and harness them, can help you become a powerful business magnate and social media influencer.

So, if you’re ready to unlock the secrets to growing your social media following, building your brand, and growing your business, click here to buy my book Unlock It for as little as $7.50.

The price of my book may not always be this good of a deal, so take action now if you want to improve your social media presence, grow your business, and build a powerful brand.

How To Pitch To Investors When Seeking Funding To Scale Your Startup Business

February 18, 2020 by Dan Lok

Looking to scale your startup business, but need funding in order to do it? Knowing how to pitch to investors will make the process smoother.

If you want to know how to pitch to investors, there is a harsh truth that you need to be aware of. Like everyone on this planet, they are tuned into the radio frequency WIIFM, which stands for What’s In It For Me? Investors are only interested in providing you with funding so that they can get a return on their investment.

Investors want to make money. They do not care about your passions or your dreams. To them, you are just a risk they are considering investing in, in order to make more money.

That means if you want to successfully convince an investor to give you funding to scale your startup business, you need to cater your presentation to that aspect. Your investors will have doubts, fears, and questions about whether or not they can trust you. If you can overcome all of these doubts and objections in their minds, they will be more than happy to give you what you are looking for.

Get Clear on Why You’re Pitching in the First Place

If you want to learn how to pitch to investors, you need to get clear on why you are presenting in the first place. What is the goal of the presentation? What outcome are you looking for?

When you plan ahead and know the ‘why’ behind your reason for presenting, you will be able to much more effectively communicate that to your audience. The investors you are pitching to could have seen hundreds of presentations before yours. If you can’t clearly and effectively communicate why they should provide you with funding, the chances that you’ll do business together are very slim.

Do you have a vision of where the company will be in a few years? What are your next steps once you acquire the funding? Communicating your plan to the investor is very important to influencing them to fund your startup business. Your investor does not trust you nor know who you are. By presenting a detailed plan to them, it shows that you have done your research, and you know what you are doing. You are giving them reasons to believe that you will become successful, and that their money will not go to waste.

When you have clarity on what you want, communicating it to others is very easy. All that’s left is to overcome their objections by presenting a well-organized plan of how you both can succeed. The most important factor when learning how to pitch to investors, is that when your audience has no reason to doubt you, they’ll be inclined to say yes.

Make them an offer they can’t refuse. - The Godfather Share on X

Who is Presenting is More Important Than What is Being Presented

Have you ever sat through a presentation that made you bored out of your mind? Chances are, the speaker spoke in a monotone voice, or exhibited low energy in their presentation. The speaker bored you to death.

If you want to know how to pitch to investors, you’ll need to make sure your presenter makes a good impression. If you are not a good presenter, get someone else to do the pitch, who is good at presenting.

Remember: It’s not about the offer, it’s about the person who’s presenting it. Someone who demonstrates charisma, passion and energy for what they believe in, will come off as someone who is trustworthy and entertaining. Your audience is not just judging the business, but also the people who will be running the company. And if they perceive the CEO or marketing team to be sloppy, they’ll think the same way about your offer.

That’s why making a good first impression is crucial to build rapport with an investor. For them, it’s not just about making a good ROI, it’s also about who they are working with. Successful business people know that there’s nothing worse than dealing with someone who is difficult to work with. And if they sense the two of you won’t be a good fit, you won’t get the funding you need.

If you want to successfully learn how to pitch to investors and scale your business, you need to come off as someone they can trust. That means the way you look, talk, act and move all needs to be aligned with that image. If you get nervous during presentations or freeze up and forget what you wanted to say, that means you haven’t practiced enough.

Practice Until You Are Sick Of It, Then Practice Some More

Having difficulty with presentations or have trouble getting your thoughts across clearly means you haven’t practiced enough.

When I first started doing public speaking, I was terrible at it. Like everyone else, I had stage fright and often got nervous when speaking to a large audience. But as time went on, I realized the reason why I got nervous was because I was not ready. I didn’t put in the work to prepare before the speech, and tried to wing it like everyone else. The problem was that I lacked the confidence to deliver an outstanding performance, because I did not rehearse enough.

So instead of making excuses, I practiced for hours each day, in front of a video camera, to perfect my presentation. My advice for you is to film yourself while presenting. It allows you to see how your presentation would come across to members of the audience. And if there’s certain parts of your presentation that you are not satisfied with, you can be sure your audience is going to feel the same way.

You may feel awkward watching yourself present, but it is the fastest way you can correct your flaws. After all, no one can spot your mistakes better than you can. Think about it as a way for you to see what is wrong, and correct it so you can continuously improve. I guarantee that if you practice and really focus on improving every part of your pitch, your first time presenting will be drastically different from your 20th time doing it. And when you’re finally giving your pitch to an investor, you’ll be more than ready to deliver your lines.

Practice makes perfect. If perfect means getting the funding to scale your startup business, would you be willing to practice?

Why The Best Candidate For Presentations Is Yourself

It may be tempting to simply delegate the task of presenting to another team member and skipping over all that practice, but when it comes to pitching to investors, the CEO and founder should be the ones presenting. As long as you are a good presenter, that is. And if you’re not good at it, perhaps you could learn.

Wondering why the best person to pitch is you, the founder? This is for two reasons:

First, your investors are going to have questions, and you’re the best person to answer those questions. Imagine the scenario where the investors ask if your team member is the CEO, and they reply with no. What do you think your audience is going to think?

“The CEO of this company can’t even show up to their own presentation? Do they even care about their own success?”

Second, is that your team members won’t have the same knowledge as you do. As the founder, you know where you want to take the company in 1, 2 or 5 years. You know exactly why you are seeking funding, why you’ve gone to them instead of everyone else, and why if you two decide to do business, that you can make it a win-win situation for everyone involved.

Your team members won’t have the same knowledge or passion that you do. Like your audience, they are also tuned into WIIFM, and only care about what they have to gain – which is most likely a paycheck. They lack the experience and vision that you as the founder possess. And unless the team member presenting has equity share in the company, they will most likely not demonstrate the best version of themselves during the presentation.

Some aspects – such as passion and vision, cannot be delegated. It’s one thing to have a veteran salesperson do the presentation – it’s another for the founder to take the initiative and do it themselves.

Use The Future as Negotiation Leverage

If your startup business isn’t currently at a point where it can be ‘shown off’, use its future potential as a bargaining tool. Correlating where your company will be a few years from now, is another strategy on how to pitch to investors.

For example, let’s say you sell teddy bears and your business revenue per year is $200K, with $30K as profits. To an investor, they may think your annual numbers are far too low for them to provide you with the funding. He’s impatient and wants to get his money back within a year of investing. But at the rate your company is growing, it’ll take more than 20 years before he gets his return on his investment.

