Episode Title: 37: Grow Your Fan Base and Customer Satisfaction #BANANAS – Lessons from Jesse Cole & the Savannah Bananas

Episode Description:

In this episode of the Beau Leadership Group Podcast, host Bob Beaulaurier draws inspiration from Jesse Cole's groundbreaking book Fans First and the wildly successful Savannah Bananas to explore how leaders in any field—sales, marketing, management, parenting, marriage, or ministry—can transform transactions into passionate fandom.

Leadership is influence, and as John Maxwell reminds us, to whom much is given, much is expected. If you're treating your most important people (customers, teams, family) like numbers instead of fans, you're missing out on joy, loyalty, and impact.

The episode breaks down Jesse Cole's "Five Innings" framework (often called the Five E's) for building raving fans, enriched with biblical wisdom, insights from the American Marketing Association (AMA), Harvard Business Review, MIT, and more:

1. Eliminate Friction – Make it easy to say yes. Remove hassles in every interaction. Backed by science: Reducing effort drives loyalty more than satisfaction alone (HBR, AMA). Biblical tie: "My yoke is easy and my burden is light" (Matthew 11:30).
2. Entertain Always – Attention precedes influence. In an attention economy, boredom kills leadership. The Bananas design entertainment into everything. Biblical example: Jesus engaged through stories, humor, and questions (1 Corinthians 9:22). Science shows emotional arousal boosts memory, advocacy, and virality (Journal of Consumer Research, neuroscience on dopamine).
3. Experiment Constantly – Fans are built through curiosity, not perfection. Test relentlessly; failure is feedback. The Bananas' bold experiments created a 3-million-person ticket waitlist. Biblical: "Test everything; hold fast to what is good" (1 Thessalonians 5:21). Research (MIT Sloan): Experimenting organizations outperform rigid ones long-term.
4. Engage Deeply – People want to be seen, not just impressed. Blur lines between audience and participant. Use names, acknowledge personally. Biblical: "Jesus saw him" (Luke 19:5); know your flock (Proverbs 27:23). Science (Gallup): Emotional engagement predicts loyalty better than satisfaction; two-way interaction multiplies lifetime value (AMA).
5. Empower Action – Turn fans into participants, not spectators. Give autonomy and involvement. Biblical: Faith without works is dead (James 2:17); go make disciples (Matthew 28:19). Science (self-determination theory): Autonomy fuels motivation; empowered customers become advocates with exponential referrals (AMA).

Key Takeaway: Apply these five principles—eliminate friction, entertain always, experiment constantly, engage deeply, empower action—and you don't just gain customers... you build fans who forgive, promote, protect, and stay loyal for life. Whether leading a business, team, or family, this "Fans First" reset brings fun, purpose, and real influence.

Inspired by Jesse Cole's Fans First book and his Live to Lead talk. Grab the book, reflect on your own "fans," and ask: Am I managing transactions... or creating fans?

www.beauleadershipgroup.com

Confidence doesn’t happen without practice.
When you improve your confidence as a leader, you improve confidence in every aspect of your life.

Email me at bob@beauleadershipgroup.com to

↳ Learn how DISC can teach you your leadership style and amplify results

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Are you highly capable—but watching less competent people rise while you stay stuck?

This episode explains why that happens—and what ethical leaders must do about it.

Many good people avoid power because they think it’s dirty, selfish, or unspiritual. That mistake leaves leadership to louder, less qualified voices—and costs families, teams, and organizations real progress.

In this episode, we confront an uncomfortable truth: power isn’t the problem—ignorance of power is.

What You’ll Learn

• Why hard work alone doesn’t win – and why leadership books often mislead well-intentioned people
• Why power is neutral – and how avoiding it makes you vulnerable to those who understand it
• The “Rolex under your sleeve” mistake – relying on competence while ignoring visibility and positioning
• The real sources of power – expertise, trust, title, access, and perception—and how leaders misuse them
• Biblical wisdom on power – stewardship, humility, and responsibility (not denial)
• Why visibility beats performance – and how to ethically control your narrative and influence

The Challenge

Ask yourself: Where am I pretending power doesn’t exist?
Because avoiding power doesn’t make you holy—it makes you irrelevant.

If you care about your family, your team, and the future of the organizations you serve, this episode is a must-listen.

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www.beauleadershipgroup.com

Confidence doesn’t happen without practice.
When you improve your confidence as a leader, you improve confidence in every aspect of your life.

Email me at bob@beauleadershipgroup.com to

↳ Learn how DISC can teach you your leadership style and amplify results

↳ get your Elevate Your Personal Confidence Superpower Plan

📞Ask me your Question or Get Featured! Ask Bob Anything

#Leadership #MaxwellLeadership #DISC #MarketResearch #BiblicalPrinciples #LeadershipInvestmentDecisions #CLEAR

Beau Leadership Group Podcast with Bob Beaulaurier
Episode: Identity, Influence, and Small Wins That Change Everything

• Identity—not goals—determines what you achieve, what you tolerate, and what you believe you deserve
• You don’t rise to your goals; you sink to the story you tell yourself about who you are
• Key insight: Identity is trained, not declared
• Drawing on Albert Bandura, confidence is built through small “mastery experiences,” not affirmations
• Small daily actions send evidence to your brain that you are capable, disciplined, and trustworthy
• Inspired by Ed Mylett’s “One More”, progress comes from stacking tiny extra efforts that compound over time
• “One more” isn’t about effort—it’s about casting votes for the identity you want
• From Viktor Frankl, fear loses power when you stop fighting it and intentionally lean into it (paradoxical intention)
• When fear stops controlling identity, identity starts controlling behavior
• Practical 3-step tool you can start tomorrow:
  • Choose one identity (not a goal)
  • Design a 5-minute win that’s too small to fail
  • Ask, “Could I do one more?” and act on it
• Leadership fails not from lack of vision, but from untrained identity
• Real influence flows from who you are—not what you say
• Small actions, repeated daily, rewrite your identity—and your identity decides your future

Closing reminder:
Empower your leadership and elevate your image with God in mind. Bless your week.

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www.beauleadershipgroup.com

Confidence doesn’t happen without practice.
When you improve your confidence as a leader, you improve confidence in every aspect of your life.

Email me at bob@beauleadershipgroup.com to

↳ Learn how DISC can teach you your leadership style and amplify results

↳ get your Elevate Your Personal Confidence Superpower Plan

📞Ask me your Question or Get Featured! Ask Bob Anything

#Leadership #MaxwellLeadership #DISC #MarketResearch #BiblicalPrinciples #LeadershipInvestmentDecisions #CLEAR