Starting a business begins with a joyful action full of possibilities and exciting challenges that begin a journey of learning experiences and business growth. A common excuse we often hear for not starting a business is lack of money in general, which is true in some cases.
But an even more significant obstacle or worse crisis is the lack of ideas, which you should consider.
Coming up with minor to moderate business ideas depends on the type of business you want to start. Before finalizing an idea, you must ensure it aligns with your business vision, target audience, and industry.
Here are some digital business ideas along with brief descriptions and vital points about the setup cost and requirements to start a business with a budget of $20k:
20 Business to Start With $20k
Table of Contents
It is a fact that you do not need to invest a vast amount of capital to operate your distinctive business continuously. So, to help you, here are some of the best business ideas requiring 20k or less.
Read now to learn more:
1. eCommerce Store
Setup Cost:
- Website Development: $5,000 – $10,000
- Initial Inventory: $8,000
- Marketing Budget: $2,000
Requirements:
- Website
- Payment Gateway
- Inventory Management System
One of the most viable solopreneur business ideas in today’s world is owning an eCommerce store. Before investing an amount in various sectors for your eCommerce store business, you must make a secure plan. Investments include, for example, a personal website, product development, and marketing purposes.
Though this business might need some money to start, it can be very lucrative and fruitful for your business. In short, if you want to start your first personal digital business immediately, you can opt for an eCommerce store.
2. Web Development Agency
Setup Cost:
- Website setup: $4,000 – $6,000
- Marketing budget: $5,000
Requirements:
- Web Development Skills
- Portfolio
If you have mastery of web development along with some SEO experts and designers or already have an agency, you can provide web development services to businesses.
With the help of advanced AI (Artificial Intelligence) and ML (Machine Learning), you or your agency can enhance business by providing tailored content and recommendations by anticipating the preferences and needs of traders.
3. Remote Graphic Design
Setup Cost:
- Website Setup: $3,000 – $5,000
- Marketing Budget: $4,000
Requirements:
- Graphic Design Skills
- Portfolio
If you have the luxury of high-quality freelance designers or already have a small institution of graphic designers, you can offer graphic design services online. You can find many local and international companies who are willing to work with professional designers or the company.
Find out those types of companies, know their preferences and potentials, and deliver your outstanding portfolio. This way, you can work with them and take your business forward.
4. Affiliate Marketing Website
Setup Cost:
- Website Development: $2,000 – $4,000
- Marketing Budget: $6,000
Requirements:
- Niche Selection
- Content Creation
- Affiliate Partnerships
Do you know how does online businesses work to promote and increase sales in today’s digital age? An affiliate program is a platform that promotes products or services from other companies and earns a commission for each sale. Or you can say, lead generated through the affiliate links on the site.
So, carefully opt for reputable affiliate programs that align with your niche and present competitive commissions. Also, it would be best to consider the reliability of the goods or services, payment structure, and affiliate program.
5. Digital Marketing Agency
Setup Cost:
- Website Development: $3,000 – $5,000
- Software Tools: $5,000
- Marketing Budget: $7,000
Requirements:
- Skills in SEO
- Social Media
- PPC Advertising
It’s a best business to start with $20k or less.
In a nutshell, a digital marketing agency simply indicates an organization that serves a number of diverse marketing services to businesses and companies. Typically, these services include making and performing online tactics to promote goods, services, or brands.
These online marketing agencies employ many digital channels, such as search engines, social media, email, and personal core websites, to extend and engage with target visitors. The prime goal is to improve digital presence, generate leads, drive traffic, and ultimately fulfill business objectives.
6. Online Consulting
Setup Cost:
- Website Setup: $2,000 – $4,000
- Marketing Budget: $4,000
Requirements:
- Expertise in a Particular Field
- Communication Tools
Start by identifying a niche with expertise that can be comfortably aligned to meet specific client needs to ensure success. Therefore, you must clarify your service, price, and value proposition. It would help if you executed a robust marketing strategy using digital channels and networking to reach your target visitors.
Besides, it’s best to focus on effective communication and create a smooth client onboarding process by using virtual meetings, gathering feedback, and refining your services. You can also suggest free resources to showcase your expertise and build trust.
7. Digital Products Marketplace
Setup Cost:
- Website setup: $3,000 – $5,000
- Product creation: $7,000
Requirements:
- eCommerce Platform
- Digital Product Creation Skills
First, you must build a user-friendly platform with intuitive navigation, enabling sellers to list and control their digital products comfortably. You must deploy safe payment methods that build trust between buyers and sellers. Also, you need to make a powerful search and recommendation system to improve the user experience.
