Most people want to earn online but hit the same wall: they don’t know where to start or how to build something that actually pays. Between coding, design, and setup costs, even simple ideas can stall before launch.
But the reality is that making money online no longer requires a tech background or a big budget. Automated business ideas let creators earn while systems handle the busywork.
This guide breaks down six proven business ideas you can start in a week, each one focused on automation, scalability, and low startup costs. Whether you want steady side income or a foundation for a full-time business, these are models that work.
1. Digital template marketplace
Create a storefront selling digital templates that solve common problems. Customers pay once for immediate access to professionally designed files, while you earn passively. From budget spreadsheets to presentation decks, templates require minimal maintenance once created, so this is perfect for solopreneurs seeking scalable income.
Why it works:
- Platforms now handle the technical infrastructure you’d previously hire developers for: hosting, payments, and instant file delivery
- More entrepreneurs are choosing ready-made marketplaces instead of building from scratch
How to make money:
- One-off sales ranging from $19 for social media calendars to $49 for investor decks
- Recurring revenue through bundles and memberships at $15–$29 monthly
- Premium customization services at $100+ per request for minimal time investment
Tools you’ll need:
- Gumroad for digital delivery and payments
- Stripe for secure customer payments
- Dropbox or similar for file storage
7-day launch plan:
- Day 1–2: Select your niche and identify most-needed templates
- Day 3–4: Design 3–5 high-value templates that solve specific problems
- Day 5: Set up your storefront with categories and payment integration
- Day 6: Buy your own template to confirm automated delivery works
- Day 7: Launch your shop by sharing with 10 potential customers in relevant communities
Build it in Anything:
- Start with a prompt like “Build a digital product marketplace with categories, checkout, and automated delivery” to create your database, storefront, and email system
- Add “Add Stripe integration” to enable payments in minutes
- Request “a clean, minimal design” to finish both web and mobile versions that deploy simultaneously
2. AI content creation service
Build a content production system where clients submit briefs through your custom portal and receive finished articles or social posts without you writing every word. AI handles first drafts, you handle editing and client relationships, and automation manages delivery. One person can serve 20+ clients this way.
Why it works:
- AI writing has crossed a quality threshold while demand for fast, affordable content continues to rise
- Automation handles first drafts and formatting, letting you serve more clients than traditional agencies
How to make money:
- Per-piece pricing: from short social captions for $25–$50 each to 1,200-word blog posts for $100–$300
- Monthly retainers starting at $500 for recurring deliverables, creating predictable income
- Add-on services like SEO optimization or custom images for $50–$100 more per order
Tools you’ll need:
- ChatGPT for content generation
- Canva for quick supporting visuals
- Zapier for automatic delivery workflows
- Webflow or similar for your client portal
7-day launch plan:
- Day 1–2: Pick a content niche (real estate, fitness, finance) and study the voice clients expect in that space
- Day 3: Generate 5 sample articles that demonstrate quality to become your portfolio
- Day 4: Create 2–3 pricing tiers and build a simple intake form for new orders
- Day 5: Connect writing tools and set up automated delivery
- Day 6: Turn your best sample into a mini case study with before/after or results
- Day 7: Send your case study to 15 prospects with an early-bird discount offer
Build it in Anything:
- Start with “Create a dashboard where clients order generated content, track status, and receive finished files”
- Build the backend by saying “Include client login, order form, and admin panel for me to manage requests”
- Add a login screen and prompt “Connect Stripe and set up automatic email delivery when I mark orders complete”
- Keep refining prompts while the system handles delivery, letting you focus on quality and finding new clients
3. Automated lead generation and outreach services
Build a lead generation machine that finds prospects in specific industries, qualifies them, and sends personalized messages without constant supervision. This business works while you sleep to handle the prospecting work every company needs but few execute consistently. This model generates recurring revenue when clients see measurable results.
Why it works:
- User-friendly tools now bring enterprise-level automation within reach of small businesses, but most companies don’t know how to set them up
- This creates a massive underserved market of companies needing better lead generation who will pay you monthly to build, manage, and optimize it
How to make money:
- Initial setup fees of $300–$800 for custom workflows
- Monthly retainers of $150–$500 for campaign management
- Add-ons like A/B testing dashboards or CRM integrations at $100–$300 monthly
Tools you’ll need:
- Apollo for verified prospect data
- Jasper or similar for message personalization
- Mailshake for email sequencing
- Google Looker Studio for campaign reporting
7-day launch plan:
- Day 1: Pick a specific niche (dental practices, real estate agents, SaaS founders) and outline the ideal buyer persona
- Day 2: Design the lead pipeline and draft an email sequence
- Day 3: Build the automation in your tools and test it with 10 prospects
- Day 4: Connect email domains and activate tracking
- Day 5: Onboard a pilot client at a 50% discount in exchange for a case study
- Day 6: Add a reporting dashboard showing open, replies, and meetings booked
- Day 7: Publish a case study and use it as proof for new clients
4. Paid newsletter
Launch a newsletter where subscribers pay monthly for your expert content curation and analysis. You become the filter that saves people time by delivering only what matters in your chosen field. Meanwhile, automation handles subscriptions, payments, and delivery schedules so you can focus on the valuable editorial work.
