What is Online Business

this time of isolation as the world is still reeling from COVID-19, is a great time to seriously look at What is Online Business and is it something we should consider doing ourselves?

The facts during this pandemic are, we are all either working from home or not working at all, either way, our lives have drastically changed in so many ways.

Think about it, because of one flu-like virus that they claim is less severe than the regular flu we are used to, everything we do is very different today than it was just a few short months ago.

Causing food shortages, changes in fuel prices, people having trouble paying their mortgage and rent. Without some kind of government assistance, most people would simply not survive this outbreak very well.

I have started ordering my groceries online, then just go and pick them up. This has eliminated the necessity of actually going inside a store. Sure I don’t get to pick the produce however that’s ok if it helps to prevent me from catching the virus.

I did not grow up with computers or the internet so you can trust me when I say I never thought I would buy groceries online.

My grandchildren are having video classes with their teachers and classmates online. I never saw that coming either and one of my sons just completed his studies for his Bachelors’ Degree online. Can you imagine that happening just last year, no we couldn’t off.

My daughter just bought a beautiful electric fireplace online. So many products and services and yet not one traditional store or school were stepped inside in the last 3 months.

To say the times are changing would be a vast understatement. The changes this pandemic has caused will be around for a long time to come.

As a global community, we need to evaluate if these past ways of doing everything is even necessary any longer.

Before COVID-19, there were already many stores closing because of online competition. Let’s think about what that is really saying.

To me, it is saying we should use our time at home to start setting up an online business and prepare for the future because it is here today.

After all this time of having everything we purchase either delivered or curbside pickup do we really think we will want to go back to crowded stores and long line-ups at checkouts? Before the pandemic, many stores were closing or adding online purchases to their way of shopping. This pandemic just enforced it by 100’s of times.

Online shopping is here to stay, local stores? Well, not so much, they are hurting in several ways.

Local stores have to pay huge land taxes to rent the spot or to the government as land tax. They also have to bring in products before selling them and if they don’t sell they have marked them down or get rid of them.

With online, you don’t have an inventory to worry about and with a blogging site, you don’t even need to worry about what people are buying which makes it even easier to make money online.

No, I believe traditional business is a thing of the past. Sure there will always be those that think they can make it work but the truth is people are using the local store to see it before going online to find a better deal.

So to prepare for the new future let’s take a look at the different types of online businesses we have to choose from.

 

Consulting

We each have certain things we are good at. Offering those services to others who are not as skilled in that area has been a lucrative business for years. Offering those services online makes economic sense.

The employees at most businesses have a general knowledge of the day-to-day operations but they don’t have specialized skills in any area. If you are an expert in a certain area it makes sense for that business to consult with the expert on how to improve their bottom line.

Some popular online consulting jobs are:

• social media management
• search engine optimization (SEO)
• paid search advertising (Google Adwords or Bing Ads).

We tend to be humble or shy about the things we are good at but the sad truth is that could be preventing you from establishing a great side business or even a full-time business in consulting.

It could be time to swallow your pride and put yourself and your talents out there for others to see. Who knows where it could lead.

 

Artistic Products

It seems artistic people tend to be quite shy. That is why it makes perfect sense for these people to offer their services online.

They could offer beautifully crafted items for the less crafty to purchase or they could offer lessons and teach people how to make their creation and also offer the supplies needed.

There are many types of artistic products that could be leveraged online:

• painting
• knitting
• crocheting
• quilting
• jewelry making
• woodworking
• metalworking
• pottery

The list could go on and on. I am sure this will get the creative juices flowing.

If you are crafty in any way why not leverage the internet and create a fun side business for yourself.

 

E-commerce Store

An e-commerce store can require a huge upfront investment. You would need a website, products, a warehouse and the ability to package and ship products.

A great alternative would be to partner with manufacturers who would be willing to drop ship your orders.

There are plenty of manufacturers willing to work with you in this way.

