Agenda

SUNDAY, MARCH 02, 2025

3:00 PM – 6:00 PM

Accredited Value Guide™ Pre-Conference Workshop

A unique opportunity to earn your Accredited Value Guide™ certification live. This certification ensures that you are well versed in using the Value Builder Questionnaire to drive strategic conversations and develop a roadmap for your Business Owner clients, whether they are approaching exit or not. Join us for the first live session of it’s kind, meet others before the summit begins! Space is limited!

7:30 PM – 9:30 PM

Welcome Reception

We’ll kick off the event with an outdoor Opening Reception, where you’ll have the perfect opportunity to reconnect with old friends and expand your professional network. Enjoy a relaxed and inviting atmosphere as you engage in meaningful conversations with peers and industry leaders.

MONDAY, MARCH 03, 2025

8:00 AM – 9:00 AM

Breakfast

9:00 AM – 10:00 AM

Main Stage Keynote: The Boomer Exit Wave

Join us for a keynote with John Warrillow as he unveils insights from comprehensive quantitative and qualitative surveys of business owners from the boomer generation. Delve into the minds of these entrepreneurs as John reveals their candid thoughts on achieving their endgame, navigating obstacles, and selecting advisors. Gain perspective on the challenges and aspirations driving these owners, and discover how to align your strategies with their needs. Don’t miss this opportunity to gain exclusive access to the inner workings of this key demographic with The Value Builder System™ founder & CEO John Warrillow.

By attending “The Boomer Exit Wave,” you’ll learn to:

Identify key exit motivations and timelines for boomer business owners.
Recognize the common hurdles and setbacks these owners face in their exit journeys.
Understand the traits and approaches boomers seek in advisors to facilitate a smooth transition.
Quantify the scale of the boomer exit wave and its impact on the economy.
Develop strategies tailored to address the unique concerns of this generation of business owners.
Leverage insights from The Value Builder System™ to position yourself as the advisor of choice for boomers.
Anticipate trends in the market as millions of boomers look to exit their businesses.
Access actionable data to drive conversations and improve your advisory practice.

10:00 AM – 10:30 AM

Smarter Marketing with Value Builder Analytics

Join Jason Reilly, VP of Marketing at Value Builder, for an inside look at the latest work from our Value Builder Analytics team for the year ahead. Drawing on insights from a proprietary database of over 80,000 business owners, this session will preview how our upcoming analytics-based tools and resources will be able to help you focus your strategy, make smarter decisions, and deliver relevant, timely information to your owner clients and prospects.

In this sneak peak you’ll learn about:

Advisor Marketing News: How you can leverage this one-of-a-kind publication to refine your message, target the right audience, and build a more successful advisory business.
Monthly Research Webinars: Gain actionable insights from real business owners that you can bring to your clients in the form exclusive of done-for-you content.
Marketing Content: Discover how analytics is shaping Value Builder marketing collateral like eBooks and articles that help you differentiate yourself from the generic, AI-generated content used by less experienced advisors.

10:30 AM – 11:00 AM

Networking Break

11:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Breakout Session #1

The Trust Hack: Win Business Owners’ Confidence

Every business owner has a secret: something they want before they even think about exiting their business. Most advisors miss it–don’t be one of them. Daniel Gilham, a PhD specializing in uncovering the inhibitors and motivations for planning, and Pete Martin, a serial entrepreneur focused on helping owners unleash their business’s highest potential, lead this interactive workshop. Together, they’ll break down what’s really on a business owner’s mind and how to bring it to the surface.

By attending The Trust Hack: Win Business Owners’ Confidence, you’ll learn:

The #1 thing every entrepreneur craves before considering an exit—and how you can deliver it.
Simple ways to break through the walls owners put up when it comes to discussing their endgame.
How a few smart questions (asked in the right order) can make you the obvious choice as their advisor.

Breakout Session #2

Grow or Go: Helping Business Owners Decide Their Next Move

This session will examine one of the most important questions business owners should ask themselves—should I continue to invest time, money and resources towards growing my business or should I begin the transition process and let the next ownership team take it to the next level? Business owners don’t always make the decision to stay in their businesses for the right reasons, nor do they select the most optimal time to leave. MassMutual and Value Builder have developed a simple tool to help business owners answer this important question and this breakout will show you how to initiate the grow or go conversation with your business owner clients.

Breakout Session #3

Mastering the Mastermind: Expand Your Impact (And Income!) with Group Coaching

Mastermind groups are one of the most effective ways for advisors to scale their expertise, create deeper client engagement, and generate recurring revenue. But how do you structure a mastermind that delivers real results—and keeps clients coming back?

In this hands-on session, Linda Ratner, a seasoned business owner, master coach, and speaker pulls back the curtain on the Fast Track Mastermind, a proven framework designed to help advisors lead high-impact groups that drive business growth. With a track record of helping business leaders navigate disruption, scale operations, and drive sustainable growth, Linda will show you how to build a mastermind that delivers real results.

