Running an online business can be tremendously lonely. Many people I meet who are trying to make money online are doing it on their own. Even in the corporate world the people who are organising their company’s online activities are comparatively lonely – very few people in big business understand the whys and wherefores of running their business online. Only a few companies – Amazon, Google and so on – whose entire business is based online will have groups of people who all understand what it takes to be successful in the world of the Internet. One of the reasons there is so much information online about Internet Marketing is because those people doing it are alone; they need support and help from as many sources as possible. As a psychologist I’m aware of work that shows that loneliness reduces performance, effectiveness and a host of other issues related to success in any endeavour. For instance, anyone addicted to anything, such as gambling, is more likely to overcome their difficulties if they are part of a group – a social network – that provides support, ideas and help; in other words the addict can see they are not alone. It is this realisation that you are not alone that helps stimulate action and therefore leads to success. So, for Internet marketers being alone, trying to run an online business without any kind of social network for support means success is less likely. This struck me yesterday when I met with three friends all in a similar situation to me – professional speakers with an online business. We had a fantastic meeting where we shared lots of ideas but more importantly gave each other the support we would have been denied if we had continued working alone. We call our social network a “mastermind group”. But whatever you call a group of people who share similar ideas, goals and attitudes it doesn’t matter – what matters is that you have a network of people. So if you are trying to run your online business and make it more successful, consider your own private social network or group of individuals in similar situations. Call it a mastermind group if you wish. But meet regularly, discuss ideas, questions, problems frankly; support each other. Before you know it, your online business will surge forward because you will no longer be doing it alone; you will have like minded people urging you on, providing you with ideas, making you accountable for your actions. And how do you find such people? Well, start with who you already know – but there are other ways you can find them. Try social networking sites, or raising the issue in your own blog. But whatever you do, try to have a mastermind group of some kind with other people; your online business will benefit.
Internet Marketing :: Killer Web Content
I received an email yesterday from a contact who had pondered long and hard about business success, online and offline. She had come to the conclusion that the “secret” to success was the ability to produce “killer” copy – text that absolutely persuades and convinces people that you are right, that your product or service is a “must have” and that buying now is the only option. Copy that persuades people to do just that, said my friend, is the difference between people who really make it big. Indeed, I was at a seminar in the USA run by information marketing guru Fred Gleeck who said that if you only learned one skill for making money online, that skill should be copywriting. So, there seems to be agreement that copywriting is a key skill. Now, if you want your web sites to zing with fantastic copy and you can’t write it, you’ll need to pay someone. But the top copywriters who’ll charge you £10,000 or more for a single sales page. If you don’t have that kind of cash, what can you do. I had the same thought the other day and coincidentally was looking around a bookshop when I found “Killer Web Content” by Gerry McGovern.
This is a brilliant book. For anyone who wants to write their own web copy, the guidance in this book is essential. It’s written in a no-nonsense, practical way with plenty of tips and ideas. There are worked examples which help you understand things and see ideas in practice as well. If you want to succeed online, then this book is essential reading.
Online Business :: Be like a circus performer
Yesterday I went to the circus with my son, Elliot. It was the famous “Billy Smart’s Circus” – the one I remember from my own childhood. Elliot sat transfixed, mouth open wide, as the first act arrived – a group of men and women who climbed like monkeys up huge 40 feet high poles and did all sorts of acrobatics on them. Chico the clown was a great favourite with the audience as well and the trapeze artists were simply amazing. Coming out of the circus Elliot was full of questions. How did the magician turn a box on fire into a lady? How come the trapeze artists performed tricks no-one else in the world had attempted? How much do you get paid if you work in the circus? Typical questions from a 7-year-old. But they made me think. The trapeze artists were only in the show for around 10 minutes. With two shows a day, they only work for 20 minutes a day. Yet, they clearly cannot perform so well without hours of practice each day. Similarly, Chico the clown had to fill time whilst the stage crew had to deal with a problem in the ring (an item that had been used by the previous act just would not fly up to the roof of the Big Top. Yet, the children didn’t even notice. Chico used his expertise to do additional funny things and tricks, occasionally glancing to see if the stage crew had managed to complete their task. Only a clown with practised skills could carry that off so well. And as for the magician – you simply cannot turn a burning box into a woman without several practice sessions..! So what does this tell us about online business? Well most people I meet who try some kind of online business – such as using a blog to promote their work, or setting up a shopping cart – tend to do it once or twice and then give up because “it isn’t working” or “it’s too difficult”. What most people are doing with their online business is the early practice of the trapeze artists. I bet if you had been to their practice sessions they kept falling off, landing in the safety net and getting back up and starting again. But how many times do you think this routine happened before they succeeded in performing the most difficult trapeze trick in the world? Once? Twice? Probably hundreds. Most online businesses fail because of lack of practice. People make one or two attempts at something and then give up because it isn’t working. What you need to succeed online is dozens, maybe hundreds of goes at something until you find the way it works best for you and your customers. Giving up too soon would have meant that the trapeze artists wouldn’t have amazed me and Elliot. Neither would they have got a job. And if like Elliot you are wondering if it’s all worth it, try booking a circus act for your company’s dinner dance. You won’t have much change from £1,500 for a 20 minute show. It’s worth it.
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