Ep 191. Stop Selling Services: How to Sell What Your Customers Actually Want

Summary

The Scoop With Erica Krupin

Episode 191: Stop Selling Services: How to Sell What Your Customers Actually Want
Release Date: February 23, 2026
Host: Erica Krupin
Guest: Jeff Joyner, professional speaker, trainer, and author

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Episode Overview

In this highly practical encore episode, Erica Krupin welcomes professional speaker and trainer Jeff Joyner to dive deep into one of the most common traps for home service business owners: selling the service instead of understanding and selling what customers really want. Using real-life stories and actionable strategies, Erica and Jeff draw connections between personal growth, business mindset, and the art of connecting with customers. The conversation is packed with insights that reach beyond the pooper scooper industry and into the heart of what it means to build a loyal, thriving business.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Personal Growth & Business Parallels

[01:49]–[04:06]

• Erica and Jeff open with a candid conversation about their fitness journeys, highlighting how consistency and discipline in one area (like health) translate into professional success.
• Quote:
  “The older that we get, we realize we need to take better care of ourselves... We might not see results right away, but if we keep being consistent and we keep pushing through, eventually we start to have some progress.” — Erica [03:36]
• Jeff shares vulnerability about weight loss setbacks, drawing parallels with consistency and falling off track in both personal routines and business.

2. Mindset of Service—a Shift from Tasks to Relationships

[11:37]–[22:00]

• Jeff shares his story: from struggling salesperson to top performer at Campbell Soup Company, emphasizing the importance of understanding the true desires behind what you're selling.
• Quote:
  “There’s a difference between what you’re doing and what you’re selling... If all you are selling is poop scooping, well, six-year-olds could do that. You’re crazy if you do that… What people want is to do business with good people they know and trust.” — Jeff [14:00–16:38]
• Example: The Danielle Haircut Story. Jeff received stellar service from his hairstylist Danielle, who focused on personal connection, making her service irreplaceable—even in a commodity business.

3. Beyond Customer Satisfaction: Cultivating Loyalty and Raving Fans

[23:30]–[33:15]

• Discussion on the customer satisfaction continuum—dissatisfied, satisfied, loyal, and “raving fans.”
• Quote:
  “What I would be selling… is not poop scooping service. It's the opportunity to be in business and support the business of Erica.” — Jeff [19:25]
• Satisfied customers are vulnerable; only loyal and raving fans stick more, refer, and help businesses thrive.
• U.S. Department of Consumer Affairs study: only 5% of dissatisfied customers complain; the rest silently leave. Don't wait until they want to cancel—proactive, personalized engagement matters.

4. Automation vs. Authentic Connection

[33:15]–[38:00]

• Erica notices that automating communication led to turnover and fewer new customers; she realized that connection is irreplaceable.
• Jeff: “If you’re too busy to connect with your customers, you’re too busy doing the wrong things.” Delegate what you can, but never the relationship-building.
• Importance of finding little extra ways to serve—moving garbage cans, personal texts about packages or issues. These “extras” get mentioned more in reviews than the core service.

5. The Subtle Difference Between Service and Hospitality

[39:08]–[42:20]

• Jeff explains Danny Meyer’s concept:
  “Service is: did the job get done? Hospitality is: how did people feel about doing business with you?”
  • Going from 2 (to) to 4 (for)—are you doing something for the customer, or to them?
• Laundry industry example and the “extra mile” mentality drawn from the Sermon on the Mount.

6. How to Sell Without Being Salesy

[42:28]–[47:34]

• Addressing a listener question on marketing without sounding pushy:
  • Speak to emotional benefits: free time, safety, pride in a clean yard—not just “we scoop poop.”
• Quote:
  “I’d be looking at the emotional side of it, not just the transaction… we’re going to help you be proud of your yard again.” — Jeff [45:16]
• Gratitude is a marketing tool—thank your customers in memorable, authentic ways (handwritten notes, personal calls, not just automated texts).

7. On Communication, Personality, & Comfort Zones

[48:38]–[52:01]

• If you’re not naturally personable, change. Communication and connection can be learned like any other skill.
• Quote:
  “Connecting with people is a skill like anything else… If you’re quiet, you’ve learned to be quiet. Speak up.” — Jeff [49:00]
• Don’t use personality as an excuse; invest in growth.

8. Importance of Authenticity and Avoiding Inauthentic Gestures

[52:13]–[54:04]

• Customers can sense when appreciation or communication is fake or pre-programmed. Authentic connection fosters loyalty.
• Dogs and people "can sense fear" and inauthenticity—be real.

9. Work-Life Balance & Pursuing Purpose

[55:14]–[65:57]

• Erica opens up about entrepreneur struggles: balancing ambition with relaxation and relationships.
• Jeff advises couples and individuals to align around a shared purpose that’s bigger than money or happiness; service to others is key.
• Quote:
  “I think people are a little too chill, in my experience. The satisfaction that you get from watching TV is kind of artificial… the satisfaction you get from achieving, accomplishing, serving others—that’s real.” — Jeff [61:02]

10. Networking, Community, and Building Referrals

[74:04]–[83:45]

• Jeff’s advice for public speaking: Don’t focus on yourself or your own anxiety—focus on helping, connecting, and serving the audience.
• Engage with people everywhere (grocery stores, gyms, flights):
  • “Give compliments as an icebreaker.”
  • Real-world connections drive the most powerful and cost-effective marketing: word-of-mouth.
• Quote:
  “I see people more and more rely on billboards, advertising, branded trucks… but what really moves the needle is person-to-person connection and word-of-mouth.” — Jeff [81:34]

11. Full-Circle: What Are You Actually Selling?

[82:29]–[86:15]

• Being a transparent, genuine person in all aspects of life and business means your victory, progress, and growth become multiplied through the connections you make.
• “As you become a better person, that gets magnified because of your transparency.”

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Memorable Moments & Quotes

• The Danielle Haircut Story [16:38–21:27]: Jeff's moving account of loyalty and personal service that transformed a commodity into something unique.
• Customer Satisfaction Study [24:40–27:12]: Only 5% of dissatisfied customers complain—go on the offensive before it’s too late.
• On Authentic Connections vs. Automation [46:48]:
  “I get a bunch of automated texts on my birthday… I would rather not get the message than get an automated message pretending to be personal. It turns me off.”
• On Communication Skills [49:00]:
  “Everyone was born the same: naked, hungry, and upset. Everything else you’ve learned.”
• On Transparency [83:45]:
  “As you become a better person, you’re working on yourself. That gets magnified because of your transparency… Most people live private struggle-victories. You’re putting your struggles and victories into the universe for others.”
• On Purpose [60:44]:
  “There’s a purpose that you’re together. God brought you and your partner together for a purpose, and that purpose is bigger than you, bigger than being happy or just making money.”

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Notable Timestamps

• [14:00] Jeff explains the difference between what you’re selling and what you’re doing.
• [27:12] The “silent customer attrition” problem — only 5% complain.
• [35:52] Erica’s staff protocols for building customer connection every visit.
• [41:00] Hospitality vs. service—what customers feel is what they remember.
• [46:48] The value of authentic communication over automated messages.
• [49:00] “Connecting with people is a skill. Change. Work on it.”
• [61:02] Jeff on purpose, habits, and the value of serving others.
• [74:04] Speaking tips: Focus on audience, not self.

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Closing: Where to Find Jeff Joyner

• Book: Say It Like It Matters, When It Matters
• Website: jeffjoiner.com
• YouTube: “An Epic Life”—personal stories and communication tips

Quote – Erica [82:29]:
“If you don't put yourself out there, you're going to spend so much money on advertising, and it might not even be effective.”

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Takeaways for Listeners (Action Steps)

• Focus your marketing and service delivery on emotional benefits and customer outcomes, not just the removal of dog waste or a technical service.
• Build raving fans by proactively engaging customers, adding unexpected touches, and maintaining authentic communication.
• Work on your ability to connect, even if it’s uncomfortable—genuine relationships drive loyalty and business growth.
• Use your personal story and presence online and in-person as a magnet for referrals.
• Remember: You are not in the poop-scooping business, you’re in the trust-and-relationship business.

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This episode is an essential listen for anyone wanting to transform a transactional home service business into a brand customers love—and recommend.

Transcript

[A]

Welcome to the Scoop podcast. I'm your host, Erica Kruepman and today's episode is an encore episode. The reason being is I'm taking some time off to really focus on Spring Rush for my pooper scooper business. As many of you know, Spring rush is so important for our business and I really need to be locked in if I want to achieve those goals that I want to achieve and be able to give my business the time and the energy that it needs. These episodes, we feel, me and Mr. Producer feel that these need some extra love. The information that is in these episodes are really good and super helpful and I hope that you enjoy them. Thank you so much for hanging out with me and enjoy the episode.

[B]

Welcome to the Scoop with Erica Kruipen. Your host is the owner of Crouppen's Poop and Scoopin. She's built a six figure dog waste removal business and loves talking a little crap with like minded folks. Starting and growing a small business can be scary, but Erica wants to share some tips and tricks that she's picked up along the way as she continues her entrepreneurial journey. She hopes this podcast will educate and inspire you to think outside the corporate box and do something a little crappy like scoop dog poop. And now, here's Erica.

[A]

So for those of you that are watching the replay, I accidentally put the in stream link and my husband came in. I seen him pop into the stream. I was like, what the heck are you doing here? So funny. All right, well, Jeff, I want to thank you so much for coming and hanging out on the Scoop podcast and also hanging out in Krupin's content lab.

