Note: We use AI transcription so there may be some inaccuracies
Laura Hargrave: Welcome everyone here at Boss It. We would love to hear from you. Join us in our Boss It community by heading over to our website, bossitclub.com, and join our mailing list. As we grow, we will be launching our community of fellow Boss It BFFs, and we want you to be a part of it.
Okay, Sophia Noreen, let's dig into this. I can't wait to tell them all about how we got here.
Sophia Noreen: Welcome to the Boss It Podcast. My name is Sophia Noreen and I took an Etsy startup and launched it in big-box retailers within 12 months. As a creative with an entrepreneurial drive, I left my full-time career in healthcare to find better harmony between career, family, and self-care. We believe you can have it all. Yes, you can launch and run a successful scalable business while maintaining harmony in all aspects of your life. We believe we can learn from each other and draw on many experiences to create the best life possible. During each episode, we will share proven life hacks that will keep you on top and striving every day.
There should be no hesitation. Make a plan. Take action. We are here for you!
Sophia Noreen: Hello, everyone. Welcome to another fantastic episode of the Boston podcast. My name is Andre, and I'm gonna be your host. And today we're gonna be chatting about how to grow your business successfully. I'm going to be giving you seven tips.
So the first tip is you really need to dream big. And I say this because many of us play really small. We do not want to go outside of our comfort zone. And therefore we're not really maxing out our. So my first tip for everyone is to really dream. I want you to think about that audacious goal and visualize that it's actually yours.
Now, an example that I have personally is that we have been able to expand our small Etsy shop into a big retailer like Walmart. And I said, pretty confidently early on that we are going to go into Walmart. I remember telling this to one of our mentors and he was like, you're pretty confident about this goal.
And I said, yes. And within about 12 months later, we actually were on the shelves at Walmart. We have a long story about that, but we'll do that story another time for you guys. So the first tip is to dream big, take a minute, and really think about where you wanna be with your business and just visualize it.
The next tip is to make sure that you're creating a product or service that people want. You need to make sure that your customer actually need the product or need the service, and then you'll have no problem selling. And the best example we have of course is from also Sophia. We knew there was a gap in the market.
We knew that our community needed the E and Ramadan products. And that was the reason why it was so easily picked up by a large retailer. So again, remember, you are selling a product or a service and you need to make sure it fits the needs of your customers. Number three, you have to remember you are the owner.
You are the. Instructor of the business, meaning you need to be able to get nitty gritty in your business. You need to be hands on in the beginning. And in the early days, it was me going to the popup shops. It was me packing the parcels and shipping it out. It was me that was designing everything. And by doing it at the beginning, It will allow you to have a greater understanding of the process.
And then you can strategize on a way to leverage, meaning, hire the right people for the right positions, meaning knowing the systems that need to be put in place. So in the beginning, you should be hands on. You should be going out to the popup shops. You should be dealing with customers and customer service, and there's nothing wrong with it.
So don't be afraid to be hands on at the very beginning of your business. The next tip is you need to be enthusi. When you are selling a product or a service, you have to show your enthusiasm, especially as a business owner, it really helps that you are the one selling the product at the beginning and being a part of that brand and that service.
I know a lot of us are scared and we wanna hide behind the camera, or we don't wanna put ourselves out there, but trust me. When you do that, it helps align your customer with the owner and aligns the brand. And then people will be shopping because it's not just the company, but it's you as the brand. And so, especially with social medias these days, you have to be enthusiastic.
When you get online, you have to be enthusiastic when you're actually in front of your customer and selling in an in person event. This will really be key for you as you move things forward, because when you are actually doing a transaction, A transfer of energy. And so if you have the enthusiasm for your product, then that enthusiasm will spread to the transaction and you'll have more complete or likely sale.
So don't be afraid to show your enthusiasm on camera and don't be afraid to get in front of the camera. The next tip is you need to be optimistic. There is stuff that's gonna happen that is not planned for, and your systems are gonna crash. Your customers are gonna complain. They're going to end up having damaged goods.
