‘How it was named’ is a series where I explore the creation of brand names that have caught my interest. This edition features Ayesha Bhimji of So You Don’t Have To

 

1] Tell us about So You Don’t Have To; what do you do?

 

I’m an Operations and Online Business Manager (OBM), I founded So You Don’t Have To to partner with small businesses who are at the growth stage but are at capacity and need support with the back-end of the business. I like to think of myself as an operational liberator, stepping in to take care of the day-to-day management of the business — team management, projects, systems, hiring, that sort of thing… so they don’t have to. I take that headache away from you so that you, the business owner, can focus on what you do best and why you started the business in the first place.

 

An OBM’s role is really about strategy. It’s about looking at the business in its entirety to figure out how they can help the business grow, scale and be more efficient. What processes can be streamlined, how can the business improve its workflows, etc to do better. It can be about implementation but is more often about seeing things from a bird’s eye point of view and making sure that all the moving parts are moving along in tandem.

 

2] And why do you do it?

 

My work has to have meaning behind it, and purpose. My career has involved investment banking, international development, fundraising (for UNICEF, which I loved!) corporate community investment… I’ve worked with some amazing people, lots of schools, social entrepreneurs etc. Essentially, people who are really trying to move the needle and make a real, positive impact in society through their work.

 

Having had that high-pressure, high-octane career, I came to realise that my circumstances had changed and I needed to be more present at home, and needed to have a life-work balance (not a work-life balance). I knew that I wanted to work for myself… to build something that I can be proud of. I wanted to be the master of my own destiny and to have more control over how I spend my time while I also got to have some value and meaning in my work, and do something positive for others.

 

I’d never really heard of the term OBM but when I came across it while thinking of what kind of business to go into, it just spoke to me. I can actually make a difference to my clients, to their business and to their life. I want to give that sense of relief to my clients that actually I’m a safe pair of hands, that I’m a trusted partner who can share the burden.

 

3] What values inform your ‘why’?

 

I value quality, excellence and meritocracy. Trust is a really important part of my business; I want my clients to feel that sense of relief, that ‘dropping of the shoulders’ deep exhalation, knowing that they’ve handed things over to me and I’ll take care of them. From a personality point of view, I quite like structure in my life and routine. I place high importance on those things in my own life because it means that life runs that little bit more smoothly. And I think that lends itself really well to the work that I do.

 

4] How did you end up with the name So You Don’t Have To? (did you work with an agency, undertake trademark searches and registration, indicative costs…)

 

I thought of the name myself. There was no great strategy behind it, I didn’t work with anyone on it. But it actually came very easily to me. ‘So you don’t have to’ is a term that we use in everyday language. It’s colloquial and everybody understands what it is and what it means. It instantly communicates a sense of relief, a sense of delegation… support. And those are all the things that I want to do in my business for my client.

 

So in a sense, the name came really, really easily to me — based on that idea of someone being able to hand things over to me so that they don’t have to do them. It’s memorable, really catchy, clever, perhaps a little bit tongue in cheek. It has that sense of familiarity around it, but also trust.

 

5] What did you almost call it before deciding on ‘So You Don’t Have To’?

 

Now, this is an interesting one. There were a few… Liberty Business Solutions was one, Kindred Business Solutions, Water Cooler Business Solutions, Glass Half Full, Against the Odds. You can see where my train of thought was! Some of them ultimately felt like they don’t really communicate what I want the name to, others were taken and unavailable. But ‘So You Don’t Have To’ really stayed with me and I’m really happy with it. I think it emotionally connects with potential clients in a way that those other ones don’t.

 

6] How important is a business name according to you?

 

I don’t think a business name has to be flashy, but I think it does have to be intentional, and I think there does have to be some thought behind it. I’ve seen a lot of business names that are really flat and sort of forgettable, and I didn’t want that to be the case with me. I really needed to have something that does what it says on the tin, and I think I’ve achieved that.

 

7] What one thing do you wish people were aware of about your area of expertise/industry? 

 

Small business owners have this impression that they have to do everything alone — wear all the hats, do every single process and handle every single part of the business. That just isn’t sustainable. You might also burn out and nobody wants that.

 

Asking for help, in life and in business, is a strength — not a weakness. We’re conditioned to not ask for help but everybody needs help with things. The reality is the more you try and do by yourself, the more you slow your own growth.

 

I want people to know they don’t have to do it all alone. That they can look for support. Particularly in my case, I tailor my packages around the client — we work together, we work out what is the best fit and what’s going to provide the most value.

 

8] Question for funsies! Fill in the blank: Whatever you do, don’t _____ 

 

I have three to offer!

• • Don’t stop learning
  • Don’t assume that what worked in the past will work in the future
  • Don’t forget that kindness is a strength, not a weakness — even in business, and especially in business