108. Scaling One Of The Biggest Masterminds In The World with Aaron Stokes

From creating worlds with digital coding to the mom-and-pop auto shop down the road, there is a wealth of generational knowledge and innovation in our workforce. It’s taken all of us to build a strong economy, but very few have been able to bridge the gap between their old-world skill sets and online digital influence. But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible, who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks?  Our guest today is one of the few who has not only successfully bridged that gap but has leveraged it to create events that will help merge old-world skills and new-world marketing. Aaron Stokes is a 22-year veteran of the automotive repair industry, who uses his experience to help other auto repair shop owners build successful businesses. After multiple business owners sought him out for advice he recorded his first course and put it into the marketplace. It exploded and started a movement that would help bring small businesses out of obscurity and into the niche that needed them.  Listen in as we discuss how Aaron grew his course to in-person gatherings of up to 500 people in just four years. You’ll get an inside look into how Aaron runs his events and what he looks for when it comes to keeping his audience engaged and inspired. Speakers, you’ll gain insight into what exactly Aaron looks for when hiring and why he doesn’t bring some speakers back. Meeting planners, you’ll learn tips and tricks on how you can innovate your event and stay away from cookie-cutter experiences.  When you hit play you’ll hear about Aaron’s heart and dedication to changing the lives of small business owners and their families one experience at a time.  For more information or to connect with us, check out the links below!      More Of What’s Inside: Creating smaller experiences within a bigger event          Mirroring a live event on social media Maximizing the resources within your city  Tactics to keep people coming back Picking the best speakers for your audience Creating an opportunity for self-revelation The importance of touching the heart of the audience Dealing with rapid growth and new hires Stepping away from the cookie-cutter version of events Impacting local people by sourcing from the community The problem with small businesses Pouring into your people to create a better event   And much more!     LINKS: Book Speakers for your next event!  We are the only agency where you can book free and paid speakers, no bureau commissions! Learn More https://elitespeakersagency.com/   Join our Platform Live 2021 Event: Learn how to let your story shine while growing your business!  https://joinplatformlive.com/greenroom   Join our Platform Tour interactive Journey, October 11th-17th: https://success.advanceyourreach.com/platformtour-registration/?campaign=Greenroom&ref=12 If you are interested in becoming an affiliate for our Platform Tour October 11th-17th, you can learn more here: Become an Partner for Platform Tour   Connect with Aaron: Website: ShopFixAcademy.com   Connect with Blair: [email protected]  Connect with us: Facebook: www.facebook.com/advanceyourreach Website: advanceyourreach.com [email protected] Email​: [email protected]   Episode Minute By Minute: 0:37 - Introducing Aaron 1:54 - How Aaron got started 5:08 - Building different event experiences 10:41 - The difficulty of running multiple events at the same time 14:00 - The value that keeps people coming back 18:45 - How Aaron evaluates speakers 22:44 - Placing your speakers in the best light  25:57 - How Aaron jumped into the stream of masterminds 30:57 - Scaling the shop fix method 36:07 - The importance of hospitality 39:54 - Where you can find Aaron 40:59 - Closing thoughts More About Aaron: Aaron Stokes is a 22-year veteran of the automotive repair industry, who uses his experience to help other auto repair shop owners build successful businesses. Through Shop Fix Academy, he provides innovative management coaching and training based on the knowledge he acquired growing the automotive repair chains, Eurofix and Autofix. Stokes created Shop Fix Academy to provide comprehensive training for shop owners delivered through user-friendly videos, conferences, one-to-one coaching & peer groups to ensure that participants receive maximum value for their money. Stokes also offers consumers advice on automotive repair through his radio show, “Fixin' Cars with Aaron Stokes,” broadcast weekly on Nashville’s 99.7 WTN