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5 Key Ingredients to Surviving in Online Business


You may actually have to do some work.

This is a basic list of key things that are critical to having a successful online business. This article is more for the person who is new to online business rather than the seasoned professional.

1. Design

I really can't stress enough how important a professional-looking design is for attracting sales. Quite frankly, many people will just not trust a site that is poorly designed.

You want your customers to feel that every aspect of your business is taken seriously so they can feel secure and confident that you will not rip them off. Presenting your business in a sloppy or ugly manner

is just not the way to build that confidence.

2. Usability

This ties right in with design. Make sure the design of your site allows for easy navigation for your customers and makes the process of checking out as hassle-free as possible.

Make sure that they can find anything that they would be looking for easily. Remember that your competition is just a few clicks away, and they can just as easily go elsewhere.

3. Marketing

Obviously marketing is of tremendous importance, perhaps even more so on the Internet, than in the physical world. Unlike a brick and mortar store, where it is easy for people to drive/walk by and see you, you cannot stand out on the Internet without a great deal of effort.

Thankfully, there are many ways to help you get found like search engine marketing, social media marketing, email advertising, PPC, banner ad campaigns, etc. The more Internet marketing methods you utilize, the greater chance you have of being discovered by potential customers. Just make sure your site is presentable when they get there.

4. Reputation

As many others and I have discussed repeatedly, it is important to manage your online reputation to the best of your ability. Search for yourself on search engines, and be careful of what information you put out there about yourself.

This includes social media sites, blog comments, forum posts, and anything else your name may be attached to. It is also good to find out what others are saying about you, and to do your best to counter any negativity by any means necessary.

5. Price

Just as your lack of usability can drive customers to your competition (which is again, only a few clicks away), so can your lack of competitive pricing.

It's one thing if you are offering your goods/services at the same price as everyone else, but if they are higher, most customers will just as soon go elsewhere than pay more to go with you unless you truly offer something extra that they're interested in.

You will do well to remember the above five points when starting an online business. Just because you finally have a website, does not mean that you will automatically get those online sales.

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About the author:
Chris is a content coordinator and staff writer for SmallBusinessNewz and the iEntry Network. Subscribe to SmallBusinessNewz RSS Feeds.

Comments

Yes I agree, with all these

Yes I agree, with all these 5 rules. However, we have not yet got it right, and sales are still happening.

RE: Herbal Steve

Well, that's good! Think of how well you'll do when you do get it right.

RE: I Agree too

Patience is a good thing to have for any business, but it is probably easier to give up on an online business than a brick and mortar, especially if you haven't quit your day job yet. Good one!

#7 or something

UNIQUENESS If you do all the above in a way that is also unique to the way anyone else has gone about the process you will gain an audience. Such ideas would include... * Giving away something your niche audience would truly consider valuable. * Tieing in blog/forum with your website * Offering how-to videos related to your niche There are a large variety of ways to become unique. Perhaps the best is to be ready to respond back to reader inquires immediately as they come in. Nothing surpasses the knowledge of superior customer service even on the Internet.

RE: #7 or something

All good tips!

Marketing is the key

You can have the best looking site, the most usable and have the best price. But if you aren't seen you will not be successful. You have got to find a way to be seen by potential buyers or your site will fail.

PPC advertising is not for everyone. The costs per click are rising and the competitiveness of the Internet is driving profits down. This means that the ROI on PPC is not like it used to be and the overall costs are prohibitive to many new startups.

Even with PPC advertising you still must spend a great deal of time, effort and sometimes money on SEO to be successful.

Nathan Lewis

www.myposprinter.com

www.myposterminal.com

I would stress the marketing

I would stress the marketing and the reputation, the brand. Even if you  got the others wrong and you got these two right, people will queue to  buy from you. 

Andrea 

www.italyabroad.com

Good Article

Great article Chris! Thanks for taking time to nail these things down. Marketing for my safety and security web site has been tricky as I have high impulse items. Social marketing has been somewhat effective and is cost free, other than time. I agree with some of the other commentors but the basics are nicely listed here.

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