If you currently lack results, you can paint a picture and make them imagine what it would be like if they did invest. For example, if they decide to provide you with more funding, it would allow you to use that funding to increase your production line and sell more bears. Now, that $30K in annual profits could rise to $100K, shortening the time it takes for the investor to make back his money.

Being able to form an image, a vision of where the company could be in the next couple of years is a powerful tool that many successful entrepreneurs use in their lives. This is called visualization, and it allows entrepreneurs to imagine a desired scenario. Once the entrepreneur has an image of what they want, they can then go after it. And if you’re familiar with the Law of Attraction, you’ll know that whatever you can conceive, you can achieve.

You can use this visualization trick to convince investors to provide you with funding. Convince them that the only thing holding your business back from becoming the giant success that it is, is finding an investor who is willing to provide the funding.

Be Willing To Take The Lower End Of The Bargain

One of the problems holding many entrepreneurs back from getting the funding to scale their business, is that they aren’t willing to settle. Besides knowing how to pitch to investors, the other part of your presentation is going to be about negotiation. Imagine that you have 100 balls in front of you. These balls are to be divided amongst you and the person you are doing business with – the optimal outcome being that you get half of the balls and they get half of the balls. It’s a fair 50-50 ratio.

However, in reality this rarely ever happens. The person with the most leverage – AKA the person who is less needy, usually walks away with more balls than the other person. In the situation where you are a startup business and are looking for funding, the investor has more leverage and can call the shots. The investor is aware that he has the upper hand in the negotiation, and will use it to collect more balls – a 40-60 or 30-70 ratio.

To some entrepreneurs, they may be happy with this deal if it means they get what they want. As long as they get the funding they need, they are willing to take the shorter end of the bargain. But for some entrepreneurs, they don’t like the fact that they are being taken advantage of. As a result, they’ll say no to every single deal and opportunity that comes their way, not realizing that if they would just accept taking the shorter end of the bargain for now, they could have much more to gain in the future.

Remember: Settling does not mean taking the lower end of a bargain forever. You are simply enduring the terms and conditions now, to give yourself an opportunity for re-negotiation later on in the future.

Opportunities multiply when they are seized. - Sun Tzu Share on X

How to Pitch to Investors Using Storytelling

Storytelling is a powerful way to get your point across without sounding like you’re lecturing your audience. Lectures are boring, but stories are compelling. Humans are wired to do things based on emotion, not logic. For example, why are so many people spending $10,000 on a diamond ring, when they are never going to use it again afterwards?

Storytelling allows you to convey your emotions to your audience in a very effective and entertaining way. Especially when it comes to giving a pitch to investors, you want to do everything you can to stand out from everyone else. If you incorporate your emotion and passion into a well spoken story, you will be able to captivate their attention like no one else.

For example, here is a story you could tell that provides your investor with information about who you are, the history of the business and why you need funding:

“2 years ago, when I was in college I realized there was an ever growing problem of men who did not shave. You could see men with stubble and 5 o’clock shadow sticking out in plain sight, as you walked down the hallways. Everyday, my professor would come to class with a thick, grotesque beard. And even I was a victim of this fashion frenzy during times of extreme stress.

One day, I realized I had enough of seeing other men and their unsightly beards. That’s when I decided to make two life-altering decisions:

I dropped out of college
And pursued my dream of creating men’s grooming products

With my friend, who also had problems keeping his beard under control, we founded the company Shave It Off, where we currently provide quality shaving products to men across 30 different countries worldwide.

Our company has been growing faster than we’ve ever imagined, and now we’ve run into a problem only you can help us with: we need funding. Our revenue and profits are currently bottlenecked by our lack of delivery trucks, and as a result we need more funding to buy more trucks. By doing so, we can deliver more products to men all over the world, to help them get a clean shave every single time.”

Now imagine if you didn’t put that into a story, how much less entertaining would that sound?

“2 years ago I dropped out of college. I hated beards, so me and a buddy found this company called Shave It Off. We sell shaving cream to guys around the world, because it makes a lot of money. We’re short on trucks at the moment, and need money to buy more trucks. Want to help us out?”

Captivate your audience by using storytelling in your pitch. You’ll be able to effectively communicate your side of the story, and inspire them to help you achieve your goals as well.

Facts tell, stories sell. Share on X

Get The Perfect Closing Script To Control Any Conversation

In any conversation you’ll ever have, there will always be some sort of push and pull. One person will always be trying to gain leverage over the other, through their words and actions. The person who ends up victorious, is the person who knows exactly what to say.

Those who lack business experience are often taken advantage of, and find themselves on the lower end of the bargain. The person you are speaking with can sense your inexperience, and oftentimes will use it against you to get the best deal for themselves.

However, when you know how to handle questions and objections thrown at you, you can shift the conversation so it flows in your favor. Having the intuition to tell where the conversation is heading and steer it in a direction that benefits you, is a crucial part in being able to influence others to do what you want and win negotiations.

If you want to succeed in business and learn how to influence people to do what you want, get the perfect closing script here.

How To Find Investors Before Your Company Launch

February 12, 2020 by Dan Lok

Thinking of starting your own company? First, you’ll need to know how to find investors to fund your startup.

Most entrepreneurs who are looking to start their own company know it’s not just about having a solid plan of where they’ll take the company in the next few years. It’s not what niche they are going to go into, or the best practices within their own industry. No, it’s about money – AKA startup capital. That’s why you need to know how to find investors.

Successful entrepreneurs and business owners know they need cash on hand if they want to succeed. Research shows that most businesses fail because they lack capital. Without an adequate source of funding, they won’t be able to maintain their operations past the first 5 years of business – which is the crucial moment in time when most businesses fail.

Think of capital as a safety net. Every time you make a mistake in business, it’s going to cost you money. The more money you have, the more mistakes you can afford to make. This is why having capital is very important, and you need investors to raise capital. Compared to a startup with very little money, the companies that knew how to find investors can afford to make more mistakes. And you will make mistakes which will cost you money.

Those who started a business with very little capital (and no investors) only afford to make a few mistakes before they go bankrupt. If you’ve never tried to grow a business before, you’re sure to make plenty of mistakes.

Having capital allows you to endure through those tough first few years, and eventually build up your business to become successful. If you’re looking to start your own company, here are a few tips on how to find investors for your startup launch:

Perfecting Your Business Presentation and Pitch

Before you even begin to look for investors to fund your startup, you should have your pitch down. Have a well thought out presentation that is visually appealing. Documentation of your plan and what you have in mind. The niche and industry you are going to go into. Your expenses, operations, estimated profit and yearly revenue. And most importantly, what’s in it for the investor.

