Do you have a personal computer, an internet connection, and a worthwhile dream of trying to make money online?
Then what are you waiting for? Gone are the days when you would need hundreds of dollars to start a business. Now, a computer and an internet connection are just what you need.
It is incredible how the internet, better still, technology,, has helped shape the world. You can now become wealthy or at least financially free at a very young age, compared to older times when most people made their fortunes after stepping into their 40s.
Many people fear starting an online business because it might crash someday, and it is often said that whatever the mind can conceive can be achieved. It would be best to forget why it won’t work and think about why it could.
Some are already making money, while some are still skeptical about the whole idea of online business.
But really, there is absolutely nothing to worry about – an online business is the most straightforward business you can ever run, and be sure of minimizing risk. However, there is no business without ANY risk.
Why Starting Your Own Business Online Is A Smart Move
If you happen to be among the people who are doubtful about the idea of online business, there are several reasons why you should choose online over the traditional bricks-and-mortar format.
1. Easy and cheap to start
Regardless of what type of business you have in mind, one of the most important things to consider first is how much it would cost to start your dream business.
To start an online business, you only need a little cash to set up the website and host it online. As long as you know what you want to do, you are ready to go with just a few dollars.
Even though the costs of starting an online business are minimal compared to starting a brick-and-mortar company, you should still do your research beforehand and calculate your expenses.
In fact, according to the Business portal of the Queensland government, not doing so is one of the fundamental reasons for start-up failure.
2. Easy to achieve exponential growth
Isn’t’ one of the goals of starting a business to maximize profit and minimize loss?
If that remains the same, one of the reasons you should consider an online business is to think of how fast and easy it can grow.
3. Open to a large group of people
An online business provides all the essential tools to improve your product sales while keeping it running smoothly at a low cost and reducing loss to the bare minimum.
The internet is there to help display your products and services to over 3.2 billion customers around the globe – that is huge.
It also can help integrate your website with social media and gives access to the most sophisticated and user-friendly marketing platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and so many others on the internet.
4. Gives time to do things while still growing your business
Unlike the traditional offline business, an online business gives you time to attend to other issues of pressing needs while you still grow your dollars online. It provides much greater flexibility.
I travel pretty often, and when I do, it’s’ so damn impressive because I am still making money!
While others have to take a leave from their jobs or temporarily close their brick-and-mortar operation to go for a trip, my online business gives me the freedom and flexibility to take it wherever I go.
5. Makes your business available round the clock
The internet is always up and running, even when you are asleep. Once you have launched your website, only a little additional time is required to maintain it to increase efficiency and automation.
Essentially, you are bound to be making money 24/7 instead of having a conventional business that only operates a limited amount of time during the day.
Is Starting An Online Business Feasible For Everybody?
Generally, yes, it is attainable. Putting up your own business online is much easier than you might think.
Here, you’ll get to work at your own pace, space, and time – unlike the bricks and mortar workplace, where you are limited to work to a specified schedule, confined space, and under interaction with less motivated and ambitious colleagues.
So why subject yourself to unnecessary stress when you can start making up to $2,500 or more in a month in the comfort of your own home?
The good news is that you don’t necessarily have to be a tech guru to start. With a budget of as low as $10 in a month, you will be able to get the ball rolling.
There are tons of business opportunities out there on the internet, but the unfortunate thing is that not everyone can see them.
What Kind Of Online Business Should You Start?
Before starting an online business, you should perhaps find something that you are passionate about or interested in and can turn into cash. What is more pleasurable than getting paid for what you love doing?
Another thing to note is that when circumstances become challenging, passion is what keeps you going. As an aspiring online entrepreneur, you may need to consider the following ideas:
1. Professional Freelancing
If you have excellent skills in graphic design, search engine optimization, website design, résumé/cover letter writing, and article writing and don’t have a website of your own, and you can get started offering these services to people who are ready to buy.
And you can do that without even spending a dime on getting started!
Sign up for some powerful freelancing platforms, and you can start making money in a few hours. Freelancing on platforms like Elance, Upwork, or Fiverr can be lucrative and even replace a regular job.
Many people make a total time income or even six figures by working on Fiverr.