Moreover, using effective marketing strategies, digital advertising, and social media is essential to entice buyers and sellers. To ensure success, establish clear guidelines and policies for product listings, provide excellent customer support, and frequently update and optimize the platform based on user feedback and emerging market trends.
8. Online Course Platform
Setup Cost:
- Website Development: $4,000 – $6,000
- Course Creation: $8,000
Requirements:
- E-learning Platform
- Content Creation Skills
An online course platform is a widespread, prevalent, and one of the most operable online business ideas among others. Focusing on main materials such as a user-friendly interface, various course offerings, and solid technical infrastructure is necessary to establish a digital course platform business.
You need to create an intuitive platform that authorizes easy navigation for both teachers and students. In addition, you must facilitate a secure and reliable payment or transaction system. Also, investing in strong customer support is vital to resolve queries promptly.
9. Subscription Box Service
Setup Cost:
- Website Setup: $4,000 – $6,000
- Inventory: $10,000
Requirements:
- eCommerce Platform
- Inventory Management
The first thing you need to do to start a subscription box service business is to identify a niche or theme and create high-quality and outstanding products within that theme to provide value to the target audience and keep customers engaged.
And the success of these service businesses depends on curation, customer experience and marketing priorities.
It would help if you encouraged more customer feedback and reviews to improve customer satisfaction and refine offerings. You should apply flexible subscription plans to meet different preferences and budgets. And for a steady supply of the customer’s desired products, a strong relationship with the suppliers has to be built.
10. Freelance Writing Service
Setup Cost:
- Website setup: $2,000 – $4,000
- Marketing budget: $3,000
Requirements:
- Writing Skills
- Portfolio
Do you have a website, or are you a company owner who wants to make some extra income?
In this case, a freelance writing business will be your final and appropriate decision. First, focus on building a robust online presence that showcases your expertise and contains high-quality content. After that, you can offer your services to various businesses or organizations by highlighting a portfolio of past work along with your writing skills.
Additionally, constantly refine your skills to survive in a competitive market and keep up with industry trends. Remember, exceeding client expectations is essential to building credibility, building a positive reputation, and securing repeat business.
11. Virtual Assistant Agency
Setup Cost:
- Website development: $3,000 – $5,000
- Marketing budget: $4,000
Requirements:
- Administrative skills
- Communication Tools
To start a virtual assistant agency business, you must build a reliable and efficient team, implement helpful processes, and provide exceptional customer service. On an important note, you must clearly define your service offerings and pricing models. It is also essential to invest in strong cyber security measures to protect your business (clientele) data.
Also, frequently evaluate and optimize internal processes for long-term relationships and to stay side by side with industry trends.
12. Social Media Management
Setup Cost:
- Website setup: $2,000 – $4,000
- Marketing budget: $5,000
Requirements:
- Social Media Expertise
- Scheduling Tools
First things first, build an attractive website showcasing your expertise, services, and case studies. Also, you must proactively integrate with social media platforms to deliver engaging content to targeted audiences and stay updated on the latest trends.
It would help if you offered customization options to meet the needs of different merchants.
And define your service package and pricing structure in a way that is subtle, clear, and concise. On a serious note, you can use analytics tools to track your performance and demonstrate the impact of strategies.
13. SaaS (Software as a Service)
Setup Cost:
- Software Development: $15,000 – $18,000
- Marketing Budget: $5,000
Requirements:
- Software Development Skills
- Market Research
If you want to ensure success as a SaaS (Software as a Service) business, you need to prioritize product-market fit, customer satisfaction, and effective marketing strategies. First of all, you need to develop and sell software online based on customer priority and technological advancements.
Next, thoroughly understand market needs and pain points to ensure your SaaS software effectively addresses them.
As a marketing strategy, articulate explicit pricing models and propose free trials to entice and convert potential customers. Also, periodically update your software with the latest features and improvements to stay in the competitive dynamic SaaS landscape.
14. Dropshipping Business
Setup Cost:
- Website Setup: $3,000 – $5,000
- Marketing Budget: $10,000
Requirements:
- eCommerce Platform
- Suppliers
- Marketing Strategy
To start a retail business without holding inventory, you need to research and identify a profitable niche with sufficient demand and manageable competition. And besides the fact, you need to establish partnerships with reputable suppliers to ensure product quality and timely delivery.
The next step is regularly analyzing market trends and adjusting your product offerings to meet growing customer demand. What’s more, you need to optimize your website for conversions and implement trust-building elements. For example, the elements such as customer reviews and secure payment options.
15. Print on Demand Business
Setup Cost:
- Website setup: $3,000 – $5,000
- Printing costs: $10,000
Requirements:
- eCommerce Platform
- Design Skills
Start a POD (print-on-demand) business by researching prevalent trends and making unique, visually enchanting design products that entice your visitors. Next, you need to adopt a reliable POD platform that precisely meets your business goals by carefully considering aspects such as product variety, print quality, and shipping options.
