Online colleges offering full online degrees have grown steadily in the last decade. But, what has propagated these phenomena? Why are online degrees becoming so popular? Recent data shows that while trends to change from time to time, some areas colleges remain popular with online students. These degree programs are in criminal justice, health care, information technology, and, business.

Let as examine why degrees in business have remained on the popularity list for so long. What sets them aside from other degree programs? As you can imagine the field of business is a competitive one, and to be successful one must be able to stand out from the crowd: You can do this by: advancing your education, getting a promotion, getting more professional experience; and becoming an expert in your particular niche.

A major advantage of online business degrees is that you can complete your training at various levels. These are associate degree (AS or AA) bachelor degree (BBA or BSc), doctorate degree (DBA), masters degree (MBA), Also, you can complete additional business certifications for example health care management, risk management, Six Sigma, and project management. Thus, the online degree option is a chance to advance your career and set yourself aside from your competitors.

The MBA has certainly made its mark as the industry standard for measuring success and accomplishment in business. This is more so for those who are in mid-level business management positions, and those who what to move beyond entry-level positions to more challenging tasks and responsibilities. The demographics show that many students enrolled in online MBA degree programs work and take class simultaneously.

An additional advantage of considering pursuing an online business administration degree is that there are multiple areas of focus to choose from including: accounting and finance, business leadership, human resource management, e-business, risk management, organizational management, project management, international business, marketing and sales, small business management, operations management, retail management, sport and entertainment management, and information technology management to mention a few areas of focus. This wide selection does make business administration stand out from other degree programs.

Online business degree programs apply student-centered instructional strategies to improve learning outcomes. These approaches include: enhanced instructor-to-student communication and student-to-student; customized approach to instruction that matches students’ learning styles and work schedules; easy access to learning tools and materials any time and place; and using authentic approaches to evaluation and assessment.

A selling point for online business management is their dedicated approach to flexibility in scheduling and teaching. Unlike in many brick-and-mortar colleges, completing a degree online assumes you do not have to be physically present to complete your course requirements, and attending a virtual classroom is ideal for those with busy family and professional schedules. However, do keep in mind that some courses may require asynchronous, synchronous, or a combination of both communication modes.

The United States Department of Education reports that 20% of college students elect business studies. As discussed, the many areas of focus in business studies are perfect for many professional areas such as finance and accounting, marketing and sales, and small business management. In fact, in the U.S. the most popular area of concentration is accounting, which in itself has various areas of concentration e.g. financial accounting and tax accounting.

Other areas in business with an increasing or steady demand are finance, and economics. In addition, employers are always seeking to hire graduates with marketing degrees. This makes sense given that the Internet created new way conducting business. The web acts as a platform for sales, advertising, business interaction, and business promotion. Related to this phenomena is e-commerce or e-business, another growing area in the business world.

The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that employment in advertising, marketing, sales, and promotions should see a 12% growth from 2006-2016. During that same period, accounting jobs are expected to grow by about 18% due to the expanding economic market and increasing regulatory reforms. While earnings vary by industry, education, and professional experience, some reported potential earnings are: $106,790 for sales managers, $97,170 for public relations managers, $96,000 for project management positions, $113,400 for marketing managers, and, and $137,000 for financial analysts.

Business professionals are work in virtually about any industry that you can think of including education, financial institutions, not-for-profit bodies, manufacturing, entertainment, and sports and entertainment among others. Each business and industry needs a range of skills from its employees making it important to make an informed decision on what you would like to focus on to succeed. Also, it is advisable to conduct detailed research on which program best suits your needs. Finally, it is important to really only consider online universities that are accredited and recognized.

If you are an online business owner or you are thinking about starting your own, it’s important that you read the following. Most online business owners or new online business owners typically make the same 5 mistakes. Knowing them could possibly not only save you time but also decide if you are going to be successful in your venture.

#1: Focus: There are so many online business owners out there and the one thing they have in common is they go from one opportunity to the next. They never start a company and see it through. Along the way, it looks like the grass is greener somewhere else so they make the jump only to do make this jump every few months. Once you decide to start your own online business, there is a few things you should do before you start. Research several different companies, look the following items. Support both from your sponsor and sales, marketing strategies, training, compensation plan, is it a lot of products to sell or just a select few and more. When you are comfortable with one company then get started and stay focus. You will struggle at 1st and there will a learning curve but use intelligent patience through your process. There is no get rich quick programs, don’t fall for it.

#2: Consistency: To me, being consistent is the most important part of building your business. This is the first item that goes away from beginner online business owner. Establishing your goals and a plan to achieve them and then follow-up with your plan. Start with small goals and build your business from there. If you are new to your business, planning to make $10,000 in your first month is highly unlikely but making your 1st sale would be a good start. Your plan should as precise as you can, accounting for time allocation, training, investment and more but do not vary from it at first. After your 1st month, re-evaluate your plan to see if you are on pace to achieve your goals and adjust your plan accordingly. This should be only small adjustment, not major turnaround unless you were getting nowhere. Evaluate your plan every month to assure your success is on course.

#3: Procrastinators: Usually, procrastinators are not very organized. They usually do not have a detailed plan as to what they are doing and when they are doing it. They will spend time reading e-mails, reading and posting on forums, spend time talking with friends, family or worst, people they don’t even know. If you are a procrastinator, you probably have not enjoyed a lot of success if any. Learn to plan your days, weeks and even months and do your to do list 1st then start what you use to do. You can plan an allotted time for e-mails, and forum posting but stick to that time you give yourself.

#4: Make the sale: Most online business owners make the biggest mistake here. When they have a potential customer, they focus on what they are selling. That is the most common mistake. Get to know your customer or lead. Find out what they really want and help them see how it would help them if they purchased your product or service. If you show an interest, they are more likely to purchase as if they are just treated like a customer at Wal Mart. Focus on your customers not your products.

#5: Follow-up: This is for the people that wonder why people quit on them. Follow-up is as important as any of the 1st four component we just discussed. I am sure you heard about buyers remorse. It is kind of like you are buying your 1st brand new car and you are all excited but when you starting thinking about the monthly payment for the next 5 years, it makes you think twice but in this case, you can’t return your car but your customers can return your products. After you made the sale, this is where your new customers find out who you truly are. If they know they can count on you when they need support or they know you will check on them from time to time, it makes your customers feel good about their purchase. Remember, we already discussed, focus on your people, not your products.

Following or not following these steps can decide how fast you become successful in your online business or have any success at all. Just keep in mind that in a recent survey taken, 97% of the people quit their online business because they most likely failed at 1 or more of the steps above. The good news is there is only 3% of the people that will make it in this industry, so your competition is very little. It is not like you are starting your own fast food restaurant and you are taking on Giant like Mcdonalds or Burger King. Avoid making the common mistakes, build your business and 6 months to a year from now, you will be able to fire your boss!