Is Your Online Business A Hobby Or A Real Business?
By Kevin Sinclair
A common question today is: "Why am I not making any money
from my web site?" The main reason for this lack of success
is that there are too many hobby sites rather than real
business sites on the internet.
Your web site is a hobby business when:
Your web page is full of sophisticated animation and
graphics taking forever to load;
You do not have your own product - instead you have links
to many affiliate or network marketing programs, you have
never bought the products or services and have no knowledge
of their quality or suitability;
You respond to email enquiries as and when you feel like
it rather than promptly;
You don't provide sufficient contact details on your page
so that people can contact you easily;
You have a hit counter that keeps on being inflated by you
visiting your own site to see how many hits you have
generated;
Your advertising and promotion is non-existent or is
inconsistent and poorly focused;
Your web site does not lead your customer through a sales
process; and,
You expect that having a web site is all you need to do to
make money on the net.
Business success on the internet demands a "real business"
approach that is professional and focused on the customer or
client. To have a real business requires that you have your
own "sales funnel" that will usually involve having your own
product or service.
In simple terms, a sales funnel is an approach to the sales
process that works very successful for those who implement
it properly. At the top of the funnel are your prospects.
You qualify your prospects through offering something for
free that is directly related to your product or service.
In many cases this is a free newsletter or ezine that will
allow you to demonstrate your expertise and stay in front of
your prospects so that you can eventually convert them into
customers.
As prospects move through the funnel, they are offered a
product or service at a low price point. For example, an
electronic book for $30 could be sold to your prospects.
Once they buy this product they have become one of your
customers. You have qualified their interest in or need
for the products and services that you offer.
Moving into the lower part of the funnel, you offer your
customers your higher priced products or services. As these
people have already bought from you, trust and credibility
have been established and they will buy the higher priced
items more readily than if you offered them to your
prospects directly. This is usually the area where you
will make most of your profits.
While the above is a rough example of the sales funnel
concept, I think it illustrates a sales approach that is
characteristic of a real business. Additional products and
services, including affiliate programs that you recommend,
can be offered to your customers with greater potential for
profit.
Real businesses know the profile of their likely customers
and have a marketing plan for how to reach them in the most
cost-effective manner. They are consistent in their
advertising and promotion activities. They track the results
of all activities so that they know what is working and what
isn't. Decisions can be made on facts rather than guesses.
Full contact details are provided on a real businesses web
site so that customers and potential customers can easily
contact them. They are customer service oriented and answer
e-mails promptly. They also provide a full guarantee that
they honour without question.
As they know their potential customers, they ensure their
web site is easy to navigate, quick loading, and provides
the information their potential customer needs to decide to
make the purchase.
A real business is conducted in a professional manner. If
you want more information on business professionalism, I
recommend you visit the International Association for
Professionalism Online at: http://IAPonline.org .
Real businesses will make real money on the internet today!
Don't operate your web site with a hobby mentality - be
professional and follow business success principles and you
will be able to build the business of your dreams.
Article by Kevin Sinclair, CPA, of Be Successful! Business &
Personal Success Resources (http://www.ksinclair.com/). He
is the author of 2 free ebooks: "Success Secrets" & "How To
Choose A Home Based Business". Kevin is also the publisher
of "Be Successful News" - to subscribe, send a blank email
to pbsr-subscribe@listbot.com
