If you’re someone hoping to turn your side hustle into your main source of income, you’re in the right place. I want this to be a resource for you to learn from my mistakes, tips, and tricks I’ve picked up along the way, and offer advice I’ve been given.
I graduated from the University of Arizona with a Bachelor’s in Dietetics. It didn’t take me long to realize that this path wasn’t for me. I skipped the 9 to 5 corporate life and started my own business straight out of college with a lifestyle and activewear apparel company. It wasn’t until January 2017 where I discovered my passion for content creation, photography, and videography. I shut down the apparel company and started LY VISUALS in June 2017.
I’ve been specializing in video and photography for less than three years and I managed to scale my business to 6-figures. My goal is to help and educate other creatives to turn their passion into their paycheck. So, here are five tips that helped me get there in less than 2 years:
Make Sure Your Branding Is On Point
Have a clear message about what you do and who you do it for. Separate yourself from a hobbyist or someone who is doing the side hustle for fun and instead, be someone who is taking it seriously as a profitable business. In order to do so, incorporate branding.
Branding doesn’t solely focus on your logo or color scheme but rather on what people feel from your brand. What emotions are you evoking from your audience?
A good place to start is by separating your personal and business accounts.
When it comes to social media, avoid confusing your audience by mixing personal and business under one account. You want to show current and potential clients that you are legitimate and that you take your business seriously.
After structuring your social media accounts, you need a website. Although social media is great, people who find your account want to see your work or your website. If you don’t have that, they’re more likely to turn to your competitor who does. Some things to consider:
- Portfolio
- Testimonials & Reviews
- About You & Your Company
- Contact Form
Networking
There is so much power in word of mouth and it’s one of the best ways to network your business. Think about it – the more you interact with people, the higher your chances of working with that person, and the better chance they’ll tell their friends. Assuming you do a killer job, of course. And you will. This is hands down the best way to generate more leads and more clients to your business, right now, FOR FREE.
You have to be uncomfortable to grow.
Take it from me, an introvert. I used to be scared to network and meet new clients. It took me a few years to overcome that obstacle and you can too. By far, it has been one of the biggest things that helped me take my business to the next level. Once I decided that I needed to be uncomfortable to grow, it was like the doors to new opportunities began to open.
Join Facebook groups with people in your niche and interact with other entrepreneurs, you’ll be surprised to see the benefits unfold. It worked so well for me, I started my own Facebook group to help creative entrepreneurs looking to learn how to scale their businesses.
Promise and Over-Deliver
After you land the client and begin to work with them, promise what you’re going to give and over-deliver. Knock the socks off their feet and give your client something they weren’t expecting. Not only will they be impressed, but they are also more likely to tell their friends of how you went above and beyond.
Structure Your Workflow
If you want to be a 6-figure business, it’s time to start acting like one. Make sure you have a structure right from the start and invest.
As a creative entrepreneur you’ve recognized that technology is continuously changing. It’s essential to make sure that you’re up-to-date. Invest in courses to learn more about specific topics, invest in the right software to keep your workflow running smoothly, and invest in the right equipment. If you want your business to thrive, keep learning new things. In the end, you will discover what works best for you and how you can make the most of your valuable time.
Knowledge is Power.
Be Confident
You may not have the confidence right off the bat when you start out as a business owner, but you will get there. Patience is the key. Accept that failure will happen, learn from it, and keep going.
Confidence comes from knowing that the work you’re producing is of high quality. That’s why it’s so important to invest in yourself. The more knowledge you have, the more confident you will feel when taking on a project.
As you land clients with higher budgets or clients who are paying the price you’ve listed on your proposals, the more your confidence will grow. This applies to both your pricing and your business.
Level up in all aspects of your life and in all aspects of your business, your work, your craft, and the confidence will come.
Recap
Remember, these things don’t happen overnight. Trust the process and know you will grow as an entrepreneur as time goes on. If you ever catch yourself doubting your abilities, read through these five steps again.
You can also check out the podcast episode for this blog here and leave me a review. New episodes are out every week. Feel free to follow me on Instagram, I post updates and behind-the-scenes there too.
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