How Long Does It Take To Build An Online Business?
How long does it take to build an online business is a frequently asked question. There is a lingering assumption that because it’s relatively easy to start an online business, that results too will come quickly. They definitely can, but more often than not success – depending on your definition of it – takes time. The key word here is build. The best businesses start with a solid foundation and many factors influence the building process.
These include, the products you sell, your marketing skills, your marketing budget (or lack of) and your mindset. Lets look at a couple of scenarios and assume that most of us are somewhere in the middle of the two.
Scenario 1
How long does it take to build an online business if:
You are in a position to invest in your education and training and have some budget you can set aside for paid advertising. You have time around a job or current traditional business to devote to building your online business – or are able to pay the bills and jump in full time.
This scenario offers the fastest route to profit as you are able to take advantage of highly targeted advertising on platforms like Google, Facebook and Youtube. But even if you are in that fortunate position, don’t start throwing money at advertising like the proverbial shit at the wall. It’s essential to work out exactly who your target audience is first.
With the right products, sales funnels, automated follow up system and a clearly defined target audience the ROI from paid advertising can be unbeatable. Get it wrong though and you’ll waste a lot of money.
Scenario 2
How long does it take to build an online business without any of the above? i.e. You have little or no money to invest in education or in ongoing, paid marketing.
The good news is that there are still plenty of ways to market online that don’t cost money. Free adverts, social media, blogging and video are all great strategies that can be done on a no cost basis. They will however take longer. If you have great products that have a lot of people looking for them and if you consistently add to your online real estate customers will find you online. Eventually.
The Time And Money Mix
Most people have a mix of time and money and will have to build their online business accordingly. The advantage of having more money is that it gives you more leverage. Paid advertising online, once you understand it, is an incredible thing. It allows you use a ton of information to find new customers, analyse and improve your results and therefore your ROI. It’s far removed from old style radio, press and TV advertising.
Free online marketing too can be a beautiful thing. If you become skilled at blogging and creating content, which introduces high value products effectively to your target audience, it’s basically free money. Who doesn’t like that? It can also provide you with a budget for paid advertising. A great strategy but, as I say, a longer term one.
Build An Online Business In The Right Niche
When people ask me how long does it take to build an online business I’m tempted to say “Who cares?” or “How long is a piece of string”: The first because it’s the most rewarding thing you can do in terms of the lifestyle, time and financial freedom it creates; The second, because as I’ve hopefully explained, it depends on a lot of factors.
I can point you to a superb resource no matter what situation you are in with time/money. Formed by Stuart Ross and Jay Kubassek several years ago, SFM and DEA provide a one- stop shop platform. Not only do they provide all of tools, resources and systems essential for online marketing, they provide advanced training on all forms of online marketing.
If you have no products of your own to start with you can market theirs as an affiliate partner at various levels. It’s a very smart place to start as online learning is becoming one of the biggest and most profitable sectors to be in. When you can learn and earn at the same time you can make best use of that time/money mix.
Click here to watch a series of videos recorded by Stuart Ross in which he answers a lot of frequently asked questions about building an online business.
