The $100 MBA Show

You will fail. If you’re an entrepreneur, you won’t always hit the mark. It’s part and parcel of independent business to establish a goal, strive for it, and come up short. As the year winds down and we evaluate our performance, we should take stock of how we’ve failed, and whether we let those failures drag us down or power us forward. For new entrepreneurs, every missed goal can seem like a cris...

A page by any other name is just as sweet. Whether you call it a squeeze page or a landing page, conversions are the name of the game. A well-constructed squeeze page shouldn’t take too much time or effort — if you have the right tools. Today, we tell one listener what those tools are, and where to find them. It’s a follow up from last week’s episode on maximizing your conversion rates via squeeze...

They say to dress for the job you want. But if you’re already an entrepreneur, you can dress for the job you created! Our host Omar almost always rocks a branded t-shirt featuring our software company, WebinarNinja. The reasons for doing so, however,  go way beyond the urge to sneak in some extra advertising. Whether he’s speaking at a conference, on a webinar, or just hitting the gym, Omar’s gear...

What can we learn from failure? And not just any failure — total, massive, beyond-epic, multi-billion-dollar failure? In this week’s Must-Read book for entrepreneurs, we find out. Bad Blood by John Carreyrou is many things: an engrossing page-turner, an exemplary piece of investigative journalism, and a huge, devastating lesson in how not to launch a product. It’s the true story of Theranos, a sta...

Sometimes, you just have to bang it out. Whether you’ve got a webinar, pitch, or demo, a quality slide deck is a must. Despite how daunting it can seem, putting one together doesn’t have to be a nightmare or a monumental task. It can be a simple, straightforward, one-hour process. It can take less time than an episode of Game of Thrones to get ready for your next big moment — if you have the right...

The sales call: is it a lost art? More importantly, should it be? What’s the role of outbound marketing in an almost completely inbound world? Is there still value in reaching out personally for a conversation? Can the time you and your sales people spend on the phone actually return worthwhile revenue? The short answer is yes. We still use outbound calls to supplement our sales strategy, in incre...

Does every web application need a mobile version? If not, which ones do? Most major software companies have a version of their product for every device under the sun. But for lean startups, you’ve gotta put your time and effort into what returns the best investment. Today, we discuss exactly how to figure out if you need a mobile app — and if so, how to proceed. There are a few key questions you m...

It’s gonna happen. As your business grows and your team members ponder their futures, they’ll want to know how much you value them. Like, exactly how much. Whether you employ freelancers, full-timers, or contractors, shelling out the dough to keep the right people on board is a must. Of course, you have your whole business budget to consider, so how can you offer just compensation while keeping yo...

Sometimes, you consult exciting new voices in business leadership. Sometimes, you consult the legends. Peter Drucker basically invented business management, and is seen as one of the founders of corporate culture. His extensive studies and writings on effective business leadership are the foundational canon for budding executives — and entrepreneurs. Today, we review his classic The Effective Exec...

Your business is growing. Your team is growing. Your space needs to grow, also. It’s FREE RIDE FRIDAY!!!, and we’re discussing how to scale your business in the one way entrepreneurs often forget to consider. Your office space has to be flexible enough to grow with your staff. Moving from space to space wastes money, time, and effort. So how can you set your space up for growth — without the growi...

Call it a landing page, or call it a squeeze page. Either way, it’s the key to conversions. These stripped-down, bare-bones pages have one purpose and one purpose only: to collect email addresses. One page can move visitors down the funnel at incredible rates, but only if it’s executed properly. Today, we discuss exactly how to get it right. There are times when an ill-placed squeeze page (or a po...

Conferences are a big investment of time and money. How do you know which ones are worth it? It’s Q&A Wednesday, and one listener is in a bind: with only enough time and resources for two conferences, choosing the best is no easy task. Fortunately, we’ve been to many a conference, as speakers and attendees. We know what to look for, and what to avoid. Most importantly, we know what makes a confere...

As always, our experience is your guide. Recently, we undertook the difficult — but enlightening — task of launching an entire new product. What we learned was valuable to us, and will definitely be valuable to you. We’ve got a new product, but this episode isn’t some thinly-disguised plug. It’s a genuine lesson on building and launching something new, and everything that process can teach you. Wh...

