Some Common Online Business Myths Busted

There are countless business opportunities on the internet for entrepreneurs looking to start their own small business. An online business thrives at a much faster pace than its offline counterpart; it makes good sense to cease this opportunity by starting your small business online and reaching out to a global online audience. There is immense fiscal potential for your business online and it would benefit the business owner immensely to gauge this potential beforehand. There are three main means of setting up business on the internet – By selling your own products, through affiliate marketing or by distributing content.However, the ‘business’ of starting an online business is rife with myths, circulating furiously on the internet, the world over. You need to be aware of the truth behind the lies as these very myths may stand in the way of starting your own small business online and reaping huge benefits.Myth #1: Competition is fierce and the market is saturated. One of the most common myths that you are very likely to come across, stresses that there are many players in the market who offer the exact products and services as you plan to, hence making your business redundant. Discouraging, yes. True, no. Ask yourself this – If there are so many competitors in the same niche, doesn’t it mean that there is a lot continuing interest and demand for that particular service or product? You have your answer. All you need to do is to attract more customers to your business with effective marketing strategies and by offering attractive incentives and discounts to your customers. Innovation is paramount and if you try to come up with quality products and unique ideas in the same niche, there is no reason why your customers will go to your competitors.Myth #2: You need a huge investment to start an online business. One of the biggest advantages that an online business has to offer is that you can virtually start it with little or no investment. There are many examples of businesses like eBay, Google, etc. that started with very less capital and have now became giants in their niche fields, churning out profits for their businesses, employees and stockholders.Myth # 3: You need a large advertising budget to advertise the products or services online. Online advertising is cheap, quick, measurable and gives you instant ROI. In comparison, traditional modes of advertising (TV, Radio, Print, OOH) require thousands of dollars to advertise on. Online marketing techniques need little or no investment to advertise your business. All you need to do is market your products with effective & proven Search Engine Optimization (SEO) techniques and you will begin to quadruple your site traffic.Myth #4: Only big businesses succeed online. Research has shown that many people feel comfortable while dealing with a small company, if their website is professional looking and offers quality products and services. This is because they feel products offered by a small business are more economical compared to their larger business counterparts.Myth #5: An online business can be started without any prior knowledge. Ignorance, is never bliss; Even more so in the online world. It is very important that you must have a sound knowledge of an online business before launching your website. Ensure that you perform careful research before choosing your industry and niche. You need to weigh the pros and cons of a potential online business or it is more likely that your efforts may not succeed.Myth#6: Launching a good looking website will ensure instant success on the internet. Although website aesthetics capture those first glances, what increases your chances of becoming a market leader are sound marketing strategies to increase site traffic and offering relevant and quality products on your website. It is of no significance to spend thousands of dollars on the design and layout of a website if it barely offers anything unique from that of your competitors.Myth #7: You cannot get the top ranking on a search engine page. The top spot on a search page is offered to advertisers who have a very good performance history, high CPC and a high quality score. Search engine ranking is not the only way to drive traffic to your business and there are several other ways to promote your business online. Therefore, it makes good sense to use a combination of advertising methods to generate increased traffic to your website. The key is not to rely on a single method.