[C]

You know, as you know, I follow you on social media. You, you've been inspiring me with your workouts. I was telling someone today that I think there's a middle ground between being out of shape and being in shape and it's called being active. And that's where I'm at. I play pickleball for an hour and a half to two hours almost every day. And so it would not be fair to say that I'm inactive. But what I really need to do, I'm watching you getting in the gym, lifting weights, picking up heavy things and putting them down. That's what I got to get back into. I haven't done that for years. And so you're inspiring me. Not just in your business, poop scooping and leading people. And I love seeing how transparent you are with your fans and followers and kind of giving them a real life view of you and your family and what you're up to. And as you talk sometimes about your faith, which I think is important too, and so honored to be a part of whatever you're doing and to support you in any way I can.

[A]

I appreciate that. Thank you. I remember when I, I had seen you at LauncherPreneur Academy when Brian was putting on his lal. And you've, I mean, you, you share a lot as well. And I know you, you were talking about, like, not weight loss, but just moving and grooving. And I've seen pictures of you prior when you were heavier, and then you've lost some weight and just moving your body is, is really, it really is important. I think the older that we get, we realize that we need to take better care of ourselves. And I always had an unrealistic expectation because the magazines are always like, get fit in six weeks. You know, lose belly fat. And I've been working out consistently since I want to, say, September. And it's like, now I'm just finally starting to see some, like, little baby muscles in my arms. And I'm like, okay, here we go, finally. And I, I do think that that all translate into business, into faith and growing, that, you know, we might not see results right away, but if we keep being consistent and we keep pushing through, eventually, eventually we'll start to have some progress.

[C]

Yep. Yeah, I agree. And you know, my own personal journey when, when it comes to wellness is. Yeah, it was a few years ago that I was like £250 and I'm like, gosh darn it, that's an eighth of a ton. That's how they weigh pickup trucks, for goodness sakes. So I, we started doing low carb, super strict, more exercise, and I lost like £55 in about six months and felt good. And. But, you know, I travel a lot and running from place to place in the airports, eat a lot of restaurants, I, like, fell off the wagon. And I've asked some of my friends who are in recovery from drugs and alcohol, I'm like, is that a improper, you know, I mean, I don't want to belittle what they're doing, because falling off the wagon with heroin is going to get you in probably more trouble than going back to McDonald's when you know you shouldn't. And they go, no, it's the same psychological thing that I'll, like, eat something and then it'll just derail me. And it drives me crazy because I should be smart enough not to let this happen. But I'm like, well, since I'm off my diet, you know, what I haven't had in a year is a milkshake. And you know what's good after a milkshake? Another milkshake. And so I put some more weight back on and now I'm getting it back down and I'm fascinated. And I really, I'm 55 years old. I've been a professional speaker and trainer now for 30 years. I understand the mentality of motivation and discipline and consistency. Like, I get it. And even after all these years, I struggle with it and then I feel guilty about it. You know, I'll be up on stage and I'm like, oh yeah, telling people how to reach their goals and chase their dreams and I'm the fat guy. And you think everyone's judging you and maybe some of them are, but who you really shouldn't care. And oh, it's a whole thing. But, but I do agree. What I've learned in my life is that I don't know if an equilibrium is the right term, but when you're, you know, doing things, you know, mentally and physically and spiritually, you know, when you got it all grooving, one part helps the other. And it's like when a wheel falls off on one of those, for me at least I found that I'm in trouble in all of them. That when I'm eating right makes me want to exercise and when I'm exercising it makes me want to eat right. But if I fall off of one of those, then I'm like,

[A]

yeah. Yesterday, I don't know what was going on yesterday I had a really good workout. I was feeling good, looking good, you know, all the things, whatever. Last night I was just standing in the kitchen and I was just had a hankering for like some ice cream and I was like, I just want some ice cream. And I almost doordashed a pint of ice cream, but I drove and I got like a dairy free, gluten free ice cream. And in theory it would be fine because it fits within my diet. I got three different pints and I had more than I should have of each. Last night I was miserable, I had the sweats. My husband actually had to open up the window for me because I was so hot. Which then led to. I woke up late, my eyes were puffy. I have barely done anything productive today. So it all kind of, it does, it all starts to like fall off and. But you have to recognize and be like, nope, we're going to course correct. And I Think just in business in general, if we don't. How do I want to say this? Sometimes we don't know what's going on, and we're trying to figure it out, and we need to, like, stop, maybe reach out to somebody. Oh, I lost you.

[C]

No, that's me. My having some trouble with my camera. It's got, like, a screensaver that comes on, and I don't know why it's doing that. So is it back on?

[A]

Yeah, you're good. My thought wasn't very good anyways. But I do have a question. What kind of camera are you using for your streaming?

[C]

So I'm not the best example for that. I never did any streaming or zooming or anything until just a few years ago when Covid hit and I do speaking and training for a living, and all of my events got canceled. That was a fun season. When my income went to zero, that was unexpected development. And so this is. It's a Sony camcorder that I'm hooked up to here through my laptop.

[A]

Are you an iPhone user?

[C]

It's probably about 10 years old. Yeah.

[A]

Okay, well, if you want off camera, I can tell you because I'm recording from my iPhone. I use my iPhone for all my recording. Everything that you see, it's just the iPhone.

[C]

Yeah, we'll connect on that. When I'm doing, know, when I make YouTube videos and stuff, I use my iPhone for that. But. But I've been having trouble connecting my iPhone to the. To my. Sure. Microphone and. But I don't. I don't do it as much as you do. I'm not. I don't do a regular podcast. I do occasional YouTube videos. But, yeah, I. I agree with what you're saying that, you know, it's, you know, the mentality of it. I'm convinced the mindset behind everything really makes a difference, you know, and. And that it's okay to draw a line. It's okay to have too much ice cream. Last night when you get in trouble is when you start a habit of ice cream every night now, you know, but to draw a line and start over. And so that's kind of where I'm at in my life, is trying to find some good balance. I was reading probably different religious beliefs and spiritual backgrounds, listening to your podcast. Personally, I'm a Christian, and I was reading in the Book of Luke the other day, and, you know, there's all these stories about, know, baby Jesus and then nothing until he's an adult. Except for there's this one little passage in Luke, I think Luke 2 or Luke 3, that. That described Jesus growing up, and it said he grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and men. And I'm reading that, and I'm like, okay, so wisdom. He grew physically, mentally, and he grew in his ability to get along with people and his relationship with God. And I'm like, that's it. Spiritual, mental, physical, you know, with people. You know, and so having those. Having those balances are important, I think.

[A]

And so it is. And I. You're. You're good with people. You're good with communicating with people. And I was a little intimidated to even have you on the podcast because, you know, to me, you're big. You're a big dog. And I'm like, oh, I don't know if I can interview well, but I'm glad that you're on. And I've. I've read your book several, several times. Say it like it matters, when it matters in there. There's a part. There's a lot of good parts. But the one that I still kind of get hung up on is where you talk about, like, how you became a really good salesperson because you weren't selling the item that you were selling. You were able to construct, like, a story around it and what you were actually selling.

[C]

And.

[A]

And I've been like, thinking on that ever since I read your book. And I think a lot of us scoopers or people that listen to this podcast, we're scoopers or we're in the home service industry, and it's a commodity. Right. It's a lot of times it's lower ticket sales, but it's high volume. And so I'm wondering if we can kind of go into that a little bit and why it's important to, like, spend time to learn your customer, learn what you're actually selling, like, what your customer actually wants.

[C]

And.

[A]

And then how to build a marketing plan around that.

[C]

Yeah, be happy to. And for your listeners who don't know who I am. Yeah, by the way, we should probably go there. But my name is Jeff Joyner. I am a professional speaker and trainer based out of Cincinnati, Ohio. My weird career background is. Got a degree in. I got a bachelor's degree in communication when I was young, right out of high school, and speech communication was on a speech team when I was in college, which led to a scholarship to graduate school. Got a master's degree in communication from Miami University in Ohio. And then they offered me a faculty position right after that. So I was 22 year old college professor, and much to the surprise of every teacher I ever had, did that for five years and then went to work in corporate sales for the Campbell Soup Company. And I spent 10 years working in sales for a Fortune 500 company. Really, really struggled. My first four years was the worst salesperson they had. Like, literally, they used to rank us and send out an email, and I was at the bottom. And I took basically a year of my life and started studying selling. I read every book you could find on the subject, probably 60 or 70 books, took out little nuggets out of each one and kind of reinvented how I go about selling products and services. That next year I was the top Campbell Soup salesperson in the world. You can't see him in the background, but I got my little trophies up here, you know, the merit award for excellence they give to their top salesperson. And I won it again the next year and the next year. And then when I do selling training for companies today, I was just in Minnesota last week, big sales company, and I said, yeah, I learned some things that helped me make five times more sales with one third the hours at work. And they're all sitting there. Like, I can tell they don't really believe me, but neither can they afford to ignore this information. But that's kind of my story. And I really. Yeah. Learn some things, hopefully that may be of use to your listeners. Because I would argue with your premise when you say what you're doing is a commodity. I think maybe it is and maybe it isn't. It depends what you're selling, if you're. What you're. I think there's a difference between what you're doing and what you're selling.

[A]

Yeah, let's unpack that.

[C]

What you're doing is scooping poop, right?

[A]

Yep.

