Startup Life Show With Ande Lyons

Hold onto your seats folks because this episode of the Startup Life Show is a wild and exhilarating roller coaster ride!Our guest, Adam Robinson, pulls back the curtain and candidly reveals the real startup stories you rarely hear. You'll feel the pain and the glory from his honest insights about the mistakes he made along the way, and the victories he pulled out from the ashes of burned attempts.This is a terrific episode for folks who want to know what really happens when you launch a business. You will be inspired, and you will be a better founder from Adam's entrepreneurial adventure!A little background about this magnificent man: After 8 years at Lehman Brothers (and Barclays Capital, post-bankruptcy) where he was trading credit default swaps, Adam decided to leave Wall Street to pursue his entrepreneurial dream. In 2014, Adam conceived Robly Email Marketing, and in 2015 he launched the product and flipped the email marketing space on its head by guaranteeing 50% more email opens than all other

Are you feeling confident about how you're pitching to investors or at pitch events? If you'd like to give a GREAT pitch that everyone remembers, click the play button... NOW.Our guest, Precious Williams, also known as the #KillerPitchMaster, is a world class master communicator who works with entrepreneurs to help them take their professional speaking skills to the next level. With over 24 years of experience conceptualizing unique branding, speaking, and marketing techniques, Precious trains individuals and companies how to remain authentic while presenting concepts and visions to their target audiences.As a 13-time national business elevator pitch champion (yowza!), Precious has been on top television shows and publications for her pitching and branding skills. She was featured on Season 8 of ABC’s “Shark Tank,” as well as CNN, MSNBC, Wall Street Journal, and many others.I'm thrilled to introduce you to this extraordinary entrepreneur, and I know you will SOAR with her AWE*MAZING advice!Prec

Our guest, Olga Bashkatova, left the stable world of corporate accounting and boarded the startup roller coaster ride by working at startup companies - 5 of them in 7 years. She found the work inspirational and educational and quickly learned she could never return to her former career as a corporate CPA. As the last startup she worked at filed for bankruptcy, Olga decided to launch her own business - NextStage Advisory - where she provides affordable outsourced CFO services to startups.Olga’s typical clients are VC-backed Seed or Series A startups looking to clean up historical financials, establish a stable, monthly financial process, produce GAAP financial statements and reports, pass an audit, implement financial software, manage an outsourced payroll and benefits company… and hire/train an internal accounting team. In addition, she makes sure her clients maximize their valuations by focusing on revenue growth while cutting expenses, automating manual processes, and developing more mature operations.Do I

"You want to reach the point where the average salesperson can sell to the average customer."Our guest, Uri Haramati, is a seasoned product manager with over a decade of business knowledge and experience in diverse capacities. A serial entrepreneur, Uri founded Life on Air, the startup that previously launched the Meerkat and Houseparty video streaming apps, which are used by millions of users worldwide, and where he held the position of Head of Product and managing company operations. Previously, Uri founded Skedook, an event discovery app, and served as a senior consultant at Deloitte. Today, Uri is Founder and CEO of Torii – a SaaS Management Platform that gives instant real-time visibility and control of all company-wide SaaS apps.Uri shares his extensive startup experience with us (Meerkat/Houseparty!), including his deep understanding of finding product market fit. You'll especially appreciate his advice on:•Co-Founder Operating Agreement•Chicken before the egg founder challenges•Transiti

As a new business owner, do you find yourself falling back into an employee mentality? Or perhaps you compare yourself to other founders and end up feeling like an imposter? Or Maybe you are so overwhelmed by the entrepreneurial journey, you’re thinking about throwing in the towel!Our guest, Krista Mollion is on a mission to create a global movement to help people overcome burnout, find balance, eliminate uncertainty, fear, and doubt and step fully into their potential.After almost 20 years working in the corporate world, Krista became a startup founder when she launched The SASSY Method™, a life coaching practice for bosses who want to live a more balanced, fulfilled life, and she’s the founder of Your Product CEO, a B2B consulting company for product management and product marketing Krista provides tactics and advice for overcoming Founder Fatigue, along with inspirational insights to help Founders become more self aware of their leadership style.To learn more about Krista's SASSY Method, please visit:

