Here are a few things to help you keep your start-up costs to a minimum:
Work from Home
Don’t even think about renting a workspace, at least not until you have some serious cash coming in. Instead, dedicate a specific room in your house or apartment to your business and make this your work central. Doing so will not only leave you with more money at the end of the month, but it will allow you to deduct several expenses when you are filing your taxes.
Free Publicity
Of course, if you are to be successful in business, you need people to see you and to be aware of the goods or services you have to offer. But this publicity does not have to be costly. There are many ways to get yourself out there for free. For instance, you can take advantage of the free marketing tools offered on the web and make good use of social media. Additionally, you can create a website for your business using one of the many free web builders and hosting services available out there.
DIY Business Cards, Pamphlets & Brochures
Even though the preferred method for marketing is often the electronic kind, the printed word remains a timeless and invaluable promotional tool. For example, business cards and pamphlets can help you make a lasting impression on future clients when cold calling or networking. And the best part is that with the help of free tools on the internet, you can easily create and print them yourself for next to nothing.
Barter
Bartering is when you exchange goods or services with someone, service for service, good for good. This method of doing business is growing in popularity since it drastically reduces costs of running a business. So, if you have a service that someone would be willing to pay for, you can join one of the many online bartering exchanges. Though some of these websites charge fees for enlisting, there are many that you can join for free.
As we have seen here, it is possible to start a business with little or no money. Of course, you might have to spend a bit more time and energy than the person who has all the start-up money they need, but just think how proud you’ll feel if your start-from-scratch business turns out to be a flourishing one.