A big part of any journey towards retirement and debt-free is extra cash to help you get there sooner. In this post, I am going to talk about some business ideas that anyone can start and then don’t require thousands of pounds to help you get there!
Now there are plenty of ways to get you started on your journey to make extra money such as cashback on your purchases, surveys and selling your items that you no longer need but there is only so much money to be made from these and eventually, you will probably run out of things to sell etc.
If you are looking to make a slow and steady income (maybe even more) then looking into your own business may be an idea for you. I know that so many people are put off starting their own business due for a number of reasons such as costs of start-up or even scared of the legal complications that may come from it but I promise it is the best decision you will make as long as you take it slow and steady.
When we talk about businesses though, I’m not talking about those that you pay into and then have sale targets to make. I am talking about a business that you build up from a little seed into this great idea. We all have the times when we sit down and think about a great business idea and then imagine how it could change our lives but very few of us ever take it to the next step and make it become a reality.
What I don’t think people realise is you don’t need to have a huge investment to start a business. There are plenty of business ideas out there that give you the options to build your own brand without the money to get started. Here are some ideas to get your business brain ticking,
- Blogs – Without a doubt, this is my favourite money maker. It is not an overnight hit but is cheap and one that has helped us out over the years. I use Stablepoint hosting and it is about £70 a year to host up to 5 blogs. You will need to factor in a few other expenses if you plan to have a blog, each domain name is about £5 a year to purchase and you will need to pay the ICO a fee for the data protection fee, this will be approximately £40 a year. So if you were planning to set up just 1 blog it would cost you at least £140 a year roughly however for a fairly small successful blog, you can look to potentially earn a few hundred pounds a month up to a couple of thousand pounds a month. There is a whole lot more you can pay for when it comes to blogging but always start small and build it up.
- Crafting – Are you a crafter making things such as crochet items, maybe you have a thing for card making or are even a huge fan of the Cricut machine? Now you don’t need to necessarily have only a store or eBay/Etsy store as many businesses are able to make their income source from social media. Handmade gifts are always gratefully received and I am sure there is a business from everyone in this market. Keep your costs low with the materials you buy in, I know it can be tempting to get ahead of yourself and buy in lots of stock but you need to be realistic. You don’t want to be left with lots of stock of items. Market your items well and keep the prices competitive but most importantly, stay true to your style and theme.
- Coaching/Tuition – Are you a trained coach or teacher? Have you thought about a step into coaching or tuition? You could host a dance class or sports club if this is your area of expertise and start building your business up at the weekend around your day job. You will need to make sure your insurances are up to date and things such as DBS etc are completed for everyone’s safety. Finding yourself a niche that you love will help you to grow it to where it needs to be and if you crack into the market you can make yourself a local household name.
It may be hard to find a way to stand out in the crowd on some of these ideas however when you are passionate about something, this will really shine through and make your product stand out too.
I have tried so many things over the years and the one thing that has really worked well for me is the thing that has needed the lowest amount of investment and effort to get going. Sticking to something I have loved has grown beyond what I imagined it could be and has given us that little bit more security over the years, especially when times have been tough.
What business idea would you love to work on?
