How To Start A Business Online

The coronavirus pandemic and the socially distant times have made us re-evaluate the way we carry out our business. Starting and operating a business in these times, while ensuring limited physical interaction, sounds difficult but it is possible. And we have digital technology to thank for this. 

Starting and operating a business online is the new way forward. Many businesses that were designed to run on-ground are now thriving online. Right when the pandemic hit the globe, education was one of the most critical issues to be tackled. Teaching and reaching out to students in person was not possible, hence, going by the new normal, the new question that rose was how to start online tution at home? Not just teaching, but businesses like daily grocery, medicine etc are now moving to the online platforms. 

If the recent study figures are to be considered, Indians have moved to shop for even groceries and basic essentials online and these numbers are expected to grow further as an increasing number of individuals prefer shopping via e-retail stores while maintaining a social distance. In fact, by 2025, e-retailers are expected to grow by four times as e-commerce will penetrate even the small towns within the country. 

Benefits Of Starting An Online Business

India is currently the fourth largest retail market, but the online market has still not covered a significant ground. This however is slowly changing and the coming years will witness exponential growth of the online business. Therefore, now is the right time for aspiring entrepreneurs to tap the potential and venture into an online business. 

Some of the benefits of starting an online business include-

• An online business can be started from anywhere and does not require a shop.
• An online business can be started on a small budget as the costs of purchasing and setting up a shop and other maintenance costs are saved. 
• A shop can reach out to only the potential customers within its locality or the city, but an online business has a global reach where it can reach out to a wider audience around the globe.
• In case of a retail shop, entrepreneurs need to maintain a considerable stock while for an online business, the entrepreneur can avail or manufacture the products as per the orders.
• An online business provides the entrepreneur with the flexibility of time and helps them cater to the customers at any time, from a location convenient to them.

However, where to start and how to start the business are the critical questions that aspiring entrepreneurs seek answers to. Creating a business plan is a good starting point. Other details of how to start a business online are discussed herewith. 

How To Start A Business Online

Entering into an online business is quite simple but certain essentials need to be factored in when learning how to start a business online to ensure that the business starts on the right note. 

Select The Kind Of Business

When getting to know how to do business online, one of the primary decisions to make is to finalise the kind of online business to start. 

Entrepreneurs can choose from any one of the following types of online businesses-

• E-commerce or product based business like an online T-shirt store or mobile accessories (retail and wholesale)
• Service based business
• Digital business

While selecting the kind of business, ensure that the product or the service is-

• Unique and original
• If not, then the entrepreneur is an expert in that particular field

A thorough market analysis before selecting the kind of business to start online will help understand the need of the customers, the existing competition and how the business can be different, thus creating a niche.

Register A Domain Name

A domain name is the address of the online business’s website that users will type in the browser URL bar in order to visit the website. Selecting and registering a domain name is one of the foremost steps when planning on how to start a business online. A domain name is usually “www.businessname.in/com/”.

The domain name will form the identity of the business in the future so it must be chosen carefully. Ideally, the domain name must be short, easy to remember and reflect the business. 

Domain names can be registered by-

• Selecting the name
• Checking it’s availability
• Registering the name via a domain name registrar or company
• Paying for the registration as well as for the name

Select The Web Hosting Service

The next step is to select a hosting service to host the online business website. A service can be chosen considering what all they offer and what is suitable for the business. 

Some hosting services offer structured options, such as choosing from a website template to the number of email accounts along with it while others allow the entrepreneur the flexibility to programme their own website. Unless the entrepreneur is an expert, choosing from a template and then adding personal touches is a good option.

Create An Engaging Website

The website is the face of the business for any online business, therefore the website should be created with a lot of thought.

• The website design must reflect the type of business
• The design and layout must be easy to understand and simple to navigate
• The website should not be too content rich where not needed
• The website must have encapsulating photos of the products to be marketed
• In case of an e-commerce website, the navigation button to the payment gateway must be easy to spot

These are some of the details to keep in mind when learning how to start a business online. 

Set-up A Merchant Account

When business is carried out online, the payment will also be made online. To allow customers to make payment the entrepreneurs need to set up a merchant account or a payment gateway. This account must be easy to use, with clearly visible tabs and instructions elaborating the process and taking the customers ahead.

Additionally, for e-commerce and retail businesses that plan to sell products, entrepreneurs can also purchase e-commerce software. This will help make the experience secure for the customers and easy for the business owners.

Ensure A Reliable Network

When aspiring entrepreneurs wonder how to start a business online, one of the primary things to consider, along with creating a website and hosting it, is to have a reliable internet connection. A lot depends on the computer hardware and the basic hardware requirements for an online business are- 

• CPU: for web 1,6 GHz and for web and database 4 x 1,6 GHz CPU
• RAM: 4GB
• Minimum database space: 10GB

Alternatively, the following are also the basic hardware requirements for e-commerce businesses- 

• CPU: Quad 2GHz+ CPU 
• RAM: 6GB
• Minimum database space: 10GB

Be Social To Advertise The Business

After ensuring the basic requirements are in place to start an online business, the next very vital step is to advertise the business. One of the best ways to get the business noticed is to create a social media presence for the business. The business should be visible on various social platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. If the business involves something to be seen, like a visual form- like clothes, accessories, homeware, or art and decor or craft or something that can be best described via pictures, the business can even have a presence on platforms like Instagram, Tumblr and Flickr. 

Entrepreneurs must post regularly on these social media platforms- a new product, an announcement, a post, a new entry, anything related to the business must be posted on all the platforms. This helps get noticed and recognised by even potential customers. 

The social media presence in today’s digital world can make a sea of difference for the business. There are several ways in which the business can tap into the benefits of social media. Entrepreneurs can download social media marketing checklist to know more about how to use these platforms aptly for the business. 

Apply Marketing Techniques

Along with social media presence and advertising, the business needs to apply digital marketing techniques to reach out to a larger audience across the world. 

Some ways in which this can be achieved is by using Google AdWords and tapping into the power of search engine optimisation. This ensures that the business website pops up within the first few whenever anyone searches for products or services related to the business. Entrepreneurs can always seek the expertise of professionals, such as those at deAsra to help market their business across the web. 

Calculate And Arrange The Finances

Starting an online business requires a comparatively small investment. The cost of hosting a website on a domain annually, along with creating a website can cost anything between₹10,000 to ₹20,000 approximately. The other expenses for the business can be for sourcing or manufacturing the products ( if it’s an e-commerce retail business), maintaining an inventory, purchasing a merchant account and investing in the advertising and marketing plans. 

These costs can be covered by-

• Obtaining loan from a bank
• Procuring a loan from a non-banking financial company
• Via the entrepreneur’s savings
• Through borrowings from friends and family

Apart from these basic essentials elements, when getting to know how to start a business online, entrepreneurs need to also –

• Register the business- this means to select a suitable business entity and register the business accordingly.
• Take care of the legalities- most businesses need certain registrations, such as FSSAI for food related business, GST registration for taxation, etc. 

These pointers can help entrepreneurs get a headstart on their entrepreneurial journey when starting an online business. For detailed information or assistance, entrepreneurs can always approach deAsra for guidance and support.