Matt Johnson-Principal is a Canadian businessman. With a BCom in Marketing and an MBA, he has helped businesses in Vancouver and Okanagan before moving to the United States and opening a firm in Seattle, Washington. Matt’s Washington-based firm, Mountain View Consulting, specializes in social media marketing, PR, site design, and SEO. He started his organization to help Canadian and American businesses thrive by utilizing current resources rather than building new ones. Matt’s consulting firm grew from his original location in Canada, to having two locations when he opened the Seattle office.
At the end of 2021, Matt acquired a Vancouver, Washington based marketing firm and changed the company’s name from its original Matt Johnson-Principal Marketing Consulting to the new Mountain View Consulting. Matt kept the staff at the Vancouver office, now having a total of three locations. Clients of Mountain View Consulting benefit from the firm’s tailor-made solutions.
Tell us a little bit about your background and how you started your company?
I’m a graduate from the University of British Columbia with a degree in Marketing and an MBA. I initially started my company when I was living in Vancouver, BC where it began as a Canadian-focused consulting firm. This is not to say that we didn’t have clients from the US or elsewhere around the world, but most of our early clientele came from Vancouver, BC, and surrounding cities. I opened our first US office out of Seattle, Washington to cater more to the businesses that needed consulting services on the West Coast.
I decided to acquire the second location in Vancouver, Washington because of the many benefits it offers both me as an entrepreneur (e.g., tax incentives) and my clients. The greatest benefit for my clients is the ability to be able to work closely with our Seattle location while still keeping our Vancouver office separate and distinct from both locations.
What would you say are the top 3 skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur, and why?
One thing that you have to be very comfortable with when being an entrepreneur is being uncomfortable. You have to do things that are not normal for most people, which means taking risks and doing things differently than others in your industry.
Another skill entrepreneurs need is resourcefulness -even when you don’t have the right answer, figure out a way to get it. You have to know your resources well and how to maximize them the best you can.
Finally, I’d say never lose sight of why you started your company in the first place. It’s very easy as an entrepreneur to get caught up in day-to-day operations so being able to take a step back once in a while is also vital.
What were the top three mistakes you made starting your business, and what did you learn from them?
One mistake I made when starting my company was that I tried to do too many things at once. This is something that most entrepreneurs struggle with because in the startup phase you’re in “startup mode” where you’re constantly thinking about all of your different initiatives. A lot of times this means sacrificing quality for quantity. If you want to build something sustainable, you need to take time to build it right.
Another mistake I made was not delegating properly early on in the company’s development. As an entrepreneur, you think that you can do everything by yourself and sometimes shirk help from others even when you know deep down inside that there are people who can help you out more than you may realize. The key is to find the right people and give them the proper training so they can excel in their respective roles.
I also would have invested more time in marketing early on. I did invest time at the very beginning of starting up my company but could have made it a much bigger priority early on especially during our first year.
Tell us a little bit about your marketing process, what has been the most successful form of marketing for you?
I believe in varying my marketing approaches with different initiatives. For example, one of the most successful forms of marketing for me has been blogging. I’ve written articles that have received a lot of attention from our clients and also prospective clients in social media channels like LinkedIn. This is not to say that traditional methods are not effective in reaching out to your market, but you need to place more focus on your online presence these days.
What valuable advice would you give new entrepreneurs starting out?
The best advice I’d give to new entrepreneurs is to do what you love and not focus on the money. Too many people start a business for the wrong reasons and end up hurting themselves in the long run financially and mentally – plus, they quickly lose their passion for what made them want to get into that industry in the first place. If you focus on the money, more often than not, you will fail because you won’t be able to sustain such a high level of drive and passion for your project.
What’s a productivity tip you swear by?
I try not to make plans in advance – I usually leave all my appointments open-ended; otherwise, you start to get into a rut where your day resembles that of someone else’s. This allows me the flexibility to take meetings on the fly when opportunities present themselves, instead of pre-scheduling everything in advance. If you’re focused on a particular goal, sometimes working on it can be as simple as finding time during your day to do so.
If you only had $1000 dollars to start a new business, knowing everything you know now, how would you spend it?
I’d invest $600 in marketing efforts and the other $400 on product development. First things first, you need to get your market’s attention – without that, nothing else matters. Then you can start looking into the logistics of improving your product/service offering based on feedback from both internal and external sources. I’ve often seen it work out where people put all their money into product development but neglect marketing, which is why that $600 would go towards the latter.
How have the pandemic and Lockdown affected you or your new business?
My company has always utilized remote work, so the pandemic hasn’t affected us personally at all. I think there’s a lot of talk about how it’ll affect businesses in general and I’m curious to see what kind of changes will occur. I’ve heard stories of some companies closing down until further notice, while others are actually using this as a time to make some changes.
What helps you stay driven and motivated to keep going in your business?
The people I work with motivate me to keep going. We help each other out, not just in business but in our personal lives as well. I’ve been fortunate enough to have a good friend who’s my partner at Branding Success and we’re always bouncing ideas off of one another. He’s also someone that motivates me to do better and it’s contagious. I don’t think sometimes about giving up, because I know that as long as my team is behind me there’s no reason to quit.
What is your favorite quote?
“What you think about, you bring about.”
– Mike Dooley
What is your definition of success?
Success to me is being happy and content with what I’m doing and who I’m doing it for. The money is nice, but you can’t put a price on happiness – so to speak. That’s not to say that hard work doesn’t pay off because it certainly does, however, success should be defined as achieving something that gives you a sense of fulfillment and pride in yourself.
How do you personally overcome fear?
I don’t think fear should be something that holds you back from doing what you want to do. It’s a natural reaction – especially when it comes to the unknown – but if you manage your fears and take things one step at a time, it’ll make everything a lot easier in the end. Looking back on some of the bigger moments in my life, I don’t even remember being afraid – perhaps a little anxious beforehand but that’s to be expected.
You can easily overcome fear in three steps: 1) Accept the consequences of your actions 2) Accept that you’ll feel some discomfort when doing something new 3) Tell yourself that it’ll all be worth it in the end.
Can you recommend one book, one podcast, and one online course for entrepreneurs?
Book: 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferris – I read this years ago and it was a great way to get motivated and inspired. Tim’s philosophy is in sharp contrast to the beaten path, which is why he stands out as an entrepreneur. It’s not all sunshine and rainbows either; there are some things that his approach just won’t solve for you, but it’s a great starting point and then you can work your way into even further success.
Podcast: The Tim Ferriss Show – I subscribe to this and try to catch up on all the great interviews that he does. He has some really interesting people from all walks of life come onto his show and talk about things that they’re passionate about. How to invest, sleep, and just live a better life in general – it’s hard not to learn something new every time you listen/watch an episode.
Online Course: Anything from Skillshare – I don’t have much time for courses these days but when I do decide to take one, I always go with Skillshare. The courses are always well-rounded, and the instructors are great at explaining things in a way that anyone can understand. There’s something for everyone – photography, music, design – it’ll keep you busy for a while if you decide to take on more than one!
How can readers get in touch with you?
If someone would like to get in touch with me, they may email me at mail@mattjohnson-principal.com
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