Getting Started

I’ve decided to use my experiences with Pro Style Sports and life in general to create a column about starting and running a business. This blog will probably cover topics from marketing and product development to philosophies about money and life. I’ll be as honest as I can without putting the company at a competitive disadvantage. Which means you can expect me to reflect back on past events rather than look forward to future ideas or products.

For this first entry, I’d like to explain why I’m launching this project, given that my life is already too busy. First, I think it will be interesting to give other entrepreneurs, sports fans, and business people an inside look at what goes on starting a business in the sports world. I’m a teacher by nature and hope to use this site to share some of the wisdom I’ve learned to anyone who’s interested enough to listen.

The day after I had the idea of starting this series of columns, I met one of my friends for coffee. She’s a dance teacher and immediately began telling me about a web site she’s designing that would allow her to reach a wider audience. She plans to write health and fitness articles and make money by creating a virtual store to sell products she endorses. Most sites, she said, begin with content to bring visitors, and once they have the traffic, they start selling or advertising. Bottom line, I needed content to supplement my products. The fact that she said all this before I told her that I had thought the same thing confirmed that I needed to start putting articles on baseballwallet.com.

The second reason I’m writing this column needs to be seen from a business prospective. Because I have a very limited amount of both money and time, every "investment" of either needs to bring some sort of return. My perception is that most visitors come to this site from a search engine, see the products, either buy something or don’t, and then leave. The only reason they come back is because they later remember the site and want to make a(nother) purchase. But if I can give visitors a reason to visit this site regularly, the products will stay fresher in their memory, and when their old wallet dies or their cousin’s birthday comes around, they’ll be more likely to buy a baseball wallet. I learned that the technical term for this is to create a more “sticky” site. Basically be a good host and give visitors a reason to stay longer and come back more often.

The other business reason I’m writing these columns is to give an identity to Pro Style Sports beyond its name and products. I prefer to shop at a local store or eat at a family owned restaurant because I feel more connected to the business. National chains, on the other hand, feel so distant and impersonal. So I’m hoping that giving visitors some insight into this company will help them feel more connected to it, even though they may not know me personally. Hopefully I won’t just be selling a product, but rather a product with a story. Let me give a quick example to illustrate this idea. I have an autographed Nolan Ryan 1988 Topps baseball card. But when I show it to someone, it isn’t just a signed piece of memorabilia. Instead it's the card he signed for me at Book Stop, just after releasing his autobiography “Throwing Heat”. The same book in which he says admits that he’s bad with faces, so he watches the shoes of every autograph seeker to see if anyone is coming back for a second signature. I always wonder what shoes I was wearing the day I finally saw my idol up close, after watching him for years from the Astrodome bleachers. To me, my card isn’t a commodity that can be valued on Ebay, because it’s worth much more than whatever its current selling price.

The last reason I decided to write about my experiences at Pro Style Sports is because I love business. I enjoy reading about it, discussing it, and conducting it (although there are definitely parts that I struggle with). By understanding business, we are able not only to have more freedom in our lives life but also to change the world. Business gives us the ability to create, and as we are successful in our endeavors, everyone involved benefits.

These are the reasons I’m starting this column, and I hope you’ll find it both interesting and beneficial. I would love to hear any ideas or feedback you have regarding either the baseballwallet.com web site or this column. And so we begin.