Start your own online business
by Fred on 10/12/07 at 7:00 am
8 comments
I heard a classic story today about a grandma in the States who wanted to teach herself HTML. She did a quick course during which she set up a dummy site selling tumbleweed. Initially it wasn’t a genuine site, but then she started receiving a couple of orders. This grandma is now (apparently) grossing $40,000 a year selling, you guessed it, tumbleweed.
I get around one query per month by a wild-eyed entrepreneur with an idea for an online business. My personal favourite so far has been a chauffeur service with a twist (site launching soon, so you’ll have to wait for details). My worst is definitely the guy who wanted to sell a pressurised rocket contraption for kids. Being a concerned father, I asked him what would happen if my kid got in the way of one of his rockets. ‘Oh, it’ll blow his head clean off’ he said with a chuckle. Right, ok then.
The beauty of the internet is that it’s arguably the most accessible way of setting up a business. Of course, getting your site live is only the beginning, and, as my award-winning colleagues at Yuppiechef.co.za will quickly tell you, it’s not always fun and roses.
Some points to get the juices flowing:
1. How is my service / product special? If it’s a rehash of an existing product or service, then figure out what your angle will be. Example: instead of another Kalahari or Amazon, you’re offering ‘the best online bookstore in South Africa specialising in school study guides’.
2. How will I make the website stand out in a crowd? Here’s a test: Type in your product or service in Google and see how many results come up. If there are pages of competing sites gunning for your target market, you have a big challenge on your hands. Take a look at what the other sites are doing, and see where yours can offer something different.
3. How will I get traffic to my website? This is a classic. Every entrepreneur has that ‘If I build it, they will come!’ philosophy lodged somewhere in their minds. This rarely happens… despite stories you’ve heard about lucky teenage tycoons and millionaire grandmas. Traffic comes through a variety of channels: search engines, referring sites, PR, advertising, business cards, newsletters etc. You’ll have to figure out the most likely sources of traffic and then create your marketing mix accordingly.
4. What happens when someone arrives on my site? The key thing here is a ‘call to action’. Is the desired result that you would like to achieve on the website clearly and intuitively laid out? In short, you want to persuade your visitor to become a customer.
And so, as the tumbleweed wafts on by, what are you going to do about that idea that’s burning a hole in the back of your head?
Fred Roed is the marketing guy in the Ideate crew. He runs a web marketing company called World Wide Creative and loves writing about people out there doing marketing right. View more articles by Fred.
Rowan J
Dec 10th, 2007
Great advice Fred. I would also include many payment options for customers as well. Credit cards are not the only way to do business online. Give the customer choice and make it as easy as possible for them to pay. That way you won’t lose a sale when the buying decision has been made.
charl
Dec 10th, 2007
Nice read, I would encourage anyone to start a online business, its relatively cheaper to setup than a concrete business and you have access to a world audience
Wanda
Dec 11th, 2007
You are a legend Fred! Go Granny!
Kerry
Dec 11th, 2007
Useful info! One thing that is also very important is to ensure your website is global, not local, if that’s where you want to go. If you’re trying to get to the global market, you’ve got to research what other people in your field are doing and how they present their websites. It’s the first port of call so be careful of using local slang and buzz words!!
Jacques
Feb 16th, 2008
Hi. We are giving away free stores to start your own online business and give you R1 000(virtual), to get your business going, and still people join and just add nothing in their stores, or they ask if it is a scam. I don’t understand South Africans they complain everyday but do absolute nothing about it. If anyone is interest in getting online and going, here is more info http://www.stores.bidabargain.co.za/ and click my name for the main site.
Please don’t see this as a advert, but a way to get people started.
Fred keep up the good work I like your ideas here.
Raquel
Oct 2nd, 2008
Hi guys, I need some help. I want to start an internet business but i have no idea how to create an order page with Paypal buttons.Are Paypal accounts linked to your South African bank account? Do any S.A banks provide online merchant accounts? I want to sell my own products and will incorporate produts from other companies, but I’m concerned as to when and how i’ll get paid.
Chris
Jul 30th, 2009
Hi there, can anyone recommend any shopping cart software available for south african online bookshop
elemental
Dec 10th, 2009
i think you can check for open source software – OS commerce or Magento? Hope that helps!
PS: why would anyone like to buy tumbleweed?? LOL