Thursday, March 28, 2024

  • Logging on For a Living

    May 1, 2012 by  
    Filed under Internet Businesses Tips

    More and more people are becoming aware of the fact that to be on the internet can mean serious business opportunities for those who are switched on and prepared to do the necessary work. In times gone past getting set up in business was a lengthy process that would almost invariably require some hefty investment up front simply to get started. Now, all you need is a computer, an internet connection and an idea. The rest is simply a matter of following some uncomplicated steps and putting your plans into action. You can have an idea one day and be up and running within twenty four hours if you have the drive to make it happen.

    Before the internet opened things up so much, a business would generally require premises from which to operate. Even if you ran the business from your home, this would make it more complicated as it would involve having your business life intrude heavily on your home life with little separation between the two. Now, all business can be routed through your computer – using e-mail, PayPal and some simple, user friendly websites (such as a blogging platform) – and the rest of your home can stay just as it is. The only concern that you need to have is how you are going to make it pay – but that is no different from any business, and there is no such thing as free money. What there is, thanks to the internet, is a world of business that is simpler and more transparent than it ever was before.

    Getting Up and Running

    May 1, 2012 by  
    Filed under Internet Businesses Tips

    Making an Internet-based business work and pay for you is more simple than business has ever been before – you just need to know how. The first thing to do is to decide on a price list for things that you will do. In order to make explanation more understandable, let us use an example. If you are a website builder for example, you can set prices based on how complicated or otherwise the site is. A site with an intricate design, multiple pages and interactive content will be a lot more time consuming and demanding than one that simply has a front page with basic information. You would therefore price it more highly.

    Having a host site is preferable if you want to do business by way of the Internet. This can again be simple or more complicated. The site is like the front door of a “bricks and mortar” office – it will be what brings customers into contact with you. It acts as a shop front, so making it attractive and intriguing will bring in all the more business. For simplicity, you can set up a blog, something which is highly popular and easy. An original, more customisable site will require some HTML knowledge and other associated competencies – but if you build websites then you will know that.

    On the site, you can display some short descriptions of what you do, how you do it and how much you charge. Really, there should be a limit to how much information you give to customers. To overload them will get in the way of things – you can give the specifics when they contact you.

    Getting into Business

    May 1, 2012 by  
    Filed under Internet Businesses Tips

    Beginning a career in business is now a lot more simple than once it was. The outlay of capital that was once required to get a business going is now no longer necessary. Rather than having to spend potentially thousands of dollars on getting premises into operation, buying supplies and getting various governmental clearances to operate as a business, you can set up a basic website and potentially be trading mere hours later. This means, essentially, that the only thing holding people back is the lack of a concrete idea of what they are going to do. If you want to attract external funding, you will still have some hoops to jump through – but that is optional when your premises are in cyberspace.

    You do not need to be a cyberspace genius to make money from the Internet. Things can get up and running with a very simple site. The best way to do this is to set up a blog. Sites like LiveJournal.com started the blogging boom, but others like Blogger and WordPress have taken up the baton and made blogs a more customisable entity, meaning that even multi-page sites are not beyond even a novice. A page of information on the services you provide, another with a price list, and another with other pertinent information – customer testimonials, for example – can reach the Internet within less than an hour. And that is when you begin promoting your business in earnest. As you are on the Internet, this should not be hugely problematic.

    Getting Paid

    May 1, 2012 by  
    Filed under Make Money Online

    The number of hoops through which a individual had to jump in order to get a business up and running, prior to the Internet revolution, was enough to turn a lot of people off. At one time, being a businessperson was a highly specialized job, and the business world was a place with a language and customs all of its own. As a minimum you would need to have a business bank account, separate from your own personal account, and either an accountant or the ability and time to do your own accounts. Getting started now requires nothing more than a computer, an Internet connection and knowledge of what sites to use.

    The online payment site PayPal has become hugely popular in the space of less than a decade. It is a way of transferring payment electronically from one account to another. The funds leave one person’s PayPal account and hit their intended destination almost instantaneously. The receiving account holder can then transfer this money out to their bank account, or use the electronic funds to purchase goods or services. While cash is still king, PayPal is now welcome in many more places than before, and you can now apply for a PayPal top-up card which operates like a credit card and updates with any new funds in the space of a working day. This means you can be spending money the day after you have done your work. The world of business is no longer impenetrable and murky – it is more simple than ever.

    Blogging for a Living

    May 1, 2012 by  
    Filed under Internet Businesses Tips

    Online blogging sites such as WordPress and Blogger are now a major tool for savvy Internet entrepreneurs to make money quickly. Although there has been some criticism of the “blogosphere” – as some people will insist on calling it – for being a window on a world of moaning teenagers, the simple truth of the matter is that not only are many blogs a more reliable news source than the mass media, they also present the budding businessperson with a way to get money coming through the door quickly. All it requires is a bit of thought, an idea and the motivation to make it happen.

    You can run it one of two ways. You can make your blog a pure information/entertainment site that people will read for the enjoyment of it. A blog with a reputation can attract advertisers, just as any newspaper or magazine can. If your blog gains a reputation for being something that a lot of people read, advertisers may well approach you, or you can approach them offering a not-to-be-missed opportunity to get their product advertising space somewhere people are likely to look. This can be enough for an individual to live on, although this is not going to happen instantly.

    Alternatively you can use the blog as a way of promoting a more conventional business. Blogs are easily navigable sites that are equally easy to update. So it is not necessary to have any great knowledge of internet technology to keep one running, and to use it as a way of bringing customers through the door. Then all you need to do is have something they are prepared to pay for – and that can be almost literally anything.

