One of the things that used to frustrate me alot when asked a question was my mind drawing a big blank.
I might be an expert in some things, but, when that happens, I am no longer an expert in anything.
This happens to a lot of people when they have a desire to start their own business but have no idea where to start. Trial and error causes all sorts of time eating exercises.
And, how do you know a profitable niche from a false hope? You want long term success not short term splash.
Everybody is not a target market. Even the biggest companies do not sell to everybody. They can target them because they offer such a wide variety of product that there is a good chance they'll hit an interested buyer.
Smaller companies don't have that luxery, nor budget. They need to identify their "dream" customer and then emulate that customer's profile.
One of the steps you will need to accomplish is your look and feel. You want it to be basically the same throughout your marketing materials. If you are running an online business that starts with your website.
Then everything else you create, including letterheads and business cards, would follow that pattern.
And, your messages must follow a pattern that is consistent with all the other messages that you put out there.
This includes blog posts, customer/prospect proposals, podcasts, tradeshow, whatever you do to reach your target audience.
You do not want to confuse your customers and prospects by giving them too many choices (mostly 'cause they'll pick none of the above).
This discussion actually has a suggested plan for action. One of our product lines offers a course where you can get your answers delivered to you and a good foundation upon which to continue building your business.
Take a look: "Back to Basics: An Online Business Start-Up Plan"
