Who You Gonna Call… When You Need Help With Your Online Business?
February 14, 2012 · Print This Article
I believe the answer is about 997… or more.
The question is, “Peggy, how many times have you been stuck in your online business since you began in 2007?”
Do any of these scenarios sound familiar to you?
John wondered if his online business idea was really feasible – was that space already too crowded with big players? How would he get traffic?
Lauren had no idea where to even being, she just knew she wanted to make money online.
Trevor knew he could start making money from his product if only he could figure out how to set up his new shopping cart.
Mary Ann wanted to know how to get continuous content for her site and how to repurpose that content into paid products.
Joe was making a decent living from his business but was stuck on how to take it to the next level to make an amazing income.
You can see their problems are all different because they’re at different spots with their businesses. They all feel a little, or a lot, stuck. So now what?
They’ve got options. There are always options.
Quitting, though, is not an option. 
Family or friend
This might not be a good choice because they likely won’t understand the whole online thing. However, if your site/business caters to “regular people” they might be a good guinea pig to give you feedback as a typical customer.
Qualified friend
You might have friends who jumped online when you did. While they might be able to help you somewhat, there’s a good chance they don’t know any more than you do. One thing they might be able to help you with, if they have a lot of experience in the offline world, is general business and selling advice.
Online acquaintance
If you’ve been online for a bit, you’ve probably got a few online friends who have specialties you can tap into. Maybe you can arrange a barter – you help me with this and I’ll help you with that. This can be a great way to go if your pockets aren’t deep or you have a tiny technical question.
How To Videos
If you’ve run up against a wall with a product or software you’ve purchased, they might have How To videos or tutorials you can look at. These can be really helpful, but they sometimes take a while to go through to find the answer to your stuck.
Help Desk, Live Chat
Sending a support ticket to the help desk should get you answers too. And I find live chat is my best friend for quick resolution to a specific product/software problem.
Paid solution
You want your WordPress blog set up quickly so you don’t have to mess with learning it? Or maybe you’re writing a book to help brand you but you don’t have time to do all the book’s marketing? There are excellent solutions if you’re happy to pay for them. The longer I’ve been in this business, the happier I am to pay others to do what I don’t have the time or expertise to do myself.
Group coaching
This is the middle ground between taking forever to find the answers yourself and private coaching. You’re getting a lot of valuable material like videos, pdfs, etc. But you’re also getting access to the coach, along with the rest of the group, where you can ask questions. This is usually done with webinars or teleseminars.
Private one-on-one coaching
This is obviously the best solution if you can afford it. Granted, you need to find a coach who is not only already successful (walks the walk)and resonates with you, but also specializes in teaching what you want to know. For example, it makes no sense to get coaching from someone who’s made his money running CPA ads if that’s not the business model you’re interested in.
With so many options, you should be able to find the one that suits your situation so you can move forward. Here’s the interesting thing I’ve found through experience… the problem doesn’t go away if you just ignore it. J In the next email I’ll talk about an option I’m currently using to help me get unstuck. It’s a little different than the ones I’ve posted above.
- What are your favorite solutions to getting a problem fixed or getting unstuck?
- If you’d like to leave a mini-rant about something that frustrates you or slows you down, you can do so in the comment box.
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I’ll go for the qualified friend. He will be trustworthy, ready to help whenever I need him and the best thing would be that he would provide all the support and clear all my doubts properly. Any other professional or videos or articles can just provide you information. Any doubts regarding it cannot be cleared there. A good friend can give you all the time in the world and he would prove to be the main reason for your online business.
Twitter: RyanBiddulph
on February 15th, 2012 2:44 am
Hi Peggy,
Super advice.
No ignoring! As you note the problem does not dissolve. Seek solutions, and often times the solution resides in the mind of an experienced online entrepreneur.
Shorten your learning curve. Pick the brains of really successful mentors and you learn what to do, and what NOT to do….the 2nd half of the statement screws most people up as much failure is due to engaging in wheel spinning acts.
Mentoring is A1 but there is a wealth of free information online. Follow a pro’s blog, and you can figure out what to do to grow your online business. Why waste time trying to do it all on your own? Piggyback on smart, successful people.
Thanks for sharing Peggy!
Ryan
Ryan Biddulph recently posted ..How You Can Be Dumb as an Ox and Still Make Quick Internet Money with Cash Gifting
Twitter: learn_to_blog
on February 15th, 2012 9:04 am
What a question, Peggy. We all stumble from time to time. I tend to stick my head in the sand, sadly! When I’ve had enough of that I come out and seek help, mostly from informed friends, maybe forums or to be honest Facebook closed groups that I’m in, they tend to be a great source of information. Great post, really good points and yes, I do need to shorten my learning curve!
