T4T - Flashback - How to start a business - internet or otherwise....

 As I prepare for the switch to columnists next week - I thought I'd revisit a great (T4T) Tips for Tuesday - post that went up a few weeks back on starting a business.Internet or otherwise. I hope you enjoy:


I reached out to several Entrepreneurs - many of them Internet-based  - and asked the following question:



"What’s the best advice you can give to someone looking to get started in business, internet-based or otherwise?"


  This was quite possibly my most successful request. From Start-up founders to Start-up coaches to food topping innovators and a couple millionaires - As usual - I was amazed by the responses. 

1) 

Alex Genadinik 

 Founder 

 Problemio

"You must follow your passion. Starting a business is easy, but spending years of hard work to grow it and turn it into a success is incredibly difficult. So if you follow your passion, that will help immensely in getting through the ups and downs.  And when I say follow your passion, I mean it in a broad sense. Having a business itself can be a passion. The competition of being a business owner and seeing something you make grow can be fascinating enough. 

And once you are following your passion, be very disciplined and hard working. Get mentorship when you can, and don't try to do things alone. And be ready to work harder than you've ever worked before, and then some! " 

To learn more please visit Mr. Genadinik's site: problemio.com

2)

David Jackson 

Host 

School of Podcasting

"My advice would be to pick a date on the calendar to launch. Figure out what you need to do and work backward. Then you can figure out what you need to do each day to follow the path to your launch. In the end you need to START. You can't get better at something until you START doing it. So many people get paralysis by analysis. They want things to be perfect before launching. Unfortunately, they never launch because they just need "one more thing." Realize that if you aim for perfect and you miss, you will more than likely land on "very good." Start. Start. Start!"

To learn more about Mr. Jackson - please check out his site: schoolofpodcasting.com

3) 

Lajuan Stoxstill-Diggs

Author/Founder of
Craigslist Hustle

"My situation is unique in that I never intended to start a business. I was laid off by my employer and had a family to feed, so I was looking for ways to make extra income. I was motivated from the beginning to keep a roof over my family’s head and food on the table and that is what helped me get started in business. I suggest taking time to find a situation that motivates you so that you have the initial push to move forward. It could be you’re tired of the long work hours and not seeing your family or the low pay on your current job. Whatever is needed to motivate you in the beginning use it and remind yourself daily of this situation so you can stay motivated. Once you have decided what business venture you would like to pursue I would suggest finding people in the same or similar field who you can grow to trust and learn from.  This will help eliminate a lot of pitfalls that may come in starting a business. If you do not have anyone personally then I suggest reading books that will accomplish the same purpose.  The internet is full of resources from successful business men and women who have poured out years of wisdom into EBooks and paperback books.
 
When it comes to starting an internet based business and you are low on finances, then I suggest you invest time learning from others and doing it yourself. When I wrote and self published my book The Craigslist Hustle I didn’t have a clue as to what was needed to get it out into the market place. So, I spent a lot of time on Google and YouTube learning from other self published authors, as well as learning how to use Photoshop and other computer programs so I could bring the EBook to the marketplace. Once the EBook became a success, I went back and learned what was needed to bring the book to print. If your business offers a service or product and you are short on time, then I suggest you barter in exchange for someone else doing the things you are not familiar with in the beginning to get your business off the ground. Craigslist is a great place to find talented graphic designers, publishers, lawyers, and others who would be willing to barter their services in exchange for your services or product.  I hope this has motivated you the reader to pursue that business that you’ve always wanted to pursue and I look forward to reading your success story in the near future!"

To learn more please check out his site:  mrcraigslisthustle.com

4) 

Julie Busha

Founder 

Slawsa Gourmet Topping

"1.  Be financially prepared.  Starting a business is a very daunting task as many people find it difficult to take that leap of faith in leaving a secure job with benefits for one that is truly unknown.  While some companies can grow slowly as a "second job," others will require "all-in" efforts.  If you don't have complete control of your financial life before you decide to start your business, you will find that you're not able to throw your whole self into your new business.  Be financially prepared to not take a salary for a few years if needed and know what impact that will have on your life.  Be prepared to not take those vacations or enjoy those weekends with family.  Remember, greatness does not come without sacrifice and while most people will never understand the feeling that sort of sacrifice, it's the entrepreneur that loves their life the most because, regardless of those sacrifices, they wake up every day to make this one better than the last in growing their business. 

