Seven Ways to Create a Successful Online Business

If you are starting an internet business or analyzing your website, you should be thinking of how to generate income. There are seven ways to build a successful online business.

• Sell your own products
  
• Sell your services
  
• Drop ship products
  
• Recommend affiliate products
  
• Sell ad space
  
• Start a joint venture
  
• Start an affiliate program

How to:


1. Sell your own products.
The biggest advantage to selling your own products is that you control how much profit you make on every item you sell. You know exactly what each product costs. Try out different price points to see what works the best. People who shop online are price conscious and comparison shoppers. Competitive prices keep them on your site and results in more return visits. Make your home page sparkle with photos and use phrases to Pre-Sell visitors with a “What’s in it for them” as they look at your site.


2. Sell your services.
Providing professional services online requires more patience. Build a website that promotes your services. Unlike product shoppers people who surf the internet for service providers will need lots more Pre-Selling. Use testimonials. Feature your membership in professional associations. Become the authority in your field by submitting written articles to online article directories. It makes no difference if you are an attorney or a zoologist, service providers from A to Z profit from selling their service online. When you sell a service, you're essentially selling a relationship. This requires is that you spend more time and effort establishing your credibility and developing rapport with your visitors. References to articles you have published, trade magazine submissions and online directories will help you. You not only need to establish the benefits of the service you're offering, you also need to establish the value of you providing this service.


3. Drop ship products.
If you want to sell products and avoid the cost of shipping, warehousing and producing a product drop-shipping may be the choice for you. You can sell quality, brand-name products on your site. The drop shipper takes care of fulfilling the order. There are many sites, such as Café Press, that drop ship products and pay commissions. Investigate thoroughly before you sign up. The reputation of your website is at stake.


4. Recommend affiliate products.
Recommending affiliate products creates a "no-risk" partnership. You promote another company's products or services on your site. When your viewers purchase you earn a percentage of the sale. It is much easier to sign up with an affiliate company than attempt to find affiliate partners for every product. Use reputable affiliate companies such as SiteSell, Commission Junction or Clickbank.


5. Sell ad space.
Google has a program called Ad Sense. Yahoo and MSN also have programs that allow you to place their ads on your WebPages. Google, Yahoo and MSN are major search engines. The process is very simple and easy to use. Advertisers buy ad space from the search engines. Based on your site’s content and keywords the search engines place relevant advertising on your pages. You have probably seen these ads when you surf the net. Many web hosts sell direct to the advertiser. For a monthly or yearly fee the advertiser has their information appear on your website.


6. Start a joint venture.
Joint ventures involve combining skills, products, services and resources. One great way to profit through joint ventures is to seek out products or services that would benefit your visitors. Approach the companies that provide those products or services. Ask them if you can recommend their products or services on your site in exchange for a commission or for a portion of the profits. Most companies will gladly agree to this arrangement. After all, there's no risk for them since they only pay you when you refer a paying customer.


7. Start an affiliate program.
Your own affiliate program is like hiring a sales force on the internet. These affiliates sell your products or services. In return, they make money when they send you a paying customer. You will need to assist them in website promotion in order to fully realize the potential market of each of their sites. The power of the internet is enormous. Use it to your advantage.

Teach Your Site to Sell

Selling is Selling.

Internet Sales is No Different.
It is just a different sales venue.

Not many years ago the word internet was a small blip on the radar. Now it is one of the dominant forces in our lives. Think of where you go for information. Right where you are now, at your computer. Even Grandma knows how to send email. The children of today will never imagine a world without the internet.

There are thousands of people who have built a successful sales business on the internet. The appeal is overwhelming. Look at the number of sites that are about building a website.

The fact is most of them do it the wrong way.It isn't about fancy designs or eye catching photos.Its about words. The types of words that make people do something. But you have to know what it is you want them to do.

I know, you want them to buy something. And that's OK. But you have to pre-sell them first. Unless they already have a relationship with your business they want to know more before they buy. Just like you do when you consider making a purchase.

