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How to plan for the future

Put up your web site

Search engines, social media, and paying for traffic…

Create a marketing plan for ROI

There are many ways that you can build a Web site when starting your online business.  You can create it yourself,  purchase a template from many online services, or you can get a Web site from a larger provider, such as Amazon and Yahoo!

When writing my book Yahoo Income: How Anyone of Any Age, Location, And/Or Background Can Build a Highly Profitable Online Business with Yahoo, I spoke with many highly profitable businesses that were using Yahoo! as their Web site platform.

In the book, you can find a load of information on how to start up your business with Yahoo!  In future blog articles, I will write about some of the information I learned through my research and interviews with Yahoo! businesses.  My case studies included:

eHobbies http://www.ehobbies.com

Greek Gear http://www.greekgear.com/

Exclusive Concepts http://www.exclusiveconcepts.com

Colorado Web Solutions http://www.coloradowebsolutions.com/

Order Motion http://www.ordermotion.com/

Children’s Organizer http://www.childrensorganizers.com/

Coffee Cakes http://www.coffeecakes.com/

World Wide Brands http://www.worldwidebrands.com/

Monitus www.monitus.net

HT Market http://www.htmarket.com

Ventura Web Design http://www.venturawebdesign.com

Pop Deluxe www.popdeluxe.net

Chips V6 Specialties http://www.chipsv6specialties.com/

1 Choice 4 Your Store http://www.1choice4yourstore.com/

Rock Solid Results http://www.rocksolidresults.com/

Check these sites out and see how they have used Yahoo! to start and grow their business.

When people open a new business for a brick-and-mortar store or offline service, they make very sure that the name is not trademarked by someone else.  If the name is available, then the business owner needs to trademark it, so no one else will take it. You will need to do the same with your online business.  A business name is very important, since that is how  your customers or clients will remember you. That is how you will build brand and how your clients and customers will tell others about your products or services.  Deciding on this name is almost as important as deciding what product or services you will offer.

You want to determine if anyone else is using the same name.  Too many Web site owners ignore this step.  In the best case scenario, customers will confuse your two sites and business will be lost. In the worst case scenario, you could be sued and have to change your name after your have your business established.

In addition, you will also want to protect your logo or any design that is associated with your business’ name.  Check with the United States Patent and Trademark Office or Trademark Electronic Search System database to see if anyone has your intended business name trademarked.   If the name of your business is close to another one, but not exactly the same, you could still have some problems.  You do not want to spend the time and money in a legal fight.  If the name is not taken, then you need to apply for a trademark to protect you in the future. Since your business will most likely be part of your domain name, it is necessary to check the trademark on this, too.

Remember:  1) names identifying  products or services to customers are considered to be   trademarks;  2) memorable trademarks are protected by law;  3) specific business and domain names normally are considered trademarks ; 4) whoever uses the trademark first owns it, in case of a legal question; 5) different trademarks  legally conflict with another if customers are unable to keep the two businesses separate.

When determining your domain, research as many trademarks as possible, look for potential conflicts and choose a name that will not cause a problem in the future.  You should also look for different spellings and synonyms of your possible business name. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office provides all registered and pending trademarks.  Also search other business name registers, such as Thomas Register Online.

If you find any other names that are close to the one that you have chosen, make sure that the businesses are not carrying similar products or offering the same services.  Also make sure that customers cannot confuse the two names when looking for items.  Lastly, if the name of the other business is well known and branded, stay away from it. Do not try to be clever and play off this name. You could easily be sued.

If you tried opening a regular brick-and-mortar store without developing a business plan, the chances for success are minimal. You would not have any specifics about inventory, costs, marketing, financing or target market. Then why do so many people try to start a Web site business without doing their homework and planning? Somehow a myth arose that anyone can put up a Web site and immediately begin making money without any forethought or future planning. Every day that myth becomes more untrue. There are millions of businesses selling similar or the same products, scores of them with major marketing programs.  If you put up a Web site and wait for people to find you, you could be waiting forever. When you decide to sell products or services on the Internet, you must:

1) Specifically delineate your product or service. What is the exact product or service you plan on marketing?

2) Research the competition. Who are your competitors? What is their success rate? Can you break into this field?

3) Define a way to differentiate your Web site. Can you find a niche or unique way to make your business stand out from the competition?

4) Clarify your target audience(s). Who will be buying your product or service?

5) Decide on how you will procure, store and ship inventory. Are you making your own product, using drop ship suppliers, storing and shipping yourself?

6) Determine how to finance the business. Do you have enough money put aside to start your business, or do you need to get a loan? How long can you support yourself without making a profit?

7) Develop a marketing plan. How are you going to make yourself known to buyers? How will motivate them to use your products or services?

8)  Create a mission and vision and goals. What is the ultimate purpose of your business?

9) Build a long-range strategy. How will you continue to build your business?

10) Honestly assess your abilities and desires to succeed. Do you have the knowledge, fortitude and patience to start and grow your business?

5 Ways to Start Internet Money Makers

The Web has come along way since it first started in the 1990s. Now, you have a variety of choices when developing your online business plan:

1) Sell a Product

Have you always dreamed about opening a retail store? Do you have a unique, or niche, product that interests you? Do you have expertise in this product that you can share with others?  You can sell homemade items, such as clothing or wedding cakes.  You can make arrangements with drop ship companies that will fulfill and ship your products for you.  Or, you can hook up with a company like Amazon.com and put all their products on your site.

2) Sell a Service

Instead of a tangible product, you may have a service to sell. For example, you may be a freelance Web blog writer or a business consultant. Your Web site can be tied in with your brick-and-mortar offsite business or just for online marketing and sales.

