10 POSSIBLE MISTAKES IN STARTING A BUSINESS ONLINE

In my previous post, I shared with us "7 steps on how to start an online business and earn from it".

Today I will be disclosing to us the 10 broad mistakes young entrepreneurs make when starting an online business.

Without further delay, below are the 10 mistakes entrepreneurs make in their online business.

1.                DELAY TO LAUNCH THE PRODUCT OR SERVICES: 

         As the saying goes “delay is dangerous”. Most possible reason why some people delay before launching their products or service is waiting for some specific number of audience or traffic like 1000 or may be 10,000 visitors or subscribers. Whatever the reason maybe it’s a fatal mistake because you don’t want to build or offer a product or service no one will pay for. The earlier you start the better for you and your product or service. Plus m you need proper guide to offer your product/service.

         

2.                SOLVING UNIMPORTANT PROBLEM:

        Remember in my last post on “ how to start an online business” I talked about identifying an opportunity/need on what people need then trying to solve them give you an edge over competitors. But if your product/service does not solve a major problem/need, don’t bother sourcing for customers online. Most business fail online because they try to solve unimportant problems. If you fall in this category there is a need for you to do a re-check.

3.             FAILING TO LISTEN TO CUSTOMERS FEEDBACK: 

         Listening to feedback from customers does not just entails checking for positive replies but also for those asking of refunds or those who buy your product but don’t use it, also those who tell you they won’t buy, try to find out why. There’s a reason why customers are always right, without the customers you don’t have a product.

4.                FOLLOWING THE MULTITUDE: 

         Remember there are many other business online similar to your own kind of business offering same products/services like yours so “dare to be different among duplicates”. Give your customers a reason to choose your own products over the others. Put yourself in the customer position, the customer might want to know “why should I purchase this product?” Don’t be an inferior version among other competitors.

5.                CHOOSING A FIELD YOU HAVE NO INTEREST ABOUT: 

         I’ve seen a lot of people going into business they have no knowledge about just because others are into that same business and they are making it. Most business fail due to lack of interest in that business. When choosing your product or service, ensure you have even a little idea about it. This does not mean your business has to be your number 1 passion. They will be competition but who cares? Just remember to be “different in a world of duplicates”.

6.                STARTING WITH THE WRONG MOTIVES: 

         Your motive towards your business is very important as it is similar to step #5 above. Your motive towards your business should be to offer quality service, and then any other can follow. Know that when you pursue excellence success will follow you pants down.

7.                THINKING AND NOT ACTING: 

          It is very easy to fantasize or dream about the outcome of your business, but without taking the right steps or acting on your decisions, there is no way your business can be a success. It should be more action and less thinking. Like Thomas Edison rightly said “Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration”.

8.                DOING IT ALONE: 

         In business for you to be successful sometimes you need people to make it work. Your customers, suppliers, service providers are people. Meet other entrepreneurs like you to get more ideas, share your struggles with them and your goals or aim and ask for their opinion.

9.                WRONG CONTACTS: 

         The kind of people you associate with will also determine your success or failure in the online world. Ensure to interact with people of like minds just like you. Who are zealous and ready to make success even at the face of failure.

10.            PATIENCE AND TOLERANCE: 

        Most young entrepreneurs lack the zeal to be patient in their business they want to get a huge turnover within few weeks of starting their business online. When they fail to achieve their goal within few weeks they think of throwing in the towel. For you to make your business a success give it your best shot and with time it shall yield the expected result.

On our next post NaijaPayOut shall be disclosing to you a legitimate source for you to earn money online directly into your Nigerian Bank Account.

7 STEPS ON HOW TO START AN ONLINE BUSINESS AND EARN FROM IT

When Starting an online business there are numbers of possible steps to follow to ensure great earnings. Most of the successful people that do their business online have some few steps that they took. Even a newbie can benefit from the internet if these steps are properly followed.

