Based on comments received so far, many Sitepoint readers appear to want to start their own business, someday, and are not quite ready to take the leap. Please don’t live in “someday.” If you want to start a business — if you’d feel like you’d have wasted your life if you never got around to starting something up — then get a plan in place today.

Here are five elements that you need to succeed. Three are very practical, and two are more in the psychological realm. Please read them and take the challenge at the end of this blog:

1. A solution. You can be a freelance web designer if you want, but why not dream bigger? Why not create a solution that you can sell again and again, without having to trade your time for dollars? That way, you make more money for less of your time. A good solution solves a real problem that people in a focused target market have, in ways that make them more money and also make them feel better (e.g. less stress and frustration, the thrill of success and prosperity, security, etc.). Web design might be only one small part of that solution; you may need to team up with an application developer to create the comprehensive solution that your prospects will buy. Some of the most successful web designers I know have become wealthy by developing portals for a specific industry, subscription-based online content sites, or soup-to-nuts e-commerce and business intelligence solutions. Instead of serving as vendors or freelancers, they got the resources they needed together to provide a valuable solution that they can sell over and over again.

2. A marketing plan. To take the leap, you had better know how you are going to get your solution visible in your marketplace. You need a compelling story about the problem you solve, the solution you offer, the benefits you provide, and why you are unique and better. Then you need to take that message and get it out to prospects in your target market through at least 5-6 channels: your network, writing, speaking, your web presence (and strategies to drive traffic there), affiliates, community leadership/service, and other ways to educate your target market about what you do and why it is valuable.

3. Reserves. It takes a while to build a business, as long as 6 months to two years. If you don’t have an immediate source of clients to sustain you, you need to have some savings. Desperate designers don’t close as many deals; prospects can smell the desperation and get turned off. Make a plan, and build up your savings.

4. Commitment. When you take the leap, the first six months to a year might be the hardest of your life. At the start of a business, every ten units of input generate only one unit of output. It’s like pushing a rock up a steep hill. You get rejected. You feel overwhelmed. You don’t know what to do next. You want to give up (sometimes). The only way to make it is through resilience, persistence, and commitment. You have to be totally committed to your success, totally sure that you are destined to succeed. When you are, and you can back your confidence and commitment up with competence, others will be attracted to you and what you have to offer. Read on to the end of this blog to a link to a truly inspiring quote that might make all the difference for you.

5. Support. Working for yourself can be lonely. Get support – maybe a business partner, maybe a group of like-minded business owners that you can meet for lunch. Read books about small business. Join lead exchange groups. Exercise. Do what you need to do to support yourself, especially during the start up phase.

Here’s a challenge for those on the fence: Think about what you need to have in place to take the leap once and for all. Then declare a date and a few milestones by posting a response to this thread. I dare you.

Still living in “someday?” Go to this link and read this excellent quote; it was the final straw that got me to launch my first business, and I’ve never looked back:
http://www.worldisgreen.com/archives/000158.html

Until Monday!

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 22nd, 2004 at 6:17 pm, contains 708 words, and is filed under Selling Web Design Services. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed. The views and opinions in this blog post are those of its author.