3)  Sell Information

“How To” books are always big sellers offline, and they they are big sellers online as well. People come to the Web to search and find information, especially unusual information that they will not find other places. They are always looking for experts in a field that interests them. You can sell downloadable e-books and e-reports or print-on-demand (POD) materials.

4) Sell Memberships

This type of business can combine products, services and information or just one of these items. For example, you may charge for a dating service or a list of area childcare providers. Or, you may have aWeb site that provides additional hard-to-find  information and products to paid members, such as Webinars.  You could have a membership that includes a Web site as well as offline activities, such as monthly meetings in different cities.

5) Sell Affiliate Products/Services

With associate or affiliate programs, you sell another company’s products or services and get a commission based on the number of people you send to the affiliate’s site or how many individuals buy a product or service or perform another type of activity, such as sign up for a newsletter or membership.

Each one of these types of businesses has its advantages and disadvantages and depend on your particular interests, online and business experience and resources.

TAKE THE TEST

You are thinking about starting a business online, but you do not know if this is the right thing for  you. Here are some serious questions to ask yourself:

1) Are You Passionate About E-Commerce?

The most successful e-commerce businesses are owned by individuals who are passionate about their work and are willing to put in long hours and “blood, sweat and tears.”  They view their business as an expression of their capabilities and gain a great deal of self-satisfaction from their work. When successful online merchants pursue an e-commerce business for the first time, it becomes a number-one effort. The ultimate goal is to make this venture take hold.

2) Are You Willing to Make the Commitment?

You understand that this will take a great deal of time, energy, and dedication. When you started other activities and ventures, were you able to stay on point? How about at your regular nine-to-five job? How was your performance record? When asked to do a job, even those that you did not particularly like or enjoy, did you do it anyway the best you could? This commitment is necessary. Also, be prepared for your life to be different. Talk with your close family members, so they know that you probably will not be available as much as usual and could be more stressed than normal. Your personal life will not be as flexible as it has been in the past.

3) Are You Always Looking to the Future?

Because the Internet changes so quickly, you must be the type of person who continually looks for new opportunities and recognizes them when they present themselves. Some people like the status quo and let others come up with the ideas and changes. Then, they follow suit. Others see a headline in a magazine and suddenly start thinking about the impact it will make. You do not have to be a Thomas Edison or Benjamin Franklin and always come up with millions of new ideas.

4) Will You Try New Approaches? Then Try Again?

It is not always necessary to wait for an idea or opportunity to present itself to you. Successful e-commerce merchants will try different approaches on their own. Originality means continually searching for creative and different ways to solve new and existing problems. You need to think outside the box and consider the problem from a completely unique perspective. This requires looking at an issue from all different directions. Even when something works, why not find an alternative that may work even better?

5) Are You Personally Motivated?

With an area of expertise or interest and a great proven idea for a Web site, anyone can open an online business in a matter of hours. That does not mean you are the right person to start an online business, nor that you would want to open a store without doing all the necessary prep work beforehand. You need to acquire the skills to develop, build, market, and continuously update an online store. Beyond this, you have to go into this venture with a strong “I can do it” mentality, and also with an understanding that all businesses have a risk.

6) Can You Be a Jack/Jill of All Trades?

Running any kind of business, off- or online, also necessitates multi-tasking. Frequently, you may find yourself involved in multiple roles or tasks at the same time. You will have to wear many hats and be responsible for a lot of different functions, especially if working alone. At any time during the day, you can be on the phone ordering product from a drop-ship vendor, writing new copy for the Web site or blog, analyzing the store’s analytics, and packaging up a product to send out to a customer. As your business grows, you will be able to add on help, but at the beginning the buck stops with no one but you.

7) Will You Be Available When Needed?

You say that you want to do this part time or as a hobby. There is no problem with that. It is another way that the Internet is flexible. When you have a brick-and-mortar store, you have to literally open the doors every day at scheduled hours. Online it does not matter when you open. However, you need to be careful about being available, if you have included your phone number on the site. Remember, however, that what you get out of this venture is what you put in. If you only work a few hours each day, it will take you much longer to grow your site. You also will have to be good at setting priorities, so the business operations continue uninterrupted.

8 ) Do You Have the Necessary Business Skills?

You don’t have to be a business genius, but it is essential for you to think clearly, logically, out of the box, and have strong management and organizational skills. Naturally, it is helpful to have a strong sense of customer service, facility with basic mathematics and accounting skills, interest in marketing, and ability for record keeping.  An interest and ability in Internet technology is important, as well.

9) Are You Willing to Keep On Learning?

When running your own online store, you will learn a great deal of new information needed to be a successful online merchant. If you are new to e-commerce, you will discover that you are the one individual who continuously must make the decisions on arising issues. When inventory needs to be found, when taxes must be paid, when ads have to be written and posted, when the Web site has to be redesigned, you are the one who will be responsible. If you already have an established brick-and-mortar business, some of these will not be new skills, but then there will be a host of new areas that you have to add to your repertoire.

10) Will You Continually Put Out Effort?

There is a major danger that many new merchants encounter that keeps them from attaining a successful business: A belief that an online business is an easy way to make money without much work. Do not fool yourself into believing that starting an online business is any easier or any less demanding than it would be to open a traditional brick-and-mortar operation. Far too often individuals start an online store because they truly feel or hope that it will make them wealthier than ever and with much less work than with an offline business. Starting an e-commerce business does have its benefits and can be easier to get going than an offline store, yet you need to be practical about what you are getting into and what you will personally gain, or not gain, by the degree of your participation.