And that is why most websites fail. They fail to draw traffic, they fail to provide good information and they fail to make sales. Why? Because they try to sell first. Don't sell...PRE-SELL your visitors. You must develop a relationship. You must provide information that makes them want to come back to your site. Very few visitors purchase on their first visit, it’s the nature of the internet.

Selling on the internet is no different than sales anywhere...

• You must have a quality product to sell.
Your website may look flashy. It may be the best one on the web. You want to make sales. If you have nothing to sell all you have is a pretty screen saver.

• You must present the product with enthusiasm.
That is the force that drives sales. Whether you sell on the internet or one customer at a time. By the way, even internet surfers buy one at a time.

• Your website must have great selling skills.
Yes, your website. It must talk to the viewer as if they were standing directly in front of you. They have to hear your passion about your business, your service or your product.

• You must realize this is a business.
Starting a business, buying a business or running a business. The principles are the same. You must have a plan. Your plan should include a well thought out course of action.

• You have to grab their attention.
The internet is a fast paced world. If you do not get their attention immediately they will find someone else. You have about a minute.

• You must present your case in simple words.
When YOU look at a website don't you scan the page? If the type is very small or it looks like a 20 page magazine article you want to find something else, right? Your customers are the same way.

• You must realize it will not happen overnight.
The fatal mistake people make is thinking about the money first. I know, everybody wants to get rich quick. That is not the real world. Yes, millions of people are online and you can sell your product to them. But...

They have to find you first.

There are millions of pages. How are they going to find yours? Google, Yahoo and MSN are internet search engines. Just like you, people type in what they are looking for. These search engines find the pages you want. How? By looking for Keywords.

Think of your site like a book. Your book can have the best looking cover. It can promise an exciting read on the dust jacket. If your reader opens the cover and the pages are BLANK they will not buy your book.

Make your site one that provides real content and value. Those are the qualities that succeed online.
2006 Copyright MasteringSelling.com

How much do Sales Managers make?

Here is a great reason to be in the Sales Business....

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bestjobs/snapshots/21.html

Do You Know your People?

Do you know each of your people? The individual they really are, not just the person who works for you? Do you know their spouse's name? What about the kids? As much as we are individuals we also have common desires that motivate us.


In his theory “The Hierarchy of Needs” Abraham Maslow defines those common desires as:


Physiological- The desire for food, shelter, warmth and comfort

Safety- The desire to survive without threat

Belonging- The desire to be a part of something with common interest

Esteem- The desire for recognition of the mastery of tasks

Self-Actualization-The desire to maximize potential




These desires are the fuel of your salespeople.
Some are further along than others. When they are new they are still looking for food, shelter and warmth. Your top people are striving for self-actualization. They want maximum results. Everyone else is somewhere between.

You cannot make all of them superstars. You can however find some common threads among your top producers. Help the others find them and you will be on your way to building a great team. Look for this in your top people and teach it to the others.



They are realistically oriented

They know when they are getting the job done and when they are not. You do not need to remind them, you need to help them. Beware of the salesperson who isn’t performing up to par and it doesn’t seem to bother them.


They accept themselves.

They are aware of their shortcomings, whether they have shared them with you or not. If you will find out what they perceive those areas to be and can suggest how to improve them you will develop a loyal employee.


They are spontaneous

The ability to “think on your feet” is paramount to the salesperson. Being flexible is a trait that successful people are proud of. Allow your salespeople to be spontaneous and think “outside the box”. You will learn and hear things that will astound you if you will give them the chance.




They are problem centered

Successful people identify the problem and then take the necessary steps to rectify, correct and improve. As part of the development of your sales team ask your people who have this area of strength to share with you and other members of the team how they handle problem situations.



They have an air of detachment and a need for privacy

Part of the psyche of successful people is they consider themselves to be “a cut above” and not like the rest. Don’t we always remark that the successful salesperson doesn’t have time to join the “pity party” or wait for customers? It isn’t always that they are busy, oftentimes it is simply due to the fact they do not want to be considered as just another member of the team. Assign them a task to assist you that they consider to be of vital importance to the mission and they will shine.


