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Online Business Start-Up – Take Careful Steps to Avoid Falling Flat

Jeremy Lytle

October 30, 2006

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Certainly, when you start your home business online, you will want to proceed cautiously. No one wants to fail. It’s important to test your idea on a small scale first, to have some reasonable certainly that profit will follow when you roll out the full-scale marketing plan. Certain obstacles are commonly encountered, and it’s a good idea to be aware of them, in order to minimize your mistakes (and frustrations).

Embarking on a home based business involves more than just expertise in selling your product and service. Yes, a proven track record is helpful, but the businessperson who plans for success will need to be savvy in all aspects of running a smooth operation. If the entrepreneur has sold a nutritional product successfully, the desire to further capitalize on the initial success may be strong. But expanding into a full online presence involves knowledge of HTML, site-building, web traffic, advertising, SEO, copywriting, accounting, legal considerations, and knowing when to call in professional help. Further, the entrepreneur will need to know how to manage growth, especially if additional personnel are required in the operation. Unfortunately, watching a few episodes of “The Apprentice” from the sofa will not imbue the entrepreneur with the business acumen required.

Market research is very valuable to insure that one’s business plan is viable. Who are your competitors? Are they successful with similar products? Do they advertise regularly (a indicator of success)? Is your product unique somehow—helpful if it is new or cutting edge—or offers a distinctly different advantage? A clear assessment of the product’s usefulness will determine salability.

Self-reliance is important in any business endeavor, and even more so for the home-based business entrepreneur. Online based businesses depend less upon the “warm market” than do traditional multilevel marketing programs. Also, one must choose whether to involve friends and family in the home business, or whether “the door must be closed while daddy is working.” Different families bring different skills and talents into the equations—some family members may bring valuable contributions to the home business, while others may be a distinct liability. As in any endeavor, bringing in additional partners, even if they are relatives, involves risk. Going it alone can be a strength here, rather than a liability, if your immediate family is not business-minded. Few are.

Sometimes, friends who are well-regarded in personal matters can hinder your business aspirations simply out of jealousy, or fear that your personal success could change the nature of your relationship. Again, knowledge of what motivates human beings will help you determine whether your immediate social circle will support you, or hinder your progress. Again, sometimes a business mindset dictates a degree of isolation. Again, individual circumstances will dictate this.

If the entrepreneur has not been previously successful in marketing endeavors, it may be advisable to scout around for an affiliate product that is being sold by others successfully. Some search engine explorations may turn up prospective programs that seem well-regarded and well-promoted. Searching for general opinions of a program being considered may prove useful. If there are thousands of unhappy marketers who express disappointment with a program or have been burned by a company’s abrupt shift in pay policies, it will likely be evident from a thorough online search.

Organization becomes vitally important as the home business grows. Maintaining accurate records is essential. The entrepreneur must know how to make the necessary contacts to see that supplies are adequate and inventory flows as it should. Good customer service skills are essential, too, and the pride one feels from a job well done is justifiable. It takes effort to please your customer base. Interpersonal skills will serve you well in an online endeavor, just as they would across a department store counter.

You will want to automate things as well as you can. The PC can be a great friend to you as you automate, because this friend doesn’t mind boring, repetitive tasks. And you know that your “pc friend” will see even tedious or complicated tasks through to completion.

Successful entrepreneurs give themselves permission to succeed. They are aware that success will mean change, and they prepare themselves to meet the challenges. While moving beyond one’s range of comfort is never easy, it may be necessary for change and growth. Doing the same thing day in and day out will inevitably render the same result, when a new result is what is desired. Once The more carefully the basic tracks for success have been laid, the more frequent the trips to the bank will be. And that dream vacation to the tropics may not seem so remote a possibility.

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