Building a successful business - on your terms
“I stay true to myself and my style and I am always pushing myself to be aware of that and be original.”
Reunion @ Hub Space member, Sarah Banks, shared the personal and truly inspiring story of her business, Banks' Business Solutions at the recent October Reunion networking event.
In what one attendee called the ‘life-changing’ talk, Sarah told the story of how she has built up her online business consultancy over the last 8 years by holding to her values, balancing business with her family life and setting boundaries.
The talk was so successful that we wanted to write a blog about it!
Following Sarah’s recent nomination for ‘Business Mum of the Year’ as part of the Women’s Business Awards, it makes even more sense to read on and learn more about Sarah’s story and the secrets to her unique business success.
By the time she started Banks’ Business Solutions eight years ago, Sarah Banks life had undergone many changes, not least of which was the journey into motherhood. Now with two daughters and beginning to consider a return to work, Sarah decided that she would like to set up independently, offering the fruits of her many years of experience in the field of online business support. Sarah felt sure that she would be able to create a dynamic and successful business that not only worked around her family life, but enabled it to thrive.
But, as Sarah candidly shared, the early days weren’t straightforward, not least in the area of self-confidence, demonstrated when she attended her first networking event:
“My first experience of networking was a very corporate, referral marketing event. It was terrifying, and I left convinced I couldn’t actually do this in the way I wanted. Afterwards I even went so far as to dye my hair so I would be taken more seriously – I was basically left with the impression that everyone in the room (mostly white middle aged men) wouldn’t take me seriously as a blonde!”
Although Sarah had carefully considered what she wanted out of her business, her vision was quickly diluted in the face of what seemed like the best advice from more experienced and most importantly, “successful” business folk. It seemed that everyone between friends, family and Instagram influencers had an opinion about how Sarah would best proceed in creating her business:
“I was bombarded with messages about what I ‘should’ be doing – the hours I should work, how I could quickly get to six figures, digital marketing that I had to have in place, how I should package my services etc. I felt obliged to give all of these strategies a try even though I didn’t feel that they necessarily rang true for me.”
For example, Sarah felt that she wanted to talk to clients, really listen to their challenges, and use her skills to offer them bespoke support. But what she was being ‘advised’ to do was to offer a range of service packages; and whilst what she really wanted was to network by getting to know people and not necessarily selling to them, all of the available advice on networking emphasised the ‘sell’. But for Sarah, perhaps the biggest issue was working hours:
“Everything in the manual of setting up a new business says work - work - work, and don’t you dare say ‘no’ to any potential customers. But I knew that what really mattered most to me was my family, and that I wanted to be able to spend quality time with them during holidays; in fact, I wanted to be able to go further, even think about going travelling with them and having some adventures together. I quickly learnt that the traditional approach doesn’t work for me!”
What followed was a learning process in which, through trying out different approaches, Sarah began to identify her personal values and, crucially, her definition of ‘success’.
“I began to find an approach that fits my values – intuition, integrity and authenticity, and to realise that if I just trusted those values, the right clients would come to me.”
Does that sound a bit risky? It did for Sarah too, but she held firm and watched as those values began to seep through into all aspects of her working practice, and brought benefits right back with them:
“When I started out I thought that clients would find me online – and whilst some do, to be honest it’s rare – most actually come via word of month because they know I offer flexible support, they have built a relationship with me, and they want to work with someone who is authentic.”
Another aspect of those values, especially the value of integrity, was the growing ability to set boundaries for herself. Going back to her vision of being able to focus on her family life as well as her business, Sarah quickly recognised the need to clearly and honestly communicate with clients on work times, for example.
“I realised that you really don’t have to be available all the time, so I deleted my email from my phone and made a commitment not to respond if I was busy or focussed on something else or if I was not working at the time. Instead, I chose to communicate my availability to clients and to trust that they would understand.”
“I began to find an approach that fits my values – intuition, integrity and authenticity, and to realise that if I just trusted those values, the right clients would come to me.”
Perhaps one of the most groundbreaking aspects of Sarah’s business practice is her willingness to identify her own definition of ‘success’. In our highly driven contemporary culture, most businesses define success by growth, followed by more growth…and yet more. But this, says Sarah, isn’t necessarily right for everyone:
“Being successful looks different to each of us and I would always advise any business owner to think about what success means to them right from the start and build their business accordingly. I carefully worked out how much income my family needed from my business and shaped it around that, in terms of how many clients I would work with and the scale of projects for example.
My business is successful as it has allowed me to spend three months travelling in 2018, quickly adapt to the needs of my clients and family during lockdown and spend a month touring Ireland this Summer. My business is successful as I can take my children to and from school everyday and be there to run them to the many clubs they attend, plus I can enjoy the childrens’ sports days, school plays and other events but also ultimately earn what I need to have the lifestyle I want.”
Sarah is clear, there are some things that are essential for every business to have in place:
“Don’t get me wrong there are some things you HAVE to do in business. You definitely need some form of processes in your business as when you grow you want to be able to work efficiently, and there will be some software you need to get set up. There’s also registering with HMRC, getting appropriate insurance and register with the ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office) for example, but there are lots of things you don’t have to do.
You DON’T NEED to be on every social media platform, you don’t need to build lots of funnels and send out weekly newsletter, you don’t need to package your services in a set way and you don’t have to even have a website if that isn’t right for you and your business.
As mentioned before, I thought that clients would find me online when in reality it’s usually by word of mouth. Also the clients I attract come to me because I don’t force them to take out packages but instead offer a bespoke service.
Ultimately I am able to offer flexibility because of the way I work and my values and that serves both myself and my clients.”
Sarah with Jo Black Reunion Director at October 2022 networking event
Now in its ninth year, Banks’ Business Solutions is a thriving and highly successful consultancy; with a busy and happy family life, plus plenty of wild swimming and travel adventures, it looks like the fantastic vision of balance between work and family life that Sarah wanted to achieve from the very beginning is most definitely a reality. And with a potential award from Women in Business awards in the offing, we reckon that Sarah’s story has a lot to offer us all.
