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Bureaucracy.  Even the word makes some people groan. I had a realization the other day that a lot of small businesses don’t see any daylight between good systems and unnecessary bureaucracy and frankly that’s a shame.  Just because you’re a startup doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be developing systems for doing things efficiently.  Just because you’re an established company doesn't mean your systems are efficient. Your goal as the business owner is to make sure that your business can run without you.  IT’S ALSO YOUR JOB to see that your business runs the way you want it to.  One without the other and you’re not going to be happy.  In this episode I talk about a few ways that I run Reynolds OBM that should make sense to all of you.  I talk about a few small projects you can start that will reduce the amount of questions you get, decrease the amount of time you spend looking for things and decrease the number of calls you get from people who don’t know what to do or where to look for something.  Take a listen.   LINK TO KELLY’S FREE URL TRACKER: https://www.getyouracttogether.co/urltrackersignup If you need help with your small business or agency contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/ To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www.reynoldsobm.com/gyat

There’s a trap that a lot of my guests recently have talked about.  A trap of our own making that agency owners keep falling ito as they work to grow their businesses.  We trap ourselves in our clients’ work.  We know we need to get out of it and yet as hard as we try there’s always a good reason to stay involved personally.  Always a reason to do their work ourselves instead of handing it off to one of our people.  I’ve fallen into this trap many times myself so I thought I’d devote an entire episode to talking about it.   In this episode it’s just you and me and I’m going to show you exactly and specifically how this trap has snared me in the past.  I’ll also show you what’s on the other side when you make the decision to slip out and run your company instead of work on your clients.   If you need help with your small business or agency contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/ To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www.reynoldsobm.com/gyat  

Many small businesses start their own channels through podcasting to get exposure, build brand, and show expertise all at the same time. What they don’t know going into it is just how much work it’s going to be to run your own production company.   Stephanie Judice knows.  She and her nine-person team produce podcasts for upwards of twenty clients every week. They’ve edited, post-produced, and distributed thousands of episodes content for their clients and today she joins me as a guest to talk about the challenges and successes along the way.   We talk about getting out of the day-to-day of the business, hiring for efficiency vs. hiring for redundancy, what you’re responsible for as the owner, and building and rebuilding of roles for people you want to keep.  This is a great conversation, listen in!   Timestamps: 09:40- Perfectionist vs. Leader 13:00- I started asking my team what to fix 17:50- The upside of losing a good person 22:10- The pride of employing people 25:56- Building a team for flexibility 33:45- It’s probably your fault 35:30- 20 Clients, 10 team members, 2 kids Want more from Stephanie?  Visit her site or on social media: Website: www.stephaniejudice.com FB: www.facebook.com/stephaniejudicepodcastmanagement IG: www.instagram.com/stephaniejudice   If you need help with your small business or agency contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/ To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www.reynoldsobm.com/gyat  

Nobody wakes up in the morning and decides to be the worst business person they can be. Yet a lot of very talented, very skilled people from plumbers to lawyers and everything in between have trouble running their businesses and that very often comes down to how they deal with the money.  Jen Paterson is a money coach for that crowd.  I talk with her about everything from setting up bank accounts, to our attitudes towards money, to buying shoes guilt free.  There’s a lot in here for every business owner regardless of their craft.  Listen in.   Timestamps: 00:18- What a “Money Coach” does. 06:36- Pay Yourself 12:00- Reprogramming the ways you talk about money 23:28- Bank Account Architecture 29:08- Revenue rollercoaster 33:30- Picking your banker 39:27- Business is a different skill Want more from Jen?  Visit her site or on social media: Website: https://www.dollardivas.org/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/jenpaterson.biz/   If you need help with your small business or agency contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/ To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www.reynoldsobm.com/gyat

Nobody wants to feel like they’re being sold.  Nobody wants to feel pressured or have useless information thrown at them. This is why it’s important to be thoughtful about how you design the flow a prospect goes through on their way to giving you money.    When his clients need help navigating the build of that process, James Hipkins takes their hand and dives deep.  James and his team have been building large, corporate websites for 10 years and he’ll tell you the hard part is all the work you do before you start designing things.  More recently James’s focus has turned to small businesses where he believes a lot more help is needed.   I talk to him about the things you SHOULD be thinking about when you design your website (hint: design is waaay last), not building on rented land, the cookie strategy, and a lot more.     Want more from James?  Visit him site or on social media: Website: https://red8interactive.com/ FB:https://www.facebook.com/inn8ly/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/inn8ly/ Linked: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jameshipkin/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/jhipkin/   If you need help with your small business or agency contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/ To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www.reynoldsobm.com/gyat

