How to Start a Digital Nomad Online Business for Less Than $100

You can start your own digital nomad online business for under $100 today! 

Yes, you read that right. 

Starting an online business as a digital nomad doesn’t have to have hefty startup costs. With a minimal amount, you can begin to build your empire – one that will give you the freedom to make money from your computer both actively and passively. 

By the end of this article, you will have seven different online businesses you can start either as a full or part-time job so you can either get started becoming a digital nomad or simply want to have some more income. 

So, grab your $100 and get ready to build something great! 

Dropshipping

The world of e-commerce has taken over the digital nomad online business sector by storm. Dropshipping is a strategic and creative way digital nomads can sell products online without ever having to keep these items in stock. Therefore, allowing them to live their location-independent lifestyle. 

Let me explain. 

A digital nomad finds a product online, usually from Alibaba or AliExpress, that will sell well. 

He then sells the product at a higher price than the supplier charges on a separate e-commerce website. (Shopify is super popular for this!) 

To promote the product, many dropshippers use social media advertising like Facebook and Instagram. 

When a customer orders the product from his website, he then has the product shipped directly from the supplier to the customer. 

Now, this is in purely simple terms. Advanced e-commerce businesses run entire marketing and advertising campaigns, sometimes costing thousands of dollars. 

But the revenue is worth every penny invested! 

To get started, though, you only need about $100. Choose your product(s), build an e-commerce store, and start promoting.

Before starting a dropshipping business, I recommend doing your research and learn from others in e-commerce. A great way to break into this world is through Clubhouse conversations and Facebook groups. 

Blogger/Influencer

Do you have something to say – something the world will benefit from hearing?

If you enjoy writing and creating content, then you may want to start a blog! 

While blogging sounds like it is something from the early 2000s, it is still a profitable online business digital nomads can start for a low cost. 

To begin, pick a topic and your niche. If you’re interested in travel, choose a niche like solo female travelers, backpackers with dogs, or luxury vacations. 

Then, build your blog and website. Purchase your domain, get some hosting (we love BlueHost), and create a WordPress site using our favorite Divi theme to get started. 

Once your website is up and running, it’s time to start creating content! 

It’s best to plan your content ahead of time and do some keyword research to see what people are searching on Google. When you have great SEO, your blog can show up in more results when people search for a topic you’ve written about. 

Now,  there are a couple of ways you can make money with your blog. 

The first is to use Google Adsense and allow ads to show on your website. You’ll get paid depending on how many people see the ad and how many people click the ad. 

The second is to do affiliate marketing. This is when you promote a product or service and receive a commission if your readers purchase it. Contact products you love or already use and apply to their affiliate program or ask to become an affiliate.

This takes a lot of time and dedication – creating content isn’t always easy! But if you are consistent, write engaging material, and trending traffic, you could make a lot of money with this online business. 

Create an Online Course

Would you consider yourself an expert in something? 

Could you teach it to someone else interesting to learn about it?

Then create an online course! 

More and more people turn to independent learning each year and take online courses to learn new skills. Whether they’re learning as part of their job or simply because they’re interested in the topic, creating an online course is a great online business for digital nomads who want to make passive income. 

Here’s how to do it. 

First, choose what you would like to teach. Maybe you’re particularly skilled in a computer program like Photoshop, or you want to share tricks and tips for taking photos and videos with an iPhone. It could be as simple as teaching people how to draw! 

Next, create your course. Write an outline of what you’re going to teach and create either a presentation or a book for students to follow along. 

Then, you’re going to film your course. This will be a mix of videos of you, your presentation, demonstrations, and any other footage you may have that’s related. 

Once the video is complete and to your standards, it’s time to put it online. 

You can choose several websites to post your course, including Udemy, SkillSuccess, and Thinkific. 

The beauty of creating an online course is that you only have to do it once. Then when it’s online, and people start purchasing it, you’ll earn passive income. 

It’s important to note that you should also spend time and energy promoting your course on social media and other online platforms. 

Self-Publish Books on Amazon

Are you a determined writer who loves to tell a story or provide information to people?

