Sayali Prabhudesai | HTML developer, entrepreneur | Activelink Web Design | Dubai
(June 17, 2023) After five years in the corporate world, Sayali Prabhudesai knew that the life wasn’t for her. She had also gained substantial experience as a HTML developer and a web designer. All this led her to found Activelink Web Design in 2012, which provides services like graphic design, social media marketing, web development and design and Search Engine Optimisation. Ten years on, the Dubai-based entrepreneur continues to partner with organisations and events across India and the UAE.
“I got my first job in Mumbai as an HTML developer,” Sayali tells Global Indian. “Then I worked in a few companies over the next four or five years, as a web designer and a HTML developer.” By 2012, Sayali was confident about having built a good foundation for herself and wanted to learn from her own experiences, in her own way. That’s how Activelink was born, in India in 2012. “A well-designed website can help you make an impression on your prospective customers, nurture your leads and get more conversions,” Sayali remarks. “It also gives your visitors and prospective clients a good user experience.”
Taking the leap into entrepreneurship
The journey, Sayali says, began with making a decision and acting on it, both of which happened quite suddenly in her life. That decision was to hold off on looking for a new job, take control of her life and do what her heart desired. Sayali started small, speaking to people in her close network. “I didn’t even have a business plan ready,” she recalls. “I started with word-of-mouth and some small projects within friends and families. My costs were zero in those days.”
Handling small projects, and the growth that came from them, helped her gain the confidence she needed to spread the word in professional circles. “For the first two years, though, I was a one-woman team and did everything on my own,” she says, adding, “I was the soul of Activelink. I did marketing, design and development and managed to deliver projects successfully.”
While the process was enjoyable and challenging, working alone has its pros and cons. “When you’re in an office, you have colleagues or a team to help you tackle issues. And while it was tough, I enjoyed working alone on the development. Sometimes, just dealing with tech issues would take up hours.”
By this time, Sayali had moved to Tanzania with her husband, who had found a work opportunity there. The couple, along with their two kids, spent two years in Tanzania starting in 2014. “My husband got a chance to work in Dubai in 2016, he is a CA and works in Finance. I continued my work here too – I built some company websites and a community website as well,” Sayali explains.
As she balanced work, family and the experience of living in different countries, Sayali continued to grow Activelink. She was now comfortable with the work and began meeting small business owners, entrepreneur friends and widened her network. “I learned from people how to reach prospective clients, joined networking groups and started making contacts,” she explains. This was before the heyday of social media, and “Facebook or Instagram weren’t used much for business purposes at the time,” Sayali explains. “Direct contact was the only way, so I slowly followed up on leads and began getting more projects for Activelink.
Sayali Prabhudesai
By now, she had also begun to enjoy the freedom she had worked so hard to attain. “You are the boss and the main decision maker. It keeps you going, even if there are obstacles.”
Even so, collaborating with tech companies remained a challenge. “As I said, starting out on my own was a quick decision,” Sayali remarks. “Collaborating with companies for basic website requirements like domain and hosting was an early challenge,” she admits. She would trawl through the internet for domain and hosting provider companies and meet with them daily to understand their process.
Then came the all-important exercise of team building. “That was a new experience as well,” she said. “I had to learn how to find people within my budget, get work done and still have a profit at the end of the day.” Sayali says that positive feedback at the end of a project gives her much validation. One parameter by which she measures this is getting work through references instead of self-promotion. “The best part is that today, 95 percent of my projects come through references. I call this an achievement,” she says, “because people believe in me.”
Networking is key to entrepreneurship, Sayali believes. “As Tim Sanders said, your network is your net worth. Your ability to reach people and make connections is very important.” Providing the best possible services is always important because one successful project opens the door to many others.
Work/Life Balance
She has also learned the fine art of work/life balance, and battled the chaos of the early days until she learned to take the reins. “My kids needed me all the time but I sat with them and we talked about my career. I told them I have to dedicate some time of the day to work as well,” Sayali says. “The younger one is still too young to fully understand this but we are learning how to manage.” She prioritises staying organised, starting her work day with a to-do list.
Having a supportive husband really helps, Sayali says. “He is always up for helping me out. He is my finance manager and advises me on financial matters when I need it. He also manages the the home very well when I am out on meetings.”
Takeaways:
- Taking the leap to follow your passion and be your own boss can lead to fulfilling entrepreneurial opportunities.
- Starting small and leveraging word-of-mouth referrals can be an effective way to begin building a business.
- Balancing work, family, and personal growth can be achieved through open communication and setting boundaries.
- Building a strong network and making connections is crucial for business growth and success.
- Providing excellent services and achieving customer satisfaction are key factors in gaining referrals and expanding the business.
Honest & Hard working…..very few in todays’s world !!