Make Your Own Market: Web Startup Lessons Learned

For many years I operated my web business like I was a small fish in a big pond. I limited myself only to those marketing strategies that I could afford. I never believed I could gain as much traffic or make as much money as the big fish, because I just never felt very big. The one positive thing that I had going for me is that my small size never affected my big appetite for success. I invested the past eight years of my life into learning how to be a better web entrepreneur and I learned one BIG piece of valuable information. Unlike most of the struggling entrepreneurs out there, the successful ones don’t focus on being the big fish in the big pond because they understand that it’s more important to be a big fish in your own pond; even if it’s a small one.

I know, you might be asking yourself what is all this crazy talk about fish and ponds. Underneath the fish talk what I am really trying to say is that I became a successful entrepreneur by my own standards when I created my own market and in essence, built my own pond. As an entrepreneur functioning as a very very small business, I often felt like I was always limited by my small size and budget. I couldn’t afford to get the premium advertising like the big boys. I couldn’t afford the marketing consultants and PR reps, but what I could afford was to spend all my time and brain power trying to figure out a solution that worked for me.

The solution that worked best for me is one that can work for you too. If you want to find your own pond of success you have to make your own market. When I say this I mean that you have to create your own pool of web viewers and readers who are interested in what you have to say and want to sell. As a space that you create, it becomes a space that you can dominate. You will have your own following, you can set prices, and you can send out promotions and make profit without ever having to compete with big fish or work by their standards. You can essentially create your own success story without trying to desperately duplicate someone else’s success, which is what so many entrepreneurs try to do.

I can honestly say that this strategy works because it continues to work for me and many other successful web entrepreneurs. Having spent years cultivating my market, I now spend little to know money on internet marketing. There is no need to spend half your budget to advertise on other people’s sites when you already have access to your target audience. Granted, you will have to pay or continue to promote, on some level, which is something I talk about in my internet marketing guide. However, you don’t have to be completely dependent on the sites and services others to make your business grow.

I’m sure by now you should already be thinking that I mailing list is a good idea. It is actually one of the best tools a web entrepreneur has when attempting to make his or her own market. However keep in mind that a mailing list is just the beginning and it’s not everything. If you don’t have a mailing list form on your site, why not? If you do have one, how are you using it? Are you tapping into its full potential? And whether you have one are not, are you aware of the other ways in which you can make your market grow? To these questions I have several answers that I would like to share with you.

Writer: LHenry creator of the SistaSense eBussines Blog, a series of Web Business Howto Guides, BBWO Network for Professional Black Women.