Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in business solutions but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Dan Knauss, Founder of New Local Media, located in Edmonton, AB, Canada.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
New Local Media started as an open-source web design and development consultancy focused on content management and e-commerce projects in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where I lived for a long time and expected to remain settled. "New Local Media" reflected that focus and commitment to helping local organizations use media technology to speak and relate to their constituents and customers effectively and authentically. I ended up moving and eventually leaving the country, but I kept my original local clients and added more from the places I lived next.
Most of my clients have been small to mid-sized local businesses and non-profits that are well-established or just starting out. Some of the well-established ones were just starting out when my relationship with them began. Most of those long-term clients were connected to social entrepreneurship projects and circles of people who want to support things like independent journalism, environmental advocacy, progressive urban redevelopment, local politics, local food systems, sustainability, and affordable housing. They're trying to solve problems that matter, think cooperatively, are willing to try new things, and value a "less is more" ethic. My approach to web design projects has always been consultative and a way to discover solutions, remove barriers, and support the larger goals of my clients in a very collaborative, personal, hands-on way. It's almost always harmful to focus reductively on technical implementation without asking how and why someone is using a tool in the first place.
In the last decade, the focus of my work has shifted to writing and editing, but that is always a bigger part of new website rollouts and redesigns than most people realize. I approach everything as a writer. I try to work out the tools and messages that are needed to flesh out each client's story and enable them to tell it better. I avoid the word "content," but I've always supported content-based design. I would rather talk about narrative or story-based design and planning that's aligned with an overarching vision. You can map out any creative or problem-solving project in terms of its storyline and what fits or loses the plot.
Tell us about yourself
Open-source software and the open web got me interested in what was possible to do on your own in the late 1990s. Eventually, people wanted to hire me for projects. The enormous growth of the WordPress platform led to it becoming the essentially only platform I use. Doing flexible contract work allowed me to stay at home with my daughters when they were young and be involved in my community. All of these things were motivational and circled around the ideas of freedom that is foundational to WordPress and open source.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
There have been times when I had a business partner and worked with other contractors, but for the most part, the business I own is me and my time. Having that freedom and flexibility has a lot of benefits, and I'm proud of that, but mostly for what it allows me to do outside of the work I get paid to do. In particular, freelancing subsidized the shadow work of raising my children and volunteering in my community.
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
You have to take care of all the details that can't be automated or delegate them well, but you're still responsible for the outcomes.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Don't go alone — find peer support in networks and mentors.
- If you're freelancing or working from home, establish strong barriers around your time, space, and money. Balancing work, family, and social life gets a lot harder if you don't clock in and out in a separate workspace and reinvest in yourself and your business.
- Think about the end of the story — where your business ends in the best and worst imaginable ways. Aim for the best, plan for the worst, and be flexible — always have an alternative move to cope with whatever comes along.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://newlocalmedia.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NewLocalMedia/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/dan_knauss
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danknauss/
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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