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You are actively doing deals and are ready to invest heavy into systems for a high volume operation...whatever it takes!
Starter Blueprint
Empire Builder Blueprint
Passive Investor Blueprint
Welcome to your Empire Building guide!
You are here now because you want:
A large, profitable, unstoppable cash cow that lives up to your entrepreneurial potential.
You've got the drive and ambition to put as much effort into your business as possible.
You want to work smart AND hard...
You're not afraid of the grind.
You have a budget to invest into lead gen, building systems, and world class talent to run the day-to-day.
You're not afraid of having a huge team.
There's a problem though...
Right now, YOU might be the CEO of every department of your business.
You're probably toying with a ton of different software tools, and trying to make sense of it all so you can have a clear picture of your operation's KPIs...but it's just a TAD too complicated right now.
Are you overwhelmed by all this???
Well not to fear...InvestorFuse is here!
A Empire Builder business is a TEAM-BASED operation.
It looks something like this:
On this page, we're going to break down EXACTLY what you need to set this up.
Here are the different sections:
Throughout each section, we'll also answer the question:
What tool do I use?
To capture each tool we recommend and what it costs, we created a spreadsheet, which you can use to map your total budget.
Just go to the appropriate tab...and it's got literally everything you need and all the tool links referenced below.
Ready to build your legacy!? Let's begin...
At InvestorFuse, we've worked with several big players and helped them setup their businesses.
One of them is Nick Perry, who closes six-figures PER WEEK in assigment fees.
SIX FIGURES PER WEEK.
To get a glimpse at what a true Empire Builder business, looks like, here's an unfiltered walkthrough of Nick's offices.
There's a few things to take note of from that video:
1. Specialization: Each area of his office does ONE thing. Acquisitions in one room...dispositions in another...etc.
2. Dashboards: His dashboards are visible by ALL. This keeps everyone aligned towards the goals of the company on a daily basis. He's even got different dashboards for different departments.
3. Culture: The environment, the game ball, the spinning wheel, the smiles, the motivational posters...Nick has created this intentionally, and so will you!
This type of business is totally different than the Lean Flipper or Passive Investor...because it's ALL ABOUT THE TEAM.
What I'll be sharing below requires CONSISTENT effort to produce results.
Don't be like most investors that quits when something doesn't work after a week of trying.
You are in it for the long-haul here.
To set your expectations appropriately:
You will need to let go of most of your day-to-day responsibilities.
Yes...this means you'll be delegating (not micro-managing) most tasks.
Yes...this means that some things won't be done 100% as well as you at first...but guess what:
Increasing your $/hour productivity and always focusing on high value tasks and working ON the business is the name of the game here.
We like to say you should be working 70% ON and 30% IN the business so that you can eventually work 100% ABOVE the business.
Take a second to let that process....
Being ABOVE the business means you look at your business as an asset for wealth building.
And your job is to then ALLOCATE dollars so your money continues to generate more money.
This is the essence of wealth building.
But for now...let's talk about setting up a HIGH VOLUME real estate investing operation.
Ready? Let's get to it!
**This section is an excerpt from The 8020 Investor Academy, our online training and mastermind about systemization.
(Learn more about our Academy and apply here)**
As an active investor, If you have no target...you'll never hit one!
Before spending a bunch of money on systems and campaigns...get specific about the outcome you want.
To help you create a CLEAR intention for your business goals, down to the KPIs you need to hit, we created a fancy spreadsheet.
Step 1: DOWNLOAD THE FANCY GOAL
SETTING SPREADSHEET
Some tips: Use current known numbers. If you don’t have anything recorded, well it’s a good thing you’re taking this training!
Make a guesstimate. You need a baseline to grow upon.For now, we do this exercise so you can begin to re-arrange your decisions with these numbers as the filter
PRO TIP: Pick ONE strategy and stick to it until success. Every time you switch strategies, a baby Koala dies (and you lose momentum and lower your chance of making money and having a successful dream business.)
FOCUS= Follow One Course Until Successful
Your bread and butter business model should ideally have very few moving parts.
A simple virtual wholesaling strategy is perfect for a lean flipping operation.
