We’re breaking tradition and interviewing our very first guest! Given the meager budget for this fledgling operation, we searched for a future star that we could afford today. Yoni Katz is a 12-year-old entrepreneur and a big fan of our podcast. He is starting several businesses and wanted to get our insight. Little did we know that Yoni would teach and inspire us more than we could help him! 

In this episode: 

• Building a personal brand at any age 
• How to price your first products/services 
• Small business guerrilla marketing 
• How to work referrals 
• Playing to your strengths 
• The difference between features and benefits 
• Pricing based on the value you provide 
• Investing at a young age 

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Watch the episode here

Listen to the podcast here

Yoni Katz – Business Lessons From A 12-Year-Old Hustler 

This is a special episode. We have our first ever guest. We made this exception for a business mogul in the making by the name of Yoni Katz. Yoni lives in London. We know his dad from LinkedIn. Yoni is a hustler. Yoni is starting multiple businesses at once and wanted to come on our show and get some advice. We dive into both of his businesses. We talk marketing, pricing, operations, brand, and all things that most adults don’t even understand. I hope you love this episode. If you’re new to this, we’d love it if you hit that subscribe button. If you enjoy our show, please give us a review. 

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We got a special guest. He’s only twelve. His virgin ears will not be soiled by me.  

We are breaking new grounds for this show. We promised ourselves that we weren’t going to chase around a bunch of people to do interviews if we were going to start a show. we haven’t had to chase for this one. We do have a special guest that we are excited about. We are joined by young Yoni Katz. Yoni, welcome. 

Thanks. 

Yoni, where do you live? 

I’m in England, London in Edgware. 

The first lesson for every entrepreneur is to never give away your services for free. Click To Tweet

This idea came about because we had posted something on LinkedIn in one of our videos. Yoni is the son of Adam Katz, who is a friend of Frank and I that we interact with on LinkedIn often. Yoni asked a few business questions and Frank said, “Rather than trying to answer them here on LinkedIn, why don’t we get him on the show and start diving in?” Yoni is making young Frank and Ian seem lazy twelve-year–olds because I had not quite done what Yoni has done nor had I’ve been on a business podcast by that age. Frank, what were you doing at twelve years old? 

Mostly sports and school. If I was doing anything business–related, it was working with my dad. He was an electrician. I’d do that or I was hawking candy bars so I could play on travel sports teams. 

The closest thing I had to what Yoni has been up to is I scooped my dog’s crap for allowance. I consider that a job. I would then go spend it on pizza and candy. 

One of the things I’m excited about Yoni to have on the show is you have an accent. We sound like we have an accent to you. It’s all perspective. When I was in Australia with my sister and we were talking, she’s like, “I wish we had cool accents.” The guy standing behind me goes, “You do.” I’m excited to hear you talk. 

Yoni, why don’t you start with the first business that you started? Tell us about the first customer that you went and got, and how you convince that person to give you their money. 

My first person was a test, which is my mom. I’m doing a massaging business. My mom always begged for massages so I was like, “If people like massages that much, I might as well make some money out of it.” She was my test round. 

That is a beautiful idea. Never give away your services for free. That’s the first lesson for everyone. If you’re going to give someone your services, charge for it. 

No one is sacred, even mom.  

I also wanted some money to invest in the stock shares. Also, I wanted to get known for my future businesses. When someone needs me, I’m one of the people that they think of. I’m trying to get my name out there. 

What you call that is your personal brand. You’re thinking about branding, getting your name out there, and being known for certain things. I’m going to stay on that. What would you like to be known for, Yoni? 

I want to be known for someone who’s willing to do something. If they know that I’m willing to do something at a young age, hopefully, they’ll think that by the time I’m older, I’ll be able to help with their services a lot more. 

I’m getting in with this interview already. I’m excited about this. I’m going to make my son watch this. He’s a few years behind you but he’s not thinking about personal brand. He needs to be thinking about branding. 

I love what you said about getting your foot in the door and making it so people know you’re willing to do stuff. That’s great. 

 

In general, I hope that you never lose that whether you’re 12, 22 or 42. Frank and I are over 40. We want people to think of us as people that get things done. If you ask us to do something and you pay us to do it, we do it well and we do it on time. As we get into any business you want to start, there is nothing more important than being a man of your word. If you want to start a business, the best way to grow a business is to do what you say you’re going to do on time and exactly how you said it. I love that you lead with that before we even had to prompt you. 

