With millions of dollars made and thousands of hours saved, Jordan Gill, founder of The Kolada Group, knows that if you want to make an incredible impact in your business, you must have massive support. Her mission is to partner with business owners like YOU in making your company indestructible to losing team members and money-sucking software decisions.
What motivated and inspired you to start your own business?
I’ve always known I wanted to have my own business and live life by my own values. When I was working full-time for an online entrepreneur, I just felt in my gut that it was time for me move on. So I put in my 6 weeks with literally no plan. During those 6 weeks, I tripled my monthly salary with 3 monthly retainer clients and was able to consistently have almost 5 figure months. It was a true blessing to take that leap of faith.
Tell us about your business.
I’m the head honcho at The Kolada Group, a business operations firm that helps entrepreneurs maximize the efficiency of their tech and team. We are all things automation and delegation!
List awards/certifications/accomplishments.
I’ve spoken at 5 events in my first year of business and traveled to 22 different cities. So crazy!
Where is your business based?
Our headquarters (aka my home office) is in Dallas, Texas. My team is completely remote, but my Project Manager, Chelsea, is about 45 minutes away so we have work dates.
What were the first few steps you took to get your business up and running?
I got an LLC and figured out a monthly retainer price and went forward. I literally didn’t have a website or “brand” or even testimonials. My network grew strong in the online marketing industry over 2 years so when I needed clients, people advocated for me. Then, I continued to network, network, network. I also opened a business bank account. So I really went the traditional route of getting my legal and financial ducks in a row.
What has been the most effective way of raising awareness of your business and getting new customers?
I love teaching in people’s communities. That’s one of my favorite and most effective ways of getting clients. People like to see my personality and the way that I work. The nature of my work is that it’s personalized. So I can teach the frameworks, but clients will always want 1 on 1 attention.
What have been your biggest challenges so far?
I wasn’t visible in my business for the first 7 months… do not do as I do. I didn’t like my business name and I worked behind the scenes of other people’s teams so I just stayed in that mentality. Finally in January, I chose my word of the year: visibility. And it’s TRANSFORMED my business completely. The more you can show up and be a beacon for your business, the better it is!
How did you overcome these challenges?
I continued the consistency of my podcast as well as started a very consistent social presence on Instagram. I’ve created a Facebook group as well. I didn’t roll everything out at once. However, when the process was created and easily maintained, we added things on from there.
How do you keep motivated through difficult times?
I have a GREAT support system: 2 masterminds, a sales coach, marketing coach, 6 team members, family, biz besties, non-biz besties. It truly take a village. It’s about surrounding yourself with people who believe in you even when you don’t believe in yourself.
How do you distinguish yourself from your competitors?
A lot of ways. Most people do monthly retainers in my line of work. I don’t. I only do intensives and VIP days. I like it that way. That’s how I stay in my zone of genius. Also, a lot of systems people usually only share one “RIGHT” way to create an operation process. I like to look at people’s businesses individually to see what support they really need with their software and team.
What is the best advice you have received recently?
Trust yourself. Some of the best advice because in business and life, people are constantly giving you unsolicited (and even solicited) advice that doesn’t truly serve you. Only you know what’s best for you. I had myself getting a bit off track due to some people I thought I could trust. But stay in your power and trust it.
What advice would you give to other entrepreneurs?
Don’t shy away from ways to do business if you haven’t seen them done before. No one in my niche just does business the way I do, so I had to carve my own path. It seems scary because you don’t have a roadmap, but how exciting is that?!
What are your favorite business tools/resources and why?
You asking a systems person for their favorite tool is like asking the question – “If you were on a deserted island and could only bring one thing…?” One tool that I will suggest for folks who have a team is Slack. Think of it like AOL Instant Messenger back in the day, but even better. Also, my favorite integration is Acuity (calendar scheduling) and Zoom (video conferencing), for my discovery calls and client work. It makes it so simple because all I have to do is get on the call!
What is a good article or book you have read recently?
Recently, I haven’t been reading as much, but a book that I always recommend for folks looking to get their business financial game on lock is “Profit First” by Mike Michalowicz. I started out my business with that mentality and it’s made my life SO much easier.
What are you currently learning about for your business or looking for help with?
I’m learning that I need to incorporate more self-care. I’m a workaholic but it’s also because I love my business. I don’t struggle with a lot of the normal business stuff because I have a team helping me. But it’s more being disciplined with stopping my work than starting. I could easily work 12-16 hour days and get a ton done, but that’s not sustainable.
What are your goals for the next few months and how are you striving to achieve them?
I’m going to continue to be visible in the ways I know how since I’ve been able to get results. Thankfully I don’t get distracted by shiny object syndrome so I am just going to continue to tweak and make what I’m currently doing better! I’m also not a big “goals” person, which is weird. I like focusing on the processes and so far, it’s brought me what I’ve wanted achieve.
What social media outlets do you use? List them below.
Instagram @thekoladagroup
Facebook www.facebook.com/thekoladagroup
Facebook Group www.facebook.com/groups/bigandboldbackends
Podcast Systems Saved Me
Website www.thekoladagroup.com
Email hello@thekoladagroup.com
Hashtags #thekoladagroup #systemssavedme
Luci Coo says
Really great post and really great advice for someone like me that is new to starting a new business like a blog.
shanissweetart says
Interesting points and good advice. I like the “visibility” focus. I’m going to try that.
Eryn says
This post is filled with great info! Thank you for taking the time to share it with us all. I can’t wait to implement what I’ve read!
Ashlee says
Really great post, which has lots of great advice and tips for those looking to go into business. Thanks for sharing.
Ashlee | ashleemoyo.com
Annmarie says
This is a great post for anyone who wants to branch off and become their own boss in any aspect of their life.