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Whatever you call yourself–“freelancer,” “consultant,” or “solopreneur”–you’re getting by just fine as your own boss. You’re regularly pulling in a comfortable five-figure income, and it feels good answering to nobody but yourself. But now you’re ready to think bigger. You want to build your solo operation into a proper company by making a few key hires and expanding your customer base beyond the handful of clients that just you yourself can personally manage. Here’s what it takes to make that happen.
無論你是將自己稱為一名“自由職業(yè)者”，“顧問”還是“個體企業(yè)家”，你都可以算作是自己的老板。你常常能輕輕松松地就擁有五位數(shù)的收入，不用對別人做出交代，只對自己負責(zé)也讓人感到身心暢快。但是現(xiàn)在，你已經(jīng)準(zhǔn)備大干一場。你希望通過對幾個重要崗位的招聘，在個人能處理的客戶基礎(chǔ)上擴展客戶群，進而將個人業(yè)務(wù)擴建成一個合適的公司。那么以下幾點就是你所應(yīng)該了解的。
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1.OUTSOURCE BEFORE YOU CAN QUITE AFFORD IT
1. 當(dāng)還能承擔(dān)費用時將業(yè)務(wù)外包
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After two years of running my own business as a solopreneur, I hired a business coach to look at things from an outside perspective and point out a few ways to take everything to the next level. It quickly became clear that if I wanted greater rewards, I’d need to take bigger risks. Most of those came in the form of hiring help–namely a virtual assistant, a video editor, and my own publicist. At the time, these looked to me like expenses I couldn’t easily afford, but I took a chance anyway and it soon paid off.
作為一個個體企業(yè)家經(jīng)營自己的生意兩年后，我聘請了一位商業(yè)指導(dǎo)，請他以一個旁觀者的視角來指出一些方法將現(xiàn)有業(yè)務(wù)提升到一個新的水平。我很快就明白，如果想要更大的收益，我需要承擔(dān)更大的風(fēng)險。而其中大多數(shù)需要雇人幫忙，即聘請一名虛擬助理，一名視頻編輯以及我自己的公關(guān)人員。那時看起來這些費用我很難承擔(dān)得了，但是我還是冒險一試，并且很快就有了回報。
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Other entrepreneurs agree that this type of early investment can be crucial. “There is so much that goes into running an online business, and there’s no possible way that you can do it all,” shares Lori Kennedy, founder of the Wellness Business Hub, which offers personal development and professional training for health and wellness experts.
其他企業(yè)家也認(rèn)為這種早期投資至關(guān)重要。The Wellness Business Hub,一個促進個人發(fā)展和給衛(wèi)生健康專家提供專業(yè)培訓(xùn)的平臺，其創(chuàng)始人Lori Kennedy分享說，“運行在線業(yè)務(wù)涉及太多的事情，你根本沒有辦法可以做到面面俱到”。
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“I learned that lesson quickly. I didn’t want to waste any time trying to code or figure out how to set up webpages. Even though I wasn’t making enough money,” she explains, “I decided to hire a virtual assistant who specialized in tech development to help me get all of my online properties set up properly. It was like I was buying back my time.”
“我快速吸取了這個經(jīng)驗。我不想浪費任何時間去嘗試編寫或弄明白如何創(chuàng)建網(wǎng)頁。盡管我沒有賺到足夠的錢”，她解釋說，“我決定聘請一名專門從事技術(shù)開發(fā)的虛擬助理來幫助我將所有的網(wǎng)頁內(nèi)容進行正確設(shè)置。這就好像是我花錢買回了自己的時間?！?/div>
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2. SCALE UP YOUR AUDIENCE
2.擴大客戶群
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Once you’ve outsourced a few key functions, you need to spend the time you’ve freed up strategically. One of the first things you should do is focus on growing your audience.
一旦將一些主要功能外包之后，你需要有策略地花費富余的時間。而其中應(yīng)該做的首要事情之一就是擴大客戶群。
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Every digital entrepreneur has heard it time and time again: the money is in your email list. “It takes 90 days to attract at least 2,400 new people into your audience on an email list,” says Shanda Sumpter, a business coach and CEO of HeartCore Business. “If you haven’t built a list yet and are busy trying to build a website, work on your branding, or create products, then stop!” Sumpter says.