Do you know who Charlie Munger is? 

No, I don’t.  

He’s a cartoon character. He’s 90–something years old. He’s got glasses. He can only see in one of his eyes through his glasses. He eats peanut brittle. Do you know what peanut brittle is? 

No. 

It’s peanuts and hard candy. It’s like hard sugar. When he eats the peanut brittle, he gets it all over his shirt like your grandparents would. He’s got pearls of wisdom that come out of them. He talks about if you are looking to disappoint people, don’t be reliable. What you’ve already said is one of his key principles. You want to be known as someone reliable. This old Sage with one eye, glasses, and gets stuff all over his shirt is agreeing with one of the principles you have. Be reliable and be trustworthy. That can pull you forward. 

After mom, who was your second customer in your massage business? 

It’s mainly been my family because I’m trying to get their reviews. I’m trying to keep it small. If I tried to do it with loads of people, number one, my hands will be tired. Number two, I wouldn’t have time for anything else. I’ve also got to do all the things in life. 

You’ve got school, football and all these things that you’re involved in. Let’s talk about your family. You brought up reviews.  

I want them to tell people that it’s good. They already have positive thoughts in their mind. If you start something with negative thoughts about it, you’re going to not like it probably.  

I’m loving this kid, Frank. What you are talking about, the term for that is social proof. Have you ever heard of social proof before?  

No. 

Customers don't buy based on facts. They buy based on emotions. Click To Tweet

Social proof is when someone goes on a computer, you run an internet search, you go to Google, and you look it up. The first thing that most people are going to look for is what are other people saying about it. In general, we put a heavyweight on the experience of other people. The fact that you are starting with people that you know are going to give you a good review is a brilliant lesson for anybody who’s starting a business. You want to make your first customers raving fans. How are you going to make sure you get good reviews from them other than the fact that they’re your family and you’ll track them down if they don’t? 

I make it short but not too short that it’s unpleasant. They’ll come back from more. They’ll say, “I always want more.” They mentioned that. Also, I’ve stolen my mom’s sleep cream. I put it on them so they get a good sleep after. 

A special sauce in the business. I like it. 

You’re keeping the overhead low. 

Where are they going to give you a review? Where are they going to leave it where other people can find it? 

I’m going to make a message and then make a list of like, “This person said X. This person said Y.” 

That’s smart. Where is that going to be? Are you going to have a book? Where will that be visible?  

I’m messaging people. 

Have you thought about building a web page for this business? 

I have been. I’m trying to keep it smaller. 

Does that mean you might do it or you’re not going to build a web page? 

No. I’m trying to keep it of people I know because I’m also not driving around the whole world. 

That’s smart. You got to make them come to you. That’s right. You’ll never know what kind of a weirdo is going to come over to your house and ask for a massage. Your dad is going to have to stand around with a baseball bat and watch what’s happening. This business, how big would you like it to be? How much money would you like to make from this business? 

I’ve made a bit of £100. I’m going to try to get that again or maybe a bit more. I’m trying to build a bit to invest in stock shares or stock markets. I want to keep it small because I only want to get in a few people’s heads that I’m out there. If I get it out with everyone, I wouldn’t get the message across properly. 

Frank, this is incredible.  

I love that you’re already afraid to blow it out. 

He’s already thinking about execution issues down the road. It’s fantastic. 

I know the service is incredible. I can’t pull too many fans. It’s awesome. 

Yoni, what do you charge for a massage? 

I’ve had massages in the past for £40 an hour. I half it because I’m younger. Also, I need to make it sound better. It’s £20. I half the time. It’s half an hour. Also, I halved the price again to £10. It sounds a lot smaller than the actually price is. 

When you say £40 for a massage that you’ve had before, you’re basing your pricing based on what you think the market is already. You are starting with a lower price. That’s one of the areas where you’re going to differentiate yourself. 

They’ll come to me over other people. 

 

In what ways in your mind do you think you could raise the price? What would you have to do to be able to raise that price? In what ways do you think you can move yourself and your pricing to what the market is charging?  

I need to get experience and learn body parts and science. I need to go to a university or wherever you learn it. Also, I would need to be older because I can’t go to a university at this age. 

Do you want to know a secret?  

