Talking about Entrepreneurship with USC MBA candidate Prentice Parr
Prentice is currently an MBA student at USC. He also runs BlackGreekPride.com, buyLAhouses.com and received his undergraduate degree from U.C. Berkeley.
In addition to being an MBA student at USC, you're currently involved in multiple ventures and projects involving websites. How did you first get involved in the online business world? What are some of the challenges you’re facing when trying to build up an online audience and traffic for these websites?
I get this question all the time. So, a few years back, I decided that I wanted to pursue my interest in entrepreneurship. I was doing really well in my job at the time (in fact, I had saved the company over $450K in my first year) and was thinking if I put the same amount of time and effort into my own venture, I’d probably be pretty successful. So I started researching business models and liked the idea of a website. It’s low overhead and I could create a site with relatively little capital. After a few test sites, I decided to stick with the one that was generating the most traffic and excitement. The biggest challenge for my website is getting the right mix of traffic. Roughly 2/3 of my traffic comes from Google and 1/3 from Twitter. My traffic from Facebook is negligible at this point. My hope, is to get a traffic mix closer to 1/2 Google, 1/3 Facebook, 1/3 Twitter, and 1/3 Other (Youtube, Pinterest, etc).
Managing social media for multiple brands and websites can be daunting, what are some tools or tips you can share with the audience that help you with this process?
I’m currently using Buffer, but would suggest Hootsuite as well. Buffer allows you to set predefined times that you would like to send out a message. With the click of a button, you can schedule a message, page, video, or whatever to be sent through Twitter, Facebook, and other platforms at the same time…. It’s really, really, easy. And it’s free. Hootsuite allows the scheduling function, but it is not as quick and easy. But what Hootsuite is great for is to be able to zero in on folks who are either talking about you or your website on social media, as well as folks that are in an industry that you’re interested in. By the way, Hootsuite is free too!
After being in a fraternity in UC Berkeley, you started BlackGreekPride.com. What were some of your goals for the website or needs you were trying to fill by creating this website?
I noticed that while Black Greeks had a pretty solid offline presence, there was not a primary online destination for Black Greek fraternities and sororities…So, I wanted to create this. That’s why I created BlackGreekPride.com. The site is both an entertainment and information center, where fraternity and sorority members can watch videos of strolls and step shows, learn about upcoming events, and buy paraphernalia. BlackGreekPride.com is also one of the few websites where fraternity and sorority members can have fun AND take advantage of academic and employment resources. I also hope for BlackGreekPride.com to be a source of inspiration for high school youth by strengthening their interest in college.
Any advice for individuals thinking about getting into entrepreneurship?
Just do it. A friend of mine (actually, a Marshall School of Business Alumnus) once told me about a successful entrepreneur who spoke at his class. The entrepreneur said “the only difference between entrepreneurs and regular people is that entrepreneurs do something…they think about ideas, strategies, ventures, etc., but after a certain amount of time, they do something to move forward.” So no matter where you are in the process, if you want to be an entrepreneur, just do something. If you don’t have an idea, start reading the Wall Street Journal and purchase a book on entrepreneurship. Have an idea? Then write a business canvas. Have a business canvas, then execute your next step. Once you have a completed business canvas, you’re pretty much an entrepreneur at that point. The only thing you need to do next, is execute your plan and make money.
Connect with Prentice Parr Jr.
Website: BlackGreekPride.com
Twitter: @BlackGreekPride
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/BlackGreekPridecom/223111044401499
Email: [email protected]