7 Steps to Starting a Business - On a Low Budget
Starting a business can be super overwhelming. Not only do you have to create an amazing product or service, you have to learn the businessy stuff that goes along with it. And to top it all off, starting a business costs money.
But making your entrepreneurial dreams come true doesn’t have to be panic-inducing or expensive.
The most effective and least stressful way to start a business is to break down your to-dos into steps. Below, I share seven steps on how to start a business when you have a low budget. These steps will guide you from determining your offering to attracting customers.
Ready to go from side hustle to self-employed?
1.) Determine your offering(s) and ideal customer.
Before you go into business, you have to know what you’re going into business for. (Duh, I know.)
But be specific. Know exactly what you offer and how your product or service differs from the competition. Discover your blue ocean strategy, set a fair price point (that’s fair to both you and your customers), and establish your ideal customer.
Also known as your target audience, your ideal customer is the type of person you want to work with or would benefit from your product or service. Get specific! Give them a name! How old are they? Are they a male or a female? What are their hobbies and interests? What are their pain points and how does your offering alleviate them?
Knowing your ideal customer allows you to market specifically to them, thus increasing your sales. Don’t be afraid to niche down!
Psst! There’s an exercise that guides you through creating your ideal customer in my online Self-Employed School course.
2.) Make it legit.
There are a few different ways to set-up a small business. If you’re a solopreneur, you can either set-up as a sole proprietor or limited liability company (LLC).
A sole proprietor set-up ties your business to your name: Megan J Brown dba Miss MegaBug.
*dba: doing business as
An LLC establishes the business as a separate entity: Miss MegaBug, LLC.
While a bit more expensive, having an LLC protects your personal assets. Meaning that if someone were to sue you, they can only go after the business assets. As a sole proprietor, however, people are also entitled to go after your personal assets, such as your home.
If you’re stressing out or confused about business set-up, reach out to your local business advisor with the Small Business Development Center.
Once you decide which set-up you’d like, check out your state’s Secretary of State website. Most states allow you to register online. In New Hampshire, it costs about $100 to register an LLC and renew it every year.
Also be sure to check if there are other licenses you need, depending on your business type and the state it’s located in.
If you go the LLC route, be sure to set-up an EIN with the IRS. An employer identification number, EINs are required if you have employees. They’re basically your business’ social security number. While not required if you don’t have employees, EINs protect your social security number as you can write your EIN on any business form instead of your social.
Also, while it costs about $20/mo., I HIGHLY recommend using Quickbooks Online for your accounting software. It’s easy, there are a BUNCH of tutorials, and you’ll save yourself SO much time and frustration come tax time. Not only that, because Quickbooks is well established, it syncs with most client management softwares and financial sites. And if you have an accountant, they’ll love you for using it.
Click here for a free 30 day trial or for 50% off your subscription.
Psst! For a complete guide on starting a business, check out my Begin Your Business online course. It’s FREE!
3.) Build your brand.
Your branding is more than just a logo; it’s your business personality from the look to the feel to the sound. Branding is your customer service, your voice in social media captions and web copy, and the colors and typography you use.
Branding is meant to attract and connect with your ideal customer. This is why it’s highly important that your branding be cohesive across all marketing channels and that you and your team are reflective of that branding.
Out of everything business-related, I do recommend paying a professional to design your logo and help you establish your brand. Logos need to be in vector format, meaning they can be resized without affecting the quality. Vectors are created in Adobe Illustrator.
Always request a brand guide, which outlines the names of the fonts and color codes used. If your designer did not provide a brand guide, click here to learn how to make your own.
Psst! My Self-Employed School online course includes an entire module on branding.
4.) Design a website.
Once you have your branding established, it’s time to create your website. This can be a daunting task for many, but it’s something you can totally do yourself.
I recommend working with Squarespace. Not only are their templates modern, easy-to-navigate, and beautiful, there are tons of tutorials on how to work with them. And if that’s not enough, Squarespace is an all-in-one platform, meaning your domain and hosting is paid to Squarespace- no third parties required.
Squarespace personal hosting is $144/year, while domains are in the $20-50 range. Email through GSuite using your domain is $72/year. My website runs on the Basic E-commerce plan, which is $312/year. More pricing info can be found here.
Be sure to use the colors and fonts from your brand guide on your website.
Before you launch your website, check-out 7 Mistakes DIY Squarespace Websites Make - And How to Fix Them.
Psst! Ready to design or refine your website? Check out my online signature course, Self-Employed School. There’s an entire module dedicated to website design, and it will take the confusion out of what you need to include on your website, as well as how to make it an effective 24/7 sales machine!
5.) Create an e-newsletter list.
Even if you don’t want to send email newsletters now, it’s essential to begin collecting emails from the very beginning of your business. Email is by far the most effective online marketing strategy, and your potential customers are more likely to open an email than they are to see your social media post.
Set-up a Mailchimp account, which is free up to 2,000 subscribers. Either add a subscribe form to your website, or better yet offer a freebie as incentive to get people to sign-up for your list.
Still not convinced email marketing is all that jazz? Click here.
Looking to dive even deeper into email marketing? Check-out my signature online course, Self-Employed School. You’ll learn my top tips for effective email marketing, from what to include on your emails and how often you should send an email to how to grow choose the right e-newsletter platform to how to grow your list.
6.) Establish your online presence.
Now that your website is optimized and ready to go, it’s time to go hard on your social media accounts. Be sure your website is linked on all of your platforms, and that your profiles are converting people- meaning that people are heading to your website.
The main goal for any marketing strategy is to get people onto your website. That’s where your sales are made.
Remember to claim your Google My Business listing. This is SUPER helpful when boosting your SEO, meaning getting people to your website via Google searches.
Social media is a free way to promote your business, and I recommend that all small business owners manage their own. (Click here to learn how to save time on social media.)
For a jumpstart on Facebook and Instagram, check out my online mini courses, Facebook Facelift and Instagram Insight. Both are included in Self-Employed School!
7.) Write a press release.
This super effective and free step is often overlooked by many business owners. Press releases are basically newspaper articles that you write. This allows you complete control over your image and what is included in the release.
Note that newspapers are cracking down on the difference between press releases and ads. Press releases have to be something news worthy, such as starting a new business.
Follow this template, check out your local and regional news outlets’ press submission guidelines, and submit. They may end up writing a featured story on you!
Psst! There’s an entire module on publicity and how to write a press release in my online Self-Employed School course.
I have a bunch of business and marketing resources, and if you’re looking for more support, here are three ways I can help you when you’re ready...
Starting a business? Enroll in Begin Your Business. It’s free!
Check out my YouTube channel! I upload a new tutorial every week, and topics covered include Facebook, Instagram, Canva, search engine optimization, and more.
Subscribe to my online membership, Debug Your Business, for more in-depth support.
Grab a planner, write a to-do list, and make those entrepreneurial dreams come true!
P.S. This post is not meant to provide legal advice or take the place of consulting a lawyer. All information is for educational purposes only.
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Disclosure: This page may contain affiliate links, meaning I receive commissions on purchases made through those links. That being said, I never endorse a product or service that I have not used and loved myself. Promise! Learn more by reading my affiliate disclosure.
