How to Start an Online Business As a Kid
I don’t know about you, but my kids are ALWAYS asking for ways to make more money. Of course, when I offer to let them do more chores around the house, and receive payment for those extra chores, they are less than enthused at the idea.
We also live in an area where yard work is managed by the HOA, so they weren’t able to offer their help to the neighbors.
Also, we don’t give allowance in our family. We want to teach our children about money and where money comes from—which is work.
So, what could I do to help my kids learn to work AND make money that they will actually do?
Well, I decided it was time to help my oldest learn how to start an online business, and see what happened. We opted for the ecommerce option of starting a business.
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I started my ecommerce business with my Etsy shop back in June of 2016. My business has undergone a lot of changes and shifts since then, but I have learned so much along the way.
But I didn’t really start making progress with my ecommerce business until I signed up for Alison Prince’s 0-100k Course. I decided to use what I had learned from Alison’s course to help my son start a business and earn some money.
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What is the 0-100k course by Alison Prince?
The 0-100k course teaches you how to start an ecommerce business, and how to make it successful, even if you have never sold online before.
The course walks you step by step through the process of setting up your business, picking a product to sell, getting money in the door, and so much more! It really is the process I, and so many other entrepreneurs, have used to create, build and grow an ecommerce business that is successful.
Plus, Alison taught her 10 and 13 year old daughters how to build their own business, using her methods, before she ever created her course. So I knew that her methods would work for my kiddo too.
How to use the 0-100k system to start an online Business as a Kid
Find a Product to Sell
Once my son and I decided that he should start a business to earn money, the first step was to figure out what he wanted to sell.
What I learned from Alison Prince’s course was, the best way to start getting money in the door, is to sell products that you know are popular and successful already.
So, we took that tid bit of knowledge, used the method Alison teaches to find such a product, and started looking around for some ideas.
Eventually we found a product that we could make and sell together. It ended up being a fairly simple, but handmade, product.
So we decided that we would split the responsibilities of the process and then split the profits of the product sales as well.
Decide where to start selling the product
Alison’s course goes over how to start selling products on daily deal sites. After discussing the options with my son, we decided to try selling the product he chose on two different deal sites and see what happens.
Check out this video Alison made about selling on daily deal sites.
So, we started preparing our listing for these sites. He helped me with taking pictures, selecting product options, writing descriptions and submitting this product to these deal sites.
This tip, of using daily deal sites, was and continues to be a game changer in my ecommerce business efforts. HOLY COW!
When you use a deal site, you are tapping into the already established customer base of the site. This allows you to start making money and building a business, without needing an email list or having your own online store.
It is awesome for beginners because you can learn how to handle multiple orders, shipping, customer service, learn what works and what sells, and so much more!
Rather than put lots of stress on my son to build his own website, I wanted him to start small and see success as quickly as possible.
Small wins in business ( and in any goal) help to keep the momentum going, and prevents discouragement.
I definitely didn’t want him to get super frustrated right from the get go. Entrepreneurship is hard, but small wins can keep you going.
After a couple of days, our product was accepted and we had to move into the next step of the process– making sure we were ready for the sale.
Prep for the Sale
Next we had to order inventory and prep for the sales on the deal sites. I really wanted to show my son all that goes into starting and running a business. Part of that is money management.
Buying inventory and shipping supplies costs money and eats into profits. Making sales isn’t the only part of running a business, though it is definitely a fun part.
Once we were ready, we had to wait for our product to go live on the deal sites.
Sell the product and Serve the Customer
The first deal site we made a few sales of our product, but not a ton. This ended up being a good thing since it allowed us to get more of a system down for making sure we did a good job on the product and customer service side of things.
It also really helped my 9 year to see what it was going to take to do this business. ANd the work that was going to be required.
The second time our product went up for sale, it was a BIG hit. It went live on Friday, and finished on Sunday.
We had A LOT of orders to get working on from that 3 day sale. And this was HUGE for my kiddo. He was so excited at the number of sales we made.
But he also realized it was going to take time to make and fulfill these orders.
Over the next several days, we spent a lot of time working on the product and fulfilling orders.
Once we were done, he was relieved. It was a lot of work! BUT he also realized that he made $200 profit in one weekend! This win definitely made him excited to try his hand at entrepreneurship again!
My younger son also watched his older brother during this time, and now wants to start a business of his own too!
Keep Building an Online Business as a Kid
So where do we go from here? After selling this particular product several times, my son decided he wants to try a different product for his next entrepreneurship venture.
Is that a problem? No, actually. Since we didn’t build a whole business around this one product, he can decide to change all he wants. The more things he tries, the more he will learn and will get closer to the business he actually wants to build.
The whole point of this process was to help my son learn how to START a business, and help him make some money (which he definitely did!)
So, when he is ready to try another product/business idea, he already has a foundation for how to get started. He knows how to pick a product and start making sales. And this is a foundation that he can build from again and again to create a business he loves and can be proud of.
I NEVER would have been able to help my son build a business, if I hadn’t learned the tips and tricks I did from taking Alison’s 0-100k course.
If your kids are looking for ways to be an entrepreneur, starting an ecommerce business is a great place to start. And, taking Alison’s course is the perfect way to learn.
Alison’s course can be taken by adults and kids alike. In fact, there are lots of parents in the 0-100k course that are doing this ecommerce journey with their children.
If you are interested in learning more about starting an online business, or helping your kids to make one, check out my review of Alison’s course here.
Final Thoughts on how to start an online business as a kid with the 0-100k course
If your kids are looking for ways to make money, you might want to consider helping them start an ecommerce business. I hope this article has helped you see that it doesn’t have to be hard or complicated.
My son and I were able to follow a proven, step by step system, that helped him to make some real money in a short amount of time. And the best part is that others can follow this same system to see success selling online as well.
My 9 year old has been so excited with his success with his product, AND the fact that he made $200 profit in just a couple of days! It was enough for him to buy his very own Nintendo Switch–a goal he has been working towards for a long time.
Starting an online business isn’t just for adults. Kids can do it too and learn valuable skills along the way…entrepreneurship skills such as responsibility, money management, customer service, creativity and so much more!
Seriously–check out Alison’s course and you can help your kids start working on their dreams.
