This guide outlines the best home businesses you could set up and get running with minimal outlay.
If you’re in the process of starting up a new business or you want to be able to go it alone and start a business working from home to forge a new career for yourself, welcome to the home business space. The SBA suggests that around half of the US’s 30 million or so small businesses are home-based, so you’re in good company when it comes to growing your business from the sanctuary of your home.
But with the ever-changing business landscape, what is a good business to start up? While some suggestions have longevity and are undoubtedly already being done by many others the world over, are there any new and emerging industries that you need to get on board with for better chances of success?
The best home businesses for you to explore will be the ones based on your experience and skill set. It’s no good trying to jump on the bandwagon of new and emerging industries or consumer trends if you have little to no knowledge or expertise in the area, as you will literally be setting yourself up for failure.
Instead, focus on what you are good at, what you can do, and where your skills would serve you well. Because if you don’t have the skills and, indeed, passion, then it’s not worth going forward at all.
Best home businesses to start
With that in mind, read on to discover some of the best home businesses you can start with little outlay of funds.
Digital Marketing
To get started with digital marketing, all you need is your laptop and an internet connection, and you can get going anywhere. Of course, this depends on the experience you have in the area, but if you are already in this sector and you want a viable option for one of the best home businesses, then a digital marketing agency can initially be started from your laptop in your in bed; something your dog would definitely approve of.
Find your niche within digital marketing, be it SEO, PPC, email marketing, content marketing, and so on, and then decide on your payment structure. From here, you need to register your business, and you are ready to start your own agency from home and find your clients to get going.
Digital marketing might not be an easy sector to get started in. However, by proving you can get the job done and delivering proven results, you can build on this as digital marketing is a profitable career with profit margins of up to 40% due to their ability to be carried out remotely.
Freelance Writer
Freelance writers are still in great demand, even with the advancement of AI in this area, making this one of the best home businesses. Nothing can beat a good handwritten quality piece of writing, and many businesses are on the lookout for someone who can write them copy, articles, social media captions, and so on.
If you have a flair for the written word and can bring a subject to life, or you are a superb technical writer, then you only need to log in to LinkedIn to see the demand for this service and get yourself up and running. For the most skilled writers, there is an unlimited earning potential each year, and sites such as Fiverr, Upwork, ProBlogger, and Freelance Writing are great places to start, or you can find a business whom you can write for on a freelance basis from home and enjoy the benefits of regular work.
Pet Sitter
If you have a natural affinity for pets and you are confident in your skills with a range of animals or just one type in particular, e.g., cats or dogs, then one of the best home businesses you can set up is a pet-sitting service.
Many families go on vacation each year and aren’t able to or don’t want to take their pets, be it for business or pleasure. This is where pet sitters come into play. You can host the pet in your own home or stay in the client’s home for the duration. All you need to do is to look after your clients beloved pets’ and ensure hey are taken care of for the duration of the trip.
You can use apps such as Rover and Wagg! to help you find clients. One of the best parts of this job is that you can choose your own hours and even run another business alongside this during the time you spend caring for pets during their owner’s absence.
Design Websites
It has never been easier to design websites, and with more and more companies stringing up online or needing to create or change their digital presence, being able to help them build a great website can be one of the best home businesses for you.
Ideally, you will have experience in this area and a proven track record of building websites, but even for the uninitiated, there are plenty of website builders you can master to help you get up and running even with no experience, not to mention online courses that will talk you through how to build a website to improve your skills and make an income from doing this for others.
Teach Online Classes
There are millions of online tutorials across the world for so many different subjects. You can teach online fitness classes, teach all languages and skills, and show others how to do what you do; you can teach absolutely anything; even classes traditionally taught in person can be adapted for online learners.
Teaching classes online allows you freedom and flexibility as you choose when you can teach and how long you spend doing it, making it one of the best home businesses. Plus, if you make pre-recorded videos for others to follow along, you can record them at once and then share them on your schedule, meaning you don’t even need to be around to teach you to simply record, edit, and upload.
Dropshipping
Dropshipping is where a third party holds and delivers products on your behalf. Dropshipping is one of the best home businesses if you don’t have the space or funds to buy and hold inventory at your home.
You need to find suppliers you can trust to ship and deliver your products on time and to help you build your business, but many successful business models use dropshipping as their service model currently.
You can use apps on Shopify to find the right dropshipping suppliers for you; you can choose one based in your local area or overseas. But you need to do your due diligence to ensure you pick the right partner. From here, with inventory and shipping taken care of, you only need to focus on marketing through excellent customer service, social media, and engaging content designed for your target audience in your chosen niche.
Print On Demand
Print-on-demand businesses are similar to drop shipping businesses in that you don’t need to buy and hold inventory upfront or do the printing yourself. Again, you need to find a reliable partner who can deliver high-quality work for you as orders are made. The last thing you want is for customers to be disappointed with their products and ask for refunds.
To make your print-on-demand company successful as one of the best home businesses, you need to find a niche you are interested in. For a product you want to sell, such as clothing, cups, artwork, etc, you can use pre-designed graphics, or you can design your own graphics for anything, be it resonating to your blog; it can be pet focussed, based on hobbies, or just slogans.
Sell via Marketplaces
If you have an eye for selling used products or can identify products that can make money, you can start one of the best home businesses by selling via social media marketplaces or sites like eBay and Craigslist, for example. The beauty of this business is you can sell anything.
You can buy used furniture, flip it, and sell it; you can sell second-hand clothing, toys, homemade products, craft items, baked goods, anything and everything. You can choose to have items collected by buyers and sold in your local area only, or you can set up nationwide shipping and welcome customers from all over the country.
Start A Cleaning Business
It is not technically a job you can perform sitting on your bed with a laptop on your knee, but you can still call this among the best home businesses as your home will be the business’s base and where you operate from.
Again, like with many other options in this list, you can choose your hours, the distance you are willing to travel, and the sector you are cleaning in, e.g., residential, commercial, leisure businesses, or food-related businesses. Only it is entirely up to you.
You will need to pay out for equipment and tools — but this is a minimal cost — and have a real passion for cleaning to deliver exceptional results and build your client base. But, if you have a knack for getting things sparkling clean and enjoy doing it, a cleaning business can be right up your street.
Conclusion
There are many home-based businesses you can start, but these are just 9 of some of the best home businesses you will come across this year that have the potential to be highly lucrative. Whether you have a budget to get up and running or you are starting on a shoestring budget, there is something for everyone on this list.