Yes. 

You could learn as much on YouTube as you could at the university. Your idea of getting better, you’re showing a lot of emotional intelligence and emotional maturity. You know you’re new. You know you’re not qualified enough. You’re not trying to charge what a qualified person would. If you’ve only done a few massages and you’re trying to charge as much as a family member could pay to go to a professional, why would they pay you if they can go to a professional? You have to give them a little something to entice them to come in. The best way you’re going to get better at this is by practicing, doing a little bit more of it, and asking for feedback. What do you like that I do? What should I do less of? What should I do more of? You keep asking customers over and over. In any business, the best way to get better and to build a business is to listen to your first customers. They’re the ones that took a chance on you. Usually, new customers are going to give you a lot of great feedback. Do you have any other thoughts on how he can push the price? 

This isn’t necessarily sustainable. He could also push the price because these are your relatives, in most instances. It’s not the crowd you want to do that with building your skillset. You could go that route with it. The other thing is the foundational skills. I have started a business from scratch. Do you have any guests who my first investors were in my business? 

Your family. 

Absolutely. They’re going to be your guinea pigs on your massage business but they’ll be your biggest supporters when the time comes for that as well. What you’re doing now is you’re building a track record with these people who will support you in everything that you do in life. Maybe you forego some immediate profits for some long–term game. 

To Frank’s point, that’s fantastic. There’s no shame in starting a business by starting with your inner circle. Do you know what a network is, Yoni? 

Yes.  

What do you think a network is? 

That’s the people around you and the people you’re with the most.  

Those are your schoolmates, your teammates in soccer, your family, your brother, your mom and dad. The people you interact with the most like teachers. These are the people that are in your inner circle. When you start a business, you normally are going to start with your innermost circle. Whether you’re 12, 30 or 50, it doesn’t matter. Your dad might have told you about it but we are starting a car alarm business. It is a high–tech product. We raised millions of dollars for it. Guess who we called? 

I forgot the name of that basketball player.  

We got Shaquille O’Neal. Mainly, where we raised our money, we’re with our family. My mom and dad are in it. The founder’s mom and dad are in it. His brother and sister are in it. My best friends, that’s who I called, my friends that have money that I want to get in on the deal. Frank is in it. That first round of financing, that first round to get it going, we did what you did. We called all the people that we were closest with and trusted us. That’s what you did. Your first customers trust you. They feel comfortable with you. They gave you a chance to go practice your business and to get feedback. It’s a brilliant move on your part with this massage business. What’s the end goal with the massage business? Is this a starter business to make a few coins so you can get into your next business? 

Don’t worry about what other people think of you. Focus on doing the things that you like to do. Click To Tweet

This isn’t a business which I want to go long–term. This isn’t the business which I want to get people to know me for my next business and then the next business after that. This is to tell people that I’m in the market. My next business is a car washing business but it only comes up one week a year. I can do this with the massaging business. I’m doing it because in the Jewish community, there’s a festival called Passover. You have to get rid of all the wheat–related food, any crumbs, or anything. You need to clean all your houses and your cars. It’s stressful. If I clean people’s cars, it would reduce their stress. If I make it cheap, it’s easy for them to say yes because it’s getting rid of a hard job for barely any money. 

I’m excited, Frank. Everything about this is brilliant. You have an event that you know people are going to be keenly focused on. There are a lot of businesses based on this. If you started a flower shop, they make all of their money around Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day. They have certain events where they do all their marketing beforehand because they know there’s a deadline and there’s pressure around this. It’s beautiful. Frank, he’s doing a launch. He has a built–in date. This one is a little bit different. My question here would be how you price it than maybe even the massage business. Frank, I would love your input on this. When is the day coming up when you would do this car washing? 

I don’t know the precise date but it’s three weeks. I’m going to do it that whole week. 

Yoni, you wanted to raise this money so you can buy stocks or stock shares. That’s still the goal. What you talked about was undercutting the pricing because of your lack of experience with your massage business. You looked at what’s the market and you came in with a humble approach, which is a little bit lower. What Ian is going to go with this is on the launch. I want to put seed out there and say that in this business, we don’t think about lowering the price. We think about how we can charge a little bit more because of the services rendered. Ian, when you get into the launch, we think about how can we ring the bell? 

Let’s start with what do you think someone would pay for a good and thorough cleaning of their car for this event? 

