Erin Andersen
Eng 2010
22 March 2015
Online Business Owner
Trish O’Bryan
O
n a secluded and peaceful property in North Carolina in a house she shares with her
husband, three daughters and a grandson, in the corner of the living room is where Trish
O’Bryan spends her days, and sometimes nights, managing her online business. She is the
co-founder and operator of Tru Therapy Outfitters, an online business that sells archery equipment,
apparel and accessories. Through the internet, she has been afforded the opportunity to become a business
owner and create an investment that has turned into a source of income to help provide for her family.
Whether you are a one-person business owner or a company with employees, the financial opportunities
are vast and the economic impact through job creation and/or sales is undeniably present because of the
internet.
Small Businesses
By June of 2009, nearly one fifth of the word
population had access to the Internet, which has
doubled since 2004 (Giddens, Duneier, Appelbaum,
Carr 480). Since the introduction of the Internet and the
growing capabilities it offers, there are almost 28
million small businesses and over 22 million of those
are self employed business owners with no other
employees. Statistics also reveal that 52% of all small businesses are home based (Nazar n.p.).
While O’Bryan has had many jobs over the years, her main focus is being a mother to her three
daughters, a grandmother to her first grandbaby and a wife of ten years to a, now retired, Marine.
O’Bryan is no exception to the statistics and decided to challenge her current position and release her
entrepreneurial side to create a small business out of the comforts of her own home back in January 2012.
“The Internet is the cheapest way to start a business [and has little risk if it fails],” O’Bryan says “and
without the Internet, starting a business has more start up costs, such as property fees and maintenance
costs associated with a brick and mortar store and there is more financial risk to the individual(s) trying to
start the business if it is not successful.”
Financial and Economic Growth
For most business owners, the Internet has been a huge source of financial and economic growth
with the accessibility to expand the business or products on platforms such as Amazon or EBay. Over
50% of the world’s population works for a small business and since 1995, small businesses have
generated over 65% of the net new jobs (Nazar n.p.). Referred to as “nonemployers,” most home-based
business owners are self-employed, have no paid
employees, have annual business receipts of $1000
or more and are subject to federal income tax
(U.S. Census Bureau n.p.). In 2011, there were
22.5 million “nonemployer firms,” a 1.7%
increase from 2010 and the total revenue from
these micro businesses rose to $989.6 billion, up
4.1% from 2010. These small businesses brought
(Fig. 1-1)
in an average of $44,000 in revenue (qtd. in Pofeldt n.p.) and overall, there has been a steady increase in
Non Employer businesses (see Fig. 1-1). The growth of successful small business owners is continuing
and the expanding capabilities of technology will only enhance our economic growth in the future.
Importance of the Internet for Business Opportunities
O’Bryan, like many others, operates her business from her home that includes maintaining a bulk
of inventory, marketing, sales and book keeping. Her main source of advertisement is through the social
media site, Facebook, where Tru Therapy Outfitters has its own page. She also will use sites such as
Craigslist and LeJeune yard sales.com to advertise products on occasion. “Without the Internet, I would
just be a stay at home mom. I couldn’t do anything without it. [Having the internet for my business] has
allowed us to be a two income family versus only one income,” says O’Bryan. She faces everyday
stresses and struggles as a business owner as well as reaping the benefits of success from her hard work
and determination. “When there are bad days with little or no sales, it is frustrating and I do have thoughts
about quitting. We don’t have any loans so everything is out of pocket for us and we feel it more.”
“Without the
Internet, I
would just be a
stay at home
m o m.”
For O’Bryan, this is actually her second business. When she and her
husband first started a business, they had a brick and mortar store, but were not able
to generate enough profit to maintain the business so they had to legally go out of
business and close their store; they renamed and rebranded their business and
changed their marketing strategies to start up again via the Internet. With the new
business, the struggles were and are still there. Their sales were high at first and declined for about a year
after which they slowly rose back up and are holding steady. Even with hardships, O’Bryan’s tenacity has
allowed her to adapt to modern culture and change tactics in how her business operates and advertises that
she is able to help provide for her family. The multiple uses and platforms that can be used for
advertisements or sales are astounding and this time around, O’Bryan is determined to stay successful.
Trish O’Bryan’s home office
Works Cited
Giddens, Anthony, et al. Essentials of Sociology. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2011. Print.
Nazar, Jason. “Infographic: The State of US Small Businesses.” Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc.
10 Sep. 2013. Web. 8 Mar. 2015.
O’Bryan, Trish. Personal interview. 6 Mar. 2015.
Pofeldt, Elaine. “The Rise of the Million Dollar, One-Person Business.” Forbes. Forbes.com. 29 Jun.
2013. Web. 8 Mar. 2015.
United States Census Bureau. “Nonemployer Statistics.” U.S. Department of Commerce, 2015. Web.