Tips for Starting Your Service Based Business

Last week I talked about making the leap into business. This week I’m giving you 3 tips for starting your service based business. These are all things you can do right now! 

When I started my photography business I had no clue how to run a business. At all. I was fresh out of college and wanted to take on the world. Fast forward a few years to when I bought the yoga studio - I had no clue how to run a yoga studio. In some respects that was probably a good thing because I was less scared to make “mistakes”. And looking back at everything I’ve learned over the last 15 years I wouldn’t change a thing! Was it hard? Yes. Was it worth it? Also yes. 

Now that I’ve run two successful service based businesses (three if you include coaching!) I have a plethora of information that I give to my clients. But more often than not, when I am coaching my clients I get to listen to what my clients are saying and ask more in depth questions to help them discover exactly what it is that they need from their business. Everyone’s business needs are slightly different and unique. I can give you every piece of advice and worksheet out there but ultimately it comes down to you digging in and doing the work. Giving answers to some of the hard questions, showing up for yourself and your business and knowing what it is you want to do and why. Now, you might be asking, then WHYYYYYY would I invest in coaching?! 

The answer: coaching is a chance for you, the business owner, to speak freely, ask questions and dig deeper into some of your own thoughts and actions as they relate to your business. 

Feeling like you “can’t make any money”? There could be a money block somewhere that you don’t even realize is holding you back. Feeling like you’re not reaching your ideal customer? Maybe you’re operating from a place of scarcity or lack (aka afraid that if you don’t serve EVERYONE you won’t be able to make any $$). 

When I started my photography business I was hell bent on serving everyone. Don’t get me wrong - it worked, for a while. But after a few years of that I was exhausted. I also realized that I was having more and more “budget brides”. Which meant I was seeing more and more people who were trying to get me to lower my prices or my worth. I wasn’t connecting with my ideal bride any longer. And quite honestly, that was just fine. After we had Maeda in late 2017 I knew that I needed to rethink my photography business and figure out who I truly resonated the most with. When I took a deeper look into things I realized that family and kid photography was really my jam. I love weddings but being a wedding photographer is A LOT of work, long hours and time away from home. As my family grew I knew I wanted to be more present because babies don’t keep. 

So how did I figure out what I wanted from my businesses?

I’m going to give you three of my tips for starting your service based business. Although these are geared toward the service industry, you could really apply them to any industry. 

First and foremost - research, but don’t get stuck there. 

The research phase can be fun and engaging - you’re excited for everything you’re learning and getting all the little pieces into place. But, research can also suck you in and hold you hostage. Keeping you in a state of, “just a bit more research, then I’ll be ready.” And I’m here to tell you, just like having kids - the right time to start, is NOW. For all intents and purposes, do your research. Know what you want to do, the market you’ll serve and who your “competition” may be (more on “competition” next week 🥰 )

Just because you’ve started a business doesn’t mean that the research phase has to stop. Quite the contrary! In all of my businesses, anytime I’m feeling stuck I come back to researching and asking questions of my business - am I serving my best client? Can I make some small shifts to better serve my clients? Do I want to change anything? But don’t get stuck in the research. Answer your questions, make the shifts and move forward. 

Second - have a plan. How will you make money? What will your expenses be? What do you need to outsource? Can you do “all” the work yourself? What does your client journey look like? What kind of materials do you need to start your business up? There are tons of business planning tools - if you become a coaching client of mine I will give you the business planner that I use! Having a plan, even if you don’t like having a plan, will help you be a better CEO. As you lay out your plan, what is it that you want to focus on? Do you want to have more time with your family, meaning less “time” for business? Or do you want to go full steam into your journey?

Third - name your business. Make sure it’s something unique but not so unique that people won’t know how to spell it. Check to see that no one else has your same business name. Your name is ultimately your image so knowing what you want your image to portray is important. When I named my photography business I knew I wanted to offer more than “just photography” which is why the “and Design” is part of my business name. This means that I get to house both photography and coaching under one roof. After choosing a name go and get you a website! Register your domain and get building! 

Next week I’m going to talk about community over competition and why I don’t see my “competitors” as competition. 

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