Jon Tucker, Senior Strategist at Compete Marketing Group, shares lessons learned and tools to leverage to start an online business. This presentation was created for university students and presented at student events.
More at www.CompeteOnWeb.com
1. How to Build an Online Business| CompeteOnWeb.com
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Jon Tucker | Compete Marketing Group (CMG)
SDSU Alumni
Working in “web” since 2005
CMG is an agency that specializes
in SEO / website traffic
Through CMG, we do client work
and “in house ventures”
Jon Tucker | Senior Strategist
www.CompeteOnWeb.com
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Build an Online Business
Lessons learned, tools to use,
and actionable takeaways…
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Online Business Models to Consider
Sell Things Online Sell Info / Content
Web
Businesses
Generate & Sell Leads Do Client Work
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Sell Things Online
1. Find a Product to Sell
– Create a product
– Sell someone else’s
– Compile multiple products
2. Create Your Web Store
– Showcase products
– Process orders
– *integrate with other stores
3. Promote Your Web Store
(see later slide)
Selling things online, also known as “e-commerce”, is a popular online business model.
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Sell Things Online- Tools
Selling things online, also known as “e-commerce”, is a popular online business model.
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Sell Information and Content
1. What Info Will You Sell?
– “How-to” tutorials
– Exam preparation
– Creation of deliverables
(i.e. resume writing, etc.)
2. How Will You Deliver the Info?
– Free content, w/ advertisements
– Downloadable file (PDFs, etc.)
– Members-only website
3. Promote Your Info
(see later slide)
Information has value and can be sold in the form of a blog, private membership website,
online seminars and consulting, e-books, email newsletter, etc.
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Sell Information- Tools
Information has value and can be sold in the form of a blog, private membership website,
online seminars and consulting, e-books, email newsletter, etc.
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Generate and Sell Leads
1. Decide on Target Niche(s), based on
– Your expertise
– Size of the opportunity
– Relationship with lead buyer
2. Create a Site / Generate & Sell Leads
– Website style depends on tactic
– Track all of your metrics, test
effectiveness of webpages, etc.
– Sell via online marketplace or direct
If you can generate online leads, there are businesses that will buy them. In some competitive
markets, you can sell leads for $100’s per lead which presents a big financial opportunity.
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Generate and Sell Leads- Tools
If you can generate online leads, there are businesses that will buy them. In some competitive
markets, you can sell leads for $100’s per lead which presents a big financial opportunity.
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Do Client Work
1. Determine Your Service Offering
2. Leverage “Content Marketing”
– Website w/ regular blogging
– Host events / webinars
through meetup.com, etc.
3. CHARGE MONEY- Providing
bargain prices becomes very
difficult to sustain over time.
*Developing websites is not listed above, but is an option if you can already create websites.
Working on other people’s businesses is not only a great way to get exposure to many business
models and learn how to build a successful business, but you can earn great money too.
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Do Client Work- Tools
www.ppcblog.com/10-great-places-to-learn-adwords/
http://blog.crazyegg.com/
Working on other people’s businesses is not only a great way to get exposure to many business
models and learn how to build a successful business, but you can earn great money too.
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Top 3 Ways to Promote a New Business
There are many ways to market a business
online, but these are 3 to consider for
growing a new business quickly.
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Online Advertising (PAID)
1. Identify Advertising Channels
2. Create Targeted Ads
– Target ad content
– Send to targeted webpage
– Use targeted call to action
3. Measure / Improve Over Time
– Test ads
– Test webpages
– Measure revenue produced
If you can target your market effectively and constantly monitor profitability,
it’s possible to grow your business very quickly.
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Blogger Outreach (“FREE”)
1. Identify Bloggers in Your Niche
– Google, lists of bloggers, etc.
– Prioritize list by multiple metrics
imjontucker.com/find-bloggers-to-promote-business/
2. Contact Target Bloggers with Offer
– Guest post to their blog
– Offer exclusive promo offer
3. Measure / Improve Over Time
– Traffic from each blogger
– Conversions from traffic
– Effectiveness of your offer
Identifying bloggers that already have an audience in your industry and partnering
with them in some way is a great way to quickly get exposure for your brand.
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Affiliate Marketing (“FREE”)
1. Identify Affiliates to Promote You
– Complimentary businesses
– Popular sources of information
2. Provide Commissions for Sales
– Make the offer lucrative
– Utilize an affiliate system
– Consider secondary ways to
monetize your customers so
affiliates get most of up-front $
Identifying people who already have access to your target market
and giving them a commission on referred sales can grow your business quickly.
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Potential Next Steps
Get presentation: www.CompeteOnWeb.com/events
Build your experience with online businesses
– If you know what online business you want to pursue,
begin this week with the tools / resources in this
presentation. If questions, reach out to me as needed.
– If not
• Start a blog using Weebly.com or WordPress.com
• Read about online business topics and write a summary
of what you learned on your blog once per week
Feel free to contact Jon Tucker anytime with questions at
www.CompeteOnWeb.com