Today’s guest is Alex Henige, who is the founder of Reduce Reuse Grow, a small compostable packaging company that provides packaging for small coffee shops & food venders. And with each product they serve Reduce Reuse Grow will in turn plant a plant at a local restoration site.

We start by talking about his indirect approach to Kickstarter & how that grew into over 20k in contributions from backers. How a product can evolve by running it through the business model canvas? Why your first idea isn’t always the best idea? How we can impact the environment with every purchase we make? And much much more!

Thank you for listening!

Visit their website at ReduceReuseGrow.org or on Instagram @ReduceReuseGrow

In this episode I sit down with Seth Hiatt, serial board game entrepreneur & founder of Mayday Games.

Originally Seth ran a successful online business selling through eBay; however, that all ended suddenly when eBay shifted away from a single listing fee to taking a percentage of each sale.

Overnight Seth had to make a choice between going back to his previous career as an accountant or to rework his business model.

Follow us through our conversation as we discuss his journey & discover tangible takeaways you can apply directly to your startup.

Today’s guest is Boman Farrer, the co-founder of LunoWear, a stylish watch brand made from bamboo that nearly raised half a million through crowdfunding. Even when they had to switch funding platforms after raising 400k!

In this interview we discuss the following topics:

• The value of family tradition
• Building a loyal audience before launching a product
• How to properly execute a crowdfunding campaign.
• Instagram strategies using hashtags & influencers
• How to use Facebook ads
• The pros & cons of Amazon exclusives
• And much, much more!

You all are the greatest! Thank you for listening & enjoy!

Today’s guest is Tod Nelson, the 8th hire of Amazon and now the Executive Director of the Cal Poly Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (cie.calpoly.edu).

In this interview we talk about what the early days of Amazon were like. In addition we address topics that range from PR stunts to unorthodox hiring practices to Jeff Bezos leadership style on down to what you learn from packaging someones books.

If that isn’t enough, we dig deep into the following questions:

• How to manage explosive growth?
• Why you have to sometimes just show up, roll up your sleeves and work your ass off?
• Why you needed to think big at Amazon when came to implementing new processes?
• Why you should never hirer someone less talented than you?
• How entrepreneurship is best taught at the university level?
• How to maintain company culture while scaling?

Thank you for listening! Keep in touch with me @CultOfStartup on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat & Twitter.

Information can tell a story, but without structure, that story remains incomplete.

Today’s guest, Nick Grant, is completing that story with eye dropping designs created by his agency Killer Infographics.

Nick’s business evolved from serval fledgling ideas that earned their wings, but never really took flight. In the interview he talks about your first business idea not always being your best, nor your last.

We also discuss the struggles a startup must face in growing, including things like office space that fits your team, but has sufficient wiggle room for new hires to properly invoicing clients to make sure they are paying on time.

We also dive into the different types of freedom created because you've built a business and how his family influenced him to do the same. 

I hope you all enjoy this interview as much as I did. Thank you for listening & enjoy!

Looking for more information about Cult of Startup? Follow us on social media at CultOfStartup on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat.

Our guest today is Cameron Manwaring and in this interview we discuss how hustling & being present for opportunities completely changed his life.

We start by talking about his early days in entrepreneurship. Where he started his own window washing business to avoid working at a taco joint & how he broke the all time record for a class assignment to have $1,500 in revenue before the end of the semester.

We then get into the meat of our conversation, where Cameron started working with Devin Super Tramp, a YouTube celebrity who at that point in time had around 30,000 followers. Devin invited Cameron to be his manager & together produced over 70 videos and today Devin’s following has grown to over 4 million.

From this Cameron started a company that consulted on creating viral videos on YouTube called Shareability. To date they have worked with brands like Turkish Airlines, Poo-Pourri & Cricket Wireless and not to mention celebrities like Kobe Bryant & Ronaldo.

Additionally, Cameron was selected as a Forbes 30 under 30 in 2015.

If you are looking to find the right reasons to go into YouTube for your business, this is the interview for you!

In today’s podcast, we have with us, special guest Austin Craig. Austin got his start in YouTube by acting in a video for the brand Orabrush, which makes a special tongue cleaner that rids your mouth of bad breath. From this one YouTube video Austin has had opportunities to work with numerous brands and has helped them sell millions worth in product. We conclude the interview talking about his production company & how it has been recently hired by Brigham Young University to produce a series all about creatives.

We cover the following topics:

• What was it like when YouTube first released the ability to pay for advertisements?
• How can a company adapt to stay relevant with evolving social media platforms?
• Why you should consider the specific strengths and weaknesses of a platform before producing content on it?
• Why content is KING, but distribution is QUEEN?
• How to choose wisely team members and co-founders?
• And my personal favorite takeaway which was a formula to use when you want to win people’s attention and get them to act. Which is entertain, educate, organize and mobilize.

Watch Austin’s first big video with Orabrush here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFeb6YBftHE or watch when him and his wife decided to live the first 3 months of their married life entirely on bitcoin: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbH8Bfnki5l9fveNrxdMw6w

Feel free to reach out to Austin on Facebook www.facebook.com/austinmichaelcraig or at his website www.austinmcraig.com

For updates on show times and future guests connect with me on Instagram, Twitter or Snapchat all at the handle of CultOfStartup.

