cavnessHR Podcast Show Notes

We have thousands of people on the site who offer every service you could possibly imagine. If you would like to check it out and save some money in the process, you can use code "Kirkland1A" to save five dollars off of a service twenty-five dollars or more. Or you can use "Kirkland1B" to save ten dollars off a service of fifty dollars or more. Use that at checkout, we know that you'll have a great experience, and if not, send me an email and I'll help!

Jason: Hello, and welcome to the cavnessHR podcast. I'm your host Jason Cavness. Our guest today is Melissa Strawn. Melissa, are you ready to be great today?

Melissa: I am.

Jason: Melissa is a CEO and founder of MyPeopleNow.com: A worker first gig community for discovering new service providers and inspiring stories behind why they do what they do. Melissa also blogs at fromwelfaretomillionaire.org, and is on a mission to transform the social services system to one that encourages and supports efforts towards meaningful self-sufficiency. Melissa, thank you for being here today, I really appreciate it.

Melissa: Thank you, Jason.

Jason: So, Melissa, what are you focused on right now?

Melissa: So, in addition to where the site is today. We have just taken on a new project that we're calling the people's accelerator, and we are in the process of partnering with different organizations around town that work with underrepresented and underfunded entrepreneurs or solo-preneurs. If you will, small business owners, and specifically in talks with an organization called Urban Impact that helps these underrepresented entrepreneurs get started with their businesses. They just completed a project called Sharks at The Beach. Where these people presented their ideas. We hope to come in and sort of give them a tool to amplify their business so that they can scale it and take it to that next level.

Melissa: The reason why this project is incredibly exciting for me is because I care most about making social impact, and care most about helping people who, when they say they're ready to pursue self-sufficiency. That there is a team of experts who say, "We're here to help you get there." This will also act sort of as a model, if this is successful, for us to go forward in the future with other service providers.

Jason: Melissa, why is transforming the current social services system so important to you?

Melissa: Well, I grew up in extreme poverty. I grew up on food stamps and welfare and Section 8, and all of those programs. I saw this massive failure in them to actually get people out of poverty. It's almost as if dependency is built into the programs. For example, let's say you're on food stamps or the SNAP program, and you go and you get a part-time job. You're finally making a little bit of money, your food stamp allotment is reduced. It's reduced almost on a dollar-for-dollar basis to the point where it's like, "What is the purpose of trying to get off of these benefits if I'm just penalized for doing so. In addition, I'm losing benefits like childcare and things that they provide, and I have to now pay for that on my own?"

Melissa: Just to add in real quick: one of the reasons why that's a failure is that there are a lot of people who are on social services. They have sort of a tenuous situation where they might be well enough to work during some weeks or months. Then they might not during others, going back and forth onto the different programs is incredibly difficult. So staying on the program just to have that security and safety becomes more important than experimenting with self-sufficiency.

Jason: Melissa, did your idea for MyPeopleNow come first, or did your wanting to change the social services system come first?

Melissa: Definitely the social services system change came first. Because growing up I saw so many people in poverty. So many people had so much potential and so much to offer the world. But they just didn't have the medium that fit their current situation. So they floundered, and so honestly these thoughts have been in my head all my life. Then in college, I started studying sociology and started to see and learn how a lot of these issues are systemic, and then ultimately that led to my idea for MyPeopleNow.

Jason: Melissa, back on April 4th you did a LinkedIn post where you talked about and it really spoke to me at the time because I was going through the same thing. Really talked about going from aspiring CEO to a data entry clerk. Can you talk about that a little bit? I think everyone goes through that. They just don't talk about it enough, I don't think.

Melissa: Yeah, it's really hard when you're a bootstrapped founder, or I think a founder in general, to know where to prioritize. You've got to get yourself out there, you get media coverage, you're doing these pitch events, you're getting recognized. As you're doing that you're neglecting a lot of this task-based work that involves actually making your company or product function. That post just came from the fact that once we did get a little bit of media coverage, our site kind of took off unexpectedly. I ended up with just hundreds of emails in my inbox every single day. The problem with that is that because we weren't ready to scale, they say, "Do things that don't scale," right? Well we did things that don't scale, and then it scaled, and then our technology couldn't keep up with that. So I literally had to manually enter every single person we registered on our site, which is fine if you have a couple dozen. We had hundreds, eventually thousands, and I finally, finally threw up my hands and I said, "Enough, we've got to just take a time out and actually code the features that will automate this,. Then when that happened, this massive cloud was lifted, and then I was freed up to actually be a CEO again!

