#031: Winning in Hard Times. Why Most Businesses Shrink and a Few Roar Back.

#034: Functional Medicine of Idaho - Stewardship as the Guiding Principle in Business

In this episode of To a Million and Beyond, I sit down with Sam Warren, who acquired Functional Medicine of Idaho nine years ago with no medical background and helped grow it from five to over 120 employees, four locations, and care across 13 states. We unpack what functional medicine means—root-cause, whole-person care focused on optimizing mind, body, and spirit rather than treating symptoms—and how Sam’s own recovery from severe concussions helped shape the mission. Sam shares how he and his wife Amber (a PA) navigate owning a business together by building strong leadership layers and boundaries, and how they hire and prune around humility, hunger, and being heart-centered. We also talk about stewardship vs. ownership, leadership and organizational health, vulnerability-based trust, and building a culture where the team cares for each other through initiatives like a matched care fund. 00:00 Mission First Impact 01:10 What Is Functional Medicine 03:30 From ISP to Healthcare 05:07 Healing Sparked the Acquisition 07:29 Building a Values Driven Team 11:41 Helping People Flourish 12:09 Culture Benefits Care Matrix 15:03 Stewardship and Embracing Hard 22:15 Marriage Boundaries at Work 29:38 Leading With Heart Daily 30:27 Turning Off Work Mode 31:05 Cutting Digital Distractions 32:27 Marriage as Daily Refining 33:44 Stewardship Over Ownership 35:24 Building a World Class Team 39:25 Leadership Health and Trust 44:05 Anxious for Nothing 47:05 Legacy of Service and Love 53:24 Enabling Others to Flourish 58:11 Closing Gratitude Who should we interview next? Send nominations to MattWillis@WizardOfAds.com

#033: Busy, Booked, and Still Broke

In this episode of To A Million and Beyond, I talk about why small business owners can be slammed with calls and booked solid yet still feel financially fragile: they’re building on the wrong foundation. I explain how profit often leaks through small decisions like discounts, low-margin jobs, and taking work out of fear, and I share a Midwest home service example where record volume still produced shrinking profit because the schedule was full of the wrong customers. I argue the real issue is trust and identity: when customers see you as interchangeable, you compete on price and urgency. I outline how consistent, targeted brand storytelling and “brand priming” can shift your client mix in 60–90 days, and I recommend raising your floor price, saying no to draining work, creating simple memorable media, and training your crew to embody your identity so margins rise naturally. 00:00 Busy But Broke 00:54 The Wrong Foundation 01:43 False Security Trap 02:16 Profit Leaks Everywhere 02:50 Full Of Wrong Jobs 03:31 Trust And Identity 04:22 Tell A Better Story 05:16 Clarity Changes Clients 06:17 Brand Priming Proof 07:41 Small Steps To Fix 08:19 Leaking Buckets Metaphor 09:17 Back To Businessman Who should we interview next? Send nominations to MattWillis@WizardOfAds.com

#032: What Rebuilding My Marriage Taught Me About Winning Customers

In this episode, I share how a decade-long addiction and a trust-shattering lie to my wife exposed three questions that surface when trust collapses—who are you really, can I trust what you say, and are you for me—and how consumers ask the same questions of brands. I explain why logos and value claims like “integrity” don’t create belief, and how leading with declarations can backfire by setting unrealistic expectations. Instead, trust is built through character, culture, vulnerability, specificity, and consistent communication over time—using stories instead of slogans, showing failures and how you made them right, and deepening emotional connection with repeated, evolving creative. Drawing on IPA research, I connect consistency to trust, memory, and profit, and argue that relationship-based marketing aims for customers to feel like they already know you. 00:00 Betrayal Confession 00:45 Three Trust Questions 01:17 Consumers After Betrayal 01:56 Why Logos Fail 02:49 Trust Is Demonstrated 04:02 Fix Culture First 04:41 Trust Drives Profit 05:18 Vulnerability Stories 06:19 Consistency Compounds 07:39 Parasocial Marketing 08:22 Pillars And Farewell Who should we interview next? Send nominations to MattWillis@WizardOfAds.com

#031: Winning in Hard Times. Why Most Businesses Shrink and a Few Roar Back.

Why Most Businesses Shrink in Hard Times (And How to Roar Back) In this episode, I explain how hard economic times change the rules of business and customer behavior, and why most competitors fall into a death spiral by cutting brand-building marketing, over-relying on PPC, lowering prices, and degrading team and service quality. I break down how fear makes purchases feel risky, why customers want an ally they can trust, and why the goal in a downturn shifts from maximizing revenue per transaction to winning long-term emotional preference. I share practical steps to plant your flag now: keep investing in top-of-funnel customer bonding marketing, protect demand with branded keywords, be cautious with unbranded PPC when the math breaks, add adjacent or recurring revenue streams, and stay consistent because repetition builds familiarity, trust, and pricing power. I also offer free, tailored “economic weather reports” via email. 00:00 Why Businesses Shrink 00:50 Competitor Death Spiral 01:34 Fearful Customer Mindset 02:29 New Goal in Downturns 03:27 Bonding Marketing Playbook 03:51 Protect Branded Search 04:40 Unbranded PPC Reality 05:38 Add Recurring Revenue 06:49 Consistency Wins Long Term 07:29 Plant Flags and Close Who should we interview next? Send nominations to MattWillis@WizardOfAds.com

#030: How Trust Fills Your Funeral Home - Win Their Heart Before They Need You

This talk was requested by the National Funeral Directors Association and presented via webinar on Wednesday, April 22nd, 2026. Matt Willis of Wizard of Ads explains that funeral services, like HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and insurance, are “grudge buys,” so transactional, price-focused marketing drives families to compare on price and location. Using Henry Ford’s cross-industry innovation as a metaphor, he argues funeral homes should learn from other essential businesses by building trust and preference before a death occurs. He outlines four customer paths (Google search, Facebook recommendations, trusted-referrer calls, and families coming directly to you) and cites research that 75–83% choose at time of need, two-thirds contact no other funeral homes, and 84% choose brands they preferred before entering the market. He recommends relational marketing built on empathy, competence, consistency, and frequency; using reflective storytelling, authentic vulnerability, and “happy stories”; prioritizing mass media to reach the 95% not in-market; budgeting ~60% to brand building and ~40% to activation; and positioning pre-need as an outcome of trust.  00:00 Ford Assembly Line Lesson 01:55 Grudge Buy Reality 03:31 Four Decision Paths 06:39 Trust And Safety Stats 08:02 Relational Not Transactional 11:34 Trust Building Ingredients 19:17 Story Types That Work 23:18 Relational Ad Example 26:49 Targeted Vs Mass Media 30:33 Proof From Other Trades 33:07 Budget Split Guidance 33:54 Pre Need Follows Trust 37:07 Next Steps And Wrap Up Who should we interview next? Send nominations to MattWillis@WizardOfAds.com