Running your own business can be very rewarding. But there are times it can also be discouraging if you let it. Having run my online business since 2005, I've learned quite a bit about what works and also what does not. Here are 8 ways YOU are blocking success in your online business.

1. Grammar And Spelling Mistakes

Whether in your blog posts, videos, or social media posts, making grammar and spelling mistakes can affect the way your business is viewed. Even if you're great at English spelling and grammar, it's always a good idea to check over everything before it gets posted. Having an experienced web content expert is ideal, where possible.

2. Not Giving Enough Information

Not giving enough info is a big block in business success. When people purchase a product or service online, there needs to be some trust involved, as there are plenty of scammers out there. Trust building is one of the most important aspect aspects of running your online business. Part of that is ensuring your potential clients and customers get detailed and accurate information about not only the item or service, but about your business as well.

If they can't find enough information, it can cause them to click away. Always include information that easily shows your business is legitimate. Products and services should require zero to little questions when the description is read. It should be very clear who you are and what they can expect. If you are not the best writer, you can always hire a professional product description writer to write or rewrite your product pages. 

3. No Logo Or Other Brand Identity Issues

Your business logo is a big part of how people will recognize your work online. In addition is your unique posting style, products, services, and business personality. If your business doesn't have enough of a brand identity, it can be hard to stand out in the sea of existing web content. Your brand identity is how people find you and stay with you. If you need help with brand identity, don't hesitate to reach out for a custom plan catered just for you and your business, regardless of the size of your budget.

4. Social Media Post Mistakes

Always check and re-check everything before you hit that post button. Does all of your text make sense? Is the grammar and spelling correct? Does what you said fit correctly with your brand and with your audience? Are previews from any links loaded correctly? Are you posts going out at a good time for your audience? Is the information accurate?

Some social media sites have text limits. Ensure what you are posting does not get cut off by these limits. Making these and other social media mistakes could be blocking success in your online business. Clients and customers can easily get turned off by inaccuracies.

5. Not Connecting Enough With Your Audience

Audience engagement is huge in keeping people around for more. People want to interact with you and your brand. That's why they are there. But if you aren't doing that enough, they can easily wander to the next business who will give them the attention they crave. Create fun, engaging posts on social media.This could be memes, videos, stories, Q & A posts, and so on.

Get creative and make it related to what you do. Be sure to respond as quickly and accurately as possible to all contact form requests, email inquiries, social media messages and comments. Learn your audience and grow with them to help them see they are a part of your team.

Your audience is the key to your success. Appreciate and interact with them as much as possible. Your brand identity should be present in all of those interactions. They need that personality in order to have something to connect to. If you don't have the time for this, there are social media and branding experts who can learn your brand's personality and help or take over that area for you.

6. Not Keeping Your Mindset In Check

YOUR mindset is KEY to succeeding in online business. Regardless of how little or how much you make, you need to keep those thoughts in check. In order to manifest and maintain a successful business, your thoughts about the business should always be good ones. During slow times, look at other positive aspects unrelated to sales.

Think forward on the solution, not on the problem itself. It is okay to consider the issues and reevaluate based on them. But don't let slow or non-existing sales cause negative thinking in regards to your business. The main focus should be on goals and resolutions. Overthinking on problems can block your success.

7. Location Of Your Products & Services

Where are you placing your products? If you are listing in them in marketplaces only and don't have your own website or domain, this could actually block a large number of sales. While you can certainly succeed in online marketplaces, having your own website will hugely add to that success. It builds trust and legitimacy that online shoppers often look for. It also looks more professional and gives you much more room to build that brand identity.

Hiring a professional website designer will ensure quality content, being found by search engines, and avoid common mistakes beginners make in building websites. However, if you prefer to build your own, there are plenty of business hosting companies that are easy for beginners. I personally recommend Weebly, due to the fact that they seem to offer the most options with the best prices. They are also very easy to use and automatically optimize your site for both web and mobile audiences.

