Is it possible to start an online business with no money to do it with? That's what we're going to chat about in this blog post.
So you want to start an online business. But, you have a zero spare cash to get started.
I will tell you it can be a little difficult to start an online business with no money, but there are definitely some low-cost options for you.
But if you truly have no extra spare cash, stay tuned because I'm going to give you some options to consider. Then once you start earning some cash you can upgrade to some of the other ideas I'm going to mention.
How Do You Start an Online Business With No Money?
First, you need to set up some type of website.
There are free options available.
You can get started with:
- WordPress.com
- Wix.com
- Weebly.com
All of those offer a free version. The drawback to all of those is that you are not going to have a dedicated URL.
That means you won't have a site that reads HustleandGroove.com for example. It would read “HustleandGroove.wordpress.com” if you don't have your own domain name purchased.
So if you have a little bit of cash, like $7, that's all it really takes to purchase a domain name. I would go ahead and do that if you're able to.
To save $7 easily, don't buy your coffee for a few days, get your morning coffee at home and save that $7 for your domain name. I use godaddy.com for my domains if you're wondering.
At least then you've got a domain that looks legitimate. It would redirect to your free site eventually though, but at least you have something that's super easy to share with others.
So that would be step one, get a website up and running.
It’s not ideal, but you could get away without a website but choose instead to spend a little money to get started with an email marketing platform that allows you to create landing pages.
But I'm getting a little ahead of myself. So let's circle back and just start with a free website.
So choose your best option.
WordPress.com, Wix.com, or Weebly.com are your options for free hosting and website presence if you want to start your online business with no money to spare.
The next thing you need to consider is what you’ve got to say and how that will make you money.
Create Some Great Content
Next, sit down and write out some of the things that interest you because you need to create some content.
And it is far easier to create content about something that you already know about.
So make a list of everything that you're interested in, everything that you know something about. Do that now.
Then you need to optimize that content.
Basic SEO
To optimize your content so that you get some traffic coming to your website, you need to jump into the Google keyword planner.
You're going to access that through Google adwords.
Now don't freak out!
You don't need to have a paid account to use the Keyword Planner tool. We just need to get in there to have a look at those keywords to see if any of them are going to even make you any money.
Type in some of those ideas that you've been thinking about and see what the Google keyword planner tool tells you.
Ideally, you are looking for low competition. We are starting out with the low hanging fruit, which means you're probably going to find keywords that are like:
- how to start out XYZ, or
- how to get started with ABC, or
- review on XYZ, or
- I want to buy ABC
Those are the types of long tail keywords that you're looking for.
In the above example, the long tail keyword of “newfoundland dog” shows the results we're aiming for!
Remember you're looking for low competition. You could go to medium competition, but we want you earning some cash as quickly as possible.
So stick with the low hanging fruit.
If you need extra help on using Google keyword planner, check out this post they did over at Backlinko.
Then you need to consider how to monetize that potential content.
A Crash Course in Affiliate Marketing
The next thing you want to do is figure out what affiliate product you are going to promote within those blog posts that you're going to write.
So remember where you need to be at this point:
- you have set up a website, aka your blog. You may (or may not) have chosen to purchase a domain name
- you've written down some ideas that you're interested in writing about
- you've done the research with the Google keyword planner, and
- now you're on the hunt for some affiliate products to promote.
Now, if you're not familiar with affiliate marketing, it does mean that you're utilizing someone else's product and promoting it for them. They are paying you for advertising for them.
In exchange, you are going to earn anywhere from 40% to 60% on any sales that you make through your own affiliate link. The amount you earn totally depends on the product you’re promoting and the amount you are selling.
Affiliate Sites to Start With
A couple of sites that you can get started with include jvzoo.com and AmazonAssociates.com. Both of those are really great starting points and Amazon Associates, whilst they only pay out a top tier of 8%, you actually get to earn a royalty or an affiliate income based on what someone spends in their entire shopping session on Amazon.
So if you think about it like this, someone visits Amazon, they buy a book for $2.99 and you're going to make maybe 2% on that. Then within that same session, they go and buy a TV or they go and buy a digital camera. Whatever else they spend in that session, you also make another 2% to 5%, so you can see how it can quickly accumulate.
It’s all based on the keywords that you are targeting and the affiliate product you're promoting.
Amazon Associates is probably the easiest one to get started with. But by contrast, it's also going to be the one that takes the longest to earn meaningful income from.
If you are consistent with writing those blog posts and then sharing them on social media platforms, then you can expect to start earning some cash within the next 30 days.
And once you've done that, then you can think about going into an actual online business model.
For further information, I've talked about how to start a side hustle and also about how to figure out what your passive income idea might be in previous posts and videos.
Starting an online business with no money is possible. With continued perseverance and rolling any earnings back into growing your business, it is possible to start a business on the cheap.
Your Turn
Now it's your turn. Nothing happens if you don't take action. Follow the steps outlined above. Start your online business today with or without some cash.
Drop a comment below if you follow these steps or if you've got a question.
