This Is Small Business

Entering a new market can be challenging, especially if it’s an international one. But Max Gurevich, President of Warm Home Designs, has learned all the do’s and don’ts after successfully entering the Canadian and Mexican markets via Amazon. From making sure you switch up your marketing strategy to better suit the new market and trusting your customer feedback, to taking on the fear of a new language, Max has a wealth of helpful tips to share.This episode is brought to you by Amazon Ads. Amazon Ads helps you reach customers wherever they spend their time and is here for every type of small business. Amazon Ads has a range of products and information to help you achieve your advertising goals, for registered sellers, vendors, book vendors, Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) authors, app developers, and/or agencies.—(03:25) How to tailor your products to non-US markets.(05:34) How to use research to gain a competitive advantage.(10:16) Andrea goes over the key takeaways for expanding to new markets which include thorough research, adapting marketing based on customer feedback, and starting with small-scale experiments for return on ad spend evaluation.—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

Trying to figure out how to make money while giving back through your business? Learn what it takes to grow your business when the foundation of your business model is social responsibility. Andrew Glantz, the Founder & CEO of GiftAMeal, explains how he managed to make a profit out of a business centered on giving back to the community. And Heather Cameron, a social entrepreneur and Michael B Kauffman Professor of Practice at the Washington University in St. Louis, tells us how to successfully build a business model that makes that possible.This episode is brought to you by Amazon Business. Amazon Business provides a wide product selection, business-only pricing, and account features that can make running your small business easier. Amazon Business supports small business through various programs such as the Small Business Grants where Amazon Business gives over $250,000 to 15 small businesses who are Amazon Business customers. Amazon Business is committed to the growth of small businesses and invests in grants to help small businesses overcome challenges they face, freeing up their resources to focus on their mission and customers. Small Businesses are the backbone of our economy and when they succeed we all succeed. Create your free account today at amazonbusiness.com.—(07:09) Andrew's insight on how to create a scalable, socially impactful business(10:47) Andrew talks about how he got the Amazon Business grant and the importance of putting yourself out there.(13:38) Quantifying the value and impact of your business quickly is essential for success because you'll have a compelling value proposition and make sales efforts more effective.(17:61) Heather underscores the importance of alignment in an entrepreneur's journey and how it connects your brand with what matters to both customers and your team.(20:56) Heather emphasizes that small business owners should think about their social impact in tandem with their business strategy.—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

Are you sure you’re reaching the right customer? If you're not sure, you might not be leveraging customer research. Roshni Wijayasinha, Founder & CEO of Prosh Marketing, explains how to use customer research as a marketing strategy and the importance of timing when targeting the right customer. —(02:19) Roshni talks about the three ways you can reach your customer: brand awareness, conducting customer research, and utilizing digital tools.(03:50) Why timing is crucial in finding the right customer (06:00) Why you should continuously adapt your strategies and the importance of direct communication with customers.—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

Are you interested in starting a crowdfunding campaign? Or maybe you’re wondering if you should pull money out of your savings to start your business? Learn the pros and cons of bootstrapping & crowdfunding and what it takes to launch a successful crowdfunding campaign with Josh Lipinski, the founder of Breakwater Supply, and Tess Estandarte, Director of Product Marketing at Rainfactory.This episode is brought to you by Amazon Business. Amazon Business provides a wide product selection, business-only pricing, and account features that can make running your small business easier. Amazon Business supports small businesses through various programs such as the Small Business Grants where Amazon Business gives over $250,000 to 15 small businesses who are Amazon Business customers. Amazon Business is committed to the growth of small businesses and invests in grants to help small businesses overcome challenges they face, freeing up their resources to focus on their mission and customers. Small Businesses are the backbone of our economy and when they succeed, we all succeed. Create your free account today at amazonbusiness.com.—(04:14) Josh points out the benefits of bootstrapping like having the freedom to call the shots and not having to meet investor demands which allows you to concentrate on improving your product and service.(05:40) Josh talks about why he decided to use bootstrapping to launch some of their products and emphasizes the importance of building trust by delivering on promises because it's a serious business that requires a solid plan.(12:23) Tess highlights the often overlooked legal aspects of crowdfunding, such as the importance of patents, trademarks, copyrights, intellectual property, reading the terms and conditions, and taxation.(14:06) Tess talks about the benefits of crowdfunding for entrepreneurs, highlighting the engagement with a supportive user community, brand and product awareness, and the ability to assess market readiness before seeking additional funding or investors.(19:33) To make your crowdfunding campaign stand out, Tess advises against cutting corners on the quality of assets, particularly images and videos, which can either make or break your campaign.—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

Have you been struggling with securing funding? The issue might be your cash flow. Ambro Blackwell, a best-selling author and VP and senior business banking relationship manager at JP Morgan Chase, explains what cash flow is and how to strategically plan it in a way that sets you up for success. —(04:14) How to use your cash flow to figure out and mitigate what problems you might run into.(08:18) Andrea goes over why cash flow is vital for securing funding, the key sections that are typically included in a cash flow statement, and what they represent.—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