We are our habits. That’s the lesson author James Clear understands, and it’s the topic of this week’s Must-Read book for entrepreneurs. Atomic Habits is a valuable primer on forming the right habits, and ditching the bad ones. One habit at a time, you can improve your results in business and life. By losing unproductive habits and establishing productive ones, you make the little differences that...

David Ogilvy invented modern advertising. What can you learn from him? In a still text-driven online marketplace, effective copy writing is just as important now as it was in the 1960s. As the real-life Don Draper, Ogilvy used meticulous research to find out exactly what drove leads and sales. Everything he discovered about magazine and newspaper ads is directly applicable to websites and landing...

Amazon giveth, and Amazon taketh away. The online retail behemoth is a double-edged sword, a massive marketplace that can give you huge exposure to millions of potential customers — but not without a price. Without a doubt, Amazon makes many things easy, like payment processing and shipping. But just as surely, Amazon takes its toll. Is it worth it? Is what you surrender to Amazon more valuable th...

Breaking up isn’t easy. But sometimes, it’s necessary. A business partnership is like any other: a mutual investment of time, effort, and resources. When it ends, it can go very badly. But when both partners are forthright and genuinely committed to an amicable split, parting ways doesn’t have to be a traumatic experience. It’s Q&A Wednesday, and we’ve got a listener who’s ready to pull the plug o...

Ah, the flea market. The tables, the booths, the smells, the locals…the lessons. These markets are a microcosm of the business world, a stripped-down space where the simple rules of supply and demand are on full display — along with a ton of valuable lessons entrepreneurs can use on and offline. Our host Omar and $100MBA co-founder Nicole recently took a trip to the Kirribilli Market in Milsons Po...

If you can’t convert, you can’t sell. Turning website visitors into customers is an exact science, one with years of research behind it. Today, an expert in conversion optimization strategy stops by to give us a thorough breakdown of exactly how to move visitors down the funnel and onto your customer list. Iz El-Bahnasy is the founder of Gather, a conversion app that’s leading the way in…well, lea...

It’s a big world out there, and the Internet allows entrepreneurs to find the best, most affordable talent wherever it is. But with that freedom comes a unique, modern hassle: losing money as you do business across national borders. Today, we discuss how exchange rates can cost you hundreds per month — and what you can do about it. As a remote team with over 30 employees on 4 continents, we’re exp...

Sponsors: are they worth the effort? Whether it’s a blog, YouTube channel, podcast, or live event, sponsorship can be your biggest source of revenue. It can also be a major pain in the tuchus. Yes, sponsors pay you. But that money doesn’t come free, and what you give in exchange can have a dramatic impact on your relationship with your audience. Carefully balancing the needs of your sponsors, your...

We know webinars work. So what tools do you need to make them work better? It’s Q&A Wednesday, and we’re helping one listener choose the best gear for the job. There are a million audio/visual gadgets out there, but we’re focusing on the must-haves, the bare essentials that have the greatest overall impact on the quality of your webinar. As longtime webinar hosts (and webinar software developers),...

Having a bad day? In entrepreneurship, that’s gonna happen. Fires will erupt, and putting them out is every independent business person’s burden. But if you let a rough patch sour your mood, the damage will be compounded by your own emotional imbalance. So how can you take the hits with calm, cool, and confidence? Today, we discuss our specific methods for digging ourselves out of a funk. Your tea...

Excessive stress is not a requirement of entrepreneurship. At least that’s what Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson, authors of this week’s Must-Read book for entrepreneurs think. It Doesn’t Have to Be Crazy at Work is a radical treatise on the dangers — and utter uselessness — of running yourself and your team ragged. Their company, Basecamp, prides itself on a healthy approach to the  work/...

You want to start a business, but you’re terrified. You’re terrified that you could find yourself unable to fund your basic needs like housing, food, and Netflix (ok, maybe that last one’s not technically a “need,” but still). Entrepreneurship is risky, and takes time, and you have to make a living while your business grows. So what can you do to keep a roof over your head while you pursue your ow...