People buy from those they know and trust. Nowhere is this more true than on the Internet, where you may never even meet anyone in person. Establishing a trust relationship with your potential online clients takes time, but it is well worth the effort! You have to have the relationship online first before you sell.
Think about the last time you bought a product or service online, that had a substantial positive impact on your work or life in some way. If you were spending a good chunk of change (and perhaps investing a good bit of your time) on that purchase, chances are you did some research first: reading online forums and reviews to see what others had to say about them; contacting them directly with questions and observing how quick and helpful (and polite) their response was; maybe even buying a smaller product or service from them first. All to determine if you could trust this online business to deliver what they promise.
Your potential online clients are no different! They are going to want to know if they can trust you to deliver, too. Here are three specific ways you can work on building a trusting relationship online, and how each will help your business:

1. Get to know your customers. This helps you more deeply understand what it is they need — making it a lot easier to tell them how what you are selling is going to meet their needs. Find out where they “hang” out, on discussion forums, social networks, etc., and get involved. Don’t just schmooze or try to sell your product right then and there — instead, add value to the conversation. If you are doing it right, you’ll be doing a whole lot more listening than talking.

2. Connect with your customer on a personal level. Let them see you as a person, one who has some things in common with them. People will trust you, and ultimately buy from you, if they feel you are like them. This means being sincere and transparent — not pretending or making something up. If you can’t make that trust connection with one particular person, don’t force it — move on to someone else.

3. Keep up the trust relationship. The relationship doesn’t stop after the sale! Clients who know and like you, and have benefitted from what you have sold them, will tell others about you! It will be easy for them to recommend you because they are recommending a trusted vendor, not an impersonal business or product. If you’ve done a good job of providing them with something that makes their job or life easier, they won’t be able to wait to tell someone else!

Once you have your relationship online wth your audience you will turn them from browsers to buyers.

Love life, not just the weekends. You only have one life, Live It! @ www.NicciAndLee.com

There are literally millions of websites out there promising to tell you all about how to start your own home based business, with a “cannot fail” blueprint for success. And many of them are completely legitimate - but there is one secret ingredient that you need to have in place if you are going to get the best start in business for yourself…

If you’ve been researching online businesses for a while, you are probably thinking that the answer is to find your niche - but you would’nt be completely wrong, but there is something more important. Same with having with the “right” system or the “right” advertising or having the ultimate website design. All of these things are important, but there is one thing that is overridingly important - one thing that has the power to determine how your business will go.

Really - this energy has shaped your life so far - and it will determine the course of the rest of your life as well. Whether you know about it or note, and whether you are in control of it or not, this will control your life more than anything else. It can open doors for you, or it can slam them shut in your face. It can put you in the right place at the right time, or make sure you are never anywhere worthwhile at anytime!

What is really incredible about this power is that you have it within you - and all you have to do is to turn it on to start receiving all the things you want immediately!

What is this power? It is the power of your dreams! The power of your passion

So - how can your dreams give you the best start in business? By becoming your business! There is some reason in your life why you are starting your own business. Before you even get started with the actual business, you need to get really clear on what you want from life. Then you find a way to lock those images in your mind, every day - and the more outrageous the dream, the more power it has.

You need to find the ways that work best for you - but pictures are a really powerful way of locking in your dreams. So if you want a new car - get a picture of exactly the car you want. If you want a new relationship, or a new life - try some pictures of how you would like your life to look. Now get focused on those, every day - and get very involved in that new life you want - driving that car, being with that partner. Then watch what happens…

When you get focused on the outcome, something amazing happens. Suddenly, you become very resourceful - and it is almost effortless! Just by concentrating on where you want to be, many of your obstacles will just vanish, and you will find yourself coming up with solutions to the others seemingly from nowhere. Not only will you get the best start in business, but you will be in the best business for you - because any business not in line with your goals will simply not fit your new view of life.

All this sounds great - so why are so many people NOT achieving their goals? Well - it is very simple. This is not hard to do - in fact we often do many things far harder with far smaller results - but it is also easy not to do. You have to be totally committed to your dreams - just as you cannot be half-hearted about your business. Everyone has something that really lights them up - something that will drive them no matter what - and that is what you need to tap into. After you do that, and then focus on whatever that is for you - you will be unstoppable! But if you are going to “give this a try” or “see what happens” you will not see results. These are not our rules - it is just the way this works - but if you can get clear on what you want from life, and get focused on it - you will be amazed at how quickly you start to see progress.

Love life, not just the weekends. You only have one life, Live It! @ www.NicciAndLee.com

Starting a home based business is a great idea because this gives you the opportunity to become your own boss and amass a great amount of wealth as well. There are many advantages from working out of the comforts of your home. Including buying a whole new wardrobe… of PJs and trackies!

10 tips that we think will get you started…

1) Believe in your abilities: Too many people never start their business because they are not sure whether they will ever be successful or not. Yes there is always a bit of a risk involved (but there is risk in everything we do), but if you never even start the venture, how can you know whether you will be successful or not? If you have the knowledge and if you can work hard, then you will be successful.

2) Look for the right business: Do some research and you will come across many home based business opportunities. But beware, not all of them might be profitable. So you should spend some more time in research and find out whether the one you like is profitable or not.

3) Work on your hobby and/or passion: What are you truly interested in? Perhaps you are a seasoned traveler and if you start your business in the travel niche, then naturally you will be enthusiastic to give it your time. Starting a business on a hobby or something that interests you is a great idea.

4) Get ready for business swings: Not every day is the same -  you cannot expect that your business will not go through the ups and downs. This happens to every business and will happen to you as well. Persistence, without exception is a key to your success.

5) Routine: Though you are working from home and can work the hours you please, but you should have discipline because it is your business and the responsibility to make it a success is also yours. Fix a time of the day when you will work daily. Decide on the number of hours a week that you will give, no matter what happens.

6) Learn from your failures: Do not be afraid to fail because everyone fails. Instead make every failure as an opportunity to learn new things and transfer this knowledge into your next venture.

7) Leverage the Internet: The Internet offers a great opportunity as it has made the world a market. Today you need not be restricted anymore and can find a customer from across the world. So go online and do some marketing and your business can literally ‘go places’.

Read about the success stories: Find out all about the people who have been successful in your chosen line of business and learn what they did and how they became successful. Your business can profit from their learning and experience.

9) Start small and then grow: It is always a good idea to start with a small budget and then invest back the money that you have earned from your business. Do not put in a lot in the beginning - let your business first stand on its own feet.

10) Have a business plan: You must have a business plan and also definite targets - short, mid and long term. Work according to your plan and give yourself an award when you meet your targets. This will keep you motivated.

We are learning and using all these strategies ourselves for our home based business … we will keep you updated with anything else we think that may help you. (Similarly - if you have any thoughts about the above or anything to add then please let us know)

Love life, not just the weekends. You only have one life, Live It! @ www.NicciAndLee.com