At least £15 or £16 for the inside and out.  

Where are you basing that on? Where do you get those numbers? 

I’ve been on Google and I searched loads of companies and what their prices are. Also, I know someone who used those prices. In that one week, he made over £500. 

Where would you do this? Let’s say I’m a potential customer. I’m in your church and you’ve convinced me that I’m interested. Where would I have to bring my car? Are you going to be in a parking lot somewhere? Am I coming to your house? 

I’m going to go to you. It’s a lot easier.  

Are you going to schedule a time slot? Are you going to give them a calendar and say, “Here are the times I have available when I’m not at school? You could pick a slot.”  

I’m going to start by practicing on my mom’s car and seeing how long that takes me. 

Your mom needs a cut for all this work because you’re practicing on mom. 

I’m going to practice on her and see how long it takes. Let’s say it takes two hours. I’m going to make a schedule on that basis. 

Do you know what the term marketing is? 

No. Is it like a market?  

It’s similar. It’s advertising. Do you know what advertising means?  

Yes.  

Marketing is about getting attention. Right now, no one thinks of Yoni. They think of you as the cute kid that they see at church from time–to–time. They don’t think of you as a businessman who could clean their car. You have to get their attention. You have to let it be known that I’m out here. I’m doing this. Here’s how it works. Here’s what I would charge. The most important part is here’s the value to you. What is the value to a customer? Why would I pay you £15 instead of doing it myself? 

I’ve got this app called Canva. It’s an app where you make posters. I made one with all the prices on it and all the information you need to know. I always found that in pictures, you’re taking a lot more information and long emails and stuff. I’m going to send that on my status and parents‘ statuses so all of our contacts can know that it’s there.  

Here’s what I’m thinking, Yoni. Do you know the difference between a feature and a benefit? 

A feature is a design and a benefit is something in your favor. 

That is well said. 

If the feature is you’re going to have a clean car with no crumbs because you have to get rid of all the crumbs before Passover. If Yoni does the work, what’s the benefit? 

They don’t have to do it.  

What do they get if they don’t have to do it? 

A lot more time.  

 

You’re saving them time. To Frank’s features and benefits, it’s well thought out already. A feature is what? A benefit is so what? A feature is I’ll clean your car inside and out. I will spend the time. The so what is, you have an hour of your life back and you don’t have to do it yourself. You are saving people time. You’re either trying to usually save people money, you’re trying to save them peace of mind or you’re trying to save them time. This one is a little bit of peace of mind and a little bit of time. Saving money would be I’ll do it myself. I don’t pay anyone for it.  

The average person doesn’t have time to go clean out their car, which is why my car is always dirty because my kids mess it up. I don’t even have time to drive it down to the cleaning place. You’re going to save people time. You’re going to do it for them, “Let me take this off of you. You’re busy. I know that. You adults are out and running around and doing stuff. I’m going to take this off of your plate. I’m going to come to your house. I’m going to clean your car for you.” The companies that you said will clean your car out for £15. Will they come to your house and do it?  

No. The person I know does go to people’s houses. That’s why he made so much money. 

Here’s something I would challenge you to think about. If it’s £15 for me to get in my car and drive, sit around and wait, I’m not saving any time. If you think about it, I’m having someone do the manual work but I still have to drive there and then I’m going to sit there for an hour while you clean my car while I’m on my phone but my time has not been saved. I’m paying £15 because I don’t like to clean. It’s aggravating. I don’t want to do it. If you came to them, I opened my car and say, “Go clean it, youngster.” I’ll keep doing whatever I want to do at the house. I’d be willing to pay you an extra £5, £20, or maybe £25 for that. What do you think, Frank? Think about your pricing. Your value is higher than the market that you’ve already scouted out. You might be able to charge more than £15 by going to them. Your costs are higher. Dad’s car to get you there, that costs gas. That’s a little bit of maintenance on the car. That’s dad’s time. It’s your time. 

I’m going to walk there. 

It’s even cooler. 

I’m doing it with my brother because I’m not sure I can do the whole car. It will take two hours. 

You have an employee. You’re going to have to pay your employee. You need to think about pricing when it goes into this. If I were you, I would charge a little bit higher than what you think the market is. 

It’s a good £20. 

