The idea of working from the comfort of your very own home and being your own boss is of course…a very tempting image inside anyone’s head. Yes, online businesses can work, it can be lucrative but it is also hard.

The images you see of people sipping margaritas on the beach while working on a laptop is actually the REWARDS of a successful business.

An online business, is just like any other business. It takes significant work and effort in order to be a successful one. Even though there are some perks working from home, there will be just as much work, (if not more) that has to be done.

Many people think that working from home is gonna be easy, and if they maintain this mindset, they are going to fail even before they start. Before you even consider starting an online business, you are going to have to throw that mindset out of the window if you want to succeed.

One reason many online businesses fail to even take off is because many people think that is easy. And people who think that an online business is easy will not even bother to learn anything.

If they think it’s really that easy, then they should be asking themselves a few questions beforehand. You may have an idea of what you want to do for as a business…

But how do you sell it online?

Where do you sell it?

What do you sell?

Where do you find what you sell?

How are you going to advertise?

Where are you going to advertise it on?

There are literally hundreds of questions concerning just selling a product or service online. If you don’t bother to learn the ropes, you are going to be stuck staring at a blank screen.

Fortunately for us, the Web is full of information regarding the proper approach on how to conduct an online business. But you have to know where to look and you must have the thirst for the knowledge. Only then you will know what options you have and only then you can make carry out informed decisions.

Sometimes an online business may require a small investment (such as payment for banners and ads). With adequate knowledge, you use the time and money you invested for your online business in a more effective way.

There are millions and millions of website on the World Wide Web. When you have a website of your own, it’s easy to overlook yours if you don’t have something special or unique that sets your website from the rest.

Sure, you can emulate the more successful websites, but you can only go so far before becoming a total rip-off of the original site. Learn what works from their site and make it your own to be used on your website. The key is to learn what works while still maintaining your unique identity.

Sure, our goal is to sell stuff online but there is also a delicate approach when it comes down to it. You can’t force what you want to sell down people’s throats. You’ll only drive them away.

Your website doesn’t really have to be all about selling your product/service from header to footer. Include value for your customers as well. Try to offer free content, such as informative articles, funny videos, free e-books, and such. People are more likely to buy from you if they like you, rather than not.

The beach image is not mentioned earlier is not a lie. It’s just a preview of what’s to come after you have put it time and effort into building your online business into a successful one.

Web traffic are made up of individuals who are visiting in your site, and if you are able to convert these “visitors” to “customers” then you are finally heading in the right direction.

But, the reality is that not every visitor who comes to your site will buy. Maybe for you’ll get a sale every 1000 visits, or 600 visits, or maybe even 3500 visits.

This is also known as the conversion rate. And what we want is to have a high conversion rate.

There are plenty of things which can affect your website’s conversion rate. What we are about to discuss today is merely one out of many factors. (Even though this is only one, it doesn’t make this any less important).

A lot of website owners ho are selling a product or service severely underestimate the power of testimonials. Therefore testimonials on their website are non-existent. If you’re one of these people, let me help you see the bigger the picture on how important they are.

How many times when you’d like to try something new, you’d actually seek the opinions your friends’ who have already tried it out?

Take for example if you knew a friend who tried out the restaurant that you have been wanting to go, you’d ask him/her how it was right?

When he tells you about his experience going the restaurant, the food, the people, the environment, that’s HIS/HER testimonial right there!

Do you see the importance now?

But of course, you shouldn’t go crazy and start pasting testimonials all over your website for the sake of just having it.

How many times have you seen single-worded testimonials such as “AWESOME..” or “GREAT!” or “A MUST-HAVE!”, followed by a first name and no picture.

This is not a proper testimonial and this might be even bad for business compared to not having it at all.

There is a PROPER approach to getting and putting up a real, solid, magnetic testimonial.

One of the best ways to obtain real, honest and positive testimonials regarding your product or service is……of course from people who actually use them.

You can e-mail simple questionnaires to your current customers asking for their opinions and what is it that they really like about your product or service. Remember to keep it simple and only easy-to-answer questions please.

Having a questionnaire look like an official government form will not get you many replies.

Here are some great and yet simple questions to ask them :

What to they think?

How did they come across it?

How did it improve their lives?

