Starting an Online Business

The Guide to Starting anOnline Business

Introduction

2 | The Guide to Starting an Online Business

It takes an intelligent plan to start an online business. While starting an online business is the entrepreneurial dream for many in the 21st century, it’s easier said than done. The stats say that approximately 80% of all online businesses are doomed to failure [1]. With failure rates so high, even on the web, what can be done to raise your chances of starting a successful, online business?

More than you think, actually. For starters, don’t let the high failure rates demoralize you. You can overcome these bad stats by coming up with a sound business plan that’s based on an in-depth understanding of the market or industry in which you plan to operate. This takes copious research, but look at it this way: The more you know about your market and

its needs, the more you’re going to be able to provide a highly valuable product or service to solve your customers’ problem.

And that’s precisely where the nuts and bolts of starting a successful online business lie. To start an online business is something that anyone can do; the key is turning your startup into something successful that solves your target audience’s problem and delights them. You can’t do this without a sound business plan.

This is the foundation of your entire online business: its business plan. Any soli ive summary [2]:

• Thebusinessconcept–Adescriptionofyouronline store, its product or service, and the market it’ll serve

• Itsfinancialfeatures–Thingslikeprojectedsales, profits,cashflowsandROI(returnoninvestment)

• Itsfinancialrequirements–Astatementofhowmuch capital your online store needs to start up and then expand

• Thecurrentbusinessposition–Relevantcompany information such as its legal type of operation, inception date, principal owners and key people

• Itsmajorachievements–Developmentsinsideyour

online business that are crucial to its success; things like patents, prototypes, facility locations, necessary contracts and even test-marketing results

• Whileallfiveelementsarevital,besuretoputextratime intoyourbusinessconcept.Here’swhereyoudefinewhat your online business is about, what customer problem itsproductorservicewillsolve,andhowyourunique valueproposition(whyyou’rebetterthananyother businessinyourspace)willsolvethecustomer’sproblem.

• Besuccinctandstraight-to-the-pointwhencomposing thissectionbecauseyouwanttoquicklycommunicate thecrucialdetailstoyourreaders(read:investors)so they’ll read on - not waste their time.

1. Write an EffectiveBusiness Plan


2. Create a Website


Ecommerce accounts for a lot of retail sales today. Since your online business will be web-exclusive, it really pays to have a professional designer/developer build it for you. You don’t need to spend an arm and a leg for it; just keep it simple and basic. It should be a website that’s extremely user-friendly, so that your shoppers can easily find the product or service they want and then check out on your site without any friction whatsoever.

Make up and choose an easy and memorable domain name for youronlinebusiness.Tostartanonlinebusiness,youneedaURL,which you can buy for a reasonable price at many websites all overtheweb.[3]You’llalsorequireagoodwebhosttokeepyouronlinestoreupandrunning24/7/365.AswithyourURL,youcanfindamyriadofwebhostsallovertheInternet,someofwhomarebetter than others. [4] To settle on a web host with which you feel comfortable, you may want to read web-host reviews from sites likeWhoIsHostingThis?,whichprovideacomparisonofdifferentweb hosts. [5]

3. Work on Your Site’s SEO


SEO is short for search engine optimization, and it’s the most powerful tool on the web for enabling your target audience to find your online business! Begin with keyword research, which is the basis of any powerful SEO campaign: Choosing the right keywords for your online business will ensure that the appropriate kinds of customers find your online store when putting in your keywords on the web. [6]

After you know your keywords, you should move to optimize your entire site.BestpracticesofSEOincludeoptimizingtheURLsofeachpage,creating a site map for spiders to crawl your pages and get them indexed on search engines, starting a blog on your site and regularly publishing keyword-suitablearticles,andusingPPC(pay-per-click).[7]

Inaddition,youshouldalsoworkonbuildingupastrongnetworkofhigh-qualitybacklinkstoyoursite.[8]BacklinksarethebackbonetoanysuccessfulSEOcampaignbecausetheyhelptodetermineyoursite’sSEOrankingbasedonthequalityoflinkspointingbacktoyoursite.Inaddition,theyalsopointwebtrafficbacktoyoursite,therebyincreasingthenumberof site visitors your online store gets, which brings with it more leads as well.

4. Use Social Media to Drive Leads to Your Website


Social media is not just for posting pictures of what delicious food you had at that restaurant last weekend. It’s a hardcore marketing tool for serious businesses! When you’re starting an online business, you want to push your brand in front of as many people as possible, and social media will help you do just that.

