Launching your own nutrition business can be intimidating and overwhelming. Sure, your educational training has taught you to work with clients, but has your education prepared you to start a business? Were you given the tools and confidence you need to become an entrepreneur?

We’ve seen many dietitians with the passion to start their own business, but without the right guidance and clear steps to take, they put their business dreams on the back burner. Paralyzed by a lack of confidence, amazing dietitians feel that their business dreams are just not achievable.

Even more, we’ve seen dietitians take the initial steps to launch their nutrition business, but find themselves stuck, unable to grow. They are creating valuable content and promoting their services, but still, no one is buying.

Overcoming these initial fears and challenges is part of the journey, but you don’t have to do it alone. Becoming a nutrition entrepreneur requires a solid foundation in business, marketing and sales. Having the right resources and mentorship can help you optimize your time and maximize your success.

Here is our guide to groups, resources and programs that are designed for dietitians in private practice. Utilizing these resources early on will give you the support and knowledge you need to become a successful nutrition entrepreneur.

1. Get Support Early On: Connect with Fellow Nutrition Entrepreneurs

Dietetic Practice Groups and Local Chapters

Connecting with other dietitians in your area who are going through the motions of growing their nutrition business can be invaluable. The ongoing support and advice from colleagues can help you have the starting tools and confidence needed to launch your business. As your practice grows, attending ongoing dietetic meetups and conferences is a great way to stay connected. Healthie makes keeping these contacts easy. To set up a free Starter account with Healthie today, click here.

Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics – Nutrition Entrepreneurs DPG:

When you become an Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics Member, you can choose to subscribe to additional professional groups, called DPGs. The Nutrition Entrepreneurs DPG is a great network for dietitians looking to launch and grow their business. Membership gives you access to the NE DPG newsletter Ventures, invitations to meetings and workshops, online access to the NE DPG forum, webinars, toolkits and free marketing materials to help you enhance your business. Become an Academy member and visit the Nutrition Entrepreneurs DPG website.

State and local dietetic organizations:

Apart from joining the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics, you’ll want to visit your state and local chapters. Getting involved with your local organizations will help you connect with other nutrition entrepreneurs in your area. You’ll be able to gain valuable insight as to practice laws and regulations that are relevant to your state.

New York

• New York State Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics
• Greater New York Dietetic Association
• Central New York Dietetic Association
• Western New York Dietetic Association

Jersey

• New Jersey Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics

Florida

• Florida Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics

Texas

• Texas Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics
• Texas Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics Northeast Region
• Austin Registered Dietitians Alliance

California

• California Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics
• California Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics Los Angeles District

Online Community Support from Health & Wellness Entrepreneurs

More than ever, online communities are a realistic and easy way to connect with fellow nutrition entrepreneurs. Facebook is a great place to start, as it hosts several specific groups for health and wellness professionals.

Closed Facebook groups run similar to a forum, in that there are a lot of resources posted for the group as well as ongoing chat discussions relevant to the group. Maintaining your network and facilitating partnerships is easy through our platform’s free stare plan.

Pro Tip: in every facebook group, you can “search” for past posts from members. If it’s been discussed in the past, you’ll be able to browse prior relevant posts.

From a web browser, the group search bar is located in the sidebar on the left-hand side

2. Develop Your Nutrition Business and Marketing Knowledge

So now that you have the in-person and online support network you needs, it’s time to build up your business knowledge. As a dietitian, you naturally have the skills and abilities to promote and sell your business. Working with clients, you educate, motivate and SELL the idea of change to help them have healthier, more fulfilling lives. You give your clients the tools, resources, support and strategies they need to be successful.

When you take a step back, and look at your business like you do a client, you can see that you inherently do have the abilities to grow your business.

You have the passion to create a business and the inherent abilities to sell your services. What you need now, is a business course that can take you step-by-step through creating a solid business model and marketing plan.

3. Receive Ongoing Mentorship as a Nutrition Entrepreneur

An experienced entrepreneur or business coach can provide the personalized support and direction to help new entrepreneurs achieve business success. Mentorship can work in several different ways, but typically a mentor will serve as the person to share ideas with and will assist in establishing clear business and marketing goals.

Oftentimes, business mentors also bring additional experience and skills in the areas of business and/or marketing, which are typically lacking in nutrition educational programs. Absorbing these skills in the process of building and expanding a wellness business can lead to longterm business success for nutrition entrepreneurs.

Whether you find yourself at the beginning of your business journey, or looking to take your business to the next level, support for nutrition entrepreneurs is available. Leveraging these resources will allow you to both expand your business reach and achieve your longterm business goals. Let Healthie help you with your goals as well. Click here to get started with a Free Starter Account today!