THE 7 Deadly Digital Delusions Preventing You From Building Your Online Empire PDF eBook

PREVENTING YOU FROM BUILDING YOUR ONLINE EMPIRE

ByDoyle Buehler

THE 7 DEADLY DIGITAL DELUSIONSPreventing You From Building Your Online Empire

First published in Australia in 2014

[email protected]

© Doyle Robert Buehler 2014All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author or publisher.

National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry

Author: Buehler, Doyle Robert, 1969-

Title: The 7 Deadly Digital Delusions Preventing Your From Building Your

Online Empire

ISBN: 978-0-9874990-4-2 (Paperback – The 7 Deadly Digital Delusions)

978-0-9874990-5-9 (PDF -The 7 Deadly Digital Delusions)

978-0-9874990-6-6 (ePub The 7 Deadly Digital Delusions)

978-0-9874990-7-3 (mobi The 7 Deadly Digital Delusions)

Subjects: Buehler, Doyle

Internet Marketing, Social Media, Web sites – Design,

Content Marketing, Business Strategy

Dewey #: 658.872

Preventing You From Building Your Online Empire

IntroductionThe recent times have been a huge adventure. I’ve been trying to

understand exactly what is happening in the “Online” Industry. Why

does success online seem so far and few? Where is the so-called

“promised-land” of fame and fortune online. What was actually

happening to Entrepreneurs online?

I found that there were a lot of spinning wheels, with

not a lot of traction or results happening

for most businesses. Everything was

inconsistent to what the “big boys”, in

the big media agencies were saying.

This got me to thinking that perhaps

7 DEADLYTHE

DIGITAL DELUSIONS

7 Deadly Digital Delusions

we didn’t even realise that there was a problem, or that there may

have been a problem, but all that you need to do was “keep going

in the same direction” or just throw more money at it. It seemed

like a strategy that was doomed to fail from the start.

This wasn’t working – businesses were still struggling to get sales,

leads, engagement. It wasn’t a pretty picture at all. The problem

was that the businesses could not believe nor understand why

things were not working properly, or why they weren’t working as

well as they were told.

The only thing that the “big boys” would do, is spend more and

more on advertising – something that I knew (and know) that a

smaller business just could not do. This would not work for the rest

of us.

2 www.thedigitaldelusion.com


We needed to be smarter than just throwing more cash at it.

I found that many businesses did not actually realise what pieces

were missing, and how critical it was to understand what they

needed to do, and how. And, most importantly, how an ad agency

was designed just to make profits off of the client, without any

substantial outputs.

It really was about mass panic, confusion….

What I saw was that many entrepreneurs were feeling

the same things. They were not getting the traction

that they needed, to create a working

business. Their time was being wasted

into “nothingness”, and “something”

was not working. These were all part

of what now is known as The Digital

7 Deadly Digital DelusionsDelusions. We were being mislead and misinformed.

They were really feeling STUCK.

There is good news is that there is a “Diagnosis”. You are not going

“mad” either, as everyone else is doing it as well.

But then again, the unfortunate aspect is that many businesses

simply don’t know what they don’t know. This is where this book

will help.

I’m not here to make it complex, or to tell you that I have the

one and only magic pill. I’m going to tell you that by better

understanding the problem, you will be able to overcome these

Digital Delusions. I’m going to tell you that you can do this, but you

need the right tools to get the job done.

You need a framework that is complete and robust, that works

under all conditions.

And this us where we will go.

Doyle Buehler



Table of Contents The 7 Deadly Digital Delusions#1: Guru-speak and buzz words gets results 14

#2: Social Media and Facebook are strategies 18

#3: Online works in isolation 22

#4: Advertising is dead and ineffective online 26

#5: I don’t need a “sales funnel” for ROI. Sales will come in time. 30

#6: Online is “easy”. Just write about a good story. 34

#7: Build it and they will come 38


What Exactly is Happening to Your Online Business?Many Business Leaders and Entrepreneurs experience a wide

range of feelings and emotions when trying to grow their business

online. It is what everyone faces, not just yourself.

Circle the one that you feel is the most important one.



While most businesses make a successful move online, there are a number of core mistakes most businesses make when working online:

1. Not knowing what social channels to use and when. Not

understanding how to use social media and the online market

space.

2. Forgetting to follow a specific process for moving

online, or developing an online presence and

influence.

3. Thinking that their audience online

actually cares about who they are

7 Mistakes That Most Businesses Make Online


or what they do, and will quickly engage and respond to what

they have to say.

4. Not having a proper step-by-step plan to telling people about

themselves and their company online.

5. Not knowing what tools are easily available to make the process

substantially easier.

