In this digital world, it is easy for anyone to start an online business, even if they do not have any prior experience of selling anything. The cool thing about commencing an online business is the freedom to earn by working from anywhere. There are so many small online business ideas out there that it can get overwhelming to pick your niche. Deciding on one of the ideas could be quite a task.
This article is for aspiring entrepreneurs planning to start an online business. This post will discuss how it is to become an eCommerce entrepreneur for the first time by giving you the top online business ideas for 2022.
Is It a Good Idea to Start an Online Business This Year?
In the simplest terms, the answer to this question is ‘Yes’. The coronavirus pandemic has brought about many unexpected circumstances for many of us. The effects of these circumstances cannot be forgotten any time soon. Even now, the pandemic's impact is still felt in various aspects of our lives. Apart from the threat to our public health, the pandemic and subsequent lockdown policies of various nations have disrupted the routine activities of the citizens. The operations of many small businesses have also been particularly affected. In fact, the entire world economy at large has faced a downfall. This has forced people and companies to think of online business ideas.
Many people have had to start working remotely, as brick-and-mortar organizations started developing creative ways to meet customer needs and continue making sales. According to a study, around 41% of businesses worldwide had to temporarily close down due to the pandemic. Furthermore, many people became jobless, and households' income levels were reduced. Many countries faced recession as the world economy shrunk.
However, now that we have been over two years into this pandemic, businesses have started changing their operating procedures to adjust to the new normal environment. Many organizations have come up with new ways of continuing to make sales. Despite the massive closure in the corporate world, we can observe a gradual rise in online business ideas, as people continuously think of new ways to earn a living.
It might sound ironic, but many businesses do have the ability to thrive during or after a pandemic or economic downturn. Many large companies, such as Airbnb and Uber, started their operations during the global financial crisis in 2007-2009. Data shows that tons of online business ideas can be implemented in this day and age as the world attempts to adapt to this post-pandemic period.
Therefore, now is the perfect time for starting an online business. Determined entrepreneurs can penetrate different markets and industries and create space for their online business ideas to be commercialized in the post-pandemic environment.
5 Best Online Business Ideas
Here are the 5 best online business ideas you can consider for making good money this year. These are based on the online business trends we have been observing since the pandemic started in 2020.
1. Start a Dropshipping Business
Dropshipping is one of the most convenient ways to make money online. You do not need to invest in the manufacturing of the products that you sell. You don't even have to buy products in advance. All you need to do is promote the products of different brands. Once you have a customer ready to buy, you can collect the payment first, marking up the price to make a profit, purchase the product from the supplier at the negotiated cost, and post or ship it to the customer. In other words, you are free from the hassles of production, distribution, and inventory management. You are merely taking orders from customers and seeking out third-party wholesalers or retailers. But remember, to be successful at dropshipping, you have to find customers who are willing to pay a price that’s higher than the price at which your supplier or wholesaler is supplying to you.
This is among the best online business ideas because everything in running a dropshipping business is handled online. The order is taken online, payment is collected online, and the promotion or marketing will also be done online. You can promote the products or services you sell through social media or an eCommerce platform. You can also choose to build your own online store and upload pictures of all the products you want to promote.
2. SEO Consulting
If you have a good understanding and knowledge of search engine optimization, you can actually make a living out of it. Providing SEO-related services to small and large organizations online is among the most lucrative online business ideas in this day and age. With the rise in online business trends, many companies and brands are looking for ways to stay ahead in the competition of ranking high in search engines. But a tiny portion of the population in the world has in-depth knowledge of this niche.
If you can become a good SEO consultant, you can help companies boost their online sales to great heights. That’s why most companies are willing to pay a high price to hire professional, experienced, and effective SEO consultants. The best part is that if you don’t have good SEO skills but are interested in learning them, you can take on free and paid online courses available in this subject area. Those who have a good knowledge base in this field like to coach others on this skill. In fact, providing online coaching is actually another item among the top online business ideas for this year.
3. Virtual Online Training
Creating digital courses or offering online coaching on various fields of expertise is next on our top online business ideas list. The pandemic has made many people realize that learning does not have to stop at any point in life. No matter how experienced or educated you are, there is always scope to learn more, especially in your area of interest. Many students had to study online in 2020 and 2021, and that built confidence among the teachers, coaches and professors to continue to give lessons online and make side income out of it. Hence, if you are from a profession that’s related to teaching, tutoring or coaching in any way, this could be among the best online business ideas for you.
Image taken from Strikingly user’s website
There are already so many online learning or online course platforms out there. But the demand for online courses is even beyond that. You can even create your own digital courses website and start uploading your lessons there. The field that you choose to make courses in is entirely up to you. It will depend on the niche you are interested in or have access to, and your area of expertise and past experience. Once you get into this and launch your first online course, it can also open doors for you to try out other great online business ideas.
Image taken from Strikingly user’s website
4. Freelance Graphic Designing
Freelancers enjoy the flexibility of working hours. Through various online business ideas, they have the opportunity to accept projects and tasks that fit their daily schedules. Also, due to the presence of freelancing platforms like Fiverr and Upwork, freelancers get to decide what kind of projects to work on and which clients to work with.
If you are good at graphic designing skills, you can showcase your work in the form of a portfolio, and work on small graphic designing projects with small and large organizations that are willing to take on remote workers to do the job. Nearly all businesses these days require graphic designing work to build their brand logos, posters, infographics, and other visual branding elements.
Image taken from Strikingly user’s website
Image taken from Strikingly user’s website
5. Selling DIY Crafts
Are you into DIY crafts and designs? Do you like art and aesthetics? If yes, now is a great time to showcase your DIY items. Selling handmade arts and crafts is one of the top online business ideas these days. You can either sell them on the large eCommerce platforms like Amazon or Shopify, or create your own eCommerce website on Strikingly.
Image taken from Strikingly
Strikingly is a growing platform for building different kinds of websites, without having to write a single line of code. We have lots of templates to choose from, which serve as ready-made web designs for you. If you want to create an ecommerce website, you can select one of our online store templates, and showcase your products there. Our tools will also help you in your marketing and order management efforts.
With Strikingly, you can actually implement most of the online business ideas discussed above with ease. Simply create a website and promote your online business through it. We promise the whole process will prove to be simpler than you think.
