Become an Entrepreneur By Launching Your Side Hustle in 6 Steps
Become an Entrepreneur By Launching Your Side Hustle in 6 Steps
You’re curious about entrepreneurship, and you have a business idea in mind – but you also realize that you can’t leave your full-time job just yet. After all, you need a stable source of income and benefits for your family. But with this advice from The Virtual Consulting Firm, you can start a side hustle, test out your idea’s economic potential, and create a brand new income stream for your household. Here’s what you should include in your business plan, how to create a preliminary budget, and why you should form an LLC.
Set Up an LLC
Even if you haven’t mapped out every detail of your vision, you can register your company as an LLC before you start making sales. By researching how to start an LLC, you’ll keep your personal financial assets safe from litigation and qualify for certain tax perks. Additionally, you’ll want to set up a business bank account and open a credit card for your expenses.
Develop a Plan
If you’re launching a side hustle, you still need to create a business plan. Block off a few hours to drill down into the nitty-gritty details of your business idea. In your plan, Novo recommends including an executive summary and general company description, as well as an analysis of your market and major competitors. You can also write out your marketing and sales plan, along with descriptions of your offerings.
Budget Carefully
As you put together your business plan, you also need to think about your budget. Don’t treat this lightly – keeping your finances under control and your spending in check is of the utmost importance if you want to turn your business into a full-time income source down the line. Qonto states that your business budget should cover your estimated revenue, fixed and variable costs, one-time costs, cash flow projections, and expected profit.
Balance Your Schedule
As you get your side hustle running, you don’t want to stretch yourself too thin. If you’re juggling a side hustle with a 9-to-5 job, DollarSprout recommends setting clear boundaries early on. Define how many hours you’ll work per week, turn down work that would push you beyond those limits, and communicate your schedule to your loved ones.
Cost-Effective Marketing
You need to market your side hustle in order to attract your first customers or clients. How can you advertise with a limited budget? Turn to digital marketing channels! Set up a company website with a blog where you can share updates about your business, post product demo videos, and display your contact information.
You should also set up business profiles across several popular social media platforms, such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. If your target audience is on the younger side, it’s a good idea to start using TikTok for your business, too! It’s free to utilize all of these platforms, which makes social media marketing very cost-effective.
Hire Contractors
Do you need a little help managing your side hustle? You don’t have to burn yourself out trying to do everything on your own, but you don’t necessarily have to hire employees right away, either. Instead, consider hiring independent contractors and freelancers for tasks like writing blog posts, updating your social media profiles, or bookkeeping!
Starting a side hustle is a great way to learn the ropes of business ownership without the financial struggles that come with full-time entrepreneurship. You can test the waters, tweak your business model, and keep saving money and supporting your family! With these tips, you’ll be ready to file for LLC status, hire contractors for help, and manage your schedule with these new responsibilities.
The Virtual Consulting Firm is unique in our ability to offer you the services of the best consultants, software and web developers, information technology (IT) and business professionals. If you have any questions, please email info@TheVCF.com.
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This article was written by a guest writer, Christopher Haymon of Adulting Digest
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