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Originally Posted On: https://floridaindependent.com/how-to-start-my-own-business-with-no-money/

 

Are you tired of being an employee? Are you starting to consider opening up a small business later this year?

Studies say that over 670,000 businesses open every year. Sounds promising, right? However, 595,000 of businesses fold annually.

Though 80% of small businesses survive the first year, only half of them make it through the fifth year. But what if your biggest roadblock is your lack of capital? How do you even begin?

Continue reading below as we answer the question of “how to start my own business with no money?”

The Challenges of Starting a Business

Lack of capital is perhaps the biggest problem people face when starting a business. On top of this problem with funding, there are other bumps that you will likely encounter.

Before we address the question of “how to start my own business with no money,” let us first discuss the other common problems you may need to hurdle along the way:

Getting the Right People

Starting a small business may be manageable with you at the helm and a couple more by your side. But once your business starts to grow, you will need to increase manpower. Hiring the right people is one of the toughest challenges you will go through.

With so many applicants vying for the job, interviewing each one of them may take a toll on you. Moreover, you need to screen them one-by-one to ensure if they are fit for the job.

Technological Updates

Though technology can make your life easier, its dynamic nature can also pose a challenge. If you wish to maximize technology to your advantage, you need to keep in step with the latest updates.

This means implementing an IT strategy for your business. This also highlights the need to invest in scalable tools.

Creating Traction

Since nobody knows your brand and products, you need to work your way into relevance. You need to put the work in and make some traction.

Unfortunately, some business owners do not know how to make noise. If you have the right tools like social media and a well-designed website, you can come up with content and attract more customers.

How to Start My Own Business With No Money

As we mentioned earlier, the lack of capital is one of the biggest problems that deter people from taking the road to entrepreneurship. But not having enough capital shouldn’t mean saying goodbye to your business plans.

Check out this guide to starting a business with little to no capital on hand:

1. Unleash Those Ideas

The first big step to take when deciding to move from employment to business is unleashing your business ideas. To do this, brainstorm with a couple of people you trust. Your focus is to identify viable business ideas that you can pursue.

Start by identifying the current needs of people. From there, brainstorm on the different ways you can fill their needs.

You can either introduce a new product or something that improves an existing idea. Amid your brainstorming, you must also consider your passion. Your passion is what will help motivate you and push you to continue during tough times.

2. Create a Business Plan

After deciding on the type of business that you want, you can start writing a business plan. This applies even if you are a sole owner. The business plan is like your blueprint that will keep you on the right track.

A solid business plan must come with all the essential elements. These include an executive summary, a company description, a market analysis, and the organizational structure.

Moreover, your plan must also have a breakdown of your products; your sales and marketing strategies; your financial projections; and your funding request.

Be sure to put all the key details in each of the sections. The executive summary is a clear and concise overview of your business. As for the company description, include your mission statement.

Meanwhile, your market analysis must feature the results of your extensive research. Your research must cover the industry, the target market, and your direct competitors.

As for your funding request, indicate how much money you need to launch your business. Moreover, include the amount that you want to maintain until your profits and cash flow become more consistent.

In case you choose a business in staffing or security, you need to ensure the salaries of your employees come on time. Hence, consider looking at business funding solutions to keep your people happy.

3. Identify What’s Free

Since your goal is to kick-off your business with little money, identify the things that you can do or get for free. To do this, find out what is essential to your business. From there, look for items of services that you can use without shelling out money.

Are you active on social media? Then consider creating a Facebook page for your business.

Do you know someone who knows website design? Then talk to that person and offer a trade. Identify your skills and find someone you can barter in place of payment.

Furthermore, maximize the power of the internet. It is a place where you can find free resources that you can use in building your business.

4. Explore Funding Options

Whether you like it or not, there will come a time when you will need to spend to keep the ball rolling. But this doesn’t mean touching your emergency savings. Thus, you need to explore different funding options.

A good option is connecting with venture capitalists. These are companies that invest money in start-up businesses that showcase the potential to become big. Venture capitalists pool funds from different people, which they will invest in a start-up.

Another option is through angel investors. They are similar to venture capitalists, only that they are private, high net-worth individuals. They will give you the funding that you need in exchange for equity or convertible debt.

Crowdsourcing is another promising option worth considering. This works by collecting small amounts of money from hundreds or thousands of people.

The key to a successful crowdsourcing drive is to offer a product that people are willing to support. Check out the website Kickstarter for more ideas on crowdsourcing.

Last but not least, you can talk to some of your closest friends and relatives to boost your funding. Additionally, if you have a day job, don’t resign just yet.

5. Beef Up Your Savings Account

Part of building the foundations of business is securing your family. This means beefing up your savings account to cover any emergency expenses.

Your goal is to save up to six months’ worth to cover such expenses. This is crucial especially when things don’t pan out the way you want them to. This ensures that your family won’t need to worry about food and other overhead expenses.

The rationale behind the six months’ worth of savings is that you will only begin to see real cash flow after the first six months of your business.

6. Complete All Documentation

Another way of keeping your expenses low is to complete all legal documents early. Doing this will also keep you away from delays and legal complications in the future.

First, you need to register your business name. You will also need to get a trademark for the name. This allows you to use the name for branding purposes.

The next order of business is to create an employee agreement. This is the contract that will lay down the obligations and expectations of both your company and your employees. It will also be the arbiter in settling possible disputes in the future.

There is also the non-disclosure agreement that you need to draft. This will serve as protection to your company’s best-kept secrets. It will also foster trust between you and your future employees.

7. Build and Organize Your Assets

After completing all the key documents, you can now start creating all the business assets. These are the tools and platforms that you will use to launch and grow your business.

Start by creating your digital assets, particularly your company’s website. The cheapest way to go about this is to create one using WordPress.

You will then use your website to publish your blogs. You can also use it to launch videos of your products or services.

You also need to build your social media presence. Create a Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram account. Use these platforms to promote your brand.

Last but not least, invest in a few printed materials. An effective way is through stickers showcasing your company logo. Give out these stickers to everyone you know and instruct them to stick them in their cars and laptops.

The key is to create a buzz that will turn into a loud noise announcing your company’s arrival.

Become Better in Business

Resolving the question of “how to start my own business with no money” is breaking the first major barrier in the life of an entrepreneur. But once you get the ball rolling, there are hundreds of other lessons you need to learn to succeed.

Hence, we invite you to learn more about business through our other articles. We provide tips and tricks that will make you become a better business owner.