每個數(shù)字企業(yè)家總是能一次又一次地聽到下面這句話：收益就在你的電子郵件列表中。HeartCore的商業(yè)指導(dǎo)兼首席執(zhí)行官Shanda Sumpter表示：“僅吸引2,400名新的客戶進入你的郵件列表就需要90天時間。” Sumpter說：“如果你還沒有建立一個列表，而且還正在忙于創(chuàng)建網(wǎng)頁，品牌或者產(chǎn)品，那么你真的該停下了！”
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Those are all important projects, but they can come later. When you’re trying to transform your freelance work into a full-fledged startup, your critical next step is to “give your potential clients what they want,” she explains, and “the only way you can do that is to ask them”–ideally by email. “Focus your energy on creating a list of subscribers” before you turn toward any other business-branding projects.
雖然這些也是重要的項目，但可以暫且擱置，稍后處理。然而當(dāng)你嘗試將自己的自由職業(yè)工作轉(zhuǎn)化為一個完整的創(chuàng)業(yè)公司時，關(guān)鍵的下一步應(yīng)是“為潛在客戶提供他們想要的”，她解釋說，“而且唯一的辦法就是直接詢問他們”——最理想的方式則是通過電子郵件。在轉(zhuǎn)向任何其他商業(yè)品牌項目之前，“集中精力創(chuàng)建一份客戶列表”。
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Not sure where to start? Here are a few tips from Fast Company’s own newsletter editor Cayleigh Parrish, on the nuts and bolts of launching a high-impact email newsletter.
不知道從哪下手？以下是Fast Company的通訊編輯Cayleigh Parrish的幾個小提示，介紹了發(fā)布一則高影響力的電子郵件通訊需要的具體細節(jié)。
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3. FOCUS FIRST ON SOLVING A PROBLEM FOR FREE
3.先把注意力放在免費解決一個問題上
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As you work on scaling up your email list, don’t forget about the “know, like, and trust” factor; that’s not only the key to actually getting subscribers, but it’s also what the most meaningful relationship with your startup’s customers will be based on. So instead of just pointing people to your website, offer them content upgrades, lead magnets, and opt-ins. Translation: hand out a free download, checklist, training exercise, or something similar in exchange for email addresses.
當(dāng)你在擴大電子郵件列表時，不要忘記“知道，喜歡和信任”因素的重要性；這不僅是實際獲得客戶的關(guān)鍵，而且也是與公司客戶最有意義的關(guān)系基礎(chǔ)。所以，不應(yīng)該僅僅讓別人訪問你的網(wǎng)站，而是應(yīng)該向他們提供內(nèi)容升級，賣點，并讓他們有權(quán)選擇進入網(wǎng)頁查看與否。翻譯上可以提供免費下載服務(wù)，羅列清單，提供培訓(xùn)練習(xí)或類似的項目以換取電子郵件地址。
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“You should be able to create your lead magnet within 24 hours,” notes Kennedy. “Pull together some of your existing content, and package it into a guide, report, or checklist.” Chances are there’s something you’ve developed in your previous work that you can repurpose–and don’t overthink it. “Remember,” she adds, “your lead magnet has to tie into your program or service offer. It should provide the reader with a quick win.”
肯尼迪說：“你必須得在24小時之內(nèi)形成自己的賣點?！薄皩F(xiàn)有的一些內(nèi)容放在一起，打包成一個指南、報告或清單?！焙芸赡苣銜匦抡{(diào)整之前工作中你形成的內(nèi)容，不要過多考慮這一塊。她補充說，“要牢記：你的賣點必須符合你的項目或提供的服務(wù)。它應(yīng)該為讀者提供一種速勝的感覺?！?/div>
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4. GET REALLY GOOD AT MAKING DEALS OVER THE PHONE
4.善于利用手機進行交易
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I will admit, until this year, I myself had let this one slide a bit. With 2015’s and 2016’s surge in webinars, online classes, and virtual summits, I’d come to rely exclusively on making sales through digital means. But as Sumpter points out, “Everyone wants to sell through a website, and websites don’t make money.”