Brandon Cockrell was a salesman knocking on doors in 100-degree heat in Georgia in a suit.  That taught him that digital sales is pretty great. Today his team builds digital sales systems for companies that need people to sign-up, opt-in, book-now, or buy today.  His wholehearted adoption of technology as a way to drive revenue has given him a lot to say and I talk to him about the “when?”, “how?”, and “how much?”   Timestamps:   02:37- Help an “Ops-Gal” get started with her sales funnel. 09:37- Proving out the hard stuff in your sales process 14:03- What ROI should you expect when you market? 24:20- TikTok 30:21- How many touchpoints for a conversion to a sale? 34:04- The value and trouble with organic reach   Want more from Brandon?  Visit his site or on social media: Website: https://www.linchpinsales.com/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/linchpinsales/?hl=en   If you need help with your small business or agency contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/ To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www/reynoldsobm.com/gyat  

This is a great episode!  Christina Lenkowski is a veteran public relations expert. She’s worked for big companies like Cirque du Sole and Dark Horse Comics but what she’s discovered is that podcasts are the most effective form of publicity.   Now she helps her clients go from “Best Kept Secret” to “Go-to Expert” by raising their voice on other people's platforms.   There’s a lot here as Christina shares how she gets her clients on 24 shows a year, how you can make it easy for show hosts to book you, and ways you can use the content you generate from appearances.   Timestamps: 02:02- What working remotely tells you about yourself. 04:56- The value of being a podcast guest 12:14- Share that content over and over 19:11- Anderson Cooper is not coming for you. 20:11- Pitching to podcasts 24:38- The first paragraph of a pitch to a podcast 29:15- Missteps when you pitch a show 32:23- You have to be visible to grow 36:36- It takes time to get on shows 43:16- Repurposing your interview as evergreen content   Want more from Christina?  Visit her site or on social media: Website: https://www.publicityxchristina.com/ Quiz: https://www.publicityxchristina.com/quiz-landing-page FB: https://www.facebook.com/publicityxchristina IG: https://www.instagram.com/publicityxchristina/ If you need help with your small business or agency contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www.reynoldsobm.com/gyat Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/  

Amazing guest this week! Debra Joy is on her fourth business.  One was sold, another went public, and one went nowhere.  For the last 15 years she’s been a coach to entrepreneurs, executives, and creatives so they can achieve success with less stress.   We talk about the effects high stress can (and does) have on our bodies, the power and hazard of goal setting, and how leaders can unconsciously create traumatizing environments at work.  Debra talks about helping clients achieve big things.  She also talks about using the journey to become the kind of person you want your goals to make you.  Timestamps: 00:23- Somatic experiencing practitioner? 03:06- ...but all I wanted was to fix the world. 09:07- choosing when to overdue it 10:57- the goal VS. why they want the goal 14:49- A somatic practice as a perspective in coaching 18:06- Work as a traumatizing environment 23:30- habits 27:19- Kelly gets coached.   You can Find Debra here: Website: http://www.debrajoy.me/ FB: https://www.facebook.com/withdebrajoy IG: https://www.instagram.com/debrajoy_coach/ Linked: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debrajoy/   If you need help with your small business or agency contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/ To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www/reynoldsobm.com/gyat

Ana Natkins had a career in the corporate world. There she developed and strengthened her natural ability to look at complicated workflows and break them down into small, digestible pieces. Today she runs Anna's Simple Solutions, where she and her team use those skills to help overwhelmed, neurodivergent business owners simplify their processes and increase productivity through the use of technology. In this conversation I talk with her about the tools she uses, her love for Clickup and Airtable, and some basic things to remember about the neurodivergent and how they sometimes work. Timestamps: 01:23- Neurodivergence in the workforce. 06:24- Mom + Entrepreneur = Guilt 12:45- Setting up your company so that your people can thrive. 15:25- Two Ops nerds geek-out on Airtable 25:00- Ana’s networking database is on steroids   ANA's Links: Website: https://www.anasimplesolutions.com/ FB: https://www.facebook.com/AnaSimpleSolutions IG: https://www.instagram.com/anasimplesolutions/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ananatkins/ Need help from Kelly? http://www.reynoldsobm.com Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/ To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www/reynoldsobm.com/gyat

