The entrepreneurial journey can be a rollercoaster. Full of highs and lows, it is not for the faint-hearted and requires a unique skill set. However, the most important part is being able to monetize your passion, especially if you are self-funded.
I initially built WILD as a side hustle and ran it alongside a full-time job for almost three years before I left to focus on WILD full time. I always recommend people build a side hustle first. It’s a great way to test out ideas and see if they are viable and monetizable.
I am personally passionate about supporting entrepreneurs in becoming visible, building a leadership brand, leading the community for social impact and generating revenue.
Let’s explore 4 ways to monetize your business:
- Building and leading community – a common pitfall I see with new entrepreneurs is starting a new business without building a community first. I started WILD back in 2018 by organizing events for women leaders in the UAE and building a community that now spans Saudi Arabia and other GCC countries. I had the WILD community for two years before I started upselling WILD products and services. This meant I had credibility, a network and thus low-hanging fruit when it came to selling our services. Build community first and never be short of clients.
- Craft your Leadership Brand – It is important to niche down, get specific on the market and client you want to serve, and decide, ‘What am I known for?’. This is how you develop a leadership brand. You can then position yourself on social media as the leader authority expert in your field. I am known for gender equality and female leadership, which means everything we do at WILD supports this niche. I write thought leadership content and articles and get invited to public speaking on stages. You need to be visible and have as much exposure as possible. This will generate leads and revenue.
- Events and Masterclasses – events have been a core component of what we do at WILD. From large events to smaller online masterclasses. They are a great way to generate leads. Events serve many purposes, from bringing the community together to gaining social proof for your leadership brand, creating photos for content, and building a database for email marketing. The trick is to offer as much value as possible during the events and sell your offers at the end. The audience is bought into you and what you can offer, then ultimately, wants to work with you! Events attract sponsorship and ticket sales which is another income stream.
- Be Visible – if you are not visible, you are invisible. People can only work with you and buy your products when you are seen. Women in particular, fear putting themselves out there. This includes networking at industry events and trade shows, being on a panel talk, working your way up to moderating a panel and perhaps a keynote talk. Visibility is key when it comes to monetizing your business.
It is important to note that cash is king, and whatever business you build, you need to be able to monetize it.
