Israel LoBue - Founded in FoCo Podcast — Founded in FoCo Podcast

And to really kind of just detach yourself from the outcome really is the best way to approach sales, because if you're making it about yourself, you're going to get in trouble. It's really all about the person that you're trying to serve and giving them the best advice so that they can make the best educated decision to move forward. And if they move forward with you or they don't move forward with you, that's okay. As long as they're able to come to some sort of decision that helps better their life.

Hey, it's Nick Armstrong, and this is the Found in FOCO podcast. Each episode we get to talk with a local entrepreneur about the things that are inspiring them, the things they're working on, and what they want you to know. So today I'm here with Israel Laboue, and he is from Next Level Advisors. Israel, tell us about your business.

Yeah, thank you so much, Nick, for the opportunity and for the ability to be on the podcast. Grateful for this time together. Really, Next Level Advisors is an idea and a concept that was birthed not from myself, but from a good friend of mine, Brandon Sturkey. He was an advisor for over 20 years or so, and he sold his practice, but he realized that there was still an area of need that he could serve the financial advisory community, community, financial wealth advisors, and really just in the areas that were lacking, whether it's marketing, it's seminars, it's radio. There's a plethora of different areas that the industry just really didn't know much about. And so they learned from just grit and grind and made up, made a ton of mistakes. And through that process, they got better and they basically cracked the code. So he has partnered with basically— and myself, I'm the CSO of the company, and so I've come on board to partner on the sales side of things. But really, it's a group of mentors that are all 7-figure advisors that are dedicating a portion of their time to really mentor, coach, and advise these financial advisors that really want to take their business to the next level. Hence the name Next Level Advisors. So that's kind of in summary kind of what it is.

So it's not for an end user, somebody who's looking for financial advice. It's for the financial advisors who advising their clients and want to level up their game.

The business owners. Yeah, it's B2B. Yep.

So what is it? What are some of the challenges that come along with that? I mean, it's obviously there's a ton of marketing advice out there for all sorts of different stuff from financial aspects. But tell me about what, what did the day-to-day look like? What is the challenge that goes into this, into this, into this market?

Yeah, I mean, again, I was brought on— I'm not a financial advisor myself, so I'll just say that being that they're from— just knowing my friend and basically what he's created, there's just— it's really where there's a gap or where there's, I guess, a hole in the bucket, if you will, as far as where financial advisors and their businesses are struggling is they just don't really have the marketing figured out. It's been just old, archaic ways of doing marketing. They partner with wholesalers or other different companies that just have products and services. And so these financial advisors then take these products, they go and sell them and they get a certain override from them or whatever. They don't really actually have taken the time and the energy to, to understand marketing, to understand what is the messaging to really bring, you know, qualified leads or people in front of them that they can really serve. And so that's basically what's been happening for so long. And nobody's really been able to crack the code except him and these other advisors that he's partnered with that have their expertise in, in different veins, if you will, as far as the industry. Like, we have a mentor that's really good at women's marketing, women's seminars specifically. Her name's Arwen Becker. And then we have Mickey O'Neill, who's really good at radio. He's really mastered how to, you know, have a presence on radio. So Brandon, who's started Next Level Advisors, he's really mastered marketing. You know, what's the messaging, what's the ad copy, all those different things that are really relevant to you know, finding your niche customer to be able to attract them, to help them and serve them. So hopefully that made sense.

It does. And bringing a network of advisors in is some strategy that we've seen applicable in different industries as well. Um, what is it that, what is it that sets Next Level Advisors apart? I mean, you've mentioned that phrase that they've cracked the code. What's the secret sauce? What's the thing that makes Next Level Advisors, an advisory group that works out better than some other peer-to-peer mentoring service?

Yeah, great. Uh, it's, it's because of the plethora of different mentors that have expertise in different fields. So we're really well-versed in all different areas depending on what is needed for that specific business, for that financial advisor to grow their practice. Um, but also being that it's a group of people that have already made the mistakes So investing into the mentorship, the coaching, um, the systems, you're paying for their mistakes so you don't have to make them yourselves, right? That's really the value of mentorship. You know, you can hear Tony Robbins or anyone that's really successfully made it, right? Darren Hardy, those people that are just like— they have a surrounding, right? It's, it's the people that they surround themselves with that have made them who they are today. The Jim Rohns, the Zig Zigglers, like, they are in a mentorship group so they have that continuous learning and growing, and they don't want to repeat the same mistakes. They don't want to recreate the wheel. It's like, if I want to be where somebody else is at that's already successful, and then I'll just— should follow what they're doing. So that's really the, the secret sauce, if you will.

