Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in marketing services but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Henry Purchase, Founder of SEOSpace, located in Wolverhampton, Staffordshire, UK.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
I have three businesses:
SEOSpace: An easy-to-use, jargon-free SEO plugin that provides any Squarespace user with actionable insights to improve their rankings and get more organic traffic to their website. We're also building the largest, free resource hub for everything Squarespace SEO across SEOSpace and my YouTube channel.
ROUGH WATER MEDIA: An SEO and content marketing agency that specialises in B2B SaaS and technology companies. These companies tend to be Seed Stage - Series B.
A Couple Things To Do: A couple's travel blog, which I run with my girlfriend, which helps couples uncover the best things to do across the world. This blog is on Squarespace and helped me identify the need for a Squarespace SEO plugin.
Tell us about yourself
A big reason I got into business was my dad - he was a construction worker/bricklayer at 15 and slowly built his own business over 30 years. He's a massive inspiration to me and led to me always wanting to start my own business. Another big reason/motivation for me in business is scale - with a software company, you can help thousands, possibly hundreds of thousands of people get closer to their goals, which is extremely exciting!
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
I would say getting offered £290,000 funding for my previous software company - I love software, and the process of building the product, attracting customers, and getting offered funding, in that case, was a huge accomplishment for me that I'm looking to build on with my current businesses.
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
Not being able to switch off. I'm currently working remotely in Asia, and on the surface, it seems glamorous, but in reality, it's lots of long hours, struggling to switch off and enjoy time with friends and family, and a persistent pressure to deliver. Of course, I'm incredibly lucky and love most days, but it certainly is hard!
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Start a side hustle/project: if you want to grow something big, you have to start small. Starting on a side hustle gives you the fantastic opportunity to learn and grow as an entrepreneur until you start sometime else or that takes off. That's what I did with my travel blog, which quickly led to my Squarespace SEO plugin.
- Surround yourself with people who can help: You're the average of your 5 closest people. If you aspire to grow a business, surround yourself with people who motivate you or help you get there, as opposed to dragging you back.
- Enjoy the journey: Having big goals and hustling as an entrepreneur is great, but don't get too focused on the end destination. Your best memories and most enjoyable times will be when you started and were getting things off the ground - just start and enjoy the ride!
Where can people find you and your business?
Website (Marketing): https://www.seospace.co.uk/
Website (Marketing): https://www.roughwatermedia.com/
Website (Blog): https://www.acouplethingstodo.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs9faCvwvBX-K4j66h52Jkg
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/henry-purchase/
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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