238: Creating Magic Connections with the 7 Figure Millennial, Brandon Fong

02/24/21 • 51 min

Dave Lukas, The Misfit Entrepreneur_Breakthrough Entrepreneurship

This week’s Misfit Entrepreneur is Brandon Fong. What if I told you that at any point in time, you are one connection away from huge growth and success in your career or life? Just one connection. Would you believe me? Brandon does...because he has proven it – not just in his own life and businesses, but for the thousands he has helped realize this power in their own lives and businesses.

Brandon is the founder of 7 Figure Millennial. He’s been featured in Fast Company, became the youngest member of the Genius Network with Joe Polish and elite millionaires at age 22, and has helped build multiple 7-Figure marketing operations. He teaches people how to deeply connect and develop real, authentic, and meaningful relationships with people – virtually.

In the current climate we are operating in as entrepreneurs, this skill is invaluable, so I asked Brandon to come on the show and share all of his secrets with you.

7 Figure Millennial Podcast

Brandon-Fong.com

Magic Connection Method Gift: BFO.NG/Misfit

Brandon’s entrepreneurship journey started in middle school. Each day when he went to pay for his launch, when he went to pay, on the screen it would say $0. The reason being is because he qualified for the school lunch program because his family was very challenged financially. It frustrated him and drove him never to have that problem. His parents did everything they could to nurture this in him and taught that many times success comes from being resourceful. And you can be insanely resourceful if you know how to connect with people.

His parents would let him skip school at 16 to go to networking events to meet, learn from, and connect with successful people.

Every time Brandon has leveled up in his life has been because of someone he has met and connected with. He also learned to prioritize health, happiness, and relationships alongside money.

Talk to us about being just one connection away and how real that is for people...

The people you look up to are a lot more accessible than you think they are.
Just because someone has large success, doesn’t mean they are not open to connecting with you.
You just have to reach out. The worst thing that can happen is that nobody replies.

Tell us about the Magic Connection Method. How does it work?

If you reach out in a real, genuine way, you will stand out in today’s world.
The Magic Connection Method is a process Brandon Developed that has 3 parts.
The goal is to get someone to respond and open the door to have a relationship.
Step 1: The Hook
The biggest mistake people make when reaching out to others is they make it about themselves instead of who they are contacting.
The goal of the hook is to make it about them and connect with them in a genuine way in which you are interested in them and can talk to specific reasons why.
Step 2: The Irresistible Offer
“A compelling offer is 10x more convincing than a compelling argument”
Example of normal offer vs. an irresistible offer is the new mattress companies that let you sleep on the mattress for 100 nights and if you are not satisfied, you can send it back and get your money back – no questions asked. It’s a win, win compared to going to a store and buying a mattress and hoping it works out.
For your irresistible offer, ask “How can I show that I care about them, minimize risk for them, give them a lot to gain, and make it easy to say yes.”
At the 19 min mark, Brandon gives an example of how he worked for free for a short while with Jonathan Levi.
Step 3: The “No Oriented Question”
When you say yes to something, you are giving away something
The exact opposite is true with saying “no.” It is choice.
A “no oriented question” may be something like “Would you be opposed me to doing x”
It is giving them the opportunity to say no instead of trying to force a yes.

You’ve said you can help entrepreneurs uncover $100k+ in their backyard, explain more on this...

There is lots of untapped potential in a business. It just needs to be found.
It goes back to the Magic Connection.
Identify your best client
Refine the offer to be irresistible
Communicate with clients and prospects in a better way and you’ll get better results.

Talk to us about the steps you take in a business to create a world marketing program?

It takes a systematic process to genuinely reach out to people.
Business is people at the end of the day.
The Magic Connection Method is key.
One exercise is to identify your top 5 customers that are the best and most profitable and who the top 5 worst customers are that are not profitable and drain time.
Once you have the profile, you can then creat...

In the current climate we are operating in as entrepreneurs, this skill is invaluable, so I asked Brandon to come on the show and share all of his secrets with you.

7 Figure Millennial Podcast

Brandon-Fong.com

Magic Connection Method Gift: BFO.NG/Misfit

His parents would let him skip school at 16 to go to networking events to meet, learn from, and connect with successful people.

Every time Brandon has leveled up in his life has been because of someone he has met and connected with. He also learned to prioritize health, happiness, and relationships alongside money.

Talk to us about being just one connection away and how real that is for people...

The people you look up to are a lot more accessible than you think they are.
Just because someone has large success, doesn’t mean they are not open to connecting with you.
You just have to reach out. The worst thing that can happen is that nobody replies.