They're going to have logistics problems and you have to be ready for them in regards to your mindset. You need to be optimistic. And if you cannot be optimistic, you need to reframe. And the best trick I have is if something is not going as planned, I ask myself, is there something I am not prepared for?
I am not doing, and this is the way of the universe trying to help me correct my path, or is there a way for me to correct the path? So I'm more aligned with what I'm destined to get completed. That's a bit woo, woo. But the point is please be. Your journey and in business is going to be up and down. It's going to be hilly.
There will not be a straight climb all the way to your success goals. So make sure you reframe and ensure that you are leading with optimism and not being so pessimistic. We said it once before, but we'll say it again. You need to focus on your customer and what your customer needs. The goal of your business is not to just make you rich.
Yes, there can be incentives for the entrepreneur and for the business owner, but the business is meant to serve the customer. Customer satisfaction should be one of your number one key metrics that you're measuring and remember. The best referrals are from your customers. Word of mouth, your reputation as a business, as a brand, make sure that you are focusing on your customer and their needs, and you will reap the benefits later.
And my final tip for today is you need to make sure that you have a unique selling proposition. Why are customers coming to you and your brand? Why are you the one that they are going to be better served? Again, there is many opportunities to be a me too company, meaning you copy somebody else's vision, somebody else's plan somebody else's service or model of delivery, but that is not going to serve you well, moving forward, because they are going to see through that and they eventually will drop you because it's commodity.
So what can you do to make yourself stand out as the go to. As the business with a unique selling proposition. And if you can figure that out, I will guarantee you that you will have success because your customers will continue to come back and they will bring their friends. And that is generally the goal for all of us is to ensure that we're growing our customer base.
And we're doing it without paying more money and we'll get more into that in future episodes, but we want to lower the acquisition rate of getting a customer. And so with a unique selling proposition or building a brand, you are likely to do that more successfully. So make sure you are doing that all throughout your business, trying to differentiate yourself from your competitors and not being that me too.
All right from the top. Let's go through the list. We want you to dream big and make sure that you are doing that stretch goal. Make sure you're aiming high. You don't limit yourself. We wanna make sure that you are creating products that people need so you can sell them easily. We want you to be hands on in your business.
So you actually know how to leverage later on and create standing, operating practice. We also want you to be enthusiastic when you're selling that way. When you're enthusiastic, that transfer of energy goes to your customers, and you're more likely to complete the sale. Be optimistic because if you're optimistic, when those challenges do arise, it's easier to combat them and focus on the solution.
We also want you to understand your customer's needs and make sure that you are satisfying, your customer's needs that way. They bring back their friends and you'll actually reduce your acquisition. For your customer to end equal results in more profits. And finally, we want you to concentrate on your unique selling pro.
When you have a unique selling proposition, you stand up from the crowd and therefore your business will have a longevity and be more likely to sell with the brand rather than discounting. We'll get into more of those topics later. So make sure you hit subscribe. And if you'd like you can comment below and tell us which tip you're going to try to put into action a bit more.
Remember, we want you to make a plan and take action. Be the best you can possibly be. If you wanna follow us along on Instagram, you can go ahead and catch us at boss at club and we'll catch you guys again next week. Take care. Bye.
Sophia Noreen: So my fellow Bosses, did you enjoy that episode? Now, it's time for you to make a solid plan and take action. But first, remember to subscribe and follow the Boss It Podcast so you receive a notification whenever we drop an episode. Remember to leave us a review on iTunes. Take a screenshot of your review and share it on Instagram as a post or a story, and tag us at Boss It Club. If Instagram is not your thing, no worries. Email your screenshot to podcast@bossitclub.com. As a massive thank you, we will be sending you our top 50 tips for starting and scaling a business. This list is exclusively for podcast reviewers so don't miss out. Now, remember Bosses, make a plan and take action in all aspects of your life. Yes, you can have it all.