It’s nice to believe that every online business succeeds, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. There are many people packing up their laptops and heading back to the cubicle.
So how can you guarantee that your online business will succeed, even in an economic climate that’s uncertain at best?
Well…success leaves clues!
There are some key factors that contribute to massive online business success. This comes from a behind-the-scenes view of many businesses who have grown significantly online (and some that haven’t). It’s not about the little details or tactics either. This is the high level stuff that MUST be in place for any of that to even work.
In this blog post, I am sharing these insights so let’s dig in.
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1. A killer offer
It’s vital that you are offering something that your ideal customer actually wants.
Your offer needs to solve a problem. Because as a business owner, you are in the business of solving problems. If there is no problem, then you’re going to have a harder time to convince people they need your thing.
On the flipside, if you solve a big problem for your customer, demand will naturally be higher. This is when your product will figuratively ‘fly off the shelves'.
You might be wondering what I mean by offer?
Whether you are selling a product or a service, an offer is how this is packaged up and presented to the customer.
Some examples of an offer:
- A recurring subscription model eg. products delivered every month, or an online yoga membership.
- A buy one, get one free offer that makes it a no brainer purchase.
- An online course that contains the key lessons for success, but also has additional bonuses to ‘sweeten the deal’.
- Free shipping over a certain purchase price.
The offer turns the product or service into a more appealing package, solving more problems. And because it becomes a no-brainer good deal, it will sell much better.
Take the ThighMaster as an example of this.
In the 90’s when infomercials erupted onto the market, a product called the V Toner came on the scene. It was packaged as a portable piece of fitness equipment that could provide a full body workout. The product had been created yet the positioning of it completely failed.
Then an aspiring marketer purchased the rights to the product and changed the name to the Thigh Master. This took it from a full body workout to focusing on a specific area that a lot of women want to work on. He then created a unique offer, making it a no-brainer purchase. The Thigh Master became a huge success story and a bestseller.
All by changing the positioning and the way it was being offered!
So if you're wondering why your latest launch flopped, there’s a very high chance that your offer needs work.
2. Know your ideal customer
It doesn’t matter if you've been in business for five minutes or five years, getting to know your ideal client is vital.
We know that people are looking for solutions to their problems. So it's up to you to find out what problems they have, and how you can communicate with them.
This just isn’t on a logical level either. Most purchasing decisions are made from an emotional level. So your level of understanding of your ideal client and what they aspire to needs to dig deep!
A good simple example of this is lawn mowing. People want their lawns mowed, it’s an essential part of being a homeowner. They can either do it themselves or outsource it.
Yet there’s more to it than that. What do they really want?
On an emotional level, these people want to have a property that looks well-maintained and groomed. This could be about feeling like they’re successful, or even related to what others think of them (status).
It could also be about freeing up their time to spend with the people they love. So instead of stressing out and mowing their lawn on a Saturday afternoon, they can look out across their well-maintained lawn watching their kids run around. Instead of mowing the lawn, they have more of those precious moments with their family.
Can you see the difference? If you can tap into that deep level within your marketing, you really truly understand your ideal customer. And then you get to sell with confidence, because you know that your offer solves their problem.
So how do you get to know your ideal customer?
Easy – you talk to them. Spend some time in conversation and ask questions that are going to help uncover the REAL answer.
The things you want to find out are:
- Where are they right now and how do they feel about that?
- Where would they like to be instead?
- And what are the barriers (real or perceived) to getting there?
I personally find doing these interviews either in person or via a video call on Zoom to be much more effective than over the phone.
You can also keep an eye on Facebook groups and observe what problems people are experiencing.
This kind of research is essential so that you can understand what their model of the world looks like, as well as the words they use. This kind of intel is essential so that you can truly solve problems for your customers.
Bonus tip: Keep a vault (like a Google Doc or Trello Board) on real things your ideal client has said. This is very useful to spark inspiration when you’re writing anything.
3. Be prepared to sell
It can be quite tempting to go deep into content creation mode as a way to avoid selling. To be successful, you will need to combine the two.
You do need to be prepared to sell to your online audience. Because no one else is going to do it for you, and without it you won't make money.
