I’ve built companies for hundreds of thousands of dollars, and I’ve built companies for hundreds of dollars. I’ve also lost hundreds of thousands of dollars (typically on those more expensive-to-build companies), and I’ve made hundreds of thousands on companies with an initial investment of under a thousand.

I’m living proof that there is not necessarily a positive correlation between the amount of money you put into a company and the subsequent success (sales, profit, growth, etc.) that company can go on to achieve.

I’m also living proof that every dollar you spend is not equal. …

A few years ago I received an email out of the blue that really took me by surprise.

I was at least a couple of years into my startup journey (also known as, living in a dingy 400 square foot studio apartment and trying to stretch my savings as long as possible, while attempting to build a business in a vacuum).

These were the early days. We were making money, but we were also spending money — and we were spending more per month (on the business) than we were bringing in. Also known as not being profitable.

However, there…

Let’s be honest: I know why you’re here.

You’re excited to hear another startup failure story from someone whose dreams have crashed and burned before them, even better to hear it was all their fault (what a poor, pathetic loser of an entrepreneur they must be), and you can’t wait to use this example as an excuse to justify your own entrepreneurial self-doubt or shortcomings.

Don’t worry; I meant what I said in the title, and I will deliver.

I’ll even offer some helpful takeaways that you may be able to apply to your own current startup or other future…

Let me preface this with the fact that I’m not a very emotional person.

I don’t open up quickly or easily and I have an auto-cringe response to most anything mushy or gushy hurled my way. I like to keep my friends, enemies, and pretty much all humans a good six to ten emotional feet away from me on a fairly regular basis.

On top of my lack of emotional availability, I’ve also never felt very maternal. I see babies kind of like I see socks. They’re (sometimes) cute? They’re cool. I guess…

Do you see where I’m going with this? The fact that I could even write that last paragraph and admit it…

These days, it seems like there are two different types of business owners floating around the internet.

1. The influencers, who built a following around themselves or some type of (free) content they created, and subsequently spun that into a business
2. The business-first entrepreneurs who built a business by…oh yeah, building a business. Like finding a need, a gap in the market, an underserved audience, teaching themselves the tools from product creation to marketing, and building the whole thing from the ground up.

Thanks to the power of social media and the fact that oftentimes, customers buy into a person or…

As an entrepreneur (who employs freelance writers), I think it’s important to reveal the truth about how business owners like myself view freelance writers and what, specifically, we care about… because it might not be what you think.

The Name of the Game Here Is Simply ROI

Can you justify what you’re costing me?

As a freelance writer, you probably want to believe that your craft alone — writing — is what I’m paying you for.

The reality about freelance writers? …

There are a lot of different schools of thought and strategies when it comes to marketing. Some people prefer ads. Others social media. Or revenue-sharing partnerships. Or direct mail. Or referrals. Or a combination of all of the above.

And that’s fine. You can — and in my opinion should — diversify your lead generating and sales-converting activities with a wide array of varied marketing tactics, on multiple platforms.

However, there is one thing which, no matter who you are or what you sell, you should do. By that I mean, if you’re not doing this, you’re missing out big-time.

…

Let me preface this with the fact that I love seafood. I love sushi, shellfish, and most edible creatures that come from the ocean. Despite the various diets I’ve been on and off throughout my life, the one constant has been the inclusion of seafood (well, except for a very short and unsuccessful stint as a fruitarian in my teen years, which ended abruptly for obvious reasons — you just can’t get between a girl and her lobster).

I’ve always been one of those people who notices, but completely overlooks the little warning sign on menus, at grocery stores, and…