Starting a new business online and seeing it grow can a thrilling experience. But knowing how to get started and how to write a business plan can be daunting for new start-up entrepreneurs. In this article you will find a simple framework to help you get started along with a few tips from top online marketers on how to write a business plan.
Begin with the end in mind ~Steven Covey
The logical place to start any new business is at the beginning, right? That seems smart. But really, you need to start at the end and work your way backwards. Think first about what you want to build. What is your business concept? What idea do you have that makes you almost giddy and excited to start your day? What is your vision for the success of your business? Then, what products do you need to turn your idea for a great business into sustainable cash-flow and profit from your passion?
Maybe you already have a business but you are struggling to grow it to the next level. Well, guess what? These same tips will work for you. When you really understand how to organize and plan your business, your projects and your marketing campaigns, you can get more customers, make more sales and gain more freedom in your calendar to enjoy what you value most.
I want to help you experience your ultimate dream of a prosperous time-rich lifestyle. After all, isn’t that why you are in business for yourself?
Planning is a crucial first step in starting an online marketing business, planning a marketing campaign or a business project because good planning results in clarity. Business gurus agree that clarity is absolutely essential for success in business. The more clear you are about the outcome you want, the easier it is to accomplish it.
So, before you even think about building a business website or creating a new product, it’s wise to spend a few hours in planning for the outcome of what you really want. But here’s some really good news!
Unlike a brick and mortar business that requires significant capital to start and operate, internet marketing businesses are very inexpensive to start and cost very little to operate. That means, you do not need to write an exhaustive business plan with loads of financial projections and volumes of marketing studies.
In fact, the simpler you can make it, the easier it will be when it comes time to execute. A simple one page plan of action and a checklist or two will help to keep you on track. So how do you get started?
Think about your “Big Harry Audacious Goals” first. What are the reasons you want to be in business? Can you achieve the lifestyle you want by working for someone else or, like so many entrepreneurs, do you long to be your own boss and control your own destiny?
I found a great article for you from Entrepreneur Magazine. It lists 50 valid reasons for starting your own business. Read the article here and then get out a tablet and pen and make yourself a list of a few reasons why you want to be in business for yourself.
START WITH BIG WHYS AND BIG AMBITIONS
Success is different for every online business start-up. Maybe you want to build a modest business online to supplement your retirement or your family income. Or perhaps you want to build a six or seven figure income business so you can enjoy a better lifestyle or maybe you want to impact more people with your business.
Learning how to market a business online is a way for you to achieve every goal you have whether it is to make more money, pay off debt or to retire early.
Think of starting your business like planning a trip. First, you need to locate your starting position and second you must know where your ending destination is located.
Just as you would use a road map to plot your course to a desired destination, a simple business plan is used to plot the course for your business. Setting your end destination in your business is the same thing as setting a goal. In business planning, setting goals helps you to make progress and stay on the right path.
Set a few specific goals around how much income you need from your business and when you hope to achieve that level of income. Set goals for how you prefer to spend your time, what kinds of lifestyle results you want to enjoy and what kind of impact you want to have with your business.
THE 6 THINGS YOU MUST KNOW TO BE IN BUSINESS FOR YOURSELF
Before you get started on writing your business plan, I want to give you some context. Ready?
This might surprise you but did you know that you only need to master 6 elements to have a successful online business? Here’s an illustration:
-1- Product: Great businesses have great products and services. You need a product to market and sell that delivers the result that your target audience wants. When you’re starting out, you don’t need a lot of products and your product doesn’t have to be perfect. It could be coaching, consulting, an online training course, a member site, a live event or anything that delivers on your promise to solve a problem your ideal customer has
-2- List: Once you have a product, you need a list of people to market and sell to. If you don’t have a list, you need to build one. If you do have a list, you need to know how to grow and maintain it. The best way to build your list is to start with a lead magnet that your customers want. Give them value from the get go. The way to do that is pick the ONE thing you are really good at and focus on delivering value. Start small. Keep growing your list. In time it will become a valuable asset for your business.
-3- Sales Vehicle: In order to make a profit, you have to be able to sell your product and to do that you need a sales vehicle or a platform of some kind. Your sales vehicle could be a great sales letter, an engaging webinar, a series of short training videos, a direct 1-2-1 triage call, a live event or a combination of tactics. Bottom line, you need a process and a few sales tools for selling your product to your audience.
-4- Technology: The beauty of building an business on the internet is the technology that makes operating your business a cinch. Internet technology makes operating a business both easy and inexpensive. At the minimum you need automation tools like Mail Chimp, Awebber, Get Response, Active Campaigns or iContact which are simple to implement or more advanced tools like Ontraport or Infusion Soft that do everything you need.
-5- Sales Cart: There are a number of options for sales carts. The top one is PayPal but you could also install SamsCart or combine your email marketing technology with your sales cart with programs like Ontraport.
-6- Delivery System: You can deliver your product 1-2-1 but you will have a challenge scaling . So you need to take advantage building a virtual internet team or simply build an online course or a membership site that delivers consistent value for you. The key to huge success is to learn how to surprise and delight your customers with great support. Learning how to manage virtual teams can help you leverage your time by letting the team do the support work for you.
Business Planning Questions
Once you have determined your big why to build a business, and you are clear about what you truly want, the next step is to get very clear on the answers to a few questions….
- Who do you want to serve? (Who is your ideal client)
- What is your mission/purpose or idea for your business?
- What will you do to bring value to your market? (Your product)
- How will your product/service be different? (How will you compete in your niche?)
- How will you deliver the products and services they need? (Your delivery system)
Getting clear on those five questions will help you get off to a fast start. I have a great Business Planning Guide with a 2-page questionnaire to help you think through the process of planning your business. It comes with 8 additional templates to help you get started on writing your one page business plan. You can access it for free at the bottom of this page.
Vital Business Planning Tips From Top Internet Marketing Experts
Over the years, I’ve collected a few quotes from some of my top mentors. Here are a few of my favorites:
One of the big factors that makes top internet marketers so successful is their obsession with giving value to their market. Internet guru Eben Pagan says, “Give away 10X more value than you ask for in return. It’s that simple.”
I love this quote from Smart Passive Income blogger, Pat Flynn, “Internet entrepreneurs don’t trade time for money. Instead, we Internet entrepreneurs invest our time upfront creating valuable products and experiences. We work hard now to continually reap the benefits later.”
Pam Hendrickson is one of my all time favorite online marketing product creators. When I first started out, I spent 100% of my time creating content. That was a big mistake. Pam helped me with this nugget, “Spend 80% of your time on promoting and getting new customers and 20% on creating content and new products.”
Jeff Bullas is considered by many to be one of the industry’s top content marketing creators. Jeff advises new start-up entrepreneurs to, “Never underestimate the vital importance of finding early in life the work that for you is play. This turns possible underachievers into happy warriors.”
And finally a great quote from the masterful marketer, Brian Tracy, “Every minute you spend in planning saves you ten minutes in execution or getting the job done.”
With that…have some fun crafting your business plan. Let yourself dream. Think about your 3-5 year vision for creating time and money freedom.
So, this is my challenge for you this week. Find a quiet place where you can spend a couple of hours of uninterrupted time and write down your thoughts into a simple one-page business plan. Take time to really think through your big why and your goals for starting your online marketing business.
Feel free to share this article with someone you know and please leave me a comment below. I’d love to hear your ideas about what you found to be helpful or what else you think you might need. You can either post a question here or shoot me an email. I’d love to help you if I can.
FREE Business Planning Templates
Recent Comments