One of the most influential business books I have ever read is The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber. At its core, the book asks a simple question: how did McDonald's become the most successful franchise in the world? The answer has everything to do with how you should build your online business.
The McDonald's Principle
Ray Kroc did not build McDonald's by making the best hamburgers in the world. He built it by creating systems so thorough that anyone could run a McDonald's location and deliver a consistent experience. Every detail is documented in their operations manual. How big the patties should be. What the buns should look like. Even where to place the pickles on the burger to prevent them from sliding into the customer's lap.
The result is remarkable consistency. I have eaten at McDonald's in Tokyo, Korea, Texas, and Tennessee. The experience is essentially the same everywhere. That consistency is not an accident. It is the product of obsessive systematization.
Why Systems Matter for Your Online Business
Most part-time entrepreneurs operate the opposite way. Everything lives in their head. They are the only person who knows how to publish a blog post, send the newsletter, update the website, or respond to customer emails. If they stop working, the business stops.
Building systems changes that equation in three powerful ways.
Systems let you outsource. If you have documented exactly how to research and write a blog post for your site, you can hand that document to a freelancer and get a predictable result. Without documentation, you spend more time explaining and fixing than you save by delegating. This is why most people say “it is faster to just do it myself.” They are right, but only because they have not built the system yet.
Systems let you sell. A business that depends entirely on you is not really a business. It is a job with extra steps. A business that runs on documented systems has real value because someone else can operate it. Online businesses typically sell for a multiple of their monthly revenue, and that multiple goes up significantly when the business does not depend on the owner.
Systems let you duplicate. Once you have built a successful system for one niche site, you can replicate it in another niche. The specific content changes but the process stays the same. This is how people build portfolios of successful online properties.
How to Start Systematizing Today
You do not need to document everything at once. Start with the task you do most frequently. For most online business owners, that is content creation and publishing.
Record yourself doing the task. Use a screen recording tool and narrate what you are doing as you do it. This gives you a rough draft of your procedure.
Write it down step by step. Turn that recording into a written procedure with numbered steps. Include screenshots where helpful.
Have someone else follow the procedure. This is the real test. If someone can follow your document and produce an acceptable result without asking you questions, your system works. If they get stuck, improve the documentation.
Iterate and improve. Your first version will not be perfect. That is fine. Update it as you learn what works and what needs more detail.
The Long Game
Building systems is not glamorous work. It is not as exciting as launching a new product or seeing a traffic spike. But it is the work that transforms a side hustle into a real business. Ray Kroc understood that the system is the product, not the hamburger. Apply that same thinking to your online business, and you will build something that can grow far beyond what you could accomplish alone.
Mark, I agree with Kent. Good stuff, indeed!
Another benefit to systematizing your Internet business is that if your computer were to go down for an extended period of time or you were out ill for a while or some other unexpected problem occurred, someone could come along and know exactly what to do to run your business.
Mark,
Another great post, thanks.
You are right, the faster I can create a system, the faster I can delegate everything I do to employees. After months of trying to do it all myself (and not getting very far), I’m ready to outsource.
Thanks again for not trying to sell us Frank’s list building system.
Awesome post and great points, Mark! And nice walk down memory lane with those Big Mac ingredients! LOL
I have been working on simplifying my business, first off, to help myself. Also, like you mention, I’d like to teach others to do what I do. People have been bugging me for years to write an ebook or a course about the children’s mail business. And the other benefit would be getting my kids to help me run things, as well. Or maybe even an assistant that’s not related. 😉
Every 8 minutes? Still today? Wow!!
Good stuff Mark. I like the way you and Josh Spaulding operate real businesses. Not to name drop, but I’m blown away by the systems Jason Fladliem has set up – and no I don’t promote his products. I think he’s the next Russell Brunson. You just get fired up watching those guys work systems.
I don’t really know him — but thanks for the tip. I will check him out.
Regards,
Mark
Hey Mark!
Good old E-Myth! I have a copy that is probably over 10yrs old. I also have the VHS of his “Small Business Success 7 point plan for growing your business. I would love to share ideas about how to grow an internet marketing business the good old fashioned way. Drop me a line!
Steve
Ray Kroc had a great idea – he should have called it “Mess Control”
Hey Mark,
Even though I really dislike McDonalds on many many fronts there is no denying that from a business model standpoint they have truely have done something remarkable.
I never want a fully turnkey business as I like myself to shine through, although I am looking to automate many parts of my business and I enjoyed the analogies in this post.
Hello Mark
I haven’t made a dollar online as yet, mainly because I keep looking but not taking action.
Getting bombarded daily with offers eg List Control and many others.
Information overload, what is real and works?
Is there a system for marketing online that like Mcdonalds once you have taken the actions within that system will achieve the results promised.
Any help with working out the direction I should take would be much appreciated.
Howdy Mark!
So where exactly do I put that darn pickle? 🙂
Outsourcing sounds great! And outsourcing, I know, provides much-needed employment for many skilled Filipinos. I sincerely appreciate your suggestions on outsourcing.
Jaime
I too am so glad your not promoting Frank Kern it looks like every affiliate marketer and his mother are falling over themselves to promote it and offering mountains of bonuses to buy through them, thank goodness we have you and Josh to tell us how it really is, keep up the good work and a nice article about Macdonalds
Mark great tips. I have been using outsourcing for a few tasks and it has been a big help freeing up my time to focus on more “money” tasks.
BTW.. Glad to see you dumped that side scrolling pop up 🙂
A good how to article about branding your Website http://newsletters.loungelizard.com/apr2009_libation/
Its a good example which you have given that business of McDonalds.Yes the McDonalds business is completely systemized and we should try to build a internet business like McDonalds.With systematic business we can grow it easily without spending more time.