Easy-to-Start Online Businesses for 2021

Vladimir Derachits
amasty
Published in
6 min readApr 28, 2021

It’s a piece of cake to become an online business owner nowadays. You can easily find a suitable business niche for yourself. First of all, you need to determine your strengths, interests, skills — this will help you choose the unique idea for an online business.

If you want to find the most profitable online businesses, you will realize that there is no specific area in which all businesses are successful. The chances of making a business lucrative will be the highest for those who can offer a potential client an original, high-quality product and no less high-quality service.

In this article, you will find the best online business ideas for 2021 that suit almost everyone (spoiler: for some of them you’ll need zero budget).

Online business idea #1: affiliate marketing

Affiliate marketing is a form of self-employment and one of the best online businesses to start because it requires minimal start-up costs and does not require a person to produce, stock, or ship goods.

Affiliate marketing is a logical and flexible sales model that generates multiple streams of income. However, this is not a simple income model that allows you to get rich quickly.

Affiliate marketing pays to refer new customers to other companies and purchases products or services through tracked (referral) links posted on blog posts, web pages, emails, social media posts, any other web pages.

How you get paid depends on the company. Oftentimes, you will receive a commission every time someone buys a product or clicks on an affiliate link on your site.

Online business idea #2: sale of info product

Info products are the trend of our time. Demand is high, business growth is unlimited. With proper management, an info business can earn from several thousand to several million per month.

Today the info business is in great demand, it continues to develop in new directions. To succeed in this niche, it is necessary not only to create a high-quality information product but also to advertise and sell it correctly. Info business goal: to achieve multiple sales with one-time product creation. Therefore, the issue of promoting and finding clients is especially relevant.

Selling information products is a promising and profitable business. As long as people are interested in acquiring knowledge and skills, the info business will be in demand. This is especially evident in our post-COVID reality.

Online business idea #3: dropshipping

This model is not bad for starting your own business. After all, there is absolutely no need to purchase goods at the warehouse and bother with delivering them to the client, cash support, and so on to start this kind of business.

Instead, you will partner with wholesalers and manufacturers to sell their products under your brand name. When someone purchases on your website, you simply notify the supplier and they send the order to the customer.

That being said, dropshipping is a fairly affordable business. To open a store, you only need a website, a laptop, and access to wholesale supplier directories such as SaleHoo or AliDropship.

There is one thing. Most dropshipping stores sell roughly the same items. To be successful in this area, you will need to find a product that will make you stand out in the market. Narrowing the niche may be the solution.

Online business idea #4: application development

Apps are still in high demand, so it’s no surprise that developing them can be a great idea for a remote business.

The mobile app market is growing steadily every day. Over the past few years, mobile apps have played a big role in the life of any smartphone or tablet user.

If you have the necessary skills, then one of the best ways to use them wisely is to start an online business by developing mobile applications. To do this, you will need to purchase licensed software with which you will work. It is necessary to purchase licensed software. Otherwise, you run the risk of running into a serious fine.

Small tip for you: if you want people to download your product, make it cheap or free from the start to outwit the competitors. Instead, make money selling paid features and ad space.

Online business idea #5: graphic design

If you are a creative person who understands design, knows how to work with the appropriate programs, and has artistic skills, you can make money creating designs. Since many companies need help creating visual branding materials, graphic design services are always in demand. You will create not only logos, but social media posts, infographics, and more.

You do not need a diploma to start a business in this area. However, you have to hone your skills. You also need to invest in a good computer, drawing tablet, and graphic design software.

Don’t forget to create a portfolio with your works!

Online business idea #6: niche online store

Perhaps only the lazy did not open their online store today. But I won’t be lying if I say that an online store can still be a profitable online business if you:

  • Choose a niche wisely

Opening a store with popular products is only a good idea if you can offer unique prices and service, super fast shipping, or other nice additions. Otherwise, it is better to think about a narrower niche where there are not enough good online stores.

  • Have certain knowledge

To open a store, you will need knowledge about the specifics of the product that you offer and knowledge about internet marketing.

Online business idea #7: food delivery from restaurants

Even large cities often do not have services that could quickly bring food from any restaurant. At the same time, the demand for delivery is huge — in almost any establishment that delivers food, the waiting time increases on Fridays and weekends.

Online business idea #8: online tutoring

Music and drawing lessons, acting, and vocals — this can also be an online business! If you have a skill or important knowledge that you could share with others, online tutoring is your choice. Determine what skill you have and what you can teach, in what area you can become an expert, what experience you are ready to share.

If your knowledge and skills can be conveyed online, this is a great option and a huge saving in money. You can create a course once and sell it for many years, periodically supplementing it with relevant information.

Such an online business does not require special costs. Sometimes it is enough to place an offer of your services on an ad site — and wait for customers to contact you.

Online business idea #9: blogging

Over the past few years, blogging has become more than just a trend, but a way of communicating with the world. And for some netizens, the blog has become their own business. Don’t think blogging as a business is as easy as it might seem. But there are almost no entrance costs either — you just need your head on your shoulders and a little knowledge of digital marketing.

Blogging as a business requires day after day not only ideas for articles, but also a website, its design, content, post plan, and optimization. It can be quite challenging to do all of this alone, so you may need a good team!

You can also try crypto mining, but there are small(big) doubts about the reliability and payback of this method without a large starting budget.

So…

Online business options are huge. A person of any profession, with any skills and knowledge, can find a suitable business option for themselves. The Internet, a gadget, and skill in a certain area — this set will be enough to start an online business. And as you understood from the article, many ideas can be implemented even without investment.

Happy business!

P.S. Share your ideas with me in the comments below and I’ll tell you about my most insane start-up ideas :)

--

--

Vladimir Derachits
amasty
Writer for

Developers code in some kind of programming language. My programming language is English, and the finished program for me is an article.