Let's figure out how to make your Startup grow!
You have already taken the steps needed to create your startup. Now it is time to start scaling it up and expanding your reach.
Read more below to figure out all the steps you need to grow your startup!
Quality Control
No matter what your startup is about, one thing matters most, and that is quality. There are three main sections where quality control is most important. These are first and foremost, in your product/service, then your customer service, and lastly your content. Let’s explore these sections more in-depth.
Product or service
Now, this should go without saying, but all the above does no good if you don’t have a quality product or service. If your product doesn’t work or if you do sub-par work, you are going to hurt your business beyond repair. It is better to under-promise and over-deliver than to over promise and under deliver. If you can’t do something, be upfront about it. Don’t make promises you can’t keep, and every time you get a customer, you are making a promise to them. You are promising them a solution to whatever pain point they are having. That is what your business model is about! If you haven’t figured out what value you are providing, go back to my Start Planning page and figure out how you can create your startup!
Customer Service
This goes into the service mindset mentioned above. If you are not serving anyone, you shouldn’t be in business. It’s not about you or your profit, but rather about how you can better serve your customers/clients.
To be successful and grow your business, you need to figure out a way to easily and efficiently facilitate a dialogue between you and your customers. This could be a messenger app, creating content, replying to comments, or even hiring someone to help you answer questions and building that trust and relationship with your audience.
No matter how you communicate with your audience, you need to make sure it is reliable and of high quality. You can’t just “phone it in” and go through the motions, but you really need to care. If you or your staff if you hire people, don’t care about your customers, you are not going to be successful, because, in business, reputation matters: and your customers talk to each other! Whether they are leaving a review of your startup or telling their friends about their experience and interaction with you, your reputation and its success lie in how you treat your customers, before, during and after, any business transaction. Remember that your service doesn’t stop after you sell something or after you complete a project. It is your responsibility to follow up and keep that relationship alive and healthy by genuinely caring. By putting in that little extra effort, you can turn a one-time customer into a lifetime customer.
Content
When you have your website up and running, one of the best ways to boost your traffic through organic SEO (more on this in Marketing 101) is by developing content. The more content your page has on it, the more notice Google and other search engines are going to take notice. By creating content, not only are you helping your website rank but you can also provide that much more value to your customers.
Keep in mind, your content needs to be of high quality. You can’t have a website advertising your music portfolio and then create a whole bunch of blog posts about dirt bikes. Those things don’t relate. However, if you write articles and create content about how you make your music and answer questions you had when first starting out, you are providing valuable knowledge to people who are just starting out themselves.
By having this type of service mindset, you will help your audience, help your website grow, and show proof of concept that you actually know what you’re talking about which can help you get more clients later down the line.
Integrate social media
In today’s age of technology and the internet, the best way to grow your startup is by getting it in front of as many people as possible. The easies9t and most efficient way to do that is through social media.
Now I know that starting campaigns and figuring out which platform to use can be daunting, but don’t worry! I’ve got you covered. Check out my Marketing 101 page where I break down not only social media marketing but a whole bunch of different marketing strategies you can use to grow your business!
Diversify your Startup
I mentioned that my business model incorporated not only services but products. While I believe to start, you need to focus on one or the other, after enough time and your business is established, you can start diversifying into other business models — if it makes sense!
—-Products
If you have a service-based model, you can start diversifying by creating products to sell to your clients or new clients. Maybe someone wants to hire you for your services, but can’t quite afford it yet. That’s OK! They can, however, afford your product that will help them solve a problem they have on their own. If they still need extra help, they will be more willing to hire you to solve it for them, if they can’t figure it out themselves!
Here are some quick overview of products you can offer!
Digital Products
Freebies
In order for people to trust you and buy something from you, you need to give them a reason to trust you. That’s where these free downloads come in. Whether it’s a guide or checklists, create something that helps your new customers but also gives it to them for free. Just collect their email from them so you can not only send it to them but
E-books
If you have a wealth of information, especially about a specific topic, you have the makings of an e-book. If you can provide thorough, accurate information about that topic, put it in an e-book and start selling it! This is a great tool for your writers out there too!
