24 business ideas that could be worth millions

The advance of the Internet has democratized access to the world of entrepreneurship. From virtually anywhere in the world (provided they have internet access), manufacturers can launch real, viable businesses capable of generating millions of dollars a year.

While technology has lowered the barrier to entry for starting a business, there are still an endless amount of problems just waiting to be solved. With tons of ideas, the main ingredient to building a startup – besides time and a bit of luck – is execution. Just get started. To help you get started, here are 24 viable business ideas.

Gmail Extension Builder

Modern businesses rely on email to do their job. There are dozens of opportunities to create Gmail extensions that automate parts of a professional’s workflow to save time and money.

Related: 20 Gmail Hacks Only Advanced Users Know About

Drone videographer

Improved aviation technology has made it easier than ever to fly a drone over a beautiful landscape or building. The commercial and residential real estate sectors are practically asking for more drone videographers to serve their real estate agents and developers.

Related: Revolutionizing the Film Industry with Remote Control Drones

Dropshipping business owner

You can start an e-commerce business without holding inventory. This practice, known as dropshipping, offers many opportunities if you can dominate the right niche.

Related: 6 Steps to Building a Successful Online Dropshipping Business

Online course creator

If you know an industry or task very well, you can easily create and sell an online course that teaches people a new skill. You will only have to invest the necessary resources to develop the class.

Related: 8 Steps to Creating a Profitable Digital Course

Social Media Manager

You can manage social media accounts for a number of different businesses if you market yourself well. Advertise your ability to generate sales and increase ROI by leveraging the reach of multiple social channels.

Related: Tips for Running Your Best Social Media Campaign Ever

Online influencer

It’s a common dream these days to become an internet celebrity, and there’s a reason: Building a large following on the internet can give you immense influence that can be monetized on a massive scale.

Related: What I Learned From Spending $10 Million on Influencer Marketing

Affiliate Marketing Partner

Affiliate marketing is a partnership that bloggers, content creators, or marketers can have with an online retailer. The retailer pays a commission for each referral sale the partner sends to them.

Related: Top 10 Affiliate Marketing Tracking Software Platforms

Event planner and promoter

Restaurants, clubs and other physical venues often struggle to attract customers. By using your abilities as a marketer, you can get paid for directing traffic to these placements.

Related: The Price Is Right: Generating Profits in the Event Planning Business

Real Estate Investor

In any market, there are opportunities to buy and sell real estate to make a profit. With a little capital, you can start taking more risk on your assets and making long-term investments in residential and commercial real estate. Just be sure to do your research before you start.

Related: 8 Ways Real Estate Is Your Smartest Investment

ghost writer

You can turn your ability to write well and quickly into a serious business if you find the right clients. Try freelance platforms like Upwork and Freelancer.com. As long as you provide consistent, quality content, over time your business is bound to grow.

Related: The Complete Entrepreneur’s Guide to Ghostwriting

Content Translator

Being fluent in another language can be extremely valuable for people who need their websites translated. Create a simple website and you can start charging for “translation as a service” for websites, documents and presentations.

Related: Going Global? 3 strategies to ensure nothing is “lost in translation”

Chatbot Builder FAQ

Companies waste dozens and dozens of hours a week answering customer support questions. Help them automate this process using a simple chatbot.

Related: Top 10 Best Chatbot Platform Tools to Build Chatbots for Your Business

Pinball Website

Using Flippa or any other online trading marketplace, you can buy and sell projects, domains, and websites. With the right eye, you can find great deals on promising ideas and turn them into profit with just a little investment in the right areas.

Related: 7 Lucrative Online Jobs That Can Skyrocket Your Income

newsletter editor

Creating a newsletter with an active audience is an extremely lucrative business opportunity, as advertisers will pay a lot of money to get their name presented to the right audience. Start with a small niche that you can really add value to, and you’ll likely see your subscriber list grow over time.

Related: 4 Steps to Creating a Profitable Digital Newsletter

Freelance designer

Learn to use Photoshop or Sketch, and you can start charging clients for your design work. As a freelancer, you’ll be able to make your own hours and dictate your own progress as your business grows.

Related: The Non-Designer’s Guide to Hiring a Great Freelance Web Designer

Personal trainer

If you are into physical fitness and maintaining a healthy lifestyle, personal training might be the activity of choice for you. There’s always a market for it through people looking to get in shape – and looking for someone to nudge them in the right direction.

Related: How to Add Wellness Coaching to Your Personal Training Business

Pinball from Craigslist

Craigslist can be a gold mine for finding deals you can flip for a profit. There are many resources available online that can help you identify bargains from the rest of the pack.

Related: How to Make a Fortune With $100

farmer’s market vendor

If you know farmers in your area, you can contact them and offer to sell their products at farmers’ markets. Rather than paying upfront, you can mitigate your risk by partnering with farmers in exchange for a commission.

Related: College Entrepreneurs Find a Green Niche in an Online Farmers Market

Paid advertising consultant

Most businesses rely on some sort of paid advertising to generate leads for their business. Become an expert on Google AdWords or Facebook Ads and you can start charging customers for managing their spend.

Related: Need Customers? The 5 Best Ways to Market Your Consulting Business

Tutor

Whether it’s for the ACT, SAT, or just general schoolwork, many students could use support to do their best in different subjects. Become a resource that helps students succeed in the classroom, and many parents will likely be willing to pay you for that help.

Related: To Improve Your Business Quickly, Stop Selling and Start Teaching

Outsourced assistant

Well-paid CEOs don’t have the time or energy to deal with the many administrative tasks that can come with the job. If you can give rich people time back by acting as an outside helper, many will be more than happy to compensate you appropriately.

Related: Which Successful Entrepreneurs Outsource to a Virtual Assistant

Critical

Believe it or not, you can benefit from being a “professional reviewer” or someone who reviews products by posting thoughts about them online. It will take some time to gain some domain authority, but after a while you could become a thought leader in your space.

Related: One of TripAdvisor’s Top Reviewers Talks About How Reviews Work, for Better and for Worse

Life coach

Becoming a life coach is as simple as determining which of your past experiences you can use to bring value to others. Whether it’s providing actionable strategies or general advice, you can probably find a niche as a life coach or mentor.

Related: The 10 Best Cities to Start a Life Coaching Practice

Website designer

There are many businesses and professionals who want a website to represent them online, but lack the skills to create it. Many are more than willing to pay for a quality website that will better display their brand image.