30 Online Business Ideas Worth Giving a Shot in 2023 (Updated)
Online businesses are booming, hence here are 30 online business ideas that are worth a try. In the time of this global crisis we are facing, more and more professionals are starting to work from home. And why not? It’s safe, convenient, and even earns you good money if you decide to do it right.
Creating an online business from scratch takes a lot of skill and hard work. However, once you get the hang of it, you are good to go. Here we present to you a comprehen2sive list of viable online business ideas that are worth your time and effort. These online business ideas will suit a diverse range of skill sets and talents.
1. Sell an Online Course
If you have immense knowledge in a subject, this is one of the most appropriate online business ideas for you. It usually requires low to moderate investment. You just need to design the course material and make some high-quality video tutorials on the subject.
If your course adds value to someone’s life then you can earn decent money by selling it online. Screen Flow is a screencasting app that will allow you to record your screen accompanied by your voice. It also assists in video-editing.
The best thing about selling an online course is that you can continue to make money out of it weeks or even months after the course has gone live. Teaching something to someone that could help in enhancing the quality of their life is in itself a rewarding experience.
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2. Become a Freelance Writer/ Designer/ Web Developer
This business idea is for the writers/design ninjas/ programmers who would want to put their skills to good use. Freelancers are their own bosses and enjoy the freedom to choose and reject projects according to their convenience.
You can easily go ahead and make an account on sites like Freelancer and Upwork and start bidding for projects right away. Before committing to freelancing, decide what your sellable skill is and then try to find projects based on it. Don’t forget to market your services on platforms like LinkedIn and Facebook.
Helping out people with your skills is an enriching experience. However, staying productive while working from home is quite a challenge. You have to constantly motivate yourself to work efficiently.
Apart from writing, designing, and web development, some other freelance jobs like accounting and data entry are also gaining popularity in the freelance market.
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3. Sell your art online
This is one of those online business ideas that need a lot of patience and dedication. Making art is in itself tough and time-consuming, let alone marketing and selling it.
But selling art online is a creatively fulfilling job. It helps to have your website dedicated to your art. Blogging about it is another great way of building awareness among your followers.
Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube can help to promote your work. There are many online galleries where you can build a presence to be more visible.
4. E-commerce site
This is one of the most viable online business ideas. Creating an e-commerce site automatically gives you an edge over people who sell traditionally. While setting one up is easy, it’s really tough to compete with thousands of similar websites and businesses.
Your prime focus must be on the marketing and advertising aspects as those are the things that drive people to your e-commerce site. You can create an ecommerce site on a popular hosting platform like Shopify.
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5. SaaS
SaaS or Software as a Service is online software that people can buy. The software is stored in the cloud from where it can be accessed. Some popular examples of SaaS are Google Apps, Dropbox, etc.
You must first come up with the idea of a software service that people are interested in buying. Maintaining a SaaS is a relatively difficult task. However, SaaS can grow into a profitable business if you get the hang of it.
6. Writing and Publishing a Book
Most of us have been guilty of daydreaming about writing a bestseller that would make us instantly famous. This dream, however, is not impossible to attain in this digital age. This is one of the most rewarding online business ideas you can ever come up with. No matter if it’s a research-oriented academic book you’re planning to write or something on the lines of a novel, you can easily self-publish your book in many ways.
You can either go for the Digital Downloads app for publishing in digital format or you can even use printing services and tools like Blurb and CreateSpace to print physical books. The Digital Downloads app even lets you stock digital files.
Self-publishing has many benefits over traditional publishing. Amazon’s KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) program enables you to self-publish your book without any hassles. A bonus is that it is absolutely free.
If your book is lucky enough to sell well in the first week, Amazon will take it upon itself to promote your book. With all that, there’s no reason you should not reap the benefits of self-publishing.
7. Starting a Blog
Starting a blog is one of the easiest ways of building a side hustle. Whether you want to sell your products or you want to build awareness around your brand, blogging can help with all that and much more.
To be successful in blogging, you have to build an audience that stays. Your audience should be your main focus. Only then will people trust you enough to engage with your business.
Blogs are sustainable and can help you earn money in the long run. However, the aspect that is crucial to a successful blog is its content. You have to have good writing skills if your blog is text-based. Above all, the content should be engaging and easy to understand.
