In my annual member survey, one of the 3 most common obstacles I hear is the money needed to start a business. As in, “I don’t have enough money to start a business.”
(The other 2 are time and ideas.)
It’s kind of a chicken vs. egg problem: you need money to start the business and you need the business to earn the money!
But the truth is that most of the best side hustles these days don’t take a ton of cash to get off the ground. In fact, most of the businesses I’ve started have cost less than $500 to start.
In this episode I’ll share 8 business models that have no startup costs, and one of them even has a “better than zero” startup cost — meaning you can get paid to acquire your inventory.
The 8 Models:
- The Perceived Value Plan
- The Dealmaker Model
- The Connector Email Model
- The Curator Email Model
- One Man’s Trash is a Another Man’s Treasure
- Repackaging
- The Pay for Performance Model
- The Agency Model
Tune in to hear my examples of real businesses making it work under each of those models. It’s sure to get your creative juices flowing on what kind of side hustle you could start!
Stick around to the end of the show and I’ll also share the actual startup costs for all of my businesses over the last 20 years.
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Sponsors:
- Upside.com – Use promo code SIDEHUSTLE and get a minimum $100 Amazon gift card when you book your first business trip! (Conditions apply; see site for details.)
- DesignCrowd.com – Save up to $100 on your next design project!
Links:
- Buy Buttons
- International Star Registry
- I Wear Your Shirt
- Jason Zook on The Side Hustle Show
- Restaurant.com
- How Does Restaurant.com Work?
- Help a Reporter
- Alexandra Kenin (Urban Hiker SF) on The Side Hustle Show
- PodcastGuests.com
- The Skimm
- The Hustle
- Startup Mixtape
- EcoScraps
- What Makes SmartWater Smart?
- Sam Gonzalez on The Side Hustle Show
- Library of Classics mp3 player
- Scaling up a Service Business w/ Russ Perry
- Design Pickle (affiliate link; 14-day risk-free trial, then use promo code VA30 for 30% off your first month.)
- BELAY Solutions
- How Much Does it Cost to Start a Podcast
- How to Scrap Metal for Money
My 20-Year Entrepreneurial Resume:
- Selling candy at summer camp
- House painting
- Real estate investing
- Footwear affiliate business
- Other affiliate sites
- Side Hustle Nation
- Recruiting business
- Freelance writing
- Freelance editing
- Amazon FBA business
- Merch by Amazon – I forgot to include this one but it cost nothing to start!
