Top Ten Lessons Learned in Internet Business

Top Ten Lessons Learned in Internet Business by Shelley Lowery ;)Since starting my Internet business back in 1997, I have learned many lessons along the way. These lessons have played a major role in my success, and I'd like to share them with you... Lesson #1Collecting your visitors' email addresses should be one of your top priorities.Start collecting email addresses the moment you put your site up. Developing a list of targeted potential customers is an absolute must.Although publishing an ezine is usually the best route togo, it is not a necessity. You can use your list to send outweb site updates, product updates, or whatever you'd like.Lesson #2Your web site can either make or break you.A professional looking web site will play a major role in your success. If you aren't secure in your abilities todesign a professional looking site, you will be much better off hiring a professional.Lesson # 3If you want to make a lot of money, you must create a niche. A niche fills a specific customer need.People want products and services that fulfill a specific personal need. If you are the first to fulfill the need,you'll reap the rewards.Lesson # 4Generating web site traffic takes a lot of time and effort.The key to generating a lot of traffic to your site is getting your link on as many sites as possible. Sure,listing your site with the Search Engines is your first step; however, you must not solely rely on SearchEngines to bring you traffic.My two biggest traffic generators are as follows:Affiliate Program - Having your own affiliate program is one of the best ways to get hundreds, even thousands of links to your web site. Providing a Free Product or Service - Providing your visitors with a free product or service is a great way todrive traffic to your site.For example, I offer a free article syndication service. This service provides free content for web sites brandedwith a link to my site.Lesson # 5Selling your own products and services is much more profitable than marketing affiliate programs.Some of the top Internet sellers include: . Software. Information. Private sites. Internet services Lesson # 6People do not like to be sold. You will be far more successful if you have a sincere desire to assist yourpotential customers. This can be accomplished by writing informative articles, courses, tutorials, or even providingadvice within discussion forums in your area of expertise. Trust plays a major role on the Internet. You must build your credibility with your target audience.Lesson # 7Automation can save you hours of valuable time. Although there are certain areas of business that must be personally dealt with, there are many areas that can be completely automated:. List management. Customer follow-up. Welcome messages. Thank you messages. Order processing. Order fulfillment. Order confirmationThis can be accomplished using autoresponders, scripts and software programs.Lesson # 8Organization is an essential part of developing a successful business:- Create a daily work schedule for an organized approach to each day.- Use an email program that will filter your messages into specific folders.- Organize your computer folders and files for quick and easy access.- Create a "Frequently Asked Questions" page to lessen support requests.- Create templates for frequently used messages.- Create a page (residing on your computer) that contains a list of affiliate programs you're promoting. Includeyour log-in information and hyperlinks for easy access.Lesson # 9Customer satisfaction and support should be your toppriority.Lesson # 10You have to spend money to make money. You must be willing to invest in your Internet business including:. Computer. Internet Access. Software. Domain Name. Web Hosting. Education (books, courses, etc.). AdvertisingLesson # 11 (I know, there were only supposed to be ten, but this one is important...)SPAM is a four letter word and will be treated as such.Although this list is far from complete, these lessons should provide you with some basic guidelines to assist you in developing a successful online business.Copyright © Shelley Lowery 2003. About the Author:Shelley Lowery is the author of Web Design Mastery - An in-depth guide toprofessional web design. And, Ebook Starter - A complete ebook design kit.Subscribe to Etips and receive a free copy of the highly acclaimed ebook,"Killer Internet Marketing Strategies." email: etips-subscribe@ebookstarter.comsite: http://www.web-source.net

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