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8. Be a Virtual Assistant
If you are someone who likes organizing and managing stuff, then being a virtual assistant is a good option for you. As a virtual assistant, you are expected to do administrative work for clients from the comfort of your home.
You will be asked to schedule appointments, make travel plans, answer phone calls, and handle email and social media accounts among other important tasks. You will need a strong internet connection and the ability to multitask for becoming a successful virtual assistant.
9. Affiliate Marketing
Who would have thought that promoting a product or service on your blog or social media could help you make money! This is one of the easiest online business ideas to give a shot. You get some commission for every purchase of the product promoted by you through your channel.
Through affiliate marketing, both the seller and the affiliate are benefited. The seller gets to sell more products while the affiliate gets a portion of the profit made.
10. Subscription Boxes
This business idea is all about creating a themed collection of products and selling it to people. You can curate books, snacks, perfumes, makeup, and spice it up with beautiful packaging to attract buyers.
There is a surprise element in subscription boxes that makes the concept so interesting. Buyers will order a subscription box to be amazed. And it’s your job to not disappoint them.
You don’t necessarily create the products you put in the subscription boxes. You can collaborate with brands and craftsmen and resell their products.
This is a booming industry that is expected to grow in the future. Subscription boxes are ordered as gifts too. So, yes, you’ll surely make more money in the holiday season.
11. Selling Handmade Products
Selling premium quality, handcrafted products is something you can do to turn your interest into a sustainable side-hustle. You can sell anything from handmade jewelry, showpieces, skincare, and haircare range to edibles like chocolates and pickles.
Creating something beautiful for your customers is a fulfilling experience and it’s up to you to take out time for making the things you want to sell. Word of mouth plays a significant role in promoting this business. It’s advisable to have a website that shows the entire range of your handmade products.
12. 3D Printing Service
If you own a 3D printer and know your way around it, you can set up a successful 3D printing business. All you have to do is print the model based on the 3D model provided by a client. To make this online business profitable, you have to advertise and market it carefully.
It is advisable to reach out to important tech companies and startups. This business model won’t cost you a fortune if you already have a 3D printer. Also, it is good to have insurance. You can find prospective clients on websites like Treatstock.
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13. Become a YouTuber
Becoming a YouTuber is one of those online business ideas that will earn you both money and respect. YouTube is a free platform where you can create magic with just a camera and a concept. Many YouTubers have made a fortune out of making videos. Once your video goes viral, you’re unstoppable. Running ads on YouTube is a guaranteed way of making money.
The crucial aspect of starting a YouTube channel is coming up with a niche. You can pick anything from food, beauty, fitness, and health among others.
Your knowledge about your niche matters a lot if you want to be successful in the long run. To gain followers, one has to be consistent and above all, creative with the content.
14. Create and Sell Photos
This is one of those online business ideas that combine creativity and selling skills. If photography is your passion, you can create and sell high-quality images through stock agencies to people and businesses. The clients pay for the rights to use the photos in their marketing and websites.
You will make a small amount of money after people download your images. It’s advisable to create photos keeping in mind the trends of the market.
15. CV and Cover Letter Writing Service
A lot of professionally qualified people are unable to write good CVs. Keeping this in mind, there has been a rising demand for good CV and cover letter writers.
To perform well as a CV writer, one needs to analyze the client’s skill set and then highlight them. Proper format and good grammar are essential for writing a CV.
CV writing is one of the easiest of all online business ideas and can be profitable in the long run. One can easily advertise on LinkedIn for their services. It is also advisable to keep a portfolio of sample CVs ready to show to prospective clients.
16. Email Marketing Consultant
An email marketing consultant helps businesses to run successful email campaigns. They help you to decide the format and text of an email or a newsletter.
They tell people what words to use and what words to avoid for increasing the rate of response and generating sales. You can charge more money depending on your marketing experience.
17. Social Media Management
As a social media manager, you are expected to work with businesses or individuals to run their social media pages. You have to post content and engage with the audience by replying to comments. You can use tools like Buffer and Hootsuite to manage social media accounts.
The best way of attracting clients is to be extremely active on your social media. You can even create your website so that your prospective clients can get in touch with you.
18. Selling Study Notes
A lot of students don’t attend their regular classes for various reasons. However, they would always need notes to study well for exams. That is why selling your study notes to needy students is such a great business idea.
Any current or former student can make decent money by selling notes. There is a great demand for digital notes as well. Websites like Stuvia are great for uploading your notes and then selling them. However, it is advised to keep the prices affordable for your students.
