Often people think you need to raise a lot of money to build a successful online business. However, this is not true at this age.
You don’t need venture capital to start your business. You can do it without money.
I created several successful online businesses without any funds partly because I am young and have no money!
Let’s see how to start a business with no capital at all.
Start with the smallest viable product
Your minimum viable product (MVP) is the most basic form of your business. It usually starts quickly and is relatively cheap.
To create your MVP, answer the following questions:
What is the core function of this entrepreneurial idea?
How do you add value?
For whom do you add value? In other words, who will pay?
Keep things simple. If you can’t describe your MVP in two sentences, it might be too complicated.
As entrepreneurs, we are perfectionists, which is why it may be a daunting task for someone just starting.
You must follow the established mentality now and refine it later.
Don’t worry about what you don’t need at the moment. If you don’t exist, you can’t grow!
Use what you get
When you don’t have a lot of money, you have to make the most of everything you have.
Whether it’s your time, family, and friends.
Look around and see who you already know who has the skills and knowledge to help your business. Then see how you can help them.
The busiest people have no time. This is your greatest asset when you don’t have a lot of money. Trade wisely to get help from others!
Look at your skills, knowledge, and interests. What do you already know? What can you learn quickly?
Find local resources for entrepreneurs. Find a suggested mentor.
If you have design know-how, create a simple logo for your product and exchange your services with the people you need.
If you are a good writer, write great content for your website and exchange your services with others who need it.
Make the most of every free resource available! Whether it’s learning or something else to help your business.
Take advantage of free
The free value-added business model has leaped in the past decade. This means there are many professional tools that you can use for free (at least when you start).
Here are some brands that offer free plans:
- Website Builder: WordPress // Wix // Weebly
- Social media tools: buffer // Hootsuite // social services // click to send
- Photo editor: PicMonkey // Canva
- Email Marketing: MailChimp
- Invoice: Free Invoice Generator // Invoice to me // Slimvoice
- Logo: Trendy Logo Generator
- Writing: Hemingway // Grammar
- Cloud storage: Dropbox // Google Drive
- A / B Testing: Optimization
If there is no free plan for the service, you are interested in, sign up for a free trial. Then busily make your first sale before the trial period expires.
Alternatively, you can request a copy at any time in exchange for testimony or other services. If you’re dealing with a startup, this job is excellent.
You will be surprised how much you can get for free, just ask!
Speak out
When I launch a new product, I email friends, family, and former colleagues. I reach people on social media.
Connect with everyone, you know. This is not a hard sell. You just keep them in the loop.
Offer to let your friends use your products for free. Then ask for a referral.
Find where your customers are
Go where your potential customers hang out. Provide free advice. Helpful and become a resource.
Visit web forums and answer questions. Become an active contributor to Reddit.
The answers to Q & A-style websites are as follows:
- Quora
- StackExchange
- clear
Browse social media for users who can use your product. Search for Twitter tags relevant to your business. Join related Facebook and LinkedIn groups.
In other words, HUSTLE!
This helps you build your authority and be noticed by your target audience. Once you have established trust and credibility, buying your product will be an easy task.
Motivate social sharing
You need the motivation to reach a broad audience, and the easiest way is by providing incentives for users who promote your product.
- Foursquare was downloaded 1 million times in 13 months.
- It took Facebook 10 months to reach a million people.
- Spotify reached its millionth user in 5 months.
- In less than three months, Instagram was downloaded a million times.
- This rapid adoption is only possible with social sharing.
When you email a subscriber, ask them to forward your email to a friend.
I am holding a T-shirt drawing. Offer a discount. Create a freebie (use a tool like Rafflecopter).
Use whatever content you get the edge on, and let users share your product on social media.
Guest Blog
Find out which blogs have your target customers. Narrow the list of smaller blogs to popular blogs with a broader audience.
Get started with smaller blogs as they are easier to get started with. Suggest reader-related ideas for 2-3 guest blogs.
Then write the best blog post that you can help their readers. Remember, don’t sell!
In your bio, they will include a link to your website. If you add a lot of value to the article, readers will check your stuff.
Once you have a relationship with this blogger, ask them if they can offer a special deal to their readers.
When you become a resource for their community instead of another trying to sell their products, you will win the trust of bloggers.
They will then go to great lengths to make your products and services available to customers.
There are several excellent guest blog posts, and then you can start your outreach to the more substantial blog.
Door to door
Eric Barstow started a residential painting company. He knocked 250 doors and provided free estimates. From these clues, he closed five jobs and received $ 4,000.
Eric’s advice is: “Don’t spend money until you make money.”
Practice your point of sale and find opportunities to market your products personally.
Attend industry meetings, events, and local gathering groups to build your network. Be sure to follow up with the people you meet.
If they don’t buy it now, they might buy it later!
Provide free work
If you have a service company, you should establish some social proof.
One of the easiest ways is to give away work for free in exchange for proof.
Society has proven to be healthy. Testimonials are proof that you are as impressive as you say.
Don’t do free work for anyone. Find people who have a lot of contacts so they can recommend the business to you.
You don’t need to be a celebrity to use their power.
You can build relationships with influential YouTube characters and blogs. Put product samples from the message into the message and ask for a review.
The right person mentions can make you notice a large group of potential customers.
Every time I start a business, I assume I have $ 0, mainly because that’s where I start. This forced me to the hustle and bustle, and there was no chance for granted.
If you want to start a business online, then you don’t need a lot of money. I am living proof. If you work hard and smart, then you can successfully execute your entrepreneurial idea with almost no money.
