There are many myths about how to start a business. Many say that you need money to make money. I beg to differ with this notion.

You do not need money to make money; you need a strong will and quality knowledge. This article will teach you how to start a business with no money. That is right, absolutely no capital.

Most people give every excuse they can get on earth to justify why they are not starting a business. Most of these reasons may be logical but they are not essential.

Of all excuses people make, lack of money is usually on top of the list. Many people cite a lack of capital as the number reason for not starting any business initiative.

Although money can be a problem, it is never the problem. According to this article, there are 5 reasons why people fail to start a business (And money is not one of them)

·     Fear of the unknown

·     Waiting for the right wind

·     Average contentment

·     Fear of failure

·     Lack of entrepreneurial drive

With this in mind, it is possible to start a business with literally zero capital.

. It is said that the cost can run up to 3,000 dollars. I want to confirm that this information is not true. According to Sba.gov, you need so much to start a business. They say that you need the following to start a business:

·     Office space

·     Equipment and supplies

·     Communications

·     Utilities

·     Licenses and permits

·     Insurance

·     Lawyer and accountants

·     Inventory

·     Employees’ salaries

·     Advertising and marketing

·     Market research

·     Printed marketing materials

·     Making a website

Let us expose the myths

·     Office space

You do not need an office unless you are running a brick-and-mortar business. A brick-and-mortar business is one that sells products to customers face to face in an office or a store.

If your business is not this traditional, you do not need an office.

Similarly, you can co-rent and office space with another young business. There are also cheap shared spaces that you can take advantage of.

·     Equipment and supplies

These are not needed in all types of businesses. If you are a reseller, you probably only need the equipment you already have in your house.

·     Communications

Startups can manage their communications. You do not need to hire an agency or a consultant to help you with this. You just need to learn the basics. After all, information is everywhere on the web.

·     Utilities

Startups endeavor to keep their costs low and remove any unnecessary expenses. Utilities may be essential but they may not be an upfront cost.

After you have started operations in your business, you can start thinking of how to finance different utilities.

·     Licenses and permits

Licenses and permits are crucial. Unless you want to get into trouble with the government, you need to have valid licenses and permits.

It is true that these licenses and permits cost money. However, many businesses, especially online businesses, do not need licenses and permits.

Similarly, setting up your business in a state/county that charges less is a good move. Some local governments can give businesses free licenses and permits for some years after registration.

·     Insurance

These may be necessary for some jurisdictions but not in all. Some regulators make it optional for businesses to have an insurance cover.

You just need to understand the laws set by your government and make necessary adjustments.

·     Lawyers and accountants

You may indeed need a lawyer, especially when registering your business. The lawyer will give you technical advice and handle the paperwork.

This is where you need to know people. It is of a high probability that you know a lawyer around. This may be your relative, a friend, or a friend to your friend. You can gain favor with them and use their stamp.

If need be, find a recent law graduate. This one can give you the services at just 10% of the cost.

You do not need accountants as you start your business.

·     Inventory

You need inventory but it does not necessarily have to be your own. You can use other people’s inventory in your business. We will look at this later.

·     Employees’ salaries

This is the greatest myth. You do not need any employees as you start your business. They may not be necessary for a newly found business.

You need to hire employees by the need, not by the forecast. As your business grows, it will demand a larger workforce. This is where you hire them. At this point, your business will have enough returns to cover wages.

You can ask your relative or friend to help you out in the meantime. You can also hire workers on a commission basis. This will relieve you of financial pressure due to monthly wages.

·     Advertising and marketing

This may be important but it is not necessary. If you are running on a low budget, do not use paid advertising and marketing channels.

There are pretty many free advertisement and marketing channels that you can use. Social media is one of these. It is free and with a very wide reach.

·     Market research

This is necessary but not that costly. In most cases, it is free. You can use the internet to do your research. There are plenty of materials that would be invaluable.

If you need to need to talk to people, you can make use of your social media, people in your neighborhood, and those in your contacts. Ask them to give honest feedback on your products and services.

·     Printed marketing materials

You do not need printed marketing materials. You can use online banners to advertise. As your business grows, you can then use your profits to print physical marketing materials.

·     Making a website

Although getting a website is important, it is not a priority when registering your business. You can use the profits you generate from your business operations to get a professional website.

In the meantime, have a strong social media presence. This can be a substitute for a website. When you make profits, make it a priority to get one.

As you have seen, you can eliminate 90% of these costs. Most of them are not urgent. You can always get them after you have started the business. With business acumen, you can figure out ways of doing them with less or no cost.

Clasifications of business cost

1. One time vs. ongoing costs

Business costs can be one time or ongoing.

One-time costs are the ones that you pay once and never again. This includes business registration fees, logo design, making a website, office branding, etc.

