Ed Mayer: From Valet for 18 Years to Successful Internet Marketer

Ed Mayer parked cars for a living for 18 years when he realized he had a child on the way. Now, he is a successful internet marketer. His story is below in our exclusive interview.

Thanks for accepting this interview, Ed. I am excited to learn more about you. So, let’s get started with the interview.

Where were you born and raised, what was childhood like, and what did you want to be when you ‘grew up?’

I was born in 1966 in Lebanon Pennsylvania. Lived there until I was about 7 years old. My parents had gotten divorced and my journey of many schools was underway.

Childhood was rough, in that, my mother was an alcoholic and jumped from boyfriend to boyfriend, therefor, I had gone to 8 different schools growing up, my last being the Lower Dauphin Schools which is where I graduated. That was grades 8 through 12 – so you can do the math on my frequency of moving and attending new schools.

Remembering back to my childhood, I don’t remember thinking too much about what I wanted to be when I grew up… instead I focused most of my time figuring out what I WAS NOT going to be…. which was… not ending up like my father…. Drugs – did them – dealt them.. in and out of jail.

I knew without a shadow of a doubt, at a very young age, that I was Not going to end up like him. At age 50 I can proudly say that… I HAVE NOT ended up like him…

Sidenote: I absolutely love my father to this day – just knew I wasn’t going to live MY life like he did!!

What did your parents do for a living and was there any Entrepreneurship in the family?

Well…. My father was a Professional druggie and my mother a drunk. Not sure that this falls into the Entrepreneurship category. Seriously though, there were many jobs that they both had throughout my lifetime from selling vacuum cleaners, to foundry work, shoe manufacturing, nursing aide, etc.

Sidenote: Both my father and mother are drug and alcohol free for close to 20 years. YAYYYY !!

How did you become a Valet, what was your life like then, and why did you decide to get out?

Cool story about this. My best friend was a bellhop at the Hotel Hershey – 4 star resort hotel in Hershey, PA. One day he asked me if I would like to get an interview and try to get in.. he had said the Tips were very good, so I said absolutely.

At this time I was a single father of my 2 oldest boys and thought this would be great, for the extra income. I got hired on the spot as a bellhop.

Within about a month one of the Valet spots opened up and I was approached about it, they loved my energy and enthusiasm and thought it would be a great first impression for their guests.

So in 1991 I was a full time Valet, with Benefits for my boys. Absolutely loved working for the Hotel, had the opportunity to work outside, park all the hottest vehicles and made great money.

The best part…. This is where I met the love of my life. Lisa was a nail tech at the Hotel, we had known each other for some time when she worked the front desk. February 25 2017 marks our 12th wedding anniversary…. Pretty exciting !

The only reason I left the Hotel is because I knew that I was not going to get Rich and be able to supply my family with the Lifestyle we all deserved. Entrepreneurship…. Here we Come !!!

When did you discover network marketing, what was your first four years like, and can you tell us what you would change if you started over today?

I discovered NWM back in the early 90s with Amway. Loved the concept, but it just never panned out, or should I say, I didn’t pan out. So here is where the story gets cool….

In early 2007 I was introduced to a Healthy Energy Drink company. Tried the drink and BOOM…. Dollar signs popped into my head…. So I got started with this company, worked my A$$ off, and in 2008, December, I left my illustrious Valet parking career to work Full Time from the comfort of my home.

Build this business up into 2012, loving what I was doing, but something was just not settling too well with me. After all, I got into this with dollar signs in my eyes…. I was making money, but something really strange started to happen to me….

I began to really understand what HELPING PEOPLE was all about. And even though I was making money, my team was not duplicating my Success and it started to eat at me Big Time.

There were some other things in the NWM industry that were not sitting well with me either. The whole PAY TO PLAY thing, people having to buy bigger packs to be qualified for higher pay….

So in late 2012, I went in another direction and started working with Digital Training products and Blogging. Learned a Ton and so thankful that I chose to expand in this way.

