How to launch a business from your college dorm room
By Adam Witty
College students with an entrepreneurial spirit may be eager for the day they can leave the confines of their cramped dorm rooms, move into a spacious office, and launch the business of their dreams.
But why wait?
There are plenty of examples of college students who were still living in their dorms when they started what became very successful businesses.
Just to name a few: Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook; Michael Dell of Dell; Evan Spiegel and Robert Murphy of Snapchat; and Matt Mullenweg and Mike Little of WordPress.
I know something about launching a business in the most meager surroundings. It wasn’t a dorm room, but I did start my now multimillion-dollar company in 2005 in a spare bedroom of my house when I was just two years out of college. Confined by four walls but not by my vision, I mapped out a plan and mission that would see me become the leader of a growing company.
Here are a few tips for college students on how to launch a business from your college dorm room.
Find a mentor
A good mentor, such as a professor or local businessperson, can provide valuable advice, help with networking, and perhaps even be the inspiration behind the business you launch. My mentor was Pat Williams, a motivational speaker and senior vice president of the NBA’s Orlando Magic. Williams told me that every motivational speaker needs a book, but most don’t have one. In cases where speakers did have a book, it was often self-published and of poor quality. It was Williams who suggested that I start a publishing company for people like me who could use the book as a marketing tool.
Think of yourself as a brand
College students are well aware of such brands as Nike, Netflix, Apple, and Starbucks, among many others. They recognize and maybe even trust these brands and will naturally think in terms of the corporate brand for whatever business they want to launch. But beyond a company brand, it’s also valuable to promote your personal brand. Regardless of what service or product you plan to offer, it’s important for you to build your visibility and credibility in your field. This is especially true when you’re going up against established businesses that have years or decades head start on you in terms of brand awareness. This may be a challenge for a college student, but by getting yourself and your name in front of as many people as possible, you will be on your way to building trust with your intended clientele.
Make use of social media
If you’re worried about how to pay for next semester’s textbooks, it’s unlikely that you have a massive marketing budget. What you do have, though, are social media accounts that cost you nothing. Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram can all help you spread your message, build your authority, and connect with potential customers or clients.
Even before you begin, whether you’re starting your business in a dorm room or an office park, you will want to know how you will measure your success. What metrics will you use? Will you set as a goal a certain number of leads each month? A certain number of sales or new clients? You have to know what success looks like and where you want to end up. If you don’t, how will you know you’re happy with the results?
Adam Witty, co-author with Rusty Shelton of “Authority Marketing: How to Leverage 7 Pillars of Thought Leadership to Make Competition Irrelevant,” is the CEO of Advantage Forbes Books.
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