In this episode, we’re venturing briefly beyond crowdfunding to talk about investing, specifically how you can start your own profitable investment fund. For that, we’re going to interview our special guest Bridger Pennington, a serial entrepreneur who became a highly-successful investment fund manager. So, let’s talk about how you can replicate his success... ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Discipline yoursel...
Sep 09, 2020•56 min•Season 1Ep. 39
In this episode, we’ll talk with Mindy Zemrak, who is the Emmy-nominated Supervising Casting Producer of ABC’s “Shark Tank.” This award-winning startup-centered reality show debuted in 2009 and has since featured thousands of entrepreneurs, including over a dozen of our past crowdfunding clients. Mindy is now casting for the show’s 12th season, which will premiere this autumn, and she is going to give us her expert perspective about how YOU can succeed on it. So, on with the show… --------------...
Apr 22, 2020•1 hr 21 min•Season 1Ep. 38
In this episode, we’ll focus on e-commerce strategy, especially for bootstrapped startups. And, for that purpose, we’re interviewing an expert growth strategist named John Coyle, who’s going to explain how to identify your competitive advantages, how to capitalize upon them to grow your brand, and how to strategize successfully through the three phases of bootstrapped e-commerce. Let’s dive right in… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detai...
Jan 08, 2020•1 hr 5 min•Season 1Ep. 37
In this episode, we’re going to familiarize you with the world of prototyping and mass-production, specifically as it relates to crowdfunding. Whom should you contact? How can you best keep your ideas from being stolen? How can you best ensure quality? We’re going to overview all of these topics and more in this episode with our very special guest, Gaston Liang, who is an expert in sourcing, manufacturing, packaging, and logistics. So, let’s get started… -----------------------------------------...
Dec 18, 2019•1 hr 24 min•Season 1Ep. 36
In this episode, we’re going to revive the subject of what to do when your campaign goes wrong—in this case, so terribly wrong that you actually need to restart it. So, we’re going to talk all about the mechanics of re-launches, both voluntary and involuntary. So, if you ever receive one of those dreaded notices that your campaign has been suspended, then don’t panic—we’ve got your back! Let’s get started… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we...
Dec 11, 2019•48 min•Season 1Ep. 35
We’re back atcha today with another good one that includes a very impressive guest who is also literally live on Kickstarter right now! Our client Dale Backus has developed a wildly-popular phone grip that has been raising thousands of dollars per day to challenge a complacent industry leader. Let’s see what we can learn from his crowdfunding story… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Entrepreneurs don’t always pi...
Oct 02, 2019•53 min•Season 1Ep. 34
As promised, we’re going to break out our newly-minted Ultimate Crowdfunding Pre-Launch Checklist! And, after this episode, we’re going to give it away to you for free… no catches. And you can start using it to prepare yourself to take your next big idea to the next level. So, hang in there until the end and let’s get started! ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Entrepreneurs should commit to success, improve both...
Sep 04, 2019•58 min•Season 1Ep. 33
In this episode, you’re going to hear from our very own in-house legal counsel here at Funded Today, Thomas Alvord. He’s going to give you the insider’s look at everything you should be considering when it comes to business law, contracts, and just running your new business. So let’s get started… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Entrepreneurs should prioritize developing a viable business over protecting themse...
Sep 04, 2019•1 hr 16 min•Season 1Ep. 32
As promised, we’re bringing on one of our past clients, namely Rob Peck of AquaVault. He’s got a very unique perspective and I think you’re going to love it. So are you ready to learn directly from an actual Kickstarter creator who raised over $200,000 on a project? What about learning more about how to absolutely crush a “Shark Tank” appearance? Or are you just curious about the day-to-day hustle-and-grind of entrepreneurship? If so, then today’s episode is for you! Let’s get started… ---------...
Jun 12, 2019•41 min•Season 1Ep. 31
Have you ever wanted to listen to an actual Kickstarter creator who raised over $100,000 on a project? What about learning the ins-and-outs of a successful appearance on “Shark Tank”? Or, are you just curious about the life of an entrepreneur? If so, then today’s episode is going to literally rock your world! Let’s get started… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Desire is vital, and positive thinking is helpful, ...