You made a big shift from seeing dollar signs in people to truly wanting to help and serve them. How did you shift your mindset this way, and how did your home business benefit?

Simple…. I was growing into a Leader, becoming someone that not only talked about Helping People, to being able to Actually do it.

In my case, I think it was through Experiences…. My Mindset has always been Strong, but the experiences along this journey have helped tremendously.

My home business EXPLODED…. When you Focus on Serving People versus the Money…. Everything changes… the Universe shows you the Love.

In 2012, you found a mentor. What did they show you, and how important is it to find a mentor?

Mentors are Crucial…. Notice how I said Mentors? People can have many Mentors…. I have Mentors in different Niches that I follow, learn from, then Apply what I learn.

Mentors are simply here to show people the way. The people must do the work to Get There!

On your “about me” video you state that you’re a no bullshit kind of guy and authentic. Why do people need to know that you’re authentic?

This is one thing I pride myself in. In the online space, everywhere really, there is so much Hype and BS. Especially in the Home Business arena…. Hype and BS hurts people…. They join an opportunity thinking HUGE things are going to happen just because they Joined…. And BOOM…. It doesn’t happen in 3 days and they Quit, run around giving our Industry a bad name…. It’s just Bad….

Plus, people Love the Raw, Authentic and Real person. Well, not everyone of course, but that’s ok too.. gotta have the haters out there too…. When you get the Haters – you are doing things right !!

What is the biggest mistake you see new internet marketers make, and how can they fix it?

Look, chalk it up to excitement, and I can totally understand this at the beginning…. But the biggest mistake is going right out to social media and SPAMMING your links everywhere…. I am totally guilty of it myself at the beginning…. Because I didn’t know any better and had no one to tell me otherwise.

Learn some skills, it’s a business, so treat it like a business. Find a Mentor that is going to give you some steps to take, follow those steps, and work Your A$$ off.

BELIEVE that you are going to be Successful. The Belief in my opinion is where it all Starts…. without Belief, you will Never be able to conquer the obstacles that are coming your way…. And they are coming!!

I love your blog! How old is it, how many posts are on it, and what is your daily traffic like?

Thank you…. This blog is a couple years old and honestly as I am doing this interview I have no idea how many posts are on it or how many visitors come to it daily.

Although I blog, I also do many other things. Thinking maybe I should keep track of that a bit more…. I focus on putting out Content and Value, and with it being on the blog…. It is out there in Internet land for Eternity…..

What’s the hottest way to generate leads for you these days, and can you share a technique?

Oh man…. Lead generation is definitely a Skill that everyone working on the internet NEEDS to learn…. I generate leads from Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Youtube …. Videos – Lead Capture pages with Autoresponders to send out auto email followups…..

My #1 way now is Solo Ads or Paid Advertising…. Of course it costs money and wasn’t an option early on in my career.

Now I love it because I just pay and Wala the traffic runs to my Capture Page and Leads are generated. Assuming the CP is a converting page. There are many things that go into it, but I highly recommend people Learn this skill and build your own list.

An example I like to give is Groupon. Groupon is a BILLION dollar company… what do they do? They send people to their ugly website, and for what reason…. To get their email…. After they have your email… they send you offers to buy. Cha Ching !

What is your favorite book right now, and why?

How to Win friends and influence people…. This is a RELATIONSHIP business…. building a solid foundation is the Key to your future Success in your business. That is done by building Solid Relationships… PERIOD !

What are your goals for 2023?

My goal doesn’t have a Specific number attached to it…. It is to Help as many families Break Free in 2023 as we possibly can. We will do this by connecting and serving those that wish to make a change for themselves and their families.

What is your favorite quote and why?

YOU EITHER BELIEVE IN FREE ENTERPRISE OR YOU WORK FOR SOMEONE WHO DOES

Stop putting so much time and effort into making someone else rich… put that hard work and energy into making you and your family rich…. Everything is Possible for Everyone!

Thank you so much for this interview Ed!

Other Awesome Interviews: