I've made horrific mistakes in my first years in business, and they're just as interesting. As I look back, I can't help but ask: how could I have been so stupid?
In this episode, I will run through the major things I learned and should have done differently in the first ten days in business. Sales and tech expert Phil Gerbyshak joins me to share the tactical things to work on in addition to marketing strategies.
Watch the full episode of Stop Doing Nothing — What You Should And Should Not Be Doing In The First 10 Days Of Business with Phil Gerbyshak.
What You Will Discover:
Money matters first. If you haven't quit your job yet, get a credit card. Get as high of a limit as you can, but you must control it and use it solely for your business. The separation of business and personal spending is so crucial. Phil encourages you to do that first and then open a bank account and set up an LLC in your state. In many cases, you can't have a bank account unless you have an LLC. So, those are the first two things to prioritize.
Set up a professional-looking invoice. Phil emphasizes that it'll be worth its weight in gold & you'll look way more "referable". Get an invoicing tool that will allow you to take money online, accommodate how people want to pay. This also establishes you being legit biz.
Build up an email list. I cannot emphasize enough how important an email list is. It doesn't matter if someone you know has got a list of 30,000 and you only have one. Just start; as your business builds up, people [will be] interested in what you have to say. When someone gives you their email address, it lets you know they want to be a little closer to you than they are on social media.
No fancy branding or website. All it takes is one page to convince people whether to buy from you or not. So when you are just starting your business, you don't need to problematize if you don't have a website.
Find those things you're good at in your business and learn to get rid of the other stuff where you aren't. For example, if you get rid of the accounting work, you've got more time to write a blog post, make a video, or fly to a meeting. If you can get rid of your social media posting tasks, you've got more time to do prospecting, phone calls, or conferences, which are sales-generating things that would boost your business. Leverage your strengths and identify what you can outsource.
Phil Gerbyshak is a speaker, sales expert, corporate sales trainer and small business coach. Phil trains his clients on the power of connection, leveraging the reach of social media, combined with the deeply personal work of nurturing 1:1 relationships, growing profitable long-term clients, transforming businesses and boosting revenue.
Know more about Phil at https://philgerbyshak.com/
