Part 1
Do something that you love: It sounds woo-woo, but if you are going to leave a well-paying job to work even longer hours establishing a new business, or, take time away from family and friends to start a side hustle, you may as well enjoy it. You will go through rough patches; sometimes you will struggle with products, orders, sourcing materials, technology, so its important that you enjoy the work and the process enough to see it through.
Start small: Start where you are. Start with what you have. The product/service does not have to be perfect. The budget does not have to be big. But you have to start. The perfect time to start is now. Think about this: Every app and operating system offers regular updates. You can get the latest and greatest phone/laptop/tablet every year. Give yourself permission to start.
Progress not perfection: Perfection is a myth. It does not exist. This means that it can never be perfect. There can be room for improvement and aspirations for utopia. Let progress be the measure stick, nor perfection. Perfectionism can be debilitating and overwhelming. You will lose hours of your life aiming for such an elusive end goal.
Gratitude: It all grows from gratitude. Feel that sense of immense gratitude in your heart and mind and keep looking for things to be grateful for. The more you are grateful, the more things you will find to be grateful for and the more good things will happen to you.
Keep a positive attitude and mindset When things go right, it is easy to be positive and enthused with life and business. When things get tough and go wrong, this is when it really matters. Life happens, products will fail, orders will get lost, you will make mistakes but these are all temporary and things will always improve. With a positive attitude, mistakes seem more manageable, and solutions more obvious and you FEEL better. You can get through anything!
Understand what motivates you: What fuels you? Is it ambition, turnover, sales, money, freedom, providing for your family, In the beginning, it might be pure joy for the project/product or service, but that can wane over time. Stay in tune with what fuels and fires you.
Be clear on what you are offering/selling - product, branding, associated service: This is a broad topic but a simple way of understanding this is to answer the question - what problem does your product or service solve? And, what else can it do that is better/different to your competitors. This is the Unique Selling Proposition (USP). Example: Dog groomers solves problem of dirty dogs. USP - use of eco friendly products/snack pack/mobile/experienced groomers/breed specific etc
People buy from people: Consumers buy from stores and brands they like and trust. Make sure your clients or customers have the opportunity to get to know you a bit beyond the products or service you offer.
Part 2
Who are your ideal customers? Get as specific as possible here. Are they male or female? Age? Location? What are their shopping habits? Do they shop online or in-store? What problems are they looking to solve? It is incredibly important to understand who is buying your product.
Understand where your audience/target market hang out: Its important to understand where to reach your audience. Are they using Linkedin, Instagram, or Facebook to shop and connect? Then, focus your efforts here.
Have a marketing and sales strategy: Firstly, a sales strategy isn’t a marketing strategy and vice versa. The difference between the two is as follows: Marketing is the art/act of notifying clients of your business, your brand, products, services of your existence. In simple terms, this can be done with adverts, traditional and online, and through social media posts, a website, blogs, podcasts, influencers, videos, and more. A sales strategy is the art of making sales. This is usually about getting the sale. Without sales, you won’t have a business as sales generate income. If you are a small business, you are probably doing everything yourself so that means you are doing the marketing and the sales. Ie - running the ads and quoting on new and repeat business
Repeat business is key: Look after your existing clients very well. If they love you, they will tell all their family and friends how much they love you. A loyal, obsessed client is like a diamond. You want to nurture those relationships as far as possible for as long as possible. If you have a service or product that incurs monthly retainers or fees, it is a great business model to have as it is sustainable and easy to forecast future sales and turnover. Eg: A weekly garden service
Celebrate each milestone/sale/win/new client: This has certainly worked for me over the years. I literally do a happy dance when someone purchases furniture at our store. I love it when someone falls in love with one or two pieces and HAS to have it. It's a giddy happy feeling of pure elation!! I love it when clients book commissioned work. I love it when clients recognise our work online or in a friend's home. Celebrate when you reach the various milestones in turnover, online followers, number of clients, growth in staff.
Accept the compliment: When someone says, wow, great service, good job, well done, take the compliment! Don’t bat it away, or talk it down, but rather accept the kindness. We need more kindness in this world.
Have a list of dreams and goals and a plan to get there. Don’t dream small, but rather dream big. The goal, in order to be worthwhile achieving, should scare you. You should feel that fear rise up inside you, your inner safety officer should be chomping at the bit telling you to calm down. That’s a goal worth fighting for. WRITE. IT. DOWN. Dream about it. Write them out everyday. How does it feel to own a few stores, a house, a new car, have 150 000 followers? And have an action plan. A goal without a plan is just a dream. I’m all for manifesting but the bigger goals need a plan to get there.
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