The Ultimate Guide to Microentrepreneurship
2020 did NOT go as planned
☹️ But, that doesn’t mean we can’t turn 2021 around for the better.
If you’re anything like us, you have a burning desire deep down to change how things have always been. You also care a lot about what you do, and you know the future is now.
That’s why we’re here today with this ultimate guide to microentrepreneurship in 2021.
We believe in your dreams, and we want them to grow wings this year 🦅
This one’s for the rebels, the doers, and the visionaries…
Building your empire starts here. 👇🏽
Hold The Phone… What Even Is Microentreprenuership?
Microentrepreneurship is the act of being a microentrepreneur.
🤣Sorry, we had to…
In all seriousness, a microenetrepreneur is the owner of a microbusiness.
Your next - and obvious - question would probably be: What the hell is a microbusiness?
Well, in our blog What the Hell is a Microbusiness? (And Why You Should Start One), we answer just that.
But long story short, a microbusiness isn’t clearly defined 🥴
Our friends at the ever reputable Small Business Administration (SBA) say that it’s a firm with one to nine employees.
On the other hand, the state of Vermont defines it as a business that employs less than five people and makes less than $25,000 a year.
Depending on who you ask, you’ll get different answers.
You know what that means?
Pick the definition you like best! 😜
Why Is 2021 Is The Best Year To Become a Microentrepreneur?
We’re glad you asked 🥰
For those who are thinking: Omg, ‘rona destroyed everythinggg. How could I possibly start a biz NOW? 😫
Did you know that many companies that are now household names were birthed during crises?
Take AirBnB and Uber for example, both founded around the 2008 Recession.
Or, we can even go wayyy back to 1975 during the oil embargo recession (before many of you were even a thought 😂).
Microsoft came about them. You’ve heard of them, right?
All these founders didn’t sit back and cry 😭 They got to work 🔨Period.
Plus, 2021 is the right time to start your new microbusiness because online shopping has shot up nearly 40% since the pandemic started in 2020.
😲You might as well get in front of the peeps glued to their devices while you can.
The Ultimate Guide to Microentrepreneurship in 2021: How to Rock It
We could have a proper intro here where we build up excitement for you, but naw.
You know you understand the benefits of finally getting your biz going, making money and leaving a legacy for years to come.
So, what more do we need to say? 😄
Onwards (or should we say downwards?) to our ultimate guide to microentrepreneurship in 2021!
Believe in yourself
We’re starting things off real 🧀
But truth is, if you want to become the best microentrepreneur you can be in 2021, it starts with you 👊🏽
This means trusting you have the potential to be great.
You CAN create a booming biz that meets your wildest dreams and more.🤩
And while yes, it’s easy to say one thing, believing it is another, especially if you’re surrounded by nay-sayers.
😱 Owning a business is hard. Many new businesses fail. You’ll never make it! 😱
Sure, you consciously tell us what they say doesn’t affect you, but it’s what you subconsciously believe that matters (in other words, what your brain absorbs without you noticing).
If you frequent our blog, you already know we’re a fan of this simple, quick exercise to start releasing these limiting beliefs:
📝 Physically write down these beliefs on a sheet of paper.
✍🏽 Next, write the opposite. (For instance, instead of owning a business is hard, write owning a business is straightforward and fulfilling.)
✅ Lastly, act! This is the most important part as it will help you reinforce the new thought pattern. Do this for every belief you can think of to release your shackles in no time ⛓💥
Do some soul searching (a.k.a. Find your why)
While 💰💰💰 often seems to be reason enough, we’d argue that it’s not.
If you want to really rock the microentrepreneur game long-term, you need a why.
Why does this biz matter to you? What’s your motivation? Why should customers and clients give a flying rat’s butt about you?
Again, if you’re in it for the wrong reasons, you won’t last long.
And in case you didn’t know, there’s actually a long history of startup failures. 💩
While many fell cuz of financial fraud, we’re willing to bet a lot of them didn’t focus on what’s important.
Eh-hem… That’s their why (in case you haven’t been paying attention these past 10 seconds 😆).
Because when something really truly matters to you, you find a way to make things work.
Almost as if by magic 🧙🏽♀️
(Ooohhh, whaddya know? We talked about these first two points in our Black History Month: What Black Microentrepreneurs Can Learn From Black Business Leaders, along with other 🔑 lessons. Go there or be square.)
