How to find your Business Mentor
Mentorship, business coaching & mentoring have been a vital part of business growth for decades. Many successful businesses credit their mentors with helping them achieve their success.
What is a Business Mentor
Business mentoring involves providing the advice, support and resources for businesses to succeed.
Mentors can provide invaluable guidance in many areas. For example, developing a business plan, networking, pricing strategy, website improvements and marketing. A mentor can also help you overcome challenges and stay on track during tough times.
At Wellmarkit, we help small business owners plan, launch, manage and grow. We nurture small businesses & non-profits through mentoring, business coaching and educational workshops. Our mentoring & advice covers finance, business planning, pricing strategy, marketing strategy, SEO, website development & maintenance. Wellmarkit mentoring & business coaching is available to business owners in the UK, Ireland U.S. & Canada.
If you’re considering finding a business mentor, there are a few things you should keep in mind:
1. Look for someone with experience in your industry.
A mentor who has experience in your industry can offer valuable insights and advice. The best business mentor knows the challenges you’re likely to face and be able to help you plan for them. At Wellmarkit, we are dedicated to helping small businesses plan, launch, manage and grow.
We nurture small businesses & non-profits through mentoring and educational workshops. Wellmarkit mentor in pricing strategy, finance, business planning, marketing strategy, SEO, website development.
2. Find someone who is willing to invest time in you.
A good mentor will invest time in you and your business. They’ll want to see you succeed and will be happy to offer advice and support whenever needed. Good mentors have strong experience in large businesses as well as in running their own business. If they do not have these experiences, then they have not walked in your shoes.
3. Make sure the relationship is a good fit.
Before agreeing to work with a mentor, make sure the two of you are a good fit. You’ll need to be able to trust them and feel comfortable discussing your business with them.
If your are a Health & Wellness business, then you should be looking for a business mentor who has experience in helping similar businesses. They will be in a better position to share their knowledge and help you grow your business as they will know what has worked for businesses like yours.
How can a good business mentor help me?
1. Offer advice on business planning.
A business mentor can help small business owners create a business plan that outlines their goals and objectives. This is invaluable as it gives you clarity and direction going forward. They can provide guidance on what to include in the plan and how to make it realistic and achievable. If you don’t have a business plan, you will not know whether you are going in the right direction or not. You should create a new business plan regularly.
2. Help with networking.
Networking is essential for any business. A mentor can help small business owners network effectively online and offline. They’ll be able to advise on which networking events to attend and how to make the most of them. They’ll also be able to help with networking online, through social media and LinkedIn groups for example.
3. Advise on pricing strategy.
Pricing is a key factor in any business, and a mentor can help small business owners set the right price for their products or services. They’ll be able to advise on whether prices should be set high or low, and how to increase or decrease prices without harming the business. There are many different pricing strategies (value-based pricing, competitive pricing, price skimming, cost-plus pricing, penetrative pricing & dynamic pricing). Choosing the right approach can be critical to your business success.
4. Assist with marketing strategy.
A mentor can help small business owners create an effective marketing strategy that will reach their target market. They’ll be able to offer advice on what channels to use, what kind of messaging to use, and how to track results so that they can see what’s working and what’s not.
5. Help with website development & maintenance.
A good mentor can help small businesses with website development and maintenance tasks such as improving website content, adding new pages, fixing broken links, and optimizing for search engines.
Overall, a business mentor can provide invaluable support, advice, and resources to small business owners, helping them grow their businesses effectively. Mentoring is one of the most effective forms of learning.
Questions and topics you could cover with a business mentor.
There is an endless list of questions and topics you can cover with a business mentor. There is no definitive list. The best areas to focus on are areas where you feel uncertain, struggle with, see an opportunity to exploit.
Here are some examples:
– What are their top tips for networking?
– What’s the best way to increase or decrease prices without harming the business?
– How do they measure the success of their marketing campaigns?
– What do they think is the most important elements of my website that I should focus on?