What happens when a computer engineer and seasoned entrepreneur with a strong product development and UX background attends a local trivia game night event? He creates an impulsive trivia game app!Our guest, Stephon McCoy, is Founder of QuicWit – a 24/7 365 trivia gaming experience and lead generation digital marketing platform. QuicWit asks users multiple trivia questions randomly … on a daily basis … and the first person to answer wins a valuable prize mailed directly to their house, no strings attached! Stephon is an entrepreneurial renaissance man with experiences ranging from hardware, digital marketing, Alexa skills, B2B platforms, iOS/Android development, and web app development to consumer products. He founded his first startup while in his senior year at University of Pittsburgh, and has participated in four different startups since then. A food truck connoisseur, grill master and travel enthusiast with a genuine love and curiosity for tech, you can feel how much Stephon fully embraces life!Stephon t

Feeling overwhelmed by the clutter of toys and baby gear taking over your home? Would you like to upcycle your stash of hardly used mother's little helpers, but can't find the time or energy to cart them to a consignment store? Our guest, Rhonda Collins, knows exactly how you feel. A documentary film director and a Mom to twin daughters, Rhonda lived in a tiny apartment in Oakland, CA and hadn't seen her floors in years. Every time she went to declutter all the gear, she felt a pang from the guilt of how much she spent on all the toys and from the thought of throwing out perfectly good toys which would end up in a landfill.Environmentally conscious and an avid recycler from a young age, Rhonda felt so uncomfortable to have all of this stuff and not know what to do with it, and not sure what would happen to it if she just donated it to the Salvation Army. She knew she had to solve the problem not just for her, but for society.So she co-founded TOYCYCLE - the easiest way to buy and sell used toys

Our guest, Dan Willis, is a Millennial Motivator and an international public speaker engaging audiences on how community and relationships are the future of marketing in the millennial marketplace. He brings his best advice from 15 years of international digital marketing experience to the Startup Life Show listeners. Drawing from practical experience from consulting with major brands like FOX TV, Toyota and H&M, Dan offers insights into the power of relationship marketing, video content and the emerging millennial/genz marketplace. Dan shares how your brand can succeed today, and how to build your brand’s success for the future.I found Dan at my favorite social media bar – Twitter – where he generously shares the best tips, tools and advice to his followers. He is the BEST role model for using video and GIFs on social media. He responds to questions and content with short, impactful videos… funny GIFs… and you'll love Dan's brilliant live streamed weekly tutorial AND his weekly Twitter Chat ca

"The reality is you're going to fail more than you're going to succeed. And the goal of a good baseball player and a good entrepreneur, when dealing with things like rejection or failure, is to recognize that it isn't the end point. It's just another data point." ~ Justin RealOur guest, Justin Real, has been obsessed with baseball his entire life. During his own baseball career, he experienced the stress of spending the end of high school competing for the attention of college team scouts. This is where the idea for his startup, Realplay Sports, came from – Realplay is an AI powered technology company that delivers video of every swing, pitch, and catch that any player makes on a baseball or softball field. Its cameras capture every moment to help players improve, share their highlights with anybody, and hold on to memories. The platform helps high school and college athletes gain a competitive advantage in baseball and softball.Justin shares his best startup stories, and yes...

Our guest, Hunter Foote, is a serial and an altruistic entrepreneur. With a strong background in private equity and real estate investment, Hunter is the Founder & Executive Director of the Vanderburgh House, a certified B-corporation with a mission to build recovery focused, peer supported, sober living communities. Vanderburgh is passionate about ending the stigma of addiction and giving those in recovery a safe place to continue their journey of sobriety.Hunter is also the Managing Director of Honeybee Financial, an innovator in real estate and business lending.Hunter and I both mentor at EforAll… my favorite non-profit accelerator program, and I’m so excited for you to meet this extraordinary entrepreneur.You'll hear Hunter share:* the benefits of filing as a B Corporation* the very expensive lesson he learned when he launched the business * how he figured out the best duplicatable business model for scaling* hiring missteps and solutions* why providing 100% financial transparency leaves employee