6. Thinking that everyone already knows about their company and

that their information is relevant.

7. Being reactive and unable to provide a clear focus, strategy and

direction to building their online influence.

Which ‘Mistake’ is most relevant to you?



There is a lot to consider, when building a profitable business online.

Confusion starts from the fact there are so many different elements of online, that you need to address. How can you manage everything?


What is the Essence of your business online?

Are You Relevant?

Do You Exist?

Too Vague

“Expert” Level Not Understood Too Complex

NoDirection

Knowledge Strategy

Awareness & Relevance

Your OnlineEmpire Sweet

Spot

Business Leaders know that they need a combination of the 3 Digital Elements that are the foundation of a complete and

effective digital strategy.



What Every Business Leader Needs To Know:

How do I leverage my business effectively to overcome the clutter of online information, the overwhelming

technology, and the social media hype, so that I can increase sales, promote loyalty and build a successful online presence

with my business?

What are you able to do to grow

your business online?

How exactly do you leverage

what you have?


What exactly is The Digital Delusion?

The over-riding belief that what you are doing is correct and working, and that if you just continue a little bit longer…

The base of these problems is from the specific patterns of

behaviours and knowledge that are incongruent with what is

actually going on.

The Digital Delusions highlight these challenges, attitudes,

behaviours, pains and problems that we are all encountering as we

try to grow our business online.

How will you actually make a change,

and move from being irrelevant, to the

Leader in your industry?


These are...


7 DEADLYTHE

DIGITAL DELUSIONS

1#



The Reality:

You would be surprised about how much you know that actually

affects what you do and can do online. Online strategies come

down to the essence of your business, which can be conveyed

better by the business leader. It needs to be a close

part of what you do, everyday, and needs to be

integrated into everything that you do.

There is also a significant amount of

misinformation that is being passed

around, at any particular time.

Guru-speak and buzz words gets results


Overcoming The Delusion:

Every business leader’s business is different. While there are

principles of online work that are similar in structure, your business

is unique, and the approach that you need to take in developing

a strategy is quite unique. You need to be able to combine the

essence of your business with an online methodology that takes

into account your business. Simply telling someone what to do

is really only half the solution. You wouldn’t necessarily buy half a

car, or buy a house without opening the door and looking into it.

While “gurus” and “experts” are important to helping you define the

basic online activity side of your strategy, understanding how your

business runs is something that can only happen with a proper

understanding of it. This is how you can develop a strategy that

works specifically with your business.



Become the expert. Know your

own business first.

What you can do, NOW:

• Become the expert in your own business

• Develop your own unique strategy that works for your

business

• Cut out the clutter – reduce the number of feeds/emails that

you subscribe to. Go on a digital detox to focus on your own

business


7 DEADLYTHE

DIGITAL DELUSIONS

2#



Social Media and Facebook are strategies

The Reality:

Social media is a tool. Facebook is a tool. You need to be able to

organise yourself appropriately, and use the tools and resources at

your disposal. Everything needs to be combined together,

with all of the other aspects of an online presence.


Think of social media as being part of

your online business toolkit. You need


a lot of different tools to actually build a house, correct? Online is

no different. You need to know what tool to use and when. You

don’t use a hammer for cutting boards to size, so likewise you

should not use one tool to build your entire online business. There

are so many different tools available, that you need to be able to

understand which tools best fit with your business. Are you a B2B

or a B2C? Do you deal with “fun” type of content, or do you work

better with factual, engineering based information.



Pick the correct tools for your own toolbox.


• Research what channels fit best for your audience

• Profile your perfect customer and action it

• Take a look at what other social channels will work best with

your business


7 DEADLYTHE

DIGITAL DELUSIONS

3#



Online works in isolation

The Reality:

You need to combine all of the different online avenues and

channels for you, together, such as advertising and social media

and SEO. If you have an existing physical location, you also need

to consider how to transition customers from your

physical store or office locations, towards your

online activities.


Overcoming The

Delusion:

All of the components of good

online best practices need to

be utilised, together. Regardless

of what type of business you are

in, you need to have a sound strategy,

a clear content plan, SEO that works, a sales or action funnel,

social media, video, photographs, advertising. When planning and

implementing, ensure that you follow a specific framework that

allows you to capture all of the various steps and activities along

the way.



Integrate all of your online elements to

dominate your digital domain.


• Define all of the online elements of that you are currently

using. Ensure that they are all working together.

• Identify what elements of the online industry wheel you are

missing.

• Add the gaps to your strategy, and create a plan to

implement them all, together.


