Updated: May 15, 2024, 4:36pm
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Many dream of being a successful businessman. However, the idea of investing one’s life savings in pursuing a dream can be risky and unsettling. There are many business opportunities in the market that you can start with minimal investment, and with a solid strategy you can also earn high returns and succeed in making a business.
There are estimated to be around 334 million businesses worldwide. Thus, you must have a unique business approach to succeed in the industry. Forbes Advisor India has put together 10 small investment business ideas that could help you to make a wise business choice for yourself and make your business grow.
Coming up with business opportunities is an easy task but identifying which suits you the best is challenging. It is very important to understand the business exposure, the capital to invest in and the expected returns before you jump on to any business plan. Below are a few business opportunities in the world that you can start right with minimal investment:
Tiffin services in India are well-known and have been running successfully for years. Online delivery services like Swiggy and Zomato have now taken over the market. Still, with cloud kitchens, it has become easy for all homemakers to utilize this to their advantage.
All the lovely homemakers who give you a glimpse of “maa ke hath ka khana” can use cloud kitchens (commercial kitchens) to accept food orders via calls or online portals. The estimated investment to start a cloud kitchen business can be less than INR 1 lakh.
Starting a digital marketing agency is one of the best business ideas with minimum investment and high returns. It can be a joint venture with the partner being equally knowledgeable in digital marketing, graphic design, and content creation, or a solo business.
The initial investment can be in marketing tools, software and other setup to promote a business online. Small investments include a laptop, licensed editing software and paid marketing tools. The estimated investment to start a digital marketing agency is INR 80,000.
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Affiliate marketing is a lucrative business that requires promoting popular brands on a website. Those who don’t have a website or a blog can also engage in affiliate marketing by signing up for an affiliate program like Amazon’s.
The affiliate marketer earns a commission each time a product or service is purchased from one of the marketing links through them. The commission can be as low as 1% to as high as 20% or more, depending on the referral volume and product. The estimated investment to start affiliate marketing can be within INR 3,000.
Dropshipping is yet another easy and low-cost business idea to start. It is a fulfillment model where a third-party supplier, on your behalf, stores and ships inventory to customers. It is one of the best choices for business ideas because of its low overhead, scalability and hands-off.
Dropping is an excellent business with the potential for high growth. It does not require much initial investment, so you do not need to worry about storing and purchasing goods. You can directly sell the products to customers ordering from multiple retailers. The estimated investment to start a dropshipping business can be within INR 10,000.
Virtual assistants are self-employed workers who offer administrative services to clients from remote locations. They are similar to personal assistants and help business owners manage their tasks promptly.
The only difference is that virtual assistants don’t necessarily have to be in the same country or city as the businesses they work for. Their services vary wildly, including social media work, general admin, graphic design, and sales.
Website design can be an amazing low-budget investment business idea. A website is a much-needed source of information and marketing in today’s business world. Every business needs an online presence, and websites are the way to do that. If you like designing websites, you can make a business out of it and help companies create outstanding websites to attract customers.
Ensure your company has a proper business objective, a unique design niche and valuable rates. Have a well-established portfolio to attract customers and testimonials. The estimated investment to start website designing can be within INR 30,000.
You do not need a desirable second home or business experience to become an Airbnb host. The housing platform initially started as a way for homeowners to rent their spare rooms temporarily for extra cash.
If you have an extra room in your house, you can create an Airbnb account and rent it out daily, on weekends, for overnight stays, or whenever suits you. Ensure you create a unique guest experience so your visitors enjoy a pleasant stay.
Freelancing is another brilliant way of selling your skills and earning from various sources simultaneously with zero investment. There are various options available for freelancing, some of which include content writing, graphic design, financial advisors, photography, social media marketing, and web design.
To start a freelancing business, you do not need a fancy workplace or any heavy investment—just a laptop and the tools necessary for starting your own business. You need an awe-inspiring portfolio and time.
In a busy, dynamic world, planning an event on your own can be challenging. Hence, people tend to hire event planners to make their jobs easy and to enjoy the events, be they concerts, weddings, birthdays, or retirement parties.
Event management companies generally manage big events, but you can start a business with a small investment by taking orders at a small level, like school or college events. Later, you can expand your business by accepting large orders. The estimated investment to start an event management company is INR 50,000.
People always need more clothes, even if their wardrobes are full. Starting a clothing business is a lucrative business idea. You can start by selling printed T-shirts; the printing machine costs a few thousand rupees.
If you’re a fashion designer with a good eye for fashion, you can sell your creations and allow customers to customize their clothes. Another thing you can do is purchase clothes from wholesalers, fix a label and sell them on your website. The estimated investment to start a clothing business can be within INR 50,000.
Photography and videography are old business ideas that have evolved with time. If you have a creative eye for capturing moments and the skills and techniques needed to operate a camera, then this is the best business idea for you. Nowadays, people love to document their happiest moments, so make an impressive portfolio to attract customers and add videography samples and additional Instagram reel samples.
This business can be a moderate investment. You must have a high-quality camera, essential tools, and editing software. Invest in your drone and other heavy camera tools once you have set up your company and made a fair profit. The estimated investment to start a photography/videography business is INR 80,000.
Starting a fitness business is, again, a low-budget business idea. You do not necessarily need a fancy place to start this business; you can conduct your fitness classes on a terrace, playground, or lawn.
You can reach out through social media or fitness channels to spread your business. The fitness classes can include yoga, Zumba, or other physical activities to keep fit. You can also conduct online fitness classes. The estimated investment to start fitness classes can be within INR 20,000.
With an underlying understanding of the types of business opportunities that exist in the market. It is very essential for your business growth and survival. Opportunities are elements that contribute to your business’s success. Here are a few ways you can identify a new business opportunity:
Before deciding on a business idea, make sure you conduct market research. Market research will help you understand whether your business idea is workable or not. Conduct industry research that will define the competitive landscape along with determining the audience for your business.
Observe and analyze people, take interviews, fill out survey forms from them, take feedback, and more. All these will provide you with a deeper understanding of your target demographics.
The term SWOT breaks down into strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. A SWOT analysis will provide you with valuable details about your business and help you identify a new opportunity and prospect that can be potentially utilized.
For instance, if your analysis shows that changing market trends can be an opportunity for your business then respond to it by altering prices, introducing new products, adapting your advertising or building customer relationships.
Additionally, you can identify a business opportunity by digging into the processes and delivery methods of your existing products or services. Have an open mind while analyzing it and come up with practices that can improve your business. Ask questions like:
You just need to recognize the innovation potential of your business.
Some of the best business opportunities to start right now are dropshipping, cloud kitchen, digital marketing, freelancing, website designing and affiliate marketing.
Here are a few pointers you need to know before starting a business:
To know more about how to start your business check out our guide on how to start a business in 11 steps
Freelancing for professionals as a business can make the best money.
I have experience across journalism segments including finance, fashion and entertainment. I have written short stories and assisted as director and cinematographer on a few projects in the past.
Aashika is the India Editor for Forbes Advisor. Her 15-year business and finance journalism stint has led her to report, write, edit and lead teams covering public investing, private investing and personal investing both in India and overseas. She has previously worked at CNBC-TV18, Thomson Reuters, The Economic Times and Entrepreneur.
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