2.  Be the jack of all trades.  One thing I've been very proud of is the fact that I can write press releases, balance the books, update our web site, handle logistics of orders, be active on social media and pitch to retailers all in one day.  Many people consider themselves good at a few things but weak in others.  If you're starting out on your own and cannot be reliant on support from others in areas where you are weak, you're at a huge disadvantage.  Even if you can delegate later, you have to know your business inside and out and perform all tasks associated within.  In the beginning, you'll probably have to do everything on your own anyway.  You'll find that as you grow your business, you'll be met at some point with empty promises from people who say they will, but ultimately won't…then it becomes yours to fix.  Never say you "can't" do something because you're not good at it.  Simply learn how to do it and do it.  There is no excuse for you not being able to perform any task associated with growing your business."

To learn more about Ms. Busha's secret sauce - please check out:  slawsa.com
5)

Max Teitelbaum

Co-Founder

What Runs Where

"Just jump in. The biggest thing that holds people back is fear. Fear of
failing, fear of losing something or even just fear of trying. The best
way to get started is to get your hands dirty."

To learn more please check his site:
whatrunswhere.com

6)

Aaron Kahlow

CEO & Founder 

Online Marketing Institute

"Simply stay focused on building a great product first. Then properly marketing that product. Then building the team to grow. In that order exactly, otherwise, failure looms".  

To learn more please visit: onlinemarketinginstitute.org

 
 7)

Amy Schmittauer

Savvy Sexy Social Blog

Vlog Boss Studios 

"Live for the no. Learn why. Move on. If you're going to think about quitting every time you get turned down you're never going to make it. And for every no you get, you're closer to the most fulfilling and wonderful yes yet."

To learn more about Ms. Schmittauer please visit: savvysexysocial.com
8)

COREY POIRIER

“Don’t go into a business you’re not passionate about. Operating a business won’t be easy and you will encounter many challenges along the way. After interviewing over 2500 high achievers and discussing the importance of passion, I’ve rarely encountered a leader / business person who has achieved astounding success in any field or area of business they are not passionate about. If you’re passionate about the business, you’re more likely to stick with it during the lows, and to make the most of the highs. I would also add that you should be willing to fail, and to make mistakes (as there is no better way to learn and grow then in the trenches), to invest time and money in personal and professional development, to select and learn from the right mentors, and to become and remain completed focused on whatever task you’re working on at a specific time.”

Please learn more about Mr. Poirer by checking out one or both of his sites: conversationswithpassion.com or coreypoirier.com

 

9)

Robin Hallett
Intuitive Healer, Rock Star Reader, 
Creator of Sacred Bling

 "Self care is my #1 tip for Entrepreneurs who want to rock their business like they really mean it. You and your needs are the priority - NOT the business, NOT the soon-to-be-clients. YOU are the priority.  Your body is the only container you’ve got for all that creative juice.
We’ve become masters at ignoring what matters most. Important things like feelings, and the physical needs of our very own bodies. We blow ourselves off usually because we feel stressed and pressed. Because there are Really Important Things you need to do and you don’t have time. I know. I hear this a lot from Awkwardpreneurs (read, entrepreneurs who are NOT rocking it like they mean it). 

My philosophy: Taking breaks for meditation, exercise, and proper diet aren’t options, they’re musts.

 These practices make up the fuel that help us rock our work like we really mean it."

Please check out her website: robinhallett.com

10) 

Mitch Joel

 President
Twist Image

"If you're looking to get started in any business, learn that business inside and out. Thankfully, the Internet is here to help. Set-up Google Alerts for everything related to that industry: key terms, key leaders, key clients and more. Subscribe to any and all relevant industry trade publications – this includes the physical magazines as well as e-newsletters and more. Read every book on the subject that you can find. In short: become an info-vore. Love it more than your competitors. Love it more than anyone. Then, once you're eyeballs deep in it, start blogging. Start doing the hard work and critical thinking about what needs to change in the industry and what your perspectives are. Pushing that further, attend all industry events and (better than that) get active in your industry." - 

Please learn more about Mr. Joel's business check out his site:  twistimage.com/en

10)

Jim Palmer

The Newsletter Guru

"Follow the Money

Successful entrepreneurs know the importance of following the money. When their customers ask for something, these entrepreneurs find a way to supply their customers with whatever they want. That’s what following the money is all about—go where the money leads. After all, you’re in business to make a profit.

