Small Business Internet Marketing

Earn cash On-line With Article Marketing

2010-06-05T07:19:00.001-07:00

Have you ever wanted to know a confident fire way to earn cash on the web? Then the only alternative is Article Marketing. I have tried everything to make money on the internet but the only certain fire way is to just write articles. It's rather time consuming but if you want to see results, you're going to have to work. So after that you are finished reading this posting I want you to immediately open your Microsoft Word or whatever software you use to write content articles and begin writing!

Step 1: Pick a keyword that you intend to optimize and write your posting around that keyword. It actually isn’t as hard as it seems. In this case the keyword I chose is “make money on the web with article marketing.”

Step 2: It’s time to write your post! Make confident you know something about the topic you chose since in the event you do this process will go by much quicker. Keep writing until you've about 500 words.

Step 3: Now if you really want to generate income on-line with article marketing you could have to make a choice here. It is possible to either submit it to Associated Content and make money per views ($1 per 1000 views) and submit tons of articles to generate profits with this technique OR you are able to chose to link it to an affiliate product or to a blog. Then submit. Mine is directed at one of my blogs, check it out if you wish to see an example.

Step 4: Rinse and Repeat.

If you really desire to make money on the web with article marketing you should write up to 10 articles per day all with a specific keyword and linking up to your blog.
Click here for far more info on article marketing and other internet marketing strategies.

The Three Things Every Small Business Needs to Know about Network Security

2009-12-22T19:55:00.000-08:00

What do Emulex, the White House website, and Microsoft have in common? All have been the victims of network security compromises. While these are some of the more high profile cases, there are daily examples of network security failures and the high costs imposed on companies as a result. According to the 2004 Computer Crime and Security Survey conducted by The Computer Security Institute/FBI, companies have sustained losses of $141,496,560 in the past year from computer security incidents.

There was a time when only large companies worried about network security breaches. However, in this brave new world where everyone from the home user to the large corporation relies on technology for functions that range from email to the storage of sensitive data, it seems no one is immune to the havoc that viruses, worms, spyware and hackers can wreak.

So, what's a small business to do? How do you keep your company's network secure? Most small businesses do not have a specific IT budget set aside, much less a certain percentage allocated toward network security. Yet the failure to have a secure network can cost a company far more than it would have ever spent on security.

There are three things every small business should know to reduce its chances of becoming another network security statistic.

Your employees are your biggest risk and asset.

SurfControl, a web and email filtering company, indicates 80% of all security breach incidents occur from within an organization. This conjures an image of the bitter employee sitting in a back room creating a sinister plot or virus to bring the company's operations to a grinding halt.

While this certainly does happen, most often it is the seemingly innocent daily actions of employees which may put you at risk. Consider the email with an attachment that is opened, launching a company-wide virus within minutes. Or, perhaps employees are web-surfing on sites that are not reputable. Maybe your sales manager brings a proposal home for the weekend on a CD or floppy disk, works on it using a home computer which has a virus, and brings it back to the office on Monday to add finishing touches. Or that sticky note with a user name and password on an employee's computer screen.

It is necessary to create a company culture of vigilance. The first step is awareness. Educate employees about the risks. Instruct them not to open emails and/or attachments from unknown sources. Reduce non-business web surfing by implementing "acceptable use" policies, and reinforce them.
There is no fool-proof method to ensure total security without unplugging your connection to the internet.

