9 month update

So you might be wondering why I haven't posted in a while.  The simple answer is that I have been so busy running Mamatini that my commitment to blogging weekly about the experience has fallen by the wayside!  Having your own company is a more challenging, exhilarating experience than I ever could have imagined, but I have some great tips to share with entrepreneurs thinking about doing the same thing.

I was very lucky to start Mamatini with the benefit of having worked in the VC/Angel Investing community for a while.  It made me hyper aware of all the pitfalls that you need to look out for in starting a new business.  The first and foremost is that things ALWAYS take more time to ramp up than you expect, and you should be prepared for this.  Make sure your cost structure is completely in sync with your revenue model, and it will afford you the time you need to grow your business and attract the market you need to make your product a success.

The other really important thing to be aware of is to give yourself time to truly understand your customer.  Even if you think you know what they want, it takes a lot of trial and error to get your service or product and its messaging to the stage where it can really address their needs in the right way.  I think of so many products that have had the kind of success I want Mamatini to acheive, and in my research I have found that many of them took years to break through to the level I assumed we would in only months.  Reaching the "tipping point" doesn't happen overnight, so make sure you are investing patient capital and that you are willing to stick it out until the market can truly "get" your idea.

Another crucial tip is to invest as much of yourself as you can in promoting your business.  Every connection and contact you make with an enthusiastic customer is priceless.  You have no idea if that person will be the right connector to take your product from a helpful item to a revolutionary product with the ability to change society.  Even the most inconsequential interaction can start a chain reaction that can take you from so-so to the next big thing, so keep working at it if you are getting postitive response in the right direction.

Thanks so much to all of my wonderful customers, business associates and friends who have supported Mamatini.  I want to build a great company but my mission is clear: to help MORE women meet the breastfeeding goals!  Mamatini helps more women breastfeed better, easier and for longer.  If we can help more women meet this natural objective, we will have a happier, healthier, more efficient society.  And THAT is what drives me as an entrepreneur.