Then you may want to consider self-publishing your books on Amazon Kindle! 

Long gone are the days of writing query letters to editors and publishing companies in hopes they’ll choose to publish your book. You can now take your success into your own hands! 

With the Amazon Kindle self-publishing program, you can publish your ebook and make passive income from your book’s sales. 

Now is the perfect time to publish an ebook. Rarely do we see people, especially digital nomads, reading a hardcopy book anymore. Now people are being more environmentally friendly and practicing minimalism by using a Kindle or other e-reader device. 

With this program, you can do everything yourself. From writing to editing to formatting to designing the cover, this online business is practically free for a digital nomad. 

With Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing, you’ll just have to upload your formatted ebook, and it’ll be ready for sale in about a day. Plus, you’ll earn up to 70% royalties on the sale. 

Or you can choose to partner with BookBaby and pay $99 for them to convert your ebook format for multiple e-reader devices. 

Pro Tip: Set your starting price at $0.99 for the first week. Then increase the price by $1 each week after that until you see sales stop. This will help you determine how much you can sell your ebook for. 

Make sure to spend time promoting your ebook on your social media. It may also help to create an author website and do interviews to get the word out about your book. 

Start a Freelance Business

An excellent online business for digital nomads is to start a freelance business. You’ll find that many digital nomads work as freelancers to support themselves. 

Freelancers can be anything from a web developer to a graphic designer to a writer. If you have a skill that’s in high demand, you can become a freelancer! 

To start a freelance business, you’ll need to create a portfolio website. We suggest creating it with WordPress and BlueHost and using the Divi Theme, a clean and sophisticated layout. 

On this website, you’ll explain your services, add examples of your work, and a way to contact you. 

You’ll have to learn how to pitch your services to clients. This is best done through cold emailing and using your LinkedIn network. 

For example, if you’re a web designer who comes across a business’s outdated or broken website, you could send an email to the owner and offer your services to fix it. 

It will take some time to get your freelance business off the ground, but when you spend time marketing yourself and collecting reviews, you’ll be making money in no time! 

Buy and Flip Website Domains

You’ve heard of people buying cheap houses, waiting until the area becomes more popular, and sell them for a higher price. 

You can do the exact same thing with website domains. 

With $100, you can 100 domains for $0.99 each on GoDaddy and hold them until someone else wants to buy them from you at a higher price. 

It’s important to note that you should be purchasing domain names with popular terms in them. So, you’ll have to stay on top and even ahead of trends to make sure your domains are desirable. 

You can then list the domains you wish to sell on Flippa or auction it off on GoDaddy Auctions. 

This online business won’t make digital nomads money immediately. This is a waiting game for most. 

However, there are ways to make the domains you’re holding even more desirable. Once you have the domain, create a website, and work on its SEO. When search engines already recognize the domain, people will pay much more for it because the hard work has already been done for them. 

Print-On-Demand Merchandise

If you’re a graphic designer or artist who wishes to see your art on t-shirts, computer covers, stickers, or phone cases, you may enjoy starting a print-on-demand online business. 

It’s extremely simple! 

When you have created a design you wish to sell, you’ll upload it to a print-on-demand site, such as Printful, and sell your items.  

Then, when a customer sees your design and purchases it, the website will create the merchandise and ship it to them. 

You don’t have to hold any inventory or find different suppliers. These print-on-demand websites will do it for you. 

Your only job is to create designs, promote your merchandise, and manage your e-commerce sales. Build yourself a website, show off your products on social media, and get the word out. 

To really succeed in this digital nomad online business, it’s a good idea to find a niche or aesthetic to stick to. This will narrow down your target market and provide you more customers. 

Decided on Your Online Business? Get Started on Your Digital Nomad Life

You’re reading this article because you wanted to find an online business you can start as a digital nomad. Now that you’ve discovered some options and hopefully gained some inspiration let us help you with the digital nomad part. 

Nomads Embassy makes becoming a digital nomad much easier! With our innovative step-by-step platform and one-on-one assistance, you can get started on your digital nomad journey in just 5 minutes or less. 

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