How Max Closed A $40K Retainer - Master Filmmaker Review

What's going on, guys? I'm here with one of my clients, Max, who just closed a 40k retainer. What's going on, dude? How are you doing?

Great. Thanks so much for having me today.

Absolutely, man. I guess for anybody who doesn't know you, do you mind just giving us a little bit of backstory on like, who you are, how you started and how you got into this?

Yeah, absolutely. So yeah. My name is Max Fillmore. I live out in Utah, Salt Lake City, and I've been a videographer and that's been my passion for like maybe 10 years, kind of ever since I was a kid. And I've, I started doing videography kind of as like a full time job a year ago. And I kind of started out just doing like freelance work, like literally taking anything I could get, like going to tons of literally asking every single person I know, like, hey, like, I'm a videographer, I'd love to do something for you. Like, you know, and so I got clients here and there doing like some real estate shoots, doing weddings, different things like that. And it was great. And, but I think like my passion for videography and like my desire to actually make it like successful for myself, it's kind of what led me to this program. And like when I saw the, when I kind of found master filmmaker, it really dropped me. It drew me in because I was like, dang, all the problems I'm having with like literally begging people to work, like to be able to work with them. I feel like almost like I did.

That like five years ago, dude. Yeah, it's like, right? Yeah, I went through the same thing too. It's like, it's crazy because I feel like everyone can of follows the same path, I guess. How did you find out about us originally? Like, how did you get in touch with us?

So I saw a Instagram ad, I think I saw a series of Instagram ads actually. And I was like, after a couple, I think I saw one about, you know, video retainers and I was like, oh, that'd be nice to get paid monthly, you know, to do, do work for people. And so I reached out and kind of scheduled a call with, I think it was Evan and went, yeah, yeah. And then from there like I, I really felt good about it and went forward with it. But yeah, I love it, man.

Well, obviously it's been working out for you so far, I guess. What was kind of that biggest problem though that you had, was it like the consistency? Was it more so, like how to get clients? Was It a combination of both. What was kind of the biggest problem you had coming into this?

Yeah, so I'm kind of a big picture guy. And I feel like sometimes I can so big picture that I like, kind of look over the little things, like the steps that I need to take to success. Like, I'm like, okay, I want. I want all these big clients, but, like, I don't know how to get there. And so I think the biggest struggle for me was seriously just knowing where to look and how to market myself so that people would, like, want to buy from me and would want to choose me. Yeah, because in my. In my area in Salt Lake, there's like tons of videographers. There's, you know, there's thousands. I feel like it's really. I'm sure that's how it is in other states too, but it was really hard for me to like, set myself apart from other people. And so I feel like that was kind of the biggest thing was just looking professional, setting myself apart, and, you know, having clients, you know, come to me.

So, yeah, you're kind of big picture to where you're like, I know what I want to do, but I don't know how to actually get there and take those steps to actually get there. That makes sense, I guess. Was there any reason why maybe you chose this program over maybe some of the other programs? Maybe there wasn't a reason. Was there, like, anything that kind of like, allowed you to pull that trigger and really, like, dive deep?

Yeah, I mean, I think I did look into another program that my. One of my buddies was in, but I think something that drew me into Master Filmmaker specifically was I really felt like there was a team of people that, like, were all very focused on my success. Like, I had, like, several of you guys reaching out to me like, constantly, you know, encouraging me and helping me. Even before I signed, I felt like I saw that within, like, the program, and I saw also how like, organized, like, the step by step process was. And I felt like, dang, like that's a super clear path to success. Like, I feel like they have a really, like, defined way of doing this. And so I. And I also was able to see kind of some of your past clients that's had success, and that also was like, okay, that's a good, you know, I can tell that which you're gonna.

Be up there now. It's like, you know, so I love it. Huge, man. And like, I guess you're still obviously going through the program. We're still setting more Things up. This is literally just that first deal, the 40k. Um, but I guess, like, is there anything within what you've been going through so far that's been particularly helpful? Like as far as group calls as sales, obviously you talked about the roadmap that we're building out for you. Is there anything there specifically?

I think honestly, like one of the biggest things was building out the, the CRM and having like that. Yeah, having that system built out so that when I do get new clients and when I'm looking for new clients, it's almost like it's an automated process of like bringing them on and helping them become, you know, one of my clients. And I felt like, yeah, like you said, I feel like the, the one on one coaching calls and group calls where like, you guys helped me go through each step from like creating my VSL to creating, you know, CRM and ads and, you know, running all the ads. Like, I couldn't have just figured that out on my own. I felt like that, like, you know, as you hold it, kind of like you guys are holding my hand through the process, basically.

Yeah, no, totally. I mean, that makes sense, I guess with like within the process. What kind of client was it that you ended up closing for the 40 and what kind of, like, what kind of person was that? What kind of niche? What niche was that?

So I'm in the medical professionals niche. And before we had done only dentists. Like, we had only worked with dentists. And so we wanted to get out and do other medical professionals. And so that was our first priority was like, we want to get someone other than a dentist. And so, yeah, it was. So what. The client that we did end up closing was an audiology practice.

Nice. Okay.

Basically, yeah, your doctor. And so that was new and like different for us, but I felt like. So when they came to us, we sent them like the, the VSL and like the landing page that we had created. And like right after sending them that video, like, she was sold. Like, she was like, all right, yeah, I'm in. Because she saw the case studies we did, she saw the video we made. And like, I really felt like when we got on that sales call with her that she was already ready to buy.

