How to Get Funding for your Start-Up outside of the banks!

If you feel that crowdsourcing is not a viable option for your new business, you might be surprised to learn that when you look at how to get funding for your start-up, outside of the banks, this is top of the list for a reason. Crowdsourcing is one of the most popular search terms when it comes to business financing.

Venture Capitalists and Private Equity firms are known to be sources of large amounts of funding for businesses all over the globe. In the US, there is no shortage of options. However, there are many individuals asking that same question of how to get funding for your start-up. Your business will need to be an attractive proposition, and to do that; you need to have a custom pitch deck that investors will fund1

This is the popular term that essentially means you self-fund your business. Now, one of the reasons that may have brought you to this post was that you Googled something such as ‘how to get funding for your start-up’; if this is the case, surely you don’t have the means to self-fund? However, there are many ways you can get creative and raise enough money to get started and self-funding until your business can fully support itself. Perhaps you can let out a room in your home, sell some of your old things to raise money; or even do a service swap such as trading your skills for that of web designers, accountants or any other professional service you might need in the early stages. Where there is a will, there is a way; self-financing a business is rewarding and fulfilling, it is also a huge motivator when your own funds are used to create and set-up your new business.

With so many different outlets to help you find angel investors online, you are best to look for an Angel Investor who has a desire, experience or an interest in the area in which you want to start a business in. However, you locate an Angel Investor, one of the key documents you will need to have prepared in advance is a custom-written business plan. With Investors of any type, you don’t get a second chance to make a first impression. Make sure your business truly stands out and deliver a pitch deck that investors want to fund.

While this is not the most-effective solution of how to get funding for your start-up, it can often get you a lump sum of cash, quickly and easily. There are numerous stipulations regarding the age and condition of the vehicle, but if you are looking at how to get funding for your start-up quickly, this could be a good option.

Rollover for Business Start-ups enables new business owners to utilize some or all of their retirement funds to create a start-up. There is no need to take out any fresh finance, and there are no penalties for using funds for this purpose.

These aren’t always commonplace, but the fact is, there are so many businesses and brands globally, it is worth searching online to see if there are any brand competitions that you personally or your startup could participate within. Small Business Local Buzz offers small business owners the opportunity to win money to spend on their marketing activities, and their prizes range from $5k-$25k. Huggies ran a competition for start-ups, calling for applications from ‘mompreneurs’ and offered a cash incentive along with business advice as the overall prize. Pepsi and Uber have both ran start-up competitions, and there are many others who will do so in the future.

There are many ways that the modern-day start-up business can get access to funding without needing to go through the bank. It is simply a case of working out which out of these alternative sources of business capital is right for you, and for your start-up; then pursuing that channel of funding will all your energy, determination, and of course, the best custom-written business plan for your start-up business.