Starting An Online Business – What To Buy, Broken Down By Budget

Author Image

by  James McAllister

We live in a beautiful time for entrepreneurship.

The internet has leveled the playing field, and makes it easy for just about anyone to compete in a global marketplace, even without a very large budget. It is even possible to start an online business with no money whatsoever!

However, although it’s possible to start an online business for free, it certainly becomes much easier if you have a little bit of money to work with.

I was one of those people that started from nearly nothing – I remember having to beg my grandmother for $20 to buy web hosting and a domain name. I was only 14 at the time, and had no real income source to work with.

Today, my brands have sold hundreds of thousands of units, and I’ve worked with entrepreneurs around the globe to help them achieve a similar level of success.

Do not let your lack of money stop you from pursuing entrepreneurship – I promise you that it can be done without a large budget. However, if you do, there’s certainly opportunities to build success more quickly.

In this article, I will recommend my best purchases based on your starting budget. This article will be aimed towards people who want to start online businesses – either eCommerce shops (selling physical or digital goods to customers), affiliate marketers, or other content-based entrepreneurs (such as bloggers, YouTubers, and podcasters.)

Let’s get into it!

Read More

7 Exciting Ways Blogging Can Benefit Your Small Business

Author Image

by  James McAllister

Note: Listen to this post instead using the audio player below, and consider subscribing on your favorite podcast player!

iTunesGoogle PlayPlayer EmbedShare Leave a ReviewListen In A New WindowDownloadSoundCloudStitcherSubscribe on AndroidSubscribe via RSSSpotifySpotify

Blogging may be the single most effective way to market a small business, yet a surprisingly large number of people fail to take it seriously.

It’s cheap to start, and cheap to scale. It works in almost every industry. It generates sales in the short-term, and is an incredible brand-building tool in the long-term.

When it’s pulled off correctly, it can not only completely transform entire companies, but it can make it incredibly difficult for anyone else to even compete.

The potential here can not be overstated. My first ever hire was a content writer. There’s a reason blogging is at the core of all my companies, (including my eCommerce brands which have gone on to do millions in sales.)

The importance of blogging cannot be understated. In this article, I am going to make the case why it’s time for you to start a blog, and showcase all of the incredible benefits that blogging can offer your small business. Some of these will not be obvious, and I urge you to continue reading with an open mind – taking examples and imagining how they will fit in with your own business, and your existing marketing strategy.

Read More

How To Recession-Proof Your Small Business

Author Image

by  James McAllister

Note: Listen to this post instead using the audio player below, and consider subscribing on your favorite podcast player!

1x
0:00
...
iTunesGoogle PlayPlayer EmbedShare Leave a ReviewListen In A New WindowDownloadSoundCloudStitcherSubscribe on AndroidSubscribe via RSSSpotifySpotify

Economic recessions are an inevitable reality of business, and destroy those who are unprepared.

This is especially true for small businesses, and even more so for first-time entrepreneurs who have never witnessed an economic recession from the perspective of a business owner.

See, as entrepreneurs, we tend to be risk-takers. We make decisions that lead to quick growth of our companies, and sometimes go a bit too far. We bank on the good times continuing, our carefully thought-out plans succeeding, and a bright and prosperous future.

Unfortunately, we may not factor in the hiccups we’re bound to face along the way.

In this article, I want to lay out some steps you can take right now to reduce your risk of collapse during even a very tough economic recession, and ensure that your company can continue thriving even during the worst of economies.

This isn’t to say that I believe a recession is about to strike, but this topic is too important to ignore.

Let’s get into it!

Read More

Don’t Put It Off – Why You Should Begin Utilizing Influencer Marketing Today

Author Image

by  James McAllister

Note: Listen to this post instead using the audio player below, and consider subscribing on your favorite podcast player!

iTunesGoogle PlayPlayer EmbedShare Leave a ReviewListen In A New WindowDownloadSoundCloudStitcherSubscribe on AndroidSubscribe via RSSSpotifySpotify

Every so often, marketers are given access to an advertising platform that offers an incredibly good return.

Typically, these platforms are new, unproven, and businesses are weary about jumping on board. Because of this, they tend to offer an unusually high return for marketers that able to figure out how to utilize them, capitalizing on the inbalance of supply and demand.

Influencer marketing right now is one of these powerful, undervalued advertising channels that even now in 2019, is still underutilized and underappreciated.

Although it is not considered anything new (celebrity endorsements have been utilized in advertising for ages),  we’ve never been at a point where influencer marketing was so accessible to even the smallest of brands – it doesn’t have to cost a single dollar for you to start.

In this article, I intend to highlight some of the most compelling reasons you should begin your first influencer marketing campaign right now, or scale it up further if you’re already utilizing influencer marketing to grow your business. It doesn’t matter whether you’re selling a tangible or intangible product – influencer marketing can benefit your company and help you grow in the coming months.

Let’s look at some of these reasons in detail.

Read More

Cold Email Outreach: A Detailed Strategy To Following Up Effectively

Author Image

by  James McAllister

Note: Listen to this post instead using the audio player below, and consider subscribing on your favorite podcast player!

iTunesGoogle PlayPlayer EmbedShare Leave a ReviewListen In A New WindowDownloadSoundCloudStitcherSubscribe on AndroidSubscribe via RSSSpotifySpotify

It takes an average of 7 contacts before a person will make a deal with you.

90% of salespeople, marketers, and entrepreneurs will not follow up with a person more than 3 times.

Yet, 80% of deals are made on the 5th to the 12th contact.

Can you imagine all of the money that you’re leaving on the table?

This isn’t just applicable to making a sale. It could be arranging a meeting with an important person, pitching somebody to link to an article, or trying to get somebody to appear on your podcast.

Email outreach is more important than ever, yet a whopping 90 PERCENT of people will not even put the effort in to do it right.

It’s time to get relentless with your follow up. To form a strategy that will help you to achieve the results that you’re looking for.

Because clearly, the vast majority of us are leaving a LOT of money on the table.

The above statements should showcase just how important following up with people actually is. Therefore, this article will serve as a quick guide to getting started, showcase some examples, and help you to form a systematized strategy to make following up quick, easy, and effective.

Read More