Given the frequency with which new viruses are introduced, it seems impossible to keep up 100%. Symantec, an internet security software company, released its semi-annual Internet Security Threat Report for the first half of 2004, finding over 10,000 malicious programs that could infect a Windows PC. There will always be new threats. The important thing is to have a plan in place for dealing with them.
Back to the basics: What every small business should have for a more secure network.
1. Passwords that change on a regular basis and are not intuitive.
  The National Cyber Security Alliance recommends using hard-to-guess passwords that are at least eight characters long and mix upper case, lower case and numbers. Don't share your password with anyone and change it at least every 90 days.
2. Up-to-date anti-virus software on all workstations and servers.
  Since new viruses are created every day, it is essential to have anti-virus software that can be updated regularly to protect against the latest threats, preferably automatically updated to every workstation from your server.
3. Firewall with strong traffic policies to prohibit and allow communication.
  Firewalls provide protection between your computer and the world. They filter and block potentially dangerous and unauthorized data from the Internet and also let "good" data reach your computer. There are two types of firewalls: software and hardware. Software firewalls run on individual computers while hardware firewalls protect several computers at once. The size and needs of your company determines whether you choose one or both.
4. Email anti-virus and SPAM filters.
  Using filters to intercept email viruses and SPAM is an important way to protect your network. There are two types of email viruses: those that are enabled when opening an email attachment (i.e. the LoveLetter virus in 2000) and those that run automatically regardless of an attachment (such as the Nimda virus). An email anti-virus filter will catch incoming messages that contain viruses and stop them in their tracks. Typically you will receive an email notification to let you know that a virus was detected and quarantined.
  
  SPAM is one of the biggest wastes of space and time ever invented. It's not enough that we receive junk mail in our physical mailboxes, now our email inboxes are flooded, too. SPAM is inundating the internet with many copies of the same message in an attempt to force the message on people who would otherwise not choose to receive it. A SPAM filter separates unsolicited emails from those that are legitimate, placing the unsolicited messages in a separate folder. There is always the risk that the filter may block messages that are legitimate, so it is essential to review the messages in the SPAM folder from time to time. Most SPAM filters permit you to specify which emails you want to receive in your inbox based on a list of email addresses that you specify, often called a "white list".
5. Anti-Spyware Technology
  Spyware, as defined by CRMtech.com, is "any technology that aids in gathering information about a person or organization without their knowledge. On the Internet (where it is sometimes called a spybot or tracking software), spyware is programming that is put in someone's computer to secretly gather information about the user and relay it to advertisers or other interested parties. Spyware can get in a computer as a software virus or as the result of installing a new program." It basically gives advertisers information about your web surfing habits so they can target you for particular products. Anti-spyware is software or technology that disables spyware so you can regain your privacy.
Conclusion:

While no one can guarantee complete protection from network security breaches, it is critical to be proactive and have contingency plans in place. One of the more popular approaches to putting the right network security functions in place is outsourcing this function to professionals. According to Jennifer Mears in an article that appeared in Network World, the outsourced IT professionals help you save time, give you access to reports and audits, as well as expertise that may not be available in-house. Bringing in the experts may be just what you need to get a jumpstart on the security of your network.

Learn More about Network Security Solutions for Small Business

Salehoo Ebay Wholesale Directory

2009-06-02T20:54:00.000-07:00

Of course a wholesale directory is an essential thing if you want to make REAL money on ebay. Having the right wholesale sources makes the difference: Win or FAIL!

I went to the sales letter and was really blown away. The founder of Salehoo Simon Slade promises so many things and honestly, there are so many so called "wholesale directories" online that are an absolute waste of time and money. All wholesale directories I came across in the past never lived up to their initial "hype" and I'm sure you would agree if you've been in this business for longer than like 5 minutes.

You only need to search Google for "wholesale directory" and you'll be returned with tons of wholesale ebooks and directories some of them even free. All of them state that they are the best. Well, just forget about that! Most of them have not been updated for years and are full of dead links or companies that no longer exist. (I am not kidding!)

Salehoo A Scam?

There are also sites stating that salehoo is a scam.... Well, forget about that! I did some research and found out that these sites are set up by competitors to harm Salehoo and sell their own wholesale ebay guides.

One of the "claims" that Simon makes about his product is…

If you don't like SaleHoo for ANY reason, you can return it for an immediate 100% refund of your purchase price. And remember, this is a 56 day guarantee. You're free to return it next week, or up to 56 days from now.

Hmm....; a pretty bold claim, eh?

Another bold claim that Simon makes is this:

8.4" Stand In - Car TFT LCD Monitor

Chinese Source Price ->$92.49!!!

VOIP Telephone -> Chinese Source Price: $10.40!!!