The "80/20" of wholesaling is sourcing deals at scale...we'll get to that shortly.
The real magic of setting up the infrastructure to acquire houses virtually is this:
It's the common denominator to ALL exit strategies.
If you can generate, capture, qualify, and pursue deals in a systematic way, the world is your oyster.
I'm sure you already know the basics of wholesaling,
But do you want some free training anyways?
My partner Matt Viebrock created this training that breaks down the entire process of virtual investing for free.
He covers:
CLICK HERE FOR FREE COURSE (use the pwd "8020fuse")
If you're looking for a strategy that:
Then creative financing as your exit strategy is for you.
It's all about using TERMS (price, downpayment, monthly payment, length of term) to structure a win-win for you and the seller.
As the coach Blair Halver puts it,
You're not a wholesaler, you're a transaction engineer.
Here's the most popular methods:
Owner finance
What it is: Instead of bank financing, you can buy a house through installment payments to the owner.
Benefits: No banks, you can pay higher price and negotiate favorable terms, you can even negotiate deferred payment, you can assign these like hotcakes to an end buyer for a quick profit.
Cons: They're a bit harder to find, but like anything else in this business...it's a numbers game. Start with a high equity landlord list.
What it is: Instead of getting bank financing or coming. up with cash, you can buy a house simply by taking over the existing mortgage payments.
Benefits: No-money-down, no credit needed, the mortgage stays in owners name, and unless the seller needs cash upfront, you can acquire title to property basically for free! This is the beauty of negotiating on TERMS vs. just price alone.
Cons: When title transfers, technically banks can ask for all their money back at any time because of the "due on sale" clause. It's extremely rare for them to do it though...because banks HATE owning properties, they just want the cash flow. Luckily, there's ways to solve the problem if it does happen to you.
What it is: Also known as "rent-to-own," this strategy is best used when selling to an end buyer that has cash for a big downpayment, but can't get a bank loan.
Benefits: CASH NOW>CASH FLOW>CASH LATER.
If you can lock up a deal sub-to with no money...imagine how cool it'd be to sell to a "tenant-buyer" that will pay you a large 5-figure downpayment, a monthly rent payment higher than your existing mortgage payment...and a BIG backend sale you can profit on.
See video below for examples...
Cons: You need to screen a lot of tenant buyers to find the right fit, but they are out there! And this can be outsourced.
I recorded a video with Blair Halver running through several deal examples.
Here it is for free:
I'd recommend attending Blair's training on creative financing.
His program literally GUARANTEES results or you get your money back (nobody else offers this).
He shows you
No brainer there, it get's our full stamp of approval...check it out.
Make sure to have a great attorney before doing these deals.
Oh...do you need one? Each state has different laws, so Blair told me I could share his master US recommended attorneys for each state.
Here you go: Blair's Epic State-by-State Lawyer List
We can't talk about building an empire without mentioning Commercial.
It's the source of countless millionaires. Here's a few reasons to consider looking into this:
While we are not commercial real estate experts, we can point you in the right direction.
One of our most popular interviews is with David Bokman, who wholesales commercial real estate. Watch this for a nice intro to this strategy:
For the most modern and QUICKEST approach to amassing a large net worth, I'd follow a guy named Tim Bratz.
His podcast, The Legacy Wealth Show, outlines how he's build a 9 figure net worth with commercial real estate in just a few years.
The path that many Empire Builders have taken is to START with single family houses, systemize that business, and then begin to foray into Commercial once your business starts to run on its own.
We'll show you how to do that :)
Now that you've decided what STRATEGY to pursue to monetize your opportunities, let's dig into different ways to GENERATE those opportunities.
Leads are the lifeblood to your business, so you'll want to get this up and running as soon as possible.
Then, you'll want to get it off your plate so you can focus on doing deals.
As I said for picking the strategy: Pick ONE method and stick to it until success. Every time you switch strategies, you lose the chance to see results, build momentum, and learn how to improve your lead generation.
Be Scientific
Try something, test results, and tweak until successful. Marketing is like a science experiment. You don't know what's going to work well for YOUR business until you try something, and continuously optimize the results.
