TeenAnalyst.com
Venture Capital Funding
By Tony Hung

Keep Marketing
By Chris Stallman

Step Seven: Find Capital
Date Added: June 3rd, 2002

By Chris Stallman  |  E-mail

   As the famous saying goes, "it takes money to make money". That couldn't be more true when it comes to the business world. Every business costs money to start. Some cost millions or even billions of dollars to get off the ground. Some only cost a couple hundred dollars. And a truly creative person can find a way to start a business with just $25 or $50. But if you plan to become big, you might want to start planning on spending a little bit of money to get things off the ground. To do that, you'll need to find some startup capital and here's how you can do that…

Ask your parents for money

   Parents are usually very encouraging when it comes to their kids' projects. They want to see you succeed. Talk to them about your business idea and find out if there could be a way to borrow some money and either pay them back later or repay them in some other way. For example, if they contribute $100, agree to take out the garbage for a few months. Or you can use the profits from your business to repay them a little bit each month.

Find someone with money and make them your partner

   There's always someone out there with money. If you know of someone who has a little extra money sitting around burning a hole in their pocket, mention to them that if they lend it to you, you'll give them a share of the business' profits. But be careful when doing this...don't offer them a number so high that it'll come back to haunt you. For example, if someone gives you $50, don't agree to give them 50% of the business. Sure, that 50% might not be much when you're starting out but if you end up becoming very successful, that $50 loan might end up costing you thousands or even millions of dollars.

Take out a loan with the local bank

   If you're at least 18 years old and are confident in your business, you can take your business plan to a local bank and ask about a small business loan. Like I said, you should be pretty confident about your business because you'll be liable for any debt your business incurs. So you might end up paying back that loan out of your own pocket.

Find some big investors (venture capitalists)

   Okay, so you have a "hot" idea and it's going to make you millions of dollars? Well, if you think it has that much potential and you are very serious about it, you'll probably want to talk to some venture capitalists.

   Venture capitalists are investors and firms who give large sums of money to startup companies that need the funds. In exchange, they get a share of the business.

   Getting venture capital isn't easy to do. You'll need a very professional business plan and you'll need to prove that you're serious about what you are doing. You might face a lot of rejections before you find an offer. But stick with it and you should do okay.

   Now that the money is secure and everything is ready to go, it's time to finally start the business. Continue reading...you're still not done yet.

 

Previous Article - Next Article                                                        Like this article?  Bookmark It