Online Business Tips for Entrepreneurial Seniors
All too often, seniors embark on their quest to build an online business, only to stumble and fail to thrive. Everyone will encounter setbacks along the way because there’s a learning curve to almost anything, but seniors often don’t have time to endure this because they need to supplement their retirement income. I’m a senior now, but when I came online at the age of 50 I had little to no knowledge about how to start earning income with an online business. Online business tips available at that time were too technical for me, so I promised myself I would help others as soon as I had figured it all out, and that is exactly what I have continued to do. Take a look at my Monthly Mentoring Program to see if it could be right for you.
When you’re new to being an online entrepreneur, you never know who you’ll be learning from. They may sound savvy and successful, but do they have your best interests at heart?
Not always. This is why many seniors are led astray right from the beginning, so it’s important that you learn the best way to start your journey as a senior who thrives. Sometimes, the people you learn from mean well, but they can only share what they’ve learned – and that choice may not be the same one you need to embrace.
Below, you’ll find 17 things you need to keep in mind as you navigate the lucrative and enjoyable career path as an online senior marketer. This is a fun and profitable option, and you don’t want anything slowing you down!
Choose a Niche You’ll Enjoy on a Daily Basis
If you simply pursue the same niche as someone else because they told you it was a money-maker, you’re going to grow old of it, fast. You may feel a draw to that niche because you don’t want to take any chances, and it’s a proven niche.
But soon, you will have learned the ropes of online marketing, and you’ll wish you were sitting down to work on a niche that you truly had a passion for. Keep in mind you can earn from your hobbies and interests.
This career isn’t based on boring subject matter, but instead on what people want to learn and do. That might be golf, crafts, baking or something else. You aren’t limited by niche selection, so you might as well make it something you’ll have fun with!
Don’t Start with a Complex Business Model
There are dozens of business models online. Some are more complex than others. If you’re new to this industry, understand that you aren’t making a one-time selection that you have to limit yourself to forever.
In fact, it’s often advised that you have multiple streams of income, but you need to start with one that you can grow initially. Some of the easiest ways to earn online include business models such as affiliate marketing, info product creation, selling printables, freelancing as a service provider or creating private label rights content.
Build a Site the Easiest Way
There are different ways to build a brand site. The easiest way is to simply buy a domain and basic hosting plan and install WordPress for free. This instantly turns your site into a blog.
If you’re new, don’t try to learn complicated page builders and ecommerce shopping carts on day 1. This will only overwhelm you and a WordPress blog is the basic standard for site development in this industry.
Spy on the Competition, But Set Yourself Apart with Online Business Tips
When you’re new to online marketing, you might think it sounds horrible to go spying on people, but this is smart business, and you have to be aware of other niche leaders are blogging about, selling, and saying to their customers.
They’ll be watching your content marketing strategy, too – because spying isn’t done so marketers can steal from one another, but so they can adequately educate their audience about topics not being covered elsewhere.
Manage Your Time Wisely as an Entrepreneur
Time is the greatest resource you have, and whether you have 30 minutes a week to grow your business or a full 40-hours to devote, you need to manage it properly. You don’t want to sit down to work, only to be distracted by drama unfolding on Facebook.
Put yourself on a doable schedule where you can achieve your daily to-do list. Don’t rush things. You can work at any hours, split up your workload or automate many of your tasks to have the kind of flexibility you need.
Start Building a Social Media Presence
Social media platforms are a great way to get free traffic to your online business. It’s also a great way for your audience to get to know and trust you. But don’t only stick to Facebook.
You want to branch out to other sites and apps where your audience is active – and that may mean learning how to use Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, Pinterest, or even YouTube. You might also want to consider launching a podcast for even more reach, because it’s a free and easy option to pursue.
Learn All You Can for Free Before Buying Courses
Many seniors often come online and, in a quest to succeed, spend a lot of money on courses, thinking that will help them learn all they need to know to start earning. But before you hand over your money, look for free information first.
There’s a lot you can learn on peoples’ blogs, on social media posts, or by signing up to their email list and downloading their free gift as well as learning from their on-going emails they send out.
