Can I Make Money Doing This?

You’re sitting in your kitchen, making the cake that your friend ordered for her son’s birthday. This is the 6th cake you’ve made for friends just this year, and honestly, it looks really good. The thought has crossed your mind before, and it’s nagging at you again. “Why couldn’t I sell these?”

Often, friends and family will throw those business ideas at you after you’ve decorated a cake, made a wall hanging, knit a hat, or landscaped a yard. “You should start your own business doing that.” What could be better than doing something you love and getting paid for it? Let’s be real though, not everything you enjoy doing is going to translate well into a small business. But there are a whole lot of things that will.

In order to determine whether you could make money owning a business doing your craft, you need to determine several factors first. The following are the basic questions I want you to answer before you decide to dedicate the time and energy needed to start your own small business.

1. Is there a market for this? The best way to determine whether there is a market for your product or service is to research it on the internet. Is someone already selling what you want to sell, or doing what you want to do? That’s a good sign. Obviously there’s a market for it. And no matter what it is, there’s room for more. No one person or business can serve all of the people in the world. There’s room for you. If you don’t see anyone else doing what you want to do, that can be good or bad. Look deeper to see if that means that there’s a great need for your wares, or if people are just not willing to pay for what you do. Be sure to ask your friends and family if they would use your type of services. I probably wouldn’t ask my mother, because she would always be on my side, even if it was a really bad idea. But you’ll know who to ask. And if someone else is already offering what you have for free, it may be a bit harder to convince people to pay you for it.
2. Do I have the resources I need to start this business? Some businesses take very little money to start. Maybe you only need a computer and internet, which you already have. If you are going to need a brick and mortar, or a commercial kitchen, you’re going to need a bit more start up money. You may be wanting to sell an item that you already make for fun, and you have the materials on hand. Maybe you can take orders so that you have money for materials. Download our Small Business Start Up Guide to help you put together a list of what it will take to get your business started, and for tips to raise the capital you need to get going.
3. Do I have the time to dedicate to starting a new business? This is especially relevant if this is going to be a side gig, if you already work a full time job or you have a family or other obligations. I don’t want to discourage you from going for it, but I do want you to be realistic about your current time constraints. Having less time doesn’t mean you can’t be successful in your own business, it just means you may grow slower than you would like. We also offer ways to find more time in your schedule.
4. Can I make enough money to cover the cost of running a business? Download our Small Business Budget worksheet to see what it is going to cost to actually run the type of business you are interested in starting. Then see what the going market price is. You can find this by researching what others are charging for the same service or product. Will yours be of the same quality or better? Do you have more credentials that would allow you to charge more? Adjust your budget accordingly. If you go through the budget worksheet and it looks like you can make money, then the answer is yes.
5. Do I have the skills to run my own business? This question is not to discourage you from starting your business. What I want you do is be realistic about what your skills are. Decide what you are good at and will be able to do yourself, and what you will need to get help with. If you go into this thinking you can do it all yourself, you may be setting yourself up for failure. The last thing you want to do is not be able to take orders because you are spending an inordinate amount of time setting up your website. If doing the bookkeeping or designing your website are not things you are really comfortable doing, put your time into the things you are good at and get help for the things you don’t really want to do, and get additional training for the things you need to know but haven’t learned yet.
6. What do I still need to learn in order to keep a business afloat? Do you need to hone your craft a bit? Learn QuickBooks? Gain marketing skills? Do you know what you don’t know? Many good business ideas have gone under because the person with the idea didn’t dedicate themselves to becoming good business owners. Set yourself up for success from the very beginning by being willing to learn what you need to know in order to run your business.
7. Do I have the support system I need to be successful as an entrepreneur? You’ve determined that you have the time and resources you need to start your own small business. Now, make sure that your family and friends will be supportive. Let them know how important this is for you, and how excited you are for this new venture. Maybe you can share your goals, or the fact that you can all go to Disneyland if you make a certain amount of money. At the very least, they all need to know that if they aren’t on your side they need to get out of your way, because you’re getting ready to accomplish great things.

If you’ve gone through this list of questions and are still excited about stepping into your entrepreneurial shoes, then it’s time to get started. Starting your own small business is an exciting venture, and I’m excited to see you make money doing the things you love.