How do I find a mentor?

[Eileen Joy]

Hi. I am in the process of researching and planning setting up an online retail business. My head is spinning slightly with all the things I need to get on top of but I do feel that a mentor would be really useful at this stage. I have tried to find one but without any luck so far. Does anyone have any suggestions as to where I should look? By the way, I do not want to have to pay - I assume this is reasonable? Thanks!

 

[OldWelshGuy]

You want someone with huge experience, who will help you make money, but you don't want to pay?

Have a word with your local economic development department, but the 'mentors' they provide employed by the government are so good at business that they accept a £30k a year job telling others how to earn money ??

Your best bet is to break it down into points, then post on this forum, where you will get advice from people in business, who have made the mistakes many make, or have avoided those mistakes by asking here

 

[BHDS]

If you type "business mentor" into google there are a wealth of websites that pop up including things like the Princes Trust and the Federation of Small Business. Where have you tried for a mentor? It's not necessarily a "one size fits all" kind of thing, and the first person you contact may not be a good fit nor have the right knowledge or connections to be able to help you. So it may be a little trial and error, or they may refer you to someone else.

I connected with a fantastic mentor through a business networking group, so you could maybe try face-to-face networking as well.

 

[Hammur IT]

Is it from a technical side or business side that you are looking for mentoring?

 

[Eileen Joy]

Hammur IT I am looking for business advice. BHDS, I have tried looking online but just haven't managed to find anything suitable yet. I think you are probably right about meeting people through contacts and I am going to start attending networking groups very soon with that in mind. Thanks everyone for replying to my question.

 

[HazelC]

It will be hard to find a good mentor with lots of experience for free, especially if they are running a mentoring business - like you, they are in business to make money.

There are growth vouchers available though where you can money towards business mentors and coaches

 

[Page]

You can find mentors that do it for love and interest - but these are usually retired or semi retired people who do not need the £££ in the same way

The problem with ecommerce is that it is new and so there are not people like that around

My advice would be to use the forum if you want to do it for free

And/or use a mentor but consider paying for them

If you offer £30 an hour on this forum then you will get some takers - but do your research on them next

You will be amazed what you can get with 6 half hour sessions as compared to trying to do it all for nowt
It will be money very well spent IMHO

Not me by the way - I cost a lot more and currently have no spare hours

 

[LowPrices.uk]

What topics do you need mentoring on?

I'm a UK affiliate, and I have been to various industry affiliate marketing events. These kind of events are also attended by reps from leading UK online retailers.

The big one is Performance Marketing Insights London which takes place in October, but there are many smaller events organised by affiliate companies and digital agencies throughout the year.

 

[Pish_Pash]

Anyone fitting a 'would make a great mentor' profile, is way too busy making their millions to be mentoring....anyone who has enough time to mentor has (IMHO) therefore 'made it' & now gets a buzz helping out others ...good luck finding someone like that, they'll be scarce & I'm not sure that they'd want to get involved with someone starting out totally brand new (I'm figuring they'd likely rather mentor someone who has the basics squared away & is presently showing great potential).

An online retail business can be as simple as ...list something on ebay, post it...rinse repeat. It can be your own website (not that much more complicated)...truth be told there's not that much complicated about the retail side of things...it's all the 'bolt on' stuff where it gets convoluted (getting this app to link intot that app etc etc)

 

[japancool]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but so much in business is really just a matter of common sense - or at least, it seems that way if you've been exposed to that kind of environment for many years, but I understand that it can be daunting for someone who is just starting out or has limited experience.

Ultimately:
1) What are you selling?
2) Who are you selling it to?
3) Why will they buy it from you?
4) How are you selling it?
5) How much money are you going to make from it?

Are some of the very basic questions you need to answer. Almost everything stems from these (and no doubt a few others).

 

[AdamLP700]

I can relate to you 200%!!

