"Don’t be afraid to fail, embrace it" with Janay Symonette
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Janay Symonette is the powerhouse businesswoman behind FindrPro and ProPaySoft. With over a decade of experience in marketing and business management, Janay leads by example with a solution-oriented approach to entrepreneurship. She has played a crucial role in the advancement of technology systems for fin-tech startup environments, having managed the developments of web applications, trading dashboards, banking technology, and financial courses.
Can you tell our readers about your background?
I am a serial entrepreneur. I started my first online business in 2012, helping to connect clothing retailers with customers online. That transitioned to the Island Shop Network, which was a marketplace that helped customers to find the products and services they needed near them.
In 2017, my husband and I launched The Island Network Group and Sign Island, as a boutique printing and marketing agency serving business in The Caribbean.
In 2018, I launched version 2.0 of Island Shop Network called FindrPro - a services marketplace and online quotation software for service-based businesses. My mandate for FindrPro was to help small business owners automate …
Where is your business based?
My business is based in The Bahamas.
How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?
I’ve started all of my business in Excel (today’s pen and paper), mapping out my ideas. I spend a lot of time analyzing things in my day that took me longer than it should or where I encounter roadblocks in business and in life, and I start to figure out how to solve these problems.
What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?
Your network is your net worth. Tapping into your network of friends, families, customers is still one of the most effective ways of raising awareness for your business. I like to think of it as a tribe that will chant, post, tweet, and share your content, and one of the best ways to garner interest and buzz around what you’re doing.
What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?
My biggest challenge over the past 7+ years has been knowing when to let go. I’ve tried to make things work that was clearly a waste of time and energy. This goes for business, friendships, and even family. The only way to get through is to appreciate the role self-care plays. Self-care is taking a step back, determining what is best for you today, and literally saying no to everything that is not that.
How do you stay focused?
I write everything down! I’m pretty old school in that sense. There’s something about seeing things written down to stay on track. Also, it feels good to put a check-mark next to something you accomplished - no matter how small it may seem.
How do you differentiate your business from the competition?
I am hyper-focused on user experience, which means I’m always thinking about how to make things easier from the customer's point of view. That focus has helped to stand-out and is in fact much harder than it seems. Quite often, we focus on whether something ‘works’ where my team and I focus on ‘if it works the best for the intended customer’.
What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?
I actually really enjoy creating retargeting campaigns. How to get a user fully engaged in what you’re promoting or selling after the first visit. I try to flex my advertising creativity to get people back on the website and ultimately onboarded as a customer.
What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?
There’s a quote I like that says ‘Don’t worry about failure, you only have to be right once’. The truth is we are going to fail, maybe once, possibly 10 times but many times this is what it takes to come up with the right idea at the right time - so don’t be afraid to fail, embrace it.
What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?
My favourite app: TheSkimm
Sometimes it can be difficult to keep up with what’s going on in the news and around the world but I think it is really important for business meetings and small talk with colleagues and customers. I usually refer to TheSkimm to keep me in the loop and when I get some free time, I can really delve into the details.
Favorite Blog: Create & Cultivate
As a female business owner, I source motivation and gems from other female business owners and I like to read about their work, how women have turned challenges into opportunities, and their outlook for the future.
Favorite Book: Michelle Obama’s Becoming
Who isn’t completely inspired by Michelle Obama’s book ‘Becoming’? A profound story of a black woman that moves through a system that we’re all too familiar with to become the first black first lady and having to navigate with all that comes with it. It’s really a must-read.
What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?
There are so many tools that I love.
One resource that I find really helpful is Envato Elements, which offers unlimited creative assets that you can use for your business. Even with a free account, you have access to 12 assets per month; anything from graphic templates and fonts to stock images and music.
However, my ultimate favourite has to be Hubspot, which is a CRM, sales, and email hub and also offers marketing tools for your website. Their free version is quite robust and offers you the tools to be able to manage your contacts, tasks, send emails and so much more in one place. I’ve gone through so many CRMs and this one is the best for me.
Who is your business role model? Why?
I am really inspired by women who have been able to bootstrap their businesses. In the Bahamas, there isn’t a lot of opportunity to access funding, especially from VCs or angel investors because we’re in such a small market.
How do you balance work and life?
I try to spend as much time as possible with my real supporters and family. These days that is in the form of a Zoom conference, but I like to take the time to catch up, putting work aside.
What’s your favorite way to decompress?
When I REALLY want to decompress, I travel. For me, travel is therapeutic and educational. When possible, I try to go as far away from my culture as to learn more about the world, and most times I find ideas that I can apply in my day-to-day work.
What do you have planned for the next six months?
In the next 6 months, I’ll be launching and learning from my newest project ProPaySoft, an automated HR and payroll solution for Caribbean businesses.
How can our readers connect with you?
@propaysoft