Do you want to start an online business? Yes? Great, go do it!
OK, how are you going to do it? OK, now it’s harder than you expected. OK, now you’re throwing in the towel because it’s too hard.
The situation that I just presented to you is one that hundreds of thousands of people go through on a yearly basis. Everyone wants to be able to say that they successfully launched and run a business. Being able to say that you own and operate a business brings you a sense of pride, and so it should. Operating a business takes a lot of hard work though, work that you may not want to do and work that doesn’t necessarily fit into your schedule or “life plan.” That is why a lot of people end up throwing in the towel: it’s all just too much for them.
In order to start and run a successful business, you HAVE to be willing to put the work in. You have to sacrifice time away from other things in your life; understand that sleep might be one of them. The amount of work that will go into making your business successful will be a lot more than you think, so be prepared to go the extra mile before you even start your venture.
You think your business idea is great. You really believe that your business will help people. You know for a fact that your business plan is solid. Awesome, you’ve made a great start. Now, where are the people? Why isn’t anyone paying attention? Why are you not making any money? In order for your business to make money, you have to actually go out and start attracting your customers, especially in an online business.
In business, nobody is going to just randomly come to your store and buy what you’re offering. You have to go to market and peak the interest of consumers, over and over and over again. If you think that by creating a “decent” marketing and sales strategy to make your business more “known,” then you are lying to yourself. No consumer is really going to give a damn about you. Why should they come and buy something from you? What’s in it for them? In order to even begin to peak consumers interest, you have to convince consumers that they should buy from you, whether it’s because of x, y, or z.
In order to market your company, it is vital that you brand yourself. In today’s business environment, consumers only want to associate themselves with a brand that they can relate with, a brand that they understand. If your business doesn’t have a brand, then a consumer won’t be able to really relate and now you have lost them.
Why do you think nobody really buys off-brand food? Because nobody wants anything to do with food that is bland and plain; unless of course they have no other option. Food needs to be exciting and spark curiosity when you see it. The same is true for any good or service that is out there. Just think of all the eye-catching logos and powerful mottoes you see when you walk into any store. These carefully illustrated designs catch your attention because you either feel like you know the brand, or you’re curious as to what the brand has to offer.
If you want to follow suit, you should definitely take a look at branding yourself to your market in a manner that you believe best represents who you are as a company. From there, consumers who feel like they understand you or want to understand you, will attract to you.
Now you’re starting to see some traffic flowing through your business. Good. Don’t think for a second that this stream of traffic is going to keep flowing though. If you don’t nurture your stream or try to expand your stream, your business is dead. On a daily basis, you must continue to put the work in. Consistency is key here. If you’re not consistent with driving traffic to your business, then you’re not going to be making money anytime soon. Put the work into your business on a daily basis. Go 10X and above the amount of work you think you need to put into your business. Once you do, your future customers will understand that they are getting an incredible amount of value from you for what they are paying for.
That is another topic that is critical if you want your business to be successful. You must understand that value is what you are selling to your customer, not a material good or service. What value will your customer really get from buying your good or service? If the value they receive is high, then I guarantee you your customer will be happy. If the value is low, then your customer will probably not be coming back. Deliver value to your customer, make them happy, and make them understand that if they buy your good or service, then it will help them.. It’s all in the sale. If you can’t sell, your business is dead. You must first convince your customer why your good or service is so valuable. Only then will they really consider buying it.
Work on your selling techniques on a daily basis. What key benefits will your customer be receiving if they buy your good or service? When you’re selling your good or service to a potential customer, focus on these key benefits and really make sure that your prospect understands what they will be receiving if they buy from you.
DON’T be too confrontational though. Be friendly, be understanding, and if they don’t want to buy from you, then they don’t. Don’t try and sell them on something that they don’t want, even if you truly believe that it will help them. If the prospect doesn’t want to buy your good or service, then it’s their loss. Sell to someone else who will truly receive A TON of value from you. You will find much more happiness there.
If you keep practicing this process throughout the life of your business, one way or another, the customer who turned you down will eventually come back to you. And this customer will be frustrated with himself or herself. They will be frustrated because they never bought from you way back when your good or service was dirt-cheap! What will you do? You will sell to them….with a smile!
These are just some of the key principles that you need to keep in mind when you’re starting a business. They are the key principles that I’m trying to focus on as much as possible while building my online business. Without the three principles that I discussed, then you are definitely dead. Like I said though, these are just SOME of the key principles. In order to really run a successful business, you need to be constantly adapting to your business environment. You need to be the #1 person who understands your market.
Read books, attend business seminars, and talk to people within your industry! The more you know, the better. Challenge yourself to put yourself out of business on a daily basis, that way your competitors won’t be able to.
Good luck if you decide to launch a business, whether it is online or in real life. Luck doesn’t have a huge part to play though. Hard work, consistency, and above all else, passion, are the key ingredients required from you to truly make your business a successful one.
To Your Success,
Euan Swan
My Track to Success 