I'll keep this short and sweet. Do you have affiliate partners that sell your product/service but only collect if they make a sale? This is arguably the best sales strategy out there. It is how I built my shed sales company to $3,000,000+ in 2 years. Having affiliates is scalable and a way to keep fixed costs low. What have you done to bring on commissioned sales people?

He is a wealth of small business knowledge. The link is in the Calendar.

We've all been there. ​ The prospect agrees to meet with you. ​ Then poof. You're ghosted. ​ Here's some phraseology I learned from Chris Voss that works surprisingly well when prospects ghost you. ​ Example for a proposal meeting: ​ "Have you passed on the proposal meeting?" ​ Other ways to say it: ​ "Have you put the proposal meeting on ice?" "Have you given up on the proposal meeting?" "Seems like you're putting the proposal meeting on the back burner." ​ The psychology? ​ People are hard-wired to have their actions be congruent with their words. Tell someone you'll pick them up at 6, show up at 7, and you feel bad. It's called cognitive dissonance. ​ When I use this tactic, I typically see a 35% response rate in about 5 minutes. ...And for the other 65%, you can follow up afterwards with this email: ---------------- Hey (Name), It looks like you decided to pass on our proposal meeting, which is not a problem at all. Based on your initial interest, it seems like I messed something up along the way. You're going to think this is a huge imposition, but would you be open to providing some feedback so I can improve? Did you think the price would be too high? Confused about our services? Did you get distracted binge-watching Game of Thrones? Either way, I know there’s lots of stuff competing for your time and attention. Thanks for giving us a look. Best, (Name) ---------------- ​ The best part? ​ If people don't respond, it's a gift. You now have time to spend with people who are motivated to speak with you. ​ Don't invest time with people who don't invest time with you.

I would have to guess that 20%-25% of new clients talk to me in our first meeting wanting to know about grants or special funding for veterans. Let's go over what is real vs. what is rumor mill. The SBA doesn't actually give startup grants to veterans, though they do waive some fees in certain circumstances: SBA's own site states plainly that it doesn't provide grants for starting or expanding a business; its grant dollars go to nonprofits and resource partners that provide counseling and training. This could clear up a lot of reader confusion and position you as the trustworthy source. So, find a non-profit that has a mission to support veterans or small business and apply for the funds. Now lets cover A roundup of real cash-grant programs for veteran founders. Here are a handful of legitimate no-strings grants currently running: the Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant Program (four $10,000 awards and one $25,000 award annually, funded by the FedEx Founders Fund), Warrior Rising's Business Shower grants ($2,000–$150,000, but only for graduates of its training pipeline), the National Association for the Self-Employed's Growth Grants (up to $4,000, membership required), and smaller/regional ones like Texas Woman's University's Veteran Entrepreneur Grant ($5,000 awards, Texas-only) and the Farmer Veteran Coalition's Fellowship Fund for ag-based businesses. Now lets look at the PE (Private Equity) side of the house. Hivers & Strivers, a veteran-focused angel investment group writing $100K–$1M checks in exchange for equity. (I have not personally worked with them). The best thing going for disabled veterans is still the VR&E program. As most know by now, they can offer up to $50,000 (with exceptions) for a veteran to start a business. The program usually takes 6-18 months and you need an official business plan that is vetted by an SBA partner (Me, VBOC, SBDC). IF interested, reach out to me directly.

Hello everyone! My name is Hector and I recently retired from the Army after 20 years of service. I was an MP/ Military working dog trainer. My current focus is navigating new goals developing my pet Dog training/ working dog consulting business and getting my bearings in the business world. I recently set up my LLC and building up the client base locally. I don't have it all figured out just yet, so I am here to seek information on business startups and learn how to effectively utilize the VA VR&E program for business development and continuing education. Outside of my army career, my interests are spending time with family, training dogs, beach life, and my new hobby of...running😅. If anyone has experience leveraging VR&E for a similar business and has advice for a newly transitioned veteran stepping into entrepreneurship, I would love to connect!