Writing your book is a major accomplishment that can be truly life changing for both you and your audience. But the mistake that many new authors make is that they stop with just the book.
What if your book was just the jumping off point to something much bigger? What if you could turn your book into an actual business? How would that change your life?
If this sounds like something you would like to explore then keep reading!
But first it’s important to note that building an online business is not the right move for just anyone. If you don’t have a desire to be your own boss (which many don’t), and you prefer the monotony of a workplace setting with a guaranteed paycheck and no room for advancement, then you won’t excel as an Internet entrepreneur.
There’s nothing wrong with taking that road, but for many individuals, it’s not enough. They want more out of their professional lives, and that includes both money and personal satisfaction. This is often the reason many people decide to write a book – to do something that makes a big impact in this world while making money doing what they love.
However, when you begin discussing this option with others in your life, they may not understand your quest for independence and growth. It’s not how things have been done for most people over the decades.
So it helps to know the reasons why you are doing what you’re doing so that you can share your reasons with others – or even just remind yourself of why you’re doing this on those days when you second-guess your journey.
Only you know your true reason why, but the following reasons can give you some solid insight about why others have chosen this path before you – and why thousands are currently considering it.
Here are 10 reasons why you should consider turning your book into an online lifestyle business.
1. Your Income Has No Limits
One of the biggest perks that online businesses have to offer you for a career is that you don’t have any set limit on your income, unless you are trading hours for dollars, such as freelance service provider work.
If you are selling or promoting any type of products, becoming a content creator, or taking advantage of other online business models, you will see your income grow year after year.
Imagine not having to start out at a set salary or hourly wage, and having to go to a boss year after year to beg for a raise. This is what most employees have to endure, and it’s a humiliating practice that does not pay people their true worth.
From now on, you can work hard building a business that you own and design from scratch, you can price your products, courses and coaching and be selective about what you choose to promote so that your earnings are a true reflection of your efforts.
2. You Get to Choose Work Based on Your Interests
Another reason many people love to get involved in an online business is that for the first time in their life, they are able to pursue their passions. Being an online entrepreneur does not mean you have to be an expert in anything or have a degree, as you would in many offline positions of employment.
Instead, consumers are looking for leaders who have similar interests and experience, who can guide them in how to achieve their goals or eliminate pain points in their lives. In fact, you can be a newbie in a topic, and simply share your journey along with others and still earn money from that type of content.
It’s fascinating to think that many people put their passions and interests on the back burner, only tapping into them after work and on the weekends. you will be able to create an entire work week around what you truly love.
You can base a business around topics such as the pets that you love as family members, a sport that you like to play, a craft or hobby that you like to indulge in, everyday tasks such as cooking that you enjoy, and more.
3. You Get Maximum Flexibility with Your Hours
If you’ve ever worked in an offline business, you probably hated the schedule you were given at some point. Whether you had to work late into the night and on weekends or holidays – or commute early in the morning in order to clock in on time and take breaks when you were told you could, it’s never as satisfying as setting your own hours.
With an online business, you will be able to tailor your work week however it fits for you. In fact, it can change from day-to-day or week to week if you need it to. You will no longer have to ask your boss for time off if you want to go on vacation or if you don’t feel well.
You won’t need a doctor’s note to prove that you were under the weather. You can work as many or as few hours as you want to. If you want to have a four hour work week, you can do that.
If you are the type of person who likes to work and wants to put in 40 or more hours, feel free to do whatever makes you happy. You can even have a split work week where you put in some effort on certain days, and take off on the other ones.
You can even split your work day app so that you are working a bit in the morning and a bit in the evening, with the rest of your day free to do what you need or want to do. No other job allows you that kind of freedom and flexibility.
4. You Have Very Little Overhead
When people think of becoming their own boss, it’s usually in the traditional, offline sense. They think of starting a retail business or service based business where they have to rent space, hire workers, get insurance, stock, and more.
But in the online world, your overhead costs are nearly nonexistent. If you need or want a site of your own, you can purchase a dot com domain for as little as $0.99 to $17 per year.
A hosting account will only cost you anywhere from under $3 to $10 a month maximum. Other than that, there are dozens of free tools and courses that can help you build your business by teaching you what you need to know and giving you access to things that you need to create.
As you build your business, you can always set aside a little bit of money to reinvest in things like paid tools, traffic, or even freelance workers that can help you take a bit of the load off of your solo business.
5. It Gives You the Ability to Build a Family Business
Another reason people want to build an online business, is that it gives you the ability to bring your family into the mix. Many men and women want to start something together, or develop something they can get their kids involved in.
