Profits differ from net income, and no where is there clearer than for small business owner-operators, artists, and creatives. Just because you have a certain amount of money left over after covering expenses doesn’t mean you’ve made profits. Why? Because you have to factor in the cost of your labor and the risk you took and so after factoring that in, millions of small businesses and artists and creatives are operating with little to no profit. However, it doesn’t have to be this way and so we wanted to create a space where sharp entrepreneurs and creatives could come together and discuss the challenges to profitability and potential solutions. If you have something valuable to add to this conversation that can help others achieve profitability, please reach out to us as we want to get your ideas in front of our readers.

Jeanne Reilly

The biggest challenge we’ve found as we work towards profitability is what the consumer is willing to pay for a supplement vs. what a high quality supplement costs to produce. We knew entering into the unregulated supplement industry was going to be a challenge – in a world where any manufacturer can produce anything unchecked we had our work cut out for us to stand out. Particularly in the prenatal supplement world, 99% of the products you can find on the shelves or online are sub-par. Read more>>

Patrick Hilson

The biggest challenge in my opinion in regards to making profit in the industry of Freelance Photographer stems from my social media presence. I am just not that big of a social media guy. Granted, I could put more effort into it, but I just don’t. Given how the world is moving today and how the algorithms are constantly changing, you have to continuously post every day at a certain time and make sure you have the right key words and hash tags; it just feels so forced… The way I’ve grown with my passion, I no longer do it for the likes, Now I just shoot because either I’m requested or I simply feel like shooting. Read more>>

Nicole Matta

I feel the market is very much over saturated. It can become very overwhelming competing with hundreds of other makeup artists. Also post covid it is not the same in terms of people and their comfort level. Read more>>

Emily Reynolds

The music business is tough. Though a top quality jazz band, a lot of our gigs pay about half of what musicians insisted on as a minimum 35 years ago. We have many wonderful fans, but not everyone understands how bands depend largely on tips. The public misconception is that musicians play because they love it, not because they’re trying to earn a living. It’s true that we love music, but people are also trying to earn a living. How wonderful it would be if there were federal support for music and arts groups as in other nations. Read more>>

Nia Crooks

My custom coasters are $50 + taxes and shipping. I feel as new customers review my work, they are deterred by shipping fees due to the current climate we are in which Amazon created with “free shipping”. I must admit, I am a loyal Amazon shopper (myself) and I do enjoy free shipping. But I also pay a monthly fee for this service. Read more>>

Tiffani Denham

As a full-time digital content creator, one of the biggest challenges is getting other brands and businesses to recognize my content as work, not just a pretty image or creative video on social media. Many times brands will reach out and comment about how much they love my work and want to collaborate with me in exchange for free products or service. In some cases, product seeding is appropriate. However, in order to consistently produce a quality product and remain a sustainable business, monetary compensation is necessary. Read more>>