The recent economic downturn
has changed the way we have traditionally looked at our incomes. Till the
economy was doing well, we’d think that our jobs were secure for life, and when
we’d retire we’d have a big fat retirement fund that we could spend our retired
lives comfortably with. And then the recession happened and changed everything.
People got laid off of their many years of employment and the retirement funds
took a nosedive, eroding in value. The dreams crashed. But the gloomy job
market and insecurity of the future brought along a silver lining—the
entrepreneurial streak in people. Suddenly, more and more people started
looking at alternatives to make money, and the internet become one such
resource for a stable income, limited only by people’s imagination and the
amount of work they put in.
Adam Ginsberg, the pioneering internet
entrepreneur and eBay top seller is now a coach and mentor to thousands of
people who have turned to the internet to earn a comfortable living for
themselves. Here are three top tips from
Adam for all those who are considering the internet to either set up a new
venture or to supplement their existing income with some extra cash on the web.
Be Unique
The internet, as resourceful
as it is, is also high on competition, and you’d often see hundreds of websites
offering similar products or services. Therefore, the first thing for you to do
is to choose your niche before you jump in. Even if your idea has competition
on the web, you could still be creative and add your individuality to it, thus
making it unique.
Research
Once you’ve had an idea and
you decide to sell it on the web, don’t jump in without knowing what your
competition’s doing. Adam Ginsberg cannot stress enough on the importance of
research when starting a new venture. It’s always good to understand what your prospective
customers are buying and what are they’re looking for before you start selling
to them. Understanding customer needs
will save you a lot of effort in promoting your goods on the internet.
Learn
Once you’ve decided to start anew internet venture, invest some time and money in getting at least some basic
education on how the internet works, how to set up your online store, about
e-commerce, payment platforms, etc. There is so much that goes into setting up
an internet venture, and without education, you’d feel like a babe in the
woods.