Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Tyron Pretorius, Founder of The Workflow Pro, located in San Diego, CA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
The Workflow Pro is an online marketing operations blog focused on the Marketo marketing automation platform and the Zapier automation tool. Alongside detailed step-by-step blog posts, shared code snippets, walkthrough videos, and an online course, the aim is to enable marketing operations professionals to streamline and automate their processes.
Tell us about yourself
I started working on my blog during the pandemic when I realized how competitive it was on freelance platforms like Upwork. I wanted my website to showcase all the cool projects I was doing at work to help me get freelance work. I also wanted to share this knowledge to help others. Getting a nice comment from someone via email or on one of my YouTube videos always brightens my day and keeps me motivated to stay inside, making content when I could be out playing volleyball and spike ball on the beach here in San Diego.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Above all, I am proudest of launching the Marketo API Crash Course on my site. I spent from February until June of 2022 working on the course, and so far, the work is paying off. Testimonials from people who have completed the course have been fantastic, and I have made $5000+ in sales.
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
If you are running your business on the side on top of a 9-5 job, the toughest thing is the sacrifices you have to make in your personal life. I live in sunny San Diego, so it is always hard to stay inside writing blog posts or recording videos when I know I could be outside playing volleyball or hiking. When you make sacrifices like this, it makes you question whether the business you are working on is worth the effort. So my advice to entrepreneurs starting out is to validate your idea before pouring tonnes of time into it and to set up ways of tracking success to keep yourself motivated. For me, this was setting up the Google Search Console and seeing my organic search results improving every month.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Validate your idea before pouring tonnes of time into it, and start with the things most likely to cripple your idea and make it a no-go. If it passes these initial trials of fire, then you likely have some time worth pursuing.
- Set up ways of tracking success to keep yourself motivated. For me, this was setting up the Google Search Console and seeing my organic search results improving every month.
- Don't get bogged down in formalities like creating a legal entity, creating a business bank account, etc.; if you worry about this stuff, you will never get started. Get to work on the important things needed to prove your business, and once you have validated your idea and scaled to a point where these formalities are holding you back, then you can do them.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://theworkflowpro.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tyron.pretorius.73
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paddy_pretorius/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PretoriusTyron
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tyronpretorius/
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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