What’s up legends?

I’m just settling back home in Miami after spending three incredible nights in NYC. It was a mixture of business and pleasure.. but realistically just a ton of work. 72 hours meeting with as many Founders Club members as possible, ripping runs through Central Park, wearing a winter coat for the first time all year, and best of all hosting three events with over 100 founders!

I’m catching up on emails and blasting off what will be the last edition of CROSSED COMMERCE.

Yes, you heard that right. 

As of next week this newsletter will be shutting down….

And being REBRANDED as Founders Forward. 

It’s a big change as this newsletter has been a good part of my identity for the past three years but it’s a much needed change for the better. 

Moving forward this newsletter will be filled with:

• Insights from some of the best founders in the industry

• Expert takes, Q&A’s, and knowledge drops from some of the smartest entrepreneurs in the world (definitely not me)

• A crazy amount of discounts and hookups

• Exclusive invites to events (in-person & online)

Although the rebrand officially starts next week or honestly whenever I get the damn logo… I wanted to kick it off with a huge last second give away and a big thank you for reading this.

This upcoming Sunday through Wednesday (March 16th-19th), I have this entire place in Joshua Tree, and I can’t make it, so I want to give it away 100% for free.

It can fit 10 guests, 6 beds, has a swimming pool, hot tub, pickleball court and so much more. This place is incredible for a last second get away, team offsite, or that overdue vacation that you’ve been thinking about and it’s FREE. Legit on me. 

How?

My brother Greg runs a massive travel Instagram account called @Planet and is one of the biggest travel influencers in the country. Every week he gets free accommodations from legendary spots like this and the only thing they ask in return is creating sexy content. 

So if you’re a content creator, own a camera, and are capable of taking some incredible content this $5000 stay is yours completely free. First one to respond back to this gets it. Good luck!

……..

Now it's time for this week’s newsletter!

I want to talk about a mistake that I see being made all the time. Founders letting branding and perfection getting in the way of your own growth.

Newsflash: nobody really cares! Stop letting colors, logo, and the website slow down your growth. Founders are spending months tweaking things that, quite frankly, nobody cares about. The only thing that matters is making MONEY.

They launch their product and think, People will love this because I worked hard on it, then reality smacks them in the face.

Crickets. No sales. No traction. No one cares.

And that’s because–brace yourself for this one–your customers don’t give a shit about your brand, at least, not until you give them a reason to.

Stop Burning Cash on Ads — Do This Instead

One of my favorite hacks that I’ve seen in the past six months is brands killing it Levanta and Amazon affiliates. The game has changed, you can’t just run ads and hope that somebody is going to find your product on Amazon.

In a world of crazy knockoffs, Amazon’s never-ending new fees, them changing the rules and making it harder than ever to scale profitably, you’re not alone if you feel like it’s tougher than ever.

That’s why tons of Founders Club brands and CROSSNET are stacking affiliate marketing on top of their Amazon strategy—and Levanta makes it ridiculously easy. In just minutes, you can:

• Tap into 10,000+ creators, influencers, and review sites that drive traffic that actually coverts to your listing

• See a 5-20% boost in revenue and LTV - without sinking more money into PPC

• Set up in less than 2 minutes

For us we are getting set up with a ton of mom influencers who want to show off the new product that is getting their kids off their phone and back to being a kid again. We’ve tried doing things like this is the past but it was super expensive to pay all these “influencers” and just hope that it worked.

Here’s the best part with Levanta: you only pay when a sale is made. No wasted spend, no guesswork. Just pure results. Commission-based influencer marketing on steroids.

Oh, and all that external traffic? It boosts your organic rankings and earns you Amazon’s Brand Referral Bonus.

If you’re tired of overpaying for influencer marketing and not driving new traffic, then you need to book a demo and let me know what you think.

Also let me know if you want a personal introduction to my team and they can hook it up with onboarding.

Customers Only Care About One Thing: Themselves

This is the cold, hard truth: People don’t care about your backstory, your product, or your branding. They care about what’s in it for them.

And that’s where most founders go wrong. They build a brand that they like instead of building a brand that solves an actual problem for the customer.

Here’s what bad marketing sounds like:

“We’ve spent years crafting the finest materials to create the best product on the market.” 

“We’re revolutionizing the industry with our innovative approach.” 

“Our story began when we had a vision to change the game.”

Cool. Nobody cares.

Here’s what good marketing sounds like:

“Tired of shirts that shrink after one wash? Our fabric stays perfect–wash after wash.” 

“Most protein bars taste like cardboard. We made one that actually tastes good.” 

“You’ll never have to deal with another clunky, overcomplicated app again.”

See the difference?

The best brands aren’t about YOU. They’re about THEM.

Your Job is to Make Your Customer the Hero

Most brands position themselves as the hero–like they’re swooping in to save the customer’s life with their amazing product.

Big mistake.

Your customer is already the hero of their own story. They don’t need saving. What they need is a guide–someone to help them get what they want faster, easier, and with fewer headaches.

Think about Nike. Their marketing isn’t about Nike itself–it’s about you becoming a better athlete. Think about Apple. They don’t shove specs down your throat–they show you how their products make your life easier. Think about CROSSNET. We didn’t sell a four-way volleyball net, we sold unforgettable backyard memories.

Your brand should be the guide, not the hero.

If You’re Not Solving a Real Problem, You’re Dead in the Water

I don’t care how cool your branding is–if you’re not solving a real, painful problem for your customers, you’re good as gone. When we started CROSSNET, we weren’t just selling a volleyball net. We were solving a problem that people didn’t even realize they had.

• People loved backyard and pool games, but they were bored of the same old ones

• I was looking for something fun to do on the beach while my girlfriend tanned for 4 hours straight

• Volleyball was fun, but it was always the one try hard hitting the ball, never getting anyone else involved

That’s what made it work. It wasn’t about us–it was about giving people a better experience than what already existed. So before you go tweaking your logo for the 17th time, ask yourself: 

“Am I solving a real problem?”

Want to Build a Brand That Actually Sticks? Do This:

If you’re trying to build a brand that customers actually care about, here’s what you need to do:

Get hyper-clear on the problem you solve.

• What pain point are you eliminating? How does your product make life easier, better, or more enjoyable?

Make your customer the hero.

• Stop talking about yourself. Talk about them. Every ad, email, and piece of content should answer: “What’s in it for them?”

Make sure your messaging is simple.

• If a 10-year-old can’t explain what you do, it’s too complicated. Great brands communicate fast, clear, and simple.

Validate before you launch.

• Talk to real customers. See what they actually want. If you’re not getting genuine excitement, rethink your approach. It’s okay to have to iterate multiple times–it’s worth it to spend more time to reach the best end result.

The Brands That Win? They Get This Right.

It’s not about fancy logos and website design. It’s about creating something that customers genuinely want, need, and will tell their friends about.

Because once they see how much value you provide, that’s when they start caring about your brand. And if you’re serious about building a real, lasting business, you need to be surrounded by people who get this.

I’ll leave you on this note. If you could take a playbook out of anybody’s story, it’d be my good friend Jake Karls, from Mid Day Squares. Not only was he an OG Founders Club member, but he built one of the world's tastiest chocolate bars, that customers care about and want to see win. They’ve raised an obscene amount of money and are now sell over 2 million bars a month! This does not happen without a cult like following!

We’ve been working hard behind the scenes to create the world’s best entrepreneurship podcast, where we interview world class founders and learn out the reason behind their why.

Episode one of The Founder2Founder Podcast is now live.

Go enjoy it here!

Grateful for you as always. Go crush the rest of the week.

Chris