The idea of starting an “online” business is one that’s no longer the foreign concept it was less than a decade ago. However, with that said, so few of you have the intestinal fortitude to move forward and “leap into the fire” to become a “Webpreneur”. There are so many great ways to go ahead and start making real money online. All that’s required is the courage and resilience to do something that the other 95% of the world doesn’t (or did but failed miserably.)

Regardless of your current status; successful business owner, highly motivated career-person, recent graduate – or just unhappy and sick of working 9-5 for the boss(hole) and having “too much month at the end of the money” – quote from the original “Lifestyle Coach”, Business Philosopher, and professional mentor to Tony Robbins, Mr. Jim Rohn.

You CAN and should consider starting an online business.

You don’t have to rush out and set up an LLC or S-Corp right away. Take the plunge and see where you’re at in two-months, three-months, six-months, etc. When you start making some money, then you can talk with your accountant and decide how to go forward with regards to taxes.

Don’t wait too long though!

1. Content Developer/Specialist

Content creation is pure gold online right now. And it will always be, at least until the robots take over! Content includes: written, video, audio, apps, websites, graphics – and every conceivable tidbit in between. If you think this can’t be lucrative, check out what Salary.com is saying.

Most Webpreneurs start out in one or more areas of content creation, then move on to create their own products, using the knowledge gained from the creation side in order to run their own team of content creation specialists. It’s also popular to graduate to a content “middler” (term freshly coined by moi): someone who finds people who need content, then outsources that work to competent content developers (i.e., writers, videographers, web designers, graphic designers, etc).

Affiliate Marketer (Online Advertiser)

Another great job that you can pick up on right away and start making some money. There is a learning curve, and several avenues that you can go down. Basically, to become an affiliate marketer, you need to find companies who need your help to market/sell their products, then build web properties, use social media, and even offline advertising techniques, to find willing buyers for said product.

Affiliate marketing got some flack a few years ago for unscrupulous acts of deception and fraud that were committed on consumers during the Acai Berry Craze – among many others. These days, there’s more regulation and much more room for people like you, who have morals, to enter into the race.

The two toughest parts of this job are: A) Knowing how to get inside a buyer’s head, B) Finding reputable networks to work with.

Always vet potential networks thoroughly. When you find a company that you want to work with, search a minimum of 5 different online sources looking for good or bad news about them, before considering doing business with said company. Check out resources like this to find companies looking for affiliate advertisers.

Blogging

You didn’t think you’d skate by reading a piece about starting an online business and not read about blogging, did you? First, forget everything you’ve heard about the negative aspects of being a blogger, and how it isn’t profitable anymore.

Yes, everyone and their uncle is doing it, or has tried it. “Johnny” and “Susan” and “Micheal” have all tried it and they didn’t make a dime – blah, blah, blah!

The reason most people aren’t making money blogging is because their using methodologies from 2008; the thinking being that all you have to do is throw up a blog, stick some nasty popups in front of each visitor while they’re trying to read your content, spam the search engines, and voila! You’re an Internet Millionaire overnight!

It won’t work – and search engines like Google makes sure that it won’t work anymore in the future – ever.

You need to write on subject matter that interests people – with authoritative voice (e.g. sharing your expertise,) while employing social media (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, YouTube) and other tools to help garner traffic. Google loves real content now, which makes it easier to rank in the search engines. Plus, you should really care about what your blog is centered around – readers can sense and will respect true passion!

Here are a few links on how to create a successful blog/website that people will want to read (if enough people read it, the opportunity for monetization is always there):

• lifehacker.com/how-can-i-write-a-successful-blog-and-get-more-people-to-read-it
• blogforprofit.com/28-days-to-build-a-better-blog/
• socialmediaexaminer.com/26-essentials-for-blogging-success-what-you-need-to-know/
• theminimalists.com/blogging/
• problogger.net/archives/2013/10/12/a-10-step-guide-to-becoming-a-better-blogger-starting-today/

Takeaway

Those three ideas I mentioned above are, by all means, not that unique. In fact, everybody can do it, which brings you pros and cons to consider.

Online business is easy to start, especially with the widely available guides and tools, which are available for you free, or at least on the cheap. Indeed, starting up is easy. However, growing your business is a different story.

Failure rate is sky-high. For just $10, you can be an online entrepreneur! Yes, it’s a bit too cheap to be one, making webpreneurship a “career” for curious people. Even if you are dead serious about your online entrepreneurial career, things are still not easy.

I’ve started dozens of online business and hundreds of websites, and currently I only have a handful that stands the test of time. Yes, it’s not easy, but it’s well worth it.

With that being said, if you have the drive and passion for continuous learning and the wealth of opportunities presented in the online world, webpreneurship can open you man doors for profits, business networking and more opportunities – online and offline.

Now get up from your La-Z-Boy – and from your comfort zone – and start hustling. Good luck!