How has it helped them?

What was the favorite thing/feature about the product or service that they liked most?

Would you recommend it to your family/friends?

People tend to be very cautious on the World Wide Web (what with all the bad rep and all) and therefor if might take some convincing to help them determine that you and what you are offering is the real deal.

And a testimonial is just that.

The answers you get from your customers will be a great justification to why your service or product is really great.

Of course it’ll be even better if you can get a testimonial from a famous figure who happens to be using your product/service. Famous figures or faces such as someone who has already a very established and highly reputable company/brand. These are always the best kind of people to have, to write a testimonial for your product or services.

Hopefully you find what you have learned here today useful.

Good luck and here’s wishing you all the best in your online endeavors!

Facebook has outnumbered Google in terms of active users. But honestly, it’s not that all surprising because it’s been like for quite some time now. Unless something else better (or even more fun) comes along, its gonna be very hard to knock Facebook of that top spot.

So even when you know where’s the party at, it doesn’t mean you just log in the website and cash in just like that. You have to know how to approach it in a right way, otherwise your time and efforts will just be a waste of time.

Here are some tips which you can use to help with your Facebook marketing approach.

Facebook can be one of the most fun and yet suitable place to provide customer service. The conventional online forums or live-chat sessions can be costly and time-consuming to set up. Not to mention it is kind of intimidating for first-timers who are looking for help.

When they’re unsure or uncomfortable, they’ll prefer not to pursue looking for help and their problem will go unsolved. Thus an unhappy customers is usually a lost one.

Facebook however is a fun and friendly platform which is more than able to provide these kinds of services. And the best of all is that it’s free!

Through Facebook you can easily interact with your customers through Facebook Wall, status updates, IM-style chat and more.

Another great way to get what you want to say out there, is to do Facebook “tagging”. When you tag a user in a photo or video, the tagged person will be able to see it in their News Feeds. And in turn, their friends can see it.

Tagging is a great way to reach the masses and tagging should be done as often as possible. Just be careful of the photo or video that you tagged them with though. Keep it clean and nothing potentially offending.

Also, try to search for Facebook page/group admins. It would even be more perfect if the page or group has tons of people in it and if the group or page is related to your target niche.

Contact them and try to collaborate with these admins by providing them incentives or rewards in exchange for them posting a message in the group/page wall regarding your product or services. (Imagine the potential of a group/page with 10, 20, or 100 thousand people!)

When you have set successfully set up your Facebook page, there is one more thing that you can do. The wall of your Facebook page shouldn’t be the first thing that newcomers should see. There are just too many updates and comments going in it might be overwhelming for newcomers.

It’s a good idea to have a sort of “Welcome” page. It can be a video or a short description to better describe what your business is all about. This is the perfect opportunity for a call to action. You could either ask the newcomer to click on “Like” to access your page.

The Facebook “LIKE” icon is one of the most recognized icons on the world wide web today. And chances are, every internet has at least come across it once in their online surfing. Therefore you should also do the same and have a “LIKE” icon like for example on your website blog.

Where you place the “LIKE” button is just as important as having it in the first place.

Try also to include the “LIKE” button on your blog posts and sign-up form or opt-in form (if you have one). You would have to do some research, testing and experimentation to help determine what are the other places that’s best to place the “LIKE” button. The general rule is to make it accessible and easy to see.

When you do business online, do not be surprised if you do come across some less-than-desirable feedback regarding you and your services. But that doesn’t mean you should remove the comments section once and for all.

If you still allow commenting while at the same time addressing the issues that the customer is unhappy about, shows that you genuinely care and have an interest in what customers have to say. People will see you as more credible and genuine.

A few negative comments is better than no comments at all. But if there are more far more negative comments than positive ones, maybe you have to take a step back and review your business product, service and approach.

When you embark on an ad campaign in Facebook, it’s not advisable to have the link in your ad pointing back to your Facebook page. Your Facebook ad will need to entice clicks but they should be directed to your WEB SITE.

Your web site is where you have full control of everything from how it looks, the content and all the way down to your call to action. If you do it right, you’ll have a higher probability of converting prospects into paying customers at your web site thanks to Facebook.

At this point of time, Facebook is still ever-growing and therefore it is also ever-changing. There are many ways to approach marketing in Facebook and what may work today may not work tomorrow.