Enjoy the journey.
Mandy
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 15th, 2012 9:04 am
Hi Zvi,
I agree that a qualified friend can be a huge asset. I’ve got mine, Alan Petersen, and he’s not only a font of internet marketing wisdom, but he’ll help me whenever I ask. Of course I return the favors. You can’t be having a friend like that!
Thanks,
Peggy
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 15th, 2012 9:10 am
Hi Ryan,
Yes! “Piggyback on smart, successful people.” I know in the beginning many of us waste a lot of time trying to figure things out on our own. Going with a pro, one with the values and direction you’d like to follow, will really shorten the learning curve.
Thanks for the great advice, Ryan.
Peggy
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 15th, 2012 9:17 am
Hi Mandy,
I confess I still stick my head in the sand too, but not nearly as often as I used to. I’ve learned it’s much better to speak up and yell for help… preferably *before* I tear my hair out.
Thanks for mentioning forums – that can be an excellent place to find answers!
The harder type of problem to be stuck with is the big one of where should I be heading with my business next? That’s when I find someone really qualified to look up to.
Thanks,
Peggy
Twitter: sharynsheldon
on February 15th, 2012 9:26 am
Hi Peggy!
Love the way you’ve broken down the options. Especially since people get stuck for different reasons. For instance, if it’s a motivation issue, then sometimes a friend can be enough to just urge you one. I love having both mastermind groups/forums to bounce ideas around and a coach who can help me with privately with other roadblocks and strategy issues
.
Here’s another way to get unstuck: Make a decision! Sometimes I just overthink things and am afraid to commit to one option since I don’t want to make the wrong choice. Better to just do something and get out there. You know the Bob Jenkins saying – “Take Action, Revise Later”.
That said, time to go do something now!
- Sharyn
Sharyn Sheldon recently posted ..Offline Marketing PLR Mega Pack
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 15th, 2012 1:46 pm
Hi Sharyn,
Motivation – that’s huge! Thanks for bringing that up. We all get stuck from time to time and need an extra nudge to help motivate us.
And I really like that you mention making a decision as a way to get unstuck. It’s so true! Sometimes we get really paralyzed with indecision, especially if it’s a Big choice to make. Picking Door #1 or Door #2 is definitely better than just standing there staring at them forever.
Thanks,
Peggy
Or as alternative you can ask all questions that you have on suitable blogs or forums. Here people who had or have the same problems will advise you something
Amanda@BuySellWordpress recently posted ..Fashion WordPress Themes
I choose for “qualified friend” and i have many qualified family that working online.
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 16th, 2012 8:51 am
Hi Amanda,
You’re right, there are some blogs and forums that can be a big help when you have a specific problem. Knowing where you can go quickly for an answer is key.
Thanks,
Peggy
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 16th, 2012 8:52 am
Hi Becca,
That’s another vote for qualified friend.
How wonderful for you to have family working online too!
Peggy
Twitter: suefleckenstein
on February 17th, 2012 4:08 pm
Hi Peg
I would have to go for qualified friend of course! Depends on the problem though. Sometimes I find just taking a step back and going for a walk helps. Then when you return you feel refreshed and the problem doesn’t seem so bad after all.
By the way thanks for your help yesterday!
Sue recently posted ..Hyperpigmentation PLR
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 17th, 2012 5:12 pm
Hey Sue,
Does that help yesterday make me your qualified friend?
What would we do without Skype?
I hear ya about stepping back and going for a walk. Sometimes that’s all it takes to see the problem in a different way.
Thanks,
Peggy
So glad to be part of social media, In case of something I can visit my blogging community to have an information. Thanks!
I don’t really know whom should I go to for my online business needs and doubts. I feel people these days might not assist you in a proper way and tell you the bits and pieces of the whole business as it would just increase their competition. A professional will be using his secrets to improve his business and its really hard to find a friend who may willingly help you with it. Overall I feel that self research is the best way you can learn and the more you practice and the more you experience, the more you will go in depth of it.
I would go for private one-to-one coaching. It would be better to be trained personally by a professional who is having the entire knowledge of the online business and how it works. One-to-one is better than group as the techniques or tips shared by the professional has to be applied for the personal use and in case of group tuitions, everyone else would tend to do the same and copy your ideas.
Who You Gonna Call… When You Need Help With Your Online Business?
Nice question. The first thing that came into my mind is Facebook and Twitter. I really believe that the social media today is the most powerful tool to attain success in marketing your online business.