Laura Sinclair started her career in corporate social media at a time when corporations left “that social stuff” to interns. It didn’t take forever for her to get good and to realize that she could go out on her own.  In 2014 she left corporate and bought a failing business which she swiftly turned around so dramatically that it was generating more money each month than she paid for it. Forced to close a brick and mortar business during lockdown, Laura now shows other business owners how to market themselves and get on the same upward trajectory. We talk about dumb ways to waste $10,000, working while scared, keeping yourself in the right mindset, how a lot of marketers make things more complicated than they need to be, and a great deal more.   Timestamps: 01:02 - Luxury auto to gym owner to marketer. 06:26 - $10,000 down the drain 09:42 - Marketing from Desire not Pain 15:16 - Confidence and fear 23:10 - Jazzed for January 25:00 - Marketers make marketing complicated 31:15 - Sales > # of Followers 40:10 - Yuckiness in sales   Want more from Laura?  Visit her site or on social media:   Want help from Laura? Visit: www.laura-sinclair.com Or on IG: https://www.instagram.com/itslaurasinclair/   Need help with your small business or agency? Contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program: http://www/reynoldsobm.com/gyat Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/

Jessica Armstrong is the owner of TC Created, a service agency that supplies realtors with transaction coordinators so they can spend their time in front of buyers and sellers.  In this episode, Kelly and Jessica discuss how starting a business is a journey of self-discovery, how challenging it is to be objective when you delegate work to others, and how success in business has let Jessica to coach others.   If you need help with your small business or agency contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www/reynoldsobm.com/gyat Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/ Thanks to Jessica for joining us!  If you’d like to contact her try her site: www.tccreated.com To follow her on IG follow: https://www.instagram.com/tccreated/ Timestamps: 2:19- Starting a business is a journey of self discovery 7:40- Important things to think about when you hand off work to your team. 12:22- How Jessica’s coaching practice is a result of trauma and generosity. 23:16- Getting salespeople to buy your service

What do you think will happen in 2023? I think I’m getting flowers.  “Why?” you ask. Because I’m planting flowers.  You all know my love of good systems for everything from my clients to my garden.  Today I’ve got for you today is a story about what happens when a client breaks all of those systems. We don’t wake up everyday amazed that water comes out of the pipes and the trains come on time. Maybe we should. There’s a lot of work that goes into systems when everyone needs them to work.  So what happens when the hub for all those systems gets improperly migrated? What happens when all the company’s documents, all the access permissions, all the SOPs, (each interconnected to the others with up-to-date links and passwords in a reliable filing system) what happens when they all get scrambled like an overturned scrabble board?     If you need help with your small business or agency contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www/reynoldsobm.com/gyat Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/

A special message from Kelly.   If you need help with your small business or agency contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www/reynoldsobm.com/gyat Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/  

Katie Suarez is a 5th generation Montanan with 20 years in the construction and building sector.  When she launched her company it was obvious that she’d be serving the sometimes gruff, always direct entrepreneurs of that space and their softer, kinder cousins from the design industry.   Today, ‘Kate’ empowers residential contractors and interior designers to uproot traditional ways of working and seamlessly transition brick and mortar offices and studios into virtual businesses. Her goal is to release the pressure felt by small business owners by partnering with them to take on all of their "business-y" responsibilities, so they can focus on what they truly love and do best!   Timestamps: 07:25- When your ego gets in the way of letting other people do the work you need them to do. 11:10- How nitching down has given Katherine the ability to tell a client what they need just based on their current revenue. 20:07- How Kate gets clients 30:09- Hold on… is Katie married to Kelly? 31:01- Mistakes Kate made in the beginning. 35:24- How Kate puts her week together 40:11- Putting your neck on the line for your people

If you’ve been around here for a minute, you’ll know I love to talk about systems and having things run well. It’s been our focus over the last 6½ years as we help small businesses get organized and run better. Throughout that time I’ve been a broken record that you need good systems to run things well. Maybe over the last few years you’ve wondered if it’s true.  So I wanted to share two stories of how I had my systems tested just to show you that yes, it works. If you need help with your small business or agency contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www/reynoldsobm.com/gyat Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/