They are independent and autonomous.

This salesperson is the one who recognizes what needs to be done and sets in motion the forces to accomplish the task. They make great team leaders and mentors. This salesperson is the one who doesn’t look busy but always has deals working, is using the phone effectively and seems to get the most referral and repeat business.


They have an appreciation for people and events.

This salesperson is the one who is aware of his surroundings. He is a reader, learner and student of human nature. You will recognize him immediately because he is the salesperson who will make you aware there is a situation that needs to be addressed. Your other salespeople will turn to this person for advice or to share a grievance.


Most have had a life-changing experience.

A profound change in circumstance will make people aware of what is important and teach them to overcome adversity. (Ask your salespeople who served during wartime in the military or have experienced the death of one of their children how crystal clear your focus can become). By applying the mental toughness learned during their experience they succeed in spite of the circumstance.


They value intimate relationships

Successful people may know many, but have real relationships with only a few. They value these above all. If your salesperson considers you to be one of those chosen few guard it carefully. If for any reason they feel you have violated that intimacy you will lose them.


They do not confuse the means with the ends

They recognize what is good and what needs improvement in all areas of their work. They examine what steps, procedures and plans need to be in play in order to achieve the result. They recognize that success is the by product of effort guided by a plan.




Their humor is philosophical as opposed to hostile

Successful people can laugh at themselves and their humor is often self deprecating. Recognize that this person learns from humor and it is one of the forces that keep them grounded. Let them express their humor; successful people use it as a means to relieve stress, bring themselves back to focus and move on.


They resist conformity

Successful salespeople are always looking for a better way to accomplish the job. They know that just because it’s always been done a certain way doesn’t make it right or the best way. This is also the reason they have that air of detachment about them. They want to be viewed as different.


They transcend the environment

Successful people do not get caught up in office politics, nor do they want to. Their focus is on accomplishing the goal. They are the person who doesn’t fall victim to circumstance. This person is the one who says “I don’t care how many salespeople you hire, I will still be able to succeed and come out on top”. This person is a valuable commodity in helping others see the big picture.


The secret to finding these qualities in your salespeople is to get to know them.

Learn about them as individuals. If you are like most managers your time is limited. Time is all you have; it is what you allot your time to that differentiates us.


The reason you are consistently out of time is you haven’t taken the time to develop your people, both their skills and their person. The result is your staff is constantly turning over and you spend a great deal of time looking for their replacements. They are not prepared to do the job so you spend your time doing it for them. (And resenting them for it) You haven’t developed them to be problem solvers so you solve the problem for them. Learn to develop them and your job will be easier.

Is Your Tool Chest Full?

I Bought a Router


No, not the kind to link computers to a network. The kind you use with woodworking projects. It was the fanciest router I had ever seen. Bought it, took it home and then I realized I hadn’t done a woodworking project since junior high school.

And I really am not sure if I will ever do another one. But I now have a pretty fancy tool.

This made me stop and think about the tools you have at your disposal. Sales is a wonderful business. It is so wonderful companies spend multi-millions of dollars on product brochures and sales literature. Be honest, you have some of it stuck in a desk drawer somewhere gathering dust. These are great tools.

But back to the router. It is a tool. A very nice tool. And I have no idea if it will ever get used.
How are you using your tools? If this afternoon you went to the hardware store and bought a router would it make you a master woodworker? Of course not. Your sales career is much the same. You can have all the tools but until you learn to use them they will sit idle. You will accomplish very little, if anything at all.

The greatest tool you have is yourself. Work on you first, the rest will come.

• Do you study every day? The products you sell? Some form of prospecting or closing technique?
  
• Do you read motivational material? Attitude is the fuel that drives your career. Do something to be inspired every day.
  
• Help someoneIs one of your fellow salespeople having a difficult time? Help them. Teach them about a product, share a sales tip or just encourage them. YOU will learn something from all 3 of these.

Doing more of what you are doing is going to get you more of what you’ve got...If you don’t like what you’ve got you better change what you’re doing!