[C]

And that is. Anyone could do that. We could train monkeys to do that. It's not difficult. Right. And so if that's all you are selling is poop scooping, well, six year olds could do that. Right. And so I don't think you should be selling poop scooping at all. I think you're crazy if you do that, I think, because you gotta, you know, I, I talked to my, my kids are young adults now and I have one teenager left and then two in their 20s. And I talked to them about, you know, how income works in a free enterprise economy. And I don't know if you've heard me tell the story, but my, my oldest daughter Amanda was a champion in karate. She won the national championship in karate at the USA, you know, Karate Nationals when she was like 13 years old. And then she repeated gold medal when she was 14, had a tryout with the U.S. olympic Committee, one of the best kids in the world. And I used to go around, tell her story everywhere. And I was in a company in Indianapolis and I told her a story. And the president comes up and he goes, hey, we're having our shareholders meeting next week. Would your daughter be willing to speak at our conference? And I go, I don't know. I mean, she's a 14 year old girl. I'll ask her. So I say, amanda, would you be willing to put together like a 10 minute speech about what you learned about karate? And she's like, I'd rather not. And I said, I'll split my speaking fee with you if you do it. And she goes, well, how much is it? And I think it was like 8,000 bucks. And she goes, I can make $4,000, but I'll do it. And so we did it together, showed a little video of her, and then she. And she rocked him up there. She was talking about, you know, these are talking to mostly professional salesmen, salespeople. And like, you guys are way too concerned about your competitors. If you're good enough, you don't have competitors. And anyway, we're driving home and she said, I can't believe I just made $4,000 in one night. She goes, it would take me all year to make that money babysitting. And I said, yeah, do you know why? I said, because when you babysit, you only benefit one family at a time. And tonight you benefited a thousand families. And so your income in this country, I'm convinced, is determined generally how many people benefit from what you do or how few, and how many people can do what you can do or how few does that make sense? So if your only skill is flipping burgers, you're never going to make a lot of money, because most people can do that, and it only benefits a few people at a time. And so if I was in your line of work, right, scooping poop is what we do, but what do we sell is something very different than that, Right? You know that. You know, in my book I talk about learning the difference between people's wants and needs, right? That was one of the lessons I learned that really helped me was I read a line in a book that said, people buy what they need to get what they want. And I was like, people buy what they need to get what they want. So someone who needs life Insurance? Do they want life insurance? No, but what do they need? What do they want? Well, they want peace of mind for their family. So someone who needs a pooper scooper, what do they really want? Some of them just want a clean yard with no poop in it, and it's that simple. My, my screen keeps doing that. Driving me crazy. Some of them, Most of them, I'm assuming what they want is not to have to do it themselves. Right. But there's other things that they want too. They want to work with people they trust. They're letting people onto their property. I wouldn't let just anybody come onto my property to be on my property when I'm not home. And I think you're not selling a product, you're selling a service. I think what people want is to do business with good people that they know and they trust. And that's what I would be selling if I were in your shoes, is not poop scooping service. It's the opportunity to be in business and support the business of Erica. You know that we're partners. I'm part of your family almost. I don't know if I'm making sense. I'll give you an example. I get my hair cut about every three weeks. And for years I went to sports clips. I don't know if they have those where you guys live. And it's haircuts for men. You watch sports, you get your haircut, they give you a shampoo. And I would always go in there and like, all right, do you have a specific person or first available? I'm like, first available. Well, one time this girl Danielle cut my hair. And as she's cutting my hair, she's like, tell me about your family. Oh, you know, my wife Kathy and I have been married for, you know, blah, blah. We got three kids. Oh, what do your kids do? Oh, my God, Mom. My son rides roller coasters in my day. And she really seemed to take an interest in me and my family. So next time I went back, they said, first available. And I said, danielle, is she here? Yeah. So she cut my hair again, and she remembered my kids names, remembered my wife's name. Remember what I did? We had a great conversation, found out that she's a single mom with four kids. Wow. So when it came time to give her a tip, I gave her the biggest tip I ever gave somebody who cut my hair. Next time. Three weeks later, I needed a haircut. And instead of showing up and saying, is Danielle working here? I called and said, can you tell me When Danielle's going to be there, because that's when I'm getting my hair cut. Right. You see where the story's going and you have vendors like this in your life. Yeah, right. That. Well, she cut my hair at sports clips for like 10 years. And then she got in a fight with the manager there because she had all the customers were wanting her. They put a board up on the wall that said the names of everyone waiting, the name of the customer and who they're waiting for. And it was like, Danielle, Danielle, Danielle, Danielle. People were sitting there waiting an hour for Danielle when there's other women standing there doing their nails. And so she left there, and I'm like, danielle, where are you going? She goes, I'm just. I think I'm take a break. And I said, can I, you know, can I come to your house? For two years, I drove 30 minutes one way for this woman to cut my hair in her garage and paid her cash. And because she made me feel like I was her favorite customer, now she's clearly making a lot of other dudes feel that same way. Because when I believe in somebody else would be coming. And now she's at another student, but she still cuts my hair. And now she cuts my son's hair. And I've recommended about a hundred of my friends for her to cut their hair, too. So it's not apples to. Apples to your business, but you could argue that a haircut is a commodity.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

But getting your haircut by Danielle. Right. Is a special thing, and she makes it special. And so that's what I think. I think if I were in your shoes or any pooper scooper shoes. How do you differentiate yourself? And you've heard me speak to the launcherpreneur people. I tell them the same thing. If you. I was on Brian Fullerton's Facebook thing that he does. I forgot what he calls that. Not LinkedIn. Linked up something.

[A]

Link. It's just called Link.

[C]

Yeah, it's called Link.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

And I asked, they had all these people on there, and I said, if your lawnmower blades got twice as sharp, would you double your profits this year? And they said, no. What if you became twice as skilled at making straight lines in people's yards with your lawnmower, Would your sales and profits double? No. What if you got twice as good with people with connecting with them, with thanking them for their business, with finding out, is there anything special that you need when we're here? Oh, you know what? We don't like it when you put Your, you know, put it here, Would you put it over there. There's little things that people want. You know, one of my chapters in my book that you've read is, you know, getting rid of your satisfied customers. And I don't know if that part made sense to you. To me, this stuff is all related, but I used to think, like most people, that customer satisfaction was a continuum with two ends. And one of them was satisfied and the other one was dissatisfied. And it dawned on me one day that's not true at all. Right. It's more like this, you know, satisfied customers or, you know, but dissatisfied customers. What are dissatisfied? If you got a customer who's dissatisfied with your service, what do they become?

[A]

Real quick, a non customer or a person that is sending me messages.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

And then a satisfied customer is sometimes are the ones that are just like the service is fine, there's some issues, but I don't have the time to complain and nor do I want to find another customer. You know, they're just kind of neutral.

[C]

You have some dissatisfied ones that are hanging around and they're easily picked off by other people.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

You know, I saw a study by the U.S. department of Consumer Affairs. I'll give you a fill in the blank trivia question and maybe if you got some people that are watching this, can they give you feedback or they're just watching?

[A]

No, they can. There's actually a chat. Can you see the chat by any chance?

[C]

I see that there's a private chat, but I don't see any comments. There are people chatting away.

[A]

Well, there's only. There's one.

[C]

Okay, comments. I just tipped on it. Yeah, Brian Race is in here.

[A]

Yeah, he's in the house.

[C]

I know. Brian. Hey, Brian.

[A]

Yeah, Brian. We were chit chatting earlier. He was helping me out because I was having some audio issues when I had an in guest person and the audio wasn't the best, but we're gonna get that figured out.

[C]

A friend of mine is a former NFL guy and he wrote a book and he said, yeah, I'm recording the audiobook right now. Oh, you should have talked to me. I got the best guy that would have worked with you on it, probably giving you a better deal. And he said, yeah, this guy's being a real stickler, making me rerecord things over and over again. I go, next time talk to me first. But here's my trivia question from this study. I found said. It said one in four times when somebody buys a product or service, they're dissatisfied. So four People buy a car, one of them's unhappy about the experience. Four people buy a sweater, one of them's not happy. Four people get their poop scooped, one of them doesn't like how it was done. One in four is the average. But out of those dissatisfied customers, what percentage of them complain to the service provider about it? What do you think?

[A]

A huge shout out to today's episode sponsor, Jobber, the number one operations management software for home service business owners. Jobber is the software I use to run, grow and manage my, my small pooper scooper business. Jobber helps me handle the admin tasks quicker so I can focus on growing my business and getting more me time back. From creating custom quotes all the way to getting paid my money, Jobber has my back. Yeah, we're pretty much best friends. But if I had to choose my favorite feature, I'd say the mobile app. I can create the quotes, edit the jobs change, communicate with customers and keep my eye on the staff right from my phone. If you're a home service entrepreneur looking to level up your business, look more professional and save time, head over to jobber.com croupin to start your 14 day free trial and get 20% off your first six months with my special link. Now let's get back to the scoop.

[C]

One in four is the average. But out of those dissatisfied customers, what percentage of them complain to the service provider about it? What do you think?

[A]

It's. I feel like it's gotta be less than half way. Out of the dissatisfied.

[C]

Yeah. So out of the dissatisfied group, what percentage of them complain?

[A]

3.

[C]

Or like you're close. 5%. Okay, 5% complain, 95% just take their business elsewhere.

[A]

And I find that to be very, very accurate. Because when a customer wants to cancel service, I always say, if you don't mind me asking, what was the reason that you're canceling? If they didn't give me an answer, and sometimes it's just personal reasons or it's just, well, there was issues. I'm not happy with the service and then, then I want to unpack it. What can we do to, you know, be better? What happened? A lot of people will silently suffer until they find somebody else.

[C]

And so here's my advice based on what you just said, you know, and you can take it or leave it. What do I know about scoop and poop? But you're doing the right thing at the wrong time. They're saying, I want to end my service. What could we have done better? It's like when your significant Other dumps you and leaves a note on the fridge that says, this isn't working. You're like, wait, wait, wait, wait. It's too late, right? As a much smarter move is before they ever say anything to find a way to have a conversation with them. And I know in the modern tech savvy world, everybody wants to do an automated bot, sending out a. A text to them. I don't think that's where you win and lose. I think to find a way to get face to face with them somehow and say, hey, really enjoyed, you know, keeping your yard clean for the last few months. Is there anything that we could do better? Is there any way that we could change? And you know what? They might ask you to do something you can't do, you know, but more often than not, because here's what I've learned, right? There's. There's dissatisfied customers, then they're satisfied. What's better than that? A loyal customer.

[A]

Okay, right.