You can curate your different social media streams -Twitter,Facebook,Pinterest,Instagram-toconstantlypresentrelevant,industry-specificcontent about your space to your leads, customers andpeers.Whendoingso,it’simperativethatjust20% of your content is self-promoting; otherwise, it’lljustturnoffpotentialleadsonsocialmedia.[9]

Forexample,let’ssayyournewbusinesssellsITsoftware.Inthatcase,you’dtaketoTwittertosharethe most informative and helpful industry news/infographic/videosaboutITsoftwarethatyoucanfindontheweb.Bydoingthisconsistently,peoplewill see your brand as someone credible and be more motivated to click the backlink from your socialmediaprofiletoyourwebsite!

The same thing works if you, in another example, selldeliciouscakesonlyonline.ByusingPinterestandInstagramtopostpicturesofsumptuousconfections in general - including a few promotional shotsofyourowncakes-youcandrivetraffictoyoursiteefficiently.

As soon as you get some customers and regular site visitors, don’t hesitate to build an opt-in list for emails. Chances are that people who regularly visit your site will be very open to voluntarily signing up for email updates from your brand, just because they already enjoy your product or service. Another option would be to require subscription that’d involve them giving you their email addresses in exchange for premium content (ebooks, white papers, etc.).

Ineithercase,havinganopt-inemaillististhewaytomarket your brand because these are people who have a desireforyourcontent[10].Inshort,thatmakesthemtheperfect recipients for promotional materials like when you have a new sale going on or when you have a special, one-time deal happening at your online store.

Ofcourse,beforeyouhavesitevisitorswhoactuallywanttojoinsuchanopt-inlistorsubscribeforadditionalcontent,youhavetohavehigh-qualitycontentonyoursiteinthefirstplacethatwouldpersuadethemtowanttostick around. For instance, you can curate a blog that you regularly update with stellar advice, information, tips and news relevant to your industry and geared toward solving aproblemforyourreaders.Suchcontentwouldmakeyoulook like you understand your customers’ needs, which increases chances of them opting in.

5. Take Advantageof Email Marketing


There’s nothing like positioning yourself as an expert in your field when you start an online business. This immediately boosts your credibility and thusly persuades leads to do business with you. If you do this right, you actually create a system of qualified leads that come to your site because they already made up their minds that your product or service is what they need. How do you do this?

Byguestblogginglikecrazyonhighlytraffickedauthoritysitesinyourindustry.See,guestbloggingisaproven,highly strategic method of bringing new business right to yourdoorstep(orwebsite).[11]

Thinkofitthisway:Whenyou’rereadingyourfavorite,industry-leading publication in whatever niche, you associate its authors with expertise, simply because they have bylines on the site and are writing for these highly regardedpublications.Similarly,whenyouguest-blogonasitelikeHubSpot-let’ssayyou’reamarketer,andyour online business is a marketing consultancy - you immediatelyshootuptoexpertstatusbecauseHubSpotishighlyregardedintheinbound-marketingfield.

This system of establishing yourself as an expert and therefore driving leads to your website in the form of backlinks in your author bio works for every niche, no matter what.

6. Turn Yourself into an Expert


7. Don’t Forget Back-EndSales as Well as Upselling


You can make extra income via back-end sales and upselling. It’s recommended that you pursue every customer’s so-called lifetime value, especially since stats say that approximately one-third of all customers who’ve already bought from you will buy from you again when you follow up with them. Do you realize what this means? You already have people ready and willing to buy from you - all you have to do is reach out to them again to put them back into your sales or conversion funnel! That’s super-easy.

Back-endandupsellingtacticslikethesearegreat follow-up approaches:

• Suggesttothemaproductorservicethat complements their initial purchase

• Givethemelectronicloyaltycouponsthey’re able to redeem the next time they visit your site

• Suggesttothemarelatedproductorservice on your site’s “thank you” page after they’ve completed their initial purchase

Sometimes,allthatittakestomakepeoplepurchasefromyour site again is a small, simple and friendly reminder throughafollowup.That’sit!Thisisreallyoneoftheeasiest ways you can secure additional income for your online business.

8. Follow the Law... All Laws


Doing business on the Internet when you start an online business can be tricky because you don’t have any physical borders that apply to your operation. Nonetheless, you still have to abide by the laws of your city, county and state, not to mention any federal requirements, too [12]. Just because you’re on the web doesn’t mean that the law isn’t something you have to contend with. For instance, let’s say that your online store operates in a state that charges customers a sales tax. In this case, you’re obligated to apply for a tax permit or, in some cases, simply register with the state revenue bureau.

