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There’s no better time than the present to start making money…without any.
Are you curious how you can start a business without money? Well, you’re not the only one facing this dilemma. In fact, most aspiring entrepreneurs lack the one thing that has the potential to make their dreams come true – money! The good news is that no matter how limited your budget might be, you always have some options in starting a business.
“Wait a second; what happens if I am completely broke or living paycheck to paycheck?” Don’t worry; where there is a will, there is a way. The most important aspect you need to succeed in your entrepreneurial endeavor is a clear plan and a relentless ambition to execute it.
Of course, luck plays a part in everything, which is why you need to stay prepared to make the most of an opportunity that knocks on your door. In this guide, we are going to discuss how you can start your very own business with little or no money, step-by-step. So, keep on reading!
1) Keep your current job (or get a new one)
Okay, time for some real talk. If you happen to be someone who lacks ambition, maybe entrepreneurship isn’t for you. No matter how great of an idea you may have conceived in your mind, the idea alone won’t make you money. To make money, you must put your plans into action. For you, it might be time to look for a different, higher paying job.
Having a steady source of income will not only boost your self-confidence but also inspire you to accomplish greater things. Unless you possess the bare minimum funds to set the chains into motion, no business idea will ever come to life in the real world. Once you get a job, make a point of saving as much as you can for investing it later. If you want to learn a unique way to save your money for investing, read about Rich Dad’s Pay Yourself First philosophy here.
If you’re already employed; don’t quit your job just yet. We understand the desire to “be your own boss,” but think twice before you make any major decision. Only leave your job once you’ve made enough savings that you can use to get your own venture off the ground.
Money spent: $0
2) Think about how you want to make money
With the internet coming of age the past decade, the idea of making a living by working from home has been propagated far and wide. With most gurus urging their followers to stop working for others, the idea of quitting your job and focusing on your own business idea has become very popular. But what are you going to sell? What service are you willing to provide?
I got a pretty good formal education. It took me years to get over it. That’s what life is all about, unlearning all the old techniques from yesterday and relearning the new ideas of today. – Ken McElroy, Rich Dad Real Estate Advisor
Well, for those of you who are still figuring out where your future business is headed, these tips may help:
3) Market research
First you need to analyze your market. Ask yourself if your business idea is unique and if there is any possibility of making it better. Is your business idea capable of generating value? Are you planning on starting a business around something that your audience wants? Do you think you can pursue this for the long haul? These are some of the burning questions you must answer to yourself.
4) Do a SWOT analysis
SWOT analysis is a vital technique that can help you identify the strengths and weaknesses of your business idea. It can also view a rundown on the potential opportunities open to you and the threats you may face in your venture. In the context of business, it will help you to carve a name for yourself within a niche.
5) Become an industry expert
Once you have chosen your market and have an idea in mind, it’s important to begin placing yourself in the market as an industry leader. Another way of putting it: you should position yourself as a subject matter expert —or SME.
In steps one and two above, it should have become apparent what people’s needs are in each market. Websites like Amazon and Yelp offer great opinions on what’s working —and lacking—from various products and services. What can you improve upon? Are there digital products available that aren’t getting rave reviews? Is there a physical product in the market that lacks a personal touch that only you can design?
It doesn’t matter what type of product (or service) you’re offering, if you want your business to be different from your competition you’ll need to get your voice heard. The quickest way to do that is by joining online communities that discuss your chosen industry. There are online forums like Reddit and Facebook groups that offer a bevy of topics to choose from—for free. In most cases, you don’t even have to join them. Simply scroll through them looking for solutions to peoples problems.
By now, you should have a solid understanding of your industry and, more importantly, your own voice within it. Now it’s time to let your voice be heard.
