With billions of web pages and countless email messages -- a good percentage of which are spam -- building a successful business on
Internet is hard work. Many entrepreneurs seek to create a 'full-time' income (whatever that may mean to each individual) yet find that making just a few sales is still a struggle.Have you ever looked at your online earnings and wished you could do better? If so, then it's time for a change. Doing same things will give same results! Here are just a few suggestions for building your online business:
~1. Give your website and/or sales letter a makeover. For example, some sites offer lots of free content, as a way to help people while building credibility. Others are much more direct: entire website consists of a single sales letter. Many argue that these 'mini-sites' are far more effective in generating sales because they don't have any distractions - visitor can focus on what you have to say. That doesn't mean you have to give up your content site ... but consider creating a mini-site to help drive sales.
As for sales letter, if copywriting isn't your strength, then hire someone to do it for you. Sure, it costs money -- but a good sales letter can pay for itself many times over.
Things don't stay same online for very long! Don't be afraid to experiment. Just remember to keep backups so that you can always revert to old version if your experiment doesn't produce results you want.
~2. Don't forget about 'real world'. There's life outside of cyberspace! Many people prefer to be contacted by postal mail. Email has become so clogged with spam that it can be very difficult to get people to read (or even SEE) your message! Ideas on how to promote your business offline are available at http://onlinebusinessbasics.com/articles/checklist3.html
~3. Evaluate your income stream. How stable is your income? Are you protected against income fluctuations? Will you be okay if one of your income streams disappears, and how long will it take to recover?
You can also 'widen' your income stream by creating additional sources of revenue. For example, someone who sells a cookbook or recipes can also offer their services as a 'menu planner': working within a set of guidelines (time, budget, cooking skills, dietary restrictions...), menu planner can create 'custom' recipes for her customers. Whatever you choose to do, find other opportunities to add to your bottom line.
~4. Read, read, read. Education never stops! There's always something new to learn, and even one golden nugget of information or inspiration could be responsible for a significant boost in your business!
