Scalable Startup – An Internet Based Scalable Startup Business

What is a scalable startup business? The dictionary defines startup as:

noun
noun: startup
  1. the action or process of setting something in motion.
    “the start-up of marketing in Europe”
    • a newly established business.
      plural noun: start-ups; plural noun: startups
      “problems facing start-ups and small firms in rural areas”

Scalable Startup

scalable startup

A startup doesn’t have to be your own, it could also be an existing business model you use. Affiliate marketing and drop shipping are the two main ‘go-to’ scaleable business models. They are scalable mainly because there’s no need to get involved in the processes of the business itself.

You don’t need to deliver anything personally or speak to any customers. In the Tim Ferris book The 4 hr work week, he used drop shipping as a business model which can be scaled and grown from anywhere. Ultimately the goal of such a business is time and financial freedom. With a scalable startup like this, anyone can grow a business which is able to be operated from anywhere globally from an internet connection.

That’s quite appealing to almost everyone because it means you can build a business from your laptop, scale it and automate it. But who can do this, what are the barriers to entry and how can you get started?

How To Start A Scalable Startup From Anywhere

As more people come into this industry, new software has made it far easier to learn and operate the tools of the trade. Not so long ago, even building a website was the domain of the tech guru. You even needed to build from code not that long ago. Now everyone can have a website up and running in minutes and equally have an internet business which offers scalability and automation. Checkout this video which shows just how easily you could have a scalable startup running very quickly. (click the image below)

Scalable Startup – Scalable Definition

scalable
ˈskeɪləb(ə)l/
adjective
  1. 1.
    able to be scaled or climbed.
  2. 2.
    able to be changed in size or scale.
    “scalable fonts”

Most businesses are scalable to a point. But then their location and business model stops them growing bigger and faster. An internet based business which uses digital products is much more scalable than say a local business which employees 10 staff.

scalable startup

That’s because a local business is limited by its location. Unless there’s a internet side of the business, there will be a limit to how many customers it can serve. Even then, having employees means that the systems in place are limited by the number of people you have. Whether your staff serve customers or create products, there’s limit to how much they can do.

An online business can be automated and serve multiple people at once through a website, for example. If you start an online business which sends prospects and customers to another business model, you don’t have to be concerned with the back-end – the day to day running of the show. Your only concern is the front end marketing side of the business. That’s the part which is very scalable, especially with an online business.

A ‘bricks and mortar’ business is limited too by its size. Growth requires expansion of physical premises. An online business has no such problems. It it already geared for massive scalability to a global scale.

What Makes An Online Business So Scalable?

An online business is scalable because it uses tools, systems and strategies which can be automated. Websites for example, run 24 hours a day without the need for human presence. Digital products can be bought and delivered instantaneously over the internet with automation.

scalable startup

Adverts can run 24/7 with no interference, delivering customers directly to the products they most need. Email marketing can allow online marketers to send a single email to tens of thousands of people simultaneously. The process can even be completely automated too. Emails can deliver service, build relationships and promote any product or service.

If you start an online business which lets you focus solely on the ‘front-end’ marketing side, you can grow and scale your business from anywhere globally. If your business model includes digital products you can earn 40% commissions on your sales. A good business model also allows you to earn back-end commissions (later sales made to your customers), subscription commissions (commissions for ongoing memberships and software products) and various other benefits:

  • A built in sales team – simply refer customers and benefit from in house sales
  • Multi-tier commissions – commissions made by sales of your team (your referrals)
  • High ticket products – Let you use paid advertising and scale up more effectively.

With the right business model an online business can continue to bring in commissions long after you have done all the hard work. Because it works with automation and systems geared for scaling up to a global audience, an online business offers anyone the one of the best scalable startup businesses.

Access An Online ‘Scalable Startup’  Business Which Anyone Can Run

Most people will say they are either too old or simply don’t have the technical ability to run an online business. As you have already seen, software and online tools eliminate much of the technical barriers to entry in a business like this one. There’s also plenty of people at all ages who are already succeeding in this area.

Join an online community and access online training and a proven business system. Learn how to start your own scalable startup, even with no experience. Access a 7 day video series here to learn more and get started.

Scalable Startup Internet Business

A scalable startup internet business is a business which has the potential to be scaled. That doesn’t necessarily mean it will be scaled though. There’s a few things which set apart a scalable startup from something which will only ever be a small business:

  • Vision – Do you want a scalable business or a small business?
  • Target market – How large is your target market?
  • Systems in place – Are your business systems automated and how much can they take?
  • Geographical area – Is your business local or international?