Downloads
If you can create a digital product that can help people, give it out to people. Figure out how your download can help people and create it, whether it’s a checklist, a template, or a worksheet, as long as it provides value and people can download it, you’re on the right track!
Physical Products
If you are an artist and create digital works of art or photography, why not allow people to buy prints? There are plenty of places that you can set up an online, print on demand store out there for all your great works of art!
If you can write an e-book, you’re halfway there to a traditionally published book! While this can be harder to get into, there are some ways out there to get your books in printed format without going through a major publisher if you’re not up for that challenge yet.
Services
Freelance
This should be your bread and butter, as long as you have the time! No matter what type of creativity you have, as a creative, your services are in high demand–from graphic design to photography to writing, people have a need for quality work so why not go to you! There are plenty of platforms out there to get started on and if you need help figuring out how to get started, this site will help you figure out how to set yourself apart and get those freelance jobs you need!
Consulting
If you are a master of your craft but you don’t have the time to commit to a freelance project, consulting could be the right move for you. If you can prove you know what you’re doing and you can show people how to get the same results you have gotten before, you can set up a profitable consulting gig to show people step by step what they need to do to succeed!
Course
If you are able to do any of the above and are an expert in your creative field, why not teach others how to learn your craft? Teachable [affiliate link] is a great platform for you to build an online course and help new creatives master their craft!
Affiliate marketing
If you have a blog or website (and you really should have one!) [link to article] you can make some extra income by affiliate marketing as I have done on this site. This can be tricky to navigate, but like everything else I mention on this site, the key is to recommend something of quality.
Networking & Partnerships
No one is an island and your business shouldn’t be either. Every business needs to make a professional network of peers. Not only does this help you stay up to date with industry standards and trends, but it also allows you an opportunity to grow your customer base. By networking with other people in the same or similar industries, you can connect with their audience and be able to offer value to more people. You do this by creating partnerships: more on this below!
Where to network
LinkedIn is one of the best tools right now to start growing your network. Not only is the platform shifting more from a recruitment tool towards a more friendly content creator platform, now (as of 2019) is the perfect time to capitalize on organic reach.
Conferences
Conferences are great for creatives because not only do you get super pumped and inspired by seeing all the cool stuff out there, but you get to keep up to date on new design trends and you can meet people face to face that normally might not be able to get the chance. This could be the keynote speaker of the conference or some other competitors but who bring high value. If you can connect with your peers at the conference, you can grow your audience and influence by offering something of value to these influencers and see if they would be willing to share your product or service!
Webinars
This is kind of the opposite of conferences in the fact that webinars are great for you to connect with your audience. If you host a webinar you can provide your audience with valuable information and be able to interact with them directly and answer one on one questions and build that customer relationship!
Social Media groups
Social media groups are great for building a community for your audience. If you are reaching a lot of people, you can provide them a space to connect with each other and share motivation, insights, and information.
You can also grow your network by joining other’s groups and answering questions. If you can provide valuable information for free you will show people you know what you are doing and they are more likely to pay attention and join your community!
Partnerships
One of the best ways to capitalize on your network is by building partnerships. If you can find someone who likes what you do, and you like what they do, you might be able to find a key partner to help you both grow. The key to this, much like your relationship to your customer base, is predicated on win-win scenarios.
Perhaps you need a little help with your accounting, but you happened to network with an accountant that needs a little help building their brand. You can set up a partnership so they can help you with setting up your accounting system, or teaching you so you know how to do it yourself, and you can help them revitalize their brand or set up a marketing campaign for them. No matter what, it’s a win-win and you both are happy and do what you enjoy doing!
Partnerships
One of the best ways to capitalize on your network is by building partnerships. If you can find someone who likes what you do, and you like what they do, you might be able to find a key partner to help you both grow. The key to this, much like your relationship to your customer base, is predicated on win-win scenarios.
Perhaps you need a little help with your accounting, but you happened to network with an accountant that needs a little help building their brand. You can set up a partnership so they can help you with setting up your accounting system, or teaching you so you know how to do it yourself, and you can help them revitalize their brand or set up a marketing campaign for them. No matter what, it’s a win-win and you both are happy and do what you enjoy doing!