There have certainly been few other years since 2020 in living memory, with people across the globe having to adjust to previously unfamiliar phrases. Social distancing. Lockdowns. Or new working concepts, like meeting via zoom rather than in person. But this situation hasn’t all been an imposition. Many have taken advantage of the break from the nine-to-five routine to consider other options. The necessity of going online has inspired entrepreneurs to spring up everywhere. Here are five ideas for Internet businesses with terrific potential.
Online dating
It may not be the easiest business to set up, but it certainly has the potential to be the most lucrative. Online dating has taken the world by storm since the first commercial sites were launched a couple of decades ago. The key to making a success out of this venture would be identifying gaps in an overcrowded market. How about mature dating niche? Refer to a review platforms of dating sites for over 50s to get an impression of how typical outlets operate. If you can bring panache, originality, and creativity to this area of dating, perhaps targeting this niche area in a way that introduces a unique twist, it could prove successful. The key ingredients should be well-designed pages, a strong brand, a fully-realized monetizing aspect, and harnessing social media for free advertising.
E-commerce
There are many virtual retail outlets already, with obvious examples like Amazon or eBay. Rather than just digging out the occasional item from the garage or loft to put on eBay auctions, you could strive to make this more of a formal enterprise. Do you have a particular hobby or passion that you could transform, setting up an online shop to attract worldwide customers? All you need is imagination and dedication. Whether you’ve been stashing football programs or collecting DVDs or albums over the years, most of which are gathering dust, if you can put an online shop together with engaging and well-written content, this could grow legs.
Affiliate marketing
The beauty of affiliate marketing is this is an online business where you don’t have to invest in stock or advertising. Becoming an affiliate involves identifying a product that is already being sold, then offering yourself as a third-party platform to shift these products. Services like Amazon are always looking for mini-marketers to collaborate in selling their products on intelligently-designed platforms. Or identify an area you are keen on blogging about anyway, using your expertise to draw in customers. You’ll get a percentage of sales through commission.
Vlogging
Most of us have read headlines about Vloggers or YouTube stars – individuals who have accumulated huge followers simply by discussing particular topics with authority, then plugging products. This is a difficult area to get into, but if you can crack the unique attributes that make Vlogging such a mesmerizing spectator activity, there’s no reason why you couldn’t go on to carve your own slice of this pie. As with any web enterprise, the key is having captivating content. There are little overheads. All that is required is imagination, a degree of charisma, and perhaps some luck, too!
Freelance writing
A huge side-effect of the worldwide lockdown is more and more people going online. New websites are popping up all over the place, but no matter how competently-designed these might be, they will survive or expire solely based on the strength of their content. So sites will always be looking for content providers, and you can charge accordingly. You could easily set up your own freelance writing business when demand gets high enough.