The biggest reason investors fail is they simply don't do enough lead gen...
Inconsistent marketing is the death blow to most investors
The following are the most efficient ways to get leads in the door that we know.
They are also the easiest strategies to systemize for consistency.
However...they will take some financial investment to get up and running.
This is the cost of doing business.
The goal is to invest marketing dollars (or hours), so you can get a return, in the form of fat deal$.
Note I say "invest." It's best to think of expenditure here not as a cost, but as an investment.
So...we sorted these strategies based on your marketing budget starting out.
**We left most of the low-cost strategies because the paid strategies will get you quicker results.
Check out the Lean Flipper page for a full rundown of the low cost lead gen strategies.
If you're trying new strategies, you'll want to try a few things at once to see what works.
As soon as something works....STOP EVERYTHING ELSE and do more of what works.
Remember, FOCUS.
Before we begin, a big question you might have:
"Where do I market?"
Answer: Start in your backyard.
Yes, you can do this business virtually....
Nick Perry's market is the entire USA.
Only once you've proven the volume in your backyard do we recommend going national.
Cool?
Remember:
ALL OF THESE STRATEGIES WORK!
You just need to CONSISTENTLY execute. I'm giving you the "80/20" to get these up and running as fast as possible.
Alright here we go...
Did you know that over 90% of ALL HOME SALES are from real estate agents listing properties on the MLS?
You can't deny, we're still in a real estate agent world, and they can be an investors best friend.
What if there was a way to source OFF-MARKET deals from them, before they hit the MLS?
This is called "Pocket Listings."
As a high volume operator in your market, you can really take advantage of this to get a consistent source of free deals from agents that know you'll be good for a closing.
My friend Kyle Nolan Good teaches investors how to build relationships at scale to keep your funnel (and pockets) filled.
Watch Kyle's FULL WORKSHOP here
This free training covers
Watch that, and start building relationships with the agents in your target markets.
One of the CHEAPEST (but not totally free) forms of marketing is text messaging.
With this strategy, it is a numbers game...meaning you'll need to text hundreds and hundreds of numbers just to find someone interested in selling.
One of the CHEAPEST forms of marketing is text messaging.
With this strategy, it is a numbers game...meaning you'll need to text hundreds and hundreds of numbers just to find someone interested in selling.
Here's a quick video of how to do that..
For more advanced training on getting the most targeted data. Watch this training from the master Tyler Austin (it's a long one, but it's darn good
Now that you've got your list squared away, it's time to start texting!
He even gives you tips on how you can get a Virtual Assistant to do the texting FOR you!
Ahhh cold calling. Most investors have a love, hate relationship with this one.
Much like texting, it requires HIGH VOLUME.
You (ideally an outsourced team member), needs to do a LOT of dialing.
Rough numbers we've seen across the board:
You must contact 100 leads in order to generate a contract.
I shot a video to show you how easy it is to get a cold calling campaign going. Just use Call Reps, not the company I referenced in this video, which is slightly dated.
If you have a bit more cash to invest...try the following strategies:
With direct mail, you are answering the call from someone who wants to talk to you
vs.
Cold calling...where at first they do NOT want to talk to you.
Pyschologically, you're in a great position when you answer these calls live.
I like how direct mail campaigns can be broken down into hard stats:
2500 mailers sent per month
2% of those leads called
20 of those were qualified leads
1 offer was accepted.
Etc.
Like every other form of lead gen, this is a numbers game, and your success ratio goes up the LONGER you mail a list.
And expect to put some serious cash behind your direct mail.
You're gambling if you expect to pull a deal with only $500/mo budget.
You want to be spending at least $2000/month on mail, which will allow you to mail around 4500 owners.
Luckily, there are services that do ALL of your direct mail for you.
You set it up once, upload your list, and they take it from there.
Here's the best one:
They have an extensive library of templates to choose from.
They have near rock bottom prices (mention InvestorFuse for best deal).
I suggest speaking with their amazing sales team.
They'll help you make all decisions, and have your best interest at heart.
Their leader, Andy Detwiler did a training on best practices for our members. You can watch it here.
Why use CallRail?
Have you heard of "Multi-Touch" Marketing?
