Ten Keys to Making Money On The Internet
There is no real secret to making money on the Internet. There are just
well-known key factors that must be met in order for you to achieve online
success. If your business doesn't meet these key factors then it is bound
to fail. Without further ado, here are the Top Ten Keys to Online Success...
1. PROVIDE VALUE
Let's look at two of the most successful online ventures: Yahoo and Amazon.com.
Why are they so successful? They provide tremendous value to the Web. That's
what they've been doing all along. Your website must provide free resources,
foster a sense of community and show real value to your visitors. Without
useful information and real content, your website will just be background
noise. Provide real value and the revenues will follow.
2. QUALITY PRESENTATION
Providing content, community, and utility is not enough. It must be presented
well. Quality means fast, clear web design that looks good and is easy to
understand. It should be easy on the eyes, as well as the brain. Your users
will make quick determinations about the quality of your site. High quality
will result in repeat visitors and more traffic. The word about your awesome
site will spread!
3. BE UNIQUE
Your site must be unique. You should own something no one else has. In most
Internet business opportunities you're nothing but pitching something you
don't even know anything about with a web site that looks exactly like
thousands of others. It's depressing to see people waste their money promoting
some "get rich quick scheme" or advertising the same programs as everyone else.
Not to mention those ripoff cybermalls. So, if you don't have your own unique
website which fosters the Five C's (content, community, consistency, capability
and commerce) then you're nothing but a cyber-static salespitch.
4. BUILD YOUR BRAND
Why is Yahoo! valued at 10 times more than Infoseek? It's their brand name.
Yahoo! is now virtually synonymous with the Internet. Amazon.com has also
attained great name recognition. Both companies have formed a name that people
can easily remember and with a comfortable ring to it. Today the key success
factor is not about gaining market share, but rather gaining "mind share."
This means brand recognition. Your name needs to be catchy and meaningful.
Your name needs to express a feeling or image in the mind of the consumer.
For example, the name Yahoo! is exciting and makes me feel like I've struck
gold. The name Amazon.com paints a picture in my head of a vast and great
jungle where anything is possible.
5. E-COMMERCE
Let's face it. E-Commerce is here to stay. According to Forrester Research,
Online retail sales will hit $108 billion by 2003. Your site must have a
fully-functional E-commerce system built into it. It's expected if you want
to actually make sales through the web. Visitors need to be able to purchase
your product or service at any time with just a click of a button. Your site
needs to make shopping a fast, fun and easy experience. Cater to the impulse
buyer and provide a simple yet effective shopping cart system. How else do
you expect to make any money on the Net?
6. FORM AFFILIATIONS
One of Amazon's biggest success factors is their affiliate program. Wherever
we go there's an Amazon book being sold on a website. It is so important to
form solid partnerships and affiliations. Set up your own affiliate program
and you might just see your profits soar. Develop joint venture partnerships
with those web sites that fit with the "theme" of your business. Remember,
you won't survive very long if you're trying to do it all by yourself.
7. TECHNOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE
No one accomplishes all of the above key factors without substantial technical
know-how -- or at least ready access to it. It goes without saying Yahoo! and
Amazon.com have many very technically savvy people on staff. Surely you wouldn't
expect to build a substantial online business without doing the same. Of course,
you don't have to be a programmer, but you must have access to those people who
can support you technically.
8. PROMOTE
Advertise! Promote! Tell the world about your site! And I don't mean spam.
I'm talking about a constant, strategic and aggressive promotion by using
opt-in lists, ezine advertising, classified advertising, search engines,
targeted email marketing and other online promotional tools. Advertise on
the radio, newspapers, and television. You have to let everyone know that
you exist and that you mean business. A web site is, in reality, infinitesimal
bits of data buried in a computer. It only means anything if people come see
your site.
9. PATIENCE
You have to be patient and think long-term. It takes a lot of hard work to
be successful and it won't happen overnight. Plan ahead. Focus on your strategy
and develop the right moves for the right time. Take your business step by step
and you'll be greatly rewarded. I see too many people trying to make that fast,
quick buck without putting much work into it. It's just not going to happen that
way.
10. INVESTMENT
In order to reach your goals and dreams, you have to invest time and money.
If you're short on finances, then try to gather friends, family or investors
to fund your project. If you think you have a really great idea then you should
approach angel investors and venture capital firms. According to the Small
Business Administration, angel investors pour as much as $20 billion a year
into some 30,000 small companies.
How to Attract Business
The Most Effective Sales Skill: Irresistible Attraction.
