This is the year you start your own successful online business! You’re looking for freedom, cash flow and an escape from the 9-5 commuter grind – but first, you need to decide on a business idea. 

Start a blog and monetise it

What could you talk about for hours on end? Try starting a blog on a subject you’re interested in. It’s not quite as easy as it sounds though, as you’ll have to consistently publish content that engages users to develop a solid following. Once you’ve got this though, you can start earning money through affiliate marketing or advertising. 

Affiliate marketing is where you earn a commission by promoting products through your blog. It’s useful to have a basic knowledge of SEO and copywriting for this (here’s a good beginner’s guide from SEO Moz), and you’ll get better results promoting content that is similar to your blog to start with. Amazon’s affiliate program has a list of products you can advertise if you’re stuck for ideas. 

You can also make money by selling advert space on your blog, but to get a decent income you have to have millions of viewers. It’s a good side hustle, but don’t expect it to become your main form of income. 

Coaching and online courses

If you have a good level of expertise in a certain subject, you can monetise it! You will have to promote it yourself through a website, social media and email lists, and it’s often useful to have a blog related to your subject of expertise to give yourself more credibility. 

Online coaching involves few clients, but at a high hourly rate. It’s a quick way to start earning money fast, and you can charge premium prices – but make sure to do some market research to set your price. 

Online courses are low risk, high reward ventures. They are easily scalable and can reach a global audience, and as they don’t have a sell-by date, they can make money over time with minimal input from you. 

Ecommerce

You’ll need to do your research to find a profitable market first, with steady growth, and it’s best to keep your idea specific rather than general to give yourself an edge. 

There are lots of costs involved in ecommerce, so make sure your product costs at least £50, if not more, otherwise you might find you aren’t making any profit at all! A cheaper option is to use dropshipping, where the products are held and sent by the supplier rather than you. 

To set up a profitable and successful online business, go into something you care about and you have a good level of knowledge on. And for each of these options, a website is paramount. Try Go Sitebuilder’s simple website creator with our free 14-day trial and start your online business today!