How I Took the Plunge and Started My Online Business

In 2016 I was made redundant from my job in primary education that I had for 15 years. I had found it very fulfilling but I decided to have a complete change and do something different.

To get some immediate income I advertised two rooms in my home for rent with Spareroom.com,and found renters very quickly. You can read more about how simple this was in my post: 

3 Simple Ways To Work From Home

After some internet research I decided to start my own business online,and was encouraged further by reading the book 'Copy This Idea' by the successful English entrepreneur businessman Andrew Reynolds. You can get a free paperback copy of this book just by paying the post and packing costs here: 

I started my online business as an affiliate (I earn commission on products I recommend online) and this has evolved as I have gained more knowledge about using social media, blogging and the internet to grow and market myself online. I have met knowledgeable, friendly people through social media and would recommend using it to meet prospective customers and useful contacts, and it is also a valuable source for knowledge-based articles.You feel like part of a community of like-minded people. 

It is a fact that for most businesses today you have to be visible online. I am learning to apply the life-long business skills I have already to my new business Neater Works, in which I review and recommend people, services and tools to help small businesses and home based entrepreneurs. It is my mission to help small businesses and start-ups get noticed both online and offline, because I am passionate about supporting local business in order to keep small communities alive  

I can now provide a service to improve website search engine rankings ,for example by creating schema maps and using the best keywords appropriately, as well as improving online visibility overall. A website has to be visible in order for potential customers to find the business or service they are looking for. If they don't land on your site, they will use somebody else.

If you have been thinking of starting your own online business I would say that it is challenging and stimulating but never boring. Research your chosen niche carefully to make sure that there is enough demand, then go for it! I cover this topic in another post here:

How to Choose a Profitable Niche Market for Your Small Business

A Big Lesson for Small Business Owners

Recently I went to get a new tyre from my local tyre shop. I always get great service there at a very competitive price. It's not a fancy place though, as they mostly handle used tyres from written off vehicles of all shapes and sizes. It's a popular place but it's really just a huge yard stacked out with mountains of tyres in different sizes. They also have a small workshop where they fix punctures and do all that mysterious wheel balancing stuff etc.

I was last there only six months ago but today the regular chap was nowhere to be seen. Instead there were two guys with foreign accents who I have never seen before. The place was transformed - all tidied up and organised so neatly, with all the tyres racked up according to their size, every tyre correctly labelled with white chalk. There were neat, printed signs prominently displayed, showing the price ranges for the various tyre sizes. and contact phone numbers for these two guys, together with their names. They both wore t-shirts with their name, contact number and the company name on the back. There was also a new, covered area for working under. It was like the place had been given a complete face-lift and it looked so much more professional. 

Usually the tyres are in heaps and they have to do a bit of searching for what a customer wants, although the boss is so skilled he knows exactly what he's looking for, just with a glance. I asked the guy who served me if he was now the owner. 

"No", he replied, "I just work here, but I asked if we could improve it and the boss really liked it." 

I told him I liked it too and made a joke with him, asking if he had got more pay as he deserved it.

"No," he said, "but it doesn't matter." 

He was clearly proud to have made such a difference. Although he probably hadn't worked there long, the boss was obviously open to suggestions for improvement and the effect was remarkable. That shop had been exactly the same for years and it probably was doing ok. However, just a few ideas from a fresh pair of eyes has taken it to another level. I can't wait to see how the business is changed the next time I visit.

Conclusion

So - employers and leaders, whatever size your business, involve your team and ask for their ideas. They might just make a huge impact that you never would have thought of.

Do you have any stories of employees being involved in change-making? I would love to hear them.

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