8.4" Stand In - Car TFT LCD Monitors for $92.49? Voip TELEPHONES for $10.40?!!! Well, we'll see .. and let me tell you, I have been trying various wholesale directories so far..

Worldwide Brands - $69.95 Dropshipping Wholesalers $47 Wholesale Directory Ebook $67
So getting access to a directory that indeed offers up to date information of REAL wholesale sources that do not require to order 1000 units at a time to get access to these crazy prices was going to be a challenge"

The Challenge! My Little "Quick Test" To See Whether The Salehoo Was Full Of Hot Air or Solid Substance

Now where was I ?

I went ahead and signed up for Salehoo.

By the way, one thing I really like is the fact that there is just a ONE TIME FEE of $67.00 (a limited time special. In general Salehoo is priced at $99). And there are no recurring charges ever.

I was granted access instantly.

I have to say, I was pretty impressed. All information provided was accurate and up to date. I was most impressed by two (out of many) wholesale suppliers salhoo referred my to. They offer the lowest prices I have ever seen. Most of the suppliers at these two sources offer minimum order quantities of ONLY 1 unit as they want to do business with western companies as the competition in China is so fierce. And best of all: what I hated most so far was the fact that I had to pay suppliers most of the time using western union money transfer. I always felt pretty bad doing this. These suppliers accept PAYPAL!

Taking all this into consideration I can now compete directly with the big companies without having to pour $1000's of capital into my stock! I also don't have to be afraid anymore of losing my money, because I can pay the suppliers by paypal.

So, do I recommend Salehoo? You betcha!

It's indeed damn good!

If you want to make REAL money on eBay then you definitely should get Salehoo.

Click Here & Get Started Right Now!

Search Engine Optimization for Small Business

2009-03-31T07:31:00.001-07:00

You want search engines to find and feast on your site. Content is king but you better understand the importance of link building, how to structure your pages to accommodate search engines, and key html elements. Just because you have your page up doesn't mean search engines will find it and know what it's all about.

Most website owners have two or three key phrases that they would love to be the first result for in the search engines. This simply won’t happen for a brand new website and likely will never happen for businesses operating in highly competitive industries. Unless you have very little competition online your best hope is to initially chase secondary key phrases, or drill down your key phrases to match your niche exactly.

Take for example the phrase “marketing consultant”. This is a highly competitive term that will be very hard for a new business consultant to rank competitively for in search engines. The solution is to break it down further into phrases that refine the niche.

“small business marketing consultant”

“Sydney marketing consultant”

“chiropractic marketing consultant”

“Sydney chiropractic marketing consultant”

Being the first result for “Sydney chiropractic marketing consultant” could easily be achieved in the first few months of launching a website because there are not many other websites that optimize for that niche phrase.

Small business tips in a recession

2009-03-25T08:08:00.000-07:00

Recession impacts everybody. From the small business owner to wealthy business moguls, no one is unaffected in a recession. People begin to shift from eating in restaurants to preparing more meals at home, and start tightening their purse strings as much as possible. Companies begin to scale back their operations, and even let go of employees. The question on many small business owners' minds is " how can I capture market share and keep my business going during difficult economic times?

First of all, you must keenly understand the mind of the consumer. Customers still have to buy things in a recession. But, they tend to more carefully consider their purchases rather than buying on a whim. They take time to research the best possible deals. So what can you do to keep your customers?

The following suggestions can help your business continue to grow in a recession:

Advertising: one of the major mistakes that happen during recession is that small business owners cut down or completely eliminate advertising. Doing this can make big difference since stopping advertising can make you lose a huge chunk of the market share

Customer loyalty: Recession is one of the best times to enhance your customer loyalty. You understand your customers and give them what they want. When customers feel special, then they tend to come back again and again.

Customer input: Getting feedback from your customers through surveys or other tools will provide valuable information about how your customers are managing during a recession. This will help you create customer loyalty by choosing the right products and services that are tailored to you customers' needs.

Formulate a business plan: A well structured business plan can help you in managing your resources and also increasing your business

Reach out to neighborhoods: Since gas prices have been increasing, customers are more often staying close to home instead of making the trek to malls and large shopping centers. Reach out to customers in their neighborhoods with flyers and other local advertisements to make your customers aware of your business.