Tell us about the Magic Connection Method. How does it work?

If you reach out in a real, genuine way, you will stand out in today’s world.
The Magic Connection Method is a process Brandon Developed that has 3 parts.
The goal is to get someone to respond and open the door to have a relationship.
Step 1: The Hook
The biggest mistake people make when reaching out to others is they make it about themselves instead of who they are contacting.
The goal of the hook is to make it about them and connect with them in a genuine way in which you are interested in them and can talk to specific reasons why.
Step 2: The Irresistible Offer
“A compelling offer is 10x more convincing than a compelling argument”
Example of normal offer vs. an irresistible offer is the new mattress companies that let you sleep on the mattress for 100 nights and if you are not satisfied, you can send it back and get your money back – no questions asked. It’s a win, win compared to going to a store and buying a mattress and hoping it works out.
For your irresistible offer, ask “How can I show that I care about them, minimize risk for them, give them a lot to gain, and make it easy to say yes.”
At the 19 min mark, Brandon gives an example of how he worked for free for a short while with Jonathan Levi.
Step 3: The “No Oriented Question”
When you say yes to something, you are giving away something
The exact opposite is true with saying “no.” It is choice.
A “no oriented question” may be something like “Would you be opposed me to doing x”
It is giving them the opportunity to say no instead of trying to force a yes.

You’ve said you can help entrepreneurs uncover $100k+ in their backyard, explain more on this...

There is lots of untapped potential in a business. It just needs to be found.
It goes back to the Magic Connection.
Identify your best client
Refine the offer to be irresistible
Communicate with clients and prospects in a better way and you’ll get better results.

Talk to us about the steps you take in a business to create a world marketing program?

It takes a systematic process to genuinely reach out to people.
Business is people at the end of the day.
The Magic Connection Method is key.
One exercise is to identify your top 5 customers that are the best and most profitable and who the top 5 worst customers are that are not profitable and drain time.
Once you have the profile, you can then creat...

Previous Episode

237: Lessons, Wisdom, and the Keys to Successful Investing with One of America’s Top Financial Minds, Mark Tepper

This week’s Misfit Entrepreneur is Mark Tepper. Mark is a highly successful entrepreneur in the financial space and multi-time INC 5000 winner. You probably have seen him weekly on CNBC and Fox Business where he’s known for his no-nonsense, direct approach. I personally enjoy his honesty, willingness to stand on his principles, and insights and use them in my investing business.

Mark is also the author of 2 best-sellers, Tilting the Odds and Walk Away Wealthy.

But, what I love most about him is that he is an entrepreneur to the core and is a fierce competitor before anything else. And I’ve asked him to come on and share what he’s learned along his journey, his thoughts on how to navigate the crazy markets in today’s age, and what he sees for the future.

www.SWPConnect.com

Twitter: @MarkTepperSWP

Mark grew up an entrepreneur at heart. He’s always been very competitive and as he says, “I would not make a great employee.” He came out of college and started his own business. He loves how rewarding it is to own his own business. He loves the wealth management business because he has a scorecard every day he shows up because he is either performing or he is not.

Tell us about your philosophy on investing and how to succeed as an investor?

Mark’s free eBook on his website called Tilting the Odds breaks it down if you want to get it.
There are 3 main things Mark and his team look at
The first is the management team. Mark and his team look for quality management teams that have tenure and consistency.
The second is that the company has to prove it has a sustainable growth story either in the market they are serving or other areas and that is has run room to continue to grow and not be a “1 hit wonder.”
The third is price. You must discipline and not overpay for growth.

At the 8 min mark, we talk about the recent event with Gamestop in the market and how it related to entrepreneurship. Its best to just listen.

“Every single lesson I have learned from the stock market can be applied to running a business”

Talk to us about the business of investing and financial planning. What is most important to know about the industry and what should they look for in an advisor?

The industry is a lot of smoke and mirrors.
A lot of “wealth management” companies are just salespeople that are really glorified middlemen.
Most do not have a strong value prop or competitive advantage.
Mark and his team are active investors who have sought to have a strong value prop and a competitive advantage through their processes, reinvestment into the company and technology.
The best question to ask a financial advisor is “What separates you from your competition?” If they can’t easily answer that, then they don’t have a separator.
The next question is “What is your investment philosophy? Active? Passive? Investment vehicles you use?
Lastly, ask “Are you a fiduciary?” Fiduciaries are required back law to put your best interest ahead of their own.

What should people know about today’s market and what should they be preparing for?

