As more and more people are looking to the internet to build a business they have questions about how to begin. One of the foremost questions is, “What is the best online business idea?” There may be more than one correct answer, depending on the person.
If you are a “workaholic” one business model may be better for you than another. Maybe you only have a few hours a week to work your business. If so, the same model will not work for you as for the “workaholic”.
Let’s take a look at some business ideas which you might use to build your online business.
Start online business ideas
No doubt you have heard of such sites as Ebay
Auctions and sales
Bonanza, Ebay and Etsy were originally auction sites on the internet. Today they are that plus upfront sales sites. In other words, sometimes you can bid on a product. But, most of the time the product has a set price and you pay the price and get the object or product.
Your initial beginning with either of these entities requires no money output. You will need to register an email address and get a Paypal account. Most sites of this type prefer the Paypal method of purchasing the products. The particular platform will get their fee when you make a sale. For Bonanza, this is usually 6% and another 3% for Paypal. Ebay and others are a little higher. They all have upgrades, for a monthly or yearly fee, which gives you more flexibility.
With the upgrades, you can list more products and get advertisements and promotions for your products. Prices for the upgrades vary depending on what you want to accomplish.
Time involvement
If you go the auction route, be ready to spend time building and maintaining your business. As I stated above, this is for the person who loves to work and work a lot. There is plenty of money to be made, but there is plenty of competition. There are a lot of people who are making a lot of money at this type of business.
Storefront – Shopify and Volusion
The auction platform may not be your “cup of tea”. But, you may enjoy the atmosphere of sales. Two popular programs for this approach are Shopify and Volusion.
These two are somewhat similar. You purchase the program through whichever you choose to use. It is usually done on a monthly or yearly basis. The structure provides a storefront site for you which you fill with products from a supplier they provide. Whichever platform you choose will line you up with a supplier for whatever products you wish to promote.
You will set up your own accounts with these suppliers either through Paypal or credit card. The supplier will provide a catalog of products for you to choose from. They will, in most cases, insert them into your storefront site appropriately priced.
When a customer to your site makes a purchase, you will receive your retail purchase price. You then pay your supplier the wholesale price and keep the difference for your overhead and profit. The supplier will then handle the shipping. They will ship it to the address you give them.
Dropshipping
You may not be familiar with “dropshipping”. Dropshipping is a process by which a supplier of a product takes your order and ships it wherever you wish. For instance. If a buyer pays you for a product you get from Walmart. You receive the payment(retail) and out of that amount pay Walmart their part(wholesale and/or shipping). From then on Walmart handles the preparation and shipping to the address of your customer.
Dropshipping allows you to not need to warehouse any products. It allows you to offer millions of products without having to maintain an inventory. Dropshipping can allow you to start a business with very little money. What you will need are only a viable credit card and a Paypal account.
Alternatives
Maybe you are not looking to begin “bigtime” business. What are a couple of alternatives?
If you wish to begin very small and build from there, there are two good alternatives. Each deals with things that you wish to get rid of. Maybe you have friends that wish to get rid of some things. If so, you might consider Craig’s List or Offerup.
Each of these is free to list objects or services that you may have. This might provide initial income to be able to begin building a business online. You can begin with no money.
Are these the answer to “What is the best online business idea?” Read on to find out.
What is the best online business idea?
To build a successful online home business, this is the best product available. It is called “affiliate marketing”. You may ask, “What is affiliate marketing?”
I am so glad you asked. Let me explain.
Affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing is a little different from the previous business platforms we mentioned. This type of approach is not quite the same as the auction or storefront.
As an affiliate marketer, you may or may not promote a specific product. But you do not sell it through your particular website. Rather, through a “blog” you share information which relates to certain products or services.
How it works
You are probably wondering how affiliate marketing works.
It works as follows. You become affiliated with a certain product or service by registering with that company as an “affiliate”. You then promote that product or service by linking to them through an ad or “banner” on your website. If a visitor to your website clicks the “ad” or “banner”, they are taken to the product’s website. If the visitor makes a purchase of the product or service, you get a percentage of the sale. The percentage varies depending on the product and the company.
You are not directly involved in the transaction. By building authority in your weblog you grow in visitors. With an increase in visitors to your site will come an increase of clicks to the products with which you affiliate.
It usually takes from six months to a year to establish a website so it begins to bring an income. But with regular maintenance and input, it will continue to bring income for years.
With “affiliate marketing” you can set your own time and how much time you spend. You can also choose the niche and products you wish to be associated with.
Who can use affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing is for anyone who is creative and industrious. Many younger people have begun and do affiliate marketing as a fulltime business. Retired people have started a second business life with affiliate marketing. Even students make money with affiliate marketing part-time.
Whoever you are, you can build an affiliate marketing business. The initial foundation time is usually six months to a year. Some have done it faster and some a little longer. The time you invest will determine how soon it will begin producing.
Another controlling factor is the “niche” that you choose. A “niche” is the area of interest that you choose to emphasize. It is best to choose an area that you are passionate about.
Successful online business ideas that work
The online business idea that has proved a successful platform for thousands of people is the one I recommend. It is one that more than a million people have used to build a successful business. It is called “Wealthy Affiliate”.
Wealthy Affiliate-Best Online Business Idea
Wealthy Affiliate has been around for fifteen years. It has grown from two friends who discovered a way to make money online. Those two young men still use and share the principles that made them a success online. They still actively participate in the daily promotion and building of the Wealthy Affiliate program and platform.
The program is comprised of thousands of lessons, tutorials, videos, and webinars to help its users succeed. Its archives continue to grow every day as the internet evolves. The members of Wealthy Affiliate are always up to date with the latest products, information, and tools.
The founders of Wealthy Affiliate are always keeping the program updated and on the cutting edge of internet technology.
The cost of Wealthy Affiliate
Wealthy Affiliate has only one tier of membership. However, each member has to enter through the FREE membership portal. So not to take advantage of anyone who wants to start an online business, Wealthy Affiliate offers a FREE membership. This FREE membership allows every prospective member a chance to see how it works. The FREE membership offers you ten Free lessons on how to set up your online business. When you finish the ten lessons you will have launched your own website and begun your online presence. To do that, Wealthy Affiliate will give you two(2) Free websites. They will also host those two Free websites for Free.
By the time you have accomplished this, you will know whether Wealthy Affiliate is for you or not. Even if you choose not to join Wealthy Affiliate, they allow you to keep the two websites. I am sure that you will want to continue if you really want to build an online business.
The cost of Wealthy Affiliate
Many programs have a graduating cost scheme. You join for one price and then if you want better, you have to pay more. Still, others charge you “big time” for so-called secrets to build an online business.
There are others who promise to build you an affiliate marketing website. They stock it with products from Amazon and launch it on the internet. The problem is, they do not teach you how to maintain and build your website. To learn that, you must pay more. Most of these programs will cost you into the thousands of dollars. And you will not be any better off.
I mentioned above that all members of Wealthy Affiliate must start as FREE members. By experiencing Wealthy Affiliate, you decide if it is a good fit for you. If you decide it is, then you can join as a PREMIUM member. That is the only level there is for a paid membership. The cost of the PREMIUM membership is $49 a month. You can save on that by purchasing a yearly membership. What you receive with the PREMIUM membership is worth hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars a month.
Recap
We have looked at some of the most popular ways to build an online business. You know what fits your personality best. No matter which platform you settle upon, I believe Wealthy Affiliate will prove to be a valuable asset.
Since the initial membership is FREE, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain. You will never know for sure unless you try. Click the banner below and begin your adventure in what is the best online business idea.
