A formula for a successful online business

Due to the virus crisis, everyone is looking at an online business model of some sort. I am one of them. The product that I have to sell online has been proven to be (very) difficult. The feedback I got so far doesn’t surprise me. 8 out of 10 didn’t think it would work. But, those eight people also didn’t have better solutions.

What is a formula to have a successful online business model then?

Throughout the experiments I did in the past several years, there are some very important conditions that need to happen.

• The understanding that your product is not for everyone. Minimum Viable Audience is key. Once you gain this understanding, you have to find out how your product can solve their problems.
• The Unique Value Offering (UVO). You should at least try to understand why customers should care about your product or service. How is it different from other companies?
• The trust of your customers. If a company has a good brand positioning, they get a head start. But many don’t. Your chance then relies on the existing customers.
• How you tell your stories
• The understanding that success will not happen overnight. But the business cannot wait forever too.
• The need to have a friendly sales process. Very few customers are ready to buy on spot. How can we accommodate the after-first-sales-interaction communications?
• The action plan to create awareness about your product or service. This plan includes all online activities you can think of e.g. guest blogging, joining relevant business forums, strategic giving (to help other people), advertising (if you have the budget).

Of course, we do need to have a user-friendly website. However, without the above conditions, there is no chance of success.