Office Space Expenses

$0

$7,000

Inventory Expenses

$350

$14,750

Software Expenses

$150

$2,794

Website Costs

$13

$215

Advertising & Marketing Costs

$0

$2,450

Total Startup Costs

$513

$27,209

WILEY

wiley.com

533

JW.ORG

jw.org

665

VitalSource

vitalsource.com

1,176

O'Reilly Media

oreilly.com

2,812

The Library of Congress

loc.gov

3,539

Nashville Public Library

nashville.overdrive.com

3,894

Northeastern University

northeastern.edu

7,128

University of Illinois at Chicago

uic.edu

7,306

Washington University in St. Louis

wustl.edu

8,056

Emory University

emory.edu

8,569

PSU Business Accelerator

pdx.edu

12,650

Flexibility

You can put as much time into the business as you'd like. If you like the work and have some initial experience, you can start small and manage all aspects of the business on your own.

Ability to start your business from home

It's not necessary to have a physical storefront or office space to get your business started. You can do everything from the comfort of your own home, at least in the beginning!

Little startup costs required

The cost to start a online library business costs significantly less money than most businesses, ranging anywhere from 12 to 27,209.

Rewarding work

Starting a online library business can be really rewarding work. After all, you are solving an immediate issue for your customer and you're working on something you truly care about.

Scalable

With businesses and processes changing daily, there will always be demand for new features, products and services for your business. Additionally, there are several different business models and pricing tiers you can implement that will allow you to reach all types of customers.

Traffic to your website

A online library business gives people a reason to visit your website and to keep coming back to you!

Crowded Space

Competition is high when it comes to your online library business, so it's important that you spend a good amount of time analyzing the market and understanding where the demand lies.

Finding The Right Supplier

Most businesses in this space go the supplier/manufacturer route, which isn't a bad thing! However, finding the right supplier can take a lot of time, energy and trial/error. If done properly, this process can save you months (if not years) of time and energy. More on this below in the "finding a supplier" section.

Security Issues

With any Saas business, data loss and security issues may arise throughout your process of building your product. It's critical that you understand exactly what you're responsible for and how to avoid potential issues down the road.

Lack of benefits

With a online library business, you are typically self-employed and responsible for finding your own insurance, which can be quite costly and time-consuming.

Isolation

Often times, as a online library business, you typically work alone and do not have much face-to-face interaction with other team members.

Taxes

As a online library business, you typically pay self-employment taxes which can be quite high. It's important to understand what you will be paying in taxes each year so you can determine if the work you're taking on is worth it.