Mike Minutes Mastermind 12/18/2023

Hello everybody. Happy Monday. Let's get this party started. Have looked to see how many.

Questions we caught got in for marathon Monday, but we'll find out shortly. A couple quick announcements.

Slash reminders. Now I have to refresh Facebook twice in order for it to actually show my live stream.

Thank you. All right, link, copy, paste. Okay.

Couple reminders. It was a note on everyone's Command center invoice last month. There was two reminders on there. But I understand that sometimes you don't read the invoice emails. That's fine. So this is what it said first off is that starting in 2024, you're going to see your invoice invoices coming from Copilot for all the franchise fees etc and command center fees, everything. So you're going to get an email asking for bank details for from Copilot and that is going to be from Augusta Franchise llc. So you'll see that it'll come in as if you're getting an invoice from Command center and it'll say, hey, please update your bank details and then you can enter your details there.

This is going to be a really important step as we move forward with Copilot because we have an entire different server called commandcenter.co pilotserm.com for command center access. This allows us to be able to track team members throughout people's accounts much better than them having to put their name at the end of every single action. More importantly, as we add the coaching program in 2024, it will allow us to be able to show coaches, people pieces and parts of your account and be able to keep internal notes for the coaches inside of one place. So right now we have an external CRM. We've used all those in the past, like the leadership team and the coaches, but we can't share every single thing with the coaching program. So for example, someone's going through divorce, we're going to keep that very separate. Whereas if we put it all in Copilot, we can give permissions who sees what. It's very, very organized and really serves our, our needs the best. It also is super good for automations. And so for example, if you're, if you change bank accounts and you redo it like everything is through one system and also at Command center instead of everything having to go through like up the chain of command for a leadership team to address in terms of personal problems, they're able to make notes and then it's able to stay separate in terms of just keeping track of each Each owner, each manager, et cetera. So if someone's not showing up for estimates, a whole bunch. For example, right now, the process is they have to escalate this until the point where someone like Liz at Command center is going to be like, okay, I'm going to go enter this into our different CRM account. So all that to say you're going to get an email from Command center asking for your bank details in 20, 24 and beyond. We'll be using Copilot to bill an invoice, everything. And then that way you have, you'll have like a client portal that you'll be able to see all of your invoices and it'll just be much better. You'll be able to change, put bank details and etc. In there. We do require that bank bank details are required, not credit cards.

What was the other thing I was going to say? Second thing is the second reminder inside of that.

Invoice last month was that for the people who have opted out of Max, their hourly, their permanent rate, it is going to affect this coming invoice. So in January. So if you would like to opt in or out of Max, I will just quickly actually just show you or do that just so we're all on the same page. So to Gustafranchise.com on the dashboard, I go there, I will show you where you can opt in or opt out of MAX during office hours. And as a reminder.

If you're opted out of Max, basically that means that max will not pick up during office hours. It'll go straight to Command Center. Because having MAX in between helps us a lot in terms of organization at Command Center. The $1.09 per minute will apply to anyone that is opted into Max, and it'll be a dollar and 39 cents per minute if you are opted out of Max. So underneath forms just do Max AI calls, opt in or out. And on this one, you can opt in or you can opt out. So if you opted out currently, I know, like in the past three weeks, a lot of people opted back into it as it's been refined more and more. Feel free to do that. That'll make sure you stay at the $1.09 per minute instead of going to the $1.39 per minute as we described.

All right, that's all I had for announcements. Let's go into some questions. Let's see what we got. We only have two questions on a marathon Monday, folks. All right, let's see here. Present Share screen.

All right, John Garretson John Garrettson look at this guy. Can we get owner email account set up as well as a location exam account for example we are.

August longinsurance.com could I get a second one for communications we may not want our office to see such as items that we do not concern anyone but the owner. John Garrison's ALCS as an example of my secondary one I have I currently have this as my other businesses and find it highly beneficial.

I actually need I need to bring this forward to Command center because we keep track of everyone's accounts through the one email. It's like the fastest, easiest way for everything to stay simplified so I can communicate with them. I know several people have made it where they have a different account and like when it moves into a different folder then it goes their other email etc. But it becomes a bit of a logistical nightmare because that's how we keep track of everything. I will talk to them at Command center. I know it can be done. It just how do we want to set this up and make sure that we still stay organized at command center. So before I just say yes we can do that I will make sure that command center that they actually this wouldn't throw a monkey wrench at them by having different because for example whenever you communicate from Jay Garrettson that requires then if anyone from Command center gets that email they would have to somehow assimilate that you are associated with that other specific location. Whereas if you're always responding from a specific location we immediately know where you're coming from. So it's just not until someone's been here for like a year or two they're not going to know all the owners and all the locations. So that's the only my only apprehension and then the organization on the back end. But I'll run that by Command center and see if it's something that we can do. And if not I know several people have created forwarding email addresses separately.

