Business Benchmark Group Podcast

Getting referrals is the best marketing strategy you can have. So to kick start referral month, Stefan runs through the benefits of referral marketing, how to get them, who to get them from and ensuring the referrals you get are actually prospects you want to work with. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our podcast. Find us on all your favourite podcast platforms: iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast/id1372652118?mt=2 Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/podcast/5ZbuFOBaZ8YQ3eT1u3Y14R SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/businessbenchmarkgroup iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-Business-Benchmark-29372537/ Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast PodBean: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/yi4rd-6bc65/Business-Benchmark-Group-Podcast ACast: https://acast.com/businessbenchmarkgroup

Laurie Reeves is the Managing Director of ControlWorks – an automation company that specialises in providing safe, energy efficient environments for commercial buildings, data centres and shopping centres. ControlWorks has seen phenomenal growth in recent years, which was only sustainable after first overcoming some major hurdles, which he describes in detail during the podcast. Laurie also knew that in order to grow the business effectively, he needed his team to take on more responsibility in running the business. He shares how he was able to make this happen, and the amazing results that were achieved once he did. Brilliant insight for all business owners in this one. Enjoy! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our podcast. Find us on all your favourite podcast platforms: iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast/id1372652118?mt=2 Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/podcast/5ZbuFOBaZ8YQ3eT1u3Y14R SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.co

There’s no point exceeding your customer’s expectations if it’s sending you broke. Before you think about more things you can do for your customer, first and foremost, you should focus on delivering exactly what you promised. Fulfil everything you said you would do. It’s surprising how many business owners lose sight of this. This is by far the most important aspect of the relationship. If you then want to offer even more than what you promised, you need to understand what impact this has on your business and deliver it in a strategic and systematic way, otherwise it could be costing you more than you think. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our podcast. Find us on all your favourite podcast platforms: iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast/id1372652118?mt=2 Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/podcast/5ZbuFOBaZ8YQ3eT1u3Y14R SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/businessbenchmarkgroup iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/26

Marcus Theodor is the owner of C2Films (c2films.com.au) - Australia’s highest rated, most reviewed wedding event videographer. C2Films has built their reputation by focusing on delivering the highest quality products to their clients. Marcus recognised, though, that the product is not the film they produce, but the amazing experience they deliver for clients on their most special day. By constantly wowing their clients, C2Films gained more and more referrals and grew at a rapid pace. To meet demand, Marcus needed to re-engineer the business to ensure quality didn't suffer - he was committed to delivering the best experience possible for each and every client, no matter how many. He shares great insight into what it takes to build a benchmark business from scratch, and the importance of building a great reputation.

Jacqui from Yarra Valley Gourmet Foods shares her story in business, and discusses the tenacity and determination required to be successful. In 2009, Jacqui left her career in the corporate world to pursue her dream with the purchase of Yarra Valley Gourmet Foods. Jacqui was determined to succeed - failure was not an option! With Jacqui's leadership, the business continues to innovate and grow, sharing local produce with more people than ever. Stefan and Jacqui discuss her journey of business ownership, and all the lessons she's learned along the way. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our podcast. Find us on all your favourite podcast platforms: iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast/id1372652118?mt=2 Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/podcast/5ZbuFOBaZ8YQ3eT1u3Y14R SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/businessbenchmarkgroup iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-Business-Benchmark-29372537/ Stitcher: https://www

Improved conversion rates are the key goal for any business owner or marketer. Marketing costs money, so the higher your conversion rate, the more bang you get for your buck. In this short podcast, Stefan discusses the importance of improving your conversion rate. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our podcast. Find us on all your favourite podcast platforms: iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast/id1372652118?mt=2 Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/podcast/5ZbuFOBaZ8YQ3eT1u3Y14R SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/businessbenchmarkgroup iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-Business-Benchmark-29372537/ Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast PodBean: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/yi4rd-6bc65/Business-Benchmark-Group-Podcast ACast: https://acast.com/businessbenchmarkgroup

We all know that keeping your existing clients is easier and cheaper than finding new ones. Every business owner’s goal should be to develop customer loyalty. Though it’s important to note that there is a distinct difference between loyalty and repeat business. Developing customer loyalty relies on you consistently exceeding your clients expectations. If you only meet the minimum standard they expect – that’s hardly going to get them excited about coming back to you next time, or calling their friends and telling them about how awesome your business is. You need to delight your customers. You need to surprise them, to exceed their expectations, to meet their every need – and then do more! If you do this, your customers have no reason or desire to go anywhere else, they won’t be swayed by cheaper competition. They know you, trust you and become advocates for your business. In this short podcast, Stefan explores all this and more. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to