Are you looking forward to exiting your company? Take a glimpse into what happens during and after exiting a business. Jewel Burks Solomon, managing partner at Collab Capital and the ex-CEO and founder of PartPic, tells us how PartPic got acquired by Amazon and what she would’ve done differently. And Danyel Surrency Jones, the head of Amazon's Black Business Accelerator program and co-founder and ex-CEO of POWERHANDZ, explains why she made the move to Amazon and offers some helpful entrepreneurial tips to keep you going.—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

How do you keep customers coming back for more? By being attentive to their needs and priorities. Learn customer-centred ideas to integrate into your business from the best. Mitzi Rivas, CEO and Founder of Livie & Luca, is all about customer service and she’s got the customer retention rate to prove it. And John DiJulius, the founder, Chief Revolution Officer, and President of the DiJulius group, gives us some great tips on how to provide great customer service no matter where you are in your small business journey.—(04:13) How Mitzi personalizes her customer’s experience(09:46) How you can enhance the customer experience using delivery(15:04) What do entrepreneurs get wrong about customer service?(18:04) How do you maintain good customer service as you scale?(19:24) How can a smaller business compete with a larger business when it comes to customer service?—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

Should I work with a manufacturer or do the manufacturing myself? That’s a question every small business owner starts thinking about as they grow. Sean Brownlee, the CEO of Ravenox, has made the choice to acquire a manufacturer for his business and is gonna let us know all the benefits that come with it.—(03:42) The benefits of becoming a manufacturer(04:56) How to manage inventory—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

How do you show customers that your product is different - and better - than competitors'? Aaron and Whitney Cordovez, Cofounders of Zulay Kitchen, talk about how they differentiated their brand in the crowded "kitchen gadget" category.And Rita Gunther McGrath, a best-selling author and professor at Columbia University Business School, shares her five-step discovery-driven planning process to help you succeed.Learn how to find out what really matters to your customer, and what to think about when you're just starting out to ensure you stand out from the crowd.—(05:10) Considerations Zulay Kitchen made to ensure their products are different(12:44) What is discovery-driven planning(16:02) How to find out what really matters to your customer(18:15) Considerations to make when starting out that will help you stand out—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

How much is my product worth - and what is my customer willing to pay? Every entrepreneur asks these questions at some point in their small business journey. Mark Stiving, Chief Pricing Educator of Impact Pricing, joins Andrea with insights on:(2:00) How to think about pricing your product or service.(02:58) How to figure out how much your customer is willing to pay.(04:46) Should you start pricing your products at a higher price?(06:04) How to grow a subscription model and why it's beneficial.(07:51) How to remain competitive while still growing.(09:21) What are valuables and how can they help your business grow?—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

Every step you need to take to get your book in front of an audience - learn the process of publishing with Naibe Reynoso, a journalist and the founder of Con Todo Press. And Jane Friedman, a publishing industry expert, shares her secrets to ensuring your book is as discoverable as possible.—(05:32) What are the steps to publishing a book?(13:21) What's the ISBN and how do I get one for my book?(18:12) Considerations an aspiring author should make if they want to make a profitable business out of writing books.(19:50) What Business model works best for someone who just wrote their first children's book?(21:04) Technical elements that you need to know before trying to sell a book.(24:15) Andrea lists the key takeaways from the episode.—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

Are you ready to make your first hire? Learn how to find the right fit, and why retention is so critical. Keirsten A. Greggs, the Founder & Principal Talent Acquisition Consultant of TRAP Recruiter, tells Andrea what small business owners should consider at this important stage of growth.—(02:22) Considerations small business owners should make when they hire. (05:24) How to find the right fit when evaluating applicants.(07:08) Andrea lists the key takeaways from the episode.—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

What happens if you don't protect your IP, and is it worth all the paperwork? Jeannell Darden, CEO of Moisture Love, shares her story of battling trademark and copyright issues, and how she overcame it. Learn when and how to start the process, what to consider when rebranding, how to avoid trademark disputes, whether you should register your logo, and where to find legal support for small businesses. Cynthia Dahl, Practice Professor of Law at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, offers her insights. Stay tuned to the end of the episode where host Andrea Marquez lists her key takeaways!—(07:04) Considerations to make when rebranding.(14:54) Considerations for founders regarding trademark and protection.(16:47) When should small business owners start considering intellectual property (IP) protection.(18:08) Mistakes to avoid when protecting your brand.(20:16) How to avoid confusion among consumers and trademark disputes.(22:09) Should you register your logo?(24:18) Andrea mentions the cost of legal help for small businesses and points out free resources recommended by Cynthia. She also lists the key takeaways from the episode.—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

Are you preparing to launch your first product? Andrea learns how to prepare your MVP (minimum viable product), and how to know when you're ready to go, with Trinity Mouzon Wofford, co-founder and CEO of Golde. Trinity also gives us a look into all the behind-the-scenes work she put into their brand as she prepared to launch.—(05:56) How distinctive packaging and vibrant colors helped Trinity's brand stand out in a crowded marketplace (07:58) Copying big businesses' marketing tactics doesn't work! Trinity explains how she found success by staying true to her vision(09:10) How to leverage friends and family to gather early feedback on your product - before you launch (09:42) Trinity explains how she knew she was ready to launch her business (11:06) Andrea's key takeaways for launching your MVP—Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