 The steps include:

     1.       Identifying a need or opportunity.

     2.       Write a brief content about that product and services.

     3.       Get a blog or website that is user friendly.

     4.       Drive traffic to your blog or website.

     5.       Build a good reputation.

     6.       Ensure proper follow-up of your customers & subscribers.

     7.       Increase your income through back-end sales & up-selling.

   

   1.     Identifying a need or opportunity:

      Identifying a need or opportunity can be sometimes very difficult. But the internet makes this very easy. Most  people make the mistake of picking a product first before finding a market. To increase your chances of success, start with a market then note some problems that most people are seeking solutions to, there you can start.

To locate opportunities online make research by:

• Visiting online forum to see what questions people ask and what problems they are trying to solve. 
•  Make a keyword research to find keywords that people search, but only few websites are competing for it.
• Check out potential competitors website & take note of what they are doing to meet the demands.
• Use what you have learned to create a product or result and do it better than them.

   2.       Write a brief content about that product and services: 

     When you are rest assured that your product or service is available for sale write a brief content about the product or service and how to order or purchase it. This step is very important as it sells out your product before you make the actual sales.

When writing about the product or service you render, follow these steps:

*        Start with a very compelling headline to arouse the interest of potential customers or subscribers.

*        State and describe very clearly the problem that your product solve

*        Include testimonies from people that have used your product (If Any).

*        Talk about the importance of the product or service and it’s benefit to users.

*        Make an offer or discount.

*        Make a strong guarantee about the product or service

*        Offer “after sales services”.

When doing this, you have to think like a customer and ask yourself “What is in it for me”

   3.       Get a blog or website that is user friendly: 

       Once your product & service is ready & you’ve note down your selling process, what you need next is a marketing platform or a means of contact between you and your customers.

A blog or website is necessary at this point. Remember to keep it simple and it should be user friendly otherwise you’ll loose a lot of potential customers or subscribers.

Some important tips to keep in mind when creating a website include:

*        Choose plain fonts on a white background.

*        Navigating through the site should be simple.

*        Use pictures, audio or video if necessary to send your message.

*        Include an opt-in offer to collect e-mails.

*        Make it very easy to buy from your website, not more than 2 clicks.

*        Include an opt-in for feedback.

   4.      Drive traffic to your blog or website: 

        Driving traffic to your website or blog is important, and you can drive traffic to your site or blog by search 

       engines by advertising.

I’ll recommend pay-per-click advertising as it is the easiest way to get traffic. Using pay-per-click has two main advantages:

*     Pay-per-click show up on the search page immediately.

*     It allows you to test different keywords as well as headlines, price & selling approaches

With this you get immediate traffic & track your best highest-converting keywords which will help your ranking in the organic search results.

   5.       Build a good reputation: 

      This involves writing free articles and embedding videos on other website with a link to your own website. The content should be things of interest to other people with a back-link to your website.

You will reach new readers in better way, every site that post your content will link back to yours.

   6.       Ensure proper follow-up of your customers & subscribers: 

       Remember in Step #3 when building a website and make an opt-in offer to collect e-mails, well those emails are very useful.

You can use e-mail marketing to turn visitors into buyers. When your customers or subscribers opt-in for e-mail, they have given you permission to send them e-mails in regards to your product & services. This is a very hot lead, and e-mail marketing is the best tool to follow-up that lead.

   7.       Increase your income through back-end sales & up-selling: 

        Increasing your income through back-end sales and up-selling is a very important market strategy similar to after-sales service. 36 percent of people who have purchased from you before will buy from you again if you follow-up with them.

•  Offer related products on your “Thank You” page after their purchase. 
•   Reward your customers for their loyalty and they will become more loyal.

If you are just starting a small business online stick to these steps above. If you've been online for a 

while check and see if there is a step you are neglecting.

In my next post here, I will be disclosing to you “10 Possible Mistakes In Starting a Business Online”