Today I’m speaking with sidepreneur Tony DiLorenzo. He has an interesting story because he has two successful businesses in two completely different niches. Furthermore, one is more offline and the other is more online. What’s really helpful here is how he validated the idea for his side business.
On to the questions!
What Is Your Day Job And What Is Your Side Business?
My full-time business is The Dent Dude where I remove dings and dents for all makes and models of vehicles. Twelve years ago I stepped out after the company I was working for went under. Through years of trial and error The Dent Dude is a leader in the San Diego area.
During the recession the auto industry took a huge it. At this time my wife, Alisa, and I decided to begin podcasting about sex, love and commitment at ONE Extraordinary Marriage. Since then we have grown the show to the #1 Marriage Podcast on iTunes. As we grew, we added products and services that our audience asked us for.
How Did You Choose Your Side Business?
My wife, Alisa, and I had hit a low point in our marriage around the 11 year mark. We decided to take on our 60 Days of Sex Challenge. It was about a year after that when we presented at a marriage retreat and saw the impact we had on couples. Another year passed with many couples reaching out to us about helping them have an extraordinary marriage.
It was at this time we jumped in and began to learn about how to build a brand and audience online.
How Do You Find Time To Work On Your Side Business?
Any free moment that was available. Many mornings I will wake up before everyone else to get in 30-60 minutes of time to create and work on projects.
What had really helped us is that we cut cable, deleted distractions and stayed focused on what we needed to accomplish to gain a foot hold in our niche. Without these distractions, we are able to get lots done in 30 minute chunks of time.
What’s Working For You Right Now In Growing Your Side Business?
Optimizing our site for lead acquisition. Our main focus is to grow our mailing list. To do this we are introducing new lead magnets as well as different email promotions to increase revenue.
There are also many different techniques we are implementing across the site to continue to gain new leads.
What Advice Can You Give Someone Who Is Thinking About Starting A Side Business?
Differentiate yourself quickly and have a product, yours or affiliate, and services that you offer from the beginning. You don’t have a business if you are not generating revenue.
When you first start, your site doesn’t have to be perfect. It’s a work in progress and will grow with you over time. We went through phases where our site was not what it is today and yet we were still reaching couples and impacting lives.
