Profitable Online Business Ideas

Profitable Online Business Ideas 2023: 17 Best Ways to Earn Online

In today's article, we cover some profitable online business ideas

If you are looking for the best online business that you can engage in to replace your 9-to-5 or run on the side to supplement your monthly income?

Or maybe you are looking for online business ideas that pay well, then you have found them right here on this blog.

I am happy to let you know that you have come to the right place to discover the best online business ideas that can make a decent income every month if you put effort into them.

I went further on each business model by including actionable resources, so that you won’t be left stranded. All you have to do is pick one and start.

Each online business model is unique and will require some effort to make it work, but nothing too complicated that you can’t do. Trust me.

That aside…

Before we dig deeper into the list of profitable online businesses. I am going to start by sharing a few tips with you.

First off, you need to understand that legitimate online business models are not a get rich overnight schemes.

Secondly, starting a profitable long-term online business requires some effort and commitment to learning the skillset required to implement them.

Let’s dive right in.

Profitable Online Business Ideas

Profitable Online Business Ideas

What do I need to start an online business?

The Basics

In order to start a profitable online business of your own and make money from it. Whatever online business you want to venture into. You should consider these basic things first.

The requirement.

  • A good laptop or smartphone
  • A good internet access
  • A skill (on any business model of choice)
  • Some capital (some are free though)
  • And your consistency.

Now let’s get into the list of 18 lucrative online business models you can engage to make money online. Ready?


1. AFFILIATE MARKETING

Affiliate marketing is one of my favourite profitable online business models. It has the potential to generate fast income as it doesn’t require you to start creating or sourcing for a product of your own. The business model involves selling other people’s products or services and earns you a commission on every valid sale you generate through your special link.

Free eBook The N500K+ Per Month Income Blueprint With Affiliate Marketing

An illustration of how Affiliate marketing works

Take for instance that you have a friend (say Michael) who needs help on how to pass his IELTS exams. You referred him to Mr Charles â€“ an Expert who coaches people on how to score high IELTS points in their exams.

Michael paid him for the training, say $50 and you earn 50% commission.

Bayo was happy because he finally passed his IELTS exam. You are happy you contributed to his success. And Mr Charles was also happy you brought him a sale and he rewarded you N$25 in commissions.

This is a WIN-WIN situation for everyone.

What if you can get up to 30 valid sales for that month, you will be earning $750 in commissions.

With my explanation, you should have a clear understanding of how this business model works.

How do you make more money with affiliate marketing?

Your work is to recommend quality products to people. You earn an agreed commission on every sale generated through you.

The best kind of products I suggest you pay more attention to are digital products like ebooks, online courses, video training, memberships, etc…

I prefer promoting digital products because your commission is instant and huge. You get paid once the product is delivered electronically to the end users after payment.

Unlike physical products that need physical delivery which might take several days to get delivered to the end users or might even get denied at the point of delivery.

There are good affiliate marketing marketplaces to find quality digital products created by Experts in niches like Health, Make Money, Business, Travel, etc…

A few of them are JVZoo, SellHealth, Clickbank, Expertnaire, LearnoFlix, etc…

Free Affiliate Marketing Resources:

2. BLOGGING

Blogging is one of the best profitable online business models when treated like a business and you can niche down to the target market. A profitable niche should give you the opportunity to sell or recommend a product that your readers can buy. Your blog can be on relationship advice, sport, gadgets & technology review, beauty, cooking, travelling, tutorials (how-tos), skill or expertise.

Your uniqueness which is your voice, with your opinion put together on your blog becomes your selling point. Whatever the idea, you can create a nice simple blog out of it with this guide. Another quick & smart way of making money with a blog is to create a product review. This doesn't take forever to earn a decent income online.

Helpful Resources on Blogging:

3. ONLINE COURSE SELLING

Are you skilled or so knowledgeable about a topic, this is the perfect time to make good money from it? Aside from having a blog around your ideas or skills.

You can also start a premium course on a platform like Udemy to share your knowledge and reach out to millions of students across the globe.

Udemy is an online learning and teaching marketplace with over 45,000 courses available to learn almost anything you want to learn online. Start your own online course today and make a decent income through this learning and teaching platform.

