Let me start off this blog by telling you that Jake Kelfer is amazing, and if you don’t know him yet, you’re about to. He joined me on my podcast to share some must-have info about one of my favorite topics: influencer marketing.
So let me ask you: how many times have you purchased a product because of the person who is promoting it? Makeup, shoes, tee-shirts, jewelry, tooth whitening, body scrubs—millions of products are sold thanks to athletes, celebrities, and even everyday people who have just grown a great online following.
But as an entrepreneur, do you also wonder how you could ever work with one of those influencers?
Jake Kelfer boils it all down to this: building your business by building relationships. And he lays it out in his new book, “The Elevated Entrepreneur.”
Jake Kelfer's Relationship-Building Journey
Now, you will love listening to Jake’s story in the podcast episode, but there are a few things that have just blown me away that I really want to talk about.
First, Jake is an action taker. When life didn’t quite go the way he thought it would, he was willing to pivot. Instead of the NBA player he’d dreamed of being (at 5’8”, it wasn’t likely he’d be a Los Angeles Laker ), he decided to be a sports agent. And when a weird economy and a hiring freeze got in his way, he pivoted again, landing a job with the Lakers organization.
He took action.
At just age 22, Jake Kelfer also wrote a best-selling book about how to stand out in the job market and discover your passion. And that put him on a path to be a writer, a motivational speaker, and a business coach.
But what was his key to success? The relationships he’d built with people every step of the way.
Are You Prioritizing Relationship Building? Jake Kelfer Says It’s a Must When Working with Influencers.
One of the things I loved as I interviewed Jake was his understanding of what it’s like to build a business online. And he pointed out that too often, we as business owners tend to focus on tasks like finishing a website or writing a social media post instead of getting to know your customers, what they want, and what they need.
When we make building great relationships with our customers a priority, when we find ways to serve them, they want to buy from us, and then success follows. It’s an outcome. It’s the exact same thing with influencers. If you stop focusing on what they can do for you, and instead look at building a relationship with them, it changes that dynamic. When you find ways to authentically relate to them and serve them, if you show them that you want to help them meet their goals, success will follow.
Jake Kelfer's new book, The Elevated Entrepreneur
I mentioned that Jake wrote his first book at just age 22—which blows my mind ? a little bit. But since then, he’s written three books on entrepreneurship and network building.
Now, I don’t want to spoil everything and dive into the book here on my blog. What I will say is that Jake has interviewed the world’s best coaches, performers, and entrepreneurs. He wanted to understand why they were so successful. And he shares those answers in the book and gives some serious insights during our conversation.
You will learn SO much when you listen to Jake lay out what he’s learned and why it’s so important in this episode of the How to Sell Online podcast!
If you’re going to do one thing on your business today, learn from Jake. (Oh and have a notebook handy because you’re going to want to take A LOT of notes!)
Top 10 Takeaways
- People come first and should be the focus of your business.
- The relationships you build are everything!
- You can achieve success and still enjoy the journey.
- Don’t forget that the people you’re serving are humans.
- It’s important to “fill your own cup” as a business owner.
- Be intentional in what you’re doing.
- If you feel alone, you’re doing it wrong.
- Be willing to figure it out!
- Go where you’re celebrated, not where you’re tolerated.
- We make everything too complicated, just have fun.
