Tag Archives: bootstrapping

Find Online Bargains To Launch Your Business Identity

I’m always on the lookout for ways to run my business more cost effectively, particularly when it involves using online tools since that also collapses the time it takes to accomplish your tasks.

Michelle Madhok of  www.Shefinds.com,  writing in Ladies Who Launch,has identified a few cost savers.  These are particularly useful when you’re trying to launch a business and need some reasonably priced collateral materials:

“1. Don’t pay someone else’s rent. I live in Manhattan where real estate is extremely pricey so when I need a printer I don’t want to pay for the copier’s Manhattan address. Search google.com for the service you need. Color copies at the neighborhood copy shop cost .89 cents each. A quick search finds www.colorcopysite.com in California that will produce the copies for .10 cents each and ship for next day delivery.

2. Cyberscale. Use online businesses where the sole focus is on what you need. For business collateral go virtual. Vistaprint.com is a bargain, offering 250 business cards for $19.99 and 250 postcards for $49.99. Need 200 photos for your press kit? Bonusprint.com charges just 29 cents for a 5×7 print of your digital photo. Compare that to $1 per photo at your local developer.

3. Fair trade. Many people looking to make a career change or get experience in your industry may be willing to trade their expertise for yours. Visit sites such as ryze.com and craigslist.com where you can post a message about the services you need. Personally I found people to help me with marketing, analysis, copy editing and photography all in exchange for my experience or advice.”

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How To Be A Successful Bootstrapper

Seth Godin, marketing guru, popular blogger and I share a common goal.  As he puts it, “At last count, there were several million bootstrappers in this country, with another few million wannabes, just waiting for the opportunity. My goal is to give you enough insight and confidence that youʼll get off the bench and make it happen.”

Entrepreneuring can be a pretty challenging business so it’s good to have some support, particularly from someone who’s done it many times.

This is how Godin starts off his manifesto ( which he is giving away free for only a few weeks. It’s well worth the read, plus it’s pretty inspirational if you’re testing the waters to start a business.)  The rest of Godin’s manifesto goes on to explain these and some other points he makes in the beginning.

TAPE THIS TO YOUR BATHROOM MIRROR AND
READ IT OUT LOUD EVERY NIGHT BEFORE YOU GO TO BED:

  • I am a bootstrapper. I have initiative and insight and guts, but not much money. I will succeed because my efforts and my focus will defeat bigger and better-funded competitors.
  • I am fearless. I keep my focus on growing the business—not on politics, career advancement, or other wasteful distractions.
  • I will leverage my skills to become the key to every department of my company, yet realizethat hiring experts can be the secret to my success. I will be a fervent and intelligent userof technology, to conserve my two most precious assets: time and money.
  • My secret weapon is knowing how to cut through bureaucracy. My size makes me faster and more nimble than any company could ever be.
  • I am a laser beam. Opportunities will try to cloud my focus, but I will not waver from my stated goal and plan—until I change it. And I know that plans were made to be changed.
  • I’m in it for the long haul. Building a business that will last separates me from the opportunist, and is an investment in my brand and my future. Surviving is succeeding, and each day that goes by makes it easier still for me to reach my goals.

    • Most of all, I’ll remember that the journey is the reward. I will learn and grow and enjoy every single day.

    To download the entire pdf document, go to Seth Godin’s “Bootstrapper’s Bible” .

Download the PDF manifesto to your hard drive.
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BootStrapMe: Tips for the serious bootstrapper

A pair of boots with one bootstrap visible.

BootStrapMe: Tips for the serious bootstrapper.

Just in case you’re not familiar with the term, Wikipedia to the rescue: bootstrapping or booting which began as a leather strap evolved into a group of metaphors that share a common meaning, to better oneself by one’s own unaided efforts, or a series of self-sustaining processes that proceed without external help.

Sound familiar?  If it sounds very familiar, you may be a bootstrapper.  I have bootstrapped a number of businesses so it’s a very familiar term to me.

Shawn Hessinger, who is a bootstrapper himself, is also a blogger and journalist who spent years covering business issues. Then he decided to dive off the deep end, become an entrepreneur and blog about his adventures. He shares some hard won knowledge, which might be helpful to you, if you are considering bootstrapping or are already in the thick of it.