Anyways, here’s a 🔥 tip for ya before we move along: Keep your why some place visible so it’s top-of-mind.
Build a strong product
Along with your why, it helps to have something worth selling 🤣
Sure, you may have an idea, and you may have the means to get it done, but will it stand the test of time in our noisy, post-pandemic digital world?
Here are some things to do when building an effective product:
🔎 Research. Who’s your target audience? What pain points are you solving for them? Who’s your competition, and how will you be different from them? Getting data-driven answers to these questions will save you time in the long run.
🤗 Tell your story. Telling stories makes us human. People can learn a lot from your humble beginnings, what inspired your biz venture, etc. Remember: No matter what you sell, it’s YOU that matters. Make yourself heard.
🗣 Define your voice. Likewise, your brand voice won’t only reflect you, yet also what your company stands for. Don’t forget your mission and vision, too. Plus, make sure it’s coherent. For instance, if you sell gag water bottles, your brand voice wouldn’t be formal and stiff, like what you’d expect from Havard 🤭
Don’t take too long perfecting your minimum viable product (MVP) before launching it. You can make changes to it based on feedback once it’s open to the public.
This leads us nicely to our next point…
Test the market
The next step is to validate that people will actually buy your product (a.k.a. you test the market).
The best - and quickest - way to do this is by setting up social accounts.
They have minimal buy-in but BIG insights on whether your idea is a flop or a go.
We recommend you start with no more than three platforms so that you can consistently publish quality content on each.
QUALITY, not quantity 😊
Here’s an exhaustive guide on how to find and target your social media audience.
Also, don’t post the same message on every social media platform. Optimize content for each network, or your audience will catch on (bad news 🐻).
Seeing a trend here?
But, you probably already know all this, having practically grown up with social media. Let’s move on before you doze off 😴
Refine your MVP based on feedback
After you create your MVP and launch it to the public, you’ll start getting feedback - whether you ask for it or not 😂
Are people understanding what your business does? What are their questions? What do they seem to be most pumped about?
👉🏽 Remember: Not getting feedback is also feedback.
Maybe you’re trying to sell to too many people, and your real target audience doesn’t resonate with your offering.
🤔 If that’s the case, perhaps it’s time you niche down.
Find your niche in 60 minutes or less with these four questions (a few of which you probs already have answered).
For even more moolah, find a niche within a niche 💵
Here’s a quick example.
If you’re a health & wellness coach for multicultural women, niche down to health & wellness specifically for Black women 👩🏽🦱
Targeting only multicultural women was specific, but you’ve narrowed it down even more by choosing just one race.
See what we mean? Cool 😎
Expand off social
Social media is rented ground.
If you want to own your corner of the internet, you need a website.
Yes, we know we sound like a broken record 🙃 because we tell you this every chance we get 🙃 , but IT’S TRUE!
(Don’t worry. This is probably the last time we tell you this… probably.)
If a bunch of trolls wanna gang up and tell the social platform’s admin you’re being a bully (when you’re obvs not), you’ll get kicked out 🥾
And then where will you turn to to promote your products, grow your audience, and make money?
We dunno either 🤷🏽♀️
Plus, website builders like SquareSpace, Wix, and Weebly make it SO EASY (and affordable) to get your own website up and going.
You really have no excuse not to.
👉🏽 The name of the game is to diversify platforms and own your audience.
So, here are some more ways to do so:
📧 Get an e-newsletter going (No, email is not dead.)
🎙 Do a podcast and repurpose it (Or, guest speak in them.)
📷 Stream live events to multiple platforms
💻 Publish content on your website
Yeah, some of that probs doesn’t sound too sexy.
But getting banned from social and then losing out on clients, money, AND time trying to figure out what to do is way uglier. #justsayin’
Partner with microinfluencers
Microinfluencers, or influencers with up to 10,000 followers, are slayin’ the game.
A recent study for Insta found that engagement gets better with the less followers you have 👀
👉🏽 The highest engagement rate was found among those with 1,000 to 5,000 followers at 8.8%.
👉🏽 There’s a slight drop to 6.3% for those with 5,000 to 10,000 followers.
👉🏽 And those with 10,000+ followers rake in a measly 3.6% engagement.
Even another study (referenced below) proved that normal influencers just aren’t that influential anymore 😏
Celebrities and influencers have the least influence over people’s purchasing decisions, with 60% of consumers saying friends and family impact their purchasing decisions.
Only 23% said celebrity influencer content was impactful.
