Starting and Running a Successful Online Business
From Cynthia Minnaar
By applying these basic proven success strategies to your home Internet business, you will not only be giving yourself the greatest chance of success in starting an online business, but you will put yourself head and shoulders above most of your online business competition.
The Allure of Starting an Online Business
A great many Internet home based business opportunities use lifestyle benefits as their main selling point. Their sales pitch and use of images are very convincing and many people actually do believe that they will be able to quit their job and retire in a matter of months and become a millionaire in one year, drive around in the flashiest of sports cars and own the best piece of real estate in the area.
Another attractive sales line of starting an online business is the use of the words "fully automated", which implies that the business owner does not have to do very much work in order to earn a vast income. Unfortunately for us all this is not the case. A great deal of work is required by those seriously intent on building a successful, lasting and profitable home Internet business.
Unfortunately, it is mainly due to the above that so many people fail in their endeavors to make a success of their Internet business. They have been misled into believing that they can make vast amounts of money from an online business in a short period of time by doing very little work and without having to apply any basic business principals.
Treat Your Online Business Like any Other
The first and most important success strategy that you can adopt is to treat your home Internet business like a real business, not a hobby. There are basic proven success strategies that the highly successful online business owners put into practice on a daily basis and you can implement them too.
Most people start an Internet home based business while still working a day job in the hope of making some quick and easy money in their spare time. This "part-time" attitude will lead to disappointment and failure. A "full time attitude" is required to build a successful online business in the few hours available.
To build a successful and profitable home based Internet business you need to apply basic business principals with a full time attitude to everything related to the business i.e. Internet marketing, ad tracking, cash flow management, product testing, customer service, website updates and maintenance, email marketing, etc.
Be firm with yourself and make the decision to either get into business or get out.
Like any other business, time management and cash management are of utmost importance. Decide what is important and what is urgent. Have a daily task list with time limits on each. Diligent cash flow management is a means to allow you to set aside a portion of your profits to invest back into the business.
Be sure that you are selling something that has value and market the product in such a way that you attract the right potential customers to your website. Be sure to meet your potential customer's requirements and expectations in order to turn then into actual customers.
Make Yourself Available and be Professional in Your Online Business
It is important that potential customers visiting your website have some way of contacting you, by phone, fax or email - this builds trust and gives you the opportunity to get to know your customers. Can they easily find their way around your website? Put your customers' needs first. Answer queries promptly.
Project a professional image of a real business - don't hide away. It is a good idea to personalize your website by putting a face to a name, so if you do add a photograph to your website use a good professional head and shoulders shot as opposed to one of you lounging under a palm tree with your laptop and cocktail. Be sure that your online business is designed to fulfill a need and you will start making a profit when you put your customers' needs first.
Keep Track of What Works and What Doesn't for Your Online Business
Internet marketing requires discipline and hard work and you need to know what is and isn't working and why. Track every possible means that a potential customer has of finding your website. Knowing your conversion rates are important, especially if you are using PPC or other paid advertising. It is vital to constantly monitor and check and adjust where necessary.
If you are involved in email marketing, you need to know your opt-in and opt-out statistics, including at what stage prospects are opting out? Find out why and make a change. Do you know what traffic sources generate the highest opt-ins? Track, test and monitor everything you do. When making changes to your website, make one change at a time and when you get different results you will then know exactly what caused the new result.
You need to know what your top performing keywords and keyword phrases are and at what position in the search engines they perform best. Know your click-through rate to sales conversion rate.
With the Internet being such a fast changing environment you need to break down every single process in your Internet marketing chain and know exactly what is happening so that you are in a position to quickly make adjustments to keep up with the trends. The amazing thing about the Internet is that you can track everything; success is just a matter of avoiding the guessing game and being disciplined.
Conclusion
In closing, be sure to :
- Provide something of value that solves a need or a problem
- Project the right image, that you are a real professional business that cares
- Use the right keywords and keyword phrases in order to attract targeted prospects
- Never stop marketing your online business
Although these are the very basic business principals and online business success strategies they will form a very solid foundation to an online business. Combine these with your decision to "get into business" with a "full time attitude" and you are on the road to building a highly profitable and successful home based Internet business.
