Tag: business startup

7 Steps How to Put Yourself Out There Online

If you have a business, an online presence and campaign can benefit (and may be mandatory for) your continued financial growth and outlook into the future.

1. Get Your Domain(s)

When I’m working with a client, I usually make sure they have several domains in their quiver. If possible, and in order of importance, they are:

The Top 4 Dot Coms You Should Own

  1. Your name dot com
  2. The name of your business dot com, dot net and dot org
  3. What you do dot com
  4. The name of your leading product or service dot com

These are the top 4 dot coms you should own at the very least. First and foremost, your domain collection is about protecting you, your brand, who you are and what you do. There are thieves hiding amongst the landscape of the Internet looking for people and businesses, like yours, who will target domains associated with you and your business, by them and hold them hostage for a premium. And sometimes, it’s worth paying a premium for a dot com that clearly defines your product or service.

2. Post a Basic Site Presence

Let’s say you’ve covered the basics and have your domains safely tucked away in your GoDaddy account, what next? Start by minimally setting up small websites for each dot com. No need to panic here, you don’t have to spend a lot of time or money investing in a web team to get the job done. I walk my clients through a simple 7 to 10 minute process to quickly and easily get this done through their existing GoDaddy account. No need to fret over it, this is a simple DIY web presence. No need to hire it our when you can do it yourself.

3. Who You Are, What Your Do and Where

Of course, this is only the start. Next up, you must know and define what you do and decide where you will position yourself in the marketplace. This is the real work of preparing to launch an effective online presence. Depending on how confident you are and where you are in your business’ life span, this may create a bit of frustration or friction, but trust me, it’s worth it. The information and data gleaned from this process is invaluable and will keep you focused on your business goals.

After you’ve collected all the data from your research and documentation, there comes the moment when you want to integrate this information on your web site. This is where you say, “goodbye,” to your basic web site. Now, it’s time for an upgrade.

4. Upgrade Your Web Site

You may need to upgrade your hosting account with GoDaddy, who has an excellent reputation for call-in phone support (avoid any unnecessary upsells. Their support team can be very aggressive in attempting to sell you products and services that you don’t really need). So, give them a call and tell them you want to upgrade your hosting account and use a user-friendly web platform, like WordPress, for your web presence. WordPress is not only easy, but is extremely powerful and there are many pre-designed templates (themes) and plugins that you can use to make your life online easier; and the price is right: Free.

It doesn’t take long for me to bring my novice clients up to speed and soon they are rocking the Internet like a web superstar. I would say, try it yourself; if it seems too overwhelming, consider hiring it out. If you outsource your web development, be prepared to learn enough about what is going on behind the scenes to make certain that you’re not being taken advantage of and be prepared to take an active role as you build your web presence.

5. Add Content Regularly

As you continue to build your web presence the basic rule of thumb is, “Content is King.” That is to say, posting valuable content about you, your business and what you do on a regular basis will serve you well in the data-infested murk and mire of the Internet. It’s all about being able to be ferreted out in the swamp. Your content will help people find you.

6. Internet Marketing

You will also need to do some online marketing, minimally some Google Adwords, and have some social media representation, such as Facebook presence.

You hear a lot about Search Engine Optimization (some good, some bad), nonetheless, it is necessary to have an understanding of SEO and take advantage of it when and where you can. Effective marketing online campaigns should be your best marketing tool dollar-for-dollar, if done right.

7. Keep On Keeping On

Like anything else in life, don’t think of your online presence as a one-shot deal. Nothing will deteriorate your online presence more than stagnation.

Everything on the Internet is changing every minute of every day. What worked like gangbusters yesterday, could be a worthless strategy tomorrow.

It takes a village to run a successful village and your web team is a priceless asset. Yes, you can start small and do it yourself, but as you grow be thinking about ways you can expand your web marketing to catapult your business to the next level.

Overcoming Entrepreneurial Burnout

You’ve dreamed, been given the gift of an idea from beyond, a special skill or service or any of the myriad reasons people get inspired to take the leap of faith and start your own business. You’ve been bit by the entrepreneurial bug.

Maybe you’ve been feeling life is taking you nowhere, that it’s time to do your own thing, live life on your own terms and be your own boss. You’ve decided that it’s time to take action and do what you love and allow others to compensate you for following your passionate dreams.

You love the freedom of being able to set your own hours, share your gifts, talents and special abilities while letting your inner light shine as you exercise your creativity, reach your lifestyle and financial goals, enjoy more happiness and make the world a better place.

You’ve taken action and made the commitment to take a risk to embrace your dream, and you find out that entrepreneurialism (starting and running your own business) may be more than you bargained for. When you started out, you were enthusiastic and empowered with self confidence and love. Then, after a while, of dealing with the day to day operations of running a business, your confidence and determination begins to wane. Even though you’re doing what you love, you may feel your energy draining, begin questioning yourself, and possibly find yourself entertaining a personal bout with depression.

