online

By Venessa Cade

Your mistakes don’t define you. They only add to your experience and act as a good learning experience. You only fall to get back up stronger. So if the thought of starting your own business – be it an online one – envokes the fear of a failure, you are not alone. Consider it as one of the by-products. But that should not let you down. You should be able to face your fear and kick start your online business. It is all the rage these days. And rightfully so. Almost everyone these days can access the Internet easily through services like AT&T packages. While this may sound exciting, it also implies that there is immense competition out there.

Before you start, beware of the mistakes. These are some common mistakes that people make when they start an online business. So try to avoid them.

Lack of a Plan of Attack

You cannot survive without a plan of attack aka the business plan. You might not need a formal business plan, but you DO need a plan. Because without one, you will not have a direction you would want to move in. Moreover, you will also not know how to manage your cash (for example, how long will the cash you have in hand last). Therefore, do not begin without a business plan. This might take a lot of time. But once you have a plan, you can carry out the business smoothly.

Not Doing a Market Survey

You need to carry out a market survey before you start targeting a specific segment. Of course, you have the target audience in your mind. But you need to be aware of their behaviors as well. In this case (online business), the buying pattern of your target audience regarding the product you are about to offer will matter. You must also search for the expectations of your potential market regarding your product.

Not Identifying the Satisfaction Gap

As part of your market research, you will also have to identify the satisfaction gap. Because the chances that a similar product/service that you are about to offer has not been introduced before are rare. Therefore, you need to see how effective the past products/services were. You need to identify the extent to which the gap was filled in the past. And try to fill the empty space that still remains with your offering.

No Good SEO Practices

SEO is the backbone of an online business. The survival and eventually the success of your online business will depend majorly on the visibility of your website. Failure of your website to appear on the first page on Google will be a major setback for your business. And for that purpose, you need to invest in SEO. As it enhances your chances of visibility to the audience.

Ditching the Expert

If you do not work with an expert(s), you will only suffer in the long run. You might be well-versed in things related to your business. But you always need expert advice in areas where you lack expertise. You can always outsource. If you do not want to hire a full-time employee. But DO NOT ditch expert advice. They call them EXPERTS for a reason.

Undervaluing Your Product

You need to set a price that gives you a sufficient profit margin. What else are you doing business for if it isn’t for making a handsome amount of money? Do not shy away from charging what you believe should be the amount for your product/service. Never undervalue.

Insignificant Solutions

If the problem that you wish to solve for your target audience is significant enough, you do not have to worry about customers. But if your product/service aims at solving a problem that is very minor or insignificant, you should worry. Because people would not really be interested in it.

Having Wrong Expectations

There is no such thing like an overnight success. And if you think that success will come to you that easy, whom are you fooling? The earlier you realize this, the better. It will be toxic for you to have the wrong expectations regarding your success. In case you find yourself lost, connect to entrepreneurs and talk to them. That will help you more as experience speaks more than the bookish knowledge.

Lack of Passion

If you are not passionate about something, chances that you will succeed are rare. I mean there will come a time when you won’t enjoy doing the job anymore. Your own business will become a pain for you. And something that you will not be happy about. You do not want that. Because the lack of passion will translate into a lack of innovation from your side.

Ignoring Negative Feedback

People will not always like your product/service. Apart from positive feedback, you will constantly receive negative one too. The latter is more crucial to your success. Because this will help you to analyze your shortcomings. And work hard to improve them.

The above stated are the major mistakes that you should avoid. However, failing to provide your employees with a favorable working environment is also a mistake. If you are planning to start an online business, you would want to check for AT&T Fiber availability or the like. Because the employees should have access to an Internet service that offers blazing speed and almost no down times.

Venessa Cade is a writer by choice and digital marketing consultant with experience of working with various startups in the past 8 years. She has helped many online businesses and can proudly claim a big part in their success story. When she is not working which is not often, you will see her watching cooking shows nonstop – thanks to reliable AT&T Residential! Yes, her second passion is cooking.

Survey stock photo by oatawa/Shutterstock