I am also running a couple of online businesses and starting up was extremely confusing with mistakes costing me thousands of pounds! I felt I needed a mentor and fortunately, I managed to get a few. The first mentor I had was through the Prince's Trust. Second, was a potential investor I'd met through Venture Giant. He didn't invest in my startup however he was very forthcoming with his time offering advice whenever required. Third mentor was a very kind friend of a friend who I'd been introduced to. Another good place to get advice is here on UKBF. Sure it won't be the same as mentoring but you will get to speak to those who have experienced a same/similar journey as well as people who have been in business for decades with experience in a variety of different areas.

 

[Simply Business]

@HazelC's point about growth vouchers could work for you! There's still time to apply for them, and you can get up to £2000 worth of advice/business help for free.

Might be worth checking out?

 

[japancool]

@HazelC's point about growth vouchers could work for you! There's still time to apply for them, and you can get up to £2000 worth of advice/business help for free.

Might be worth checking out?

It's not exactly free though - the government matches what you put in, so it's effectively a 50% discount.

 

[Simply Business]

Good point @japancool, buy one get one free would have been more accurate Certainly worth looking into though @Eileen Joy

 

[Pish_Pash]

& the cynic i me says that no doubt those supplying the associated services will have bumped their prices up!

 

[Eileen Joy]

Thank you all so much for your advice. Perhaps I will be able to get the advice I need on here instead! It is great to find this community and although I understand that a lot of what I need to know is probably common sense when you are starting out even the most obvious sounding tips can help avoid pitfalls. AdamLP700 thanks for your advice - very useful and encouraging.

 

[AllUpHere]

& the cynic i me says that no doubt those supplying the associated services will have bumped their prices up!

In my experience, a lot of the businesses involved generally sell £2 k's worth of service for £4 k anyway, so you don't gain much.

 

[Pish_Pash]

In my experience, a lot of the businesses involved generally sell £2 k's worth of service for £4 k anyway, so you don't gain much.

Therefore I surmise ...Govt. Growth Vouchers = 'pull the wool over the punters eyes' (is there anything left in this world that's not a wheeze)

 

[Chris Ashdown]

Eileen i PM you

 

[HFE Signs]

Maybe you need a business partner who has the skills you don't..?

 

[HazelC]

& the cynic i me says that no doubt those supplying the associated services will have bumped their prices up!

No point really, they still get the full price, not the 50% - the government matches it.

 

[Pish_Pash]

No point really, they still get the full price, not the 50% - the government matches it.

The point would be more profit for those supplying their services. think about it, how do you know if the price you are being quoted is fair or not? (I've never paid for any of the services being touted before, it's not like a loaf of bread which you can benchmark). So along comes the government & says "we are going to offer a 50:50 deal to businesses" ....you've got a clueless subsidizer & a clueless end user ...ripe for price tweak-age to the upside!

But I think more to the point, even if they haven't tweaked their prices up, how do you know their prices were competitive in the first place?

 

[OldWelshGuy]

Sadly you have to deal with an 'approved' contractor. which means 'cartel'

 

[HazelC]

The point would be more profit for those supplying their services. think about it, how do you know if the price you are being quoted is fair or not? (I've never paid for any of the services being touted before, it's not like a loaf of bread which you can benchmark). So along comes the government & says "we are going to offer a 50:50 deal to businesses" ....you've got a clueless subsidizer & a clueless end user ...ripe for price tweak-age to the upside!

But I think more to the point, even if they haven't tweaked their prices up, how do you know their prices were competitive in the first place?

But the user can still choose the best price - then they get the growth vouchers for that one - same as in life, people choose the best price & service.

 

[Pish_Pash]

But the user can still choose the best price

best price from a list of "approved contractors" ...I'm with OldWelshGuy, that makes it essentially a cartel. Better going to the open market for your required service & not have to get involved with pesky voucher schemes.

same as in life, people choose the best price & service.

