Low Capital Intensive Business
Let's start with the major question: is it possible to start a profitable business without sky-high investments? In short, it is.
Keep reading if you want to know the details.
Yes, one can open a business by investing a small amount, however, they should clearly understand that the less money they want to invest, the more time they will have to invest: into the search for ideas, the research and analysis of the market situation, in search of a free niche, into organizing work, finding suppliers, purchasing, communicating with clients and much, much more.
Invest $1+ and lie on the couch waiting for the result – that's not how business works.
The initial stage is the search for an idea. There are tons of articles that offer 100 Low Investment Capital business options out there. And here it is worth dwelling on two main questions:
- What do you want to do?
or
- What you really can do?
At this stage, the hard filter takes place. Everything is more or less clear with the "want"; it is either a dream or a pragmatic approach. It is a little more complicated with the "can". This part regards your skills but they must be leveled enough to allow you to sell them.
Many people love to take pictures or be photographed but selling your services as a photographer or your photos on auctions is a whole another level. Soberly evaluate your skills or ask acquaintances to do this objectively. Of course, no one can keep you from skilling up, but here we return to the question of the amount of time invested and the willingness of a potential buyer to pay for what is already available, not when you've improved.
Start small, and as soon as you have a circle of regular customers and a stable income, you can think about additional investments.
Sell a service
One of the simplest options is to sell your time. It requires minimal financial investment since your major investment is time.
You can sell services directly, create a consulting business, or combine these two approaches.
Digitalization helps expand possible horizons. A writer can not only publish books but also keep a blog, sell articles, and engage in copywriting or adaptation of the texts. A photographer does not just take pictures of events but also sells them in high quality at the auctions. Combining a service business with physical or electronic products is not possible for everyone but it is a very promising direction that provides another source of income that is not linked to your time.
The market of freelancers is large, but there is a lack of real specialists. Creating a profile on Upwork can significantly increase your chances of landing a client.
What service businesses you can start:
Influencer
Do you love social media and have a lot of followers who like your page? On Youtube, it can already bring you income. You can try to advertise products or services on other social networks.
Being an influencer is quite a popular trend right now. One should not think that it's only about fashion and beauty; auto parts, construction tools, gardening, or beekeeping – almost every direction has a niche. However, how free that niche is that's another question. Just remember that, first of all, the advertised goods must be of high quality and relevant to your audience.
Blogging
Blogging is another low-investment idea. If you know how to get people interested in your posts, then this is a great option that only requires your time. Bloggers can also be influencers.
E-book Publishing
Again, your talent plus your time. Popular authors make quite good money from their books, but this is a fairly simple niche even for beginners. The main thing is to find your audience. If you do not know where it is better to publish, we recommend that you read this article Great platforms for self-publishing your book.
Resume Writer
Banal? Yes. But paradoxically profitable. Despite the huge number of instructions, tips, and manuals, writing a high-quality resume is quite a popular thing. And if you can work out not only the text part but also the visual part, and catch up in the graphic editor, then even with zero investment in advertising, you will have clients.
Podcasts
Another popular trend. If you have interesting ideas that will be useful to people, start recording them down. The main thing to remember: is education and usefulness first and only then monetization.
Note that people like listening to books more than reading books. Therefore, it is quite easy to make money in this niche, even if you do not have an original idea but only voicing books.
Create online courses or digital products
Creating training courses is also a popular niche, as everyone is chasing the most up-to-date information, online courses serve to save time and get the necessary knowledge in the shortest time possible. Here it is better to focus not on quantity but quality. A good video sequence, voiceover, subtitles, and additional materials will work in your favor. Yes, the courses won't sell forever, but depending on the field, that's 3+ years of passive income.
As for digital products, they can be document forms, templates, stock photos, or even music.