No matter what business you are in: you will never build a great business all on your own. The bigger and better the business you want to build, the bigger and better the team you will need around you. But winning teams do not happen by accident, nor are they created overnight. Selecting the right people is just the beginning of building a successful team; to have them perform at a benchmark level, you need to focus on creating an environment that allows them to excel. In this short episode, Stefan explains the six keys to building a winning team. 1. Strong leadership 2. Having a common goal 3. Rules of the game 4. Action Plan 5. Support Risk Taking 6. 100% inclusion – 100% involved - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our podcast. Find us on all your favourite podcast platforms: iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast/id1372652118?mt=2 Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/podcast/5ZbuFOBaZ8YQ3eT1u3Y14R SoundCloud: https://soundcl

Stefan chats with Chris Sacco, Director at KLC Recruitment (https://www.klcrecruitment.com.au) Chris shares the story of launching KLC Recruitment in 2009, and how she has managed overcoming the challenges of growth with the support of business coaching and peer support of other business owners. Chris also gives great insight into the recruitment process and managing employees, for both KLC Recruitment's clients and her own team. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our podcast - NEW EPISODES EVERY FORTNIGHT iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast/id1372652118?mt=2 Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/podcast/5ZbuFOBaZ8YQ3eT1u3Y14R SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/businessbenchmarkgroup iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-Business-Benchmark-29372537/ Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast PodBean: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/yi4rd-6bc65/Business-Benchmark-Group-Podcast

Patrick LaManna - CEO of LaManna Supermarket LaManna Supermarket is an independent grocer that is taking on the supermarket big boys. Hear how their passion for quality food, quality ingredients and outstanding customer service has allowed LaManna to differentiate itself and flourish. Listen online.

We chat with Chris West, the Managing Director of Fleet Plant Hire in Melbourne. Fleet Plant Hire is an industry leader in Melbourne, providing earth moving equipment and operators for any project, including major infrastructure works across Victoria. Chris has been working with us at Business Benchmark Group since August 2015, and in that time revenue has more than quadrupled, the number of trucks has tripled and team size has tripled. Chris was getting busier and his time was in ever more demand - and eventually he realised something needed to change. Although his natural reaction was to be central to everything in the business, with our guidance, he was able to empower his team to take on more responsibility - and to his surprise, they not only met the challenge, they excelled. This led to flow-on benefits for Chris and the business. Chris shares his own learnings and gives advice that will resonate with anyone leading a team. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our p

David Buttifant is a world leader in sports science. In roles such as High Performance Manager at Carlton Football Club, and Sports Science Director at Collingwood Football Club, David has made his career building the resilience of Australia’s top athletes. David describes how building resilience drives performance. He performs a great experiment on our audience to showcase our fight or flight response to a situation. He also explains why high performing teams require clarity around goals and roles. As leaders, we can’t force behaviour but we can shape it and in order to do that we need to ensure that we must maintain a growth mindset. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our podcast - NEW EPISODES EVERY TUESDAY! iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast/id1372652118?mt=2 Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/podcast/5ZbuFOBaZ8YQ3eT1u3Y14R SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/businessbenchmarkgroup iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/po

Our interview with Matt Spiteri, the owner of ESC Electrical. Matt shares his story of incredible growth of his business, particularly in the past 18 months. ESC Electrical (http://escelectrical.com.au) offer electrical services to the high-volume domestic and multi-residential markets. Matt has been working with us at Business Benchmark Group since October 2017. Although a relatively young business, ESC electrical was an up and coming player in the market prior to joining with us. In the 18 months since he began working with us at Business Benchmark Group, ESC Electrical has fully established itself in the market with Matt taking the business to a whole new level. In this time, Matt has clearly seen his identity shift from being an operator in the business, to spending more of his time on higher hourly rate tasks as an owner and investor in the business. When he started working with us, Matt was still on the tools and working very long hours. 18 months later, Matt no longer works on the tools, works

As a business owner, you need to understand the difference between horizontal and vertical time, and ensure that the work you do is for a high hourly rate. If you want to build a progressive and growing business, the work you do needs to be at a higher level, and you must have the trust and confidence in your team to delegate your lower hourly rate tasks to. Stefan explores this all in this week's podcast. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our podcast - NEW EPISODES EVERY TUESDAY! iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast/id1372652118?mt=2 Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/podcast/5ZbuFOBaZ8YQ3eT1u3Y14R SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/businessbenchmarkgroup iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-Business-Benchmark-29372537/ Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast PodBean: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/yi4rd-6bc65/Business-Benchmark-Group-Podcast ACast: https://acast.com

