Starting a business has become relatively more accessible in the past two decades than the previous generations before us. So much so that people during the “gold rush” era would be envious of how easy it is to start and create abundant wealth. And to do so from the comfort of our homes.
Although marketing and starting our own business online are possible, there are a few things you will need to learn before diving right in. To see success as quickly as possible, you will want to learn as much as you can to not only save you money but to save your time. As you grow your brand, you will want to find an experienced and knowledgeable digital agency to walk you through the many steps of e-commerce marketing.
In this article, we have taken the liberty to outline the five major things you need to know about marketing. The saying “knowledge is power” is very evident in this circumstance.
Understanding Marketing: The 5 Things To Begin
Lesson 1: Learn How to Detect Bad Advice (It Is Everywhere)
The Worst Marketing Advice I’ve Ever Heard
The most successful entrepreneurs online will tell you that if you are going to start following and listening to these online gurus, that you pick just a few. There are many false gurus out there who are just selling nonsense.
The most successful people in whatever niche (blogging, marketing, SEO consulting) you are trying to get in will have a big audience; they will possibly release their monthly and yearly earnings (this is to show proof, NOT to show off), and they will most likely have many testimonials.
Learning to research the gurus is juts as important as learning how to market. Although the internet has allowed so many people to become their own bosses, it can be very easy to be deluged with a sea of nonsense. Be very careful with the information you take in.
Lesson 2: Understand What Is Marketing?
Marketing is an ongoing process, which means that this is not a passive stream of income. You have to work on marketing. And the scary thing about marketing is that your work may not always pay off.
Here are a few things you need to take into consideration:
Promotion and marketing are not the same things – this is very important to know. Just because you post a link or article doesn’t necessarily mean you are marketing.
Marketing begins with product conception – you have to know what you’re marketing. Know the benefits of the service, product, or offer you are offering.
Planning Strategies – how much do you plan on selling your service or product for? Do you plan on upselling? How are you going to keep your customers? These are things to ask.
Promotion – Along with social media, how else will you promote the service? Will you use paid advertisements? If so, what type? Native, display, pop-ups?
Lesson 3: Learn The 7 Customer-Building Basics
Marketing Basics: The 101 Guide to Everything You Need to Know
Learn these seven fundamentals in order to market effectively:
- Offer a valuable product/service
- Identify your target audience
- Make your products/services easily accessible
- Find cost-effective communication channels
- Communicate well with your channels, as well as with your audience
- Deliver the product or services
- Repeat and expand
Lesson 4: Evaluate Your Own Marketing
Place your service or product through a Six Sigma-esque process (read here to learn more about Six Sigma).
Ask a few questions before promoting the product/service.
- Does the product meet the demands of the customer?
- Have you surveyed customers during a test trial?
- Is the product/service affordable?
- Do you have a special price add-on (upsells)?
- How do you intend to keep your audience?
Lesson 5: Utilizing the Web for Business
23 Amazing Online Marketing Tactics for Small Businesses With Low Budgets
Lastly, you will want to focus on your website platform. Do you want a blog, an e-commerce shop, an affiliate website? They all offer their own benefits, which fall outside the scope of this article. However, it would prove most valuable to know what type of online platform you will want to use for your product/service.
Good luck, we are wishing you the best.