But, there are also will always be new ways that exist in its place. In order to keep up and ahead of the competition, we have to constantly keep a look out for these newer ways.

So what’s easy to make them understand something?
Show them something that they’re FAMILIAR with.

Or something that they can relate to. When you can achieve this on your web site, congratulations. You are this close to turning a potential prospect into a paying customer.

The success of an online business is nothing without its reputation. Big companies have already long established their brand and reputation. But we small ones have to build from scratch and this can be hard.

But it’s not a lost cause, as there are some things that are well within your power. Things that you can do to build that more “customer-friendly” website.

A simple testimonial can go a long way. When someone sees that someone has tried your service and product before and has a very pleasant experience with it, chances are prospects will do the same hoping for the same pleasant experience.

Testimonials really stand the test of time because it is like a review and also a recommendation from someone. If the person/organization behind the testimonial is a famous figure, even better!

It’s also great if you could have Twitter accounts and Facebook accounts for your business. Not only are these the bulk of where your future prospects are, you’ll have a chance to place these social networking buttons on your website.

Take for example Twitter follower counts.

When placed on your websites, it shows newcomers that you are someone or a brand where people do follow and its worth to follow. Chances are if the newcomer likes what you are offering, then he or she will follow you as well, adding to that ever-growing number of followers.

Same goes for the Facebook button where instead of follow you get the “LIKE” button. Where the number of likes shows how many people like your web page.

Another method that you can employ to help give that little push when it comes to call to action is to have only a limited number of slots of your services or limited number of your products. When you tell them you only have a limited number left, they see it as what you selling are going off like hot cakes and everyone wants a piece.

And it must be a good deal therefore it makes sense why is it flying of shelves like there’s no tomorrow. The customer (not to feel left out) will also want a piece and this equates to you having a sale.

Website development is one thing and web site design is another. During the course of your online business, you may have to go through several design changes on your website. It could either me major or small but bottom line is, you have to constantly tweak and fine-tune to find out what works and what doesn’t when it comes to customer conversion.

Failing.

This is a fact and the statistics prove it. Entrepreneurs and their businesses (online or not and regardless of size) are forced to close down or call it quits. The only positive thing that comes out from this is that we are able to learn from these people’s mistakes.

But as there are many reasons (and theories) to as why an entrepreneur’s business faces closure. Let’s bring out some common beliefs on what really is a business killer and see whether or not if it’s true.

The first belief is entrepreneurs fail because they lost did not stick to their long-term plan. This is true for small businesses however. For a small business, short term goals and results are more important than long ones.

This is because, small businesses usually have not much money to start out with.

Therefore there is not enough money to help sustain small businesses in the long run of things.

If you’d like to see your small business grow into a large one, a long-term goal and plan is more than necessary. But the trick here is to have your business operations based on short-term goals.

Another common belief on why entrepreneurs and their businesses fail is because entrepreneurs depend on only a small number of customers. This belief is true, but only if you have only 5 customers to start out with.

The internet is flocked full of potential prospects just waiting for you to come along with what you have to offer. But once thing for certain that everyone can agree is that, it’s always easier (time and money wise) to push your products or services to existing customers than it is to find new ones.

You should always keep finding new ways to bring in customers while at the same time, maintain a pleasant business relationship with your current ones. It’s a juggling act, but it’s something that will benefit you in the long run.

So how do you keep the customers happy? By giving them what they want right? So how do you go about doing that?

Ask.

Encourage them to provide feedback such as discussions, suggestions and comments.

The next belief is that entrepreneurs fail because the tend to “undercharge” their clients. Actually, “overcharging” your clients is like shooting yourself in the foot and overcharging is more likely to drive yourself out of business compared to undercharging them.

“Undercharging” has it’s advantages and place. For example, if you’re a start-up company and you have yet to build your reputation and credentials. The only way to do that is by having customers. And when they like what you have to offer, your reputation will go up. So what is the best way to ask prospects to give you a chance?

By offering services cheaper than what most are offering. People can’t resist a good deal (including myself) and if you’re cheaper or the cheapest one available, people will come flocking in and looking for you.

