I've been an entrepreneur for almost nine years. As I enter a reflective state of mind, I find myself watching new businesses springing up every month, especially by women of color across my local community of Atlanta, Georgia and beyond.
As a profit strategist, I help new entrepreneurs create and identify their opportunities for profit in their business and the first conversation I have with clients is an understanding of what their common "struggle" or "obstacle" is in their business.
As I document a consensus in my mind, the majority of new business owners are enthused on the thought of becoming an entrepreneur but struggle with clarity, balancing, and a "saturated" market. You know, "saturated market", when there are too many people doing what you do.
Let me be clear.
Saturation is a "thing", but it only is a thing of the mind. As a millennial, you are in one of the most creative generations where fearlessness and a solid stance on equality, balance, and justice is embedded within us. In order to truly thrive as an entrepreneur in this day and age, here are a few keys to keep in mind.
Know Your Value
When launching your business, it's important to not focus on how many people are doing what you do, but what's your differentiating value to the market?
Your differentiating value is known as your market-add and some identify it as a culture-add. What new vibe does your business bring to its industry?
This is the value you bring to the marketplace that has not been done. What value does your business have? This could be your customer service, quality, depth of knowledge, experience, product scarcity, etc.
It is your responsibility to know how your business adds value.
You can't expect to see a tribe pull up on you if you're not doing anything different. Either you need to make what is already done better or create something entirely never done before.
Build Interest Through Story-Selling
Once you understand your market-add, it's time to determine how you can build interest so that you can break through the noise.
A strategy to grab the attention of your audience on social media is through what I like to call "The Story-Selling Framework". This framework involves you creating a past (a hook), present (a struggle), and a remedy (a solution) post. This framework can also be used for your e-mail marketing. It is a copy tactic.
To start your story-sell, you must start with a hook. A hook is an attention-getting headline or story opener. The goal here is to grab your audience's attention in the first sentence. A photo or video can be a hook. The next step in story-selling is identifying a struggle of your audience. What annoys your ideal client or customer? Is it not having time? Is it not having enough energy? These are all common struggles, obstacles, and annoyances that your ideal client may have. Create a list of 3-5 common struggles your customer or client is having right now. The goal here is to agitate the excuses your ideal client has.
Finally, the "remedy" is the last statement in the story-selling framework. You are the remedy to your audience. It is important that you focus on how you're the solution as it relates to your social media post(s).
Consistency, Consistency, Consistency
In story-selling, you must tell your story at least 7x on as many platforms as you're active on.
As a vet in entrepreneurship, it is important for you to understand that this is a LONG RACE. Entrepreneurship is not for the faint or weak at heart. It is for those with determination, will-power, and strength to endure even when the results are not immediate.
You may not win quickly.
You may not make money right away.
You might have to sacrifice.
But what I can guarantee is consistency is the only way that this race will work out. Shift your mindset to believe that one day the check WILL come and it will! Invest in the growth of your business. If you aren't willing to make a financial investment into your own self, why would you believe others would into you?
Invest In Self
Do not freebie your business to death. When you invest in programs, masterminds, retreats, coaches, learning, conferences, etc. you are telling yourself that you are betting on you! There's nothing quite more admirable than you putting your money where your mouth is!
Pay your homegirl for her work, tell your homeboy you could use his services, pay these people so the energy that you give off only exudes there's a "price" for that. Your vibrations will be higher when you have money invested.
You will work harder.
You will know how to repel people wasting your time.
You will feel empowered as a business owner to only do business.
The key to success in business is research (test to see what works in your audience and keep what gives the best results), relationships (create a community and collaboration in your local area), and reputation (provide great experiences for your clients or customers so they can refer or #repost).
As you thrive in your journey with entrepreneurship, understand you don't need to feel defeated. You can have a sustainable business in any market because the value you bring is ordained in you.
You were chosen to carry it out, it is and always will be your gift.
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Featured image by Shutterstock
- Growing a Company in a Competitive or Saturated Market ›
- What Market Saturation Means for Your Business ›
- Why You Should Compete in a Saturated Market | BusinessCollective ›
- The Disadvantage of Market Saturation | Chron.com ›
- Want to Penetrate a Saturated Market? Here's How | Inc.com ›
- What is market saturation? definition and meaning ... ›
- How To Sell In An Over-Saturated Market ›
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I've always had a love-hate relationship with wigs. Sometimes, I struggle to get them to lay flat and don't get me started with the bonding glue process. So when it comes to wearing wigs, I like to keep it nice and breezy around this b--- (word to Katt Williams), especially in the summertime.
That's why I jumped at the chance to try these three versatile wigs from Luvme Hair. Each one offers a unique look and is surprisingly low maintenance, which aligns perfectly with my philosophy that wearing wigs should make life easier. Let’s dive into the three styles below.
Headband Wig
Courtesy
This was the first wig I tried on, and I instantly fell in love with it. So much so that it took me weeks to even consider trying the other two. I’m partial to colored hair, especially blonds, browns, and reds, so I was skeptical about the jet black hair. However, I think the color, combined with the curl pattern, worked surprisingly well for me.
One of the things I really liked about this wig was that I didn’t have to braid my hair down first. I could simply throw it over a low ponytail, which is the epitome of a low-maintenance style. The headband has combs inside and velcro on the ends, ensuring a secure fit.
Half Wig
Courtesy
I had never worn a half wig before, so I faced some challenges. I cornrowed the bottom half of my hair where the wig would sit, but I believe this made it more difficult to use the combs. It might just be me though. I straightened the top part of my hair to blend it with the wig, which looked cute for about five minutes.
Firstly, I have a brown/blonde color mix on the ends of my hair, and the half wig is black. So, I had to hide some of the color (I didn’t have time to dye the wig). Secondly, straightening my hair myself is always a hassle because it never lasts long. Add to that the summer humidity, and you get a hot mess. Despite all this, I managed to get some cute pictures before things got out of control, and that’s all that matters, right?
Would I consider this a low-maintenance hair style? Yes and no. I think it’s unrealistic for me during the summer, especially since I enjoy summer activities. However, when the weather cools down, I’ll definitely rock it, dyed, of course.
Bob
Courtesy
Now, this is the wig I was nervous about. I never had a bob and I didn't think I would like it. But once I put bobiana on, my mind instantly changed. I finally understood why the gworls rave about the bob so much. It was giving boss. It was giving grown woman. It was giving the bob means business. Iykyk. It was the ultimate statement.
I will say when I first put it on, one side of my wig just would not lay flat. It took some trial and error, but I finally managed to get it to look good. With the bob, I highly recommend braiding your hair down first as small as you can so it can lay as flat as possible. I really liked the ash blonde color, which is perfect for summer. The length also makes it a great low-maintenance style for the season, so you don't have to worry about the hair making your neck sweaty.
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