Video:How to Stick to a Low Budget When Creating a Business

Transcript:How to Stick to a Low Budget When Creating a Business

Hi this is Jaclyn Mullen from JaclynMullenMedia.com and you are tuned into About.com. Now today we're going to be talking about a subject that is very dear to my heart. Yes - how to stick to a low budget when creating your business.

Have a Business Plan and Marketing Strategy

There is no shame in having a low budget, but you do need to start somewhere with regard to getting your business going and my first recommendation is a business plan. A website and business cards don't necessarily mean that you have a business. There are several free resources available to you online to help you create your business plan, pinpoint your customers, figure out your services, and ultimately figure out your pricing. Then you can go ahead and launch a website for next to nothing. Whether you get a graphic designer or utilize a very low-cost WordPress theme, your web presence can in fact be free.

Now that you know who you're marketing to, and how you're going to market to them, we’ve got some social media tools that you can use to also help you get the word out, and we're talking Facebook, Twitter and blogging. Those are the things that help you get the business up and going, but how do you stick to that low budget?

Clearly Outline the Budget for Your Business

First things first, you want to identify a threshold for your business bank account. Now you might be saying well what do you mean by a business threshold? Numbers don't lie, so whether that number is $1000 for you or $2000, make sure that you set up a weekly e-mail alert that lets you know what the balance of your bank account is and if you fall under the threshold, you know that you need to reevaluate your spending and get back on track.

Which leads me to tracking those expenses. As business owners we have several things that we can deduct, from cell phones to fuel, but how do we keep track of all those things? Well there's a program that I use called Outright.com, that actually provides you with a graph, a pie graph to be exact, to categorize all your expenses for you, to let you know where you're spending your money. And again if things look a little funny, then you know where you need to go back and get back on track.

Shop Around to Save Money and Stay on Budget

Lastly, always get three quotes when dealing with outside vendors or any services, and I mean cell phones too! The first price that you get does not have to be the final price. You are in business and you want to make sure that you can save money and you want to make sure that what you're paying is fair. These are my tips and suggestions for creating your business and maintaining your business on a low budget.

I hope you have found them useful. This is Jaclyn Mullen for About.com. Thank you for tuning in.