Many people give up on their dreams and ambitions before seeing the breakthrough that they always wanted. This can come from a plethora of reasons. Lack of funds, lack of confidence, or lack of hard work ethic.

Penny Clarke is an exception to the masses. She started her company 6 years ago and saw her sales explode from $5,000 a month to $50,000 a month during this COVID pandemic. Here’s how she did it.

Humble Beginnings

Penny is the last baby of 8 children. She was born and raised in Monrovia, Liberia. She looked up to her mother who worked as a schoolteacher and sold cornbread to make ends meet. Seeing that her mother had a side hustle inspired her to expand her streams of income. She migrated to the United States at age 16 to further her education. Her mother passed away in 2014 from congestive heart failure, which moved her to be more committed to helping women of color achieve their dreams.

In 2015 a trip to South Africa inspired her to build a team of African designers. Together they created a line of necklaces, earrings, bracelets, headwraps, handbags, and more. When her company was first launched she was still working as a government employee in Washington D.C. The pandemic has really propelled a lot of online businesses in the right direction. Economists are coining 2021 as the year of “The Great Resignation”. People are quitting their jobs in droves to pursue remote work.

Inflation is a huge issue within the job market. With travel restrictions still in place, many are taking this time to go back to school and really pursue what they love to do. Immigration and work visas have also been on the decline, which means they are a shortage of foreigners to take on jobs that are temporary and seasonal. Many “quitters” are not quitting work entirely. They are on the search for better opportunities.

Penny is among those who are taking a leap of faith to invest in an online business. The memories of how resilient her mother was accompanied by her love of travel, fashion, and foreigners birthed “Millie’s International Creations”. Most of her online boutiques’ materials are derived from Africa.

How Her Business Grew

Digital marketing is an in-demand skill because it can powerfully scale a business from zero to hero. Facebook ad campaigns can target your ideal demographics. A website with a sales funnel can generate awareness, consideration, and qualified leads which can turn into daily buyers.

Penny attributes her growing sales to the digital marketing agency 7th Pro Solutions. “When I started working with Edwin Jardin (the founder of 7th Pro Solutions), he really helped me to create a sales funnel for my website that has literally increased my revenue by 500%. My company now gets sales every single day, and it’s a challenge to keep up with inventory – which is a great problem to have.”

Creating a sales funnel can be a daunting task when you try to do it alone. The 3 main stages of a sales funnel are awareness, consideration, and decision. During awareness, a potential buyer is shown the product or service. How well the advertisement is towards gaining awareness is crucial for consideration. The 2nd stage, consideration is when interest is sparked. The person’s curiosity ignites in them the desire to buy. The last stage, the decision is when the buyer decides to buy a product or service.

7th Pro Solutions is a Digital Marketing Agency that focuses on accelerating business growth through effective strategies. Facebook ads can cause sales conversions to grow rapidly. Each ad has to be tailored to your individual social media platform. A business manager usually decides to use Facebook advertising in a strategic marketing plan when they want to reach new qualified prospecting audiences.

Are You A Passionpreneur?

Millie’s International Creations has a simple mission statement: “Millie’s aims to bring quality merchandise by women designers and artisans at an affordable price to the U.S. market. Part of our proceeds benefits various nonprofits around the world. I am continually traveling and seeking out women who wish to achieve their dreams and support their families through their craft.”

What’s your craft? Is there any hobby of yours that gives you butterflies anytime you daydream about it? Turning your dreams into reality takes investment, a concrete business plan, and a supportive team that works in harmony with your goals. During this pandemic, hustling can open many avenues if you are persistent.

Starting a side hustle can push you to expand past the boundaries in your comfort zone. Need some inspiration? Check out Etsy. You can take common household items to create your own handmade goods. From hats to unique bracelets, people love creations that took time and skill to make. Writing an e-book that inspires others can help you to make connections in the blogging industry. Take your expertise in a field to teach valuable lessons to others.

Monetizing your social media is another way to start building an online business. Instagram is the top social media platform for making sales. Once you have over 10,000 followers, you can monetize your posts and close deals with advertisers. Facebook Marketplace is another great place to create listings and sell handmade items. It’s free to start and you can share your items in various Facebook business groups.

Do you have a success story similar to Penny Clarke? Sound off below!