This episode is brought to you by Audible, which is a service I have used for years because I am not the fastest reader. In the time it usually takes an average person to complete a book, I take about twice as long. This is why I prefer to listen and digest great reads through audio.

And I have a book recommendation for you! One of the most eye opening audiobooks I’ve listened to is “The 22 immutable laws of marketing” by Al Ries and Jack Trout. Which left a huge impression on how I perceive marketing and what startups can do to avoid falling into the trap of a “me too product” along with a variety rules any business should be aware of.

All you have to do to get your free audiobook… and free 30 day trial is go to audibletrial.com/cultofstartup and you can choose from their selection of over 180,000 titles that range from books to magazines, you name it. Go to Audible and snag yourself a book! YOU LIVE!

Today’s guest is Chris Kelsey, a high school dropout who left school with only six months left to go during his senior year. Now almost 2 years later his company Appsitude.com is set to gross over 4.8 million in revenue for 2016.

His business has built 100 plus mobile applications amounting to over 50 million total downloads. They have grown from a small team to now nearly 50 employees located around the world. Can you believe he's still a teenager?

We go over some topics that a lot of young entrepreneurs come to terms with such as:

• What is the value of a college education?
• How to deal with parents when dropping out of school?
• Knowing who you will be and sticking to your gut feeling about the future.
• How do I network when I’m young?
• How to come over personal constraints we set on ourselves?
• And what resources are available to all entrepreneurs who are willing to do a simple google search?

We also talk a lot about of how the world and our inner ego will set limits on what we can achieve and ways to dismiss those thoughts and roll forward with where we wish to be.

I hope you all enjoy this journey I went on with Chris, it’s one hell of a ride.

We all love links and here the ones to find Chris on the inter-webs! Email Chris@appsitude.com or Instagram @itsapptime 

YOU LIVE!

How many times have you wished you were more environmentally conscious as a consumer? Brett Edwards aka Mr. Eco can teach you how through rap! While in college Brett started free style rapping for fun, under the rap identity of “Mystery E” and one day while at lunch with his sister and dad they suggested, he should start rapping about the environment. And thus, Mr. Eco was born!

Since that moment Mr. Eco has performed at 270+ elementary/middle school assemblies to 135,000+ children in The United States, St. Lucia, Taiwan and Hong Kong, his YouTube channel has over 730,000+ views, he funded his second album “Renewable Rap” via Kickstarter, and sailed from Bermuda to Iceland with 5 Gyres studying ocean plastic pollution. That’s what I love about Brett, he is a passionate individual with a mission to empower youth to make a change in the world.

Get ready to learn from the following topics and questions:

• What it means to empower an individual and not necessarily just inspire them
• Why is it so hard for us to make changes in our lives?
• What you can do right away to start contributing to the protection of our planet?
• How to handle the haters or hecklers while performing?
• Why you should start your business now and not waste any time thinking about it?
• Current events, such as the recent governmental ban on micro bead in face wash and tooth paste.
•  How you should approach running a successful Kickstarter campaign? Along with some strategies and tactics to use along the way.

Additionally Brett references a blog post by Tim Ferris on how to hack Kickstarter funding, here is a link: http://fourhourworkweek.com/2012/12/18/hacking-kickstarter-how-to-raise-100000-in-10-days-includes-successful-templates-e-mails-etc/

Here is a link to Mr. Eco’s Kickstarter campaign for his second album: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/74628798/renewable-rap-mr-ecos-worldwide-youth-album.

If you are looking to invite Mr. Eco to perform at your school, please reach out to him at MrEco@MrEco.org he can also be reach on Twitter or Instagram at the handle of @MrEco or better yet, watch his music videos on YouTube.com/MrEcoOffical, oh and his person website is MrEco.org

Deuces! 

Today’s guest is Jessica Santana, who is the co-founder of New York on Tech, a startup where it is there mission to prepare the next generation of technology leaders.

Jessica is a great example of leaving corporate to pursue a startup. And what makes her story so interesting is that her experiences working as a minority in corporate inspired her to develop New York on Tech. Not to mention her parents are immigrants that came here to help their family achieve the American dream.

We cover the topics such as:

• The gig economy and why parents should be paying more attention to it.
• How the education system is broken simply based on the fact they limit students by not offering enough hands on learning.
• The need for students to be exposed and inspired by potential opportunities that they have post graduation.
• In the long run, why skills matter the most over the theoretical learning?
• How to create a business model in ed tech?
• And much much more.

Give a shout out to Jessica on social media twitter: @JessWorldwide or her startup website: http://www.newyorkontech.org/

Thank you as always for listening, you guys are the best. Enjoy!

Craft wine is booming and today’s guest is in the thick of it! We welcome Sarah Kraft, co-founder of Hillersden Wine to kick off July with a bang. Hillersden has been able to accomplish some mind blowing results within a short period of time.

