Have you always wanted to start your own business and be your own boss but didn’t know where to begin? Read on for 15 Low Cost Small Business Startups for 2022.
While many of the Funding Zest guides talk about saving, this one is about spending but… not a lot of money. Here you’ll see some ideas to make money with a small investment to build your own business. Many could qualify as a side hustle. Some you can even grow large enough to quit your day job
Key Factors:
- The SBA (Small Business Association), reports that most micro-businesses cost about $3K to startup, in contrast to franchises that are home-based that can be between $2K – $5K.
- There are small businesses that you can start for mere hundreds of dollars (see list below)
- Business expenses you may or may not need include supplies, equipment, insurance, landing page, website, legal fees, business credit cards and etc.
- Small business loans can be obtained from banks, credit unions, family & friends or online lenders as personal loans or payday loans.
- There are many ways to fund your new business.
Flipping Existing Websites Can Be a Lucrative Business
There are over 1.6 billion websites on the internet but only 15% are currently in use. As it’s usually easier to improve an existing site versus starting from scratch this makes all kinds of sense. You can buy them improve them and then sell them by increasing or adding content marketing and improving their SEO potential. Once you’ve made these improvements you sell them on.
If you’re wondering how to come up with your savings to start one of our 15 Low Cost Small Businesses for 2022 read this 5 Things To Avoid When Saving Cash.
Walking Dogs Could Be Your New Business
Dogs need exercise. It helps their health, their fitness, and their moods. A simple landing page is not expensive but don’t skimp on the liability insurance for your new business. You need to protect yourself from any unexpected lawsuits from bits or accidents. Price your services to cover your insurance costs and to ensure a profit. Many dog walkers charge in the neighborhood of thirty to sixty dollars an hour. You may want to offer pre-paid walking packages to build up income i.e. 10 walks for $500, etc. There are dog walking sites to list your services.
Start a Virtual Assistance Small Business as a Low Cost Small Business Startup for 2022
Answer emails, invoice for services, schedule meetings, and help out with any other admin chores and you can become indispensable to companies large and small. If you don’t know where to start, there are great websites with job listings just waiting for you. Try Fivver, PeoplePerHour, or just google Virtual Assistant sites to find one that has the kind of jobs and clients you’re looking for.
Start a Car Detailing Small Business
How do you feel about washing cars or preparing them for sale? It’s a big business and depending on the car or how ‘detailed’ the need you can charge from $50 to over $400 per auto. The best is if you have a regular rota of detailing jobs. Like the dog walking you could offer a 5 details contract for a 15% savings. This works both for those who want a guaranteed schedule of frequent detailing work and those who want to save a bit.
Tutor Online
Do you enjoy teaching and have knowledge and/or skill in particular subjects? Now that everyone is somewhat proficient on Zoom online teaching is easier than ever. One of these 15 Online Tutoring sites should be able to help you find jobs.
Dropship Popular Products as Your Small Business
Say you’ve noticed the popularity of certain products. You’d like to sell them but you’re not in the manufacturing business and don’t have the funds to inventory them. What do you do? You dropship them. It’s easy and low risk.
Here’s how it works…
- You set up an online store.
- Customers place an order through it.
- You take that order and send it to a supplier to which you pay the wholesale price.
- That supplier sends the product to your customer.
- Your profit comes from what the customer pair minus your wholesale cost and any shipping costs or fees you pay the wholesaler.
Here are 10 ten companies that can help you learn the process and help you set up your online store – with Wix, Shopify and Big Commerce leading the way.
Printing Custom Designs on Demand (COD) is Hot For Small Business Startups
The print on demand (POD) is hot! The very cool aspect of this business is that you don’t pay until you have sales. There are suppliers who do the printing, the packaging, and the shipping for you. You only need to supply the designs.
Like dropshipping, you set up an online store using one of the companies mentioned above like Big Commerce. From there you use a print-on-demand app. These are amazingly automated and simple to use even if you’ve not tech savvy. If you can link up with the right influencers then your marketing becomes easy too. Google starting a POD company and you’ll find plenty of advice.
Write Content for Websites and Blogs
Consistent posting is key for companies or influencers to keep up their presence and increase their business but sometimes they don’t have the time to write all the content they need. That’s where you’d come in. If you also have SEO skills to boost their content then you will be in demand.
WordPress Website Work
Do you know WordPress inside and out? Then here are in demand skills you can use to make money:
- Create a new WordPress website
- Improve existing site’s SEO
- Address security issues
- Optimize a website for new Google algorithms
Group Coaching
Coaching has become more and more popular as people see what it can do for them. There are many areas of coaching that you can pursue. If you are new to coaching, check out online courses that only take 6 months to get you up and running. They support you not only in how to coach but picking your area of specialization and tell you how to market your services. Areas to consider are career coaching, life coaching, business coaching, and interpersonal skills coaching. The list is almost endless. Choose one where you have some expertise and knowledge to give the richest coaching experience possible.
Cleaning Business
The business of cleaning homes and companies will never go out. All you need is the materials to do your job and if you want to add on carpet cleaning invest in a sturdy and dependable carpet cleaner. Investigate what other cleaners charge in your area and price yourself accordingly. If you offer extra services and on-demand cleaning then you can charge more.
Start a ‘Testing Websites’ Small Business
Have you gone to a website to buy something but the experience was so negative you gave up? That’s what every business wants to avoid so they hire people to use their websites and give feedback on the negatives and the positives of their experience trying to order, get help or gain knowledge. Usually, the business will give guidelines on what they want you and your possible employees to pay attention to and test out.
As you take on projects, your employees will receive a set of questions that they need to answer as they navigate a company’s website. Through video, they’ll communicate their initial thoughts on the current user experience and how the site could be improved.
Are You an Instagram Pro? Start This Low Cost Small Business for 2022
Using Instagram for some businesses or markets can make or break their business so helping them improve their Instagram presence can be huge. And if you know the ins and outs of Instagram ads, that’s even better!
Produce Business Videos as a Small Business Startup
If you have video production skills, i.e. recording, editing, cutting, and publishing then you will be in demand. Videos on business sites are now expected as consumers want to see the product in action. More than that, the link from a video site like YouTube helps a business’ website by enhancing its SEO with backlinks. Also, read How Can I Pay For the High-Paying Skills I’ll Need in 2022?
Not only can you handle business videos but you may prefer to do events like weddings and graduation editing.
Prepping Students for Pre-College Testing
This market is worth almost $18 billion so there’s room for you to help high school students get into university. You can offer ACT prepping, help students with admission essay skills, or any other taking test help is welcome and lucrative.
Pros & Cons of Our 15 Low Cost Small Business Startups for 2022
Pros
- Many of these small business ideas take a small investment where you can use savings or take out a small loan
- You get to call the shots
- Work when you want to and don’t work when you don’t feel like it
- When it’s your startup you’re more motivated versus doing the same for someone else
- You get all the profits
- If you have expertise or knowledge of the business you decide to start then you’ve got an advantage over others
- You can still get a business start-up loan if you’re self-employed
Cons
- Starting your own business can be a lot of work
- There’s stress involved in running your own business and sometimes
- If you’re working on your own it’s hard to get away from it
- If you’ve never run a business the learning curve can be quite steep
Bottom Line:
There are lots more than our list of 15 Low Cost Small Business Startups for 2022 but this is a great place to start. If you have the desire to start your own small business there are lots of options that won’t cost a lot. Pick one that you’re passionate about and/or will fulfill your income needs. If you don’t have savings that you can use then you have options so check out small business loans from banks, credit unions, family & friends or an online site for payday loans.