Jun 05, 2019•56 min•Season 1Ep. 30
What does it take to manage customer service? Why is customer service more important now than ever before? And finally, what are the best ways to ensure that you, too, can provide world-class customer service? Let’s dive right in… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. It’s hard to maintain superiority in products/services indefinitely and, whenever your competitors offer comparable benefits-and-costs, customers will...
May 22, 2019•49 min•Season 1Ep. 29
In this episode, we’re waxing philosophical once more. The topic: FREEDOM. The reason: we think that it’s the most important word in the world to focus on. And today, we’ll show you why... ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Bondage is sometimes entirely self-imposed, but we can discipline ourselves to escape this sort. 2. We should each value freedom, which allows us to achieve our greatest potential for happines...
May 08, 2019•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 28
In this episode, we’re circling back around to our extremely popular “Life After Crowdfunding” series with perhaps our most practical episode in the series so far, which is about how to turn your website into a cash machine. Let’s dive right in! ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Entrepreneurs should reject “entremyopia” to embrace realistic expectations, including that all startups will face challenges, but that...
Apr 30, 2019•50 min•Season 1Ep. 27
In this episode, we have a wonderful guest—Greg Mercer, who is the founder of Jungle Scout. We’re going to discuss how tools like Jungle Scout can give you an edge over your competition on Amazon. ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Pursue your passions for work, as long as you can earn a living from them—and, after you’ve achieved financial stability, you can focus more on working for fun than for profit. 2. Entr...
Apr 24, 2019•37 min•Season 1Ep. 26
In this episode, we are continuing our “Life After Crowdfunding” series by discussing how to make big money on Amazon by optimizing your listings. Let’s jump right in… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Amazon listing titles should include the brand, the model, its attributes, and its benefits, while incorporating appropriate keywords for SEO determined through research. 2. Amazon listing bullet-points should eac...
Apr 17, 2019•48 min•Season 1Ep. 25
In this episode, we are bringing you Zach’s special interview by Carson Jorgensen in his pretty-famous podcast “The Definition of Success.” Carson and Zach discuss quite a few things that are a little bit different than what we normally talk about in our podcast—they talk about business, life, happiness, and (probably most importantly) the whole idea of self-awareness. Let’s get started… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takea...
Apr 03, 2019•56 min•Season 1Ep. 24
In this episode, we’re bringing back our very popular series “Life After Crowdfunding.” And today’s topic of Amazon is one of our favorites—it’s the 800-pound gorilla of e-commerce that you cannot ignore. Let’s dive right in! ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Crowdfunding success doesn’t necessarily lead to e-commerce success. 2. Amazon provides a wealth of readily-available intelligence that can help entreprene...
Mar 27, 2019•31 min•Season 1Ep. 23
In this episode, we learn from Stoicism! Let’s get started… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. We can live more happily by gleaning time-tested truths from great philosophers, including the Stoics, whose beliefs about pursuing happiness through virtue originated in ancient Greece, thrived in classical Rome, and continue to attract some modern adherents worldwide. 2. We should nurture gratitude for what we already...
Mar 20, 2019•45 min•Season 1Ep. 22
In this episode, we’re talking about one of Zach’s most favorite things: the #1 reason why your life “sucks” right now—and what you can do about it! Let’s get started… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Reality is objective, but perspective is subjective and may depend upon our frame-of-reference, and so our reference-points influence our perceptions, which influence our happiness. 2. Many qualities like wealth o...
Mar 13, 2019•48 min•Season 1Ep. 21
You might find this episode’s topic a bit interesting: “Life After Crowdfunding: IndieGoGo InDemand – What Do I Do After I’ve Had a Successful Campaign on Kickstarter?” An interesting question! Your journey has just begun. Don’t worry, though—we’ll get it all covered in this episode… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Indiegogo InDemand is an excellent platform for gleaning additional funds for your project while...
