Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Jessica Hay, Co-Founder of Mud City, located in Chicago, IL, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

Mud City helps to emerge B2B technology companies to stand up their Outbound Sales Engine - typically from scratch. From the implementation of key systems to the management of key people - we construct the ecosystem that makes scalable & repeatable Outbound results possible.

Tell us about yourself

I'm a recovering VP of Sales with a particular passion for Top of Funnel - maybe because it's so often overlooked and so often the actual key to success. After building an Outbound Team at a prior company that successfully won +40% of the Fortune 500 and produced +92% of the total pipeline, I wondered how early-stage companies could benefit from the playbook and set out to share it with them.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Mud City launched in March of 2020 on the literal cliff of the Global Pandemic. In many ways, my biggest accomplishment is surviving as a 100% bootstrapped business in the midst of a pandemic and seeing incredible growth to boot.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

Two things come to mind...There are simply so many things you will not and cannot know until the mistake is made. The role requires endless patience, mostly for yourself. Finally, it can be incredibly lonely if you don't seek out the opposite with intent.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. Those initial documents that guide your company's creation matter - lawyer up and do them right. I'm especially looking at your Co-Founders.
  2. Ensure you are perceived as an expert in your field before you launch - those early believers will be critical to your launch. If you're not quite there - take some time to build your presence, voice, and opinion.
  3. Brush up on your sales skills and become customer obsessed. Every founder must be an evangelist and salesperson at heart.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

Be transparent - or as transparent as possible - about the pains of your journey and leave perfection at the door. It's not possible, so there's no sense in bringing it with you. Your persistence and grit in the face of the inevitable obstacles are your meal ticket and will endear your customers and your team to you when times are tough.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://mudcity.io/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mudcitychi/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mudcitychi
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-watts-a8785540/

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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