Full Swing is a PR Agency born in 2019 and has already become one of the 2% of women-owned businesses that generate greater than $1M/year in revenue.  It didn’t start out that way. Caitlin Copple Masingill and her co-founder are on a mission to give more women the power, money, and decision making authority to make a big dent in the world.  She didn’t originally think that she was building an agency.  She intended to build a small owner-operator business that could meet her goals.  It didn’t take too long before she met people who helped her expand those goals.  Now she’s proud to employ a team, offer healthcare on day one, and operate an unabashedly capitalist business in a markedly values-driven way.  Need help with your PR? Want to contact Caitlin?  Visit: https://fullswingpr.com/ Connect with Caitlin on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fullswingpr/ If you need help with your small business or agency contact the Reynolds Online Agency: http://www.reynoldsobm.com To get on the waiting list for Kelly’s group coaching program click here: http://www/reynoldsobm.com/gyat Join Kellys’ facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/ Timestamps: 05:18- The cool part about ignoring conventional wisdom 07:15- The thing that people don’t talk about enough 12:48- The team Caitlin built & planning future headcount 16:50- The single most game-changing thing that put her on the path to running a 7-figure company 23:21- How Caitlin gets clients 26:20- Who free webinars don’t work for. 29:42- A day in the life 34:58- The hard part of letting go of the work 38:54- The biggest mistake Caitlin made building the business

In the last few weeks, I’ve seen this trend in some businesses and since I like things to be streamlined and running well, it drives me mad.  What I’m seeing is a push to go for the cheapest option by default.   I’m not talking about those of you who are just getting started and piecing it together. I’m not advising you to charge lots of things and go into debt.  Admittedly, I know some of this is fear from the talk of recession and I’m not saying that cheap things don;t have their place but the cheapest option as the default choice is just DUMB. You need to look at what you are getting for your money.  What is the best value.   Need Help with your agency or small business? Contact Kelly Here: Reynolds OBM Agency Join Kelly's facebook group HERE:Reynolds OBM on Facebook Get on the waiting list for Kelly's next group coaching program: Get Your Agency Together Group Coaching

Luisa Alberto was variously told that she should be an artist, a physical therapist, a philosopher.  Now she’s found her calling running People First Finance which is run by, staffed by, and supports female run businesses.   In this episode of our Agency Series, Kelly and Luisa talk about building a great business culture, the need for financial competence in business owners, and much more.   For more from Luisa visit her homepage: www.peoplefirstfinance.com Or on instagram @peoplefirstfinance   For help with your agency or small business contact Reynolds OBM at: www.reynoldsobm.com Join Kelly’s facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/reynoldsobm/   08:00- How a landlord accidentally set Luisa on a path to financial literacy. 10:30- The windy road to realizing you need to hire people 23:40- What brings her team culture together 28:12- Getting contractors to be every bit as devoted as employees 35:57- The problems clients keep showing up with and the core of Luisa’s business 44:43- Having enough space to look at your business objectively

The other day someone told me, “You can’t scale a broken business, you need to fix it first.”  It was one of those moments when something sounds so profound and so obvious at the same time. Like I already knew this but I was hearing it for the first time. This idea is one of those things that gets skipped A LOT but when you actually think about it, it’s so important.  So today I wanted to talk about that, about not scaling a broken business.    In order to scale a business well, it needs to be running well or it all falls apart.  It’s like an old car; at slow speeds for stops around town it’s ok if the brakes aren’t great and everything is being held together with rust.  But when you hit the interstate you need all the parts to work.    Now, when you ask most entrepreneurs what their business needs, you will almost always get “more leads” or some version of that as the answer.  So much focus is put on getting people in the door and selling and everything else is less important. Until of course everything breaks.   I’m a self professed ops nerd so I may seem a bit biased here, but hear me out. What if what you need isn’t just more business?   For help with your business visit Reynolds OMB. Join Kelly's Facebook group.  

Once upon a time Mary Zargarian had a great life in corporate America.  Now she directs all of her leadership skills and hard work into building her agency. Zargarian Consulting helps its client roster of service-based, largely women-owned businesses and nonprofits optimize their workflows and free up time for their core priorities. On this podcast she gets specific about why she hires the smartest people she can, how to have tough conversations with clients, and how you can accidentally encourage bad behavior from clients. Timestamps: 00:58- The change from solo operator to agency owner. 06:55- What offers Mary focuses on and why. 08:20- When clients say, “We don’t have systems.” 12:00- How Mary structures her agency 17:45- Why you should hire strong people that are smarter than you. 23:59- How agency owners get in trouble with the mis-match between client fees and sub costs 28:45- When you sometimes enable poor behavior from your clients 32:34- Having tough conversations with clients 42:10- Finding new team members   Visit Zargarian Consulting Reynolds OBM's Homepage Join the Facebook Group