Most people with any form of business sense have wondered what it’s like to run their own operation. There comes a time where working for someone else might feel limiting, especially if you feel you have the skills to pull off a solo enterprise with some degree of consistency and integrity. If you’re a creative individual, it’s likely that you’ll feel even more interested in expanding out in the free market in an attempt to see just how far these talents could take you.
However, there’s a reason that most people who entertain these thoughts don’t simply pack up and try the pursuit the following day. Of course, as ever, the deciding factor is the money you have to make your dreams a reality. The following six methods serve as relatively unintrusive methods of raising cash to fund your dreams, and some of them also come with added benefits.
Crowdfunding
Crowdfunding can serve as one of the most popular ways to gain online exposure to your business. Through websites such as IndieGoGo, Kickstarter or even specific projects like Steam Greenlight, your project or invention will be open to public funding in return for a tiered set of rewards which you have the potential to decide. A strong marketing campaign will need slick visuals, original art and maybe even a promotional video from you.
In the effort to truly maximise the exposure you find during your campaign, spending a little bit of initial investment can make you look more appealing in your initial offering to the market. However, this is much less expensive than advertising something you have already made, and not only does this method give you money to create the product with, but it already brings with it an interested group of followers who have the best progression of your business to heart.
Loans
There are plenty of method to secure a fast cash injection, but not all of them are reliable, and most of them might mean transferring some proportion of business percentage permanently to an outside party. Instead, opting for a specialized business loan can help you, especially if the firm is friendly and understanding of the trials and tribulations a small firm can experience in their initial year.
Television
If you’re truly wanted to expose yourself to the most significant audience right out of the first gate, attending a television show dedicated to connecting wealthy investors and those who pitch their business enterprise can be a great way to find funding in a public setting. Unfortunately, many businesses who try this approach can be humiliated if they attend with less business sense than is required, so make sure your predictions are solid, your parents are confirmed, and you offer a solid return on investment for the potential investor.
Even if they aren’t interested in providing their own money to the business, a compliment or praise worthy assessment of your operation can be transmitted nationwide, and sometimes there’s nothing as useful as that.
With these methods of cash injection, the sky could be the limit!