GE 247: How Brand Yourself CEO Patrick Ambron Turned Down a Shark Tank Offer And Doubled Their Business Anyway (podcast)

Hi everyone! On this episode of Growth Everywhere, I share the mic with Patrick Ambron, CEO of Brand Yourself, an online presence management company.

Tune in to hear Patrick share how Brand Yourself helps victims of “revenge porn” take back their online presence, how an appearance on “Shark Tank” led to an increase in $1M in revenue, and why companies wouldn’t hire his co-founder after they had Googled him.

Download podcast transcript [PDF] here: How Brand Yourself CEO Patrick Ambron Turned Down a Shark Tank Offer And Doubled Their Business Anyway TRANSCRIPT

Time-Stamped Show Notes:

• [00:54] Before we jump into today’s interview, please leave a review and rating and subscribe to the Growth Everywhere Podcast!
• [01:39] Brand Yourself operates under the thesis that how you look online matters.
• [02:09] The co-founder Pete was having trouble getting hired, because when companies Googled him, a criminal with a similar name kept coming up.
• [02:21] Pete went to online reputation management companies and couldn’t get a quote under $25,000, because those companies are focused on corporations and not individuals.
• [03:42] Brand Yourself also helps victims of revenge porn curate their online presence and take back their power.
• [03:50] Brand Yourself started out simply by helping professionals manage their online presence for far less than the standard rate of $25,000.
• [04:20] Employers not only Google you, but they also sort through your social media as well.
• [06:27] Patrick appeared on Shark Tank.
• [07:02] He was there for an hour and a half, then the segment was cut down to about six minutes.
• [07:10] They didn’t end up taking an offer, but the exposure helped draw more clients to their service.
• [07:44] They gained over $1 million in revenue by going on Shark Tank.
• [08:41] They declined the offer because they wanted $2 million for a 13.5% stake in the company, but they were asked for a 25% stake.
• [10:28] Revenue-wise they had done $2 million in sales when they went on Shark Tank.
• [10:42] 2012 was their first year as a revenue-producing company.
• [11:43] The tools are catered towards dealing negative issues at the moment.
• [12:12] Anyone can sign up and get a “diagnosis” for free, but for $100/year you get a variety of tools (a web-based SAS model).
• [12:36] They also have a concierge service.
• [12:52] They have a team of in-house people that can help you create and curate your online content/presence.
• [13:40] On average, the concierge service costs $10,000/year on average, but it could potentially be the minimum rate of $7,000/year, as it’s all dependant upon your needs.
• [14:28] They don’t have acquisition costs and their software has a lot of automated elements, so they can focus on the stuff that requires a human touch.
• [14:57] They deliver a higher-quality, more personal experience as compared to their competitors.
• [15:27] Brand Yourself generally works with individuals and consumers, which means they are working with smaller budgets.
• [16:10] They don’t have to compete with other companies, because they are targeting different customers.
• [16:36] All of the growth has been “organic”, because it all came from word-of-mouth, SEO, and tool-based marketing.
• [17:30] They made sure to corner the market on smaller consumers with online presence problems.
• [18:03] They followed the need, created great tools and resources, and made sure that Brand Yourself was easy to find and use.
• [18:42] They evolve their tools to meet the needs of the market and make sure to offer free versions.
• [19:30] For a while, they were trying to force the market into their ideal business model, but clients needed services on top of what they were originally offering.
• [19:57] Finally, they changed their mindset and began to build around what the market wanted.
• [20:10] They resisted at first, but then realized they would be more successful following market trends. In the end, their business exploded.
• [20:50] Patrick makes sure he always knows what his long and short-term goals are, understands what tasks are necessary to accomplish them, and then he completes those tasks. He holds himself to his micro and macro-goals.
• [21:33] Partick doesn’t use apps, he has an actual notebook that he carries around.
• [22:00] About once a month, he looks at the bigger picture and makes sure he is on track.
• [22:40] One new tool that has added value for Patrick personally is Blinkist.
• [23:08] Blinkist is essentially a Spark Notes collection for non-fiction and business books.
• [24:02] He uses it as a research tool to find the best books to read.
• [25:00] Patrick recommends Made to Stick; it’s about crafting powerful messages.

Resources From This Interview:

• Brand Yourself
• Must-read books:
  • Made to Stick by Chip Heath and Dan Heath
• Blinkist
• Patrick’s Website

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