Sign up with Udemy and list your course on their marketplace, and once your course is live, students will be able to discover and purchase your course and you make money every time a student purchases your course.

4. VLOGGING

One common way to do this is to start a Youtube channel.

Can you look straight in front of a camera with no shaking or have some awesome information you want to share with the world in the form of a video?

YouTube vlogging is something you might consider checking out to get your stuff out there and get good returns from it.

One of the common ways to make yourself money is by monetizing your YT channel with their ad program. You’ll be approved once you have attained the 4,000-hour view with at least 1k subscribers. Read more about it here.

According to Similarweb, Youtube is the third most visited website in the whole world, so make good use of it. It is 100% FREE to start.

To Set Up Your YouTube Channel

The first thing to do is to create either a personal or business channel depending on your choice. This is very easy to do and with just a couple of clicks, you should be ready to set up your new channel.

5. INFO-BASED PRODUCT SELLING

It involves packaging your knowledge or expertise into an information-based product and sell to make money online.

Do you have answers to some everyday problems that a lot of people are craving for solutions about? Or possibly you know someone who has a solution to a problem around you. You can make a deal with such a person and package the solution into a digestible info-product and sell it to make money online.

Possibly you know something that can transform the lives of people for good or get them closer to their goals, then it is time to sell your brain here and make money with it. Your info product can be packaged in the form of an e-book, video training, membership program, software, online courses, and much more.

6. FREELANCING

Freelancing has been one common and popular way to make money online with so many possibilities available on the internet today. There are endless varieties of websites dedicated to each type of freelancing job. Take for example, a freelancer SEO expert can apply on a dedicated microsite on SEO, as well as general freelancing websites like Upwork.com, Fiverr.com, Freelancer, and others.

To have an edge, first, build up a convincing portfolio before making money as a freelancer online. To begin with, this may include doing some free work for some popular brands and companies. Then, once you've built up a solid portfolio for yourself. You can start pitching more well-loaded clients for high-paying gigs.

7. E-COMMERCE

E-commerce is widely considered as the buying and selling of products and services over the internet. This is a very lucrative online business which I strongly recommend you to look into.

Smart eCom business model is not new, possibly heard of it – buying items from places like China, Turkey, the USA, etc, at a cheaper rate to resell for bigger profits. What I so much loved about smart eCommerce business is the huge profit potential. Your profit margin can go as far as 1000% ROI (Return on Investment).

You don't need a physical store, or set up a gigantic company to start it. One most important factors of success in this business is the ability to spot hot-cake products and sell them. So you must learn how to spot hot-in-demand products and how to market your product rightly.

Recently I shared the step-by-step process – definitive guide to starting a profitable ecommerce business in Nigeria to start this business from scratch and be profitable at it.

8. KINDLE PUBLISHING

Kindle/book publishing business has to do with writing and publishing ebooks on popular stores like Amazon, Kobo, etc… and you are paid royalties monthly on the book(s) sold for that month. The books can either be written by you or can be outsourced to a professional ghostwriter.

This is a simple online business model that guarantees recurring income in form of monthly royalties on your book(s). Your major work here is to write a quality book that has the potential to sell. And the more book you can publish, the higher the tendency of making more income on auto-pilot. 

This business is actually pretty straightforward. What you need to do is to look for categories that sell really well. You can learn more by clicking here >>

9. VIRTUAL ASSISTANCE

A virtual assistant is a self-employed individual who works from a distant location, generally a home office, to provide administrative support to clients. Virtual assistants typically assist their employers or clients by organizing appointments, making phone calls, making travel plans, managing email accounts, and generally taking care of administrative work to free up time for the customer.

Virtual Assistants can work part-time or full-time and are frequently paid by the hour, week, month, or project. Becoming a virtual assistant can help you increase your income while also allowing you to network with influential people. Virtual assistant jobs can be found on sites like Fiverr, Upwork, and Linkedin.com.

10. CRYPTO TRADING & INVESTING

As far as I know, this comes with some risk but this is practically becoming a popular way to easily make money online. When it comes to cryptocurrency, there are several ways to make money with it but I will share just two of them.

