Typical Internet Start up Expenses… What Are They?

In 2010 and beyond more and more entrepreneurial start ups are Internet based, so what can, “the New Internet Entrepreneur,” expect to layout as typical Internet Start up expenses?

The answer to this question can range from a couple hundred dollars, up into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, so let’s start with the basic start up expenses and work our way up shall we…

Your Internet Start Up Business Needs Internet!

If you don’t have a computer and Internet connection…get one! You won’t save any money in the long run, if you have someone else do all your work. You can easily buy a new computer that is capable of most of what your start up Internet business will need for under $500.

I also recommend sparing no expense for a high speed connection because you will want to possibly create videos or watch video training.

Your Internet Start Up Needs a Product!

If you already have a product that is in demand… great! From experience, I would recommend lining up a drop shipper, or your dreams of sitting on a beach with a pina colada in hand checking your increasing bank statements will be spent standing on a line at the post office with box in hand… Typical expense for drop shipping is about 10% of your margin.

If you don’t have a product, you can always find a manufacture willing to sign you up as an affiliate where you typically earn 70% to 50% of the suggested retail. I’d stay away from anything that required you to buy product “up front” especially if you are starting an Internet business on a budget.

Your Internet Start up needs Real Estate!

Just like your local business on Main Street, your customers will need a place where they can shop. There’s two ways of going about this:

1) Join an existing Internet Business Opportunity, where the websites are already built for you and included in the initial start up expense (usually below $500). If you are on a budget, don’t have any experience with building websites, or writing good sales copy, I would have to recommend taking this route for your start up, as it will save you time, and money testing your market.

2) Build your own. This is where the start up expenses isn’t so “typical.” You’ll find some web developers charge a lot more than others and sometimes with good legitimate reasons. The fastest and most flexible platform I’ve found to build upon is WordPress.org (not WordPress.com) and you can get a pretty cool theme for less than $20 and upload it yourself with a little help from your hosting company. However, if your budget permits seek out a professional that is well versed in Word press because for a few hundred dollars they can design custom graphics, customize the template, and add very useful plug-ins making your space easier to use and more effective.

Your Internet Start up needs Advertising!

If you build it, will they come? The answer is NO! You need to include marketing into your Internet business start up expenses. So you’re probably asking, “OK how much,” and that’s a great question. I like to break my marketing down into 2 categories.

1) Advertising: This consists mostly of paid methods such as pay per click, pay per action, banner advertising, direct mail, press releases, ezines, articles, email marketing, ect. ect. In most cases you can set your budget but your ROI will depend on your ability to connect and solve your prospects problem. Typical Start up expense could range from zero into the 10′s of thousands per month.

2) Networking: You can network in person, with friends, family or at events. Nothing new here, just be nice, provide value and for Pete’s sake ask them questions about their business and they will eventually ask you about yours! Online networking on social media websites such as Facebook, MySpace,Twitter, YouTube, and many others has also become very popular. Unless you are using tools for automation the only investment is your time.

Your Internet Start Up Business Needs an Auto-responder!

Auto-responders have to be one of my favorite tools I use to leverage the Internet, yet it amazes me how so few businesses actually utilize it in their Internet business.

An auto-responder is not something you set up in your Yahoo or Gmail; it’s a professional service which allows you to build an opt-in list. It allows you to send personally detailed, predetermined messages, at predetermined times, to people who voluntarily “opt-into” your list.

Countless sales studies show that a prospect needs to see an offer several times before a buying decision is made, and through your well written email auto-responder campaign, you can stay in front of your audience for the long term. This ensures that when the time does come to make a purchase, your reader already knows, likes, and trusts you… So the chances of them buying from you have been greatly increased.

This is also referred to as “lead nurturing.” The goal of lead nurturing is to maintain a relevant and consistent dialog with viable leads – regardless of their timing to buy – until they are sales ready. A key aspect of lead nurturing is the ability to provide valuable education and information to the prospect up front. The best part is that it does not have to be done on the phone, and it can be automated with a good email auto-responder service. Typical expense $15 – $30 per month.

So let’s recap… The typical Internet Start up expenses is:

1. Get a work station (computer and connection)
2. Get a product (yours or someone else)
3. Get a store (website)
4. Get Advertising (Internet marketing)
5. Get an automated lead nurturing system (email auto-responder)

So to answer the question; “Typical Internet Start up Expenses… What Are They?”

As you just read, they’re not so cut and dry, everyone has a different skill set and resources. Be prepared to invest your resources (time & money) into yourself because if you are not willing to do it, who do you think will?

How much you want to make, and how far you deviate from a proven system, the more risk, and expense you will bear. My parting advice is to NOT jump in with the sharks. Start with a proven Internet based business or opportunity and hone your marketing skills, because marketing is really the kingpin of your success online.

Did I leave anything out? Can you spare two cents? Please leave it below if you can, Thanks!

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