by american express open. helping you get business done. hi there everyone. i'm j.j. ramberg and welcome to "your business" the show dedicated to helping your growing business. for any person that turns on the tv, the channel and streaming options are seemingly endless. but, turns out, we're not the only ones who like to indulge. our four legged friends are apparently fans, too. and when ron levi, the founder of the first ever network for canines tapped into dogs' true delights he got tails wagging around the world. >> have another treat? >> many people will be surprised to learn that dogtv, the first-ever network dedicated to nonhumans, was actually inspired by a cat. >> i used to leave my cat charlie alone every day to go to work. and one day just gave me the saddest eyes in the world like a puss and boots kind of cat. >> ron levi the founder of dogtv realized his television could be a quick fix for charlie's sadness and his own guilt. >> he reacted. i took pictures. >> but turning on just any channel wasn't an option. >> if you leave on any animal channel, or any news channel, you might see something scary like a crocodile. so there's a bomb somewhere that is on the news. you can increase their stress. it's not good for them. >> in that moment the concept crystallized. a 24/7 channel just for cats. the idea ultimately went from cats to canines. after hearing from pet owners that dogs are a lot more needy when left on their own -- -- in 2007 the pet industry was a $40 billion business. ron felt strongly that owners might be willing to fork out a small fee for their four legged friends to be entertained by pooch appropriate shows. but, selling the actual concept to cable providers would undoubtedly be really rough. ron made his way to jasmin media based in israel. the reaction was far from warm. >> he said it's a great channel. completely new niche, and i said there are no new niches. he said but the channel is for dogs. and you know, that initial reaction is, you know, maybe i'm on candid camera. >> i left that office very sad, i have to say. and then a day after he called. and he said, there's something here. i don't know what. and maybe i'm crazy but there must be something here. >> it's not going to be very expensive. it's not like an episode of game of thrones. and we could play it all over the world without needing to localize because dogs all bark in the same language. >> gilad newman was a partner and saw potential in the business. ron was ready to get the cameras rolling but rushing to market in an unfamiliar territory would have been a huge mistake. especially with a concept that would initially be considered a gimmick by most. >> i think many entrepreneurs are on fire. you know, we have this idea, we have to make it happen now! gilad the ceo said we want people to take this very seriously. the big advice is be patient, these things take time. we had to study dogs and understand them in order to create the right content for them. >> the pair spent three years conducting studies, and gathering research from around the world. then, it was critical to test the content they created. >> what we did is we installed security cameras in 38 apartments in new york and l.a. we wanted to do kind of a proof positive thing and see it works. >> who knew zebras and giraffes are truly dog's best friends or that dogs are not fans of each other's barks. >> you need to have the best proof of concept in order to know that this thing works. it's all about the execution, and have proof that it actually works. you don't have that, you don't have much. >> the pair felt ready to craft their pitch and set up meetings with cable providers. >> we understood that people actually see us like the crazy people. so people didn't know how to take that and the first tv network meetings it wasn't a great thing. i think the second the fourth person in the meeting took off his phone and started e-mailing his wife we knew that we were in trouble. we knew that they were not really taking us that seriously. presentation didn't look good at all. the evidence wasn't demonstrated correctly to these people. >> they needed a major dose of legitimacy. so ron and gilad got pet experts and the humane society on board. and then, in 2012, they tested the product in a small market to get invaluable data to prove the demand existed. and it did. that move was a game changer. >> 24 hours after we launched it was on good morning america, david letterman's show, leno and fallon. it's flattering. but that was not the idea. we wanted to save these people for later on. >> although they weren't prepared for the onslaught of stories unleashed by the media, they ran with it. soon dogtv was popping up all over the country and across the globe. in 2014, discovery communications became a minority stakeholder in the company. the channel also launched online. expanding its reach from 15 countries to 75. dogtv is now in more than 12 million homes around the world. and apparently, humans are also getting hooked. including actor billy bob thornton. >> you know, there's a ha ha thing here, and it's funny, it's a tv channel for dogs. but when people start to learn about the studies, that it can actually work and help with separation anxiety and with stress, we designed something that is not less than revolutionary to me. if you have an idea, doesn't matter how crazy it is, if you really, really believe in it, if you really do, just go and do it. pretty much every crazy idea can somehow get to the market. just go and do it. but do it right. make the best presentation. the best product, work with the best people in the world. get great partners as i did. do all that, and people will take you seriously. ron levi started