Maybe £25. Guys like Frank and I, if you can save us time, we’re happy to pay £25 for somebody to come and clean out our car. I wouldn’t think twice about it to save us that time. 

There are two things we should do here and then let’s get into your real estate questions. Why don’t you summarize for us what’s your marketing strategy? What are you going to talk about? What’s the benefit of hiring you versus doing it myself or bringing it to the carwash down the street? 

I’m going to tell the customers that they don’t have to go anywhere. It’s delivered to their door, that’s on the poster. If it’s at your house, you’d have to get out all your equipment and then at the end, tidy it up all yourself. We’re going to take our own equipment and then take it to the house. There’s the additional cleanup to that. 

You said that Passover was the driver. In time for Passover, do you know what that’s called? 

No.  

That’s urgency or a call to action because you have a deadline. If that’s the person you’re appealing to, don’t be afraid to put that on there, “In time for Passover.” The other thing is you’re in business and you’re a businessman.  

Yes. 

I would invest in a t-shirt that says, “We accept tips.” 

In general, you should get yourself some merch for this business anyway. A big picture with you on it and smiling. You need a name for this. 

I was thinking about one of my businesses being Shopify. You make your own t–shirts and you sell them online. 

That’s another good one. For this, Frank’s point is good. You’ve got Canva. One thing I would challenge you is I would go on your computer and I would make one piece of paper a marketing flyer. Practice making a marketing flyer. You can Google search templates for marketing flyers. You’re a good–looking kid. You’re a good marketer. You’re a businessman. I would put a big picture of you and your brother smiling and saying, “We come to you. Let us clean your car for Passover. Here are all the things that we’ll do inside and out. We’ll vacuum. We’ll wash. We’ll get all of the crumbs out.” Here’s the what and then under that, “You have peace of mind that you’re prepared for Passover. We saved you time. All of this for only £25. We’ll come to you, schedule it.”  

I would think about how you can get some of those pieces of paper. Use Canva. Digital is beautiful. You’ll have more people. I would hand them out at church. I would see if you could even hand them out to people in the congregation that are there. Hand them out so people see this and they bring it home. A lot of people that are going to be your customers are going to be older. They might not be online and they might not be there. Maybe some old–school marketing is the way to go here where you’re handing out sheets at the front where people can pick them up and take them with and then call and schedule their cleaning. 

Do you know what are the other benefits of doing it face–to–face? It’s hard to say no to somebody when you’re right in front of them. That’s why a lot of big sales happen when people sit at the same table together. You have your flyer. You’re a charming kid. You say, “I’m excited to do this.” The sales will happen easier in many instances. 

Frank is nailing something important here that you should think about in your whole career. I’ll give you an example. The local Little League football teams are always selling something here. They do it for two weeks. I will go to Dunkin Donuts to get a coffee and they’re selling me something and I buy it and I come out. If it’s a different kid selling, I can’t say no to him either. People don’t purchase. Customers don’t buy based on facts and objective. They buy based on emotions. Some people will buy from you because they want to help a little hustling kid who’s cute and aggressive. They’ll buy from you because they want to help you out. They know there’s value but they want to help you. They want to do something right. Think about that. Anything you can do face–to–face, you’re going to have a much higher close rate, meaning more will say yes to a kid giving them a flyer. Does it make sense? 

Yes.  

Frank and I are here. Your dad needs to let us know in messaging. Whatever you’re doing with this launch, we’re excited about it. What did your buddy make in a week? 

£500.  

Frank, what’s a good goal we should set for young Yoni? He got to beat that. We’ll get it to £550 or £600. 

What do you want to make, Yoni? What do you want the number to be? 

I want it to be a bit of £500 as well. 

What we think doesn’t matter. Write that goal down, circle it, put it somewhere prominent like in the mirror in your bathroom, and then start on your plan.  

Work backward. If the number is £600 and you’re charging £20, how many customers do you need? 

Thirty. 

You need 30 customers. You and your brother need to put a plan together. How are we going to get 30 people to see that we’re offering this? How are we going to schedule all 30 to make that money? You’ve got to work backward when you have a goal. We have pounded you on your amazing business ideas. Frank, I don’t know about you but I’m tickled that we did this. You inspire me, Yoni. Ask us. Frank and I are involved in lots of different types of properties, some individually and some we’ve done together. You are interested in property one day. What would you like to ask us? 

