Today, The Asian Entrepreneur has the privilege of speaking to entrepreneur Husnain Minawala about his experience of starting a digital marketing business.
Tell us about yourself, Husnain.
Call me a wanderer, traveler, social media enthusiast or a business man. I founded my first web portal named Events Pakistan in 2006, which to date is covering all major events of the country. In 2010 a digital agency was inaugurated by the name of Mystic Advertising. In 2013 a web portal for all the active bloggers of Pakistan was launched. In 2014 Mystic Advertising LLC opened its very first office in Dubai, UAE.
In your own words what do you do?
Exploring new places and getting lost in right direction gives me peace and happiness. I want the whole world to know why they should travel and what an amazing thing it is. By profession I am Digital Marketer.
What led you to your current business?
It may seem as it’s a planned but everything was unplanned, I always had a flare of doing my own business rather working for another organization. Mystic Advertising is to me like a child is to his mother. In five, progressive years, I groomed and raised it with love and care. I started from a single room for the office in Karachi, Pakistan, and now here I am, in my current office on 43rd Floor in Dubai.
Could you walk us through your process of developing your business?
Well, at first, like you all know that a first-timer has his doubts and flaws. In the beginning, I was like freaking out over “what if I won’t be able to deliver” or “What if my plan fails completely”. Man, those were the days, before over-analyzing and worrying got me thrown into a mental asylum, I decided to gather myself and focused on the present rather than past. And here I am, safe and sound, by all regards, sane. Now, by the grace of God, I have developed a pride-worthy business, all from scratch.
Did you encounter any particular difficulties in the beginning?
As mentioned formerly, I was very insecure basically a worry-rat. It took some time to believe in myself and have confidence. Initially, I was also very lost over what new ideas to come up with and how to portray them “lyrically”. But with the passage of time things got clear and I learned a lot. However, I can say for sure that I survived, as you can see my whole-self right now.
What is your long term plan?
My long-term plan is to actually have a long-term plan which is not just a hastily- made up one but a proper organized strategy. Apart from that, I have a current long-term plan in which I will be advertising my business and my blogging site nationally as well as internationally. This will, in turn, help my dear brothers belonging to different cultures and promote unity between Pakistan and its allies.
Expansion of my business, aspiring to have operations all over the world. We will soon be starting our operations in New York, United States of America.
Could you share with us some industry insights?
Advertising is not something which cannot be learnt from reading books, You learn it with experience, Every day is a new learning day, At times you learn from your clients, It’s been a while since people are debating over digital and conventional methods of advertising but still fails to decide which one is more effective. So if you talk about advertising insights, Let’s Say “No matter if your business is going well or not you need Advertising anyhow” Thus we can conclude that Advertising industry will always be doing well.
What are some important lessons you’ve learnt about entrepreneurship?
Being an entrepreneur is definitely not for the faint of heart, but it does open up the amazing opportunity to run with your ideas and experiment with them like a scientist would mix up potions. However, you have to get out of your comfort zone daily, your first try will most likely fall short or even fail completely, you have to kiss up to a lot of people you don’t even like, which is the worst part. Being a good listener is the biggest necessity. All in all, it is one exhilarating job!
Any tips for achieving success?
Be confident and open-minded, all the time! Even if others think you are wrong, stay rooted to your ideas and be a stubborn-nut! In my business, I have learned that social skills are the mother of success. Without it, success cannot be achieved. Never ever leave the things for tomorrow, do it today, however much tired you may be. Believe me; you will be thankful to me later. I learned these things in a hard way; implement my advice and sore high in the sky!