The same study continued to say that 90% of millennials prefer “real and organic” over “perfect and packaged.”
(Timely side note: If you watched the SuperBowl LV commercials, a lot of brands def missed the 🎯 here…)
Anyways, convinced you should get on the microinfluencer train? 🚂
Lucky for you, many work with brands for free.
You’ll just need to pony up some free products in exchange, obvs.
To get the most out of the experience, remember a couple tips:
💬 Engagement matters more so than followers. In case you couldn’t tell with the stats above, followers, likes, etc. are just vanity metrics. Don’t let them blind you. Pay attention to engagement, such as comments and shares.
💓 Choose influencers you vibe with. Does the microinfluencer align with your values? Are they targeting the same audience? Has s/he partnered with other brands before? How’d it turn out? Answer these questions to stay on track.
Unsurprisingly, brands are failing at influencer campaigns for NOT doing a lot of this.
In the end, it’s our choice.
But if you need some help getting started with this, check out this ultimate guide to growing your business with influencer marketing.
Build a community
You need a ride or die tribe that are head over heels for your products.
Why?
Because people love to feel like they belong to something, something bigger than themselves.
👩🏽💻 Take Apple for example.
If they were just another tech company, do you think people would wait outside their stores days before a new product drop?
🙅🏽♀️ Of course not.
🤯 That’s insane.
😄 But because they’re Apple and their fans are loyal af, it’s kind of a normal thing for them.
👉🏽 Get on Apple’s level.
Here are five steps to building a community around your brand that will help you get started:
✅ Define what is (and isn’t) your brand and how to build it.
🔗 Find the best way to connect with them.
💎 Make membership valuable.
👋🏽 Initiate engagement if needed.
🔝 Go above and beyond.
Full deets are in the article. We’re moving right along here in our ultimate guide to microentrepreneurship in 2021…
Start outsourcing work
Microentrepreneurs don’t go it alone forever.
Your one-man or -woman team won’t be able to keep up with everything.
If you’re asking yourself 🤔 What would I even pass off to someone else?
💭 Think: What are you best at in your biz, and what are you not so good at?
Or, what’s taking up a lot of your time without the biggest ROI?
(Personally, we can think of some pretty obvious areas here 😂)
For example, you have a video marketing agency, you could outsource accounting by either subscribing to a cloud-software - like Wave, FreshBooks, or Bill.com - or hiring a human to do it.
This way, you don’t have to worry about mundane bookkeeping while you run your biz.
(We actually wrote a pretty extensive review blog called Product Review - Accounting Software: FreshBooks Vs. Wave if this is something you’re already looking into.)
Grow your team
On the same note, if you want to scale effectively and efficiently, you’ll need to bring people on - and not just for the boring stuff like accounting.
(Sorry if there are any accountants out there reading this. We say this with all the love and appreciation in our hearts for you ♥️)
We’re talking’ a lean, mean, money-generating team 🤑
As we’ve said before, you can’t go it alone forever. You just can’t.
⏳ It’s inefficient. It’s time-consuming, and it’s kinda selfish. I mean, if you really believe in your business and the good it can bring to the world, wouldn’t you want to do everything within your power to get it out there?
That’s what we thought 😁
Having a team can make that vision come true.
Here are some solid tips on how to build a team that won’t sink your startup:
👨🏾💼 Get a headhunter to help if needed
💪🏽 Hire people who will get the job done
😍 Help them understand the importance of customer service
🤓 Hire those who offer different perspectives for increased #diversity
🤩 Sell your vision
If you want the rest, you’ll just have to read.
Finishing Up Our Ultimate Guide to Microentrepreneurship in 2021
We hope you’re convinced that now is better than ever to roll up your sleeves and get working.
As much as we hate to say it, your microbusiness won’t start itself 😢
Don’t worry if you don’t have all the answers, nor even know where to start. That’s where we can help 😊
We kind of already did all the hard work for you in a blog we wrote, The First Year: A Comprehensive Guide to The First Year of Your New Small Business (Part 1 of 2).
(It’s so comprehensive that it has two parts lol.)We even dissected the nitty gritty parts of having your own business, like setting up the proper business structure and all that stuff.
It’s something you’ll want to check out if you’re serious about all this.
And, if you just can’t get enough of our resources, we invite you to get early access to Boost. It’s the only work platform you’ll need to help you grow your biz to new levels 🔝
Happy microentrepreneurship-ing! 🥰