You also need industry-grade photos, effective marketing strategies, subtle and clear product descriptions, the use of social media, and, if possible, the use of premium ads to drive traffic. To stay competitive in the evolving POD industry, you must constantly analyze and adapt your design and marketing strategies
16. YouTube or Vlogging Business
Setup Cost:
- Website Development: $150 – $250
- Camera: $500 – $1,000
- Microphone: $100 – $200
- Lighting: $200 – $300
- Tripod: $50 – $100
Requirements:
- Keyword Research Tools: $50 – $100
- Analytics Tools: $20 – $50
- Intro/Outro Animation: $100 – $200
- Video Editing Software: $100 – $300
If you are searching for passive income ideas that deliver content to add value or entertain your audiences, YouTube or Vlogging business will be the perfect option for you to choose. Start by building a mesmerizing channel layout, including professional branding and a captivating channel description.
Also, invest time in optimizing video titles, descriptions, and tags to improve discoverability.
Along with that, you can team up with other content creators to create content that will help expand your reach in your niche. It would also be helpful if you made a community or joined a community in your niche. Try to engage with your audiences regularly through comments or other social media channels.
It is the best business to start with $20k or less.
17. Stock Photography
Setup Cost:
- Website setup: $2,000 – $4,000
- Photography budget: $8,000
Requirements:
- Photography Skills
- Licensing Knowledge
If you are an expert graphic designer or own a graphic design company, you can make business by selling your quality finished images through a functional platform. To do that, you just need to ensure your photos are skillfully edited, have market demands, are rightly tagged, and are embodied for easy accessibility.
Also, to build a successful stock photography business, you must pay attention to industry needs, trends, and popular themes that help you create your content. In addition to that, you also need a robust platform or create your own website to display and sell stock photos with explicit licensing terms.
18. Remote Fitness Coaching
Setup Cost:
- Website setup: $3,000 – $5,000
- Marketing equipment: $8,000
Requirements:
- Fitness Expertise
- Communication Tools
Today’s modern, advanced internet provides an unparalleled opportunity in people’s healthcare through the video conferencing platform. So, suppose you are a healthcare specialist or a certified fitness coach. In that case, you can quickly start remote fitness coaching, offering personalized fitness plans and tailored coaching sessions for individual goals.
All you need is a professional website and active social media channels where you can connect with your target audience through video conferencing and provide fitness services. Also, you will need a secure payment process and strong client communication through email or messaging apps.
On a quick note, engaging and informative content like nutrition guides, workout videos, and success stories help showcase your skills and attract clients.
19. Language Learning Platform
Setup Cost:
- Website development: $5,000 – $8,000
- Content creation: $7,000
Requirements:
- Language Expertise
- Content Creation
Essentially, the true success of a language learning platform business lies in three vital ingredients. These ingredients are, for example, Content Quality, User Engagement, and Technological Integration. First, create high-quality, different language content that caters to diverse skill levels and learning styles.
After that, insert interactive features, such as live sessions, quizzes, and games, to boost user engagement.
Finally, employ advanced language learning technologies, such as speech recognition and personalized learning algorithms, to create experiences for individual users. Also, establishing a solid feedback system and fostering a supportive community can encourage user retention.
20. Remote Event Planning
Setup Cost:
- Website setup: $3,000 – $5,000
- Marketing budget: $4,000
Requirements:
- Event Planning Skills
- Communication Tools
To start a remote event planning business, meticulous organization, clear communication, and innovative technology integration are paramount. Along with this, it is imperative to emphasize transparent communication channels by establishing digital infrastructure to ensure clarity and promptly address potential challenges.
It is also supportive of developing strategic partnerships with reliable vendors for virtual entertainment, catering, and technical support. You can enlarge your business by offering a collection of customizable event packages. Besides, you can provide the facility for using the virtual platform for conferences, webinars, and interactive sessions.
Remember that the estimated costs provided above and actual expenses may vary based on your specific choices and circumstances. Additionally, ongoing expenses for marketing, maintenance, and other factors should be considered.
Final Thought
In view of the above discussion, exploring the business field with a modest investment of $20k opens up a diverse landscape of entrepreneurial opportunities. From eCommerce ventures to service-oriented enterprises, the list showcases the potential for savvy entrepreneurs to turn a relatively modest investment into a thriving business.
In conclusion, success in these ventures will undoubtedly depend on dedication, adaptability, and a deep understanding of market dynamics. And will transform a modest investment (business to start with $20k) into a catalyst for business growth and financial success.
