Starting a business is risky. That is the reason why everyone does not have it. It takes an investment of thousands of dollars just to get off the ground. 9 out of 10 new businesses fail in the first year. Before any profits are made, such things as product inventories, mergers, advertising, employees, accounting, insurance, licenses, commercial space, and others must be paid.
The digital world has taken many risks to start your dream business. There is still an initial fee to be incurred at the beginning but the price is not as high as starting a brick and mortar business. License fees and mergers must be paid online or offline but most other expenses can be avoided at an early stage by starting with your online presence.
If it can be sold in the store it can be purchased online and sent to the customer's home. Will add at least an additional revenue stream for this business. There are many advantages to starting an online business.
The Advantages Of Starting an Online Business
1. There is no urgent need
What makes online business so great is its scalability, meaning you do a little work for greater results. With automation tools, you can have many boring data entry tasks done without you thinking about it again. With PayPal, you can receive payments online through your website without you knowing the credit card is inserted.
If you sell digital products to be downloaded then there is no need for pre-order inventory or commercial space, thus eliminating rental costs.
Because when you really need help from real people, sites like oDesk.com and Elance.com let you do outsourced work to people who are hired, monthly or even full time.
Things like insurance and security are needed for online as well as online but also securing intellectual property stored online in the cloud is much cheaper than doing the same for merchandise in stores that are vulnerable to theft or fire.
2. You have the freedom to travel
There is no need for a physical location in most cases so there is no need to stay in one place. If you need to pack and move your company to another state where there is more opportunity, it can be as simple as packing your laptop and accessories and leaving. With the physical business of 'brick and mortar', it will be a bit more difficult to relocate. You will most likely be limited to any lease deal you may have.
As you know, business and tax laws vary from state to state. After your online operation gives you the freedom to choose where you want your business to be combined. You must have some sort of address specified in the state but have no actual store. There are some states that are the most appropriate law for internet travel entrepreneurs. I am not an accountant or business attorney so please consult before starting.
3. The whole world has access to what you offer
You have not limited your immediate geographic area yet. You are not limited to any geographical area for that matter. Offering your products and services online opens up your business offerings to the ends of the world. The internet is not sleeping and there are billions of people online searching for solutions to their problems while you are sleeping.
4. You are at the fingertips of an evolving online marketplace
The internet certainly will not go anywhere in the near future as more and more people gain access to internet connection or smartphone every second. E-commerce follows the same trend as more and more people are comfortable making purchases online and from their mobile devices. From a consumer's point of view, making purchases from the comfort of your own home can save you a lot of time, and for certain products, shame and embarrassment.
5. You can cheaply test your market
Not all brilliant ideas translate into products or services that can be consumed. And as you know, the new business failure rate is very high. Another advantage of starting an online business is the ability to measure interest without actually having a product available for sale. One example of this which I've seen a lot is the preview page or 'beta' with a product prototype where people can sign up to 'be the first to know' when the product is available. This can be done with food products, clothing line, app, pretty much anything. This is a great way to measure interest before you go all out with the final product.
You do not need $ 10,000 to start a business again.
There are hundreds of ways to make money online and frankly, who can NOT open a store to billions of people on the internet. There are still many traditional brick and mortar businesses that do not provide their products and services online, limiting themselves