Have you heard the question “what’s your LTV/CAC ratio” and wondered – what the ? I’m just trying to build a business here!You may have thought to yourself “ruh roh – I have no idea what that means!Don't worry! I share with you what these acronyms mean, why they’re necessary for your business, and how to calculate them. As a founder, you have to lift “know your numbers” weights. It’s part of your hands-on training, and the LTV/CAC ratio is a valuable calculation to help you create a successful outcome for your business.Why? Because it reveals your marketing return on investment (ROI)In other words – it lets you know if you’re throwing money away on your business or if you’re investing your marketing dollars wisely.If you’re raising capital or applying for a line of credit, you’ll need to know this number.This is an audio from my Andelicious Advice YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/AndeliciousAdviceBelow is the example I promised for a practice calculation. Have fun and let me know if you have

Our guest, AK Ikwaukor, a former professional athlete known as Coach AK, is an entrepreneur, consultant and strategic storyteller who has traveled to 30+ countries working with students, professional athletes, coaches, government agencies, celebrities, CEO’s, employees of Fortune 100 companies, scholars, victims affected by terrorism and even community leaders from around the world through his entrepreneurial ventures. His endeavors have included work in sports diplomacy, storytelling, fashion, VR, and global education. He has led an unorthodox path which began by narrowly missing the 2008 Olympic games to working at top educational institutions.In 2018 AK joined a team of former athletes and a group of outstanding designers to launch a fashion brand called E-Lete Styles – a high end professional attire brand for male athletes.You will be entertained and fascinated by AK's entrepreneurial adventures! He goes deep into how and why he launched his fashion brand business, and shares the best mindset hacks f

How do you respond when someone thinks you're too young or too old to be launching a business?Our guest, Auriel Wright, is a serial founder and a current Senior at Harvard University studying Computer Science and Mandarin Chinese.That’s right… Auriel is still in college. My advice: don’t ever be caged by your age – you’re never too young or too old to launch a business! In her current venture, StrattyX, she serves as CEO and CTO and works to fulfill the company’s mission of democratizing algorithmic trading through their flag ship product, a mobile algorithmic trading tool for retail investors. Auriel has received nods from Grace Hopper, the Harvard Gazette, the US Navy, and Intel for her work and she previously worked as a quant at Goldman Sachs before starting her venture full time.Auriel is a fierce problem solver and generously offers all Startup Life Show listeners to reach out to her with any problem you're having. She'd love to help you!Her generosity flows throughout our conversation, w

It's natural to feel anxious when the "lights/camera/action" are focused on you. You're working hard to communicate your business message while managing your facial expressions and body language, all under the microscope of intense scrutiny. Our guest, Eric Cox, is a media and communications veteran with over 20 years experience in TV news, PR, marketing and on-air talent development for news. His passion is helping people tell their stories and he’s spent his professional life following that passion.His business, Media Prepared, is the culmination of two decades of working with some of the best in the fields of media, PR and marketing and consistently delivering results that help clients tell their story, make an impression or simply feel comfortable in an unfamiliar space.And he’s going to help you feel media prepared, too!You can learn more about how Eric and Media Preparedness via his website:Be sure to connect with and follow Eric via:Website: http://www.mediaprepared.com/Email: eric@

Our guest, Kim Gamez, is the CEO and founder of Mi Padrino®, an online event planning service to help parents and families organize, plan, and fund events celebrated in the Hispanic tradition.Kim saw a need for a more efficient solution for organizing Quinceañeras, Weddings, Baptisms, and more for the Hispanic community. And, as a mother of 5, she deeply appreciated the complexity of coordinating all aspects of these time-honored traditions with families near and far. Her hope is that, with the use of Mi Padrino®, Latinos all over the world can be inspired, stay organized, and get the funding they need to have the events of their dreams.Talk about an inspirational business model – wow – I’m so excited for you to learn more about this phenomenal female founder and how she grew her startup with 5 children and a husband!Moms: you are going to laugh out loud when you hear Kim's story about the time she was a finalist at a $100,000 pitch contest. Yup, she was breastfeeding her baby when they announced she was