There are plenty of online courses available to help you get started if this is the type of business that interests you.

 

Freelancing

For some time the term “freelancer” has meant someone who didn’t have an actual day job and charged extremely high prices for their expertise. Today more and more people are making extra money by freelancing from home.

Popular freelancing jobs include:

• copywriting
• online marketing
• web design
• coding

There are websites such as “Fiverr” and “Upwork” that help freelancers and businesses connect all over the world.

The biggest advantage of freelancing is you get to choose how much or how little you work based on your available time. The available jobs range from a one time gig to consistent, repeat work on a weekly or monthly basis?

 

Flipping Domain Names

I remember when flipping houses was considered a great opportunity in the real estate game. Well, buying and selling domain names is the real estate of the internet.

Just like with actual homes, selling domain names can net some serious cash.

Back in 2010, the domain name “insurance.com” sold for $35.6M and was considered the most expensive domain name ever sold at that time.

Not every domain name will net that kind of profit.

The experts claim you should create a portfolio of domain names to increase your potential for sales and profits.

There are plenty of auction sites and forums that can offer tips and tricks.

This is a game that requires a little creative thinking and a lot of patience.

 

A Niche Based Website

These days we have all heard of Amazon and we are aware of how huge their reach is. Why not be an affiliate of theirs and earn profits whenever people from your website make an Amazon purchase.

With a niche website, you will focus on products that are specific to your niche. This allows you to easily have more than one website to capitalize on different niches.

This takes some upfront effort but can easily become a nice source of passive income once it is established.

I have found an amazing course that teaches everything you need to learn about niche based websites and they even offer it for free.

I highly recommend checking it out.

 

Develop an Online Course

Once you have discovered what you are good at why not create an online course.

You would then sell your course online. The benefit of an online course is that it is generally a high ticket item, meaning you charge a higher price for it.

Naturally, this requires a substantial investment of time to create an entire course but it could be well worth the efforts.

There are also plenty of online training courses to help you get started if this interests you.

 

Watch Out For Scams

There is one other topic I wish to discuss or warn you about before you go off looking for a business to get into.

Scams…

… yes, that’s right, there are more people online offering scams at huge prices only to deliver you the very basis and nothing more. Some even downright just take your money and you never hear from them again. Sure they get shut down in time maybe year or two but by then they would have stolen thousands from the public.

I wrote an earlier article that I would encourage you to read before searching online. It should help you a lot to recognize those nasty scams out there. It’s called “How To Know A Scam” and it points out all the little things they used to trick you into buying.

If you come across one that you are not sure about then contact me and I will check it out for you.

 

Final Thoughts

I firmly believe the time is now to not only fully understand “What is Online Business” but get a plan in place and start building our future.

While there will always be a necessity for some traditional businesses, I firmly believe the way of the future is online.

If we go back a hundred years or so we had the industrial revolution, I believe we are on the cusp of the digital revolution and those who are wise will position themselves for great prosperity.

If you don’t get online now you may be left behind.

As you can see there are plenty of business models to choose from so finding something that suits your talents and abilities should not be a problem.

For me I find myself enjoying writing and sharing valuable information with others. I love hearing comments from my readers on how much they learned or enjoyed my articles. There was a time not too long ago that I wouldn’t be able to make a living at writing but today with the internet at our disposal the world has opened up to us all.

Today I make a living at blogging and I… just love it.

If, blogging is something you would be interested in then check out the company that got me started called Wealthy Affiliate. They are currently offering 10 FREE lessons to try before you buy.

These guys have been around for over 15 years helping young entrepreneurs get started online and trust me they know their stuff.

Just remember whatever route you take if you do decide to build your own online business it will take time to build and get running successfully. It won’t be overnight so don’t fall for any of those get-rich-quick schemes out there.

Best of luck my friend and thanks for stopping by, please leave your comments or questions below. I look forward to hearing your thoughts.