Discount offers: In a recession, customers seek out and expect discounts and special offers. Discounting your services in whatever way you can will help make you more competitive in a tight market. Make sure to advertise these discounts in targeted neighborhoods.

Make customer convenience a priority: Many customers just don't want to spend time shopping for every-day needs. This is why home delivery and dial up services can grow your customer base.

Promotional offers: Even though cash-strapped customers focus on saving money during a recession, we all need to splurge at times. Come up with creative promotional ideas and discounts that will attract new customers.

By using these ideas to improve your small business, you can stay active in a tough market. You can even go global by creating a small business website to attract customers from far and wide. Take advantage of these small business tips and you'll see your business overcome recession and continue to grow! Click here to learn more about small business internet marketing.

Internet Marketing Advice for Small Business Owner

2009-03-23T05:59:00.000-07:00

A lot of small business owners think that they can just get by with word-of-mouth and by scrimping and saving on their own marketing budget. You will never become a successful player if you don't do any marketing at all. Sure, you may think that it's a David versus Goliath battle against similar companies who make millions of dollars in profit every year, but you are going to have to step up to the plate and at least try to get the word out about your company. Now, it is the time to start doing internet marketing.

Small business owner can consider hiring a firm to help you out. An Internet marketing firm is going to know how to market your business, and if you work with one who specializes in helping out small businesses, you are going to get even better results. Sure, working with a firm is going to be pricier than doing it yourself, but unless you know what you are doing, you are probably going to get more value out of working with a firm because you won't make a lot of costly mistakes.

As a small business owners you should understand Internet marketing. A lot of businesses start marketing campaigns without really understanding what is going on, and it ends up costing them a lot of money. If you are working with an Internet marketing firm, they should be able to explain the ins and outs of your campaigns for you. If you decide to go on your own and do it by yourself, you are going to want to make sure that you understand everything front and back and inside and out.

Don't be afraid to try risky Internet marketing campaigns. You may think that a small business shouldn't try risky campaigns, but in reality it may be the only way that you have a chance to get ahead. Sure, when you are first starting out you probably want to get your website search engine optimised and build your customer base that way, but when you are a bit more established and have a bit more playing room, you might want to try a riskier campaign. A riskier method is going to pay off if it works and create some buzz about your company so that you have a lot of people visiting your site. There is no harm in getting people to talk about your site.

Small business owners are really reluctant to try Internet marketing and they don't really realize that the only way that they have to succeed is to a jump on the bandwagon and start an Internet marketing campaign.

If you set your mind to start internet marketing for your small business, here is a good news for you, There are a new course - Small Business Traffic Secrets, it teaches small business owners 11 specific strategies for getting massive website traffic. The course show you how to absolutely DOMINATE your competitors for website traffic in your small business. The author of the course do over 8,000,000 web visitors/month. click here to learn more about the course.

Use Facebook to Promote Your Small Business

2009-03-22T04:59:00.000-07:00

Why should you use Facebook for your small business? Because there is a lot of people out there for you to prospect to. 79 million of them. Because you should use social marketing in your small business.

Do you still think only college students use Facebook? Think again because today the average user is over 35. And because the Facebook social networking experience can be precisely what

you want to make of it.

Think of Facebook as a professional tool for a small business, and that's what it is. It doesn't matter how millions of high school and college students are using Facebook to get out of doing homework. You can make it into whatever you want, even your own personal media broadcasting channel.

Among the several opportunities and benefits here are a few:

Brand evangelism (even if you have to do it yourself)
Generate cheap leads for your small business
Build a list for your small business
Personal branding
Establishing yourself as a thought leader
Facebook group as yet another touchpoint for your brand

Don't underestimate the power of Facebook for getting traffic to your website. In some countries, over 70% of the adult population has a Facebook account. In the US alone, there are almost 40 Million people age 18 and over that have Facebook accounts. the potential business you can generate on this site is staggering! Michael Geary - a Internet marketing expert used Facebook extensively and personally do over 30,000 visitors/day to one of his websites just from Facebook traffic alone. Michael Geary is the course founder of small business internet secrets. This new course wii show you 11 methods for increasing traffic, getting more leads, increasing sales, and increasing your small business revenue overall.