Well...it's a thing, and it allows you to hit your lists from multiple channels, all in one system.
Namely...via email, text, cold calls, and direct mail in an automated sequence.
Pros: It consolidates multiple channels into one "Campaign"
Cons: Makes it harder to isolate which channel actually worked to convert the lead. Also, it's more complicated to setup.
Luckily, there's a system for this! Though, it's not for the technically declined.
REIReply is basically the only affordable game. in town that's built for real estate investing teams. I shot a video with their CEO to get more clarity around how to use. it and what you can expect to pay to get results.
There's a lot of misinformation about online marketing for real estate investors.
I'm. here to set the record straight for you.
If you have a website, you need to drive traffic to it if you want it to make you money.
You'll be driving traffic one of three ways:
They call it "Pay-Per-Click" because the ad system is essentially a bidding system.
You are bidding for clicks to a certain audience or keyword you target.
Nick Perry (from the office tour above), get's about 90% of his deals from PPC alone.
This is his "One Thing," and he has the budget to spend 10s of thousands of dollars a week to generate leads.
Asssuming you have a higher marketing budget, here's why I love PPC:
Pros
Cons:
It costs a lot of money to get it going.
At the high end, Greg Bilbro, CEO of GEOFlip, a company that does this for investors, recommends spending minimum $5k for 5 months to get the BEST results.
Stephanie Better, a Facebook ads specialist, recommends at least $2,000/mo to start getting a consistent flow of Facebook leads.
Why? Again, you need to collect a lot of "data" around which ads get clicked by who.
Also, this works best if you're targeting a large market or city. You need enough eyeballs for it to work. Don't go this route if you're targeting tertiary or rural markets.
HINT: DON'T DO THIS YOURSELF.
Unless you genuinely enjoy PPC algorithms, leave this to the pros and stay focused on monetizing the leads it produces.
For Google PPC:
Most services charge up to $2,000/month to manage your ads full time and send you reports.
That's in addition to your adspend. We suggest a minimum $2,000 per month for at least 6 months.
Our favorite Google PPC Done-For-You Services:
For Facebook Ads
Our Favorite Facebook Ads Services:
For $997 bux, Blair shows you how to setup a NATIONAL Facebook ad campaign, gives you all the templates, shows you how to use the system, and then shows you how to do creative finance deals to make big profits virtually, no matter what market the lead comes from. By targeting the whole country, you can get spend as little as $5-$6 a day to get a steady stream of leads.
So, check out that course if you want to do it yourself.
Website
In the meantime, you should setup your website so you have a web presence.
Look no further than Carrot, a done-for-you pre-built investor website that naturally ranks in google with ZERO work on your part.
Get A Carrrot Site Here for Under $70/mo
Here's a training from Trevor Mauch, their CEO, about how best to use a Carrot site and make it your own. (This is a clip from our Modern Marketing Masterclass)
In addition to direct-to-seller marketing, an Empire Builder invests into building an authoritative, recognizable presence in their industry.
Investing in your brand recognition is long term thinking, which is what separates the good from the great.
Having a powerful brand is hard to duplicate, and will yield you fruit forever.
You'll want to start investing part of your profit back into brand-building activities.
SEO
Getting to the top of Google naturally is what this is all about.
It requires constant effort that we recommend you outsource to a specialist that can do it right.
Like all brand building, it's a long-game to build a presence to the Google algorithm, not to mention it's constantly changing.
The video above from Trevor is a great overview.
Catchy Name/Jingle/Phone Number
One of the largest REI brands on the east coast is Express Home Buyers, run by Brad Chandler.
On an interview I did with Brad, he said that paying for his jingle was "the best marketing dollars I've ever spent"
It's like a psychological hack that got his service implanted in the minds of millions of home-owners over the years.
Listen to it here (it's damn catchy).
I did an entire interview with Brad talking about building a brand. It's part of our Modern Marketing Masterclass.
TV/Radio/Outdoor Media
These channels WORK!
We know experts that can help you execute.
For TV commercials, reach out to the Minnesota Home Guys. Email jaden@homeguysmn.com
For Radio Ads, go here.
