Are you looking to start an online business or moving your existing business online? Here are five steps you can follow to start a successful online business.
Identify a Need the Business Will Fulfil
If you are looking to start an online business, chances are you have probably already identified a need. If not, this would be the first step in the process. Once you have established a need, visit your competitors’ sites and look at what they are doing to fill this need. Try and find a gap in what they offer. What can you do more, or better, or differently? This will give your business an edge, offering your clients something no one else can.
Sell Yourself With Content and Copy
Website and marketing copy is essential in generating sales. Here are a few tips to writing compelling copy.
- Know exactly who your niche market is and address them specifically.
- Write an attention-grabbing headline that gets straight to the point and promises a solution to the problem your customers are experiencing.
- Establish your credibility. This can be done by providing your credentials, telling a story or adding testimonials from clients who have used your product/service in the past.
- Talk about your product and what makes it special.
- Keep it short and sweet. Make use of bullet point lists, subheadings, short paragraphs, etc.
- Create urgency and ask clients to buy/book. You could be missing out on sales if you do not tell your audience how to get in touch or make use of your services.
If you focus on what is unique or special about your product, you are setting yourself up for success. Your sales copy is your only chance to speak to your audience directly and tell them why they should use your product/service over someone else’.
Create a Website That is Easy to Use
Once you have your product/service and know who your target audience is, you can get started on your website. Here are some tips on getting going with a business website:
- Keep it simple. Stick to one or two fonts and a simple background. Don’t overdo it with the colours.
- Make it easy for clients to find the information that they need.
- Keep graphics, audio or video to a minimum, unless that is your area of expertise of course.
- Ask people to subscribe so you can collect their email addresses.
- Make it easy to buy/book.
- Very important! Make sure your website is fast.
One example of a simple, yet modern and user-friendly website is Novibet, an online casino gaming platform. You can take a look here at novibet.co.uk for some inspiration.
Drive Traffic to Your Website
This is a very important part of the process. Without traffic you won’t sell.
Advertise, use social media to promote your content, start guest blogging or invite others to guest blog on your website, post content on LinkedIn, don’t neglect email marketing or word-of-mouth marketing (especially when you are starting out and don’t have a big marketing budget) and always include a link to your business with every titbit of information you put out there.
Establish an Expert Reputation for Yourself
Give away free, expert content by sharing content, videos or any other content that people will find useful on social media (or whichever platform/medium you prefer).You can also include “send to a friend” links on valuable content on your website and become an active expert in forums and social networking sites where your target audience hangs out.
