Make your idea a reality
Are you interested in setting up a business? A lot of people dream of building a new startup and the issue that often stops them is the cost involved. How can you possibly afford the amount of money you need to spend to get a new company off the ground? A digital business will cost on average about three thousand in the first year while the setup fees for a brick-and-mortar business could be as high as ten thousand. You can see the problem then, but what’s the solution? Well, there are a few fantastic options if you are interested in raising money for your startup. Let’s look at the most creative possibilities.
Here are 5 creative ways to raise cash for that new business
1) Crowdfunding
This has become an incredibly popular way to launch a new business, and it’s not surprising. When you crowdfund a business idea, you will typically set a target amount that you need to reach through donations. Users will then donate to this cause, and if you reach the target, you keep all the money before starting work on bringing your business to life. The biggest advantage is that at that point, you are under no obligation to pay the money donated back.
This might sound too good to be true, but it really can happen, and it’s part of the story for various, modern successful businesses. It’s worth exploring this idea in a little more detail so that you know how it works.
First, various sites offer this type of setup from Kickstarter to GoFundMe pages. They all have the same basic model with a few subtle differences that may impact which option is best for your needs. But they all expect you to sell your idea. In the past, this meant creating a page and laying out your business plan, product, or service. Today, a lot of new companies invest a little cash to promote the idea, draw attention to it, and then pitch a fundraising campaign. That’s because this market has become incredibly competitive.
It’s also true to say that the most interesting or unique ideas for businesses are most likely to thrive in this type of environment and generate the level of interest needed to continue down this path. If you are thinking about crowdfunding, you need to make your promotion as dynamic as possible and guarantee that you perfect your pitch.
In cases like this, it’s also worth remembering, that you are often asking customers to buy a protection before it has been created. You then use the money they pay in advance to push your business forward.
2) Competitions
It’s also worth watching out for competitions. These are often run by major businesses and are used to encourage other entrepreneurs to get onto the market. This usually works as an open contest where potential entrepreneurs are encouraged to put in a proposal. The leading proposal wins the prize of funding for the business idea. It’s one of the best ways to bring something that is purely an idea to fruition.
When you enter competitions like this, it is once again important to get that pitch right. Think of it like meeting as an investor and always planning for the long term. A lot of competing entrepreneurs will make the mistake of only thinking in terms of the first year. You need to go further than this and plan your potential business for the first five years. If you do that, you will have a greater chance of standing out.
There are many examples of these types of competitions, but one would be the campaign run by Pepsi. Co. The company launched a competition and encouraged individuals to send in their ideas for a new app to be used by the business. The winner was provided with an all-expenses trip to New York to meet key influencers as well as individuals in the company. This allowed the winner to get meetings with people they needed to fund a startup and get it off the ground.
3) Heading To A Tradeshow
You might want to think about attending a tradeshow with your business idea. This is suitable for startups that need large levels of funding and already have money for marketing expenses. Attending a tradeshow won’t typically be cheap, but it can be worth it if you make the most of the opportunity. Ultimately, you should make the stall at your tradeshow as eye-catching and inventive as possible because it is once again a highly competitive landscape. Only truly fresh and original ideas tend to stand out to investors who often frequent trade shows. But it is important to realize how important the packaging is here. You might think that if you have a great idea, that’s all it takes to win the sale and that’s just not the case.
Visually, you have to create the right impression, but there are some tricks you can use. For instance, if you have some money, you should market your presence at the tradeshow long before the big day. You should make sure that you are staying active on social media, potentially building up a story that individual investors can follow online. Even physical marketing through posters and billboards could be a beneficial way to get the support you need here. Or, you could even use the same trick people use to sell homes. Introducing baked goods that could be iced with your company logo could be a great way to draw investors in with an enticing scent.
If you don’t want to take things this far, why not just use technology to dazzle them with a completely captivating display? UHD screens are the perfect way to showcase an awesome product and make sure you get your message across.
4)Trade Services For Services
You might also want to think about paying for your business through the services that you can offer individuals you need to buy from. This probably sounds more complicated than it seems. An example would be your office space. You might need an office for your business setup but this can be incredibly expensive and difficult to manage monthly. So, instead of offering to pay the rent, why not provide the property manager or landlord with a free service from your company? You might, for instance, be running a marketing startup. Just like any other company, landlords do need marketing and promotion for their properties. So, if you can provide a service like this for free, you might just find you can get a location for your company free of charge. Or, they might just knock a few hundred off the original asking price. Even then though, you will still have found a great way to save some money on your startup costs.
This is just about recognizing what you have to offer and using that as currency rather than paying all the startup costs. It’s a great way to avoid both borrowing a loan and building up what can become an unmanageable level of debt. You do need to be careful that you don’t stretch yourself too thin with this idea. You don’t want to be taking on too many clients where you’re simply delivering a service to stay afloat, rather than to get paid.
5) Government Grants
The Australian government (both state and federal) provides a whole range of grants for a whole range of startups. Some of these grants may be in the form of a low-interest loan while others may be in the form of a lump sum that is given to you. This all sounds great however finding out about the grants is the difficult bit. Fortunately, with the development of the internet, it is significantly easier than it was in pre-internet days. It may take a little bit of searching to find something that is suitable however it will be worth it in the long term.
We hope this information helps you realise that a lack of funding doesn’t mean your startup dreams have to come crashing down. There are plenty of clever and creative ways to get the money you need.
Think that it might make good sense to explore virtual options for your new startup bus