7 DEADLYTHE

DIGITAL DELUSIONS

4#



Advertising is dead and ineffective online

The Reality:

Advertising is a sound strategy for creating brand awareness as

well as sales/leads. Without advertising of some form, whether it

is through Google adwords, mobile advertising, or

social network ads/posts, it is a very effective

way to increase your audience and sales.

Online advertising needs to be done

with specific criteria, however, and

needs to be guided and managed


properly, or it can definitely be quite pointless and expensive.

Most small businesses need to allocate an appropriate amount

to advertising to their business activities. That being said, not all

forms of advertising are “equal”, especially from the perspective of

aligning with your own business strategy.


Today you can develop and use highly targeted campaigns to

your audience. Whether they are on Facebook or Linkedin, or just

searching the web, you can usually find your audience. Develop

campaigns that are highly focussed on your target market. Utilise

additional incentives, such as contests and sweepstakes. You

need to be smart however, and create a campaign that truly

matches what you want your customers/audience to connect with.

Test your campaigns and then adjust them as needed. There are also



Advertise only with a clear structure,

purpose and target audience.


• What are your brand goals – traffic, sales or branding? Build

out your strategy based on these specific criteria.

• Identify the process that visitors will go through, when they

click on an ad. Will they easily get to where you want them to

go? Are you ready for the follow-up?

• Identify all of the specific details and habits of your perfect

customer, so you can target them specifically


7 DEADLYTHE

DIGITAL DELUSIONS

5#



I don’t need a “sales funnel” for ROI. Sales will come in time.

The Reality:

Sales funnels do not necessarily imply only for a specific dollar

value or “sales”. A sales funnel is necessary in order to guide your

audience to a conclusion or specific “action”. This action can be as

simple as a download of an ebook, or the completion

of a form, but something needs to be in place.

Sales cycles can be short or long, and

it is critical that you capture your

audience all throughout your specific

sales or activity cycle.



If you operate a commerce based site, then obviously the final

action is a purchase. If you are running something less tangible,

you also still need to consider how to capture your audience. Even

if your final action is just to inform, your site needs to be able to

“capture” this step, with such things as a download, a gift, an

email, entry into a contest, or something similar. When you are

formulating your strategy, ensure that you understand this process

and are able to add “goals” along the way.


• Set up your analytics package to include specific goals and

other actions.



Guide your customer along their adventure

with you, to create engagement.

• Always ensure that there is some takeaway with your

audience, at some point in the sales cycle.

• Utilise links towards your ultimate goal, throughout all sales

cycles, all channels, and all of your online and offline activities.


7 DEADLYTHE

DIGITAL DELUSIONS

6#



Online is “easy”. Just write about a good story.

The Reality:

Online takes significant work and dedication, yet often times

businesses do not apply all of the necessary resources that could

be used to make it work. Your story is important, but it also is the

implementation that makes the biggest difference. It

also takes work and it takes resources that you

need to either do it yourself, or assign

the activities. It takes commitment as

the business leader



While you do need to tell your story, you also actually need to “do

it”. Many businesses talk about blogging, yet never actually do it.

You need to have a clear schedule that allows you to prioritise all

of your content ideas and topics. Then you need to get down to

business and actually do it. Consider activities such as blogging as

core to your business - if you don’t do it, your business will fail. It is

as important as having sales people on the floor of your traditional

store. You also need to ensure that you complement all of your

online activity together, including press releases, cross promoting

your feeds, all with the ultimate goal of building your community

online. Also consider the use of press releases - not just to get

your story out there, but also to allow others to find and connect

with you.



Invest the time to become relevant

to your audience.


• Promote yourself and your business on all of your channels.

Don’t be afraid!

• Create relevance and consistency, by writing and talking about

the important things about you and your business. Create a

schedule that you stick to, for posts, blogs, videos, sharing,

etc.

• Invest 25% of your time into building and advancing your

online footprint – your entire digital domain.


7 DEADLYTHE

DIGITAL DELUSIONS

7#



Customers will always be able to find me. Or, “Build it and they will come”The Reality:

Instant traffic generators do not exist. While you can just “run some

ads” to build traffic, you also have to have a very sound foundation

to be able to manage and actually utilise the online

advertising that you do use. Further, while Google

and the other search engines will eventually

find you, this will take some time and

some effort on your part. Similar to

online being “easy”, there is significant


amount of involvement and engagement that must happen for

you to build your audience and community. Building a website or

putting together a Facebook fanpage will not generate traffic into

your sales funnel unless you take an active role in it.


When you are planning, building and executing your website,

ensure that you build into your framework a follow-on plan that

allows you to engage on all levels. You also need to constantly

supply your website and all of your social channels with

progressive, engaging, interactive content on all levels. Look at

your sales funnel and find out where the attraction points are - then

isolate these with your specific content and channel strategies.