[C]

And that's someone you know. And, and I ask my audiences sometimes, hey, those of you who are married, what if I called your spouse and said, hey, tell me about your spouse? And they said, yeah, satisfactory. That would concern me. He'll do until I find something better. Right? And so a loyal customer, right? And then better than that is a raving fan, someone who so loves what you do. I. One author called them your apostles. They're out spreading the good news. And I guarantee you, you've had customers that have recommended you to their friends, and they're like, oh, my gosh, we got all this poop in the yard. And they're like, oh, my gosh, you need to call Erica. And man, those are worth their weight in gold. But my strategy when I was working at sales became, I'm going to start shooting for that. You know, I had a. I told the story in my book, but I had the president of a big company, a regional president for one of America's biggest companies, called me up and wanted to meet with me. And he goes, I heard the sales training you do is good, but I don't know, we train our people pretty good. And I go, oh, yeah, I'm sure you do. And he goes, but here's my question. He goes, we survey our customers and we ask them if they're satisfying, and we score very high. And he leaned forward and he goes very high. He goes, but every day we lose customers. How do you explain that? I said, let me guess. When you survey your customers and ask them if they're satisfied, you get between 90 and 95% that say they're satisfied. And he goes, 92.6%. How did you know that? I said, well, I'm just a genius consultant. I didn't tell him that. Every company that surveys their customers and asks them if they're satisfied gets the same answer. And some of them are dumb enough to brag about it, right? Verizon's like 9 out of 10 Verizon customers would recommend Verizon. Well, of course, because all the millions of people that don't like Verizon have already switched to AT&T. Ford does it, too. Nine out of 10 Ford owners would recommend a Ford. Yeah, because they like Fords. That's why they drive one. And so that became my strategy. And if I was in your shoes, to be. I do think. And it takes time, and you can't. I'm not saying every one of your customers you're going to take out to coffee every week, that you can't do that. But some kind of, hey, this isn't just. We're not just a vendor, right? You're doing business with me and my family. I would let them know. I would. You know, I'd find a way to introduce your husband to him. Even if it's on, you know, an email or something that. Or a flyer or something that. That, hey, when you do business with us, you're supporting my young family and we really appreciate it. I'll tell you a story. And again, sometimes these are different industries that you gotta kind of draw the lessons out of. But I got a friend who owns a frozen custard shop, right? And it's seasonal. It's open in the summertime, and it's no indoor seating. It's. You go up and you get your ice cream and you sit out at the patio and eat your ice cream. And he's like, jeff, I'm trying to increase my sales. You know what. What apps can I use to increase my sales? What. What technology? What kind of advertising? And I go, you know, I say, you know what? I would start, honestly, this is the only way I know how to give advice. What would I do if I was in your shoes? And I said, here's what I would do. I would be out on that patio every Friday night and Saturday night all summer, shaking hands and kissing babies like I was running for Congress. And I would go up to some family eating their ice cream and saying, hey, is your ice cream good? What are they going to say?

[A]

Yeah, yeah.

[C]

And you say, hey, my name's Dale. This is My store. And this is how I'm putting my kids through college. And it means a lot to me that you're supporting my family business. Thank you. Come again soon. Would you bring some of your friends? He started doing that that summer. His sales doubled and his profits tripled,

[A]

which is so huge. And you telling these stories, I know you said it like, we gotta pull from different, you know, different places, but it all, it all boils down to the same thing as connecting with your customer. And I think this is really important to talk about, especially with AI, the automations trying to do things as, like, quickly as possible. And I got into this mindset as well. When I first started my business, I was very personable. I knew everybody's name, I knew the dog's name, I knew the backyard. I knew all of it because I was so focused on the business. And then as I got busier, I started to get staff, I started doing the social media. I was thinking, how am I going to automate this a little bit more? How can I make this easier? When I started doing that, that's when I drastically seen a change and a decrease in getting new customers. And then there was an increase of turnover. And I wasn't quite understanding what was going on until I sat back and really thought about it. I was like, you're not doing what you were doing in the beginning. You weren't connecting with the people. So I had to go back to that connection. Yes, it is time consuming, but it's very, very effective and it's very important for your business and it's the best

[C]

use of your time. And again, I don't know the, the profit margins you're dealing with. I don't know any of those details. And so excuse me if I'm proposing something that wouldn't work in your business. But there's, there are parts of your operation that can be automated. Right. So things like invoicing.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

And, you know, you'd be crazy to have a calculator and a pencil and doing that by hand. Right. Take advantage of technology whenever you can. You know, blasting things out can be. But you know, when I have business owners tell me, well, I'm too busy to blank if it's the people part of it. I mean, honestly, again, if I were in your shoes not knowing anything about your margins or whatever, if you're too busy to be out connecting face to face with your customers, I would say that because you're scooping poop yourself, hire someone else to scoop the poop. The actual scooping of the poop part is something that can be delegated maybe to someone who's not as good of people as you, someone whose time isn't as valuable as yours. Does that make sense?

[A]

Well, yeah, but I will say so when I do hire, that's something that what I look for is I have to have strong communication. I'll kind of give you a scenario so you kind of know what, they're

[C]

representing your brand too. And they need to be people doing it too.

[A]

Yeah. So like, okay, they're going there, they're scooping the poop. But say for instance, if there's an issue in the backyard, there's a broken gate or there's a trash can that has been emptied and it's by the road, they're pulling that trash can back and they're putting it back by the garage. They are going to communicate with the customer. If there is a package on the porch they see sitting there, when the service is complete, they're going to let them know, hey, your service has been complete, your gate is closed. Have a wonderful day. So we're making that connection and that has to be done with every single service.

[C]

Yeah, I think it's huge. It's great.

[A]

And a lot of our reviews, we get people that talk about the trash cans being pulled back, about the text messages of we're on the way, your service has been complete, the closed gate. And so I, we get more, more reviews about that versus the, oh, they, you know, do an excellent job, which we do. But those other ones stand out so much more. And I feel like those attract more customers than just, okay, they scoop the poop.

[C]

That's exactly right. Any, my mentality when I'm, you know, dealing with customers is what can I do? You know, And I, I have this, if you've read my book, you know the answer. But I do this a lot in my training. The difference between and 4 and I ask audiences this all the time, what's the difference between two and four? And someone says two and I go incorrect, half incorrect. Square root. Nope. Usually somebody will say, well, two is made out of a curved line and a four is made out of straight lines. And I'm like, well, I get outside the box. But that's still not it. And people don't get it because in my question, 2 and 4 aren't numbers, they're prepositions. That when an ordinary service provider shows up at someone's house, something is happening to them in their property. But when a world class service provider shows up, something is Happening for them, right, that we're here for you. What can I do for my customers that my competitors can't or won't? The garbage cans are a great example of that. Hey, quick text. There's a package on your porch that we noticed. Hey, I saw someone kind of suspicious in a purple hat walking on your street. I don't know, I'm just giving you a heads up. Any little thing in my world, it's someone will hire me to speak somewhere. And we want you to do a two hour training session. And I'm like, hey, while I'm there, would you be interested in me doing a breakout session and doing another hour for everyone in your company who manages people on leadership? Oh, what would you charge us for that? No extra charge. I'm going to be there anyway. And they're like, oh, my gosh. And then they're online. Oh, this is the best training ever. And again, I feel like a broken record sometimes that I didn't make up a lot of these ideas. That little idea came from a guy I know who looks just like your husband. And he was given a speech once called the Sermon on the Mount.

[A]

I was gonna say, say,

[C]

and you know, in Jesus, most famous sermon he ever gave, he said, hey, there was a law at the time that, you know, that he was speaking to Jewish farmers and fishermen and peasants who were under the very strict, cruel rule of the Roman Empire. And there was a law at the time that if a Roman soldier could take any Jewish guy and say, hey, carry my stuff, and you had to carry it for a mile. Very unpopular law. And Jesus is talking and he goes, hey, if someone asks you to go a mile with them, go two miles, and I guarantee people were like, oh, Jesus, what are you crazy? But when you do, it's going the extra mile. What can I do? That's the extra mile. It's the little touches. I think you're smart, Erica, by the way, you got your little cartoon version of yourself on all the vehicles. And as part of your branding, you know, that's. There may come a time when you have franchise units in a hundred, you know, different locations that it may be a little bit different. But I'm telling you, there's. I think there's something powerful about. I would rather be doing business with Erica, who's a person than a company. I'd always rather do business. You know, I spoke a couple times. I've been asked to be a keynote speaker. I do a lot of training in the food industry and I was a speaker at the North American Pizza and Ice Cream show. And it was all the people in the country who own independent pizza shops. And they sit around and complaining that they have such a disadvantage to Pizza Hut, Little Caesars, Domino's, Papa John's. How can we compete? And what they're complaining about is that those big companies do have some advantages. They get an advantage on pricing for the ingredients they buy. Right. They get cheese for a cheaper price, and they get national advertising. But I tell them what determines if somebody really wants to come back to a restaurant. It's how they were treated when they were there. It's the difference that two versus four. Where I first learned it is learned that idea is I read a book by Danny Meyer, who owns the, like, the five most profitable restaurants in New York City, and he wrote a book called Setting the Tail. And he said the difference between 2 and 4 is the difference between service and hospitality. Service is did the job get, you know, in your world? Service is, was the poop cleaned up at the right time, Properly disposed of properly. That's the service. The hospitality is how do people feel about doing business with you and your company? And I am convinced that's the tipping point. That's the companies that win. Those are the people that have huge increases. Those are the people that get great reviews. Those are the people that are referring themselves to other. You don't even have to incentivize them, you know, and even, you know, I feel like I'm rambling now, so feel free to ask some questions.

[A]

Oh, yeah, no, I got questions for you. I'm really bad about cutting people off, so I've been trying to be better about that. I got a whole list of questions for you.

[C]

All right.

