How Did You Get Started??

When starting a new business, this is the question that often you are asked:  How did you get started? How do you ever get customers?

First I want to start with natural talent coupled with learned information.  

I personally love what I do. I had the natural talent to do decorating.  My decision to polish this talent with taking every class available in college on interior design brought everything I did to an entire new level.

My personal belief on the contrary is I really don't think the best designer is one that just decided to go to collage to become one.  It really takes both, talent and information.  

College helps me to have confidence to know WHY a certain thing works, floor plan, the right rug, the right color choices, fabric selections, fine tuned room arrangements, etc. etc.  Natural talent makes items jump right off the shelf into my basket, create solutions, make a room look expensive on a small budget, understand people, lifestyles and needs.

So how did we get it all to a starting point and get a business moving to a busy consistent designer life?

Here is my theory:  I remember as a child in Louisiana seeing an old car with a scrubby looking old guy driving, obviously on his way to go fishing.  In the right front seat and going out of his back right rolled down window was not a fishing pole, but a bunch of fishing poles.  You see, the serious fisherman knows that if he is going to go fishing, he is going to use many poles!  

As this fisherman, I am a believer that in marketing a business there is not just one thing that you do to generate customers. Like the fisherman, we have to use many poles, many marketing tools.  It is never just one thing.  We can't just build a website and hope someone stumbles across it on the worldwide network of traffic.  It takes many poles.  This photo is a sample of the many poles I have personally used to promote what I do.

The real beauty is when you grow a clientele that will use your talents over and over.

I would love to hear your input on this subject!