3 Simple Marketing Strategies For Your Small Business

2009-03-18T20:00:00.000-07:00

Small business marketing strategies that increases customer retention and bottom-line profits without breaking the bank.

If you're in business for yourself then sooner or later you're going to be asking yourself the following questions:

How do I get more customers? How can I get my customers to spend more money with me? How can I get better quality of leads without breaking the bank account? Is there a better way of targeting my advertising so that I win much more than I lose?

Below are three strategies to attracting more business and making more money:

Strategy #1 - You Must Understand The Lifetime Value Of Your Clients

Every business owner needs to fully understand the life time value of their customers.

This is the total profit that a customer will bring to your business over the lifetime of your dealings with that customer. The following example will explain why it's important to know this number: Let's pretend you own a book store.

If your customer spends $50 every time they walk into your store, and they visit once a month for 4 years, a customer is worth $2400.00. The math would look like this: $50 (average bill) x 12 (number of visits) x 4 (number of years).

Think of how much money you're missing out on if you were thinking of only one transaction?

Let's take a look at another example:

John Smith sells a cd plus manual kit on how to self-publish a book. The initial manual set is worth $500. John knows that over the lifetime of a customer, a significant number will spend somewhere between $20,000 and $40,000 with additional products!

By knowing his numbers he can afford to allocate a significant amount of money towards his advertising budget to bring in more customers. Why? Because he is equipped with information that he'll make it up on average over the lifetime of the customer.

Strategy # 2 - Build Up Your Customer List

Always collect their names, emails, and other contact information from your customers.

How will you stay in contact with your customers if you don't collect your information?

And if you do ask for their contact details on your sales slips and invoices, be sure you are using them!

And if you are wondering how you collect them it is as simple as asking them for it. This is best done during your customers' purchasing process by asking them to fill out a form with their details. There are many successful companies who did this for years and would mail you catalogs in the mail.

Don't you remember getting them? And when you received these catalogs you would find a comfortable place to relax with pen in hand checking off or earmarking the items you would later order. This enabled these companies to make more money from their customers.

Another way to get your customers to give you their contact information is by having a monthly drawing in which a prize will be given. It will amaze you how many names you could collect by doing this.

Let's say you own a restaurant, you can offer a free dessert to everyone who drops their business card into a fish bowl. It's not impossible to collect over 1000 names over the course of a month. How much will a dessert cost? $2 - $3, if that much. If all business owners were to implement this marketing strategy alone, they would be protecting their businesses in the face of stiff competition. They could send out snail mail to their customers with special offers on slow nights and watch them come flocking in.

This can also be done with emails and faxes. You want to generate more business? No problem. Send out a special promotion.

Strategy # 3 Develop A Strong Relationship With Your Prospects And Clients.

If you want to generate new business that you can keep for a lifetime then you'd better make it a number one priority to keep in touch with your customers. The reason you'd want to do this is so that you can remain at the top of mind with your clients. When they're ready to buy - you're the one they'll think of first.

It's not unusual to hear cases in which a business will send out newsletters to their customers for years before they buy. You want to position yourself in such a way that when they're ready to buy -- you'll get the sale.

The lesson here: keep communicating and following up with your customers until they're ready to place an order with you.

Blogging for your small business

2009-03-17T21:19:00.000-07:00

Small business owners will certainly benefit from blogging, Blogging is where you have the opportunity to write about anything. These are free web areas and highly beneficial to businesses. Blogs are online journals. Blogging has been around for quite some time now, but has only recently become a fad. Blogs can consist of anything and therefore can be used to advertise a business. Keep it simple, say what you mean without taking the long trip. State your business, define it well, then tie everything up in your concluding paragraph. Make your blog assessable to everyone, keep to the point and avoid going to tangents.

What does Blogging Provide to Small Business?