In my work with entrepreneurs, it is not uncommon for these otherwise potentially hugely successful business people to waver, when this is the critical moment for them to push through this thicket we refer to as burnout.

15 Signs of Entrepreneurial Burnout

  1. Lack of energy
  2. Increased anxiety
  3. Work too much (long hours)
  4. Not eating right
  5. Denying your own self-care (exercise, meditation, reading, journaling etc.)
  6. Feeling as though the weight of the world (your business) is on your shoulders
  7. Not interacting socially
  8. Noticing your personal relationships are deteriorating
  9. Holding yourself to unrealistic high standards
  10. Doing everything yourself
  11. Feeling guilty for taking time for yourself
  12. Endlessly pushing yourself to do more than expected (or even possible)
  13. Beat yourself up for not managing your business better
  14. Being disappointed in the level of success you have attained
  15. Not taking the time to celebrate your wins along the way

If any of that sounds like you, it might be time to re-evaluate and get a grip on your life. Don’t sacrifice your quality of life for your business. It’s easy to get in over your head, it’s not only expected in business, but it is also a primary element to moving your business to the next level and allows you to increase your opportunity for massive success.

You have forgotten about yourself – the most valuable component – of our business. It’s time to focus more on caring for you and nurturing the most valuable asset you have: You.

You can do this by considering

It Is What It Is

Simply accept that things are the way they are. Sometimes stuff happens that you have no control over. Get a grip, it’s not all about you. Sometimes you make a mistake, accept responsibility for that, get over it and move on. Don’t beat yourself up. And when you have a win (look for them – even small ones), celebrate it!

Being bold enough to make your own way invites challenges. It’s up to you to make sure you have the strength to deal with them when they arise. And if you need a hand, don’t hesitate to ask for help. Not everything is your fault and don’t let anything get in the way of your attention to yourself comes first.

Make and Take Time

Make time to rest, relax and take care of yourself. We all have the same 24 hours a day, and you’ve been denying yourself a portion of the available hours. It’s time to reallocate and prioritize. Consider some time management and scheduling to maximize the time you have.

Look Out for You

Make priorities of making opportunities to do the things you love to do and take better care of yourself. Start paying more attention to the way you eat, exercise and sleep, make adjustments to enhance these basic primal needs for your mind and body. Also find ways to make room for activities that promote better health and joy. Rebuild neglected relationships (or make new ones) and manage the more important, meaningful areas of your life.

Do It

Think about it, if your son or daughter were conducting their affairs, like you, you would be all over them to make changes, to take better care of him/her self. Take your own advice. Make a commitment to you and your own self care and love. Learn (and practice) to say, “No,” when your business or others demand expectations of compromising your attention to you, without feeling guilty.

While it may sound counter-intuitive at the outset, your renewed mind, body and spirit will be better equipped to do more with less if you’ve put yourself first.

Cut Yourself Some Slack

When you’re frazzled, feeling like your world is crumbling around you and it’s all your fault, stop. Take a break. Try to look at it from a different perspective. In every tragedy there is treasure, you need only to take the time to find it. Then it all makes sense.

And if you fail, forgive yourself and get back on track as quickly as possible. Failures are necessary components of success empowering you with invaluable education as you push forward. Don’t beat yourself up and keep going. You have everything you need to get you from where you are to where you want to be. If you keep going, the things that you don’t have will appear when the time is right.

You got this

Look for the good in everything and you will find the success you’re looking for. It might not turn out like you thought it would, but the results will be better than you imagined because every adversity will lead you to a far better place if you persevere.

Shiny Objects Everywhere

Ever get distracted by shiny objects? Those things that are newer, better things or processes that garner your attention with their sheer brilliance, clever packaging, advertising or have the possibility of garnering the support and love from your family and/or peers are indeed so shiny.

shiny-objects-everywhere-distractions-or-tools

They immediately distract you and pull on strings deep inside you and you imagine how magnificent it would be, “if I only had” that, or one of those, then my life (family, or business) would be complete.

Only, more often than not, the shiny object does not meet your expectations of fulfillment following obtaining the thing you sincerely desired and believed it would help you to achieve the sought after feeling. So, the search is on for the next thing.

This not only applies to products, but relationships, education, programs, services, technology, social networks, investment and business opportunities. You can find shiny objects in any segment of your life and in most cases, the shiny object is a distraction, interrupting your otherwise focused progress in your life.

Because, let’s face it, even if you have the best (insert anything) once you get used to it, you start looking for something else a bit shinier.

It’s never more apparent in our society in relationships which have become somewhat disposable due to the social impact of the acceptance of the idea of disposing of something old (or has lost its sheen) and replacing it with something new is actually a good thing. Certainly, it makes sense from a profit standpoint, because in most circumstances transitioning in relationships creates additional cash-flow supporting our economy.

As it occurs to you, you might think, “Oh, so it’s a profit deal.”
Pretty much, that’s the truth. We owe a debt to the economy for encourage the deterioration of the family unit as well as other relationships, personal and in business.

