Be the expert.
It has been way too long since I blogged; but I think its important, so I am going to try to start being better about it.
I read a book that my mother gave me called “Raising Eyebrows”, it is a story about the foundation of Tweezerman, you know, the tweezers that you see in Walgreens and lots of other stores. It was a fantastic book, I may try to include a link to it; but seriously, the advice that he gave was so practical. Dal LaMagna, the founder, is a perfect picture of entrepreneurial ADD. He tried so many different businesses; but he settled on one that no one else really was that interested in, and he perfected it. He became the industry expert on tweezers… On Tweezermans home page, it says, “Tweezerman, the beauty tool experts.”
Drew Hanlen, a student at Belmont University, and founder of Pure Sweat Basketball, said some very inspirational things this morning about branding. He was talking about another students business; but his comment was true for everyone. “You have to become an expert in whatever field you are into be successful.” For him, he is an expert in basketball fitness. When someone meets with Drew, they know this, this is how he has branded himself and his business.
Since I began to pursue my entrepreneurial dreams a few years ago, I have had many ideas and considered starting a lot of them. Recently though, I had a moment when I realized that I need to pick something and stick to it. I don’t get much done when I am all over the place with ideas. What good are ideas if none of them happen.
DormStor.com is my business, and it is something that I am excited about. Yeah, to most people that sounds like the most boring idea ever; but I am not most people and it sounds like a lot of fun to me.
Over the next year, with the help of my mentors, I will become the industry expert on student storage and shipping, as well as the lifestyles of students living on campus. I am branding my business differently than most would; but I believe because I am promoting it differently and more efficiently, that it will be to my benefit. By the end of the year, I want everyone to know what DormStor is, and I believe that by staying focused and becoming the expert, I can do that.
RCH