So you sent that over to her and then she was, she was pretty much pre sold by the content you created. Which is also why we want to create case studies, obviously, because then you can show what those past clients experience going through and working with you, you know, which is absolutely huge. And was this. I was going to Ask, was this one of the first retainers you had ever sold or had you done retainers before this?

There. We had done some other retainers, but the offer was only like, we were only getting like, 800amonth and was our.

So this is like your first high ticket retainer?

Yeah, absolutely. So we had never done anything like this before. Like, I, I never imagined doing, like, a $40,000 deal, you know, so that alone, like, was huge. And I think we undervalued ourselves like crazy. You know, we didn't even know how much we were worth until I felt like we were talking to you guys. So.

Well, I think it, it, it comes down to, like, it's a perspective thing, right? So, like, you don't, like, you are worth as much as you think you're worth. Right. And obviously you have to show the client how you're going to help them get a result. Right. But, like, it's a lot of perspective. So when you get around people who you see in the wins, like, 100k deal, 140k deal, like 50k deal, it kind of just like expands your mind to where you're like, oh, I could probably do that too. Like, they're no different than me. You know what I mean? So it is super important that you get around people who are doing more than you, because you never want to be the smartest person in the room. Because then you're just, like, bottlenecking yourself in terms of your growth because, like, you're. You want to get around people who are way better than you, who make you feel like, holy crap, man, like, I am not doing enough. Right. Which is, which has been huge for me in my own life, with my own coaching too. Um, and like, I guess, where do you feel like you might have been if you hadn't taken the leap and kind of jumped into the program. Cause obviously, it's a scary leap. It's a scary jump. It's scary to bet on yourself, but I guess, like, where do you feel like you might have been if you hadn't done that?

Um, I really think we still would have been, like, just stuck in kind of the rut of, like, first of all, like, really trying to reach out for referrals and, like, word of mouth to get clients. And then also, I really felt like our price point would have been stuck at that lower place where I really. Because I didn't want to be putting in the amount of hours I was putting in and not get the money that I felt like I was worth. Yeah. And that's that I think again was probably one of the biggest selling points. And so that's the biggest difference now is I finally have a vision of like, what we can do. And so like, I felt like that first $40,000 deal was literally just the beginning. It's like, now we know we can do it, right?

Like, it's validation of your mindset around the price point. And then now you're like, okay, cool, we can rip a ton of these. Was it a lot more work? Like, is it a lot more work than your $800 ones, would you say? Or is it kind of the same?

No, it was the same for sure. Like I.

So you literally changed nothing pretty much. Like, there's some tweaks obviously, but like you didn't change much and then like you just charge more simply because you thought you could, right? Yeah, absolutely.

And like I said before, like with the videos, like the, the case studies and stuff that we made, like, I, they were already sold, so like we didn't. Technically I did less work because they already knew, you know, So I was.

Like, who wants to be salesy anyways? Just let the, let the client results speak for themselves. And that's why, like, if you're not getting clients results, get it, like invest in how to do that, which obviously we help you guys with. But it's like, learn how to get them results because people will pay for results. They do not care about the content and how beautiful it is. They want results and that's it. And if you can deliver, great. If you can't, then you're always going to be stuck at those lower level price points, I guess. Last question, Max. If anybody's maybe on the fence about just like booking a call and like speaking to our team, I guess, what advice would you give them, knowing what you know now?

Well, first of all, like, it does not hurt to even at least book a call to be able to see, like, what if it's a fit for you? Like, I, I mean, it's hard to say that, like it's going to be a fit for every single person out there, but if it is a fit for you, if it is a fit for you and it does fit, like what your goals are and like where you're at in your business. I 100% believe that like, you will get a return on your investment with this. Because, like, it's so laid out so simply like the, the step by step process and like, you know, each week you're given very specific tasks to do. Like, I felt like I Never was confused about what I had to do this week. I knew exactly what I. And so because of that, like, if you're willing to work for it, my advice would be if you're willing to work and you care enough about your video business, then master filmmaker is a perfect option for you because the work is going to, you know, it's going to pay off and you're. You're going to make your return on your investment. And that's what I felt confident in that going in. And it only took us about a month to do that, so.

Oh, you've only been. I thought you've been in for longer. You've only been in for a month. Oh, wait.

Just kidding. No, it's actually been almost 2 months.

2 months. 40k in 2 months is not too shabby. Yeah, I love it. Well, I think. And we'll wrap up here, but I think you hit the nail on the head where it's like, like you. Anybody can do it. You just have to be willing to bet on yourself and use the tools that in front or that are in front of you and given to you to then do it right. And it just comes down to, like, having the right steps because, like, you could waste years and years and years doing the wrong thing. And that was my biggest fear. And that's why I invest in mentors, because it's like, dude, I don't want to spend the next 10 years figuring out how to do this stuff. Like, I'm just going to pay someone who already has it figured out for people just like me, and I'm going to do it. So.

Yeah, absolutely.

Dude, I love chatting with you. I'm super excited to do another one of these when you're at like a million dollars a year and we're going to crush it. And dude, I appreciate your time.

Absolutely. Thanks so much, Eric. Appreciate it.

Yes, sir. Absolutely.