Outline of Your Digital Business
8 steps to help you plan and prepare
Let's quickly take stock. We have covered some essential steps in how to start a digital business online in 2024 and beyond.
We've discussed the role of your philosophy and purpose. And we looked at how to choose your business model.
HOW TO START A DIGITAL BUSINESS : TABLE OF CONTENTS
This report is part of a collection that covers all aspects of how to start a digital business online. To see others in the series, explore the links below:
Before going any further, let's outline the overall process of how to start a digital business online in 2024.
Stage by stage, this outline will show you
how to build your digital business,
save yourself time and effort in managing it, and
get it to grow by leaps and bounds.
Once you have it up and running, you'll have the choice to either
keep it and enjoy the profits for a long time... or
sell it for an immediate windfall profit.
It's your choice!
But...
A word of caution before you go any further.
At first glance, this will all seem a bit overwhelming.
You might be stunned at just how many things there are to do. And if your desire for a digital business is weak, you might simply throw up your hands and give up!
I hope you won't do that. Because here's the thing...
Remember the trick question: How do you eat an elephant?
The answer: One bite at a time!
Well, even though it's a joke, there's a profound meaning to it.
This is exactly how you start a digital business in 2024 and beyond!
Don't get overwhelmed at how big the task seems. Instead, simply break it down into a set of smaller ones.
And begin with the most important or critical action steps.
Get the first done. Then move on to the second. All the way down a list. Until they are all finished.
Sure, it will take some time.
Yes, you will have to work on it.
Absolutely, a few things will be tough or challenging.
But you can get it done. Thousands of others have done it - and they are no different from you.
In fact, some have much more trouble than you in getting started. They have fewer resources. Or less energy. Or other constraints.
Still, they've done it.
And you, too, can do it.
What follows is a general overview of... everything.
You don't have to get it all finished by tomorrow. Or next week. Or even next month.
Gradually, step by step, your digital business will take shape as you knock off one task after another. And before you realize it, your digital online business will be up and running!
Okay?
Ready to get started?
Great!
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So let's begin with...
An Outline of Digital Business Processes
The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
Your first step is to plan and create the different processes that together will make up your digital Internet business.
No matter whether you picked the direct selling model or the content publishing model or lead generation, there are some things in common that you must do in the correct sequence.
Step #1 - Niche Research:
Look for a problem in the marketplace that you can help solve. See what's troubling people, and think about a solution that you can offer them.
Another approach is to see what wildly popular trends are followed by thousands of people - and then come up with an exciting offer you can make them.
Step #2 - Mindset and Belief Systems:
After you've located a niche to go after, you must step back and ask yourself another important question -
"Can you do it?"
The answer to this will largely determine your success or failure with an online digital business.
Even if you enter the hottest niche market, but continue to believe firmly that you cannot win against smart, deep-pocketed competitors... you'll very likely fail.
On the other hand, if you view it as a challenge, and set out with optimism, ready to try and break into the system, and confidently trust that you will win at any cost... then your chances of success just skyrocket!
Step #3 - Planning and Strategy:
You need a business plan that's detailed, elaborate, and practical.
And then, you must:
Assess your strengths and weaknesses, as well as those of your competition.
Conduct a detailed market analysis, listing out opportunities and your plan to take advantage of them.
Spell out targets and set specific goals; estimate costs and investments; chart out deadlines and time frames.
Create detailed process charts for every aspect of your digital business.
Trace every step from beginning to end. Explain how things will work, and decide who will be responsible for each step.
Prepare for growth. Imagine your hopes and dreams coming true. How will your digital business grow? Over what time frame? Which will be your top priorities?
Assemble your team. Study your plan. Evaluate the skills you already have in-house. And decide who you'll need to recruit or hire to help.
Step #4 - Tools and Resources:
Your digital business needs some essential elements.
You'll need some tools like
statistical analytics programs,
scripts to run split tests,
services to track ads,
autoresponder email services for follow up,
web hosting services for your website,
and many more.
A crucial element that many digital business owners don't budget for is... education or learning.
In your digital business, technology will shift so rapidly that it will make your head spin!
You should try to keep up with new trends. This takes ongoing education and training.
You'll also need is skilled people to handle specialized tasks.
Experts at copywriting, system administration, and graphic design are worth their weight in gold. When you find a good helper, make sure you keep them happy so they won't leave!
Bonus Cheatsheet: Click Here to Download "Outline of Your Digital Business" (PDF Version)
Step #5 - Building Your Web Presence:
This is the point at which most business building courses begin - and end!
Yet, as you've seen, there's a lot to do before this stage... and a lot more to be done afterwards.
You'll have to
create (or buy rights) to a product or service,
build a digital business website,
create an effective sales process,
set up a system to securely process online transactions,
collect client data using web forms on your site,
plan a way to follow up with prospective buyers,
...and much more.
Later on, you'll add affiliate marketing systems and make joint venture deals to help your digital business grow further.
Step #6 - Testing and Tweaking:
Any online digital business is a work in progress. Once your basic set up is ready, you can begin to drive visitors to your page - and test to see how the process performs.
It might sound like dull, difficult work. But it's also important... because testing can give your digital business a decisive edge over your competition, by showing you where to improve and/or fix problems.
This will boost the return on every ad dollar you invest - by improving your sales conversion rate. There is no limit to how much you can enhance and improve any digital business through testing.
Step #7 - Relationship Building:
You must also focus on powerful things like building client relationships that ensure future growth and viability.
Here are some ways to do this:
Build a list of prospects and clients,
Publish an email newsletter to stay in touch,
Write a blog and distribute your content,
Engage in conversations on social media
All of this helps build your community and keep visitors coming back to your digital business.
Step #8 - Traffic Generation:
A site which gets 10,000 daily visitors will out-perform the one with only 500. That's why, for a digital business, targeted online traffic is king!
Traffic pulling systems can be
technology driven (like SEO, blogs, and RSS feeds),
content driven (like articles and syndicated content),
money driven (like ads or pay per click from search engines),
people driven (from affiliates and link partners)
The end result of all of them is the same. To bring curious, interested, eager-to-buy prospects to your digital business - where you can sell to them.
RECOMMENDED READING:
So there!
Now you have a 'big picture' outline of how to start a digital business.
And you know the key steps to tackle as you grow your business online.
Download a PDF Version of all our articles on: "How To Build Your Digital Business - In 2024 & Beyond!
It's time to get started.
Build your site, one element after the other.
Test it and make changes to improve results.
Drive a flood of targeted traffic to the site.
And make money by serving their needs well.
Do this, and your digital business will grow bigger - and better.