People think that it's tough to become an online retailer - but it's not. Although there is a lot of competition out there, a lot of niche sites and a lot of great deals to be had, there are actually simple means to get started.
One way you might not have expected is to start a blog. You can then use that blog as a tool to sell products related to your subject matter. Start blogging about what you love, if you have a hobby, blog about that. Just make sure you choose something you're actually passionate about or you will most likely lose interest after your first couple articles.
Blogs have a much better chance of building and maintaining traffic than a website. There are a lot of reasons for this but I am only going to mention two. First, search engines give way more attention to blog articles and tend to rank them higher then web pages. And second, blogs, when used correctly, have the ability to connect with people, unlike any website. Blogs tell personal stories that people can really relate to, which allows for a very high level of loyalty to be achieved.
I found a great personal art blog, which the artist uses to showcase here paintings. Throughout her postings, she describes her inspiration, what she is currently working on, etc. and people become engaged. They feel like they are a part of the painting process. They can get exited about the art as they watch it develop. For the most part, as people follow Paint Dance they start to feel closer to the artist on a personal level, so this ends up building a desire to support the artist.
This particular artist uses PayPal buttons to sell and only sells specific pieces.
As you can see, this is an obvious model for success. But it is important not to push it too far, making it more about the sales and less about the topic, which is the key motivation behind your audience wanting to visit your blog. There is a fine line here that needs to be recognized.
It seems you can write about almost anything and still build a solid audience. Whatever your interest, whatever your story, you can bet there are people out there that share that passion. Just keep the articles constant and keep it about you. In some way or another, you will connect with people on a personal level.
At the end of the day what you really are is a blogger, but don't let that scare you from making some money at it. After all, we all have passions but it is only those that can sustain their dreams that will end up actually living it.
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