Making Money Online

Online Article by: Susan Ward

Interested in starting an online business? A successful online business can truly be a dream come true, giving you both an income and the ability to work at home.
But like any other business, starting an online business that will be successful takes planning and effort. The very first step, even before you write your business plan, is to figure out how you're going to make money online. Obviously, you're going to sell products or services, whether they be stuffed toys or nutritional information. But what online business model are you going to use to entice customers to buy what you're selling?
Here are seven different online business models for you to choose from so you can get started making money online.

1) Ecommerce Site
The classic ecommerce site, designed to make money online by selling products, has both an online catalogue and a shopping cart. You can set up your own online store from scratch or choose one of the many complete online store solutions to start an online business.

The great advantage of using a "prefab" online store to make money online is that hosting, Internet merchant accounts and the ability to accept payments online is often included in your online store package.

Tricks to Success: multiple payment options, attractive, easy-to-use catalogue

2) Sales Letter Ecommerce Website
Like the infomercials on TV, these websites make the pitch, focusing on educating potential customers on the benefits of the products or services being sold. Unlike television infomercials, this type of online business model is long on copy and short on pictures.
As a website visitor, you can often recognize this way to make money online at a glance; the copy often begins with a question directed at the potential customer (such as "Would you like to increase your sales by fifty percent?"), and involves a lot of scrolling as benefit after benefit is revealed, usually backed by testimonials from satisfied customers. Time-limited and special Tricks to Success: sincerity, well crafted copy

3) eBay Auction Model
This is a variation of the first online business model. But instead of using an ecommerce site to make money online, you use someone else's. Although eBay Stores are available, you don't actually need one to sell products through eBay - you can sell online by using eBay's auction system.

The eBay auction model is especially attractive to people just starting an online business. People who want to make money online often use the eBay auction system as a cheap and easy way to get started and test demand for the products they want to sell. Then, if things go well, they move on to an online store through eBay or some other provider, or develop one themselves.
Tricks to Success: well crafted copy, good product photos, excellent feedback

4) Stand-Alone Blog
Blogs are popping up all over the 'Net like mushrooms on a damp forest floor. The beauty of blogs is that anyone can self-publish their work online easily and cheaply. While many blogs exist just to get a person's thoughts and ideas out there, others are attempts to make money online.
The standard online business model for blogging is to run ads on the blog pages. Google AdSense, for instance, is a popular choice. There are, however, other ways to make money online through a blog.

Tricks to Success: having an engaging voice, being part of the blog community

5) Service Business Website
The typical service business website, properly done, combines a portfolio with persuasive copy. To make money online, a good service business website has to answer the question "Why should you hire this person to do that?"
Often, what's being sold is the talents and skills of an individual, but these are difficult to show online so the mainstays of service business websites are biographies and testimonials. (Photo) samples of a person's work may be included if possible. If you're starting an online business of this type, soliciting testimonials from satisfied customers as a first step.
It's become almost standard for those seeking to sell their services online to offer prospective customers free content, such as a newsletter, email tips or ebook. These are, of course, great ways to get to collect customer data and stay in touch.
Some service business websites also sell products, typically the books and/or tapes of the individual involved, but sometimes other things.
Tricks to Success: powerful testimonials, personalization and professionalism

6) Info-Site
It is a website that focuses on presenting information, often on a specific topic.

Info-sites are predicated on the theory that enough people will be interested in the information to seek it out, visit the website and support it by clicking on or buying something.
While some info-sites make money online by selling their content, through subscription or syndication, others make money through advertising and/or affiliate programs. Some info-sites also include an ecommerce component, directly selling products related to the information the site provides. A gardening info-site, for example, may also sell gardening tools.
If the info-site business model interests you as a way to make money online, don't be discouraged by the size of some of the sites that I've used as examples. An info-site doesn't have to be huge to be successful.
Tricks to Success: strong, engaging content

7) Brochure Site
The brochure site is basically an online business card. It presents the name of the business, some information about the products or services the business provides and contact information. People interested in learning more are asked to call, visit and/or sometimes to fill out an online form.
The brochure site is the online business model least likely to make money online in and of itself. Such a site is best suited as an adjunct to a business with a strong offline presence. Many small businesses use this kind of website as a Internet billboard for their customers, providing yet another way for their customers to get basic information about their business such as phone numbers or directions to their premises. The website is actually part of the business's customer service rather than a money making venture in itself.
As an online business model, the brochure site does excel as an event registration site. Businesses and government agencies often create separate brochure sites for specific conferences or trade shows.
Tricks to Success: having other sites and/or channels set up to direct traffic to the brochure site

You Don't Need to Stick to Just One Online Business Model
When you're putting your online business plan together, you need to be aware that you don't have to stick to just one online business model at a time - and you may make more money online.

Credits:

http://sbinfocanada.about.com/od/onlinebusiness/a/onlinebizmodels_2.htm