Animals And Pets

Starting an Internet Business is a dream for many entrepreneurs who aspire to make their own destiny. To many, it seems like a daunting task, an unreachable goal of independence. While to others, visions of becoming an overnight millionaire after seeing a misleading midnight infomercial haunts their dreams. Truthfully, starting an internet business is the easy part. Its cultivating, maintaining and expanding that is so challenging. The most important steps are to 1) Find something to sell that inspires you and that you love and 2) Market your product properly and 3) Follow up with your customers.

Many internet gurus dont find the need to like what youre selling. They figure youll find a way to like it once it begins bringing in income. On the contrary, I believe that since this business venture may take up to 80 hours of your time weekly, a general passion is needed. Moreover, all of your content, web design and networking will be consumed by this product or products so you need to be an expert or at least have a general knowledge to get you through the day. Believe me when I say your customers know the difference from an expert site or a site that is simply trying to take their money. The easiest way to find your selling passion is to list your interests and goals and go from there.

When my husband and I started our first internet business we were starving actors with two Chihuahuas that consumed our lives. We loved to pamper them but in NYC our feeble actors salaries could barely buy them scarves. We would walk into boutiques and were overwhelmed by the prices. Then it hit us in the face. We could sell quality boutique style dog clothes online.

When we did the research we realized that the pet business was booming! We also found that just like us, there were many parents who wanted to pamper their pet but go easy on their wallet! As the business grew, our passion became our expertise, and we have never become bored with our decision to go into the pet industry. We had and still have to put many hours into our business. I am thankful that its in an industry that we love.

The second step to a successful internet business is proper marketing. We have all visited sites that mean well. They may even have a nice product, but the site looks horrible. Im not quite sure why this step is something skipped. Your website image is your store front. Therefore, it has to be visually appealing. People need to feel comfortable giving their credit card information to you! The average web browser can spend less than 10 seconds in a site before deciding to quickly click out. This number only gets less as DHL and cable connections get faster. One cant just expect ones product to speak for itself.

Now dont get me wrong, Im not insinuating that you need to shell out money to have your site professionally made. I feel with a little motivated self-teaching and the basic knowledge of Photoshop, anyone can make an attractive, eye-catching site. It just takes effort and organization

Lastly, and most important, communication with your customers is essential. Many would be surprised to see I put so much stock in past customers. Unfortunately, they are often forgotten or pushed aside. Its a fact that 80% of the business will come from 20% of the customers. Keeping customers coming time and time again is essential to maintaining a business. The best way is by e-mail marketing. I can instantly see a growth in sales when I launch an email campaign. Compile an e-mail opt-in list and continuously update your customers on sales, new items and promotions.

Nikki Carroll proud mother of four dogs and co-owner of http://www.littlepamperedpets.com with Dog Clothes and Dog Clothing

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