This is sometimes possible with an offline retail business, as well. However, the cost involved in starting your own franchise or business in the offline world are much more significant.
You may have a child or spouse who is an introvert or who doesn’t want to work in the offline world. Or, they may be attending college and need a way to supplement their income.
Having an online business that your family can be involved in is a great way to bond and spend time together without being separated by an entire work day or week. It also allows you to have something you can hand down to your heirs, depending on which business model you choose.
Of course, they would not be able to take over your coaching business unless they, too, were just as knowledgeable as you on the subject. But if you decided to branch out into other things like affiliate marketing, you could hand it over to them upon your retirement and they could continue building it or even just earning from what you had created.
They could also flip the affiliate marketing website or sell off the digital assets that you had created and use that money to support themselves if and when they needed to. You could also do the same if you were to retire from your online business.
6. You Get to Be the Decision Maker
One thing many people love about being an online entrepreneur is that they finally have power over their work day. If you’ve ever worked in an offline corporate job, you may understand the frustration many people feel in having to answer to a boss, a team, or colleagues about what they are doing and how they have to do it.
You will undoubtedly be faced with moments where you disagree with the direction the company is heading, yet you are powerless to do anything about it. As an online entrepreneur, you are in the driver’s seat.
You get to determine which niche you are in, which business model(s) you will pursue, and how you operate your business on a regular schedule. Even if you are a freelance service provider, you can pick and choose which clients you decide to work with.
You can grow your business quickly or slowly, use any tools you like, and you can choose which items go on your task list and which ones you decide are better outsourced to other individuals.
7. You Can Work from Anywhere
Another perk many people enjoy about working for themselves online is that they can work from anywhere in the world. As long as you have an Internet connection, and a laptop that you can work from, you’re all set.
This has come in handy for many individuals. For example, if you have elderly parents living in another state and you need to be there for them through a health issue, you are able to pick up and move your business at a moment’s notice.
Or, you may want to travel the world and see the sights. This is something most people can only do for one or two weeks of the year, if they can even afford it. They have to ask a boss if they can take a vacation, and make sure the schedule is clear and that no one else in the workplace has claimed those vacation dates.
It makes it very hard for families to schedule time together to travel, especially when you are talking about getting approval for two adults as well as a school vacation schedule that has to be considered.
You can work from an island, from the mountains, or from anywhere in any other country or state. There are some people who get in an RV and take an extended road trip that they can enjoy as an online entrepreneur.
Even if you just stay at home, you still enjoy the perk of being able to work from anywhere. You can sit in bed with your laptop, plop yourself on the couch, go to the park, or anywhere you want to and still get your work done.
8. You’re Not Stuck with One Business Model
One of the great things about this opportunity is that you never get bored. You might start with one business model or niche topic, but you can expand into as many as you can adequately afford to support with content.
For example, if you write a book in the weight loss niche, you may learn that your audience is looking for simple tools to help them on their journey. So you might start out creating a variety of low cost printables that people can download, such as weight loss trackers or calendars and meal plans and sell them on Etsy to your target audience.
As you continue to build your audience through your book and low content products, you may find that people begin offering you money to be their personal coach.
This can afford you the opportunity to develop a high ticket program where people pay you to guide them in a one-on-one or small group setting.
You can also create a passive income stream by turning your private coaching program into a home study course. This would allow you to scale your business and create more time freedom.
There are tons of possibilities once you get started.
9. You Get to Serve a Global Audience
Instead of being restricted by the amount of people who would happen to pass by your business if you were to open a retail shop offline, you have a world of customers at your fingertips as an online entrepreneur.
You have a global audience that can purchase from you, which means 8 billion people have the potential to find and purchase your products and services. Of course, not all 8 billion are on the Internet or even looking for what you are interested in.
But you never know who will turn to you for guidance. You might have customers that are primarily based in the United States, but you are also able to tap into clients and customers in Canada, Australia, the U.K. and elsewhere.
10. It Provides Peace of Mind About Your Future
One of the most important things that you need to consider is that you have peace of mind with this type of business opportunity. When the pandemic hit, thousands of businesses shuttered their doors and laid off employees who were left to fend for themselves.
Online entrepreneurs were not put in the same predicament. They already worked from home and were able to not only survive but thrive in a world where everyone else was dealing with the fallout.
Online consumerism is only showing signs of growth, so you get to enjoy peace of mind knowing your business is not in danger of becoming extinct or at risk of any outside precarious situations.
Only you truly know what’s in your heart that makes you crave this career as a solo entrepreneur. You don’t have to apologize for being a go-getter. Just blaze a trail and put in the effort and you’ll reap the rewards of your labor.