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by Colleen Kowalski on January 13, 2022
The 2022 Exit Planning Summit is a conference where top advisors, their teams, and business owners come to share transformational experiences, build deeper relationships, and uncover innovative solutions for their business. We have speakers from a diverse range of specialties speaking on our main stage during the Summit. One of which is marketing specialist and EPI Faculty Member, Kiley Peters.
Who is Kiley Peters?
Kiley Peters is the Founder and CEO of the international award-winning Brainchild Studios, a research and digital content strategy partner for people-first small businesses. She founded RAYNE IX to provide coaching and consulting to small business owners seeking to become better people, leaders, and owners. She also created the Work From Home Playbook, a series of short online courses guiding new entrepreneurs through the steps of starting and launching a business.
As a serial entrepreneur and national speaker, with nearly 15 years of industry experience, she has consulted on digital marketing and business strategies for hundreds of brands ranging from small businesses to global enterprises. Her primary areas of expertise include small business coaching and consultation, digital content strategy, and consumer behavior research and analysis.
She is an Adjunct Professor at Marquette University, a Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA), and holds dual Bachelor of Arts degrees from Marquette University and an MBA from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
We recently sat down with Kiley to discuss how she came into the exit planning community, how to differentiate your business in the marketplace, and what she is most looking forward to at the 2022 Exit Planning Summit.
What originally interested you about the exit planning industry?
Kiley: Over the summer of 2020, I was approached by a potential client who was seeking help exiting her business. I shared with her that I didn’t have experience in this type of work but that I’d be willing to learn as much as I could to help her and she agreed. Naturally, I turned to my network for advice. I reached out to one of my first bosses, Carmen Bianchi, whom I met as she was running her Family Business Forum at the Entrepreneurial Management Center at San Diego State University. She directed me to EPI. I found the Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA) program and became a CEPA in November of 2020.
As EPI often says, exit planning is a good business strategy. I think every owner needs to understand what options they might have in their business.
How has Exit Planning and your CEPA education directly impacted your business?
Kiley: I firmly believe all business owners should understand exit planning because it allows you to invest in your business in more strategic ways. The CEPA program highlighted a number of ways to increase the value of my business. A few big takeaways for me were focusing on diversifying revenue streams and our client base to minimize risk. I am working on strengthening the four intangible capitals in my businesses as I work to reduce my daily responsibilities in the business. This includes streamlining team member responsibilities and delegating more key tasks to elevate leaders on my team.
I also really appreciate that the CEPA program acknowledges the emotional aspect of exiting your business. So much of your identity is tied to your business as a business owner. It is one thing to go through the process, but it is a whole other beast to tackle the emotional aspect. This program is a good reminder to consider personal values and passions to ensure a successful post-exit life as an owner.
Why do you think advisors struggle to market their practice effectively?
Kiley: Many businesses, including advisors, don’t typically take the time to specify their target market and truly understand their pain points. They assume their audience wants and feels the same things they do, and, therefore, they often fail to reach their true target audience. My advice would be to take two steps back. Don’t assume you know everything about your audience and conduct strategic market research to determine who your audience is and what they want.
How will your session directly accelerate those in the exit planning industry?
Kiley: In this session, I’ll share the top ways to differentiate yourself when it comes to branding your business and how to best attract business owners as prospective clients or partners. I’ll share original research conducted on hundreds of business owners that will highlight the specifics of what they’re looking for when building professional relationships, what matters most to them, the values they honor when making decisions, the content they prefer, and the platforms they frequent most often.
What are you most looking forward to at the 2022 Exit Planning Summit?
Kiley: I am extremely excited to hear and learn from Gino Wickman. I am also eager to be available to chat with and support the EPI community and network with advisors and owners from across the country.
For more information about Kiley Peters please visit:
Connect with Kiley Peters on Instagram and LinkedIn
The 2022 Exit Planning Summit
We are excited to welcome hundreds of Certified Exit Planning Advisors Sunday, May 1 – Tuesday, May 3, 2022, to Scottsdale, Arizona for a conference where top advisors, their teams, and business owners come to build deep relationships, share unique experiences, and uncover innovative solutions for their business.
The Exit Planning Summit is the coming together of the CEPA Community. The best CEPAs from around the world collaborate with their supporting partners and colleagues that are all helping business owners to create more significant companies. CEPAs will develop new or further current relationships, learn best practices, and advance themselves as advisors. Advisors will leave the Exit Planning Summit not only galvanized to accelerate their practice but with the tools and connections to do so.
Learn more about the Exit Planning Summit and register to reserve your spot today!
Register for the Exit Planning Summit!
