The Process I Wish I’d Followed When I Started my Business
Oh hey fam,
I’m going to throw it back for a second.
Two years ago I was sitting on the 18th floor in a Vancouver Apartment staring at my computer screen trying to work out how to use Squarespace and wondering what the hell I was doing. 🤷🏼♀️
I’d always wanted to run an impact driven business, but for the longest time I wasn’t sure what I would do. When I finally got up the courage to start CoCo I was so excited to finally be doing it, I got swept up in the fun of buying a domain name, creating an instagram, making (and re-making) a website, but when the excitement of all that faded and Covid was kicking in and I was staring at the screen wondering just how I was going to get clients and what I was going to sell them. It all felt a little more real.
And honestly it was scary AF.
My friends and family would message me..
“Oh that’s so cool you’re starting a business, what exactly do you do?”
*gulp*
“Who the TF knows” I would think to myself.
I didn’t know anything about creating a brand, I didn’t know how to package or productise my skills and I certainly didn’t know how to get clients. My accounting degree meant I knew all about how to read my profit and loss statement but it hadn’t taught me anything about how to actually make a profit.
Two years, 1 UX qualification, many business advisors/coaches, a fair few fck ups 😳 and many incredible clients later - I now realise this feeling wasn’t unique to me.
It’s something that all new business owners go through at various points in their business journey and it doesn’t have to be that hard.
Here are the top four things I wish that I had been clear on back then…
NOTE:
The steps we go through here are included in the CoCo business planning playbook. Download it here to follow along with each of the steps.
The What: Your Business & Offer
The what is the core foundation of your business - what you do and how you package it up. When you get clear on this not only is it much easier to tell every caring relative ever what you “actually do” but it’s also much easier for clients to understand how exactly you can help them and for them to request your help.
Before you define your offers what you’ve got are the ingredients, once you are clear on what you offer you’ve taken those ingredients and made them into a cake. 🍰
Your “I help” statement: The one sentence describer
I help [who] to [ do what] so that they [the outcome]
Eg; I help purpose driven businesses implement systems and processes so they can create more impact and have fun doing itHot Tip: Nailed this bad boy? Dope - update your insta bio
Your Business Excerpt: The elevator pitcH
Let’s get a little formal on it for a second - your business excerpt is your elevator pitch for your business. It’s a little more detailed than your I help but not quite the business monologue we tend to end up repeating.
Here’s an example:
At CoCollaborate we partner with purpose driven businesses to help them productise their services, get more clients, reduce their overwhelm and ultimately create more impact by designing and implementing systems and tools that give them time, money and space in their business. We’re passionate about helping service businesses amplify their impact and have fun doing it, which is why we have a range of done with you and done for you services to suit your stage and budget
Your Offers/Services: How can people work with you?
This is the juicy part - it’s time to get TANGIBLE with what you offer. Break it down by category and note where you can package up a range of services to maximise the efficiency for you and the value for your clients.
Follow this format for each of your services/packages;
Name:
What is it:
What’s included:
Who it’s for:
Benefit/Outcome:
Price:
Here’s an example:
Name: Business Energetics
What: An 8 week group programme business accelerator for service based businesses in their first couple of years who are ready to streamline their systems and legitimise their business.
Includes: 8 weeks of content modules, live group calls, 24/7 tech and business coaching via slack
Who: Service based business owners in their first couple of years of business who are feeling overwhelmed and not sure where to focus or how to reach the next stage in their business
Outcomes: integrated business rituals/processes for content planning, financials, marketing strategy, brand, sales, tech platforms and lead generation
Price: $2325 Beta Price
Note: I see a lot of people get stuck here as their future and present states collide, I know you’ve got bigga dreams but I want you to try and answer these questions thinking only about the next 12 months rather than trying to reconcile everything you want to be “one day” with what you can offer right now.
The How: Your Brand
A lot of people think that a brand stops at a logo and colours. Not you.
You know that a brand is about a lot more than that, your brand is HOW you do what you do, your brand is what makes YOU unique. It’s 2021 and we live in a world with access to the world wide web - there are no unique ideas only unique executions.
