How To Start A Business (2023) | Guide For First-Time Entrepreneurs | What I Wish I Knew
Connect with me on Twitter @AndrewLeeReal
In this article, you’re going to learn:
- How to get your own website
- Where to hire freelancers and how to not get scammed
- How to learn to code mobile apps
- How to rank your website on Google
- How to learn Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
- How to build backlinks to your website
- What are the best startup communities on the internet and how to join them
- Why you need to start your email list ASAP and how to do it
- Why you need a mentor and how to get one
- Why you need to document your journey when you’re first starting out and how to do it
- What to do when you’re stuck on coding problems
Who this guide is for:
This guide is mainly for those who are interested in creating their own websites/apps/ecommerce sites.
*Disclaimer:
I’m not affiliated with any of the brands I mention below in any way (besides my website).
I’m also not looking to sell you anything or get you to subscribe to my email lists or anything.
With all of that out of the way..
Here is a massive list of resources and advice about entrepreneurship that I wish I had before I started my first business:
How to hire freelancers and how to avoid getting scammed:
I’m a huge fan of hiring freelancers to speed up projects so we can get moving quicker.
There are other sites that handle this but my favorite is a website called:
- Upwork.com
Upwork pro tip:
Set your settings when searching for freelancers to only show you people who have earned over $1,000 and also make sure they have numerous positive reviews about their work.
Important note when hiring freelancers:
Always remember..
You get what you pay for.
You may be tempted to try to save money on freelancers.. but this is a massive mistake in my opinion.
If you’re starting an ecommerce business and you’re trying to cut corners on a cheap developer to build your website.. you’re going to lose.
I’ve learned this lesson the hard way.
If you’re trying to save money on freelancers… just know this:
The likelihood you find a cheap, reliable freelancer who does amazing work, who can also get projects done quickly is probably 1/100.
Take the time to find a freelancer who isn’t working for $1 an hour.
Instead of wrangling a bunch of freelancers in an attempt to save money… make the investment in the right person and save yourself time so you can get back to running your business.
Join start-up communities:
For example, ProductHunt.com is a place where people go to launch new products and startups.
Follow Tech Reporters/influencers on Twitter:
Put yourself in conversations with them.
Establish relationships on Twitter.
If you make relationships with influential people, you’ll be able to be taken seriously when you go to launch your startup.
Join relevant groups on Reddit (theyre called subreddits):
Become a real member of the community.
Don’t just go in and start spamming/pitching everyone.
People frequently try to go into online communities without adding value and wonder why they aren’t making any traction.
Here are some of my favorite Reddit communities I’d advise joining:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Entrepreneur/
https://www.reddit.com/r/startups/
Learn the basics of coding:
Udemy.com and YouTube are fantastic cheap resources on learning to code.
Before you buy a course on Udemy:
Go on Google and spend 5 minutes searching for a discount/promo code.
You usually can find a great deal/promo code for Udemy courses that discount you 90% or more off.
I’d recommend buying this course (below) from an instructor who taught me the basics when I was just starting out.
Disclaimer:
Do NOT spend more than $25 on the internet taking coding courses. There is a tremendous amount of free knowledge out there.. Anyone who offers you a coding master class for hundreds of dollars is a scammer.
YouTube has taught me the majority of what I know. For example, just look up “Swift tutorials for beginners” and see all of the great guides.
If you’re stuck on a coding problem and need help:
Stack Overflow is a community of coders and they can help you when you’re stuck on a coding problem.
Get a mentor.
Find someone who has already found success in what you’re interested in.
- Watch out for the snake oil salesman who want to teach you how to be an entrepreneur but have never started a business themselves.
If I could get you to read at least 2 books before you start your journey I would highly recommend every entrepreneur read these two:
Start your email list ASAP
Start collecting emails from day one.
Even before launching your product.. set up a landing page and have a place where people can subscribe to your email list to be notified when you go to launch.
I recommend MailChimp and OptinMonster.