Jason: I know a lot of people out there tell you, "Build an email list," but email lists don't build themselves. You've got to manually build them up. Which takes time and a lot of people don't realize all the ankle-biters you have to do as an entrepreneur until you build your team up.

Melissa: Yeah, definitely.

Jason: Where is MyPeopleNow available at now, is it just in the Seattle area, statewide in Washington, or, where can people sign up to it at?

Melissa: I'd say about half of the services on our site are in the Seattle area, the rest of the half are all over the country. We have a few sprinkled around the world that are virtual services. So each one of the providers on our site has a video chatroom so they can do virtual services, either through video chat or through email. That goes into what your last question was about the scaling and the LinkedIn post. We never intended to go big really fast, and that happened sort of accidentally. That was part of the reason why that hurt us, is because we were not concentrated in Seattle. We couldn't get that critical mass going, which is really important in marketplaces. So we're actually sort of doing the opposite now, trying to scale back and move things back to the Seattle area. So that we can really get Seattle right, and then use that model to expand into other cities.

Jason: Melissa, how does the platform work, both from the gig economy person, and the person wanting to buy services?

Melissa: Yeah, so let's start with the helper. So we call the providers "helpers," so to be a helper you just sign up, join, fill out your bio. Maybe throw up a photo or a little video introducing yourself, and then put your services online. That entire process could take anywhere from three to five minutes, it's incredibly easy. We do recommend really taking time to talk about yourself. Your story behind why you do what you do. So that people, it piques their curiosity, rather than you just being another person who does XYZ. You have a reason for doing that. To be a client on this site is just as easy, it's just a matter of signing up. You can send a message to any of the helpers on the site, ask them questions before you actually book them. Then once you feel confident enough in booking one of them, you just go ahead, click "request to book." You can pay for it, and then the funds will be held by the platform until the service is completed to your satisfaction. Helpers can choose to accept or decline the request, of course. But we've never had someone decline it because people tend to like the extra business.

Jason: Melissa, how do you validate or certify that these people actually know what they say they know how to do. Is there a system for that, or you just take them on their word, that they what to do what they're doing?

Melissa: Great question. Currently, we do not do any vetting ourselves, of the service providers. Couple reasons for that: it would be very time- and resource-intensive. The other thing is that we don't want to give our stamp of approval on people that we aren't really really sure that we would recommend. So I'd like to say that our current iteration is a little bit more of a community-based Craigslist where people actually have profiles and can get to know one another. But that people still need to do the vetting of one another. Just like they do on Craigslist. Where we're moving through in the future is actually towards social validation. Let's say that I trust Gavin the graphic designer and he does great work for me. By virtue of that, some of my other startup founder friends might go ahead and book Gavin because they know, "Well, if Melissa trusts him, and he does good work for Melissa. Then he'll probably do good enough work for me." So by adding that social validation layer, we're hoping to avoid the vetting process altogether.

Jason: Melissa, what kind of safety checkpoints do you have put into your system?

Melissa: Oh, you mean the terms of the providers?

Jason: Yeah.

Melissa: So, we don't have any. Another reason for that, just from my background. Is that the U.S. has a major incarceration problem, and part of the problem of that is. What do people do when they do have a background, and they do fail all the background checks, and they can't get a traditional job. What are they left to do? They're left to kind of figure things out on the side, ultimately we feel like that leads to them getting in trouble with the law again. We want to provide a platform where, whether it's virtual services or in person. Where anybody can prove themselves, and prove their worth without us saying, "No, because of your background, you're not allowed." All of the gig economy sites out there today like I've signed up for Uber. They do these extensive background checks and things like that. But does that really ensure that I'm going to provide a good service experience? Just because I don't have a background? Alternatively, does someone with a background, do they never get to live outside of that shadow and prove themselves economically, and so that's just another area that we'd like to address.

Jason: Melissa, who is your stereotypical helper on the platform? Is it a single mom, is it someone in college, a certain age- I mean, I know they're all over the place, but is it a typical demographic?

Melissa: That's an interesting question, I don't exactly think that I know that yet. I could say that the service providers that I work with personally, it's equally male, female. I'd say that the majority of them do not have kids. I think more of the service clients have children, like myself, and you need more help. But these are people who already have jobs, and they do this on the side. Either because they just enjoy it, for example, our tutor, he already has a full-time job. But he decided that he wanted the challenge of teaching someone how to learn math, and he was good at math, had a degree in math. So he decided to offer tutoring on the platform, not just for the money, but more personal fulfillment.

Jason: So, Melissa, is it more people coming to you to become helpers on the platform, or do you have to go out and recruit people to become helpers on the platform?

Melissa: People just come organically to help on the platform. We've virtually spent zero dollars on advertising, and we have about 4500 people on the platform today. So they're people who hear about it either through word of mouth or through, just getting advertised on other sites. So luckily we have a really good mix of people, who can do a whole range of things. From your standard, run-of-the-mill house cleaning and dog walking kind of services. To intuitive healing, or life coaching. It's all over the place, and that's exactly how we wanted it.

Jason: Melissa, next question, so how are you doing as far as repeat users, like, retaining customers, how's that going for you?

Melissa: I'm actually really happy about that, 60% of the services that are booked on our site are booked, where one side of the transaction has already booked a service before. So, to us, that confirms that people don't just want to get one thing done and then go away. They want to get multiple things done, which is excellent for us.

Jason: What other places besides Seattle can people use the platform?

Melissa: Currently all over the country, especially if you provide virtual services like graphic design or digital marketing, and things like that, you don't need to be local to Seattle.

Jason: So Melissa, you're pretty active in the Seattle startup community, can you talk about your involvement with that, real fast?

Melissa: About a year and a half ago, just realized, "Wow, I don't know anybody in Seattle, period. Let alone in the startup community." I started joining different groups and going to different events, and just being a good, authentic person who wanted to see other people succeed. So a couple of the groups I joined are Founders Live, the Female Founders Alliance, the F Bomb Breakfast group. The reason why those are important is they're filled with peers who are there to cheer to you on and to remind you that you're not a weirdo. That starting a company is really actually that hard, and that what we were going through is very normal. They believe in you and you can keep going. I think that all I have to say about that is, be a good person first, and give resources and ideas first. Eventually, if you need something from your network they will be more than happy to help you out. It's been a great experience getting to know the Seattle startup community.

Jason: Melissa, what would you tell someone who's just starting out in the process, you know, "I have this great idea, I know no one, I know nothing, I just have this idea." What would you tell them to do, or not to do?

Melissa: I'd say, don't try and shove a marathon into a sprint. There's this big narrative, especially in Silicon Valley. Which is where I'm from, that, "Oh, you've got to go big, go fast, or go home!" It doesn't have to be that way, and you might suffer emotionally and mentally and physically in the process if that's the way that you try and approach your startup. Maybe that way's going to work for you. ut for me, I found that I had this adrenaline, nervous energy driving me every day. "Go, go, go! Fast, fast fast!" It was just crushing me, and finally, I realized, there's no gun to the back of my head, there's no one saying,."Hey, if you don't figure this out in a couple months, we're canceling your ability to do a startup." I realized I was in charge of how fast I wanted to go, and I could do it in a more intuitive and heart-centered way that was not taxing on my body and mind. So definitely keep that in mind.

Jason: I know for me personally, I've definitely learned patience the last couple years of my startups. It's never as fast as you want, so I've definitely learned patience.

Melissa: Yeah.

Jason: Melissa, as an entrepreneur, founder, you have to do everything, marketing, sales, business development, fundraising, twenty different things. How have you personally tried to manage all this stuff without going crazy?

Melissa: Ha! Woo! I know I've heard a lot of people either say delegation. I've tried to delegate the things that are really not in my wheelhouse. Technology, for one, graphic design. I'd say, do the things that make you really excited, and try and ask for help on the things that you're just beating your head against. The other thing I have to say is that you're not ever going to get it all done. You're not ever going to get it all done perfectly. My email inbox is embarrassingly full. I try to do as much as I possibly can. But ultimately every day, when something new comes up. I ask myself, "Is this impacting the world positively like I want? Is it good for myself, my family, my children? Will it help bring our business forward?" If it can't meet those criteria, then it's honestly something that can be put on the back burner.

Jason: Melissa, you have a team that helps you out, correct?

Melissa: Yeah, yeah.

Jason: So can you talk about how you quote-unquote "Recruited" this team to come be a part of your company?

Melissa: Yeah, well I had to marry one of them!

Jason: Hey, whatever it takes!