19. Video Editing
If you know your way around the camera and are great at editing, video editing can prove to be one of the most lucrative online business ideas for you. Various events require good video editors.
The first thing to keep in mind is the niche you want to work for. Decide early on whether you want to edit business videos, wedding videos, or ad campaigns.
Sometimes video editors who are starting can even work for free to build their portfolios. You can put up some videos on LinkedIn and YouTube to showcase your talent in video editing.
20. Presentation Creation
Many companies and startups outsource the job of creating presentations to save costs. Presentations are needed by businesses to generate sales by attracting clients. So there is a lot of demand for good presentation creators. Software like Google Slides and Canva offer the most popular presentation formats.
21. Perform Market Research
If you have sound marketing and research acumen, this is one of the best online business ideas for you. The success of a business depends upon its understanding of the market and its competitors. However, not all companies have the capacity to perform market research on their own. This is where market research analysts enter the picture.
As a market research analyst, you will be expected to organize and then analyze all data relating to your client’s company. For researching, you will be required to create surveys in various formats. If you are planning to start in this field of work, you will have to be experienced in market research.
22. Become an Online Personal Trainer
As an online personal trainer, you will be required to motivate and coach people so that they attain their fitness goals. This can be done through video tutorials and video calls. You can have multiple clients and monitor their progress effectively.
23. Create Webinars
If you have expert-level knowledge in any field, then you can monetize it by creating webinars. These are online seminars that are live-streamed allowing your audience to interact with you. The content of webinars is mostly educational. Webinars are currently in vogue in the financial and technology sectors.
When you are starting, it is crucial to decide on a niche and then choose suitable webinar software. You will also need an effective marketing strategy to attract more audience.
24. Copywriter
As a copywriter, you will be required to write sales copy allowing your client to attract readers and generate the sale of products or services they offer.
Advertising is an important part of any business and big brands don’t shy away from paying a lot of money to good copywriters. Writing persuasive, succinct, and grammatically correct sales copies will help you succeed. You can use platforms like Fiverr to pitch your services as a freelance copywriter and work in the comfort of your home.
Your credibility and experience will decide how far you will go as a copywriter. It is also important to have a good portfolio in place.
25. Be an Online HR Consultant
This is one of the best online business ideas for people with a background in HR. Talent management, structuring promotions, and motivating employees to create a healthy workplace are some of the key responsibilities of an HR consultant.
One can seek clients through networking. It is helpful to decide early on whether you want to offer general HR consultancy or you prefer a specific industry.
26. Trade in the Stock Market
This is one of the riskiest online business ideas but if you have researched well, you can consider trading in the Stock Market. Stock market traders simply buy shares at a low rate, wait for some time, and then sell them, making a good profit. Online stock market trading has the advantage of lower transaction costs as compared to traditional stock market trading.
Time is of the essence in this business so having a stable internet connection is crucial. One can subscribe to various trading magazines to stay informed about market trends.
27. Become an Online Project Management Consultant
As a project management consultant, you will be expected to organize meetings, update industry knowledge, and deliver projects on time.
A sound network and industry experience will earn you good money in this field. Understanding your client and communicating with them to know their vision of the project is of paramount importance. Most consultants use software like MS Project and SharePoint for improved trading.
28. Online Fashion Designer
If you are good at designing and are interested in fashion, there’s no reason to not pursue it online. You can sell your designs for clothes and accessories directly to people and businesses. However, it takes time to gain a loyal customer base. It is advised to keep your designs simple when you are starting.
29. Create and Sell Music
If you are a fairly talented musician, then you can monetize your talent by creating and selling your music online. The best way to sell your music is by doing so on your website. The only problem is less exposure.
If you want to reach more listeners, you can consider selling music through online music stores like iTunes and Google Play. The fact that most people already use these platforms for listening to music will guarantee you more exposure.
You can also upload your music for free on SoundCloud.
30. Be an SEO Consultant
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization and is crucial for the success of any company or startup. As an SEO consultant, you will be asked to optimize the content of a website so that search engines like Google can rank it higher on their search engine results pages. This ensures increased traffic to the website as well as sales.
SEO is a game-changer in the growth of any online business. SEO consultants are required to perform keyword research and build links. It is advisable to have your website and advertise on social media pages and sites like LinkedIn.
