No matter how long you’ve been in business, there’s always something new to learn. And the best part is, great advice can come from anywhere, anyone, and any industry.
Below, you’ll find some of the best advice we heard from business owners and professionals in 2023 (plus tips for incorporating them into your business).
My favorite piece of advice from a very famous person came from Ryan Reynolds. ‘To be good at something, you have to be willing to be bad.’ Those are Ryan’s words, and it made me realize that too often we think that if we try something new and we are not immediately successful at it, then it is just not for us. We should give up.
We look around and we see people who are much better and we say, ah, I’m never gonna be like them. But the point that Ryan is making is that everyone is bad at first. Everybody. And so the difference maker isn’t whether or not you are good at the beginning of something, but rather whether or not you are able to tolerate being bad long enough to get good.
Jason Feifer, Entrepreneur magazine editor in chief
How to incorporate this advice into your business
Being brave doesn’t mean going in without a plan. It means pursuing your goals despite fear. Whether you’re just thinking of starting a business or want to change things up after 10 years, there are resources that can help you “get good” as you find your footing in your new or refreshed endeavors.
Check these out for more inspiration:
- Wayne Brady’s 7 principles for life and business
- What is a vision statement and how do I create one?
- A marketing plan example to guide your strategy
- ‘You have to think bigger:’ a checklist for expanding your business
[Social media is] just trying to replicate how you talk to people. The more aesthetic our photos became, the less I talked about things we cared about. The less I talked to people, our rates went down. I would sit there and go, ‘What is going on?’ And [then] I realized, I’m not social. I’m just media.
If you’re not talking to someone, if you’re not using it to talk to people, if you’re just posting chocolate chip cookies, no one cares. If you’re talking to someone, they care.
—Mo Sahoo, co-owner of Best Damn Cookies
How to incorporate this advice into your business
Social media is an important part of any business’s marketing strategy. Posting online creates visibility and interest in products and services. However, simply posting photos can come across as flat and mechanical. Showing potential customers there’s a person behind the operation humanizes your business and marketing efforts, helping you make meaningful connections.
Beef up your social media presence with these resources:
- Social media experts share what every small business owner should know
- The ‘Daily 5:’ how to post on social media in 5 minutes or less
- How to create a social media calendar for your small business
- 5 tips on building an authentic online presence
The customer may not always be right, but you do need to listen to them, and usually there is some truth in what they’re saying. There’s always something you can learn and improve.
Ben McAvoy, co-owner of Insectek
How to incorporate this advice into your business
Being a business owner means you’ve built something very important to you. You want to see it thrive and have people love it as much as you do. When someone leaves a review about your business that isn’t glowing, it can feel like a personal insult. However constructive criticism can be just the thing that propels your business forward.
Reading and responding to reviews, whether positive or critical, can help build goodwill with current and potential customers and exhibit your commitment to customer service.
These resources can help you navigate the process:
- Tips for responding to reviews on Yelp
- Why are review responses so important? Hear from 5 customers
- Review response strategies from 5 small business leaders
- 4 steps to a successful review response strategy
A thank you note can go a long way. That’s something [I add] myself—my own personal touch—and it allows anybody who purchases from me that chance to connect with me, without asking for a review directly.
—Tony LoMenzo, owner of Top 10 Collectibles
How to incorporate this advice into your business
Asking for reviews is against Yelp’s trust and safety policy and can leave customers feeling obligated to write a review that isn’t true to their experience. Letting reviews happen organically is the best way to build an authentic reputation, encourage word-of-mouth referrals, and inspire repeat business.
Rather than asking for reviews, add a memorable touch to your business that keeps you top of mind for customers in need of your products or services in the future. Some options include:
- Send a thank you note to express gratitude for their business
- Hang customer reviews in your physical space or add a “Find Us on Yelp” sticker to your store window
- Send a follow-up survey to ask for direct feedback
- Make a great impression on your Yelp Page by responding to existing customer reviews to exhibit your level of customer service
- Focus on making a stellar customer experience people want to share
Get started with these resources:
- How to get reviews on Yelp (without asking)
- 4 ways to personalize the customer experience
- 3 customer service tips to go the extra mile
- How to build consumer trust for your business
As a Black woman, it is so hard to sometimes break into the market—get capital, get funding, get support. So I lend my talent to teaching entrepreneurship, facilitating for organizations here locally so that other Black women can see somebody that looks like them and can tell them the truth and be very transparent and say, ‘You may face this these things, but you have a community or you have somebody now that you can go to.’