Start collecting subscribers and keep them updated on the progress of your startup’s development.
If done right, you can have an engaged list of people right at the beginning of your entrepreneurial endeavor.
Start a YouTube channel and document your entrepreneurial journey
Again, when done right, you can build an audience of people who are interested in your brand… for free.
Learn the basics of SEO
This a great beginner’s guide by Moz.com — I’d recommend reading all of it:
Here are some of my favorite SEO blogs that keep up with the latest updates and best practices (in no particular order):
—
Link building:
One of my favorite link building techniques is called “Broken Link Building”
The premise is simple:
1 — Find an article in your niche that links to a site or resource that no longer exists.
2 — Contact the author and politely inform them that they are linking to a page that no longer is there
3 — Below that message, ask them if they thought that your article or brand would fit the criteria to be mentioned when they’re fixing that dead link (make sure your article or brand is relevant and would actually provide value to be linked to in that article
—
A lot of people make the same mistakes on their websites.
Check out this Reddit post I made where I gave advice to entrepreneurs for their websites and see where you can improve your site as well:
Social Media:
It’s 2022 and if you don’t have a following on your Facebook page yet, your time is better spent elsewhere.
Focus on Instagram and Twitter.
Also, if your niche is photo based, try Pinterest and Flickr.
Side note:
If you’re using the same hashtags or being soammy on Instagram, you’ll be Shadowbanned.
Meaning, your posts won’t show up in discover or for hashtags.
It’s a huge deal.
Here’s how to check if you’re shadowbanned on Instagram:
How to get your own website for your business:
Squarespace is one of my favorite platforms. I run a bunch of Squarespace and Wordpress sites that all rank well and convert well.
Wordpress.org NOT wordpress.com is cool if you don’t want to use Squarespace. However, Squarespace is really user friendly.
The main downside in using Wordpress is you have to make sure your website plugins are up to date. With Squarespace, they take care of all of that for you.
Whatever you do:
DO NOT USE WIX. Their SEO has gotten better than what it was in the past but it’s still not saying much.
Wix is very limited.. and there are better and cheaper options out there.
Free SEO tools that I recommend:
SerpMofo (to see what your titles and meta descriptions will look like in Google)
Start your own blog and document your startup journey:
Medium.com is a great free resource to blog.
Medium is like Twitter without the character limits.
Big tech people use Medium and it’s great for getting exposure.
You’re on Medium right now reading this…
Your content should be here too.
If you’re looking to create video content for content marketing:
I love adobe photoshop. You can edit both videos and photos.. and if you’re working on websites/apps it might be a good idea to understand the basics on editing images/content.
What not to do:
Don’t spend all of your time researching how to start a business. Go out and make tons of mistakes. That’s how you learn.
One of my friends has been talking about trying to start a business for 3 years while I’ve been out doing things wrong and learning.
Stop being afraid. Expect that no one you know will care what you’re doing for years.
Just get to work and start.
Final thoughts and answers to questions people have messaged me after they read this guide:
Should I spend a bunch of money on coding courses?
I’m definitely not saying to spend money on coding courses. Personally, I have probably spent under $50 total in my entire life on coding courses — there are so many free resources online!
However, it can be kind of overwhelming at first if you’re a newbie.. so taking a little $10 coding course might help you more.
How do I even get started with SEO? Is it hopeless?
I’ve been doing SEO for the last few years and I can remember how overwhelming learning the basics was.. I was simply listing that Moz was a great guide to start getting a basic understand of how SEO works.
Side note: I also like Backlinko.com
Do you pay for any SEO services/software?
(Bonus) SEO services I pay for:
- Ahrefs
- SEMRush
- Majestic
- ScreamingFrog.co.uk
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If you’re interested in what I’m working on, see a few of my brands below..
My personal website:
BuyCustomGeofilters.com:
RSVPATX.com:
PostBuilder App:
PicMerger App:
StoriesStudio App:
