However, searching for a mentor who is an industry expert can be quite a task. Similarly, finding a well-deserving mentee can be difficult too. Hence, this challenge brings up a new opportunity for budding entrepreneurs to connect both sides effectively. By building an online mentoring platform they can help connect experienced mentors with mentees.

Types of Mentoring

We can see a huge scope in the online mentoring business space, but before tapping onto its potential let us see the different types of mentoring prevalent in the industry.

Individual

Also known as one-on-one mentoring, where a mentor with desirable experience and expertise, guide, and help a mentee achieve his goals. All points and feedback are discussed privately in face-to-face sessions.

Group

This type of mentoring involves a mentor guiding several mentees in a group. Here mentors can reach and guide more mentees in a shorter span of time. This is useful where no individual attention is required and the same skill is to be taught to every individual in the group.

Collective

In this type of mentoring, a group of mentors would guide and share knowledge with a group of mentees. This type of mentoring is mostly popular in enterprises.

Necessary Features for an Online Mentoring Platform

Before you start building your own online mentoring platform, there are certain necessary features that you should consider for the success of your platform.

Matching Algorithm

A mentor and mentees’ match is neither made in heaven nor is it guesswork. Albeit, it requires an effective matching algorithm to read user profiles and make suggested recommendations. A well-organized mentoring platform allows mentees to choose mentors according to their requirements, and in turn, mentors can add relevant particulars about themselves on their profiles to make that search easy for them.

In case, mentees don’t want to choose their mentors themselves, the admin can assign a mentor to them. Correct matching will ensure satisfaction at the mentees’ end and will increase trustability on your platform.

Interactive Tools

A well-established mentoring platform must have good communicative tools to facilitate seamless communication between mentors and apprentices. They should be able to interact in real time via video call or chat. They should be able to easily collaborate with each other by sharing links, and documents, on the platform.

Furthermore, features like a virtual whiteboard, screen sharing/recording, chat support, etc. are essential for any online mentoring platform.

Multilingual

If you wish to serve globally, this feature can help you get an edge over your competitors. This feature can help you break the language barrier and open opportunities for you to serve and mentor participants worldwide.

Progress Monitoring and Tracking Reports

This could be an important feature for mentors and mentees to evaluate the progress of the mentorship program. As accountability is essential for any training program and mentees’ success, monitoring and tracking reports that can show the progress of mentees in the form of graphs or in scores can be an added advantage.

Through these tools, mentees can assess their performance and can also identify weak areas where more support is needed.

Ratings and Reviews

Ratings and reviews can play an important role in improving the transparency of your platform. Mentees can provide feedback about their mentors and further new students can decide whether they want to hire a particular mentor or not. The rating of mentors can also be shown on their profile page to increase their accountability. Hence, we can say that ratings and reviews play an important role in client satisfaction.

As we have discussed essential features that should be included on the mentoring platform, let us see how you can start building your own online mentoring platform.

Building an Online Mentoring Platform

An online mentoring platform can majorly be developed in two ways:

1. Custom development
2. White-label solution

Custom Development

In custom development, you need to hire web developers and designers who will custom-build your platform from scratch keeping your business needs in mind. This solution offers high scalability and efficiency for your platform. Custom development allows you to fully reflect your brand identity and add personalized small touches to your user interface.

The main drawback of a custom-developed solution is that it takes a lot of time and money in the development process as the platform will be built from scratch.

White-Label Solution

A better alternative to custom development is to purchase a white-label solution that can cater to the needs of your business. As it is a pre-made solution, it is quite affordable. One of the major advantages of white-label solutions is that your platform is ready to launch within 2-3 days. And, as the platform developed from this solution is tested several times, there are fewer chances of any errors or bugs.

The expenses saved using white-label software can be realigned in a more effective way. You can use that budget in marketing your business to attract more users and eventually increase the profits and ROI. Moreover, investing in white label software eliminates the need to control the process of product implementation and you do not have to spend time and effort on project management, thereby saving a lot of time and effort.

Yo!Coach is one such popular solution that allows you to build your platform in a short period of time. It is white-label software that is fully customizable. It is cost-effective, highly scalable, and has all the basic and advanced features needed for establishing an online mentoring platform effectively.

This solution provides lifetime ownership with no recurring fee and is pre-integrated with popular video conferencing and payment APIs. There is no one size fits all choice when choosing the approach to build your mentoring platform. You should make your decision based on your unique business requirements.

Bottom Line

With the advent of new technologies and tools, we can see a gradual shift of people towards digital modes of mentorship, where they can not only attend classes according to their convenience but also can be guided by experienced mentors. Mentoring platforms exist because there is a need for such platforms in the market.

Facilitating both mentors and mentees with a feature-rich online mentoring platform can help turn your mentoring business into a success.

The post Essential Features For an Online Mentoring Platform appeared first on Tricky Enough.

Mentorship Matters

As a small business owner, you must be wondering if it is out of my league to find mentors like these. It’s true, not all entrepreneurs have world-famous executives to mentor them but that doesn’t mean you don’t need mentorship.

Kabbge Inc, a financial services company surveyed 200+ small business owners throughout the US for evaluating the importance of mentorship. They came up with the following findings:

• Only 22% of small business owners had mentors when they started out. 17% said they had advisors (paid consulting services). This means 63% of the businesses didn’t have access to professional guidance.
• 92% of small business owners agree that having a mentor impacts growth and business survival directly.

In the early years of business, having business mentors is vital to success. A mentor provides counseling, and a fresh perspective to collaborate, learn, and help you stay focused.

Benefits of Having a Mentor

When you are freshly setting into an industry, it’s good to have someone you may look up to in the field. If you are in doubt, take a look at the importance and benefits of having a mentor:

Practical Experience

You can’t learn how to play basketball from someone who hasn’t been on the court or touched the ball right? That’s why we have coaches to teach us how to play and to help us find our strengths and weaknesses. Otherwise, it could just be another textbook course.

In business, your experience is an asset and it’s an expensive one. It is critical to the success of your business. Reading books doesn’t make you an expert unless you step into the field. Most authors don’t feel comfortable revealing every truth about their journey in their books. It’s not because they don’t want to share insights but because some experiences are too intimate to be shared. The way they dealt with their problems could help inexperienced entrepreneurs.

Chances of Success Exceed

Tons of surveys are out there to prove mentors are important to success. Don’t take my word for it. Reach this survey. 80% of the CEOs who succeeded said they had some type of mentor.

Chances of success in business, as well as in life, are amplified by having the right mentor by your side. Timely advice, accountability, valuable connection – everything works to lift your spirits and provide moral guidance. This type of support can leapfrog anyone to success.

You Get Reassurance

Research has proven time and again that quality mentorship has a positive impact on entrepreneurs. Having a true friend who shares their fears with you, and practically guides you along the path of success keeps you reassured that success is near.

Many skills make you a successful entrepreneur and self-confidence is one of them. In fact, confidence matter more than talent. With the help of a mentor, young entrepreneurs can tap their confidence and take every challenge as an opportunity.

Stay in Business for a Long Time

How many startups have you known that have failed in the first, second, third, fourth, and then fifth year of business? Probably many. Maybe it was your friend’s business or even someone in a close family. It goes without saying your boat will into the river if you don’t take an experienced sailor with you.

Don’t want your startup to fail? Then get yourself a mentor. 30% of new businesses hardly survive in the past 2 years. 50% don’t even make it past 5 years. However, if you have a mentor, your business can take the plunge and thrive for 5 years and more.

Stronger Emotional Intelligence

Let’s face it, most of us aren’t born with emotional intelligence. A mentor can instill it in you. With a mentor by your side, you are likely to have greater control over your emotions.

Stress is not the only problem, most entrepreneurs are quick and aggressive at making decisions based on feelings. In situations like these, a mentor can become your shield and keep you from reacting. He can help you make smart and decisive judgments.

Encouragement during Failure

Not all entrepreneurs are blessed with success right away. Failure to launch, problematic campaigns, lack of capital, tax mistakes in the first year of business, and similar other problems will appear time and again.

Being unable to meet your goals and expectations can make you depressed. This could affect your decision-making abilities. A mentor can help you channel your depression. Words of encouragement and motivational speeches from the one who has experienced everything you are experiencing are a big acknowledgment.

If they made it, I will make it too, this is the thought that makes you keep going.

Rewarding Network Opportunities

Mentors have connections in a range of industries. The people whom they will introduce you to make valuable connections. The more you tap into their indispensable network, the more opportunities you seek. One thing is for sure, you can’t make connections like these on your own.

How and Where to Find Mentors?

Now it all begins with finding the right mentor to work with. But where?

Fortunately, several organizations out there connect young entrepreneurs with mentors. The problem comes down to time. Most entrepreneurs are too busy trying to make their business successful that their commitment to finding a mentor becomes unmanageable. Well, having a mentor is just as important as the best ISP (because speed matters).

Here are some tips to help you find a great advisor or mentor to rely on:

Start with Networking Groups

Startup incubators, networking groups, and social media can help you find mentors in your niche and possibly even in your community. Look for a person who has a wealth of experience in your field. Their knowledge and commitment matter at the same time.

Find Someone Who Understands Your Business

It’s ok if you can’t find a mentor with the same career background as you. What matters is finding the person who understands your business. Some industries have more mentors than others. If your industry falls into the category where a limited number of mentors are available, work with one who has a thorough understanding of your business.

Ask Indirect Competitors

Your direct competitors will obviously be reluctant in giving practical advice on succeeding. So don’t bother reaching out to them. Instead, find indirect competitors (businesses serving in industries other than yours) to recommend a mentor. Chances are they are in business longer than you. They could provide you with the names of leading mentors in the community.

Their leadership might be willing to share some pearls of wisdom with you. Strive to develop a relationship with them by offering free services, if applicable. It’s totally fine not to hire them as mentors but they could act as your advisor when needed.

Do A Little Twitter and LinkedIn Search

There is nothing you can’t find by doing a good old social media search. Twitter and LinkedIn are filled with profiles of social entrepreneurs, community leaders, advisors, consultants, and mentors.

The best thing about this is that you can find mentors based on your demographic area and industry easily. Don’t flood their inbox with a list of questions. Never beg them to mentor you. Ping them by introducing yourself casually. If they are welcoming, then pitch the idea of mentoring your business.

Search for Entrepreneurial Hotspot

Every city or region has its own entrepreneurial hotspot. You just have to look harder to find yours. A startup incubator is another term for it.

It’s probably an open workspace where entrepreneurs from various industries meet, brainstorm ideas, share creative thoughts such as what things to consider before selling, and simply chill. Keep your eyes open for such clubs. Attend whenever you find an opportunity. You may not find a mentor there directly, but connecting with fellow entrepreneurs will help you get in touch with one.

Conclusion

The truth is, convening a small business owner or entrepreneur to work with a mentor is harder than finding the right one. Don’t let your big business idea fail because of one negligence. It may seem like a costly investment but it’s better than failing, right?

Suggested:

Essential Features Of an Online Mentoring Platform.

The post Why Every New Entrepreneur Needs a Mentorship for business? appeared first on Tricky Enough.