By attending Mastering the Mastermind: Expand Your Impact (And Income!) with Group Coaching, you’ll learn:

Why Masterminds Work – The science behind peer learning and accountability.

Proven Formats That Drive Engagement – Explore different structures that best fit your clients’ needs.
The Fast Track Mastermind Playbook – Define your target market, structure sessions, and leverage Value Builder tools to deliver maximum impact.

Whether you’re new to masterminds or looking to refine your approach, this session will equip you with a step-by-step framework to start or scale your own group coaching model.

12:00 PM – 1:00 PM

Lunch

1:00 PM – 2:00 PM

Breakout Session #1

The Trust Hack: Breaking Through the Barriers to Win Business Owners’ Confidence

Daniel Gilham, Managing Director, Farther

Pete Martin, Founder & CEO, AskMyBoard

Breakout Session #2

Grow or Go: Helping Business Owners Decide Their Next Move

Brian Trzcinski, Director of Business Market Development, MassMutual

Breakout Session #3

Mastering the Mastermind: Expand Your Impact (And Income!) with Group Coaching

Linda Ratner, Founder, Ratner Consulting

2:00 PM – 2:30 PM

Networking Break

2:30 PM – 3:30 PM

Built to Sell Radio Live with Guests Rob & Sherry Walling

John Warrillow will record a live taping of an episode of Built to Sell Radio, the world’s most popular podcast and building to sell. With more than 3 million downloads, Built to Sell Radio has become must-listening for founders pursuing an endgame. In addition to hearing live from a founder who has sold a business, you’ll also hear how their Value Builder advisors support them in their journey.

By attending “Built to Sell Radio Live,” you’ll learn to:

Gain firsthand insights from a founder who has successfully exited a business.
Discover key strategies bootstrapped founders use to build businesses without external funding.
Learn how to create value in a business that’s positioned to sell.
Hear Rob Walling’s approach to bootstrapping and scaling SaaS companies based on decades of experience.
Explore lessons from TinySeed’s accelerator program and what investors look for in bootstrapped companies.
Get an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at what makes Built to Sell Radio a go-to resource for founders.

3:30 PM – 4:00 PM

Marketing to Small Business Owners: Q&A with Rob & Sherry Walling

Join us for a special bonus session with Rob Walling, serial entrepreneur and founder of MicroConf, TinySeed, and the Startups for the Rest of Us podcast, and Sherry Walling, a clinical psychologist, speaker, and award-winning author. Rob has built a dedicated audience of small business owners through his podcast, VC firm, and conference series—all tailored to the needs of bootstrapped founders. Sherry has helped thousands of founders and leaders navigate major life transitions and the hardest moments of their careers.

In this interactive Q&A, advisors will have the chance to ask Rob how he has successfully attracted and engaged a loyal small business audience and ask Sherry about the mental health challenges owners face while building a successful business and how to navigate them effectively. Get ready to gain actionable insights on reaching, resonating with, and converting small business owners into long-term clients.

By attending this session, you’ll learn to:

Craft a marketing message that resonates with small business owners.
Build an engaged audience using Rob’s methods across podcasts, events, and content.
Leverage podcasting, newsletters, and other platforms to establish authority.
Apply best practices for converting a content audience into clients.
Use Rob’s insights on how small business owners make decisions and what influences them.
Design a sustainable content strategy that attracts small business founders over the long term.
Build credibility with small business owners, even if you’re just starting out.
Recognize and address the mental challenges entrepreneurs face when growing their businesses.

5:15 PM – 6:00 PM

Guided Tour of Austin

Enjoy a guided walking tour highlighting the great history of Austin, Texas, as we travel between the AT&T Hotel and Conference Center and our social event at Moonshine.

6:00 PM – 8:00 PM

Evening Social Event: Moonshine

Join us for drinks and appetizers at Moonshine in one of America’s most exciting cities. Afterward, immerse yourself in Austin’s dynamic nightlife, filled with live music venues, rooftop bars, and quirky dive spots. From the iconic Sixth Street to the trendy hangouts on Rainey Street, Austin pulses with indie bands, craft cocktails, and late-night food trucks, embodying its reputation as the ‘Live Music Capital of the World’.

TUESDAY, MARCH 04, 2025

8:00 AM – 9:00 AM

Breakfast

9:00 AM – 10:00 AM

Main Stage Keynote: Cracking the Top Quartile
What the Top 25% of Value Builder Advisors Do Differently

What sets the best advisors apart? Join Laura Ferguson, Chief Revenue Officer, as she reveals insights from an exclusive survey of Value Builder advisors. Discover how the top 25% achieve superior results through smart client targeting, strategic tool usage, and high-ROI business development tactics.

