5 ideas to start an online business with no money

You want to start an online business because you want to enjoy the freedom of entrepreneurship or as a side hustle next to your job or study. But yes, you don’t have much starting capital. How do you start a business with no money? Fortunately, that is possible. We collected 5 ideas to start an online business with no money.

Hopefully, we inspire you to think further about your future business.

Starting an online business with no money

These companies can be set up in no time (you don’t have to write an entire business plan ) and hardly need any starting capital. In other words, start today!

1. Virtual Assistant (VA)

This is a perfect job for those who like lists and organizing. You can compare a virtual assistant a bit with a personal assistant, but then remotely. As a VA, you (often) assist an entrepreneur in spending more time on their core business.

If you start an online business as a virtual assistant, you decide for yourself what kind of work you offer. For example, you can think of keeping up with the mail, administrative tasks, managing social media, writing copy and supporting tasks.

2. Social media manager

Do you secretly spend a bit too much time on Instagram, Pinterest and TikTok and therefore know exactly what works and what doesn’t work on the channels? And can you also write and create content? Then starting an online business as a social media manager might be something for you.

You may want to take another online course to create even more value, but there is also a lot of information available for free on the internet. Entrepreneurs who have not eaten cheese from social media are pleased with your knowledge. They often do not have the time to delve into this themselves, but they realize that it is essential in this online world.

3. Use your talent

What are you good at? Could that be illustrated? Putting websites together? To write? Do research? You can not think of it so crazy, and there are freelance assignments to be found. Then you have to dare.

And even if you can’t find freelance assignments from your talent, you can still make money with it. Think about selling your photography or art or selling your embroidery or other creations online.

4. Dropshipping

Starting a webshop as an online company… That sounds like a lot of work. And it also costs start-up capital. After all, you have to stock up before you can sell stuff. That’s where dropshipping comes in. Dropshipping, you offer products in your webshop, such as Alibaba express, Amazon, etc., that you do not have in stock yourself.

When a customer buys one of “your” products, he orders it from the factory or wholesaler. He immediately sends it to the customer. If you find this interesting, we recommend that you dive into the world of dropshipping. Then you may soon have an online store with incredible gifts, funny gadgets or animal items.

5. Print on demand

Have you ever heard of print-on-demand? You can compare this a bit with dropshipping since you also start a webshop where you don’t have your own stock.

But there is one big difference. Wherewith dropshipping, you ‘buy’ products for a low price and put them up for sale in your webshop for more money; with print-on-demand, you make the designs that you are going to sell.

That’s how it works: with print-on-demand, you sell your t-shirts, posters, mugs, canvas bags, bath mats, phone cases, and there are many more examples you can come up with. Anything you can print your designs on.

You work with a supplier, and this supplier prints your products the moment a customer buys them. This can be done via your website, but also via other websites.

Like with dropshipping and basically every other online company in this list, this is a summary of what is involved with such a company. So ask yourself if one of the ideas to start an online business gets you excited. If so, the first step towards your business may have been taken today!