Remember, everyone on this planet is tuned into the radio station WIIFM – What’s in it for me? Realize that from an investors point of view, they are taking a risk. They don’t know who you are, if you are trustworthy or if you’ll even succeed. Worst case scenario, your business could fail, and they lose all of their money invested. Your job is to help alleviate these doubts and fears, and assure them that you are going to succeed.

To do this, focus on tailoring your sales presentation to how it can benefit your investor. Are they getting a 10% equity in your company? Will they get royalties on every product or service being sold? Make it clear that if they decide to do business with you, they are going to get a nice ROI. A little bit of greed in business is a good thing – if you can cater to that side of your investors, they’ll think less about what they have to lose, and more about what they have to gain.

Give them enough reasons to believe they have more to gain than lose, and they’ll have the confidence to say yes. And, if you come across as confident in your well-rehearsed pitch, they’ll be more likely to feel confident investing.

Before You Become a CEO You Need to Become a Salesperson

During the actual presentation, your role is going to be that of a salesperson. Your company does not yet exist – it is simply an idea in your head or on a piece of paper. You are trying to sell your company and vision to the investor, and to do that, you need to convince them that your plan is going to work.

Before you even become the CEO of your own company, you first have to become a great salesperson. Being a visionary and sharing your passion as to why you want to start a business in the first place is good, but unless you are able to clearly articulate your thoughts to the investors, you will never have a chance at succeeding. Spend time to craft your pitch carefully, practice your speech over and over until it comes second hand, and then take action.

This is where skills like closing become very useful. If you have experience doing sales, you will have a much easier time getting over your investor’s objections. Being able to redirect the conversation will allow you to get to the core of what your investor is really after – getting a positive ROI. You already know what kind of outcome they are looking for, all that’s left is to lead them towards that result. Treat them like you would treat a prospect, and get them to say yes.

Having your pitch down and solid documentation of how you are going to get there, is going to help influence investors to believe in you and your vision. But ultimately, it will be up to you and how well you can sell yourself.

Why You Shouldn’t Approach Banks For Your Startup Funding

Thinking about getting funding through traditional methods like the bank? Think again.

Banks have extremely strict lending criteria, and as a startup with no track record, no revenue and no proof of success – the chances they’ll say yes are very slim. As a startup entrepreneur, banks want nothing to do with you. Startups are a risk they aren’t willing to take, and with such a large customer base, banks have many other people they can lend money to at a much lower risk.

If you’re wondering how to find investors to fund your company, banks are the last place you’ll want to visit. Instead, get creative – and tap into the marketplace that other entrepreneurs can be found: Social Media.

Using Social Media and Crowdfunding To Build Your Business

One of the best ways to get funding is by using crowdfunding platforms such as GoFundMe, Kickstarter and Patreon.

“But Dan, I’m an entrepreneur! I’m not going to accept DONATIONS from other people!”

You won’t accept donations? That is precisely the kind of mentality that is holding you back. Instead of seeing it from the perspective as a donation, think of it as a business loan that you will pay back once your business is up and running. For example, let’s say you need a million dollars before you can start your business. So you set up a Kickstarter page, get the funding and now you’re ready to launch your business. How are you going to pay back your loyal supporters, who got you where you are?

This is why some crowdfunding campaigns have rewards based on the amount that people donate. Those who donate more money, have access to exclusive perks and benefits such as lifetime discounts on products and services, or limited edition products. Having a reward tier system allows the funders to feel they are getting something in return. You get the money you need for your business, and they get rewarded for their financial assistance.

You Don’t Need Money – You Need Resourcefulness

Finding investors for your startup company launch requires creativity. You are doing something that goes against traditional wisdom, which means you need to think up methods that don’t use traditional means.

The biggest problem that beginner entrepreneurs have, is that they make up excuses. They say things like “I don’t have enough money” or “I don’t know how to do this or that.” As an entrepreneur, excuses will get you nowhere. If you want to succeed, you need to realize that those who have made it, did so not because they had money, but because they were resourceful.

Imagine that you somehow got the startup capital for your company. You’re ecstatic that you finally have enough money, and celebrate with a big company launch. But then a year later, you realize you’ve already burned through all of the cash and need more. Now you’re back where you started. How will you solve the issue this time?

Having money isn’t the solution. Being resourceful is. If you have the skills and knowledge to generate money, you will never have to worry. Money is something that can be taken away from you as easily as you have earned it. And in the world of business where there are many risks and possibilities of going broke, you need more than just money if you want to succeed.

Learning how to be resourceful will allow you to overcome many other problems that you will inevitably encounter along the way. If you make excuses and rely on having everything ‘ready’ before you begin, you will struggle whenever any problem pops up. Think of the problems you currently have now as opportunities, that tell you what aspects of yourself you need to improve on.

Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime. Share on X

Finding Angel Investors and Getting Them to Say Yes

If you’ve ever watched Shark Tank or Dragon’s Den, you may be familiar with the term ‘angel investor’. Angel investors are entrepreneurs that are wildly successful. They are multi-millionaires and even billionaires that actively look to invest their money into funding companies and startups.

These millionaires and billionaires can afford to take the risk to invest in startups, because to them it is only a small percentage of their net worth. If the startup fails, they simply lose their investment – which is not a lot to them. They understand that if they want to make a lot of money, they must be willing to take big risks. For them, startups are the fastest way to generate more money – a small $100,000 investment could easily net them a 1000% return if the business becomes successful.

If you want to get funding from an angel investor, you need to be prepared. This is why I recommended you first rehears and perfect your pitch and presentation before you even begin looking for investors. Successful people know that opportunities can happen at any time, and if they want to win in business, they have to always be ready to give their best. That means preparing ahead of time what you want to say, and how you should present yourself. After all, you only get one shot at making a first impression.

Angel investors can be found in any local city, online, on television shows, at business workshops, seminars, and even as an associate of your friends or family. The larger your network is, the better chance you have of finding an angel investor. Once you do, all that’s left is to convince them that you have what it takes to make the business successful and generate them a massive return on their investment.

Why Your Network is Your Net Worth

The more people you know, the higher your chance of succeeding in business. Successful business people understand that having connections and growing their network is one of the most valuable assets they can have. In order to build something great, you need a team. And when you know a lot of people, you have access to many more opportunities.

People only do business with people they trust. And for them, they are much more likely to trust a friend than a random stranger they just met. That’s why having a large business network is so valuable, because it allows you to tap into many resources. Finding a business mentor, for example, could make all the difference for you. In fact, if it wasn’t for my mentor Alan, I might never have become successful.

Alan was my copywriting mentor. Before I met Alan, I had started and failed at 13 different businesses, getting myself into $100,000 of credit card debt. Even though I was desperate to succeed, I still did not give up, and did everything in my power to keep moving forward. That led me to attend a seminar, where coincidentally, I found myself sitting beside him in the audience.

