Editor’s note: This article was first published in May 2011. It reflects the 2011 web market, including demand for 3D or animated banners, services that keep re-posting classified ads, and recent changes to Google’s algorithm, probably the Panda update of early 2011.
Below are some business ideas focused on the internet. Every company needs visibility online, and not every entrepreneur has the knowledge or the time to handle simple services they know they ought to offer.
It’s true that, more and more, the tools available online allow some companies to do without professional services. Web design is a case in point: it is increasingly easy to build your own website with no prior knowledge and without hiring a professional firm. But it is also true that a professional’s touch can sometimes give you a very different kind of visibility, one that sets you apart from your competitors. Here are 4 business ideas for making money with this kind of service.
1. Web design and blog creation
Every business needs its own website or blog to carve out a place among internet consumers and be visible online. The biggest complaint small business owners have when they ask web design firms for this kind of service is the high price, so they end up fending for themselves or asking a relative or friend who more or less knows how, even if they aren’t a professional.
Then there’s setting up a blog. Is there anyone today who doesn’t know how to make a blog? The answer is that anyone can do it, but not everyone has the time for it, so offering this service to a company at a reasonable price will save them the headache for a fee.
If you start a business based on this kind of service, you can make money not only from building the website or blog, but also from maintaining and even updating it. It’s all a matter of agreeing on it with the company.
2. SEO and social media marketing
Any business can have a website, but if it isn’t among the top positions in the main search engines, it’s of little use. You might think there are already plenty of companies in this business, but honestly, very few use ethical techniques, and with the recent changes to Google’s algorithm, many of the companies that promised fast search rankings will find their clients penalized.
In search engine optimization, a serious company that deals honestly with its clients still has plenty of room.
Then there’s the business opportunity of social media: whether through lack of time or lack of know-how, very few companies know how to build an audience and become known on social networks.
These are perhaps the companies and businesses growing fastest and offering their services to small shops. This kind of service also requires ongoing maintenance and constant attention to the client, so they usually charge monthly fees.
3. Logo and banner design
Same story again. Not everyone knows how to use a design or banner-making program, and any company planning to advertise will need both.
These days, companies want innovative banners, whether in 3D or animated. Specializing in this kind of business and offering reasonable, competitive prices will get you started in a very profitable business with high demand right now.
4. Posting on classified ad sites
Everyone knows how to create an ad on a classifieds site, whether in the property, buy-and-sell or personals section. The problem, as we all know, is that the most recently posted ads are the first to be seen, and by the next day the earlier ad has practically no visibility, having been “buried” by hundreds of new posts.
There are already businesses that offer companies constant updating of their ads so they stay in the top positions on 5 or 10 classifieds sites throughout the day.
As you can see, this business requires no specialization, but it does take a lot of time. In fact, this business idea has already become a way for some students to earn extra money.
As we can see, these are simple business ideas that require no investment and offer real value to other companies by using services that already exist. Success in this kind of business is a matter of getting yourself known to win your first customers, and of offering good, professional service at a low price. Word of mouth will take care of the rest.
Further reading
- Ideas for earning some extra money
- Business ideas with no investment
- More internet business ideas
- Business opportunities in services for companies
- Business ideas to start this year
Featured image: Claireneon, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