#1: Invest and HODL

This is the most common approach. Through a peer-to-peer group or a platform like Binance.com. All you need is to buy and keep some coins (Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, Ripple, and other cryptocurrencies) and hold them until their value rises. Then sell at a profit once their market prices rise and you make profits, simple as that.

#2: Day Trading Crypto

As far as I can tell you as a trader, this is far more rewarding but requires good trading skills to analyze the market charts and assets correctly. The basics of day trading require you to sign up, buy some assets, and analyze, and you’re all set.

If you want to be a day trader, try as much to learn how to analyze markets using both the technical and fundamental analysis; both methods are commonly utilized to evaluate all traded assets.

Also read: Successful Crypto Trading For Beginners [Free PDF Download]

A Smart Approach to Earn With Crypto Easily

This is for you… If you don't have the luxury of time to analyze the market but want to make money from the crypto market, then the best approach is to copy-trade signals only from reputable sources or experts like Stormgain.com.

11. SAAS BUSINESS

Software as a Service, sometimes known as SaaS, is a technique of distributing software as a service through the internet. Rather than installing and updating software, you simply use the internet to access it. Customers are licensed to centrally hosted software via a subscription plan in this delivery model.

As a SaaS Company, your major way of making money is through subscription fees. Upsells, such as premium plans, affiliate programs, and adverts, help SaaS companies make money in addition to subscriptions.

Also Read: The Best Business Model You Can Start With Little Money

12. DOMAIN FLIPPING

Domain flipping has to do with buying a domain name as cheaply as possible. Then, without doing anything with the domain, you'll sell it to a buyer for a higher price than you paid for it. By obtaining the correct domains and selling them for a profit, flipping domains may be a successful side hustle that can earn you hundreds of dollars every month.

13. CONTENT WRITING

A content writer is a creative worker who writes copy for a variety of platforms, including websites, blogs, social media, whitepapers, ebooks, and more. Your work as a content writer is to develop print and digital content for businesses that gives information or highlights their products or services.

You have the freedom to work from anywhere at any time. They are in high demand, particularly in the fields of business and marketing. As a result, you make a lot of money for your writing skills, vocabulary, and language fluency.

14. SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCER

In general, an influencer is someone who makes money by influencing other people's purchasing decisions. If you have a huge social media following, this is another good option to make money online. Sponsorships and sponsored content are two ways for social media influencers to make money.

For example, if you are an Instagram influencer with a massive following, you can post about a brand on your page, earning a commission for any of your followers who buy from the brand after hearing about it from you – the influencer.

15. DROPSHIPPING

Dropshipping is a low-risk business model that allows you to sell products to customers without incurring the significant fees of a wholesaler. The amount of money you generate will vary drastically depending on the dropshipping niches you choose and the average cost of your products. A profit margin of more than 30% will help you get the most out of the best dropshipping products you have to offer.

16. ONLINE CONSULTATION

You can make money consulting online if you have a specific area of expertise to offer. Meet with your clients on a frequent basis to assist them in resolving their issues. Provide consultations via Zoom, Skype, email, phone calls, or SMS.

To begin online consulting, determine what unique information you have that can assist people or businesses, then reach out to potential clients and demonstrate how they can profit from your services.

17. SELLING DIGITAL ARTWORKS

You can get money if you are a brilliant artist or graphic designer who can create beautiful works of art. You may develop exciting designs and artwork, post them to the site, and then potential clients can choose from a virtual gallery to have your artwork printed on a variety of goods.

Signing up for websites like UGallery, Etsy, and Society6 would be a great way to get started selling digital artwork online and making money online.

Profitable Online Business Ideas Summary

I hope you enjoy the online business idea list.

The following are my top picks for the best online businesses that you can get involved with if you want to start a legitimate and profitable online business, but you are not limited to this list.

Also, don't forget, you don't need all of them to succeed. Anyone that interests you can make you tonnes of money if you will put in the effort that is required. Don't try to implement all of your businesses all at once. Master one business model at a time. What I suggest you do is pick just one and work on it till you succeed at it.


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