“Once the wave of exuberance over starting a new bootstrap business passes giving way to a lot of hard work accompanied by occasional disappointment, it’s time to take some serious stock…

• Take criticism seriously. Though it’s the part that NOBODY wants to deal with, the fact is criticism can be your best friend, if you learn to read it correctly. Learn to draw inspiration from your customers’ complaints to build a better product by knowing the difference between things you can change, things you can’t and what requests are just unreasonable.

• Treat your startup like a job. You would think this would be obvious to anyone. But, if the reason you became an entrepreneur is so you wouldn’t have to do it, it’s time for some unpleasant facts. Behind all the supposed glamour that comes with owning your own business, there’s just a lot of plain old fashioned effort. Think of it this way. The only difference between work you do for your startup and what you do for an employer is the person who owns what is built by that labor in the end.

• Reinvent yourself daily. There will be things that don’t work and paths that lead to no where. The benefit of bootstrapping is that while you have no money, you also have no constraints. With no one looking over your shoulder to tell you, ‘That’s not how you do it,’ finding the right equation may be easier.

• Focus on problem solving. Most business goals can be better seen as a series of challenges to overcome or problems to be solved than as the pursuit of a single and constant goal. Break your startup into challenges and set priorities for what must be done. With each problem you solve you will find others arising. Keep the process going and you will slowly inch toward your goal…often almost without realizing.

• Never give up. Never surrender. … There are days you will feel like throwing in the towel. Remember, very few things are an immediate success. Persistence is key in the end.”

To read this entire post or more of Shawn’s blogging, go to BootStrapMe: Tips for the serious bootstrapper.

You may also want to consider these suggestions by

Esther Dyson,  who gave some advice to Bambi Francisco CEO, co-founder , Vator TV, Inc. (Owner) in Esther Dyson: Feign smarts by listening more

Dyson is “widely regarded as an Internet/high-tech luminary, thought leader, and respectable investor, having put money in some of the hottest startups, such as Flickr and del.icio.us (both part of Yahoo), and more recently 23andMe, which is backed by Google.

In this “Lessons learned” segment, Esther offers her advice to entrepreneurs and lessons learned to investors.

Her first is to listen. “Whatever the context, people will think you’re smarter,” she said.

The second is to be focused and not be distracted. “More companies die of indigestion,” she said. “Pick one opportunity and do it well, rather than do five or six things badly… opportunities will always be there.”

The third one is “always make new mistakes.”

Hopefully, we can all focus in, listen to Dyson, and try to only make new mistakes

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Bootstrapping A Blog

Image representing Blogger as depicted in Crun...

Image via CrunchBase

In Don’t Raise Money – Bootstrap A Niche Market Online , we talked about niche markets.  Now, let’s look at bootstrapping that niche by taking that big leap and developing your own blog.

First, you will need to decide: what is your niche? You should zero in on the niche you believe you could excel in.  If you are an expert or have special knowledge of some field or have a  passion for something, start your blog on that. If you keep current, write well and with passion, update often and are open with your readers, you will find an audience.

My inspiration for a website topic, which later also evolved into a blog topic, was a study I was asked to do for the University of Texas at San Antonio business department.  This was in 1994 and they had a lot of very rough, raw material ( like clippings from newspapers) which suggested men make more money than women, even when they own their own business. The term “glass ceiling” had only recently become part of America’s vocabulary and the phenomenon was just beginning to be explored.

It was at this time, in December of 1994, that Netscape introduced the graphical browser and opened up the rush to the Net.

I decided to combine my interest in writing about “leveling the playing field”, with my entrepreneurial drive to launch yet another business on the cutting edge of the newest frontier, which, in this instance was the Net.  I knew I had the interest and the passion to sustain it.

So the question is, “What turns you on?  What sets you on fire or gets your adrenalin pumped?”  That will be your niche.

Step One: Carve out your niche and pick a catchy title that captures the essence of your blog. . Do some brainstorming and toss it around with your friends. Take a look at Ajaxwhois.com, a domain name finding software, to jump start your naming process.

Select A Blog Type

There are many different choices of blog types  from journal blogs, to collaborative and topical blogs ( Chris Brogan‘s new group blog, OMGPittsburgh.com is both collaborative and topical ) and compilation of link blogs ( Alltop StartUp News is both a compilation of links and a topical blog although the startup business topic is very broad.) There are also photoblogs, which can be  successful if you are good and prolific photographer and are articulate about the process and results.  But whatever kind of blog you decide to develop, successful blogs find a niche and stick with it.

