In this episode, we're joined by Taylor Welch and Chris Evans, founders of Traffic and Funnels, a multi-million dollar sales and marketing company.
Today we discuss how they built Traffic and Funnels and the challenges they faced along the way including working as a partnership, overcoming sales droughts and burnout, and setting boundaries. We also discuss marketing tips and much more.
Why Start Traffic and Funnels? (As a Partnership)
Taylor and Chris met in a Facebook group about marketing, product launches, email campaigns, and advertising. Over a period of several months, they began to learn more about the work of the other person. They bounced back and forth the idea of partnering and starting a business. They did provide complimentary skills of marketing and advertising for Chris and copy and funnels from Taylor. They had the mentality that they want to try it out, explore the area, and add value wherever they can.
In September 2015, they initially began with looking to generate $20,000 a month in sales. After the first full-time month in January 2016, they were at about $130,000.
"I think it's really important for partnerships if they do come together, that there's something brought to the table by both parties that would be more difficult for the opposite member. Me and Chris, we don't necessarily contribute the same things at the same time... It's important that you are aware of what the other person brings to the table personality-wise, skill set-wise, and work ethic-wise."
Some partnerships don't talk about expectations. In a partnership, there will also be disagreements. It's possible to disagree in a healthy way. A disagreement doesn't mean that you don't have each other's back. Nobody has the same perspective.
What does Traffic and Funnels Do Specifically?
Traffic and Funnels helps people dial in advertising, marketing, and message to market. It has turned into a powerhouse where people can skip years of the advertising and marketing journey by using the Traffic and Funnels team.
At this point, Taylor and Chris don't necessarily have different roles, but they have different interests and lanes where they like to work. Taylor generally works as the starter with many different tasks popping up at a time in a chaotic fashion. After Taylor establishes something and brings the initial energy, Chris steps in to optimize and scale with a longer-term vision.
"We are advisors in the business, coaching our leaders. Where we used to be developing the business, now we're really focused on developing people."
What does the team look like today?
They have a core leadership team with individuals handling operations, sales, marketing, and client success. These are the people that Taylor and Chris have appointed to run the business. Trust has been built and these individuals manage and grow the business without them.
"They're growing it without us, they're developing it without us. They have become great leaders and they have our ethos and understand our concepts and principles, it's almost like we're duplicating ourselves over and over."
Delegating authority to capable and trusted individuals allows Taylor and Chris to spend 5 hours a week each on Traffic and Funnels. They looked to get out of the team's way and let them own the successes and failures.
How to Most Effectively Market?
Taylor and Chris spent a lot of time to understand their target clients. They never assumed that business would just come to them. From the very beginning, they invested sales dollars into advertising for the company.
Your most effective marketing may depend on your interests and skill set. It needs to be organic and the messages need to be tested naturally. There's so many different ways to go with marketing and advertising, so having the right people in your corner can help you identify what's working and what's not. You have to know who to look to for advice.
Challenges Along the Way
The first full-time month was January 2016 with $130,000 in sales. In February, they were down to $30,000. At that point, Taylor was handling all of the sales. There was a lot of self-doubt that crept in. Taylor and Chris decided to speak with a coach, and Taylor got a spark in sales. After many "no's", Taylor's confidence was shaken. At every level of growth, with unfamiliar territory, confidence can be hurt. It's not necessary to be stressed out and have angst over something you can't control.
"Don't sweat it. Everything is such a big deal when you're young and you're growing... then you look back in hindsight and it's a learning moment. It wasn't a tragedy, it was a learning moment."
"This is a journey, it's not just a day or a month or a year... The thing that you really need is to just continue to march forward. Consistent action beats out most people because they give up."
Burnout
When clear boundaries aren't set, entrepreneurs can get burnt out. There needs to be boundaries in place that define what the individual does and what they do not do. It's difficult to have vision and self-reflect, especially when you feel that every single area of the business needs your immediate attention. When you're burnt out, you need to own that personally. You need to identify what gives you energy and life in the business and then focus on delegating the rest.
"When you can get to a place where you can prefer other people, elevate other people above yourself, that's part of the secret of succeeding. When you're so healthy as an individual and a person, it's more about "How can I give?".
Learn more about Chris and Taylor and their work: https://trafficandfunnels.com/
