How to get started in business without capital ?

Two of the most important requirements for starting a business successfully are a unique idea and capital. For example great products like Microsoft are merely unique ideas that were funded. Here at B2C Co Working where I work from there are young people full of these brilliant ideas but without funding. 

I am however, tired of so called mentors who when they come they are always like, “ Without money you will go no where as a start up. You need money ! Look at Facebook its where it is because it was funded. You need money !!” and they end there. This is mediocre advice. Why do you emphasize a problem so much but you don’t have a solution? Do you want me to die from hyper tension at this tender age? I would appreciate a person who is like “ Without funding you will go no where , here is advice on how to get it.” 

So in this article I am going to share how I got started in my sales lead generation business without money by developing effective lead supply and making do with what was there. I hope this in its own way is going to help many entrepreneurs who have brilliant ideas but without money to fund themselves.  

Developing an effective lead supply

If you can sale you can have enough money to cover all your costs, to make a profit and to set you up on a success trajectory. There is therefore, a need for a diagnosis that look at why your sales are not working. 

When I was in real estate some few years ago I did such a diagnosis as I faced challenges especially from a misfiring national economy. My diagnosis discovered that a salesperson no matter how good will never do magic on a poor marketing situation. Through try and error I eventually came up with  digital solutions on the marketing side which in turn positively impacted the sales side. So after all this my conclusion was if your marketing is good as determined by its ability to supply pre-qualified leads then your sales can even close by themselves. 

Sales training is important but it must be complimented by effective marketing. Many business owners who put endless pressure upon sales people do not get this because they do not invest in strategic digital presence in order to get effective lead supply. Some who do are however, ignorant to the fact that marketing is an art so their social media profiles and pages, blogs and websites to prosper require raw talent to daily run them creatively. 

Here are the effective digital solutions I came up with whose costs are negligible;

Social media page

A social media page helps you to cost-effectively gain brand awareness. The first thing that should happen before any sale is brand awareness which is the fact that people should  know that you exist.

Page likes, shares, and comments are some ways this tool helps your brand to be noticed by leads. The people who engage with your brand through these ways are helping your brand to be accepted by their own network of friends because of the later's trust in the former. What is more exciting is that all this commercial mileage is achievable at negligible costs.

A business blog

Blogging for business is regularly creating need focused content like articles and videos on a blog with a view to create the image of industry authority within the thinking of your target audience and potential clients or leads. 

Trust is the life blood of any commercial relationship and this trust is best created through a blog. Therefore, prospects gained through a blog approach a business man or woman from a position of respect and they are easy to close. 

I remember how I gained a client during my real estate years after the client read an article I had written about the dangers of purchasing property from a seriously ill seller. The lady had bought a house from an ill elderly man and there was an outstanding balance that needed to be settled. She decided to immediately settle the balance and the money would come from proceeds of selling another piece of land she owned else where. My article made the issue an emergency and I its author gained a motivated seller!

Social prospecting

Social prospecting is searching social media for clients and opportunities. Its the digital version of physical prospecting because the world has gone digital. Its best to approach prospects and book meetings through social media because they are already active there. 

Professional networks like LinkedIn allows you to connect with the big man or woman directly which is more efficacious than indirectly through a personal assistant at the office.  LinkedIn is a gold mine with 600 000 000 professionals and being able to use it well is as good as getting a license to print money for a while! 

For sales people it allows the search for people using things like positions in organisations and this enable sales people to effectively pre-qualify not only in terms of decision maker but also of ability to pay, needs, and time.