BETA
This is a BETA experience. You may opt-out by clicking here

More From Forbes

Edit Story

How To Build Your Board Of Advisors -- A 3-Step Approach

Following
This article is more than 10 years old.

The following guest post is by Lawton Ursrey, CEO and founder of Indie Peace, an environmentally responsible apparel company, and product marketing manager of Sage One, a simple online accounting application for small businesses.

You have the great idea, the business model, and the marketing plan for your new business. But do you have a board of advisors to guide and mentor you and your venture to success?

I’ve asked a number of new entrepreneurs about their board of advisors, only to learn it is virtually non-existent. They may have an uncle or a cousin who gives advice, but that’s the extent of it. There are plenty of mistakes you’re going to make, but don’t just power through them with your entrepreneurial drive. Instead, eliminate as many as possible in pre-flight.

The first key is knowing what the potential mistakes are and determining if you can navigate around them. Don’t just “GO FOR IT” as you’ll exhaust yourself and your business with challenges that you were unprepared for.

Climbing a mountain? Don’t just run out and do it. Get the right tools first. What tools do you need? That is when you call a mountain climbing expert. See how easy that was?

A board of advisors is vital to your business. One of the fastest and easiest ways to sidestep landmines is to leverage the experience of seasoned entrepreneurs. There is nothing on the Internet that can replace direct, one-to-one advice from an expert.

I’m not talking about a dozen men and women in suits who have formal meetings every month in a stuffy conference room. I’m talking about a select group of people who have direct, successful experience doing what you want to do—and who are willing to share their expertise with you.

No matter what you want to do, there are people out there who know how to do it well. You just have to find them. As an entrepreneur, you’ve got to be fearless, and that includes approaching the right people and asking for five minutes of their time.

Don’t worry about putting people out. Almost every small business advisor I’ve encountered loves giving advice and expects nothing in return. I hear it often: “I love the startup phase and love to contribute my experience to it.” They absolutely thrive on it being a steward to the entrepreneurial ecosystem that helped them. Remember to ask for help, and remember that they’re probably honored to have you ask.

I built my board of advisors for Indie Peace using a three-step process.

Step one is to find your first advisor, who will be your “bouncing board” to others. Nearly every person who wants to start a company knows someone else who is successful, has valuable connections, and will help out as a favor. Don’t know anyone? Cast a broad net. Go through your current network, including family and friends, and ask them to refer you to a successful entrepreneur. At this point, it doesn’t matter what industry they are in as long as they have the overall experience.

Let them know that there will be no meetings to attend or tasks to complete. All you are looking for are individuals whom you can call or email occasionally to ask specific questions about their area of expertise. And those are the first members of your board.

Step two is to leverage these members to get your foot in the door with experts in your industry. Whatever your business model is, you have to map it closely to those people. Let them know that you already have other experts on board: “I’m already working with John Smith, an entrepreneur, and Mary Clarke, a graphic designer, and I would like to have five or ten minutes of your time.” If they can’t help, ask if they can refer you to someone else who can.

At this stage, you may also find potential board members at entrepreneur groups in your city. Find your “tribe” by attending meetings and events for local entrepreneurs and surrounding yourself with like-minded people. Try entrepreneur.Meetup.com, Cofounderslab.com, LinkedIn entrepreneurial groups, and search Google for entrepreneur societies and small business groups in your city. Attend all the events and discover the ones for you.

In addition, the university or college near your city will probably have an entrepreneur institute. Contact the director and see how you can get involved.

Co-working facilities are my favorite places to connect locally. They cater to entrepreneurs and host business pitch nights and other events to share ideas and contacts. I met one of my most valuable advisors this way.

Step three is the most challenging. This is when you will be approaching the people you couldn’t approach earlier because you didn’t have anything to show for yourself. These people are your blue-chip advisors—the “rock stars” you thought would be impossible to get. By now, you have hit some milestones to prove that you are serious and committed to growing this business. This is what I’ve achieved, this is what I’m doing now, and this is where I’m headed.

Show them solid results, demonstrate that you are worth taking a gamble on, and let them know you can do better with their help. These are very busy individuals, so cater to them and their schedule and show utmost respect for their time.

At every stage, make it clear to your advisors that you will make the best use of their time by contacting them only occasionally with specific, focused questions that target their expertise. My Indie Peace board never meets as a group, but I get the advice and answers I need from focused, one-to-one contact.

Most importantly, show your gratitude for their time and expertise. Many of your advisors want nothing more than to know that their input is greatly appreciated and valued.