When you have a better reputation and have positive testimonials accrediting to your good name, only then can you afford to charge a little higher for your guaranteed quality services or products.

Being an entrepreneur has its risks.

But what makes an entrepreneur a successful one is the ability to pick themselves up when they fall, brush it off, learn from their mistakes and move on forward.

Yes, only 2.

And when you build your very own website and get it online, your website will definitely fall into either one of these categories. What are these categories? I call it “Hit” or “Miss.”

Do you see the bigger picture now? Your website could either be a big “HIT” or a total “MISS”.

Of course everyone in their right mind would definitely prefer their website be the former than the latter.

But, this is not the only hurdle when it comes to a business website.

A business website might be able to pull in customers, but you don’t gain much from just getting visits alone. You need the customers to take action. And if they’re not taking action, your website is just a wasted potential.

But notice I said “potential”.

Meaning, just because a site starts off on the wrong foot doesn’t mean it’s a lost cause. It can be turned 180 degrees around, in the right direction. And hopefully with some pointers outlined here for you today, you can slowly salvage or further improve it.

So what makes a website have visits/view but no action?

First reason is largely due to the reputation of your sight. Or to put it in another way, how reputable it looks. You need a site where your target customers can relate to. When they can relate they will feel more at ease or “safe” when browsing through the stuff. Give them what THEY want to see and they will give you what YOU want.

You also need to build trust with your visitors. This is where 1st impression really counts. And if she deems you suspicious or as a probable fraud, you seriously need to re-design your site and the content you put up there.

Content-wise, it would be perfect if you could include any recognitions such as

awards, certifications, security badges, testimonials, comments etc etc…about your company’s business on your website. This is a necessity if you would like to establish your website to be a trustworthy one.

Another reason your website is not seeing much action (beside page views) it’s because you’re most probably guilty of directing your customers to (just) your home page.

When you have a website that deals of other (related-or-not) services or products, the home page is only a general of your entire operations and it just doesn’t really give the customers what they are really looking for.

It’s like leaving them in a hotel lobby when all they really want is to book to stay for the night. Wouldn’t it be better to ask them instead what kind of room are they looking for? / the preferred view? / how many night of stay?

Get where I’m going?

Customers who are ready to buy most already know what they want. So that’s why your website should have proper and relevant “segments” or “sub-pages” which can cater to specific customer needs and wants.

You can also refer to these as “landing pages” and many business web site owners fail to see the importance of landing-pages or do not spend enough time developing,refining,tweaking it. So don’t let their mistake be yours as well.

One last (and certainly not least) reason is your web pages doesn’t have a “CALL-to-ACTION”. Each web page on your site must have an objective for its existence. It’s simply not built for the sake of filling in the gaps or making your site look bigger. You’re only wasting your precious time if this is the only reason.

What’s the point of offering a great product or service if you don’t have something at the button that says “Order/Buy Now”. But what’s also important is not only having a “CALL-To-ACTION” you have to know where and when to place it.

Imagine having a “BUY NOW” button or link above a service or product description. You’re asking people to buy something they don’t even know. it’s very awkward and it comes off as pushy. And this is definitely not good for business.

So try out these simple methods today and remember, it’s all about constantly tweaking of these methods to get the desired results you want. Your website can definitely be a “HIT”. Like always, it’s just a matter of “how”.

How many times have heard of that one before. And most of the time, it’s the customers themselves who say it, as a means to justify how acceptable their demands are disregarding how absurd/ridiculous in really is in fact.

We love our customers. Of course we do. But there’s just so much that we can do or give to them. But occasionally there will always be that “ONE” customer that comes along and gives us hell. You’ll know it when your businesses start to suffer up to the point it affects the results you give the other customers.

When this happens then you know it’s come to the point we have to cut this one loose.

It’s a good idea to keep a constant lookout for these “customers”. It’s best if you can identify them before they really drain you dry.

Here are some signs that you can look out for.

Will you please?

They unhesitatingly and openly take advantage of you. Some may be a little more subtle, as a means of “testing the waters”, but at the end of the day they always show their true colors.

The next thing you know they’re well over your head. They will be friendly and that is how they’ll get you to do work for them for free. They will always play the “FRIEND” card. A little favor here, and a little favor there. At the end of the day, not only do they expect special treatment from you, they DEMAND it.

