Ditch the Corporate World and Start your Own Business

Bysnet

How many of you sit in a cramped office or cubicle every day, staring at the clock overhead as it seems to move in slow motion? If you look at the number of people ditching the 9 to 5 grind in favor of making a living online, you’d have to assume that the number of disenchanted workers is reaching an all-time high. If you are among the ever-growing group of people that has grown tired of corporate life, and of having someone constantly looking over your shoulder, it may be time to log on to the internet for something more than the next new game on Facebook.

One of the major benefits of starting your own online business is not having to be a slave to the grind that the corporate world dictates. For many embracing business lives on the internet, it’s more about having some freedom to create a schedule of their own making than simply bowing down to the almighty dollar. That said, you still need to be able to make money if your goal is to work from the comfort of your own home a permanent switch.

This is definitely something that can be done, but in order to achieve a comfortable living, you are going to have to try and be unique. Informational products and guides to making money at home are big business online, but the problem is that the market has become flooded with a few products that everyone is trying to cash in on. The key is to think outside the box a little so that you can come up with something that is in demand, but which may not necessarily be readily available online.

You can use free online keyword tools to get an idea of what people are searching for on a daily basis. What you may find is that a specific subject is very popular, but that niche that falls under that category are not really heavily marketed. For example, there may be a million products related to golf, but how many of them are aimed at golfers looking for a ball or type of club that will add length to their drive. Find a specific niche and you can create a product that answers a commonly asked question. That is where the money lies.

The subject of money is one that is often broached by those interested in working from home, although the questions are usually in reference to how much they need to spend to get started. Those costs can be minimal if you create your own product and have your website set up so that it can basically run on autopilot. There are plenty of tools available nowadays that allow you to take orders and deliver 24/7, without having to be in front of your computer. If you know nothing about setting up a website or some of the finer details of the online business, you can hire freelancers to help you. There are a number of micro gig sites where freelancers offer their services at ridiculously low prices, yet still, delivers quality work.

With so many people now taking to the internet to find whatever they need, there are now business opportunities that simply didn’t exist just a few short years ago. In order to achieve success online, you need to be able to give people what they need so that you can then live the life that you want.

If you have made it to this point in the article without feeling overwhelmed and still remain excited about the prospect of getting started, the question you like to have now is exactly how you can do that. There is not really a definite road map that you can copy to guarantee business success, but there are some definite things that you can do that will increase the likelihood of you making money online. It is often the hard work and effort that you put in before your website goes live that will dictate your level of success moving forward. That all begins with choosing the type of business that you want to own and operate.

We already spoke about informational products as being a good way to go, but you have to ask yourself how successful you will be if you are simply creating an item that you know nothing about. Following current trends and popular items is fine, but you can really only talk intelligently about them if it’s something you really know about. Customers will see right through you if they purchase a product that does not live up to what they know about a specific subject. It should be your goal to come off as an authority in the business that you choose, and that is something that can only be done by choosing a niche or a subject that you are passionate about and have real knowledge of.

You will be amazed at how much easier your job becomes when you choose something that you know about and love. If a customer asks a specific question, you will be able to answer it quickly without having to search for a response that you hope is right. With knowledge comes power and the extreme likelihood that the customer(s) in question will continue returning to you because they view you as an expert in your chosen field. Return business and the positive word of mouth that it can create will do nothing but help increases sales and get you noticed for all the right reasons.

Okay, so now you know what you are going to sell or promote, the next step is to assess your strengths and weaknesses. This is something that has to be done with a critical eye, but which is often hard to do. Ask your friends and family what they believe those traits to be and make a list of their answers. Apply those traits to what you would do in business so that you can get an idea of areas where you might excel, as well as those where you are almost sure to struggle. For example, if you have no artistic talent whatsoever, are you really the best person to put a website together? Probably not, which is why it’s so essential to look at the aspects of your business that might need to be contracted out to those micro gig sites we spoke about earlier in the piece.

Something else that you really have to be realistic about is how much time you have to devote to running your own business. Even when you hire others to take on some of the work, there is still plenty to be done, which may not be easy to accomplish if you have a busy work schedule. There are plenty of tools that can be employed to automate the process, but you are still going to have to put in a fair amount of time, especially at the start when you will have to work hard at getting your business built up and seen. The less time you have to commit to your business, the less likely it is to succeed. Again, you can maximize your time by getting help and simply committing to the tasks that you are good at. When you think about starting your own business online, you really need to think about it in the same terms as you would with a traditional bricks and mortar store. There are several things that need to be in place and decided upon before you take the step of getting a website up and getting the ball rolling. Let’s take a look at a few things that you should do before getting started:

  • Put together a business plan – This is something that traditional business owners have to do before they open. While this is often done to get financing from the bank, a solid business plan will help you clearly see what steps need to be taken in order for you to get started. Try to make the plan as detailed as possible, down to the nuts and bolts of things like how much you need to spend in order to get the ball rolling, as well a work schedule that you are able to fully commit to.
  • Take a look at the competition – Once you have an idea for the type of business that you want to begin, perform a search in Google for what your niche will be. The sites that land on the first few spots of the results page are the ones that are getting it right and being successful. Take a look at what their websites look like, and what it is they are doing that you might not have added in your business plan. Perhaps they have a blog on your site that you never considered, or maybe they had a strong following on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. Take away those ideas and think about how you can make them fit your business model.
  • Ask for help – If you know of anyone else that has their own business, online or otherwise, talk to them and get an idea of what’s in store for you. Ask for advice on getting started, and see if they can recommend freelancers that have helped them in the past, and who have proven to be reliable. Being aware of the potential pitfall and potholes that line the road ahead can you safely and successfully navigate your way to online success. Yes, you might still get there through trial and error, but why commit to making errors when they can be avoided with a little help from your friends?

There is really nothing more rewarding that building something from scratch and making it successful. There are more than enough stories of online success to make it obvious that those types of successes can and do happen on a regular basis. When they do, though, it is usually because of hard work and proper planning, both of which tend to navigate you towards a financially bright future. Again, if you have reached this part of the article, it should be considered as a sign that you are indeed serious about getting your online business up and running. We wish you the very best of luck in doing so, and we hope that the little tips outlined in this piece will help you achieve your online dreams.