start with a client-service business
$0 → $500
When we were just getting started with our businesses, one of the biggest issues was trying to figure out what type of business and revenue model to pursue.
Online courses sound great, but if you don’t have an audience, who are you selling them to?
Software (aka SaaS) is cool, but if you have zero developer skillz (yes, skillz), it's going to be a long while before you can start making money.
If you're trying to start a business from scratch, we recommend starting with a service-based business.
Service-based businesses can come in many shapes and sizes: Graphic design, web design, web development, virtual assistance, copywriting, art therapy, personal styling, social media management, the list goes on and on.
Essentially, you are a freelancer with a skill, getting paid for the hours that you work for someone else's project.
This is a GREAT business model to start with because you don’t have to have a big audience or a social media following; all you need is to have cultivated a skillset that you can monetize. With just a few clients in the door, you're likely making enough money for a healthy side business (rather than a products-based business which would take significantly more sales to make the same amount of money.)
Great, the business is established and we know who we can help and with what services we can help them with. Now, let’s get into the three tips in this lesson for Oodles of Poodles π©π¨ to get their business foundation right and their first client(s) in the door.
β‘οΈ Tip #1: Be clear about what you do and who you do it for (ps. You need a website!)
You may have noticed in the short bio for our fictitious business, we offhandedly threw out there our web design company focuses on helping small business owners in the health and wellness space. THIS. IS. IMPORTANT.
One of the biggest mistakes we made early on that we see new business owners make as well is NOT specifically stating who your business is for.
It may seem limiting to pick a specific group of people that can pay you money, but trust us, if you cast too wide of a net and just say you do “web design for small businesses” you aren’t going to ATTRACT 𧲠anyone. We’re going to go into more detail about this next lesson.
The other part of this first tip is to identify what exactly you do.
For Oodles of Poodles π©π¨, hopefully you noticed we wrote “build elegant websites on Squarespace.” We want to focus on the skills we have and the software we know how to use.
We don’t want to learn how to use Wix, Weebly, Webflow, or any other website platform that starts with a “W” π. Plus, this is another way to attract a specific type of customer who uses the platforms you know.
Once you can answer these two questions, the logical first step is to create a website.
This is very important though: Don't overthink this step! Give yourself a specific deadline of when your website needs to be launched for your biz. Constraints are incredibly important and we’ve all had those “under construction” pages up on our sites for longer than we should’ve.
β‘οΈTip #2: Start BEFORE you're ready and courageously practice putting yourself out there.
Everyone open your ears… ππ… Are they open? Good. You ARE going to have to reach out to people before your business is “perfect.”
You ARE going to have to put yourself out there on a limb that’s a bit uncomfortable. We ALL do this!
To get your first couple of paying clients, you may need to do things like:
At the $0 stage of business the most important thing is getting SEEN. You have to promote yourself and you have to understand that promotion is NOT a bad thing.
Promoting yourself ≠ being a sleazy salesperson. Those are not the same things.
Head's up: Be prepared that your friends, family, and acquaintances may criticize you for putting yourself (and Oodles of Poodles π©π¨) out there.
We’ve learned that nearly all criticism in business comes from other people’s insecurities and fears. Know this, and put on your invisible suit of armor, ready to ward off any unwanted criticisms of your new biz!
β‘οΈ Tip #3: Create a buzz-worthy "launch" event.
One thing we don’t see enough new biz owners do is leverage the "new-ness" of their business to create buzz early on.
Now, we understand being quiet is more natural to some people, but businesses need to be seen/heard before they can get paid!
Here’s what we’d do for Oodles of Poodles π©π¨ if we were just getting started:
Optional: If you're a much more extroverted person, you could also do some sort of video launch. It could be done on Zoom, YouTube Live, IG Live, etc, and the entire call-to-action of your buzz-worthy event would be to attend that (instead of OR in addition to the email signup).
This type of launch event is not just about getting those first three paying clients. It’s about doing what we talked about in Tip #2: showing people your biz exists!
If you get a paying client, that’s obviously your main goal, but at this stage of the game, just getting people to know you are offering this service is critically important.
If you can work through these three tips, you should absolutely be well on your way to landing your first paying client (or two, or three!)
There’s no specific timetable on how long these things should take, but we’ll remind you of one important thing: You have to get started before you feel 100% ready! No one feels 100% ready at the $0 stage of business.
Next lesson, we’re on to our next stage and we'll tell you what to focus on next once you earn hit that first $500/month benchmark. π¦
Online courses sound great, but if you don’t have an audience, who are you selling them to?
Software (aka SaaS) is cool, but if you have zero developer skillz (yes, skillz), it's going to be a long while before you can start making money.
Service-based businesses can come in many shapes and sizes: Graphic design, web design, web development, virtual assistance, copywriting, art therapy, personal styling, social media management, the list goes on and on.
Essentially, you are a freelancer with a skill, getting paid for the hours that you work for someone else's project.
This is a GREAT business model to start with because you don’t have to have a big audience or a social media following; all you need is to have cultivated a skillset that you can monetize. With just a few clients in the door, you're likely making enough money for a healthy side business (rather than a products-based business which would take significantly more sales to make the same amount of money.)