Most people believe that Fiverr is not a lucrative platform because most services are sold at just $5. However, the truth is that it offers you tons of opportunities to be a successful freelancer. Once you get the ball rolling and establish a customer base, it’s’ not hard to start getting paid much more than that for each completed order, with sums possibly going up to $100-$500 per completed order.
2. Specialized Retailing
You will already be pretty familiar with websites where you can go to do your shopping. You have probably tried to purchase from Amazon or even from other websites such as eBay and Alibaba, among many others, at one point or another.
These companies are online, and from there, their owners make enough money every second of every day. You, too, can join the league of online entrepreneurs and start your e-commerce store.
Amazon, eBay, and Shopify are familiar roads for aspiring internet entrepreneurs, and the potential upside goes over 6, 7, and 8 figures in income.
3. Blog Publishing
Blogging is one of the easiest and fastest growing online businesses around. You can get started quickly with a few bucks for hosting and a domain name. There are dozens of free themes available for your website, so you don’t have to hire a web designer. What’s more, WordPress, the leading blog content management system, is free and available to anyone.
If you are not that good with technology, you don’t have to worry because there are tons of tutorials on YouTube to get you started. Most people can make money blogging. Many bloggers out there don’t need to look for any other job elsewhere – they make good money from their blogs.
Of course, you need to be knowledgeable and unique regarding what you blog about if you want to succeed in doing so.
If you are serious about it, blogging can be as lucrative as any other online business. For instance, there have been case studies of bloggers making over $100,000 a month from their websites, a sum most people don’t’ earn from their regular jobs in an entire year.
4. Website Design
Many other companies are out there looking to improve their websites. If you are good at the art of web design, you are sure to be able to rake in some serious money.
If you are not already good at it, learning is easier than you think, as there are tons of free tutorials on Google and YouTube. Everything you need to know is available at the reach of your fingertips.
Practical steps To Starting Your Own Online Business
1. Clearly Define What Products/ Services You Are Going To Sell
The truth is, you are not the only entrepreneur offering that product or service.
To convince your potential customers to choose your products or services over the ones offered by others, you must possess essential knowledge about your product or service, understand the business environment and know who your competitors are.
You don’t have to know everything from the get-go, but you have to have a plan at least regarding how you will get started.
2. Set Up A Professional and Functional Website
Once you have clearly defined your products and services, the next step is to buy a domain and make it come alive.
When choosing a name for your website (which should carry the business’s name), you must go for something likely to catch the public’s attention – make it short, creative and straightforward.
It is creating a website to allow a lot of people across the globe to access your work. It is one thing to create a website. However, keeping it alive, relevant, and exciting is another thing.
Endeavor to generate as much traffic as possible on your site, increasing your chances of making good sales.
3. Know Your Target Audience
Before getting to know your potential clients, first, you need to know that not everyone needs your products and services.
Getting the products and services across to an interested audience is the driving force behind every business. When people get the goods and services they want from you, they will be more likely to return for more. They might even bring their family and friends along. Hence, they become your ideal and loyal clients.
When you know your target audience, you can solve the problems of who to sell to, how to get them interested and how to get customers to keep coming back.
4. Identify And Focus On ONE Social Media Platform
In the previous point, it was mentioned that getting your goods and services to an interested audience goes a long way in the success of your business.
Directing your objectives towards where your target audience hangs out on social media is imperative. For instance, if your potential clients fall within the age groups of 18 – 29, you might want to consider opening an account for your business on Snapchat and Instagram.
LinkedIn might be the right platform to focus on if you are interested in career-oriented professionals. To make your products and services known to your family members and friends, Facebook may be the best option.
Other valuable platforms to market your business include Google+, YouTube, and Pinterest.
What matters is that you focus on the one that can give you the biggest bang for your buck. Most people spread themselves too thin trying to grow all their social media platforms simultaneously. Ultimately, they don’t produce any of them and lose valuable time they could have invested elsewhere.
A Last Word Of Inspiration
The likes of Mark Zuckerberg and Steve Jobs all started from somewhere.
Remember that eBay, Amazon, and Alibaba, among others, all started from a single room or a garage. Eventually, they ended up being internet giants whose owners are billionaires.
Hopefully, this will emphasize no limit to how much you can make with an online business. All you have to do now is a start, even if that means starting your online business from your kitchen or dorm room.