Successful businesses continue to expand their offerings. They continue to follow the money. Since it’s easiest to sell to your top customers—the hyper-responsive ones—that should be your focus as you follow the money.

Become intimately familiar with his or her customer list. To begin with, you should not only identify your top 20%, you should also segment your list by identifying the top 10%, top 5%, and even your top 2 %.Your top 2 to 5% of customers are not your typical customer. They should receive different marketing messages and even different offers than the typical customer. If your goal is to sell as much as possible and achieve the highest possible profits (and that’s a worthy goal), this can be made much easier by selling to your repeat customers in unique and different ways.

If you’re not exactly sure which products or services can be profitably added to your arsenal, here’s a very easy way to find out: Ask! Go back to your customer list and focus on your top customers. Create a survey to bounce your ideas off them, and measure the responses. It can be as easy as listing your ideas with a one to ten scale, and have them rate how likely (or unlikely) they’d be to buy or use it.Your current customers are the ones most likely to buy from you again. Find ways to sell more to them.

Follow the money: Find out what else your customers want to buy and find ways to provide it for them.

Please check out Mr. Palmers site at: thenewsletterguru.com

11)

Dane Maxwell

Founder

The Foundation.io

"The smartest thing anyone can do is get out of their realm of expertise and knowledge. Don't go with what you know. Get out of that. Go into markets blind and Find The Pain. If you make your business about finding pain, you can then put experts in place to solve that pain and take a cut. The smartest businessmen in the world do just this. MindValley, Appsumo, etc. We don't believe in being experts at subject matter at The Foundation. We believe in being the experts at finding pain, clearly defining it, and then putting experts in place to solve that pain. 

If you do anything, Find The Pain. Don't focus on being an expert. You'll live a much more free life. Who wants to spend years becoming an expert at something, when you can launch a business in weeks using this method? I've launched multi-million dollar companies like PaperlessPipeline using this method. I just Find The Pain in markets, and put experts in place to create products around that pain"

To learn more about Mr. Maxwell please check out: thefoundation.com

12)

Laura Betterly

Founder

Yada Yada Marketing 

"The best advice would be to "START"  I know that sounds a bit simplistic, but I've worked with 100's of entrepreneurs and it's common for each of them to be stuck with fear and uncertainty--What I all the what if syndrome.  What if I get a question that I can't answer--what if my website isn't beautiful enough?  What if I don't have the right business card,  what if I make a mistake?  Truth is we all make mistakes, find questions we can't answer etc. but getting paralyzed and not doing something because of that fear only guarantees failure by proxy.  Go into your new business willing to make mistakes and just start.   Taking that first step is the hardest, but the rewards of having your own business are limitless."

To learn more about Ms. Betterly - yadayadamarketing.com

14)  

Jeremy Frandsen

Co-Founder

Internet Business Mastery Podcast

"After over 8 years of working with freedom business beginners, seeing their struggles and their success, we now know what it takes to successfully get a business started.  First is defining your Single Motivating Purpose, then you need to choose the Audience you would wake up excited to help for at least 10 years.  Finally, you have to very specifically figure out the solution you will give that audience, solving their #1 pain or irrational desire.  It's a simple formula, but it is what it takes to start a highly successful Freedom Business."

Jeremy Frandsen is Co-Founder and Co-Host of the Internet Business Mastery* learn more about the podcast here: internetbusinessmastery.com

15) 

Nick Peall

Internet Marketer 

Public Speaker  

"You must be willing to make mistakes daily and find the lessons in each of them. Some people remain paralysed in the research phase of their business because they're afraid of failing. But failure is something that happens a lot when you're in business so you just gotta expect it and make the most of it. Nobody has success overnight with their first idea, it takes years of trying and failing before the winning formula is found. 

The other piece of advice would be don't confuse activity for action. Some people are spending their time appearing to be working, but not getting an real results from it. You must be able to identify what the core tasks are then delegate the rest. Reading and networking and researching are valuable, but if they are not producing profits each week you have to focus on the main task that will generate cash flow."

To learn more about Mr. Peall please check out his site: nickpeall.com

*on a personal note I've been listening to Jeremy and his partner Jason since shortly after the launch of their podcast and it's an honor to feature them here.