Top 10 Business Ideas For Educated People: The number of people with college degrees continues to grow every year, and we’re seeing more and more entrepreneurs following their passions after graduating. But starting a business isn’t easy; there are many things you need to consider before taking the leap. There are also plenty of pitfalls that can befall even the most educated entrepreneur if you aren’t careful.
Top 10 Business Ideas For Educated People
To help you avoid those snags, here are the top 10 business ideas for educated people, as well as links to resources to help you get started.
1) Writing
Writing has a ton of potential as a business idea and one that can appeal to educated people who have other passions (like travel or photography) in their lives. Many bloggers say writing for an audience is a great way to keep your own skills honed.
It’s also a dream job for many: You don’t have to put on pants if you don’t want to, you work from home, and you can be as creative as you want with the content. But actually making money from it is another story.
2) Consulting
Becoming a consultant is one of many business ideas for educated people. Your clients can be other businesses, governments, or nonprofit organizations. You’ll be paid to provide advice on your area of expertise. You may have heard that consultants charge a lot of money for their services; in fact, they can sometimes earn over $1,000 per hour!
That sounds like a big commitment and you might wonder whether it’s worth it for someone with an advanced degree. In general, though, consulting can be a very rewarding way to get your new business off the ground because you get to use your skillset and knowledge base to help solve problems.
3) Copywriting
This is a fantastic business idea for college graduates with a background in writing. Not only will you get to flex your creative muscles, but you’ll also help businesses create new content. And let’s face it: Businesses are swimming in content—blogs, emails, reports, web pages—but often aren’t sure how to best leverage that content or what information customers want most.
If you have an eye for business and can write well, consider becoming a copywriter and helping them sort out their messaging issues. You could even work as part of a team of copywriters if you have strong organizational skills; one of your jobs would be to keep track of each client’s message in order to make sure each story remains consistent across all their marketing channels.
4) Freelancing
Freelancing is a lot like running your own business. If you don’t enjoy working independently and you prefer direct management or staff, then freelancing isn’t for you. But if you are organized, hardworking and responsible, freelance work could be a great option for you.
Whether it’s temping at home or setting up an office in your spare bedroom, there are plenty of opportunities to make money as a freelancer.
5) Internet Marketing
The internet has created a wealth of opportunities for entrepreneurs interested in starting or growing their own businesses. The online world is always changing, but there are still some tried-and-true strategies that can help your business grow: Use search engine optimization (SEO) to attract customers who are actively searching for your products or services.
Social media marketing lets you share valuable content with your current followers and draws new customers to your page through viral sharing by other users. Social media also gives you a way to respond instantly to customer feedback and show off customer testimonials.
Online advertising offers targeted, effective ways to connect with potential clients based on their interests, demographics, location, and much more—without having to pay expensive print-advertising costs.
6) Offline Marketing
If you have a good idea for a business, offline marketing can be extremely effective. This is especially true if you’re just starting out and don’t have much of an online presence or digital marketing strategy in place yet. Offline marketing means hosting in-person events, meeting potential clients at restaurants and stores, and dropping off promotional materials with businesses that might be interested in your product or service.
While it might sound old-fashioned, it’s a great way to get your business’ name out there quickly when you don’t have much money to put toward digital advertising—or simply aren’t familiar with how to do that kind of advertising yourself. Plus, word-of-mouth recommendations are usually more powerful than any social media post you could possibly create anyway.
7) E-Commerce
There are two ways to approach e-commerce as a business. You can sell online, taking advantage of digital products like electronic documents and digital music files. Or you can sell physical products through an online marketplace like Amazon or eBay.
Though both approaches require an investment in your product—in other words, a small business inventory—you can start small with each by setting up a simple, self-managed storefront for selling products directly to customers. Alternatively, you could outsource e-commerce fulfillment and take advantage of existing demand from buyers on platforms like Amazon and eBay.
8) Starting a Small Business
If you’re interested in starting a business but feel like you don’t have enough money or time to launch a new venture, consider taking an existing concept and franchising it. Franchising is a way to buy an established brand and build on its reputation while staying within its guidelines.
Many of today’s biggest brands started out as franchises including McDonald’s, Subway, Dunkin Donuts, 7-Eleven, and Carl’s Jr. Franchising can be a great way to enter the world of entrepreneurship from a position of experience and financial security. But there are some pitfalls—make sure you do your research before taking any plunge!
9) Investing in Real Estate
We’ve all heard of (and maybe even used) Airbnb, but did you know that there are many different types of real estate investments? There are dozens of options out there, including buying a vacation home in a nice resort town or renting out a room in your own house. Look into where you live and figure out what kinds of opportunities exist that can make some extra money for you!
10) Franchising
Franchising might be a great option for an educated person who’s interested in starting a business. Franchises typically provide startup, management, and marketing support, in addition to a brand name that can help attract customers. If you want to franchise your own idea, you’ll likely need financing from somewhere other than personal savings; franchisers will require capital of at least $50,000 to get their new businesses up and running.
And if you want your franchise venture to succeed, prepare yourself for long hours; on average, owners spend about 60 hours per week working on their businesses—and almost 90 percent say they work at least 40 hours every week.
Also Read: Ten Business Ideas For Electrical Engineers
Conclusion
You’re probably an educated person, or at least know a few of them. The good news is that there are some great business ideas out there that you may be particularly well-suited to succeed with because of your education and experience. Here are ten great businesses that college graduates can start today!
Of course, if you aren’t a recent grad (or even if you are!), don’t worry – there are still plenty of entrepreneurial opportunities for smart people like you who want to make a living doing what they love.
