If you are itching for some inspiration on how to build your own online business, check out these 10 profitable low-cost business ideas that have a high profit.
1. Dropshipping and Selling Online
You know it’s hard to put yourself out of a job if you don’t keep up with things constantly. Maybe you want to get a side hustle or a few extra income streams from your job. This could be the right thing for you if you have a skill and a passion for selling and promoting products over the internet. The best part about dropshipping is you can start by selling items like T-shirts, pillows, t-shirts, and many more other goodies online. You simply find someone (or group of people) who would like your products and then ship it to them.
2. Starting an Affiliate Marketing Business
Affiliate marketing is one of the most popular ways to grow an online business. For example, consider Amazon affiliate marketing, which offers a commission for purchases made through their website. It works great because Amazon pays you based on the quantity of sales. However, you need to have a product or service that they’re willing to pay upfront, but you must offer something of value to make them do so. There are plenty of companies like Shopify that allow people to create custom emails to send to customers who buy from them. They then reward you for making sales from these advertisements.
3. Web Development
Web development is a growing field online. If you have skills in web development, you might want to try going into web design or even teaching children about it. The demand for web designers and developers is continuing to grow as websites become more advanced and more complex. One way to monetize your work is by becoming an advertising affiliate marketer. Google Adsense allows companies to earn passive cashback on its publishers when they purchase ads. Your commissions will come from a percentage of every sale and the more you promote your company or product, the more you earn. Of course, you can always sell full-blown products to businesses as well!
4. Creating Artistic Content
One way that graphic artists and illustrators can use is to create interactive content on Youtube. People love seeing content from creators doing really cool things that they never thought was possible. Another way that people can use to monetize their creativity is social media influencers and podcasters. These two categories are still relatively new and have not become extremely successful yet, but they exist and are growing quickly. While you can pay for YouTube, you don’t want to give away too much of your time or money. When you create content, share it with friends, and keep it engaging and interesting, people will want to see it. As long as you keep uploading video after video, you shouldn’t feel like your earnings are diminishing.
5. Freelancing
Freelancing is also an increasing option for small business owners. What differentiates freelancing than traditional jobs is the fact that clients often find creative things done by individuals, particularly if they aren’t paid fairly by corporate America or receive subpar compensation. Most businesses prefer to run freelance business models in order to remain flexible in terms of schedule and availability. Also, freelancing gives you the ability to set your own hours and work at home.
6. A Virtual Assistant Job
A virtual assistant job offers a multitude of perks including working from home, offering flexibility in terms of hours, and having less freedom than what any office job requires. Although you won’t expect a day off in many cases, there’s no schedule so many people benefit from allowing themselves to choose specific times and days to help them plan ahead. Other benefits include helping customers organize, communicate, and prioritize, and to stay accurate to the process whenever required. Being able to work from home also means that you can work remotely if you decide you don’t want to commute to work every single day.
7. Graphic Designing Work
Graphic designing is another low-cost business you can start today. In the past, graphic design has been used mostly for branding purposes but now, businesses and individuals alike are embracing this art form. Think of Etsy, Zazzle, etc., where creators are using graphic design for everything from decorating homes and cars to logos for businesses and branding campaigns. Once you join the world of graphic design, you’ll learn all sorts of techniques from simple typography to complex color theory. If everything goes smoothly, you can actually start earning money doing the same thing that you’ve always wanted to do.
8. Writing Services
Writing is a valuable resource to entrepreneurs because writing helps to connect with audiences and readers. Whether you’re a novice writer looking for the beginning stages of a career, seasoned writers needing a boost in confidence, or you’re only starting in your business, starting a writing business is an excellent source of income. From eBooks, blog posts, reviews, guest blogging opportunities, and more, earning money from writing is a lucrative opportunity for those starting out in the industry.
9. Illustration
An illustration business is all about creating great imagery not only for businesses but all sorts of things. Whether you’re into jewelry, clothing, sports, food and so much more, there are lots of opportunities for illustration. Depending on the type of business you’re running, whether you’re drawing cartoons, designing logos, writing stories, or making videos for television shows, you can make money off of this art form. Some of our favorite illustratively drawn characters in movies, books, and games have been Disney character Mickey Mouse and Apple Inc.’s Appleseed logo. If you know the ins and outs of how the products are made, there’s huge potential for growth.
10. Designing Websites
Starting a website from scratch is quite the undertaking. Not only does it take a lot of money to create a solid platform with beautiful themes and templates, but SEO can prove daunting as well. Luckily for you, you don’t need to invest in building websites alone. Instead, you can hire experts to help create a professional website from top to bottom. Many people in web design work with agencies based in Europe or North America who are trusted with client projects at scale. By hiring freelance designers, you have complete control and can work under your own schedule without relying on the hourly salary you typically receive from a regular office job.