dogtv himself and got partners to help him grow it. the skills that make a great founder aren't necessarily the skills that make a great ceo later on. once the business gets past the start-up stage, it is quite common for a founder to step aside, and hire someone else to run the show. but, it can be really, really hard to find the right person. that's the challenge the founder of the dog toy company faced, and his search took years. >> it's such a major decision it's important to get it right. it's a big deal to find of release the reins to someone with your brand. >> alex fisher knew the day would eventually come. >> since the beginning i've always known how smart i was, or wasn't, and i always knew i needed someone else to run alongside. >> in his mind the change was inevitable. when he launched his company planet dog in 1997, he knew that at some point he'd want to hire someone else to run it. >> i don't want to be my own ceo. and i know my own people don't want me to be their ceo. our boat got to be so big that my captain's license didn't work with that ton boat. >> the founder of the maker of eco-friendly pet products wanted to hand off day-to-day control of the business. he was looking for a leader who could spur growth while remaining true to the original mission. >> planet dog just wanted to deliver a product line that was well considered. maybe it had a little boutiquey feel to it. but it was a collar that you would want on your dog. that's how nice that's supposed to be. and the same went with our beds. the same goes with our bouncy toys. >> when alex started looking around for a new ceo he met a lot of great people. but, he didn't meet anyone that was the perfect fit. >> i could easily find a person that was very good at one, two or three things. but the reality is, we had twelve things that we need to be watching. >> all that changed when he heard about colleen mccracken. it was 2013. >> i was itching for a smarter partner. and it still took years to find the right person. i like to say that colleen rescued our company. >> she'd been working as the ceo of another business. so she had the business chops. and not only that, she loved animals. >> i had worked with company founders in the past, and i learned very quickly what it's like to, you know, run a business, with the founder very involved. >> alex and colleen agreed that she would come on board but they made a very key decision. she was not brought in as the ceo right away. >> it was easier to formulate the beginning of the relationship and sort of a consultant type manner. which gave us both an out if it wasn't working. >> alex knew that if he was going to truly hand over the reins he had to feel col for theable with colleen first. >> if i felt like i couldn't let go of a specific project, or the trust wasn't there, it's really debilitating. and it almost, to me, feels like a dog leashed to a tree. >> colleen agreed with alex's plan. she thought it was better for everyone to get to know each other. >> it's a little different to come in, you know, here's our new ceo, versus here's someone who's going to help us on this project that we're working on. and so i think it was a really good opportunity for the company to meet me, and me also to meet the company. >> alex realized pretty quickly that colleen was the right person for the job. she was asking good questions, and already thinking about solutions to some of planet dog's woes. >> she was a great listener. it seemed that she was willing to not guess or presume. she took plenty of time to learn about the direction it needs to go before she even decided to change any direction. >> and when colleen became the ceo, she thought it was critical to stop herself from moving too quickly. >> i do believe that the first role of any ceo is to observe. you never act initially. you really have to give some thought to observing, and talking to people, and learning more about the founder. >> she set the tone by rallying employees, and coming up with goals. >> there were a lot of things that people were working on. but not necessarily all working together towards a common grow. to be honest, it was almost a little bit of a sigh of relief for the employees, because they weren't really sure what the priorities were. >> and alex did his part by stepping back, so colleen could drive the company forward. >> i've learned in the four years that i've been with planet dog when to consult with alex, and when do i think he's going to be okay with allowing that to go in a different way. as the ceo i do get to make the final call. >> what made the last four years easier is that colleen has alex's ear, and the faith of her team. >> alex underestimates the role that he's played in really standing on the sidelines and championing these changes. that's sometimes hard to do. >> that doesn't mean that there aren't times when the pair don't see eye to eye. >> i would say that alex and i disagree often. i mean it does happen that we are not on the same page. but the difference is that we do listen to each other. and there are times when he's right and i'm wrong, and i change the decision because of that. >> technically alex has the ultimate say. but that's not the kind of relationship he and colleen have formed. >> i can reverse the decision but it wouldn't ever really come to that because we have an understanding. i trust that she's seeing where we're going better. so i would never second-guess a decision that colleen makes. >> but he and colleen are in touch about every other day. which is giving alex the flexibility he'd been looking for. >> every time i was able to let go successfully, my life became a notch better. so, though it's maybe not the easiest thing to let