The Venture Update

Anyway, it’s been a really long while since I’ve updated you on my business ventures. Honestly, I’ve been so busy with everything that’s been happening with this new business. But I’m so stoked to tell you all about it! Since the last time I blogged about my journey, it must have been back in May. Ever since then, I’ve just been focused on writing articles and forgot to write about my entrepreneurial journey. How could I forget the reason why I started this blog in the first place?

The truth?

I wasn’t exactly sure where this blog was going. I also had forgotten how therapeutic writing was. I’ve been so caught up with my projects that I began to neglect my blog. So many things have happened over the past few months!

What’s New?

Instagram

I started to really take my Instagram game seriously.

I started posting once a day almost every single day and went from 40 followers to 1,000 followers organically! I mean, that’s a HUGE milestone for me. I also hosted my first ever contest giveaway to celebrate this new victory. It may not seem like much for some but for me it’s such a big accomplishment because I’ve tried growing my old Belleluxe account for my shopify store last year and did manage to grow it to about 1,300 followers. However, 500 of those followers were bought because I wanted to experiment with it and see how it worked.

Never again!

One thing I definitely would NOT recommend is buying followers. You get nothing out of it except a higher number of followers and I realized it’s not a numbers game. It’s about community, engagement and interaction. It’s about following, commenting and liking other people’s photos and building relationships.

Never forget the “social” in social media!

Ever since I started shifting my mindset to think this way, the numbers just started to grow on its own and I’ve been able to make friends with people from all over the world! It’s really quite amazing the power of social media when used correctly. As long as you are able to understand this, you will be able to generate leads, build relationships and grow your opportunities like no other!

One thing I’ve started to notice is how draining social media can be. Holy.. I can definitely see how this can be a full-time job. Especially as you get more and more popular and continue engaging with people, you’ll find yourself easily spending at least 30 min just replying to every comment that’s been made on your post. I try to limit as much time spent on social media as much as possible these days and try to keep it to 60 min a day max (so hard though!)

QUICK TIP

Set a timer. Otherwise you can be scrolling and commenting for hours and not realize how much time passes! Give yourself a break from time to time and never let social media get in the way of your family and friends.

Facebook

Those of you who have been following my journey know that I’ve been trying to grow the Hustle Nation Facebook Group. Last time I mentioned about it, the group was around 90 people. Today, it’s still at 93.

That’s because I haven’t been actively trying to promote the group and quickly realized that the people I was adding to the group were not very interactive or engaging. I’d rather people join on their own.

Hence, Hustle Nation quickly died.

I kept posting with little to no interaction for some time and finally decided it was not worth my time. I no longer focused on growing the group and instead, started a new Facebook Group with one of my closest friends and named it Boss Babe Imperial; a group focused on connecting and building a community of women entrepreneurs in Montreal. It’s much more niche-specific and I want to see if it will get somewhere. I realize how much better I get along with women so I decided it was much better to narrow down the target market instead of trying to cater to two different markets.

Are you in Montreal and interested in joining? Do you have a business, would like to start one or interested in personal development? You may join us here.

Apart from that, I’ve been mustering up the courage to post more on my timeline for people to know what I do instead of posting things exclusively on my pages or groups. It’s definitely made a difference that’s for sure because a lot of people have been reaching out to me more often and I’ve been able to rekindle lost friendships which has helped me a lot in my new e-commerce business.

Freelancing

Since my Instagram has grown so much, I’ve been getting more and more companies to notice me.

A couple of months ago, a wellness company called Oriwest reached out to me via Instagram and much to my surprise, asked me if I wanted to collaborate.

I was beyond speechless.

I couldn’t believe it happened. At the time I probably had about 600-700 followers too which was quite a small following.

They liked my writing and design style and the way I took all of my photos so they asked me if I was interested in trying out their products and helping them to promote their brand. I immediately agreed and arranged to meet up with the co-founder in person since she was in town. She was such a sweetheart and we had so much in common! It was a wonderful experience meeting her face to face.

To be honest, I was very nervous and quite anxious because I didn’t have much experience and didn’t really know what to expect. When she asked me how much I was charging, I completely blanked out. Right away, I went online to do some research that night.

It was my first ever collaboration and I was afraid I was going to completely screw up this opportunity.

Regardless, I stuck with it and gave it my all and to this day, I’m still learning! I’m slowly helping them to spread brand awareness and am currently working to revamp their website, fix up their content and write up some blog posts.

I’ve never been happier! I must admit, sometimes it does feel like a chore but I’m willing to put in the work to learn and do what I can to become better every day.

SHOP.com

One of the biggest projects I started since mid-August (and also the most exciting) however, is my SHOP.com e-commerce business that focuses on one-to-one marketing.

Now before you start jumping into any conclusions, let me clear this up. It is not a pyramid scheme.

Why?

Because the person at the top who sponsors people isn’t the only one making all the money. Instead, it is a business model that uses a vertical structure instead of the traditional horizontal structure. A model that very much aligns with my vision. A team-based approach.

What does this mean?

It means everyone benefits 100% from each other’s efforts and the best way to succeed is to help and support each other as a team.

Let me explain, SHOP.com uses a points-based system to encourage team learning and support. I guess you can say, it’s kind of like a game. Which, in my opinion, makes the business kind of.. fun. Not to mention how much I’ve grown since I started. Faster than I ever thought possible!

Since embarking on this new venture, I’ve met the most amazing like-minded people. Tons of entrepreneurs worldwide; all willing to help each other out like one big family even if they’re not financially related. Also, what’s neat is that many of the people I’ve had the privilege to meet have already started a company of their own and has this business on the side as an extra source of income or as a way to complement their current businesses.

I absolutely LOVE it.

Hence, why I say it is definitely NOT a pyramid scheme.

The structure of all those MLM (multi-level marketing) or network marketing companies you see out there such as 5linx, ACN, Mary Kay and Arbonne for example are all pretty much similar and do have potential to succeed. But what makes this company stand out from among any other company is their business model.

We sell pretty much all of your everyday essentials from high-quality house cleaning products to weight-loss solutions, health supplements, skincare, makeup, pet care.. you name it! So instead of focusing on only one area of expertise such as makeup, I can choose to become an expert in baby products as well.

There’s just so much room for growth!

Did I also mention that can get paid to shop? I won’t go too much into detail about that but basically, we’ve paired up with over 3,500+ partner stores and big name brands such as Nike, Hudson Bay, Best Buy, Wal-mart, etc to provide people with a way to convert their everyday spending into earnings! How amazing is that?

Best of all? It’s completely FREE to make an account. Start getting cashback by making an account here.

The reason I started this business was because I was determined to learn how to sell. I was also extremely curious about whether or not things would turn out differently for me compared to my college days when I first got involved in MLM. I made 0 sales back then.

Today, I won’t lie. I’ve made 2 sales but hey, a HUGE progress from back then! I mean, not bad for someone whose naturally very shy and have never found herself closing any sales (only once) regardless of all the MLM companies she tried.

It’s such a huge motivation for me to be able to get 2 sales within a span of 2 and a half months. What an accomplishment for me! And I don’t intend to stop there! It also helps a lot the fact that this business aligns perfectly well with my vision to stand up for and inspire others. SHOP.com allows me to sponsor new budding entrepreneurs as a part of my team and mentor them to be the best they can be!

What more can I ask for?

Conclusion