Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Robin & Jesper, digital marketing & social media instructors based in Paphos, Cyprus.

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

We teach digital marketing through online courses. Our primary customers are younger people looking to develop or start a new career in digital marketing without paying for expensive degrees.

Tell us about yourself

We started as two young guys who were pretty confused about our lives. Having worked stable 9-5 labour jobs, we both wanted to take our lives in a more passionate direction and decided to educate ourselves to become personal trainers. It was at this education back in 2015 that we first met. After one year of education, we began working full-time as personal trainers in different gyms in Stockholm. While the feeling of helping people was great at first, being limited in your role of helping people–and forced into the same location day in and day out started to get the best of us.

We decided that we needed to take our lives in a different direction that wasn't as limited to a single location and the same times every day. So we started creating YouTube videos and multiple websites. YouTube really took off, and we eventually had millions of views on our channel. Around this time, Pat Flynn was running a business called Smart Passive Income, and he had just released his first online course. And that course, earn more than tripled his best affiliate marketing income he had earned prior. So we decided that this ability to grow a YouTube channel and websites we'd developed surely was knowledge others had to be interested in as well.

So we started creating online courses on both fitness and marketing, but only the latter really took off. When we started getting our first sales and reviews that elaborated on how helpful the course had been to them–we knew that this was something we really wanted to focus on. And the rest is history! Today we have the honor of helping people make real life-altering changes to their lives, and at the same time, we get to earn a living through workouts, being location-bound, and working our own schedules.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Reading reviews of people starting up their own businesses and getting that job they always wanted thanks to taking our courses. It's really heartwarming to know that our products are changing people's lives and that we've done a great business out of selling high-quality courses at very affordable prices.

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

To be honest, it's getting started. We built several business models that, in one way or another, failed. This is such ungrateful work as we sacrificed every single weekend and summer vacation to build this business for 2 years with nothing to show for it–and working a full-time job on the side. But once you DO get the ball going, it just gets easier and easier.

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

  1. Model what works. Don't reinvent the wheel; look to those who have already succeeded and see how you can improve it. This is the easiest way to get started.
  2. Do what works. Once you've modeled off others' success, you will start noticing that YOUR business is different. Some things you do will work, and other things will fail. Do more of what works for YOU and less of what doesn't. Sounds simple, but you'll likely notice yourself forgetting about this one over and over when you're in the trenches. Just always come back to doing more of what works and less of what doesn't.
  3. Consistency is key. There will be good days, and there will be bad days; regardless, the work will be the same. Don't look for motivation–that's a finite source. Look for routines; they'll guarantee you get the work done without the energy drain of indecisiveness.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://robinandjesper.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RobinochJesper/

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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