4 Post-COVID Business Ideas You Can Start Right Away
From online businesses at home to investment opportunities, there’s a wide range of business ideas that you can venture into even if you have no formal experience in business management. Here are a few of the most promising ones in terms of profitability or marketability.
COVID-19 is a major economic problem as much as it is a health crisis. Business lockdowns and job losses have caused financial distress for companies and employees alike. In the United States alone, about 46 million applications for unemployment benefits have been filed at the Department of Labor.
Although this kind of scenario is far from being anything good, it has also sparked added interest in starting a business, especially among those who’ve been affected financially. If employment opportunities are hard to come by these days because many businesses themselves have been affected by the pandemic, you can regain control on your finances by launching your own business.
From online businesses at home to investment opportunities, there’s a wide range of business ideas that you can venture into even if you have no formal experience in business management. Here are a few of the most promising ones in terms of profitability or marketability.
1. Backyard farming
COVID-19 lockdowns highlighted the need to have a ready supply of food at home so that you don’t have to secure a special pass just to go to the grocery store. In the coming months, you can expect people to still stay at home most of the time, relying on grocery services or shopping at neighborhood food bazaars. Both of these are good opportunities for you to start an agricultural type of business.
If you have a backyard that you use sparingly, you can turn it into a mini-farm or garden. You can plant a single kind or multiple varieties of crops, fruits, or vegetables, and then sell your produce within your community.
You can also take some of your harvest for your household consumption. Let people know about your farm-to-table business by promoting it on social media, which is becoming more and more useful in establishing online presence for small businesses.
2. Online education
Distance or home-based learning has replaced traditional school instructions, and this is likely to continue for the rest of the school year. Many parents are finding the setup challenging since they have to juggle between working and facilitating their children’s learning at home. Teachers are still adjusting to the new method of teaching, too, so it’s very likely that parents will need help from online tutoring services.
This is definitely one area that you can explore and conduct classes to assist students in their school subjects. Even if all you have right now is refurbished equipment, you can still hold online classes with students using video conferencing platforms. Many of these are free, with tools like a chatbox, file-sharing systems, and so on.
Just invest in a good pair of headset with mic and high-speed Wi-Fi connection, and you’re good to go as an online tutor.
3. Franchising
Franchising is a business strategy where the owner of an existing business grants you the right to sell their products or services using the same business model. With a license to a franchise, you can worry less about essential business functions like employee training or marketing since the franchisor will assist you with those things.
Most of the businesses that are open for franchising have physical or brick-and-mortar stores, so make sure that you follow COVID-19-related protocols like constant disinfecting of the store, enforcing social distancing among customers, wearing of face masks, and so on.
You may want to focus on products or services that are in high demand right now, including food, logistics, medical supplies, and health supplements, to name a few.
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4. Stock trading
The ongoing pandemic is teaching us to use our money well because no one knows how the economic situation will pan out in the future. As much as possible, you want to preserve your financial resources, but at the same time, you want it to grow by investing it in profitable business markets. Stock trading can be a viable option. You can then use your profit to supplement your business, too.
But, first, you have to learn stock trading, so you’ll know how to go about it. You can start by reading up on forums or investment guides to determine which stock can offer high returns and keep your risks as manageable as possible.
If you have the means, now is the perfect time to get into stock trading while prices are still fluctuating, and there’s a good chance that you can trade at prices that are lower and more affordable for you. Once global economies and market conditions improve, the cost of your stock holdings may increase, and you don’t have to buy them at new, possibly higher, price levels.
Your Business Journey in Post-COVID Economy
Financial struggles during COVID-19 may hold you back from joining the business bandwagon, so you must have the right idea. It may help if you pick a concept that you’re familiar or comfortable with, or start with something for which you already have the initial resources needed to get your business off the ground. With proper planning and vision, you can set out on your entrepreneurial journey in no time.