An entrepreneur profile is a written piece that provides information about an entrepreneur, their background, experiences, skills, achievements, failures, lessons learned, advice for others, vision for the future, and more. Profiles enable readers to get to know an entrepreneur on a deeper level beyond just their business accomplishments. Writing an effective entrepreneur profile requires research, interviewing the subject, crafting compelling content in an engaging narrative format, utilizing quotes, and structuring the article strategically.
Understand the purpose
Before writing an entrepreneur profile, it’s important to understand the purpose of the piece. Common goals include:
- Inspiring and educating readers about entrepreneurship
- Highlighting the story of an entrepreneur as a case study
- Promoting an entrepreneur’s personal brand or business
- Showcasing an entrepreneur within a certain industry or geographic location
The purpose will inform the angle, tone, length, and other stylistic choices when writing the profile. A piece meant to inspire youth about startup founders will take a different shape than a business magazine profiling an industry titan.
Research the subject
Thorough research is crucial to writing an engaging entrepreneur profile. Before interviewing the subject, learn about their background by gathering information from sources like:
- The entrepreneur’s website, social media, and published interviews/profiles
- Their company website, including the “About” page, media coverage, product info, etc.
- Profiles on databases like Crunchbase or LinkedIn
- Public records for information on education, past businesses, awards, etc.
Develop a timeline of the entrepreneur’s career, including education, early jobs, how they got started, key milestones, major failures/setbacks, pivots, etc. Identify interesting facts, challenges overcome, successes, unique approaches, controversies, and anything that gives deeper insight into their story.
Conduct an interview
While background research is crucial, the heart of an entrepreneur profile comes from direct interviews with the subject. Prepare 8-12 open-ended questions that elicit interesting details and encourage thoughtful responses about their journey. Avoid yes/no or short-answer questions.
Example interview questions:
- What inspired your journey into entrepreneurship? Any key influences/role models?
- Walk me through your career path leading up to launching your first business. Key highs and lows?
- What motivated you to start your current company? Where did the idea come from?
- Describe your leadership style and values. What kind of company culture do you promote?
- What’s been your biggest failure or setback so far? Key lessons learned?
- What accomplishments are you proudest of? Why?
- What advice would you give aspiring entrepreneurs today? Keys to success?
During the interview, listen closely to uncover interesting snippets that can be quoted in the profile. The Q&A format will provide raw material to turn into a compelling narrative.
Structure the profile strategically
With research completed and interview transcribed, think strategically about structuring the profile:
Opening – Grab attention with a compelling introduction to the entrepreneur, such as an anecdote, quote, or key accomplishment. Briefly explain why readers should care about this person.
Origins – Provide color about early life experiences, influences, and motivations that set the entrepreneur on their path. This provides helpful context.
Career timeline – Use subheadings and mini story arcs to guide readers through the entrepreneur’s career progression. Highlight key successes, failures, evolutions, insights, etc.
Behind-the-scenes – Share “fly on the wall” insights into how the entrepreneur operates based on your interview. Convey their personality, leadership style, decision-making process, daily habits, etc.
Obstacles – Discuss major setbacks/failures and how the entrepreneur navigated them. These ups and downs make the story relatable.
Impact – Quantify the entrepreneur’s achievements and impact on their customers, community, and industry. This demonstrates their influence.
Lessons – Spotlight key lessons learned and advice the entrepreneur would share with others. This imparts valuable wisdom.
Future – Close with a look toward what’s next for the entrepreneur. This provides an inspiring vision of growth.
Write a compelling narrative
With the structure in place, it’s time to bring the entrepreneur profile to life in an engaging written narrative. Follow these tips:
- Inject your own writing style while preserving the entrepreneur’s voice from interviews
- Use vivid details and anecdotes for a show-don’t-tell approach
- Incorporate quotes strategically to break up paragraphs
- Employ literary devices like metaphors, rhetorical questions, and humor when appropriate
- Use active voice and avoid clichés or business jargon
- Share personal or emotional elements that humanize the subject
- Balance professional achievements with behind-the-scenes personality details
The final profile should read like an interesting story while educating and inspiring readers.
Use data and media effectively
Entrepreneur profiles are strengthened by incorporating relevant data points and media elements:
Photos/graphics: Choose images showing the entrepreneur in their working environment, headshots, product photos, graphic timelines/data visuals, etc.
Tables/lists: Use text formatting like bullet points, numbered lists, tables, sidebars, and call-out quotes to break up dense paragraphs.
Quantitative data: Include numerical factsoid about funding raised, revenue, customer adoption metrics, percentage growth, etc. These hard numbers provide concrete impact.
Awards/press: Note any major awards, press mentions, or other third-party validation. This gives credibility.