Ongoing costs are those that are recurring. They included salaries, rent, taxes, permits, production, marketing, etc.

If a cost is one time, make sure you choose quality. With quality, you do not have to incur other expenses in future making adjustments.

If the cost is on-going, keep it as low as you can. This is a cost strategy. Make sure that you are not paying any excesses. If there is a cheaper office next building, it is worth considering it. Also, keep salaries low until you have enough money in the bank.

2. Essential vs. optional cost

This is straightforward. There are costs that you cannot eliminate. There are others that you can do away with.

Essential costs include business registration, licenses, and permits, sales and marketing, etc.

Optional costs include paid marketing and advertising, joining business clubs, consultancy fees, etc. If it is optional, it is not a priority if your budget is low.

3. Fixed vs. variable cost

Fixed cost rarely changes. Whether you carry out business operations or not, you have to pay for them. They include office rent, employees’ salaries, domain name renewal, permits, and licenses, etc.

Variable costs depend on the running of the business. They can be low or high. They rise as you carry out more business operations. The vice versa is also true.

Variable costs can include logistics, production, marketing, etc.

Having demystified the myths and understood the types of costs, let us now discuss how to start a business with no money.

How to start a business with no money

As we pointed out, it is very possible to start a business with no capital. These 8 tips will teach you how to start a business with no money.

·     Market other people’s products

·     Start a service business

·     Utilize your skills and experience

·     Get a co-founder

·     Get part-time employment

·     Find potential angel investors

·     Get a loan

·     Utilize crowdfunding

1. Market other people’s products

This is what most people who lack capital do. It is how I started my real estate business. You just need to have strong negotiation skills to do this.

As a small business, you do not need to have an inventory of your own. You can approach a bigger company in your industry and offer to market their products on a commission basis.

Beware not to approach big companies. You need to target middle-level businesses. These businesses are always open to any idea that might increase their income.

After getting a meeting with the marketing head or the CEO, use your closing skills to get the deal. Promise them results at all costs. Use the moment to showcase your expertise and understanding of the market.

Beware: do your homework very well because they might ask tough questions. Portray yourself as an expert and you will get the deal.

2. Start a service business

Service businesses do not need much capital to start. They just require expertise and skill at what you do.

If you are an expert in digital marketing, you can start a digital agency. For a HR professional, setting up a HR consultancy is a good idea. In whatever profession you are in, there will always be a service business that you can start.

Service businesses do not need inventory and logistics. You can work remotely from home. This means that you do not need a physical store.

3. Utilize your skills and experience

As we have said, you need to start a business in your area of expertise. This will give you a good competitive advantage.

If you are an expert in real estate, you do not need to start a finance business. Just focus on what you are good at.

Ask yourself, what do I do best? Would my potential customers get the service from me or my competitors?

Utilizing your skills will allow you to avoid hiring workers upfront. You can do the technical work on your own.

If you utilize your skills, the tendency of your service making customers happy is very high. This will give you repeat business.

4. Get a co-founder

This is an option worth considering. Getting a co-founder to take care of the financing is a good option.

When getting a co-founder, you must understand that you will lose some control in your business. If you do not select a co-founder well, they can be a thorn in the flesh forever.

To get a co-founder, be sure to have a scalable business idea. Ask them to invest a certain amount of money for a certain percentage of the business.

The best people to get are those that are employed elsewhere. This ensures that they are busy enough to meddle with the running of the business. After all, you got them to get the money not to help in management.

Beware to retain a majority shareholding in your business. This will prevent someone else from taking control of your business and firing you.

These people must have the cash that you need. Determine how much you need and make targeted approaches.

5. Get part-time employment

If you do not have money to start a business, you can get a part-time job. This will give income to start and run your business. Make sure that the job is part-time. This will give you time to run your business.

6. Find potential angel investors

Angel investors are people who invest in a high growth business intending to make money. If you have a good scalable business idea, this is an option worth considering.

7. Get a loan

Getting a loan to finance your business is a viable option. However, getting a loan from a financial institution is not advisable. They will give you unnecessary repayment pressure even before you break even.

The best place to get a startup loan is from friends and relatives. This is what I did when I started my business. Ask one of your financially free relative or friend to give you a business loan. If the idea is great, they will probably do it.

8. Utilize crowdfunding

This is making use of the masses. The public is always ready to finance viable ideas. They can also be willing to donate to such noble business courses.

There are sites like CrowdFunder, IndieGogo, and Kickstarter that provide crowdfunding services.

Final thoughts on how to start a business with no money

There you go. You now know how to start a business with no money at all. What is remaining is utilizing the knowledge.

You cannot afford not to start a business. Take the bold step today and you will be happy you did.