We recently connected with Dorothy King and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Dorothy thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?

In the spring of 2023, I found myself in a surprising situation. I was a new mom and just two weeks before my return to work, I was informed that my previously all remote job was not remote anymore — and therefore no longer available. I was shocked. I’d spent the last decade in corporate roles across retail, sales and ecommerce. I deeply enjoyed my work as the ecommerce director for a fast growing brand and was ready to go back after maternity leave.

As the shock wore off, I enjoyed the extra snuggles with my little boy and the wheels began to turn. What would I do instead? The thought of jumping into interviews didn’t appeal to me, and I knew that the work I’d been doing was exactly what I wanted to continue. In the back of my mind, an idea began to form — maybe there was a need for the work I’d been doing but tailored to smaller, scrappier brands. Perhaps I could create a freelance-based business where I offered the same core services I’d done before, but fractionally.

Over the summer, the seed took root and went from thinking I could just “pick up some freelance projects” to this could be a real business. Starting with conversations with contacts and mutual acquaintances, I picked up work and formed a business model. I studied business model design in graduate school, so the idea of identifying a problem and solving it came naturally to me.

Over the last year and a half, one client has led to another and another. With each new project and client, I have put the pieces together on pricing and time management. I formed an LLC and hired a business coach. I largely said yes to anything that came my way which, through trial and error, allowed me to see what worked. I addressed problems like charging too little and not having the right tools and software set up. Step by step I have built Dot Com Consulting into a business that is not only sustainable, but is more rewarding than I could ever have imagined.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Dot Com Consulting is an ecommerce consulting business founded on the mission to help small business grow sales online. The problem we solve is to help other businesses close the gap from where they are to where they want to be through digesting data, building a holistic ecommerce strategy, implementing that strategy with operational excellence and, ultimately, transforming the business.

My career began with an early love for fashion and retail—specifically the “business side of fashion,” as I used to describe my Fashion Merchandising major at the University of Georgia. I started out in wholesale sales in New York City for womenswear brand Lafayette 148. A desire to be closer to the customer interaction led me to pursue an MA in Business Design from SCAD. That program focuses on the creative mindset in forming a business model that meets a customer demand. While in graduate school, I worked on projects that focused on designing business models, which sparked my passion for helping build and refine businesses. However, I never felt the pull to start my own business when I could instead collaborate with other entrepreneurs.

From SCAD, I pivoted to roles with earlier stage businesses including The Citizenry, Julie Vos and minnow. In these roles, I honed my skills in building and executing strategies for different business models. I worked in various settings: launching an inaugural retail operation at The Citizenry, designing a best-in-class DTC customer experience and data infrastructure at Julie Vos, and leading e-commerce through rapid growth at minnow. These experiences deepened my passion for data-driven, customer-centric decision-making while giving me the opportunity to work closely with innovative founders.

All of these experiences laid the foundation for Dot Com Consulting. After a decade of helping sell physical products, I discovered that my greatest passion lies in selling the service Dot Com offers: the tools and strategies to help other businesses grow. My proudest moments come a client loves a new launch, report or feature. Helping clients see their business in a new light or achieve a significant goal reaffirms that the fractional e-commerce services we provide are meeting their needs perfectly.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

For me, the absolute best source of new clients has been existing clients. I started my business by reaching out to 4 potential clients I knew of from my previous work and two of those became two of my first clients. Those initial two have sprouted out into nearly 20 different clients over the last year, each one referred by another or a word of mouth connection.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

There are many but the one book that has stuck with me for years is Hug Your Customers by Jack Mitchell. I worked for a venture backed home goods company and the founder suggested it to everyone who interacted with customers. The philosophy centers around a retail store and the feeling you give a customer – going above and beyond the transaction.

I’ve found that this philosophy applies far beyond the retail floor. In my consulting business centered on retail / luxury goods brands this book is doubly meaningful. The idea of creating brand loyalty and experience is relevant both between Dot Com Consulting and our clients and between our clients and their customer. Working in ecommerce, my end goal is always to create website that “hugs” the customer through the screen – a win for everybody!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.dotcommerceconsulting.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dotcom_consulting
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/dot-com-consulting/

Image Credits

all images are my own