Recently I had the pleasure of interviewing Jim Beach, of The Entrepreneur School on my Blog Talk Radio show SmallBizFinance.
Jim is an amazing entrepreneur, who has proven time and time again that start-ups can be quickly profitable without risking a lot of capital. Lessons learned and insightful case studies are shared in his new book School for Startups: The Breakthrough Course for Guaranteeing Small Business Success in 90 Days or Less
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As a follow-up to the live interview, Jim wanted to share a no cost, risk free start-up business idea. You read that right, he is freely sharing a viable business idea right here, right now. Thanks Jim!
Learn Jim’s No Cost, Risk Free Start-Up Idea Now!
During my interview with Nicole on her radio show we discussed the role of creativity and risk in entrepreneurship. While both can be part of entrepreneurship, creativity and risk are not required, and when removed, entrepreneurship becomes easier for lots of people.
I wanted to give everyone a freebie, a business idea that any 16 or 60 year old could go execute today for no creativity and no risk.
Every real business in America has a social media strategy that includes at a minimum LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Website, blog, and email pieces. One sector remains incredibly underserved in this area and could benefit hugely, maybe better than other sectors.
Rstaurants remain the great undiscovered social media Mecca
Go into 10 restaurants, ask for the manager, and say, “For $200 a month, I will create a comprehensive social media strategy for this restaurant. You will install an ipad in the lobby, locked into a protective case of course, and your staff will encourage your guests to input their email addresses and contact info, and then on a slow Monday, when the restaurant is empty, we will send out a tweet announcing half priced wine for the next hour, and get the place full.”
If you visit ten restaurants and make a pitch like that, I bet you can sell three.
And, in one day, for no risk at all, you have $600 a month in income for spending time on Facebook. First thing to spend money on? Business cards and a simple website. But, start selling first, before the business cards. Maybe print some for free on your printer using thick paper, but we are NOT spending money until income occurs!
More Great Business Ideas
In the appendix to our book, School for Startups, we list 25 or so free, easy, quick businesses that you can start for almost no risk. Or, go to your favorite search engine and look for “free business ideas.” This is there less “coolness” in a business because you got the idea out of a book or off a website? No, your customers and your bank account don’t care. The money spends the same.
Another great thing about this way of starting a business sets a great precedent. You are building the business on cash flow, using internally generated funds only. This business will never borrow money, will never be in debt, will never induce risk into your life, and will help buy bills instead of keeping you up at night worrying about servicing debt.
Final Thoughts
What ideas have you tried or considered when staring a new business on a shoestring budget?