There is always a lot to do. Some great events are happening this year. These are just some of the headlines:
§ In the UK this weekend, there is a long bank holiday weekend in celebration of Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee, marking the 60th anniversary of her accession to the throne.
§ In June, millions of football fans will be watching the 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, which will take place in Poland and Ukraine.
§ The 2012 Summer Olympics will be held in London in July and August.
§ The US presidential election will be held in November 2012, where current President Barack Obama is running for a second and final term.
These are all big events that will be widely covered by the media and it is very likely that somewhere in the world someone is talking about one of these things right now. Of course, there are many more events that happen every day that don’t make the headlines but affect our daily lives.
Big stories tend to make the news about your online business seem very small. Are people really going to want to know about your new website or a new product you have for sale with your online business?
Well, they are if you make sure that what you have to say is relevant and of direct benefit to them. Let’s look at those great events mentioned earlier. They are headline events, but they won’t appeal to everyone. If you have no interest in football, you may not even know about this year’s European Football Championship. Let’s say you’re a fan of gymnastics, chances are you follow what’s happening at the Olympic gymnastics tournaments, but maybe you’re not that interested in rowing. We all have different things that we are attracted to.
Here are 10 questions you need to answer to make your online business successful:
1. Why have you created an online business?
2. What do you want me to achieve?
3. Who is your target customer?
4. How will you reach or communicate with them?
5. When will you reach or communicate with them?
6. Who are your competitors?
7. What is your marketing budget?
8. How will you track the effectiveness of your marketing?
9. How will you get your customers to buy from you again?
10. And, most importantly: What is the core benefit, the single, simple message that you are communicating to your prospect?
I’ve worked in the advertising and marketing industry for over 26 years and it’s amazing how many business owners don’t know the answers to these questions, especially the last one. These questions apply whether you are running a business offline or online. The last question, number 10, is known as the ‘Single Mind Proposal’ or SMP. It is also sometimes referred to as a Unique Selling Proposition (USP). The simple reason for the SMP is: If you don’t know why customers should buy from you, then how can you expect them to?
Take the time to carefully consider the answers to these questions. Once you have them, you have the basic foundation for your online business that will help you to be heard above the noise of everything that is happening in this busy world.