Starting a business with no money may seem difficult, not impossible.
Besides the cash flow, you need more things to keep a business running. Great companies that started from zero capital also had no smoother entrepreneurial path. Everyone requires a lot of hard work, tireless efforts and a proper strategy to keep the business fund growing.
Moreover, you may need partners and investors to scale up the business. When you’re starting on your own, perhaps you’ve very few resources. In fact, you can start as small as you like.
Suppose you want to open a jewelry shop. You can start selling them to family and friends first. Eventually, you’ll build a reputation and can sell to third parties. Once save some capital, open your online store and start dealing there.
In this article, we will find how to start a business with no money.
4 Ways Start a Business with No Money
Remember, the more resources you have, the less money you require.
In order to start a new business, you need basic knowledge, imagination, a little experience, time, a social circle, the ability to find opportunities and make quick decisions etc. Certain physical skills, intellectual skills, artistic mind and good health also help to keep your focus on the work.
Here are some ideas for starting from scratch when you’ve literally no money.
1. Write Down a Plan
Before starting any small or large business, you need a solid plan to work with. To adopt an idea or plan, keep in mind the following things:
- Write a simple and short description of your business. Whether it’s a line or paragraph, people should get the knowledge about the product or service instantly after reading it.
- Make a budget depending on how much you have, resources, potential clients, partners, time, knowledge or experience etc.
- Take immediate actions depending on the budget list.
Once you get a clear idea, you can proceed to the next step.
2. Look for Opportunities and Resources
When you’re about to launch a business, hurdles and obstacles will be there. Be determined and concentrate on your business venture.
Ask yourself what you can get as free resources for the business. Are you planning to start a well-designed website to sell your limited products online? Perhaps, it’s wise to promote the business first on a Facebook page to get more exposure.
You can design your own marketing materials on Canva or launch a sale on popular sites like Etsy.
Look for and research about free-to-use e-commerce platforms if you are just starting out with your business. They make establishing an online store even with a limited budget brim with possibilities. Most of these platforms are not only available for free, they are also flexible and even scalable.
There are plenty of free alternatives on the internet. All you need is to search thoroughly with digital skills and select the proper one. Nevertheless, it’ll take some time to build up. Eventually, you can save some amount for future needs.
3. Get the Finances and Funding
Here is the most important part of starting a good business with no money or experience as a teenager or professional. You may be questioning yourself how to generate the fund without any capital.
But don’t worry. You have some smart financing options when you really don’t have any money. Let’s know about them.
- Invest your six months savings as expenses: Though drawing out money from your own pocket isn’t sound ideal, but why not? Many entrepreneurs follow the same way to begin the journey. While making the business plan, make sure you know how much to spend and generate revenue. Then try to determine how long it’ll take to earn profit.
Mostly, it needs at least six months to ensure a constant cash flow. Till then, you can start saving for a minimum of six months and invest it in the business.
- Ask for financial help from friends and family: If you’re short of cash, ask for extra funds from friends and family. When you’ve dreamed of becoming business personnel and have a solid strategy, friends and family can be multi-layered resources.
Moreover, you’re not asking for charity. Rather you can convince them about the business plan. You may start practicing sales pitches with them and ask for their feedback.
When you’ll ready, maybe they’ll agree to help you with some finances. But remember to make the loan official in writing, especially when you can return their money. Don’t ruin your interpersonal relationships for some monetary issues.
- Use a crowdfunding platform: Crowdfunding has become a popular and easy way to raise money for startups. It’s like an online activity where you’ll promote the business through the platform and encourage people to contribute some amount to it.
You must select a reliable crowdfunding platform as a fundraising campaign. Once you hit the target, start working for which you’ve raised the money. Your donors are waiting for their rewards.
- Apply for a business loan from private banks: Many banks, financial companies or online lenders provide small business loans. But be careful about those favorable terms and variable interest rates that may kill your project before taking off.
However, you can get a loan only if the business idea is profitable enough. So, why don’t you get a business line of credit? It’s nothing but a credit card with which you can buy necessary materials as needed.
- Apply for small business grants from Government: You can further try for grants for the small business or other financing opportunities from the federal or state government. Though it’s not always easy to get approval. But once the startup is scaled up, you can try to search for free cash.
Additionally, such grants need applications and certain requirements. As long as you meet them, there will be a huge cash flow. With this in mind, you can keep looking for a government database or ask for advice from the local business administrator.
- Look for angel investors: You probably have heard about angel investments. They give startups financial support when no investors are willing to offer. Not to mention, they can be your best mentors as many of them are successful entrepreneurs.
Generally, angel investors are among those who put capital seed investment from outside. Further, they put their personal funds, unlike other venture capitalists or finance firms.
4. Start Small Think Big
In the beginning, start a business with no money seems stupid. Therefore, you can start small while thinking big to grow the business. Before stepping into the outer competitive world, start selling your products to the known ones. All friends, family, co-workers or others, offer your service to them.
Send WhatsApp to everyone in the contact for your first sale. Also, don’t forget to ask for feedback on the quality of the service. Thus, you’ll know what’s to improve and adjust.
Summary
Many people think that they can’t start a business without any money. It may be true to some extent. However, with the proper mindset, you can do lots of businesses with zero or a little fund.
Yes, you still need some capital to proceed. In that case, either take loans or find strong investors who can support you financially and give back up for some months. Once you establish the market, in the long run, you’ll start earning profit.
