The last time you heard from me, I had just launched my business (Velocity Digital) and was bursting with excitement at being able to show the world what I do. That was about 6 weeks ago and my introduction to the business world has been incredibly interesting so far!
Putting yourself out there
My business is knowledge based – people pay me for my knowledge, experience and advice. By starting my consultancy, I’ve told the world that I believe I can make a big difference to the fortunes of their business. That fact means that I have been treated in a much different manner to what I have been used to. When I worked for agencies in the past, I was a representative of that agency, the client (or prospective client) was assessing not only me, but the whole package. Now, everything falls on me, and I’ve immediately noticed a positive change in the way people interact and deal with me. They are much more open to criticism, doing things differently and taking a step back from being so entrenched in their business and looking at it from a fresh perspective. I’d like to think that is because as things stand, its only me and they are only putting their faith in me, not a wider team or organisation. Putting myself out there like this has been a real test of my knowledge and the way I deal with people and so far, I think I’m doing pretty well (even if I do say so myself).
Winning work Vs lowering fees
As I spoke about in week two, I spent a long time working out my pricing for my consultation time and also some ‘off the shelf’ products. I produced a list for my own use and it has been invaluable so far. I have been flexible in my pricing, this has been fruitful in many ways, but I have always ensured that I stick to a minimum. I feel my services are worth a certain amount and to go below that makes a mockery of that. I’ve also not won work due to what people have seen as high prices. That is fine and will happen forever I am sure! I want to ensure that I am not lowering prices to unsustainable levels just to win work – this does not benefit my business and in the long-run, it actually doesn’t benefit the client in the long-run.
I’ve got 99 problems but accounting ain’t one
I’d like to give a hat-tip to a couple of tools I’ve been using to help me run things smoothly…
The first is Free Agent – this online accounting software is so easy to use and is highly intuitive. From invoicing to expenses, I’ve found it a major help.
Next is Toggl – this is a simple web and mobile based app that let’s you measure the time you are spending on project work. So easy to use and the reports are easy to digest.
That’s all folks! You can find out more about Velocity Digital here or read my latest social media, digital and content marketing posts here –
mystartupdiary.com 