Do you tell people your business story? If not, why not? You might think its unremarkable and well, maybe a bit boring, but it’s not. Self-employment might be getting more popular, but if you’ve started your own business you’ve still taken a leap into the unknown. Even if you’ve still got a day job, adding in extra work takes effort.
You might find that sharing the reasons behind the change could be just what your business needs.
Why wouldn’t you share?
There could be any number of reasons why you’re reluctant to tell your business story. If you’re still in full time employment, being too honest about your side business could get you into difficulty. If you want to build your business to help you escape from a job you hate, you may not want your boss to hear about that just yet.
But what if something else is holding you back? Do you think your story is a bit dull? Maybe you just don’t want to blow your own trumpet too loudly. The brutal truth is that if you’re not willing to shout about yourself a bit, you’re probably not going to make it in business. That’s not to say that you need to be boastful. You just need to be able to tell people what you do and how you can help them. If no-one knows you exist they’re not going to work with you.
How it helps your audience
Even if you think that you have a similar story to everyone else, you should still tell it. It’s often the shared stories that help you gain your customers’ trust. I was sent a review copy of a book called ‘Mumpreneur on Fire 3’ recently. It’s produced by the Mum’s in Business Association (MIBA) and features stories written by women in business about their lives and what lead them to start their own business. There are some remarkable stories in there, but it’s the little details that really clicked with me. I loved the familiarity of reading about women who built businesses to suit their families or who had experienced a bereavement and still carried on.
If you’ve got an incredible tale of success against the odds it will certainly win you admiration. But it’s the small details that let your audience recognise you as someone who’s just like them. Other business owners will start to trust you because you have a shred experience. If you’re a parent making products for other parents your story will show them that you understand their needs. It all builds trust over time.
Boosting your reputation
Of course, writing about your story doesn’t just help you to engage with your customers. It helps you to start being recognised within your industry. I write about blogging in my own blog and I talk about it in my networking groups, whether that’s on Facebook or face to face. It’s now got to the point that people are starting to ask me to come and talk to them about blogging and writing in general.
By telling your business story you can start to attract the same kind of attention.
It might sound scary, but the more you do the easier it gets. The real benefit is that it helps people to find you. If someone is looking for your product or service, your business will get mentioned because people know what you do. What’s more, sharing your story helps them to trust you. What could be better than that?
Further reading
If you’d like to pre-order a copy of ‘Mumpreneur on Fire 3’ you can do that here.
To find out more about MIBA, visit their website.