When we’re thinking about your brand we want to drill down into of all the businesses that do what you do - what makes the WAY that we do it different;
What is the EXPERIENCE that we want to give people when they work with us;
“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” Maya Angelou
Before we get to the visuals of your brand we want to understand;
How do you want people to feel when they work with you
What is your unique value proposition (what makes working with you different to others)
What is your brand personality
What are your brand values
What is the story behind your name
Once we’ve defined the above then, and only then, are we ready to define our visual brand. In your early stages of business I recommend just doing this yourself to get up and running. Once you’ve got consistent income and you’re feeling a little more solid on what makes your business, your business, then it’s worth investing in a good brand designer to take what you’ve got and make it more professional.
For now - it’s as easy as completing this simple visual brand template using pinterest for inspiration.
03. The Who: Your Ideal Avatar
No I’m not talking about the blue people (though that is a great movie) - your ideal avatar is the profile of your ideal client.
Now before you go telling me that your service is relevant to anyone who wants it let me tell you a little story.
Meet Rhonda. Rhonda is a Vegan Body Builder with 5 kids and a hectic timetable. And she’s on the hunt for a recipe book.
Rhonda walks into a bookstore and heads to the recipe book section.
Hi, I’m Rhonda 👋🏼 (Rhonda is also an avatar obvs)
The first book she comes across has a beautiful cover that says “Delicious recipes”.
“Okay” thinks Rhonda, “I like delicious recipes.”
But then, the next book on the shelf catches her eye - “Delicious Vegan Recipes” -
“Ooh that’s more like it”, thinks Rhonda, “now I know I’ll be able to eat all of these recipes”
She’s about to reach for the book when Book number 3 gives her a nudge - “High Protein Vegan Recipes in under 30 minutes”
Which book do you think Rhonda is going to get? 🤔
Niching on an ideal client doesn’t meant that your services wouldn’t be relevant to anybody who wants them, BUT it does allow you to tailor your services and your marketing to clients that fill up your cup while making your potential clients feel seen and heard in a way that generalisation never can.
So with that in mind - it’s time to define our ideal avatar. You might have one or two but ideally you have one primary avatar per service you offer.
When defining your ideal avatar there are two parts to our process;
The Demographics: where they hang out, what platforms they use, where we are likely to find them in real life
The Psychographics: what are the unique pains and desires that they face, how can we speak directly to them and make them feel understood
📍 Demographics are logistical - where do we direct our marketing efforts
🧠 Psychographics are contextual - what content will resonate and how can we help solve their unique problems
04. The Why: Your Brand Story
Last but not least in our process is our WHY - the reason that you’re doing this thing.
Running your own business isn’t easy, in fact it’s the hardest personal development journey I’ve ever been on but what keeps me going on good days and bad days is my WHY.
Your Brand Story is like the battery for your business
When the business is going well, you'll feel good because you’re fulfilling on your why and making a huge impact.
When things are going badly, you'll keep going because your why is worth it and you truly believe in the impact it’s going to create in the world.
That's why it's so daaaang crucial to get intimate with your why and write out your story.
For CoCo, our WHY is rooted in the collective impact that’s possible when everyone who has a business idea that’s going to create positive social change is enabled and empowered and has the tools they need to succeed.
For me, it’s the idea of the problems we can solve in climate change, in social inequity, in education when businesses who are creating change in those areas have the launch pad they need to scale their impact without sacrificing themselves in the process.
That’s what sustainable positive change looks like.
The why I have on my wall reads;
Click the image to download a copy for your wall
Every time I look at it, no matter what is going on in my business (or life) that day, I am reminded of the incredible things possible when we play in the realm of collective impact, and all the positive changes that my clients are creating in the world.
So, what’s your why?
Now it’s your turn
Once I got clear on the above four things my business really started to sky rocket and I’ve witnessed the same for all the clients I’ve worked with. Getting clear on the above is a crucial stepping stone that catapults you from having a good idea to a sustainable business and it forms the basis of all decisions going forward in your business.
Are you ready to get clear on your offer, brand, avatar and story?
If you're all ideas and want to get really clear on your business and where it's headed, I've created a Business Handbook to help out. Spend one hour of focussed time on this workbook, and you'll come out with a tangible, clear plan.
I can’t wait to hear what you’re creating.