Yeah, Thomas Edison said that it's a criminal waste of time to not use the experience of others to bring yourself forward.

So Thomas Edison's a perfect example, right? It's like, why would I go and figure out how to create the light bulb? I just go to the store and buy it because he's already, uh, learned 10,000+ ways that did it wrong that, you know, where he failed.

Exactly. So tell us about your panel at, uh, Found in FOCO.

Okay, yeah, so it's basically sales. A systematic process is really kind of the, the title, if you will, but it really just breaks down the sales process. I've been in sales for, gosh, 15 years or so, uh, give or take a year, and, um, there's a certain specific process, the way that you should go about it in order to be successful. It's like with anything, and really sales is a skill that if you want to get better at, you have to continuously learn and grow, and you're going to be no better than the system that you have in place. So if your system is failed or flawed, then you're probably not going to be able to make the impact you want to make. So it really just kind of outlines— I don't have it in front of me. It is pretty quite a bit in there, but basically I just have an acronym for sales habits. And so S is for a certain definition, and I just go down the line.

So you've been in sales for a long time. Sales is a high burnout industry, and folks tend to cycle through really quickly. What is it that's kept you in, in the game, and what's kept you successful?

Yeah, really good question. I think it's kind of like, uh, when I'm, when I'm posed with a puzzle, I don't just give it a couple shots and I give up and put it to the side and say, okay, well, I can't figure out that puzzle. So it's almost kind of like a puzzle that is continuing to grow on me. I think It's probably similar to maybe the work ethic that I put into working out. It's like I just had a goal in mind that this is the body I want to achieve and the health I want to feel, and I'm going to continuously do it. And consistency over time is going to, you know, warrant this— that transformation. Similar with sales. Um, I've had my ups and downs, and I've had some times where I'm just like, why am I doing this? But at the end of the day, it's like I really have looked more and more into the massive advantages of it. And really, first and foremost, it's to serve and help people. Really, that's why businesses exist, right? Someone has a problem and hopefully you're, you know, you can understand them well enough to provide them with the solution that's going to help them, that's going to better your life, their life. And if you help enough people get what they want, you're going to be taken care of. That comes from Zig Ziglar. So I think just— and you can kind of write your own ticket. That's what I think I love about it too, is really a business does not even can't even thrive or even make it if they don't have somebody on the ground selling it. Just, just a simple truth.

Marketing and sales tend to go really hand in hand, and you can't really have one without the other. As you said, there's, there's a limiter for success. So what, what have you seen be successful for businesses of different sizes? Right now you're working for a mid-level firm. Talk to us about your experience in like small business, for freelancers or for larger businesses even?

Yeah, I would say just to kind of give you a little history as far as my background. So I used to own, operate, and I sold a fitness company. So that was more of a business-to-consumer. Somebody wanted to transform their life, they saw us as a, as a solution to help them do that. They would come in, it was a fitness boot camp, and we offered different solutions to help them do that. That was a little bit more of an easy kind of face-to-face sale. Then evolved, then I evolved to more of on the phone, on Zoom. And it was B2B, a digital marketing firm in the past. And that was a great experience. It taught me a lot. It's definitely a different type of dynamic and you have to really— the process is more dynamic in that nature as far as really seeking to understand and really figure out what are their pain and problems that you're trying to accomplish and does your solution help solve that? And to really kind of just detach yourself from the outcome really is the best way to approach sales. Because if you're making it about yourself, you're going to get in trouble. It's really all about the person that you're trying to serve and giving them the best advice so that they can make the best educated decision to move forward. And if they move forward with you or they don't move forward with you, that's okay, as long as they're able to come to some sort of decision that's helped better their life. That's kind of my philosophy. I didn't have that early on. I was kind of a selfish, uh, when I was early on in sales, but I evolved and matured as I heard more mentors speaking in my life, like Zig Ziglar and Jim Rohn and some of you know, the ones that live on today that have their legacy, because I had to make a shift in order to really be successful at sales.

