The decision to start your own business is not one that should be taken lightly, but it is still one that thousands of people take every year. However, deciding that that is what you want to do could be relatively simple when compared to everything else that you will need to put into place.
There’s the decision of what your business is going to do, there’s the practicalities and technicalities of how you are going to do it and, of course, there’s the small problem of how you are going to fund your venture.
It’s not easy to take such a big step in your life, especially during a period where the economy is still struggling back to its feet (and so one should consider all possible risks, minding also services like the Uplift Legal Funding, a legal funding company), but luckily there are plenty of ways it can be done. Here are just a few avenues you could look into.
Family Funding –
This is perhaps the most obvious choice and the one that the majority of people will attempt to make first. If you are lucky enough to have someone in your family who is willing and able to lend you the money you need to get started then this is the perfect way to fund your start-up. Statistics tell us that this is the most popular way of doing things because there is little pressure to keep up the re-payments, little effort involved in the asking process and little need to prove anything to the person lending the money.
Government Schemes –
Since the recession laid siege to some of the high-street’s biggest names, the government have taken it upon themselves to help out the people who are attempting to stimulate the economy through the creation of their own business.
There are many different grants and loan schemes available which offer great help to anyone in this position including ones that help people who have been refused a loan from the bank, those that reward companies that are looking to create jobs for other people, those that offer money towards research and development and some that offer help with employee training costs. You can find the full list on the government website.
Crowdfunding Websites –
Although the origins of crowdfunding can be traced back to 1884 when money dried up for the Statue of Liberty’s pedestal and American citizens chipped in to help out; the invention of the internet has really helped this system develop and become more accessible to everyone. The idea is that you sign up to one of the many websites, post your business idea and how much you need in order to get it off the ground and then other people make pledges to help you out.
Perhaps the most famous of these websites is Kickstarter but this is mainly for creative projects and so there may be better options for starting your business. Sites such as Indiegogo, Microventures and RocketHub are conducted in the same way and may be better for your business funding needs.
Investment Angels –
Perhaps the best way to fund your business venture is to get somebody else on board who can not only share the financial burden but also offer help and advice in the running of the business, too. The BBC show Dragon’s Den allows members of the public to make a presentation to four of the biggest entrepreneurs in the country, but you don’t have to go on telly to earn these investments.
Your angel could come in the form of a fellow business owner that you’ve met or a complete stranger from this list of people itching to get involved in interesting new projects.
Chris Mayhew is currently saving to start his own business whilst looking into other ways to fund his venture. He would recommend the New Business website to anyone looking for news and advice surrounding the business industry.
Cover photo: 401(K) 2013