Marketability

The next consideration is to make sure the subject of your blog is marketable.  Is there a large enough audience out there who might want to buy something from your site to assure you a cash flow, and ultimately, one which will sustain you?

There are a number of ways to generate revenue from your site but the results of each them will depend on how much traffic you are able to generate so….

First Goal: Generating Traffic ie. Building An Audience

The Process

Keep up to date and listen in to what’s going on, particularly on the Net, in your niche.

How to Write a Famous Blog offers the following advice:

  • “Look around the Internet for blogs you love. Read and post to them religiously. Leave a note that actually has something to do with their site so that they know you actually took the time for pay attention to the material posted; do not expect anything back in return. Just commenting will cause others to be more likely to visit your and do the same. Often when you make comments to sites a link to your own personal site will already be included with your comment, unless you are posting from one hosting site to the next. If you’re at ITW and you read a blog on Myspace then it would be appropriate to include such a link.
  • Build a network with other people in the blogosphere – make friends online. This is the best way to get readers and a great way to meet people you would otherwise never know.”

Gather your audience or your targeted demographic the particular people who are likely to be most interested in what you are writing about

  • “A good way to make a popular blog is to make other blogs popular. That is, visit, read, and thoughtfully comment on other people’s blogs. On most blogger sites, a link to your own blog will be automatically included in your comment. So the more blogs you post on, the more people will be driven to visit your blog. Of course, don’t just go on and post one-word spam, because that might keep people away.
  • Linking to other established or authority websites is also a good way to network and make yourself known in your niche, and other bloggers to share the “link love” with people who link to their site.”

Ways To Monetize Your Site

Whatever product or service you choose to sell, it should be tightly tied in with your theme or niche.  That is how you are identified in search engines and links throughout the Net and why people are coming to visit your site.  AdvancingWomen.com, for example, which focuses on women in business and careers, could probably not sell a single Red Sox baseball cap from its site. Not that there may not be women out there who are afficionadas of AdvancingWomen.com and also would like a Red Sox baseball cap, but that is not where they go to look for it.  So stick to your niche when selling.

What AdvancingWomen.com can and does sell, however, and you can as well, is…

Advertising related to your demographic.

Google Adsense allows you to open an account and include their automated ad delivery which will be match your content. You also can find other ad delivery systems through Google.com, if you’re interested.

Product or Services related to your demographic. You can also Google for these.  Bear in mind, you can select almost any product under the sun and sell as an affiliate through Amazon.com. You can also open your own storefront on Amazon.com.

Identifying a Well Matched Product Or Service For Your Demographic

To take a photoblog as an example, iStockphoto.com, the internet’s original member-generated image and design community, has changed the economic landscape of buying and selling photos online, ( see Crowdsourcing for details of this phenomenon).  So you should take their pricing into consideration, when deciding what to sell from your site. You may want to sell camera equipment or other related items which have the advantage, for you, of being higher ticket items and therefore more profitable for you.

You can also identify various vendors like CafePress.com which allow you to sell personalized T-shirts, buttons, bags and other items.

As your audience grows, your ability to sell will grow and so will the number of vendors approaching you to sell their items.  Be patient. Write well. And write every day. Success will follow.


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Don’t Raise Money – Bootstrap A Niche Market Online

This is the third in a series on financing your business.  But this time we’ll discuss starting small, counting your pennies, inching your way up, (commonly called “boot strapping”, pulling yourself up by your boot straps) until you are making a profit.

Martha Stewart at a 2006 Cynthia Rowley fashio...

Entrepreneur Martha Stewart Image via Wikipedia

One way to do this, with low barriers to entry, ie. not much money to start, is to launch an online business in a niche market. Many entrepreneurs are willing to risk their careers and their homes and work until they drop in order to own their own business. The problem is there are a lot of really big players with billion dollar pocket books chasing the same markets. What to do? One answer is to think small, or at least smaller. Consider a “niche” market.