Thinkthat’sall-ifonly!Sinceecommercemeansthatyourcustomerswill come to you from all over the globe, you’ll also have to contend with internationaltradelaws,aspeskyandcumbersomeasthatsounds.Werecommend researching, understanding and following all international trade laws to guarantee that you’re in compliance with any and all regulations.Thelastthingyouwantisforyouronlinestoretobeshutdown,finedorpenalized in some other way, when you’ve already put so much careful and determined effort into starting an online business.

Conclusion


An online store is a time-consuming, significant endeavor that you can’t underestimate. You’ll likely be working more than 40 hours a week when you first start an online business. This speaks to the dedication that you’ll have to show to make this a success. Dedication only goes so far, though, which is why you’ll have to rely on a sound plan to have any hope of turning your online store into a profitable and sustainable business.

Youstartanonlinebusinessbyfirstwriting a solid business plan that’s not overly optimistic, but takes a realistic view of your situation. From there, you have to get your web presence up and

running because your online store is the way your customers will buy your product or service. That’s why it has to be easy to use and very user-friendly. Now,youjustneedpeopletofindyourbusinessontheInternet,whichiswhymarketing is so vital, whether that’s throughSEO,socialmediaoremailcampaigns.Evenifyouhaveasolidbusinessplan

in place and have the marketing under control, you still can’t forget about any applicable business regulations.Beinganentrepreneuristhedreamofmanypeople.Whenyourunanonlinebusinesseffectively,yougettoenjoyindependence and the perks of being yourownboss.Beforeyougettothatpoint, you have to execute all aspectsof starting an online business well.

References


http://www.practicalecommerce.com/articles/75484-8-Reasons-Why-Ecommerce-Businesses-Fail

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/38308

https://www.google.com/search?sclient=psy-ab&biw=2560&bih=1239&q=gyrator+definition&oq=gyrator+d&gs_l=&pbx=1&pf=p&sugexp=ernk_zc&gs_rn=64&gs_ri=psy-ab&pq=rise%20of%20hamburger%20menu&cp=9&gs_id=13&xhr=t&cad=cbv&sei=R43DVajfJ4HVoASPgoLQAw#q=buy+a+url

https://www.google.com/search?sclient=psy-ab&biw=2560&bih=1239&q=gyrator+definition&oq=gyrator+d&gs_l=&pbx=1&pf=p&sugexp=ernk_zc&gs_rn=64&gs_ri=psy-ab&pq=rise%20of%20hamburger%20menu&cp=9&gs_id=13&xhr=t&cad=cbv&sei=R43DVajfJ4HVoASPgoLQAw#q=best+web+host

http://www.whoishostingthis.com/hosting-reviews/

https://moz.com/beginners-guide-to-seo/keyword-research

http://searchengineland.com/21-essential-seo-tips-techniques-11580

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http://www.practicalecommerce.com/articles/75484-8-Reasons-Why-Ecommerce-Businesses-Fail

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/38308

https://www.google.com/search?sclient=psy-ab&biw=2560&bih=1239&q=gyrator+definition&oq=gyrator+d&gs_l=&pbx=1&pf=p&sugexp=ernk_zc&gs_rn=64&gs_ri=psy-ab&pq=rise of hamburger menu&cp=9&gs_id=13&xhr=t&cad=cbv&sei=R43DVajfJ4HVoASPgoLQAw#q=buy+a+url



https://www.google.com/search?sclient=psy-ab&biw=2560&bih=1239&q=gyrator+definition&oq=gyrator+d&gs_l=&pbx=1&pf=p&sugexp=ernk_zc&gs_rn=64&gs_ri=psy-ab&pq=rise of hamburger menu&cp=9&gs_id=13&xhr=t&cad=cbv&sei=R43DVajfJ4HVoASPgoLQAw#q=best+web+host



http://www.whoishostingthis.com/hosting-reviews/

https://moz.com/beginners-guide-to-seo/keyword-research

http://searchengineland.com/21-essential-seo-tips-techniques-11580

References


http://www.webconfs.com/importance-of-backlinks-article-5.php

http://www.socialmediatoday.com/content/8020-rule-why-just-20-your-social-media-content-should-be-about-your-brand

http://blog.hubspot.com/insiders/how-to-build-an-opt-in-email-list

http://feldmancreative.com/2015/01/benefits-of-guest-blogging/

https://www.sba.gov/content/start-online-business

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All images are subject to copyright.

http://www.webconfs.com/importance-of-backlinks-article-5.php



http://blog.hubspot.com/insiders/how-to-build-an-opt-in-email-list

http://feldmancreative.com/2015/01/benefits-of-guest-blogging/

https://www.sba.gov/content/start-online-business