At that time, Alan was this super successful copywriter whom I frequently studied. I managed to convince Alan to become my mentor, and after a lot of begging, stubbornness and hard labor, he finally agreed. As time went on, Alan found himself too busy to take on copywriting work from his clients, and instead handed them off to me. Because of Alan, I was able to kick off my copywriting career, find clients and never have to work a 9-5 job again. I knew the right people, and they helped to open many more opportunities for me. That’s the power of having a large business network.

Your network is your net worth. - Tim Sanders Share on X

Expanding Your Network and Business Connections

If you want to expand your network, you have to put yourself out there. That means going to seminars, workshops, making YouTube videos or building a social media profile.

If you’ve been following my work for some time, you’ll realize that I do all of the above. This isn’t accidental, it’s intentional. I knew that if I wanted to spread my message across the world, that I would need to put myself on as many platforms as possible. I had to grow my presence online, so that people could find me and know who I am. If you’re looking for investors to fund your startup business, I would recommend you to do the same.

There are many platforms you can promote yourself on. Some popular platforms are LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Kickstarter. Think of these platforms as your business brand – what kind of content do you want your audience to know about? What kind of content would attract investors to reach out to you for funding?

“But Dan, I HATE social media! It’s so shallow and cliche!”

Instead of thinking about it as social media, think of it as business media. You are using these popular social media platforms as a way to advertise your business. The best part, is that you can do so for FREE. Traditional methods such as running ads cost you money, and considering you are looking for investors for your startup, you probably don’t have a lot you can spend.

Get creative, and leverage social media as your business page. You’ll be able to reach millions of people by either building your own personal brand, or finding others who are doing similar things.

Follow Me On LinkedIn and Expand Your Business Network

Becoming an entrepreneur is not easy. It means you are committing yourself down a path that goes against conventional wisdom and what you have been taught. In order to succeed as an entrepreneur, you’ll have to think outside the box.

If you’re looking for ways on how to find investors for your new company, you won’t be able to do it through traditional institutions like banks. Instead, look for places where investors and other entrepreneurs are most likely to hang out. This could be at seminars, workshops, speaking events or your local bookstore. They’ll also frequently visit crowdfunding campaigns and professional business platforms like LinkedIn to grow their network and connections.

By building a personal portfolio or brand of yourself and what you stand for, you can attract potential investors to your startup. Put yourself out there, by growing your network and posting on social media. If others are interested in what you have to offer, they’ll instead reach out to you.

If you’re looking to grow your business network and meet others who are doing the same, follow me on LinkedIn here.

Is Investing In Real Estate A Good Idea?

February 8, 2020 by Dan Lok Leave a Comment

When I was a younger entrepreneur, I couldn’t help but wonder if investing in real estate was a good idea.

I was raised like a typical Asian. In Hong Kong, which is where I’m from, a lot of people dream of owning a home. I was taught to believe owning a home was an ideal goal. If you want to do what you were raised to do, then you would buy a home, whether it’s a house or a condo. But if you want to have more mobility because your job is not stable and you don’t have a steady income, renting might be wiser.

Which would you rather choose: an unachievable dream or financial suicide? Share on X

Both seem unpleasant, especially in a high-priced real estate market like Vancouver.

People say if you rent, you’re making somebody else rich. You’re paying someone else’s mortgage. You’re throwing money out the window instead of investing in real estate that will be yours.

If you’re from an Asian background, you were taught from a young age to own your home. You want to own the roof over your head, no matter what the cost. If the mortgage was barely affordable, you just worked longer hours or got a second job.

You became what they call “house poor.” You had a beautiful home you could be proud of, but it was also the black hole all your savings disappeared into.

I couldn’t help but wonder if this was at all a good investment.

So, should you buy or should you rent? Now, I believe it’s the wrong question to ask.

Here’s why: It depends on where you are at in life, your income, and also your goal. It’s like asking, “Well, should I buy a condo, or I should I buy a house?” It depends on whether you want a garden. If you want to have a gym. If you want a condo lifestyle, so you deal with less maintenance. Or if you love to spend your spare time gardening and lounging outside.

Investing in real estate and buying a home is a major decision, probably the most important investment that you’ll ever make in your life.

So today I’m going to give you some principles that will help you to make these decisions wisely. I’m going to share some insights with you based on my experience as an entrepreneur and investor.

Watch this video about whether you should rent or buy.

Question 1: Can You Really Afford To Be Investing In Real Estate?

Consider the cost of renting versus buying. If you live in any of the major cities, you know prices of real estate can be very expensive.

With your current income you may not be able to buy at all. It might take you years, maybe decades to save up enough money just for the down payment. And then after that, it’s a stretch to make the monthly mortgage payment.

In this situation, there is too much risk involved. If you can barely afford the mortgage payments, then an emergency, such as a leaky roof, could get you into deep financial trouble.

In this case, don’t buy, rent.

Question 2: Is It Cheaper To Rent Than To Buy?

In a city like Vancouver, the housing prices are so expensive they say you need an income of over $100,000 to buy property there. The mortgage payments and property taxes would be so high that maybe it’s better for you to rent and then buy later when you have more savings.

You might be wondering if you could buy property and make money from it, to help with your mortgage payments. In that case, you would be a landlord renting out a piece of property. Next you would have to decide how much to charge the renter to cover your mortgage. If the rent you charge is not enough to cover your mortgage payments, that’s called negative cash flow.

For a lot of real estate investment properties, there is actually a negative cash flow. You can calculate it. If your monthly mortgage payment is $3500, but you rent out the place for only $2800, as the landlord, you’re losing money. Every month the tenant lives there, you’re losing money. You could raise the rent, but you may also lose the renter, who may not want to pay more.

What you’re counting on is the appreciation of the property over time so by investing in real estate you would get your investment back when you sell it.

As a tenant in Vancouver, you save a few dollars. You don’t have to make a down payment, so you can rent a place that’s not so nice but saves you money. You can use that money towards something else, maybe starting a business, or developing a side hustle so that you can afford to buy in the future.

Question 3: Should You Rent If You Are Still Earning And Learning?

Maybe you just graduated, maybe you just started your own business. You’re trying to figure out out your career, your strengths, the ideal location for you to prosper. You never know, because there may be an opportunity in another city, and then you’ll have to move.

In that situation, I recommend that you rent because you want to be mobile. You want to be flexible, especially if you’re a millennial, and instead of investing in real estate just save that down payment to invest in yourself.

Or if you’re an entrepreneur starting a business, invest that amount in your business, so you can grow it. When that business makes you more money, look into buying. But for now, rent if you’re still earning and you’re still learning.

Question 4: Should You Buy If You’re Stable And Established?

