How to Start a Business Online From Scratch: 3 Simple Tips to Get You Started!

by with 10 Comments Running A Business

Are you thinking of starting your own online #business? Do you have dreams of becoming your own boss the easy way?

You are definitely not alone. With the number of layoffs increasing by the day in recent times, many entrepreneurially minded persons have taken to the internet to start their own businesses.

Of course, your reason may not be as a result of job loss. Probably you want to start that business because you desire a better lifestyle for you and your family. Or, maybe you are already tired of working for others and you want to step out to be your own boss!

How to start your own online business

Now, no matter your reason for wanting your own business, you must understand that creating your own online business is not an easy thing to do. There are many forces out there conspiring to frustrate your efforts. It doesn’t matter the hype you may have been fed with, building a sustainable business is not milk and butter!

Does that mean it cannot be done?

The answer is, NO!

Millions have done it and you too can do it. All I’m saying is that this is not the type of project that you should become involved in if you do not know exactly what you are doing. You need is to make the right preparations to ensure you have all your ducks in a row before you officially #launch.

From my years online and from what I have seen in many others, there are a number of critical steps you need to take before you will be able to get your site up and running. Let me share with you the top 3 things you need to do.

3 Critical Steps to Starting a Sustainable Online Business

1. Get An Experienced Web Designer

A web designer is essential to your success

To have a #successful online business you need a well-designed website. This is why your first step to a successful online business is hiring an experienced web designer; preferably, someone who has worked on many sites similar to the one you are going to create.

You must understand that your business website will play a vital role in your success or otherwise. In fact, you will never be able to achieve massive profitability if you have a substandard site that moves very sluggishly and has many glitches. This is why it is not an overstatement to say that the web designer you hire will be the most important person in your entire operation.

Visitors to your business site will, most of the time, judge your business based on your site and not the products or services that you provide. This might not seem fair. However, it is the reality. As you do know your website is the first contact they have with you and first impressions do matter!

Besides, when people visit your site, they will want to look around it for a few minutes. If it looks unimpressive or if it moves sluggishly they will leave and do their shopping elsewhere. This is another good reason why you should ONLY hire a web designer who has at least six years of experience.

Ideally, the person you hire should have designed other sites that are in the same genre as your desired site. This will allow the design process to go more smoothly.

Recommended Reading: Top 7 Small Business Website Mistakes and How to Overcome Them

2. Decide On a #Marketing Campaign for Your Online Business

Design a marketing strategy for your online business

This is where many wannabe online entrepreneurs fall flat on their faces. They spend a fortune in getting a talented web designer to build for them a great website. However, they wait in vain for that much-desired website traffic. Build it and they will come is only true in the Field of Dreams!

You may have the most beautiful website with all the whistles and bells and built by the most talented web designer; but if the general public is unaware of your online business, it will amount to nothing. Your top priority should be to get the word out about what your business does and the products it sells. It is imperative to do this effectively so you can start generating a profit as soon as possible.

There are a number of ways you can choose to go about accomplishing this goal. One of such is to hire a professional marketing company to design a marketing campaign for you. Besides, you should also create various #social media accounts for your business.

3. Thoroughly Test Your Site Prior To Launching It

Test your site before launching

This is very crucial. You need to be certain that all aspects of your site are in working order before the public accesses it. It is therefore, important that you test your website before launching it.

Some of the critical things you need to test out are the website shopping cart, the search feature, the videos, if you have any and of course, all of the other things on your site which you know are critical to the running of your online business. This is to ensure that there are no glitches when you finally launch. It will be embarrassing to the reputation of your business if you launch a site that has problems.

Recommended Reading: Top 3 Mistakes to Avoid When Starting a New Business

Conclusion

Starting your own online business is definitely the quickest route to becoming your own boss in today’s economy. However, to ensure that you don’t become one of the statistics of failed online businesses, it is important that you carefully put the above tips into consideration. To be forewarned they say, is to be fore-armed! Overlooking these simple tips could be costly.

4 Essential Business Tasks Every New Entrepreneur Mustn’t Ignore!

by with One Comment Entrepreneurship

So you are ready to run with that business, right? But have you considered what business essentials you should take care of to keep things going?

Have you ever really considered if there are any essential tasks when it comes to starting a business?

Believe it or not, starting a business entails a whole lot of things. Trying to wrap your head around these things most times could be daunting. This is why it is important that when you start a new company you should be able to know the essential tasks you need to cover. Failure to do that could mean you experience many issues further down the line.

The question therefore is what are these essential business tasks? In this post I’ve listed some of the most critical processes in the hope of giving you a helping hand. So long as you don’t overlook any of these essentials, your business should be ready to create profit.

Of course, there are a lot of other things you need to think about, but none are quite as important as the tasks listed below.

Business essential tasks for new entrepreneurs

1. Get A Good Accountant

Before you register your business, it is is vital that you find a good accountant. In most instances, they will deal with the company formation on your behalf. Also, they can offer advice on your business plan, and how to spend your money. It’s important you have a decent accountant because you’re going to need a lot of guidance at the end of the tax year. The last thing you want to do is pay money to the government when you can use it to expand.

2. Find A Talented Web Designer

Suitable web design is crucial if you want to reach a large audience. Most people use their mobile phones to access the internet these days rather than desktop computers. That is why your site needs a responsive and attractive design. Try to make sure you keep things as simple as possible. Internet users do not want to work harder than is necessary to buy from your brand. Indeed, some of them might look at alternative companies if your processes are too complicated.

