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Nov 13, 2018 · 17m · top-founders

1207 How This Author Launched $800k+ Conference and Research Revenue Stream

Dan Schawbel · 10m spoken Nathan Latka · 4m spoken
0:00 / 0:00

gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions

In this episode of The Top Entrepreneurs Podcast, bestselling author and Future Workplace research director Dan Schawbel breaks down how he built an $800,000+ diversified revenue engine through Fortune 500 enterprise memberships, high-ticket corporate research studies, and keynote speaking.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Nathan holds 30.8% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 3.8 Guest teaching 4.3 Guest disagreement 1.5 Nathan pushing back 3.5
05100:0010:001:08–6:03 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Writing a Book While Employed at EMC Nathan presses Dan on the economics of his transition from EMC to running Millennial Branding, teasing the vague concept of millennial consulting. Nathan does rapid mental math on the 40 Fortune 500 membership accounts at 15k each to establish a 600k run rate.6:03–10:48 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Lessons from Launching and Scaling Online Magazines Nathan seeks advice on his own magazine launch and suggests Dan's business operates as white-label market research. Dan corrects Nathan's framing, explaining that his studies are co-branded thought leadership partnerships with enterprise brands like Oracle and Virgin Pulse.10:49–14:43 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Conference Structure, Attendance, and Event Sponsorships Nathan actively steers the conversation by interrupting Dan when he pivots to event sponsors, demanding exact headcount metrics for both public and member events first.14:44–16:22 · Nathan as informed peer 2/10 Research Insights from 'Back to Human' and Remote Work Dynamics Nathan takes a passive interview stance, allowing Dan to detail findings from his book study demonstrating that remote workers suffer from weaker relationships and higher attrition despite autonomy benefits.1:08–6:03 · Guest teaching 3/10 Writing a Book While Employed at EMC Nathan presses Dan on the economics of his transition from EMC to running Millennial Branding, teasing the vague concept of millennial consulting. Nathan does rapid mental math on the 40 Fortune 500 membership accounts at 15k each to establish a 600k run rate.6:03–10:48 · Guest teaching 5/10 Lessons from Launching and Scaling Online Magazines Nathan seeks advice on his own magazine launch and suggests Dan's business operates as white-label market research. Dan corrects Nathan's framing, explaining that his studies are co-branded thought leadership partnerships with enterprise brands like Oracle and Virgin Pulse.10:49–14:43 · Guest teaching 3/10 Conference Structure, Attendance, and Event Sponsorships Nathan actively steers the conversation by interrupting Dan when he pivots to event sponsors, demanding exact headcount metrics for both public and member events first.14:44–16:22 · Guest teaching 6/10 Research Insights from 'Back to Human' and Remote Work Dynamics Nathan takes a passive interview stance, allowing Dan to detail findings from his book study demonstrating that remote workers suffer from weaker relationships and higher attrition despite autonomy benefits.1:08–6:03 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Writing a Book While Employed at EMC Nathan presses Dan on the economics of his transition from EMC to running Millennial Branding, teasing the vague concept of millennial consulting. Nathan does rapid mental math on the 40 Fortune 500 membership accounts at 15k each to establish a 600k run rate.6:03–10:48 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Lessons from Launching and Scaling Online Magazines Nathan seeks advice on his own magazine launch and suggests Dan's business operates as white-label market research. Dan corrects Nathan's framing, explaining that his studies are co-branded thought leadership partnerships with enterprise brands like Oracle and Virgin Pulse.10:49–14:43 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Conference Structure, Attendance, and Event Sponsorships Nathan actively steers the conversation by interrupting Dan when he pivots to event sponsors, demanding exact headcount metrics for both public and member events first.14:44–16:22 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Research Insights from 'Back to Human' and Remote Work Dynamics Nathan takes a passive interview stance, allowing Dan to detail findings from his book study demonstrating that remote workers suffer from weaker relationships and higher attrition despite autonomy benefits.1:08–6:03 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 Writing a Book While Employed at EMC Nathan presses Dan on the economics of his transition from EMC to running Millennial Branding, teasing the vague concept of millennial consulting. Nathan does rapid mental math on the 40 Fortune 500 membership accounts at 15k each to establish a 600k run rate.6:03–10:48 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 Lessons from Launching and Scaling Online Magazines Nathan seeks advice on his own magazine launch and suggests Dan's business operates as white-label market research. Dan corrects Nathan's framing, explaining that his studies are co-branded thought leadership partnerships with enterprise brands like Oracle and Virgin Pulse.10:49–14:43 · Nathan pushing back 5/10 Conference Structure, Attendance, and Event Sponsorships Nathan actively steers the conversation by interrupting Dan when he pivots to event sponsors, demanding exact headcount metrics for both public and member events first.14:44–16:22 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 Research Insights from 'Back to Human' and Remote Work Dynamics Nathan takes a passive interview stance, allowing Dan to detail findings from his book study demonstrating that remote workers suffer from weaker relationships and higher attrition despite autonomy benefits.