go, if and when you do, if it's done right, the company obviously benefits. >> sales continue to climb. and both colleen and alex say it's the combination of the founder, and the ceo, that have gotten them there. >> the founder's perspective is often very different than anybody else's. and it's important to put yourself in their shoes from time to time. we all like to look back and say were there some things i would do differently, sure. but at the end of the day i think we did it quite right. all right now your dog has a toy. your dog is watching tv, and it is time for feeding. and that's why we have you, alex douzet you're going to be pitching in our elevator. what's the name of your company? >> ollie. >> it's a dog food company? >> e-commerce company. >> and who did you bring along? >> my dog simon. >> is this your taste tester? >> absolutely. he loves every product we make. >> was he the inspiration for the company? >> no my other dog who couldn't come today was the inspiration. >> he had another appointment today? >> yes. >> all right, let me tell you about who you're going to be pitching. you have michael broukhim the founder and ceo of fabfitfun, a successful prescription box company and susan tynan who is the founder of framebridge, both e-commerce companies ahead of you so they should have some great advice. >> can't wait to hear from them. >> good luck. >> thank you. >> hi. i'm alex douzet, i'm the cofounder and ceo of ollie. and ollie is an e-commerce company for pet food. we are direct-to-consumer, natural food. we are human edible, human grade quality, and what we do that's different than other pet food company is that we custom tailor the plan and the recipe to the profile of your dog. so people come to our website, they fill out the survey for their dog. they tell us about the breed, the age, the weight, activity level, if they have any ler jis and based on that, we'll recommend the right recipe and the right meal plan and then we ship the food to you every two weeks. so it's a subscription service. we send you the right amount. we help you keep your dog at an ideal weight, because they can leave a longer life. and it's a refrigerated produproduct. it's not a dry food, it's not a wet food, it's a human food that you keep in your refrigerator. you serve it to your dog. you don't have to reheat, rehydrate. it's the healthiest product you can find on the market. we're here because we're looking to raise for equity. >> all right. i think he's a little hungry right now. >> yes. >> nice job. do you guys have dogs? >> no. >> i don't. >> okay. then this will be a real test of the pitch then, right? because you're not talking to customers. okay, what would numbers. the first one one to ten what did you think of the pitch? second one to ten what do you think of the product? okay let's start susan. okay. so, pitch, i gave a seven. i think great description of the product. features, benefits. i can completely understand why someone would want it. from a business perspective, though, i don't understand the economics of the business yet. and i would imagine for delivering fresh food, getting that right is a big component. the product sounds terrific. i gave that a ten. really clear to me why this would be exciting. and consumers certainly love their dogs and they certainly care about the food they're eating now, so feels like with the custom element, too, you really have something exciting. >> great, thank you. >> michael? >> and i went with nines across the board. so, first of all, i love a good subscription, and i think this is a great space to be in. people obviously love their dogs. and, you know, the uniqueness, i haven't seen this customizable sort of angle to it. i think you got to really push hard on that. and really, that's where your source of leverage is going to be, where you can differentiate over time. you can learn more and more about dogs and what i try to figure out is how do you get some sort of feedback about how well this is working. maybe there's actual trials or experiments you can do. then you can keep improving those algorithms which can be a sustainable edge. >> the product, nine? >> the product nine. obviously i didn't try it. but -- >> we can. you have time you can try it. >> but you think it's a great idea? >> i think it's a fantastic idea. you know, we saw a huge acquisition in this space just this year, there's a lot of money to be made in this space, and again people love their dogs and i think they're willing to go for the best for them, and if you can convince people this is the best you'll be great. >> great. thank you for the feedback. >> thank you so much for coming. >> thanks for having me. >> thank you so much for coming. good luck with everything. >> thank you. >> we really appreciate you coming on the program. >> thanks for having me. >> thank you guys for your feedback. it was great. the holidays are coming up, and as you've walked around you've probably already seen big retailers start to advertise and offer products for the holidays. even though it's so early in the year. but what can you do as a small business to try and capture some of those customers, as well? sarah baldwin is the president and ceo of bella luna toys a company in maine selling natural, wooden and organic toys. sarah bought bella luna toys in 2009 and has since grown what began as a small home based web business in a multimillion dollar enterprise. congratulations. >> thank you. >> that's really incredible. so i want to talk, you started on the web, you've built this company, i want to talk about small stores that are brick and mortar, getting people to shop online during the holidays. so that they don't miss out on those online sales. >> exactly. so