[A]

All right. So these are actually from. This is from Emma, but it was pretty much very similar questions, which in sales, a lot of us, we want to learn how to sell without being pushy. So if we're not, we're not selling, picking up poop. We're selling more free time, more time with the family. I'm sure there's different reasons for different people. Like, how do we go about creating, like, social media content and getting the word out there without being like, we sell? We're. We're a pooper scooper and we could scoop your dog poop. Do you have any insight on that?

[C]

Yeah, that's a great question. Because, you know, a lot of the selling that I've done is like business to business where you're having a sales call.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

You're not. You're not going around ringing doorbells and saying like so tell me about your life. And so for you guys to be making some assumptions and I would, I would have your advertising covering all of it. But you know, you're selling a clean yard, you're selling safety. Right. I know when, you know, when we had, when our kids were little, we had a son on the autism spectrum and one of the things we were very concerned about is having a dog that was going to poop and in our backyard because it could be a safety issue.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

You know, and what are we going to do? You know, and so there's a segment of people that, you know, it's, it's, you know, for some people it's going to ruin their lawn. I'd be thinking up everything that people might want that pooping, scooping would be a solution to that. You know, if it's like, hey, are you tired of, you know, my. But it'd be around my advertising would be around the emotional stuff. Are you tired of this? You know, have you ever had someone come over and they stepped in some dog poop in your yard? Have you ever had poop on your shoe? Anyone who's ever had dog poop on their shoe and knows how gross that is, I'm sure in your world it happens every day to your shoes.

[A]

Well, I try to be good about not stepping in it, but I can't say that it doesn't happen.

[C]

Anyone who's ever like, oh, but scraping their shoe on the, you know that, but that we provide, you know, friendly, thorough, honest. That's the stuff I would be marketing. Right. That, that we're responsive, we're flexible, we can, we have a customized options based on your needs and you know, and you may decide to try to do some add ons in there that maybe will take your garbage to the curb if you want us to come on a certain day. I don't know if that makes sense to do that or not. But I'd be looking at the emotional side of it, not just the transaction of the picking up that we're going to help you be proud of your yard again.

[A]

That pain or pleasure.

[C]

Yeah, yeah. Because it's the emotional stuff that makes people decide to spend that money, I think. And then I would add to that the gratitude piece of it, I think. Can't be overexplained to be thanking the customers you have for their business. And I'm not like, you know, but just for people to know that, hey, we really appreciate it because the people I suspect A lot of the, you know, some of the people that cancel their service in your line of work are probably dissatisfied with the service. Probably a bunch. A lot of them have a job change, someone's been laid off. They start looking at their budget.

[A]

Yeah, yeah.

[C]

Where can we make, where can we make some cuts? Well, we can't turn off the heat, we ain't turning off Netflix, you know, and they start looking at the poop and scooping. We could probably do that ourselves. And so that, you know, you want to have that emotional thing where they're like, for lack of a better word, I'd feel guilty dumping Erica and her team because we've been loyal customers. I'd be thanking them on the one year anniversary. I'd be thanking them on the six month anniversary. Hey, we've been partners in keeping your yard free of dog poop for a year now. Happy anniversary.

[A]

Now how would you do that? Would you do that? A handwritten card, an email, a text

[C]

message, maybe all the above.

[A]

A phone call?

[C]

Yeah, I think it would depend on you if you had the time. I think a phone call man or handwritten card I get on my birthday every year. You probably get them too. I get a bunch of automated text messages from dentist office and from the chiropractor. Hey, this is Dr. Johnson's office. Happy birthday. Well, I know and so does everyone else that Dr. Johnson isn't sending me that message. It's an automated system and it turns me off. I would rather not get the message than get an automated message pretending, suggesting that I'm an idiot.

[A]

This is very similar. I don't know if you listen to Andy Frisella, but he was talking about this specific topic. He bought a Rolls Royce and he got a thank you card or something in the mail, but he could tell that it was like a pre printed one. And he said that he would have much rather not received one because it was like one of those automated ones. Because it was just, it was an insult. With the amount of money that he spent and like the dedication, he would have expected a handwritten one.

[C]

I totally agree. And even in my world, anything that stands out, right, like I don't send Christmas cards to my customers because everybody sends Christmas cards. I'm more likely to make, you know, to send someone a message and say, hey, you know what? It was three years ago that we first did business together and I'm really proud to have you as one of my customers now.

[A]

You are very.

[C]

And how many of those does somebody get every year?

[A]

Very limited. None now, you are a very personable person, as am I. What about the person that's listening, that struggles with communication, and they struggle with connecting with people? How can they still do this?

[C]

Great question. Here's my advice to them. Change.

[A]

Oh, how do they do that?

[C]

Work on it. Communication. Connecting with people is a skill like anything else. It's like driving a car. When I first got behind the wheel, I wasn't a very good driver. I wasn't like, well, I guess it's just not my personality to travel. You know what I did, I practiced, and I took some classes, and I got better over time. The same is true about everything I'm good at today. I practiced. I get. People tell me all the time. I knew a guy who's a very successful businessman, who's former, you know, Army Ranger, but, you know, but he's like, jeff, I wish I was blessed with communication skills like you have. Like, you were. And I go, this guy's ripped. I go, yeah, I wish I was blessed with big muscles like you have. He goes, oh, a lot of work. A lot of hours in the gym, brother. And I go, yeah, same with me. I've. I've done 10,000 speaking events. You know, I wasn't blessed with speaking skills. I think people use their personality or their temperament or their background as an excuse way too much, I think. I think everybody was born the same. You were born naked, hungry, and upset. That's how you were born and everything else you've learned. And if you're quiet, you've learned to be quiet. Speak up. And it's an uncomfortable answer for people, but, well, I'm not. That's out of my comfort zone.

[A]

Yep.

[C]

Yeah. Are we talking about entrepreneurs here? The last podcast I was on was some college students that were entrepreneurial majors, and we were talking about entrepreneurism. And I go, I know it sounds good to you guys. It's the most difficult thing you could do. Oh, it's the most rewarding. But I said, you know, I go, hey, if I did a podcast on how to be a good employee, it would be really short. Here's what I would say. Find out what's important to your boss and do it.

[A]

Yep. Show up.

[C]

That's it. Do your best to make your boss happy. The end. Oh, you want to be an entrepreneur? Well, now you have to learn a little bit about real estate and about banking and about hiring and about taxes and about leadership and about recruiting people and about mentoring and. Right. I mean, it's. It's difficult. And so when someone Says, well, I'm just not really good with people. Change. Anyone can become good with people. There's a. There's a thousand books on it. And sometimes I get people mad. I'm like, well, how many books have you read on that in the last year or audiobooks have you listened to about communication? Well, none, because that's not my comfort zone. This is the reason you should be listening to those. And so it's not a bad question, but that's my answer is, I think people can. You can learn to be good at that. And you know what? The people I know that are not naturally bubbly, extroverted people like you and I are. I mean, there is something to be said for that. But when someone goes out of their way to connect with me, and I can tell it's not natural for them, it means more to me. Okay, that makes sense.

[A]

No, it. It does, because they actually had to put that effort in.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

How can. Okay, can you tell when somebody is being, like, inauthentic when they're trying too hard?

[C]

I think. I think everybody can tell. That's why it has to be authentic, that it can't. You know, you're my best customer. You know, if it's not true, people can tell. You know, I tell the story in my book about, you know, and you guys are in the dog business. And so I think dogs are like this, too. Dogs can sense fear. They can sense who's good and who's bad. They can just sense it. But I had two days in a row, you know, long story short, a couple years ago, the first day, I was sitting with my friends having some lunch, and this guy comes walking up to us, him and his daughter, little girl. And you could feel that that guy was about to ask us for some money. You just feel it. You could see it in his eyes. It had that vibe. And he goes, well, he goes, excuse me. I'm from Louisville. My car broke down. I need some gas money. Can anybody have any gas money? And I gave him 20 bucks. And someone goes, oh, he's just scamming you. And I go, well, maybe, but, you know, hope things get better for that guy. But I could tell the next day, I'm out at Kings Island Amusement park, and we're waiting to meet some friends there. And this lady comes walking up, and before she said a word, you could tell that she was about to give us something. She goes, hey, do you guys have your tickets yet? Because we have three extra tickets, and if you want them, you can have them. And we're like, oh, well, we have season passes, but oh, my gosh, thank you. And then she found another family and gave those tickets away. But you could see it in her eyes that she was looking to give. And I think people can sense, are you a giver? Are you a taker? Are you for real? And so if you don't appreciate your customers, don't thank them. I think most people do. They just. That kind of thing ends up on the back burner, you know, I don't know if you've ever seen the. The quadrants. I think it comes from Stephen Covey about urgency and importance.

[A]

No. Can you explain that a little bit?

[C]

You know, imagine an X axis and a Y axis, right? That. And on one is things that are important and one is things that are urgent. And so you split it into four quadrants. There's some things that are urgent and important. Paying your bills, getting your work done. Right. There's some things that are urgent but not really important. You need to try. Those are the things you want to try to minimize and automate if you can. There are things that are neither urgent or important. Right? This is playing video games, goofing around, watching movies, and too much time spent in that quadrant will ruin your life. But then there's this quadrant of things that are important but not urgent. That's where success and failure happens. In my experience, that's self development is important, but not urgent. That's going to the gym. Yeah, going to the gym's not urgent, but it's important. Thanking your customers. Any. Any of the people side of the business falls into that important but not urgent. Someone said they like my mug, by the way. Go blue.

[A]

That's branch Buster. That's my husband. Yeah, we. And then Courtney.

[C]

Wait, do you see this side? It matches.