3. Employ A Marketing Agency

Dealing with marketing yourself is going to involve a lot of time and effort. You probably don’t have enough hours in the day to give your full attention. That is why it is sensible to use a marketing agency. There are plenty of them around these days, and you’ll find them online. Just ensure you always read reviews from previous clients. That way, you can be certain you are going to receive a premium service.

4. Get The Right Insurance

You’re going to need lots of different insurance policies to protect your business. That is especially the case if customers and clients visit your premises. Considering that, you should contact suitable business insurance providers as soon as possible. Make sure you shop around to get the best deals and try to buy everything from the same place.

Conclusion

Those business essentials will apply to all new companies, regardless of which industry they enter. Just make sure you create a plan that will allow you to get everything sorted before you start trading. Once you’ve done that, the road ahead should be a little clearer. There are always going to be stumbling blocks. Even so, overcoming them is easy with the right approach. Cover all the basics, and nothing can go wrong.

Now you’re ready to launch the company; you just have to find a lot of motivation. You will work hard for a long time before you make a profit. However, it will be worth the effort in the end.

So, what are those essential business tasks that you have not taken care of in your business? Or what other essential task you want to add to this list? Share with us in your comment below.

The Essential Guide on How to Start an Online Business

by with No Comment Internet & Online Business

Have you ever thought of starting an online business and just didn’t know how to go about it?

Or,

Are you already running a business online but you are not making any headway because you may have taken the plunge without carefully analyzing what it TRULY takes to start a successful business online?

Now, it’s true that starting an online business has never been easier, but that doesn’t make it a simple task. Ironically, the ease of entering into the online business arena is, for many who want to start an online business, the biggest problem.

In this article, I want to share with you what you truly need to do to get started and launch your own online business. So, whether you are just starting out and wants to know what you need to start on the right path or you already have a business online but you’re wondering what you may have left behind, this guide is something you’re going to find valuable.

So, let’s get started…

How to start an online business
1. Form Your Idea

Whatever your idea is it has to be unique. Sure, you can get a bit of money from a copycat website, but it won’t last long, and you will soon find yourself being blacklisted by customers and search engines alike. You can come up with something entirely new, or make an improvement to a current service. Whatever you choose, you have to make it clear that you are different to all of the rest.

2. Get A Domain

Now you need to find a domain name. In days gone by, you could just name your domain after your company, but things are a little different now. If you are starting an online business, then it’s best to choose your domain name first, and then use the same for your business. We recently put together a guide for choosing your domain, so make sure you check it out before moving on.

3. Build A Website

If you have an idea for a website, do you have the skills to build it? If not, then you are going to have to hire a developer. Make sure that design is at the heart of what you come up with, and build your website so that it is simple to use. Test things time and time again before you launch to iron out any kinks, such as broken links or headings.

4. Create Content

Now that you have your website up, it’s time to fill it with content. Depending on what you want from your site – sales or signups – you should treat your content differently. Sales websites should focus on high-quality product descriptions. And if you are looking for subscriptions for a blog or something similar, then look into presenting new information in a unique way.

5. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

OK, so you have your content in place, but who is going to read it? Nobody will if they can’t find it. This is where search engine optimization and marketing comes in. A good search engine marketing company will help you get found in the search rankings and help you boost your conversions, meaning more sign ups or sales.

6. Social Media

Another good way of getting your content seen is by spreading the word on social media. Set up accounts on the social channels that work well with your business model, and get involved with other people’s conversations. If you are adding to them, then you should see your follower numbers start to increase, meaning more eyes will be directed to your website when you need them to be.

Conclusion

There you have it, the essential guide to starting a business online. It is unfortunate that many want to complicate things. But you don’t have to do that. If you truly want to succeed online then follow this guide and you will not go wrong.

Good luck with your new venture. I look forward to reading of your results.

Image credit: Flickr.com

How Ready Is Your Site For The Google Mobile-Friendly Algorithm Update?

by with No Comment Your Website

With just a few hours before Google implement its planned big update – mobile-friendly algorithm change, it beholds every webmaster to take action now, if they have not done so.

Google had announced earlier that come 21 April it will launch a new mobile-friendly algorithm with the mind of rewarding websites that are fully optimized for mobile with higher rankings in search results. The funny thing is that why Google indicates that the change is to improve the overall user experience (UX), there are however, news that Google is actually planning to launch its own mobile phone network, a move that will see the company move into supplying broadband connections across the planet.

But, instead of waving away the up-coming algorithm change because we know that whenever Google comes up with any update it always has some vested interest, we must understand that this is really beyond Google.

For example, right now more and more people are now accessing the internet with their mobile devices and not making your site mobile friendly will be missing out on this vast number of mobile users.

How Do You Know If Your Site Is Mobile-Friendly?

If you still don’t know if your site is ready or not you can easily found out by doing a check using this tool from Google.

For example, when I checked the webincomejournal.com, here’s what I got:

WebIncomeJournal.com - mobile friendly

Web Income Journal passes mobile-freindly test

Yes, the Web Income Journal blog is mobile friendly!

Mobile Friendly Web Design Tips for Businesses [Infographic]

But beyond checking you can also use Google’s own guidelines to ensure that your site/blog is mobile friendly. If you site is built using the WordPress software, you can get some tips here. If you’re using some other software then you will want to check out this page.

And, here’s an infographic from the team at SumAll with a review of the upcoming changes:

Mobile friendly sites - infographic