Social media: Embed relevant social media posts by the entrepreneur that showcase their work and personality.
Integrating such elements makes the profile more visually engaging while backing up key points.
Edit and refine the draft
After completing an initial draft, set the entrepreneur profile aside for a day before revisiting it with fresh eyes. Then refine the piece by:
- Checking for typos/grammar errors
- Tightening up verbose or repetitive passages
- Ensuring proper punctuation of quotes and data
- Confirming all facts/figures are accurate
- Improving transitions between topics
- Incorporating final feedback from the subject
The editing process helps polish the profile into a professional-grade piece ready for publication.
Final delivery
For the final touch, format the entrepreneur profile for proper delivery based on where it will be published:
- Website: Code the article in HTML with proper tags/metadata for SEO.
- Print magazine: Export to a layout-friendly format like Microsoft Word.
- Email: Design and code an email template to share the profile.
Proofread one last time before sending the finished piece to the client or publishing it live. Then celebrate creating an engaging entrepreneur profile!
Sample Entrepreneur Profile
Here is an example entrepreneur profile formatted with headings, quotes, data, and other elements:
Paving the Way in Fintech: An Entrepreneur Profile of Susan Payton
Opening vignette:
Susan Payton fidgeted in the shiny leather chair across from the venture capitalist’s imposing mahogany desk. She clutched her freshly printed pitch deck and took a deep breath. As a 35-year-old female founder in the male-dominated financial tech sector, raising capital to launch her fintech startup was proving even harder than she expected. But she believed in her mission to modernize outdated accounting practices for small businesses. She leaned forward and made her case…
Childhood Influences
Growing up in suburban Michigan as the youngest girl sandwiched between two high-achieving brothers, Susan was instilled from a young age with a relentless drive to prove herself and never take no for an answer. Her father, a self-made entrepreneur who built a car dealership empire from scratch, served as an ongoing inspiration. “He taught me the power of perseverance against all odds,” says Susan. “I saw how creating economic opportunity leads to changing people’s lives.” Observing her mother juggle a full-time job as an accountant while managing their household also shaped Susan’s gritty work ethic and respect for women in business…
Early Career
Armed with an MBA from Northwestern and CPA license, Susan landed a job with a top 50 U.S. accounting firm. She excelled in auditing businesses across industries, but was struck by how many small companies relied on antiquated processes and tools that stifled productivity. Susan started tinkering with ways to modernize things like banking integrations and reports to streamline finances. But she repeatedly faced resistance from executive leadership, still dominated by older men stuck in traditional models. “I realized shaking up the old boys club would be an uphill battle,” she recalls…
Startup Origin Story
During a late-night brainstorming session at her kitchen counter, Susan had an “aha moment” – why try changing the old guard when she could forge her own path helping small businesses directly? She soon left her firm to found FastBooks, aiming to launch easy-to-use fintech tools on a mission to empower mom-and-pop shops…
Fundraising Struggles
As a black woman founder without a technical background, Susan found fundraising to be her biggest obstacle. She was turned down by 146 different investors. But Susan persevered through what she calls “the mom test” – if her mother working multiple jobs could find a way, so could she…
Traction and Results
FastBooks finally launched in 2018 with $750K from an angel investor who believed in the mission. Early traction was promising:
- 10,000 signups in the first 6 months
- $120/month average revenue per user
- 2x increase in efficiency for customers
- Series A funding round raised $4 million
Current Status
Today FastBooks serves over 75,000 small businesses and has processed more than $8 billion in transactions. Susan has grown the team to 50 employees and closed a $10 million Series B round last year. She was recently named to Forbes “30 Under 30” list recognizing top young entrepreneurs. But for Susan, impact is measured by human stories…
“My proudest moments are hearing how we’ve changed clients’ lives by saving them time and money they can reinvest to grow their business and support their families. That fuels me to keep innovating.”
Key Lessons
When asked what wisdom she would share with aspiring founders, Susan emphasizes resilience. “Don’t take rejection personally. Let it fuel your fire to prove the doubters wrong. Stay laser focused on believing in your vision when no one else does. The privilege of being an entrepreneur is getting to follow your purpose – that’s what keeps you going during the toughest days.”
What’s Next
Looking ahead, Susan aims to hire 100 employees and hit one million users over the next three years. She continues pushing to modernize more legacy processes for small businesses seeking efficiency. “FastBooks is just getting started on our mission to level the playing field,” says Susan. “The future has no limits when you embrace innovation with purpose.”
Conclusion
Writing an effective entrepreneur profile requires research, strategic structuring, compelling narrative technique, integrated data/media, and tight editing. The end result tells a founder’s story in an engaging way while educating readers. By humanizing entrepreneurs and spotlighting their journeys, profiles enable even more people to pursue their own bold business dreams.