Let’s say you’re close to or over 30 years old, and you have a stable career with a good income. You don’t expect to change your work situation anytime soon, and you won’t be moving from the city you plan to live in. You can afford to buy a home in a good neighborhood, and still have money left over after you buy. In this case, you can afford to buy a home, especially if your mortgage doesn’t exceed 25% of your monthly income.

If you have a significant other, and you and your partner are working on this purchase together, you can think about how much you can spend on a home. If you both have a reliable source of income, either from a job or from the business you’re working on together, then you should buy. Buy because you are starting a family, and you want to have a place where you can watch your kids grow up.

Question 5: Should You Buy If You Are An Entrepreneur And Not Yet An Investor?

Entrepreneurs like to take risks. So do investors. The difference is investors only invest money in an opportunity or business but an entrepreneur invests ideas, time, passion and in some cases, money, in a business.

If you’re an entrepreneur or business owner, you want to look at your home as not an investment, but a savings plan. Your primary residence is your savings account. If you look at it that way, it is a forced savings plan for you. So, in case your business goes through financial ups and downs you’re still putting money aside in your savings account. You’re not betting everything you have on your business.

If you stop paying your mortgage, you’ll be out on the street very quickly, but somehow, as an entrepreneur, you’ll be creative enough that you will find the money. Every month you’re putting money in your mortgage, your savings account, in case something happens to your business. It’s a bit of a buffer so at least you have some equity.

I learned this the hard way. Entrepreneurs are sometimes overly optimistic. We think everything is going to be good, everything is going well, but sometimes you never know. So, if you are an entrepreneur, buy the home that will be your savings plan.

Question 6: Do You Buy If You’re Financially Successful?

If you’re stable and you’re financially successful, buy. I believe when you have your own home, there is a psychological benefit to that.

Knowing that you’ve got a place, and you can design the home exactly the way you want to maximize your productivity. At the same time, your home is your sanctuary, your primary residence. But it’s not an investment, and I’ll explain why in a moment.

If you’re financially successful, I would recommend you spend no more than 20% of your net worth on that primary residence. Some people may say up to 30%. So how would you calculate that amount?

Let’s say your net worth is two million dollars. You wouldn’t spend more than $400,000 on your primary residence because your home is not an investment. You don’t buy your home because you intend to make money from selling it. So you spend 20% of your net worth on a house, and use your extra money to buy more investments, such as real estate.

I spend a very tiny percentage of my overall net worth for my primary residence. That’s my home where I have my sauna, massage chair, home theater, library, man cave, and gym. I have everything in one place, when I designed the ideal home for me. That’s where I feel relaxed and that’s where I recharge.

So if you’re still undecided about renting or buying, ask yourself these questions which I covered in this article:

Can you afford it? No = rent
Is it cheaper to rent or buy? Not enough savings = rent
Should you buy if you’re still learning? Not stable in life = rent
Should you buy if you’re established? Enough savings = buy
Should you buy if you’re an entrepreneur? Have savings account = buy
Should you buy if you’re financially successful? Property is 20% of your net worth = buy

Your home shouldn’t cause you financial ruin. It also shouldn’t be a dream you can never attain. As long as you make wise decisions about your finances and investments, you can become a homeowner.

Grow Your Savings Predictably and Sustainably

If you want to discover how to multiply your savings without losing to inflation, risking your finances to short-term opportunities, and without keeping it in your low-return savings account when investing in real estate, you’re invited to my event in Las Vegas on February 23-24, 2020.

Take control of your financial literacy and reserve your seat before spots run out.

5 Crucial Things To Look For Before You Invest In Startups

February 3, 2020 by Dan Lok

Are you looking to invest in startups but you aren’t sure what to look for? How do you determine if a startup is a good investment idea? How do you know it’s the right thing for you?

When you want to invest in startups there are plenty to choose from. Almost all startups need money. That’s why it looks like a promising investment sector too many.

It seems so easy, find a startup. Invest your money. Watch them grow and multiply your money. But, in reality, it isn’t quite that easy.

Not every startup will be the next Uber. Not every startup succeeds and grows rapidly. Often it’s hard to tell if their product and offer are any good.

That’s a problem because if you are investing in a startup you want to make sure it pays off. You want to get returns on your investment sooner or later. Investing in the wrong startup can be a risk.

And there are also other factors you have to consider before you put your money into anything. So before you go ahead and invests your money into a startup, check for these 5 crucial things first.

1. Is There A Hungry Market for Their Product?

Before you invest in startups you want to make sure there is an actual market for their product or service.

Let’s imagine you can choose between startups. One has an advantage in capital, on has the best product or service, another one has the best team. Or maybe they have the perfect timing or the latest technology. Which one would you choose?

If I would invest in a startup I would always choose one thing: A hungry market. I would choose that every. single. time. Share on X

Their product or service might change, but a hungry market will always buy from them.

So many startups fail because they focus so much on their product or service. But they completely forget about their customers. They focus more on their own needs than on the needs of the marketplace.

They put all this effort into building the perfect product…that nobody wants. Instead of their product, look at their offer. What is the irresistible offer that they bring to the marketplace?

An offer contains their product plus the value. If the perceived value is high enough people will want to by. You can imagine the offer almost like a bait. Like if you go fishing, you want to choose the right bait. So the fish would actually bite. Using a stone as a bait won’t do you any good. You have to understand what they want.

Why Is The Market So Important?

So many startups make one mistake. They offer what they think the market wants. Instead of finding out what the market actually wants.

You only want to invest in startups that actually have an irresistible offer of some kind. It should be more than a crazy idea in their mind.

Save yourself from investing in startups that spend years on things that nobody wants to buy. As sad as it is, that happens too often. 8 out of 10 businesses fail after 20 years. Half a million businesses are created every month. 30% of those go out of business within two years.

What to Look for in a Market?

You also want to check how big the market is before you invest in startups.

Is it a very local market only in the direct neighborhood? Or is the market the whole world?

Don’t get me wrong the market doesn’t have to be huge for them to be successful. But it has to be some good size so they can expand later. Simply put, is the market big enough so their offer is scalable? What are the chances of this offer getting bought now and also in the future?

And finally, when it comes to invest in startups, there is one more thing about the market. How saturated is it? Are they targeting an existing market with lots of competition? Or a completely new one?

What if their chosen market is very competitive? Do they have a defining factor that makes them different? How is their solution different from existing ones and is there a market that needs that? There is also the question of how powerful their competition is.

I once had a guy tell me he wants to start a coffee company and compete with Starbucks. How can a small startup compete with a huge chain?

Of course, the founders are very passionate about their ideas. But you have to stay cool and check if their business actually makes sense.

What to do if you invest in startups that market to a completely new market? You have to make very educated guesses if it is possible. Will the market be big enough? Is the crowd hungry for this?