speaking balance: gold is Nathan, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Nathan 57.7% · guest 42.3%0:00 · Nathan 57.7% · guest 42.3%3:00 · Nathan 27.3% · guest 72.7%3:00 · Nathan 27.3% · guest 72.7%6:00 · Nathan 19.4% · guest 80.6%6:00 · Nathan 19.4% · guest 80.6%9:00 · Nathan 30.5% · guest 69.5%9:00 · Nathan 30.5% · guest 69.5%12:00 · Nathan 19.8% · guest 80.2%12:00 · Nathan 19.8% · guest 80.2%15:00 · Nathan 29.9% · guest 70.1%15:00 · Nathan 29.9% · guest 70.1%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 9:26 Rejecting White-Label Label

Dan directly pushes back against Nathan's simplification that his company offers ghostwritten white-label research, clarifying that studies are formal partnerships where he serves as spokesperson.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 11:35 Halting Sponsor Pivot for Attendance Data

Nathan cuts Dan off as he attempts to discuss event sponsors, explicitly holding the line to get hard attendance metrics first.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 14:58 Debunking Remote Work Retention Myths

Dan educates the audience and host with research data showing remote work counterintuitively undermines employee loyalty and psychological needs without in-person touchpoints.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 4:28 Instant Membership Math

Nathan showcases commercial sharpness by instantly multiplying Dan's 40 clients by 15k to pin down Dan's 600k conference baseline before Dan states the total.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Writing a Book While Employed at EMC 5314 Nathan presses Dan on the economics of his transition from EMC to running Millennial Branding, teasing the vague concept of millennial consulting. Nathan does rapid mental math on the 40 Fortune 500 membership accounts at 15k each to establish a 600k run rate.
Lessons from Launching and Scaling Online Magazines 4524 Nathan seeks advice on his own magazine launch and suggests Dan's business operates as white-label market research. Dan corrects Nathan's framing, explaining that his studies are co-branded thought leadership partnerships with enterprise brands like Oracle and Virgin Pulse.
Conference Structure, Attendance, and Event Sponsorships 4325 Nathan actively steers the conversation by interrupting Dan when he pivots to event sponsors, demanding exact headcount metrics for both public and member events first.
Research Insights from 'Back to Human' and Remote Work Dynamics 2611 Nathan takes a passive interview stance, allowing Dan to detail findings from his book study demonstrating that remote workers suffer from weaker relationships and higher attrition despite autonomy benefits.

Statements from this episode (7)

Assertion Not checkable as stated
Future Workplace Retains Over 40 Fortune 500 Companies for Annual Events
“So we have over 40 fortune, 500 companies that pay us annually and they get to send three delegates to each of our four events, two east coast, two west coast events.”
Dan Schawbel Nov 13, 2018 ▶ 4:14
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Future Workplace Corporate Research Arm Generates Over $200K Annually
“Then there's the research business, and that's what I lead, and so that, that's over 200 a year.”
Dan Schawbel Nov 13, 2018 ▶ 5:03
Disclosure
Future Workplace Charges $30K to $100K for Corporate Research Studies
“We don't do it for less than 30. I've done my, the biggest study I've ever done gets closer to a hundred.”
Dan Schawbel Nov 13, 2018 ▶ 9:58
Disclosure
Schawbel: Future Workplace operates with three full-time employees
“So we have three employees right now, full time. And then we outsource the event business.”
Dan Schawbel Nov 13, 2018 ▶ 10:42
Disclosure
Dan Schawbel Earns $10K to $20K Per Corporate Keynote Presentation
“I do probably 10 to 20 keynotes per year at anywhere from I've gotten 10 to about 20,000 per.”
Dan Schawbel Nov 13, 2018 ▶ 12:45
Assertion Not checkable as stated
American Express funded Schawbel's second book research after 100+ rejections
“Like I reached out to over a hundred companies. Everyone said no. Jim Levine, our literary agent who I dedicated the book to, he's like, Dan, I believe in you. You got this. And then I had like two weeks left and American Express signed on to it, which was awe…”
Dan Schawbel Nov 13, 2018 ▶ 14:25
Assertion Supported
Remote Workers Are Less Likely to Desire Long-Term Tenure, Research Shows
“The research that we did with Virgin pulse revealed the opposite, revealed that if you work remote, you're much less likely to want a longterm career, your company without the social interactions that you get in a physical office space. And if you aren't using…”
Dan Schawbel Nov 13, 2018 ▶ 15:17
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