Hey guys! This is the continuation of my previous blog, in this Blog I will be sharing tips on How to turn your hobby into a business! Although there’s a proviso or “caveat” as what they say in lawschool:
“This is based on my personal experience”
So to give you a brief background..
I think I am an entrepreneur at heart, I didn’t have any formal education about business nor had undergone a special training. So don’t worry about that! You don’t need any formal education, you only need to be creative and your determination to even do the dirty work (Yes for me! Literally because I personally pot my Succulents)
My interest in business most especially in selling started during highschool and for that I am very proud to let you know that I earned the title as “Miss Munchkin”. This is not a title I earned because I join a pageant but because I got popular for selling munchkins at school..
So you have ACE biscuits to blame for that!
Anyway so that was just the first few products that I sold…
I had sold products such as clothes, food, bookstands, swimwear and the long list goes on
Fast Forward to this day… I own a small business
My hobby of taking care of Succulents turned into a profitable business, I am amazed that my idea of an Event giveaway received good feedbacks although up to this day I am still evolving, trying to stay innovative, creative and I don’ want to be complacent because I know that this is a free market (people can just copy my idea) so I have to be consistent in order for me to stay in the game.
Starting a business can be easy but in order for your business to thrive you have to excite your consumers and be consistent!
So here are my tips:
1. Do Something you Enjoy or Love!
I can’t stress enough the importance of doing the things that you love! You have to be PASSIONATE with what you do because the first few months can be very exhausting and you only have your self to rely on and your vision! You have to think about your short and long term goals.
If you are not passionate with what you do, it will be very hard for you to stay motivated and to push yourself forward!
2. Do your research
I know it is very exciting just to think about turning your hobby into a business! But wait! Timing is everything being a hobbyist for a long time doesn’t mean that you are fully ready to launch your product in the market.
So it is best for you to research first, you have to know your competitors, the market and research what are the anticipated challenges that would come in your way! The last thing you would like to happen is to leave a bad impression to your first few customers because you haven’t done your research first and can’t answer their queries properly! So research and gather as much information as you can!
3. Marketing is the lifeblood of any business.
So you have done your research and you are confident in answering those queries but how will you get clients? No matter how great is your product but you don’t know how to market it, you will never earn any sales! So you have to research and check the demographics of your target consumers and from there create a marketing strategy!
4. Auditing
This is the SERIOUS part of having a business and to any person who wants to take their business SERIOUSLY! That’s why business is not for everyone because Passion alone won’t work! Even if you are still a beginner this is very important for you to track your expenses, cash flow and your revenue.
Even in as much that I would love to sugarcoat that as long as you have the Passion you can start a business but it is not enough, you need to anticipate all the risks and the challenges involved!
5. EXECUTION
You have all these nice ideas, dreams and plans. When you checked yourself you think you are prepared.. but all the long periods of preparation and strategizing will produce no results if you DON’T EXECUTE!
So that’s all for now! I hope you would take that leap of faith! Do you have any business ideas on your mind? but don’t know how to start..
Please feel free to leave comments and I will be happy to give you some advices 🙂
Ms Financial Planning Advocate 