Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Kelsey Stafford, CEO of Stafford Productions LLC., located in Lawrenceville, GA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Stafford Productions is a media production company specializing in sports highlight videos for athletes. Our customers are athletes of all ages and divisions, such as high school students, college students, semi-professional players, and professional players.
Tell us about yourself
I am a 26-year-old female from Ft. Lauderdale, FL. My business first started out as a hobby back when I was in college because my boyfriend needed a highlight video from his soccer season. Since I majored in communications, editing and film, I knew how to make a video for him. I was not charging anything back then, just creating videos for fun. When the first video was produced, all of his teammates liked it and wanted one for themselves. From there, the hobby became a true business and took off!
Helping others by actually helping them is what motivates me each day. I have done my market research, and all other companies who are in this market niche charge hundreds of $$$ for this service. Since I was a college soccer athlete and went through the recruiting process, I wanted to help athletes rather than make money. Alleviating some of the pressure from an athlete's workload and allowing them to focus on something more important than creating a tedious highlight video is something I wish someone would have helped me with back in the day. Therefore, I make it my mission to help others!
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
The biggest accomplishment in my line of work is helping an athlete get committed or sign a pro contract. Knowing that something you made for them was seen by high-level coaches/recruiters is a feeling I will never get over - and I've been doing this business for two years now.
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
The obstacle that comes with being a business owner is time management, I would say. Since my business is run entirely from social media, I am never truly "off the clock." I can receive messages at 2 AM or work until 9 PM. I also work from home, which makes it even easier for me to get lost in my work. Since I have recognized this as an obstacle, I treat every day like a true work day and set boundaries and time limits for myself in order to spend time with my family and not experience burnout.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Do your market research. Learn the space that you want to go into, know who your competitors are, and if you have a viable product/service that can help solve your target audience's needs.
- Come up with a product or service.
- Create an offer.
- The last and probably biggest tip is to get STARTED! So many individuals who want to create their own business get stuck in the analysis paralysis phase of creating a business that they never actually get anything done. My advice to you is to get started and put your product/service out there. You can figure out the kinks in your sales process as you begin to sell.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.staffordproductionsllc.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/staffproductions1
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/staff.highlights/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/staff_pro1213
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelsey-stafford-b25564197/
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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