Know What to Delegate (and When)
At some point in time, you may encounter a task that’s either too time consuming or too difficult for you to handle on your own. Don’t try to power through if you don’t have to. If you set aside a little bit of seed money, you can use that to outsource these tasks to someone who can make quick work of it.
This might be content, graphics, sales copy, or something else. There are freelance ghostwriters, graphic designers, and even virtual assistants you can hire to take over and free up your time.
Carefully Select the Tools That Can Help You the Most
There are many free, low cost and high ticket tools that entrepreneurs can use to benefit them in their business. You want to start out with free tools, even if you have the money for better ones.
Make sure you know how they work so that when you go to buy something like a keyword tool, you know what you’re looking for in terms of features and the price at which you are willing to pay.
Be Genuine with Your Target Audience
Authenticity is hard to come by – especially in this industry. Too many marketers want to project an air of success, even if they haven’t achieved it yet. Regardless of what niche you decide to pursue, be genuine and transparent with your audience and it will make them more prone to heed your advice and purchase things based on your recommendations.
Surround Yourself with the Right Colleagues to Implement Online Business Tips
Networking is an important part of conducting business online, and it’s usually friendly interactions on Facebook or via direct email. But make sure you do your due diligence in researching someone’s reputation before you align yourself with them in any way.
That includes promoting them, partnering with them or even just supporting them on social media. If they have a reputation for doing shady things online, you might be painted with the same brush because of your friendship and networking mistake.
Set a Budget for Time and Money
Your time and money are precious commodities online. We talked about managing your time in terms of how to ensure you achieve your tasks. But you also need to budget it overall.
It’s easy to get sucked into an endless addiction to building your business. You want to balance your work and personal lifestyle, especially in your golden years. And set a budget for spending money, too – where you reinvest a small portion of your earnings back into your business.
Know When to Scale Your Business Into Something More
People are desperate to branch out, but if you do this too soon, you’re going to end up sabotaging both business branches. You can scale your business, but not until you’re fully ready to do so.
That means your initial business model is earning money, you’re managing it in a timely fashion, and it makes sense to add more to your plate. You can scale the same business model and niche by simply doing more of the same, or add something new.
Set Realistic Goals for Your Online Brand
You want to have goals for your business. This helps you have milestones that you strive for, and allows you to make task lists that keep you moving forward. But they have to be realistic.
Don’t try to set goals like making $10,000 in the first month because it’s likely not going to happen. It can easily (and quickly) grow into that, but it’s not something that happens right out of the gate.
Embrace the Continual Learning Mindset
Instead of getting overwhelmed at the amount of things you will be learning – about your niche, business model, strategies, and more – you need to look forward to learning and implementing new information regularly.
This is what will help you push past competitors in your niche and carve a place out for yourself as a thriving brand online. Learn at your own pace and implement things so that you master them before moving on to something new.
Learn All You Can About Your Audience
One thing many seniors fail to do is take a deep dive into learning about their target audience. By knowing everything there is to know about the demographics of the people following you, you will be able to create or recommend products that resonate with them more.
You’ll also be able to promote to them better because you will know the psychological persuasion techniques needed to get them to trust you and purchase solutions to their pain points.
Don’t Be Afraid to Switch Gears as You Learn Online Business Tips
Lastly, you need to give yourself permission to change things as you move forward in this industry. That doesn’t mean you need to flit around from business model to business model or niche to niche on a weekly basis.
But if you have been doing something for awhile and it’s either not working or you don’t enjoy it, you have the freedom as an online entrepreneur to make changes that you feel are right for you and in your best interest.
Becoming a senior Internet marketer is a proud achievement you will have, where you can be your own boss and build your business in any direction you choose. With the right mindset and instructions, you will find it easier to succeed and profit from your efforts and determination with the online business tips I have shared with you here.
I’m bestselling USA Today and Wall Street Journal author Connie Ragen Green. My goal is to help at least a thousand people to reach six-figures and beyond with an online business. Come along with me, if you will and let us discover how we may further connect so you may achieve all of your dreams and goals and transform your life experience, with my help and guidance.
Perhaps my “Monthly Mentoring Program” is right for you.
Leave a Reply