How do you start in property? How do you start the business? 

What I did is I got a degree in Construction Management. I went to work for a home building company. I moved a long way away, more than 1,000 miles away from home. I don’t know what that comes out in kilometers. It’s 1,500, 1,700 kilometers away from home. It’s a long–distance because I thought there was a good opportunity. What I did is I built one house. Have you ever played Monopoly?  

Yes. 

I built that house. I built up equity, which means I had money in that house. When I sold that house, I traded that into a bigger house. I sold that one and turned it into a third. I slowly traded and traded until I had enough money to own some stuff that wasn’t where I lived. That’s how I did it. 

Do you ever rent your stuff? 

Yes. In my first house, I couldn’t afford the house by myself. I rented out rooms. I lived in one room and I had the kitchen and the family room that I shared with people. It was almost like having a bunch of roommates. I had a nice owner suite. It would have its own closet and some bathroom. I shared the rest of the house with other people because I couldn’t afford it.  

Yoni, property is expensive. In all likelihood, your first property, you’re going to have to take a loan from a bank to get most of the money to buy it. A reason why most people never get started in real estate has nothing to do with the skills it takes to be in real estate. They don’t get started because they’re not good at saving their money. You have to still be able to put some money down. My biggest advice to you, all of these ideas you have that you’re trying to make money, the best way to save is to go make more.  

You’re going out and you’re trying to make £600. That’s great. You’re going to invest in the stock market. Maybe in ten years, that £600 turns into £1,200 or £1,500. Do that over and over so that you have the money you need to put down. That’s how you do your first real estate deal because you save enough money. What that takes is discipline. While all of your friends are spending money on things that don’t make sense, video games, and things that don’t make money, you keep saving money, investing it, putting it into stocks, and doing things like that. Over ten years, when you come out of university, you’re going to have more money to start. You can’t be in real estate if you don’t have some money to start with. Long before you do anything else. 

If you had any advice for your twelve-year–old self, what would it be? 

Stop eating so much sugar cereal. You’re going to get fat. Frank, you go first. That’s a true story. I would tell myself that. 

It’s hard to hear this when you’re twelve and you got a lot of ambition. Enjoy being twelve. Have fun. You’re in what, 6th or 7th grade? 

Seventh. 

Seventh grade is a lot of fun. You got buddies and pals. Enjoy being twelve. The other thing I would tell myself is don’t worry about what other people think of me. I worried a lot about that when I was twelve. Thinking about things that you like to do, trying things, having fun with your friends, that’s good stuff. If I was being honest with my twelve-year–old self, I’d say, “Go talk to that pretty girl.” I was shy. I didn’t want to do that. As a grown–up, what do I have to lose? 

You don’t have as much to lose as you think. When I was younger, I was always in a hurry to be a grown–up. I wanted to get older. I wanted to make money. I wanted to be independent. I’ll tell you what I tell to all of the little boys that I coach in baseball. There’s not a dad out there who wouldn’t trade everything to be back on a soccer field playing soccer games when they were 12, 13 or 14. Try to enjoy those moments. You’ll remember them for the rest of your life. Don’t be in too much of a hurry to get older.  

The second thing I would tell you is everyone only cares about themselves. If you understand that the most important thing to everyone you interact with is themselves and not you, you’ll be good at persuading people and connecting with people. Make everyone feel like the most important person in the world and they’ll love you. You’ll have more friends than you can imagine if you can master making other people feel important. 

I have a toddler son. Ian and I sound like old men when we tell you this because we are old men. One of the things I tell him every single day is, “These are the good old days.” The reason I say that to him is because they are. There will be a period in his life where he’ll be older and have different responsibilities. I want him to do enjoy it. Ian and I know a lot of kids and we know a lot of twelve-year–old kids. Do you know why we decided to bring you on as our first podcast guest?  

No. 

It’s because you were curious. I love your curiosity. If you can keep something from your childhood, it’s that curiosity. It’s asking the questions that got you to sit down with us and be on this show in the first place. You ask good questions. You are smart. You’ve thought about it. That’s going to serve you well. Continue to ask questions, to be curious. Enjoy the process and get through it. That is a special quality that you have. 