8. Low Quality Images For Products & Services

Online shoppers are very visual. This is because they cannot physically touch and see your items in person. Therefore, product images need to be as clear as possible. The images need to feel as though as your potential buyer is looking at the product in person. Include as much detail as possible. Also, try to highlight the items in a way that stands out when you look at the picture.

Try different angles to see what images catch your eye immediately. These are the images you need to use. You can also try accenting the images with text, your brand logo, and related props or image templates. When it comes to services, some may do better with mostly text and background graphics that accent what is being offered. You can also hire a professional image creator if you get stuck.

Need a way to work at home that's not complicated and doesn't require an investment? You can now become a Brand Shamans affiliate for FREE and earn money from home (50 % of every sale) by simply sharing links on social media.

How Do I Sign Up?

Sign up for an affiliate account on Payhip and follow the instructions. Once we receive your request, we will review it. If you are approved (most people are approved), you will see products in your account to share, once that approval has gone through the Payhip system. We use this 3rd party system to help ensure our affiliates that payments, stats, and sales will be processed fairly and in a timely manner. This helps build trust between us and our affiliates. PayHip is a trusted manager for affiliate programs and online shopping carts.

How Much Will I Make?

How much you make depends on how many sales you can generate, which products you choose to promote, and so on. But we give 50% commission on every sale generated through your link. That could actually amount to big profits, especially if you're a good seller or you are able to sell some of our larger packages.

How Do I Get Paid?

You will get paid via PayPal by our third-party affiliate manager, PayHip. If you do not have a PayPal account, you will need to create one in order to get paid.

What Products or Services Will I Promote?

We have a variety of products and services that you can share with your audience. Some of these include branding & content services, handcrafted artisan jewelry, author marketing services, healing items and services (talismans, tarot & oracle readings, etc), hobby items, gifts for parents and kids, pet toys, and more! You can take a look at our online store, Intent-sive Nature to get an idea of what we have to offer. Then, sign up for the affiliate program separately at PayHip.

What Do I Need to Do?

All you need to do is sign up to be a Brand Shamans affiliate.  Once approved, simply grab the affiliate link for the product/s of your choice and start sharing the links via your social media networks, your blog,  or your website. Remember to share wisely without spamming in order to get the best benefit. Follow the rules wherever you share. Also, share in your own name, rather than ours. Each time someone makes a purchase by using your link, you will receive 50% of that sale via PayPal. It's really that easy! 

What if I Need Banners or I Need Help?

We have a Facebook group called Brand Shamans Affiliates that you can join  after becoming an affiliate. This is where you  can ask questions, find tips, and get banners to use when promoting your special affiliate links. 

*We are not obligated to approve or keep any affiliate and reserve the right to reject pr remove anyone at any time, though that is rare. If we find that anyone is violating laws, rules, and regulations regarding social sharing, that person will be removed from the affiliate program. There also may be other (rare) reasons for this.

The vibes your brand puts out there are important to your company's success and image. Is your brand representing its true purpose? Does what your brand puts out there truly align with what you envisioned for the company? Do you know your brand's true purpose or does it even have one yet?

Every Brand Needs A Purpose

Does your brand have a purpose? It should! Each brand's purpose is what helps people connect. If there's nothing behind it except a product, people will have a hard time understanding why they want or need it. Does your brand help people in some way? Does it have a unique meaning behind it? Make sure there is a purpose for doing whatever it is your brand or product does.

Your Brand's Purpose Needs To Be Obvious

Not only does your brand need a purpose, but it needs to be very obvious. For instance, if your brand's purpose is to spread the word about a specific cause, that should be evident in everything you do. Logos, blog posts, social media posts, ads, product labels, shipping packages, and anything else put out there by your brand needs to reflect that purpose.

For instance, our store, Intent-sive Nature shows even within the name that we are very intensive about the intent we put out there and we LOVE Mama Nature! Our products are very intent and nature oriented, from healing jewelry to branding with a spiritual twist. Everything we do is about our main intention to help people find their true selves (in both business and personal ways) and help them heal themselves and their businesses through the power of true self aka nature.