π‘ Here's an idea... For the rest of Grow It Gradually π¦, we’re going to use a fictitious business example so you can put yourself in the shoes of a fledgling biz and watch it grow. Let's just call our business… Oodles of Poodles Web Design π©π¨. Here at Oodles of Poodles, we specialize in helping people launch elegant websites on Squarespace. We focus on designing and building websites for small business owners in the health and wellness space. (Are we health and wellness experts? No! But we know there are many new businesses popping up in that niche and we love a good skincare routine as much as the next person, so we're going to target them.) Our mascot is Prism, a lovable Poodle who has yet to learn how to build websites, unfortunately, but we’re working on training her! π©
Great, the business is established and we know who we can help and with what services we can help them with. Now, let’s get into the three tips in this lesson for Oodles of Poodles π©π¨ to get their business foundation right and their first client(s) in the door.
You may have noticed in the short bio for our fictitious business, we offhandedly threw out there our web design company focuses on helping small business owners in the health and wellness space. THIS. IS. IMPORTANT.
One of the biggest mistakes we made early on that we see new business owners make as well is NOT specifically stating who your business is for.
It may seem limiting to pick a specific group of people that can pay you money, but trust us, if you cast too wide of a net and just say you do “web design for small businesses” you aren’t going to ATTRACT 𧲠anyone. We’re going to go into more detail about this next lesson.
The other part of this first tip is to identify what exactly you do.
For Oodles of Poodles π©π¨, hopefully you noticed we wrote “build elegant websites on Squarespace.” We want to focus on the skills we have and the software we know how to use.
We don’t want to learn how to use Wix, Weebly, Webflow, or any other website platform that starts with a “W” π. Plus, this is another way to attract a specific type of customer who uses the platforms you know.
Once you can answer these two questions, the logical first step is to create a website.
This is very important though: Don't overthink this step! Give yourself a specific deadline of when your website needs to be launched for your biz. Constraints are incredibly important and we’ve all had those “under construction” pages up on our sites for longer than we should’ve.
Everyone open your ears… ππ… Are they open? Good. You ARE going to have to reach out to people before your business is “perfect.”
You ARE going to have to put yourself out there on a limb that’s a bit uncomfortable. We ALL do this!
To get your first couple of paying clients, you may need to do things like:
- Post on any social media account you have letting people know you started this new (business) adventure and you’re looking for clients
- Text message friends and family offering up your services (if you want to do this in a non-spammy way, send along a friendly note with your new website and ask your network to pass it along to anyone who might be in the market for your particular skill)
- Cold email local (targeted) businesses in your area with a value-packed pitch on how you can help them*
- Embrace the fact that people will say “No” to you and that’s OKAY (it does NOT mean you are a bad person)
π *Related content alert: We recorded a podcast π episode titled, A foolproof way to get more clients, and it’s worth a listen if you’re at this stage of biz.
It’s really really really important to avoid overthinking everything early on in your business. Oodles of Poodles π©π¨ is not going to get its first paying client with hopes, prayers, and crossed fingers. It takes doing outreach and being proactive.At the $0 stage of business the most important thing is getting SEEN. You have to promote yourself and you have to understand that promotion is NOT a bad thing.
Promoting yourself ≠ being a sleazy salesperson. Those are not the same things.
Head's up: Be prepared that your friends, family, and acquaintances may criticize you for putting yourself (and Oodles of Poodles π©π¨) out there.
We’ve learned that nearly all criticism in business comes from other people’s insecurities and fears. Know this, and put on your invisible suit of armor, ready to ward off any unwanted criticisms of your new biz!
One thing we don’t see enough new biz owners do is leverage the "new-ness" of their business to create buzz early on.
Now, we understand being quiet is more natural to some people, but businesses need to be seen/heard before they can get paid!
Here’s what we’d do for Oodles of Poodles π©π¨ if we were just getting started:
- We’d create a simple landing page that has a launch date, countdown, and a call to action to sign up for the email announcement of an exclusive offer
- On that landing page, we’d show off a few examples of our web design skills, and also have a fun photo or two of Prism, the poodle π© looking awesome (anything that makes your launch more memorable and full of personality is a win!)
- We’d come up with some branded social media graphics that promote the π©π¨ launch event (more fun photos of Prism, obvs)
- For 2-3 weeks, we’d promote the launch event on all our social channels (“Something exciting is happening, join me!”)
- We’d write our first email newsletter that would offer three web design client spots at a 50% OFF discounted rate (this is the exclusive part) - This email would also focus on what we do and who we do it for!
- We’d focus on the launch event being FUN, exciting, and a new adventure for us and Prism!
Optional: If you're a much more extroverted person, you could also do some sort of video launch. It could be done on Zoom, YouTube Live, IG Live, etc, and the entire call-to-action of your buzz-worthy event would be to attend that (instead of OR in addition to the email signup).
This type of launch event is not just about getting those first three paying clients. It’s about doing what we talked about in Tip #2: showing people your biz exists!
If you get a paying client, that’s obviously your main goal, but at this stage of the game, just getting people to know you are offering this service is critically important.
There’s no specific timetable on how long these things should take, but we’ll remind you of one important thing: You have to get started before you feel 100% ready! No one feels 100% ready at the $0 stage of business.
Next lesson, we’re on to our next stage and we'll tell you what to focus on next once you earn hit that first $500/month benchmark. π¦