Ummm…

Next we have the uncertain customer. Sometimes they are so unsure of themselves they even wonder what are they doing there talking to you in the first place. These customers are definitely hard to deal with as they will change whatever the requested as often as they change clothes.

The worse part is, after going through so many changes, you end going what the requested in the very first place. A simple project can be dragged into the length of a big one. It’s easy to go over-budget and past the deadline with these people.

Picture Perfect

These groups of customers are never satisfied even though they are well aware of what they are getting BEFOREHAND. These people expect a work of a masterpiece when buying something that costs a penny. They also always change their minds and every tiny detail is painfully and (time consumingly) looked for as intently looking for a flaw to blame on. These people usually disappointed if they can find nothing wrong with a service or product that they bought.

It’s an emergency

For these kinds of customers, it’s always is an emergency. The work that they want you to perform is always top priority and anything else is not as important.

They expect their orders to be processed first even though they are the last ones that came in. In many cases, they do get their way because they will bug you to the point you’ll do their work first just for them to get off your shoulders.

One thing these customers seem to have in common is even though they can be as demanding or obnoxious as a customer can be, they are not willing to pay extra for the extra services requested.

Interesting isn’t it?

One way to deal with these customers is to write down what’s needed and required from you and your customer beforehand. When you have everything down in writing (such as a contract or agreement) then you have no other obligations outside the contract to the customer.

Think of the legal document as a means of protecting you, your business and employee.

Creating and maintaining relationships with customers, partnerships with other businesses, all this are known as networking. Just ask any boss or CEO of a successful company and he can tell you that networking is always priority.

Since the internet came along, there has never been a better, easier, and cheaper medium for networking. Companies and businesses worldwide have enjoyed increased sales, revenues, customer base and company growth thanks to the World Wide Web.

What was once a luxury is now a necessity.

Therefore its more important now than ever that you have your own web site or blog. Be it business or personal a blog is your chance for creating the reputation and branding that is crucial for any business.

Here are some reasons why having a blog for can be a boon for your business.

If you really go one step further and actually “connect” with your customers or partners then you have secured a more sustainable source of income from them.

Don’t treat customers like a tissue (where they are only good for one wipe). Customers can be loyal and these are the best kind there is.

Go the extra mile and connect with them. Build a relationship with them. Yes it may take the time and effort, this applies the same with every business out there. If you put in time and effort, you will be rewarded tenfold.

And in the case with customers, IT IS ALWAYS WORTH IT. There is no such thing as a wrong investment when investing effort with your customers interest in mind.

Current customers that you have are excellent candidates for any future products and services that you may be offering. If they had a pleasant experience buying from you, chances are that they will always come back to you again…and again…and again.

The next benefit of having a blog is that a blog is a excellent platform for new potential prospects to land on. One method of pulling in new customers is to offer incentives or rewards (or discounts on their next purchase) for existing customers who refer other people to your blog.

This creates a “chain-like” effect and goes on. And as a business owner, having a blog that goes viral is the best thing that you can ever hope for. A marketing campaign that just keeps getting BIGGER and better on its own.

Another reason for having a blog is because its also a perfect platform to expand your niche. There are many approaches to marketing a niche even if you have chosen just a single one. Take for example that your niche has something to do with Golf.

In addition to providing current news and interesting articles on Golfing, you could also provide golf guides and tutorial which comes in the form of e-books or videos.

Or you could affiliate with travel companies, hotels, country clubs, resort offering a getaway weekend of Golfing which they can enjoy a discount only can be found on YOUR site.

You get the general idea right?

There are many potential money-making platform on the internet and having a blog is just one of them. The internet is big and its ever-growing, so not to worry, you still have your piece of the big pie. You just have to know where to find it.

Some may enjoy more success than others, some might enjoy a little, and some might not at all.

Like many other tools available for the Internet marketer, its more important in HOW you use it than WHAT u use.

Sure, everyone knows social media is a powerful tool (including your next-door teenage neighbor) but if you don’t use it wisely then you might as well don’t bother wasting time with it from the start.

So outlined here are some steps which can help you and your business to move forward (or started) with the use of social media.

First off, you have to identify your goal in joining the social media scene.

Is this a means for you to reach out to a wider audience?