Mar 06, 2019•38 min•Season 1Ep. 20
In this episode, we are going to show you how you can capitalize on Kickstarter’s more powerful tool—perhaps their most powerful tool—the Kickstarter algorithm… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Pre-launch marketing (including mobilizing one’s personal contacts) can greatly boost a project’s popularity rankings on its launch day. 2. Kickstarter’s Trending (or Popular) page ranks campaigns primarily on recent bac...
Feb 27, 2019•22 min•Season 1Ep. 19
In this episode, we’re finally going to answer the age-old question that we probably get asked just as much as anything and, until this point, there’s never been a direct, straightforward answer to. The question: “Which platform should I choose for launching my campaign—Indiegogo or Kickstarter?” The answer might surprise you… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Evaluate your project’s suitability for rewards-base...
Feb 20, 2019•28 min•Season 1Ep. 18
In this episode, we are going to talk about goal-setting. Zach has spent a lot of time reading about goals, and so has Thomas; in fact, Thomas focused some of his Master’s Degree studies on goal-setting. But, today, we aren’t going to talk about what the academics, PhDs, or pundits say; instead, we are going to show you how Zach and Thomas actually set and achieve goals for their own personal and business lives to reach the success that they’ve had, and how you can do it, too. ------------------...
Feb 13, 2019•59 min•Season 1Ep. 17
In this episode, we’re going to walk you through the single-most-effective way to consistently raise money and even extrapolate how much money you’re going to raise. This approach has raised more money than all of our other methods and that’s why we saved this one for last. Let’s get started! ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Crowdfunding advertising, compared with other forms of marketing, is unusually steady i...
Feb 06, 2019•1 hr 8 min•Season 1Ep. 16
In this episode, we’ve got a very special guest for you. She’s directly responsible for raising millions of dollars for thousands of campaigns leveraging the power of earned media and the press! ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. Public relations is best started as soon as possible in order to allow as much time as possible to cultivate vital relationships, but it’s never too late for PR to accomplish some good. ...
Jan 30, 2019•39 min•Season 1Ep. 15
In this episode, we’re going to talk about the single-most-effective way to generate the best possible conversions for your invention. After testing HUNDREDS of other methods and marketing mediums, this one simple strategy trumps all the rest—and it’s not even close just how well this strategy converts as compared to ANY other method we’ve tested. To do so, we’re bringing on another special guest, the jack-of-all-trades get-’er-done closer himself, Mr. Colton Bybee, the Director of Outreach at F...
Jan 23, 2019•44 min•Season 1Ep. 14
In this episode, we’re going to get a little bit deeper into pre-launch. There’s no one in the entire rewards-based crowdfunding space who has generated more e-mailing addresses and more interest for new inventions and businesses than our very own Director of Lead-Generation & Affiliate Marketing at Funded Today, Mr. Tevin Christopher. ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1. College isn’t essential to either learn...
Jan 16, 2019•38 min•Season 1Ep. 13
In this episode, we’re going to talk about a paradox. Is it really better to be lazy than hard-working? Is it actually possible to get 16 times better results in your personal life and your business, doing less work than you are doing now? I think we’ve got an answer for you today that’s going to expand your mind and inspire you to test this tried-and-true principle. So, let’s get started… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these tak...
Jan 09, 2019•36 min•Season 1Ep. 12
In this episode, we’ve got another good one for you. We spent quite a few episodes walking you step-by-step through what you need to do to succeed with your new business venture. But did you know there’s one thing that’s more important than all of that? And today, we’re going to talk about it. I think, by the time you are done listening to this episode, you are going to have a complete mindset shift. So let’s get started… ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During ...
Jan 02, 2019•36 min•Season 1Ep. 11
In this episode, we’re busting out our secret weapon. There’s even a bit of some “water cooler talk” going on at Funded Today, that this guy is “THE Crowd Whisperer.” If there’s anyone in the entire crowdfunding universe who has an eye for a great product and how to create one yourself, it’s this man, our very own Director of Client Specialists at Funded Today, Mr. Curtis Child. ---------------------------------------------------------------- ⭐ During this episode, we detail these takeaways : 1....
Dec 26, 2018•44 min•Season 1Ep. 10