    Promotion is Important

    May 1, 2012 by  
    Filed under Promotion Tips

    There have been people – many people – who have set up a website for their business and sat back expecting it to become lucrative immediately. While the Internet has made business a lot easier for the individual with the intellectual capital to make it happen, there is little scope for making money without investing time and effort. However, compared to setting up a High Street business, the Internet can deliver results for a relatively small outlay on your behalf. An advertising budget makes things easier – no-one would ever deny that – but it is certainly not essential. A bit of time and awareness will also bear results.

    The Internet is crawling with forums and message boards. For just about any topic of conversation you can imagine, there will be at least a few message boards on the Internet, each slightly different in the way they look at the subject. Certainly, there will be a message board that discusses things that have a connection with your business. By registering on these forums, you can make your business known to a receptive audience. Many forums have anti-spam measures that prevent you from posting irrelevant content or linking without context, but there are no reasons why you cannot link to your business in the signature box that most allow beneath posts.

    Depending on the nature of your business, the possibilities for promotion on the Internet are many and varied, and they make for a real opportunity to drive your business forward, usually at no extra cost to yourself.

    Promotion Sites

    May 1, 2012 by  
    Filed under Promotion Tips

    Promoting your business is something that will generally be important if you want to bring in customers and make a success of it. There are numerous ways of doing this, some of which are expensive and others which, as a matter of relief to the person looking to get a business up and running quickly and on a budget, are free of charge. Free promotion of a business has its drawbacks compared to when paying for it – it is less direct and will not be as prominent. On the other hand however, there are clear upsides to free advertising. For one, well, it is free, and for another it is really quite simple.

    Getting free advertising is something that need only take half an hour – and that is allowing for writing the advertising copy and ensuring that it looks good. There are sites devoted to free advertising – two of the most famous being Gum-tree and Craigslist. Both of these sites simply require you to write a short description of your business, prices and some contact details so that interested parties can get details from you and arrange a deal.

    These sites make their money by placing advertisements on the site from companies who will pay for exposure in a setting where people are looking to conduct business. You make your money by placing an attractive advertisement that will make potential customers want to know more. After that it is a matter of handling inquiries and arranging deals. All of that for zero outlay, too. Isn’t it amazing?

    Work to Your Strengths

    May 1, 2012 by  
    Filed under Internet Businesses Tips

    In order to make money from the Internet, all you often need is a strength – a selling point that sets you apart from the majority of people. There are other things that will boost your chances of adding to your bank balance. Being a sound business mind includes things such as knowing how to sell, setting a price that will attract customers while not leaving you short. There is some trial and error involved in setting a price, but instinctively you will have an idea what is fair, and some quick research will tell you what comparable businesses are charging for similar services. From there it is all about working to your strengths.

    You should know what your strengths are. If you are unsure, look at what you have done successfully in the past. What business have you worked in most recently, and did you do well at it, and enjoy it? If so, there is a clear indicator of what you can do well. What were you good at when you went to school? If it was languages, for example, you can set yourself up as a tutor in those languages, or a translator. If you have a college diploma, even better. Few subjects that you can major in at college are incompatible with making money. It comes down, as often as not, to doing what you are comfortable with. Your instincts will tell you what the path to follow is, then it is simply a matter of honing the business to your key strengths.

    Use What You Have At Your Disposal

    May 1, 2012 by  
    Filed under Internet Businesses Tips

    Starting up in business used to necessitate an incredible amount of ground work. You had to find premises. You had to source materials and buy necessary items. You had to get any number of clearances before you could go ahead and even begin to trade. It was a major reason why innovative people with ideas and a work ethic were lost to the world of business – the initial outlay and the potential loss from not having a steady income was too big a risk. The Internet has beautifully democratized the world of business, and as a result people with ideas are benefiting.

    Now you can start in business as long as you have a few things, which are generally available to most ordinary people. A computer and an Internet connection allows you your way in to the business world. There is no point going in to that world, of course, if you don’t have a solid idea, but that was the case beforehand. Now, as long as you have your plan, you can put it into effect very quickly and make it pay for you within a very short time frame. Having a bit of money to spend on promotion and facilities will make it easier and quicker, no dispute there. But it is no longer essential.

    Driving things forward is about harnessing what you have. If for example you want to make money as a copy writer or proof reader, you need to publicize your services wherever you can think of, and ensure that people can contact you. From there it is simply a matter of presenting a human face and a trustworthy nature to potential customers.

    Getting a Website

    May 1, 2012 by  
    Filed under Featured, Website Benefits

    In order to make money and become successful in Internet business, the first thing that you will absolutely need – after the obvious computer – is a decent website. It is easy to recognize the companies who are not on the ball with internet business, because their websites look unprofessional and old. When the internet revolution started all those years ago, web pages were simple text on a screen, with possibly a little bit of color and graphics if the webmaster was experienced. Now, with technology improving by the day, a basic website is not generally acceptable in business.

    Information Technology classes in schools now cover Internet resources quite thoroughly, as the use of computers has been revolutionized by the Internet. The major reason that people now use their computers is to go online for one reason or another. Many people, particularly younger people, have some knowledge of HTML, and in many cases can put together web pages that would have made the original experts blush. It is likely, then, that you know someone with this skill – and for a good rate, they will create a website for you that will bring in plenty of customers.

    If you do not have a friend or family member who can put together a good website, then you may need to outsource the work to a professional. This can be expensive depending on what you want, so as a holdover it is worth setting up a blog. These can be customized to look like any other website, and will aid you in making enough money to pay for a professional to design your site. The site owner is the signature on your e-mail and on forums, as well as other innovative ways of spreading it – is all-important for you to bring in business.

    Next Page »