Five Businesses You Can Start for Under 20 Bucks - Rayzelle Forrest Young

Starting a business can put a serious financial strain on your pocketbook. If you've been thinking about becoming an entrepreneur but feel you just don't have the money to do so, there are a few businesses that you can start for as little as $20! Here are a few suggestions to get you started.

Consultant

The qualifications for being a consultant are relatively easy. All you have to do is be better at doing something than the average person is. You will be surprised at what people will pay for when it comes to receiving helpful advice. All you have to do to break into this business is spread the word about your new profession and let everyone know the area you specialize in. Some simple business cards with your name, number and your field of expertise is enough to get you going in this line of work. The key to your success as a consultant will be networking, not money.

Webpreneur

Becoming a webpreneur or selling goods and services by way of a website can be done by just about anyone. Although this line of work requires a lot of time and website promotion, it's a fairly inexpensive business to start. The easiest thing to do if you don't have any goods or services of your own is to sign up for affiliate programs. These programs provide the products for you to sell and in turn, you split the profits with the providing company. You can set up a website with several affiliate programs on them in order to maximize your sales potential. The key to success with this business is to promote, promote, promote. There are tons of free ways to advertise your website. Make use of classified ads, social networking sites, banner ads, etc.

Tutoring

If you're good in a particular subject and feel comfortable with helping others, then a tutoring business could very well become a part of your future. The dire state of today's educational system has sparked the need for more tutors than ever. A good way to get started as a tutor is to approach private schools and home schooling organizations. You will obtain more than enough clients using this free marketing method.

Pet Sitter

In recent years, the pet sitting business has experienced a surge. This is largely due to the fact that people are on the go more than ever before and need somewhere for their pets to go when they are away. This is particularly true when pet owners go on vacation. Rather than leaving their cats and dogs at a kennel, pet lovers are beginning to look for pet sitting services that serve as a sort of pet vacation even. An easy way to start this business is right in your own neighborhood. The cost of putting out flyers and talking to your neighbors will keep you well under the $20 mark.

Desktop Publishing

If you're good at designing flyers, business cards, postcards, etc. and you have a computer and decent laser printer, you can easily and inexpensively start a desktop publishing business. To get this business started, develop a design portfolio that you can showcase on and offline. You could go door to door and offer your services to businesses to get started. You could also upload your portfolio to a website and direct traffic to your site and generate new clients in this way. Both of these methods are inexpensive and will keep you within a $20 budget.

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Home Bakery

If cooking baked goods is a passion of yours, you can start a flourishing business right out of the comfort of your own home. Starting a bakery out of your home will dramatically cut your operating costs and give your business a better chance at being successful. Before you officially start your business, there are a few preliminary steps you will need to take in order to get your home bakery business off the ground.

Decide What To Sell

Decide what your home bakery business will sell. Are you going to sell cakes, cookies, pies or a variety of baked goods. If you have a small kitchen you may want to start with just one product. Since you are working with limited space you don't want to take on more than you can handle. Taking on more than one type of baked good will mean that you need more space for more ingredients.

Get Licensing

Your attorney general's office will have information on the type of licensing you will need to run your home bakery. Take care of this part of the business before you start selling any goods. You don't want to run the risk of being shut down by state inspectors before you even get the business up and fully running.

Name Your Business

Think of a catchy name for your business that will distinguish you from others that are in the same line of work. You will need to register your business name with the county recorder as well as obtain a business license with your city offices. Registering your business name will allow you to acquire a business bank account and run your company under your business name.

Get Customers

After you have taken care of all licensing and registering matters, you are now officially ready for business. This means it's time to get customers. Obtain your customers by giving free samples to business offices, restaurants, hotels and community organizations that hold meetings. These are the type of clients that will give your bakery repeat business and significantly increase your profits.

Keep Good Records

If you want to stay in business you will need to keep good records. Carefully record your profits and the amount of money you are spending on supplies and anything else needed to run the business. You will need these records in order to accurately claim deductions when you file your taxes.

Starting a home bakery is a great business if you have a passion for baking goods. Take care of all the preliminary paperwork in order to ensure your business is legitimate before you officially open. In addition, take good records of incoming and outgoing monies for accurate tax filing.

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