Many of you have probably seen the Intuit.com commercial by now. Most of you who follow my blog regularly are savvy web users and understand the problem with a commercial like this. For those of you who are not savvy web users, you probably have seen this commercial and now believe you can have a great online websites that will attract thousands of people from the internet and provide you with new leads or online sales. This creates the dreaded “Build It, and They Will Come” mentality.

Tools like Intuit are great, but sometimes they allow people to make very poor assumptions.

Now I’m not implying that this commercial has lied to you or misled you in anyway, however will say that you have more than likely convinced yourselves that something is a lot simpler than it really is!

Intuit.com is a great website providing some very powerful tools to help you gets started online, but that is not the point I’m trying to make. The problem is that too many people are going to try get in over there had believing that they can simply follow a few prompts fill out there information and get results. This is the build it and they will come attitude, and the primary reasons that online websites and businesses fail.

People can not enter into an area in which they have no expertise, no contacts, no education, and no previous success and be confident. Yet when people see commercials for products and services like this they convince themselves that it is the answer to them being able to do anything they can imagine!

Having the tools to succeed is not enough

Having the tools to succeed is not the same as having the means to succeed. We try to convince ourselves that “if only I had…”, is the reason we are not accomplishing our goals. The reality is that if most people were handed the tools for success they could not effectively use them. The goal of any goal oriented individual should be to change that fact.

For example. Let us say I were to provide you today with an email list of 2,000 individuals that are part of your niche market and regularly use the type of products or services you offer, what would you do with it? Are you familiar with how design effective email marketing materials? Do you know if your current email setup can handle sending out that many emails? Do you have or know of a service that can allow you to track who opens those emails and if they click through on them?

If you have never been involved in marketing, design, or have never owned or established a popular website before, or are not very internet savvy beyond surfing and checking your email, the answers to most of the questions will be NO. Which means to that weather you paid for an email list or someone provided you with one, it would do you little to know good, same is true of any other tool that may otherwise make you successful. Giving you a fully stocked garage does not instantly make you a mechanic, why would you think an online toolbox can make you an instant success?

Being Honest With Yourself

If you are honest with yourself you don’t usually buy online products or services from websites that look generic or like the were bought somewhere for $50 or put together by a middle school student (at least I really hope not). Think about what a website has to do to gain your trust hold your interest and ask yourself honestly if you are equipped to produce that. If not then it is perfectly okay, educate yourself properly so you can make the most of your situation, then weather you use a site like Intuit.com or you hire a professional or even decide to do it yourself, you won’t be flying blind and making poor assumptions.

Many people who constantly use the internet don’t have a real understanding of how anything in the online world works despite having used a computer for over a decade, but will become quickly offended if you imply they are not computer savvy. There is no need for that, most people who drive don’t know what anything under the hood is called and don’t lose any sleep over it.

Understand that learning about websites and then furthermore running an online business is going to take time, energy and resources. There are not shortcuts, no out of box solutions, or substitutes for gaining the knowledge required, it will take trial and error and the help of seasoned experienced individuals who can offer you their advice.

Let Go of Your Own Ego

Many people give themselves the unreasonable expectation that success in one area of their life/business will mean success in another area. It is sadly, yet again, NOT HOW IT WORKS.

You may have had success in running your business in the real world, but the principles that are tried and true in the flesh do not always translate to the web, a less learned by many who failed in the early 90′s dotcom bubble. The internet for some will be different country, where people speak and behave in a way that is completely alien to you. What you have to accept is that this is their territory not yours. Everything you don’t understand or that doesn’t make sense to you, is common place here, you are the one who is abnormal, and you are the one that must conform.

Many will not be comfortable with this concept, and some may be resistant, or even incapable of learning new things, or developing new skills or aptitudes. This is not a negative reflection on them, it simply means they are not equipped to thrive in that particular environment. Some will fare better than others, that is of course the way of things, and refusing to accept that fact will ultimately end in an epic fail.

Not Clearly Defining Your Goals

Taking the time to determine your specific goals, and then furthermore how to meet them is essential. Many will immediately, and wrongfully assume that the goal of any website or online business is simply to attract users and make sales. In broad terms this makes some sense if the logic is that “a hospital treats sick people”. While consumers do care about the features and benefits a product, they care more about whatever they are doing or attempting to do, a product or service should have the goal of enabling people to accomplish something. Features and benefits are byproducts of clear goals.

For example. I will define some of the goals of this blog:

• Providing resources and information to: designers, marketers, website owners, digital artist and other individuals in the creative industry, marketing, and web development.
• Showcasing the work and talent of various Digital Artist, Graphic Designers, Web Designers, and Illustrators.

• Promoting my own creative work, and sharing my experiences and expertise with the online creative community.

By clearly defining the goals of this site we can see who this site benefits and how it enables them the pursue their own individual goals, while also indicating what those goals may be.

Conclusion

Having a great and powerful tool to develop your online presence is not the same thing as being equipped to succeed in this business. There is no website or online services that will allow you in a few clicks that will give the results that people have spent half their lives achieving anymore than buying paint will make you a great artist. Learn the nature of the online industry, become a savvy internet user and commit to creating the conditions for success. Remember its not the tools, but the skill that you bring with you to the bench.