How to Start a Side Hustle or Small Business

The economy has always been up and down throughout history, but lately, it has been a roller coaster. In 2020, the economy came to a grinding halt, causing many to be furloughed or laid off and the closing of large corporations and small businesses.

As companies adapted their models to serve clients who could only shop online coincided with small business loans and stimulus checks, the economy improved drastically. Of course, the good times led to supply chain issues and other challenges, which have some predicting another slowdown. In some ways, it may feel stressful, but in reality, we’ve always been on some version of this roller coaster.

That is one of the reasons it may be appealing to you to start your own business or side hustle. You want something over which you have at least some control. You want to diversify your income streams to ensure your eggs are not stuck in a single basket. You want to hustle and chase your dreams.

NC GellyBall has been helping people start businesses and side hustles since the beginning. While national and global economies fluctuated during the last few years, GellyBall has thrived. In this article, we want to help you chase your dreams by providing a brief guide to help get your business started. In it will we cover:

Determine Your Why
Do Your Research
Create Your Budget
Recession-Proof Your Business
Find Your Target Audience
Market Your Products or Services
Grow Wisely

Throughout this article, we will be using GellyBall as our go-to example. Being a GellyBall dealer is a good way to have fun and make good money. Its entry price is relatively low, but the potential profit margin is quite high. It’s scalable, so you can take it from side hustle to career at your own pace. And, even though GellyBall is growing rapidly, there is still a lot of room at the table.

Whatever your small business or side hustle idea, let’s dream big together.

1) Determine Your Why

Why do you want to start a business? What are your goals, hopes, and dreams? It is good to determine your goals before you start investing your time, energy, and money into your new business to make sure you’re on the right track and making the best decisions for yourself and your family.

These questions will help you determine your why:

What is my motivation for starting a business? It could be that you want to explore new career paths, or you have an idea that you think would be of value to the world. Maybe you want to find ways to pay off debt or diversify your investments. Your motivation will inform your method.
What are my goals? Your goal might be as idealistic as changing the world or as simple as trying to provide a better life for your family.
How dedicated can I be to my new business? Do you feel like your idea is worth taking a big risk and dedicating a lot of time and energy to it? Or, would you rather do something that can occupy a portion of your free time and yield results without swinging for the fences?
Is my family ready for a new business? Your new business or side hustle should be a blessing to your family. If it is taxing for your family, it will be a struggle for them and you that may not yield the results you want.
What is a success? What would you consider a win? You might be in a position to consider the journey a victory if it won’t leave you in a bad position financially. You might need your business to at least break even for it to be worth your time and energy. Determine what counts as a win before you jump in.

2) Do Your Research

You’re likely considering starting a small business or side hustle for one of two reasons. You either have an idea you’ve had that you believe could generate income, or you want to reach financial goals and know you need to do something different to get where you want to go. So, you are either researching to see if there is a potential market for your idea or for something that has proven results.

GellyBall, for example, is a revolutionary new game that is growing rapidly in popularity. It started in Texas just a few years ago but has spread all over the United States and is in over twenty other countries. There are more than 800 dealers.

“A GellyBall Dealer is an individual or business who offers GellyBall services and products to the general public through private parties, walk-in play, events, festivals, and retail sales.” – GellyBall.com

GellyBall’s low-impact ammo makes it fun for players as young as five. However, the intuitive blasters shoot accurately up to sixty feet, so it is fun for teens and adults as well. The market is wide, and the entry point is relatively inexpensive, making it a great business opportunity for those who have financial goals but are not settled on an idea. Check out NC GellyBall for more information!

3) Create Your Budget

You have heard the adage, “You have to spend money to make money.” Of course, that doesn’t mean you have to spend all the money to make money. Some business ideas may be doable with little financial investment, while others may necessitate a significant cash commitment or even require getting a loan. To an extent, your budget will be determined by your goals, ideas, products, and services.

There is not a one-size-fits-all when developing the financial plan for your new business or side hustle. Still, there are some principles to follow that will help you make the most of your opportunity.

Invest Wisely

There is more to investing in your small business or side hustle than we can get into in a single blog post. A few things to remember include:

Seek advice from other small business owners, friends, family, etc.
Work with your family to come up with a comfortable investment amount.
Remember that there will always be unexpected expenses.
Make sure you are ready to invest enough to make it work.
Talk to financial experts to help develop your plan.
Don’t fall victim to the gambler’s quandary. Be prepared to get out when you need to.
Carefully vet potential investors. Weigh the risks and rewards of bringing on partners versus taking on capital.

Risk vs. Patience

Owning a business may seem like it puts you in the driver’s seat, but sometimes, it will feel like the car is driving you. You will have to balance risk and patience throughout the planning process. Is it time to write a big check? Is it time to hire new people? Is it time to bring on more inventory? Should I put away the profits for a rainy day or use them to try to take it to the next level?

If answering these questions is not your strength, you might consider bringing someone to the table with experience and expertise in knowing when and how to balance patience and risk.

Don’t Neglect Marketing

When you’re budgeting, you may tend to focus on the initial investment, operating expenses, r&d, etc. Don’t forget that you’ll need to dedicate some of your budget to marketing if you’re ever going to sell your product or service.

Don’t Forget Taxes

Small business and side hustle taxes can surprise people new to the game. Make sure you are ready to pay taxes. Also, of course, keep up with all potential tax-deductible expenses!

4) Recession-Proof Your Business

Businesses that survive recessions have some characteristics in common:

They reach a variety of audiences or are something niche so that certain audiences can live without them.
They are effective when online is the only option.
They provide family fun activities.
They are scalable.
They market effectively.
They provide an excellent product.

Choose a Business Idea that Will Transcend Tough Times

Some businesses and side hustles have a knack for surviving hard times. One of the advantages of GellyBall is that it is affordable for players despite a high-profit margin. Families will invest in making sure they have fun together, so your GellyBall business serves a very real need even during challenging times. It can also be played in a manner that supports social distancing when necessary.

5) Find Your Target Audience

Once you have determined to go forward with your business, you will need to establish a profile of your target audience and take your product or service to them. If you are searching for something that has a defined target or reaches a broad audience, GellyBall is perfect.

6) Market Your Products and Services

Whatever your awesome business is, people need to know about it. If they don’t know about it, obviously, they won’t buy your product or service. You may have to dedicate more money and time to marketing than what you want, but you’ll find it is one of the most important parts of making your business successful.

7) Grow Wisely

Whether you intend for your new venture to always be more of a side hustle, or you want to start a company that could grow to the moon, patient, scalable growth is key to ensuring your best chance of success. If you grow and expand too quickly, you could face substantial cash flow issues. If you wait too long, you could be missing opportunities and lose your market share.

Growing with GellyBall in North Carolina

GellyBall is growing rapidly but patiently. There is plenty of room to become a GellyBall dealer in almost every metropolitan area of North Carolina and in most of the smaller communities throughout the state. If you want to find out more about how to start your GellyBall business in North Carolina, reach out to NC GellyBall today!