A really great way to change your thinking around being “salesy” is to reframe how you think about selling. If you care deeply about what you offer, then selling can happen from a place of service.
If your offer is something that will deliver a transformation to the customer, then selling it to them is in full service to them. In fact, they're probably actively looking for a solution.
Your potential customers have a choice on what to spend their money on. If they choose to invest it in you, it’s because they want something to change! Don’t deny them of that privilege by being too scared to sell.
Selling = Serving.
Now this doesn’t mean that you start selling in every single Instagram post. It’s important to serve first with amazing value, and then sell. It’s good to get into a rhythm but make it regular and frequent!
Sometimes people are just waiting for you to put out an offer. And if you never actively sell, they could also be confused about what it is you offer. So you need to tell them about it. This is selling.
It’s time to get over your fears of being that pushy salesperson. Because if you’re a heart-centred human being, it's coming from a place of service.
Tell everyone what it is you offer. Shout it out loud – be proud of what you offer!
4. Schedule promos and launch periods into your calendar
I love the saying ‘success follows the calendar!’. And this is so true! If launches and promos aren’t scheduled in, the likelihood of them not happening is very high.
So pull out your calendar and block out all the time you have already committed to other things. Hint: Block out your holidays and time off first. Then you can start scheduling in your launches around that.
Make sure you also allow time for a solid pre-launch prior to launching anything. Time in between offers is also vital so that you have time to recharge.
Once you have this mapped out, you are going to have so much more clarity. No doubt there will be some clashes, and it might become apparent that you're trying to jam too much in. But stick with it…make some tweaks and perfect it.
I guarantee that if you start scheduling in your launch periods in advance, your revenue is going to increase. And bonus, you will also grow your audience faster.
So if you’re holding off on launching until you have a bigger following or an email list, stop that! Launching is the fastest way to grow both your audience and your revenue. And this only compounds with more and more launches. Often launches are higher energy than normal, and people are attracted to that excitement!
Just make sure you schedule in a good rest after the launch is over and you have absolutely no excuses.
5. Manage (and master) your mindset
If I had to put these five steps in order, this would be the one with the highest importance.
When it comes to marketing ourselves, selling our offer and getting visible, it's natural to freak out.
While it all sounds great in theory, getting on a Facebook live and winging it can feel seriously daunting. It's easier to hold onto perfection and not do the thing instead. And the result of that is, well, nothing.
I know this because I have experienced the ups and downs in running my own online business. My clients also often tell me that it’s not the strategies or tactics holding them back, but what's happening in between their ears!
I’m talking about things like self-sabotage. This is when you know you want the end result, but unconsciously put blocks up so you can’t achieve the goal. This can show up as procrastination or avoiding selling your offer.
I'm talking about imposter syndrome. This is when you feel like ‘who am I to be doing this' when in reality, you are seriously qualified and skilled to change so many lives.
I'm talking about sitting in indecision, as a way to halt ourselves doing the big scary thing. But often making the wrong decision with speed is actually better than making the perfect decision two years later. I know you know what I’m talking about!
Another way your mindset can stop you in your tracks is when you start comparing yourself to everyone else. This often happens unconsciously. If you catch yourself doing this my best recommendation is to stop following these people stat!
Maybe you’ve also experienced that always needing to learn more is a form of self-sabotage. Every course or free lead magnet you see, you want it! It might be ‘the thing’ that moves your business forward. When the thing that is going to grow your business is actually YOU!
The faster you can become aware of these patterns that might be playing out for you, the better! Awareness is the key here. So become your own inner detective and take stock of what you’re thinking.
Become your own inner detective
Maybe that’s catching random internal thoughts and flipping them in their tracks. The sooner you can become aware of these patterns, the better. Once you’re aware, dig deep and ask yourself ‘what is really happening here? What are you avoiding?’.
Recognising your mindset blocks and getting help with these is vital. Because if your mindset is holding you back you’re going to face struggles at every turn.
So there it is. If you can nail all of these five steps, you will have a very solid foundation to build an online business on. This is when you can start having the fun with all the strategies and tactics. This is when you can start buying traffic and scale your business quickly