Liquidity and money printing have been a huge driving force behind the current market uptrend. Trillions of dollars are flooding the market.
It is long term very unhealthy.
The insider buying activity is down. Executives internally are not buying more of their company stocks because they are at all time highs.
M&A activity is expected to slow in 2021 because companies don’t want to overpay for acquisitions.
But, until bond yields go up, there is some runway. It depends on the Fed actions, Treasury actions, etc.
Stocks are still attractive compared to bonds.

Advice for new investors and those just starting out?

Have a process and stick to it. Be disciplined.
You should go into any investment or any trade, you should know ahead of time how to unwind that trade.
If you are not willing to be disciplined and have a process, then it’s maybe best to just use index funds.
Check out the book Unknown Market Wizards
- They all got lucky in some way
- They all had a system

What are the principles you’ve taken from investing and used to build a business with?

Begin with the end in mind. When you buy a stock, you need to when you are going to exit and have the strategy.
The same goes with a business. As you put together your business plan, you should also be preparing your business to be able to be sold as well.
If you do that the right way, you will build a very efficient, profitable business.
Know what the end looks like as you get into your business.
Systematizing every is so important.

Next Episode

239: Success Lessons from a Bootstrapping Master, Shawn Finder

This week’s Misfit Entrepreneur is Shawn Finder. Shawn is an interesting guy. He grew up as one of North America’s top tennis players and ranked 2nd best at one point. He was literally competing to be the next Andre Agassi. At age 23 that he was told that he had to decide whether to try and become a tennis professional or get an MBA. He chose a university education.

You see Shawn is an entrepreneur at heart and he knew that was his calling. At age 24, he started his first venture importing packaging and selling to retailers, but his real passion was selling. So he started a list building company to help salespeople called Exchange leads, grew that to huge success and then started AutoKlose which he just sold to Vanillasoft.

I brought him on to talk about his journey, what he’s learned, and how to get more leads and business.

www.autoklose.com

www.ShawnFinder.com

Shawn was top ranked tennis player playing world-wide and go to the age that he needed to make a choice to make it a career or go to school. He got his MBA in finance. And this has served him well as an entrepreneur. He started out working for a company as head of sales, came up with the idea for his first business, Exchange Leads, his 2nd day on the job and 18 months later had built it into his first company.

You’ve bootstrapped all of your businesses to success. What is your best advice on how to bootstrap a business?

Shawn focuses on growing as lean as possible and focus on profitability.
He outsources using Upwork and other mediums for resources.
It is also important to be very strategic from the start.

Tell us about some of the pitfalls or things you would do differently if bootstrapping again...

You have to find a balance between being profitable and using the money in the bank to invest in your business. Don’t keep too much in the bank.
You are going to try a lot of things to grow your business or make it successful, be careful not to neglect things that are working and make sure you are investing further in them alongside all the stuff you are trying.
Start SEO before even launching the business if you can – organic growth is a huge opportunity.
Beware the personal ups and downs that come with having a successful business, but it not translating into personal success and income right away. You will delay personal gratification a lot.

Lessons learned going through the acquisition process?

Always be prepared for an acquisition.
Make sure your financials are up to date, accurate, and dialed in.
People don’t acquire you just because of the money you are making or your MRR/ARR.
You need to value every area of your business. Your team, your clients, your income, your IP, etc.
Working capital is very important to understand in an acquisition.

At the 12 Min mark, Shawn explains working capital and how it impacted his sale...

Working capital is deferred revenue. Revenue paid up front for services to be rendered in the future.
It will be taken off the purchase price from a buyer.
This impacts to valuation as it comes off the purchase price and can be higher than you think.
Talk working capital early on in an acquisition process so there is no surprise at the end.

What did playing tennis teach you about success, business, and life?

When Shawn was 18, he started teaching tennis.
Training others and top executives opened doors for him and helped learn how to become more professional in communication and business.
Networking through your passion(s) and connecting with others that have similar interested – and that can partner or help you is a huge opportunity
Coaching others for money is selling and fighting to keep business, so it prepares you for success in a lot of ways.

Talk to about selling in today’s world? What works? What doesn’t?

It’s getting tougher and tougher and things are changing very fast.
The most important thing to leverage is LinkedIn. Being genuine and connecting on the platform is important to help build trust.
The biggest problem is all that we are asking salespeople to do from a CRM, tracking, detail standpoint that they don’t have time to sell. Put the sale first.

What should people know about the CRM and lead management systems out there and how best to use them?

Build a sales stack that has a lot of automation. Automate as much of the process as possible allowing for automate scheduling, etc.
Get as much of the busy work out of the way for your people so they can focus on the sale.

Best ways to boost sales?