Not quite the same as in life here, this is a ringfenced group of 'ahem 'approved contractors' (stinks of price rigging)

 

[CreativeWest]

Know of an accelerator who works with startups to launch them, but nothing comes for free so they expect a cut of the company. If it is free then there are usually so many caveats you end up being more confused than you started. Being from behavioral science always found it interesting people prefer 100% of 100k instead of 20% or 50% of 1m.

 

[Laurentb]

I have had brilliant experience with the local Chamber (Wandsworth). I get a once a month free clinic with my mentor for 1 hour where I can answer any question. They also offer paid support on a monthly fee (unlimited email/phone support, 2 full days councilling per month). I was lucky since my mentor was in the same industry that I was going into and has 30 years experience in setting up businesses in a range of industries.
As a starter I have learned a lot, but I am sure that on this board you'll be able to find great advice, too.

 

[Pinky Grace]

Read books about e-commerce by famous successful business people or watch niche-related videos on Youtube.

 

[StevePoster]

Well said from our trusted members here and the conversation is really interesting.
Finding a mentor in your respective field will be tough, which means you will need a lot of basis to convince you that it can lead to conversions.

 

[webstore]

You can find mentors that do it for love and interest - but these are usually retired or semi retired people who do not need the £££ in the same way. The problem with ecommerce is that it is new and so there are not people like that around

This is very true. Maybe a business opportunity here - a new website to help younger folk find a retired or semi retired business person who has spare time & interest to provide mentoring. Could be me, but I am having too much fun in semi retirement with Magento ecommerce.

 

[ParcelBright]

LinkedIn could be a good place to reach out to someone with a relevant background. Finding someone who won't charge you for their time is a big ask though.

Perhaps consider angel investment?

 

[Vistatico]

The person must be interested in you. If you don't wanna pay money for someones knowledge and experience you must find smth else to attract your mentor.

 

[The Byre]

An online retail business can be as simple as ...list something on ebay, post it...rinse repeat.

Don't be put off by Pish Pash's crazy good looks - that is in reality his better looking brother!

But that is all you need to know right there. When you have cracked that stage and you are moving a few thousands a week, come back and we'll take it from there!

 

[Chris Ashdown]

Actually i offered to help her by sending a PM and also reminded her when i did not recieve a reply in a post but never heard from the girl so guess she lacks manners as well as a mentor

 

[Hartleyhare]

There are two kinds of people who can help you here, in my opinion. A Coach who knows general business and a mentor who has 'walked your path'. Both are good. I pay for a coach. I think of it as an experienced partner who I 'only' pay £400 a month for. A good coach knows how to get the best out of me and has lots of mental and business 'tools' to help me along the way. He will have other clients so he can bring experiences from other people to my situation. If he was a partner it would cost me potentially millions in shared profit. Unlike a partner, the coach can't work in my business, but I can hire people to do that and it will save me a lot in the long run. The mentor is someone I'm trying to find. I don't think I need to spend as much time with a mentor. I'm looking for someone in my industry who's been successful and encountered some of the hurdles I have or more importantly will. I'll find them one day, but until then, I put myself out there and keep looking.

 

[buildmeashop]

@HazelC's point about growth vouchers could work for you! There's still time to apply for them, and you can get up to £2000 worth of advice/business help for free.

Might be worth checking out?

We tried this after receiving an email saying that there was oodles of money left and it was designed for businesses 'just like ours' so filled in the online application form and was rejected straight away. No reason, no feedback - useless!

 

[buildmeashop]

Following on from my last post as the thread has given me an idea! We are looking for a mentor (or maybe a consultant) to help with launching our new hosted shopping platform concept to a 'local' market. If we tried adwords for 'online shop' we'd be up against ekm powershop, volusion. et al and be bust within a matter of days so no go there! Our preferred strategy is to target a local market for our pay monthly, Magento hosted shop solution - only problem is how do we do it? Can anyone help or know anyone who can?

 

[LeeKnowles]

Agree with above post, Find a piece to the jigsaw!

 

[Chris Ashdown]

What did your market research tell you about the plan

What is your USP

Why should people look local for a e-commerce shop unless its a service industry in which case google local covers it