Blog software is easy to use. Simply write your thoughts, link to resources, and publish to your blog, all at the push of a few buttons. Blog software companies such as: Movable Type, Blogger.com and Typepad all offer easy blogging tools to get started.
Blogging is a low-cost alternative to having a web presence. For small business owners without the time to learn web html or the money to hire a designer/developer, blogging offers an inexpensive method to get your company's name out on the Internet.
Updating the weblog is a much quicker process than contacting a web designer with changes or doing the coding and uploading yourself.
Business blogs provide your small business with a chance to share your expertise and knowledge with a larger audience. A powerful benefit for consultants and knowledge workers.

click here to learn more about small business internet marketing.

Social Marketing Advantage for Small Businesses

2009-03-15T20:40:00.000-07:00

Along with search engine optimization, social marketing is a key element in any small business marketing plan. Through the various social networking tools, social media sites offer small business owners new ways to increase web traffic and broaden their scope without increasing their advertising budgets.

Traffic

Much traffic can be attained from social networks. Better known as 'competition', the integration of social networking sites into your small business marketing plan is an absolute must if you expect to keep a leg up on the competition. As quickly as news travels on the internet, any delay could result in the loss of thousands of potential customers.

Backlinks

Through social media sites, you can make connections with other related business and participate in a link exchange. By visiting content-relevant blogs and posting to them, you can include a backlink to your own site and/or blog, automatically increasing brand awareness without spending one cent.

SERP (Search Engine Results Page)

The easiest way to sail to the top of the search engines' results is to increase your web presence. Social networking sites offer you the opportunity to get your name on the scorecard without entering into any reciprocal linking deals that may wipe out all the work you have done creating a name for yourself and establishing your business reputation.

Cost

The budgets of most small business are not large enough to accommodate extreme marketing campaigns. Fortunately, most social marketing costs the small business owner nothing but time and commitment. Through research and the investment of self, any small business marketing strategy that includes the social media can see results in a short period of time.

Interaction with customers

Social marketing sites offer the unique feature of direct contact with customers. By utilizing such social tools as comment pages, blogs/mini-blogs, and instant messaging, small business owners are able to quickly establish relationships with customers and interact with customers who can help generate more traffic through online social networking.

Self-management/control

Social networking sites give small business owners the benefit of self-management and content control. As the business owner, you control what information your contacts have access to and how often you update, change, or expand your site content.

Social marketing provides small business owners an inexpensive method of reaching a larger target audience without being forced to travel, learn new technological skills, or invest money that is in short supply. Social networking creates the marketing avenues small business owners need to make connections and establish long-term business relationships.

Local Internet Marketing for Small Business

2009-03-15T19:44:00.000-07:00

Internet Marketing is more and more important for small business. After developing a websites, Many small business owners didn't have a clue what to do with them. They seemed to expect people would show up like magic and start buying stuff. They don't know how to get traffic to their site.

Internet marketing for small business is a hot topic now, and is only going to get bigger as more small businesses get online.

GeoLocal - Local Internet Marketing
One of the first sites devoted to the subject of using the Internet to promote small local business, since 2001.

Greg Sterling - Local Search Guy GeoTarget Search
'Location' search engine marketing can put your business in front of people while they search online for products and services by city or metro area.

Kelsey Group Local Media Blog
The Kelsey Group's Local Media Blog.

Local Search Marketing Guide
A guide to local search marketing options for small businesses. Learn how to gain visibility in Google Maps, Yahoo Local ...

ClickZ's Local Search
ClickZ's articles and editorials on the subject of local search and local internet marketing.

Small Business Marketing And Branding
Small business marketing advice and how-to guides for small business owners. Learn how to start and grow your own successful business with help from Yaro Starak, a young entrepreneur from Australia.

Media Guerrilla: Small Biz Folks, Forget Blogging, Get Local

Would you like to learn more and better ways to promote your small business online? If so, the following link takes you to a small business focused program that teaches how to double your small business' revenue by using 11 secrets that your competitors don't know about the power of the Internet to attract a stampede of new customers to your business, to marketing your small business online, whatever the size of your market. It features clear, step-by-step instructions from a small business owner who used these techniques to promote one of his own sites to 8,000,000 visitors/month. Go to Small Business Internet Marketing Secrets to learn more right now!

