Just The Tips, with James P. Friel and Dean Holland

Today on Just the Tips we have someone who has an amazing story to tell. Most people in marketing have figured out how to pitch themselves as having an amazing story, but Alex Membrillo is the real deal. Going from being on welfare to owning a booming marketing business and being named to a Top 40 Under 40 list by Georgia State University, Alex’s story is incredible. He’s a humble guy, but we got it out of him on this week’s episode.

On today’s episode of Just the Tips, we peel back the layers on the mystery, wrapped in an enigma, that is Dean Holland. I’ve known Dean for years and if you asked me what it is that Dean does, I couldn’t tell you. But over a recent visit, I realized what Dean’s superpower is: Creating affiliate programs so businesses don’t have to rely on paid traffic. That’s a bona fide superpower, and on today’s episode we dive into how Dean does it.

This episode is a very special episode of Just the Tips. Despite not really enjoying each other’s company very much, Dean and I have made it through 100 episodes. And at a rate of one listener gained per episode, we have hit triple-digit listeners. In all seriousness, though, Dean and I have had a blast making this show, or else we wouldn’t do it. So today we’re taking a look at what decisions we’ve made and what we’ve learned on this long, strange trip.

Today on Just the Tips, Dean and I have a special treat for listeners. Our guest is Anton Kraly, a man who has started a ton of businesses, who knows the world of e-commerce better than just about anyone, and a man who literally has an award-winning course on e-commerce. Just one of his many talents is finding the maximum potential of drop-shipping. If you’re in the world of e-commerce, you need to listen to this episode.

Today on Just the Tips, Dean and I welcome Derek Gallimore, a serial entrepreneur who has really carved a niche helping businesses find savings via outsourcing. Derek came to outsourcing because he realized he couldn’t properly scale his business in London because of the salary costs. So he began looking around and found that he could save enormous amounts of money by sending work to the Philippines without seeing a dip in quality. Now he helps businesses do the same.

Fans all the way down from the cheap seats to the front row have been asking Dean and I for a solo episode of Just the Tips for a while now, and finally we’re giving the people what they want. Unfortunately, that does mean that Dean is also here, but we have a great topic we’re diving into this week. Even though both of us have built successful e-commerce businesses, we never actually talk about e-commerce!

Today on Just the Tips, Dean and I try to mend fences after the earth-shattering news that Dean has not seen Star Wars. But we get off to a rocky start when it’s revealed that our guest, Mariana Ruiz, also hasn’t seen the most important movies of our time! Luckily, Mariana (if not Dean) is still a true asset to the show, as she is an enormously successful business coach who actually coaches other coaches on how to scale her business.

Today on Just the Tips, Dean and I welcome a friend of mine who knows a thing or two about the one thing that every online business wants to use more of, but remains elusive: video. You hear constantly that you need to have more video on your website, on your Instagram, on a YouTube channel. But how do you cut through all the noise to make your videos stand out and connect with your audience?

On today’s episode of Just the Tips, Dean and I get schooled completely in how to make social media work for small businesses. That’s because we have as a guest Elise Darma, an Instagram Jedi who runs the Canupy agency that has grown numerous 250,000-follower Instagram accounts, has brokered hundreds of deals between Instagram influencers and brands, and runs an Instagram Masterclass.

On today’s episode of Just the Tips, Dean and I get started on the right foot when he serenades me about how excited he is to be my co-host. And then, we have an absolutely amazing guest in Patrick McKenna. Patrick is the Founder and CEO of Strike Social, a global, technology-enabled digital advertising company. He has more than 30 years of experience in business development and technology consulting for major corporations.

On today’s episode of Just the Tips, Dean and I bury the hatchet and actually compliment each other at the start of the show. Maybe we’re on our best behavior because we have Cathy Olson on the show. Cathy is a pro at making funnels look pretty, rather than simply functional. Her company name, Funnel Gorgeous, says it all. And on today’s show, she talks with us about why marketing so often clashes with design and why focusing on design can really make your funnels stand out.

On today’s episode of Just the Tips, Dean and I pull your head out of the sand and make you think about the one thing no entrepreneur likes to consider: Money. And to do that, we have Brie Sodano on the show. Brie is a financial adviser and founder of From Sheep to Shark. Her goal is to help a million women manage their money and offer real-life advice that doesn’t come from a handbook.

On today’s episode of Just the Tips, Dean and I welcome a mononymous icon in the world of advertising: Spanky. Ken “Spanky” Moskowitz has worked for some of the biggest brands in the world, including kicking off a huge campaign for Coca-Cola. On today’s episode, Spanky tells us how he got his nickname, why he embraced it, how story can transform advertising, and how you can tap into your own personal history to make your advertising connect with your audience.

On today’s episode of Just the Tips, Dean and I welcome two business partners who have been incredibly successful for a number of years. Jack Gibson and Jeff Schechter (aka Shecky) have been killing it for years, and nowadays work together in real estate. But as they discuss in this week’s episode, they wouldn’t be anywhere if they didn’t get their mindset right.

On today’s episode of Just the Tips, Dean and I welcome Stephanie Blake to the podcast. Stephanie is at the forefront of Facebook Messenger bots, and how they can help marketers take the next step in their field. Stephanie has an amazing and relatable story, being a work-from-home mom with an affinity for taking online courses, and she’s used that to really place herself on the vanguard of bots.