2. Do They Have Some Money Already?

When you invest in startups, you don’t want them to fully rely on only your money.

If they can only start out because of your investment, that’s actually very dangerous. If they need your money so urgently, the founders aren’t entrepreneurs yet.

Making money from business takes time and effort. If they expect to find one single investor (you) and suddenly make all the money…they don’t understand what it means to have a business.

Building up a successful business needs time, effort and money. You don’t create a startup because you want to work less and hate your job. If you do that, your business will fail.

That’s why I advise all my students to take care of their cash flow needs first. First, they need a stable income. Only then they should even think about becoming an entrepreneur.

So, if you want to invest in startups what out. Pick those that have a great work ethic and are resourceful enough to generate money – before they are looking for investors.

There is nothing wrong with looking for investors, but it can’t be their income stream.

How resourceful are they?

Their resourcefulness to getting money shows you what they are willing to do in order to succeed. Do they tilt because an idea didn’t work? Or are they looking for solutions and create results?

Believe it or not, there are startup founders that only want to put their money in after the startup has reached in size. They don’t have any skin in the game. Rather, they try to build their business and get wealthy by a miracle.

They have this idea and think it will make them rich. But a business without money is just an idea…it’s not even a startup.

So don’t get swooned owner by fancy looking business plan and market analysis. Those are great things to have but if there is no starting capital, how will they succeed?

I’m very careful about such things. You don’t want them to run off with your money. You want to invest in startups that are resourceful enough to have some money already. Your investment might help them to get more scale.

Being resourceful also means they don’t lose hope after hearing no several times. They have the stamina to go on because they know there is a demand for their product or service.

3. Are Their Team Members Complementing Each Other?

The next crucial thing you want to look for before you invest in a startup is their team.

Before the investment, you will likely get in contact with the founders of the startup. You will discuss the strategy, business plan and other things.

But I highly advise you to also have a look at their team. Who else is working on the startup? What skills do they bring to the table? And, likely most important, how do the founders lead their team?

Are their skills working together? Do the founders mentor the teammates? Do they really have successful chemistry?

All these are pointers to look out for. The team is an important metric to measure the success of a startup.

But, you only want to look at this, after you’ve checked the market! Again, the best team in the world won’t help, if there is no hungry market for the product.

If they have the market and a great team, those are good signs to invest in startups.

Some startups have quite small teams because they are saving on costs this way. But they absolutely need people in all the key positions, so the whole business can actually run.

What Does a Great Team Look Like?

Their team has to be able to execute. Too many founders try to get everything done themselves and give no trust to their team. Instead of delegating they work tons of hours to get everything done.

When really, all their team members should be experts in their field and get the job done themselves. They should also have some operating systems in place already. That shows they are serious about this business. Do the founders have the vision while the team is taking big parts in executing that vision?

Another very important thing: don’t invest in startups that don’t have an expert on their niche on their team. Let’s say the startup is a lead generation agency. But nobody on the team ever worked with lead generation. All they do is guessing how it works…How likely will that team succeed?

A well-built team should have the skills that the founders lack. They are balancing each other’s strengths and weaknesses. You don’t want to invest in a startup where all team members have the same skills. It means they have huge weaknesses too.

4. Did They Create Results Already?

This is another great point to look into before you invest in startups. Did they already get in contact with their market somehow?

Are the customers already engaging in with the product? Maybe there were some test runs and the testers are giving feedback. Or maybe the founders did a survey of what customers expect a certain product to do.

Looking at this shows you how serious the founders are. Do they just have ideas or are they willing to execute? Are they still working on the basic concept or are they already developing tangible results?

Are they committed to making this happen and work out for them? Or is it just an idea and if it doesn’t work they jump onto the next idea?

If you get in contact with them and they want to win you over as an investor,

watch out if they can present any real data. Does the data support their idea? These early calculations are a great proof of concept.

So what does a promising startup look like? They have a hungry market and some data collected already. If they have the data but the market is non-existent or too small you don’t want to put your money there.

When it comes to data, also make sure that their measuring is actually realistic. Some startups run into the trap of measuring too much. Or the use numbers too early. While data is important, it’s not the only factor that determines their success (and as a result the success of your investment).

How do Others React to their Idea?

A great way to see if the startup’s offer creates the desired results is this:

Show it to strangers on the street and see their reaction.

If they say “ok, yeah that’s good” then the idea actually isn’t good! You want them to go “wow this is great, where do I buy.”

If the offer can’t win over people, it won’t stand a chance in the marketplace.

4. Are You Actually Ready?

The final thing you want to consider before you invest in startups is a little bit different.

It’s less about the startup, the founders, the product or even the market…

It is about you. Are you actually ready to invest in startups?

To invest in startups might sound like a good idea but it’s only one investment type of many, many more. So, ask yourself why you want to invest in startups. Share on X

Are you actually passionate about startups? Are you an expert on the field? Or did you just hear about other people who successfully invested in startups? Are you looking for a quick way to get rich?

The problem with that is that, if you suddenly jump into investments without knowing anything about it, you are taking huge risks.

You risk making a mistake and losing all your hard-earned money. I’m not saying investments are a bad thing…I’m saying investment without knowledge is not a very smart thing to do.

See, wealthy people, invest in what they understand. And they have their ways of checking and evaluating if an investment is a good idea.

If you don’t know how to successfully invest in startups – and only do it because it worked for others – reading a few blog posts about it won’t help you much. So what should you do?

How To Prepare Yourself for Any Investment

Before you invest in startups – or do any other investment really – you want to do a few things.

First, you can’t invest if your daily cash flow needs aren’t met. Meaning, if you don’t have enough money to pay your bills, you aren’t in a position to go out there and start investing. Raise your income first (have a look hat I teach about high-income skills).

Now you want to be in a position where you can invest at least a few hundred bucks. And lastly, really understand which investment type suits for you. What do you really like? Is it really startups? Or stocks, or real estate?

I personally love two types of investments. Investing in myself and real estate. Why? Because I understand it. I would never advise anyone to invest in something they don’t understand.

What if I told you there is a chance to learn the investment strategies of the rich?

My fans and students kept asking me about investments. When to do it, how to do it right and so on. Exactly for that reason, I’m offering a once in a lifetime event. What is it about? It’s called “Secrets Of The Rich” and it will take place from February 23rd to 24th.

The rich have these crazy strategies that give them stable returns – sometimes up to 24%. Those investments are low-risk and high-return. But you can’t find it in any book and it’s not taught at seminars. At least until now.

The event is really a once in a lifetime chance. It’s unlikely that it will ever be repeated. If you want to educate yourself on investing as the rich do, this is your chance.

Unfortunately, the event is now sold out. But I have a special offer for you. You can get lifestream access that comes with a full recording too. This way you can learn the investment strategies of the rich, even if you missed out on the seats.

