The thrill of kick-starting an internet marketing business can be challenging, yet fun and lucrative at the same time. Above all else, it’s a fantastic way to earn money from home. Not only can you work from the comfort of your home office space, but typically, an internet marketing business requires less funds from the get-go—as compared to the physical office space and facilities needed for a medium to larger sized business or a business in a different industry. So long as you have a computer and a stable Internet connection, you can get your internet marketing business started. Here’s how: 1. Know Exactly What Internet Marketing is All About The key to success is to fully understand the landscape before you jump in. Internet marketing, also known as digital marketing or web marketing, involves providing marketing services or products online using various strategies. These “strategies” are what helps ignite the start of your business, and can include: Content creation Blogging Social Media Marketing Email marketing Digital advertising Affiliate marketing or programs Website design 2. Consider Treading Familiar Waters We know starting a business with no previous experience can feel like walking in the streets with blindfolds on. But it doesn’t have to be. Start brainstorming skills that you have a passion for, are comfortable with, like writing, website design, or baking. Has baking chocolate cookies as a teenager been your all-time favourite hobby? Are you the go-to for baking birthday cakes for your family and friends? Lucky for you, you can tie this passion into your internet marketing business! Work with a designer to create a website that’s baking-focused and start creating blog posts once a week. This way, you won’t feel so confused and overwhelmed when you’re starting off. 3. Develop a Business Plan From the Get-Go A business plan is a key tool to determine what exactly it is that you’ll be selling and to who. Is it a baking business that you want to start and will it be targeted at young moms between the age of 25-40? Developing a business plan creates a baseline to track accountability, and can form the foundation of your business—even if you plan to diversify later. Some questions that can guide your focus includes: What strategies will you focus on? I.e. social media marketing, graphic design, content writing, etc. What platform are you going to use? Are you selling marketing services? Or looking into joining an affiliate program, instead? 4. Research, Research, Research! From writing college papers to starting an internet marketing business post-grad, there is no easy recipe. Every business needs to start with careful research to determine factors like your audience and demographic, what they like and are looking for, and what products and services they need. Remember: even with the skills, the right platforms, and a plan, your internet marketing business can fail if it lacks a market. Some factors to consider when researching are: Your target market The platforms they tend to use Industry trends for your product and/or service 5. Determine Your 4 Ps Even if you’ve never taken a marketing class, it’s alright. We’re here to explain it to you. The 4 Ps in marketing helps effectively communicate your brand to your audience (while standing out from your competition). They are: Product: this refers to what exactly you’re offering your target customer and can be tangible (i.e. a birthday cake) or intangible (i.e. a baking service or a digital app) Price: this refers to the value of your product and can vary according to your product. (i.e. if a client reaches out to you to help with an eBook, you can charge a one-time project-based fee) Place: this is the placement, or where your target customers can find your product or services. (i.e. a social media platform like Instagram) Promotion: refers to how you plan to raise awareness to inform your target audience that you exist. (i.e. many internet marketing businesses now opt in different social media profiles across Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, etc., which is a fantastic way to grow an online presence and a digital following) Combine these elements together with the key findings from your research and voila: you have the ingredients to build a unique value and selling point for your internet marketing business. Whether you are trying to quit your 9-5, or are interested in working from home, turning your idea into reality is definitely doable, especially when you incorporate the above tips. Once your business is up and running, the next step to grow your business is to adopt an accounting software to track your income and expenses. Not sure where to look? Try Kashoo’s 14-day free trial to see how our simple bookkeeping system can help your internet marketing business flourish.