Scalable Startup Internet Business

scalable startup

The scale of your business often depends on the scale of your vision for it. Whether an owner has the foresight to see a massive business or just a small one can often be the determining factor in what it becomes. A business can’t grow beyond the thinking you bring to it. If you judge your business in terms of how little you can do to run it, it will most likely only ever be small. However, if you have a large vision and work hard on your business, and yourself, you can build a massive business, if your business model allows.

Scalable Startup – Target Market

Your target market has a lot to do with how large your business can grow. This is also tied up with geographical area which we will come to later on. How many customers can you serve and for how long? Can you build a customer base and benefit from the lifetime value of a customer, or do you only sell one product? Is your target market international and can you serve them? Who is your perfect customer? Knowing your target audience and having the right business model is vital for building a long term sustainable business. See why is target market important.

Systems In Place

What systems are in place in your business? What are their limitations and how do they work? An online business for example can benefit from automated sales platforms, email marketing, sales funnels and automatically delivered products. This is a scalable startup model. A traditional business has more limitations. It needs a physical premises, staff and customers.

Checkout tills, although now many are automated, still need a physical presence to run and serve customers. There’s a limit to how many customers can be served at once. Scaling a business with staff means increasing your number of staff in many cases. This is not so important with an online business since everything can be automated and websites can serve as digital ’employees’ of a kind!

Geographical Area

A physical business is also limited by its area. Short of building a franchise business, in order to scale up a local business many more costs are involved. Plus a bunch of physical changes might be needed. Increasing the size of a store, employing more staff, buying more equipment are just a few examples. A local business is limited in terms of how many customers it can serve too. An online business can deliver automated products and services worldwide and so is much more scalable than a local, physical business.

The Best Scalable Startup – An Online Business

scalable startup

One of the best scalable startup opportunities is an online business. There’s a few reasons why an online business ticks a lot of boxes for a scalable startup:

  • It is low cost – Compared to a normal ‘bricks and mortar’ business there’s no stock to buy, premises needed or employees to hire.
  • It can be done from anywhere – Work from a laptop from anywhere in the world with an internet connection
  • It’s systems can be completely automated – from advertising to delivery of digital products, everything in the system is completely scalable.
  • It is international – The target market is global and so it ticks more scalable boxes than a small physically based business for scalability,

Limited Business Model

A small business can be scaled with online advertising too. However, small businesses are limited by the people and systems within them. In the example of a small corner shop, a massive influx of customers would wipe out the stock in the shop. One man at the till wouldn’t be able to cope with the increased custom. Customers would turned away once it ran out of stock. An increase in the size of a shop would be expensive. More staff too costs money and bringing in more stock requires more space and more capital.

So with this above example, it wouldn’t work increasing the number of customers due to the limits of the business model. A scalable startup business should have the systems in place to scale up immediately.

Online Advertising

scalable startup

The tools are already available to scale any business up with online advertising. Most small business owners don’t even know how powerful online advertising is. Even though many would benefit from it they still don’t use it. Facebook and Adwords, for example, can allow anyone to tap into their target audience very quickly and easily.

Despite the power of online marketing, and even with those who use it, if a business model is limited with people, staff and physical location, online advertising will be deliberately limited to suit the business model. With an unlimited business model, online advertising can be scaled up massively.

An Unlimited Business Model

An unlimited business model, on the other hand, can accept multiple purchases simultaneously through a website automatically. It can communicate with potential customers through email and emails can be delivered all completely on autopilot. Products can be sold to many people at once through a single link in an email, or on a website.

Automated websites which deliver continual value through videos, webinars and by various other means can continue to deliver all on autopilot. Software, tools and systems can sold through website which continue to offer customer value month after month. Subscription products let the business owner earn money for the lifetime of a customer and continue to offer value on autopilot.

This kind of business model can be scaled with online advertising without limitation. The only limitation is the vision of the business owner in the case of a business model like this one.

Access a scalable startup business model with build in scalability and automation. Learn how to build and scale your own online business. Start here with a free video series.

Scalable Business Ideas

Looking for scalable business ideas? Many businesses are limited by their structure, not because they aren’t scalable but because they are awkward to scale. Take a physical store, for example. Staff, checkout tills and the physical size of the store are all limiting factors which can limit its growth. An online business, on the other hand, can scale up much more quickly. Automation is the best factor in a scalable business. Once automation is in place, you can scale up much more easily.