- Be a walking example/demonstration of how effective your product or service is.
- Seek to serve instead of just seeking to sell.
- Add value by network all of the time: Be a matchmaker every single day.
- Add value to your potential customers by expanding their professional vision/goals.
- Add value to your current customers by making sure they're maximizing
the use of the product/service.
- Turn your customers into your company's R&D Department, not just a focus group.
- Improve your communication skills/relating style so that people WANT to
be around you - a LOT!
- Turn your customers into your sales deputies; have them feed you
business instead of "prospecting."
- Teach others how to sell in an Irresistibly Attractive way -- this
guarantees you a strong future.
- Strengthen your Personal Foundation/Reserve Levels so that you don't
need the money anymore.
Why you need a Website
We all know the Web is a resource for fun and information. Have you ever
stopped to really think about WHY it's such a wonderful marketing tool?
If you already use a Web site to market your business, or are considering
doing so, the following concepts may give you something new to consider!
1. A Web site is a fun and creative way to express yourself.
The idea of "marketing" seems to make many of us a bit uncomfortable. Using a
Web site as a marketing tool is a way of hanging up your virtual shingle, where
you can really have fun and get creative in the process!
2. Anyone can have a Web site.
Financially speaking, the Web is "The Great Equalizer" of the marketing world.
Whereas other forms of advertising and marketing, such as television, radio,
and print media, are often prohibitively expensive for small companies or
individuals, ANYONE can use the Web to advertise and market their products
or services for approximately the same reasonable rates. While the cost of
creating a Web site may vary (based on the size of the Web site, the nature
and amount of graphic design used, and the experience level of the designer),
the cost of running or maintaining a Web site over time is minimal as compared
with other media. It is a means of advertising that is financially within reach
of everyone!
3. Your Web site is a direct reflection of YOU.
As the "owner" of your own Web site, YOU control the message and image you
want to portray. You get to decide what you want to say with it -- it's your
own personal billboard! You have as much space to get your message across as
you need, so use it well! Make it attractive, professional AND functional, make
it well organized. Be sure the REAL you comes through on that screen! Imagine
you are a potential client visiting your site for the first time -- as a new
client, what are you looking for? How easy it is to find pertinent information
about you and your business? What's in it for the client -- why should they not
only do business with you, but repeatedly visit your site to enhance their
experience of your product or services? [Tip: Think about Web sites you've
visited that you either loved or hated -- and why -- and apply those standards
to your own site.]
4. This is one time where it's considered OK to be a "work in progress".
With the Web, you're "virtually" unlimited (pun fully intended)! You can change
it as often as you see fit -- and frequent Web site updates are, in fact, highly
desirable! The more fresh and innovative the content, the more valuable it will
be to others. It is critical that you periodically review your site to see if
it's getting stale and outdated, and that you use your Web site to keep your
target market informed. [Tip: Even if your site is more or less under construction,
dump those "under construction" messages or graphics on your site -- a site is
ALWAYS a work in progress, and using those messages marks you as an amateur!]
5. You'll have room to experiment freely -- the Web is a very "forgiving" medium of self-expression.
The great thing about the Web is that by its very nature, it is intended to be
changeable and flexible. Don't worry about getting it "perfect" or that you are
locked into a design or "look".
How to Craft a Compelling Mission Statement
Most individual or corporate mission statements contain industry buzzwords,
are so complex that no one can recite them, and do nothing to inspire. The
more elaborate it is, the less likely it is understood and remembered. Having
a clear and concise mission statement for yourself and your Company becomes
your guiding compass as you journey through life.
1. Your mission is larger than a job.
Ideally your job will align with your mission. For example, you could be
employed as a teacher while your mission is education. To limit your personality
and unique abilities to such boundaries causes a profound loss of identity when
your job or career changes. The average person can expect to have seven employment
changes in a lifetime.
2. Your mission is much more than your role.
We all have various roles we fulfill: spouse, parent, manager, friend...In our
culture, men tend to define themselves by what they do professionally. Often,
women define themselves by their roles or relationships. Linking your role to
your mission places you in a vulnerable position because your role is likely
to change--most notably through death or divorce. Who were you before your roles?
3. Your mission is not your To-Do List.
As Stephen Covey so masterfully points out in First Things First, there is a
huge distinction between what is important and what is urgent. Most people fill
their to-do lists with activities which appear to require immediate attention.
When writing your mission statement, contemplate the big picture and focus on
your core values. Develop your mission first, then list corresponding goals.
