Featured in Entrepreneur Magazine
September 2005
"Give
me $1,000, and I'll give you results." Those were the words
David Aitken used to convince the owners of The Heritage
Group to invest in his idea. Aitken, 30, was a call-center
manager for the Utah company, which specialized in
residential mortgage refinancing. Aitken knew the
refinancing boom they were riding would eventually end, so
he approached owners Brad Stone, 52; Mark Strong, 58; and
Leah Young, 36, with a new idea: Help small-business owners
develop websites to rival those of larger companies. So
little capital was necessary to get started, says Strong,
that investing in it was a "no-brainer."
Armed
with only $1,000, Aitken hired a part-time telemarketer for
$8 an hour to call business owners on a list he purchased
for $250. Aitken made follow-up sales calls in his off
hours. Once he started selling the $199 websites, Aitken
brought on his brother Jeremy and friend Eddie Dockery to
help build them. All three worked without compensation for
several months, with the promise that if Heritage Web
Solutions became successful, they would be guaranteed spots
in the new company.
Hit Web Design now has 65 employees, with Jeremy and
Dockery still onboard. The Heritage Group has since ceased
operations to focus on Hit Web Design. The new
company has grossed $1.3 million in sales to date-a figure
it's on track to double by year's end. -Sarah Pierce
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