The 6 Types of Entrepreneurs: Which One Are You? – StartupBros

An online entrepreneur is someone who makes their living selling a product, service or information online.

How does an online entrepreneur make money?

1. Selling products on their website (Private Label, Dropshipping)
2. Using 3rd Party Marketplaces (Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Wish)
3. Selling Information (Online course)
4. Offering a service online (Freelance, Paid Ads)

Let’s go through each one quickly…

Business Models to Sell Products Online

There are only 3 business models used to sell physical products online:

• Private label
• Dropshipping
• Retail and Online Arbitrage

Private label means you choose a product to sell, have a factory manufacture it, you hold the inventory and you sell it on your own website.

Think of private label like Nike or Lulu Lemon. They’re brands that create their own products and sell directly to their customer. If you’re struggling on on the idea stage we have an article about the best private label product ideas for 2019. 

Dropshipping is a business model where a factory creates a product and you sell it online without holding any inventory.

It’s your job to get the product in front of the customer at a reasonable price. We actually wrote a post about creating a dropshipping clothing line here.

But if you’re passionate about something it can be extremely rewarding to create your own product at your high standards and share it with the world. For example, the business I co-own is a private label beauty company that directly sells to salons. Check it out here.

Now, let’s look at online marketplaces.

3rd Party Online Marketplaces to Sell Products

If you don’t want to create your own website or look for customers yourself you can use marketplaces like Amazon or eBay. 

We wrote about the 15 of the best marketplaces to sell products online in this post if you want to check it out.

These are the 3 most popular online marketplaces:

• Amazon
• eBay
• Wish

It’s easier to use sites like Amazon or eBay to start an online business because you can test ideas and see if there’s a demand. You don’t need a lot of money to start and it’s a great way to bootstrap your first business. We have an entire presentation on starting an Amazon business here.

Remember, you can use both private label and dropshipping business models to sell on Amazon, eBay and Wish. But if you’re low on money to start, people are buying items at thrift stores and selling them online.

One of the most common questions we get is about needing a license to sell products online and we cover that topic entirely here.

How to Sell Online Courses

Entrepreneurs can use online learning platforms to sell courses on information they are experts in. For example, selling a course on magic tricks or dunking a basketball.

Now, before you think that no one would buy online courses like that that think again.

Market research firm Global Industry Analysts projects e-learning will grow to $325 Billion by 2025.

There are 3 ways to sell online courses:

1. Self hosted on your own website
2. Sign up for a course host
3. Use an online course marketplace

Let’s breakdown some options for each category.

These are the best options if you want to create an online course and have it on your website.

• LearnDash
• Lifter LMS
• WP Courseware

But what if you don’t want to have a course hosted on your own website? Well, there are two options…

There are platforms that host your online course and you brand it under your domain. (example) course.website.com. But it’s your job to make sure people see you have a course for sale.

The second option is using an online course marketplace. You can publish your entire online course there and people looking to learn about what your teaching see your course and buy it. It’s like an Amazon for online courses. The downside of online course marketplaces is that you can’t control your course prices and you pay a percentage of course sales.

When you’re starting out and new to course building these 4 options are a great way to get started at a low cost.

• Teachable (Course Host)
• Kajabi (Online Course Host)
• Udemy (Course Marketplace)
• Skillshare (Course Marketplace)

It’s never been a better time to create an online course. Because not only do individual people want to learn skills but companies and huge corporations want their employees to stay on top of their changing industries.

The opportunity to create courses that appeal to people and businesses has never been more possible.

How to Sell a Service

The final way to be an online entrepreneur is to sell a service.

When you have absolutely no money to start a business then offering a service is how you bootstrap your business. All you need is a skill, a laptop and a hustle to make money.

These sites are great to get started and launch your freelance career:

• Upwork
• Fiverr
• Freelancer
• PeoplePerHour
• Freeeup

There are freelancers making $10,000 per month offering their services online.

It’s not the “ideal image” of an entrepreneur but your services are something you have 100% control over and no one can ever fire you.

You control your own destiny as long as you keep finding clients. Freelancing is the perfect side hustle for someone still working a full time job and trying to transition into becoming their own boss.

Go on any one of those websites I listed above and see the kinds of skills people are looking for. I guarantee that you know at least 5 skills that you can offer.