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If the teachings of the Legendary Marketer 15-day Challenge training program are anything to go by, you don’t need to spend hours on end to get your online business up and running.
In fact, one of the reasons budding online entrepreneurs fail is waiting too long to launch. Some wait for feedback or the “perfect time” to start. Others wait to achieve a certain number of followers or subscribers.
As the way, days turn into weeks, weeks into months, and months to years with no end in sight. You don’t have to be part of these statistics, though.
If you want to start a thriving online business, committing the following mistakes can hold you back for years.
1. Not Having a Solid Action Plan
Failure to plan is planning to fail, so they say. While you don’t require a formal business plan to get started online, you still need to plan.
Having a business plan is homework you need to do if you hope to succeed with your online business. The beauty of it is that you don’t need a 50-page plan to help you get your act in order before starting.
Your business plan can be as simple as identifying your ideal customer and determining if they’re willing to pay for your offer. Of course, part of planning is evaluating your upfront capital and how long it can sustain your business.
One aspect of marketing a business that some may neglect in the modern business world is a business phone number. Customers want to engage with a human to learn more about a business. For more information, consider this resource on how to get a business phone number.
2. Sweating Over Small Stuff
When starting online, the most important thing is to get your startup idea off the ground. While this may look pretty obvious, details can bog you down. You should worry too much about your website’s design, logo, font, colors, etc.
Getting overly concerned with how your business cards will look and the design of your logo can waste your valuable time. Instead, focus on implementing strategies that can help you win your first customers and grow your business for the long term.
3. Being Overly Concerned About Money
Make no mistake about it. Money is crucial when starting an online business. However, it isn’t the only recipe for success. In fact, there’s a high probability your startup may run out of cash before it generates any.
To be on the safer side of things, determine how much money you’ve got to run your business and your burn rate. Then put plans in place to get more before it runs out.
This way, you’ll avoid making a mistake most business owners often make — scrambling to raise money when it’s already too late.
As a forward-thinking entrepreneur, you should create a well-thought-out financial plan outlining milestones and the money it’ll take to accomplish these goals.
4. Not Placing Proper Value on Your Products
You need to set a reasonable price for your product or service — one that allows you to generate a worthwhile profit. It would be best to consider everything that goes into producing the final product to enable you to set your pricing right.
It is also advisable to check what other like-businesses are charging to ensure your pricing is within the standard industry rate. Of course, you can charge higher, but you need to communicate your unique selling proposition to your target audience clearly.
Put differently; you want to convince your prospects why they should pay more for your product or service.
5. Taking the Importance of Customer Service for Granted
Statistics show that 89 percent of customers are likely to engage again with a business with a positive customer service experience. On top of that, 95 percent of all customers consider customer service crucial for brand loyalty.
With so many businesses competing for clients’ attention on the internet, the last thing you want to do is ignore your customer service.
You should, therefore, make sure that you provide a way for visitors to interact with your website, whether via live chat, chatbots, phone, email, etc.
Further, be sure to monitor your social media pages to check what customers are saying about your brand and its products or service. Remember to engage with prospects by answering questions and reaching out to customers that aren’t happy with your service.
6. Giving too Much and Getting Less in Return
Sure, you can give away free stuff as a strategy to establish credibility and boost brand awareness. Free offers are great for nurturing connections with your clients, who can become repeat customers, especially if your business is service-based.
Still, the cost of offering free products or services can pile up fast, harming your bottom line. So, if you want to give free offers, make sure it’s in exchange for something valuable and intangible for a customer’s email address like a free eBook, webinar, instructions, recipe, checklist, or guide.
That way, you can continue to foster a healthy relationship with your customer without giving away too much.
7. Not Going Hard Enough on Social Media
When you’re launching your online business, you want to market it as vigorously as possible to help you build your brand. The best strategy is to start with social audiences. Why? Because social media platforms allow you to reach a sizable crowd without blowing your budget.
Start with Facebook and Pinterest if your online business is product-based. You can also use LinkedIn to reach out to decision-makers who’d be interested in your services. LinkedIn is also excellent for content repurposing.
While there’s nothing with leveraging other marketing methods, social media is great for targeting low-hanging fruits.
8. Hiring Too Early
Indeed, it is good to hire support staff. However, many entrepreneurs often rush to fill positions quickly to grow their business. While there’s nothing wrong with that, business owners risk running into problems like a mismatch in talent and the startup’s needs.
You’re also likely to hire personalities that don’t blend with your business’ culture, not to mention a lack of commitment to your company’s mission.
When hiring, even in the early days of your business, you should look for people with skill sets you don’t and possess the qualities you like and respect.
Keep in mind that the first lot of your employees will set the tempo and, by extension, determine the success of your online startup.
Thinking There is a “One-Size-Fits-All” Strategy to Success
All businesses aren’t the same. What worked for another online business doesn’t necessarily mean that it’ll work for yours. So, even as you read success stories of how other online entrepreneurs made it, you should always strive to chart your own path.
Most successful business owners don’t tell you the whole story of how they succeeded. In most cases, the missing bits and pieces hold the most valuable nuggets.
The best strategy is to start small and allocate enough finances and resources to your project to see what works and what doesn’t. That way, you can avoid huge losses just in case things don’t turn out as you expected.
The Bottom Line
Finding success online isn’t a far-fetched dream. Still, starting an online business requires careful calculation and strategizing, though.
The secret is to learn as you go and make necessary adjustments as soon as possible. Remain true to your course, work hard and deliver excellent customer service. With time, every piece will fall into place.
