Four good business decisions you need to make in your online business

For many people today who want to work for themselves, starting an online business seems the obvious choice.

This has become even more popular after the events of this year, which have seen many people diversify their business online, and a drastic change in shopping habits.

However, there are many issues that you can face when it comes to starting and running your own online business. This is when making good decisions for some common issues can help you stay on track. Here are four examples to be aware of. 

1) Choose the best digital marketing options for your business

We all know that there is great power in marketing, and so much is done online these days that you need some element of digital presence.

Most online marketing is done through social media marketing and content, and via your main online hub – your website.

However, you may need to think of fast and actionable ways to build traffic to your site when you’re first starting out and don’t have much awareness.

Building a bank of great content that helps increase your SEO ranking and draws traffic from social media is a must for online businesses. But this takes time to grow.

For more immediate results you could consider creating a QR code on packaging or in email correspondence. It’s much easier to create QR code online than you may think.

2) Get a website you’re proud of

As we\ve already touched on, websites are a key element of your business marketing today – even if you’re a blocks and mortar enterprise.

So much is done online, that you just can’t survive if you don’t have some recognition through a website. If you don’t have the budget, you can easily create a functional site that will serve you well using one of the many online platforms.

If you don’t feel like you have the skills, or areb;t confident you can create something beautiful, then you can speak to a freelancer web developer or digital agency who will be able to create exactly what you need for your business.

From an informative website with blog capability to an ecommerce store, if you can offer it online, then you have avoided one big headache for the future. 

So while making a decision on what to do for a website can be difficult (and therefore tempting to put off!) you’re much better off making that decision fairly quickly and getting a website up sooner rather than later.

3) Make the right cash flow choices

Cash flow can be a huge problem for businesses if it isn’t handled correctly. Invoicing out means that you may need to offer other trades a 30 payment window, and the same could be applied to you.

Most companies take advantage of this to ensure that cash stays in their accounts until the last minute, but this can also cause you problems if you don’t account for that.

Cash flow is needed to ensure that you can reorder stock yourself, pay staff or settle other accounts. This is when poor cash flow decisions can cause a huge headache to business owners.

So make sure you take a global picture of your cash flow, know what you have coming in and going out (and when) and always keep a healthy buffer in case of unexpected expenses or delays.

4) Make sure you hold the right level of stock for your business

Finally, it is also important for, based on your business size and future projections on sales, to hold the right level of stock to meet upcoming demands.

No business wants to turn customers away or have long waits for goods that have been paid for. So, while it can often be difficult to predict, use past trends and popularity to decide with confidence what you might need in the upcoming weeks and months, and always make sure you’re ahead when it comes to your stock levels. 

Image by Engin Akyurt