Business Marketing Magazine Summer 2017 Summer2017 | Page 32

The Business of
Family
A
s a solopreneur, I wear many hats. Who
am I kidding: I wear all the hats! Like
many solopreneurs, I excel in some
areas and struggle in others, but I am always
learning and willing to adjust my behaviors
and try new strategies around meeting new
people who need my services. My goal is to
be introduced to new people every day, to
get them excited about my business, and to
persuade them to work with me. In order for
me to do that, I must know exactly what my
clients need. What is the void that I can fill?
Most businesses fall under one of two differ-
ent models: retail or service. But what if your
business is a mixture of these two models—a
hybrid of some sort? What if you were selling
an experience that will turn into something
tangible but, presently, is just an idea? How
do you get people interested in that unique,
one-of-a-kind, personalized gift of their life-
time?
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Retail stores have something readily available
for you to buy; customers can be instantly
gratified. If they are looking for a scarf, your
store may have many to choose from. If they
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are hungry, your restaurant can make them a
taco. Service-related business can clean your
house every week so you can spend more
time with your family; if the oil in your car
needs to be changed, the service station on
the corner can do it for you in 15 minutes and
let you mess.
I don’t provide a ready-made item or a quick
service as my product. So how do I get peo-
ple to say,” Yes! I need that!” My approach
is all about personal relationships—the rela-
tionship that clients and I have, as well as the
relationships they have with who they are. As
the founder and principal of Red Artichoke
Stories, my goal is to provide a solution to
personal emotions around loss. And as we all
know, emotions drive many of our decisions.
My passion is to collect and preserve my cli-
ents’ stories before they are lost or forgotten.
In this way, my customers can share them-
selves and their beliefs with those they care
about now and to help introduce themselves
to future generations.
Think about family members who have passed
or maybe even those you never knew. What