Melissa: No, it's funny because my next door neighbor was a software engineer and I asked him if he would help code our site, and ultimately now that is my husband. So that's why I make that joke. But it's tough. But here's the thing: in terms of recruiting. I feel like I've been incredibly lucky to have the people on my team that I do. Because all I do, really, is I tell them how grateful I am for the work that they do. For some reason, that's good enough to keep them happy, even though I can't pay them a ton. Even though the work is sometimes, it's, "Oh, do this! Oh, wait, now do that, go in this direction!" You think the average person wouldn't want to put up with that, right? But if you consistently tell them, "Hey, thank you so much," or, "Wow, your work is incredible. Appreciate you," and you're genuine and coming from your heart. You can get really great, talented people to work for you. Who is cheering you on and hoping that you succeed and they want to succeed with you?

Jason: That's great advice, Melissa. Sometimes, all it takes is to be sincere, say, "Thank you, I appreciate you."

Melissa: Yeah, yeah, exactly.

Jason: I was amazed how many people don't do that, this day and age.

Melissa: Yeah, or just these expectations, I mean, let's face it. We all have expectations on us, with my team I try and take the approach like this: as long as the person is a good person, which I only hire and work with good people. If they need to take a day off, if they have a wedding to go to, or someone's sick in the family, and they can't meet their deadline? I get it, I've been there. I'm not going to alienate them by penalizing them. I'm going to let them know that, hey, I understand, and I think that ultimately that causes them to work even harder.

Jason: Yeah, it amazes me, some people have a startup, have the opposite attitude. You're not paying your people, but then you have these draconian measures, and then you wonder why your people are leaving.

Melissa: Yeah, it's not sustainable I guess, in my opinion.

Jason: No, it's not. Melissa, I understand you have something for our listeners today.

Melissa: Yeah, I do. We would love for you to check out the site. Like I said, we have thousands of people on the site who offer every service you could possibly imagine. If you would like to check it out and save some money in the process, you can use code "Kirkland1A" to save five dollars off of a service twenty-five dollars or more. Or you can use "Kirkland1B" to save ten dollars off a service of fifty dollars or more. Use that at checkout, we know that you'll have a great experience, and if not, send me an email and I'll help!

Jason: So, you're in charge of customer success too?

Melissa: Of course! My background is in sales, and sales are really driven by customer success and experience.

Jason: Melissa, another thing I like about your site is, you have some things on there called "karma dollars," can you explain how that works?

Melissa: Yeah, so Karma Points are cool because they can help you save money. You earn them every time you book a service or prove a service. But really, that goes back to my commitment to changing social services. As I mentioned before when you are on different social government programs. Again, you're penalized for making real money. But what if you actually need someone to clean your house? Or you need someone to house-sit, or something else, and you don't have the money because you're on a fixed income? You can actually build up this social capital through Karma Points. Through helping other people, and then when you need help. You can take those and use them to get the services that you need. So, currently, right now, every service that's booked. Each side of the transaction earns 10% back in Karma Points, and it can be used dollar-for-dollar.

Jason: Melissa, can you give us your social media links for both yourself, your company, so people can reach out to you?

Melissa: I can pretty much be found anywhere with the /mypeoplenow. So, twitter.com/mypeoplenow, instagram.com/mypeoplenow, LinkedIn, Facebook, it's all the same.

Jason: We'll have the links to her codes and her social media links in our show notes, and you can find those show notes at www.cavnesshrblog.com, and also be sure to subscribe, rate and review the cavnessHR podcast on either iTunes or Amazon Alexa.

Jason: Melissa, we're coming to the end of our talk, can you provide us any wisdom or advice, anything you want to talk about?

Melissa: The last thing I'll say is this: If you're a founder, stop taking advice from people who aren't rooting for you to succeed, and who don't believe in your idea. It's very easy to hear someone's negative comments or opinion and say, "Oh, gosh, I gotta change direction, oh, now I gotta go here!" Are they invested in you, and do they understand your space? If not, smile, nod, and move on, because you know the vision, and nobody knows it like you do.

Jason: That's great advice because if you did that, you'd be pivoting every hour on the hour, pretty much.

Melissa: Yes! Exactly.

Jason: All right, thank you, Melissa.

Melissa: Thank you so much.

Jason: Thanks to our listeners, thank you for your time as well, remember to be great every day!!!

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May 19, 2019

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