Discussing how adding value, asking questions, and listening to the customer can help grow a business, with John D Saunders.

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https://weardulo.com

John D Saunders, founder of 5four Digital is an experienced serial entrepreneur who excels at marketing. After selling several online stores, and a career as an advertising executive for the automotive industry, John decided to start his own marketing agency. The need to learn more and provide more value to others were the main principles behind his decision to take the entrepreneurial route. 

In our conversation we go through a variety of topics and John mentions a lot of resources which you can start using today in your own business. Some of the things we covered - working in a remote environment, constantly learning new things and sharing those with the world, building a business on core principles such as adding value, asking questions and listening to consumers. We also dived deep into strategies for social media marketing and growing e-commerce stores.

Complete notes and links: https://weardulo.com/blogs/the-early-days-podcast/marketing-principles

Topics we cover in this episode:

01:35 - How John started his life in advertising

03:10 - Starting 5four

03:40 - Working with a remote team

04:13 - The transition from working on the side to full-time entrepreneurship

05:40 - Taking a leap of faith and having a contingency plan

06:30 - Finding 5four's first clients and the importance of networking

07:30 - Educating yourself and sharing everything new you learn

08:22 - Add value, ask questions, listening to your consumer

09:08 - Getting used to being your own boss

09:53 - Being a facilitator rather than a boss

10:25 - The process of self-improvement and self-education

12:37 - Balancing learning with execution

14:34 - Project and task management tools

16:40 - Starting 5four solo - the good and the bad

17:24 - Standard operating procedures (SOPs) and collaborating with others when scaling your efforts

17:56 - Having the confidence to hire your first full-time employees

20:22 - The benefits and disadvantages of working with a remote team

22:56 - Balancing time for internal marketing and business development

24:46 - Moving into a marketing manager role and out of the project manager role

25:37 - Social media platforms and content strategies with the highest ROI

32:40 - Tools and apps to have when starting an ecommerce store

35:34 - Recommendations for building out the Product Description Page on your store

37:10 - Documenting your life online

39:28 - Plans for the near future

42:10 - Links and handles