Check out the details HERE.

How To Get Out Of A Bad Business Partnership

February 3, 2020 by Dan Lok Leave a Comment

Feeling trapped by your business partner and looking for a way out? Learning how to get out of a bad business partnership can be difficult, especially when legally binding documents such as contracts are involved.

There’s no worse feeling than being stuck in a business contract with a bad business partner. At that point you’ll be dying to know how to get out of a bad business partnership.

At first, everything was going smoothly. You were on the same page, you had the same goals and it made sense for you to become business partners. But as time went on, small cracks began to appear. First it was a few emails that they didn’t reply to. Then it was an important business decision made without your approval. And slowly but surely, those cracks began getting larger and larger.

Now, it’s gotten to the point where you two are on completely different tangents, and you don’t know what to do. You feel like they are holding you and the business back. Perhaps it’s finally time for you to part ways with them and go on separate paths. If you’re wondering how to get out of a bad business partnership, let’s discuss a few tips to help you do so:

How a Bad Business Partner Creates Resentment and Kills Business Potential

Imagine that you are a tiger on an isolated mountaintop. You have not eaten for three days, and you are starving. But a few moments later, you see a nice looking deer that is within range of you. You begin stalking towards it slowly, careful not to make any noise to alert the deer of your presence.

As you get closer and closer, you realize there is another tiger on the opposite side of the mountain that is doing the same thing. That tiger is also slowly making their way towards the deer – your deer.

That tiger poses as a direct threat towards what was supposed to be your food source. Now you have a decision to make – you can either walk away and try to find another deer that isn’t contested, or charge towards the deer and hope you get to it before the other tiger does. But even if you manage to reach the deer first, you still run the risk of having to fight off the tiger in a bloody battle in order to claim your spoils.

The tigers represent you and your business partner, and the deer represents the business. In a fruitful business relationship, this does not happen. Both tigers would be looking to work together in order to capture the deer. They would split the food amongst themselves. That way, both of them can eat and neither one starves.

In a bad business partnership, you and your partner will end up fighting each other in order to gain control of the business. Even if you do reach the deer in time, you will have to put up a fight in order to keep it. And this struggle continues until one of you gives up and can’t fight any longer.

When a Prosperous Business Partnership Suddenly Turns Sour

Not surprisingly, most business partnerships do not work out. Statistics show that 70% of business partnerships ultimately end up in failure. More often than not, most business partnerships are between spouses or family members, which makes getting out of it even more complicated. This is due to a variety of reasons such as trust issues, lack of communication, and not drawing the line between business and personal life.

If things aren’t working out, you need to examine why. Why did the business partnership go downhill? Is it an issue between you and your partner, or something in the business? Getting clear about where you are coming from can save you a lot of headaches down the road and give you clarity about what exactly is not working out.

For example, if the issue is that you and your partner are incompatible, then there is no choice but to move on. That means either you or your partner has to leave the business, and go your own separate ways. Two tigers cannot share the same mountain, just as two incompatible business partners cannot run the same business.

One Mountain Cannot Contain Two Tigers. - Ancient Chinese Proverb Share on X

The Risks of Starting a Business With a Family Member or a Friend

Starting a business with a trusted family member or friend can seem like a very intriguing idea. However, when it comes to business there is more at stake than simply just losing the business. With business comes money, and money is widely seen as a controversial issue. If you are going to start a business with someone you know, ask yourself if you can handle the worst case scenario.

If for example your business partner is your spouse, you have to make a decision. Do you want to save the business, or do you want to save your marriage? In the situation where neither person wants to back down, making a decision like that is sometimes necessary. Either one of you has to accept that things are only going to get worse, unless someone surrenders. That means letting them take over the business and calling all the shots, whether or not you want them to.

In Dan’s own organization, his wife Jenny is a valuable business partner. However, as much as he values her insight and opinions, at the end of the day his word is final. They have come to an agreement that as chairman of The Dan Lok Organization, his decisions have more weight than anyone else’s. As a result, everyone in my organization understands that even if they think he is wrong, they have to respect and follow his decisions. Because of this rule, it makes it easy for everyone to come to an agreement, and keep our business lives separate from our personal lives.

When Your Business Partner is Strictly Business

If your business partner is your friend or family member, you have to take your relationship into account when making a decision to walk away. However, if your business partner isn’t closely related to you, then it simply comes down to a matter of business.

When you first started out as partners, you most likely had contracts and agreements in place. In most businesses, partners will divide up the company into shares, and allocate an even number of majority shares to each partner. That means you and your business partner could be holding onto 40% of the company, with 20% open to the public. If you want to get out of your business partnership, you will have to sell your shares to your partner. However, if you want to continue running the business and want your partner out of the picture, that means you will have to buy their shares.

Business is all about negotiation. In the scenario where both of you are in agreement – you want to own the company and they want to leave, your partner will state their price and the two of you will negotiate back and forth about how much their shares are worth. Once you’ve reached an agreement, simply sign the documentation, shake hands and you both continue on your way.

The worst case scenario when two business partners aren’t closely related, is that both of them want to run the company and neither is willing to budge. That means either you have to make them an offer they can’t refuse, or you make the decision to walk out.

Making The Difficult Choice Between Leaving The Business or Fighting For Control

If you and your business partner are not aligned – which is the most likely case considering you want to get out of the business partnership, you have to decide. Are you willing to make the sacrifice and leave the business, after you’ve poured in all your energy, time, sweat and money? Or will you stand your ground and stubbornly fight for control – and risk bringing the business down with you?

Fighting for control of the business is a game of chicken. It is like both of you being in two separate cars side by side, racing toward the finish line of bankruptcy. Whoever decides to hit the brakes first before crossing the finish line, loses control. The one who perseveres the longest, becomes the one and only chairman. In the process however, the business will have plummeted in value due to both of you fighting for control instead of managing the business. What’s left over are the scraps of a business you once had, and your job after regaining control will be to rebuild everything you have just lost. It may be a victory, but it will be a bitter one.

The other choice you can make, is to walk away. If you choose to walk away, realize that it doesn’t mean you have lost or given up. It simply means you recognize that fighting for control of the business with someone who is not willing to negotiate is not worth your time and energy. Your time that you would use to try and gain control, is much better used to pursue other more fruitful opportunities that await you. And you never know – in the future your partner may want to sell the business. That gives you an opportunity to buy back the business.

How a Royalty Agreement Allows Both Partners to Remain in Control

In situations where neither partner wants to budge, both parties can still own the business without having to step on each other’s toes.

For example, let’s say your business partner created the product or service and you managed the daily operations. After working together, you realize they aren’t that passionate about continuing to run the business, leaving you to do most of the work. After many heated arguments, your business partner declares they don’t want to give up the ownership or right to their own product. But without it, your business can’t continue functioning.

