Creating an online business after 50, 60, 70, and beyond is easier than you might think, even if you lack technical skills. And you have an advantage going into it that young techie geeks don’t. Your advantage is your life experience and knowledge.
Since the internet is primarily an information source, specialized knowledge can be a valuable product for generating income. The ways to monetize your knowledge are one of the goals of this article.
Knowledge Sources
Your knowledge of a particular subject or activity may have come from your job, a hobby, sport, travel, or special interest. After decades of learning and experience, this accumulated knowledge can classify you as an expert!
Young adults don’t have enough years of experience to call themselves true experts on much of anything, although their naivety often leads them to do so anyway, just as we probably did in our youth. This is especially evident online.
We 50+ers have found, however, that young adults have an advantage in computer and internet skills. And they should. Computer and internet skills are now built into the education system, starting in preschool. This provides a technical support resource that we can use. However, I have found that we still need to weigh their advice against their life experience to separate quality from quantity.
Product Sources
Another e-business opportunity is selling things you’ve made yourself and received positive feedback on. These may be how-to guides, recipes, birdhouses, musical instruments, crafts, or art.
There are many inexpensive ways to integrate the sale and distribution of these products into a website. Once you get started, you will be exposed to these options.
Life Experience
Life experience creates a strong work ethic, judgment, integrity, and tenacity. These four (4) qualities are extremely important and valuable when building an online business. Again, advanced age becomes an advantage.
Many young adults fail with e-business ventures because they haven’t yet acquired these qualities. Their work ethic is erratic, their judgment is unrefined, their integrity is still developing, and their tenacity is not thoroughly tested.
This article is not an indictment against young people. I get along with young adults very well because I do not think of them as being kids, and I don’t think of myself as being old. I have met many impressive young people. I often think, “I don’t remember being that smart when I was their age.” I write it off as being an evolutionary thing. 🙂
I am pointing out the advantages of being over 50 when building an e-business to inspire you. But these advantages are real! I’ve been on this e-ride since 2000, so I’m no newbie.
Success Secrets
Do you remember that scene from the movie “City Slickers
Your passion will show in your work, and people will see it. When they do, they’ll get excited about what you offer on your website. Most importantly, passion produces the fuel to stick with it enthusiastically, regardless of obstacles.
Curly probably wouldn’t have known the second secret to online business success. Here it is. Your expertise or niche must interest enough people to generate a viable income stream. There are tools you can use to determine this. I’ll talk more about that later.
Power Vehicles
The vehicle that powers an e-business is the website host. As with auto manufacturers and dealers, you must be careful with your choice to get one that serves your needs at the lowest price.
If a vehicle used for construction or farming is underpowered or lacks essential capabilities, the business can suffer. The same applies to an online business, except it is more complex.
With many hosts, it’s like buying a car and then being expected to know all the inner workings to use and maintain it. This is the primary obstacle for those looking to create an income-generating website. They lack the technical skills and knowledge. There is a simple solution, though. All-in-one hosting!
All-in-One-Hosting
I discovered a unique hosting company that is an ideal fit for people with zero or limited technical skills. It’s also a dream saver for those who have tried and failed.
I found it particularly appealing that the owner is over 50 (born circa 1953). His frequent participation in the support forums shows his interest and sincerity in helping members succeed. He also demonstrates this by continually improving the service at a considerable cost to remain cutting-edge.
The all-in-one hosting service he built includes everything needed to succeed, without requiring technical skills or e-business experience. Here are some key features that I find particularly valuable.
- Learning Modules – This educational process teaches you how to succeed in e-business using a step-by-step approach. These comprehensive modules are available in text, video, and mobile formats.
- Credibility – Used as an e-business course at over 30 colleges and universities.
- Technical Systems – No involvement required. Everything happens behind the scenes. All website design is point-and-click.
- Niche Finding Tool – This world-class precision tool helps determine if your idea(s) will succeed.
- SEO Tool – This optimization tool helps you create search engine (Google) friendly pages so customers can find your site.
- Customer Support – Outstanding, quick response customer support via email and support forums.
- Comradery – Thousands of supportive and enthusiastic subscribers helping each other succeed in the members-only forums. You’ll never feel alone.
The company I’ve been talking about is SS and its SBI product. You’ll find out how SBI has enhanced the lives of many 50+ers and retirees. If a picture is worth a thousand words, a video must be worth at least two thousand. If this service sounds appealing, I recommend watching this short video tour.
One of the top advantages of SBI is that you do not need to know or do any coding. 🙂
WordPress
I found the best company if you’re feeling more adventurous and want to use WordPress. My decision to go with this company has been one of the best choices since starting in e-business in 2000. I’ll share details about this company soon, but first, let me outline a few things about WordPress.
WordPress is a free, open-source content management system and blogging tool. A content management system makes it easy to create, organize, and publish articles in your area of expertise. Articles are the content on a website that generates traffic. Free and open-source means the global WordPress community volunteers to develop, maintain, and improve it. I particularly like this aspect. No profit motivations and contributions come from technical and creative geniuses worldwide.
There are two main components to WordPress: themes and plugins. Although WordPress is the foundation that powers the content management system, a theme provides the look and feel of a site, and plugins add cool capabilities as you need them. There are thousands of themes, some free and some premium (paid for). There are thousands of plugins, most of which are free, and some offer premium features and services for a fee.
The premium themes offer many important advantages. Here they are.
- Search Engine Optimized – Clean, optimized code and smart design help to get the best rankings possible so customers can find you.
- Mobile-Responsive – This ensures your site looks good and is easy to navigate on mobile devices, including smartphones, tablets, and laptops.
- Airtight Security – Follows all WordPress security best practices to protect your site from being hacked.
- Continual Updates – This ensures your site meets current code standards and is kept up to date as WordPress evolves. This is huge, as many free themes lag in this area.
- Customer Support – Access premium support for troubleshooting or “how-to” questions. Support for free themes and plugins is typically slow and not 100% responsive.
- Community Support – Access to private forums. Getting support from people who understand your struggles and share your enthusiasm for a product helps a lot!
I knew nothing about WordPress or premium themes when I converted my sites to WordPress. But I did a ridiculous amount of research before I made any moves. I have since discovered that many leading figures in the e-business world use the same company and products I selected. 🙂
The company I’ve been talking about is WPE. Their hosting plans include premium themes.
Update – Some of their policies may have changed since an acquisition.
I chose the hosting service for these reasons.
- Low cost.
- Outstanding customer support.
- Continually improving and adding new features.
- Regularly ranked at the top of “best hosting” reviews.
The hosting service I’m using is DH. I have nothing but good things to say about them.
The miracle of the internet makes it possible for anyone at any age to start a business with very little money. The best part is that you can build and run it from anywhere in the world!
I like the idea of traveling while still building or managing an online business. The image of doing this on a beautiful beach or in a nice motorhome is particularly appealing.
If you go forward and start your own online business, I hope we cross paths someday so I can hear about your journey. 🙂