Notes/Transcription
In this blog, I’d like to share some of the common problems that you might face when you are just starting your small business – and a snapshot of the smart investments that you can make to help you solve them!
Quite frankly, the biggest problem for most new small business owners is that you have no clue what you should be doing when you sit down to work every day! You feel fired up to get your business going and put the plans that you have into place but you don’t have a clear enough direction and end up filling your day up with tasks that don’t actually move the needle and impact your business growth positively.
But there are some tactics that can really help to nudge you in the right direction and give you some momentum. Let’s take a look:
Smart Investment #1: Online courses
Doing a targeted course that teaches you how to do specific things can fast track your business by minimizing the need for you to waste time learning hard lessons or spending hours/days/weeks on the non-essentials.
The key here is choosing a targeted course. Doing any old course to make yourself feel “useful” won’t cut it. For example, if you are looking at growing your list, Amy Porterfield’s List Building Society is really valuable. I used this course a lot when I first started out but I still refer back to it regularly now, so it has worked out as a great investment.
Smart Investment #2: Get a professional website
It’s pretty much impossible to run a successful and profitable business these days without having an online presence. But it’s not enough just to have a website. For the majority of your customers, your website is your online storefront, your business card, your brand – so it absolutely has to be professional and convert leads into customers.
If you are just starting out, it’s probably not necessary to hire a professional web and brand designer (for now, at least). Although they are worth their weight in gold in terms of amplifying your online presence, it is an investment that you will want to take later down the road. This is because, even if you are completely sold on our business idea, it is very likely to change a lot during those first few years. At this stage in your business, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to invest a large amount of money on getting a fancy website and brand made up, only to have to pay more later to have it updated.
But you should absolutely invest time and energy in creating a DIY website with an easy to use platform such as Squarespace.
Smart Investment #3: Use good stock photos
Photos can make or break a visitor’s impression of your website and brand. With this in mind, it is absolutely vital not to use any old mundane photo that you come across on a Google search.
But don’t panic – you needn’t book a photographer just yet! You can actually do some pretty amazing things with your website and social media posts using stock photos, and they are significantly cheaper than hiring a photographer when you are in the early stages of your business.
Here are a few places to find professional-looking quality photos:
· Unsplash
· Pinterest – You can search “stock photos” on Pinterest!
· Etsy
Pro tip: Always buy your photos from the same photographers to keep your band and website images looking cohesive!
I hope you find my list of smart investments for just starting out useful in planning out your next big investment in your business!
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