Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in business services but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Adrienne Barnes, Founder of Best Buyer Persona, located in Fort Worth, TX, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
I'm the founder and Principal Researcher at Best Buyer Persona. A research service serving B2B SaaS companies that need to know their customers better. We take the founder's questions about their customers and run strategic research projects that uncover insights that help them across the organization.
Tell us about yourself
I started as a freelance writer for B2B SaaS companies. I noticed that most of my clients didn't understand their customers with clarity and in a way that linked directly to marketing initiatives. So, I began studying how to learn about customers. I studied jobs to be done, buyer interviews, survey design, digital intelligence, and social listening or ethnography, which led to offering research as a service.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
I've built this business on my own. I built it while homeschooling three elementary-age children and moving to a pecan farm. I'm proud of each client I get to work with and every person I've met. But my biggest accomplishment happens daily; it's showing up every single day. Even if I'm scared, feel a little lost, or aren't sure if I'm headed in the right direction or making the right choices, I still choose to work on this business every day. And that's a huge accomplishment.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
The hardest part about being a business owner is getting in your own way. Most of the challenges are not due to a lack of skill or talent but rather due to doubting myself. Trusting my gut and knowing that I belong there when I walk into a room has been incredibly hard but rewarding.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Pick something that interests you. If you're just in it to make money, you'll wear yourself out real soon.
- Make as many friends as you can. Friends and referrals are the backbones of my (and everyone's) business.
- Be ok with making mistakes. It's not a matter of if you make a mistake; it's just when, and when you do, the best thing you can do is admit it, apologize for it, learn from it, and move on.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://bestbuyerpersona.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AdrienneNakohl
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrienne-barnes-2001/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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