Getting your first client is an exhilarating experience, but it’s also an experience that far too many aspiring entrepreneurs never experience. Sometimes, the difference between an idea dying in the idea stage or going on to change the world is getting that first customer – the first tiny win that creates the momentum to make an idea real. So, we connected with some of the smartest folks we could and asked them to tell us the stories of how they got their initial clients.

Ryan Atkinson

Our first client came through email marketing. Honestly, it felt like blind luck. I had a background in sales from working at HubSpot, so I knew a little about messaging. But when you’re starting your first company, you never really know what’s going to work. About a week or so after launching our first outbound sequence, we landed a deal. Ten videos for $7,000. That same budget today would only get you one video. It just shows how much you learn and how easy it is to undervalue yourself in the beginning. These days, my rule of thumb is to charge 30 percent more than whatever I think is fair. I’m usually right. Read more>>

Josef Brandenburg

Growing up I was usually the “fat kid” and as people around me watched me turn it around over the years, a friend’s father asked me if I’d be their personal trainer. I had never heard of a personal trainer, I thought people got jobs that they were uninterested in so this was exciting to learn people actually could get paid for helping other people with their fitness. That was the start to my fitness career which is now in it’s 27th year. Read more>>

Ryan Kleier

In the summer of 2011 the Occupy Wall Street protests where in full swing, and I was scurrying to find any freelance work I could — making short DJ Equipment demos for a retailer and short marketing demos. It was rarely creative and not particularly fulfilling. Read more>>

Liang Chiu

I came across my first client while attending Paris Fashion Week in 2018. While attending various fashion shows the social media influencers I worked with introduced me to designers, decision makers in the Fashion PR and Marketing department of Global Fashion & Beauty/Skincare companies. Immediately I had built rapport and relationship where my first several clients reached out to me to help them implement their Influencer Marketing Program and Campaigns. From that point on, I had a nice steady stream of 2 – 3 new clients that I was managing while taking on my regular full time job. Since I was pretty good with project & time management. Read more>>

David Rivera

The Gig was given to us my a guy i know. It was our first gig.
I was told it would be 300 people. being cocky as I am i took on the Job.
It was Brisket, Pulled pork, Mashed Potatoes, abd Baked beans.
lets just say it was a adventure. Never mixed potatoes with a drill before in a 5 gallon bucket. Read more>>

Gatsby Yeh

My first customer came from the very first pop-up event at the farmers market. Right after I finished setting up my table in the park, I began greeting passersby. I welcomed my first customer to the table and started introducing them to my work. The couple fell in love with AURA Eau de Parfum, one of the original five scents I launched with the brand. To my surprise, they ended up purchasing a full-size bottle. Read more>>

Freddie Sanders

I gained my first client by consistently sharing my passion for makeup on Instagram Live. Every Wednesday, I would go live to demonstrate different makeup looks while explaining my techniques and answering viewer questions. It was a way to express myself creatively and build engagement with my audience. One day, a viewer requested that I do someone else’s makeup live—and I did. That experience opened the door to my first client and sparked the start of my professional journey. Read more>>