When people stop growing in life, when people’s careers stall and they don’t go anywhere, it’s when they quit being beginners. They quit what it’s like to be like you, to be curious, to be excited to learn new things. They feel they’ve made it and then they start protecting. This took a lot for you. You’re on with two strangers in America doing an episode. I’m proud of you. Here you are by yourself and dad’s not holding your hand. You’re ripping questions at us and letting us Shark Tank you on your businesses. Your confidence and your willingness to be vulnerable are assets that I can’t tell you how valuable they are if you don’t lose them, but most adults lose it. They get scared. They want to protect their identity and their brand. They won’t be vulnerable anymore. Please don’t lose this. We love that about you. 

I want to say something about what Ian said. We all lose it temporarily. Ian and I have both been curious, nervous or scared. That’s part of the process. If you lose it temporarily, try and get it back. That’s what we’re saying. Does that make sense? 

It makes sense. What are you looking at a property before you buy it? 

What you look at in a property is going to differ on the type of property. Those collision centers, which is where a car gets into an accident, Ian owns the building where that business is. I own office buildings, apartments and single–families. We look at different things. It comes down to what it is that you’re looking at. What kind of real estate are you most interested in? 

Mainly houses. 

What do you want to do with the house?  

Get a few in a nice location to rent those because people go on holiday there. They’ll rent them. 

Maybe like an Airbnb? 

Yes. More central to the city area like house–to–sell.  

Do you know the first and most important thing about real estate?  

No. 

Have you ever heard of location? 

No. 

That’s important, where you live. It’s close to your school, to your church. All that stuff matters. If you’re going to do this in an investment way, you need to make sure it’s close to the things that make sense. If you’re going to do an Airbnb and having it close to a beach, a city center or close to Disneyworld. All that stuff is cool because there’s proximity. Know who your customer is. Like with your other businesses, you’re learning that the most important thing with the business is the customer. Understand who the customer is for that particular piece of property and then you’ll be able to pick the right one for the right location. 

Frank lives in Richmond, Virginia. He knows the parts of the city that are growing and that are going to be more valuable in 5 or 10 years than others that are flat and aren’t doing as great. I live in Virginia but I don’t buy properties in my state. I buy South. I buy in Florida and Georgia. I have reasons for that because my properties are industrial and I’m responsible for the roof. I don’t want snow on my roof. I don’t want to get a phone call saying that I got to go fix a roof somewhere. I buy in southern states because they’re growing, more people are moving there, and the jobs are better there. In 5 to 10 years, they’ll do better than states in the North. That’s my opinion. Both Frank and I acquire areas that we tend to know a little better and we feel are going to do better.  

 

What’s the business that you’re making called, with the car alarm thing? I want to invest in it.  

You want to invest in our business. I love that. I’ve got to send that David. We might have a little bit you could schnitzel in on. We’ll see how you do on your launch. The name of our business is called Keep Technologies. The name of our first product is called The Knight, like a knight in shining armor. 

Is that the one in the car, which is the alarm? 

That’s the one that sits in the cupholder. It looks like an Amazon Alexa device that screws into the cupholder. If you do good enough in that launch, you might be able to buy into our tech company. I love it. Frank, he’s hustling in out of tech startups. It’s awesome. 

I know a guy that might want to schnitzel off a couple of shares. You can buy–in from him. That’s an inside joke for Ian and me. Anything else for us?  

No. That’s all of my questions. 

Yoni, you have been a delightful first guest. If this show becomes a worldwide hit, you’re going to be able to say that you are our first ever guest. Frank, I don’t know about you. I’m more inspired than Yoni is from talking to us. You’ve inspired me. You give me hope for our youth, for sure. 

This was a lot of fun for both of us. You’re an inspiration. You’re a fun little guy. Enjoy being twelve. Keep doing the little things you’re doing. When you’re ready to look at your first real estate deal, look us up, and we’ll help you analyze it, look at it, and make a good decision. 

We want an update when you hit that £600 for this launch. 

Your dad better tell us about how that car wash goes. 

You are way out there now. You’ve committed to the world that you’re going to go make £600 from this thing. You better get it done. Yoni, it was great having you. Take care. 

Thank you.  

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This episode was brought to you by Yoni’s car cleaning service in London. If you happen to need some services, contact this young man. He comes to you. He does it for a great price and he does it with a smile. I couldn’t imagine spending your money any better way if you’re in that London area. Drop £20. Help this boy hit his goal. 

Important Links: 

• Keep Technologies