It wasn’t all that long ago when starting a business without capital wouldn’t have been an option. Now, thanks to technology, startup costs, and other barriers are not what they once were. Many businesses can now get started with very little money down.
You may have an idea that only requires a small amount of money. Or you may be thinking of investing in a low-cost existing business opportunity, such as a home health care franchise. Of course, access to finance isn’t without its problems. Banks aren’t willing to come forward to help startups, a harsh economic climate makes borrowing from family and friends next to impossible, and using your credit card for funds comes with huge risks.
If you do need finance, government-supported startup business loans are one way to go. But it isn’t always necessary to borrow money to start a business. Here are a few guidelines for you to follow if you want to start a business with limited funds.
Build on Your Current Skill Set
What can you offer someone that they might be willing to pay you for? Can you speak a second language, program a computer, paint and decorate, or make clothes, for example? Do you practice a hobby that would be viable as a business? If you have a skill that is unique from most other people or one that would cost them money to learn, that’s an immediate advantage.
Use Free Technology to Market Your Business
You can use an online website builder to build your site for free. It only costs around $10 to register a domain name. And if you want your own web hosting, you can get that for around $10 per month. And then it’s time to start promoting it on social media. Social marketing is not only free, but it’s also easy. There are a growing number of platforms to promote on too, such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Just make sure to start with the one that most likely caters to your audience.
Use Available Resources
You can use WiFi at home, or even in your local library or a neighborhood cafe, where you can make use of their free Wi-Fi if you don’t have access at home. If you have a car, you could offer a delivery service. I assume you have a kitchen, in which case you could provide a catering service for parties or bake your own cakes. And if you have a spare room, you could let it out via Booking.com or Airbnb.
Sell an In-Demand Product or Service
Sell something that people need, as opposed to something they want. It should also be something that they understand instantly, and that they feel comfortable buying without feeling the need to ask someone else’s permission first. You’d stand a better chance of selling umbrellas for $10 rather than hot tubs at $10,000.
Get Paid First
Get paid upfront, or minimally 50% upfront, so that you always manage to cover your costs. Among the greatest causes of business, failures are late payments. So make sure you plan in advance by having a way of getting the cash in early, , and one way to do that is to learn to manage your invoices or use this free invoice template pdf.
Don’t Give Up Your Day Job
One of the easiest ways of starting a business without startup funds is to run it outside of work hours and only leave your job once your business is in a position to pay you a wage. If your venture fails to be successful, you still have your wage from your day job. If it succeeds, you’ve set up a far less risky transition to becoming a business owner.
Link Costs to Sales
Hire services as and when they’re needed, staff by the day, and meeting rooms by the hour. Websites like Fiverr.com make outsourcing small tasks to freelancers easier than ever.
Do As Much of the Work Yourself As Possible
Invest all of the income back into the business, if possible. Or at least as much as you can. It won’t seem rewarding at first, but the only way to build up sufficient cash reserves is to purchase new premises or equipment and grow your business.
Source Equipment for Free
Look at community websites where people recycle items they no longer wanted or the freebie sections of listing platforms like Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist.
Use Free Advice
Government organizations often provide free events and advice. Look on Meetup.com for low-cost, or even free, local creative and business development events. Some organizations hold events for startup businesses, as well as provide a wealth of resources.
Andrie Steliou
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