Top 5 business ideas you can start today: Discover the ideal company to start with our list of the greatest business ideas that can be turned into lucrative enterprises in a short period of time for little or no money. Starting a company is difficult; it’s a lengthy, arduous process with a high probability of failure.

Getting a company off the ground, on the other hand, is only a challenge if you can come up with a business concept in the first place. I managed my own business for approximately two years, although it took three weeks and a lot of meetings in pubs to figure out what we wanted to accomplish.

Whether you want to supplement your income, operate a company while the kids are at school, or start the next Facebook, here’s a massive list of business ideas divided into four categories:

To help you get started, I’ve addressed the business idea/model, what you’ll need to get started, and where you should concentrate to market/grow your new company for each post.

Home-based business concepts

1. Blogging

Blogging was one of the first business concepts to emerge as a result of the internet’s development. Blogs are niche-specific online journals that readers read for advice, information, and resources. Techcrunch, which began as a hobby and grew into a company worth over $25 million, Buzzfeed for current millennial news/topics, and Entrepreneur Handbook for advice on establishing, managing, and operating a business in the UK (we couldn’t resist) are just a few examples of successful blogs.

Every day, over 4.4 million blog entries are produced, and this number is rising due to a rise in amateur bloggers and the publishing industry’s overall transition to an online-only model. The blogging sector is incredibly competitive as a result of this, but there is still an opportunity for new entrants.

you’ll need to figure out what niche you’ll be covering (popular areas include business, beauty, lifestyle, and finance, although there are many more). You’ll also need a solid grasp on search engine marketing, design, content marketing, writing, editing, and the usage of the majority of digital marketing tools (social, email and notifications).

Then, using a website builder or WordPress, you’ll need to buy a domain name, set up hosting, and establish a blog-style website (you can also use platforms like YouTube or Vimeo if your video blogging). Make sure your website is mobile-friendly (responsive design) since mobile devices will be used by more than half of your viewers to access your blog. Then, to get readership statistics, set up Google Analytics and make sure you’re GDPR compliant (blogs by default have massive exposure when it comes to processing and storing personal data).

Now you must create a content strategy (for basic keyword research, utilize a keyword planner). It will take at least 2 to 3 weeks to develop a robust content strategy, which will be critical to your success. It’s now time to develop your social accounts, email templates/captures, and a long-term marketing strategy to expand and keep your following through these channels.

The easiest approach to get started with display advertising on your blog is to apply to join Adsense (pays per click and per thousand visitor impressions) and post relevant adverts in the top-performing spots on your site (in content, header, footer, and sidebar).

Affiliate marketing (selling a separate company’s product and earning a commission on any purchases) is another way for blogs that specialize on a subject or niche where the content coincides with particular products/services to successfully monetize. Lead generation (gathering information/interest from readers to purchase a certain product/service, then selling that lead to a direct supplier or third-party source) is another option for B2B blogs.

As previously said, blogging is a highly competitive game, but new blogs are launched every day that go on to become popular and lucrative. It is not a fast method to earn money online, but it is a reasonably low-cost company to start and build.

2. Use eBay to buy and sell.

eBay is an online auction marketplace where you can buy and sell almost any new or used item you can think of. On eBay, skilled buyers and sellers have earned and continue to make fortunes (check out the Red Paperclip” tale, it’s incredible).

Buying and selling on eBay is an art form; there are several deals and undervalued things that you can locate, re-list effectively on the market, and profit from. You may even make a killing by purchasing from other sites (such as Alibaba) and reselling on eBay. Dropshipping on eBay, on the other hand, maybe a better option if you don’t have the means to acquire inventory upfront. You won’t have to buy or keep stock.

To get started on eBay, you’ll need to create an eBay business account as well as a PayPal business account (which will take time to verify). The next step is to decide what kind of things you’ll purchase and sell via your eBay store. It’s all about finding bargains on and off the platform to resale for a profit at this stage. Because the market is continuously changing, you’ll need to adapt what you’re purchasing and selling in most niches to be lucrative.

When it comes to selling, the way eBay listings are presented is crucial to the number and price of sales. Make sure to include high-resolution images and a detailed item description (condition, delivery times, and so forth). The right presentation may boost the final auction price by up to 20% in certain circumstances.

You should also make sure your things are properly classified and titled so that shoppers may locate them on eBay and be enticed to click through to your product listing. Begin small by purchasing things, repackaging or improving them, and then selling them for profit.

With so many sellers on eBay, being a successful eBay merchant may be a lengthy and arduous process. Statistically, like most companies, you’re doomed to fail, but if you endure and make wise judgments, you have the opportunity to develop a very lucrative enterprise.

3. Independent contractor

A third of UK employees now operate on a freelance or contract basis, which means they provide their skills (time and knowledge) to other firms for a price on an hourly or project basis.

To become a freelancer, you must possess a specialized talent that is both in demand and monetizable. Web development, graphic design, copywriting, software development, company development, and virtual help are examples of in-demand abilities that cost highly (you can do pretty much anything from logo design to writing press releases).

After that, you sign up for UpWork and PeoplePerHour and start taking up as many freelancing jobs as you can. To build your profile and get employment, you’ll need a good portfolio and a significant number of favorable evaluations (you can price yourself cheaply on quick pre-set jobs to get this in place).

4. Become a YouTube vlogger

Advertisement income brings in a ludicrous amount of money for popular YouTube entertainers. YouTubers may become instant celebrities and earn significant sums of money with only one popular video (YouTube pays out £1,750 per 1 million views on average).

To begin, you must first pick what sort of video content you will create; some of the most popular areas include health, lifestyle, fashion, and beauty. After that, you’ll need to register a YouTube account and learn how to use the site (how to write titles, what contents popular and how you can grow).

It’s crucial to remember that although some YouTubers become sudden celebrities, the bulk of them must put in years of effort generating and posting original material in order to create a substantial subscriber base that generates continuous advertising income.

Many corporations are now directly paying YouTube stars (influencers) to promote their products/services, and this is another cash stream you may tap into if you have a big enough subscriber base (reach).

5. Dropshipping is number

Dropshipping is the practise of listing supplier items on your online shop or selling platform without first acquiring the inventory. You and this supplier have an agreement that when a customer purchases a product, you will purchase it from the supplier, and the supplier will deliver it to the customer (also usually deal with any returns). Similar to affiliate marketing, except the user remains on your site. You’re still selling things without the need for inventory, but you’re in charge of the purchasing process.

This type of eCommerce eliminates the need for storage or warehouse space, as well as the risk of cash being locked up in inventory (which is typically a big cause of cashflow problems for retail businesses). Dropshipping has a lesser profit margin than purchasing goods upfront, with a typical profit margin of 20-30%, while buying stock from a wholesaler would have a margin of 60-70%. (the margin is lower but the risk is much less).

Selecting the correct items at the proper margin from reputable suppliers, focusing on a certain niche, or looking for trends to capitalise on to generate a profit are all important aspects of starting a successful drop shopping company (i.e. Fidget spinners would be a good example of this). You’ll next need to set up an online shop and create accounts with the appropriate selling platforms (such as Ebay).

Customers may be reached by traditional digital marketing (social media marketing, email marketing, sponsored search marketing, etc.). If you’re promoting on a site like Ebay, make sure your listing stands out with quality photographs, detailed descriptions, and positive feedback.

Finally, selecting the correct drop shipping supplier/s is crucial; you must ensure that they are trustworthy and that their delivery periods are reasonable; you do not want consumers canceling orders before they arrive (many drop shippers are based in China, the lead time to produce and ship a product can mean it can take several months to reach a customer in some cases).