How to build a small business

2009-03-15T09:25:00.000-07:00

What is required to start your own small business? Even if you have your own product to sell, how do you know that you have a group of people willing to buy it? Are you aware that the desires of the buying public are as diversified as the people buying products or services are?

Those are some pretty basic questions and right now you are thinking that maybe you have wasted your time coming here but Wait! How many people try to start a new business with something they think is a good idea without any research. You may think it is too simple but most businesses are started just that way.

Doing Research

You need to do your research to find put what is current and what the public is willing to buy and if they are willing to buy that product or service from you. After all, there are a few bad people out there trying to fleece the pockets of the general public but more importantly there are many honest business people out there that are new and trying to make a buck using outdated products that are no longer valid.

So, the public wants you to earn their trust before they are willing to give you their money. The first thing you are required to do is to put yourself in their shoes and judge what it is that you are trying to sell to them and see if it is of value.

Then you must judge the product to determine if it is worth the price that is wanted. Would you pay that kind of money if you were looking for something like that?

As a small business owner, would you stand behind your product with a money back guarantee? Would you be upset if people demanded their money back? Would you be concerned if no one showed up? Would you be upset if people came but did not buy?

An Example of diversity

I just recently came from a part of the country that has a few sections that are filled with local artisans. When you go into their stores you expect to see all of these handmade products. I can't tell you how disappointed we were to find many products that had "Made in China" labels on them.

When I confronted some of them about it I got the same response, "We have to supply what the customers want". As will you!

It is your responsibility to find out what the customer wants and whomever does that best will be rewarded. So, it is very important to find out what is selling and how much demand there is for whatever product you are looking at in the chosen niche you like.

Not every one can be dog trainers. Not everyone can be golf club suppliers. Not everyone can sell cars. Etc., etc.

So find something you like and try to fill that void with a product the people want.

What are Important tasks?

That is your first and most important task you must do. Find something in your field of interest that you can get behind and push what others would want to buy.

Like I said before, if you can do that one item well you will be very successful.

Next is to get the attention of the buying public and make them aware that you are here! Whether you are trying to do business online or offline, you must get people to come to your place of business and buy when they get there.

If you don't do that you will never make it anywhere as a small business owner.

Location, Location, Location

Offline it could be as easy as finding the right location and plopping your store in the middle of it. Here is an example. You have decided that you want to sell pets and you have found a place that has a feed store on one side and on the other side you have a small corner store and then elsewhere in this small mall there is a fairly good size restaurant and all these stores have a good business.

The lot is always full and these stores generate a lot of traffic. The restaurant is always full and people are walking around and looking while they wait to be seated.

You have chosen wisely caterpillar. Your store would probably become an instant success. But suppose you have a bible store and you pick a location that is between two bars and a firearms store and a few others like that. What do you think your chance would be to get a business going here?

Without spending a lot of money advertising, you will probable look for a new location or have to fold after a very short period of time.

"Traffic, Traffic, Traffic"

Online the location is not important but certainly traffic is very important. And you have to differentiate between general traffic and targeted traffic for your small business.

Who wants to spend money on advertising when people looking to buy guns or knives or golf clubs or cars end up at your bible book site. You have wasted a lot of money for that traffic with very little compensation in your pocket.

So it is important that your advertisement is targeted to people that are interested in what you have to offer.

Return On Investment

Next lesson, still all very basic. You have found the place to advertise for your niche and you have placed ads. You get lots of traffic and the people are looking and even some are buying but you are not happy.

You have now learned a new lesson. You have spent so much on advertising that you are not making a profit. You are losing money on a daily basis and finally decide to stop advertising. Well then the traffic dries up and there you sit with no traffic and no money coming in.

This is very important step in your learning process. It is one that most people only do using knee jerk responses. First you need traffic so you advertise but the wrong traffic comes, so you target it but you are then paying too much and you lose money so then you stop advertising and nobody comes.

OK, now what?

I am sure you are tired of reading so lets take a break and you can view some of the other things on this lens. We will continue!

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