According to the Small Business Administration, 80% of businesses fail within five years or less. The most common reason? An inability to consistently generate scalable, repeatable sales. It’s not about having the best product anymore—it’s about being recognized, remembered, and chosen. Too many brilliant entrepreneurs create world-class products and services only to be buried in the business graveyard because no one ever heard of them.
In this episode of The Best Business Podcast, host Daryl Urbanski sits down with Dave VanHoose—master speaker trainer, multi-million dollar entrepreneur, and founder of Speaking Empire. Together, they take a deep dive into how any entrepreneur can learn to sell from stage and use education-based marketing to grow their business faster than relying solely on word-of-mouth. Dave doesn’t just speak about this—he’s lived it. From paralyzing spinal surgery to building a $30M business in record time, his journey is a masterclass in converting adversity into leverage.
Be equipped with battle-tested strategies to confidently craft your signature talk, sell from stage (or webinar), and build authority and scalable sales systems. If you’re an entrepreneur wrestling with sales or looking for a reliable way to connect with your audience at scale, this episode will light the way.
Here are three reasons why you should listen to the full episode:
- Discover how to turn your story into a high-converting signature talk that sells.
- Learn why 80% of businesses fail and how you can avoid the primary pitfall—scalable sales.
- Gain practical tools from Speaking Empire for leveraging education-based marketing and selling one-to-many.
Resources
- Speaking Empire: Website | LinkedIn
- Dave VanHoose: Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Crunchbase
- Best Business Podcast with Daryl Urbanski - Where you can find more insightful interviews like this one.
Episode Highlights
From Setback to Speaking Empire
- Dave VanHoose opens the episode sharing his origin story—from career-threatening spinal surgery to building one of America’s fastest-growing companies.
- With vulnerability, he recounts starting ForeclosuresDaily.com on a credit card after losing his physical career in sports medicine.
- Facing zero sales and rising debt, he pivoted to a new model—learning to sell one-to-many by speaking at live events.
- This adversity fuels his passion: helping business owners craft their message and build profitable speaking businesses that scale,
- Eventually, he founded the Speaking Empire to train others in his proven system.
From Zero Customers to a Million-Dollar Month
- Dave launches a website idea that flops—zero customers in two months, despite a great concept.
- Desperate and nearly broke, he adopts the “six-foot rule”—pitching to anyone within six feet of him.
- Real sales breakthroughs happen when he shifts from one-to-one to one-to-many, running local seminars.
- After doing 100+ seminars a month, his company scales to over $30 million in revenue with 100 employees.
Mastering the Signature Talk: The Key to Leverage
- Selling is a system, and the signature talk is your most valuable business asset.
- Education-based marketing allows you to deliver tangible value without being pushy.
- Unlike traditional selling, this method creates trust and relevance—people feel empowered, not sold to.
- Whether online through webinars or live from stage, the talk becomes your automated engine of influence and income.
- Speaking Empire teaches entrepreneurs how to craft and deliver these talks with confidence and conversion power.
Education-Based Marketing Beats Traditional Ads
- Most failing businesses operate on hope marketing or word-of-mouth alone; that’s not sustainable.
- Education-based marketing positions you as a trusted advisor rather than just another vendor.
- Dave shares how even service businesses like dentists or chiropractors can host workshops to attract leads.
- By building value first, customers become loyal, informed prospects rather than skeptical strangers.
- At Speaking Empire, this philosophy is central to the “sell without selling” approach they promote.
Revenue, Leverage & Automation: The Winning Trifecta
- Dave emphasizes three non-negotiables for growth: revenue-generating activities, leverage, and automation.
- Most small business owners get buried working in their business instead of scaling it.
- With a signature talk and automated webinar funnel, sales can run 24/7.
- He underscores that your competition will never invest in this type of positioning—that’s your edge.
Spiritual Alignment and Sustainable Success
- Success without alignment leads to burnout—Dave discusses how he lost himself in the pursuit of ego-driven goals.
- After reaching peak material success, he felt empty and turned inward, eventually walking a spiritual path.
- He now balances profit with purpose, building retreats, schools, and healing centers to help others find inner alignment.
- True success is not just about money; it’s about service, legacy, and loving self and others.
Speaking Empire Principles
- Selling from stage isn’t just about making a pitch, it’s about transformation—your story can change someone’s life.
- When done with sincerity and structure, it invites people to make powerful decisions aligned with their goals.
- The best speakers create a co-creative experience within their talk.
- Dave’s framework converts education into action—leaving attendees inspired, not sold to.
Words to Live By
- As you build your business, always start with: Where do you want to go? What impact do you want to have?
- Model what works, take massive action early, and leverage a team.
- Don’t forget your health or family—if you lose them chasing success, it wasn’t success at all.
- Whether on stage or behind a screen, your greatest business tool is your story packaged with value.