Online Business Start-up Kit

By Kimberley King

There are many reasons entrepreneurs decide to start online businesses – whether solely online or to accompany an in-person business or brick-and-mortar location – but not everyone knows how to get one going.

For those who have the drive but may not know how to begin, this kit offers step-by-step instructions. It covers:

● Researching and finding a niche market and customers
● Picking a business structure, a name, and registering the business
● Finding out about laws and regulations that may affect the business
● Developing a product or service and pricing accordingly
● Defining a brand image
● Creating a website and launching the business

The kit includes a downloadable portion that offers useful web resources and blank worksheets and template forms for your use, such as:

● SWOT analysis
● Cash flow budget
● Balance sheet
● Income statement
● Start-up expenses
● – And more!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Self-Counsel Press
• Release date: Jun 30, 2023
• ISBN: 9781770405486

Kimberley King

Kimberley King, BA, CHRP, began her career as a human resources generalist with an investment management company, before transitioning into human resources management with two of Canada’s major retailers. Several years and much experience in varied industries later, King’s ultimate goal is to help online businesses get off the ground.

Book preview

Introduction

If you are reading this book, then you are considering, or have maybe already begun the process of starting your own online business — wonderful! Congratulations! You are about to jump into an exciting, online adventure with all the highs (and lows) that come with starting your own business.

Nowadays, anyone can start an online business with minimal financial commitment, regardless of their professional or entrepreneurial background. (That is the good news!) Of course, there are some barriers and hurdles that you must tackle. For example: Do you have a good service or product idea? Do you have a proper sourcing or manufacturing plan? How will you market and sell your product or service? Do you have the financial resources necessary to weather the initial period, which can often take a year or more, before you start making money? And do you have the entrepreneurial spirit that is required to sustain you through the ups and downs of starting your own business?

This guide will hopefully give you the clarity you need to start your business off right. After all, not everyone is meant to be a self-starter and risk taker. But don’t feel discouraged: There are many reasons to give an online business a go.

CHAPTER 1

Reasons to Start an Online Business

Why would you choose to start an online business, rather than just a brick-and-mortar store? Well, there are definite advantages, such as:

1. Cost: It’s not as expensive to get going. The idea of starting a business can be overwhelming for many people. Trying to raise capital to pay for inventory, rent, and employee salaries is a daunting task. But an online business can be launched with minimal cost. All you need are a computer, a domain name, and a website builder, and you are off to the races! You could potentially launch your business for less than $100.

2. Time: Your business can run all day and all night without the limitations of 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. working hours, strikes, lockdowns, or other interruptions. You or your employees do not need to be present for every sale. Your customers can place an order or contact you via email at any time.

3. Location: If your online business caters across borders, then you aren’t locked into a specific geographic area or time zone and can service a wide variety of customers. Leasing a brick-and-mortar store means that you are tied to the foot traffic and whims of the neighborhood customers on any given day. An online business potentially means you can sell to anyone, anywhere.

Every year, more and more people shop online. By 2023, e-commerce was projected to account for 22 percent of global retail sales. And, every year, the number of internet users increases worldwide. As of July 2022, there were more than 5 billion internet users (63.1 percent of the global population) and out of this total, 4.7 billion or 59 percent were social media users (www.statista.com, accessed April, 2023).

Which brings me to my next point:

4. Potential for growth: More people online means more exposure to your brand, which means more money for you and your business.

CHAPTER 2

Are You Ready for the Entrepreneurial Challenge?

When you walk out your front door or go online, you will immediately see that your community is filled with small-business entrepreneurs. You have a craving for steak for dinner? You head to your local butcher shop right down the road. You require a legal signature on a document and Google the local notary public? Their local business has been running online and in a brick-and-mortar office for 20 years. You’re interested in buying secondhand clothing? A neighborhood parent has started selling pre-loved clothes online.

The economy would not function without small business. Your community needs small-business entrepreneurs! But working for yourself is a difficult task for many people. Do you have the right personality and skill set to start a small business on your own? You will need to ask yourself some tough questions before you begin. (See Questionnaire 1.) (All of the forms and questionnaires in this book are also available on the downloadable kit, which you can access through the link at the back of this book.)

If you answered the questions in Questionnaire 1 positively, then you are ready to get started!

Questionnaire 1: Are You Ready for the Entrepreneurial Challenge?

CHAPTER 3

How to Plan Your Business

The sections in this chapter discuss steps to take to start your online business.

What Is the Best Online Business to Start?

The best type of online business for you depends on your experience, professional background, and your personal preferences. You will likely be deciding between a product-based business or a service-based business. If you are starting your business from home, then you’ll want to pick an option that doesn’t require an investment in extra rental space or equipment. You likely do not want to rent a warehouse to store all the inventory you are trying to sell online!

If you are still deciding, you may want to keep it simple: Start an online service business, such as one where you build a website to sell your landscaping, dog walking, or copywriting. This requires very little start-up capital.

Or, start a digital product business. Unlike physical goods, digital products are limitless. You never have to replenish your inventory (for example, selling ebooks online).

Start a dropshipping business. To dropship means to move (goods) from the manufacturer directly to the retailer without going through the usual distribution channels. So you, the selling merchant, wouldn’t keep or stock inventory; you would be the middleperson between the wholesaler and the customer. If you don’t have the time or financial means to deal with logistics and inventory, and only want to focus on marketing and building your brand, then this could be a good option for you.

Of course, you may wish to sell products and need to warehouse or store them, and that is a viable, if slightly more complicated option.

Conducting Product or Service Research

Whether you are selling a service, a digital download, or a product, each has advantages and disadvantages, and you’ll want to do a bit of research.

If you are selling physical goods, then you’ll need to look into the logistics of how to do this. How do you manufacture your product? Where will you store your product? How will you ship your product to your customers? Your operational costs will need to be well planned, but if done properly, selling your products online can be lucrative.

If selling digital downloads or products (this can mean anything that a customer would buy and download, such as an ebook or online course), there are other considerations. Digital products may have higher profit margins than physical goods — you certainly don’t need to worry about renting a warehouse to store your products, or hiring a logistics company to ship your products — but pricing your digital products is trickier. The perceived value of an electronic item is usually lower than that of an actual physical good.

Service businesses are the easiest and fastest way to start your online business, as almost any service can be sold. You are selling your time in this business model, and your profits are dependent on how much time you have to sell (and your time is finite).

How do you start your research? Well, you can start with web research — it’s free and easy to access. But don’t rely solely on this information, as it can be outdated or incomplete. Look for published information on consumer demographics, industry trends, market share, etc. You can find these articles in business magazines, trade association publications, and company annual reports (time to head to the library!).

Statistics Canada and Industry Canada, as well as the U.S. Small Business Administration, are helpful sources of economic, social, and industry data.

Then add in field (primary) research. This means gathering original information through firsthand methods,