What Vibes Is Your Brand Representing?

Are you sending out mixed messages or vibes? Does your brand truly represent what you want it to? Listen to your audience. Watch their reactions to what you do. Does it really reflect that purpose? If your brand is about healing, like ours, do all things put out by your brand reflect healing? Make sure that nothing puts out vibes that are the opposite of what you intended. If you've mistakenly done this, no worries! You can still fix it! That's what the Brand Shamans are for! We help heal brands.

If your brand needs help discovering its inner spirituality or purpose, let us know! We can help!

LAST UPDATED 7/23/2022 by Lyn Lomasi

Many brands, communities, and other entities often forget about the connection that needs to happen with their audience and members. This connection is what keeps them interested and also is what keeps your brand or community authentic and focused on what it's all about. We call this brand or community spirituality. If you think about it, your brand or community is an entity that you and your audience or members are dedicated to. There is a spiritual bond. If not, there should be! We help you bring everything into focus surrounding the spirituality (or inner connection) of your brand or community. Once this happens, the rest falls into place quickly.

We Study Your Business And Help You Heal It From The Inside Out!

We'd love to know more about you, your business, and your goals. Drop us an email via the contact form (below) to give us an idea of who you are and what you need and we'll get back to you. If you don't have time to give us a life story, a few lines is fine. We'd love to explore your website for the rest! As a complementary test run, we'll even interview you for FREE to introduce you to our audience and publish the results on one of our popular channels (also FREE). This is one of the very first steps in helping heal your business, brand, or community and it's FREE, so you have nothing to lose.

Is This A Religious Service?

It's whatever you want or need it to be. We base our services on what you would like your brand to be and represent. Brand spirituality refers to your brand as an entity with its own spirit and in itself is not a faith-based service. This is a journey of discovery! You may be familiar with self-discovery. This is the same thing, but for your brand. Though, if you would like a certain faith implemented into your brand, we can help you with that, too! We are spiritual in nature with the owner being a shamanistic healer, though our services are not based on any religions, faiths, or spiritual practices (unless requested). We are open to helping you implement any beliefs or non-beliefs if that is your business' destiny.

Analysis Of Your Brand Helps Discover Its Inner Spirit

Is your brand really doing all it can for you? Is it representing the values and ideals you want it to? What message is it sending? Is it one you agree with? Are you connected with your audience and staff? For a small fee, we can analyze your brand (this includes your website, social media accounts, and more). Brand refers to your product, book, you (if you are an artist, author, actor, etc), or anything else that needs branding. The analysis will be personalized based on your brand's needs.

Your Brand Needs A Customized All-Inclusive Community Building & Engagement Plan

Once one of our Brand Healing Specialists (aka Brand Shamans) has done an analysis, we can outline what we feel will work best for you based on that research. This step is FREE and is where you will gain your FREE insight that is needed in order for us to take action. Actions may include things like email discussions on what your brand means to you, interactions via social media and/or your online community, content marketing that matches your brand, and more! This custom brand healing plan can help you find your brand's inner spirit and begin the healing process on your company's life path.

Why You Need To Take Action!

Once you have your analysis, it's in your hands to take action by having us kick your brand or community's spirituality (voice) into high gear. If there's not enough interaction going on around your community or brand, it's not connected properly. Let the Brand Shamans work together as a team with you and your audience to find your brand's inner spirit and strengths.

Watch Your Brand Or Community's Spirituality & Positive Interactions Improve!

When the connection has been found, watch how your brand or community's spirituality and positive interactions improve! Many companies and communities forget the connection part when it comes to engaging with their audience and members. We help you bring everything and everyone together to find a common ground and purpose surrounding your community or brand. Once this happens, the rest falls into place quickly.

Take Action Now! Get A Head Start On Your Brand's Healing Process Today!