TOP 10 ONLINE BUSINESS SUCCESS TIPS

1. Do something you love.

If you are in a business that you hate, then it's a good bet you won't be successful. Find where your true passion, talents and skills lie and get in a business that exploits them. The saying, "Do what you love and the money will follow" is true. Remember success is more attitude than aptitude and never forgetthat failure is only the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.

2. Believe in yourself and think positive.

Although it certainly helps to have an in-demand product, its more important that you believe in your product whole-heartedly. If you have a positive frame of mind going into your venture, if you believe you will be successful, your energy and enthusiasm will communicate itself to others and you will be successful! It won't happen overnight, but it will happen if you plan and promote to the very best of your ability.

3. Even though it's home-based, it's still work.

One of the hardest aspects of owning your own business is maintaining the discipline or motivation to work each day. It's so easy to get distracted and put off the essential tasks that need to get done. Don't sleep late or watch daytime TV during work hours. It's tempting sometimes, but successful businessesare built on the days that you don't feel like it, not on the days that you do. Develop a to-do list EVERYDAY. Set goals for the week. We all struggle with this and it's one of the key elements of success.

4. Only fools rush in - don't be one of them.

The first and most important thing you need to acquire in order to succeed in a small business is... knowledge. Talk to any succeessful marketer and he or she will tell you that one of the primary reasons for their success is their passion for learning all there is to learn about their business - and about thebusiness of conducting their business. From my own experience (I was one of the fools) I'd advise you to do all the research you can and learn as much as you can about how business operates on the internet before you take the big plunge. There are thousands of resources you can use - the best of which are all organized and categorized for you right at websuccessmaker.com.

5. Your computer is your lifeline, make sure it's reliable.

If you're planning on conducting the majority of your business on line, don't count pennies when it comes your computer set-up. Plan for success by paying a little extra up front for the fastest modem, the most memory, the speediest processor, a printer with fax, etc. It may cost a bit more up front, but you'll be grateful you did down the line.

6. Don't jump the gun in deciding what you're going to sell.

The cart and the horse thing - in essence, strategize backwards. Instead of trying to find customers for your product, look to your customers to determine your product. Target a market and find out what that market wants by joining mailing lists and networking online in discussion groups and newsgroups.Get a feel for what your potential customers like and dislike; what they are looking for that they aren't getting. Then, after you've pinpointed exactly what it is that they're lacking or looking for, figure out a way to give it to them. Either develop the product yourself, join an affiliate program or joint venturewith an established company that has what you want to offer.

7. Plan, plan... and then plan some more.

Don't confuse tactics with an overall strategy. Tactics are day-to-day actions. A strategy is an overall plan or goal for exactly what you want your business or Website to accomplish for you and for your potential customers. You must develop a powerful strategy to both guide and empower all your marketing efforts.

8. Stand out from the crowd.

This can't be emphasized enough! Not only should you make your offer irresistible, but you should make it irresistible in a novel way. You need to develop a USP or Unique Sales Position. Visit the websites of your potential competitors and make lists of what they have and don't have. Check out how they're doingthings and figure out how you can do them better. Make a list and then narrow it down to one sentence that describes your uniqueness. This is your USP.

9. Design a content rich, customer-friendly site around your USP (or have one designed for you). Bear in mind that most of your prospects are inherently impatient and selfish - not mine, but yours. They want to know, "what's in it for them" right up front. Fact is, you have less than a minute, perhaps only than 30 seconds, to hook your prospect into exploring your site further. Stick to the KISS (Keep it simple, stupid) principle. Every aspect of your site from your title to your ordering process should be simple and strait-forward. Explain the Who, What and Why of what you are about right up front, forget about fancy design gimmickry and concentrate on developing your content first and foremost. Whenyou get right down to it, that's all your prospects are really interested in.

10. Pick a domain name that is catchy and easy to remember.

Better yet, pick one that contains a searchable keyword relating to your business. Nowadays the key success factor is not so much about gaining market share as it is about gaining "mind share." This means brand recognition. Your name needs to be catchy and meaningful - to express a feeling or image in themind of the consumer - one that will stick with them.