Partnerships
This involves creative thinking. Here's a few ideas:
Who could you attach your name to as an added value to that person?
That's partnerships in a nutshell.
I recommend fueling your empire with direct-to-seller marketing, and MAXIMIZE with brand building activities.
Now that your funnel is filled, it's time to build your conversion machine and your dream team.
IF you 10x'd the number of leads that you're generating right now...would you be able to confidently handle them all?
This is what "scaling"is all about...
Being able to convert leads no matter how much volume you're getting.
Generating opportunities is only half the battle.
CLOSING them is where the money is made.
He/She with the best follow-up system always wins...
Remember, a Lean Flipping business looks like this:
Until now, we've only just built the arm that drops houses into a funnel.
Now we've got to build the scalable foundation that your team can operate in.
Why is it important to have this as automated as possible?
Here's two VERY BIG reasons:
But don't just trust the data...trust your common sense.
Not every seller needs to sell the moment you talk to them.
Some leads take YEARS of nurturing before converting to a deal.
Our colleague Christina Krause did a 3 year study that showed that 75% of her client's deals came from followup 30 or more days after the initial contact.
Of her clients with NO follow-up system...only 8% of their deals came from followup...
Don't Waste Your Marketing Dollars!!!
Now it's time to build a funnel that uses all of the best practices of lead conversion.
Enter, our sales system:
IF3.
Think of IF3 as your Lead Conversion System. Here's how it works:
Without an automated system like IF3, you're staring at countless hours of mundane work:
Our tool gives you a simple process for this, so you don't have to re-invent the wheel.
Learn more about our Lead Conversion System here.
Alright, now that you've selected your strategy, started generating leads, and setup your sales system...
It's time to setup your operation and plug in a team!
To get a team up and running, you'll need to hire at least one Virtual Assistant to help you manage leads.
There's a few ways to skin the cat.
This video will help you determine the best structure for your team.
Look no further than Rocket Station VAs.
They are pre-trained for real estate lead management related tasks .
(as well as other basic admin functions)
The coolest thing about them:
When you sign up, they will help map out the processes your VA will be doing for you.
That way there's complete clarity and you ensure that they know exactly how to execute.
They cost $10/hour.
To request a VA, book a call with Rocket Station and mention InvestorFuse for the best pricing.
Hiring Acquisitions managers is an art form, but when you get this right, you'll have closers literally MAKING YOU MONEY without you needing to talk or haggle with a single seller.
In order to attract the best closers, you need to have the system up and running, as we've described...
AND the volume of leads that will feed them enough appointments.
One of our friends Todd Toback has hired dozens of Acquisitions managers in his career, and we interviewed the best practices for how YOU can do this for your business.
We train our 80/20 Investor Academy members how to hire and manage staff at a world class level.
In the meantime, Nick Perry shared his unique recruiting method using Indeed.com.
He used to work at Indeed, so learned how to game the system.
This is exactly how you can start to create a pipeline of talent for all areas of your operation, including sales people.
The above link also includes sample Job Postings you can use.
One of the best investments you can make as an Empire Builder is an Executive Assistant that can be your right hand.
They can help you:
It's one of those roles that you didn't know how bad you needed them until you've hired them.
Best of all, you can find a great Executive Assistant that is U.S. based for under $20/hour.
We recommend using our friends' service:
They will help you find and implement your E.A.
Mention InvestorFuse for the best discount on their placement service.
Here's what you'll want. towork towards.
I hope this guide gave you the essential strategies and tools to start making the income you need to live your dream Empire.
If you've read this far, you have the capacity to do this.
The only way to fail is to stop.
Everything else is just an outcome...and you will learn by taking action.
You'll experience a lot of land mines in your path to building your empire.
I don't recommend doing it alone!
Having smart minds around you to help you make strategic decisions is the cheat code of entrepreneurship.
Our 80/20 Investor Academy is literally designed to provide you accountability, training, and the high level network to build the business of your dreams.
If you liked this free guide, just imagine what our paid training is like.
If you think you'd be a great fit, I'd love to speak with you.
Now, go and get what's yours.
-Dan Schwartz, CEO, InvestorFuse
