This is a simple surefire strategy on how to launch a profitable online business in 4 easy steps. This book is an original piece i wrote and published digitally during the global pandemic lockdown in the year 2020.
Dear Hiver
It is imperative of me to ask you this pertinent question; what lessons did you pick from the corona virus pandemic which plagued different continents of the world? Personally, it was an eye opening period for me; “the world paused, yet the internet kept rolling". So much that everybody now sees the importance of having an online enterprise or owning digital currencies. If anything, digital assets became more popular in the year 2020 especially in developing nations.
Source
As the need for business owners to switch to the online space was increasing in the year 2020, i saw the need to put his piece together to serve as a guide for anyone who wants to transition to the digital space and also serve as a guard, protecting them from vultures looking for unsuspecting, upcoming entrepreneurs to swindle online.
Kindly stay with me as i take you through some of the words i wrote down.
INTRODUCTION
Business is a question of WHAT? WHO? WHERE? & HOW?
What will I sell? (Product, service)
Who Do I Sell To? (People)
Where Do I Sell? (Platform)
How Much Do I Sell? (Price)
A valuable Product sold to a targeted group of People (in need), on a Platform where they can be found will always produce maximum Profits. Hence, to gain clarity in your proposed online business, we shall be analyzing these four sets of questions extensively.
1 WHAT DO I SELL?
This is the first question you must ask yourself before going into an online business or any enterprise at that. This implies that you are not an entrepreneur without a product to offer or a service to render. In other words, you can either sell a PRODUCT or SERVICE. A lot of people complain about not having money, but the moment you ask them what they sell, they begin to stammer.
How can you earn if you don't sell? What these people don't know is that;
The only way to be rich like mad is to sell like crazy.
A rich man with no means is either a scammer or a fraudster. So in this digital age where you can be anything that is good and golden; you need to ask yourself this pertinent question.
What do I sell? A PRODUCT or SERVICE.
Product: A substance that is manufactured, packaged, created or refined for sale.
Service: Is the action of helping or carrying out a particular work for someone or group of people.
Whichever you choose, make sure it is feeding a need and solving a problem for your customers. A good value proposition is a must. There are two kinds of products/services; A "Nice to Have" product and a "Must Have" product.
If you market a "nice to have" product to me, I might buy. But if you market a "must have" product to me, I will buy.
The latter should be your target!
2 WHO DO I SELL TO?
Listen, what I am about to expose you to here is premium stuff. Everybody might be a prospect but not everybody is your ideal client. Stop selling to everyone and start selling to chosen ones instead (target). Trying to sell to everyone is like fetching water with a basket . . . (Yeah you get the drift) Therefore, there are two elements you must define and choose before you start any online venture; Market & Niche.
i) Market: Your market is that special and specific set of people you want to serve and deliver your product or service to.
Choosing your market is the most significant decision you need to make. That way you will not be selling a great product to the wrong market. "It is unprofitable to sell meat to a vegetarian"
ii)Niche: This is that you OFFER the people in your market. The precise solution you will be providing to their problems.
In other words, it is important for your offer to be driven by solution and not profit.
"Feeding a need enriches your niche"
For more clarity, the following are examples of what it means to have a market and a niche; Authors are a market, publishing service is a niche. Expectant mothers are a market, fertility coaching is a niche. Farmers are a market, fertilization service is a niche. Newlyweds are a market, relationship coaching is a niche. Students are a market, research and project writing is a niche. In short, your market will tell you what your niche will be and as a Coach; your number one priority is to make your target market see your offer as a necessity and not a luxury.
Let me reiterate; it is unprofitable to sell a product that your market doesn't need. Therefore, niche your market and market your niche.
3 WHERE DO I SELL?
Where am I going to find the category of people that I am serving with my product or service? are they on Facebook , Instagram, WhatsApp, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google sites or web? Since we said everybody is not an ideal customer, this means that you must find out where your ideal customers are and how best to reach them.
If you define your market, you must also define your marketplace!
For example; if you are an adult educator, you don't need an herbalist or a soothsayer to tell you that your ideal customers are not on Twitter. WHY? The answer is simple... Most people on Twitter are young millennials. So it is one thing for you to know your market (i.e. those people you are serving with your product or service), it is another thing for you to know your marketplace (i.e. where you can find them)
Know Your Market!!
Know Your Marketplace!!!
Defining your market helps you target ideal customers. Defining your marketplace helps you locate them.
4 HOW MUCH DO I SELL?
These three points will help you get your pricing right;
i) Do not overrate yourself;
Hype can only give you popularity, but Value will give you profitability. Self-development leads to self-improvement. So make sure you are constantly developing and improving yourself.
To become a man of WEALTH, be a man of VALUE.
To become a man of AFFLUENCE, be a man of INFLUENCE.
ii) Do not underrate yourself; value is essential in your quest for profitability. There's a reason why Ferrari is more expensive than Toyota... there's a wide difference in VALUE. Don't sell yourself short. A high value product should not be priced low.
iii) Stay clear of comparisons; stop comparing yourself to someone who has been in the game for years and you say "Oh I want to be like that person, therefore I have to place the same price on my products and services.
It doesn't work that way; he paid enough dues for himself and he alone, you have to pay yours. Here's the trick, nobody knows you like you do. So you need to be sincere with yourself. The higher the value you're offering, the bigger the pay you're getting. And if you lie, you would be found out! Cos you can only sell a bad product once!
Question
While I was teaching this course to my army of value generals; one of them asked, "What if you have customers who are making you feel like they are doing you a favor, hence pricing your service slow?" This scenario happens a whole lot of times especially when you're just starting out, but let's be frank with ourselves;
Whatever you permit will persist!!!
If they can't help you grow, then they are not your ideal clients.
Peak performers talk value not price! Don't let the fear of unknown cave you in! You begin to ask yourself; what if this person leaves?
Don't forget I already told you that you are not selling to everybody because not everybody is your ideal customer! So listen! The value you are offering will attract people (ideal clients i.e your market) who can afford your services. (your niche) That's why I said you have a part to play here, be sincere! Don't offer a meat pie value and be asking for a pizza price.
@fehintolafirst
Selling is an art; master it and you will never go broke in your life.
Cheers to your developmental goals.
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