Marketing Runs Deep: Episode 22

Hey everyone this is Bryan Hatch, founder of AutomateBIG and I wanted to jump in today and just share a little bit about myself. People always wonder where you come from, want to find out a little bit more about your background. Why you're in business? What you're doing? And I hope that this inspires you to go and share the same thing with your audiences and help the business you help, or the people you serve to get to know you a little more.

It's important that people know who we are. I found that that is one of the biggest differentiators between me and other agencies, is that people can get to know who I am and what I'm all about and that matters. So for me, you know, I grew up in a really good family. I always wanted to work hard, accomplish big things and I played a lot of sports, very competitive. I had a good childhood. Good parents, good sisters, and I had a lot of fun. Worked hard and had some good friends and, you know, just the whole bit.

But as I was working to figure out what I wanted to do in my life, you know, I found there were a lot of people that had these very specific paths. I had friends that became dentists and lawyers and doctors and things of that nature. They had a very clear path. For me, I didn't necessarily know. I did get to live in Argentina for two years, serving a mission for my church, which is awesome. And then when I came home, I really wanted to find out what business was all about, you know.

I tried to figure out how to make some money in this world and how to just be a part of a small business. So early on, I did mortgages, learned how to do that before the big crash hit, when the crash hit, I lost my shots and a lot of things, I stuck my neck out and risked a lot, had multiple homes when I was 21 years old and learned from some struggles and some lessons there. So after that happened, I decided, hey, maybe I need to choose the college route.

I was going to some college, but I wasn't going full time. And so I went and got my bachelor's and my master's degree, my bachelor's in business, my master's degree with an MBA, with a focus in marketing. And I did some healthcare as well in there. And you know, when you go to school, you get to learn a lot about theories and a lot about ideas, but you don't really get all the experience that you're after. And so I was actually reading a book that my dad had recommended to me that he got from where he worked.

He said you gotta check this out. So I read this book and at the end of it it's kind of like match up your passion and the things you're good at, right? Or the things you're good at and the things you love. And I started writing these things down and figured out I'm like, man, I love small business and I want to be a part of a small business. I think that's just a fun place to be in, in the world personally, everybody has their different, strengths in what they want to accomplish.

I wanted to serve small businesses and I love marketing. I'm one of those nuts that really truly believe that marketing makes the world go round. I believe in marketing, that it makes the world go round. And the reason why I believe that is because, if you have something cool to offer other people and no one knows about it, then it's only cool to you. But if you have something that can solve a lot of people's needs and a lot of people's problems, then it needs to be known.

I also believe in marketing that couples what people actually need, with people that are providing that. As opposed to corroborating or making up something that people don't need and trying to get them to buy it. I don't believe in that, there are plenty of places that do that, but I believe in marketing. So I wanted to be a part of that. And so I joined a software company that did that. Their purpose was to help small businesses succeed and they did it through software. So I was like, that's right up my alley!

I went to work there. I got to know some phenomenal people. All my life, I have met great people. I haven't stayed very well connected with everybody that I've met, but very good people on the way. You know, my college years to working in mortgages, to working at a university and then, working at a software company. Good people and people that I still love and trust from that company, that have gone on to do some really cool things as well.

I realized there are a lot of people that need help running this marketing thing. They need help to figure it out. And part of my role at that company was to fly all over the world and working with their 50 biggest partners. And I would be all over the place. And I did that for a year that I was in that role. And I was all over the place.

I remember distinctly, and I've told this story a few times, but I think it's just one that I love to explain, is I remember sitting in Sydney, Australia with two entrepreneurs. It was me at this dinner, me and two other entrepreneurs at this dinner. I was the only one that made six figures. They were all making eight and more. And so to hear the conversation that was happening and to be able to be a part of that, just to be in that was, I don't know, a dream come true.

I was in awe. I actually thought to myself during the conversation, I need a pen. I need to write this down, I need to write what's going on. And as the business owner to my right and the business owner to my left spoke and talked, I found that very, very intriguing the shifts that were made in both their businesses and how they contributed to each other, and I thought it was just inspiring, very cool. I remember that moment changed me.

I left that dinner, like on fire. I couldn't sleep, I did actually write down some notes and ended up being able to work with a couple of these guys in different elements and still have a relationship with both of those guys. And love and appreciate what they've taught me and my business over the years. And ultimately, that conversation and others that I've had with other entrepreneurs led me to want to go out and teach people and train people and do marketing for people.

I feel like if I truly believe in what I've said, that marketing makes the world go round, then people need help with that. And so early on, what I did with my business is I created an agency that was small scale. Meaning we did a lot, but we did it for a few people. That was just how I run my business. I feel like if I have some deep, meaningful connections with the clients that I have, that I can make a difference in their business.

I was able to do that, and I've generated millions upon millions of dollars and helped produce those with the business owners that I've worked with. And so that has been inspiring to me. But I also think that it's interesting that more people in the world need help. And so for me, I always want to expand. I always want to grow, I always want to figure that out.

As a business owner myself over the past few years, you know, I've learned from the model of business that I've run, helping some amazing entrepreneurs and dealing with challenges of just the service, dealing with the challenges of what I do. Having some very lonely points in my business and having some very struggle-some points in my business, creating some conflict and issues with some of my clients and maintaining phenomenal relationships with others, right?

It's been a learning lesson and I'm just grateful for my path. I'm grateful for good people that are willing to be in this with me. And I'm grateful for and I just really love entrepreneurship. I love the ability to go poke a hole in the sky. I used to say that a lot, go poke a hole in the sky. Go do something bigger than what I think I could do and stretch myself. And that stretching is uncomfortable. It is so uncomfortable.

I recognize how hard that is for a small business owner to expand and to do bigger and to charge more and to help more people into all of the facets from content creation, like we're doing here with this video, from social media posting, from advertising to building landing pages, building funnels, and marketing campaigns and all that fun stuff. There is a lot to it. And doing it for other people is wonderful. And doing it for yourself is a whole other challenge. 

I think that all business owners have to figure that out. And building a team and scaling a team and figuring out those relationships you have with your team, building a company culture. There's so much to your business. It's no wonder that there are businesses upon businesses and millions of businesses that are there to serve businesses. I love what I do, I love AutomateBIG.

It has been a dream come true to work with some of the people that I've worked with, to help other people. And I could never paint a picture of my life without painting a picture of my family. My wife is extremely important to me. She means a lot. And you know, good on every one of those spouses of an entrepreneur. My wife is an entrepreneur as well. But the support that you render for people and the support my wife renders to me, to allow me to do what I do is amazing. I love my kids and I love being a dad. 

I don't feel like any business should ever stop you from being able to be the person you want to be. I do truly believe in personal development. I have been a part of a lot of personal development teams on the back end and love and appreciate that too. So I just wanted to open up a little bit of my life into what I do and what AutomateBIG is for me and how I serve, but we got big things coming.

I know that if you're an entrepreneur, you feel that same way about the next thing that you're creating, and the things that you're working on. I totally enjoy the space and I love marketing. And I hope that you will learn a lesson or two from my story in what I have gone through and figured out and had challenges of. I truly want to help businesses conquer the madness that it is to run a business.

There's such exhilaration, passion, and excitement to run a business. And there's also a lot of pain and loneliness and heartache and stress and struggle that you have to deal with. And for me, I solve those problems and I want to solve those problems better. That is what I'm after, and that's what I'm creating, that's what I've created. And I hope that you'll take some lessons from this, and go implement something cool in your business. And this is just another small way to AutomateBIG.