They say life is
a marathon not a sprint. You need to take calculated steps if you want to get
to your destination. In 2008, Singapore experienced a major digital boom that
saw a rapid increase in businesses setting up websites to promote their
products. Entrepreneurs also started to embrace the power of social media
marketing just like other countries such as the United States.
As an entrepreneur, I noticed this shift in the market and as a professional digital marketer with vast hands-on experience in (search engine optimization) and (search engine marketing), I decided to start a company, Media-One Marketing, that would offer comprehensive digital marketing services specifically to businesses in Singapore.
Long story short, I have been running the company for more than a decade now and take pride in the tremendous success we have achieved so far. Here are 6 important life lessons that I have learnt so far about starting an online business in the world.
You start with what you have
This is one of the crucial lessons that I have learnt and still apply to-date despite the fact that the company is now a fully-fledged digital marketing agency. I started with my knowledge about digital marketing, search engine marketing, and search engine optimization. My zeal and determination to make a lasting positive impact on society by helping businesses succeed helped my company grow.
Lesson: Yes, you
have a dream but you are not sure what you should do to accomplish it. Make the
first step by using what you have on your hands right now. As they say, you
don’t have to see the entire staircase, just take the first step and the
universe will do the rest.
Keep learning and acquiring new skills
As an
entrepreneur who is focussed on making it in life, do not settle for what you
have, that is, the skills and resources at your disposal. You need to keep on
learning and acquiring new skills so that you can continue to offer the best
services to your customers. The skills will also help you to get ahead of the
competition.
Since I started
the company, I have attended hundreds of conferences around the world and
enrolled for courses related to my niche. Both have given me leverage in the
market and that is why we are the leading provider of holistic but affordable
digital marketing services in Singapore.
Life Lesson:
Keep learning and acquiring new skills. Do not settle and feel contended by
what you have at the moment. You are only limited by your imagination.
The power of networking with industry leaders
One article is
not enough to list and explain the relationships that I have established with
industry leaders not only here is Singapore but also abroad. Through sharing
ideas and describing our success stories, I have learnt a lot about life and
the business world.
For example, I
remember meeting a
professional website designer who was instrumental in creating our website.
He helped redesign the pages to resonate with the goals and objectives I wanted
to achieve.
Life Lesson: No
man is an island. Irrespective of your current position, you need to network
with other industry leaders. The only way to do that is by attending
conferences and other events that are relevant to your industry or the business
you want to start.
Focus on solving the customer’s problem
This is probably
one of the most important lessons that I have learnt so far through experience.
Every client has his specific needs and interests. As a business owner, you
need to strive to understand the problem each client wants resolved before you
even offer the service or product.
I remember
during the first phase of my business, I would lose clients due to lack of
adequate information of what they want done.