[A]

Ooh, nice. And then Courtney says she definitely texts a client about a suspicious person, which is good. Okay, so, you know, you just talking about the different quadrants, and I actually was just having. I was actually. Let's get personal here. I was having a mini meltdown this morning. I'm married, you're married. Relationships are a great time. You know, you have your ups and downs. And I was thinking about how my personality, like, I'm always got to be doing. I'm very much so in, like, this personal development. I want to grow. I have all these dreams and goals, and I really think that every moment should be filled with something. And my husband, on the other hand, he. He loves life. He likes to enjoy time. And I'm trying to Figure out in my mind what a good balance is between like hanging out and watching TV and then working too much. And as I was driving into work, I'm thinking, I'm like, am I just, am I doing too much? Like, is this like, what am I doing? What am I actually doing with my life right now? And I, I think entrepreneurs, like, we, we struggle with this balance. Is there any way you can talk about that a little bit? Just about.

[C]

Yeah, I'm happy to. And have you guys, I know you've heard about it. Have you been yet to together in the trades?

[A]

We haven't. We thought about going and it just hasn't happened.

[C]

I recommend, I think it's a good thing, right? And it's for couples that are in business together. I think there's something about being in business and in love and some couples are like in business together, doing it. It seems in the lawn business that happens a lot. He's mowing grass and she's doing the paperwork. But not always Jeremiah Jennings, if you know him, I've got to know him a little bit. And he's got a lawn care business and his wife is a nurse, right. And she's got a good career doing that. And she gets a lot of pressure like, well, you should quit your job and work in the family business. And she's like, it's no one's business what you're doing with your life.

[A]

Right.

[C]

I think, you know, that everybody's different in that regard. I have some friends that like, for them, working is fun. Like, let's have some fun. Let's go work.

[A]

That's me. I'm a psycho.

[C]

And I'm not one of those people. I like to work and I like to play. What I like to do as much as I can is to overlap it, right? That the work I do is fun and it's rewarding. I'm speaking somewhere, but I just got off a little three week speaking tour where I spoke at 11 events and different states around the country. But on the days in between, I went hiking at Death Valley national park and then I was at Saguaro national park and I had a day in Las Vegas and I went around and played blackjack at like six different casinos and to see if I could end up ahead or behind. And I, I was just. Even when I was going to the airport, I played a few more hands and lost $100. I'm like, Ah, you know, but, but I think, but, but my wife, who she's not involved in our business in my Speaking business. She does the, you know, the paperwork and the taxes and stuff. But she's an accountant. She works at. She's the finance director for our local ymca. But something I recommend to people is making sure you're on the same page with, like, your purpose. Right. We went through an exercise. Oh, it's probably been 15 years ago now. I read the book. Oh, I forgot what it's called now. Something about purpose. But we did a little, like, okay, like, why are we. And I spoke about this together in the trades once. I said, raise your hand if you think God brought you and your spouse together. Everybody raises their hand. And I go, for what? And they're like, to be happy. And I go, I read the whole Bible. I don't think God's calling people to happiness. I never even saw that. And I said, I think that God doesn't do anything without a purpose. There's a purpose that you're together. God brought you and Josh together for a purpose, and that purpose is bigger than you, and it's bigger than making money, and it's bigger than being happy. And I challenge couples all the time to figure that out. What is that? And we came up with. It's framed on the wall right over here. I'd spin this all around and show you the Joyner family purpose. And this is what I believe, you know, that I'm on this earth for. And this is just me to glorify God by living victoriously and abundantly, and to help and equip other people to do the same. So that's my purpose. I'm here to win and to help other people learn how to win. And my wife and I were on the same page with that. And that's how we make decisions on how we spend our time. So you say, hey, will you be on my podcast? Is that under the umbrella of helping other people thrive and win? Yeah.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

This is right in my wheelhouse of my purpose, that what I'm doing. This is just as valuable to my life's purpose than when I'm speaking to 10,000 people spending time with my kids. That's under that purpose. I think I told you I like to play pickleball. People are like, man, you're good enough. If you took a bunch of lessons, you could play in tournaments and win some medals and trophies. And I'm like, yeah, nah, nah. It's not part of my purpose. Right? And so to be unified together. Now, if one of you, like, needs to chill more and watch TV more every now and then, that's fine, but I recommend people. I think people are a little too chill, in my experience. I heard an interview on the radio, and I need to find out the guy who wrote this book, but he was claiming that all of the world, all of America's problems are because people have too much free time. He said, we're the first generation in the history of humanity that even has free time. That a hundred years ago, every human being on Earth was focused all day long on survival, right? They were working and earning and building and providing. And maybe they had one little hobby like collecting stamps, but people weren't sitting around for hours every day. But technology, things have gotten easier. Communication and cell phones and the Internet. And it's what's led to people marching in the street over stupid things. It's what's led to people fighting with each other about just dumb things that don't matter. And so I think some people, hey, you need to slow down. I think most people need to slow down, step it up. And I think that there's some satisfaction. I think the satisfaction that you get from watching TV is kind of artificial, right? It's like empty calories compared to the satisfaction that you get achieving, accomplishing, serving other people. That's what I tell when friends of mine come to me and they're having some rocky time in their marriage, they're like, we just need to spend more time together. And I'm like, not if you hate each other. My advice is, if you're going to spend more time together, why don't you go do it in service to somebody else? Why don't the two of you together go out and feed some homeless people? Why don't the two of you go help somebody who needs some help and see if that doesn't draw you closer together. That, you know, love isn't just sitting next to each other gazing on, you know, it's looking in the same direction that we're going somewhere. And, you know, when your husband writes you a little note of encouragement, he's helping you toward your purpose. And same thing for him when you're encouraging each other, when you appreciate each other, when you're recognizing each other's strengths and you're moving, you know, I don't know if this metaphor makes sense, but two people. Let's say you got two people being towed by a ski boat, and they're just ropes. They're hooked to ropes and they're floating. What would you do if you wanted them to draw them real close together? That when you're moving in a direction that draws you close together. And so. And so I don't. I know you just a little bit. I don't know your husband at all. I think I've met him once or twice, but for you guys, that would be my advice that, you know. You know, hey, if he likes to chill a little more than you, well, then it's okay to do. That's our thing that we've learned. It's okay to do things separately. Right. I got some hobbies that I like to do. I like to play disc golf, you know, as one of my favorite sports. My wife0 interested in that. And so when I'm out playing, she's not like, oh, you know, Jeff left us again. You know, and the other thing, I don't know if you guys plan on having kids at some point, but that's a whole.

[A]

I think I'm too old for that now. So we actually. Josh has three children from his first marriage, and the. The twins are 17. They'll be 18, and Ethan is already 19. So we're on, like, the back end of that.

[C]

Okay, gotcha. And people, people, you're like 23 years old. I thought you were a baby.

[A]

Oh, no, we're. I'm. I'm getting close to 40.

[C]

Holy moly. Well, you don't look. You don't look it, so that's good.

[A]

Josh, how old are we going to be this year? I ask him that all the time. He's like, how do you not remember how old you are? I'm like, I don't know. It's not important. I think I'm 25 still. But I get asked this question, like, if Josh is in the business with me, and I have to explain, like, no, he has his own career. And I'm like, I don't know. I'm just trying to figure this out, too. Like, I still feel like I'm still a young. Even though we've been together for quite some time. Like, I still feel like we're a young couple just trying to navigate life. And now that the kids are getting older, and now it's like, okay, who are we? Who are we as a couple that has time together? What do we enjoy to do that's not kid related?

[C]

Yeah, well. And I think that's fun figuring that out. My challenge to you is to find some things you can do that are benefiting other people. And, boy, is that rewarding. The other little. My other little kind of communication nugget that. That I have seen that I've worked with Some couples that has helped them is, you know, you want to draw closer to your spouse. What you go say some nice things about them behind their back. Oh, you know, for you, when you're someone says, oh, he's always your married. Yeah. Let me tell you about Josh. He's the most amazing man I've ever met. He's my dream come true. He's my hero. It's amazing. And as you're saying those words, your relationship is drawing closer together. I tell people with young kids this. I'm just talk to a guy who's very successful business owner who's starting to get invited to do some speaking, and he's away from home for the first time and he's got little kids. And he goes, I'm trying to balance, like, my passion for my family with, like, my career. And, you know, and I goes, like, my son's soccer game, I'm going to miss my son's soccer game to go speak at this conference in Florida. And I always swore I would never miss a soccer game. And what do I do? And. And he said, I asked him, I said, have you gone through the stuffed animals at the airport phase yet where you bring home stuffed animals for the kids? Yeah. And I go, that doesn't help. I said, your kids are either going to grow up thinking that you are an absentee dad, gone all the time chasing money, or they're going to grow up thinking that you are a hero and a provider. And what's going to determine that is nothing you do. It's how your wife talks about you when you're not home. If, when you're in Florida, your wife is like, well, I bet your dad we're eating Mac and cheese. Bet your dad's having a real gourmet meal somewhere right now. Your kids are going to grow up to resent you. When my kids were little and I was gone and I travel a lot, I do about 50 events a year, my wife was telling the kids, hey, your dad's out serving people. Your dad's slaying dragons, your dad's providing for this family. Your dad's our hero. And those little kind of things make a big difference. There's so much more, I think, that comes down to communication than people think.

[A]

And I know we kind of took a detour from like, sales and business, but the on the communication is so important in relationships, in your home life, because if your home life is, whatever, stressful, then that translates over to work. And what's the analogy? Like, something happens at work, your Boss yells at you, you get mad, you come home, you yell at your wife, you yell, the wife yells at the kids, and then the kid kicks the dog, you know, so it all rolls downhill.

[C]

Yep, yep, yep. And, you know, you're. You know, the words that you speak. Speak are pretty powerful about your business, about your relationships, about whatever. So what other questions do you have? I keep rolling on. On different topics.

[A]

Yeah. All right, I'm gonna. I'm gonna open up the chat, you guys. So if you have any questions, go ahead and ask those. I'll. I'll let those pop in here for a minute. But just to confirm, we are gonna. We're 38, so Josh, just let me

[C]

know that I see that in the. In the chat. You guys are babies. You got a whole world in front of you.