There are some great resources out there to help you. Wellmarkit have a resource library & lots of templates, SOP’s & cheat sheets to help you solve problems in your business. We highly The Lean Canvas” for startups. Another is the SCORE Business Plan. These are a great way to capture your business plan on one page. No point wasting time writing 60 page business plan which is full of assumptions. We take out mentoring clients through this model to get clarity and give direction on next steps.
Is business mentoring tax deductible
The IRS & Revenue does not specifically address the issue of whether business mentoring a deductible expense. However, the general rule is that any expenses that are considered necessary for the production of income are tax deductible. Business mentoring may be considered a necessary expense for a number of reasons, such as helping you create a business plan, networking, or marketing your business. Ask your accountant to confirm if business mentoring is a deductible expense for you in your country.
Where can I get a business mentor
There are many places you can find a business mentor. For example, networking events, online networking groups, and business associations. You could also look for a mentor through your local Chamber of Commerce or other business networking organizations.
Be careful though as many mentors are “generalists” and may not have much experience in your sector. Make sure that they mentor you select is familiar with your business and your sector.
Here at Wellmarkit, we specialize 100% on the Health & Wellness sector. We can offer excellent mentoring services to therapists, practice & clinic owners. The benefit of working with somebody like us is that we see what works for your peers and competitors so there is more certainty.
Coaching and mentoring are both forms of professional development, but there are some key distinctions between the two. Coaching is more goal-oriented and focuses on helping the individual reach their goals. Mentoring, is more relationship-oriented and focused on developing the individual’s skills and abilities.
What is the difference between business coaching and mentoring
A business coach may help you develop a business plan, set goals, and create a strategy to achieve those goals. They will also hold you accountable and provide feedback on your progress. A business mentor, on the other hand, will provide general advice and support to help you grow your business. They will not necessarily have expertise in your specific industry or field.
Which type of professional development is right for you depends on your needs and what you hope to achieve. If you’re looking for somebody to help you set specific goals and hold you accountable, then coaching may be the right option for you. If you’re looking for general support and advice, then mentoring may be a better fit.
At Wellmarkit, we are dedicated to helping small businesses plan, launch, manage and grow sustainably. We nurture small businesses & non-profits through mentoring, business coaching and educational workshops. Our mentoring & advice covers finance, business planning, pricing strategy, marketing strategy, SEO, website development & maintenance. Wellmarkit mentoring & business coaching is available to business owners in the UK, Ireland U.S. & Canada. We would love to hear from you and help you move forward confidently. Contact us today.
The author is available for business mentoring in Dublin, Cork, Limerick or Galway on request. We also offer free business mentoring for local businesses where the mentee meets certain criteria (e.g. disadvantaged, limited means) Contact us to arrange.
About Wellmarkit
Why are some Health & Wellness business owners more successful in growing their practice / clinic / business than you are? Ask us! We probably helped them. We created Wellmarkit to support Health & Wellness business owners who struggle with 4 main pain points:
1. Difficulty with finding & retaining clients in order to maintain a steady income.
2. Difficulty with marketing and promoting their services.
3. Difficulty with business management: Tax, accounting, planning and knowing what is best practice in running the practice.
4. Difficulty with managing administrative tasks: Administrative tasks, such as billing, record-keeping, insurance, time management can be burdensome.
At Wellmarkit, we specialize in supporting health and wellness business owners with high-quality yet affordable services. Our services include:
• Website design & development, online booking, branding, logo and graphic design.
• Online marketing, marketing strategy, SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) & social media.
• Group & one-to-one business mentoring + advisory services. We regularly run training courses & workshops on all of the aforementioned topics.
Since we focus 100% on health and wellness businesses we bring expertise to the table that our generalist peers lack. If you want to know why your competitors are booked out and rank towards the top of Google search, ask us! We probably helped them get there. Wellmarkit are the No.1 Marketing & Web Design team for Health & Wellness businesses.
Book your free discovery call today —>Here
