Most people who call me are about to make an expensive mistake. They just don't know it yet.
I've spent 20+ years building, running, fixing, and selling subprime consumer lending businesses.
Payday.
Car title.
Installment.
Texas CAB/CSO.
Native American tribal lending collaborations.
Storefront and online.
I built one from a startup to 15 locations, took it online across four states, and exited to private equity.
I didn't read about this industry. I bled in it.
Since then I've advised more than 200 founders, lenders, investors, and vendors.
The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, The New York Times, and The Washington Post call me when they need someone in this industry who'll tell the truth instead of a press-release version of it.
People in the space have called me "the first guy to talk to." That reputation took two decades to earn and I don't intend to spend it being polite to bad ideas.
Call me if you're:
Starting a payday, installment, car-title, or consumer-lending company and don't want to find the landmines the expensive way.
Running a storefront or online lender that's stalled, bleeding, or ready to scale, and you need someone who's seen the back office, not just the pitch deck.
Looking at the Texas CAB/CSO strategy and want it to run right the first time.
Considering tribal lending collaborations and need real diligence, real structure, and introductions that actually open doors.
A vendor, software provider, payment partner, bank, or capital source trying to get in front of operators who are actually buying.
Sitting on a deal, an acquisition, or a portfolio and need someone to pressure-test the numbers before you wire the money.
When the fit is right, I also make strategic introductions. Vendors. Banks. Capital. Attorneys. Tribal partners.
Operators who've already solved the problem you're staring at.
I don't hand these out for free on a $5 call. I hand them out when I know you're serious and you've done the work to deserve them.
I will not work with:
Consumers looking for a personal loan. People looking for legal advice (I'm not your attorney; I help you frame the right questions for one). Get-rich-quick dreamers. Anyone trying to find a clever way around the law.
If that's you, save your money and mine.
I don't sell fantasies. I sell pressure-tested truth, with the consequences attached.
The math either works or it doesn't, and I'll tell you which before you find out the hard way.
Book the call. Bring your numbers. Pressure-test the plan, map the launch, fix what's broken, or find out if your next move actually makes sense before you spend another dollar finding out yourself.
OK! You want to increase the amount of $$ you have "on the street." Are you a brick-n-mortar? Online Lender? Blended? You use proprietary loan management software or something off-the-shelf such as Infinity, eCheckTrak, Epic... You are a State licensed lender? Which State(s). [As you likely know, Illinois and Nebraska just "went dark."] Perhaps you're employing the Tribal Model? Are you beyond a "friends & family" seed fund? The ROI on "the business of lending to the masses" can be superior. Make some noise. I've no clue how much $$ you're attempting to raise. But at a minimum, let everyone in your network know about your biz. How well it's performing. Avg. installment loans are 400%+ APR's! Are you giving equity? Debt? Jer Ayles. Call me. Plenty of capital looking for returns you're capable of delivering.
Focus on your target's pain. Break this "pain" into little micro-pains within the Theme. Use index cards for each chapter/module...
Choose a specific time every day to write. Turn all the B.S. disturbances off! Focus. Either write like you speak or record your talking points and pay Fiverr or whatever to transcribe.
Assemple a PDF. Get/build a Wordpress site focused on your chosen niche. Blog min. 2-3 times/week. Create great content that matters and share your knowledge in each Post. Do not holdback. QUALITY.
Build your list; Aweber or Constant contact or whatever. Prominent signup form! Build a drip campaign. Allow 6 months to get any traction.
Build your brand. Consistency... IE: like for me, it's Teacher… Lender… Consultant...Resource… Answers… The Business of Lending to the Masses.
Leave INTELLIGENT, INSIGHTFUL comments everywhere related content appears. I've made front page of Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, NYT... Reporters NEED content. THEY ARE LAZY. Do the work for them.
Be controversial. As Altucher writes, "If you're not afraid to hit Publish, if you're not scared SH&&***less, your writing sucks.
Youtube, Instagram... sure! Everyday and everywhere!
Start today. Focus. Do the work. Iterate. It's hard "work" BUT if you choose a niche you dig, the future is yours. Fail to be scared and do what need to be done, you will still be HERE!
I know, and more importantly, YOU KNOW this works!
Best ,
Jer - Trihouse Consulting
I've been lending capital, consulting and raising capital in the B2C lending space since 1998; generally AFS [Alternative Financial Services - both collateralized & noncollateralized. [Think payday loans, car title loans, installment loans...] Started with a brick-n-mortar and transitioned to online. If you're planning to lend, you face a multitude of regulatory hurdles and compliance challenges on both the federal and state/province level.
If you're "holding" funds, you face the same challenges. Google "Fintech - fill in the blank" and you will begin to comprehend the reg issues.
What "service" are you offering? Take a look at Dave.com for some BG on what I'm referring to.
You have not offered enough detail to dive deep into your question.
Best,
Jer Trihouse Consulting
I started selling a "How to Book" in the early 2000's. It changed my life! Not only did I sell a hell of a lot of books at $300 - $500 each, but it put me on the front page of the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times... This led to more book sales, positioned me as the go to guy in my niche, and enabled me to collaborate on related business deals with some very savvy business people.
What did my book do for its buyers? Enabled them to realize they could duplicate my efforts and in a LOT of cases, improve upon, scale and profit even more handsomely than I managed to do.
Paying for GOOD INFORMATION that can jump start your business is always a good idea. The ability to scale your enterprise by tapping into the knowledge and experience of entrepreneurs who have come before you is a tremendous advantage. But, perform your due-diligence. Can you call the expert(s) and explore their background, experience and motivation?
Be aware that selling a book "giving out helpful/useful money-making knowledge" makes sense for authors in a plethora of ways! By making a book available, in addition to providing a repository of additional resources and updates, the author is in a position to receive in-bound calls and questions from potential buyers of a "How to Manual," a "Bible" a "White Paper..." Literally, a dialog begins and both parties are in a position to explore and learn.
Sure, skeptics say, "If you the author is so smart, why sell your book? Just put your head down and do the work!"
Selling a GOOD book opens doors! Buying knowledge is one of the smartest investments we can make!!
Andrew at Mixergy has several interviews with founders who pulled this off. As a matter of fact, that's where I discovered Dan and Clarity.fm. And am I glad I did!