Many business owners say they win a lot of their clients through word-of-mouth However, we find that many of these same business owners who claim this actually have no structured process in place – the referrals come randomly and unpredictably. In this episode, our Senior Strategist Damien Churton shows us how to get more people to recommend us. • 2:38 – Damien discusses his experience • 4:43 - Where do you get recommendations? o How do you build and leverage your existing network? o How to identify your circle of influence • 8:05 – Get clear on your ideal target market. • 10:55 – What to say when asking for the referral. How clear is your ask? • 15:25 – Dealing with your head trash • 19:20 – You need a structured process This is just a brief overview of building an effective referral strategy. We encourage you to download our eBook and sign-up to our weekly EDM were we discuss each of these steps in far more detail, and give you activities to put in place which wil

The backbone of the economy is small business - but their contribution is anything but small! There are an estimated two million businesses across Australia, providing nearly half of all employment. It is a crucial sector that underpins the operations of many larger businesses. But running a small business is not easy! If it were, everyone would be doing it. It’s not for the feint-hearted! But although it’s not easy, it does not need to be hard. In this episode, recorded from ABC Radio’s Nightlife, Stefan explores the activities that small business owners must do in order to be successful, including planning and understanding your numbers. After all, finance is the language of business and if you don’t know your numbers, you will be flying blind when it comes to running and growing a successful business. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our podcast - NEW EPISODES EVERY TUESDAY! iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast/id1372652118

How do you keep an eye on your employees? What's an acceptable level of surveillance? In this episode, recorded from Stefan's appearance on ABC Radio's Nightlife with Tony Delroy, they dive into the often controversial issue of business owners using surveillance to track their employees. In an increasingly digital world, Stefan explains how to develop trust and accountability within your team, without the need to overstep any privacy boundaries. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our podcast - NEW EPISODES EVERY TUESDAY! iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast/id1372652118?mt=2 Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/podcast/5ZbuFOBaZ8YQ3eT1u3Y14R SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/businessbenchmarkgroup iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-Business-Benchmark-29372537/ Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast PodBean: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/yi4rd-6bc65/Business-Benchm

“Whether you think you can, or you think you can't - you're right.” - Henry Ford In this short episode, Stefan explores the theory behind this famous quote, and how you can cultivate the mindset and behaviours to think bigger, and actually achieve your biggest dreams. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our podcast - NEW EPISODES EVERY TUESDAY! iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast/id1372652118?mt=2 Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/podcast/5ZbuFOBaZ8YQ3eT1u3Y14R SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/businessbenchmarkgroup iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-Business-Benchmark-29372537/ Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast PodBean: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/yi4rd-6bc65/Business-Benchmark-Group-Podcast ACast: https://acast.com/businessbenchmarkgroup

Many business owners struggle with knowing what to charge for their products and services. When we first start out in business, it can be tempting to have low, or even discounted, prices as we often are desperate to land new business. However, this approach will quickly cause problems, including a tight cash flow, needing to more work for less and building a client base who are largely driven by price. Instead, we need to ensure our whole identity as business owners is about delivering value and setting prices based on this value you provide. This helps ensure that price is only one factor your customers consider when buying from you, but it isn’t the key factor. If you want to build a robust business and be able to invest in innovation, as well as build a reputation for high quality and service, your pricing model must allow you to do that. This week’s podcast is a recording of Stefan Kazakis appearance on ABC Radio’s Nightlife with tony Delroy. Stefan offers valuable, real-world advice to business

The current economic environment is causing some business owners to become concerned and unsure about what the future will bring and how their business will fare. But the fact of the matter is that these are cycles will always occur, and as a business owner, you can ensure that your business not only survives through a challenging economic environment, but thrives. There are actually 3 distinct cycles that affect business performance: the Economic Cycle, the Business Cycle and your Personal Cycle - and you need to anticipate and be aware of these cycles in order to lead your business to continued growth and success through challenging circumstances. Stefan gives advice for business owners about how to navigate through difficult cycles to ultimately build a business that can weather any storm. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Subscribe to our podcast: iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/business-benchmark-group-podcast/id1372652118?mt=2 Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.c