For every entrepreneur beginning their business, the one major factor above all else to consider is money. The sheer amount of places and areas of your business where you can send the money is enough to overwhelm even the most steadfast of business leaders. One important notion to remember is the fact that you do not need a lot of money to begin your business. Even an amount as small as $100 can be enough to help get your foot in the door and your business rolling along.
Rescue a CEO and CEO Blog Nation asked entrepreneurs where they would invest their $100 to make the most of it.
Find a direct seller
If you would like to start a business for under $100, I’d highly recommend looking into being a direct seller. Typically you can become an agent for less than $100 and you are not expected to invest in stock, a website, stationery or rental to be up and running. What you will need is time, patience and a good phone plan and reliable access to the internet. You’ll be given a business plan (some companies encourage you to be your own entrepreneur, others like you to follow their ‘tried and tested’ methodology) and a mentor. Reputable direct selling businesses usually throw in free training.
Thanks to Kirstin Crothers, Phoenix Trading
Investing in the customer
Working nights from my parent's home, I started a myspace and social media business on less than a $100 just over 5 years ago. I spent my initial cash on just transport to get my first meeting with a paying customer – all borrowed from my parents while I was still at uni. The best way to get started I found was to get results for my customers and proving that our creative work brought them great measurable results before even asking for payment.
Thanks to Rajeev Varatharajan, Fresh Aesthetics
Finding Different Outlets
I started my lingerie business with less than $100 as I was a penniless student who decided to set up a business and then did it the very same day! I found a reliable CMS and web hosting package and paid around $40 for the first month, then spent hours trawling the internet to find lingerie wholesalers who would drop ship so that I didn't have to invest in any stock initially. I set up a Facebook account as soon as the website was ready, which of course was free. That initial $40 was my only expense until the next month's web hosting fee! If I were to go back and start again, I'd probably spend slightly more and put that other $60 towards paying a student to design a great logo for the business as that's something I wish I'd done from the start, but otherwise I'm really happy with how my business has turned out some years down the line, and it just goes to show that you don't need to be rich to start up a new company!
Thanks to Estelle Puleston, Esty Lingerie
Invest in a professional logo
If you're starting a business with only $100 in your pocket, get a logo professionally designed. That's the first thing anyone sees of your company or brand, and you really need to put your best foot forward. That being said, logo design usually costs more than a hundred bucks. You'd need to find someone with the experience to create something solid but the flexibility to meet your budget constraints. Once you've got a logo designed, other things like business cards start to fall into place.
Thanks to Steph Calvert, Hearts and Laserbeams
Consider different paths
With $100 to start up a business, that’s more than enough to take different routes. Instead of allocating a budget to purchasing a domain and hosting, free sites like WordPress or Blogger are a great place to start. The money that would have gone into a domain name or hosting could be invested in online or classified ads instead. The rest of the money can go into more publicity material, maintenance and improvement once the business’s website is up and running. For example, you can use TheContentAuthority.com to have some content written for your site or go to Fiverr.com for a range of other services you may need for $5 each. The most important thing is to at least get the business off the ground. Once that happens, any money that comes in can be used to further and improve the company overall.
Thanks to Michael Pesochinsky, GovernmentBargains
Allocating small amounts to different areas
When there is only $100 as a budget to start up a business, allocating each dollar to a meaningful category is key. Set like $8 to buy a domain, $40 for a year of hosting, then install WordPress for free and use it to build your site or use some the $100 to pay for the first several months of WIX. Apply for Google AdWords and get the company’s name and word about its products and services out into the world. Many times Google will send (or magazine inserts will feature) $100 worth of AdWords credit to start, so make sure that is put to use. Make use of as many free services as you can to network, including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest. To pitch you stories and expertise to the media for free, use sites like HARO (Help a Reporter Out). Once everything is up and running, more investments can be made on top of the initial $100 and the sweat equity once the business’s first dollars begin rolling in.
Thanks to Ian Aronovich, GovernmentAuctions