Consider how you look at SEO from a holistic perspective - you do

need to understand the basics of what is important here, and how

these will actually be able to help your site.



Build, utilise and implement a sound

framework that is about your business.


• Build out your digital domain with webinars, videos, visuals,

seminars, free “gifts”, free downloads.

• Create excitement with product launches, new branding,

weekly events and activities.

• Interact with your entire audience, not just a select few.


Online Success Criteria

I have a detailed strategy that covers all business possibilities

I know what I am going to talk about online, and when I am going to say it.

I always have an engaged audience online

I am always relevant with my audience

My customers are always loyal to my business & my offers

I have a consistent and continual source of quality leads and sales from my audience

My audience and prospects can easily find me online, and before my competitors

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Finding Your Baseline

Subtotal

Where do you stand with your business?Take The Online Success Criteria Quiz



What are you going to do, to move your business to the leader in your industry?

We can all use a little bit of help now and again. What is your score? What can you do to improve? What do you need to do next?

The Awesome Scale0 21

147

DELUSIONAL AWESOME

How Awesome are you and your business? Are you still a bit “delusional”?


How CAN I Make Online Work for My Business?How do I become the Master of My Digital Domain, the Industry Leader, with my business?

1. Understand the Digital Delusions so that you can overcome them. Follow the action plans listed for each Delusion.

2. Utilise a clear framework or methodology that actually is systematic and allows you to decipher things in a clear, step by step manner.

Build your business around a sound framework

1

23 4 5

67

Discovery & Strategy

ContentPlanning

& Creation

Website Alignment

Online Lead Generation

& Sales Funnel

Advertising, Analytics

& Advanced Dashboards

Social & Sharing

Video Content and

Visuals

7 Deadly DigitalDelusions

3 Key Digital Elements

7 Day Online Empire Framework

The Leader in Your Industry

DAY

DAY

DAY DAYDAY

DAY

DAY



The Digital Delusion Manifesto

No one knows my business better than myself. I refuse to be

mislead by the industry. I am taking charge of my own business,

in my own industry. I will concentrate on what is important, and

disregard the misinformation that is prevalent.

I will become the leader in my industry. I will surpass my

competitors.

I will no longer be deluded by what others say and cause me

to think. I will become the master of my own digital

domain.

I will build my online empire.

I will take control of my own business online.


What to do Next? How to Become Awesome Online with Your Business.

Join “The Digital Delusion” Full Book Launch

www.digitaldelusion.info

Sign-up for the next Digital Delusion Free Webinars

www.TheDigitalDelusion.com/webinars

Send an email to receive a free paperback copy of the full book - The Digital Delusion

[email protected]

1

2

3



What is The Digital Delusion?

The Digital Delusion is an “anti” Agency. It is a way of doing business.

It is a new way of thinking and implementing for businesses wanting

to become Leaders in their industry. We are creating a new awareness

and understanding of what is needed to succeed online. It is about

mastering the digital domain and creating clarity and confidence

online for your business. It is about helping Entrepreneurs

and Business Leaders cut through the clutter

and confusion of being online, to become

remarkable. It is about time.

THE DIGITALDELUSIONMAXIMISE ONLINE FOR ENTREPRENEURS

www.TheDigitalDelusion.com


About the WriterDoyle Buehler (MBA), is the Chief Digital Delusion Destroyer. He is dedicated to getting rid of the clutter and complexity online, to get to the clarity. He is an entrepreneur, writer, speaker and business consultant. From several successful start-ups and franchise businesses, to helping other companies succeed with their ideas and strategies, he has spent over 10 years in the business world making things happen – both online and off. He is a Leading innovator in the online, ecommerce worlds. He’s helped businesses grow and achieve their goals through harnessing their entrepreneurial spirit.

1 300 681 911

[email protected]

facebook.com/TheDigitalDelusion

linkedin.com/in/doylebuehler

Skype: doyle_buehler

Awards & Accolades

KEY PERSON OF

KPI AwardsSydney 2013

Product Award


www.digitaldelusion.info

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My confusion has largely gone and I can now see through the clutter and understand the importance of clearly defining my content/brand and then being able, selectively, to continue with my audience. Pat Brown

Love the intimate and

relaxed setting. Doyle speaks

at a very personal level without

using jargon, making it so

easy to understand and to get

involved with activities.

Lin Wee, Melbourne

Doyle’s insight into a structured approach, has

helped us re-evaluate our position and direction in a very

positive way. Ed MackayDirector of Sugar Free Solutions Pty Ltd

Documents

THE 7 Deadly Digital Delusions Preventing You From Building Your Online Empire PDF eBook