What You’ll Learn:

How top advisors target the right clients and industries to drive growth
The tools and strategies they use to maximize ROI and client outcomes
Business development tactics that outperform traditional marketing
Key trends shaping the most successful advisory practices in 2025
Actionable steps to implement top-quartile strategies in your business

10:00 AM – 10:30 AM

Mastering The Marketing System: Three New Features to Become a Top Quartile Performer

Are you fully leveraging the power of Value Builder’s marketing system to deepen the relationship with your business owner clients and prospects by talking directly to their highest fears and aspirations? Join Aaron Egier, Vice President of Product and Engineering, as he:

Unveils exciting updates that will be available in 2025 for you to use in Nurture Cycle, our done-for-you, white-labeled drip marketing program designed to warm business owners up for strategic conversations.
Shares best practices for maximizing the use of our extensive resources, including eBooks, presentation templates, webinars, and podcast episodes.

Learn how to take full advantage of the only marketing system built on the owner-friendly language that made Built to Sell a global bestseller—designed exclusively to help business owners understand how to monetize their most valuable asset.

10:30 AM – 11:00 AM

Networking Break

11:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Breakout Session #1

The Trusted Advisor Approach: Mastering the Art of Relationship-Based Sales

Join Brian Marshall as he shares his transformative approach to client acquisition, built on over 30 years of experience as a professional advisor and entrepreneur. Frustrated by traditional sales techniques, Brian discovered that the most successful advisors focused on building trust and acting as partners—not salespeople. From founding an IT consulting business to training hundreds of advisors, Brian has honed The Trusted Advisor Approach, a proven system for closing larger deals and securing longer engagements without “selling.” This hands-on session will equip you with practical tools and psychological insights to adopt a trusted advisor approach in your own practice.

By attending The Trusted Advisor Approach: Mastering the Art of Relationship-Based Sales, you’ll learn to:

Replace traditional selling behaviors with trust-building techniques.

Avoid common pitfalls like the “Buyer’s Trap” and price-based negotiations.

Implement a step-by-step Trusted Advisor client acquisition process.
Shift from handling objections to creating alignment with client goals.

Breakout Session #2

The Million Dollar Consultant: Driving Revenue Through Events

Discover how to drive exponential business growth by mastering the art of event-driven revenue generation. In this engaging and actionable talk, Nick Long shares how he generated more than a $1M in his first 10 months leveraging Value Builder and powerful live events that create lasting impact. Learn how to attract clients with compelling content, foster long-term community engagement, and position yourself as a trusted industry authority. Walk away with proven strategies to scale your business while building lasting relationships that fuel continued success.

By attending The Million Dollar Consultant: Driving Revenue Through Events, you’ll takeaway:

People come for content and stay for the community.
Positioning yourself as an authority using the Value Builder System.
Leveraging events as high-conversion revenue-generating platforms.
Crafting a business exit strategy that maximizes valuation and impact.

Breakout Session #3

Crafting Your Business WHY: Stand Out, Connect, and Grow

Your Business WHY is more than just a statement—it’s the foundation for standing out as an advisor in a crowded marketplace. By aligning your WHY with your story and messaging, you’ll build trust, create emotional connections, and attract the clients who need your expertise the most.

In this breakout session, inspired by Gary Sanchez’s WHY Institute and Simon Sinek’s Start with Why, you’ll discover how to create a powerful story that resonates to attract the ideal clients you work best with.

By attending Crafting Your Business WHY: Stand Out, Connect, and Grow, you’ll learn to:

Understand the 9 WHYs and how they shape deeper connections with business owners.
Build trust by crafting an authentic and emotionally resonant story.
Develop clear, compelling messaging tailored to your ideal client.
Create a memorable tagline that captures your unique value.
Position your brand as a strategic partner who drives real results.

12:00 PM – 1:00 PM

Lunch

1:00 PM – 2:00 PM

Breakout Session #1

The Trusted Advisor Approach: Mastering the Art of Relationship-Based Sales

Brian Marshall, Co-Founder, Transformational Growth Partners

Breakout Session #2

The Million Dollar Consultant: Driving Revenue Through Events

Nick Long, CEO, NXT90

Breakout Session #3

Crafting Your Business WHY: Stand Out, Connect, and Convert

Gina Gonzalez, Founder, From Business 2 Eternity

2:00 PM – 3:00 PM

Main Stage Keynote: Building a Marketing Strategy that Sets You Apart

In this hands-on workshop, you’ll learn how to create a clear and practical marketing strategy that differentiates your business in a competitive market. Using proven tools from the Duct Tape Marketing system, including the Talking Logo framework, you’ll uncover the core elements that will help you position your business for long-term success and growth. Walk away with a marketing message that resonates with your audience and drives results.

John Jantsch is a fractional CMO, speaker, and Wall St Journal best-selling author of Duct Tape Marketing, The Referral Engine, The Self-Reliant Entrepreneur, and The Ultimate Marketing Engine. He is also the founder of the Duct Tape Marketing Agency Network, which trains and licenses independent consultants and agencies to use the Duct Tape Fractional CMO+ System.

3:00 PM – 3:15 PM

Special Announcement

3:15 PM – 5:00 PM

After Party Social: Scholz Garten

For those able to stay, join us after the last Summit session for an After Party Social. Enjoy a drink and a little networking at Scholz Garten, the oldest operating business in Texas. Solidify new relationships. Exchange cards. Make that last connection before heading home.