[A]

No, that's fun. It's. Yeah, Josh is. Josh is really good. I always tell people he's got great hair when he's not around because he has got that good curly hair. It's really good. All right, well, while I'm waiting, let me go through here and read, look at a couple of these questions.

[C]

Hey, I got a question for you. I saw that there's a scoop con is happening. All the pooper scoopers are getting together. I was a little disappointed that nobody invited me to be a speaker at that. You know, I want to go to Idaho. It's up by. Right by. Up by Spokane, Washington, and. Yeah, maybe next time. But that looks pretty. That looks pretty cool that this. You know, when I first met you, I thought that you invented this industry. I didn't realize it was, like, a whole big thing.

[A]

Nope. I was just the only one that decided to really hop on camera and start talking about it. We actually. We were talking. Me and William are talking. He's the one that's actually throwing ScoopCon, and we have a lot of the speakers, but we do have a couple more spots that we're trying to, like, figure out and, you know, plug and play, people. This is the first one that we've ever put on, so we have a lot to learn, a lot to figure out. And today, publicly, we announced it. It was private in the poop scoop millionaire community that William has. But today, the tickets are live, so we'll see how it goes.

[C]

Well, if they're looking for someone who's, you know, and that's what Brian has always liked to do, is someone from the outside kind of a motivational speaker that isn't, you know, exactly in the industry, but kind of gets what you're doing, I'll cut you a good. A good deal because I like you guys. And where you're having that conference is a cool place. I've started. As my business has grown, my wife catches me. I'll be like, you know, I just got asked if I could speak in Alaska, which is the one state I haven't been to. And they're like, what do you charge? And I'm like, whatever, because I don't want to go to Alaska.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

You know, and so. So I'll get requests like, would you want to come to Milwaukee? And I'm like, no.

[A]

Quarterly Nightlight was pretty.

[C]

You want to come to Sedona, Arizona? Yes. So, yeah, I've never been. I've only been. I was in Idaho Falls speaking at a conference, and I'm like, oh, my gosh, it's so beautiful here. And they were like, shh, don't tell anybody. Everybody's moving here.

[A]

Everything's changing.

[C]

They said, everybody from California and New York are moving to Idaho because it's so beautiful. And they said, and they bring their politics from California. That doesn't help.

[A]

You ever see those bumper stickers that's like, don't California my state?

[C]

Yeah. That's interesting. It is interesting. The people that are like, you know, California has been driven. Everything's so expensive, so I'm going to move to Texas and then vote the same way, but whatever.

[A]

Yeah, yeah.

[C]

It's full of all different kinds, but, yeah, good luck with your ScoopCon. If I can ever be of service to that, let me know. I think I've talked about you behind your back in that I respect people that look out into the marketplace and say, all right, how can I fill a need that other people aren't? And especially, you know, your kind of micro, dirty jobs, you know, you're doing something that, you know, with. It's. It's similar to my world in this weird way, is that I tell people, oh, I do public speaking. Sometimes I talk to a thousand people for hours, and people go, I would never do that. I go, I know. That's why I get paid so much to do it, because most people never would. But you guys are in a related field doing something that some people would feel they're too good for. I think you're smart.

[A]

I appreciate it. It was easy to get into, and it was fun. I enjoyed, like, trying to figure it out, because this was before, like, me and my big mouth is blabbing all over the Internet, creating all this content. So I was, like, piecing Everything together, just trying to figure it out. And now the landscape has, like, really changed. And that's the reason why I leaned into the landscaping, the green industry so much, because I seen what they were doing and. Which is really nice because now I can bring this back. So we're having this conference in May. I have a lot of ideas from the different conferences I've been to. And then with the public speaking, I actually want to talk on that for a minute because that was one of the questions is, okay, you talk on stages where there's a lot of people, maybe it's more intimate. What if somebody wants to go to, like, a BNI meeting and they want to do a little bit, a little presentation? What's a couple tips to get them to feel comfortable when they're presenting, to connect with people?

[C]

That's a good question. There's a book I really recommend that people get their hands on. Really? Really. And if you're. I don't know if you're watching this, but I do talk about this in my book, People. Most people are afraid of public speaking, right? When they do surveys worldwide and ask people, what's your number one fear? 75% of people say public speaking. And I think that's nonsense. I don't think anyone is afraid of public speaking. It's not dangerous. The microphone is not going to shock you. Nobody's going to tackle you. What people are afraid of. And I just was a guest lecturer in a college class Tuesday night, and I was asking these college students, who would say, you're afraid of public speaking? Almost all of them raised their hand. I said, no, you're not. You're not afraid of public speaking. Don't be stupid. What are you really afraid of? And somebody goes looking like an idiot. That's what you're afraid of. You're afraid of messing up, doing it wrong, looking silly, looking bad. Let's dig into that a little bit. What do you. What do you really. You're too afraid of what people think of you. Good luck being an entrepreneur if you're afraid of what people think of you. Yes, your online presence is important. Your reputation is important. But there's going to be people that don't get you and don't like you. And you got to get over that. And so I think getting over a fear of public speaking is as easy as I think. Here's where people, I think, go wrong, is they. They're talking somewhere in front of a chamber of commerce meeting, whatever. And which, you know, I don't know. I'VE found limited usefulness in some of those networking groups. Right, because you're not talking to other potential customers. You're looking for other people that are desperate to find other customers. You know, it's like, oh, the product fair. We're all going to get together and a bunch of moms are going to get together, and someone's got this table and that table, and there's no customers. But. Yeah, but short tutorial on presenting is the mistake most people make is as they're talking to an audience, they're thinking about themselves. Oh, I don't want to sound dumb. Oh, did I say that right? Oh, you know, how do I, oh, I sound sick. Oh, people aren't listening. I I, me, me, I I. And that causes your stress to go up and you start to sweat and you freak out. That's not what I'm thinking about when I'm talking to an audience. I'm not thinking about myself. I'm thinking about them. How can I convey some information that's going to help these people? Even if what I'm helping them is to understand what my business is and what I do? I'm telling, hey, if you believe in your company and you believe you provide a great service, there's nothing to be shy and ashamed about to go around telling people that. I mean, I don't know if it's because a lot of entrepreneurs used to have jobs and they haven't really learned entrepreneurial mentality, but if I was one of you guys listening to this podcast, I'd be talking to every person I see. If I'm at Kroger buying groceries and there's someone in line behind me, I'd say, hey, excuse me. I know this might sound weird, but I own a business and I help people clean their yards out of their dog waste. If you're ever looking for somebody to help you with that, here's my card. You know, my name's Erica. What's your name? Oh, my name's Diana. You know, I was kind of thinking about, what if they say, well, I don't even have a dog.

[A]

Okay, you should get one.

[C]

I talk to people. I mean, I'm on flights and I'm like, I can't believe people that sit on a flight and they're one inch away from another. Sometimes they're touching for an hour and they don't talk to them.

[A]

So I've been to a couple of your presentations. I've read your book, I've watched your YouTube channel, which, after we're done Right here, you can. We can Talk about your YouTube channel and kind of close this out. But as you're speaking, it really makes me think of how I changed how I interact in public from what you have said. When I'm standing in line, I try not to have my phone. I try not to be playing on my phone because I'm looking for an opportunity to engage with somebody. When I go to the gym in the morning and I see somebody walk in or I walk by them, I address them by their first name and say, good morning, because I want somebody to address me that way.

[C]

Absolutely. And I don't think there's. And I don't know people. I don't know what it is psychologically, but there's nothing wrong with seeing that person at the gym. I'm not saying running up and tackling strangers and chasing them around and being a psycho and stalking people, but if there's somebody you've seen three times at the gym to say, hey, Steve. Right? Hey, I don't know if you know what I do, but I run a business, and we remove dog waste from people's yards. And, you know, I meet all kinds of. I meet my customers in the strangest places. If you're ever looking for that service or know somebody who is, and you give them your card, man, I would. I would love a referral. And even if they don't, you've just connected with them. You know, people are. People are lonely. There's an epidemic of loneliness that was announced by our last surgeon general just last year, that people are more connected than ever before digitally, but they're feeling more lonely than ever. And so, man, I'm always. I was on a flight a couple of weeks ago, and I get talking to this woman next to me, and she's from Cincinnati area, she's moving, and young kids, blah, blah, blah. Anyway, she said she's the. Turns out she's the CEO of the Holocaust Museum. I'm like, well, that's interesting. And we start talking about that and what's that like? And what are the challenges you face? And. And when I'm done, I said, hey, you know what? Let me give you a copy of my book. You know, I'm like, this is an influential lady.

[A]

Yeah, I would.

[C]

I would bet money that that's going to lead to someone hiring me to speak somewhere. You don't have to have a book. You don't have a book to do that. But I sometimes take it too far. I was at. I was at the gym, and I was Guy had his headphones on, and I was like, hey. I was trying to talk to him. Hey, hey. And he takes his headphones off, we start talking, and he goes, no offense. I thought at first that you were like, special needs. I don't want to be coming across like that. Hi.

[A]

Right.

[C]

You want to be my friend. So I'm like, okay, dial it back a little bit. But I. Here's my goal, is that I'm going to be. And it's not always, hey, let me tell you about my business. If you're not used to doing that and you want to get better at it, here's the easiest way. Give compliments.

[A]

You know, I do this without. Without realizing that I was doing it. And my dad pointed that out. He's like, you're really good at that. But it was an icebreaker.

[C]

Yeah, I'll go up if I'm at a restaurant. I was at a restaurant. I saw a mom and a dad and a little boy and a little girl. And they all prayed for their meal before the food came. And I just saw him across the way is that Texas Roadhouse. And when I got up to leave, I stopped by and I said, hey, excuse me. You know, I just. I saw you guys pray for your meal, and I thought, man, what an awesome family. You guys are a great mom and dad. I can tell. And these are great kids. And they're all like, oh, I bet you that's the first time a stranger ever told them that. And I bet they'll be talking about it for the next year.

