7 Business Mistakes You’re Making Now
All right, it’s true that since we don’t ACTUALLY know one another yet, I don’t know that you’re making these business mistakes at the moment. What I can tell you is that when you’re launching an online business, there are mistakes that are crazy common pitfalls.
Kind of like (as you will see on my video) going over your one-hour parking limit by two—TWO—minutes so that you can’t get out and have to pay way more!
Dang!
But back to business mistakes.
Jared and I were talking about the mistakes we’d made in business early and on the ones we’ve seen ecommerce newbies make time and time again. That led us to create a list of 7 of them, along with our tips for avoiding them.
All right, here we go:
#1: Not setting up your business correctly.
Now I’m going to be honest, there can be some analysis paralysis when it comes to getting all the legal stuff put into place—but there doesn’t have to be. There are some great resources online and through your state and local governments. We recommend getting an LLC (limited liability corporation) set up from the get-go. You can have someone like Legal Zoom do it for you, or you can collect the information and complete the forms yourself. Oh—and be sure that if you need to have a local business license, you get one. Call if you’re not sure. Doing the right thing upfront will save you so dang much time and money if you have to fix it later.
#2: Buying way too many products for your ecommerce store.
Those who join my 0-$100K Course hear me tell them all the time to TEST before they INVEST in products. Spending hundreds—or thousands—of dollars on a product you don’t know will sell is CRAZY. Don’t do it. Just don’t do it.
#3: Failing to invest in learning.
When I was beginning my foray into e-commerce, I spent countless hours on YouTube trying to research what I needed to do to create and run my business. I would have given anything for a single resource that would teach me, step-by-step, everything I would need to know and do. Investing in learning is NOT a cost—it’s an opportunity to bypass mistakes and achieve success faster. Invest in yourself by buying courses that will help move your business forward.
#4: Aiming to be the cheapest.
Are you selling a product or an experience? Yes, you can absolutely just sell a product (think Amazon) but will customers ever remember you? Will they come back to you again and again? Will they be willing to pay a bit more for your product because you give them a reason to smile or to feel good about their purchase? Price can be a factor for many e-commerce products, but ultimately it’s the experience.
#5: Standing still.
Remember that analysis paralysis I mentioned above? It can happen a lot when you’re launching your business, often as a result of overthinking. You need to always be moving forward. Will you make a mistake from time to time? Yep. But it’s always better to learn than to stop. Go, go, go!
#6: Refusing to ask for help.
There’s a whole stereotype about men who refuse to ask for directions, right? Well, the fact is, men aren’t alone in refusing to ask for help. Almost all of us are guilty of it. Sometimes we’re afraid to ask because we’re afraid of looking dumb. Or we’re afraid to “bother” someone. The reality is that most people are more than happy to answer questions or help you out. But first, you need to ask the question. Be brave and ask away!
#7: Doing it all yourself.
So, this was one of my biggest business mistakes when I was getting started. I truly believed that I had to do every single thing for my business all by myself. Well, guess what? I was totally wrong. The more I delegated to other people, the more willing I was to hire a few people to help me package or ship my products, the more I was able to sell…AND the more I was able to focus on aspects of my business like marketing and growth. Be willing to bring people on board as soon as it makes sense financially.
So there they are—the 7 business mistakes that you’re making now (or that you could avoid making in the future.) I promise that if you stop making them or avoid them altogether, you will save yourself tons of time and a heck of a lot of heartache as you launch and grow your ecommerce business.
Oh—and did I mention that you can download a .pdf that outlines these same 7 business mistakes? Just click that link and you’ll soon be having one downloaded right in your Messenger inbox.