Money spent: $0
6) Own some digital real estate
Again, it doesn’t matter if you want to sell physical or digital products, or offer one-on-one coaching, eventually you’re going to need somewhere for people to learn about what you offer. One of the first things to do is get your own website. Having a website will not only put you in front of thousands of potential customers and investors but will also attract opinions of others. This way, you’ll be able to gauge the possibility of your business idea making it big in the industry. Here are a few options to get you started with your online presence:
- Choose a website platform
- WordPress: Starting a website doesn’t have to be resource consuming anymore because a content management system (CMS) like WordPress lets you take full control of its design and content. There is no need to hire a developer or know the intricacies of coding anymore because this platform lets you do everything with the help of visual tools and plugins.
- Wix: Allows you to create HTML5 (modern) web sites and mobile sites using simple drag and drop tools.
- Squarespace: Provides a content management system that integrates a website builder, blogging platform, hosting service and domain name registrar all wrapped into one convenient solution.
- Content
Once your site is ready, put some valuable content online that shows signs you are an authority in your niche. You don’t have to get into video marketing just yet; just good text and attractive images are enough to get the ball rolling. However, attracting customers is not sufficient; you will need to learn how to keep them engaged as well.
Most businesses choose to accomplish this using a blog. All three of the platforms we mentioned earlier (WordPress, Wix, and Squarespace) offer the ability to write content within the CMS. Obviously, the industry you are building a business within will dictate the type of content that you should provide. All that market research you did at the beginning really can come in handy. The content should be written about solutions to problems you’ve identified in your market.
- Lead capture
To make sure your visitors keep coming back to your website, you’ll need to send them reminders every so often. You can do this by collecting your audience’s contact details through a lead capture form. Offer “bait” in the form of a freebie (e-books, PDFs, coupons, etc.) in exchange for the visitor’s email address.
- Send regular emails
Once you have the email address, it’s time to move to the next step. Before you decide to send daily emails, make sure that they provide lots of value to the recipients. Your goal is to keep your customers coming back to your WordPress site; not make them hit the unsubscribe button.
- Social media
People nowadays hang out more on social media than they do in real life. So, harnessing the power of social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, PINTEREST, Instagram, etc. will instantly put you in touch with millions of people. This will allow you to get up close and personal with your audience to learn their likes and dislikes.
A useful strategy to keep your audience engaged is to post your content consistently. It’s best to choose one day a week to post your new content. Inform your community through emails and social media tools. Make sure to reply to them when they leave a comment on your blog or social media app. These are the very people you’re going to be selling to.
Money spent: $0
7) Make a product to sell
So far, we haven’t done much by way of making money. We’ve gotten to know our industry well and we’re finding our voice in the market. We’re even gaining a solid following through social media. Now, let’s decide what to sell.
Before you begin investing the time and energy required to sell physical products, we suggest leveraging the power and speed of digital products first.
Remember those blogs you posted that provide solutions to your markets’ problems? Well, that could be an excellent resource for your first product idea.
Let’s say you want to work in the home garden industry. You’ve analyzed the market and know there are different ways to grow flowers in different types of soil. Maybe you used your blog to discuss each method. Take 10 or 12 of your best blogs and combine them into an eBook. This shouldn’t require too much effort on your part. In fact, you can use a simple tool like Google Documents to combine them into one document and then export it as a PDF.
Notice what catches your eye the next time you’re on Amazon or perusing Barnes and Noble. Think you can do better? Use free online software like Pixlr (pixlr.com) to design your own cover!
Money spent: $0
8) Let’s make some money
Your eBook is done. It’s been edited into a cohesive product that’s good enough to be printed and sold in a mass retailer. But why spend the money to print it? Why not leverage the power of your community and sell it online?
First, you’ll need to store it somewhere on the Internet. The three website platforms mentioned above all provide a way to upload a PDF. Once you finish uploading it, grab the link and start advertising it. Utilize your email list with daily promotions. Leverage the power of your social following to help spread the word.
Once you’ve chosen where to store it, you’ll need to decide how your customers are going to buy it. The most common ways to perform this transaction is through one of two online payment gateways—PayPal or Stripe.