Is that ability to sell well, uh, something that anybody can do? Is it something that you can just sort of pick up as a skill? And if you— is it a muscle that you can develop?

I truly believe in that philosophy, that yes, it is a skill, and if you want it bad enough, you'll develop it so that you can hone it in and actually be really good at it. I've seen people straight out of college or whatever that had no sales experience and some of the top salespeople, uh, because I think it just comes down to your mindset. And if you have the mindset and the determination to want to be good at anything— now granted, if I wanted to be really good at, uh, basketball and be the top NBA player, well, that's just kind of a, a far-reaching goal that's just— I'm not genetically made for it. I'm— that's just out of my— that's not going to happen, right? Um, but when it comes to sales, it really is kind of an even playing field. It is a a skill that you can develop, and if you want to be good at it, you just continue to learn and grow and master it.

You've had a lot of different careers, uh, in sales in particular. What is the— what does your home life look like? What is the— do you have a support structure around you? Like, how does that— because sales is up and down sometimes. What is— what does that support structure look like for you?

Yeah, that's definitely really important, um, is really having the support behind you and having a good reason why what you're doing what you're doing, because you can be beat up one day and have these highest of highs and lowest of lows, and I've had those. So I think really having a clear head as far as my, you know, I'm married to my wife for almost 15 years. We have two beautiful girls. They're 11 and 7. And that really does keep me grounded. Also, I'll just say, you know, my faith in the Lord, that really keeps me grounded and really keeps a good head on my shoulders just to really be able to come from a place of service that I'm here to help these people the best way that I know how and that I'm trained to do so.

What would you say is the most important advice for somebody just getting into sales or just starting up their own business and wanting to take on that sales role or having to take on that sales role for themselves?

Yeah, this may be cliché, but I would say just start. Get your feet wet, get beat up a couple times, you know, have some bad calls, learn from it, listen to those recordings, see what you did good, and, you know, take note of it. What did I do well? What did I not do well? And then really find yourself a really good mentor or coach, um, that can help you with the aspects of where you've gone wrong. And I would encourage— if this is one thing to look out for in a mentor or coach, but find somebody that's really going to— one, they've proven it themselves, so they can practice what they preach. If you're getting advice from somebody that isn't successful, then you're going to go down— it's kind of the blind leading the blind. But, um, something I learned too, because I've kind of gone into the leadership coaching and mentorship role as well, and if I had a team that I've coached, is Focus on one thing and prove that, and then move on to the next. If you just say, hey, you got 5 or 10 things you need to work on, just blast them with that, they're not going to be successful at anything. It's too overwhelming.

Founder to FOCO is a great place to get connected with, uh, current salespeople. Are there any— but beyond you, is there anybody in Fort Collins that you would recommend people connect to in terms of that, uh, mentorship?

Uh, I mean, we have a lot of great mentors and coaches. If you're a financial advisor, I mean, just a you know, that in regards to that, we do have a gentleman by the name of Paul Spurlock. He helps with selling and virtual selling and stuff like that. But as far as the ones I can name off the top of my head, I don't really have anybody that comes to mind. I know there's quite a few. I just, I don't know if I want to kind of reduce it down to here's a couple when I know there's, there's, there's an abundance if you really search for it and you want it and you want to grow. But, you know, I think just The biggest thing in selling too is you really got to believe wholeheartedly that your solution actually helps people. If you don't have that conviction and you're just trying to sell, sell snake oil or something to make a buck, you're not going to be successful and it's going to bite you in the butt later. So just really partner and align yourself with a business that has a great product or solution that truly does serve people and help them and make their life better.

Awesome. Where can we learn more about you and your business?

Yeah, so you can go to Next Level Advisors, Inc. So nextleveladvisorsinc.com. There's tons of stuff there for free. Engage with it. Look at the different mentors that we partner with, some of the people that I mentioned here, and I hope it really serves you well.

Thanks so much for joining us today, Israel. And for more great business advice from your fellow entrepreneurs in Fort Collins, visit foundedinfoco.com and keep listening to the podcast for more great actionable advice. Hey, thanks for listening. I'm Nick Armstrong, and this is a Founded in FOCO podcast. For more great interviews like this one, join us at foundedinfoco.com.