Your Online Business - How to Keep It Running in a Crisis
When working with new copywriting clients, I encourage them to build an inventory of articles, blog posts or social media updates from which to draw. The reason for this, I explain, is that emergencies happen in the midst of running any online business. Even with careful planning, anyone who operates online will eventually face a fire that threatens their success.
What kind of emergencies might cause an online business to stumble?
An unexpected rush of business for which you are not prepared.
A personal illness that takes your eye off the ball.
A family crisis that requires your undivided attention.
A technology failure that cripples your entire operation.
A key player (contractor, vendor, employee) who fails to deliver.
One of the things I admire most about online entrepreneurs is that they soldier on through a crisis, doing what needs to be done to meet customer expectations. When that crisis continues long-term, however, it's easy to drop the ball.
http://mikeworksforme.com
Stop and Evaluate Regularly: Without a regular time to stop and evaluate how well your business is running, unexpected crises will occur more often. Are websites, shopping carts and other business tools working properly? Are you meeting your business goals (you do have a business plan, right?) Are you keeping tabs on your cash flow? It's surprising how many fires would never even ignite if business owners spent regular time each week examining key areas of their businesses, and then tweaked accordingly.
Know Who Can Help: The middle of the crisis isn't the time to start looking for help. Cultivate relationships with people who have expertise in areas you don't. Mastermind groups can provide excellent ideas from people who've been where you are now. Find a mentor and meet with them regularly to discuss potential flashpoints. Outsource areas of your business that fall through the cracks when you're overloaded. An expert in those areas can help keep things running when emergencies call you away. Some ideas: virtual assistants, copywriters, accountants, marketing consultants.
Never Stop Marketing: Online business owners, especially solo entrepreneurs, can get so caught up in meeting the needs of their customers that they forget to look for new ones! The crisis of losing a major client doesn't have to bring your business to a halt, if you take the time to create a marketing plan and then follow it. AdWords campaigns, affiliate and article marketing, blogs and other social media tools can be set up to continue automatically no matter how busy you become.
Cross-Train Your Employees: The minute you begin to hire help to run your online business, also begin to cross-train your employees. Having a key player suddenly unavailable doesn't have to shut down your business, if someone else on your team can pick up the slack.
Spread Those Eggs Around: It's easy to see why some online businesses fail within a few months--they are completely dependent on one product, one service or one person to bring in revenue. Even with the best market research, you might miss the mark occasionally when introducing a product. Creating multiple streams of income can take the risk out of running an online business. By creating several revenue streams, your business won't go under if one suddenly dries up. Investigate niche markets related to your primary product line. Develop products related to your flagship service. Examples: mp3 downloads of your best coaching tips, video training modules to teach ways to use your products, auxiliary services for those who don't book your key offering. http://mikeworksforme.com
What kind of emergencies might cause an online business to stumble?
An unexpected rush of business for which you are not prepared.
A personal illness that takes your eye off the ball.
A family crisis that requires your undivided attention.
A technology failure that cripples your entire operation.
A key player (contractor, vendor, employee) who fails to deliver.
One of the things I admire most about online entrepreneurs is that they soldier on through a crisis, doing what needs to be done to meet customer expectations. When that crisis continues long-term, however, it's easy to drop the ball.
http://mikeworksforme.com
Stop and Evaluate Regularly: Without a regular time to stop and evaluate how well your business is running, unexpected crises will occur more often. Are websites, shopping carts and other business tools working properly? Are you meeting your business goals (you do have a business plan, right?) Are you keeping tabs on your cash flow? It's surprising how many fires would never even ignite if business owners spent regular time each week examining key areas of their businesses, and then tweaked accordingly.
Know Who Can Help: The middle of the crisis isn't the time to start looking for help. Cultivate relationships with people who have expertise in areas you don't. Mastermind groups can provide excellent ideas from people who've been where you are now. Find a mentor and meet with them regularly to discuss potential flashpoints. Outsource areas of your business that fall through the cracks when you're overloaded. An expert in those areas can help keep things running when emergencies call you away. Some ideas: virtual assistants, copywriters, accountants, marketing consultants.
Never Stop Marketing: Online business owners, especially solo entrepreneurs, can get so caught up in meeting the needs of their customers that they forget to look for new ones! The crisis of losing a major client doesn't have to bring your business to a halt, if you take the time to create a marketing plan and then follow it. AdWords campaigns, affiliate and article marketing, blogs and other social media tools can be set up to continue automatically no matter how busy you become.
Cross-Train Your Employees: The minute you begin to hire help to run your online business, also begin to cross-train your employees. Having a key player suddenly unavailable doesn't have to shut down your business, if someone else on your team can pick up the slack.
Spread Those Eggs Around: It's easy to see why some online businesses fail within a few months--they are completely dependent on one product, one service or one person to bring in revenue. Even with the best market research, you might miss the mark occasionally when introducing a product. Creating multiple streams of income can take the risk out of running an online business. By creating several revenue streams, your business won't go under if one suddenly dries up. Investigate niche markets related to your primary product line. Develop products related to your flagship service. Examples: mp3 downloads of your best coaching tips, video training modules to teach ways to use your products, auxiliary services for those who don't book your key offering. http://mikeworksforme.com
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