Why it works:
- People are drowning in information and will pay for someone knowledgeable to filter it down
- The best newsletters serve specific niches where readers already trust that one person has better taste and judgment than any algorithm
How to make money:
- Monthly subscriptions of $5–$15 from readers
- Sponsored content slots for $200–$500 per issue once you reach a few hundred subscribers
- Premium tiers for 20–30% more to get exclusive analysis or early access
Tools you’ll need:
- Substack for the entire tech stack: subscriptions, payments, delivery, website
- Notion for organizing research and content planning
- Perplexity for efficient topic research
- Make if you want to automate cross-posting or social sharing
7-day launch plan:
- Day 1–2: Define your unique angle or access and collect at least 20 sources you’ll monitor regularly
- Day 3: Build your template focusing on consistency over design
- Day 4: Write your first issue explaining your unique point of view and why readers should pay
- Day 5–6: Set up paid tiers, test checkout, and schedule your next two issues
- Day 7: Launch with founding-member pricing and share in communities where your target readers hang out
5. Automated affiliate review site
Create a website that earns affiliate commissions by comparing products and helping buyers make decisions. The site automatically updates itself — pulling in current prices, summarizing user reviews, and refreshing content without manual work ’ so you can focus on choosing profitable niches and driving traffic.
Why it works:
- Affiliate commissions haven’t changed, but the cost of building and maintaining these sites has collapsed
- User-friendly automation tools build structured databases, sync prices, and manage content without requiring coding skills
How to make money:
- Commission on physical goods (typically 1–10% per sale)
- Higher commission rates on digital products (20–50% per sale)
- Sponsored placements for $100–200 monthly once you build traffic
Tools you’ll need:
- WordPress as your site foundation
- IFTTT or Zapier for automated content updates
- Ahrefs or similar SEO tool to find ranking opportunities
- MonsterInsights for tracking which products actually convert
7-day launch plan:
- Day 1: Pick a niche with strong affiliate programs and manageable competition (check Amazon Associates, Awin, or CJ Affiliate)
- Day 2: Register a domain, set up WordPress, and install your theme
- Day 3: Import 20–30 products with affiliate links and write basic descriptions
- Day 4: Create 3–5 comparison articles targeting specific buyer questions
- Day 5: Install analytics and verify affiliate links are tracking correctly
- Day 6: Connect automations to pull updated prices and review scores daily
- Day 7: Publish, submit to Google Search Console, and share your first articles in relevant Reddit or Facebook communities
Build it in Anything:
- Start with “Create an affiliate review site with product comparisons and automated pricing” to generate your database schema and comparison UI
- Prompt for “Add API connections to pull live pricing and reviews and automatically update product information daily” to eliminate manual updates
- Set up “Create scheduled content refreshes” so your site updates itself while maintaining SEO value
6. AI assistants for small businesses
Provide small businesses with customizable AI assistants that answer customer questions, schedule appointments, and handle repetitive tasks without requiring any technical expertise from the owner. You’re essentially selling always-on digital employees that are configured specifically for each client’s needs and voice.
Why it works:
- Small companies need 24/7 support but can’t afford full-time staff or lack in-house developers to build AI systems
- You handle the technical setup once, then charge monthly for continuous service
How to make money:
- Monthly subscription fees of $20–$100 per business, depending on features and usage
- $200–$500 for initial setup and customization
- Premium tiers at $150–$300 monthly for additional channels, detailed analytics, or priority support
Tools you’ll need:
- OpenAI API for the AI intelligence
- Zapier to connect client systems and workflows
- Typeform for collecting configuration requirements during setup
- Retool or similar for building client management dashboards
7-day launch plan:
- Day 1: Choose a specific use case like FAQ answering, appointment scheduling, or order status updates
- Day 2: Draft and test core prompts with 20+ examples questions until responses match your target brand voice
- Day 3: Build automations connecting the assistant to relevant communication channels (email, SMS, or website chat)
- Day 4: Set up payment processing and usage tracking so you can monitor performance
- Day 5: Record a 2-minute demo showing the assistant solving real customer questions
- Day 6: Create a landing page with pricing, FAQ, and the demo video
- Day 7: Contact 10 target businesses with a “first month free” offer in exchange for testimonials
Turning your idea into income
Here’s what these six models have in common: none of them require coding skills, but all of them require you to actually build something that works when customers try to pay you at midnight.
That’s where most people stall out — not on the idea, but on making authentication work, getting Stripe to process payments correctly, and deploying something that doesn’t break when five people use it simultaneously.
Anything handles that infrastructure automatically. Instead of wrestling with setup, hosting, and integrations, you simply describe what you want and Anything builds it in minutes. It covers authentication, payments, and deployment across web, iOS, and Android so you can focus on what matters: customers and growth.
The tools are ready, and your idea is the only missing piece. Describe it, build it, and launch it with Anything.