Defining Your Niche

First you have to discover what your niche should be. One way to approach this is to zero in on what niche you would excel in, which would make the most of your own special knowledge and talents. Just as Martha Stewart started by baking and catering out of her home kitchen and with a flair for elegant living, not to mention superhuman drive and perfectionism, and Debra Fields’ had her cookie recipe, you probably have your own unique talents, interests and aptitudes,if you look deep enough. It may be found in your ability with graphics, or your talent for getting an office organized or inspiring people to join your project. Being smart about specific,marketable things has value; it is “the raw material from which financial results are produced”. Taking a hard,objective look at yourself, assembling a knowledge and skills inventory, allows you to find your particular niche, something you do better even than others in your same field. It is a way of narrowing and refining your niche so you can focus on only those things you do best and know more about than those around you. This should tell you also what niche market you should target.

Sometimes this happens in a more evolutionary way. You set up a dot com on the Net to sell books and the next thing you know, Amazon.com turns into Godzilla, about to stamp you under his giant foot. Do you stand there, stare Amazon.com in the eye and go head to head in combat? You do no such thing. You think through your best niche and move a step in that direction. Let’s say you start marketing rare old books. If Amazon.com moves in that direction, you start marketing rare old books on Texana, a quite profitable business, believe it or not. In other words, you keep moving another step away from the center of the market. And eventually you’ll find a niche which is too small for Amazon.com but may be specialized enough so that it requires considerable expertise for entry. And that’s what you have to dig deep into yourself to find… the area you can execute better than most people, a market too small for the giants, but extremely profitable, perhaps because you have the field almost to yourself.

Using the niche concept, you have positioned yourself for success. Build a reputation and the giants may even send people your way for products they don’t stock.

And there are other benefits in a niche market business model:

Financing

You won”t need as much money.

After you’ve exhausted the savings you’ve set aside to sustain you in the beginning, hit on your family and friends first, just not too much. You want to be able to look your mother or your sister in th eye when you go other to holiday dinners.

Don’t try to play with the big boys too soon. Prove up one part of your plan at a time. Start small, keep building, look good before you go to your bank or your first real investor.

(See
Start Your Own Small Business Using More Ingenuity, Less Cash

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Plan B for Fund Raising – Guy Kawasaki

Plan B for Fund Raising – Guy Kawasaki, serial entrepreneur and venture capitalist

AdvancingWomen believes, for most people, this is how you actually get it done..how you are actually able to put the odds and momentum on your side and get your business launched.

  • Step 1: You dig, scratch, and claw yourself to $100,000 of funds from your friends and family. Maybe you work as a YCombinator company. You take no salary. You live with your parents, and you keep your day job at Microsoft. You hope your spouse doesn’t get laid off. You have no office, but work virtually and meet your co-founders at Starbucks if you have to. Everything you use is Open Source or shareware.
  • Step 2: Rather than trying to boil the ocean (”the mobile sector”), you boil a tea kettle. Rather than paying to attend high-end conferences, you hang out in the lobbies of the hotels where the events are and meet the same people for free. Rather than hiring a PR firm, you suck up to bloggers and hope they cover your product. Rather than buying booth space, you get on Twitter and use it to gain a reputation for your product.
  • Step 3: You’re late with your product too (because everyone is late), but you’re not burning $250,000/month, and you don’t have to tell increasingly greater lies at monthly board meetings. Finally, you release your prototype. TechCrunch covers your release because you wrote Mike Arrington a compelling one-paragraph message that you sent on a Friday afternoon because you know he reads email on weekends.
  • Step 4: This is where the miracle occurs–lo and behold, people like your product. (Truly, miracles have to occur whether you’re bootstrapping or venture-capital funded. It’s just that if you’re bootstrapping, there’s more time for the miracle to happen, and a smaller miracle suffices.) Month to month, you’re showing 10-15% growth, and monetization, praise God, has started.
  • Step 5: Now you have options. First, you can contact venture capitalists with a company that’s already shipping to raise capital to expand your business. This is a very different discussion than raising capital to build a product. Second, you can continue to bootstrap and grow by using your cash flow. Three, you can pick up the phone and agree to meet with Google, Yahoo!, Fox Interactive, or any other company that has noticed you.

Many readers of this blog are not tech entrepreneurs, but the merits of Plan B are the same for almost any type of business. You can try Plan A as long as you realize that the hard work begins after you raise venture capital, and you will need a bigger, faster miracle to make everyone happy. Or, you can just believe me: “Plan B, don’t leave home without it.”

If anyone know this process from both sides, as an entrepreur who’s started many sucessful companies and as a funder who listens to hundreds of business plans, it’s Guy Kawasaki.  And most important, you can trust him.  He’s on your side.