Image by: By CLUC
By Richard K. Noots

So, after years of struggling, you finally got that business online up and running? Unfortunately, it’s not doing as well as you thought. Of course, when you look around, it seems like every other website making a profit has access to obscene amounts of money. Worse than that, everything about their sites just seems to be better. Is it impossible to improve your own site with a low budget?

No! Of course not! Otherwise, this article would be incredibly short. Instead, we have some methods that could really improve your online business if you’ve yet to implement such things. If you see any tips on here you’ve already been using, be sure to let us know in the comments how well it’s working for you, and how you implemented such a strategy, OK? Now, on to the good stuff!

#1) Market, Market, Market!

I’m sure you know this by know, but advertisements are the key to a growing business. Sure, you may not have the money for a commercial on YouTube (or do you?), but you can access Social Media, can’t you? Take advantage of things like Facebook and Twitter, as mentioned in previous articles. Utilize the same hashtags, and keep your updates constant!

Also, try to go for direct advertisements. If your product caters to senior citizens, it might be more advantageous going through a mailing list instead of trying to reach said market over Twitter. Snail mail is still used today, and it can be an effective way to reach certain demographics. Learn your customers, and the methods of which you should advertise will become clear.

#2) Discounts and Sales

As long as you’re still making a profit, don’t be afraid to give huge sales. Have set calendar days that people can look forward to, but also add random, spontaneous sale days to catch people off guard and drive them into a shopping frenzy. Sometimes when people are caught off-guard with a good deal, they just can’t resist. You need to take advantage of this.

Be sure to give out coupons, and encourage people to join your mailing list so they can receive better deals than people who are not on said lists. You have a mailing list, right? If not, then get on that as well! You can’t afford to take business lightly, especially online. Don’t be afraid to engage your customers in contests either to encourage interaction. Why do you think McDonald’s does the Monopoly game?

#3) Go mobile!

Everyone is on Smartphones these days. So, if you’re not hip to the trends, you might as well be burning your business down yourself. Make sure your website is mobile accessible! This is something you should check every day, because a huge part of running a successful online business is adequate loading times! No, I don’t mean trucks that deliver your product either.

If your website (or mobile site) is running too slow, you will lose customers. That’s just a fact. There are numerous websites I stopped visiting simply because their websites take too damn long to load. If this sounds like a problem you’re experiencing, fix it! This is the simplest way to increase business in the most cost effective way possible.

Now, this is just the simple ways to increase revenue from advertising. There are more, but for now, focus on these methods if you haven’t already. An online business needs far more care and nurturing than a regular business, so chances are if you weren’t paying attention to things like this, your business was already suffering. Remember, take it one step at a time.

How are you improving your online business? What has worked, and what hasn’t worked? Please share, as many people on this site run internet businesses, including yours truly! So, what advice can YOU share?