The most frequent question we get asked at Synthesis is, “How can I grow my business?” One reason we get asked is folks know I started the business 18 years ago in a spare bedroom with a $1600.00 Compaq computer – state of the art with 40 mg of ram and hard drive! That, and a determination my business would pay its own way.
Gary and I both had corporate jobs but when I got the idea to offer ‘left-brain service to right-brain creative thinkers’, I knew the only way to begin was, well, to begin. I poured through the Yellow Pages and targeted the right-brainiest people I knew: photographers and artists.
At that time, I faxed letters of introduction, (cheaper than mail and email was not as common.) I also spread the word through family and friends; and every job I earned, I finished on-time and in- or under-budget. My first year I netted a profit of $172.86. We’ve been consistently profitable ever since through consistent, intentional growth.
Never Stop Marketing; Do My Best – not by me, but by my client. Wouldn’t it have been smarter to drag out a job just a little longer to garner more revenue? (After all, I am paid by the hour!) Absolutely not! I knew then as I know now that value breeds success and success has a way of building upon its own foundation.
As technology increased, so did our methods of marketing. I came across this marketing piece I sent out January of 2000:
Prior to this, I was mailing monthly tip sheets (28 lb paper cut into postcard size by hand!) This was my digital launch!
Here we are a dozen years later - 2012, still marketing by mail and email (no longer by fax, though!) and word of mouth. We continue to say to each other, “Let’s not bill that time – part of it was our own learning curve.” We continue to bill in 15-minute increments and haven’t had a price increase in years. Our business, too, continues to grow.
Our thinking? We would rather be working full-time at a reasonable hourly rate than sitting on the couch thinking we are worth $180.00 per hour.
How do you grow your business? One client at a time and NEVER, NEVER stop marketing – in whatever grassroots method you can afford and are willing to undertake.
Barbara Rogoff opened the doors of Synthesis in 1994 with one client and a great idea: give high-touch detailed service with integrity and consistency. After spending 20+ years in corporate as right-hand to three different CEOs, Barbara learned the importance of organization and keeping a sense of humor!
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