Becoming a digital nomad is made easier by setting up an online business.
When considering how to earn income online as a digital nomad, it ultimately depends on your skills, resources, and passion as there are numerous options available.
This business will serve as financial support for your lifestyle while you are traveling the world, preventing you from accumulating significant debt. Additionally, it is the basis for a long-term profession that shapes your lasting impact.
Coming up with your own business idea for the digital nomad lifestyle can be challenging. Therefore, I have compiled a few ideas for you in order to help you out. I will categorize them based on the responsibilities needed to sustain them, with the aim of sparking your creativity on how you can establish a source of income that allows you to work from anywhere.
Virtual Assistance
When starting out as a digital nomad, it is very common for individuals to work as a virtual assistant at some point in time as it is one of the most popular jobs in this field.
Virtual assistance entails remotely assisting clients with a multitude of tasks. The most prosperous virtual assistants typically focus on a specific area such as social media marketing, SEO, copywriting, or web design. Nevertheless, the demand for virtual assistants is currently higher than ever, and opportunities to work in this field can be found across various industries.
Regardless of your experience or the field you come from, virtual assistance is an excellent digital nomad business idea.
Blogging
Surprisingly, blogging can offer an excellent business opportunity for a digital nomad entrepreneur. If you believe that blogs are no longer relevant and lack readership, you should reconsider as you are currently engaged in reading a blog.
Blogs that have captivating content and are managed by bloggers who possess a deep understanding of blogging techniques have the potential to achieve immense success. A few skilled bloggers earn monthly incomes of five or even six figures, or even higher.
It is important to remember that building a blog which generates enough income for sustenance may require a considerable amount of time. Bloggers seldom achieve instant success.
Once you have established a strong foundation in blogging, it becomes an excellent source of monthly income.
Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing refers to a business model that enables individuals to earn a fraction of the sales they generate for companies through various approaches such as blogs, social media, email marketing, and other methods.
If you recommend products or services to potential buyers, affiliate marketing can be a way to earn money from these sales.
Affiliate marketing has become widely popular among bloggers as a means of earning money; however, having a blog is not a requirement for turning affiliate marketing into a profitable business.
Selling Digital Products
Selling digital products is a widely applicable business idea for digital nomads that is both common and profitable. Additionally, it is among the most convenient and straightforward options for digital nomad entrepreneurs and remote workers.
The advantage of selling digital products lies in the fact that you only need to create them once, and can repeatedly sell them.
By implementing a strong marketing and sales strategy, it is possible to generate continuous passive income for various months and even years by solely relying on a single digital product.
Amazon FBA Businesses
One of the most popular methods for digital nomads to sell physical products is by launching an Amazon FBA business. FBA stands for “fulfillment by Amazon” and entails developing products, which can be anything available on Amazon, and sourcing manufacturers for their production.
Once they are shipped directly to Amazon warehouses, the products you sell can be shipped out by Amazon, which means you won’t have to handle or even see most of them. This aspect makes it a convenient digital nomad business as you can run it from just behind a computer.
Establishing these businesses requires a lot of efforts such as acquiring knowledge on Amazon marketing, building your brand, and locating manufacturers. Nevertheless, they have the potential to achieve great success in a relatively brief timeframe and suit the digital nomad lifestyle exceptionally well.
Dropshipping
Dropshipping is considered as one of the simplest methods for digital nomads to sell physical products because it allows them to sell products without the need to manage inventory or handle shipping logistics.
Due to the absence of inventory requirements, dropshipping has gained immense popularity among digital nomads as a business model. Operating your business solely online, this selling approach exempts you from handling or inspecting the products you offer for sale.
Photography / Videography
If you possess the necessary skills, having a photography or videography business can be a great idea for digital nomads as it allows them to travel worldwide while still operating their businesses. Many photographers and videographers choose to establish their businesses in a single location, but it’s not a requirement for success.
Digital nomads can have incredible experiences while traveling, making it a fantastic opportunity. The tourism industry is frequently in search of excellent photography or video content to showcase their services and benefit from the exposure you can offer.
Photographers and videographers have the option to provide their services in exchange for experiences, hotel stays, and other benefits. Although this arrangement may not generate income, it is an excellent opportunity to enhance their portfolio or enjoy a memorable experience during their travels.
Physical Product Businesses
During my travels, I have encountered numerous digital nomad entrepreneurs engaging in physical-product ventures. This implies that they are selling tangible products directly to customers. They utilize platforms such as Shopify as a storefront to facilitate these sales.
Advantages of running a business that sells physical products.
- Can feel “more real” and be rewarding
- More scalable than services
- Ability to build a team around business
Disadvantages of establishing a physical product business.
- Requires upfront investment
- Relies on supply chain
- Hard to enforce patents or trademarks
The following businesses are examples of physical product digital nomad businesses that are easy to start.
When you white label a product sourced from Alibaba, you locate a product on platforms like Alibaba and market it using your own brand name. By doing so, you avoid the need to create a product from scratch and instead focus on finding one to sell while distinguishing your marketing strategies.
Designing your own product may seem a bit more complex; however, you can still create your own prototype, purchase a minimum order quantity, and proceed with selling it. Although this may not be the quickest path to take, it has the potential to establish a strong and successful business.
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