[A]

They'll probably be talking about it for longer. That was probably, like. It was probably huge.

[C]

Right? By the way, cost to me to do that. Nothing, zero, nothing. Cost to talk to somebody in line at the store or whatever. I see people more and more. They want to rely on the billboards, the advertising, the branded truck, the door hangers. Is that stuff important? Yeah. I'm not saying don't do that stuff, but what really moves the needle, I'm convinced, is a person to person connection. And a lot of times it is a referral. You can get referrals not just from your happy customers, but say you're talking to somebody at the nail salon about what you do, and they go, you know what? My son, his yard's full of dog shit. I need to get. And you might get a referral that way. And perfect. It's the most powerful form of marketing through all of human history. Word of mouth.

[A]

It is. And this is actually going to circle back to what we were Talking about in the beginning to kind of close this all together when the different parts of your life are all yoked. So you are a good person in business, you're a good person in actual life. Like, you're not baking it. When you're out there communicating with people, you're posting on your social media with me, I'm sharing my life. I'm putting that stuff out there. So people in turn are connecting with me in different facets. So maybe they're not. They don't necessarily have a dog, but they know somebody that has a dog. And when they ask for dog poop removal or even social media content or a gym referral, they're tagging me, they're referring me out. Because just by existing and sharing it, I'm. I'm getting referred out. And, and that's why I do think it's important to. When you're in business like this, like you, you can't just like be a hermit. You can't just be by yourself and stay home, not say anything. You have to, you have to put yourself out there as a business owner. If, if you don't, you're going to spend so much money on advertising. So much money, and it might not even be effective.

[C]

Yep, exactly right. You know, and I get on these lawn care guys about that. At the last lawntrepreneur, I called him out, I go, hey, show of hands. If the reason you got into this is because you had a job and you hated it and you want to be in business for yourself. And what you liked about mowing lawns was putting headphones on and riding and not having to deal with people. That's what first attracted. Almost all of them raised their hand and they realized, okay, you're never going to make any money unless you build a team and get a bunch of customers. And those are people endeavors. Yeah. And you know, you're getting your mind around kind of. You know, I saw a quote that I really like. There's like the master of the art of living makes no distinction between his work and his play, his leisure and his religion. You know, people always wonder, is this person working or playing? Because they're always seem to be doing both. And that's my world. And so if you are willing, like you are to be transparent, to be real and to connect with and communicate with people. Okay, if you're willing to do those two things, which you obviously are, and the people listening to this are probably working on, then see if this makes sense. I don't know if I've ever explained it this way, but this makes sense in my mind. As you become a better person, you're working on yourself. That gets magnified because of your transparency. You know what I'm saying? So you become 1% better person because of something you've learned or a struggle you've been through or a lesson you've learned. Most people are living these private struggle victories that don't benefit anyone but themselves. But you've chosen to put yourself in a place where those struggle victories are going out into the universe for hundreds, maybe thousands, someday maybe tens of thousands of people. And that's a beautiful way to live your life. The guy in Hollywood that I think about is like, Denzel Washington, that seems to be that guy that is, like, authentic and, like, wants to make a difference with people. I've, you know, I've. There's lots of famous people that are like that, that are. That. I think, you know, who you are gets magnified as you get a little bit of notoriety or whatever. You know, some of the feedback I get all the time when I spend, you know, like, oh, wow, you're the same on stage as you are in person. I'm like, I'm so glad that you think that, because that's what I'm going for.

[A]

It's hard to be two different people. And I. This is what I said. I want somebody to be able to put a camera on me or if a police officer would have pulled me over, I got nothing to worry about because I'm not. I'm not being nasty, I'm not being filthy. I'm just trying to live my life right now, trying to walk with the Lord, and that allows me to just be. I don't have to think about, oh, I gotta make sure I do this, and I gotta put on a fake facade. That takes too much energy. You just let the personality shine through.

[C]

It's exhausting the amount of energy people put into trying to convince people that they're perfect. When everyone knows you're not perfect and if you would just be you, you know, what's the one thing you're always going to be best at is being yourself. And then, you know, as you develop this kind of, you know, and I know we're kindred spirits that just. You care about other people. You're not doing these podcasts to get rich. There's just. You're not getting rich making these, but you're trying to make a difference for other people, and people can sense that. One last story. I was speaking in Florida two weeks ago in Gainesville, Florida, and about 200 people in this audience, and we were doing like a four hour leadership training. We took a break and this one guy comes up and he goes, I got a question. I go, what? And he goes, why is this so impactful? And I said, what do you mean? He goes, I've been to hundreds of these professional development days and I've never got anything out of them. He goes, but, man, I'm taking notes like crazy and you make me want to change everything about how I treat my team. And he goes, but I don't get it. And I said, well, part of it is because I'm awesome at what I do. And jokingly. But I said, I'll show you after the break. And so everybody got back in their seats. And I go, hey, Steve was asking why this so impactful? And I wanted to demonstrate for him. I said, this was after being two hours in front of these people doing my thing, talking about the stuff that I talk about. And I said, raise your hand if you think I'm the smartest person you ever met. Nobody raised their hand. They'd be crazy to raise their hand. And I said, okay, that does not hurt my feelings. Question number two. Raise your hand if you believe that I honestly care about you having a happier life and a better marriage and being better leaders and having less stress. Raise your hand if you believe that that's where I'm. And everyone raised their hand. And I said, see, that's the difference. Most people, when they get up in front of an audience, what they're trying to convince everybody is how smart they are.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

Let me tell you how smart I am. Oh, everybody knows that I'm not that smart, but I've learned some things and I care about people and I'm willing to take my eyes off myself and wow, if that doesn't make just money show up in your bank account, it's weird. And with that, we're doing an hour podcast. And I'm looking. We're like, at an hour and a half.

[A]

I know I wanted to talk to you forever. That's why I'm like. I'm like, I gotta say it, but I don't want to. But as we wrap up this episode, where can our listeners find you at?

[C]

Well, I think mentioned my book and I do recommend it. It's called say it like it matters, when it matters. It's a third public speaking, a third selling, and then a third crucial conversation you'll have in your life. Communicating with your spouse, communicating with Strangers communicating with difficult people. Also, my website is jeffjoiner.com, j o I n e R and you can find me there. And that's really kind of focused on the speaking and TR I do. I did start a YouTube channel. I don't do a podcast, but, you know, Brian Fullerton actually challenged me back during COVID All of my events got canceled. I mean, literally about $400,000 worth of contracted events. I had went like a fart in the wind. And Brian called me up and he said, I can't believe that you don't have a YouTube channel with all the stories you tell. And so I started that and. And, you know, and I get a lot of requests for people, like, hear me speak. And, like, I really like this. Where can I get more? And that's a good place. It's called an Epic Life. A n an epic Life. And it's on you. And it's really small by YouTuber standards. I think I have 1800 subscribers, you know, compared to my son, who's got 30,000. And, like, you're just getting started, Pops.

[A]

Well, what I like about your channel, there's a couple. It's. It's smaller, so it's more intimate. You upload the videos and then you respond back. And so I remember when you responded back to me, you know, because I seen you on the stage, you're talking, you're a published author. And I was like, Jeff responded back to me. He actually wrote back to me, like, this is so cool. So even though it's a smaller channel,

[C]

it's when I read the comments and I like, you know, and, you know, part of the reason I didn't want to do, like, just a verbal type podcast, you know, that I, you know, I'm kind of animated, and when I speak and I feel like YouTube's a good place for that. And some of it is like I've been making recently. Like, some of when I travel, some vlogs on the places I go, which I think are interesting. I don't know if other people do, but a lot of it is dumb thing. Somebody goes, somebody made a comment, said this channel is basically dumb. Jeff did. And what he learned from it. And I go, yep, that's what this channel is. And it's, you know, like, one of my more popular videos is how I ended up in a Greek prison. Or the time I almost fell to my death in the Grand Canyon. The time I got my vehicle stolen in New York City in the dumbest way possible. And so I Hope. But those are similar to the kind of speaking I do, which is telling stories. And there's some lessons in there. And feel free to, like, subscribe, share with your friends. And I'm going to be doing more of those this year. I did a. My. My last trip I was on was quite an adventure. I was speaking on the north side of Los Angeles on a Tuesday when everyone's phone went, evacuate, there's a wildfire. And so left there, checked into a hotel. My wife called me and she goes, the fire is heading right toward you. And I checked out of the hotel. Hotel burned down that night. I'm like, well, I'm glad I got out. So I was running from the wildfires and. And then speaking and then hiking in the mountains. And so it's an epic life, if I say so myself. And the point of it, you'll see if you watch it, is that an epic life doesn't mean that you're any more special than anyone else. But if you're trying to help other people, if you're trying to make a difference with your life, that's what an epic life is. And, Erica, you're doing a great job at that. Keep it up. All right?

[A]

I appreciate it. Thank you, guys. Thank you, Jeff, for hanging out with me for, I don't know, a long time. It's been an hour and a half. Thank you so much.

[C]

Feel free to cut this down if you need to for your podcast.

[A]

No, we're gonna be good. We're gonna go ahead and I'm gonna wrap this one up, you guys. I appreciate you guys tuning in to the Scoop podcast. And until next time, bye.

[B]

Thank you for hanging out with Erica Kruipen. She is so grateful and honored you decided to tune in to the Scoop podcast and hopes the information you heard today positively impacts you moving forward in business and life. Follow Erica on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and Tik Tok at Crupin Poopin Scoopin. And don't forget to follow the show in order to get notified when the next edition of the Scoop drops.

[C]

Sam.