We have to get to know people. We have to understand what they are going through.

At the beginning of building a business online, I always thought there were these great tricks and hacks you could do to "make people buy from you" and never have to talk to real people or give your real name.

This I came to discover is the furthest thing from the truth.

Not only that, just having a good product or service isn't enough to get people to come to you.

You have to go out and create profitable opportunities every single day. You have to create situations where you - and your target customer are connected, talking with each other to learn what you don't know about them. This is the only way to get data to grow your business and sell effectively.

Too many people overcomplicate this process. It's as simple as just having a conversation and starting by getting comfortable having conversations.

We have to have these conversations without ulterior motives of people buying from us either. You might think, "That's impossible. I always want someone to buy from me."

What if you just talked with someone and had no desire for them to buy from you - for the sake of you growing in the skill of connecting with other people? It wouldn't be a waste of time. Why is this something you are avoiding?

That's a question to ask yourself. In your business, you're going to have to get better at your people skills and your ability to connect with other people.

We can't skip, bypass or hack our way with the latest greatest marketing system away from having a real connection with other people.

Online sales are about connecting with the people who need what you offer - demonstrating value, showing them that you are trustworthy - and leading them to buy what you are selling. That's it.

What's preventing you from connecting with people? I often hear people say, "Well, I just don't know the right way to do it and the right things to do. I have so many ideas but not sure which to do."

Doing something would be nice. Starting with one of those ideas, and even if they don't pan out how you want, being willing to trial - and error to connect with other people is part of the process.

Have you been avoiding having a connection with other humans? Have you been trying to figure out some way to sell online without having to talk to people?

If you don't have a clue whom you're selling to, and you're not connecting with people, you can't build a successful business because you'll always be shooting in the dark.

So intentionally seeking out and creating opportunities both for you to get comfortable talking with other people - and you connecting with potential buyers to lead them to buy from you will be vital for your business success.

There are many great ways to do this:

• Facebook Groups

• Email List

• Social Media Content

• Phone Calls

• Blogging

• Copywriting

Any way that you can connect with people to get to know them and learn what you don't currently know already will help your business.

Remember: you don't currently know everything there is to know about your target customer - and you never will! And that's by design. We are always on a journey of learning what we don't know about our target customers by connecting with them and getting feedback from those we're working with to understand what drives them.

When you learn this and get better at it, all of your efforts in marketing and reaching new people to have conversations with will improve!

But you have to be willing to have a real human-to-human connection. No longer can you hide behind your computer and hope sales come rushing in.

Get out there, talk with some people - comment back to people, connect inside other Facebook Groups, Youtube videos, comment threads, social media posts, and comment back with people to learn from them what you don't know.

Take a genuine interest in other people - people other than yourself - and what they are experiencing - to grow and discover what you need to build and develop your business.