In order to become a successful entrepreneur, you have to start somewhere. Many entrepreneurs start with a small business and try to grow from there. There are many fabulous opportunities in today’s society to start and be successful as a small business owner; however, the challenge is finding a good idea or proven business that is profitable enough to achieve financial independence. Operating and starting a new business is tough, it is said that about 80% of new small businesses will close down in their first year.
One of the main reasons for this high failure rate is choosing the wrong business idea or wrong business plan. Having a passion is not enough to become successful for business. Potential entrepreneurs need to take advantage of what the needs are in their local market, but doing a thorough investigation and analyzing business trends within their community before they start to invest in an idea, such as those wanting to improve print shop sustainability.
The following are some small business ideas that are great for entrepreneurs.
Coffee is one of the most popular daily consumptions for most people. Small boutique coffee shops have seen rapid growth recently. People do not just go to coffee shops to grab and go anymore. Coffee shops have become full-blown restaurants or bakeries serving other foods such as sweets or other brunch items, such as sandwiches and soups. Coffee shops have become a place for social gatherings and conducting business. Having a passion for the food industry and coffee, in general, could be enough to start up a great business.
However, in order to become successful and compete with others, you need to focus on something that might set you apart from other coffee shops. Serving frozen beverages through dispensers can do wonders for your store because not all people are coffee drinkers. It is important to be diverse by offering a cozy environment, free wifi, and free reading materials. Ensuring that you choose the right location is also another important step to running a successful coffee shop business. Being closer to schools or major office locations is always a plus.
If an entrepreneur has a piece of unique knowledge and skill on a topic that is sought after. There are a ton of marketplaces that provide e-learning opportunities such as Udemy and Coursera. The main benefit of starting an online academy is that the start-up costs are very low, almost non-existent if you are a professional who has credibility in your field. All you have to do is prepare good videos, audio, notes, presentation slides, quizzes, and tests. The good thing about the internet is that it can be accessible to anyone around the world at any time.
Some good topics for online instructions are computer programming, teaching any type of drawing or analysis software, teaching marketing strategies or other types of business courses. Additionally, with the internet, you can also use your online course to build up leads and pick up projects on the side from other businesses.
In the grocery store business, it is very difficult to compete against the retail giants. Finding a niche in the grocery store business is one of the keys to being successful. Concentrating on products like cheeses, certain types of meats, chocolates, foreign foods will help you compete against the giant retailer. The other key is to have a good store location with plenty of parking or that is very accessible and not close to your competitors.
If you have a passion for interior design this type of service is very successful and has fairly low costs. Real estate has been a booming business and agents or sellers would like to market a house anyway that they can. A fully furnished house with things like beds, carpets, couches, tables, TVs, and picture frames has a higher likelihood of being sold compared to houses that are fully empty. By providing a staging service you can charge a fee for doing all of this and the best part is that you would be able to re-use all your furnishings. At times it is also possible to get furniture manufacturers to loan you their products as a form of advertising for them.
Starting a new small business for any new entrepreneur is tough because low entry barriers mean that you can face a lot of competition from others and not just the big retailers. The biggest problem is to get clients through your door and being able to properly market and sell. To have a higher chance of succeeding, you either need to keep start-up costs low or you need to find a very niche business that is not being offered locally.
