fourtyfour - I am completely blown away by your attention to detail and your incredible craftsmanship, I can only dream of having your skill.
As a small business owner, I have a quick question for you if you don't mind - what has been the best avenue for finding customers? How did you build brand awareness and market yourself?
Thanks and keep up the incredible work! Look forward to keeping an eye on this thread.
Thanks for the kind words. As a small business owner, this is my second business I've started. I learned A LOT by owning a small one man product/graphic design consultancy for 10 years. I had clients both very small local and very large global types. It taught me a lot about listening and providing expertise on the service end of what takes to run a business. It also just taught me a lot about the nuts and bolts of running a business. Not to say I have all this dialed, I still make mistakes and sometimes paperwork doesn't get done as quick as it should... but that's just something that happens when you do everything. Sometimes it just has to wait. Other times it can't. You just need to find a balance for yourself.
But as far as starting 44 Bikes and then getting clients I actually spent quite a bit of time (actually quite a lot of time) watching the custom bicycle market from the side lines. I also spent a lot of leg work getting the business's Brand image built and dialed even before I had hung out the shingle. What I've noted about my market, the custom bicycle market, is that stereotypically a builder will start the business, tool up, invest heavily in the space, tools etc and then on top of that start running a business and perhaps even have a skills gap in there whether it be actually making the bikes, running a business or even just having some plan for the business. So basically all this money is ******* in space/materials/tools and on top of that, they now need to sell not only the name but also the brand itself. That's what I observed and what i wanted to avoid. Any business small or large, the first 5 years are the most critical. You can't grow too fast otherwise you'll get ahead of yourself. At the same time, you ideally should have your craft wired so you can free up that mental/physical space and time to learning how to run a business and getting used to the ebb and flow of how a business grows.
I'm a firm believer in slow, steady, patient growth. Key word is patience. Orders and sales don't happen overnight. You need to put your best foot forward when you start a business. That means the name, the "story" the look, everything that someone see's about that business should be TIGHT. This really helps to build confidence with the customer to show them it's not some fly by night operation. Confidence and reputation are everything and treating all your clients or potential customers equally is huge. No question or no inquiry is ever not answered. Even if it's the most trivial or tire kicking stupid type of question and fishing. There's limits, but that's what customer service is all about: Knowing your limits is key, but also understanding and treating everyone equally is huge. As they say: What goes around, comes around. Treat your customer how you want to be treated and it comes back 10 fold.
Getting clients in my business is about reputation and quality of work. I did not get here overnight. Nothing came easy. I work hard as we all do. I also work smart - there's a huge difference there to achieving balance with running a business. But mostly my work has come by word of mouth based on just how much I put myself "out there" for all to see. I tell my story, I share what I do and I do it consistently as i build the business. I've built a sound network leveraging powerful social media tools - all of which have cost nothing. I've done the occasional custom bicycle show but that is not really where I am "selling". Clients have come from word of mouth and built up from the reputation of the community who I have sold to. So their experience has been passed along through that network.
Understanding your market is key and understanding what that network is and how it works is equally as important. Basically you need to do a lot of homework and observe the market you're looking to break into which is what I did. Most will agree from that world that I basically came out of no where. No one new who I was as that community of builders is much like a family tree. I came from outside that network but was able to establish myself within it because of the work but also because I did my homework too.
I also put my best foot forward developing the brand. If you are going to start a business, you can not half-*** anything. That also reflects on the business itself too whether it's apparent to you or not. People notice and people do talk within your market/community. But you need to thorough understand your market before you attempt to sell to it. I won't say I'm an expert, but I know just enough to be dangerous and I think that is a big reason why I have been growing as I have.
Slow and steady. Best foot forward. Do your best work. Put yourself out there. Treat everyone equally. It will come back.
