As an entrepreneur, starting up your own enterprise can be difficult and risky. It’s no surprise that the majority of new companies fail within their first five years. Many times, this has to do with an ever-competitive market or the inability to grow a regular client base. This could mean that you’re left in debt simply because your business didn’t grow in the direction that you had originally planned. If you’re planning on reaching out to potential customers online, there are many available options to essentially finance your goals. By having the money that you need to create a company, you’re able to create the startup you’ve always dreamed of having.
Crowdfunding
Crowdfunding is a great method for obtaining the cash necessary to make your enterprise a reality. Crowdfunding means that you’ll reach out to your audience to receive the money necessary to begin your business. This can be done through an online crowdfunding site as well as on different social media platforms. The key is to outline the goals and products that you’ll be offering, explaining why you need money in order to get your ideas off of the ground. Many people are willing to give donations to entrepreneurs who have good ideas, and you can expect the same individuals to buy your products or services after you’ve officially launched. Many of the most well-known brands started off with the help of donations, so it’s never something to be embarrassed about when it comes to obtaining the cash you need to get going.
Working with Investors
Investors are always willing to pick up on company ideas that truly have potential. Finding an investor can be tricky, and you’ll need to have a plan laid out so that they know what to expect before giving you cash to fund the undertaking. The way that investments work is that the investor themselves will take a small percentage of your sales. While this might seem like a risk, many entrepreneurs wouldn’t be able to pay for their new online enterprise alone without the help of someone else’s financial backing. For this reason, it’s important to negotiate the percentage that the investor will receive after you’ve started selling products or services. If you can’t find an official investor to provide you with startup cash, talk to a friend or family member. Most often, they will be willing to help out as much as they can simply because you’re closely related to them.
Paying Off Debts and Loans
If you plan on creating your own brand, the last thing you want to be dealing with is student loan and credit card debt that you’ve accumulated over the years. The amount you pay into these debts every single month can essentially eat into the budget that you have for the new company. This makes it difficult to stay afloat without the funding that you need. In order to eliminate this debt, you’ll want to refinance the loans to receive better rates. These lowered rates will help to reduce the monthly bills that you owe, allowing you to have extra cash for your business. If you have multiple credit cards, consider consolidating them onto a single card to save yourself from the string of bills coming in regularly.
Take Out a Small Business Loan
A small business loan is often referred to as an SBA. Taking out an SBA can be quite difficult, simply because many lenders see entrepreneurship as a risk that they might not be willing to take. When going to a lender, be sure to present information regarding the enterprise you’re looking to create and why you feel it would work. Lenders can sometimes take weeks or even months to officially provide a decision, so it’s best to start shopping around for a financial institution early. You may need to visit several lenders in order to get the SBA that you need to begin working on creating your online-based company.
Pre-Selling Products
Another way to not only receive money to finance your ideas but to see if your product will be a hit is to offer product pre-sales. This means pre-selling the items you’re going to be eventually offering to customers, allowing them to see what they can expect all while making some cash on the side as a result. Likewise, you might want to consider trying out free sample giveaways. While you might lose some money in the process of giving away free products, it’ll help you to get a clientele going because people are actually able to try out the items you’re planning to sell. They may return to purchase the item if they like it after the startup has launched. You can set up free giveaways and produce pre-sales on social media platforms and through your own online site in an attempt to get a buzz going.
