Many people try to start an online business only to realize they don’t have a clue what they’re getting into. They don’t know what it takes to be successful nor do they know the steps to take to get the ball rolling in the right direction.

Hopefully this article will help you get your online business going if you’re struggling and think that it’ll never work. Let me assure you that it’s very possible. You just need guidance that most struggling online business owners need.

Step 1: Web Page Optimization

Web page optimization is the most important step when building your online business. Having your website show up in the search engines should be top priority. This is free, targeted traffic and shouldn’t be ignored. Optimize at the very least your home page for specific keyword phrases. Most of the additional steps I will cover build upon web page optimization. Make sure you create a solid foundation in which you can build on.

Step 2: Article Marketing

This is one of the easiest methods of marketing, and it’s free. It does take time to write and is sometimes difficult coming up with content. The more you practice and write, the easier it will become. If you’re knowledgeable about something, then write about it. If not, then learn, learn and learn. Then write! Be sure to anchor your keyword phrase in the link in your resource box.

Step 3: Link Directories

One easy way to get backlinks to your site is to submit your site to link directories. Some directories are free, some require a reciprocal link and some require a fee. Submit to ten directories a day and slowly building up your backlinks. Make sure to use your keywords in the title and description. I would suggest submitting to all high Page Rank (PR) directories as this will pass on the link juice to your site. Also, alter your keywords for each submission to make your backlinks look more natural.

Step 4: Blogging

Blogging is a great way to add new and fresh content to your website. Google loves new content, so you’re doing your website a favor by having a blog and posting to it regularly. I recommend Wordpress because it is more SEO friendly and provides many different plugins that you can benefit from.

Step 5: Email Marketing

Place an opt-in form on every page of your website to capture your visitor’s name and email address. Use this to build a list of subscribers that you can market and promote to. Make sure to provide real content to your subscribers as well so that they stay on your list.

Step 6: Networking

Start networking with others. Join Myspace, Facebook and other social networking sites and start building relationships with other users. Get as many friends as possible. This is free advertising for your online business, so take advantage of it. Join social bookmarking sites as well and connect with other users. Bookmark your blog posts and articles.

Step 7: Continually Grow Your Online Business

Repeat steps one through six and continually build and grow your online business. It takes a continual and constant effort. Success won’t happen overnight. You must be patient, willing to learn and actually work hard.

Your online business requires dedication and perseverance. Stay motivated and never give up. Success can be yours with the right mindset.

Copyright (c) 2009 Khadijah Ibrahim

A lot of people have always wanted to have successful online businesses as they realise that a lot of successful internet marketers are earning at least a six figure incomes. However they fail to realise the personality behind those six figure incomes.

This is the reason why when these people encountered the first sign of obstacles or roadblocks, they would easily give up and then wonder why they were not successful.

The truth is that behind those six figure incomes are hard work, patience, determination, persistence, honesty and not forgetting humility.

Hard work

When you saw successful people, you thought that they gained their successes overnight because you never knew them before they became successful. The truth is that these people had worked hard and had been through a lot before enjoying the success as you see them today.

The successful online marketers built their successful online empire from scratch where they had to build effective websites, create good products, bring in traffic to their businesses and maintain good relationships with their customers.

They had worked long hours and did not give in to instant gratification such as watching television or just wasting time doing nothing. There was always something to do in the process of building their online businesses until they reached success. Only then they would slow down a bit to enjoy the fruit of success that they achieved.

Patience

Successful online marketers are patient people because they know that success does not happen in one day. They stick with the same bandwagon regardless of the roadblocks they encounter, keep improving and finding alternatives over and around the roadblocks until they achieve their target or goal. They would never get distracted with the achievement of others and jump into a different bandwagon.

For example you start an online business teaching people how to make homemade chocolate. You do not stop building the business and start another online business selling flowers just because you see a friend’s online business that sells flowers is successful. You should instead find ways to sell or learn from your friend the right method so that you could market your homemade chocolate recipes more effectively.

You should be patient to nurture your business and give the business time to grow.

Determination and persistence

Whether it is an online or offline business and even in life, determination and persistence are two must-have criteria to achieve success. Because without these two you would easily give up when problems arise and stop moving forward when you encounter with obstacles. When you are determined to achieve success you will find a way to make things work even in difficult situations. You will be persistent to do the job until it is completed successfully.

We would not have the leisure to use light bulbs in our house if Thomas Edison was not persistent and determined enough to find a way to make it work.

Honesty

I firmly believe that the root of success is honesty no matter what other people say. The main reason I believe this is that to be successful in anything you must first be honest with yourself.

You must honestly believe that you can achieve the goal you set, you must be honest with yourself that you will do the best to achieve your goal and you must be honest with yourself about the good things that you are going to do after you have achieved your goal.

These three main honesty principles will be the driving force for you to make a plan and keep you going to the point where you achieve success. Of course there are other things to be honest about, however when you have these three in place, everything else will definitely come in together.

Humility

Being humble does not mean underestimating yourself. It also does not mean you lose your self-confidence or even self-respect. It means that you are willing to learn from others especially those who have more experience and knowledge than you.

Even if you already know the subject, it would not do you any harm to listen and learn from others because you may have missed out a few things the first time you learnt it.

Being humble also means your willingness to ask when needed as the truth is that you actually gain more from the power of asking rather than losing such as the term that people always use ‘losing face.’

When you have all these six characters inside, you will start building a positive personality that successful people have and you would be on your way to create a six-figure income for yourself.