Online Business Checklist – How To Build An Automated & Profitable Sales Machine

Everyone seems to be looking for the perfect online business checklist that will give them the easy steps to autopilot money-making right away online. Read below and you will get right steps on building a hands-free (or as hands free as it gets) online business.

To really understand hands free, let start with some perspective...

This is a true story. Merv Grazinski from Oklahoma City bought a spankin' brand new Winnebago motor home, and the first time driving it (on the way home from the sales lot, to be precise) on the freeway, he set the cruise control for freeway speed and then...went into the back to make coffee!

Yep, he crashed.

What's the moral to this story? Well, we’ve all been told we should set up an autopilot money-making system with hands-free lead magnets blah blah. But these "systems" work no better than auto drive (cruise control) on a Winnebago.

If you try to do auto-pilot without setting up the right systems you will waste time and money - then crash.

If you want to get it done right the first time, then you’re going to want to walk your way through this checklist for building a hands-free, profitable sales machine using an autoresponder.

Choose a Niche

There are two keys to this step:

Choose something profitable. Because if it’s not profitable, then you don’t even need to bother walking through the rest of this checklist.
Choose something evergreen. That way, you can do all the work upfront… and profit from it for a long time to come.

To figure out what’s evergreen and profitable, take these steps:

Search for the niche in Google to see if there are a lot of marketers targeting the niche (which is a good sign).
Look for evidence that marketers are regularly placing paid ads all around the web in your niche as well as in offline publications.
Check if there are offline venues catering to your niche (stores, magazines, etc.).
Use Google Trends to see if the niche has enduring popularity.
Search marketplaces like Amazon to see if there are a lot of products selling well to the niche (a very good sign).

In other words, look for audiences, people buying products, and marketers advertising to this niche. If you see all those things, then the niche is likely to be profitable.

Find Out What Your Audience Wants

Once you find a profitable, evergreen niche, then you need to figure out what they want. To do this, find out what they’re already buying on your competitor’s sites and on marketplaces. If they’re already buying a particular sort of product today, they’re likely to buy it next week too.

Here’s what you’re looking for:

Bestsellers.
Multiple similar (competing) products.

Both of these are evidence that a product is in demand.

TIP: Pay particular attention to evergreen products, as you want to set up an autopilot machine that works for you over the long term.

Create an Offer

Now that you know what your audience is buying, you need to figure out what you’re going to sell to them.

You have two options:

Sell an affiliate product. If you go this route, do your market research to pick something that’s already selling well.
Create your own digital product. Create something that’s similar yet better to the offers that are already selling well in your niche.

Get an Autoresponder

Did you know that people who buy products marketed through email spend 138% more than people that do not receive email offers?

And that 72% of consumers say that email is their favored conduit of communication with companies they do business with.

61% say they like to receive promotional emails weekly and 28% want them even more frequently.

55% of ALL companies generate more than 10 percent of sales from email.

If you want to learn more about how to "Start Making Money With Email Marketing" we have an awesome post here (opens in new tab)

Now you need to get a reputable, feature-rich email service provider so that you can set up an autoresponder and start cashing in!

We recommend a service like ConvertKit.

If you want to learn more about ConvertKit

Once you have your auto responder chosen you will want the must-have tools that will compel your subscribers to pay close attention to every email you send...

You can search all over the internet I you won't find a tool which provides a better a collection of high-converting elements to use in your emails than EmailDyno...

Here are 7 of the Email Dyno tools you could be using in your emails to boost opens and clicks right now.

1) Countdown Timers

2. Video Overlays

3. Personalized Images

4. Dynamic Surveys

5. Dynamic Ratings

6. Visual Progress Steps

7. Bulletproof Buttons

No coding required, all point and click simple to use and it works for any autoresponder 🙂

Bottom line: If you send out marketing emails, then this all-in-one software should be in your toolbox! Check it out here

Create a Lead Magnet

Your next step is to create an enticing lead magnet, which is the free product you’ll offer in exchange for your prospect’s email address.

Keep these tips in mind:

Offer something desirable. Once again, turn to your market research to find out what your audience wants.
Create something that directly leads to your offer. Think of your paid offer as the “next step” after the lead magnet. This could be a tool that helps people apply what they learned in the lead magnet, an information product that gives prospects the next step or more details on the topic.
Craft a good title. People will decide (in part) whether they want the lead magnet based on its title.
Design good cover graphics. Make a great first impression and build desirability for your product with good ecover graphics.
Create something to rock your prospect’s world. Everything from the content to the interior design of the product should be stellar and impressive. If people like what they see in your lead magnet, they’re going to be open to checking out your paid offer.
Offer a call to action. Your lead magnet should naturally lead to your paid offer – but you still need to end with a call to action, which is where you specifically tell people to click your link and check out the paid offer.

Design a Lead Page

Now that you know what sort of juicy carrot you’re going to dangle to get your prospects to join your list, your next step is to craft a persuasive lead page.

There are two parts to this page:

The sales copy. This needs to be benefit-driven, attention-getting copy that compels prospects to give up their email address in exchange for your irresistible lead magnet.
The actual design. It needs to look professional, otherwise your prospects are going to bounce off the page almost as soon as they arrive.

Set Up an Autoresponder Series

The next step is to set up an initial evergreen email series (with anywhere from three to five, seven or more emails)

These aim to do the following:

Builds a good relationship with your prospects. You do this by sharing good content and promoting high-quality offers. You want to show your prospects that you understand their problems, you know the best solution to their problems, and that they can trust you.
Establishes you as an expert. You do this by providing solid content with good solutions. This works especially well if you provide in-depth information and/or information that your prospects aren’t finding anywhere else.
Closes the sale of your paid offer. Your initial email series should all focus on the same problem so that you can pitch the same paid offer within each email. Prospects don’t buy the first time they’re exposed to an offer – especially if they don’t know, like and trust you yet – so an email series will build the trust while building their desire for your offer. Prospects don’t buy the first time they’re exposed to an offer – especially if they don’t know, like and trust you yet – so an email series will build the trust while building their desire for your offer.