我承認(rèn)，直到今年，我自己已經(jīng)在這個地方丟掉了一些業(yè)績。隨著2015年和2016年間網(wǎng)絡(luò)研討會、在線課程和虛擬峰會的興起，我將完全依靠通過數(shù)字方式進行銷售。但是正如Sumpter所指出的那樣，“每個人都想通過網(wǎng)站進行銷售，但是網(wǎng)站并不賺錢”。
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“If you want to go from five to six figures,” she says, “you must learn how to sell your product or service over the phone. You build a connection and a rapport that helps you to truly understand their vision, so you can strategize and then share your options that can really make a difference for them.” There’s no substitute for being able to react real-time as somebody weighs a decision, Sumpter adds.
“如果你想讓收益從五位數(shù)跨越到六位數(shù)”，她說，“你必須學(xué)會如何通過電話銷售產(chǎn)品和服務(wù)。你與客戶建立聯(lián)系，鞏固關(guān)系，這可以幫助你真正了解他們的想法，然后你可以為其制定策略，并向他們分享這些真的能夠為他們帶來改變的選擇?！碑?dāng)別人在權(quán)衡決定時，沒有什么可以替代實時的反應(yīng)了，Sumpter補充說。
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“More often than not, even though they know it’s a good idea to take the next step with you, they’ll usually talk themselves out of making a commitment: ‘I don’t have the time, I don’t have the money.’ You have to hold the vision for the person on the other end of the phone to help them overcome their objections,” she says. “The phone = financial freedom.”
“通常情況下，即使他們知道與你進行下一步的交易是一個好主意，他們通常會說服自己不給予承諾：‘我沒有時間，我沒有資金?！惚仨毜迷谑謾C的另一端保持住這個勢頭，幫助他們克服這些拒絕的理由，”她說?！半娫?財務(wù)自由”。
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5. START SUCCESSION-PLANNING EARLY
5. 早點著手繼任計劃
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In the first days of our businesses, most of us solopreneurs are pretty scrappy, wearing the hats of CEO, intern, graphic designer, writer, and sales rep all at once. But there’s a reason you don’t see Tim Cook at the Genius Bar in the Apple Store or Elon Musk servicing Teslas. To truly become the head of your own company, you need to develop the leadership skills to delegate tasks and inspire your vision in others.
在我們從事業(yè)務(wù)的頭一段時間里，大多數(shù)的個體企業(yè)家工作起來毫無章法，我們身兼數(shù)職，既要扮演著CEO，又要當(dāng)公司里的實習(xí)生，平面設(shè)計師，寫作者和銷售代表?？墒悄憧倹]看到蒂姆·庫克（Tim Cook）在蘋果商店的天才吧里招待客人，或是埃倫·馬斯克（Elon Musk）在特斯拉門店里服務(wù)消費者，這總得有個原因。要想真正成為自己公司的領(lǐng)頭人，你需要培養(yǎng)自己的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)能力來委派任務(wù)并用自己的愿景來激發(fā)其他人。
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“In order to stay laser-focused on your key revenue-driving activities, you must have a plan in place to groom a successor,” says Bianca Sprague, cofounder of doula-training company Bebo Mia. That may sound premature, but from the very first hires you make, look for people you could eventually trust to make management-level decisions. After all, if your own duties change when you go from solopreneur to CEO of a startup, they’ll change yet again when your six-figure company adds even more staff–and, eventually, a seventh digit in its revenue count.
助產(chǎn)培訓(xùn)公司Bebo Mia的聯(lián)合創(chuàng)始人Bianca Sprague說：“為了專注于關(guān)鍵的盈利項目，你必須適當(dāng)?shù)刂贫ㄓ媱潄砼囵B(yǎng)一個繼任者?！边@可能聽起來為時尚早，但是你可以從最初聘用的員工中，尋找你可以最終信任的人擁有管理層的決策權(quán)。畢竟，當(dāng)你從一個個體企業(yè)家變成一個創(chuàng)業(yè)公司的CEO時，職責(zé)有所變化，那么當(dāng)你六位數(shù)收益的企業(yè)增加更多的員工時，且最后還有七位數(shù)進賬，你的職責(zé)將再一次發(fā)生轉(zhuǎn)變。
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