There are tones of information on Internet about opportunities of starting an online business. If you are interested on this subject, you’re for sure feeling overwhelmed. More and more people talk about information overload and are confused when thinking of starting an online business. Too much options with very low investment requirements lead to big clutter.

Now, let’s leave everything aside and try to get clear.

An online business is finally like any other real business. When starting a brick and mortar business, entrepreneurs usually have a vision of their business, set goals and seriously think about planning and tracking accomplishment of established targets.

This is not always happening when people start online. Probably because for most online businesses the amount of the investment required is very low, online entrepreneurs don’t think too much about planning. They use to follow business models selected from different sources -- many of them free -- without thinking if the model is appropriate or not for what they want to do.

Worse than that, most online entrepreneurs don’t even know exactly what they intend to do. Just applying a recipe taken from someone else doesn’t mean that their business has a business proposal, an objective and is based on a sound plan -- even if other people were successful on applying the recipe. The desire of making money, lots of money and easily, is not an objective.

So, what is an online investor supposed to do to put in place a successful online business?

First of all, he/she has to define very clear which solution the business will offer and to whom.

Second, the entrepreneur has to decide how this solution will be communicated and delivered to the target customers (aka select the appropriate business model).

And third, he /she has to set business goals and determine the tasks to be accomplished on short, medium and long run to put the business on the right track.

Knowing what to do, planning for it and following the plan each and every day is the key to building any successful business, either offline or online.

Finding an ultimate business idea and sticking on it is the first step towards building a sound business. Then, persistence and the clear vision of the business is the necessary condition for achieving success.

If the solution (business proposal) is effectively and efficiently communicated and delivered to the customers, the business grows healthy and money comes. Otherwise, the lack of clarity and of focus could only lead to failure.