Online businesses are quickly dominating the market in the modern era. Because of that, people are quickly jumping on the bandwagon and buying up their own domains, advertising to a constantly receptive audience. But there’s a double edged sword to this seemingly perfect solution to the main problem in the market: you need to be constantly on the ball yourself, and it can get extremely exhausting for your energy, time, and money to keep up with the trends.
You see, whatever it is you like to do online, staying relevant is hard if you even miss a day of being active. And if you have a blog, you know how much time it takes out of your week to run it successfully! That’s a business when you think about it, especially if you’re opening yourself up to the chance of making money because of everything you end up posting online.
I currently have 2 online businesses: my blog and my shops. I count my Etsy and my Zazzle as one because the brand is essentially the same, it’s just different platforms.
So it’s clear we need to make things easier. Read on for a couple of tips to help you get started; don’t worry, there’s a lot of advice out there for you.
Find the Right Platform
Social media is incredibly useful to have on your side, but only if you use it properly. If you’re working online, you need to know where your readers, viewers, or customers are coming from. Once you know this, you can focus on increasing this reach, and boosting your sales on this particular platform. It’s a lot better than trying to spread yourself thin across multiple sites and getting no responses whatsoever!
It might feel a little less productive than the alternative, but knowing that Twitter or Facebook are doing the most for you is the best secret weapon you could have in your pocket. Of course you can still post whatever you want, but make sure exclusive deals and promotions are being broadcast to the people who really are loyal to you: the site where most of them filter from.
Have a Central Mailbox
Every one of us has more than one email address, and we have to switch back and forth between all our accounts to make sure we’re not missing any important emails or promotions. Because of this, we can lose a lot of time on simply checking through every single inbox we own, and we can lose a lot of essential correspondence in the droves and droves and spam that will accompany them. And then you’ve got to count your physical mail in as well, which you have to spend time picking up and sorting through to make separate business and personal from each other…
Say you’re finally being sent free samples, which you naturally want to focus on because of how exciting they are! You’ve finally made it onto a branding PR list! But unfortunately, you’ve forgotten to pick up your water bill for the month; you know the fallout is going to be disastrous. Instead do yourself a favor and get an online virtual p.o box. Get scans of your mail and save a lot of time and worry by being able to group every single letter or package you could receive in the same place! Isn’t that a weight off?
Use Memberships
People like to think that they’re exclusive, and whenever it comes to using a service, if there’s a membership service they can sign up to, they know there’s something here worth paying attention to. So give people the option to join a mailing list, but then think about going a step further: allow them to donate a little bit of money each month for exclusive posts, resources, videos, meetups, and personalised messages for anyone who wants them.
This idea is coming more and more into focus in recent years, and allows you as the content creator to relax a little knowing you’re always going to be making revenue with the help of your audience. Content takes a long time to put together but seconds to consume, and you should make sure you value what it is you’re putting out there.
Can it Get Easier?
Of course it can! If you have a plan to follow, and you know you can execute the steps on it with confidence, you’re going to have a perfect small business by the end of the 20 bullet points! But getting to this point can take time, so don’t fault yourself for feeling like you’re falling behind. Use some of these tips to your advantage, and try everything you come across.
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