when customers come to our store, we always put a colorful postcard in each bag that has information about our website. all the features that are available on our website, with your url. and invite them to visit us online. i think that's great. it's sort of the first point. but that requires them going to you. and doesn't happen probably that often that someone picks it out and then goes and types it in. so how do you push stuff to them? >> how do i push stuff -- >> right talking about their website. do you capture their e-mail addresses -- >> yes, so when they come into the store we have a sign-up. we encourage them to sign up for our news letter. you can offer an incenter like a monthly or quarterly give away or everyone who signs up, and then you can let those customers know via e-mail if you have a local promotion in your store. and alert them about new products. >> and also make sure that your website is beautiful. >> yes. >> right? >> and it has to be usable, even if right now you're primarily depending on people coming in to the store, if it is, you know, 3:00 in the morning, on december 19th, and they're just like this is my time to buy. >> yes. >> it's going to make it easy for them. >> yes. you want to have a beautiful website that reflects your brand, and the aesthetics of your store, give them a great customer experience. and make it personal. you can have a website and still be a small, local store, so you can tell your brand's story. put your picture on your website. or, the photos of your staff. people like to buy from people. and even though you're shopping online, you can give them that very personalized customer experience. >> by the way, that's why they're shopping at your store, probably in the first place. >> exactly. >> because they feel connected this small local store in a way tat they don't to a big brand. >> exactly, so keep your website personal and have the small business feeling because a lot of customers even when they're shopping online like to purchase from small independent businesses instead of the big box retailers. >> and there's social media. we're all bombarded with so much marketing that comes to us. but if you have a relationship, a face-to-face relationship with some of these customers coming to you, you may be able to offer them some information that they want via social media around the holidays. >> yes. yeah, through social media. just as young people expect all businesses to have a web presence, they also expect your business to be on facebook. and they're going to message you for customer service questions through facebook. so be sure if your company has a facebook page, that you're checking it every day for messages from customers and responding. >> are you already talking about the holidays at your store? >> i have a toy business, so we start planning for the holidays in july. >> and do you have promotions around the holidays already? >> we do. so as a small business, i like to get creative with my promotions because early on, i felt like i had to compete with all the big retailers and do big 15% site wide sales and i realized as a smaller store with smaller -- >> not sustainable. >> not sustainable, so i have gotten creative. instead of doing a big site wide sale, for instance, we do a 12 days of giving campaign. after cyber monday, and we promote one category per day. >> right. >> it's kind of like an advant calend calendar. people get a new sale, what's on sale today. it might be dolls or wooden blocks or art supplies. so customers will come. they'll shop for that, those items that are on sale and usually add things to their cart at full price, so we're not losing. >> that's fun, also. it gives people a reason to keep coming back and be excited about what's coming next tomorrow. >> exactly. >> that's a great idea. thank you so much. i really appreciate it. i know you're an expert about this because you do it all year round and particularly now. talk to you soon. >> bye-bye. even some of the most intelligent people with the best intentions can be terrible managers. being a good leader can take a lot of patience, a lot of practice, and in some cases, some serious soul searching. here are five ways to improve your leadership skills right away. one, swap jobs with your business partner. this can be a great way to drum up some new ideas. you don't have to hand off every task to your partner, but switching roles could help inject a little creativity, momentum, and motivation into a routine process. two, mystery shop your store. it's hard to know how your staff is treating your customers when you aren't around. so remind them of your expectations, then you can do it or hire a mystery shopper and share the results with your team. just be sure to let your staff know what you're doing beforehand so they don't feel like they're being spied on. >> three, pay attention to the right numbers. numbers are the life blood of any business, but not all numbers are equally meaningful. for example, if 100 people walk into your store, that's great. but if none of them buy anything, that's bad. make sure you know which numbers are truly reflective of your mission so you know what works and what needs work. four, treat your suppliers like team members. your suppliers are crucial to your business, so treat them that way. give them as much information as you can so they can scale their operations to meet your demand. invest heavily in the success of their business so everyone can win as you grow. >> and five, pretend you have a boss. it can be hard to stay focused when you don't have someone over you motivating you to get your work done. so give yourself an employee review and adjust your priorities and behavior to insure that