The road to being a business owner
There are many paths that can lead you to many destinations.
Written By Candace Machado
Over the last decade I have learned a thing or two about everything yet nothing. I have become a knower of things yet there’s always more to learn. I have understood systems yet they all don’t function together. I have created content yet marketing is always changing. I have embraced change yet the business branding is a slow moving process. The honest truth is to be successful at business you have to be ready to evolve, expand, and embrace change at every turn, at a moment’s notice.
Going all in, trusting in yourself, and ensuring that you have something to offer people that they want.
And.. The cold hard truth. Not everything you’re offering is what people want, support, or are interested in.
Here are seven things that have helped Thera stay alive and well
Build a foundation of systems that function smoothly
All the systems that have been put into place need to give a smooth and simple experience. Your website, your social media handles, your back end systems are your calling cards. I have found that the back end systems are more important than your front end systems in the long run. All the systems that function together to make your front end business operate smoothly. The honest truth is that when you have a lot of systems that have to operate together it can be more of finding decent puzzle pieces that fit together. I have never found perfect systems. Over the years I have changed my website four times, evolved my branding at least three times, let go of systems, and added systems, and added in a custom app to compliment the website. The website, app, class scheduling, and video recording all align with the front end of the marketing. Everything on the front end should have a similar vibe. Aesthetics on the front end are important for the experience.
Visually captivating photos and videos
I started the process four years ago of changing up the way Thera presented its self to the world. Better quality videos, better quality photos, visuals were crisp and vibrant. We brought more color into what we were displaying. Good thing we had an in house photographer and videographer with Macahhdew studios. I noticed the moment that we changed up the aesthetics everything took a turn for the positive. That was also the year I seen financial growth within the company.
Content Creation that matters
When I first started content creating ten years ago I thought the content needed to be perfect, structured and honestly regimented. I would spend hours planning and figuring out what I wanted to say and how everything needed to be. In the last few years I have switched gears to educating, sharing behind the scenes, and providing insight into my world. I have found that people respond to emotional connection and they want for you to solve a problem or provide a visual education for them. People have an attention span of 6 seconds when they are scrolling. You have seconds to captivate them. The landscape this year has shifted to more of a transparent real time videos and photos of whats real in a company.
Community
The TheraCommunity was built on the idea that you could share space with people that had similar ideas, values, and beliefs around self care, health and wellness. The community aspect also makes it easier to build healthy adult relationships with others. The community was built in 2020 after feeling like something was missing for the company. With building a community base in your business you have to determine what it is going to look like and the boundaries you might have. The community aspect is not for every company but for Thera it has ended up being a cornerstone for what Thera has evolved into. A part of building a positive environment as well is keeping the studio a closed member studio so that we can cut down on any issues. In the beginning years the company went through several growing pains and since we have moved to a member studio it has drastically helped remove further issues.
Marketing
Over the years I have done vendor booths, met with marketers, paid for ads, billboards, social media ads, magazine articles, networking events, and the list goes on and on. Heres my honest thoughts on marketing. I won’t pay for vendor booth space anymore if I don’t believe it will benefit Thera. Theres a moment when you move beyond visibility and you move smarter within business systems. I only do certain vendor booths every year but I have a specific understanding why I do them and if there are larger booth fees I first need to be able to recoup the fee on top of making a profit. I am selective at this point. I won’t put marketing money into anything that does not provide me with data collection and I always ask myself “why would I need this”? There are a lot of marketing scams out there or people who claim they can help your company. I would recommend to choose wisely and keep with consistency when sharing what your business is about. People do not stick around always to figure out what your business does. I did work with a marketer for two years for back end systems work so my systems would function and run. That is an area that a lot of marketers don’t teach you. That’s at least been my experience. I would say overall get good with social media, email campaigns, text campaigns, content creation, advertisements, and understand trends. Trends change and so do people. The one thing to not change is your core of your company. Evolve but not to the point where people don’t know what your company does.
Releases, liability waivers, and boundaries
Although releases, waivers, and boundaries are not overly exciting they are important to keep your company safe and secure. Make your policies and procedures clear on all your platforms so that anyone that engages with your company understands what to expect. As much as we would want to believe that everyone has good intentions that would be far from the truth. I have had people request discounts, refunds, start drama, other business owners target me, or people try to use my company to piggy back off me when they are starting out. The list goes on and on. Having clear boundaries might make you seem mean but in the end it honestly saves you from all the heartache at the end of the day.
Communication
Communication is everything. Without it your business is nothing. Be direct, be assertive, be understanding, be clear with what your vision is from systems, procedures, marketing, content, programs, etc. When you communicate who you are and what your business is about you are likely to attract people to your business that feel that vibe.
Go out there and support local business and help them stay alive. Keep their doors open, and thrive.
Come and be a part of our community and support Thera
theraexpressions.com