A few months back i wrote this article on my blog titled :Start your online business: A short How-to. The article basically talks about the best strategies involved while creating your online business. You can read the complete article here. But a month from that a lot of things changed. I ran totally out of business and now i am on the streets again with very little infrastructure to set up a base again. So here are a few things that i have learned from my own mistakes. First Stop: Downhill Lane: DO NOT expect your online business to become kick-ass as soon as you start it. Everything needs time to mature and sites which are mature are not easy to come by. Keep a planner or a notepad and start jotting down everyday tasks. Break it down to bits and pieces so that it becomes easier to completely tasks. Start using check lists. I found that using these checklists increased my efficiency by almost 40%. How did i come up with that figure? Simple math: Suppose i have 10 logo requests on day 1. My efficiency without check listing would have been say 20%. At max, my 2 of the logos created would have been outstanding or up to the mark. But by check listing, i think and jot down all the ideas that flow into my head and put it down to paper. This makes it easier to refer back so that i dont have to rely on my memory too much. Hence when i do this, my efficiency increases. Second Stop: General Mistake St.: Here are the general misconceptions and mistakes that i would like to clear from both the side of a designer and a buyer; 1. Design contests are a great way of getting best results : No they are not. Contests waste both the time of the designer and the end buyer. End Buyer's Point of View: Although in many of the contest providing sites, features like respect and i trader are available, these are not viable. What i mean to say is that a designer can easily copy and recreate ideas that are not his. This has been seen in many contests before. It would be wiser to just approach a designer with good skills or invite them by posting for a job. That way, only designers with a good portfolio will approach you and you can filter your options out easily. For a better reading, i found this article very engaging: Logo Design contests are bad for business 2. Buying Traffic Helps: No it does not. You do not receive organic traffic whatever the seller may say. If you buy say 1000 unique visits, chances are that only 3 of those visits will convert. Thats a .3% conversion rate. Time Required: 10 minutes to buy traffic. Your Loss: 99.7% My Suggestion: Use Organic SEO methods. Social Bookmarking in my suggestion is really good. I received many clients from these sites. But i am no SEO expert. Third Stop: Halp Hospital: Do yourself a favour and get some help. DP is by far an amazing site with hundreds of people who are both successful and helpful. Hats off DP. Dont be shy to post for any querries, however simple. Remember- One man's dirt is another man's treassure. Post your ideas to improve this article. Lets help the newbies grow. And help me too =)
Don´t follow the so called gurus with their rehashed stuff which doesn´t work anymore when they start selling it.. There are many successful under the radar internet marketers who provide real golden nuggets. Especially here in DP. Go for it.
Very true........most of these so called marketing "gurus" just market clickbank products which are not helpful at all. DP is a treasure trove of information.