Taren Kinebrew, co-owner of Cream + Sugar Coffeehouse
How to incorporate this advice into your business
Paying it forward and uplifting others helps you create the change you want to see in the world. Your past struggles don’t have to be someone’s future. If you have the time, resources, and inclination, reach out to others experiencing the same hurdles you have. Your efforts will help move the needle toward creating a better world.
Tap into these resources for more great tips:
- Create Impact Through Culture & Community
- Leveraging Community and Culture: A Blueprint for Black Business Success
- Women-Owned Business Resource Hub: tools, tips, and inspirational stories
- How to Build a Strong, Supportive Network and Choose Collaboration Over Competition
We’re always sharing [information] about our new products and how to use [them] because a lot of the items are new and unfamiliar to people. I’m always trying to get behind explaining how things work and seeing it in action.
—Kayli Kunkel, founder of Earth & Me
How to incorporate this advice into your business
Differentiating yourself from the competition is crucial to staying in business. Once you’ve identified your niche, shout your value from the rooftops. Are your products high quality? Do you source locally? Maybe your technicians receive highly specialized training. Let your customers know what you offer but also why those things are important. Educating them builds value in your brand and helps you stand out even further when it’s time for people to make a buying decision.
Here are more resources:
- Educational marketing: 3 ways to reveal your value to customers
- Sharing your authentic passion with customers
- ‘My flag needs to be raised:’ how Emily’s Garage is retooling the auto shop
- Business founders roundtable: bonding through the entrepreneurial experience
Having our own [new] physical space, a lot of people in the neighborhood don’t know we exist, so having a really quick way to search [is important]. If anybody lives in the area and they’re searching for personal trainers, I always want to be the first one that shows up for people, and Yelp is a really good way to do that.
Miriam Fried, owner of MF Strong
How to incorporate this advice into your business
Increasing your visibility to your target audience is the first step in gaining more leads and more business. More than 80 million people a month visit Yelp looking for local businesses, so having a fully filled out Yelp Business Page can help you reach customers looking for your products or services.
Here’s how to reap the most benefits from your Yelp Page:
- How to add a business to Yelp
- Yelp 101: a business guide to thriving on Yelp
- 5 free things you didn’t know you could do on your Yelp Page
- The complete checklist for maintaining your Yelp Page
I write my own press releases. We [hired a big PR firm at first] and got nothing. And then I started doing it myself, and I built those relationships, and now it’s to the point where I’ll literally text my media contacts and say, ‘Hey, this is what’s going on’ and I’ll pitch them stories.
—Rachel Kellner, co-owner of Aigner Chocolates
I realized two things: Number one, the media likes to hear from business owners themselves, not PR companies… Number two, that you’re making their jobs easier by reaching out to them—you’re actually doing their job for them.
How to incorporate this advice into your business
Gaining media coverage can be as simple as picking up the phone and letting local news outlets know about events you have going on or awards you’ve won. Getting attention doesn’t have to be expensive.
Click the links below to explore some of the options available to you.
- Top 5 techniques for capitalizing on media coverage
- 3 steps to getting media coverage for your business
- 26 local advertising ideas for small business
- Small business advertising vs. marketing guide
For job satisfaction, for creativity, to flourish, everybody needs to know that they’re trusted. Everybody needs to know that they have a job, a goal, something to work forward to that doesn’t necessarily always involve supervision. And the more independence you give to your team, and the more you trust your team, the more the team will come through for you.
Nic Faitos, owner of Starbright Floral Designs
How to incorporate this advice into your business
Hiring and staff training are critical to smooth operations, particularly in a small business. As a business owner, you might feel the need to always be working, but how sustainable is that? Learning to hire smart, delegate tasks, and train staff to achieve your goals will not only improve your business, it’ll give you a chance to sit back and watch your hard work pay off. (Your mental health will thank you.)
Discover important hiring and management tips with these resources:
- Top restaurateur Leah Cohen on delegating, hiring, and learning from failure
- Automation vs. outsourcing: the differences and when you should employ them
- Customer service training conquered in 3 easy steps
- Getting help when you need it: a business owner’s guide to delegating
You have to be present in your community. Success doesn’t come automatically. You have to build it. So as much as I work hard, I also give back… If I don’t support like-minded people and people like me, we don’t get ahead. Success has to be shared.
—Rosana Rivera, owner of Chef Rosana
How to incorporate this advice into your business
Helping other businesses flourish creates stronger communities and local economies—not to mention goodwill toward your business. Whether partnering with a local produce shop to complement your offerings or shining a light on sustainability to help your community make eco-friendly choices, working together can be a powerful force for change.
Check out these inspiring resources for paying it forward and affecting change:
The information above is provided for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice and may not be suitable for your circumstances. Unless stated otherwise, references to third-party links, services, or products do not constitute endorsement by Yelp.