And if you think it’s easy to abandon a relationship when it gets boring as you seek an alternative, think about how much more difficult it is to stay focused on a particular business interest, especially if you’re starting from ground zero.

That’s why most new businesses fail in the first one-to-three years. Two-thirds of the entrepreneurs throw in the towel and never try again, because the whole affair was a bust, leading to a lack of self-confidence, as they find safety and security restrained to their more convenient everyday life, yet always wondering, “What if…” things had gone differently?

Then there’s the other third of the former business owners who are endlessly in pursuit of the next new thing. They are often distracted by shiny objects in business opportunities, programs or systems, even prior to successfully completing the projects at hand. We call them serial entrepreneurs.

On and on it goes for them, one thing after another, never finishing one thing and they’re off to the next. Although this is an inefficient method of business building, unfortunately one percent of serial entrepreneurs breaks through (even if accidentally) and makes a fortune.

This success story spreads through the serial entrepreneurial community quickly, encouraging the remaining seekers to increase their shiny object pursuits even more. The energy created from the success of the one percent that it even attracts otherwise healthy business owners (as well as people who have never even thought of starting a business) to start looking for shiny objects too.

A shiny object can be a tool, or a destructive distraction.

Think about taking a little extra time and thought prior to jumping ship, or investing in your next shiny object and ask yourself,

“Does this support my highest and best?”

If you have a clear set of defined goals, you can use this list to quickly qualify any shiny object.

Will it be a tool?

Or

Will it be a destructive distraction?

Stay on track and don’t count yourself as one of the accidental one percent, instead purposefully honor your purpose and mission, so that when you’ve become a member of the one percent, you know you can rest assured, it was no accident and your success is honorable and well deserved.

Be Your Own Boss

It’s a good idea to start thinking of ways to expand your regular cash-flow, especially if you desire to increase your quality of life. We are blessed to be living in a country that allows individuals with no particular expertise, training or royal bloodline to innovate and create something from scratch, intent to either develop an income stream alternative to working a job or even to become vastly successful.

be your own boss fire your boss start your own business

Fire Your Boss

How many times have you considered telling your boss to “take this job and shove it,” walk out and prove that you could show him (or her) how to run a real business and be your own boss?

Basically, there are two ways to go about starting a venture to create independent cash-flow. Reduced to their simplest form, the first (and most thought of when considering a business start-up) is the highly financed operation.

The highly financed business requires a lot of cash up-front to keep the money machine operating. Using this method, it is hopeful that if the business can stay in operation for a period of time (generally three years) it will begin to create a cash-flow that exceeds the expenses and can even begin to repay the initial debt, or investment outlay to start the operation.

The other way to begin an independent venture is referred to as a bootstrap start-up.

In a bootstrap business, the owner or founder self-finances the startup with little or no cash. The operation continues to grow based on its own merit and revenues are reinvested to grow the operation. In this scenario the business owner often sacrifices all in hopes to create an income stream equivalent to having a decent paying job without having to work for someone else, essentially “being your own boss.”

Occasionally, the creative, forward-thinking business orchestrator (entrepreneur) will out of sheer determination and hard work, risk all in an attempt to push beyond the barriers of other businesspeople to create a successful venture leading to true financial independence. This is to say his or her venture is so successful that it operates without his or her attention and pays them handsomely for their efforts in launching the business.

They no longer enjoy a self-signed paycheck, now they enjoy regular passive income from work they completed previously as their self-sufficient venture continues to perpetuate with little or no effort from the original founder.

Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, I grew up around start-up stories of loggers and fishermen with a dream building wildly successful canneries and lumber mills that started with chopping firewood or a fishing pole and building their enterprises from scratch.

More recent stories include those who have started service-related or Internet-based businesses with little or no start up overhead or investment. Low overhead is a key component in a bootstrap startup. You may be able to self-finance the opening of your operation and the hanging of your shingle (business signage) with the ability to pay the rent for the space to conduct your business, the utilities and a pittance for advertising… but for how long? Three months? A year? Three years?

That’s the beauty of being able to turn to the Internet as a place to create, build and expand upon your venture idea, because the cost of starting up a virtual (Internet-based) operation and a brick-and-mortar retail location are separated by ongoing maintenance costs. The monthly cost of operations is far less for the Internet-based operation and is much easier to manage on a shoe-string budget.

While my clients are evenly divided between Internet-based and physical locations, the Internet-based operations that are successful tend to have the ability to create a positive cash-flow in less time than the brick and mortars.

What are your chances of creating a successful business? Chances are you will fail.

That’s just the truth of the matter, we all know the statistics. No matter what type of business you set out to create, the likelihood that you will fail is prevalent.

Interestingly, as I work with individuals in all phases of their business, whether you succeed or fail in business does not depend as much on the business as you might think.

It has to do solely with the individual at the wheel running the business. It appears they have the Midas touch, everything they touch turns to gold. Truth be told, indeed, they have what it takes, but what it takes may not be what you think it is.

What do you think makes some businesspeople succeed while others seem to be unable to survive?