Our guest, Andreina Viera, is an administrative professional and business aficionado committed to creating solutions for businesses and enabling growth in professional settings. As founder of The Vieras, an organization providing outsourced administrative, financial, HR and marketing solutions to growing businesses, Andreina works with startups and seasoned entrepreneurs. She's an experienced leader and active member in her community, serving as a mentor to organizations like Junior Achievement, and a board member for organizations like Entrepreneurship for All. Andreina's personal passion is to create opportunities for women of color and empower growth within her community. I've known Andreina for three years now and have watched her blossom from a newbie business owner into a phenomenal female founder. Andreina shares:* step-by-step how she launched, branded and built her administrative business* how she addressed her insecurities around owning and operating a business* her best advice for fo

When our guest, Michele Mehl, went looking for a fitness product that she could fit into her life, she was already a successful startup tech marketing executive and a Mom with a very busy family. Her family’s history of heart disease got her thinking about a better, more convenient way to exercise. She recruited a co-founder and they begin prototyping a portable stationary exercise bike, one that promoted the same quality of exercises offered at a gym or a spin class, but portable enough to use anywhere. And so the Excy was born. A Full-Fledged Exercise Bike in a Tiny Device for every body!Soon after the prototype was built, Michele had a serious accident, requiring months of recuperation, during which time she became even more passionate about her innovative invention.Michele shares:* the best customer discovery questions* Excy's secret sauce (Uncle Mike!)* her KickStarter crowdfunding story and strategy* how she figured out manufacturing (only one part is made outside the USA!)* return policy insights

Our guest - Andrew Wall, aka Awall - is a Digital Marketing Executive with over a decade of experience coaching creative professionals to success. He built the largest gaming video network in the world, produced 10,000 gaming videos, generated 1 billion YouTube views, live-streamed video games full-time, and managed 55 social media accounts across 13 languages simultaneously. Awall is currently hosting the #1 podcast for gaming creators, live streamers and YouTubers - The Digital Drop Podcast – and he’s the Vice President of Social Media & Video Production at Raging Bull, a successful e-learning company.I found Awall on YouTube when I was rebooting my Andelicious Advice channel – I needed state-of-the-art guidance for the best YouTube results, and I fell in love with how Awall delivers content to his subscribers. I’m so excited to share this extraordinary expert with you!Awall shares:• how his love of technology, video and gaming prepared him to be a pioneer in creating gaming content when YouTube launc

Marketing/PR expert and speaker, Robin Samora, teaches small business owners how to rev up their brand online and offline to attract new clients, connect with customers, get media exposure, and increase sales. With decades of experience, she helps professionals and entrepreneurs find their ideal target market, create branding, marketing and PR strategies that work – with the ultimate goal to double sales.I’ve known Robin for 8 years and follow her everywhere she glows. I’m thrilled to introduce you to this extraordinary femtrepreneur!Robin shares:•Why you need to create a Google My Business profile NOW•How to leverage HARO (Help A Reporter Out)•How to pitch the media – and a FREE PDF template to help you properly pitch and respond to HARO requests (grab the PDF here: https://andelyons.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/How-to-Pitch-to-HARO-7_24_19.pdf)•What startup founders must not talk about on social media•How to handle bad online reviews•How to create a crises plan•Media kit best practicesPlease visit Robin&a

A serial entrepreneur and a 35-year tech product management and innovation expert, our guest Jon Werner’s first startup story began in 2002 when he founded Bones in Motion, a mobile lifestyle services company that developed mobile phone applications and web services that monitored and tracked outdoor enthusiasts in real-time. He raised $2.7 million in angel funding to scale the business and he had the best of outcomes in 2009 when he sold the business to Adidas. Woo Hoo! Jon spent over 9 years at Adidas as an Innovation Explorer, where he created and led the IoT apparel and footwear project using NFC to engage consumers. In 2018 Jon and his family founded KOYA Innovations. KOYA is short for kindness on ya! KOYA pairs kindness and connection to create personalized messages between family and friends … anywhere in the world. And yes, when I say Jon and his family, it's his wife Cherie, the Chief Kindness Officer, and their two Millennial daughters, Caryn - the creative director and Courtney, the marketing