One way to allow them to remain the rightful owner while you run the daily operations of the business, is with a royalty agreement. A royalty agreement allows the creator of the product to earn royalties for every sale that is made. This way, your business partner can still profit from what was originally theirs, and you can continue running the business the way you want to. Now, instead of having arguments about who rightfully owns the business, you can focus on running and making it grow. It’s a win-win situation for everyone involved.

Always aim to create a win-win situation in business. Share on X

When You Can’t Reach an Agreement, Let Your Employees Make The Decisions

If you and your business partner can’t come to an agreement, the best thing may be to not agree at all. This is where the old saying “Agree to disagree” comes in. In situations where a compromise is not possible, but both partners understand that the business won’t succeed if they continue their arguments, a third party may be the best solution.

Instead of letting the company be run by either partner, you can delegate that task to your employees. Some of the most successful companies today are not run by the owner’s themselves, but by employees acting as the CEO or President. Because they aren’t personally invested in the company as much as the owner’s, they are able to provide a rational perspective and avoid any conflict that would arise from having just one person running the company. That’s why larger companies will have a board of directors, to allow decisions to be made only if there is a majority vote from many members.

By letting a middleman such as hiring a CEO to run the company, you and your partner can still own the business without needing to get involved in the internal affairs and conflict that would arise. Even if you and your partner hate each other’s guts, you won’t feel the same way towards a third party who is making decisions on your behalf.

If you’re struggling to get out of a bad business partnership, the best option may be to substitute yourself with an employee who is willing to take over your role and responsibilities.

Getting Out of a Bad Business Partnership: What’s Next?

Let’s say that despite trying to negotiate and work things out, you think the best thing to do is for you and your business partner to go separate ways. What do you do after that? Should you secretly check up on them every single day and hope that the business will fail without your guidance? Or should you be humble, accept that it’s just business and move on?

In the world of business, nothing is personal. Learning to let go after a setback or negative experience is just as important as learning how to build a business. If you carry around your past with you, it will only negatively affect you in the long run and harm you in any future endeavors you may undertake.

Keep your business life and your personal life separate. Letting your personal emotions cloud your thoughts and affect your judgement means you never really got out of a bad business partnership. You’re still with someone who’s toxic or doesn’t help you grow. And this time, that business partner is someone you won’t ever be able to walk away from: Yourself.

Learn From Your Failures: Don’t Be Haunted By Them

Dan’s executive director Desmond had a similar story. When he was younger, he became business partners with some Australian men that took advantage of him. At that time, he was young and eager and displayed a lot of passion for entrepreneurship. These are the kind of qualities that will get you ahead in life. But unfortunately, these are the same qualities that his business partners would later on take advantage of.

His business partners saw that he was young and eager, and used him for their own personal gain. He ran the company, putting in his time, sweat and energy and in a few years grew it to the million dollar mark. One day when he tried contacting his business partners for an important meeting, he felt something was wrong.

They wouldn’t reply to his phone calls. They wouldn’t reply to his emails. All the ways he previously contacted them before, no longer worked. At that moment, he realized that his usefulness had come to an end. The company was wildly profitable, and so were the owners.

Overnight, his business partners took everything and left him with nothing. He had nothing to show for all his years of hard work, except the tears that were shed as the realization of what had happened dawned on him.

A few years later, Dan would meet Desmond and listen to him tell me this exact story. And unlike his former business partners that sought to use him for their own personal gain and then leave when the time was right, Dan made sure Desmond knew that if they were to become business partners, they would be in it together.

A 4 Step Process To Getting Out of A Bad Business Partnership

If you’re stuck in one and want to know how to get out of a bad business partnership, here’s a 4 step process you can use.

1. Get Clear On What You Want Out Of It

At this point you are clear that you want nothing to do with your business partner any longer. You cannot work alongside them, or you want complete control of the business. The first step is to decide what you want.

Ask yourself what you want to salvage from the partnership. Do you want a cash severance for all the years of work you put into the business? Or do you want your business partner to step down and let you make the decisions? You need to get clear and stay clear on what you want after ending the business partnership. These should be things that are non-negotiable.

When you finally talk to your business partner about ending the partnership, you need to know exactly what you want or you will settle for a compromise. For example, you might want 60% ownership of the company, but after talking to your business partner they might somehow influence you to settle for a million dollar check. In reality you could have forgot that it’s not about the money, it’s about owning and operating a business.

Unless you know exactly what you want, you will waver in your convictions. Get clear on what you want out of the partnership, before you approach them to end it.

2. Look At Your Partnership Agreement And The Business

If you have a partnership agreement from before you two became business partners, review the document and familiarize yourself with what was written.

Look at what belongs to your partner, and what belongs to you. If you both own equal shares in the company and you want to buy them out, you’ll have to determine how much it’ll be worth. If your business is making $10M annually in revenue and your business partner is preventing it from going any higher, it might be worth it to simply buy them out for $4M. While it may be a hefty price to pay, it’ll allow you to grow the business you want to without any limitations.

If you can grow the business so that it brings in $12M the next year and $14M the year after that, you’ve essentially gotten rid of a problem that only costs you 2 years worth of revenue. Analyze how much each decision would cost and then implement it.

3. Create A Legally Binding Agreement For The Breakup

Once you’ve talked to your business partner and negotiated a deal that you both can agree on, it’s time to put it into writing.

Create a legally binding agreement that includes the details for how you two will dissolve the business partnership. The agreement should detail what the terms and conditions include – such as exact sum of money that will be disclosed to either party, the rights each party now holds, and what each party is or is not allowed to do afterwards.

The last thing you want is for them to steal all your insider business secrets and become a competitor. If you want to avoid this, make sure your agreement outlines it in the terms and conditions.

4. Go Your Separate Ways

Once you’ve discussed with your business partner what you each expect and have put it into writing, the last step is to go your own separate ways. You two no longer have anything to do with each other, and can do things the way you like.

Unlike a bad relationship where one partner might have cheated on the other, your former business partner is a professional. Getting out of a bad business partnership is just like becoming partners – it’s a mutual agreement between two parties.

Don’t make the mistake of labeling your former business partner as an enemy or someone to get back at. You are simply two people that weren’t able to make the business relationship work. No one is to blame, and you both can now focus on what it is that matters to you.

Your Failures Only Make You Stronger

Knowing how to get out of a bad business partnership is only the first step towards becoming a success. As a teenager Dan failed at 13 businesses but never gave up despite being $100,000 in debt. Once he discovered that he could earn a high income without needing to rely on starting businesses with other people, his entire world changed. If you want to learn more about the skill of High Ticket Closing, watch the free training series here.