It takes a village to raise any child, and your village is the community of those who live in it. The most important thing about being part of one family, is that you have the support that you need to face your own challenges as well. I can’t think of anything more inspiring than helping so many people through their journey and getting help along the way. So far I have been able to spend time with my wife, daughter and son-in-law and my brother-in-law’s granddaughter. And the biggest challenge has probably been meeting everyone else, trying to get them on board. But here are some tips on how you can make these connections happen and hopefully help grow your business!
1) Take an Online Course
If you don’t have the funds to pay for online courses, consider taking advantage of free trials or signing up for a trial in advance, this will give you some sense on if they work for you. There are so many options out there, from YouTube tutorials to apps like Udemy where you can find lessons on virtually every topic possible. You can also check into free classes at local colleges or government institutions, just remember some may require registration and sometimes not be free. One thing to be careful too, is only take classes about topics you are interested in, because many of these courses have low ratings. Look for quality content instead, but be wary of scams which might lead you to paying fees!
2) Network With Other Small Business Owners
Just doing a quick Google search will lead you to plenty more useful information about small businesses available around you, whether it’s co-working spaces or even a place where people go to network together and share ideas about starting/running a new company. If you want to learn more about what makes a good coworking space, listen to our podcast episode where we discuss the top 5 things! Be sure to join the event organizers networking group too, it is always helpful to meet other attendees. Finally, be very mindful of ‘the age gap’ when talking with people, do your research! Most of the younger generation tends to lean toward investing in themselves first, while the older set are usually more inclined towards investing with families. Also, people tend to invest less in companies than individuals, so think long term when deciding how much investment you need. Remember, if you start this young, your risk tolerance may be lower, therefore having debt to cover and higher interest rates will be more difficult to manage. Also, don’t forget to be patient with yourself, especially if it is your first startup, it takes time, patience but most importantly experience. We had quite a few success stories to share in the Podcast episode, including some examples of people that had just started out a business and realized right away they were making something they enjoyed. For example, we had two gentlemen that used social media as their main platform (one was successful running Facebook ads for a year), after working full time, they became frustrated by seeing ads pop up on multiple platforms! Luckily he knew exactly what he wanted to create and built his product based off that, so we decided to invest heavily in building out that side hustle which paid off big time!
3) Write A Book
So yes, it does cost money, but you can get rich if you plan ahead. Many times, the reason why entrepreneurs fail is that they focus on creating something really cool, without thinking long term about it. As humans, we all have dreams, so write down whatever you have in mind. Maybe it’s a story of someone in a past life you know who took action and succeeded? Or maybe it’s a personal experience you think may inspire others? Whatever it may be, it’s worth recording because then you may come back later to retell the story of why they did it. Then, once again, look back over the process and see if you could apply it to today, and eventually you will be able to create an autobiography. Plus, it will show potential investors that you understand the world and have a passion, which you can use to convince them as to why investing in your business idea is a great approach. After all, books are written best when you sit down and write, not in your head. The benefits of writing a book is simple, it allows you to express your thoughts more clearly and possibly save money in the future because now you can look at the story from different perspectives that could not have been done on paper. That means you will save money later on, and you will want to share your experiences with those who may relate. Writing a book requires dedication, time and hard thinking, however, the rewards can last forever so don’t let anybody tell you otherwise.
4) Become An Influencer
Influencers are people that have made massive strides in their careers within a short period of time, but we all have the opportunity to become one! Just put aside about five minutes of your day to search Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, etc., then type in ‘influencer’ and see what pops up. Next, think outside of social media, maybe try searching for influencers who have made huge waves recently. They may have been nominated in a competition or they may just have recently been named in a news story. Now is the time to reach out to them and ask if they would be willing to collaborate or be interviewed, sometimes even for sponsored posts like this one! By reaching out to people in your industry you will build your credibility and hopefully make them want to invest in your project. When you’re looking at influencers I recommend going for niche influencers to target specific industries that you are passionate about. This way, you can build up a reputation for yourself and hopefully attract more opportunities later on. Don’t expect anyone to respond immediately or even call you themselves. Make sure you follow up, or just keep sending emails asking for responses.
5) Start Giving Back
It’s amazing how often it comes across that all we need to accomplish is to work harder and be better, and then we are rewarded with success. Well, I hate for you to suffer through this phase, but at least for me, becoming self sufficient takes time, effort and a willingness to put in the hours. I mean seriously, it took us almost 8 years to earn our living and before that we were unemployed. Once we got employed, and started earning enough each month, we were constantly asked how we did in school or college. We never really figured out why it mattered, except you can’t go to college so you either stayed jobless or somehow failed to graduate. However, working a 9 – 5 job and not wanting to quit, is no way to show a boss your true interests. Instead, show up with a smile and you will be rewarded handsomely with promotions, raises, bonuses or even positions elsewhere. Another way to achieve a level of financial independence through work or savings is to establish a side hustle, such as copywriting, web design, graphic design, photography or video editing. Even though you do not own the product or service, most businesses hire freelancers that specialize in certain areas. Whether that’s through Upwork, Fiverr or other sites, you still own the rights so you can sell your services wherever you choose to do business. Think globally, not locally.
6. Consider Starting Dropshipping From Home
Starting a dropshipping business is as easy as plugging and charging a little bit of money in order to ship products to customers globally! Sounds crazy, but we actually have several clients we offer drop shipping services on Etsy and Amazon Prime, and we are absolutely happy with the results. Sure it does take time to build up customer relationships, but it’s definitely a viable option for small businesses who cannot afford a storefront operation. Do not worry, because we will be posting on both retailers almost weekly, so you will never miss anything. Of course, if you wish to, you can simply start an email campaign and list it on social media, we are always open to hearing any questions!
So now that we talked a little bit about how you can invest in your business and grow it, let’s talk about ways to increase profits. First things first, it seems obvious, but before starting a business how do you pick a profitable market opportunity? What kind of products or services are people buying? How much profit can you realistically make? Is there room for expansion? All of these questions and so many others can be answered by using data analytics. Here’s what a spreadsheet tool like DataRobot can do! Some of the following points can apply to many, but we tend to focus on increasing sales. When you decide on a marketing approach, it’s crucial to consider its return on investment (ROI), or return on investment (ROI), which simply refers to the amount of income your advertising and promotion efforts generate. Obviously, the bigger the ROI, the more profitable your campaign will be! Before you start out, run a survey of your audience and find out how they feel about the advertising or promotion methods in question. Analyze the results and determine which ones are effective in selling products. Does the marketing strategy result in the revenue growth you desire? Let’s say your initial advertisement tactic yields nothing. Guess what? You didn’t waste lots of money on it! Rather than spending tons of money hoping there will be a conversion, wait and see what happens. Eventually you will learn why you weren’t converting sales leads into sales. Again – ROI = Return on Investment, this is simply making sure you are generating a decent amount of income for every dollar spent. Let’s see how it works…
You have conducted the above analysis, analyzed your audience and decided upon a marketing strategy.
Now we are ready to
