Natalie (one of my clients) & I had a long conversation during which we discussed her tiring 9 to 5 job and his aspiration to do something on his own.
She wanted to try some part-time online business, but at the same time, Natalie didn’t want to invest much money, and also she was reluctant to spend time procuring products & storing them at a warehouse or any office.
Natalie rather wanted to run a business that can be operated from anywhere without any investment in stock or infrastructure.
Here is a glimpse of our conversation:
Natalie: I want to run my own business but I just want to give it a try first. Therefore, I don’t want to spend much time and money on it. The moment I see some revenue, I will definitely consider investing more.
Me: Hmmm… Are you able to put 3 to 4 hours a day into your business?
Natalie: Yes, I can spend that much time easily, and sometimes I could spend even more than that.
Me: Enough.. Do you know of any product or services on which you think you can guide people?
Natalie: Yes, I am fond of golf so I can definitely guide newbies on buying the best golf accessories and I can even write blogs on playing the best games in gold.
Me: Great, then you can definitely start earning money soon. All you will need is a WordPress website. I will definitely help you to create a WordPress eCommerce website through which you can not only set up an online store but you will also be able to charge people for your expert advice. Sounds good?
Natalie: Great, let’s get started!
Do you see? After a thorough understanding of her dreams and limitations, I suggested Natalie get a WordPress website & I also shared a few ideas to do online business and make some money through that WordPress website.
In this blog post, I am going to share a few ideas to make money using WordPress eCommerce websites.
I am sure that you already know how easy it is to manage a WordPress website (if not its development). Having said this, when you own a WordPress website, you can definitely consider it as your asset through which you can sell in many ways & make money online.
A WordPress website can open a floodgate of tons of opportunities for you to earn money online.
No, I am not going to share any money-making secrets.
I am definitely not sharing any overnight money-making secrets with you (they don’t exist).
I am surely not asking you to throw your money to go for any course or training to earn millions of dollars.
All that I will be sharing with you is, to use your own expertise, passion, and time to make consistent & handsome money online.
In this blog, I am going to a few ideas (really few) to start an online business using a WordPress website.
#1 Sell Physical Products
Do you, by any chance, happen to know any friend of yours who sells or manufactures any product? Or do you know of any product which you think you can buy for $1 and sell for $1.2 or $1.5? If yes, I bet you already know what I want you to do.
Yes, you can launch an eCommerce website & sell those products online. WordPress offers some great eCommerce plugins such as Woocommerce which you can use and create online stores in a few minutes.
Don’t you believe it? Ask me how!
#2 Sell Digital Products
If you don’t want to be into buying and selling any physical products, go for digital or virtual products. For eg. buy anti-virus packs in bulk and sell them on your eCommerce website and earn some margin on them. All you need to do is, just add these digital products (anti-viruses in this case) to your online store and link them with your Paypal ID. Once you get the money, send your customers the serial numbers to unlock the anti-virus software through email.
Again, the Woocommerce plugin is here to help you. While adding products to your eCommerce website, it asks you whether you are adding a physical product or a digital product.
OMG, I didn’t give you any hint, but I actually told you clearly how you can make money online by selling digital products.
#3 Sell Your Expertise/Consultancy Services
If you think you are an expert in any domain and can easily provide consultancy for those services, again, a WordPress eCommerce website can help you to make money. For eg., if you are a teacher or trainer and want to provide online training to distant learners, a WordPress-based eCommerce website can help you.
You can easily upload your training material and allow the learners to pay for those materials & download them. It’s as easy as that. There are several WordPress plugins like Woocommerce that can help you to set up your own online consultancy website.
#4 Sell Others’ Products
Affiliate Marketing – I am not sure if you’ve heard about it or if you know what exactly it is. Affiliate marketing is basically a platform for publishers who advertise others’ products and get a commission on each sale. For those who don’t want to invest their money & time in buying and stocking physical or digital products.
I know this sounds very interesting and promising too. Yes, it is. But like any other business, you will need to put in your time & passion to get it going well. There are many affiliates (individuals and companies) who earn 5 figures every month.
What do you need to do?
Step One: Get a WordPress website
Step Two: Install Ecommerce & Affiliate modules
Step Three: Choose a good affiliate network
Step Four: Pick the products and services from selected affiliate networks that you feel you can promote
Step Five: Work hard to get traction on your website
That’s it!
Do you see? You always thought that making money online was always a scam. But with the help of WordPress eCommerce websites and utilizing your skills and passion, you can really make money online.
Why do I recommend WordPress?
- It’s free to install and use. No monthly or annual fee is required (you just need to pay for your web hosting).
- There are tons of plugins available to enhance the functionality of your website. For setting up an eCommerce website using WordPress, Woocommerce is the best option.
- If you require any help at any point in time, there is an abundance of WordPress developers available who can provide you with affordable web design services.
- Being a blogging platform originally, search engines love WordPress websites.
- There are tons of themes available for WordPress websites that you can install and customize in a few hours.