Are you struggling to identify your target market? Or maybe you’re wondering where you can find your ideal customer? Andrea breaks down the customer journey into five simple steps with Amber Murray, founder of Fidget Stickers. Once we've figured out who our ideal customer is, Darian Kovacs, founder of Jelly Digital Marketing, tells us how to reach them. Stick around to hear Andrea's key takeaways at the end of the episode.—(05:51) Amber breaks down the five phases of the customer journey: awareness, consideration, decision purchase, retention, and advocacy (12:54) How to identify your ideal customer BEFORE launching your product(18:31) Tools that small business owners can use to learn more about their customer's journey(25:59) Andrea's key takeaways for understanding your customer journey —Click HERE to leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

Are you an aspiring or early-stage entrepreneur with a product to sell? Learn how to grow your small business from a diverse group of entrepreneurs and experts. By the end of this season, you'll understand how to:→ define your target market→ secure funding→ set prices→ protect your intellectual property→ position your product→ expand to new markets→ hire for success→ secure a supply chain→ differentiate with stellar customer serviceThis is Small Business is an original podcast from Amazon. It's hosted by Andrea Marquez, an aspiring entrepreneur who is on a journey to learn all she can about how to start and grow a small business. Every week she dives into a new topic with a successful business owner or expert to help her on her entrepreneurial journey. We know you have a busy schedule. That's why we started releasing "minisodes" - with valuable insights for growing your small business in just ten minutes. Or for a deeper dive into the stories of our diverse slate of entrepreneurial guests, tune into our regular episodes.

In this special bonus episode of This is Small Business, Andrea Marquez travels all the way to Las Vegas for Movement Evolutions where she hosts a panel of inspiring and diverse voices in podcasting. Andrea engages in insightful conversations with Mike Sargent, co-host of Brown & Black Podcast, Kulap Vilaysack, co-host of Add To Cart, Lee Adams, Audio Producer of The Midnight Miracle, and Lori Lizarraga, host of Code Switch. Together, they explore the importance of diverse storytelling and its impact on various communities and share their thoughts on how individuals in positions of power can foster and encourage diverse storytelling. Join Andrea as she points out all the key takeaways from these talented storytellers that’ll get you excited to share your own stories through your branding as an entrepreneur.Did you know that we have a voicemail line? If you have questions – or maybe a small business story you’d like to share – all you have to do is click HERE and leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

In this special bonus episode of This is Small Business, host Andrea Marquez goes to the Veteran Edge conference by the Institute for Veterans and Military Families, an event dedicated to Veterans and military spouses who are small business owners, to sit down in a live interview with Matt Butler, the founder of Rollers and co-founder of Tally Tumbler. Matt shares his story as a veteran-turned-entrepreneur or as he likes to say Vetrepreneur, and talks about all the transferable skills he learned during his service that enabled him to succeed in building his businesses. He also delves into the importance of being passionate about your business, trying to solve a problem with your business, and making sure you go in with a plan. Join Andrea as she writes down all the important takeaways from this inspiring interview that’ll get you motivated to start, build, and grow your business.Did you know that we have a voicemail line? If you have questions – or maybe a small business story you’d like to share – all you have to do is click HERE and leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

On Episode 28 and the season finale of the second season of This is Small Business, Andrea explores what it means to be a Latinx entrepreneur by talking to a Latino business owner that she admires: Miguel Leal, the Co-Founder and CEO of SOMOS Foods. Miguel shares all of the learnings he picked up along his entrepreneurial journey and talks about the importance of representation, sharing your brand’s story, and how to leverage your community. Join Andrea as she wraps up this season and fills her small business playbook with a bunch of advice and lessons that’ll help you no matter where you are in your small business journey.Did you know that we have a voicemail line? If you have questions – or maybe a small business story you’d like to share – all you have to do is click HERE and leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.

On Episode 27 of This is Small Business, Andrea looks into what could be the future of your business, that is, if you eventually want to merge your small business with another business. Andrea talks to a familiar guest from season one, Danyel Surrency Jones, the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of POWERHANDZ Inc., about her own journey merging POWERHANDZ inc. with another business as well as Danyel's newest role as Director of Amazon's Black Business Accelerator. Danyel talks about how to make your business more appealing to potential partners like making sure you have a solid financial model and a marketing strategy. Next, Andrea talks to Kison Patel, the CEO and Founder of DealRoom, FirmRoom and M&A Science, about how to set up your business in a way that’ll lead you to a successful merger. They talk about the many different reasons why you might consider a merger and the importance of a good M&A lawyer to help you through the process. Join Andrea as she fills up yet another chapter in her small business playbook with info that might help you pull off a successful merger.Did you know that we have a voicemail line? If you have questions – or maybe a small business story you’d like to share – all you have to do is click HERE and leave us a message!By submitting your voicemail, you’re granting us permission to use the recording in episodes of This is Small Business. Please note, voicemails will not receive direct responses. For help with other questions to Amazon unrelated to this show, you can reach out to Amazon’s customer service team at amazon.com/contact-us.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.