In this episode we cover topics that include:

• Why is it important to get involved in entrepreneurship at the college level?
• How jumping into a startup can be a way to discover your true passions?
• Doing vs planning?
• What is the difference between US and New Zealand wine?
• When a shopper picks up your product, what is the story you are telling them?
• How to execute marketing in niche locations that you might not normally think of?

If you’d like to contact Sarah Kraft you can find her on Twitter/Instagram @Hillersden/@Hillersden, Facebook facebook.com/Hillersden or order direct from them at www.hillersden.com

Today’s guest is Jeremiah Miller, founder of Forging Leaders, who in 2009 started his journey out by doing speaking engagements and writing articles when ever the opportunity presented itself. Eventually, in 2010 he was able to quit his 9 to 5 and pursue his passion of helping to make other leaders great.

In this interview we discuss the following questions and topics:

• How accountability is one of your biggest assets in building a company?
• Why is the greatest fear we have rejection? And how to over come it.
• How to convert your business plan into a strategic plan?
• How to avoid crisis moments with employees and give quality feedback?
• How to build allies who believe in your purpose enough to sacrifice for you?
• How to get buy-in from employees and co-workers?
• Why you should envision building a business as a game and develop a strategy around that game.
• How do leadership, athletics and grit relate? (my personal favorite part!)

If you'd like to contact Jeremiah Miller you can find him on Twitter @ForgingLeaders or on Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/forgingleaders/?fref=ts 

Today’s guest is someone whose story is both that of success and doing the right thing for people who need it the most.

Aaron Steed and his brother started Meathead Movers as a way to make money while going to school and stay in shape for sports. Since this aha moment, they have strived endlessly to utilize the braun and brains of student athletes to help people move. With over 300 employees, MeatHead Movers has grown to become the largest independent moving company in California. Additionally, Meathead Movers provides free moving services to victims of domestic violence.

In this interview we address the following topics and questions:

• Sticking with your gut feeling with your brand name.
• How teamwork in sports translates to creating a quality team in a business.
• How to properly train the next generation of leaders.
• How to create visibility for your brand without spending a dime?
• Why is customer experience so important?
• The more all in you go, the better you’re going to feel.

Connect with Meathead Movers online at MeatheadMovers.com, or on social media Twitter / Instagram @MeatheadMovers

We hear all to much about tech related startups. However, I believe there can be just as much value found from looking into the small scrappy ones finding their niche and making a dent in their community. Today’s guest, Whalebird Kombucha is doing just that.

Jake met Mike at a house party serval years ago, both a little buzzed, Mike thought it would be an excellent business decision to bring Jake on board to be part of the team. Since then, their operations have grown to now being found up and down the central coast of California. Not to mention that have a sweet kombucha tasting room.

During this interview we cover:

• How determine which flavors customers will like the most?
• Why is a rebranding to stand out a good strategic decision?
• Is it more important that you enjoy the beverage or that the customer does?
• How timing is the most important element to starting a business.
• Why is educating the customer a priority?
• Using your community to help inspire other and promote your product.

If you’d like to contact Whalebird Kombucha on Instagram @WhalebirdKombucha

I'm super pumped to bring you today's guest on the Cult of Startup show. If you haven't heard of GhostCodes, go and download it ASAP!

Frank Danna, co-founder of GhostCodes, a simple, fast and fun way to discover new people on Snapchat. Went from being your average Joe software guy, to main stream Vine influencer, to multimedia consultant to now mobile app founder.

Although this conversation is nearly two hours long, I firmly believe this is the most entertaining episode yet. Frank is a world class storyteller & marketing guru.

Topics we cover:

• What are the unique values of telling stories through Snapchat?
• Contract negotiation when working with brands large and small. 
• Disadvantages & advantaged of being a first mover on a social media platform
• Why the copy and voice of your content matters?
• How do limitations build creativity?
• Buyer friendly values vs features.
• Why do brand waste money on over hyped influencers & not just go for the smaller more targeted influencers?
• Why everyone hates Applebee’s, but they have a Snapchat account?

Contact Frank on Snapchat @FrankeDanna or Twitter @erskine

Looking to scale your business from zero to 20k a month in revenue? Greg Hickman, founder of System.ly, has done just that. While documenting the entire journey in his Podcast Zero to Scale.

In this episode we discuss:

• The need for accountability in life & work.
• Leaving corporate and pursuing your passion. How to take the leap.
• Productizing your service.
• How to pivot while not exhausting your resources?
• What is the number on likely thing to derail an entrepreneur from success?
• How to select a mastermind group to join?

Contact Greg on Snapchat @GregHickman or Twitter @gjhickman

As always, you live.

By now, we know that education plays a critical role in the success of future generations. The challenge, of course, is keeping students consistently engaged along that journey. Logan Cohen, co-founder of Küdzoo Mobile App, has set out to solve this problem and is doing so with over half a million downloads.

In this episode we dig deep into:

• What is like to grow up with entrepreneurial parents?
• Why is team balance is pivotal to getting investing?
• How to be careful when contracting developers?
• How to get interest in a product before you write any code?
• The process of customer development and letting the customer tell you their real needs.
• Plenty more value to be found here--we hope you enjoy it!

Contact Logan on Twitter @loganecohen or on Snapchat @logansee