Otherwise, you can be very busy following a to-do list without creating anything
worthwhile.
4. You are already living your mission on some level.
Living your mission may not require massive changes. You can begin right where
you are now. Increase your awareness daily of what's really important to you.
What do you want to be known for? Increased focus allows you to receive,
recognize and fully integrate your mission.
5. You are born with a purpose.
Everyone's life is important enough to warrent a mission. In the classic movie:
It's a Wonderful Life, Jimmy Stewart portrays a suicidal businessman who experiences
what the lives of his friends and loved ones would be like WITHOUT him. Mostly,
we don't have this overview or the understanding of how interconnected we are.
Every thought we have, word we speak and action we take affects the entire
universe.
6. Your mission may not appear to be grand.
You don't have to be another Mother Theresa or significantly contribute to the
Gross National Product. You've heard the saying: For want of a nail, the shoe
was lost; for want of a shoe, the horse was lost; for want of a horse, the
battle was lost. The blacksmith responsible for Paul Revere's horse's feet
indirectly helped lead a nation to freedom. Positively affect one life and
you can be considered successful.
7. Your mission is a perfect fit for you.
Your mission is not something you loathe doing. Years ago, I feared God would
want me to be a missionary living in a grass hut and I wanted to postpone this
event as long as possible. It was irrational. Think of this: what CEO in his/her
right mind would have the sales team switch to accounting? When you are living
your mission, you experience pure joy. It is not hard and does not involve suffering.
Rather, it resonates with the essence of who you are 100%: at work, at home, at
a party and alone. Accept a mission that fits you, not the needs or expectations
of others.
8. Your mission is not the same as that of your peers.
While crafting your mission statement, temporarily disassociate yourself from
your peers. We are often influenced by and take as our own the values and goals
of those in our network, thus inhibiting self-discovery. This distancing will
allow you to concentrate on what is important and unique to you.
9. Your mission is your true heart's desire.
You may be in a career that parallels your dream. I'd like to have a dollar for
every magazine editor, advertising copywriter or reporter whose real dream is
to be a full-time novelist. Go for the REAL THING. Ask yourself: Is this the
highest thing I could do in my life?
10. Your mission inspires you to take action.
Great leaders can state their mission succinctly. Nelson Mandela's mission was
to end apartheid; Mother Theresa 's mission is to show compassion to the dying.
If you don't feel passionate about your mission, it isn't your mission. Choose
action verbs that are meaningful to you. For example, my mission is to breathe,
ignite and magnify personal power. Join the 1% of the people in the world who
have a clear sense of who they are and where they are going.
Tips for an Internet business PR campaign
- Set goals for your campaign
increase sales, attract advertisers, drive traffic to your site,
build brand awareness
- Develop unique selling proposition (USP)
about your company, its products and services; create key message
points about the benefits to end users
- Determine your target audiences
Internet industry, advertisers, consumers, Wall Street, etc.
- Begin a publicity program
write a press release about significant company announcements
(ie: new product launch, a strategic partnership, a new source of
funding, advertising sponsorship, an experienced executive joining the company)
- Select appropriate spokespersons for the media--yourself, your marketing manager, your technical expert
- Create a target media list
business editor and Internet/technology reporter for local newspaper,
advertising and interactive trade editors, business reporters, TV
reporters covering cyberspace
- Send release to reporters by E-mail or fax by 8 A.M. of the day you issue it
follow up with a phone call by late morning; talk to your messages points;
you'll only have time to give the top line of the story
- Follow what reporters are writing every day and know their interests
- Pot industry trends by checking online media and traditional print
and broadcast coverage daily or several times a day
- Build relationships with reporters
invite them to lunch; see them at industry events
How to get media coverage for your business
- Write a book on something you like or do, become an instant expert.
- Challenge an existing institution and show that you're making progress.
- Find/create a way to do something in 10% of the time/hassle/cost as it
used to, before your product/service came along.
- Create a website or email newsletter and wait for a reporter/writer to
start your media coverage.
- Hire a PR firm and ask THEM to achieve coverage for you.
- Build a track record of serving a particular niche and then call your
local newspaper, tell your story and see if they're interested.
- Take an existing product or service, and change/customize it so that
it's revolutionized or a different niche is using it.
- Link what you do/offer to an already existing trend or news event.
- Add an electronic or free component to what you offer and pitch the
story with an Internet angle.
- Get someone important/known to endorse you or what you're offering.
Order today and start getting your Grants
