Izzy Mo’s Blog

You might have read the first part.  Now here’s some little add-ons.

9) A Neat, User-friendly Website

Please understand that we are in the digital age.  The days of word-of-mouth advertising have been replaced by email and pixels.  There’s nothing more annoying than seeing a Muslim selling this awesome product, only to have them tell you that you can only contact them through a cell phone or Yahoo. How do they expect to grow and make money?  The majority, an overwhelming 97%, of my sales come from outside of Georgia.  I hoping to remedy this in the near future but it is partly because of my website and the familiarity of my blog. 

Umm Zaid has written about this before.  Whether your business is a mosque, bakery or car shop, you should have a website.  We would all love to have a slick website designed by Brother Ruh or Sister Shazia or Dynamite Soul.  Whenever you get the money, please patronize these talented Muslim designers.  But until then, try to get someone computer savvy to help you.  After all, our community is filled with graphic designers.  I got an email from an organization that’s been around for 16 years and they don’t have a website.  I’ll end there. 

10) Listening to what you don’t want to hear

It’s not nice.  It’s like a verbal punch to the gut.  You believe you have the best idea since slice bread and suddenly, someone says, “Um, do you think that’s wise?”  The difficult part about this piece of advice is that you don’t know if the person is being sincere or throwin’ salt on your game.  Is this a Muslim concerned for your finanical well-being or the nafs al ammara getting jealous? 

Think about who’s giving you the advice.  Do they belong to the same business you’re dealing in?  If you are starting a plumbing business, is this the advice coming from a master plumber with years of experience?  Just take a moment to consider their advice and see if it’s benefical.  Otherwise, you may find yourself regretting that “better than sliced bread” business idea.

11) Pray

Pray, pray, pray and pray some more.  And then pray again! Allah is your Provider and your Sustainer. Remember that!