- PayPal: Supports online money transfers and serves as an electronic alternative to traditional transactions through paper methods like checks or money orders.
- Stripe: Allows both private individuals and businesses to accept payments over the Internet.
Money spent: $0
9) Adjust according to feedback
Once you’ve put your business idea through the testing phase, you’ll probably end up with a lot of insight that might not have occurred to you initially. The reason businesses invest so much in gathering feedback is because of its value. It allows them to make changes to their business model, products, and core customer relationship policies to make more sales.
The power of second opinion is often undervalued in the business community due to overconfident entrepreneurs. You, however, must make the most use of the testing data to make sure that your business is off to a smooth start. Always remember that an idea that looks attractive on paper might not be profitable in the market.
The market will determine the value of your product or service; you must develop a keen sense to listen to it when required. The capability of making adjustments will put your business miles ahead of other aspiring entrepreneurs who are rigid with their plans and preferred mode of execution.
Money spent: $0
10) Expanding into physical products
You’ve made it! Well, sort of. You should continue to communicate and grow your community. Continue to add content to your web presence and market your digital product to current—and new—customers. Now, it might be time to make your business physical.
You can start a business with no money. But in our litigious society, you shouldn’t start one without any protection. – Garrett Sutton, Rich Dad Legal Advisor
There are literally millions of products sold on Amazon alone each month. Every one of those products falls into an industry of some type. That includes that flower business we started earlier. Think of all the different types of physical products you can offer that would help sell your digital eBooks—and vice-versa.
Seeds, pots, soil, gardening tools, watering hoses, gloves…the list is almost endless. A great place to find some ideas (and purchase some inventory) is Alibaba.com.
Alibaba.com is a Chinese e-commerce company that provides consumer-to-consumer, business-to-consumer and business-to-business sales services via web portals.
Money spent: $0
11) Grow your team
By now, things should be falling into place. In fact, you might be so busy that things are starting to fall through the cracks. You can’t be all things to all people. If you’ve been following Robert Kiyosaki, or his Rich Dad Advisors, for any amount of time, you’re probably familiar with the B/I Triangle.
As you can see by looking at the diagram, the outer sides contain the most important part of your business. Your mission, team and leadership will either drive you to success or sink it like the Titanic.
The best way to start a business with no money is to have the government pay you to start a business. A good tax strategy for your business can give you the startup capital you need to begin. – Tom Wheelwright, Rich Dad Tax Advisor
Money spent: $0
12) Looking for investors
When you’re sure that your business will thrive, next comes time to start looking for loans. While joining with investors is widely promoted in the entrepreneurial and start-up circles, you’re not limited to people. You can also opt for several loan programs that are aimed at helping small businesses and entrepreneurs.
The Small Business Administration (SBA) provides different loan programs sanctioned by the US government to start-ups in need. However, your business must fulfill some of the criteria to qualify for the loan. If you’re in the United States, the company must be fully compliant with the local laws and regulations and must function according to SBA guidelines.
The best way to start a business with no money is to have the government pay you to start a business. A good tax strategy for your business can give you the startup capital you need to begin. – Tom Wheelwright, Rich Dad Tax Advisor
Your business must also be a profit-making venture and have a good credit score to show for it. You can also approach your friends, relatives, and other people in your network for funds. You may even decide to bring in a co-founder to help with the funding and other administrative duties. The possibilities are endless when you have a reliable business model that is ready to be executed.
Investors are easy to find when an entrepreneur speaks from their heart and has the necessary skills to have their dream become a reality. Remember, only ask people that actually have money! – Darren Weeks, Rich Dad Raising Capital Advisor
Money spent: $0
Conclusion
When are you planning to start?
Now is as good a time to start as any other, so get out there and hustle. The sooner you begin, the sooner you’ll make mistakes. And you know what they say about failure being the cornerstone of success. Don’t let your thoughts of going broke hold you back from pursuing the business and lifestyle you desire. Be an entrepreneur; show the world what you’re capable of!