Kyle Tarvin Moore, Oklahoma Next year in the spring we will be going all in with door hangers and probably not doing much if any Google or Facebook advertising just due to the cost we would this be a bad strategy or should we still advertise on Google too? I would still spend some money on Google and Facebook during Sprint rush because that's when demand is high and everyone needs the service. So again that's when you want to keep powder dry is for that spring rush. I just see a lot of times people spending a whole bunch of money on Google and Facebook during the middle of, like their slow season in order to try to get more leads. And it's like it's not working. It's like, yeah, like no one needs or is searching for services on Google right now. So I would do a little bit, even if it was five or ten dollars a day, because you're going to get some really low customer acquisition cost due to the fact that people are needing services during that time of year. And then in terms of door hangers, I'd be careful with saying you're going all in unless you have tested this already. Right. So I'm assuming you have done some testing. Like, you know the numbers enough to, okay, this is going to be good strategy. But I would be careful with planning your marketing strategy.

So definitively without testing. So I just be flexible. Just know that everything is flexible. Some people hear my video, will hear a video I made five years ago and be like, oh, like you said this. It's like, okay, that was before COVID before inflation. Like, you're not going to hire anyone for $10, $12 an hour anymore. Sorry. These are the type of things that you just got to take context in.

We applied for the ERC tax credit in May and we used ERC specialists. We received a credit of $249,000 for Q1, Q2K, received a check of Q2 in the amount of 80K back at the time of this year. We paid 10K the fee. All other quarters are awaiting IRS processing. With the recent moratorium on payments and notification of intense audits, I'm concerned what I should do. I was reluctant on filing for the credit to start with and only did so because a local business.

You have to go on to.

I submitted late. Okay, wait one second. You submitted late on the form? Let me pull up the form because I. Your question got cut off.

I do not see your question on the form. Just pull it up again. I'm refreshing. It's not there. Okay. This is Brian Connor. Okay, so if it has been filed according to what they have told us, it will go through. But they put an immediate stop to any new applications. So I believe it will go through. Contact ERC specialist directly and you can confirm this. But I am 99 sure anyone that had actually like got their account, their stuff in, those have been. Have been. Are going to get issued. So the ERC thing was an absolute joke in terms of like, it was too easy. Money being given out, lots of abuse. There'll be so much people. Like, there was so much. It was. Yeah, it was Horrible. But you're able to qualify for fantastic. But they did immediately cut it off when they just saw how much fraud was happening. And so it happens, you just give away money for free. And so but from what I have heard, if you have, if you got your application in and it's processing, it will get processed. But contact ercc, you can specifically ask them like, hey, did this actually already hit the IRS desk? Like, or not the irs, the.

The, the.

COVID relief board or whatever for the regulation.

And you can just ask them. And then I would imagine though if it says in processing, you will get your money. That's what I have seen so far. But they would know directly. So. But hey, 80,000 is better than nothing. But if you have another two, you know, you're expecting another 180 coming your way. Fantastic.

His business also expand experience a high level of growth rate and we did not face it. He didn't. Yeah. Yeah. So like the erc, it does not necessarily mean that you have to have your business go down. It means that you have to Covid had to have negatively impacted your business. So if you had to know wear master and team meetings, if you had to wipe down trucks inside, if you had to change the way you did estimates, like anything like that, you can qualify for this. They basically gave out a whole bunch of free money and they realized it was too easy to get it and they shut it down immediately. Which it was over the top. Like they should have had financial requirements. And that is like you should, you would have had to show impact of financially. It's like the gym I could show like for 6 months I made $0 and had all my expenses still coming in. So I would have seen that make sense. But it doesn't make sense to. For a lot of businesses to be getting this money. But hey, if you qualify. Let's go. I'm looking for some guidance on what we should do. We have plans to make our purchases this week for what we will need for 2024 growth. We have plans to spend 70k. I think you're going to want to spend this money probably anyways, Brian, because the 80k that came under your balance, you're going to pay taxes on anyways. Right? So that 80 grand you're probably going to be taxed $20,000 on if you don't spend it. Obviously this looks, you have to look at your whole P and L and see what, what you're going to be looking like. But look, you said the Augusta location buys two trucks, one of the backpack Backup replacement, one ramp wrap or trailer and racks for one truck. The.

North Augusta location will purchase one truck, one ramp rack. Yes, you sounds like you already got the stuff ready to go for buying. I would make this decision in terms of the buying of stuff as if you're not going to get the money because that's going to happen next year anyways. So from a tax perspective, this is inconsequential. Now whether or not you get that money next year is going to become. You have to go probably buy more stuff next year to avoid taxes. But like if you've already got 80 grand, call it to 70 grand after the fee.

Unless you didn't make a lot of profit in the business. I'm assuming that literally 25 to 30% of that is going to be taken in taxes. So you're probably going to want to spend this money anyways. Unless you were planning to have the other 180 to cover this cost.

Then it'd be a matter of if the business wasn't profitable to the point where you actually need to care about taxes. So I, I'm going to go on a limb though and say that you probably want to make these purchases anyways to quote unquote, get rid of the money that you got the 70k so you don't have to pay a whole bunch of taxes on it and then.

