A lot of people would like to start an internet business but don't know how. In times like these, many folks are looking to alternatives to employment. They are looking to make money in their own business. For many, the Internet seems attractive. But is it easy?
Well, nothing is easy - especially running a business, whether it is ONline or OFFline. Actually, I might even say that, from my own experience being in business for many years, Internet business may be even harder.
To start an Internet business costs less than a physical offline business. But it takes a lot of special skills that you don't have to have with a brick and mortar business. Like writing for instance. A lot of your Internet business will depend on good writing.
If you don't know how to write well, you will have a hard time convincing your visitors. Because on the Internet, you don't talk to your prospects as you would in a store-front location, you give written information to someone you don't even see.
But, that is not to discourage you from starting your own Internet business. You can learn to write. First you have to decide whether or not you are a good writer. Do you like writing? That's the beginning. If you don't like writing at all, you will not be very happy in the Internet business -- at least I don't think so. Mind you, you can hire people who will write for you. But that's for another article.
The major difference between ONline and OFFline business is that one depends on location and the other on information. With either business, you can start out of your home, which makes it economical. But with the brick and mortar business, you are limited as to the exposure to your prospect traffic.
The online Internet business has another type of traffic that you must go out and get. If you have an offline business in a store-front location your traffic finds you as they walk by, either by chance or by having looked you up on a telephone book or business directory.
On the other hand to start an Internet business, you not only need to write to your prospects, you need to first find them, then attract them to your site, than give them the information they want, and then sell them the product they want after you have earned their trust by the information written on your web site. All of this done without a face-to-face contact.
To start an Internet business requires the knowledge of what it entails before getting a web site and host provider, and a domain name. Once you know that you are prepared to write (or to hire someone to write for you), you need to figure out what type of business you will focus on. That may sound easy. You might already have an idea of what you'd like to do business in.
But, what about the millions of prospects out on cyber space? Is your type of business what they are looking for? Out of the multi-million searchers and surfers, how many want your information and product? And who are they? How do you get your site known to them?
That's when you need to do the first thing in your adventure to start an Internet business. You need to find your niche (pronounced nish, not nitch). Is the business you have in mind a good niche? It may be for you, but is it for your customers? If nobody wants it, you won't have any customers to buy.
See how many results come back on a term that people would type in on a search engine to find your type of business information. If it is in the millions, you have a long journey ahead to make it on the Net. If the results are in the thousands, you have a better chance, if in the hundreds - even better yet. Get the idea?
Now, the search begins. Go to 'Google's Keywords Tool' and enter your search term in there. For example, 'landscaping', if that's what you would want to start your business in. You will see the return of your keyword plus others associated with it.
Look at the terms that interest you and type each one in a Google search to see what returns you get (it will be under the search term text box. That's where you see if they are in the millions, thousands or hundreds. You can also see the list of your competitors on that page and even click on some of them to see what their site looks like.
Put your findings on a spreadsheet columns of comparative possible niches and see which ones have the least competitive results. Keep doing that until you find something that shows potential and that interests you the most.