I would surely run for my best friend who I know will always stand by me no matter what happens. A friend is a one who is ready to help you no matter he is having any knowledge about it or not. But of course he should be mature enough to understand the dos and donts of running a business and I am sure my friend would help me with it effectively.
Edward recently posted ..Is there just one type of wine corkscrew that you can use?
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 21st, 2012 9:58 am
Hi Jeremy,
You brought up a good one – using social media. That’s where I go when I want a quick answer to a question. Like yesterday I wanted to know the date of something so I tweeted my question. 2 people answered immediately.
Thanks,
Peggy
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 21st, 2012 10:00 am
Hi Edward,
Friends are great for so many things – you can lean on them for moral support and attaboys.
If they know a lot about business, especially internet marketing, then they can be very helpful.
Peggy
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 21st, 2012 10:19 am
Hi Catrien,
I agree with you that one-on-one coaching can be the best thing ever for your business, for the reasons you mentioned… if you can afford it. Coaching like that doesn’t come cheap, does it!
Thanks,
Peggy
I think we all should consider social media as one of the best online “advisors”. Quick tip: search facebook group to find people with the same view on the business stuff and start sharing experience.
Jane @Wordpress2U recently posted ..Oxygenous Free WordPress Theme
Ill surely go for the one-to-one paid coaching. He will be a professional and can guide me better towards my goal. It will be different from group coaching as I can get personal attention and all the bits and secrets which are impossible to be discussed in public, can be discussed one-to-one. The main advantage is I can discuss my business plan also if needed with him and no one else can come to know about it which might happen in case of a group. Of course the tutor must be trustworthy enough.
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 22nd, 2012 3:30 pm
Hello Jane,
Social media is indeed wonderful for quick answers to questions that can be answered quickly. I wish all our questions were of that type. Life would be so much easier!
Thanks for the tip on Facebook groups. I belong to one such group and people are very helpful there.
Thanks,
Peggy
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 22nd, 2012 3:31 pm
Hi Thomas,
One-on-one coaching is indeed the ultimate, if you’ve got a coach that’s a good fit!
Thx,
Peggy
I don’t think anyone would go for online acquaintance. For a little bit of information it might prove to be useful, but you cannot depend on your online friends completely for your online business as there is no trust existing between each other. They might not help you go into the details of the business as there is a huge probability that the ones you are asking help from might be into the same business and they might not usually disclose their strategies.
How to videos have proven to be very useful for me. They provide step by step instructions for most of my queries and viewing them, I could make my online business better. In some cases, you might need a professional’s help as videos mostly help you with the setup and not in depth structure of your business. A qualified friend or family member can be of great help and there is no way you can be wrong after that.
thanks for your help here, its quite frustrating not knowing where you can go quickly for an answer, we need more blogs and forums for where you can go if you have a specific question that needs answering
After reading your experience I think Peggy, proper time management and total dedication are the only two factors responsible for your success. Even I plan my work schedule and follow it strictly and have found satisfying results. But by looking at your achievements I think you have achieved more than what you expected. Good job Peggy! Keep inspiring us!
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 26th, 2012 10:16 am
Hi Jacob,
Indeed, proper time management and total dedication are important, like you say.
I was reading something last night that said all the To Do lists in the world won’t help if you don’t then DO what’s on them. Too true.
I agree with you Peggy! Don’t just ignore problems, you need to face it in order to cope up such issues. There are many options to choose, don’t quit. Thus, remember this; “Quitters never win, winners never quit!
James Martin recently posted ..Watch the Olympics live online
Twitter: pegbaron
on February 28th, 2012 8:39 pm
Agreed, James. But ignoring does seem like the thing to do when very frustrated!
It’s only later on when we realize it’s not such a good idea after all.
Peggy
Whenever I face problems I always prefer to search for the solutions on my own or else take help from some of my friends in forums. I agree with you with the list of options which you have mentioned here. If there are any other serious problems then I tend to take help from my qualified friend. This way I try to get rid of the issues I face in running my online business.
Hi Peggy,
This is a great post. Indeed no man is an island and we need someone to survive even in online business. Two thumbs up!
Lucille C. Forst recently posted ..SEO Services
Twitter: pegbaron
on March 13th, 2012 8:48 am
Hi Edward,
I prefer to do a quick search for solutions first, too. But if I then want to go all drama queen because the answer still eludes me, I go to my qualified online friend. He listens and usually has the answer.
Hey Lucille,
You’re so right! No man is an island!
Thanks,
Peggy
I will seek help of my qualified friend, It would be more simpler to work together, I can trust him, He will help me out until my problem is solved if not solved than I can make him to work until the work is done and the important thing they are more skilled then me. How to videos are very useful too, but there are chances of missing some minute information which makes a big difference.