Scalable Business Ideas

scalable business ideas

Why is an online business the best model for scalable business ideas? An online business can be scaled quickly and easily due to automation. This is especially true of digital products. Digital products are available online and are either downloaded over the internet or accessed through a website. This means the whole process of buying a product and delivering it is completely automated. Advertising too, can be automated. Online advertising can be scaled up once a profitable model is found. What’s good too is that you can start from a tiny budget with an online advertising program.

Digital Products

Digital products are good but what if you don’t have any? Do you need your own digital products or can you use someone else’s? Affiliate marketing is a business model which let’s you benefit from the sale of other people’s products. The are thousands of digital products available to sell over the internet. You can also sell physical products too, without having to personally own them or deal with any customers.

Email Marketing

scalable business ideas

Email marketing is one of the best tools available to online marketers. It lets you quickly scale your business by collecting thousands of email addresses and delivering digital products directly to people via email. By building a list of subscribers and delivering the right products to them, you can scale up your business very quickly. As your email list grows so does your profit. Scaling up your list is a matter of increasing your advertising budget after first testing and measuring it to achieve a profitable outcome.

Scalable Small Business Ideas

A completely online business can be easily scaled because all the components within it are totally automated. A traditional ‘bricks and mortar’ business has a few limitations which hold it behind a fully automated online business:

  • It’s physical location – There is a limited number of potential customers willing to travel to the store
  • The size of the building – Can only hold a certain amount of customers at any one time
  • The process of payment – Is limited by the speed of the checkout process and number of checkouts
  • The number of staff – More staff equals more costs too

An online business doesn’t have these kinds of limitations because:

  • Products are available globally – Digital products can be downloaded from anywhere in the world
  • There’s no need for business premises – Everything is online and you only need access to the internet
  • Payment is all online – Website sales systems accept multiple processes at once from anywhere
  • You don’t need any staff – Systems and software allow you to automate everything without the need for employees

Scalable Advertising

scalable business ideas

Landing pages allow you to take information and keep contact with your potential customers. Once in the sales funnel, products can be delivered directly over the internet. Building a list of subscribers is  a major key to many scalable business ideas. Sending more people to the landing page, where the information is collected is the first step. This can be done with online advertising.

Online advertising is also called direct response advertising and it works very well. By starting with a small budget you can test and measure every element of your advertising campaign. Once a profitable campaign is running, you can scale up by turning up your daily spend. Add multiple methods of online advertising by repeating the same process with another advertising platform.

Scalable Business Ideas – Back End Products

Once you have sold a digital product through your sales funnel that’s not the ‘end’ of the process. By having the right products you can earn again and again from one single sale. By choosing digital products which also have subscriptions, high ticket commissions, back end sales and multi-tier sales, you have much greater ‘leverage’ and ability to scale your business. Of course you can sell the same front end product again and again to new customers. But having the back end of your sales system ‘geared’ like this gives you more opportunity to generate more income.

Building a system like this of your own is very difficult. Fortunately you can use a pre-existing system just like this one. Learn how here.

Advertising On The Internet

Online advertising deserves another mention here because it is the crux of many scalable business ideas. Online advertising is now very sophisticated and anyone can learn how to use it. Adwords (Google’s search driven advertising platform) lets you target specific keywords which people search for every day. Find customers immediately and send them to your website by setting up a campaign. Facebook has great advertising platform which lets you ‘laser’ target your potential customers down to their likes, interests, age and various other demographics.

The Power Of Direct Response Marketing

scalable business ideas

Direct response marketing is what many online businesses use to scale up their business. Starting with a tiny budget and a small daily spend, marketers can test adverts by sending people to landing pages and sales funnel. By measuring the results they can determine whether an advert is profitable or not.

Split Testing

Split testing two adverts against each other is a superb method of finding the ‘winning’ advert. By choosing two very similar adverts and running them together with only a minor difference, advertisers can observe the difference in outcome. If one advert performs better than another, the poor performing advert is dropped and the ‘winner’ is split tested again.

By using this tactic again and again, online marketers eventually ‘tune’ in to profitable campaigns which cost the least and make the most profit. Once this is achieved they scale up by increasing their budget. Online marketers have been known to spend thousands per day on advertising, knowing their profit is guaranteed and after a lot of split testing. 

Small changes in the adverts might be things like:

  • Header of the advert
  • Images
  • Keywords used
  • Description of the advert
  • Landing pages
  • Sales pages
  • Target audience for the advert, etc.

Learn more about online advertising in my ebook The Ultimate Guide To Online Marketing. Or get 10 pages free by signing up to my email series.