So you have made the decision to move into the online world. What next? How do you put your plans into action? Do you spend lots on a new website, branding and marketing?
Do you start ploughing hard-earned money into Google Adwords? Maybe you sign a contract with a SEO provider who may promise the world.
My advice is do none of the above for now. The most important next step for you is research, research and research. Ask yourself some basic questions. If you were looking for your product or service online what would you type into a search engine to try to find it? Then type it. You will instantly be presented with valuable marketplace information. Which sites are appearing? Are they sponsored or organic listings? Then look through these sites. Are they offering exactly the same? Are their prices in line with your expectations? Do they offer free delivery or do they employ tactics like free delivery with all orders over £50?
When I go through this process I start up a simple spreadsheet where I list the companies I am researching down the side and list their products, services and up-selling across the top and form a grid that will ultimately show you what gaps appear in the market and where you may be able to either compete or offer an alternative to others.
Once you have completed this process you will have a much clearer picture of what opportunities are there for you, which businesses are offering the best all-round package and which are not. It is often that the businesses at the top of the search listings do not necessarily offer the best package - they just know how to get it noticed!
Pay particular attention to the up-selling and cross-selling methods of your competitors. These tools are very effective at increasing sales and often the customer is unaware they are being up-sold. A good example is amazon.com where they now list "people that bought this item also bought this...." or "buy this and this together for £x - a saving of £x"
Once you have established the most successful operators then you need to understand how they are getting themselves so noticed and have such a good online profile. You should investigate their keyword strategy, links and whether they are paying for clicks or not. This information is readily available online but is not free (unless you are a client of mine!). Type their name into Google - what listings do you see? Their website? Their Twitter feeds or Facebook & Google+ posts? Do they receive reviews from customers? This will again point you in the directions you should be exploring for your business.
After all of this, take your time to digest the information. Talk to people about your ideas, conclusions and concerns. It is often the people outside of your business that can offer the most simple and logical advice that the experts can miss. There are numerous businesses out there to help you too and many are happy to give advice for free. I have over forty clients who have worked with me for many years and all because in the early days of their business I was prepared to offer help and expertise for free while they grew their businesses and now these clients are some of my most loyal.
Finally, don't be afraid to decide it is not the right step for you. The online market is huge and many people make lots of money when they get it right. There are however millions of decaying websites out there that are no longer nurtured or cared for, the businesses behind them have long since died and along with those sites some of the dreams of the owners also died.
If you decide it's the right step for you then I wish you good luck.It's a huge learning curve but is great fun, very enjoyable and extremely rewarding. Watch every Pound, Dollar, or Euro you spend - I always maintain that if you put the same effort into spending as you do to earning then you will be on the right path!
My next blog will talk about the making the leap from idea, research and planning into reality. The easy ways and the hard ways together with some expensive mistakes I will help you avoid.
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