Is it to build your reputation or branding?

You wanna look good in the search engine’s eyes?

Is it a place where you can interact with your customer base any time of the day?

Or is it a more direct and efficient approach to selling a particular product or service to a more targeted audience?

Next off, you have to understand to be in good something you actually need to invest the time. Social media is no exception. If you wanna stand out or excel in the niche or field that you have chosen to dab in, you have to be good in what you do or say.

Planning and research is always a necessity and it gives you a sense of direction (so you don’t wander around aimlessly). Time wasted was always time better invested.

You also have to know the one thing where social media sites differs from normal web sites. You may have an excuse when you have an inactive and infrequently updated website. But you are defeating the whole purpose if you treat your social media account just like another regular web blog.

Not only do you need time to develop AROUND your social media account, you need time to be involved IN it.

You MUST be active, interactive and better yet hyperactive. You can’t build it up just to leave it alone and hope it’ll “GROW”. It’s called social media for a reason. You HAVE to be social. So get out there and socialize. Build your presence in the online community that you have registered in, be diligent.

Also, people hate it when you tend to be pushy. So instead of trying to sell them something every minute, offer them something of value. Maybe a valuable content, have a great discussion, be helpful and answer questions.

In the social media scene, it’s not just about providing content. It’s providing content that is both USEFUL and VALUEBLE to your target audience.

Speaking of target audience, try to identify what they like and what they are passionate about. If you can bring up a topic of discussion on what your target audience are passionate about, chances are it’ll go viral and will get everyone talking about it which will tremendously be beneficial for your business.

Plus, don’t sound like a total robot when you’re engaging in the social media scene. Studies have shown that people tend to react and respond (in a better way) to individuals either representing themselves/organization/company/brand when they have personality.

In other words…natural.

A little humor and genuine show of interest can go a long way here.

Social media may or may not stand the test of time. But one thing is for certain is that Internet Marketing and social media is on the rise and for now it’s definitely here to stay for some time to come.

Many people are comfortable with assumptions and when it comes to business, assumptions means taking risks. Risks which can pay off, or on the other hand, cost you time AND money.

So getting feedback from customers here is just as important for you, your business and as well as customers. If you can give customers what they want, more customers will seek the products and services that are offered and when customers are happy, so will you (and your business).

To encourage your customers to interact or provide feedback to you, to have to actually make it easy for them to do so. In most cases, if you’re about to get a genuine response from a customer, chances are you’ll never get it if it’s too bothersome for the customer.

An example would be not leaving a contact number or e-mail in your web site or online profile on a social networking site.

Since nearly everyone that owns a computer is using Twitter now, so should you. Twitter is a great way to inform updates regarding your business/company/organization and it’s also a great way to ask for feedback, suggestions and answer any questions that your customers may have.

If you take the time to reply to your customer’s questions, many people will see that you show a genuine interest when it comes to caring for your customers and this can significantly boost your the credibility and reputation of your online business. And when you have a purely online business, reputation is everything.

Another great social networking website to have an account with is Facebook. There are even more people who have a Facebook account compared to Twitter and chances are if a person doesn’t have a Twitter or Facebook account, he or she will have the other.

Try to create surveys or polls often to ask them what they want, or what would they like to see in the future. Asking for their opinions and to voice out their suggestions shows you really care and what they say matters which makes them feel more important and this keeps them coming back. And a higher chance of them coming back with someone.

When it comes to asking for feedback, keep it as simple as possible. The kind of questions that are great to ask are Yes-or-No or polls. But sometimes it is necessary to find out what they want through questionnaires. It’s good to only ask one question at a time and do give your customers ample time to answer before bringing the question down or moving on to the next one.

To showcase the importance in knowing and giving what your customers want , here is a case study which highlights this importance.

Harrah’s Entertainment was a business that owned casinos, hotels and spas. They took the initiative to monitor social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook to find out what the customers were saying about their accommodations and services.

What they found out was, customers wanted to know details such as room size and what was on the menu and services offered that came with the room. Needless to say, Harrah’s Entertainment responded by making amendments to their online ads by including in the details that many customers sought after.

The result of these simple changes?

Harrah’s Entertainment online booking went up by as much as a double-digit percentage.