Address the 180 that comes in next year. I'm considering using the recent return process to IRS is opened up to return the refund given and cancel all pending refunds. If I do return the money, I imagine we will likely be out of the 10k fee to arc and stuff to come out of pocket to make up the difference. The irs. I would not recommend doing that. This is literally free money from the government. Use it to grow your business. This is why they did it. They wanted to stimulate the economy. Now was it bad legislation? Was it horrible political garbage? Yes, I would take the money, use it to go grow your business, make more jobs. Ultimately it still costs less for you to create these jobs in the government. And so.

I have not, I have not seen anyone get in trouble for these ERC things. If as long as Covid impacted your business in some way, if you had to literally do anything, they're letting it go through. The purchases for growth are in my opinion the bare minimum. And I do not see a way to make to not make these purchases and be successful as I would like for the 2024 season. If I go the return route, I will need to get a loan for all the portion of the 70 camp purchases I would definitely not go the return route. Brian, talk to. There's a few people have gotten this. Brian got it.

Who else got it?

Sick Kyle. I think Kyle Tarvin got it. There's a few others but I would not recommend returning the money.

I just would not. I believe Augusta needs to add another mo setup in order to reach the revenue goal of 145 to 150k in the busier months to push out the 15 profit percent profit we are looking for. North Augusta is at capacity with one truck. They will hit 220k revenue in 2023. That's a pretty good first year. Good job for one truck. Let's go.

I would stall growth if we did not purchase another truck for North Augusta. We also have to pay tax on the 70k in profit if we if we do not make purchases this month. Current financial situation Both locations Augusta 130k in the bank debt 54,000 0% interest. North Augusta is 40k in the bank debt 15,000 6% interest.

As I see I have a few options. Roll the dice with the ERC credit and risk the chance of being audited. The 70k pays for all growth purchases. In the event that we are found ineligible we would face penalties interested and we'd have a large sum of money to return the refund and cancel all pending. We would like. We would most likely be out the 10k. We paid the TRC get loans for the growth purchases. We could get a loan for the truck for North Augusta. Add another 600k to monthly debt and pay out of pocket for the $9,000 in rack and trailer. We could do a similar purchase order for Augusta. Buy one truck with debt. Purchase the additional truck next truck later next year along with drafts. Yeah. So this is not legal advice but from what I have seen, you are not going to get audited. From what I see they are not going to take the money back. This would be political suicide for them to do this. They will not do it. They know what they have done is wrong. They know what they have done is stupid and that's why they cut off the program so quickly and abruptly. But it would be political suicide for them to go after businesses right now after giving the money away. Also going through ERC specialists, they ensure that you are actually eligible and that's why you use them. They'll make sure everything is done correctly. Who's going to get in trouble are the people who didn't use. People like ERC specialists and they didn't fill all the boxes incorrectly. They didn't make sure everything was dotted and crossed. So there's a sense of security by having someone like ERC that does knows the legal stuff like the back of their hand. And if they say you're eligible, like you can go with it. So I would not return the money. And if you're actually concerned about like being audited and all the rest of it, just make sure running a profitable business because you could go get debt to cover that. Have I seen that? Not one single time. They have just simply resigned to the fact that they have lost gazillions of dollars to fraud and they're going to let it, let it slide. Trust me. Now is that legal advice? No. And if you were not impacted by Covid, you shouldn't have applied for the erc. But whether or not you needed it versus whether or not you qualified for it is a very different thing. And the reason I'm okay saying that is because I believe you spending this $250,000 will have a net better impact on the economy than actually going back to the government. That's my opinion. Because the cost for a government employee for one job is so, so high. You will probably create five to eight jobs with that 250k. They can't create one or two jobs for that much. So I would still give you the green light on this. Ultimately, this money will make both of these locations significantly more profitable. In the event the crazy one off chance that you get audited and get in trouble for this, for whatever reason, you would be able to go get debt. You would have basically had an interest free loan for two years. But by the time they actually make you pay it and you would be able to afford it, no problem. So I would not take any distributions from this money. I would use it to grow the businesses.

And if that's going to be especially helpful for your conscience. So like when I got the money, every single dollar went into growing businesses and creating economic impact. Like my locations before this past year were paid with ERC money. I had a lot of evidence to prove that my gym was closed down. We had to go remote for command center, et cetera. And they gave me a bunch of money. So did I feel bad taking that because I didn't really need it for about four minutes. Then I realized that I can create about 30, 40 jobs for that money and it would take for the price they would maybe do two or three. So the whole goal of that program was to stimulate economic prosperity and create more jobs, etc, and they. Because they pumped so much money and that's why we had inflation and.

Massive wage inflation and all the rest of it. So that would be my 2 cents. My opinion, and based upon the. The owners that I know have taken it, I have not seen anyone get in trouble for it. I do not see that happening. One man's opinion. That is not legal advice. Talk to erc, they're going to have, like, way more information than I do. So. All right, that's all I got for the day, everyone. I hope you have a fantastic day and we'll see you tomorrow.