The Story
Tim Stoddard runs a portfolio of businesses generating over $5 million a year. His main company is Stazzi Internet Marketing, an SEO lead generation agency doing about $2.5 million annually. He also owns Recovery Local (parent company for sober.com, yourfirststep.com, detox.com, medicallyassisted.com) and Copy Blogger, which teaches people how to write for the internet.
Tim's journey started from rock bottom. He grew up blue-collar, got in trouble as a kid, and developed a drug problem. When he went to rehab and got sober, a mentor bought him a subscription to Success Magazine. He heard Seth Godin say "start a blog, don't tell anybody about it, and write in it every day." That simple advice changed everything.
He started a BlogSpot writing about his recovery journey. People found it through search, which led him to discover SEO. He read Copy Blogger every day to improve his writing. Eventually, treatment centers started reaching out asking how he built his community - and that became his first business.
Key Insights
The Multipreneur Strategy
- •Build a portfolio of assets that do the hard work for you
- •Use cash from your agency to reinvest into cash-flowing businesses
- •Three criteria for investments: Do I like the founder? Is it cash flowing? Is it evergreen?
Why Agencies Are the Best Starting Business
- •No upstart capital required
- •You just need one client to be profitable
- •Hard to scale (every new client = more work), but great for generating cash to invest elsewhere
Sales Tips for Closing Deals
- •Learn to ask questions so the person tells you their pain points
- •Get the price out of the way early - avoid "let me think about it"
- •Ask for the deal: "Are you ready to get started?" Then shut up and wait
Building a Team
Tim hired people straight out of halfway houses - people in recovery who he's built the business with over 10 years.
Key advice: Read "The E-Myth Revisited" - realize you're the biggest problem in the company. Document processes, teach, then get out of the way.
Day in the Life
- •Wake up at 4am, chug water, coffee, record assignments
- •Take kids to school around 8am
- •Gym from 8:30-10am
- •Mornings: Logistics and task assignment
- •Afternoons: Deal making, follow-ups, phone calls, proposals
Tools
- •Slack - Communication
- •Loom - Record assignments (underutilized tool)
- •Todoist - Personal task management
- •HubSpot - CRM for leads and network
- •ClickUp - Agency task management
- •Google Drive - Everything else
Key Advice
"The solution to every problem in my life is I'm just going to get through the day. I'm just going to make it till midnight. I live my life one day at a time."
Resources
- •Follow Tim: https://x.com/timstodz
- •Stazzi Internet Marketing
- •Copy Blogger: https://copyblogger.com