I've been building my online website business since 2005; it began primarily as a way to help me sell my farm wares, but since has evolved into an income stream in its own right.
Before I jump into my story, let me show you a quote from a work at home guide, written by 4 actual work-at-home moms:
"First, building an information-packed Website gives you the total flexibility and freedom you need, so that you can devote time to your family. And second, it’s a thoroughly enjoyable business that has the potential to provide you with a long-term source of income."
In fact, (to back that up) my farm website now generates enough cash each month to pay my farm mortgage. And the website keeps working day and night, all year long.
Here's what's true: every one of us has at least one topic we know well enough (or can research well enough) to create a profitable website around it
The new standard in small business these days (including small farms) is to have a 'web presence'; people expect you to have a website the same way they expect you to have a business card.
So it makes sense that, if you should have a website anyway, you might as well build one that generates some income, too.
Building an online website business is a 'slow but steady' kind of exercise. The only way to master the learning curve is 1 - get some good training and guidance to start, and 2 - apply your brains and motivation until the job is done (this is a lot like learning farming, by the way.)
I can vouch for the fact that this can pay off. When I started, I knew next to nothing about website design or how search engines worked, or how to make money on the web.
Since then, I have built my site to about 180 pages of free content, and I am ranked #1 on Google for a number of keywords (just search on 'free market gardening guide' and see who comes up.
Most of that development came in the last couple years, once I committed to the idea that I wanted to help other folks learn to do what I do - i.e. operate a small mixed organic farm.
I get about 5,000 people a month visiting my website, and as I mentioned I regularly make enough in online sales of information products I promote to pay the mortgage on the farm. Not bad for (very) part-time job.
If you've looked around my site you know I've talked about starting my Bootstrap Market Garden for less than $300 and subsequently building it into a 5-figure business.
An online website business is the only other opportunity I am aware of
where the same thing is possible (and you don't need to get grass stains
on your jeans to start a business on-line!)
An online business has other things in common with my market garden business. You can:
Here's how it works; I write some 'content' (like this letter
to you) that attracts visitors to my site. They usually stick around and
surf quite a few pages, because I try to give away lots of useful
information.
Some of those visitors want to learn more, and they buy one of my books
or other information products I promote. This accomplishes two
objectives; it gives the buyer some practical, real-world farming information, and provides me some income so I can keep creating and giving away free content.
While I write primarily about topics related to farming, food and my
online website business, the budding 'info-preneur' is not limited to
those topics. Nothing says your online website business has to be
related to your 'day job'.
You can create an income-generating website based on any passion or interest or expert knowledge you may possess. I can prove that by letting you look at some case studies from the company I use, SBI!; some of the most unlikely topics have formed successful online website businesses.
Online website business Case Studies
FYI, I'm an affiliate of Solo Build It!, which means they are one of a very few services I promote on my website. If someone buys their service through me, I receive a small commission; this is another way I create more income, so I can keep giving away information that I believe is of value to my readers.
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