A guide to building a lifestyle business by Chris Guillebeau. These notes were taken from the key points at the end of each chapter. For the full read, see http://100startup.com/.
It's now quick/cheap to test, launch, and scale projects. This makes setting up a microbusiness easier than before.
There are 3 essentials for a business:
- a product or services
- a group of people willing to pay for it
- a way to get paid
Think about your skills/knowledge and how you can apply them to a related topic. Merge your passion with your skills to produce something valuable to others.
How to make a successful business: provide value and help people above all else.
Market your product/service with benefits instead of features. Always focus on what you can add (money, love, attention) and what you can remove (stress, anxiety, debt).
Good businesses provide solutions to existing problems. But many passions don't directly relate to solving an existing problem. When considering your passion as a business, think "Where is the business model?"
It's not always ideal to build a business out of your passion, especially if it doesn't provide any value.
The easiest business to create is a services/consulting one. Charge people for your skillset.
A Roaming Entrepreneur travels while working on his business. They're commonplace now. Don't pursue the nomadic lifestyle unless it's something you want to do.
Information publishing is especially suited for a location independent business, but there are others as well.
Define your target audience in terms of shared beliefs and values. Use this information to focus your business. A good tactic is to follow a fad, craze, or trend and solve a problem from it.
Don't do big up-front planning. Instead plan as you go, launch as soon as possible, adapt to your customers' needs/feedback, and always have a bias towards action.
The first sale is always hugely motivating. Get to your first sale as soon as possible.
Be able to explain your business in a 140 character mission statement.
7 steps to instant market testing:
- Care about the problem you're solving and make sure there are others who care too
- Verify this market is big enough
- Product must solve an existing pain that audience already knows exists
- Solve a deep pain or deep desire
- Always think in solutions and make it better/different
- Ask about your idea from targeted personas who would fit your target audience
- Show your idea to your community
The one page business plan:
- What will you sell? Who will buy it? How will your business help people?
- What will you charge? How will you get paid? How else will it earn money?
- How will customers find you? How can you encourage referrals?
- How many customers until you consider it a success? Or annual net income?
- What specific obstacles will you face? What are proposed solutions to it?
Compelling offers pay for itself, make a clear value proposition with direct benefits for customers.
Think carefully about objections and response to them in advance, perhaps in an FAQs.
Create urgency for customers to act now. Nudge them towards making a decision on your product.
Find a way to go above and beyond for your customers immediately after they choose you.
Start marketing early before you ever launch, just like a Hollywood movie. Regularly communicate with prospects before the launch. Blend strategy/tactics: answer why-questions such as story, offer, long-term plans AND answer "how" questions such as timing, price, and pitch.
A good default formula is to spend 50/50 on creating/marketing.
Start by saying yes to all marketing venues, but become more selective overtime and focus on the ones that bring more customers.
The promotion plan:
- daily: maintain regular social media with posts, responses, and support
- daily: monitor one or two key metrics
- weekly: search for partnerships and joint promotions
- weekly: maintain regular communications from prospects/customers
- monthly: connect with existing customers, ask if they need any help
- monthly: prepare for event, contest, or product launch
Remember a business' goal is to make money. You can improve your odds by creating more than one revenue channel.
Usually increasing income in an existing business is easier than establishing a whole new business. Try to scale your business up without adding workload. Opportunities exist in:
- up-selling
- cross promotions
- adding services/products
Strategies for expanding include outsourcing, affiliates, and partnerships.
Use a "hub-and-spoke" model: have one online home base and use outposts to diversify yourself. Guillebeau does this with a central blog where his audience can follow him. Then he has outposts of products surrounding his blog.
It's up to you if you want to pursue growth or stay small. It depends on your lifestyle goals.
Be sure to work "on" your business instead of "in" your business - improve things instead of always firefighting.
Regularly monitor one or two key metrics that represent the lifeblood of your business.
Don't wait for permission, step out and start with action. The biggest battle is against your own fear of starting.
Don't waste your time living someone else's life.