you're meeting your own expectations. when we come back, what you need to do to maintain credibility with potential investors. and tips on obsessing over your customers and why you should be tuning out negativity. thank you so much. thank you! so we're a go? yes! we got a yes! what does that mean for purchasing? purchase. let's do this. got it. book the flights! hai! si! si! ya! ya! ya! what does that mean for us? we can get stuff. what's it mean for shipping? ship the goods. you're a go! you got the green light. that means go! oh, yeah. start saying yes to your company's best ideas. we're gonna hit our launch date! (scream) thank you! goodbye! let us help with money and know-how, so you can get business done. american express open. this is an e-mail from jim. he writes, i am a full-time registered nurse, so i'm responsible to support myself as the business starts up. for this reason, i will not need to take pay or profit until the business becomes my primary source of income, allowing me to pay back an investor quickly. will this help me find an investor or will they perceive it as a lack of driving force? >> this is a great question because it comes out with so many entrepreneurs out there. it's a trade-off. do i focus on the business full time and leave financial stability on the table, or do i stay in my job, keep the financial stability and just continue with the start-up until i'm ready to fully dedicate my time to it? the truth is there is no right answer. in fact, i know investors that are advocated in both camps. what i would say is i turn it back to you and say what do you feel most comfortable with? it sounds to me that your gut is telling you to maintain the financial stability and continue to dabble in the start-up until you're fully ready to focus on it, and that's okay, because remember, it is your business. and you have to do what's right for you. we now have the top two tips you need to know to help you grow your business. mike and susan are back with us again. two e-commerce companies that have grown significantly. you have 200 going to 400 employees over the holiday season. let's start with you, one tip. >> my tip is how to filter through all of the feedback you get as an entrepreneur. and it is to ignore the really risk averse feedback you get because if you listen to that, you'll never innovate. if you get advice, people believe in you, want to make your business, listen to that advice. if it's just, ushouldn't do it, you have to filter it out. >> how do you do that? because some risk averse feedback makes sense. >> that's right, but if it's in the category of i'm trying to work with your idea and make it better, limsen. if it's just i don't think you should do this, you have to have blinders on to that. >> or at least be able to take it back. take it as they think i shouldn't do this, let me give the five reasons i should. this is why i think this is going to make the business grow. >> that bolsters your own confidence in it. >> michael. >> my top tip is pretty simple. just be completely obsessed with your customers. it sounds obvious, but as you get bigger and bigger, there's other stakeholders. you're going to have investors, the press having thoughts, all sorts of things coming at you from different places. i think staying attached to your customer and spending time talking to them, i spend hours every week on our community forums, on social media, engaging directly. i think it's the one thing you can't outsource. >> i think this is very important for us to say right now because the holidays are coming up, so every b to c company is going to have a lot of customers. thank you for coming on and congratulations on the growth of both of your companies. really impressive. keeping up with our dog theme today, this week's yourbizselfie comes from carolyn alonzo and her cute dog. she owns fetch pet care in chicago. since 2007, she's offered pet sitting and dog walking services as an alternative to taking your dog to a kennel. now all of you, pick up your sma smartphone, take a selfie of you and your business and send it to us or tweet it to @msnbcyourbiz. include the name of your business, your location, anything interesting or different about your business, and use the #yourbizselfie. thank you for joining us today. we love hearing from you, so if you have something to say to us, send us an e-mail. also, please go to our website, it's openforum.com/yourbusiness. we put up there everything that was on today's show plus a whole lot more for you, and we put up even more for uand add new stuff every day on our digital and social media platforms as well. we look forward to seeing you next time. until then, i'm j.j. ramberg, and remember, we make your business our business. so that's the idea. what do you think? hate to play devil's advocate but... i kind of feel like it's a game changer. i wouldn't go that far. are you there? he's probably on mute. yeah... gary won't like it. why? because he's gary. (phone ringing) what? keep going! yeah... (laughs) (voice on phone) it's not millennial enough. there are a lot of ways to say no. thank you so much. thank you! so we're doing it. yes! "we got a yes!" start saying yes to your company's best ideas. let us help with money and know-how, so you can get business done. american express open. good morning, and welcome to "politics nation." today, from atlanta. a young boy fights for his life as a crucial medical operation is held up by his father's criminal record. we'll speak with the family at the center of this heartwrenching story in just a bit. >> and is the racial strife of the trump era pushing more black students toward historically black

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