Everyone wants their own online business. But how many people really know what it takes to succeed online? In this article I'll share with you 5 things a business needs to be successful online.
1. A website you can edit yourself.
Do a search on Google for just about anything and you'll find millions of search results. There are literally hundreds of millions of website on the internet. How can you tell which one's are worth your while and which to ignore?
A recent study shows one of the first signs people look for determining if a website is worth their while is whether the website is being updated regularly. If you depend on a web designer to edit your website chances are you can't afford to pay that person to regularly update your site. Even if you are one of the businesses with the cash to hire a web designer to make minor changes it's still difficult for them to publish new content in a timely manner.
By using a website builder you ensure you're able to update your website on a regular basis. You control the content and it doesn't cost you anything to make regular updates. When people come to your website they'll see there's a real person behind it and know it deserves their attention.
2. A way to capture leads.
One of the biggest mistakes people make with their website is the failure to capture leads. It doesn't make sense to spend money on advertising just to get someone to come to your website one time. Studies show for a person to do business with you they'll need to come back to your website at least seven times.
You can get people to come back to your site and remind them what you're all about by capturing leads on your website. The best way to do this is to add a form to your website and then offer people something of high perceived value in exchange for their contact information. Just remember the more information you ask them the more you'll have to promise to give them in exchange for that information.
It's recommended you ask for as little information as possible in your contact form and that starts with a name and an email address. Once you have someone's email address you can send them regular follow ups. That brings us to the third thing you need to succeed online.
3. A way to follow up with your leads.
Hopefully you put a contact form on your page and captured as many names and emails as possible from your website. You'll now need a way to follow up with all those people. The best way to do this is with an email marketing app.
Email marketing applications will let you send emails in two distinct ways, both will help you drive sales by getting people to return to your website. The first way is an auto-responder. An auto-responder will enable you to schedule follow up emails to automatically go out at schedule intervals and share content with your leads. For example you can schedule emails to go out one, two, and five days after someone filled out your form.
The second way you can send emails through and email marketing platform is called a broadcast. Broadcast emails go out to entire lists all at the same time. This is the perfect way to promote a big sale or event. Whether you're sending a broadcast email or a follow up you're also going to need the number four thing it takes to succeed online.
4. A clear call to action.
When people come to your website or read your emails and they like what they see they're going to ask themselves "What do I do next?". You need to provide a clear answer to this question to convert as many leads into customers as possible.
The call to action should be the most obvious thing on a webpage or an email. Buttons work well because they look like something that can be clicked. Whatever the case be sure to make your call to action of reasonable size, surrounded by plenty of whitespace, look clickable, and display it in a place where people don't need to scroll in order for it to be seen. If you do all of this right you'll definitely need the fifth thing to succeed online.
5. A way to take money.
When you've finally gotten someone to take action and purchase your product you'll need a way to take money. The most popular way to pay online is with credit cards. Typically to accept credit cards online you have to apply for what's called merchant processing. The process can take over a week, requires a credit check, and is a bit of a hassle.
Fortunately some ecommerce apps have made this process easier by integrating payment processors like WePay into their sign up process. For example if you sign up for a WebStarts shopping cart you'll automatically be able to accept visa, mastercard, american express, and discover instantly without the pain of submitting a lengthy application and waiting for the underwriting process.
The online world is highly competitive because the rewards are great. By implementing these five things on your website you're sure to increase your chances of succeeding online and building the type of business everyone wants.