Here’s How You Can Start a Business for Less Than 100 Bucks
Hey, you- with the eyes full of stars and the big ambitious dreams! This guide is for you. You’re young and inspired. You’ve got the entire world at your feet. The only thing you lack is a giant stack of cash. Am I right?
Whoever said that starting a business has to cost a fortune, was… maybe half wrong. It’s true that if you want to sell products, it’ll take an investment to purchase said items. Plus, the normal costs of getting your business up and running. This article is more for those considering a business offering services. Like the following:
Copywriting (of course as a copywriter, I have to mention this one!)
Physical services i.e. babysitting, pet sitting, tutoring
Sales consultant
Digital marketing
Notice a theme? It doesn’t require much more than your brain and your bare hands to perform these jobs.
So back to the question of how to turn your work into a legitimate business. You can start working as a sole proprietor, so let’s skip all of the talks about forming an LLC and opening a fancy new business account. That can all come later. But to really make an image for your brand, what will you need?
A Website
Build a website where you list your business’s contact information, describe services, and show off all of your testimonials from happy customers. You can keep it simple at first, no need to get too nit-picky with how your site looks. For actually designing your website, Weebly is a great platform that is free and easy to use. You’ll only need to pay $19.95 a year to choose and connect your domain, plus $5 a month for them to host your domain.
A Logo
Having your own logo for your new business will really make it start to feel real. It’s an exciting step to choose the symbol you want to represent your business with. Again, this is a step you can take without spending a nickel. Use a free logo design tool such as LogoCreator, which is quick and easy to use. You can even get a free icon for your logo through Vectr. Just upload your icon of choice to LogoCreator and pick your design and color to go with. Easy peasy!
Marketing Materials
Now you have to think of how you’ll market your new business. Do you want to post to social media? Make brochures? Posters? Business cards? Most entrepreneurs do a combination of several marketing options. Sound expensive? It’s not as pricey for these materials as you might think…
Now, here’s where you’ll need to get a little creative and maybe build up your set of skills. But trust me, it’s worth it when you factor in all of the dolla’ bills you’ll be saving! To get all of these marketing materials on the cheap, you need to design them yourself. It’s not as scary as it sounds though. There are some amazing free tools, like Canva, that offer customizable templates and easy to use features to help you design your marketing materials. The costs you’ll need to factor in will only be for physical printouts. Like paper and poster material for example. Still, a major money saver here!
A Way for Customers to Contact You
Having all of your business-related Emails in one place will provide organization and helps keep your work and personal life separate. Plus, you might not look so professional when a customer has to Email you at surferdude77@myemail.com. Google offers a great deal on setting up your business Email through G Suite. It costs $5 a month and will remove unwanted ads, will be personalized to your business, and blocks phishing and spam. One of the few things worth spending money on at this point!
P.S. Just remember if you’re short on cash you have to learn to think outside of the box. But developing this skill will help you in your future spending decisions when you do start seeing that dough come in. Start out simple and you can build your business up as you go. So, don’t waste any time- go get your hustle on!
About the Author
Ciara Wilkinson has a background in education, entrepreneurship and most recently joined the world of freelance writing. She covers topics on technology, marketing and startups. When she’s not working or writing Ciara spends her time painting or putting her time in at an intense group fitness class.