You are indeed very fortunate. You already enjoy
success as an entrepreneur. Your business is already poised to GROW, DEVELOP,
EXPAND. Adding an ecommerce component to the business is the cherry on top.
KEY CONSIDERATION WITH YOUR ECOMMERCE BUSINESS
PLAN
An ecommerce site will literally take your
business around the world. No matter how “local” it presently is, set up your
website and watch it blossom.
STRONGEST ADVANTAGE OF YOUR ECOMMERCE
BUSINESS PLAN
Most new web entrepreneurs have a difficult
time tying down just what they want to do. Infoprenuer? Product sales? MLM?
Affiliate sales? Etc., etc. You have already made that decision. You have your
existing business. Our goal is to find ways to make your ecommerce component as
successful as possible.
STRONGEST DISADVANTAGE OF YOUR ECOMMERCE
BUSINESS PLAN
Many bankers won’t understand what you are
doing, or why. If your business is doing okay, why change it? Your biggest job
will be showing them how much better your business will be with an ecommerce
option.
OVERCOMING THE DISADVANTAGES WITH YOUR
ECOMMERCE BUSINESS PLAN
Prove that you can be successful on the
internet.
How would it feel to walk into a banker's
office and announce, "My site is in the top one percent of all sites in the
world"? It is actually more realistic than you think. You can do this. Honest.
Before looking for financing, take the website
as far as you can yourself -- and that's pretty far.
You can build a site yourself that generates
traffic -- and money -- in your spare time.
You can create highly optimized, targeted pages
that rank well and pull visitors to your site.
Then you can take your ecommerce business plan
into your bank and very confidently announce, "My site is in the top one percent
of all sites in the world. And I am ready to expand."
Take a look at
these websites.
Most were created by individuals, not by corporations. All are in the top one
percent in the world. And look at the range of products and services they
represent. As of this writing, there is everything from setting up a cement
contracting business to dreadlocks to forex trading to travel, and lots in
between. The Business Plan Master site, where you purchased this book, is one of
them.
Being In The "Expansion" Mode Is What Makes
an Ecommerce Business Plan Work
Start ups are hard to fund in any industry. An
ecommerce business plan as a startup business is dead on arrival.
But an EXPANSION business. Now that's another
keg of fish. This is a company that has proven success, and wants more success.
That's something that lenders like.
And when you can add your existing business
successes to those of your ecommerce site, you’ve got a double whammy of success
before you enter their door.
So take your ecommerce business just as far as
you can, then go for "EXPANSION FUNDING". You'll be nearly home before you know
it.
DEFINING YOUR BUSINESS IN YOUR ECOMMERCE
BUSINESS PLAN
Most brick and mortar companies can identify
themselves as “retail” or “service” businesses, and everyone knows what is
meant. Not so in the internet world.
Because your banker is familiar with the older
terms, your best bet in your business plan is to identify yourself as “retail”,
etc., then show how you can promote and monetize your business. Not only will
you be able to generate more customers for your existing business, but you will
find new avenues for monetization as well.
Check out the Case Studies in Step 7 for ideas
on how to grow your monetization options.
Here are some quick options to turn your
existing business into a successful online business.
LOCAL BUSINESS
Do you have an existing business? Whether you
work from a brick and mortar business, or from home, you may be looking to
extend your reach. Promoting via a website is, without question, one of the
cheapest and one of the most effective means of promotion you will find.
The internet has revolutionized the way that
most businesses conduct business. Look at the local surfboard shop. It now gets
orders literally from around the world.
Some local businesses just want prospective
clients to find them easier, like dentists and lawyers. Any retail business can
put its goods online. If its goods are unique, there is likely to be a market
online. Whichever your business is, an ecommerce business plan will help
you get there.
REAL ESTATE
MLS listings on the internet are legendary. The
real estate industry was one of the first to really make use of this new
technology.
But it is more than MLS listings. Any single
realtor, no matter how small her office, can create an impressive online
presence. It is the magic of the web.
SERVICE BUSINESS
It might be a bit tough for a dentist to work
online. But that dentist can indeed promote unique dental products, and do so
very effectively, in addition to building his business. It doesn’t hurt his
professional credibility either.
A massage therapist can do the same.
A life coach or business coach also has
tremendous potential to provide online services. With the advent of cheap
telephone service and online meeting capability, any consulting/advisory
business can jump over time zones.
At first glance these services are not prime
candidates for an ecommerce business plan. At closer look, they are a
perfect match.
TRAVEL BUSINESSES
Some states require special licensing for
travel agents. Most don’t. But even for those that do require licensing, there
is nothing at all to stop anyone from building a site on “My Vacation Place”,
with advertising from all manner of business, and even travel provided by
affiliates in the travel industry. It is absolutely a natural. This, in fact, is
one of the fastest growing areas of internet business development.
And there are lots more options and hybrid
sites. Truly, this is the wild and wooly web time, the time for innovation and
surprise, for invention and paving new ground.
The more you can include reference to your
existing business, the easier it will be to expand that concept to include
ecommerce.
Be sure to include examples of other sites that
conduct the same style of business that you are proposing. You don’t need to
show competing companies, just companies that are in the same general category.
This demonstrates that your style of running the business has a successful track
record.
HOW MUCH FUNDING WILL YOUR ECOMMERCE
BUSINESS PLAN NEED?
What kind of business do you really want? A one
person business? A hundred person business? The hundred person business won't
necessarily make you richer than the one person business. It is all a matter of
choice.
Then, as with any business, sit down and run
the numbers.
YOUR LIKELY LENDER/INVESTOR FOR YOUR
ECOMMERCE BUSINESS PLAN
The SBA is your best bet for smaller
businesses. Private investors have a good grasp on ecommerce, so feel
comfortable approaching them as well.
If yours is an established business looking to
expand substantially, a venture capital firm may be your best choice. Be sure to
check out the newest development in venture capital: venture lending.
YOUR ECOMMERCE BUSINESS PLAN
This is simply an amazing field to be in. I
have not regretted for one minute my decision to build an internet business. I
wish you all the success that I have enjoyed.
